Author's note: Heeyy.... I know, I know. It's been over a month since I last updated. I'm sorry for that.

To keep this short, I've been so fricken busy with work that I haven't really even been online at all, other to reply to some of you. Honestly, I hardly even talk to anyone at all even IRL. BUSY BUSY BUSY!!! ASDKFJSKDF So, I wrote this drabble to tie you all over until I can find the time and motivation to write for my other parts. I'm sorry I suck balls. I should go to bed now. 

Ridiculously OOC Levi; I don't care. Please don't kill me as I find flirty Levi insanely attractive. a;sdklfj whatever, this is a crap drabble. I also did not edit this and jad; lkfja;sdklf omfg it's really shitty k bye

ALSO THIS BOOK JUST HIT 8K VOTES! THANK YOU EVERYONE FOR ALL THE LOVE AND SUPPORT. I HAD NEVER EXPECTED THIS TO DO SO WELL.

***

Eleven years.

That's how long it had been since you've seen this lakeside house.

As a child, your parents would take you and your siblings to this little, rural community by the lake for summer vacations every year until you were too old and uninterested. They had previously owned a lake house here, which had recently been passed on to you because your parents were growing a little too old to manage it. Your brothers weren't particularly happy about this, but you were viewed as the more responsible one of the kids and your parents would not change their minds.

Eleven years had passed before you finally made the trip back for a small vacation of your own. You had worked your tail off for the last year and upon review, received a promotion from your job. In celebration, you decided to take a little time off for yourself.

Back then, before all the technological advances of cell phones, Internet, computers, and beyond, you and your older brothers would play outside in the dirt and along the banks of the lake. There were too many instances to count when you would come back inside covered in grime and dust. You remembered how you used to roll around in the grass and playing hide and seek in the trees. You remembered how clean the air seemed to smell here, how clear the water was.

Everything here was so different from your suburban home life. It was so much quieter and serene. The people here were easy going and friendly, the earth teemed with vibrancy.

You stared up at the two story lake house with a fond smile, memories flashing before your mind's eye. You used to love coming up here into the mountains every summer. It was always the one thing you couldn't wait for.

The last summer you spent here was when you were fifteen. A part of you had been grateful to not have to come back here, and another part of you had been very saddened that you may never see the little community again. The memories of it all were both fond and somber.

Every summer since you had been six years old, another family who owned a different house came to vacation at the lake. They had a son who was roughly the same age as you that you spent all your time with. Playing in the lake, going bug hunting, and tree climbing were some of your favorite memories with that boy. The families grew close because of their children and did so much together during those weeks.

Thinking back, the only reason you loved coming to the lake house was because that boy was going to be here. You had considered him your best friend but somewhere along the way, you both lost contact with other since cell phones were not widely available yet.

Well, at the time, you had been fine with not speaking to him anymore, but as the years had waned, you always vaguely wondered just what he had been up to.

You felt a smile tug your lips, thinking back. Turning around, you looked upon the neighboring lake house with a fond expression. You never thought you'd miss this place so much.

Noticing a relatively nice sedan in the driveway, your curiosity spiked.

You approached the house, careful not to tread on the meticulously well-kept landscaping. There was a small part in your heart that hoped that the old family you knew would be here but you knew that it would be highly unlikely. Judging by the perfect flower patches surrounding the house, your guess was more of a no than a yes.

Climbing the three steps up to the porch deck, you found the front door thrown open but the screen door still closed. The nostalgia hit you straight in the heart and you had to regather yourself from it. You hesitated for a moment before you reached out to knock on the frame with a few sharp raps.

"Why the hell you knocking now?" called an unfamiliar, deep voice from within the house. It was male, of course, but you couldn't recall anyone who had a tone so low like that in a long time. You furrowed your brows, confused as to why the reply was so snippy. You didn't have enough time to reply as a pair of footsteps across the hardwood flooring met your ears while you waited patiently. The man kept talking. "You're always barging your ass in here and now you decide to knock-?"

As soon as the man appeared behind the screen door, his speech ground to a halt in realization that you were not who he had expected.

"You're not Zoe..." he said, eyeing you.

A series of emotions hit you simultaneously. This man was insanely attractive, despite the most deadpan expression he had. His white button down shirt he wore was not buttoned up in the slightest, which revealed a very toned set of muscles from his pectorals to his abdominals. You did your best not to let your gaze linger too long but you were sure he noticed you staring.

However, what surprised you more was the fact that this man was exactly who you were hoping it would be, despite the odds. He had grown a little more from when you last saw him but he had become far more mature in his facial structure than before. Even the way he carried himself seemed different; he appeared more sophisticated and classy.

"...Levi?" you asked hesitantly.

His blank eyes widened just slightly and he pushed open the screen door to better get a look at your face. Upon closer inspection, you realized just how much older he had grown; dark under eye circles plagued his otherwise handsome face and his black hair seemed to lose it shine that it used to have. In truth, he looked a little bogged down, as if tired or stressed.

"(F/n)..." he replied, the corner of his mouth twitching into the smallest of smiles. "About damn time you decided to show up around here again. It's rude to keep a man waiting, you know."

You could not help but grin broadly back at him, a warm feeling blooming in your chest upon reuniting with your old friend. "Shut up," you said, positively beaming. "You were not waiting."

He snorted as a sign of amusement. "Come inside," said Levi, moving aside from the doorway to allow you to pass. "Let's talk."

"You're not busy?" you asked.

Levi raised an eyebrow at you before he sipped on his coffee mug that he had been holding. "Do I look like I'm a busy man right now?"

You rolled your eyes and made your way inside. "I never was able to tell with you."

The familiar surroundings brought back another wave of nostalgia for you while you sat down at the kitchen table. Although everything looked the same, there was still a sense of freshness to the rooms, as if they had been updated.

"Coffee? Tea?" asked Levi behind you.

"Whatever you have brewed is fine," you said with a smile. You were happy. It had been so long since you've seen Levi and though there were ways to find people on the internet now to reconnect, you never did get around to an attempt to find him. Then again, neither did he.

Levi set down a mug of black tea in front of you and went to lean up against the counter. He began to button his shirt and though you did not voice this, you were secretly grateful because he was making it so hard not to look.

"So," he said after a moment. "What brings you back up to the lake? I thought your parents sold the place."

"They did," you replied, unsurprised that he knew that information. "To me, anyways.... And I'm here on a little vacation myself. Thought I'd come back to relive some old times, I guess."

You paused, catching Levi smirking at you over his coffee mug, for a reason you couldn't understand. Or chose not to understand for your own sake. You felt ignorance is bliss would apply to the situation at hand.

"But what about you?" you continued. "You look like you've been here for some time."

Levi allowed himself to smile. "I live here," he said.

You blinked in surprise. "As in...permanently? You don't have another house somewhere else?"

He shook his head. "I was always hell bent on the idea of living here since we were kids. Did you forget?"

A brief chuckle escaped you. "No, I remember," you said, sipping some tea. "But I thought that was just something you said as a child. I didn't think...you actually meant it...."

You trailed off, reminiscing on the old days again.

You and another small child were staring up at the clouds in the sky, giggling and talking incessantly like small kids do. Your respective parents never had to worry about either of you; both you and Levi always kept out of trouble and could go a couple hours without much supervision. Just as long as you both were in the yards of either houses, you could do what you wanted at that age.

Presently, Levi was telling you his secret plans for when he grew up while you both did some cloud watching.

"Really?" you gasped, clapping your hands together.

"Definitely!" your best friend replied. You turned your head while still lying on your back to look at Levi. He was grinning ear to ear. "One day, I'm going to make this my house. Daddy said he would give it to me when I'm a man!"

Your eyes brightened dramatically, seeing just how happy Levi was about his future. He always talked about how he wanted to make a lot of money when he grew up so that he could have the house by the lake.

"Then I can visit you all the time, right, Levi?" you asked hopefully. You watched the clouds slowly roll by before Levi sat up a little to look at you.

"What do you mean?" he said with a playful frown. "You and I are going to be husband and wife, so you obviously have to live with me."

Again, your face lit up at the news. "Ooh, we're going to get married? Like my mommy and daddy?"

He lied back down again, this time a little closer to you. "Duh," he scoffed, offended that you thought otherwise. "I don't wanna live all alone by the lake without you. My mom and dad said that I have to marry my best friend."

"That's me!" you cried with excitement. 

Levi grinned beside you. "Duuh. My daddy said that I have to buy a ring and get down on my knee and stuff so I have to do that before we can live together."

"Okay," you replied with a giggle. "I can't wait to grow up and live here forever!"

Levi pumped his fist in the air. "Me too! It'll be so much fun!"

His other hand gripped yours, as if to reassure you that his plan was foolproof. You couldn't help but pump your own tiny fist into the air too, your belief in him strong and steadfast.

Levi watched you gaze out the window for a moment, deep in thought. You had become very pretty in the last decade. No longer were you small and fragile; you carried yourself with dignity and strength. However, your eyes did not lose the child-like wonder you always had for the world when you were young. The way you would look at everything would excite you like nothing else. Everything held meaning to you; everything meant the world to you.

You really had become a beautiful woman. Just like he always knew you would.

Your eyes cleared and you returned your gaze to him. "So, what do you do then? Do you work in town or something?"

"I'm a 'work from home' kind of guy," he said absently. "Web developing and what not."

"Ah, that would make sense then," you said with a knowing expression.

Levi sipped his tea again. "You?"

You were running a finger over the rim of your mug in thought. "I actually just got a promotion," you replied, smiling again. "I am now officially an editor for a publishing company."

Your counterpart nodded at you. "Congratulations," he said sincerely. "I would have expected nothing less from you."

The next few hours were spent catching up on what had been going on in each other's lives since the last time you saw each other. It was a bit strange how easily conversation flowed between you two; neither of you missed a beat and it seemed as if you had just saw each other a few months prior.

You had found out two years after your last meeting, his parents had been in a fatal plane accident, when he was seventeen and that he had moved in with his uncle for a few years. You had expressed your condolences for this, as you were shocked to hear such news.

He had seemed to have gotten over it but you had to gather your emotions together, as you were in the midst of tears. You had many memories with his parents too and hearing that they had passed on and you never knew was particularly difficult to digest. You wondered why your parents never told you or if they even knew about it.

It took a full fifteen minutes to get you to stop crying quietly. Levi had been a little awkward about the whole ordeal but still pleasantly consoling nonetheless.

Levi also had mentioned that he had been engaged to someone during his mid twenties, but he eventually called off the wedding. His reasoning was vague, but it sounded as though he had realized that what she wanted from life and a husband were things he wasn't going to be able to provide or wanted himself.

"She was incredibly adamant about not having kids," he sighed. Presently, you both were sitting in the living room in front of a fire. "I wouldn't say I'm particularly fond of them myself, bunch a little brats running around...but I still wanted one or two."

You nodded in interest. "I see..." you said thoughtfully. "That would definitely be a deal breaker for me too."

Levi chuckled, albeit humorlessly. "And she wanted to live in the city. Whenever I brought her here, she would go stir crazy because there 'was nothing to do.'"

"Whaaaat?" you cried. "There is so much to do up here! How can someone hate it?"

You were appalled that there were people that didn't like the idea of taking time to unwind and just enjoy nature. Then again, you had several friends that you could think of that would also hate coming up here for more than a week at a time.

The evening wore on with you divulging your own set of relationship woes. Yours were never as serious enough to consider marriage, as you always had figured out early on that these men were never people you could see yourself settling down with.

"Ah," you groaned while thinking of it, "they were just so...childish. Or full of themselves."

Levi laughed lightly. "You can just admit that none of them were me, so..."

You picked a small pillow from the couch and slapped him across the chest with it. Levi flinched just slightly but still continued to smile slyly next to you.

"Shut up," you said playfully. "That is definitely not the reason!"

"Yeah yeah," said Levi dismissively. "You were in love with me back then, remember?"

Though amused, you feigned an offended expression. "Excuse you," you said defiantly. "You were just as 'in love' with me. Remember?"

"Yes, I was," he replied with zero hesitation. "Well, as much as a fifteen year old boy could understand about love."

"Are you sure this is okay?" you hissed into the night air.

Levi's hand gripped yours a little tighter as if to reassure you while he half dragged you through the tall grass. He was leading you towards the small dock with a rowboat tied off to a post and though you were giddy with excitement about the adventure, you also were anxious that you would be caught sneaking out of the house at twelve in the morning.

"Oh c'mon, (F/n)," said Levi, glancing back at you. "Live a little for once."

"If our parents catch us, they're gonna be pissed." Despite your statement, you continued to follow his pace through the vegetation.

"It's not like we're doing anything wrong, babe," he replied. Levi's hair shone in the moonlight, much like the lake water did, as he crouched down to untie the rope around the post. "We're just going out on the lake for a bit."

"Yeah," you groaned, "in the middle of the night."

Levi stood up and swiftly kissed you on the lips, catching you off guard. You felt your skin heat up dramatically at the action and you were grateful the darkness that hid your blush.

"Just trust me." He gently cupped your cheek and you leaned slightly into with a bright smile.

"I do trust you."

Some ten minutes later, your little boat was floating in the middle of the vast lake, the quiet surrounding you both. Aside from the occasional crickets and distant rustling of the trees, the peaceful night was only marred by your attempts to have a conversation. Both of you were worried that your voices and laughter were loud enough to carry but in the end, neither you seemed to care.

"Are you happy?" Levi asked after a moment of silence. He had been gazing at you for a while, enjoying the way the light of the moon seemed to cast a glow over your skin. You had been gazing up at the array of stars in the sky above and smiled at him across from you.

"I've never been so happy!" you replied in earnest. "This is the best date I've ever been on!"

Levi smirked. "Not like you've been on enough dates where that matters," he teased while he set down the oars carefully, "since I'm your first boyfriend and all."

Your mouth went slack at the insult but you were attempting not to laugh. He did have a point.

"Shut up." Reaching over the side of the boat, you scooped water into your hand and splashed him.

"Oi!" he snapped after it hit him in the face. "That's cold as shit!"

You stuck your tongue out childishly. "That's what you get for being rude."

"Oh yeah? Well, that sucks because now I'm forced to punish you for getting me wet." Levi's eyes narrowed while you raised an eyebrow at him. You were not intimidated by his threat.

"Punished? Oh plea-" You were cut short when Levi reached out to place a hand behind your head and pull you into an ardent yet sloppy kiss that only an inexperienced teenager could manage. This was the first time you had shared a kiss this passionate with him and though you weren't quite sure what you were supposed to be doing with your tongue, you knew that both of you were giving your very best to convey your feelings for one another without words.

For some reason, the memory of that night on the lake caused your stomach to fill with butterflies but you brushed it off mentally. It had been a long time since you felt a sensation like that. "And yet, you still broke up with me," you said presently with a playful shake of your head.

He narrowed his eyes at you, thinking back for a moment. "I had to. It didn't make sense for us to try and work it out," he explained. "C'mon...we were kids anyways."

You sighed. "I know that," you replied, also mentally revisiting those memories. "Honestly, when I think about it....you did the most mature thing you could do. Like what teenager would do what you did? But I was just...being a teenaged girl so I'm not blaming you at all."

Levi held a skeptical gaze. "Sounds like it."

"Jeeze, it was eleven years ago," you said with a chuckle. "And I had several boyfriends after. Trust me, I got over it."

The pair of you fell silent.

You were reeling in confusion; the words Levi had just spoken were that of a knife to the back. You hadn't been expecting it. You had just spent the entire summer together, hiding your secret relationship from both your families. Not that it would have mattered, but neither of you wanted to deal with the teasing that they would give you both for finally admitting you both liked each other.

Young teenagers in love.

That's what you both were. You were inseparable, even more than any other summer before that. Levi had given you your first kiss, your first real taste at love. Levi had gone far out of his way to be the best boyfriend for you, in many ways.

Tomorrow was the last day yours and Levi's families would be spending together before they went their separate ways for the year. You had been dreading it.

"Wait..." You swallowed the lump in your throat before continuing on. "Are you...you're breaking up with me?"

"My parents can't afford this place anymore," Levi explained. He was just as distraught as you were but he refused to let himself be seen as weak while you were crying. "This was our last summer here before they sell it. I knew that before I came and I...I knew that this was my only chance to tell you I loved you."

You finally understood why there would be such a somber expression in his gaze whenever you would bring up "next summer" or anything involving spending time together outside of the lake setting. Everything seemed to make sense now.

"W-well," you choked out, "let's write each other or something!"

You didn't want it to end like this, just because of circumstances. You didn't want to lose this feeling so quickly, and you didn't want him to give up like this. He was stripping you from everything you ever wanted with him.

"No...that's just going to make it harder," said Levi, fighting back his urge to cry too. He was surprised that his eyes were beginning to burn but he refused to let them fall. "Think about it for a second, (F/n). Do you honestly think you'll wait around for me? For years? Until college?"

"Yes!" Your response was immediate and fierce. "Of course I would."

He shook his head. "You say that now, but once I'm gone...and it's been a few months...and some other boy from school or wherever gives you the attention that you want, I don't know...."

"Are you saying I'd cheat on you?" you snapped, angry tears flooding your cheeks.

Levi paused to inhale deeply. "No, that's not what I was saying at all!" he said in frustration. "Look, someone else is going to make you happy, okay? It's not fair for me to ask you to wait for me. I'm sorry I never said anything before.... But even if you get my address from your parents, I won't reply. Please don't make this harder than it already is."

"Do you want this, Levi!?" you spat out, hurt beyond comprehension. "Did you just use me this whole summer for your own enjoyment? I love you and now you're just telling me to turn those feelings off?? That's not fair at all!"

Levi gripped you by your upper arms to still your shaking body. "I never said I don't love you." His tone was stern and his eyes were brimming with tears. "I meant everything I said this summer. Everything! But I told you, it isn't fair to ask you to wait around for me. This is me loving you. It's letting you go because it just doesn't make sense to try to work this out."

"That's the most bullshit excuse I've ever heard!" You slapped his hands off you and began to lose your control on your crying. "Fine. If you don't even want to try, then I never want to see you ever again!"

With that you, turned on your heel and sprinted out of the woods where you had your first kiss. You didn't stop running until you made it to your room upstairs.

And you cried yourself to sleep.

The next morning, you refused to talk to him, let alone make eye contact with him. Your parents did not quite understand what happened, though they had assumed the worst. Levi did not make an effort to speak with you that last day, as he felt it was best to leave things as it were.

He wanted to believe that letting you go was the best option for you.

"Aaaah," you groaned after a moment. "Even though it was the right thing...I was devastated for several weeks after that. My mom got so mad at me for not eating."

Levi's expression turned apologetic and soft; in fact, you were surprised to find him looking at you so seriously. "I'm sorry."

You smirked to yourself. "God, Levi," you sighed in mock injury, "you broke my heart. So cruel. I had loved you so much."

Your counterpart shifted a little to better look at you; being under his intense gaze was a bit intimidating, if not even a bit uncomfortable. You weren't sure if you were supposed to say anything or if he took your joke seriously but you managed to keep your eyes on his.

The crackle of the fire kept the silence from being too awkward for you but with his staring, the heat was beginning to make you sweat slightly. You weren't sure if that was out of nervousness or from the fireplace.

Finally, Levi spoke.

"What if I said," he said slowly, "that after all the years...there was always a part of me that waited for you to come back?"

You blinked.

Unsure of what to say, let alone what you were thinking, you sat there in astonishment. Upon coming to the lake house after all these years, you never thought you'd reunite with your childhood friend and first boyfriend. Of course, he had crossed your mind throughout that time but you never let yourself linger too long on the memories.

Admittedly, you had always thought you had lost something very meaningful after your split. Despite the fact that you were both young and fueled with raging hormones, you always did have a soft spot for Levi deep down. If you thought about it, there had been several times you had thought of Levi at random moments with your ex boyfriends. You never knew why and always waved it off as some teenaged, unfulfilled fantasy.

You were unaware of the blush forming around your cheeks and lowered your eyes to your hands. Levi, however, noticed it immediately and his infamous smirk returned. No matter how much time had passed, there was something about your dynamic with him that never seemed to change.

"You don't have to say anything," he said in a low voice. His warm hand cupped the back of your neck and you looked up automatically. "I already know what you're thinking."

He kissed you without any hesitation, a deep and fervent kiss that left you breathless. A fire bloomed in your chest and you responded in kind with little thought of the repercussions. Something about this gesture was distantly familiar but seemingly beautiful and altered. He had clearly matured in the art of kissing, as he no longer was awkward and sloppy but rather confident and thorough.

Levi pulled away, hesitating a hairsbreadth from your lips and as you opened your eyes slowly, he swept some of your hair behind your ear. His hand lingered to cup your cheek and you instinctively leaned into it.

"Why did you really come back to this place, (F/n)?" he asked with soft eyes.

You could not help but smirk slightly at the question.

"Because you were waiting..."

***

Author's note: welp...sorry that was craptastic. Hope you enjoyed. I will try to update again soon. xoxo