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“But Levi…” Erwin said, putting on his best ‘puppy dog face’ in the hopes that it would get him what he wanted.
Sometimes it did, but...well, unfortunately this time it did not. Levi was unmoved by his pout, and his response was both quick and to the point.
“No.” He replied, shaking his head and causing Erwin’s lips to pull into a real frown.
He did not want to press the issue too far and annoy Levi, he thought, but still, because of the occasion, he knew he would be terribly remiss if he did not try again. “Levi, please.”
“No, Erwin.”
“Why not?”
“Because it’s fucking cheesy!” Levi exclaimed, holding out his hands and looking incredulous in an expression of ‘duh.’ He turned from where he had been placing an ornament on their Christmas tree to look at him, eyeing Erwin sternly while he stood there and held onto his camera. Now, Erwin was sure his face turned into a full blown, involuntary expression of sulkiness, and when he didn’t respond after a few moments, Levi sighed and continued in a softer voice. “I just hate those cards, Erwin. Remember all the stupid ones your dad got last year with letters, and we fucking sat around laughing at them? They’re nothing but an excuse for everybody to brag about their families and talk about how great they think their kids are.”
“Maybe, but we don’t have kids, and what if I want an excuse to brag about you instead? Have you considered that, Levi?”
Clearly, Erwin mused, Levi had not. He could tell by the way his lips parted just a bit, and by the pink flush that began to darken the skin over his cheekbones. His surprise only lasted for a moment though, but it was enough for Erwin to believe that he had found and ‘in,’ a chance at Levi actually relenting to his whims and giving him what he’d asked for: the two them, he and Levi, posing for a picture in front of their tree for a holiday card that they would send to all their friends and family.
It would be nice, he’d thought, first because it was a popular thing to do during the month of December, and second because he was happy to have someone to take the picture with in the first place. He was happy to have Levi , and he hadn’t been lying with his statement earlier. Why wouldn’t he want to brag about him, his husband of almost 1 year whom he loved with all his heart and wanted to spend the rest of his days with? The night they’d gotten married had been without a doubt the most joyous he’d ever had, and he thought their shared life together now was absolutely perfect in every way possible. Yes, he did know that the family Christmas letters Levi was referring to could be obnoxious, but why was it a bad thing to want to show his happiness to others?
“Does it matter?” Levi mumbled at that point, now looking decidedly less — at least to Erwin, who knew him well — like he was going to continue his outright refusal despite his words. “What the fuck are you going to say? It’s not like we did shit this year. Nothing happened.”
“Well, we did get married, Levi.”
“Yeah, I know, but—
“It won’t take long, I promise, and I’ll just write a few words on the back. Come on, won’t you indulge me? For Christmas?”
Levi stared at Erwin for a few seconds at that, clearly thinking and gazing at Erwin’s now growing smile — he was going to get what he wanted, he knew it, he could tell — before finally scoffing and throwing up his hands again in consternation. “Shit! Fucking fine. But you better put out good for this; got it, Smith?”
Erwin laughed loudly at Levi’s response and found himself completely unable to hide his glee. Setting down his camera, he moved to help Levi finish decorating the tree with a wide smile, aiming to hurry the process along a bit so that they could get to taking the pictures faster before Levi changed his mind. Thankfully, he did not, and approximately thirty minutes later after they had finished the tree, they were both settled at the base of it with Erwin’s camera propped up on a chair in front of them.
He’d put on a Santa hat and a matching red scarf for the occasion, and had somehow gotten Levi to wear a pair of reindeer antlers with less fuss than he’d put up for the picture. Of course, he had looked a bit unconvinced when Erwin had first produced them, but after promising that he would put out more than good with a playful waggle of his eyebrows if Levi wore them, Levi scoffed and rolled his eyes but put them on all the same. At that point, Erwin had thought that Levi looked absolutely adorable and that the rest of this would be a walk in the park, but as it turned out, convincing him to take the picture and then wear reindeer antlers wasn’t even the hardest part.
“Can’t you smile, Levi?” Erwin said to him, after they had taken a few photos where Levi looked like the human version of the Grinch.
Obviously, Erwin supposed it wasn’t super surprising that he looked like that, as he usually wore a perpetual frown anyway — not that it meant he was always angry, it was just his face — and there was no way he had changed his mind and was actually enjoying this. No, Erwin knew that he was probably just thinking about how much he wanted it to be over with already, but despite how in Erwin’s mind he always seemed cute, he knew the entire card would be even cuter if he smiled. He just...wanted the picture to be perfect, he thought, like their wedding photos where Levi had been so happy he hadn’t been able to not smile, but of course, he also knew he had to walk a fine line between prodding and encouragement. “Please?”
From where Levi was sitting beside him, Erwin could practically feel the grumble building inside his chest before he spoke. “I’m fucking trying, Erwin.”
“I know, and you’ll look perfect to me either way, but think about how your mother will call and nag you if you don’t.”
“More than you’re nagging me, you mean?”
Levi had uttered the words in a rather displeased tone, but Erwin knew that he was only teasing. Still, his posture and the way he was sitting grew rather stiff, and so Erwin reached out on instinct to gently rub at his back. He was trying to relax him and somehow it seemed to work, for after letting out a small, resigned sounding sigh, Levi shifted a bit to curl up against Erwin’s side. Erwin slid his arm around Levi’s shoulders in response, and then, much to his surprise and delight, Levi suddenly reached over and grabbed Erwin’s free hand without turning his head, pulling it between them and winding their fingers together for the next picture.
From the corner of his eye, Erwin believed he saw Levi’s lips twitch after he squeezed his palm affectionately, and so he looked at the camera and smiled too — his was very genuine at this point — just as he heard the click that indicated it had taken a photo. Erwin had set the timer so that it would snap one every seven seconds, giving them just enough time to review the previous picture and adjust their positions if needed. The screen was kind of small from where they were sitting, of course, but Erwin could see enough to have to bite his lip to keep from laughing as soon as it popped up.
Oh, Levi. He thought, viewing what could only be described as an awkward grimace on Levi’s face — one that he knew was actually an honest to god attempted smile gone wrong. I love you so much.
Despite how his thoughts were adoring, amused, and calm, beside Erwin, Levi suddenly clicked his tongue in definite disapproval.
“Dammit.” He mumbled too, honestly sounding a bit frustrated by how he saw himself in the picture. “I look like shit."
“No. ” Erwin said right away, certainly not having wanted to make Levi feel insecure by any of this at all. “You don’t. That’s not true.”
“It is. You’re just fucking biased because we’re married.”
“I’m not biased. I thought you were gorgeous before I married you too.”
Levi snorted and then shook his head at that, but when Erwin glanced at him he was sure he could now see the hint of a smile, a real smile, behind his eyes. By the time the next picture had been taken it was gone though, and Erwin hadn’t even been looking at the camera anyway. Thankfully, however, he had gotten an idea and decided what to do next.
“Oh, Levi.” He started, soothingly rubbing Levi’s hand with his thumb before turning to correct his pose, and carefully watching the timer on the camera. “I forgot to tell you: I cleaned out the pantry yesterday while you were at work. I wiped all of the shelves down too, and scrubbed the floor. I made sure not to neglect the corners.”
In the hopes that his statement — which wasn’t a lie — would make Levi smile right before the camera clicked, Erwin’s eyes immediately latched onto Levi’s mouth in the next picture when it popped up.
Damn. He thought though. No dice . Levi looked surprised and...well, not necessarily annoyed, but still there was no smile. Clearly, if he wanted to say something to get his husband to show his happiness on his face, he was going to have to try harder.
“Remember when your uncle got drunk and went hunting,” he tried once more, “and thought he’d shot a bear but it was really a tree stump?”
Click, the camera went again. This time, Erwin still saw nothing.
“What about when we first met? I spilled coffee all over your shoes, and I know you thought I was nothing but a clumsy idiot.”
Click. Okay, now there was something, he thought, the smallest, tiniest upward curve of Levi’s lips — enough for Erwin to quickly build on the momentum he'd established and continue.
“Really, though, it was because I thought you were so beautiful that I just lost control of my hands.”
Click.
“Nile actually spilled coffee on his lap the other day at work. It was boiling hot, and he winced every time he took a step afterwards.”
Click.
“Mike said that he probably won’t be having any more children for a while.”
Click.
“Levi...I love you.”
Click.
“You’re the only man I want to be with for the rest of my life, and you make me happier than I ever thought possible.”
Through the last five pictures, Erwin had seen Levi’s mouth finally turn into a smile, and then watched it grow wider and wider until it was nearly overtaking his face. It still wasn’t all the way there though, Erwin knew, as he was intimately familiar with what a well and truly full, joyous smile looked like on his husband’s face. It was a sight that he’d memorized the first time he’d ever seen it, never to forget, and if he wanted that one...well, thankfully, after saying whatever random things that had just popped up into his head, he still had an ace left up his sleeve — something ridiculous and stupid that he’d read a long time ago, but that he knew had the ability to possibly make Levi do more than smile and go into a fit.
“Do you know how I know? It’s because I don’t have to force it, and love...it’s like a fart, Levi. If you have to force it, it’s shit. ”
Suddenly, Levi couldn’t contain it anymore: not only did he smile as widely as he could, but he laughed too, loudly and genuinely enough for Erwin’s cheeks to flush just from how warm and happy the sound made him feel. He grinned as well, of course, just as much as he had on their wedding day, and blessedly, that was the image that was captured, and the one that Erwin immediately knew he would use on their Christmas card.
Before he could even say anything, however, and only a single second or two after he’d viewed the image, he found himself on the floor, practically tackled by Levi who had kissed him so excitedly that he’d ended up flat on his back on the carpet. He was surprised by the sudden movement, but needless to say, once he realized what was happening he recovered fast. Wrapping his arms around Levi, in fact, he held him as tightly as he could to his chest, kissing him back and soaking in the closeness until minutes had passed and the both of them were breathless, and Levi finally pulled away.
“You’re an idiot.” He whispered, with a smile still dancing in his eyes as he reached out to cup Erwin’s cheek. Clearly, Erwin thought, Levi had recognized his efforts to try and make him smile while taking the pictures and had appreciated it — something that made Erwin feel even happier, especially when Levi said what he did next. “...but I love you too.”
Minutes later, the entire purpose of their afternoon was forgotten, and the Santa hat, scarf, and reindeer horns were just extra casualties in the trail of clothing that led to their bedroom.