Chapter Text
Chapter 1
Levi Ackerman hated accepting help from others.
And he hated the bright, bubbly boy in front of him even more.
It was all his professor’s fault. He’d urged Levi to get tutoring from another student to help improve his grades. Then he asked the class for volunteers. Nobody had answered.
Except for Armin fucking Arlert.
No doubt he hoped to gain favour or extra credit from the professor. Or maybe he just loved the sound of his own voice. Either way, this was why Levi had spent the last two hours couped up in this miserable study room. Listening to the boy ramble on and on with his suggestions and advice on how to improve Levi’s essay for the latest class assignment.
Levi still didn’t understand why they had to meet up in person. Hadn’t Armin heard of Google docs? But the blond insisted that it was easier to work together in person. As if he actually enjoyed the prospect of social interaction.
Fuck, the boy’s energetic friendliness reminded him of Erwin. Which was a detail Levi didn’t want to focus on right now.
“How much longer is this going to take?”
Levi didn’t want to be stuck here all evening. He had plans for tonight, after all – get home, eat dinner, and watch a movie. Alone.
Besides, it was fucking freezing in this room. Levi had gone along with Armin’s plan of meeting up in his student accommodation building, which had private study rooms. But the heating didn’t seem to be working in here. Which he blamed Armin for, of course.
The other boy halted mid-sentence. His brows furrowed behind his glasses. He glanced down at the laptop screen, scrolling through his notes. “Well, we still have to look over the last three sections. And I wanted to give you some tips for your writing style – it’s too informal in places, and I think you could improve on that. I’ve also got ideas for some extra content you could add that would really-”
“Look, we’ve already made loads of changes. Can't we just leave it at that?” Levi rubbed his eyes. He hadn’t slept well last night. It only occurred to him yesterday that today would be the 14th of October. Erwin’s birthday. How the hell had he almost forgotten?
Armin tucked his shaggy blond hair behind his ear. Levi was itching to take a scissors to the unruly mop. The only consolidation was that it looked clean and brushed. Soft, even.
“Levi… the way the essay is now, it will only get you a C at most, maybe a D. But you could easily go up a grade just by re-structuring-"
“Maybe I’m happy with getting a C or a D,” Levi growled. How dare this little over-achiever try to put him down?
Armin’s eyes widened. Combined with those colossal glasses he wore, they looked comically large.
Good. He’d flustered the boy.
“Oh no, I’m not saying that’s bad!” he backtracked hastily. “It’s just… it actually wouldn’t take too much effort to improve it. Most of my essays get A's or B's, so I’ve got a good idea at this stage how to-"
“Yeah, clearly all this is easy for you.” Levi stood up, slamming his laptop closed and shoving it into his bag.
“It’s not easy! Do you know how much time I spend studying and working on my assignments?”
Irritation marred Armin’s usual cheerful face. Levi had never seen him so angry. Hadn’t even know he could get angry. He was always grinning and goofing around with his rowdy friends in between classes. Surrounded in a perpetual bubble of happiness. Untouched by the harsher side of the world.
It made Levi sick.
“Do you know what it’s like to work part-time through college? I bet your mummy and daddy pay for all your college fees and everything else you need!”
Alright. Maybe he’d gone too far. But Armin’s privileged attitude pissed him off. People like that deserved a figurative slap in the face from time to time.
“Fine,” Armin said. His voice was soft, barely under control. “I’m sorry if I offended you. Feel free to leave if you don’t want my help anymore.”
“What a fucking waste of my time.” Levi threw an arm under one strap of his bag, and stormed out of the room.
The hall outside was almost deserted. He unlocked his phone, which he’d courteously put on silent while he was working with Armin earlier.
He stopped dead at all the notifications popping up on his screen. Ten discord messages, four texts, and three miscalls… all from his housemate, Hange. He scrolled through the messages frantically.
Hange: Levi, where are you? Have you seen the weather warnings? I hope you’re not out because you need to get home ASAP.
Hange: Is your bus still running? You’re not stuck anywhere, are you?
Hange: PLEASE TELL ME YOU’RE OK???!!!
Levi reached the double glass doors at the front of the building, and stared out in horror. The flurry of snow coming down was so heavy and fast, his eyes blurred trying to watch it. The view was nothing but a sea of white – no sign of the grass, footpath, or even the other student accommodation buildings that surrounded this one.
How the fuck had it gotten so bad so fast? He’d only been here two hours! With shaky fingers, he searched his bus timetable on his phone.
Bus 109: Not running due to adverse weather conditions.
He scanned through the other buses, and even the trains. But every single transport route had the same message.
Shit. Shit. Shit.
The only other option was a taxi. But Levi lived on the other side of town. He shuddered to think what that would cost. And news websites were strongly urging people not to risk travel by any means, due to the treacherous state of the roads and footpaths.
With no better option, Levi trudged through the building. His feet carried him back to the study room he’d been in earlier. Then he decided to walk past it, in case Armin was still in there. At the end of the hallway, he found a door that led into a large dining area, with kitchen facilities in one corner and an assortment of tables, chairs and couches spread across the rest of the room.
The place was freezing cold, just like the study room had been. Was there a problem with the heating in this whole building or what?
Levi found a seat far away from the other chattering students, close to the kitchen area. He sat down heavily, putting his head in his hands.
What the fuck would he do? Stay here all night in this shitty place? He was exhausted, and wanted nothing more than a hot shower, and the familiar surroundings of his own bedroom.
He gazed around the room with rising dismay. Was he doomed to sleep on one of those dirty couches? Would he get any hassle if somebody saw him? The situation was so embarrassing, he really didn’t want to discuss it with anyone.
Fuck. Why did this have to happen, today of all days?
He had a long-standing tradition on the 14th of October, which he’d been determined to uphold again this year. Even if Erwin wasn’t around this time to enjoy it with him. But now tonight’s plans were ruined.
Levi’s eyes burned and he couldn’t quite suck in enough air. Why did it even matter to him anymore? Without Erwin, what did anything matter?
“Levi? I thought you’d left!”
He glanced up, swiping hastily at his eyes. Armin Arlert stared down at him.
Fan-fucking-tastic.
The ice in Armin’s bright blue eyes hadn’t quite defrosted yet. His chilly demeanour was at direct odds with his colourful t-shirt – which had a picture of a cute fluffy cat and said, ‘Dungeon Meowster’.
After their heated argument earlier, Levi hadn’t expected to ever speak to the boy again. But faith apparently had a warped sense of humour. He had to give some reason for why he was still here. Swallowing hard, he resigned himself to honesty.
“All the buses and trains are cancelled because of the snow. I’m trying to figure out what to do.”
Just then, Levi’s phone buzzed with an incoming call. It was Hange.
He answered, the knots in his stomach clenching even tighter. Hange’s voice was so frantic, he barely understood them.
“Listen, calm down Hange! I got caught out and none of the transport is running-”
“WHAT? WHERE ARE YOU LEVI? ARE YOU OK?!”
“I’m fine,” Levi found himself lying. “I – I’m staying with a family member nearby.”
After much reassurance and more lies, Hange finally hung up. Leaving Levi’s stomach feeling like a writhing nest of snakes.
Armin was bustling around the small kitchen area, microwaving some food. But when Levi hung up he spun around to face him. His mouth opened and closed several times before blurting out, “Are you really able to stay with family nearby?”
None of your fucking business, Levi wanted to say. But his panic at the situation seemed to dissolve his usual temper.
“No, I lied. I didn’t want my housemate to worry. It’s not like they can do anything about it.”
“Haven’t you any friends on campus you could spend the night with?”
Levi suppressed a snort of laughter. He didn’t have any other friends except for Hange. Who was really only a default friend since they were housemates.
There had been Erwin, of course. But not anymore.
“No. There’s no one.”
The microwave dinged. Armin ignored it.
“So, what? You’re going to stay here overnight?”
Had the brat some sort of issue over this? Jaw clenching, Levi shrugged. Somehow Armin’s shocked reaction made the prospect even worse. “Yeah, I’ll sleep on a couch or something. Or maybe I’ll try walking home. I don’t know.”
“Are you crazy? Don’t you live on the other side of town? That would take hours!”
The silence was broken by another insistent ‘ding!’ from the microwave. Armin turned to open it and pull out his food. Levi could smell it from where he was. His stomach rumbled.
Armin carried his dinner out of the kitchen area. Levi waited impatiently for him to walk right past, out the door and back to his dorm room. Perhaps then he’d finally get some proper peace to figure things out.
But Armin halted right in front of him.
“Here, you have this.” He set the plate down on the table.
“Wait, what? Don’t be stupid.” Levi’s stomach gave an even louder grumble. Armin’s mouth twitched.
“I’ve got more, I always make big batches of dinner to last a few days. The only thing is it’s vegan. You don’t mind that do you?”
Levi’s brain and stomach fought a silent battle, before his stomach won out. Picking up the fork, he took a bite of what appeared to be a veggie stir fry with beans and noodles.
It was… surprisingly ok.
By the time Armin heated up another portion and sat down, Levi had wolfed down half of his own meal.
“So, what’s your housemate like? Are they a student too?”
Apparently Armin was determined to make forced small-talk. Levi tried to play along. It was the least he could do after the boy had offered him dinner. They chatted for a few minutes, with Levi telling him about Hange and their bizarre science experiments, and Armin sharing stories about his own friends.
When Levi finished his dinner, he realised he’d never even thanked the other boy. Perhaps that would appease his guilt for his harsh words earlier during their argument.
“Thanks for dinner. I can’t believe it was vegan – that food usually tastes like crap.”
Shit. Why did he say that last part? That was the kind of statement that probably got you murdered by fanatical vegans.
To his surprise, Armin laughed. The sound triggered a spark of heat in Levi’s chest. “I’m glad you liked it. And don’t knock vegan food until you try more of it!”
Levi insisted on helping Armin clean up. He dried the washed plates and cutlery that Armin handed him, placing them back in the cupboard. Only now was Levi struck by the fact he’d eaten off communal utensils. He pushed aside his revulsion. These were desperate circumstances, after all.
When they were done, they hovered in the kitchen awkwardly. Levi wished the other boy would just go back to his room. Even if a part of him would miss his company.
“You’re not really going to try walking home are you?” Armin’s voice took on that bossy know-it-all tone that had irritated Levi so much earlier.
But he was right. Walking home in this snow storm was insane. As bad as staying the night in this shitty communal room was, at least he’d be safe here.
“No. I reckon I’ll hang on here.”
Armin’s mouth twisted and he fidgeted with the cuff of his sleeve.
“Do you want to stay with me?” he asked softly.
Of all the things he could have said, Levi would never have expected that. He gawped at the boy.
“I mean, the heating’s broken in most of the public parts of the building. So you’d be freezing sleeping in here. My room is much warmer, plus you wouldn’t have to worry about random students waking you up in the middle of the night to get food from the kitchen. Not to mention it’s sort of my fault you’re stuck out here at all today. I was the one who insisted on meeting up to help with your essay, instead of doing it online like you wanted.”
Armin’s voice started out high and squeaky, but it grew more confident as he stacked his arguments on top of each other. He fixed Levi with a determined stare. Then his confidence seemed to waver.
“Of course, if you’re not comfortable with that, I understand…”
Levi swallowed. Staying the night in Armin Arlert’s room was far from ideal. It certainly wasn’t the way he’d expected to end the day. But he had to put things in perspective. This solution was potentially a lot better than sleeping in a communal area with noisy students and filthy surfaces.
Besides, his original plans for tonight were already spoiled. There was no fixing that now.
“No, I - I’d really appreciate that. Thank you.”
He followed Armin back to his room, which was up two flights of stairs. The hallways were freezing. Levi just hoped the heating was still working in Armin’s room.
But when Armin unlocked the door and pushed it open, a more pressing issue drew Levi’s attention.
There was only one bed in the room.