Author's note: This is the ending/continuation/part 2 of "The Last Time." It also could be a stand alone, I guess but it'd make more sense if it were a second part. PLEASE READ THE AUTHOR'S NOTE AT THE END TOO. IMPORTANT INFORMATION!!! I told a few of you who have messaged me that The Lyricist was my next update, and I apologize for deviating from that. But I felt a second part was in order to make y'all feel better about Levi being a dickhead in the last one shot I posted. Slightly OOC Levi...maybe more than slightly? idk

Anyway, please enjoy this final part two alcoholic!Levi xoxo love y'all.

Edit: I have made a very grave error in writing this and this is now the revised version. I apologize. thank you to a beautiful reader of mine who pointed out how dumb I am.

Part Two/Ending

***

Her cries were heart wrenching. Something about the way she would gasp for air in the midst of her sobbing made an awful feeling in the pit of his stomach. Despite the guilt though, Levi could not find it in himself to pull his cell phone away from his ear.

He had lost count how many times he had listened to her voicemail but he wanted it burned into his memory. He wanted to remember every single breath and every single word.

"I sacrificed everything for you and you don't give two shits about what I want! EVER! You're a goddamn liar and I fucking can't stand this shit anymore, you fucking asshole! You lied. You lied to me, you piece of shit! How dare you blow me off like this!!" She was shrieking in her distress and anguish; Levi could hear the desperation in her voice. The pain riddled her tone and it made Levi clench his teeth with hatred for himself. She was losing it...and he was the reason why. "I can't do this anymore!! I DON'T DESERVE THIS. WHY ARE YOU SO FUCKING STUPID!? I CAN'T DO THIS!!! FUCK. I CAN'T."

Her agonizing sobs rose up once more and he could hear her moaning intermittently in between breaths. Try as he might, he never did figure out what she was saying because it was too muffled out. For three minutes straight, she would wail until it slowly faded into sniffles and hyperventilation.

"I can't win this fight..." she would finally whisper. "I don't have anymore fight left in me...I'm...I'm-"

The voicemail would cut her off and end there and without hesitation, Levi replayed it. Over and over and over. He wanted to torture himself, in a way. He deserved it. He pushed her to her breaking point, to her limit.

(F/n) left him because he chose alcohol over her...and he never saw her again. And so, he would listen to her cries on his voicemail until he couldn't feel anything anymore.

"Leviiii," someone said. It was distant, almost hazy but he could hear it. "Sweetheart, it's time to get up."

He felt a hand at his arm shake him gently but he rolled over and let out a grunt to be left alone. A rather aggravating chuckle reached his ears but Levi refused to open his eyes. "Can't you let a man sleep in for once in his life...?"

"Honey...it's nearly eleven thirty in the morning," said the sweet voice. He could hear the smile in her tone. "I already let you sleep in as it is."

Levi let out a tortured groan. "Fine," he sighed. "I'm getting up, I'm getting up."

"I'll fix you up some tea while you take a shower." The slight figure that had been sitting at the edge of the bed stood up. A brief moment had passed before he felt a pair of soft lips touch his cheek. He flinched at the invasion of his personal space so soon after he awoke.

He heard light footsteps make their way into the bathroom and shortly after the sound of running water met him.

"It's warming up, but don't take too long," said her voice gently. "You'll waste water."

Levi grunted again to acknowledge her before her footsteps signaled that she had left the bedroom. A minute went by and he could hear her talking in an overly honeyed tone downstairs but he couldn't make out what she was saying. He strained to listen but nothing coherent reached him.

Finally, he opened his eyes, the rather large room bathed in natural light. He let out another grumble; she always did like to throw the curtains open in the morning. Normally, that wouldn't bother him but this morning was different. He sat up slowly, stretching out his legs and blinked the haze from his eyes.

Levi, generally, was an insomniac. Very rarely was she up before he was. However, if she did wake first, she always let him sleep in. It was not very often that he got a full night's sleep.

He wasn't surprised though. He had the same nightmares every night for years. He hated sleeping because he hated reliving his past.

Twenty minutes later, he was showered and dressed. Going downstairs, he was met with the pleasant and welcoming scent of food. He hadn't realized how hungry he was until his stomach growled at the smell.

"Daaadddyyy!!" cried a tiny voice once he entered the kitchen. Levi glanced over at the source of the loud noise.

A small toddler was grinning up at him. Levi smiled slightly at his son, whom was sitting at the table in his highchair. It appeared to be that the child was coloring diligently but Levi couldn't make out exactly what his son was drawing. It looked like it could be an animal, but he honestly had no idea which one.

"What are you drawing?" Levi asked, ruffling the child's hair affectionately.

"I'm drawing a horse!" said his son immediately.

Levi squinted at the paper skeptically. "...a horse?" he repeated.

"Levi..." warned another voice. He glanced up at his wife, who was shaking her head in amusement. "Isn't Eren's drawing really good?"

Her husband flashed her an annoyed expression; he was not one for lying, even to kids. However, he had no intention of crushing his son's spirit either.

"Yes," he forced out. "I especially like that your horse has a green tail and blue legs. Very impressive, Eren."

His four year old huffed and began to pout. "Daddy!" he whined, taking his father aback. "Those are his eyes, not his legs!"

Levi snorted quietly. "Oh, I'm sorry, kid. I wasn't paying attention..." he replied with a roll of his eyes.

In all honesty, the picture was just a massive mess of clashing colors and had no resemblance of a horse in any way. Maybe more of a giraffe, but certainly not a horse. Eren made a small noise of irritation but continued to color.

His wife approached the table and set down a plate of food for him. "Your tea is almost ready," she said, lightly kissing him on the lips.

"Thanks."

Levi nodded and sat down, staring at the breakfast food for a moment. She seemed to have gone all out today with the French toast and side of bacon. He poked at the strawberry slices on top of the bread, brushing it aside to the edge of the plate.

"We're still going to get a present for Mikasa's birthday party next weekend, right?" his wife asked while he chewed. She set down his cup of tea and gave her husband a pointed stare. Levi lifted his gaze, holding back his annoyance at being pestered while he was eating.

"Oooh, can I get a birthday present?" cried Eren, his emerald eyes bright with enthusiasm. "I want one too!"

"Oi, your birthday is next month, brat," snapped Levi. "Wait your turn."

Eren immediately looked put out by this but his wife pat her son on the head while shaking her own at Levi.

"Yours is coming up, baby," she said sweetly. "You have to be patient, okay? Your birthday is March thirtieth and it's only February."

The tiny brunette groaned in frustration. "'Kay fine..."

With a satisfied smile, she returned her attention to Levi. "It'd be better to get it now, instead of during the week."

Levi set his teacup down and nodded. "Yeah, sure. Let's go after I'm done eating."

The shopping center was particularly crowded today, although Levi wasn't surprised. After all, Valentine's Day was two weeks away and it was a Saturday afternoon. Internally, he cringed. He had no idea what he was going to get on Valentine's Day or what he was planning to do. After all, now that he had a four year old, it would be difficult to take his wife anywhere.

They had meandered through the stores, but Levi was a little irked. Instead of trying to find a suitable birthday present for Eren's best friend, it seemed they were more so shopping for his wife. However, he remained quiet on the subject; he didn't feel like getting into an argument. Still, they had been at this for a while and Eren was beginning to grow bored.

"I'm going to get coffee." Levi watched as his wife was putting up blouses against her chest. She hardly acknowledged him and merely nodded absently. He stared at her through the mirror before he snorted quietly to himself.

"Take Eren with you," she said, not favoring him with a glance.

Levi stifled his need to roll his eyes. "Eren," he snapped, watching his son run through the clothing racks in his boredom. "Let's go!"

Eren leapt out from the circular rack with an arrangement of basic shirts on it, having been pretending to hide from giant monsters. "Where are we going, daddy?"

Levi gripped his son's hand and pulled him out of the store. Once he was out of earshot of his wife, he flashed a smirk to Eren. "I'm getting you hot chocolate. Don't tell your mom."

The child nearly exploded with excitement at this. Eren wasn't allowed to have too many sweets, as he needed to have a more healthy diet for his development. Levi, on the other hand, had no problems sneaking food for his son; deep down, he liked to indulge Eren a bit. Personally, he felt his mother was being a little too careful about his "clean eating."

Once Levi got his coffee and his son his own cocoa, they continued to walk around the shopping center. Levi was attempting to find the kid's play area for Eren to run off some of his energy; he figured his wife wouldn't be finishing up anytime soon anyways. He still was not sure how this ended up being a shopping trip for her.

"Oops..." he heard Eren say below him. Levi looked down only to find his son had sloshed a little of his drink over the front of his jacket.

His father grumbled at this. "I had a feeling you were going to do that..." he sighed. Levi squat down and took the cup from his son. His mother definitely would know now that Eren had hot chocolate. Unzipping the front of the hoodie, he stripped Eren from the jacket. "Be careful with your drinks, son. You're a big boy now, so you can't be making messes like this anymore."

Eren looked down at his feet with guilt at being admonished. Levi, however, couldn't stay angry even though he can't stand seeing his kid dirty. It drove him nuts. He was fairly sure that he was wiping Eren's face off more than his wife ever did.

"Here's your drink." He handed the child's cup back to Eren and ruffled his hair.

The pair continued to walk a little more, Eren now hyper-focused on not spilling his hot cocoa again. Levi, secretly, found this very endearing but he kept a stoic gaze in place.

"Levi!" a voice called behind him. He paused mid-stride; he recognized this voice. No amount of time that had passed would ever make him forget it.

Turning in his spot, he found a familiar face staring at him with her body turned away as if she had just walked past him. He hardly noticed that Eren was glancing between his father and the lady in front of him as a rush of emotions hit him in the chest. He couldn't place what he was feeling but looking at the woman felt strangely comforting.

"(F/n)...?"

***

You had come to the shopping mall earlier than you discussed with your fiancé to buy some jeans. You hadn't bought new clothes in a while, and your pants were all becoming a little worse for wear now. There was a part of you that knew you shouldn't be spending money on this, and rather saving for your upcoming wedding, but your fiancé had insisted you do something for yourself. Ever since he got his promotion, he has been treating you to dinners and gifts more than usual.

With a quick glance at the time on your mobile phone, you realized you had about an hour or so before you were to meet him for dinner at the restaurant you both agreed upon.

Walking at a brisk pace, you passed through groups of teenagers and families, intent on getting in and out of the store you were searching for. You were not much of a shopper. You knew what you wanted, where you wanted it, and did not like wasting time trying on every item in the store or comparing prices. Anyone who spent hours shopping annoyed you, especially if they were indecisive.

As you made your way through, your eyes caught a charming scene between a parent and child. There was a small boy with bright green eyes and dark brown hair looking a little upset while his father was crouched in front of him. You had a clear line of sight of the child but the father's back was mostly facing you so you had no idea what his expression was, but you could guess. They were too far away for you to be able to hear the conversation, and the din of all the mall chatter was too loud, but it looked as though the father was coming down on his son for a minute.

The boy was way too cute, in your opinion. You hoped you'd have a child that cute one day.

After a moment, the father put a hand on his son's head and messed his hair up slightly before rising to a stand. He turned to your direction, eyes still focused on his son.

Nothing would have prepared you for the shock you had. At the sight of who this man was, your heart lurched.

Levi.

How long had it been since you had last seen him...before you left him in that cold, lonely apartment in tears? Back then, he looked so miserable, so angry all the time. There were days when he would smile for you...days that he would be relatively happy but after a while, it began to fade. After his problem with alcohol appeared, he no longer was easy to be with and you no longer had the strength to stay by his side.

Levi looked so content now. Even though his face was impassive, you could see the love for his son in his eyes. He looked at peace; he looked...happy. You had no idea what you were feeling in this moment, as every emotion seemed to come sweeping over you, only to be replaced by a new one.

His gaze was so concentrated on watching his son not spill his little cup, that when Levi passed by, he didn't even notice you were staring at him in surprise.

And before you could stop yourself, you called out to him. "Levi!"

You mentally berated yourself as he paused in his strides; you wished you hadn't stopped him. What were you going to say to him? Would he even want to talk while with his son? It had been years since you last saw him, let alone even spoke to him.

Levi met your gaze and you already knew that whatever you were feeling, he was processing it too. Despite the years that had gone by, you still knew what he was thinking just by looking into his eyes. His son also appeared to be confused, as he kept looking at you and then back to his father.

"(F/n)...?" breathed Levi, eyes wider than you had remembered ever seeing them.

He appeared to hesitate before he took his son by the hand and approached you. For some reason, your heart began to race, your pulse skyrocketing with every step he took towards you. You weren't sure if it was fear or something else...but you didn't want to know. You automatically glanced at his left hand and found his ring finger bearing a wedding band. You weren't sure how you felt about that either.

"Wow..." you said first to cover up the awkward silence. "U-uhm. Wow...it's been a long time."

"Seven years," he said automatically, catching you off guard. He had been counting. "It's definitely...been a while."

You mentally wanted to kick yourself for stuttering but Levi's gaze was surprisingly soft. Embarrassed and thrown off by that look, you averted your eyes to the little boy beside him.

"Is this your son?" You smiled down at the little brunette and he furrowed his brows in confusion.

Levi returned the look before glancing down at the small child. "Yeah...my little shit."

You could not help but laugh at the name he called his son. "Wow, Levi...I'm somehow not surprised you would call him that as a term of endearment," you said before also looking at the boy. "What's your name?"

The small child glanced up at his father, as if to ask permission to speak. Again, you found the boy precious beyond words with how he interacted with his father. Levi pat him on the head affectionately. "Go ahead and tell her your name," he said. "She's...a friend of mine."

You felt your stomach seize up slightly at the term Levi called you but you ignored it.

The little boy turned to look at you before he grinned. He was quite the confident one. "My name is Eren. And I'm four years old!"

You chuckled at his enthusiasm and held out your hand. "Well, it's very nice to meet you, Eren," you replied, shaking his tiny hand for a moment. "My name is (F/n) and I'm thirty years old."

"Oh wow, you're old," said Eren without any hesitation. You laughed again at the child's expression; he appeared to be completely alarmed upon hearing your age.

Levi promptly flicked his son across the forehead very lightly but Eren yelped anyways. "Don't call people old, brat. It's rude." His tone was stern and commanding. "What do you say to (F/n)?"

Eren hid behind his father's legs just slightly, guilt ridden and embarrassed. You wanted to tell Levi it was perfectly okay with you but you also didn't want to intrude on his discipline. "I'm sorry," the little boy said, clutching his drink. "...b-but you're pretty too..."

You were positive that he also said, "for an old lady..." under his breath. Levi rolled his eyes, having heard it too but you both chose to ignore it.

Levi returned his gaze to you and the grin you had slowly began to fade. The awkward vibe returned while you both continued to look each other over. Even though seven years had passed, he had hardly aged a day; he was still as handsome as he was in his mid-twenties.

"How have you been?" you blurted out, curiosity getting the better of you.

He smiled very slightly at this, a sadness clouding his eyes. "I've been...good," he said hesitantly. "Better than...how it use to be."

You realized he was treading very carefully with his words. You almost wished he didn't; he used to be so straight-forward before but now he seemed to think before he said something abrasive. Of course, you knew why, as it was a touchy subject to bring up. It was the big elephant in the room, the unsaid topic that you both were unsure on discussing. You had dated for three years...and the way it had ended between you two was neither ideal nor mutual.

Levi inhaled deeply, as if to gather some courage. You knew what was coming and attempted to embrace yourself emotionally. You were over this, you reminded yourself.

"I'm incredibly sorry (F/n)," he said, tone sincere and gentle. "What I did to you back then...who I was back then...it wasn't fair to you. I know I hurt you and you stuck it out for a long time when you shouldn't have had to. No amount of stress or personal issues I had could ever justify the way I treated you. So..." he paused for a moment, "I'm sorry for how I treated you at the end of it all."

"It's alright, Levi," you said with a soft tone. You had long moved past the trauma you suffered from the end of the relationship, and had mentally forgave him years ago. You knew he had been struggling. "I can see you're a different man now...and I'm really happy for you."

Your voice caught in your throat at the last sentence; somehow...you weren't sure you believed yourself completely in that statement. You were happy that he had changed, that he had moved on with his life and he had a wife and son now. It was exactly what you had wanted for him from the very beginning.

But you knew. You knew this feeling from the day you left that apartment, and it was renewed the second you saw his face.

You still cared deeply for this man before you. You always had.

Of course, you adored and loved your fiance now. He was a good man and he treated you better than anyone has ever treated you. You were happy with him...and yet, when you found yourself looking at Levi all these years later, you realized you never completely let go of your feelings for him. Seeing him healthy and happy almost brought you to tears because a part of you had always wanted to be by his side for this part of his life.

You wished it had been you.

"...Yeah," said Levi, averting his eyes away from yours. He didn't want to acknowledge the fact they were beginning to brim with tears. Guilt filled his heart, along with several other emotions he chose to ignore. "I've been sober ever since you left that letter though. I haven't had a single drink since."

You grinned, beating back your urge to fully cry. "That's...that's amazing. I'm so happy to hear that!"

That wasn't a lie and you truly wished you could embrace him for his admittance. That letter. You remember exactly what you had wrote...and all these years later, what you wrote came to pass. He was happy and had moved on from his addiction. No amount of words could explain your joy.

Just as you opened your mouth to say something, you heard "(F/n)!" from behind you. You cringed, recognizing the voice instantly. Why now?

"Hey, honey!" you sort of forced out once you faced your fiancé. "You're...uh...early."

The tall, blond man nodded and kissed your forehead before replying. You really wished he hadn't done that in front of company. "I finished up my conference call earlier than I expected so I thought I'd just meet you now," he explained. You made a noise of acknowledgment, glancing at Levi for a moment.

You were trying to discern his expression. It was fairly deadpan but...you thought you saw irritation pass in his grey eyes for a second.

"Oh, hi. I'm Erwin," he said, holding his hand out to his shorter counterpart. "(F/n)'s fiancé."

Levi's eyes widened a fraction but he took Erwin's hand and shook it firmly. "Levi...I'm an old friend of hers," he replied, meeting your gaze for a moment. "This is my son, Eren."

"Hi," said Eren, head tilted back to look at Erwin. "You're like a giant."

You put a hand to your lips to stifle your giggle and Levi exhaled sharply. He seemed a bit exasperated by his child's honesty. Like father, like son.

"And you're a runt." Erwin didn't miss a beat. You glanced up at him, aware that his tone had been fairly brusque; he never had been good with kids. You knew he hadn't meant it maliciously but your were suddenly embarrassed.

A slight woman with ginger hair and golden eyes approached your group, several bags dangling from her arms. "These your friends, Levi?" she had said. Levi visibly stiffened at the voice. You felt the need to raise an eyebrow at her with disapproval; her voice was very sweet and for whatever reason under the sun, you hated the way it sounded. Something about her seemed so familiar too, but you couldn't quite place it.

Levi glanced at the woman. "Oh, you're done?"

"Yes! I found a few things," she said with a bright smile. You eyed her bags; there were definitely more than a "few things." The woman kissed Levi's cheek but he hardly responded to it. You couldn't help but notice their strange dynamic but didn't comment on how annoyed Levi seemed to become. Where the heck did you know her from?

The small woman turned to face you, now fully looking at you. Just like you, her face sort of contorted in confusion. "Wait...don't I know you from somewhere?"

You glanced at Levi and back at the woman you only assumed was his wife. Realization dawned on you; this woman use to be one of Levi's co-workers when you had been dating him. You held back your sudden urge to glare hard at Levi; you couldn't believe he ended up marrying her.

"Uhm, not that I'm aware of," you lied, seeing Levi look increasingly uncomfortable. Neither of you wanted an awkward exchange if she were to realize who you were. Your heart was pounding in your chest, worried she would figure it out.

The small woman eyed you for a moment more. "I swear you look so familiar..." she said but laughed it off. "Anyways, I'm Levi's wife, Petra."

You blinked in surprise and noticed that her husband was equally stunned. She really didn't remember you. Upon this realization, you wanted to slap her across the face for being a complete idiot. How could she not remember you? Sure, you dropped some weight and your hair was a lot shorter now...but you couldn't be unrecognizable.

You forced a smile. "(F/n)," you said hesitantly, automatically linking your arm with Erwin's. Petra didn't seem to remember your name either and you began to breathe easy. "And my fiancé, Erwin. I'm an old friend of your husband's. We...were friends in college."

Petra beamed at you. "You never told me about (F/n), Levi," she said sweetly, latching onto his arm. Levi raised an eyebrow at her, completely dumbfounded by her memory loss of who you were. You glanced down at Eren, who was staring up at the adults conversing but you had a feeling he was growing bored.

"We weren't close," you hurried to say. You didn't want to lie, necessarily, but you weren't keen on her remembering anything about you or your fiancé knowing about the past you and Levi shared. You thought it best to fill in the gaps for her before did herself. "We just had several classes together."

"You majored in biotech?" asked Erwin beside you. You cringed; always so curious and analytical.

Levi glanced at you with a split-second expression of irritation for lying. "No, we just had a few pre-requisite classes in our early years," he replied, covering for you.

"We definitely should get together sometime," chimed in Levi's wife. "We don't know many other couples."

You shot Levi a furtive look of desperation. This was beginning to go in a direction neither of you wanted.

"We're going to have dinner in a bit," said Erwin. "You're more than welcome to join us."

You wanted to hit him and if you could facepalm, you would. How you were going to get out of this situation was beyond you at this point. You were hoping Levi would come to the rescue because you could not think of any way to tell them they could not join without it being awkward or rude.

"Oh, that sounds lovely!" exclaimed Petra. "That is, if you don't mind having a little rascal at the table."

Erwin's reply was nearly monotone and you couldn't read him. Since when did he want to ever have dinner with anyone else? "Not at all. I like kids."

No, he didn't.

Levi drained his coffee cup absently and threw it in the nearest trash can, formulating his thoughts. You kept trying to get his attention to save the situation somehow but he wasn't meeting your gaze.

"I was planning on cooking when we got home," he said directly to his wife. "The chicken will go bad if we don't use it tonight."

Petra looked put out. "Oh, c'mon, sweetheart," she whined. "We hardly ever go out."

Levi ignored her. "We appreciate the offer, but the kid needs to be in bed at a decent hour too."

"That's too bad," you replied, feigning a frown. In reality, you wanted to breathe a sigh of relief. If you were to have dinner with them, the entire ordeal would be awkward. Not only that, trying to cover up your past relationship with Levi would be increasingly difficult the longer you were together.

"Some other time then," said Erwin. Levi nodded.

You began to say your goodbyes; little Eren was particularly happy about this. He had given you a high five and run off promptly after that. Petra had to call back her farewells and chased after her son.

"See you soon!"

You sort of laughed uneasily; you really hoped you never had to see that woman and her ridiculously cute son ever again.

Levi and Erwin shook hands for a moment. "It was nice meeting you," said Levi, voice slightly strained. "Congratulations on your engagement."

Erwin finally smiled for the first time and glanced down at you with affection. You turned away, feeling awkward under his gaze and in Levi's presence.

"Thank you. You should come to our wedding. It's August thirteenth," your fiancé said. You just about wanted to punch him at this point.

Levi smirked, a look you weren't expecting. "Of course, you'll have to send me an invitation, (F/n)."

Again, you chuckled uncomfortably. "Sure...I would love to have you at my wedding."

"Dammit..." mumbled Erwin next to you.

You cast your fiancé a confused expression. "What's wrong?"

"I left my wallet in the car," he replied, searching his slacks' pockets. "You should get his address to mail the wedding invitation while I go get it."

Erwin kissed your forehead again before you could reply and hurried back from the way he came. You and Levi watched him go for a moment, the tension between you building once more.

"Nice guy..." said Levi finally. You could hear the critical tone in his voice. "Real great with kids."

"Shut up," you snapped, letting your anger rise. "You have absolutely no room to talk. You married Petra Ral, your dumb as shit co-worker."

"....I am thoroughly embarrassed by that," he sighed. "And very grateful."

You finally let yourself glare at him. "Of all the people you could have dated after me," you griped, folding your arms, "you chose the ditz that I personally wanted to kill."

He shrugged. "It all sort of...just happened," he replied, scratching the back of his head. "How the hell does she not recognize you?"

The anger boiling in your stomach did not dissipate; you didn't know who you wanted to punch more. Her or Levi.

"...I see your wife has an expensive taste in clothing..." you spat out. You did not care if you were acting like a child.

"I see your fiance has a stick up his ass," shot back Levi. You narrowed your eyes at him with irritation.

Levi's smirk broadened at this and your heart sort of fluttered. In truth, uou missed this playful banter; not many people could keep up with you on that front. You knew you shouldn't be feeling like this, not after so long...not after how everything ended but you couldn't control it. It was so strange to you. You were too old to have these butterflies in your stomach again.

"Well..." you said awkwardly. "At least we got out of dinner this time."

He scoffed. "Let's hope there is no 'next time' either."

You chuckled and pulled out your phone. "I'm still going to send you an invitation though," you mumbled. "Erwin's the type of guy who will pester you until it's done...whatever 'it' is."

Levi nodded, having got that impression from the man and reached out to take your phone. He promptly entered his cell phone number, house number, and his address for you. Upon receiving your phone back, you called his mobile so that he also had your number.

"In case you need it for something," you said, not meeting his gaze.

Levi continue to look at you, regret rising up in his throat. You were just as beautiful as you were back then. Not that he would ever admit it to anyone, but you were the one thing he wished he hadn't screwed up. You were "the one that got away" in his eyes and he constantly berated himself for hurting you like he had. Yet even after all of that, you were here before him now, full of forgiveness.

"Thank you..." he said before he could stop himself. "If it wasn't for you leaving me...I wouldn't have gotten the help I needed. It was a good wake up call."

You met his eyes. "Levi..." You hesitated. "I'm sorry about the way I left. I should have at least-"

He held up a hand to silence you. "Don't you dare apologize," he said firmly. "I'm the one that messed up a good thing. I chose my own desires over yours and you did what you had to. I can't blame you...and I can't be angry. You were scared...and that was my fault.... And nothing I could ever say to you will ever make up for what I did to you...what I put your through. So, don't feel guilty for having left me like you did. It's my fault that we fell apart."

The tears were back but this time you let them fall freely. It was like the floodgate burst in your heart that you couldn't control. You felt silly for appearing so weak...so emotional.

Upon seeing you cry, Levi visibly grew somber. "Don't do that," he sighed. He wished he could hold you but he couldn't anymore. It wasn't his place to wipe away those tears, nor did he have the right to. "You're making a scene."

You chuckled briefly at his abrasive words, dabbing your eyes with your sleeve. You knew it was a cover up for how guilty he felt. But you couldn't believe you were crying in a crowded mall...you felt like a teenager again.

"Sorry..." you said, swiping under your eyes with your fingertips. "Alright...I guess I should go before this gets anymore...awkward."

Levi attempted to smile, but you saw the deep sadness in his eyes. "It was good to see you."

You nodded, sniffling for a second. Without much thought, you reached out and embraced him. Levi seemed to have expected the gesture as he held you tight around your back and you felt him bury his face in your shoulder. You remembered this...how it felt to be held by him. Even after everything that had happened between you two...it still felt safer here than it did with anyone else.

It was still warm. It still felt like home.

"I'm sorry I didn't man up for you back then.... I lost a good woman." He had whispered it in your ear and you were close to heartbreaking sobs. "...but my feelings have never changed."

Levi felt your arms grip him tighter. He didn't care if his wife saw.... He didn't care if your fiancé saw it either. He needed this, even for a second. He didn't deserve this moment but he clung to it nonetheless.

"Neither did mine..." you replied softly. You choked back your tears and disengaged from his arms in fear of being seen.

Levi's expression nearly broke you. Upon hearing you felt the same, he felt his heart die a little more. He was losing you again.

You hated this; you wanted to stay. You wanted to keep talking to him, to pour out your heart to him but you knew you couldn't. He had moved on and had a family, and you had your own life. Every part of you threatened to break right there in front of hundreds of people but you held it together.

For him...and for yourself.

"It was good seeing you, Levi," you said, blinking to relieve the burn in your eyes. "I'll send you the invite soon."

He nodded, smiling genuinely for the first time. It had been so long since you've seen him look at you like that. It wasn't fair.

"Goodbye." His tone was soft but final. You knew what he meant by that and it felt like a knife to the heart.

"Goodbye..." You turned on your heel and walked away upon hearing your name being called by Erwin again.

Levi watched as your fiancé wrapped an arm around your shoulder protectively and he was sure he was asking what was wrong with you. Knowing you, your probably said something along the lines of "you were laughing so hard, you cried" or something equally stupid.

You glanced back at Levi; he hadn't left his spot yet. However, you quickly averted your gaze to Erwin, who was talking.

The sinking feeling in Levi's stomach returned, as if you had left him all over again. He didn't deserve the tears you shed for him. He didn't deserve your smiles either. He didn't deserve you at all. Again, remorse and hatred for who he was in the past boiled in his veins. He let the best thing that ever happened to him go again...because this time, he couldn't be selfish. You deserved to be happy. You deserved a man that treated you right.

You deserved the whole world.

"Thank you..." he said quietly to himself. "For everything..."

***

Second Author's note: Hey!! Important information on this book! I have picked out a few suggestions I would like to use for this book, so be ready for those! Again, if your suggestion was picked, I will dedicate the one shot to you. It's roughly five suggestions, however, it could be more or it could be less. Depends on my life outside Wattpad and how much motivation I have to sit and write.

Remember, I have three ongoing series for Levi, plus the suggestions I want to do. After I finish those, I may decide to "discontinue" or put a halt on this Levi book. The reasoning is this: it's becoming very tedious and draining writing about Levi. Don't get me wrong, I still love and adore him, but I'd like to branch out into something different. Perhaps an original work, or just focus on my other projects (G-Dragon one shots, Jean Kirschtein one shots, and a Creative Writing Handbook for aspiring authors). However, don't hold me to that! I could change my mind, especially when 2nd season comes out but we shall see. Who knows? ^__^

Besides, that won't be for a while. I still have at least 15-25 more updates coming for this book, depending on how long I want to make Worlds Apart and The Lyricist, so I wouldn't be sad yet.

Thank you, as always for your love and support, my lovely readers. xoxo

Signed, BBH