The Feeling's Mutual | Levi x Reader

three - nemesis

Two hours later, and nothing gets done. 

It was supposed to be simple. It was literally just supposed to be about you and Levi deciding on a topic so that you could start looking up relevant articles for your literature review due at the end of September- ages away. But having a topic early would make life a lot easier for you and take a lot of the stress off not knowing where this project is going.

But it's been about two hours of brooding silence, interrupted intermittently by quick arguments of the both of you vetoing each other's ideas. Levi's topic proposals seem much too simple- with a topic too basic, it could be difficult to get a good mark. If you want a decent grade in this course- and you need a decent grade in this course- then it needs to be something more complex.

Levi disagrees. Of course he fucking disagrees. "Complex will get us better grades," you insist for what must be the fifth time today. 

"Complex is fine," Levi agrees, "but how the hell are we supposed to do a presentation on something we can barely pronounce?"

"Practice," you snap back. "Atherosclerosis could work as a decent topic."

"Maybe for a research report, but we've got to do a presentation on this shit." He leans back in his chair, exhaling. "I'm not doing a fifteen minute presentation stumbling through that big ass name the entire time."

You cross your arms, eyebrows narrowing. "If that's your only objection to that topic, then I'm going to tell you to get over it."

He groans. "It's too hyper-specific," Levi argues. "If we choose something more broad, we've got options for what we focus on and what we cover. We won't find ourselves at a dead end midway through the semester."

"Sounds great if you're planning on regurgitating the simplicity of our first year courses."

"You're so fucking bossy," Levi mutters, looking away.

Your eyebrows shoot to the top of your head. "Go fuck yourself," you tell him, leaning back over your laptop. "Not my fault you can't even consider compromising."

He glares at you. "You're not leaving any room to compromise anywhere. How the fuck am I supposed to work with that?"

"I'm not one not leaving any room for compromise? You've shot down every single thing I've brought up-"

"Because they're all shitty ideas."

"Yeah, because you've got better ones."

Levi's jaw locks. "I think there's a lot we could do with ammonia," he says. "Natural production, how it breaks down in the body, how different animals process it."

That actually doesn't sound half bad, but you're not going to let Levi win. "Anything more we can focus on with that?" you insist. "Chemical breakdowns? Specific functional systems that process it? Certain animals? But we'd need a comparison-"

"See, here you go again," he says with a sneer. "These are all things we can answer in the damn reports and shit. We don't need to start specific-"

You don't care. You're tired, you're frustrated, and you've got a residence event tonight that you need to set up for. "I'm done," you interrupt, closing your laptop. You slide it into your bag. "I'm done. We'll try this again after class tomorrow."

Levi stares at you for a second, then looks away with a huff. "Giving up already?" he asks, glancing back at you.

"No, I've got work," you snap, jamming your notebook into your bag. "Not sure if you know the meaning of work, but it means I have shit to do."

Levi scoffs. "Oh, right. What is it you do- the terribly hard work of the cafeteria staff? Or swinging yourself around a pole at a strip club? I didn't think the clubs were open this early on a Monday."