Levi x Reader Oneshots

Welcome Home (Levi x Reader Modern AU)

Author's Note: This story was inspired by the egregiously underrated musical "Bandstand" - specifically by the "Welcome Home Finale".

(F/n) was sobbing on their doorstep, hugging him tightly.

It had been a long, terrible war. Levi had lost a lot of friends and seen things that no person should. Yet, somehow, he had survived. And he had finally come home to his wife.

He sighed, wrapping his arms around her, letting his head rest on her shoulder. "I've missed you, so much," he whispered.

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Everyone had assured him that things would go back to the way they were before. However, in the weeks following the war, Levi realized just how big of a lie that was.

One minute, everything would be fine. The next, he would suddenly hear the echoes of screams, or see his friends' mangled corpses. Every bang was a gunshot. Every red object was covered in blood.

He couldn't sleep anymore. He was lucky if he got two hours in before the nightmares came. He had thought about spending his nights on the couch, so that he wouldn't disturb (f/n). However, selfish as it was, he needed her there when he woke up. He needed to be reminded of where he was, and who he was with.

For Levi, the war hadn't ended. He doubted that it ever would.

(F/n) tried her best to help. Sometimes, she would pull him into one of her projects in order to distract from his melancholy. Sometimes, she would wrap him in her arms and hold him together when he felt like he was falling apart. Sometimes, she would gently ask if he wanted to talk about it, but he never did. Even though he loved and trusted (f/n) more than anyone, he never wanted her to know about the things he had seen and done in that hell.

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One day while cleaning, Levi wandered into their home office. The entire back wall was taken up by a bookshelf, filled with books on all sorts of subjects. (F/n) was extremely intelligent and adored learning (which was something Levi loved about her), so she was always adding new books to the collection.

It looked like she had added about a dozen books while he was away, and Levi was curious to see what her current interest was. He glanced at each spine, reading the titles as he went. Every single volume was a textbook on psychology, and one of them was dedicated solely to PTSD.

Levi stopped. He stared at that book. And stared. And stared. And stared.

With his insides feeling strangely numb, he walked out of the room, went to the couch, and sat down.

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A while later, (f/n) arrived home from work.

"Levi, I'm back!" she called happily. When he didn't respond, she slipped off her shoes and made her way inside. "Levi?"

She sighed when she found him sitting on the couch, hunched over with his elbows on his knees, his bangs hiding his face. "There you are!"

Her brow furrowed in confusion as he made no move to acknowledge her. Then she saw the empty look in his eyes, and her expression morphed into one of concern. "Levi?" she murmured, hastening to his side. She reached out tentatively, placing her hand on his shoulder. "Hey, what's wrong?"

Levi shook his head.

(F/n) sighed, then sat down next to him. "You might feel better if you talk about it," she suggested gently.