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Erwin was busy studying the works of Marx and Engels, taking notes for his next speech at their revolution group’s upcoming meeting. He was often busy doing stuff such as this, crafting speeches and making plans for revolution. The group he was the head of had plans to overtake the government, as there had been a wave of revolutions over the past few months. The July Monarchy, the government under King Louis Philippe, was coming to an end, and prospects of a fair government for their people were arising amongst revolutionary groups such as his own.
His maid opened the door to his small study in his Paris apartment, bringing him a black coffee. Levi was his name. Erwin had plucked the poor man off the street; he’d been a mere beggar before. But Erwin had done much for him, as he felt the man’s situation was unfair and a symptom of the government’s inability to take care of its poorest people. He believed everybody deserved housing and food, every day necessities, and took Levi into his apartment, gave him the spare bedroom, and made him his full-time maid.
Levi set down the coffee in front of Erwin, and Erwin smiled at him, “Thank you, Levi.”
“Of course, sir,” Levi placed his hands behind his back, awaiting further instruction.
“That’ll be all, Levi,” Erwin replied.
Levi nodded, heading to the door before he paused, “Sir? May I ask how the planning is coming?”
Erwin had noticed that Levi had taken a liking to him from the moment he’d taken the man in. Levi was always lingering longer than necessary, touching him unnecessarily, and giving him these longing looks. This was only solidified in his mind when he overheard a conversation Levi was having with a friend at an event they’d attended together:
“He’s so handsome, Hange,” Levi sighed, almost dreamily, “You should see how he looks when he’s not so freshly-shaven. His face is all rugged and gorgeous.”
Hange laughed, “Why don’t you try to get in his pants, then?”
“I could never,” Levi replied with a blush, “He’s my boss. And he’s so busy doing things for the revolution. His work is very important.”
“Very important,” Hange scoffed with a laugh, “You know nothing about the revolution. How would you know if what he’s doing is important? You’re merely interested in revolution because of Erwin.”
“So what?!” Levi exclaimed in annoyance, “The way he talks about revolution is dreamy. He’s so passionate; I could listen to him talk all day.”
“But I’m sure you don’t take in a lick of what he’s saying,” Hange snorted.
“Okay, maybe I don’t,” Levi pouted, “But he’s still dreamy!”
Erwin had been hiding behind the wall around the corner when he heard this conversation, trying hard not to laugh. He thought it was incredibly sweet; Levi feeling all these things for him. But he was too busy with the revolution at hand, and he couldn’t find the time to be in a relationship right now. Sure, Levi was incredibly attractive, and someone that Erwin admired, but Erwin needed to focus on the revolution, not on romance.
“It’s going well, Levi,” Erwin responded, “How’s the cleaning going?”
“Good,” Levi shrugged, “I finished the kitchen and the bathroom, just the living room and bedrooms left.”
“Well done,” Erwin praised, “You’re certainly getting a lot more done than I am. I’m admittedly stuck.”
Levi raised an eyebrow, walking back over to Erwin and leaning over his work, “Can I help you in any way?”
Erwin wanted to laugh. According to Levi’s conversation with Hange, the man knew nothing of the revolution, but he decided to play along anyway and see what Levi was going to say. Levi placed his hands on the desk, and Erwin resisted the urge to get up and bend the man over the desk from the position he was in.
“I suppose,” Erwin said, “I’m just trying to decipher Marx’s words on class struggle. Right here, do you think you can figure it out?”
Levi’s face paled, clearly feeling overwhelmed, and Erwin watched with a smirk as he leaned over and read where Erwin was pointing, “I... I don’t know, sir. I’m not very-well versed in...”
He lifted the book so he could see the spine as he read, “The Communist Manifesto.”
“It’s an interesting read,” Erwin insisted as Levi set the book back down, “It’s all about the proletariat and the bourgeois; their relationship and how to overcome the oppressive power of the bourgeois.”
Levi was staring at him with wide eyes, as if he hadn’t retained any of the information Erwin had just spoken. Erwin wanted to smile, wanted to playfully tease Levi, but he didn’t want to hurt the man’s feelings.
“I... that does sound interesting, sir, but... who is the bourgeois?” Levi asked.
How does he not know? Erwin thought to himself in amazement, as the bourgeois seemed like such a simple term to someone like himself that was so well-read. He almost laughed at Levi’s question, but he had to remember that Levi didn’t know what he did.
“The bourgeois are the upper class,” Erwin explained, “Those who have an exorbitant amount of money and spend it on luxuries whilst people suffer and beg in the streets. The proletariat are the working class.”
Levi nodded, still looking a little confused, “I see... so you’re fighting for the proletariat?”
Erwin smiled. So Levi had been listening, “Yes, my group and I fight for the proletariat. The bourgeois class needs to be destroyed, and we need a more equal society.”
“Ah, I see,” Levi replied, “Well, I apologize for not being more helpful.”
Erwin shook his head, “It’s no problem, Levi. It’s difficult theory to understand.”
Levi started walking to the door, “I’ll bring you lunch soon, sir.”
“Thank you,” Erwin replied, watching Levi head out of the study.
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It was only a week later that Levi had been arrested by the French government. Erwin assumed they’d done it to try and get to him. He’d sent Levi out to run errands, and by the time it hit dinnertime, Erwin knew something was wrong. It wasn’t long before one of the members in his group had informed him that Levi had been arrested, and was given a trial almost immediately. They’d sentenced him to a beheading, the date being set for the next evening.
Erwin immediately put a plan into action. He got his group together and made a plan for them to infiltrate the prison and rescue Levi. He couldn’t just let the man die. He’d done nothing but clean his apartment and serve him coffee; there was no reason for him to be arrested.
He had snuck past the guards with the distraction his friend Mike had created, and was now moving down the hallway cautiously, seeing a row of cells. He glanced into each cell, looking for Levi. It wasn’t until he got to the fifth cell that he saw his maid, curled up and chained to the wall. The man was beaten and bruised, looking defeated. He took out a pin from his pocket and picked the lock, opening the door slowly.
“S-Sir?” Levi piped up as he looked over to see Erwin walking towards him, “What are you doing here?”
“I couldn’t let you die, Levi,” Erwin muttered as he started to pick at the lock of Levi’s chains, “I’m going to get you out of here.”
Levi gave him a grateful smile, and once he was free from his shackles, he threw his arms around Erwin’s shoulders, hugging him close, “Thank you.”
“Of course,” Erwin hugged him back.
“Sir, I have to tell you something,” Levi insisted, “Just in case we don’t make it out of here.”
He took both of Erwin’s hands into his own, and Erwin waited patiently for him to continue. He had a feeling he already knew what Levi was going to say, but he let Levi speak anyways, feeling a little anxious as he knew they needed to get out of the building before they were caught.
“I... I’m falling in love with you, sir,” Levi admitted with a blush on his face, “And I want to be with you.”
Erwin couldn’t help the smile that crossed his lips. He realized when Levi had been arrested how much he missed him; how much he couldn’t live without him. As much as he wanted to stay and run the revolutionary group, he knew his time was wearing thin. In no time at all, he would likely be arrested and sentenced to death as well for his role in the revolution, and he needed to escape as well. Now he could leave with Levi, and they could be happy together.
“I’m falling for you too, Levi,” Erwin ran his fingers along Levi’s cheek gently, “We can run away together.”
Levi took Erwin’s face into his hands and kissed him deeply, the two of them just holding each other as they caressed their lips against one another. Erwin had never felt a spark like this before, but something inside him knew he was making the right decision in taking Levi out of the country with him.
“Let’s go,” Erwin said as he got up, helping Levi to his feet, “Oh, and Levi?”
“Yes, sir?” Levi replied.
“Call me Erwin,” Erwin murmured, pressing a kiss to Levi’s forehead and watching the shorter man become red in the face.
The two escaped the compound with the aid of Erwin’s revolutionary group. He left Mike in charge, as he would be stepping down from his position, and the two of them boarded a ship to take them to England. Now they could be together, living in the English countryside and growing old together.
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