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"Just don't look at it, don't look at it and you'll be okay," Eren chanted quietly to himself, blindly reaching for a paper towel, a wash rag, anything to quickly and effectively cover the rather large cut running down the length of his arm. He could already feel the warm crimson dripping down his fingertips onto the tile of the kitchen floor, but he dare not look at the mess he's currently making, otherwise he'd pass out at the mere sight and more than likely bleed out on the floor. Usually his roommate, Jean, would be here to help stop the bleeding, but he left yesterday on a two-week get away with his boyfriend. Needless to say that he wouldn't be a very big help in his current predicament.
He could try calling Armin, but he was more then likely still be working his shift at the hospital, and wouldn't be able to get to him on time. Mikasa was currently in soccer practice, and though she would drop everything and rush to his apartment, she wouldn't see that he would have called until well after practice, which didn't end for another two hours. Basically, he was screwed.
See, Eren's biggest problem was that he passes out at the simple sight of blood. Don't ask him why or how it all began, because not even he has the answer. All he knows is that whenever he sees blood, whether it be his own or someone else's, his legs give out and he becomes extremely light-headed. Even if it's a simple speck of blood, he drops like a wasp that has been poisoned, and won't come to for at least two hours.
So, yes, Eren was in quite the predicament, indeed. With no one to call, he simply searched for something to cover up the large cut. What he had done to cut it open was simple and stupid: he was opening a box from UPS and the only thing he could find to open it with was the largest knife in his kitchen drawer. Needless to say, Eren has never heeded the warning of cutting away from himself, and also the fact he forgot to turn down his volume on his phone, so when the obnoxiously loud ringtone went off, informing him that he had a new email, it shocked him more than he'd like to admit, and now his arm probably needed at least 30 stitches.
Finally, he located a used dishtowel, that looked like it still held the stains from last week's meatloaf, but it would have to do for now. When he finally got almost all the blood and cut covered, he relaxed him straining neck a bit, but still did not dare look at it. He wracked his brain for any solution as to what to do now. He couldn't possibly drive like this, not without taking the risk of the towel falling from his arm, or the blood seeping through. No, it a car, it would be much more dangerous if he passed out, causing a wreck that could quite possibly kill him. What was he going to do?
Voices passing through the hall outside his apartment door gave him an idea. He had a neighbor, Levi, that he had seen some mornings out on the balcony, enjoying the morning rays as he drank his usual cup of tea. Eren figured he wasn't much of a morning person. He and Levi hadn't spoken very often, as the older male quite enjoyed the silence instead of idle chatter. He was a man who only enjoyed the presence of another human being, not their words. He had often gotten on to Eren for talking too much or for rustling around when he shuffled. Eren also seemed to have a knack for staring at the older gentleman, but he couldn't help it. Levi was a beautiful man, with how his pal skin complimented his naturally dark, almost black, hair that framed his smooth face just right. His hair was styled in a military fashion, an undercut sweeping beneath those soft locks. He parted his hair just off to the right, and it was the length that it gently swept over his eyes, but not to the point it bothered him. He also had a cleanliness streak in him. He would come sweep off his balcony at least once every week without fail. In the winter, he would come out and brush the freshly fallen snow from his chairs, and make comment to Eren about how he should do the same. Eren didn't argue with the man, but didn't find the reason to do such a thing. With it as cold as it was outside, he often didn't go outside to sit, only when the sun was shining bright enough to warm him.
Yes, he could go ask Levi to help him with his current problem. He could already feel the towel becoming damp underneath his hand with the blood still pouring from the slice, so, as carefully as possible, he exited his apartment and headed to the one just to his right.
Only to realize that there wasn't any way for him to knock without exposing himself to the sickening sight of his bloodied wound. Eren nearly cried out in frustration at the realization. Now what was he supposed to do? Bleed out in front of his neighbor's apartment door, all because he couldn't knock? He wracked his brain for any sort of solution, before simply banging his head once on the door out of pure frustration.
Noise on the other side is what caused Eren to lift his head up quickly, or he would have fallen head first into his short neighbor, who must've heard Eren causing a commotion outside of his apartment. Eren greeted the sight of the male, who was clad in a simple pair of black skinny jeans and a long-sleeved V-neck sweater - Levi's "at home" attire - and grey eyes peering up at turquoise ones with a bit of anger.
"What the hell do you want now, brat?" Levi asked, almost bored, his resting bitch face giving nothing away to the bleeding brunet. It seems that Levi had yet to look down and see the blood red towel clenched in Eren's hand, desperately trying to stop the bleeding.
"Ah, um, hey Levi!" Eren greeted nervously, averting his eyes away from the eternal storm that brewed in the raven's eyes, also careful to not look at his arm either. See, Eren was a bit different from a lot of people. He was about as gay as a child on Christmas. Except he wasn't happy like them. Nope, he had an immense love for other males, and his latest obsession was none other than Levi himself. Now, don't get him wrong, he's had plenty of one-night flings, but he's never actually had a serious relationship before. He finds Levi attractive, extremely so, but he also realizes that his feelings run deeper than anyone else before. He wanted to have more than just one night with the male, he wanted to wake up every day next to him in bed. HE wanted to pull him into his arms, gently running his hands down his sides, placing feather-light kisses upon his- and stop there, Eren because he's staring at you like you are the biggest waste of his time and you are still bleeding out.
"Why did you come here to just stand there and say nothing?" Levi asked, irritation etching into his usual poker face.
"Well, you see," Eren began, "I was opening a box at my house, and I could only find the big knife. I also forgot that my phone's volume was on full-blast, and, well, it ended badly." he gestured to his arm, averting his eyes while doing so.
Levi looked down to where he was gesturing, and the annoyance quickly changed into immediate concern. "Well why are you standing here? Shouldn't you be on your way to a goddamn hospital?"
"That's the problem. I have a...thing that prevents me from looking at blood. If I do, then I pass out for a while, and so if I drive I risk seeing it and then I'll pass out while driving, and that's not a good idea," Eren explained. "Usually someone is at the apartment to help me out, but I'm all alone today and I have no way of getting to the hospital! Or at least cleaning it up and try to stop the bleeding. I seriously cannot look at it." He looked desperately at Levi. "You're my only hope right now."
Levi let out a sigh of exasperation. "Of course you, of all people, would pass out from something so simple. Just, come in and I'll clean it for you. I should have some bandages around here somewhere that I can wrap it with until we get to the hospital."
Eren practically beamed with relieve, quickly following Levi inside the impeccable apartment. He was mindful enough to toe his shoes off at the door, the least he could do since the shorter male was doing so much for him. He just hoped he wouldn't drip blood onto the cream-colored carpet.
Following Levi into the bathroom, Eren was directed to sit on the toilet while Levi dug out his first aid kit from underneath the kitchen. Upon finding it, he set it on the counter before turning to the brunet.
"Okay, let me see this cut of yours. You're going to have to remove the dish towel."
Eren complied, turning his gaze away from the blood quickly as possible. He heard Levi mutter a curse word, somewhere along the lines of "why did you do this" and something that sounded like "idiot". Eren must admit, it was such a stupid thing, but now he felt bad for making the other male do this for him. Judging by the way Levi had reacted, the cut must be worse than he initially thought.
The way Levi's naturally cool hands caressed his arms with a washrag brought his mind down from panic to relaxation. He could almost ignore the throbbing pain he felt in his arm, instead focusing on Levi. Levi, Levi, Levi... Beautiful and wonderful Levi.
It was then when everything went downhill. The washrag Levi had been cleaning him with caught the sliced skin on Eren's arms, causing him to jerk away his arm suddenly, right in front of his gaze. His eyes caught the sight of red. Red, red, red, nothing but red blood cascading from the deep wound in his arm. He could feel the moment his legs went numb, and could feel the blood rushing out of his head. He was able to mumble something that sounded like "catch me" before everything went black around him.
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When Eren came to, the first thing he realized was he was in a hospital. The sterile air, the crisp bed sheets wrapped around him, and the continuous beeps of the heart monitor is what clued him off. Opening his eyes, he was met with a ridiculously bright room, and winced as it caused his already hurting head to throb. Bringing a hand to his temple, he then noticed that bandages wrapped around the circumference of his cranium, and there was also a huge knot of the side of is head. What had happened now?
The door opening drew his attention away from the bandages, and his vision focused on a familiar short man that had entered. A look of relief shadowed his face before quickly disappearing, almost as if it wasn't there.
"Well, it's good to se that Sleeping Beauty is finally awake. Took you long enough, though." Even though Levi's usual monotone voice never gave much away, Eren could tell that this time he was joking. "Do you know how hard it is to lug your heavy ass down two flights of stairs, not to mention you had hit your head pretty hard against the side of the bathtub when you passed out."
Everything suddenly came rushing back to Eren. The box, the knife, visiting his neighbor, and the blood. All the blood on his arm, coating the skin with a bright red color of death. He shuttered at the memory.
"I am so sorry. I swear, I tried not to look, but it was all reaction, and then all the blood, I couldn't see anything but the blood. I really am sorry!" Eren apologized profusely, beginning to ramble on in apologies before Levi stopped him.
"Hey, it's okay, Eren," Levi interrupted. Eren shut up almost instantly, not just because he used his actual name, but also because of the sudden change in emotion in his voice. His monotone was replaced by a voice of caring and understanding. Levi had never used that kind of tone, not around Eren at least. This was so much for the battered brunet to process. "I am just glad that you got to me before you passed out. Do you know how long you were out?" Eren shook his head. "You were unconscious for nearly four hours. I just can't help but think, what if you had passed out in your apartment? You could still be there, dead because you bled out and I would have been so oblivious next door." Levi almost seemed scared at that point, as if the thought of Eren dying wasn't something the usually stoic man could handle. It made Eren's heart jump, the thought of Levi caring for Eren just as much as Eren cared for Levi.
"I'm sorry Levi," Eren whispered softly, his voice filling with a certain emotion he couldn't explain, but he was certain that Levi recognized it.
"Dammit, you idiot. Don't scare me like that. I could have lost you, and then what? I'm so used to seeing you every morning. I can't stand the thought of waking it up and you suddenly being gone for good." The emotions in Levi were becoming too much for Eren. Did Levi really feel the same way Eren did? Did the older male imaging waking up to Eren every morning, just as Eren did Levi? No, it couldn't be possible. But, couldn't it?
Eren's thought were stopped by the feeling of arms wrapping around his body, pulling him into a hug. What..? Raven hair gently carressed his face, the light scent of lavender invaded his senses. Oh my goodness, Levi was hugging Eren voluntarily. Eren felt as if he couldn't breathe. Was this a dream? Possibly. He did hit his head pretty hard. Or maybe he had already died and this was his heaven. Whatever it was, he didn't want it to end.
Wrapping a bandaged arm around the shorter male, Eren buried his face between Levi's neck and shoulder, lightly breathing in his scent. It was so gentle, so intoxicating, so Levi. All of this seemed too real to be a dream, but too good to be reality.
He felt gentle lips press tentatively to his cheek, as if testing out the waters to see if it was a good or a bad thing to do so. Eren couldn't help the blush that colored his cheeks, and turquoise eyes turned and gazed into stormy grey. So much emotion was clouded in Levi's eyes, and they all seemed so genuine, and Eren knew this wasn't a dream, and he knew those emotions were sincere, because it was the most real thing he had ever experienced. Eren gave a small smile before pressing forward, placing his lips delicately upon Levi's, and rejoiced silently when the raven's lips kissed him back. The two didn't pull apart for some time, sharing multiple kisses here and there, each one more and more sure than the last. They would have continued if not for the nurse that walked in and split them apart.
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Eren was discharged from the hospital the next morning. The wanted to keep him over night due to the fact they had to do a blood transplant while he was unconscious. It seems like Eren lost more blood than he had thought, but simply shrugged it off. It was over and done with now, no need to dwell on it. Levi was the one that picked him up and drove him back to the apartment, and listened with amusement as Eren was chewed out by a worried Mikasa over the phone. Eren had asked to borrow Levi's phone, knowing that Mikasa would be even more upset of he didn't call her as soon as possible. She asked all the typical mother-like questions, such as "are you okay?" and "why didn't you call me?" Eren answered all her questions best he could, but it was hard to do when she asked about three different questions in one breath.
When the two walked up the stairs to their respected level, Eren was suddenly fearful because he left his apartment with blood stains on the floor, and there was no possible way for him to clean it. He voiced his concerns to Levi.
"Hey Levi? Yeah, I can't exactly go back to my apartment," he spoke up, nervousness creeping into his veins.
"Why is that?" Levi questioned.
"Well, I was bleeding pretty badly and there's still stains on the floor. I can't go clean it up without passing out again."
Levi seemed to think a moment, before pulling his own apartment keys out of his pocket, and then grabbing Eren gently by the arm and leading him into his apartment.
"Just sit here," he said, directing him to the couch after removing his shoes, "and watch TV. I'll go clean your apartment for you."
Eren sat up in protest. "But I can't let you do that! I have already asked so much of you, and for your to clean my apartment alone is just too mu-"
Eren was cut off with lips pressing against his own, effectively silencing him. "Don't worry. It's no trouble for me, and I'd rather do it so I know it gets completely clean, and then you won't pass out again, either."
Eren simply resigned to his fate, pouting as he turned on the TV and listened to Levi gather cleaning supplies to take to his place. Levi departed with a kiss to his cheek, and was out the door.
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Eren smiles as he reflected on the memories of the time he helped him, a melancholic feeling calmly settling over him. That had been five years ago. He was brought out of his thoughts by the feeling of familiar lips pressing against his cheek, and a hand resting over his, the silver metal bands softly clincking together as they touched. Eren smiled and turned his head, properly greeting his husband with a gentle kiss on the lips.
"Hey, Levi," he began, "it's our three-year anniversary. What would you like to do today?" Each year, on their anniversary, one of the two chooses where they want to go or what they want to do for the day. Eren insisted Levi chose the first time, and the second anniversary was up to Eren. With it being the third, it was Levi's turn once again to choose the day's activities.
"Well," the raven began, sitting on Eren's lap as he thought. "I want it to be simple this year. How about we just go and sit out on the balcony today? It's beautiful out, and it's just the right temperature. That's what I would like to do." It seems Levi had been reflecting as well. "But do you know what I really want?"
Eren peered at him curiously. "What do you want? It's your day, so it's all up to you."
Levi smiled and pressed his lips to Eren's again. "I just want to spend the day in your arms. Nothing more, nothing less."
Eren smiled. "That's a wonderful idea."
They met in a kiss again, and Eren took in everything that was Levi. The quality of his soft lips, the texture of his hair as it brushed his forehead, and the one thing he thought was most uniquely Levi. The light scent of lavender that defined Levi. It brought comfort to Eren, knowing that Levi was there, as he was. And Eren wouldn't have him any other way.