Chapter 7: Regret of the Century

"Are you trying to get us caught?" she asked with a flirty injection on her voice as he pushed her against the door of his office. The impact was hard enough to cause the wood to make a cracking sound.

The man seemed busy enough with her neck, tough. She could feel his teeth gently nipping the soft skin and then his tongue washing away the slight pain. The motions were sending shivers down her spine and she tangled her fingers on his inky locks to keep him in place.

A slight groan from him vibrated against her skin and she had to bite back a small moan that rose from her throat.

He trailed kisses up her jaw, taking his sweet time exploiting those sensitive spots he had discovered in their previous encounters. When she felt him approaching her ear, she closed her eyes in anticipation of his next move, but instead of his tongue licking the soft skin behind it, she just sensed his breath against the shell.

"You would like to get caught, am I wrong?"

She gasped. She didn't know why exactly. It could have been the question itself, the not so subtle implications about it or just that god dammed, playful tone on his voice.

"Just think about it", he paused to take a small nip at the shell of her ear. "Imagine Auruo's face. He wouldn't tease you again" She felt him going back to her neck where would surely leave another mark.

She felt the hand that wasn't busy with her hair trailing down her waist before settling down at the curve of her hip. He was trying to get her to fight him, she realized. She knew that he wouldn't enjoy just having her with no challenge to spice things up.

Her thoughts were cut short when she was pulled backwards, her backside pressing harder against the wall.

"Ma-"she tried to counter, but then he hummed against her skin. The vibrations made it hard to articulate sentences. She breathed hard several times, trying to get her mind to function properly.

It wasn't until she felt his calloused fingers sneaking beneath her shirt that she managed to gain enough willpower to grab his arm.

Time stood still after she curved her fingers around his wrist. Slowly, she saw him shifting his face, no longer attached to her throat.

She could feel her breath quickening, but she didn't let that nervousness reflect on her face. She was ready to rise up to his challenge.

"So, what if we let Hanji and Erwin listen too?" she whispered

The sound of coughing shook Petra awake from her slumber. Her face was pressed against a white sheet, and it took her a moment to realize that she had fallen asleep while watching over Levi.

She tiredly rubbed her face as she gazed upon the clock that seemed to be the only sound that accompanied Levi's steady yet tired breathing. It was nearly eleven a clock, the New Year was a bit over one hour away and Petra had wasted the entire afternoon sleeping over her unconscious master and having weird dreams and… what was that strange warmth that she felt on the depths of her belly when she woke up?

Levi coughed slightly again, forcing Petra to stop thinking about her bizarre dreams. No she hadn't wasted her time. Any preparations for a New Year's eve dinner, however small they could be, would have left her unable to forgive herself if that meant leaving the side of a sick friend.

But now that left her in an awkward position. Levi had been found reeking of cheap alcohol and her father stubbornly refused to say where the house master had been found. But for Petra, the trembling on the older man's voice, as well as his somber expression, were enough signs to say that it was a low life place.

Petra was confused about that prospect. She had heard Levi complaining about the uncleanliness of those places countless times. As she watched him sleeping, she pondered why he chose to wander in that foul world.

"Don't be stupid" a sarcastic voice inside her head argued at her, "It's because of the letter"

She felt her chest tighten at that though. Apparently Levi was also left distraught by the accusation made by his mother. But that opened another doubt.

Petra's hand slowly reached for Levi´s forehead, looking to brush away some hairs that now seemed to tickle his brow. As she fixed the inky strands, she whispered, as she was trying to reach him inside whatever dream he could be having.

"Your mother believes we're having an affair", her voice struggled to say the last word, "I don't know what to think about it, I don't understand how I feel about it, I don't know what to do now". The hand that remained in her lap began to clutch desperately at the fabric of her dress, while her other one, in contrast, began to curve gently around his jaw.

"I don't like being this confused. I have always been 100 percent sure of what I'm doing, of what is around me, of what you are to me, but know, seeing you like this", she felt her eyes sting. "I want to ask you….

After reading that letter, what am I to you know?"

She felt his face tense beneath her had before she noticed his eyes snapping open. Her hand retreated immediately. She felt mortified, how much he had heard?

She knew that she couldn't remain in that sacredly cat position in front of her. Levi had stated wordlessly in many occasions that he preferred a steady hand than a fearful one.

"Young master?" she asked gently yet confident.

Levi turned his gaze towards her, and Petra had to hold herself from gasping. She had never seen him like this, expression wild and distraught. His eyes were wide and scanning his surroundings desperately. For a moment, Petra thought that the seemingly desperate scanning of his surroundings meant that he wasn't sure if this was his room.

"Master?" she asked again, but this time a high note of concern passed through the confidence she usually displayed.

Petra noticed his eyes shifting towards her, and then she saw the withe sheets flying towards her.

She felt strong arms clinging to her small frame, and then a series of rapid breaths against the skin of her neck.

"I'm sorry"

What. She had known Levi practically since she was born, but she never heard him pronouncing those words.

She then felt herself freeze as she began to feel the strange, yet unmistakable feel of lips making contact with her skin.

"I think that you are starting to see Master Levi….differently"

Levi's lips began to trace a path upwards, following the delicate curve of her jaw.

"What do you think of him?"

His mouth had reached her ear, and then it changed its direction and began to dust kisses over her cheeks.

"As long as you don't know…."

Petra felt him pulling back, his gaze seemed the same he always wore, but she saw a different glint on his eyes. She hadn't seen it before, but there was a strange familiarity on it. It sparkle a foreign thrill within her. Then he moved forward once again. She didn't need to guess where he was aiming this time.

"…don't do anything stupid, okay?"

She felt a rush of adrenaline course through her as she, somehow, pushed her Master away, nearly making him land backwards on his bed.

Petra's gaze was unfocused; trying to make some sense of what had just happened, and why the hell did she took so long to stop him?!

"I-I…" she needed to say something. "I don't know…." She tried to make out a sentence. Why did she stop him? Oh yes, her mother's words

I don't know what I want" she finally sighed. The breath she released felt remarkably heavy. Levi's face seemed a bit surprised, but then, to Petra's own surprise, he calmly composed himself, fixed the sheets of his bed, and laid back in a relaxed pose, as if he had never tried anything as baffling as what he just did.

"I understand" Petra couldn't hide the utter confusion that had plastered in her face

What it's going on?

It seemed that Levi noticed this, since his next movement was a motion that indicated her to leave. It took her an extra second to fully accept the order, but as soon as she got up, she could listen to Levi's low, groggy whisper.

"What year is it now?"