Behind The Curtain (EREN X LEVI FANFICTION)

Chapter 23: Spend the night

The performance, according to Levi, was wonderful. He's never been big on live performances, having steered clear from theatre most of his life, however seeing his angel perform to his heart's content was truly a sight to behold. Seeing Eren participating in something he loves and giving it his all was inspiring. Levi has been staring for a while wondering whether the halo atop his head is a prop or a figment of his imagination.

The moment came for Eren to share a kiss with his cast members, the first character to receive such a kiss being Historia's character, Julie. Levi has never gripped a seat so hard in his life. It's just a play, he told himself over and over again. This isn't real. It's all pretend! Besides, he can now proudly announce that Eren's first kiss isn't wasted on a whim. It was treasured and shared with someone he cared about.

Despite this, he couldn't help but feel relieved when Historia goes to initiate mouth-to-mouth contact and Eren is quick to turn his cheek at the last minute, avoiding any slight touches of the lips, but not ruining the overall effect. He'd love to see how Petra, the enthusiastic and very passionate director, reacted to the slight alteration. The same thing happened when Mikasa's character, Cherry, fueled by her jealous rage demanded attention from Eren's character. In response, for Cherry to shut up, Eren's character Lewis leaps forward and plants a kiss on her. Skillfully Eren manipulates the scene to make it look as though the characters have kissed, but Levi knows this to be a fake-out, meeting Eren's eyes when the boy faces the audience to deliver his next line. Levi's body immediately relaxes after the narrow dodge and his quick switch to calm draws his friend's attention.

"He missed," Isabel whispers, trying to pull a reaction out of her friend. Levi smirks.

"No. He's simply saving his aim for a better target."

He knew it to be true, if not for the longing glances he received every time Eren faced the audience, frantically searching for Levi's seat, then for the giddy smiles Eren tried to contain whenever their gazes crossed paths. That 'better target' in question was him. Levi's still in disbelief that his simple yet elaborate plan went so smoothly. He thought that a roadblock or some form of obstacle was bound to tarnish his goals. But success finally landed in his lap. It was foolproof. Woo Eren with his drawings and poetry, then practise non-stop the piano piece he and his mother used to play to make certain he knew it back to front (this step cost him a few days of schooling, however, he has already made the proper arrangements to make up for lost time). Then, when Eren is about to go into the spotlight, lure him to the stage with his song and confess to the bright-eyed brat how he truly feels and pray that shit doesn't go haywire.

Thankfully, things turned out for the better, and watching Eren take a bow as the cast lines up for the final thank you's and appreciation given to the audience, Levi finds himself narrowing his stare into Eren's smiling face. His eyes are looking back at him, his cheeks reddening and his grin never once disappearing.

Levi decides that he needs to kiss that brat again as soon as possible.

"Holy shit! Is that a fucking smile?!"

Levi grunts as a finger is struck into his cheek.

"Farlan! Look! It's a real genuine smile! He's blushing! I've never seen Levi produce anything other than a scowl!"

"Fuck off, Bel," Levi swats her hand away but somehow he is unable to contain his feelings of happiness, even for a second. His smile lingers and Farlan gasps in shock when the lights of the auditorium spring to life and he, too, sees the horror Isabel sees.

"He's broken! Do we still have the warranty?"

"He's past expiry! We can't get a return on him, can we?"