Archive of Our Own

August 16, 2014. This day means many things to Erwin Smith. It’s the day his best friends married one another, had the most beautiful ceremony he’d ever been witness to. It was Erwin’s first time being a best man and his first time singing in front of a large group of people. Petra always gets flowers on this day, it’s been five years, and she always finds the notion to be laughable, but it never stops Erwin from doing it. It was the day that changed his life.

Erwin received the wedding invitation at a last moment's notice, which wasn’t surprising when you consider that Mike and Nanaba were the ones getting married. He’d barely had enough time to properly request time off of work, but he was thankful that he had a boss that was forgiving since he rarely ever took personal time anyway. Erwin knew he was going to be the best man, he’d known this from the moment Mike mentioned wanting to marry the silver-haired hurricane of a woman that had stolen his heart. Nanaba and Mike fit together like puzzle pieces, finding solitude and perfection in the presence of one another, and Erwin couldn’t be any happier for them, even if he was a bit jealous.

Oregon in the fall was incomparable to any other state, beautiful, graceful, perfect for a wedding. It was a crisp morning when Erwin arrived at the cabin the couple had rented for the weekend. The drive from his home in Washington was gentle, about four hours with the traffic, but otherwise uneventful. He was surprised to find that he was one of the last of the guests to arrive but he had left his house a bit later than he’d planned because of an issue at work.

“Win! Oh, you finally made it!” Nanaba came skirting down the stairs of the front porch.

“Hey, there, gorgeous.” He’d barely had time to slide out of his truck before she was jumping into his arms. He hugged her tightly and spun around in a small circle before placing her back on her feet. “You are absolutely glowing, look at you.”

“Oh, hush you, you’re already the best man, you don’t have to suck up anymore.” She brushed her hair from her eyes. “Mike is busy helping Nile get the grill turned on out back so I wanted to come greet you, show you where your room was.”

The pair had requested that the wedding party arrive the day before the to allow ample time to decorate, prepare food, and get everything perfectly in order for the big event. Erwin was lucky to get three days off to make this the best days of his friends' lives so staying here was more than okay with him.

“Oh, god, please tell me Nile isn’t going to be touching the food. Is Marie cooking? Please tell me she had prohibited him from touching any raw ingredients.” Erwin and Nanaba busted out laughing together and he gave her one more hug when she stepped in close.

“I have missed you. Why did you have to move so far away. Also, I’m the bride, so I won’t grab your bag but I’ll carry your tux upstairs so I can be somewhat useful.” She took the bagged garment when he started to pull his bags from the vehicle.

“Sweetheart, three hours really isn’t that far away. When someone asks you to spearhead an entire section of their company, you don’t ask questions. You just move, you know that. Mike moved here because you asked him to, you’re his boss. That’s how we work.” Erwin followed her through the foyer of the cabin and up the flight of stairs to the second floor to his room.

“Bet your ass I’m his boss. I’m the only reason we're having an actual wedding you know.” Nanaba opened the closet and hung his suit on the hook before upzipping the bag to inspect it. “See, I knew burgundy was the perfect color for you guys to wear, it goes wonderfully with our pink. Am I good or what?”

“You’re wonderful, Nana. Now, paws off before you wrinkle it.” Erwin put his suitcase on the edge of the bed and tossed his wallet and keys onto the bedside table.

“Boy, don’t you get an attitude with me. I’ll throw you right out of my fucking wedding.” Nanaba spun around from his suit and thrusted a finger into his face with a joking tone.

“And, what, leave Nile in charge of holding the rings? You aren’t that stupid.” They both laughed together again and exchanged another hug.

“Mike is going to be so happy to see you. We are so fucking happy you could make it. I know everything was such short notice for you.” She rocked Erwin side to side and nuzzled against his shirt.

“Wouldn’t miss it for the world, Nana, you know that.” Erwin kissed the top of her head and held her embrace for a few more minutes.

Mike, Nanaba, and Erwin had all met in the military, both of the men were snipers and Nanaba was a medic, which came in handy when the two of them scuffled together when they got bored. They’d all gotten out without much injury but not before forming an extremely tight bond with one another, following one another home and moving close together. It seemed like just yesterday that they’d met but it felt like they’d known one another for forever.

“Alright, come on, let’s go join everyone outside by the fire so we can have lunch and sort these decorations out.” Nanaba gave Erwin one last squeeze before letting him go. She waited out in the hall for him while freshen up after his drive.

Erwin followed Nanaba through the cabin to the backyard, instantly spotting a large sandy-blonde man across the yard. Mike was shoving a spoon of potato salad into his mouth that had been offered to him by Marie  and laughed when Nile was denied a bite when he opened his mouth.

“Keep it up, Marie, and he won’t fit into that suit tomorrow.” Erwin’s smiled when Mike's head flicked to meet his voice.

“Son of a bitch, you finally made it!” Mike trotted over and met Erwin with a giant embrace, knocking the wind out of each others' chests. “I thought you were going to miss lunch.”

“Nana said there would be shrimp and chicken, hell no I wasn’t missing it.” Erwin clapped Mike’s shoulders and kissed the side of his face before they parted. “Marie, there’s a bowl of that for me to take home, right?”

“I brought extra ingredients just to make you one before you leave on Sunday, baby, don’t worry. Nile, fucking stop eating it all, Jesus.” She popped the scruffy man on the nose with her index finger.

Erwin started to laugh at Nile and the booming of his voice brought the rest of the wedding party flooding from the kitchen. Nanaba's bridesmaids included Hange, Petra, Rico, and Marie, while Mike's groomsman were Erwin, Nile, Shadis, and Moblit. They all greeted one another, hugs and kisses passed all around because it had been nearly a year since Erwin had seen most of them with how busy work had kept him as of late. Their brunch went off without a hitch, so much catching up was done and plans were made as the fire crackled in the small breeze.

“So, in other news, I think Petra has a new boyfriend.” Hange cackled when Moblit elbowed them in the ribs, harshly beckoning for his partner to keep their mouth shut.

“Oh ho! Do you now, Petra?” Erwin tipped his lemonade back and hummed when Mike offered to refill it for him.

“Okay, first of all–” Petra pointed to Hange with her finger but was quickly interrupted by Rico.

“She meets up with him, like, five days out of the week and they’re been talking about getting an apartment together.” Rico tried to dodge the small bite of potato salad Petra hurdled in her direction but it hit her right in the face.

“Oh shit, yea, a food fight!” Shadis laughed deeply and was reaching for his own leftover chicken when Nanaba yelled for them to stop.

“We are both students and it’s much easier to afford rent when more than one person is paying for it, will y’all get off my dick? Jesus, fuck, man. Plus, he’s super fucking gay.” Petra had started to blush but more of a way that led Erwin to believe she wasn’t expecting to talk about this mystery man. “You guys act like I’m talking to some sixty-year-old creep, he’s twenty-four.”

Petra was the youngest of the group, a student at twenty-three while the rest of them were almost thirty, Erwin himself getting ready to turn twenty-eight in a few months. She was a bit more reserved when it came to her love life, much like Nile, Marie, and Moblit, but very unlike Mike, Nanaba, Hange, and Erwin. The four of them were unafraid to share details, ask for opinions, and show off their partners but it had been quite a few years since Erwin had been fortunate enough to do so. Being a workaholic wasn’t all that attractive to most people, especially coupled with the fact that even though he went both ways, you had to actually have time to find a partner in order to get one. Time was not a friend of Erwin Smith so he’d becoming comfortable with the fact that he might die alone with the turtles who lived in his backyard.

“She says that but she won’t let us meet him.” Nanaba curled into Mike's side but gave Petra a raised eyebrow.

“Bitch.” Marie and Nile chortled the empty insult in her direction, laughing harder at the fact that it came from them in unison.

“Oh my god, you guys.” Petra shoved a spoon of potato salad into her mouth. “He’s my plus one for tomorrow, will that make you happy? I had to pull his teeth out and threaten to break all of his teacups in order to get him to come with me. If you scare him off, I’ll murder all of you because he’s amazing and I don’t have time to charm another person into living with me.”

The entire group laughed together. Petra’s open-ended threat was flat but all too real because it really had been difficult for her to find a roommate. She was a lovely girl, bright, inviting, but having a one hundred pound pitbull named Montey kind of made it hard to make friends, much less convince someone to live with you. Erwin wasn’t always the biggest fan of strangers when it came to personal gatherings but he could push through it for the happiness of his friends.

The rest of the afternoon went easily for them once they got to the wedding venue. The decorations for the wedding only took a few hours to set up. Nanaba had chosen to go a bit more country since she and Mike were both from Texas. The group rearranged hay bales as seats, strung up fairy lights, rearranged the wooden archway the couple would stand under, and then ran through a few practice runs of the ceremony itself to make sure everything was in order. Everything was set up perfectly and draped with white cloths to keep it safe overnight before they took a drive to the reception area to get it set up as well. The vineyard for the reception was Erwin’s favorite of the two locations, the wedding venue was gorgeous with the large creek and tall trees but the vineyard was much more rustic. Nanaba really had chosen the perfect places and Erwin couldn’t wait to celebrate with them tomorrow.

By the time Erwin was deciding to turn in for the evening, a few guests were starting to arrive that planned to stay over night from their drive. Mike and Nanaba's parents arrive from Texas, a few pairs of their friends from college, some extended family that came from overseas, and a few military friends. Erwin stayed up long enough to share a cup of coffee with the couple's parents but by the time people were settling in, he’d been up much longer than his routine typically allowed him to be so he bid everyone goodnight and headed upstairs. He took a quick shower, checked his work email, submitted a few extra documents for the weekend staff, and double checked his tux was still wrinkle free before letting himself drift off to sleep.

Erwin had always been a light sleeper so he wasn’t surprised to be woken up a few hours later by the deep rumble of a vehicle engine just outside his window. He then heard the door of the room next to his, Petra's room, open and the padding of soft footsteps grace down the hallway. She hadn’t mentioned that she was waiting for a guest to arrive so Erwin rolled out of the bed without bothering to put on a shirt. He quietly slipped out of his room and down the hall to the mouth of the stairs, looking down just in time to see Petra gently opening the front door in nothing but a large t-shirt. The girl's hair was frazzled and sticking up in all directions and the only light illuminating her was coming from the overhead lamp in the kitchen so it made him wonder exactly what time it was.

“Hey, here give me your clothes.” Her voice was hushed when she stepped out onto the porch, just out of Erwin's view but came back with a suit bag thrown over her shoulder.

“Sorry, my shift ran long and then it took a little extra time getting Montey settled at mom's.” It was a man's voice, hushed, edged, and heavy.

“Was he difficult? I’m sorry.” Petra scratched her head and held the door open when a man about her same height came through with two suit cases in his hand.

“No, no, he was totally fine. I think it was just doing it so late in the evening but I knew that if I fell asleep I wouldn’t make it on time tomorrow.” The man was small with ink black hair draping over his face, keeping it out of Erwin's direct view and pale skin coming from the sleeve of his t-shirt.

“Well, here, the bed in my room is big enough for the two of us, just take a shower and let’s go to sleep. Did you bring enough stuff?” They headed toward the stairs together after Petra locked the front door again.

“Well, you wanted me to do everyone's make-up and I’ve never met these people so I just brought everything just in case.” Petra started up the stairs before her friend and giggled lightly before she noticed Erwin at he top.

“Oh! Shit, did we wake you up? Fuck, I’m sorry, Erwin. I forgot how lightly you sleep.” Petra stopped mid-step and scratched the back of her neck with an apologetic smile.

“Uh, oh, no. No, you didn’t. I just wanted to make sure everything was okay.” He stepped back and the pair came up the stairs even further, enough for Erwin to finally get a look at the man.

He was incredibly small, barely taller than Petra, if at all, with sharp features, thin eyebrows, and eyes silver enough to shine in the darkness of the hall. His skin looked so smooth, flawless and pale enough to see a few light blue veins underneath, and his hair was thin but framed his face perfectly when he looked up at Erwin. Their eyes met and time seemed to slow for just a moment because the man didn’t look away, not even when Petra slipped past Erwin and into her room. The silver was gorgeous, shimmering, and captivating enough to almost pull Erwin in; he felt a blush twinge on his cheeks and was suddenly well aware of the fact that he was half naked.

“Right here, Levi.” Petra called, snapping the both of them back to Earth as she popped her head back through the doorway. “Oh, yea, Levi this is Erwin. Erwin, this is Levi, my soon-to-be roommate.

“H-hey, it’s, uh, it’s nice to meet you.” Erwin immediately stuck his hand out before remembering Levi had a bag in each hand so he blushed even harder. He drew the hand back to push his bed-hair out of his face.

Erwin felt a heat rise in his body and the blush spread from his cheeks down his neck to drift across his chest but maybe it was too dark to see it. He thought he saw a small smile stretch across Levi's face and he suddenly felt his pulse quicken.

“Yea, you, too.” Levi held his eye contact for just a moment longer before adjusting his hold on his stuff.

“Sorry, sorry.” Erwin backed up to give Levi enough room to maneuver into the room. “I’ll, uh, I’ll let you guys get settled. I’m going to head back to bed.”

Erwin ducked back into his room and leaned against the door in an attempt to calm his heart. Something about the small man in the room next to him made the muscle underneath his ribs hammer quickly, ringing in his ears and made it difficult to steady himself. He moved to sit back in his former spot on the mattress and tried to get comfortable again but he found himself fully awake.

The last of a hushed conversation came through the wall before the sound of a shower turning on, but that only lasted for a few short minutes before everything fell silent around him. His sleepiness was gone, there was no bringing it back so he was a bit unsure of what to do with his time. Levi's face flashed a bit more in his brain and he found himself overeager for the next day, excited to get a view of the man's skin in the sunlight. Did he dance? Did he like going to parties? It came across that he did makeup, would he wear any and cover up that beautiful skin?

Erwin rolled over with a small huff and grabbed his phone, wondering if he could learn a bit about Levi. Would that make him creepy? Erwin had a Facebook but he really only used it for the Messenger because that was an easier form of communication than texting, in his opinion. He opened the app and quickly found his way to Petra's account, which he hadn’t visited in quite a while. She had quite a number of new pictures and celebratory posts in relation to her classes, but none of them showing or linking to an account belonging to anyone named Levi. He tried searching through her friends but came up empty there also and became a bit discouraged. Of course, the one person he’d been interested in in years, albeit after a three second interaction, didn’t use social media. He flipped through a few more of the apps on his phone but he didn’t have a Twitter, much less would he know how to find Petra if she was on there, but he did remember downloading Instagram earlier this year to follow Hange's photography business.

The second he opened Instagram, his dash was immediately flooded with pictures the very few accounts that he actually followed but he ignored them all and went straight to Petra's personal profile, hoping for some kind of evidence the man in the hall hadn’t been an illusion. Petra's Instagram had many photos identical to the ones on her Facebook but there were plenty more past that. She loved taking selfies, which Erwin found endearing, she took one of herself with all of her college friends, landscapes, flowers, animals, but as he scrolled through them, he found none that featured a silver-eyed man.

Erwin gets a few weeks back into the pictures when one catches his eye. It is picture of Petra laying horizontally across the arm rests of an old wooden chair, mostly naked by the looks of it, but her body was painted to match the background behind her. The background was an ocean, which looked hand-painted with incredible accuracy, and focused on a large swarm of jellyfish in multiple shades of pink, purple, and white that advanced from one side to the other. The swarm of jellyfish enveloped Petra’s body, wrapping around all of her limbs and creeping along her stomach. If it wasn’t for the chair, her hair, and gem-coated facial features, it would be hard to tell a human being was in the photo. This photo was the key Erwin needed because it was tagged by an account named “levi’s.look.book.” and following the name led the blonde exactly where he’d wanted to be.

The account had a profile avatar that blew Erwin away in such a way that he quickly sat straight up in bed and cradled the phone in his hands. It was Levi, the sharpness of his jaw unmistakable underneath the make-up, with white contacts in his eyes. The design of the make-up make it look like the paleness of his skin was fake, melting away to reveal a demonic-like creature underneath that had ink-black skin with red cracks, coupled seamlessly with a pair of red twisting horns protruding from his hairline. His hands and arms were partially in the picture, decorated in a similar fashion to reveal black fingers with long, talon-like black nails that made indents in the skin wherever they touch; one hand rested gingerly against the apple of his left cheek while the other gripped under his chin, the nail of that index finger prodding into his open mouth to tickle his tongue.

Erwin immediately hit the button to follow the page, not wanting to risk losing it if something happened to his phone or the application itself. He scrolled through and quickly found himself getting lost in the thousands of pictures on the account. Levi had hundreds of thousands of followers and some of his pictures included actors and actresses of movies Erwin had been too busy to go see. A large majority of the pictures were of Levi's work on other people and ranged from creepy to princess-cute, some normal, every-day makeup looks while others were geometric and not of this world. Every so often there would be one of Levi's work on his own body, different sections of his limbs, face, stomach, and hands – Erwin found himself falling quickly for those beautiful hands. Erwin's favorite pictures, however, seemed to be taken when Levi wasn’t expecting it, by another person in the room, and featured him in deep concentration on a painting in his free time.

Erwin found one he liked more than any other, buried deep in the years worth of photos on the account. It was in black-and-white and showed Levi sitting at a table holding a teacup by the rim, he had a brush in his free hand and was in the middle of painting what looked like scales on the stomach of the person who stood in front of him. The man's eyebrows crinkled in the middle, deep in concentration and his lips were slightly parted to make way for his tongue, which stuck slightly out against a corner of his lips. The photo made Erwin smile, he wondered who has the pleasure of taking that picture, seeing that look while Levi worked. He hoped it was Petra because he found himself feeling a bit odd at the thought of a stranger, at least a stranger to him, taking photos of the beautiful man.

Erwin drifted through the pictures, losing track of how many he liked because they were all beautiful. Levi was beyond talented and to be so young with such ambition, the blonde was jealous. Sure, Erwin loved crunching numbers and improving the success of businesses but he wouldn’t necessarily call it a passion, if anything, as odd as it probably seemed, Erwin loved the times he and Nanaba had volunteered at carnivals and children’s festivals at a face-painting booths Marie hosted for her elementary school classes. Levi, though, this man had true passion, which was incredibly attractive. Levi's pictures deserved praise so Erwin spent his time liking as many as possible.

“I swear to God if you don’t turn those notifications off, I’ll slit your throat and watch you flop around like a fish.” Petra's voice broke through the walls and it wasn’t until then that Erwin realized he’d been hearing dinging noises through the thin walls for quite some time.

Erwin's face suddenly burned red hot and he dropped his phone on the blankets. He’d been liking pictures for nearly thirty minutes and Levi's notifications had been on the entire time. He’d been caught, like some creeper in the night, and what made it worse was there was no pretending like it was him because his profile had his own name as the user ID. There were plenty of pictures on the account, mostly ones tagged from the accounts of his friends, so it was a dead giveaway that it was a real account.

“Alright, Cujo, calm your titties.” There was a soft chuckle and then everything was silent.

Erwin would never be able to leave this room, he’d miss the wedding, everything was finished. He could never show his face in front of anyone ever again. He was going to die lonely in this room and the turtles would be never see him again. He raked his hands over his face and was considering suffocating himself with the pillow when his phone vibrated. Erwin blushed harder when he read the notification he’d gotten.

ackerbondmebaby is now following you.

Erwin picked the phone up and squinted at the notification before clicking on the name to open the account. His screen lit up with more pictures of Levi but the account had less than a hundred followers. Levi was the kind of person that liked taking gym pictures, there were some of him with sun glasses on, showing off new tattoos, and then there were cute ones. In one Levi was laying in bed and cuddling with Petra's dog, topless with his lower half still under the dark comforter. The next was one of him with a dog-ear Snapchat filter over it, a small red-haired girl in the background throwing up a peace sign. Another showed him painting a dick on the cheek of a silver-haired boy sleeping with a textbook draped over his chest. This was Levi's personal account and he’d followed Erwin with it instead of the other one.

Erwin’s phone started vibrating a few more times in succession, notifications alerting Erwin the that fact that Levi had started liking his pictures. Erwin's choked on his spit when noticed the only ones Levi was liking were the ones of him alone and the turtles. He sat there for a few moments and watched a few likes roll in. Erwin navigated back to Levi's personal account and followed it also. With a smile on his face and a small hammering in his chest he took a leap of faith and liked a couple of the pictures. Levi retaliated by liking a few more of Erwin's. He had quite a number of pictures on his account but so many of them were so old, however, Levi got closer and closer to them without stopping. Levi eventually made it to the his old military pictures, most of them being ones that Mike and Nanaba had taken of him, and then there were a few of him in his suits for work. Levi liked all of them, anything that was a solo photo of the blonde.

The two of them had spent another forty-five minutes trading off visual appreciation for one another but Levi reached the end of what Erwin had to offer. Erwin breathed through his nose, it would probably be weird for him to suddenly upload new pictures now, not that he really had any other than a couple more photos of himself in his suits. He opted to continue liking a Levi's photos until he slowly drifted off to sleep a few minutes later.

~~~~~~~~~~

The wedding was beautiful, unlike anything Erwin had ever seen before and amazing enough to make him tear up a little. Nanaba's dress flowed long down the aisle as she walked, the pale color highlighting the tan on her skin, and her hair had been twisted back into an elegant bun to frame simple makeup. Everyone looked stunning, Erwin imagined that to be Levi's work, each of the bridesmaids having flawless faces to match with their perfect dresses. Even Hange, who’s tux matched the pink of everyone else's dress sported a small layer of work, which looked lovely but still barely there as they had probably requested. Mike's maroon tux matched the groomsmen but stood out because of the large white flower pinned to the pocket.

Mike's vows were just as everyone expected: cheesy, slightly sweet, but amazing enough to reduce everyone to tears. Nanaba's, also as expected, were poetic, fluid, and diabetic in nature to make Mike blush and laugh. They had around 130 people in the crowd between family, friends, coworkers, and old acquaintances, none of which were immune to emotions of the event. Mike's mother sat directly next to Erwin's and they had both started crying from the second the music started that prompted the groomsmen to escort the bridemaids down the aisle.

Mike and Nanaba weren’t particularly religious but they were those people that had their Saint Bernard gallop down the aisle with their rings attached to his collar, a last minute decision made earlier that morning. The pair exchanged their kiss and embraced one another before Mike hoisted Nanaba into his arms bridal style to spin them around. It had all gone down without a hitch and nothing could have made it any better.

Erwin would be lying if he said he hadn’t glanced through the crowd periodically through the ceremony in an attempt to find Levi but he didn’t have any luck. He’d woken up that morning to find Petra's room empty and neither of them in the kitchen when he went down for quick breakfast. Petra had been his bridemaid to escort but she didn’t seem to have any idea of Erwin's curiosity for Levi so he didn’t ask. Maybe it had been the man's way of letting Erwin know he wasn’t interested, which was okay, typical, but acceptable. He wasn’t here for himself, after all, and the festivities were about to begin.

The groomsmen and bridemaids had been directed to meet back in the parking lot together for instructions regarding the wedding photos. Erwin and Petra walked arm in arm back down the aisle and made their way over the gravel with everyone else.

“Oh, yay! Ugh! That went so amazingly! Thank you guys so fucking much, you really are the best!” Nanaba squealed as everyone exchanged congratulatory hugs. “Okay, alright. Oh god, I’m going cry again. Okay.”

Nanaba wiped her eyes again and took a moment to breath before she continued.

“Okay, so I asked everyone over here because of the way Mike and I want to do the wedding party pictures. Okay, so, we have extra clothes for everyone at the reception. We are going to take regular ones with the help of one of Hange's photography friends and then…” She drew out the last word. “We are going to have all of you transformed into zombies for funny pictures.”

Nanaba smiled wildly with her mouth hanging open. Hange was the first to jump up and down and make weird noises of excitement. Nile and Marie laughed while Petra and Rico shook their heads with smiles on their faces.

“Sounds about right.” Moblit and Erwin laughed when they both said the comment in unison.

“I’m too old for this but I guess if you’re going to make me do it.” Shadis rolled his eyes but smiled.

“I won’t make any of y’all do it, I can ask others. But Petra's friend offered to do it when I asked him about changing my makeup for the pictures and I just couldn’t turn it down. He’s so good, y’all should see his Instagram.” Nanaba looked up at Mike with a worried face.

“Nana, you know we will all do it for you.” Petra reached forward and pulled the new bride into a hug. “Levi is already there getting set up and stuff so why don’t we head over?”

Everyone split between Erwin's truck and Hange's SUV to ride over to the vineyard, a long line of vehicles following behind them for the eighteen minute drive. Erwin used the short drive to be happy about the fact that he hadn’t scared the smaller man off but he still wondered if he should skip out on the second round of photos. Making Levi uncomfortable again wasn’t something he wanted to do, maybe Mike and Nanaba would let him play a different role in the photos.

As they pulled up into the parking lot of the reception, Erwin spotted a vehicle that had been waiting for them to get there. They all parked next to it and made their way around to the covered reception areas, noting how beautiful the breeze and mid-afternoon sun made everything glow. An outside reception was a perfect idea with the weather and it would carry on perfectly late into the evening as the party was bound do as well. Erwin surveyed the area looking for the group of people the extra car belonged to and it was then that he noticed an extra popup canopy tent setup under a large tree that hadn’t been there yesterday when they set up.

“Oh my my! I certainly hope we don’t run into any zombies today!” Petra called out the fake worries in a sarcastic but sing-song voice.

Suddenly, a horde of children busted forth from the closed doors of the tent, faces painted in deep shades of blue, grey, and red. Seven children came barreling towards the adults but then suddenly made a single-file b-line directly in Erwin's direction when they spied him. He crouched down with a large smile in their face, ready for hugs.

Marie and Nile had triplets, the man had been outnumbered by three daughters all in one day, and they all had blonde hair like Marie except for one, which had Nile's black hair. Laura was the oldest of the four year olds, being born nearly thirty minutes before the other two. She was the spitting image of Marie and the mothering-type just the same. Next was Rosie, a spit-fire that looked like the perfect blonde combination of her parents with Nile's nose and ears but Marie's facial structure. The last was Nala, considerably smaller than her sisters, and Nile through and through, black hair included, and she mostly loved to read.

Hange and Moblit had adopted a family of four siblings after they got married because an empty house just made the pair feel lonely. Jamie was the oldest, at seven, with a parental-type attitude but worrisome like Moblit. Their six year-old daughter, Theo, had soaked up all of Hange’s personality like a sponge and was always ready for an adventure. Then came the twin four-year old boys, Roland and Sebastian, who were both mostly Moblit's shadows and enjoyed going to the pottery classes he taught. The couple had gotten weird looks at first after adopting the children, it was the contrast of light-brown skin against the white of their parents, but they showered their children in as much affection as humanly possible and taught them not to give a shit about anyone else's opinions.

“Uncle Win!” The name was shouted in various tones from the group just before they collided with his body and rolled him back into the grass. They all surged forward to give him kisses and nuzzle his cheeks.

“Oh no, someone help me!” Erwin reached towards everyone else in a fake please for help. “They’re going to suck my blood!”

“Uncle Win, zombies don’t suck your blood, silly!” Jaime giggled into his ear.

“They don’t? Are you sure?” The children crawled over him but he still played dumb.

“Dats vamproos, Unc Win!” Laura smacked his shirt with open palms.

“Vamproos!” Rosie and Nala growled in unison and made scary faces with their index fingers pointed down like fangs.

“Vampires? Really?” Erwin scoffed dramatically, like it was all new information to him.

“Yea, Uncle Erwin! Zombies eat your brains, that’s what Daddy said.” Theo rolled over on her back and smiled over at him.

“Dey eaf evyting, stufid.” Roland grimaced over at her from atop Erwin’s stomach.

“Ooo! Tat bad wud! Uncle Win, RoRo said bad wud!” Sebastian covered his mouth with his hands.

“Okay, okay, okay, no bad words, Roland. You know better. Do you want me to tell Momo?” Momo is the word Hange uses instead of Mama.

“No! No! I sowwie! Not Momo!” Roland pouted softly.

“Don’t tell Momo what?” Hange walked up to the group, having run into the reception area to retrieve their friend for their photos. “Roland, were you being bad?”

“No, Momo.” Roland reached up to give them grabby hands with tears welling up in his eyes. Hange plucked the child up and cradled him in their arms.

“Is he telling the truth Uncle Erwin?” Hange looked down at him with a wink.

“We were just playing, Momo. I promise he was good.” Erwin smiled up at the boy and he smiled back before noising into Hange's shirt.

“Oh, Roland, you’re going to smudge your face, honey!” Hange sighed and pulled the child away from their shirt. “Shit, my shirt. At least I took of my jacket a few minutes ago. Mob?”

“Yes, I have another shirt in the car. I’ll be right back.” Moblit smiled from behind them and trotted back to the vehicle.

“Can you grab the bag so I can do their hair, too, please? Theo, I told you to leave your braid alone this morning, didn’t I? Now I have to fix it.” Hange raised an eyebrow at the girl.

“It was itchy, Momo. It was too tight.” Theo blushed and fiddled with the bit of braid that fell over her shoulder.

“Okay, I’m sorry. It’ll be better once I fix it.” Hange winked at the girl to settle her, making her drop the braid from her fingers.

“Hey, there, brat, did you ruin your face?” Levi's voice drew Erwin's attention away from Hange and the kids.

Levi had come from the tent sporting a thick, black fabric umbrella with tassels that fluttered in the wind. He had on a pair of pink leggings and a black T-shirt with skulls on it, his feet were bare but the umbrella was large enough to keep the sun from touching them.

“Let me take a look see.” Levi made a rolling motion with his hand.

Hange twisted Roland around and Levi stepped close to inspect the child’s face. He clicked his tongue and lightly poked Roland in the stomach, making him giggle loudly, before prodding at his cheeks with a puffy foam-like item. Roland grimaced for a second but calmed when Levi told him to hold still.

“That's good enough. The rest of you, let me fix yours, too.” Levi rolled his eyes and looked all the children over.

They all looked at Levi and then Erwin noticed the paint around their noses and mouths to be smudged. Levi crouched down and gently pulled Sebastian from Erwin's side to prod at him also. The rest of the children jumped from Erwin and huddled in close to Levi so he could fix their makeup. He steadied himself when Theo offered to hold his umbrella for him and only after instructing her exactly how to hold it did he hand it over. Erwin sat up while Levi was working.

“Alright, they’re all good to go. Take them inside while it dries. And no touching your faces, please.” Levi pointed at them all with the last statement.

All the children nodded then Hange and Marie ushered them all go the reception all with promises of juice and cookies before the photos started. Everyone moved to follow the children into the hall and Erwin pulled himself of the ground to follow them.

“Hey, Uncle Erwin.” Levi's voice made a blush spark in his cheeks.

“That would be me. But coming from you I much prefer just plain Erwin. For right now, at least.” He turned around on his heels and Levi had to tilt the umbrella to see his face.

“Is that so? Alright, just plain Erwin, you have zombie colors all over your face and it's not quite time for that yet. Let me clean you up.” Levi twisted on his toes and took a few steps back into the shade towards the tent, letting the umbrella fall away from his shoulders. “Please, step into my office.”

Erwin touched his face and felt the paint slick across his nose and cheek. He blushed again and let his legs carry him over to the tent as Levi pinned the flaps open. Inside Levi had a few tables set up with some lights, boxes of makeup, a few chairs, a stool, and a large mirror. A fan also sat in the corner to bring the tent to a lower temperature than the outside but Levi reached over to flick it off.

“Pull one of the chairs up since you’re such a tall ass tree.” Levi turned to the table and grabbed a pack of face wipes and a bottle while Erwin pulled up a chair.

Erwin plopped down into the seat and looked up when Levi grabbed a wipe from the pack and stepped in close, probably closer than he needed to because he stood right in between Erwin's knees. Levi wrapped the wipe around his index finger and leaned over to crowd Erwin's view.

“So, tell me, because I’m dying to know. You have any kids of your own or are you just Uncle Erwin?” Levi wiped over Erwin's cheeks.

“Oh, no, just the Uncle.” Erwin chuckled but gripped the arms of the chair when Levi's slender fingers grasped his chin and titled it to the left for access to his ear.

“You’re not the creepy Uncle that touches them when no ones looking, though, right?” Levi laughed brightly when Erwin pulled away from his fingers and stuttered out declarations of denial. “Relax, relax, I’m just joking. God, you poor bastard. Just wanted to see that blush again.”

Erwin's breath caught in his chest when Levi gently took his chin to steady his face again. Levi's eyes met his for a moment and the grey glittered beautifully in the lights that we’re perched systematically on the table. His eyelashes swept his face when he blinked, they were long, lush, light, and Erwin could tell they didn’t have any makeup on them so this was their natural look. He wanted to feel them tickle across his face. He fought hard but was able to tear his eyes away and flick them across the tent where he saw the umbrella again.

“S-so, uh, w-what’s with the umbrella? Are you a vampire or just want to keep your skin this pretty?” Erwin’s tone dropped unintentionally and the words got a bit breathy at the end. Levi smirked and turned Erwin's face to reach the other ear, restarting the wiping as they spoke.

“Its all to draw in the hunky blondes.” Levi leaned away just long enough to grab another wipe. “Actually, I have a small allergy to the sun. I burn faster than I can apply sunblock and blister even faster than that. The pale is good for my work, though.”

“I would certainly have to agree.” Erwin gasped when Levi popped the top button of his dress shirt with the excuse that Erwin had paint on his neck. The wipe was cool against the blush that colored his skin.

“Makes a man have to find his Vitamin D somewhere else, though, which can be quite a pain in the ass.” Levi dipped his hand underneath the collar of Erwin's shirt briefly.

Erwin gasped again when Levi stepped impossibly closer but he spread his legs more to give the man as much room as he wanted. A heat coursed through his veins and his fingers twitched against the wood of the chair because Levi's skin was right there. It would be such an easy movement to slip his hands under the hem of Levi’s shirt but was he allowed? There was no way he could be wrong about the flirting, right?

“A pain, huh? Just…uh…just sounds t-to me like you haven’t found someone who cares enough to make it feel good.” Erwin took one hand from the chair and gently thumbed over the skin above the hem of the pink pants.

Levi was so close in this moment, his face mere inches away, his lips close enough to kiss in one swoop. He smelled like soap, not a cheap kind either, with hints of jasmine and mint mixed in. His hands were soft, delicate, and his long fingers floated nimbly over Erwin's skin with purpose. His nose was pointed but adorable and wrinkled when he smiled, Erwin was addicted to that smile already even though he’d only seen it a few times.

“Well, if it were the emotions that made it a pain in the ass I might be able to look the other way. I’ve been told I can be quite emotionless at time.” Levi traded out the wipe again and Erwin wondered exactly how much paint seven children could get on him without him noticing but he suspected Levi was just using them as an excuse this time.

“Now, I don’t believe that for a second.” Erwin could tell he’d interrupted Levi when his mouth moved to speak at the same time he did. “You got seven of the world's craziest children to sit still long enough to do zombie make-up. Their parents can’t even get them to stay still long enough to get them dressed for school in the mornings on most days. It’s like magic.”

“Oh stop it.” Levi clicked his tongue again but a bigger smile stretched across his face. “Kids just like me.”

“I’d have to admit they aren’t the only ones.” Levi had all but stopped tracing the wipe over Erwin’s skin but their eyes met again. “You have to be some kind of special for that to happen, Levi. Don’t sell yourself so short.”

“Cant get much shorter than five-three, so I hope that’s not a stab at how small I am.” Levi's nose crinkled with a big smile when Erwin sputtered again. “They seem to like you a lot, too. I have to admit, almost nothing hotter than a family man.”

“Almost, huh?” Erwin hoped so hard that he wasn’t reading any of these signs wrong. Of all the place for him to find someone, it had to be at this wedding, the one event to bring him back to this state. And to think he’d almost not been able to make it.

“Men in suits are pretty hot to. I found this guys Instagram last night, and let me tell you,” Levi leaned forward a bit more and whistled. “Grey suits are definitely attractive on a man. And he has turtles. I love turtles.”

Erwin gasped when Levi's bare hand pressed against his cheek. Silver eyes flicked between his own blues and his lips but just as Levi started to lean forward to close the gap between them a herd a footsteps descended on the tent. Levi buttoned Erwin’s shirt again and stepped away with a wink.

“Uncle Win! Uncle – here he is! Uncle Win it’s picture time, you goof.” Jamie poked their head through the open flap and smiled at him.

“S-so it is. Well, let’s get this started.” Erwin stood from the chair as Jamie cantered away.

“See you again in a bit, just plain Erwin.” Levi leaned back against the table he had set up.

 Erwin smiled and moved to leave the tent but in the process of trying to look collected, he tripped over the edge of the canvas and nearly fell out of the door. His arms flailed in the air but he, somehow, managed to not roll into the ground. Levi's breathy laughter flowed into the wind but he didn’t turn around in an attempt to save his dignity.

The regular pictures were more perfect that Nanaba and Mike could have ever wanted. The entire group looked so in tune with one another, as to be expected of old friends, and Hange's associate made great time to capture their laughs. The next setup, though was proving to be much more fun for everyone.

The zombie pictures took longer but was much worth the trouble. The children were the cause of the outbreak, as Erwin suspected, and one by one he took down each person in the wedding party. There would be a small pause for each person to get the make up done, a but more detailed than the children, and to change their clothes before rejoining the group. Shadis was first, then Petra, Rico, Moblit, Hange, and last was Erwin. Pixis, the man taking the pictures, tossed Erwin the tattered up shirt for him to change into, already painted with blood and dirt, and directed him back over to Levi's tent.

Erwin unbuttoned his dress shirt and tossed it back into his car before making his way back to the shaded area. Music played inside the tent and a cool breeze from the fan welcomes him as he stepped inside.

“Twice in one day, Erwin? People might start to talk.” Levi had different make up sets and paints set along the table. “And nearly half-naked. Do you have no shame? There are children out there”

“As long as it’s about me and you, talk is fine with me.” Erwin took a seat when Levi pointed at the chair from earlier and laughed as he adjusted his undershirt. “And there are no children in here so I’m allowed to have as little shame as I want.”

“Flattery will get you everywhere.” Levi chuckled but wasted no time in getting to work. “Look to the left. Thank you. Up. Great.”

Erwin followed each of Levi's directions with ease, he would do anything Levi asked if it meant being in this tent a few minutes longer. Levi tilted his face, changed colors, blended things together, all gracefully and without fault. Their eyes met periodically and every once in a while Levi would smile down at him.

“I’ve never really done make-up for a wedding like this before. Your friends are pretty wonderful for wanting to base it around the kids like this.” Levi was starting to create the bite marks over Erwin's arms where the rips in his shirt would be.

“Yea, our family pretty much revolves around those kids. Marie had a tough time getting pregnant so they tried one of those fertility treatments and bam, three girls. The look on Nile's face was priceless. They rule his life but he couldn’t be any happier. Marie had been hoping for a boy but she had some complications with the pregnancy itself and can’t have anymore. I think she was fine with that in the end once she realized how busy her life got with three babies.” Erwin tilted his head so Levi could put a bit mark on his neck. “Hange and Moblit, though, they built a huge house right after they got married. After a few months if living in it, though, they decided to fill it with kids.”

“Are they all related?” Levi's question was spoken gently within in concentration.

“Yup. Hange and Moblit were foster parents and got the call since they had such a large house. Hange was at work when they were brought over and by the time they got home, Moblit was wrapped around each one of their fingers. The twins were barely a month old, you should have seen Moblit juggling them both at the same time.” Erwin then had this lovely memory spark through his brain and he laughed deeply, Levi even had to pause and let him catch his breath. “I’ll never forget Jamie's first day of school and before their first class even started, Moblit got a courtesy call from the homeroom teacher.”

“Did they smack the shit out of someone at breakfast?” Levi started again with a tube of fake blood.

“No, no. So, this lady calls because, god, because she was worried that something was wrong at home. She thought that because, Jesus, Moblit and Hange had sent Jaime to school without their hair done. Like, this poor child’s hair was just everywhere because they had no idea how to do it.” Erwin laughed a bit harder and it infected Levi a bit.

“That poor child. That’s just fantastic.” Levi grabbed a different shade of color to put on Erwin’s neck.

“It really was, honestly. After that, Moblit got an invite from the teacher to bring the kids over so she could teach him and Hange how to do their hair. Hange couldn’t make it because of work so Moblit and I went together. It was awesome, seriously, I had never realized the difference in hair care but.” Erwin shrugged to finish the statement off.

“It sounds like you’ve enjoyed being an uncle. “ Levi stepped back to survey his work but had a few things to correct.

“Its seriously great. Hange's family doesn’t really talk to them anymore since they came out in highschool. Moblit is an only child and his parents passed away when he was in college. Marie and Nile have family but they are across the country.” Levi smiled at him again, making Erwin skip over his words for a second. “I-I’m a family man, what can I say? I’ve, uh, I've been told it’s attractive in a person.”

Levi chuckled lightly, an airy sound that filled the tent, and he rolled his eyes. Erwin felt a small surge of confidence roll through him because Levi really did seem like the kind of guy he could like. Erwin let one hand come up to trace down Levi's arm from wrist to elbow.

“You have a beautiful laugh, Levi.” Erwin's voice dropped to a soft whisper but from the blush that blossomed on the raven's cheek, it hadn’t gone unheard.

“Stop, you’re making it hard to concentrate.” Levi's brush fumbled in his fingers.

“How so? If anyone is distracted it’s me, I come here for a wedding and find a pretty little thing like you. Exactly how am I supposed to focus on them now?” Erwin eased Levi forward by his elbow and the man slipped into the space between his knees.

“I’m s-sure you’ll manage it, somehow.” Their eyes locked into a deep gaze but Levi's blush deepened. “Are you trying to steal my soul or do you look at everyone like that?”

“Just guys that wear pink leggings and have sun allergies.” Erwin leaned up from the chair to bring them impossibly closer. “Maybe one day your soul will be mine. We’ll see.”

Levi opened his mouth with a smirk, like he was readying a witty rebuttle, but Erwin didn’t give him the chance. Erwin tugged his elbow, careful not to dislodge the paint cup from his hand, and pulled the man forward enough to press their lips together. Levi gasped softly, tensed for a second, and the relaxed with a small groan. They parted after a moment when Erwin pulled away, afraid he may have moved too fast. Their eyes connected again when Levi let out a huff of air.

“That was not the kiss I expected from a man who wants to have my soul one day.” Levi leaned away long enough to set his stuff down.

“Oh, well, excuse me. Let me try again.” Erwin let both hands wrap around Levi's hips and his fingers slip under the hem of the shirt.

Levi’s hands pressed against Erwin's chest when they came together again, their lips meeting with a bit more incentive this time. Goosebumps appeared underneath Erwin's fingertips and when he swiped over them Levi shivered. Erwin's nose picked up on a cinnamon scent that mingled with the lavender, guessing that it had to be Levi's shampoo, and welcomed him in. They kept kissing but it wasn’t hurried, no rushing, but with a fire lighting between them. Levi’s tongue slipped over Erwin's bottom lip, he graciously opened his mouth and gripped the smaller man's hips a but rougher.

“Uncle Erwin!” Theo came right into the tent. Both men tensed and Levi pulled back but looked over at her. “Oh! Are you turning Levi into a zombie, too?”

“W-well, I can’t.” The blonde cupped his mouth and moved to a hushed tone. “You see, he’s actually a vampire, so I can’t turn him into one.”

“Really? Like a real vampire? Those are fake Uncle Win.” Theo propped her hands on her hips and squinted at him.

“Nope, it’s true. Why do you think he needed his umbrella and has stayed in the tent.” Erwin looked up at Levi but his eyes bugged a bit when he saw some paint on Levi's face. Levi squinted but quickly raised a hand to his mouth while the other palmed around for the pack on wipes.

“Whoa! That’s so cool!” Theo beamed down at the umbrella and back to Levi.

“Oh, yea, now run along. He’s coming right behind you.” Levi shooed Theo away with a flick of his wrist and the girl turned with a giggle.

“Uncle Erwin is eating Levi so he’ll be here in a second!”

“What?” Nile’s concerned voice trailed across the yard.

“Oh god.” Erwin went to run his hands over his face but Levi caught him with a yell. “Let me go smooth that over.”

“Good luck, killer.” Levi helped Erwin into his shirt, smoothed the makeup around his mouth, and smacked his ass on his way out.

Nile gave Erwin a weird look when he first came into view but Erwin waved him off, a silent gesture to say Jamie hadn’t understood the situation. The remainder of the pictures were taken, a few by Levi himself for his portfolio, and then wipes are passed around to get everyone cleaned off. It was late in the afternoon by the time everyone was redressed, just in time for the reception to get started.

While the pictures were being taken, most of the family had been cooking – Nanaba and Mike had insisted on a potluck type wedding to save money on catering and to ensure everyone had something to eat; the decorations had been fully finished, and the wedding cake had been delivered. By the time everything came together the sun was just beginning to set, just as planned. The outside seating was illuminated by strings of lights and candles, the tables had water bowls of roses and sunflowers, each wooden chair had a large maroon bow with pink stones, and the hired DJ had his table set up a few feet away to keep the music soft. It was all absolutely perfect.

Everyone started to take their seats outside but one person seemed to be missing. Erwin had noticed that Levi's tent fell closed after everyone had cleaned off and he hadn’t seen him in the few hours. He wondered if Levi felt unwelcome at the party, he certainly hoped that wasn’t the case, but, at the same time, he could just be hiding away from the sun.

“Mike's mom made her chili and I am actually dying right now, I’m so fucking hungry.” Moblit plopped down in the chair to Erwin’s right at the table designated for the wedding party. “I’m glad they let the kids eat earlier while we were getting everything set up.”

“Yea, Theo was already upset about not getting her snack when you were getting painted earlier.” Shadis sipped his tea one chair down from Moblit. “I don’t think Marie got her girls a snack before then either.”

“I’m surprised any of the kids lasted through the entire picture taking thing anyway. I didn’t expect the triplets to be okay with getting their faces painted, much less running around in the heat.” Erwin leaned back in his chair, right next to Mike’s, and looked across at all the guests as they came through the doors of the reception hall, still looking for Levi.

“They seemed to really like Levi.” Nile was on the opposite side of the seating arrangements, the spot next to him open for Marie. “And they didn’t seem like the only one.”

“Oooh, are we talking about Erwin's eyecandy?” Hange joined the table to sit between Moblit and Shadis.

“Alright, alright, that’s enough.” Erwin chuckled along with everyone else at his typical reaction: a head dip, a wave, and an eye roll.

“I will riot and shove a piece of cake it my mouth if they don’t get their asses out here in, like, point five seconds.” Petra situated her dress and took her spot directly next to Nanaba's seat.

“They should be out any second, she couldn’t decide if she wanted to keep her wedding dress on or wear the short one she bought for here.” Rico joined the table next to Petra and took a large sip from her mason jar of water.

Marie came bustling by in front of the table with the six children in tow and Sebastian thrown over her hip; there was a table placed just off to the left of theirs specifically for the children. As the mother fought to get them all seated and give them their cups, Erwin noticed eighth chair had been added to the space with the idea that Marie or Hange would jump back and forth between the table throughout the party. Marie took her seat just as the sun went down, the lights fully illuminated, and the DJ turned on a small melody of music.

“Alright, everyone, give a round of applause for Mr. and Mrs. Zacharias.” The DJ started a rumble of exciting music.

Mike and Nanaba came from the reception hall hand-in-hand. Mike still had on his maroon slacks but had shed his jacket, wearing only his white dress shirt and tie; Nanaba had traded in her long, flowing gown for a shorter, knee-length white dress with silver accents. They came down the lit path with large smiles on their faces, mumbling to one another, and stopped at the center of the area made for the dance floor.

“We want to thank you all much for being here with us today, we really do. This day has been more special than we ever could have imagined.” Nanaba started a speech Erwin knew she'd planned ahead of time.

As the pair spoke back and forth between one another and to the guests, a presence came up behind Erwin's chair. The smell of lavender soap filling his nose again and a tug at his ear lobe brought him to turn around, just as a small figure walked past him. Levi looked more beautiful than Erwin could have ever imagined. The man was wearing a very fitting pair of black pants and a simple light pink dress shirt, the sleeves rolled up to his elbows, and pair of dress shoes. It was so simple but the color really popped against his skin, especially with the lighting.

“Oh, wow, did you guys save me a seat?” Levi gave Erwin a passing glance over his shoulder as he came up to the children's table and took the extra chair for his own.

“Petra said you wanted to sit with us.” Jamie motioned for all of the others to stay quiet with a finger over their lips. “It kinda feels like sitting at the grown up table!”

“Oh, no, the grown up table is overrated. I’d much rather sit at the kids table anyway.” Levi reached over and booped Jamie on the nose.

“Erwin, you’re staring.” Petra whispered quietly and tossed her napkin at him.

He was staring, but he couldn’t help it. All of the children turned their attention away from the large mass of people and set it directly on Levi, their eye gleaming and amazed at his presence. Levi wasn’t even giving the children fake smiles, he was genuinely interested in their small whispers and motions, giving each child properly divided time. Erwin couldn’t stop looking, it was impossible, he’d never seen the children take to someone so quickly.

“Erwin.” Petra threw another napkin at him.

“What?” Erwin blushed and looked at her instead.

“I didn’t bring him for you to oogle at, now stop being creepy.” She giggled and reached across the two open seats to swat him on the shoulder.

“He's cute, Pet, leave me alone. I'm but a lowly man.” He knew his blush was still there but there wasn’t anything he could do about it. Petra looked over to the newlyweds still giving their speech before slipping over into Mike's seat for just a moment to crowd into Erwin's space.

“I have watched him struggle, pull himself out of the gutter, and become a successful person over the past two years. You’re amazing, you truly are, there is no one else I could ever trust with him, but please know that if you hurt him, in the slightest form or fashion, I will murder you.” Erwin knew Petra well enough to know she might not physically murder him but it was obvious how important Levi was to her. “You’re a wonderful partner, I have witnessed how doting and caring you are but he really has become another sibling to me, just like you are. I just want you to know that I will roundhouse kick you in the throat if you hurt him.”

“Petra, I would never dream of hurting anyone, you know that, but especially not him. I can tell he’s a special person.” Erwin pushed a stray hair out of her face and tucked it behind her ear as he gave her the most genuine smile he could muster. “He’s so lucky to have a friend like you.”

Petra hummed in agreement and pinched Erwin's cheek, sliding back over to her chair just in time for the speech to be over. Mike and Nanaba asked the DJ to start the party, welcomed everyone to help themselves to the food, and came to take their seats. They made a point to remind everyone the cake cutting would be in about an hour, to provide everyone enough time to eat and dance.

In a quick flash, the festivities were underway; people were getting their plates, the music had been turned up with a great beat, the dance floor already had started to fill up, and the bar was opened. Hange, Marie, and Levi, after a small offer to help, made their way to the line to put seven small plates together for the kids. Things moved smoothly, and before he knew it, it was time for Mike and Nanaba’s first dance, which also meant Erwin's turn to leave the table. The pair gave Erwin a weird look as he made his way over to the DJ's booth.

“Tonight, as a special treat for the bride and groom, the best man has chosen to sing the song for their first dance.” The DJ sat a stool out for Erwin and passed the micstand as the blonde took his seat.

Everyone clapped as the newlyweds got up from their seats, came together in the center of the dancefloor, and wrapped their arms around one another. They gave Erwin a quick look of silent appreciation and he could have sworn he saw tears in both of their eyes. Erwin had picked this song specifically for them, having heard it on the radio days after the invitation arrived, and he’d ran it so many times through his head to be sure it was right. He gave the DJ a nod, ready for the music to start, ready to honor his friends.

The music glided beautifully, the first riff filtered through the air, then the versus draped over the crowd. Mike and Nanaba shuffled over the floor and held each other tightly, exchanged kisses, nuzzled one another in a display of unfiltered adoration. Some if the guests cried, others smiled so hard their cheeks had to hurt, but about midway through the first chorus Erwin's eyes found Levi's for the hundredth time that night. Levi had a soft smile on his face and head perched on his folded hands, giving Erwin his full, undivided attention. A glimmer of something different surfaced in Levi's eyes, something Erwin could have missed had he not been paying attention. The blonde was unsure what that specific something was but it proved to be more than enough to keep his attention and the remainder of the song was sung directly to that gorgeous man.

“Tell me you love me, and I'll be good to you.” The last verse, a final spin from the couple, and a standing ovation from the crowd brought the first dance to a close.

The newlyweds wrapped Erwin in a tight hug, giving him desperate “thank you”s and tearful praises. They loved hearing him sing, nearly everyone who heard it did, and they made sure Erwin knew how much the appreciated his performance. They lingered on the floor for just a few more moments before laughing and asking everyone else to join them, for the DJ to get the party back on track. Many people clapped Erwin on the back, gave him words of appreciation, and thanked him for the gift he’d given.

Erwin shared dances with many people as the evening progressed. First was his own mother, holding him for three full songs so she could catch up after not having seen him in nearly a year when he took his last vacation to visit. Next came Mike's mother, Erwin’s second mom, and she took three for herself also because she spent one crying and the other two catching up with him as well. Third was Nanaba, because she refused to go before the two mothers. Petra, Rico, Hange, and even Mike took up his time also. None of these dances, however, really kept his attention like Levi did because if he hadn’t been in love with the man before, he certainly was now.

Throughout the night Levi had been pulled to the dance floor by the pack of children he sat with; the DJ had been specifically requested to integrate songs the children could enjoy as well because their children weren’t the only ones there, and he hadn’t failed in doing so. Jamie and Theo nearly fought each other for the first dance but Levi calmed them by agreeing to dance with them together for the first few songs they wanted. The triplets were next but Nala was already starting to tire so while her sisters clung to Levi's hands, she settled for attaching to his leg and stepping with him. He did a few more dances with Jamie and the girls before Sebastian and Roland asked for one shyly when a slower, more gentle song came on. Levi reached for their hands when they slid from their chairs but instead of taking them, the boys looked Levi in the eyes and lifted their arms, motioning with grabby hands as a request to be picked up. Levi scooped the boys up without a thought and picked a spot close to the table, rocking and spinning slowly through the song with the kids gripping at his shirt. It seemed like the DJ noticed because he let another soft song filter through the speakers as the twins drifted to sleep in Levi's arms.

“If you don’t marry him, I certainly will.” Moblit had come to stand next to Erwin who'd been taking a break in his seat.

“Moblit, you’re already married.” Erwin laughed and sipped his water, not taking his eyes from Levi for a second.

“Oh, I certainly am, and happily, but if it meant seeing our babies like that more often,” Roland had reached up and rested a small palm against Levi’s cheek in his sleep. “I’m sure I could conjure up another soul to offer to someone if Hange didn’t want to share the one they already have.”

Hange and Marie appeared next to Levi a moment after Moblit spoke. The pair had just finished getting the other children settled on the couches in the reception hall, aside from Jamie who was still nibbling in cake at the children’s table. Marie motioned for Sebastian and Hange reached for Roland but when Levi's hold on the twins started to lessen they both started crying, a whine and squeal loud enough to be heard over the soft music followed by tired sobs. Levi hugged them both close again and bounced a bit.

“Oh that’s okay, it’s fine.” Erwin couldn’t hear the soft voice he could imagine coming from Levi's mouth as he saw the words tumble out.

Levi adjusted his hold but it was obvious his arms were beginning to tire because even though the kids were a little bit smaller than others of their own age, they'd eaten quite a over the course of the evening, plus they were dead weight while they slept. Hange stepped back for just a second before turning and motioning for Moblit to come over. The dad studied the two kids for a moment before stepping in really close to Levi to scoop Sebastian out of his arm, cradling the boy's head in his hand and quickly pulling him into his chest. Sebastian stirred again, whining a few times before Moblit's scent really caught in his nose and he settled once again. Marie, Hange, and Moblit headed back to the hall once they were sure Levi was okay with Roland.

Suddenly Levi was alone with a baby cradled against his chest, no one else around him, and this was Erwin's chance. The larger man pushed himself out of his chair and let his tired legs carry him over to the raven who was rocking on the edge of the floor, shoes gently shuffling in the grass. Levi had his eyes closed, cheek pressed against the poofy, unruliness that had become Roland's hair, and was humming a light tune that harmonized with the music that was playing. Erwin came up on the pair but just before he spoke, Jamie pushed their way close to Levi's hip.

“Uncle Levi.” They rubbed their eyes and nuzzled into the smaller man's ribs.

“Oi, what is it?” Levi whispered as he soothed a few out of place curls back into their appropriate spots on the child’s head.

“Tired, Uncle Levi.” Jamie got as close as possible without bothering their brother.

Erwin felt a dangerous warmth bloom in his chest when Jamie called for Levi shamelessly, naturally like he'd always been a part of their life. This never happened, especially not with Jamie, not with the level of weariness and paranoia they displayed towards strangers sometimes. Erwin couldn’t let this interaction go, couldn’t stop himself from smiling down at them, at this new, beautiful person holding his family so close. He had fallen, was falling, and he hoped there was no end, no safety net.

“Oh I bet you are. It’s probably super past your bedtime, even for a weekend.” Levi petted their head while he softly twisted around, most likely looking for Hange.

“Hey, you.” Erwin knelt down to be as level with Jamie as possible. “Momo is inside. Do you want me to carry you inside, pumpkin?”

“N-no, Uncle Win. Where’s daddy?” They rubbed their eyes again and looked around for Moblit. Like a siren's call, it seemed like Moblit had heard his child from where ever he’d been.

“There’s my munchkin.” Moblit bent and pulled Jamie into this arms. “Do you need me to take him? You’ve had him for, like, the past hour. He has to be getting heavy.”

“Take them first, I’m good for right now.” Levi nuzzled into Roland's hair and the child stirred just enough to tuck his arms against Levi's chest and grip the man’s shirt in his fingers.

Moblit chuckled and rubbed his hand over his son's back softly, nodding at the two of them, and heading off toward the reception house. Erwin stepped in close to Levi, enough to feel that man's body heat and smell his soap like earlier.

“Hey, there, Uncle Levi.” Erwin thumbed over Levi's cheek and snuck his free arm around the smaller man's back to pull them close together. Roland grumbled between them at the sudden press of another human and stretched one hand out to also take hold of Erwin's shirt, tethering them together.

“That really does have a nice ring to it. I see why you love it so much.” Levi leaned into Erwin's touch and breathed against his palm.

“See, I told you that you were special. He is, easily, the shyest of all of the kids but here you are, wrapped around his finger, like it’s the most natural thing in the world.” Erwin sighed heavily and shifted carefully to cradle Levi's face in both of his hands. “What do I have to do to get you wrapped around mine?”

Levi gasped lowly as a blush dusted over his cheeks. Erwin wanted so much to chase the color with his lips, soft gentle kisses until Levi was his. He wanted to chase the heat with the pads of his fingers until Levi could understand how much he loves that reaction.

“Sing again.” Levi's voice was hoarse, barely over a whisper, as he leaned up on his toes to close the distance between them. “But only ever for me.”

~~~~~~~~~~

“See, I told you it would rain and we wouldn’t get everything out of that truck.” Levi came into the kitchen and, even though Erwin couldn’t see him, he knew Levi's hands were on his hips to match his told-you-so tone.

It had been on the forecast to rain except for today so they’d put off moving all week. The one day in Seattle when it wasn’t supposed to rain and what does it do? It fucking rains. They’d had just enough time to get the moving truck from Levi apartment, to Erwin's, and back to the house before it started to get cloudy. Hange, Moblit, Jamie, and Theo met them there to start unpacking but they’d only gotten so far before the rain came and everyone wanted to eat instead of work.

“Well, at least it’s here and not in another state.” Erwin tightened the new pipe under the sink, giving one final check to be sure it was tightened. “Can you hit the water for me?”

When no water landed in his face Erwin howled successfully because he’d been fighting with the seal on this sink for an hour but it was finally done. It was the last thing that needed to be fixed aside from a new paint job but it was finally livable, a fix Levi had requested be finished before they settled in so he could cook.

“Oh, thank fuck.” Levi groaned happily, sliding sideways to allow the blonde out from under the sink.

“That’s a quarter for the swear jar, Uncle Levi.” Theo's voice carried in from the living room. She was sprawled out on the hardwood floor in the living room.

“Aren’t you supposed to be doing your homework and not on your phone?” Erwin let a stern tone settle in his voice as he looked over the island towards the open area.

“Daddy said I could stop doing it since they were on the way back and they just texted me.” She waved her phone at the two of them. “He said we might get ice cream in the way home.”

“He and Momo are lactose intolerant, why the hell would you guys get ice cream?” Levi washed his hands in the sink and dried them on a dishtowel that he pulled from a box on the counter. He poured a quick glass of lemonade and handed it to Erwin.

“Seb and RoRo won first place in their swimming competitions so we get to have ice cream. You got me fucked up if I’m going to question that.”

“Theo Hayden Zoe-Berner!” Erwin twitched at the young girl's profanity and dropped his cup. Its contents sloshed across the floor of the kitchen, making Levi squawk loudly.

“Erwin Oliver Smith! I just cleaned this goddamn floor.”

“What, you guys say 'fucking' all the time. Momo and daddy say it even more than Uncle Levi does.” Theo's green eyes were illuminated by the screen of her phone with a matter-of-fact look on her face.

“Theo, that’s not the point–” Erwin sighed but Levi interrupted him from the broom closet.

“You want me to put a quarter in the swear jar with that mouth you have on you over there? Not a chance. I should tell your parents and make you clean this floor.” Levi pulled the mop and bucket from the small closet with a dramatic noise. “A new house doesn’t mean new rules, you know better than that.”

Erwin watched as the two of them kept eye contact, a silent standoff as the smaller man dished out his discipline. Levi had developed a special bond with each of the children, especially with Theo which hadn’t surprised any of the family because he and Hange had become the best of friends and the girl was a carbon copy of them.  After a few seconds, Theo looked away from her phone and put it on the floor next to her as she stood up.

“I’m sorry.” She came over to Levi and reached for the mop. Levi pulled it away, leaned it against the wall, and pulled her into a half-hug so she knew she wasn't in any major trouble.

“I can mop, brat. Why don’t you ask Erwin to help you finish your homework so you don’t have to do it when you get home, yes?” Levi kissed her on the head as Erwin came around the counter.

Levi quickly mopped up the mess and started to unpack the dishes, having thoroughly cleaned every inch of cupboard space before Erwin was even allowed in the kitchen. He had the entire kitchen unpacked and the living room cleaned before Hange, Moblit, and Jamie made it back with the food. The meal was quick, some pizza from a new shop in town, but good enough for Levi to deem it worthy of having its menu hung on the fridge. They all sat on the floor in the living room because the furniture hadn’t made its way in yet thanks to the rain.

“We better get going, the boys should be getting back to the rec center pretty soon.” Moblit eased Hange’s head from his lap and stood from the floor. “Do you want us to come back tomorrow to help you move the furniture?”

“Oh, no, it’s fine. We both have the rest of the week free to get situated so we should be able to make it work.” Erwin had Levi half-draped over his chest.

“Can we come back and play in the pool?” Jamie downed the rest of their soda and passed the cup to Moblit when he reached for it.

“We haven’t even finished moving in yet and you’re already bothering us about the pool? I feel the love.” Levi yawned and stretched his legs.

“It’s better than swimming with other kids. I heard some of them talking about peeing in the pool the other day.” Theo’s face scrunched in Jamie’s direction.

“And now I never want to send you guys there ever again, thank you sweetheart.” Hange threw the kid’s bookbags over their shoulder and motioned for them to get up.

“I’ll call someone about it tomorrow, then.” Levi's tone gave away how disgusted he was at the thought of the children swimming in such conditions.

“Really? Promise?” Theo crawled across the floor and flopped down on Erwin's stomach.

“I promise, my queen.” Levi tucked a few curls behind her ear and pinched her cheek.

“Alright, let’s hit the road. You don’t get ice cream if we are late to pick up the boys.” Moblit pushed Hange towards the garage door.

“Let us know when you get home, please.” Erwin laughed heavily as the kids scrambled to follow their parents.

“I’ll text you.” Hange waved from the doorway, letting the kids run under their arm first.

“Be safe.” Erwin and Levi called in unison as the door shut.

They both let out dramatic noises – Erwin sighing heavily while Levi groaned into his chest. The house fell into a comfortable quiet, aside for the crackling from the fireplace they’d started before the rain came. This day had been a long time coming, they were finally here together in a house that belonged to the both of them. Erwin felt a little bad that he hadn’t watched the weather better because they barely had any actually furniture inside at this present time, which was the main reason Levi was using him as a cushion. His fiancée was not one to lay on the floor if he didn’t have to.

“I wonder how long I can lay here before my husband-to-be gets tired of me.” Levi grumbled the words into the fabric of Erwin’s shirt.

“I wonder if I can convince my future groom to use me as a piece of furniture more often.” Erwin caressed the back of Levi's neck with his fingertips

“Well,” Levi laugh echoes in the most empty space. “We didn’t get any actual furniture in yet so you’ll have to do.”

Happy with the answer, Erwin gently gripped Levi's arms, pulled the smaller man, and manipulated his limbs until Levi was completely on him. The raven nuzzled harder into him, legs resting softly on the floor and arms wrapped around his neck. They stayed like this for a while, Erwin was pretty sure he’d fallen asleep at some point, but eventually he felt Levi stir and push himself to stand up.

“Babe?”

“I was thinking of setting up a bed down here tonight. Want to get the TV set up while I unpack the blankets?” Levi looked stressed, worried, and Erwin was pretty sure he knew why.

“Levi, the bed is only upstairs. You’ll wake up with a sore back.” Erwin got up when Levi slipped his fingertips into his mouth, an anxious habit he hadn’t done in quite a while.

“Hey, come here.” He wrapped Levi in his arms and pulled him into a hug. “It’s going to be okay.”

“I really think I might move the studio down here and switch the rooms around.” Levi's voice was a little hoarse.

“But that room is perfect for you. Plus it’s easier for the upstairs to be off limits as a whole, so it’s not confusing for people to know which room they are and aren’t allowed to go in.” Erwin's hands kneaded into Levi's back. “I don’t want kids accidentally going into your studio when they come to visit and we aren’t paying attention. Your work is really important.”

“I know I know. I just. Downstairs is so far away.” Levi's arms linked around the blonde’s waist.

“I know it is.” It was only twelve steps but that was a few too many for Levi's comfort. “I promise it’s going to be okay. I’m worried, too, don’t think I’m not. But we are going to be just fine.”

Lightening cracked outside followed by a small roll of thunder, making the two of them jump in anticipation. When no sounds echo through the house, they relaxed a bit but the rain quickly started to beat down harder against the windows. It was too quiet and each noise from outside made them bristle. Erwin pulled back just enough to hold Levi's face in his hands and get a good look at him.

 The man's features were so adorable, especially when combined with his appearance. Levi had discarded his shoes the moment they'd determined it was raining too much to move anything else. He was barefoot, leggings rolled up to his knees, with a ratty t-shirt slipping off his shoulder. He was tired, frustrated, and a bit grumbly but Erwin knew just what he needed.

“Here, I have an idea.” Erwin kissed the top of Levi's head but patted his back as a way of asking him not to move.

Erwin made his way over to the mantle of the fireplace and turned the Bluetooth speaker they’d placed there earlier. He shuffled through the playlist on his phone and smiled when Levi turned to look at him, wondering what he was doing. A song started softly and Erwin made his way back over, smiling when Levi recognized it immediately.

“Erwin, I–”

“Shh.” Erwin hugged him close, wrapping one arm around the smaller man’s waist and letting the other cup his shoulders. “Dance with me, kitten.”

Levi instantly relaxed when Erwin sang along with the first vocalizations of the song. They started to sway in a circle, slowly stepping around the open space. When the bass popped through the speakers, a warmth settled between them because Levi always blushes really hard when Erwin sings, even more so when it’s specifically for him.

Erwin adored singing this song to Levi, any song really, but especially this one. Every word of it was perfect, explained things that he didn’t know exactly how to express to the beautiful man against him.  His life, their life, couldn’t be anymore perfect and it was all because of Levi.

“And the thought of your love is enough to give me the answers. And I hate waking up when I know that it’s not with you. Give me a chance 'cause darlin' I’ve been lovin' all the things that you do.” Levi looked up at Erwin, ready for the next line, his favorite line. “Tell me you love me and I’ll be good to you.”

Erwin bent to press their foreheads together, eyes meeting so the words he sang weren’t forgotten, ensuring the dedication he had was pressed into Levi's skin. They swirled around the living room, mindful of the boxes, but unwilling to stop. As the words carried through, Erwin twirled Levi around, dipped him a few times, ran his hands over the exposed skin of the man's throat. The song only lasted a few minutes but for the two of them, it was long enough to ease the tension. The chorus repeated one last time, Erwin finished the song and they came to a halt before the next song started but they weren’t listening to it.

“Tell me, baby.” Their noses bumped together, a kiss desired but words requested first.

“I love you.” Levi's warm hands framed Erwin’s face and his breath tickled the air between them. “I love you so much, Erwin.”

Instead of responding, Erwin pressed their lips together and pulled Levi's body impossibly closer. There was no space left between them, everything heating up quickly. He took a few steps until Levi was pressed against a wall and smiled when a moan filtered between their lips. Erwin gripped Levi's hips when he felt a hardness against his thigh. Fingers tangled into his hair, tugging just the way he liked to make him growl into Levi's ear. Heat pooled in Erwin's stomach and electricity traveled through his veins, lighting up his whole body.

“Again, say it again.” Levi moaned when Erwin held him from grinding forward.

“Erwin, please.” Levi tried to pull him forward by his hair but he stood fast.

Erwin could feel his patience slipping away each second as his pants got tighter. He could break, it was so easy for him to give everything over if his lover asked. All he had to do was ask but Erwin just wanted to hear it one more time.

“Just, fuck, one more time. Say it.” He nudged Levi's head to the side, exposing more of the man's neck. “Please.”

Levi sucked in a sharp breath when Erwin nipped at his collar bone and squeezed his hips. His hips are so small, for perfectly in Erwin's hands, but they held so much power and it was so easy to use them to get what he wanted. Erwin was powerless against them. They had gained a little extra fullness in the past year, filled out beautifully with how often they cooked together, the less they worked out and the more they spent having movie dates. Perfect hips. Perfect Levi.

“L-love you.” The raven cried out when Erwin bit into the skin of his shoulder. “I love you.”

Erwin moaned into the skin and finally brought the rest of their bodies together, grinding Levi into the wall and probably bruising him. He didn’t care, Levi wouldn’t either. Erwin was losing what little control he had left because he didn’t have the energy to fight it anymore. He moved his lips up to silence the loud panting Levi had started and a hot tongue greeted him by sweeping into his mouth immediately.

Erwin growled again and pushed against Levi harder. He moved his hands to the hem of the annoying pants in his way and shoved them until the were stuck around Levi's knees, not surprised to find nothing beneath them. Levi shivered when the air hit him but it only spurred him to kiss Erwin harder.

Levi's fingers were still wrapped in Erwin's hair, a favorite places for them to be, but their grip was loosening the more pliant and needy he became. Erwin slid one hand around to push between Levi's cheeks, tease at the hole that he loved so much, while the other palmed the underside of his cock. The smaller man bucked into the large hand but was quick to grind back against the one behind him. Erwin groaned when the hole fluttered against his fingers, like it was needy even though he’d thoroughly used it this morning.

“I swear to God if the lube is in the truck, I will–”

“Th-the bag –  i-it's – my bag.” Levi whined when Erwin shoved him back against the wall.

“Take off your pants and turn around. Now.” Erwin grabbed Levi's bag from the floor by the fireplace and rustled around until he found the bottle.

Levi rushed to kick his pants off and spun to brace his hands against the wall, jutting his ass backwards with a shake. Erwin quickly coated a few fingers as he padded back and crowded back into Levi’s space roughly. He didn’t hesitate to slip two fingers into him without a warning and let the bottle of lube drop to the floor.

“Ah! Erwin, fuck!” Levi's eyes rolled back into his head and he scratched for purchase against the wall. The amount of lube Erwin had collected in his hand squelched obscenely.

“Oh hush, you can take it. You took it perfectly this morning.” Erwin started a slow pace, nearly pulling out completely before thrusting back in to the knuckle. “Still open?”

“Ho-how can I not be with a c-cock that big?” Levi grinned when Erwin growled again and gave a rough thrust. “Yes, Win, yes. Hurry.”

“So impatient.” Erwin pushed his own shorts away from his hips and moaned roughly when the air finally touched the heat of his skin. He pushed a third finger past the still-tight ring of Levi's hole, knowing it was just a bit too soon but that Levi loved the burn.

“Erwin…” Levi arched with a whine when Erwin bent his fingers and thrusted harder into his body. The raven pushed back against his hand, soft calls for more slipped past his lips.

“Are my fingers not enough, babe?” He nosed into Levi's hair and breathed hotly into his ear as he snagged a lobe between his teeth. He spat down onto his fingers, groaning when the glide became even easier

Levi gasped quietly as his legs began to shake. Erwin rubbed himself against Levi's ass. The smaller man moaned loudly when the hard cock finally touched his skin, even if it wasn’t exactly where he seemed to want it. A wet trail of precum smeared over the pale skin and glimmered in the light. Erwin twisted his fingers again and finally struck that beautiful spot he’d been purposefully avoiding.

“Fuck!” Levi's head dropped back between his shoulders and Erwin got the perfect view of his hooded eyes. Silver barely showed in the blown out irises , but what little was left sunk deep into Erwin's soul. “I love you. I love you. I love you.”

The whimpered words were enough to push the blonde right over the edge. He growled loudly, pulled his fingers away from Levi's hole, and flipped the smaller man around. Levi let out a wanton noise and reached for Erwin's cock without hesitation. The nimble fingers felt like heaven and Erwin would love to let the smaller man finish him off that way, but his cock had other desires. Erwin kicked his pants the rest of the way off and tugged his shirt over his head. He pulled Levi's shirt off also before draping the man's arms over his shoulders. The raven's cock bobbed heavily between his thighs, making Erwin's mouth water.

“Erwin…” Levi's eyes rolled back into his head when Erwin bent slightly and gripped his thighs before hauling his body into the hair.

“I got you, baby. I got you, kitten.” Erwin slotted their lips together in a sloppy kiss. He pressed Levi into the wall and grinded up between his cheeks as a hardness pressed into his own skin.

“Please. Please. I love you.” Levi's legs wrapped tightly around the blonde's waist as he trembled.

“God, Levi. My Levi. Too good to me, baby.” Levi's fingers clutched the back of his neck as he moved his hands to spread the smaller man's cheeks. Levi arched away from the wall when Erwin’s crown tapped against his hole. “What is it?”

“Wa-want your cock, Erwin.” The words were whispered against his chest, tickled through his hair and settled warmly against his skin.

Erwin groaned harshly. He abandoned his hold on one of Levi's cheeks to bring the hand up. He spat into his palm and used it to lube his cock before lining it up to Levi's hole.

“Remember you have to be quiet, baby. Can you do that?” Erwin groaned when the ring fluttered around his cock.

Levi's eyes met his for just a moment and gave away every once of need in his small body. Erwin pressed their lips together again just as he pushed himself inside. He swallowed the scream that tore from Levi's throat. The inside of the man's body was impossibly hot, wet, and hungry enough to make him bottom out. He was squeezed perfectly by a hole made just for him.

“Like that stretch, Levi?” Erwin could feel the tension in Levi's muscles, knew it was a bit too much at once, but groaned because he knew how much the man loved being hurt.

Erwin felt Levi's breath catch in his chest and gripped the bottom of his thighs tightly when a pained look stretched across the man's face. He was about to worry that he’d pushed his lover too far until a drugged smile replaced the pained expression. Levi's eyes rolled behind his lids momentarily before they came open to reveal lust-blown pupils and an overflow of heavy tears. He squeezed Erwin harder, purposefully, and winced with an even bigger smile.

“So…so b-big.” The raven’s mouth hung open. Drool started to roll from one corner of his mouth, but Erwin swopped in to lick the trail and follow it back to smother him in a kiss.

They kissed, sloppy and noisily with tongues shoved deep into each other’s mouths. Erwin tried his best to hold himself back because he knew the man needed to adjust, but the tight heat was just so inviting. He carefully adjusted them until Levi's legs were thrown over his forearms, rendering him powerless. Erwin braced his hands on the wall behind them and pressed against Levi harder until he folded gloriously. Levi's hold tightened around the nape of his neck and the ring of muscles slowly relaxed a bit.

“Ready, kitten?” Erwin nipped along his jaw and nosed his head to the side.

“Love…love you…” Levi hiccupped back a moan.

Erwin took that as a yes. He eased his cock out slowly, teasingly, until the head caught on Levi's rim before slamming back in. Levi yelped weakly and his cock twitched against Erwin's stomach. The blonde started a powerful rhythm because he knew both of them, as horny as they were, were incredibly tired from the day; he could already feel the tiredness of his muscles starting to complain, but that wouldn’t keep him from giving Levi what he needed.

“Er…” Moans interrupted any instance the smaller man tried to speak, and they grew louder with each thrust of Erwin's hips. Precum smeared between them as Levi's cock bounced with each movement.

“Quiet, honey.” Erwin pressed their foreheads together and licked into Levi's mouth, attempting to swallow each of the broken noises.

Noises of skin against skin filled the room, bounced off of the bare walls and echoed between the ceiling and the floor. The wetness of lube and spit sounded lewdly with each thrust. One particularly hard thrust combined with an angle change put Erwin's cock right where it needed to be.

“Erwin!” Levi broke their kissing and slammed his head back against the wall before Erwin could pull him away. The raven sucked in a shuttered breath and looked at him with glazed eyes.

“Touch yourself, Levi.” Erwin moved a hand away from the wall long enough to tug one of Levi's arms free from his neck. He brought the smaller man's hand to his mouth and licked a thick stripe across his palm.

The raven wrapped around his own cock to start a weak rhythm that matched their fucking. The blonde looked down, watched each tug and each bubble of precum as it rolled down the man’s length. Levi's moans quickly turned to squeaks and high-pitched groans as his muscles started pulling taunt. The tight hug of his hole made a heat pool in Erwin's stomach. He aimed each deep thrust into that beautiful spot to pull those gorgeous sounds out of his lover.

“Are you close, baby?” Their eyes met, but his fiancé was definitely on a different planet. He was so tight around Erwin, so hot and squeezing him just right that the man could feel every beat of Levi's heart.

“Fe-feels so…so good…” He hiccupped again and tried to swallow but more drool dropped down his chin. “L-love…love”

“You are so amazing. So tight for me.” Erwin smashed their lips together again as Levi's body seized against his chest and pulled tighter around his cock. “Cum. Cum for me, Levi.”

“Erw – fuck!” Levi braced himself against Erwin's body, legs squeezing over his arms and nails carving crests into the back of his neck. Levi rocked himself as he stroked, rode back into Erwin's thrust as best he could.

Erwin moaned harshly at the stimulation and allowed himself to let go. Panting, low moaning, and interrupted squeaks settled between them and swirled together. Sweat collected when their skin touched and blushes became the colors of sunburns.

“God, yes, baby.”  Erwin's hips stuttered as Levi clenched harder, made if harder for him to move. The man was so close and his body fluttered over Erwin’s cock.

“H-hard-harder.” Levi's chest heaved with shallow breaths and his voice skipped from being on the edge.

Erwin cursed under his breath growled deeply. He readjusted his stance and leaned even heavier against the wall, crushing Levi against it so he could smack Levi's hand away from his cock. Erwin gave up the last of his control and started a flurry of long, deep thrusts in time with tight strokes. Levi's hiccups instantly turned into weak sobs. The hand that was now free clamped down on Erwin's chest and scraped deep red lines into the flesh.

The heat that pooled in the bottom of Erwin's stomach became an inferno threatening to bubble over. He was so close and he was buried so deep when he bottomed out. Levi looked so beautiful when he was folded and crying. Levi seized once more in his hold and his cock twitched violently as he gave Erwin one finally tear-filled look.

“Erwin…” He hiccupped, moaned, and squeezed harder. “I lo-love you so m-much.”

“I love you, too, Levi.” Erwin pounded the words into the small man without mercy, striking his prostate with each slam.

One last smile graced Levi's face before is body seized for a finally time, arched away from the wall, and his eyes rolled back. Levi clutched Erwin's shoulders in an iron grip and carved his nails deep into the larger man's skin. His mouth fell open with a silent scream as he spilled between them in thick spurts. Erwin sped up his thrusts to fuck the man through his orgasm and brought himself to his own wonderful peak.

“Fuck. Fuck. Levi. Oh god!” Erwin cradled Levi tightly as he rocked into him a few more times.

He finally felt the wave break as he pressed in deep, sheathed his cock in the tight heat that was his beautiful partner, and filled him. He felt himself twitching through his orgasm and smiled when Levi's spasmed in response to the deep stimulation. Even in his haze of pleasure, Levi made sure to squeeze Erwin though it and milk him for all he was worth.

They came down together with harsh pants and open-mouthed kisses. Their bodies thrummed against one another and hair stuck together against each other’s skin. Levi carded through Erwin’s hair to push the locks out of the man’s face and press their foreheads together.

“Goddamn, Erwin. Fuck, you came so much.” Levi chuckled softly when Erwin blushed.

“Yeah, well, can you blame me? Look at you.” Erwin placed another kiss on the raven's lips and nuzzled into his cheek. “And you act like you have room to talk. I bet you’d cum dry if I pushed you.”

“I don’t think even have the energy to get hard again right now.” Levi nosed into Erwin's neck and lazily looped his arms around the man's neck once more. Levi yawned heavily before kissing into Erwin's chest.

“You slept less than me last night. You should have let me do all the work today.” Erwin moved them a step away from the wall. Levi was limp in his arms, a favorite position of his.

“Not with the way you clean, I couldn’t.” He felt Levi smile against his skin.

“Oh, but, of course not.” Erwin laughed softly and yawned himself.

“Let’s go shower so we can take a nap before dinner.” Levi tightened his grip on Erwin's neck and attempted to move his legs.

“You know your legs won’t work. I got it.” Erwin felt Levi roll his eyes, or at least he knew the man would respond that way.

“Don’t leave a cum trail on my hardwood floor. So help me God, Erwin Smith.” Levi pinched his neck in warning.

“Yes, dear.” He kissed the smaller man's hair. Erwin readjusted Levi to be sure he wouldn’t slip out going up the stairs.

Eight stairs was all that separated the top floor from the bottom, but on post-orgasm legs with a clean demon on your dick, it was easily the longest walk of Erwin's life. The master bedroom was huge and they’d, thankfully, been able to get the bed inside before the rain started. Erwin was definitely looking forward to crashing once they got clean.

“Bath or shower?” Erwin nudged the bathroom door closed with his foot.

“A shower is fine. I'm sure I can stand well enough. You’re going to break my hips one day folding me like that.” Levi winced as Erwin eased his softened cock from his hole.

“I think it’s worth it to get that deep. You always make the prettiest faces.” He lowered the man to the ground and steadied him as Levi stretched his legs.

“We’ll see how worth it it is when you're wheeling me around in a chair for the rest of my life and not able to do it anymore.” Levi flipped the water on for both showerheads and they stepped in.

“Oh, I'm sure I'll find a way. You’d die from withdrawal without my dick anyway.” Erwin massaged the shower gel into Levi’s shoulders and worked his way down his body.

“You realize that would mean I couldn’t split you over my dick anymore, either, right? Whose cock is going to make you cum as much as mine does?” Levi laughed as he scratched shampoo into Erwin's hair while the blonde massaged the soreness in his legs.

“See, that would be a good point if you thought I wouldn’t still find a way to ride your dick.” Erwin stood back up to rinse his hair.

“Fucking slut.” Levi laughed softly as he washed himself.

“It takes one to know one.” Erwin pulled the raven into him, wrapped him in a wet hug.

They both laughed together and exchanged a deep, loving kiss. They finished their shower, letting the high temperature of the water wash away the chaos and stress of the day. The tiredness quickly began to settle under Erwin's skin and he could see it doing the same on Levi because the shorter seemed to become sluggish. He reached over and flipped the water off. Erwin grabbed a towel for himself, tossed one to Levi, and they each dried off quickly.

“Oh my god.” Levi moaned into the depths of the California King to cover up the sound. He hadn’t even put on clothes before collapsing on the bed.

“I told you you'd like it.” Erwin flopped down next to him. “And to think, you wanted something smaller.”

“It was incredibly expensive. That’s why I said no at first.” Levi turned his head with a sleepy smile. “Plus, I’ve never had a new mattress before.”

“Now you do. I’m just glad they were able to deliver it today.” Erwin pulled Levi and manipulated him until they were cuddled up against the pillows, naked bodies pressed together in a warm embrace. “Maybe we can break it in after dinner.”

“Insatiable, I swear. Only you, Erwin.” Levi twisted in his arms until he could bury his face in the blonde's chest and throw a leg over his hip. After a second, the raven chuckled softly and nosed deeper between Erwin’s pecs. “But, yes, please.”

Erwin hummed into the damp, inky hair under his nose as they settled into the blankets below them. Breathing evened out and eyes fluttered closed as limbs wound together in a tangle. Just as the two of them were about to drift off to sleep, a shrill cry came through the monitor on the bedside table.

“Oh god, no. Please, just five minutes.” Levi's voice sounded on the verge of sobbing.

“We better hurry before–” Erwin's words were interrupted when a different cry filtered into the room. “And there it is.”

Both men scrambled out of bed with a quickness to pull on boxers and t-shirts. They rushed down the stairs and into the spare bedroom. The cries got louder as the door swung open.

“Oh my goodness. What is going on in here?” Levi pushed forward to the first crib and immediately scooped an infant into his arms. The baby squealed sharply and kicked against Levi's stomach. “Jesi, baby. Hey, it's okay.”

Erwin padded to the other crib and pulled the second infant into his chest. He cooed gently and tried patting her back, but the little girl didn't let up with her hiccups and chokes.

“Elise. Eli, honey. Shh, shh.”

They rocked the twins together, but it seemed like nothing managed to help calm them down. Levi looked over his shoulder at Erwin, a small frown on his face.

“He seems fine, he doesn’t feel like he needs a change.” Levi patted across the baby's clothes. “And he’s not wet anywhere.”

“They ate before we did. Do you think they’re hungry again?” Erwin gently rubbed over the girl's head, combing through the mess of hair.

“Shit, I don’t know. We could try it.” Levi was the first to step out of the room and head towards the kitchen.

In unison, the twins gave particularly loud wails, prompting both men to give each other worried looks. Levi handed Jesi to Erwin in order to throw two bottles in the microwave. The blonde cradled both children and tried to bounce them, but it only seemed to upset them more.

“Okay. Okay.” Levi pulled the boy away from Erwin's bulky arm before handing him the second bottle. Erwin watched Levi struggle with getting the baby to take the bottle. “Jesi Guerrero Smith-Ackerman if you do not drink the fucking bottle I swear that I will start crying.”

“Eli, listen at daddy's language. He’s so rude.” Erwin tried to laugh but the baby in his hands didn’t want to take her bottle either. “Eli, come on. El. Elise. Take the – Elise Vibora, please work with me.”

The baby stopped wiggling for a moment and their eyes met. Blue and hazel bore into one another, hues challenging each other in the ultimate battle. Erwin arched one eyebrow and scrunched his nose jokingly. Elise hiccupped once before giving him the biggest, toothless smile he’d ever seen. She clapped her hands together and gripped the end of the bottle to pull in into her mouth.

“That’s my girl.” The baby suckled noisily and had a quarter of the bottle gone before Erwin stole a glance in Levi's direction.

Before him was a sight he vowed to burn into his memory. Levi had, somehow, gotten the nipple and his index finger trapped in Jesi's mouth all at once. The raven was half-slumped against the island, chest rising and falling equally with shut eyes, the baby resting against the countertop and the crook of Levi’s elbow. Jesi's little fingers were all curled around the hand Levi was using to hold the bottle for him, gripping and releasing in time with his nursing.

The blonde felt a deep surge of happiness in this moment. Here, in this one second, he was staring at the most amazing man he’d ever seen. Levi was everything he’d been looking for. He was the perfect Uncle, had been from the first day he met all the kids, a natural adjustment he’d been more than happy to make to his life. Erwin felt like he’d known Levi for his entire life. Like he’d always been a part of the family.

Five years had passed since they met but it had been the best years of Erwin's life so far, showed him everything he had to look forward to. They'd decided to move in together, found the perfect house, they were about to get married, and now they were finally fathers together. They had two of the most amazing, beautiful children and couldn’t have been anymore lucky.

Levi, even in his half-sleeping state, didn’t waver once. He stood fast on his face, cemented to the edge of the counter, and twitched with each suckle against his finger. Erwin had always considered himself a natural uncle, had taken to it like it was nothing, so he knew he was ready to be a dad but Levi almost seemed like a born-ready father. The way the smaller man had taken to the babies instantly, accepted them into his heart like he’d birthed them himself.

The twins had only been theirs for a few weeks, and it had been one hell of a change to their lives, but neither of them would ever regret the choice. Trying for a year, convincing agency after agency that they were fit to be parents as a gay couple, an unmarried gay couple at that, had been difficult for them. They’d almost stopped trying, thinking it would be easier to move the date up and come back after they were married. Then the phone call came for these two brand new babies and they jumped on it without one thought.

Erwin would never forget the first time they held their children, how small they'd been at a week old. He would also never forget how much he cried knowing they had to wait nearly two months before the kids could actually move in with them because of a small medical issue the twins shared. Levi would never admit that he cried also because, “tears in the shower don’t count, Erwin,” but he knew that the raven was just as upset. But, now, they were here and moved in and heating up bottles in their microwave at four in the afternoon.

“Oh, that’s my good girl. La niña favorita de papi.” Erwin sat the empty bottle down on the counter and draped the bubbling, droopy-eyed baby over his shoulder.

“You’re getting really good at rolling your 'r's.” Levi's groggy voice pulled his attention enough to see him do the same with Jesi.

“Yea, well. I was horrible at it in high school. I have put in a lot of practice with my tongue lately, though, so.” Erwin wiggled his eyes brows when Levi smirked and rolled his eyes.

“Not in front of the children, perv.” Levi smacked him lightly on the arm as they patted the children.

Small burps came fast followed by coos of “good job” before the group returned to the nursery. Each of the children were placed back into their crib and tucked in safely. Erwin put an arm around Levi's shoulder as they watched the pair fall asleep.

“Buenas noches mis pequeños.” Levi reached into each crib and thumbed over their stomachs.

Erwin felt like he could have stood there all day just watching their children sleep. Levi looked more alert now than he had in the kitchen, but it was only a matter of time before they both let out loud yawns. With quiet chuckles, they turned away from the cribs. They quietly took the stairs back to their room, shed their shirts, and climbed back into bed.

Levi returned to his previous position and tugged the blankets until the both of them were comfortable. Erwin sighed into his hair again, smiling when the strands tickled against his face.

“Levi.” The man hummed lowly in response. “I love you so much.”

“I love you, too.” Levi kissed his chest.

“You still want to marry me, right?” Erwin asked him this all the time, probably daily since their proposal, as if it were a dream he’d conjured up in his mind.

“Mmhm. Even if you are a giant ass tree.” Levi playfully pinched his shoulder. “Now, go to sleep. You’re flying solo the next time they start screaming.”

“Oh, but of course.” Erwin hugged him even tighter as he drifted off to sleep.