Eren was 18. Legal in every sense now. Old enough to drink, old enough to smoke, old enough for a promotion in the military.

Old enough to get married.

Eren was not a stupid little brat anymore. He was an adult now.

At 6'2, with broad shoulders and still a relatively thin frame for his height, brown hair that was in serious need of a trim hung past his chin and down his shoulders. Mikiasa had scolded him more than once on it's length, threatening to cut it several times; eren and his hair had escaped every time. His naturally tan skin had darkened noticeably after years in the sun, freckles had begun to speckle his cheeks from the constant exposure to the sunlight. Teal eyes still as bright and determined as the day he joined the scouts.

Yes, Eren admitted that he was one fine looking young man.

He was 18 now. And 18 meant old enough to do the things he wanted, whenever he wanted.

As long as the Captain allowed it of course.

The captain.

Eren got chills just thinking of him; Levi Ackerman.

The pair of them had been through hell together. From the beginning of their professional relationship Eren had grown a personal attachment to the much shorter and older man.

After the deaths of the members of squad Levi, Eren had made a secret vow to himself, that he would always protect the Captain, no matter what. The young boy at the time felt it was his responsibility to put forth extra effort in keeping Levi safe, it had been his fault after all; that all the members of his squad were wiped out.

The guilt that bubbled violently under Eren's skin made him stronger. Made him fight harder, train longer, push his limits while in titian form. Eren had to be the ultimate soldier if he were going to protect Levi.

Eren was also smart enough not to how just how much he was trying for the captain. The briefest of concerned glances were passed Eren's way when he would enter the castle, panting and drenched in sweat. Eren would allow Hangi to poke and prod, stab and dissect every piece of him. The woman would basically torture him to his limits, force him to enter his titan form, threaten his life to make him heal faster.

And that, Levi had instantly taken notice to. And Eren could tell it worried his captain.

But after years of the brutality that was Hangi's experiments, Eren was one of the strongest men in the Scouts. Even the elite knew not to pick fights with him or tease him to harshly, Eren was no longer a loud mouth brat; all bark and no bite. Eren was all bite now, could take down opponents twice his size without much effort. Not that Eren was a very violent person to start with, his pent up aggression was taken out on titans and no longer put into a brooding and hostile personality. No, he directed his aggression on the real enemy and was now capable to sit at a table with his comrades and laugh freely.

Yes, Eren was 18 now and he had been through more than the average scout. He knew what hell looked like, felt like, tasted like, smelled like. He knew what it felt like to wash the blood of his friends from his hands. In his three years with the scout regiment he had learned of the worlds true cruelty, and also it's truest beauty.

Most of that beauty resonated from his Captain.

Eren was always finding ways to be entranced by the older male. From the way he was so graceful in battle, to the way he treated his horses.

On the rare occasions that the scouts were granted a day off, no training, no chores, no missions; Eren wouldn't be in the dining hall drinking with the rest of his friends. He would be found in Captain Levi's office, doing mundane tasks like fetching tea or tidying up. Sometimes Levi would let him help him with paperwork or more tedious tasks that the captain had been left to deal with.

Levi never complained about Eren's company, came to expect it on most days, and sometimes felt a little off when the "brat" wasn't by his side.

By the time Eren had turned 17, Levi had accepted the brat as his quote un quote, personal assistant. Weather they were in battle or just around the castle, Eren was to be at Levi's side; always. Levi had swept it under the rug by saying it was an easier way to keep watch on the teen.

The arrangement evolved steadily, instead of it being Eren by Levi's side, Levi was by Eren's side too. When Eren was whisked away for test, experiments, training, or even chores; Levi followed him.

When Eren was spread out on the wooden operating table being jabbed at by Hanji, Levi was at his right side. Waiting patiently in a chair for it to be over, and going as far to tending to the kid afterwards. Hanji would run off to analyze the results of her latest test and Levi would bandage Eren's wounds and get him something to eat. Sometimes after the worst tests, when Eren's body couldn't stop shaking or the tears that fell unwillingly from his eyes wouldn't let up; Levi would hold his hand. Whisper "It's okay." "It's over now." "Calm down you brat." ,Run fingers through Eren's hair and once even kissed his forehead.

Now, their relationship could be called that, a relationship. They were friends. Maybe even more so. Levi had moved Eren out of the basement and into his own quarters. Eren had a small bed on the left side of the room and a small dresser to keep his things in. If you were looking for Eren on the battlefield (out of titian form) you'd find him a pace behind his captain. (Eren had also developed a tendency to ignore Erwin's orders, only taking command from Levi. Which caused problems at first, but Erwin saw that the boy wouldn't be swayed. Levi was top priority.) If Eren was in Titian form, Levi was always near him. Watching, ready to cut the boy out at a moments notice if he were to lose control of himself. (Which Eren hardly did anymore)

As a titian, the only people that could communicate with Eren were Armin and Mikasa. But on one more than eventful mission, Eren's titian had taken over and when Armin tried talking the beast down; it didn't work. Mikasa's voice did nothing to aid the creature either. But when Levi had poised himself to tear the boy out, "Calm the fuck down brat" Titian Eren calmed instantly. Blood curdling roars dying out, and focus reset on his goal. Kill Titians, not people.

After the incident no one but an enraged Mikasa had anything to say about it. Armin chalked it up to Eren's newfound purpose to protect Levi. The explanation was deemed good enough for everyone else, but Levi continued to be on the wrong end of Mikasa's death glares. Eren's only reaction was to tell Levi "I promised myself I wouldn't let you die."

Levi had rolled his eyes and told him to stop making promises that were impossible to keep.

But Eren was 18 now! And he could make all the impossible promises he wanted to!

He would do everything in his power to keep said impossible promise, or die trying!

Eren was old enough to make his own choices, and he had chosen long ago that he would rather die protecting Levi than saving all of humanity.

And 18 year old Eren was old enough to drink, smoke, and get a promotion!

But mostly,

Eren was old enough to get married.

So when Eren woke up before the sun on his birthday, he'd already decided what he would do.

Levi wasn't a morning person, Eren was well aware of this, and when Eren slid out of bed he was careful to be silent.

Eren opened the door as quietly as he could and after closing it behind him he made his way to the kitchen. Even on his birthday Eren had duties and chores that needed to be attended to. It was Thursday which meant he was in charge of breakfast, cleaning the stables, and moping the floors. If Eren was capable of getting all his assigned work done, he could have the rest of the morning off until it was time to train with Hanji.

Stopping in the kitchen he pulled out everything he would need to make, typical oatmeal, toasted bread and jam, and what was left of the meat from last night. Still too early to start cooking, Eren laid out all of his gathered supplies and went to grab a mop from the broom closet.

He carried a bucket outside with him, filled the bottom with a layer of soap and then filled the bucket with water. Carrying it back inside he set about cleaning the floors. Eren had grown accustomed to cleaning, being with Levi24/7 showed the growing boy that he had to keep everything as neat as possible.

It took less than an hour to finish the first level, a little over an hour to clean the second floor and only another30 minutes to be done with the third.

Dumping the dirty water outside behind the stables, Eren grabbed a broom and decided to sweepout the stalls while he was out here anyway.

The horses liked Eren and never gave him any trouble while he was cleaning the stables, the same couldn't be said for Jean or Armin. The horses could sense Armin's nervousness around the animals, and Eren is convinced that the horses think Jean is a reject of their species and don't trust him. So while the sun slowly made its way into the sky, Eren swept up soiled hay and excess dirt and then laid down fresh hay and fed the animals their morning grain.

With the sun finally over the trees Eren knew it was time to start making breakfast. Erwin would be the first awake, seeking black tea to help him wake up. Levi would follow shortly after, most likely looking for Eren, and would then sit on the island awkwardly and tell Eren to hurry it up.

Eren was not wrong.

Upon entering the kitchen he found Erwin boiling water and sleepily making his tea. Erwin hardly let anyone see him in a state of relaxation, but he hardly paid any mind to Eren when it came to the mornings. And Eren almost took comfort in the fact that their leader was so at ease around him. But Eren knew better, Erwin was only at ease with Eren because he knew Levi trusted him.

"Late night?" Eren asked the first in command.

Erwin nodded his head slowly, the movement sluggish this early in the morning. "I see you're up early. Any reason?"

Eren knew Erwin knew about his birthday, and didn't say anything about the personal matter. "Just wanted to get all my chores done so I could be more available to Levi." Which wasn't a lie. If Eren wasn't in the Captain's office neither was the captain. If they wanted Levi to get any work done, it was important for Eren to be finished with his own work.

"I swear you spoil him. Make him suck it up and get his shit done. You don't have to protect him in the castle." Erwin sighed, finishing up his tea and setting the rest of the water aside.

"I'll keep that in mind." Eren replied easily. It wasn't the first time he'd been told. But Eren felt out of place without Levi, like something bad was going to happen.

Of course they spent time apart. Levi had meetings to attend that didn't involve Eren, Eren had responsibilities and chores that Levi didn't have the patience to wait through, and Eren did spend time with his friends. He and Armin would ride horses in the evenings before bed to relax and unwind, he'd spar with Mikasa and Jean when the free time presented itself, Sasha liked having his help raiding the kitchen. Levi liked spending time on the couch in his office reading in silence, and Eren was not the best at being silent.

So yes, they shared a room, the battlefield, and most of their time together, but they both had their own lives to live.

Eren was hoping to change that today.

Erwin made a noncommittal sound in response, still not awake enough to have a real conversation with the teen. With his steaming cup in his hands he left the kitchen.

Before Eren had a chance to start making breakfast, Levi entered the room. His long sleeve shirt hung loose around his neck and past his knuckles; Eren wondered if it was a laundry mishap and Levi was wearing his shirt. Levi was barefoot, which hardly ever happened, and his hair was mused with sleep. Eren's chest tightened considerably at the sight of this sleepy Levi, cutely rubbing at his eyes to fight off the sleep.

"Why are you up so early? It's your birthday." Levi's voice was scratchy with sleep. "No one would get mad at you for sleeping in on your birthday."

Eren smiled fondly at the other man and then proceeded start breakfast. "It's no big deal. I wanted to get everything done, I know you've got a busy day. That means I wouldn't have a lot of time to get it done during the day."

Levi scoffed at his words. "How long have you been up?"

"Three or four hours, maybe. I finished everything except breakfast."

"It's been longer than that." Levi said simply. Eren glanced over his shoulder curiously. "I woke up when you were sneaking out."

Eren's face fell into slight panic. "Oh man, I'm so sorry sir. Please tell me you got back to sleep."

Levi shrugged his shoulders, walking over to the kitchen island he bounced up to sit on the wooden surface. "Not really. I was expecting you to come back, but when you didn't I got a little worried." Levi's tone was bored as always; but Eren knew better. Levi didn't like not knowing where people were. He'd lost too many friends.

"I didn't mean to worry you so early, you should have said something when I was leaving." Eren went back to preparing the meal for their teams.

"I trust you." Levi says plainly. Eren can hear the meaning in his words though, the real faith that Levi holds with Eren.

Eren allows himself to grin. "I trust you too."

It's silent between them for the duration of time while Eren cooks. While Eren cooks, Levi waits patiently on the counter.

When Eren has two large pots of oatmeal ready to be served, there's four kettles filled with hot tea, the bread baskets are full and he's got the jams on a tray; everything ready to be carried out to the dining hall. Eren puts a heaping serving of hot oats in a bowl, sprinkling sugar on top and pours a cup of tea. He turns around and offers both items to Levi.

The man sitting on the counter smirks and snorts quietly. "Erwin is right, you're starting to spoil me."

"Someone's gotta do it." He sets the bowl down next to Levi, and Levi takes the tea cup in his hands, gulping down the scalding liquid. "You're too concerned with everyone else, you hardly pay attention to yourself."

"That's your job." Levi's response is blunt and instant, he doesn't even look up from his tea.

Which Eren is thankful for, because he's sure his cheeks are flushed. Yes it was his job. But hearing Levi say it, telling Eren that he expected him to take care of the other. It was like affirmation for all that he did for his captain.

But Eren is 18 now. It's his birthday and he's a grown man old enough to do what he wants.

"About that," Eren took a deep breath to steady himself. Over the years Eren hardly got nervous or embarrassed anymore, but this was Levi. And Levi was intimidating as fuck.

The shorter man, whose nose reached Eren's chin from where he sat, looked up curiously at the brunette. "Yeah?'

Eren sucked in another breath. "I'll always protect you."

Levi's brow arched suspiciously at the words. "So you've said before."

"When I'm training, the only thing I can think about is how much stronger do I have to get to win." Eren takes a step closer to his superior. "How much stronger do I have to be to beat the titans for you."

"For humanity." Levi is quick to correct. "My life isn't worth more than the human race, neither is yours."

Eren shakes his head steadily. "No. Captain- I mean Levi, Your life will always be worth more to me than anything. Including the human race. Titans could be invading the interior and I wouldn't make any advances until I knew you were safe." Eren takes another step closer to Levi, his stomach almost touching Levi's knees. "When I'm in my titan form you're the only thing I think about, there's nothing else for me to fight for anymore."

Levi's eyes are soft, but his features are still hardened as if Eren is talking about the weather not something so serious. "You've got friends to fight for."

"Armin and Mikasa are perfectly capable of taking care of themselves." Eren shakes his head nervously when he realizes what he's said. "Not that you aren't capable of taking care of yourself. I mea- You're more capable than I am, but I want to be able to fight beside you and stand with you and face challenges with you. I want you toned me just as much as I need you."

"What are you talking about brat? Of course I need you-"

"No levi!" Eren suddenly snaps at the older man. Eren pushes himself against the raven and slams his hands on either side of his hips. "I want to be with you. I want to be needed by you. You have no idea how you make me feel. I fall asleep to the sound of you breathing Levi, It's impossible for me to sleep without knowing you're in the bed next to mine. God I can smell your stupid lavender scented soap when I'm in the same damn room." Eren picks at the collar of Levi's(his) shirt. "I do our laundry, you accidentally wear my clothes and fuck you've got no idea what that does to me." Levi's eyes widen slightly when they meet Eren's teal ones. "I feel lost if I'm not beside you and you can't tell me that you don't feel at least a little uneasy when I'm not there- because you always come looking for me. Fuck! Erwin says I spoil you!"

Eren stops talking to catch his breath. Levi is still sitting still, face almost void of emotion; but Eren can read him like a book. And he can see that Levi is nervous, something he's never seen happen.

So Eren keeps going. "I want to be closer to you Levi. I want to wake up next to you. I want you to hold me when I come out of my Titian, I want to be with you when I'm recovering from Hanji's latest torture techniques." Eren takes a chance and rests his forehead against Levi's. "There are so many things I want Levi. So many fucking things, things I know I can't have, things I know I shouldn't ask for. But for fucks sake, the thing I want more than anything else is you." Eren breaks their eye contact when he closes his eyes, his hands form fists on the table top and he inhales that stupid lavender scented soap that is so close to him it's dizzying.

"Eren." The man in front of him whispers.

"Marry me Levi. I want you to marry me."

He hears the sharp intake of panicked breath from Levi, but before the older male can have a panic attack Eren explains himself more. "You told me that you hated relationship bullshit. That you hated that people set themselves up for failure, giving them chances to make mistakes. Levi; I don't have any time to make mistakes with you. I could die on the next mission. You- you could die on the next mission. We don't get to be like everyone else and fall in love with some cute fucking story; we've got right now. And we don't know what happens next." Eren opens his eyes and focuses back on gunmetal grey orbs that are wide with surprise and wet with what could be unshed tears. "But whatever happens next, I want to be with you when it happens. I want to be able to come back to the castle after a mission and crawl into bed with you; feel you and know you're alive. I want to call you mine until the end."

"So you want me to marry you?" Levi's body is shaking and Eren can feel it, but Levi moves his legs out of the way and Eren slips into the space between his legs, their chests touching now. Trembling fingers glide up Eren's arms, trail across his jaw and tangle in his hair. "You want to marry me?'

And Eren is 18 and he's old enough to do whatever he wants; and fuck yes that is all he wants.

Eren nods his head, body shaking just as much as Levi's is. He opens his mouth to tell Levi, yes. Yes that's all he wants. But no sounds come out and Eren's cheeks flush darker at his inability to say anything else, but there's a lump in his throat the size of an apple and he knows his eyes are watering. He wants to cry.

He's so close to Levi, can feel the echo of levi"s heart against his chest, the tremors that ripple over the other man flow into Eren and that stupid smell. Fucking lavender. Eren can't start crying right now! But he's not sure if he can stop himself, because this is Levi. A Levi doesn't want to marry Eren. But he's asking because this is Levi, and he's in love with him.

"Eren." Levi calls out softly. "Ask me again."

He shakes his head, squeezing his eyes closed tightly, too scared to look at those silver eyes that remind Eren of stars. Fuck if he told Levi that he'd get kicked into next week.

The fingers in Eren's hair tighten and pull gently. "Please, Eren, ask me again."

The younger man takes a few deep breaths of that lavender scent and he nods to himself, still keeping his eyes closed. "Levi Ackerman, will you marry me?" His voice is so quiet and timid he's sure Levi didn't hear him.

But he's wrong.

Because Levi's nose is pressed against his own and he can feel hot breath against his lips. "Yes."

Eren's eyes snap open, only a few centimeters away are Levi's own starry eyes and Eren's breath catches In his throat. There's no space between them, chest to chest, Eren's hips are wedged between Levi's legs. Fuck Levi closes his eyes and closes the small gap that remained between their lips.

Eren is 18 and can't remember how to breathe.

Levi's lips are chapped and so warm against his own. Eren's head tilts to the right and Levi presses closer, their lips slant together perfectly, mouths opening and closing rhythmically. It's eren that pushes his tongue against Levi's teeth, and Levi gasps at the feeling, greedily sucking the foreign muscle into his mouth.

The brunette lets out a particularly loud moan and it seems to snap them both back to reality.

They're in the kitchen, and the rest of the scouts are going to be getting up for breakfast momentarily.

They both pant heavily, breath mingling in the small space between them.

"Happy birthday." Levi says breathlessly.

And Eren realizes that is his favorite thing, the wrecked and hoarse tone of Levi's voice has Eren wanting to duck back down to cover Levi's lips with his own.

But they're in the kitchen.

They're in the kitchen and levi just told Eren he would marry him.

"Levi," Eren whines almost pathetically. In an effort to get closer Eren nudges his hips forward, bumping their growing arousals together, Eren hadn't even noticed he was hard.

The raven throws his head back and hisses. "Fuck, don't do that here."

Eren can't help himself. He rolls his hips against Levi's again, moaning as he does. "Shit, you're so perfect."

Levi keens at the gruff words pressed against his throat. Eren leaves open mouthed kisses on Levi's jugular, his lips stuttering small gasps at the sensation. All Levi can do is tighten his hold and yank Eren up to his lips.

They kiss once more, Eren taking Levi's bottom lip between his teeth to nibble on, which Levi gives a low groan. Eren pulls away reluctantly. "We can't stay in here."

"No shit brat." Levi gasps as Eren rolls his hips again. "Don't do that!"

"Let me get the food out." Eren pecks Levi's lips. "I'll be right back."

Levi tugs Eren down again to kiss him harder, he doesn't want to let go yet. "Hurry up then." Another peck. "I'll give you a birthday present. You've done all your chores right?"

Eren groans at the thought, hips jerking forward without his consent. "Yes sir, shit. You've got to let go if you want me to put food on the table."

"Easier said than done." Levi chuckles, a deep sound like warm honey and it's got Eren gasping.

But Eren manages to wriggle free of his fiancé.

Fuck.

Levi was his Fiancé.

Eren distracts himself by grabbing both pots of oatmeal and running out into the dining room, the room is still thankfully empty. He repeats the process with the rest of the kettles and breadbaskets. Eren sets down the last tray of jams when arms wrap around him from behind. Levi's head rests against his shoulder blades, one of his hands slides down his chest to palm at the bulge in his pants, the other grips his shirt tight enough to tear. Eren growls at the sensation, yanking his body free to turn around; and wrapping Levi up in his arms.

They kiss again. Aggressive mouths pushing against each other, fighting to be in charge. Eren lets one of his hands fall to Levi's ass, squeezing the flesh harshly, making Levi cry out his name.

"get me upstairs Eren." Levi raps out.

Eren nods, not trusting his speech capabilities. His hands move to Levi's thighs, lifting him off the ground. Levi's legs wrap around Eren's hips and he grinds down. Both men moan loudly.

Eren uses all his willpower to not buck up into the contact, instead forcing his feet to move. He goes back into the kitchen and takes the back stairway. Knowing the main staircase would most likely have people in it by now.

As carefully as he can he takes the stairs two at a time, getting to the second floor in a few seconds. While Levi bites at his neck and shamelessly ruts their hips together, Eren checks to see if the coast is clear. With the hallway empty, Eren takes the dive and runs down the hall to Levi and his shared room.

The door was left open from when Levi had come downstairs, Eren thanks god silently for that, and kicks the door closed with his foot when they're safely in the bedroom. One hand leaves Levi's body to twist the deadbolt into place to ensure they aren't bothered.

At the sound of the lock clicking into place Levi's mouth is back on Eren's, lips desperate for contact.

He carries them to the bed, laying Levi down on his back gently, Levi scoots back to settle against the pillows, dragging Eren with him. Levi breaks away from their liplock to pull his shirt off his body. When the cloth hits the floor he smirks. "Did it take you that long to notice I've been sleeping in your clothes for almost a year?"

Eren laughs brightly while he pulls off his own shirt, eyes locking with Levi's again, mirth sparkling in the teal depths. "I've noticed. I didn't know if you knew you were doing it or not."

"I can assure you it was always on purpose." Levi lifts his hips to meet Eren's and they both cry out at the friction.

"I'm not going to try and stop you anytime soon." Eren undoes his belt and pulls his pants down, Levi reflects the motion. Both left in underwear, Eren can't help but grin down at Levi. "You're going to marry me."
"Apparently." Levi breathes with a tiny smile.

Eren is 18, and he's old enough to do whatever he wants. He's old enough to drink, smoke and get promotions.

Most importantly he's old enough to marry the love of his life.

And fuck, he's going to.

Eren is going to marry Levi; if it's the last thing he does.

But first, he's going to fuck him until he can't walk.

"I love you." Eren says in a moment of seriousness.

Levi stops squirming beneath him and tries to catch his breath. With warm grey eyes, Levi smiles. It's small but it's larger than anything Eren's ever seen, and there's more emotion swimming in gun metal eyes than Eren thought was possible. "I love you." Levi says just as seriously.

Eren has been struck with another attack of not remembering how to breathe, because this can't be happening. But it is. Because he can feel Levi's twitching skin under his hands and those eyes looking back at him are Levi's.

"Now fuck me." Levi growls out, hands strong as they pull Eren down to him.

He will do that. Yes, yes he will.

And then they'll get married.

Okay, so this wasn't edited and I just kind of threw it together. I hope you guys enjoy it! This is probably my favorite ship right now. Even though I'm probably going to hell for it, oh well :) let me know what you guys think!