Chapter Text
“Come on, Armin!”
“I already told you, no!”
“Aren’t you at least a little bit curious?”
“No! Also I’m not trying to die! ”
“Oh come on, you really think Levi would kill you for hugging him?”
“...”
“Connie, please use your brain for once.”
“Shut up, Jean!”
The new Levi Squad had just returned from their most recent expedition of rescuing Eren, and now they had some down time before Hanji would be arriving for some top-secret experiments for Eren to partake in.
So here they were, having lunch together, trying to egg Armin on to go find Levi and hug him.
Yes, hug him.
It seemed out of the blue, but when there’s a handful of trauma-induced teenagers who do nothing but reflect in their free time, there’s going to end up being chatter about the most random topics.
It started with Connie mentioning how Levi had mellowed out after they came back from their mission to rescue Eren.
It made sense that he was quiet, considering he wasn’t currently on the battlefield due to his once-injured ankle. Sasha piped in, mentioning how even now that he’s nearly fully recovered, he doesn’t say as much as he used to, not making as many snarky remarks as he once would.
Mikasa proposed that Levi just had a lot on his mind, that maybe he was still mourning his old special operations squad, (Mikasa immediately apologized for mentioning it when she saw the way Eren curled in on himself, still clearly blaming their deaths on his own decisions).
Even so, everyone thought it made even more sense. Levi may have a cold exterior, but there’s no way, in their eyes, that he didn’t get emotional over his fallen comrades.
Armin was convinced there had to be more to it, he wasn’t quite sure what, and didn’t voice his opinion when he had no evidence to back it up. Levi wasn’t one to be sad for so long over death.
So what could it have been…?
Well… that’s what brought them to their current situation.
Armin had just finished his dinner, and his heart was racing, because holy shit I’m actually going through with this . They had finished cleaning up dinner, and now they were all waiting in the dining room. Mikasa made sure to stress to him that he didn’t have to go through with anything, but he felt like he had to, according to everyone else- even Eren convinced him to go through with it.
So here Armin was, pacing by the window, freshly showered, waiting for Levi to come back to the cabin. The sun was setting, and Hanji and Moblit had already come back. Hanji said Levi was making one more round. Everyone else was beginning to get tired.
But then, there was a silhouette in the distance, appearing from the trees. With a closer look, Armin could see it was the captain. The way Levi clearly avoided putting weight on his left ankle, causing his walking to be a little uneven, gave that away.
Right, Armin remembered. His leg still needed to recover.
Armin felt his stomach twist as he remembered his fate, while everyone else jumped up from their seats with excitement.
Before Armin could even catch his breath, he was being shoved to the door by Connie, trying to stop himself by planting his feet in front of him. Too bad Armin was physically less strong, because he ended up constantly tripping over himself when Connie wouldn’t relent.
“Hey! Wait!”
“Come on!” Sasha piped up with a snicker, following behind Armin and Connie. “You’ll need to do it outside so we can peep on you without seeming suspicious!”
“Huh?!” Armin froze as Jean opened the door for Connie to push Armin out.
“T-that’s weird!”
“Maybe,” Historia grinned. “But think of it as an experiment to see if the captain likes hugs.”
Armin sighed, clearly defeated, before he was shoved outside, nearly falling over on the porch.
“Good luck!” A few of them whispered, before the door was being slammed shut behind him.
Armin swallowed, body stiffening as his head whipped around to look outside for the captain. It was harder to see either the sun set behind the trees, the sky fading into purples and blues.
“I thought you preferred morning showers, Arlert.”
Armin nearly jumped out of his own skin. He didn’t realize the captain was already right in front of him, stopping a few meters away from the porch he stood on. Armin laughed awkwardly, grasping a strand of damp hair between two fingers.
“Y-yeah…”
Levi just stood there, much like the boy before him. Armin, even in the dim light of the night sky, could see how tense Levi looked. His shoulders were stiff, practically to his ears, and his back was completely straightened, chin pointed up at Armin. He still had his civilian cloak on, pulling the hood down while Armin gazed at him.
The silence only grew between them, and Armin could begin to hear crickets. Levi began to walk forward.
“I hope you don’t plan on staying out here for long, but if you could move out of the doorway so I can clean up myself I would-”
“ Wait !” Armin shook his hands, stepping down off the porch and closer to Levi. Levi’s eyes squinted at the sudden flustered outburst, stepping back a few steps in confusion. Armin looked at him with horror.
“Ah! Forgive me, Captain!” Armin took a step back as well, hands retreating to his sides. “I-I didn’t mean to intrude on your personal space like that-”
“‘The hell are you so tense for?”
Armin’s mouth shut immediately. The captain didn’t look angry, but he began to rub his temple as he looked toward the dark cabin.
“Did you brats get into some sort of trouble and send you out to handle it?” Armin’s eyes widened, and he shook his head vigorously.
“No, nothing like that!” Levi didn’t seem to believe Armin, scanning his taller body with his cold, sunken eyes. Armin could see the bags under his captain’s eyes, the permanent frown he wore as well.
“Armin, what’s going on?”
Armin inhaled sharply as he wiped his sweaty hands on the sides of his pants.
Do I tell him? Armin pondered. There’s a good chance if he did say something first, Levi would deny him the chance for a hug, and everyone would be disappointed. However, there’s no guarantee he’ll elicit a good response by just wrapping his arms around Levi without warning.
“I…” Armin tried to come up with a lie, looking down at Levi as he took a small step forward. “We…”
Levi cocked a brow with impatience, hand moving to his hip. Oh no, Armin thought. He’s getting angry with me.
With shaking legs, Armin took another step forward, body moving without logic catching up to him. Levi said nothing.
Come on, Armin told himself with a nervous face. It’s just a hug.
“Armin…?” Levi tried again, a scowl forming at the end of his lips when he still got no response, just a shaking boy in front of him. Armin would rather die at this point.
Maybe the captain would kill him. That would put him out of his misery.
It’s just…
Armin walked up to the point where he was one foot away from the captain, and Levi subconsciously took a step back again to not need to crane his head upward. Armin looked down to Levi again- he looked so small up close. Malnutritioned. Tired, more than likely from always carrying so many burdens on his shoulders.
Armin sucked in a deep breath, extending his arms, getting over himself. Just as Levi was opening his lips, about to ask Armin to move away, Armin was sliding his arms under the captain’s, around the small of his back, pulling him in close enough so that he could place his head on Levi’s shoulder and hold the captain against himself.
It’s just…
a hug.
Levi froze, eyes widening.
The stance they were in made Levi’s heels pick up ever so slightly, hands going stiff at his sides, at a loss for what to do.
Armin’s heart was pounding furiously, and he was sure Levi could feel it where their chests touched. He was able to hide his trembling with his firm grip on Levi, placing his face close to Levi’s neck.
“...
…Armin…?”
Armin breathed in slowly, eyes closing while he embraced Levi. He could feel the captain’s ribs while he held his tense body so close.
“Yes Captain?”
“What are you doing?”
Armin opened his eyes slowly. The blonde boy had to make sure he chose his words carefully.
“I’m giving you a hug, Captain.”
Levi didn’t say anything right away, staring off into the sky while Armin held him with a surprisingly strong grip. He could feel Armin’s hair tickling the side of his face and neck. He had to admit, having the boy’s slender arms wrapped around him while he buried himself into Levi’s neck, smelling fresh and feeling warm against Levi… it was a comforting feeling.
Not that he would ever voice that.
“...Yes, I can see that, but why?”
Armin weakened his grip, but didn’t unwrap his arms quite yet.
“Because… I thought you might need one.”
Oh.
Levi sat there for a few more seconds. The more time that passed by, the more he could feel Armin tense. Soon, Levi began to feel the slender arms that enclosed him unwrap from his frame, the dainty fingers releasing his sides, as Armin began to pull away, unsure.
But Levi wasn’t about to let him go just yet.
Slowly, just as Armin nearly let go completely, he felt One of Levi’s arms snake around his shoulder, the other one following suit, both his sword-calloused hands pulling Armin back in tight.
Armin’s heart skipped a beat.
The Captain’s hugging me back.
The Captain himself is hugging me back…!
Taken over by the overwhelming emotions that coursed through his veins, Armin eagerly returned his grip around Levi’s torso, hands pressing flat on the captain’s back as he squeezed Levi.
Levi let out a grunt.
“S-sorry!” Armin spoke immediately, retracting his grip once again. Levi didn’t move, simply shaking his head. Levi closed his eyes, head laying onto Armin’s shoulder. Armin’s heart was about to explode.
“It’s fine.”
Armin could help his smile.
Slowly, Armin pulled Levi back in, almost giggling at the way he had to bend down, while Levi was clearly lifting himself off of his heels for the hug. Armin buried his nose back into Levi’s shoulder, taking in the grassy scent of his cloak that somehow still smelled clean.
The two of them stood there in silence for a moment. Levi relaxed more and more under Armin’s touch, almost entirely at peace in his arms. Meanwhile, Armin was trying to calm his thudding heart, genuinely surprised that Levi so willingly reciprocated his affection.
After another minute or so, Armin slowly loosened his grip from the captain. He tried to unwind his arms, lifting his head. Before he could, Levi was pulling him in tighter, causing Armin to nearly step on his captain’s feet.
Levi buried his face further into Armin’s shoulder.
“Not yet.”
Armin heart rate picked up again. Did Levi enjoy this more than Armin realized? He wouldn’t blame him, considering everyone that Levi’s know has ended up dying.
He felt bad for the captain. Maybe touch was his only escape.
So, Armin hummed softly, before letting his arms slide around Levi’s middle again, blushing as he felt Levi do something close to a nuzzle against his neck.
~~~
“Uh… What is going on?” Connie queried, hand holding the curtain open as they all huddled by the door. Sasha cocked her head.
“Beats me. I thought Armin would’ve been dead by now.”
“Yeah,” Jean replied, holding the curtain opposite to Connie open. “He seems to like it?”
“I don’t trust him,” Mikasa immediately responded, glaring at the way Levi’s hands gripped Armin’s shoulders firmly. They could see Armin beginning to rub the captain’s back.
“Aww,” Historia cooed with a giggle. “I don’t think it’s meant to be harmful at all.”
They continued to watch Armin and the captain in awe. Eren could feel his stomach stir. He always took the captain to be cold and reserved. Whenever he would do so much as walk toward Levi, he could feel the captain recoiling from him, tossing him a rag, or in some cases, his cravat, where there just so happened to be ‘dirt and grime covering him from head to toe’.
So why, Eren wondered, as he watched Armin and Levi slowly disband. The moment they let go of each other, Armin wore an awkward smile on his face while rubbing the back of his head. Levi turned to the window they were gathered at, and the group never disbanded quicker, shutting the curtains and panicking at the glare they just received.
Why, Eren marveled, as the door finally opened, and in walked a flustered Armin and a tired Levi (who, frankly, no longer seemed as moody after his moment with Armin). His new squad stood there awkwardly, Levi surveying each one of them, scanning their faces, before letting out a long sigh. Eren only caught his eyes once, seeing he was less annoyed and more… amused?
“We have a long day ahead of us,” Levi spoke, beginning to take off his cloak, Armin taking it from him to fold and put away.
“You kids should get some rest.”
“Yes sir!” They all responded, tense, aside from Mikasa, who simply nodded. Levi looked like there was something else he wanted to say to them, but let it be, walking into the kitchen to make some tea before he too went to sleep.
As they all walked to their own shared rooms, Eren still wondered why.
Why would he avoid me?
~~~