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anjova · 1 year

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S.T.A.Y

post!war levi ackerman x oc (can be read as self insert)

chapter one is here!

masterlist !

He left his window open overnight again.

A familiar icy morning breeze brushed across his face painted with stitched-up battle scars, his frown replaced with a distant melancholic look swirling in his mix-matched eyes. It was just one of those days- when no matter how much he cleaned or made tea as a distraction, he couldn't stop the flashes of his dead comrades invade the forefront of his mind, and how one by one, they left his side.

How he was left alone.

Levi sat still in his wrinkle-free sheets as the morning dawn found itself leaking inside his small apartment above his store, the birdsong a reminder of how this was another day he had to go through on no sleep. It couldn't have been earlier than six in the morning, but if he stayed in bed any longer, the aches in his body would become unbearable. In the corner of the room, he shot a stare at the folded-away wheelchair that sat waiting in the dark.

He thought back to what the lady mentioned yesterday about massages, but he couldn't take himself seriously when he considered massaging his own legs, disgusted by even looking at his body for too long. His whole person was just a walking reminder of his failures every time he accidentally glanced at his reflection in a shop window or the lone hanging mirror in his bathroom he wasn't able to remove.

However, with his body now slowly moving further and further from his bed and towards his closet to get dressed whilst attempting to ignore the shoots of pain striking his muscles constantly, the smell of lavender danced through the open glass panes, distracting his mind for only a moment.

Usually, with his window closed all of the time bar the evenings, he never noticed how the smell of freshly arranged flowers would travel through the streets every morning. Iris was her name, right? Didn't she say she was coming to the shop again? Hopefully, it’s before those brats come back-

Before Levi's thoughts could derail any further, the murmur of his neighbours waking up rang throughout the single-bedroom apartment, the thin walls in his empty kitchen, bar the singular teacup, plate and set of cutlery. Most noticeable was the lack of any basket of groceries. Those damn kids.

Once Levi was dressed in the same simple button-up shirt and dark pants, however, he for whatever reason took a second glance at his unruly strands of ebony. His hair was getting long again, and his undercut almost faded into the rest of his hair. Cutting it now was just too much hassle, not to mention whenever he did have time for it, he was suddenly taken over with a wave of tiredness.

He ignored the shots of pain darting across his body as he descended the wooden stairs before he began his morning routine once he stepped foot into the eerily silent shop. Armin told him how getting into a different routine again helped him in moving on in life, yet Levi was stubbornly still stuck to the past, like a moth to a vicious flame. The shop’s silence didn’t help him manage his thoughts any better either. He was used to always being on edge, waiting to hear the ground shake underneath him, or hear the screams of his comrades to run and fight for their lives, day after day. But now, there was none of that, yet guilt can easily blind those who succumb to it.

Tch.

With a newfound urge to wipe the store cleaner than a surgery operating room, Levi was aggressively mopping his floors after he turned the open sign around the glass door, not expecting any visitors until later on in the day when the others were insisting on coming to visit the store, and definitely not just to force him to chat.

On the other side of the street, Iris sat by the round table that took up a majority of the available kitchen space, which wasn’t already occupied by trinkets Jasper found on his adventures, or various drawings of possible flower arrangements she found herself doodling when the store was too quiet, either in watercolour splashed across the beige pages or thinly-drawn lead sketches with various notes on the flowers required.

For the Lane household, it was another restless night.

As she took the final sip of her sweet coffee and neatly arranged a smiley face of sugary goodness atop the pile of pancakes, her thoughts remained on how this was the third night in a row her son couldn’t sleep because of his nightmares. Every once in a while, he would recall the horizon of monsters making their way towards him whilst he clutched his mother as tightly as his three-year-old hand was capable of, while he felt her hold his head to the crook of her neck. As much as the young boy admired the veterans who saved their lives, he was only a child after all, and his six-year-old brain couldn’t process the true horror of what went down during The Rumbling.

Underneath the mound of handmade quilts and various stitched teddy bears, Jasper couldn’t go to sleep after a whole night of interrupted rest, so all he could do was listen to his mom, and how she told him to wait for her to come back with treats.

“Hun? How are you feeling now?” Iris cooed in his ear, her voice caught by the wind and so gentle, it could’ve been mistaken for an autumn breeze. Cautiously, she tucked the dark hair that was stuck to his creased forehead behind his ears, before she hid her fatigue behind her smile when she was met with Jasper’s ocean-blue eyes.

“They- They’re definitely gone, right Mama?”

“Forever, baby. Remember how hard humanity fought against them? You’re safe here Jas, you don’t have to worry” When Iris felt the tiny hand clutch around her wrist, she took that as a signal that he was out of the worst part of it. “You wanna help me open up shop? Breakfast first though” As Jasper trudged down the narrow hallway, his natural grin quickly returned as the smell of maple syrup and fresh pancakes wafted from the nearby kitchen and he dashed past the open door, deadlining towards the enticing plate of fluffy sweetness. With her hands now empty of tiny fingers clutching it shut in its grip, Iris stood by her living room window, pushing back the blinds and nudging the panes aside to ventilate the room.

God , she needed some fresh air, they both did.

Today was a Monday, which usually meant business would be slow bar the regulars that came every week with the same orders, many headed to the same desolate place afterwards.

“What flowers are we giving Mr Levi? I think daisies!” Jasper piped up as he stuffed another pancake into his mouth, ignoring the current state his fingers were in as he abandoned the fork many pancakes ago.

“Huh? Oh, right! I promised him we’d bring some over this morning! Jas, go get changed and please, wash ur face. You’re more maple syrup than human” Iris joked before ruffling his hair, wincing at the melted sugar that somehow found its way into his strands of raven hair.

Ignoring the mess of a kitchen ahead of her, she ran down the spiral staircase to her left, leading to the comfortable shop below and began to browse her stock. Vibrant blues, pinks and yellows swarmed her vision, as she thought back to the tea shop, and how its walls were lined with strips of emerald-green wallpaper and various memorabilia neatly placed upon hanging shelves, amongst the decorative teacups.

“Maybe those new white petunias? With a bundle of daisies of course,” Iris mumbled under her breath before taking the heap of trimmed stems in her hands and making her way to the wrapping table where a wicker basket was left behind from their shopping trip. After making sure they were secure, she was about to call for Jasper before realising she had no way to conveniently plant these.

As the town clock in the distance rang eight times, and more people began to walk past her windows, she picked up her gardening supplies, including a bag of soil she’ll have to carry and pray Jasper doesn’t drop the basket of delicate flowers.

However, as she was so absorbed with her familiar routine of organising orders, she failed to realise the bell ringing, and before she knew it, a young woman no older than her mid-20s stood in the doorway, clearly unfamiliar with her store.

“Ah sorry! I was in my own world there, how may I help you, Miss?” As Iris struck the woman with a smile, she could tell what kind of flowers she was looking for. Over the years, since The Rumbling ended, she had a surge of customers looking for funeral flowers or presents to try to brighten their loved one’s day as the mourning process began.

“It’s- for someone important to me, nothing too fancy, please. That wasn’t his style”

“I understand, don’t worry. You know, technically I only arranged this last night when I couldn’t sleep, but I had this sample for a bundle of pink forget-me-nots and these beautiful carnations I have in bloom at the moment if that interests you?” Iris knew not to overstep, the woman was clearly on her way to a graveyard. Yet, a subtle smile reached the stranger’s face as she nodded her head, before nodding towards the mess Iris made on the floor in her flurry of ‘organising’.

“Sorry, I was on my way to give these to the man across the street for his windowsills, but this morning’s been quite hectic-”

“MOM! CAN WE GO NOW?” Jasper shrieked out of excitement to see the soldier again, before forcing his run to a halt as he noticed the lady staring at him in bewilderment at the front of the store. “Sorry, I didn’t know there were customers”

“You’re alright baby, now Miss, what’s your name? So I can have it registered with the order. Oh, and Jas, can you collect the stuff on the ground over there? Also, in the greenhouse, there should be a bouquet there, it’s very pink so you can’t miss it, can you bring that to me please?” She needn’t say anymore, because the young boy was already running across the store, the morning pancakes having given him a burst of energy.

“Right, it’s Mikasa. This is a lovely store by the way” By her body language, Iris could tell she was inept at holding conversations with strangers for a long time, so she made her way to the cash register, before tolling up her order’s price. Just as Mikasa passed her the money, the flurry of conversations passing by the store’s door calmed the awkwardness into something Iris hoped helped make the young woman feel less uncomfortable.

“Aw thanks, sweetheart! I try my best you know, we all are doing our part” Iris said through smiles, as she led the woman past the handpainted pots and vases that lined the shop’s walls, before picking up her basket tidied up by Jasper, filled with the flowers, tools and extra seeds.

Iris was leaning forward to pick up the bag of soil, yet was stopped by Mikasa picking up the bag with an immense speed, holding the soil over her toned shoulders as if it weighed nothing. “Let me carry this, I’d like a distraction this morning” For the first time throughout their whole interaction, Iris didn’t need to think about letting a laugh slip past her lips.

“It's just across the street, so I hope it’s not too strenuous-”

“Wait- across the street, like-”

“I have flowers! Can we go now, please?” Jasper squealed as he comically cherished the fragile flowers in his grasp whilst rushing through the backdoor, before skidding to a stop in front of Mikasa. In a flurry of childlike embarrassment, he handed Mikasa the radiant arrangement of pinks and whites, with tiny specks of gold dust scattered across the rim of the paper packaging. In the morning sun reflecting into rainbows that flowed throughout the welcoming corner store, Iris could only giggle at her son’s enthusiasm, before holding the door open for the three of them. Not before hastily grabbing her cream-coloured sunhat that hung aside the oak door, a lace ribbon tied daintily around the back.

“Ma’am? You don’t happen to be visiting a man named Levi, do you?”

As Mikasa’s voice quietened, Iris could only tilt her head in confusion at her newest friend’s expression of utter bewilderment. “It’s quite a long story, but I happened to meet these two teenagers yesterday that worked with him, and I noticed his shop seemed rather uncolourful on the outside, so I offered to decorate it. For free of course, as thanks for his service I suppose, Jasper is rather in awe of all those that fought against the Titans” Iris began to ramble onwards as she held the young boy’s hand before he ran in front of the line of moving cars, her eyes glancing from the tea shop I the distance, to the figure she noticed by the shop window, moving around with what seemed to be a mop of some kind. As Iris was more focused on making sure Jasper didn’t get distracted by the golden retriever making its way towards them, she missed the brief softening of Mikasa’s eyes, a gentle smile tagging on her lips.

Immediately after catching herself, Mikasa tightened her grip on the delicate bouquet in her left hand, whilst securing her hold on the bag of soil pressed against her right shoulder, all the while imagining how she’ll tell this to the others when they arrive at the store. Levi has a friend that isn’t one of us? And is not to mention a very beautiful woman? How did this even start again?

“Come on, Mikasa, I don’t want you carrying that bag for much longer, it looks heavy” Iris gently snapped her out of her thoughts before the three of them crossed the street in a hurry.

“I’ve carried heavier, no need to worry” Just as Mikasa set the bag of dirt next to Iris, who was already inspecting the abandoned flowerpots that lay atop the large windowsills, a familiar voice called out her name from only a few metres down the street.

“You’re already here! And who’s this? I didn’t know you had such an attractive friend Mikasa!-”

“Stop it, Connie, that’s disrespectful in so many ways!” A shorter man of a similar age to Mikasa, Iris surmised, hurriedly explained, all the whilst nudging a taller man with a buzzcut who was now bewildered at how the woman was laughing at what was said prior.

“You’re friends sure are flatterers, Mikasa, but I should probably go let Jasper inside and get to work on these” Iris rambled all the whilst settling her basket of equipment on the ground next to the bag of dirt, before leaving the flowers and packets of seeds and rising from her previously-crouched position to properly greet the new group of strangers that were now all staring at her with curiosity, gazes flickering from Levi in the shop window who was yet to notice them, to the woman practically oozing kindness in front of them. “And my name is Iris Lane, a pleasure to meet you all”

“Jean Kirstein Ma’am! How long have you known Captain and his shop?”

“Armin Arlert, lovely to meet you also”

“Sasha Braus, those flowers look very pretty!” As the young girl with tied-away brown hair rambled, Iris felt the smaller hand leave her own, and before she could turn around, Jasper had snuck away into the tea shop behind them. “Hey, that kid is gonna get all the muffins before me! WAIT!-”

“Sorry about her Ma’am, they can all get pretty rowdy when spurred on enough” Mikasa muttered, yet Iris could only laugh in response at the unique group of young adults in front of her, before grabbing the watering can she saw hidden behind the flower pots, as if the previous owner once attended whatever was grown here, yet forgot about them eventually.

“I should go inside and see if I can fill this thing up; I assume you all are here for Levi since Mikasa mentioned him not long ago?” Iris asked as she saw them beginning to walk behind her as they headed towards the spotless front doors, the older woman missing the way they all darted their gaze from each other’s eyes as if they were having some telepathic conversation. Primarily, Jean and Connie, whilst Armin opened the door and held it for their new acquaintance before she thanked him with a pat to his head before scanning the store for her son.

“Oi, Sasha, that muffin’s for the actual child, you child!” A familiar rough voice barked out from the counter before the four walked through the store until they were faced with Sasha and Jasper both hunched over the counter, reaching for the last remaining lemon and poppyseed muffin. In the end, Sasah gave in when she saw tears form in the six-year-olds eyes, yet as soon as the treat was in his hands, his eyes brightened and stuck his tongue out at the shocked woman.

“Ah, some adults are here. Iris, I hope you don’t mind your kid eating this much sugar at eight in the morning-”

“No need to apologise, Levi, you’re keeping him entertained which is more than I could ever wish for. Now, I have the flowers out front but do you have a sink I can use to fill this thing up?”

“Yeah- of course, this way”

Once Levi returned to the counter and a tap could be heard running, a snicker fell past Connie, before earning himself a smack against his back from Jean who was doing very much the same thing, only managing to hide his chuckles behind his jacket's hood.

“She seems lovely Captain! Who knew you’d get so lucky after all!”

“Cut it out, I hardly know her” Levi grumbled before forcing the group of rowdy adults to sit at one of the long tables, perfectly aligned with the afternoon sun blending seamlessly with the distant ocean, the shades of cerulean blue melting into the amber rays of the sun. Just like the alluring landscape painted outside the quaint shop’s windows, Levi’s thoughts fell onto her , again. Could he even allow such foolish thoughts about a woman way above some crippled war veteran with more scars adorning his face alone than he could count, to fester in his mind?

“I hope you like petunias, 'cause that’s all I could carry over here, haha! Jas, you stay in here okay baby?” Iris softly spoke, leaning down to kiss her son’s hairline, whilst patting his shoulders and waving goodbye to her newest acquaintances that sat not-so-subtly staring at her ever since she left the kitchen. Once she pushed open the door and could be seen outside the window, rolling up the arms of her sundress to reveal her tanned arms, Levi looked away and forced his attention onto cleaning up the mess left behind by Sasha and Jasper.

“So?” Connie began, as Levi handed the toddler in front of him a clean handkerchief to clean up the crumbs he somehow managed to get in his ears.

“Levi, Iris is pretty lovely, not to mention respectful, it’s okay if you”- Mikasa continued as she was on the way to head out the door and offer her help to the woman she, for a reason she didn’t understand, found herself comforted by.

“Not you too, Mikasa. I met the woman yesterday, and I’m hardly interested in any of that”

“Are you talking about my Mommy? She’s great!” Jasper interrupted, a kiddush grin smeared across his face as Sasha slid her hands across the glass countertop and took the final slice of muffin on the boy’s plate. “That’s my muffin, you- you muffin stealer!”

“Robbing children now Braus?”

“Respectfully Sir, we all think it would be pretty healthy if you even considered becoming friends with someone not from the past. And- if something else grows from it, well”-

“Armin as well? Shit, you’re all ganging up on me now”

“Shit!” Jasper recalled, a giggle escaping his lips which were quickly followed by Jean and Connie falling into a pattern of boisterous laughter.

“If you want the mom to like you, maybe start with not teaching her toddler those words!” Jean laughed, before the sounds of Iris and Mikasa starting a light-hearted conversation began outside the window, and Levi’s attention fell back onto the beam of sunlight laughing outside his humble tea shop; his friend’s teasing remarks falling into a void of silence.

Oh no. Those damn brats might be right.

#attack on titan x reader #levi ackerman x oc #levi ackerman x reader #aot x reader #levi ackerman fluff #levi ackerman

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