It was late at night when I awoke to my phone ringing. From the ringtone alone, I knew who it was. It was a distinctive ringtone, one that even my sleep-addled, foggy brain could acknowledge and recognize. Still, I blinked blearily as I rolled over, trying to rid the sleep from my eyes. As I reached for my phone, I spared a quick glance at the clock before tugging my phone free of its charger and answering the call.

"Levi? It's two in the morning, what's up?"

"I know what time it is," he snapped.

His voice alone, hoarse and gruff, let me know that he had just woken up as well. Strange. Sure, we talked all the time, but even if he stayed up all night like he used to - damn his insomnia - he wouldn't call me if he knew that I was sleeping. And usually, at this hour I was.

Sometimes, at these disgusting hours of the morning, I might text him and see if he was up, see if we couldn't call and talk quietly for a while until I fell asleep. But I was lucky in that he wasn't a fuckboy; he wouldn't call me just because he was horny. Unless...

No, he wouldn't. Something must've shaken him terribly for him to call me so early. Either an emergency, a real one, or... he just needed to hear my voice. Maybe he just wanted to hear my voice. We spent damn near the entire weekend together, it would make sense for him to miss me, especially considering... well, considering how much I missed him already.

"I'm sorry," I said quietly.

"No," he said with a sigh. "I should be saying that."

A pause. I waited for him to continue, to say it, but he remained silent.

"So... say it?"

"Brat," he huffed. I heard a sharp intake of breath before he continued. "I'm sorry."

I smiled, lowering my head to rest against the pillow again. "There we go. Now, care to tell me what's wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong," he started. He likely realized I wouldn't believe his bullshit for even a second because he backpedaled, just a bit. "Nothing important, anyway."

"Aw," I cooed, adjusting the blanket over my body. "Did you call because you miss my voice? We spent the whole weekend together, Levi. Not to say that it's a bad thing if that was the case, because I missed your voice too."

Perhaps being completely exhausted and being woken up in the middle of the night was similar in a way to being drunk. Drunk words are sober thoughts, after all. And I definitely hadn't meant to say that. Not aloud. And especially not to him.

Guess I couldn't take it back now.

Maybe he hadn't heard it?

"Is that so?"

He'd heard it.

Despite my embarrassment, I smiled and stretched out across my bed, trying to get comfortable again while also keeping the phone to my ear.

"Maybe," I said. "And maybe I'm still wearing that hoodie I stole from you. Who knows?"

"Tell me you at least washed it," he said. "It was covered in sand."

"Only because you pushed me."

"That doesn't change the fact it was covered in sand."

"You're just deflecting," I said with a laugh. "It was your fault."

"... I didn't think you'd fall over."

"You pushed me!"

"I suppose I just vastly overestimated your strength."

I gasped. "You're gonna regret saying that."

"Oh? Why is that?"

In his words there was a clear challenge, and that by itself brought a proud smirk to my face. It wasn't often that he humored me like this. "I'm going to make you eat your words, asshole."

"I'd like to see you try."

"I will," I declared. "And I will succeed."

"Right. Good luck."

"I don't need it, but thank you," I said in a confident, singsong sort of way.

We both went quiet then, unsure of what to say next. I wasn't sure what I could say next, what he wanted me to say. But before I got the chance to figure it out, he spoke. "Listen," he said, "I just... There was some truth to what you said. I needed to hear you."

It was strange of him to be admitting that he needed something at all, and stranger still for my heart to suddenly grow so warm.

But I felt that there was more to it.

"Are you alright?"

"Yeah," he said surely, and with that I believed him. "I'm fine now."

"Glad I could help," I said in jest.

"I'm surprised you even answered," he said.

"It doesn't matter what time you call," I said softly. "I'll always answer."

Another pause. Not for a lack of things to say, but because there was almost too much for him to say.

"Tch," he finally decided. "Thanks."

He was a man of many words, even at this unholy hour. "Oh," I said suddenly, remembering something. "I checked and we do have an extra seat to fill at my graduation. Do you think you could...?"

"I'll be there," he assured me.

"Good," I said softly. "Tell me when yours is, and I'll go."

"And if I don't want you there?"

"You're not the only person I could ask," I shot right back, knowing damn well that he did want me there.

He was only joking in his own weird way, but luckily for him, sarcasm was something I was fluent in. My words, playful though they were, were somewhat of a warning: if he didn't tell me, I'd ask someone else. And then everyone would know that he'd been stubborn, and they'd get more ammunition to tease him with.

"You're the worst."

"But you're still on the phone with me because I actually decided to answer."

"You're not the only person I could call," he responded, throwing my own words back at me. The plagiarized words brought a frown to my face and a deeply suspicious crease to my brow.

"Oh? Call Petra then. I'm sure she'll answer, and she'll tell you everything you want to hear, and she'll probably want to come over and cuddle you to sleep. Is that what you want?"

"(Y/n), I was-"

"Of course, you call her at this hour, she'll probably assume you want her to come over for something else."

"(Y/n)," he said firmly, "relax. I wouldn't want to call anyone else, you know that."

"And you're the worst," I said, echoing his words from moments ago, just as he had stolen my own.

"If you say so."

"I still expect you to let me know when your graduation is," I said. "I promise I'll be there."

"Yeah, yeah," he sighed. "I'll send it to you later." With my exhaustion now catching up with me, I yawned. I did what I could to cover my mouth and I even held the phone further from my face so that he wouldn't hear it, but he did. "You're tired," he said uselessly.

"Mm-hm," I affirmed. "You did wake me up."

"You can head back to sleep," he said.

"No," I protested immediately. "Not if you're still sad."

"I never said I was sad."

"Oh, come on," I drawled out. "I can hear it in your voice. Lie to yourself all you want but you know that I know you better than that. Just tell me what you want me to do so you can feel better. Or better yet, tell me what happened."

"Why?"

I wish he could've heard the eyeroll I gave at the word alone. What a stupid question.

"If something is bothering you, and you tell me what it is, I can tell you that it's stupid and I can help you feel better and then we can both go to bed."

"I already told you that you can go to bed."

"You're stupid if you think I'm going to be able to sleep knowing you're awake and worrying about something dumb."

And then... he hung up.

"Wow," I said, dragging the word out. I immediately called him back, sitting up in bed. As soon as I heard him on the other line, I tutted. "First off, rude. Secondly, I'm trying to help. So, what happened?"

"It was just a bad dream. Nothing big."

"What did you dream about?"

No answer.

"Levi?"

"You."

That word alone had my heart leaping into my throat. "And... it was a bad dream?"

"Not because of you, dumbass," he muttered. "I don't want to talk about it."

"Alright," I said. "Well, if it was a bad dream but not because of me, was it because something happened to me? Is that why you called me? So you'd know that I was ok?"

Once again, there was no answer, and so I knew that I was correct.

"Listen, Levi. I know you have a hard time talking about what bothers you, so I'll talk instead. Whatever you saw in your dream, it didn't happen. I'm right here, and I'm safe, and I'm here for you. So whatever you need from me, I'll do it. All you need to do is tell me what you need."

"Alright," he breathed out, and I could tell that he was grateful I wasn't pushing him to be more vulnerable than he was comfortable with. "Stay on the phone," he said. "Just talk."

"I can do that," I said, lying back down again. "Did I tell about the date that wasn't really a date that Meg and Jerry went on?"

---

My graduation ceremony was first. And as I accepted my diploma and glanced out at the people seated there to support the students, I immediately found my family. They were sat just in the second row, making them easy to spot.

There on the end sat dad with an obnoxiously big camera. Mom, sitting next to him, must have sniffled, or might have just begun to cry, because dad reached into his pocket and retrieved for her his handkerchief.

Mikasa was next in the line, wearing a pretty dress and looking terribly proud. When she locked eyes with me, she let her smile grow a little bigger, and my heart warmed because she so rarely smiled that it was nice to be the reason that she did now.

Eren looked horribly uncomfortable next to her in his button-up shirt, tie, and slacks. He must not have noticed that I was the center of attention right now, because he was incessantly fumbling with his tie, trying desperately to loosen it.

When Mikasa elbowed his side, he straightened up and his eyes found mine. If I wasn't currently shaking the hand of the school's principal, I'd have rolled my eyes. But then Eren stuck his tongue out at me, just to make me laugh, and it took all I had not to respond in kind.

And the last person I saw was Levi. He too looked terribly stuffy in his semi-formal clothing, however I had to say that he wore it far better and it seemed to look more natural on him, if he'd only relax. He'd even attempted to put his cravat on. I figured he'd still had it, but for him to wear it now...

It was a nice surprise.

And fine, I'll say it: it was cute.

I just wished someone had helped him tie it, because it looked slightly crooked.

By the time the ceremony was over, the students were released to find their families and head out, or otherwise say their final goodbyes to their classmates and teachers. I made my way right to my family.

Mom and dad gave me tight, warm hugs, offering their congratulations and telling me how proud they were of me. Eren, being the embarrassed young teen that he was, refused to give me a hug because he wouldn't be caught dead showing affection to anyone, much less his adoptive older sister.

After a few minutes speaking with them, I found Levi, leaning against a wall in a quieter area of the courtyard we'd all congregated in. While the buzz of a million other conversations still found our ears, when I went up to him, much like how it always was... it was just us.

"Look at you," I said once I came to a stop in front of him. "All dressed up. You look good."

"I feel like a pig," he admitted, looking down at himself with a disgusted sneer.

"You look like a businessman," I said to correct him. "You could be a CEO already and no one would know the difference."

"They'd think a CEO would come to a small-town graduation?"

"Maybe," I said. Then my eyes trailed to his cravat. "Of course, the CEO of a big company would probably have someone check his cravat before he left the house."

"What's wrong with it?" He muttered, looking down at it as well.

"It's just a little crooked," I told him. I stepped closer, lifting both hands to his cravat. All I needed to do to fix it was retie it, and that's what I did. I smoothed it out when I was done, my smile widening once it was done. "There, now," I said. "It's perfect."

When I looked up into his eyes, and found them already looking at me, I had the sudden urge to pull him closer by the cravat for a kiss. It'd be a perfect movie moment, wouldn't it? But with so many of my classmates and teachers around, I decided against it. Instead, I wound my hands around to link behind his back and I hugged him tight.

---

Only a few days later, I found myself in a cute, summery dress and watching Levi graduate. Not only him, but all the friends I'd met so many years ago and had only seen a handful of times since: Mike, Nanaba, Gelgar, Nifa, Eld, Gunther, Petra, and Olou, and of course Moblit and Hange. Erwin I'd seen more often, only because well, he lived in the same house Levi did, so if ever I went to visit Levi, odds were favorable that I'd end up seeing Erwin, too.

I clapped politely for those students I did not know, cheered for who I did, and stood with Levi's family when it was his turn. I knew all it really did was embarrass him, and we were all sure to get the cold shoulder later for it, but I couldn't bring myself to care. I didn't even flinch away when his eyes snapped to mine as he crossed the stage; all I did was grin and clap louder.

After the ceremony, and after greeting his family and resting at his house for a bit, Hange and I dragged him to a dinner with their entire friend group later that evening. Levi sat sandwiched between me and Erwin in a small booth at a local pizzeria.

There were several conversations going on and I piped in when I wanted to, and I bounced around from conversation to conversation as I pleased. It was nice to be around this group again. They all worked extremely well together, and it would be strange for them to no longer see each other every day.

However, this was just part of growing up. It's just how it went. I only wished I wouldn't lose my friendships with any of them, not least of all...

"Levi," I said quietly as our plates were carried away from the main course.

Everyone else was now discussing the dessert menu, wondering what to get, but by then I could tell that Levi was tired and overwhelmed and a million other things all at once, all pointing towards him wanting to leave. But because of his pride, he wouldn't say anything. And because he wanted to maintain the image of strength and pride that others had of him, he wouldn't leave on his own accord.

But I couldn't sit there and continue to enjoy myself knowing that Levi wasn't doing the same. I leaned in close to him to whisper into his ear. "Do you want to leave?" He only looked at me as I leaned away to gauge his reaction. He began to shake his head, but even he knew he couldn't hide it from me. "We'll go."

I cleared my throat, sitting up straight and calling the attention of the others. "I need to get home," I lied, "and so I'm gonna get going."

"Aw," Hange whined, a pout creasing their features. "Already?"

"We've been here for hours, Hange," Moblit argued. "And (Y/n) lives far away, remember?"

"Yeah, but..."

"Do you have a ride home?"

"I drove here," I told Eld in answer.

"Gotcha," he said. "Drive safe, then. Thanks for seeing us today."

"I missed you all a lot," I said with a wide smile. "Congrats to everyone on graduating."

A few more minutes passed as we shared a quick conversation about where I was heading in the fall, what I was doing for the summer, things like that. But when Levi stood, taking my silent cue – a quick look to him – and taking initiative, offering to walk me to my car, the conversation stopped. A chorus of goodbyes followed after us, and I picked one thing up among all the other voices: Eld, saying to the others that, "There's no way he's just walking her to her car."

And when we were outside and approached my car in the lot, Levi spoke. "You're not actually going home now, are you?"

"Of course not," I said with a laugh. "I was going to ask to spend the night, actually."

"I don't know," he deadpanned in a clearly teasing manner. "I was thinking of heading to a party with the rest of my class."

"Ah, I see," I said, playing along. "Well, Erwin's not too big into parties. Maybe I'll just hang out with him instead." I twirled my keys around my finger in a carefree sort of way as we came to a stop outside my car, knowing he'd take the bait. And he did. He stole the keys from my fingers, unlocking it and opening the passenger door for me.

"Just get in, brat."

"Something tells me we're not going to your place."

"No. Just relax and trust me."

"Sir, yes sir."

Levi clicked his tongue. "You're obnoxious."

---

For the first time in years, Levi and I found ourselves in that park we used to frequent so often. If memory served me, he brought me here on that night I wanted to sneak out for the first time. I'd asked him to go with me, and he did, and we'd come here.

And it was to that small clearing at the top of a hill that we returned, looking down at the town and its millions of twinkling lights. The city was alive tonight, but the air here was still and silent. It was a warm night, slightly humid, but wonderful, nonetheless.

I wasn't sure why I was surprised that the old, decrepit bench was still there, but it did. It was foolish to think that anyone would come up here to remove it and I didn't think this clearing saw enough visitors to warrant it breaking down, but it was mostly left alone with only the elements to bother it, and so I supposed I thought it'd weaken with age and rot by now. But it hadn't.

I was grateful that it was such a nice night, because otherwise I might be too cold in only this dress, light and flowy, that offered very little protection from the weather. I linked my fingers behind my back as I approached the crest of the hill.

I gazed down the steep slope leading down into another section of the forest, and I inwardly wished there was a fence or something to keep me from stumbling to my death. Because there wasn't anything of the sort, I took a step back, shifting my weight from one foot to the other as I looked out at the city.

Levi sat on the bench at one end, and it responded with a low creak. "Been a while since I've been here," I said just loud enough for him to hear. I looked back at him, smiling all the while. "I'm surprised that old thing is still standing."

"No one comes here but us," he said. "Hard for it to break when no one's fat ass comes to sit on it."

"I guess so," I laughed. "Hard to think that we used to fit on just one half of that thing when we were younger."

"We grew up," he said uselessly.

"We're adults now," I mused. "And we met when we were what? Eleven?"

"I was twelve."

"Same thing," I huffed, turning back to the spectacular view before me. "It's just incredible."

"What is?"

"That we're still close," I said somewhat hesitantly. I turned and headed to the bench, sitting down gently beside him. I smoothed my skirt out over my legs, keeping my eyes down and focused on what I was doing. "Seems like life likes keeping us apart."

"You're persistent," he said, shrugging. He threw a casual arm across the back of the bench, his hand coming to rest on my shoulder. Getting the hint, I leaned against him, letting my head rest against his shoulder.

"When the semester starts," I said softly, "do you promise to come visit me?"

"I have to go visit you? Won't you have your car?"

"Not when it costs $250 to keep my car on campus," I said.

That got a chuckle out of him. "Alright, brat. I'll visit you."

"You have to promise," I pressed insistently.

"No."

"Levi," I whined.

"Fine, fine." He leaned down, planting a kiss to my hair. "I promise."

---

One's childhood is a peculiar time.

For some, it is characterized by fun. For others, it is harder.

To learn is to grow, and to grow is to learn.

When one is a child, they often make all the wrong decisions. They are too slow to think and too quick to act. Often, they are rash. Some are withdrawn, others are vocal.

Your childhood was where this story began.

You have learned. You have grown.

And one day, you may look back and while you may be embarrassed by what you used to do and how you used to act, you may also be proud of where you have gone.

One's childhood – yours surely included – is full of adventure. Some good, some bad, all an experience to learn, and thus, an experience to grow. It is also, in many ways, when one learns to make – and maintain – relationships. Classmates become friends. Friends may develop into best friends. Later... friends may become something more. Something like family. Something like a life partner.

There is, of course, a special kind of relationship that blooms from meeting in adulthood, in knowing already who you are and what you stand for.

However, meeting someone when you are but a child is a different form of special. Being a child means you are still fumbling around trying to find yourself. It is especially tricky and quite troublesome to meet someone from a young age and maintain that relationship.

Many friendships – born early – do not stand the test of time.

However... Some do. And that is enough.

Whether yours does continue, or perhaps progresses into something more, is up to you and him. It can only come from you both. It is in your hands.

Only time will tell.

Let us continue.

Note: hello loves, this is a rather important (and long) note! ((ik I say that about every single one but I really mean it this time!))

ok, so first off: you guys would not believe how many times I accidentally typed "fart house" in chapter 22 when writing about the party. because holy shit. I think that it was every single time. my brain refuses to type frat and always switches it to fart. oh, but to be as simple as my brain.

^ that's not the important part, btw. anyway, happy graduation, y/n~

I tried to make the graduation ceremonies as abstract as I could because I'm not sure how it's done in other countries but I assume that wherever you go, you get the piece of paper, listen to stuffy speeches, and then when it's done you go outside or whatever and say goodbye to everyone.

anyway, this chapter marks the end of Part I of the story! what it means for you guys is really nothing major. there won't be a change to the story in any way, and it's not like I'll be taking an extended break after this. I won't even be taking the one week off like usual! wow!

really, all this means is that thematically, we are out of the "childhood phase" of the story. welcome to adulthood, loves. there are technically three total parts in this story. the prologue through chapter 25 was part I, ch 26-45 is part II, and ch 46-66 (plus the epilogue) will be part III. so there is still plenty of story left.

already, you might have noticed a change: originally, I had 65 chapters planned, but I actually just finished writing the book! woo! there are 66 total chapters and an additional epilogue that will be published right alongside the final chapter.

gasp, I'm done writing! what does that mean? what it means is that from here on out, there will be no breaks, and double updates will begin! what does that mean? well, if you haven't read my other updates (understandable, btw), all it means is that I will update every Monday and Friday until the book is completely published.

of course, because of work and school and yk, my personal life, updates may be a bit late or sometimes I may miss a day, but do not fret, for I'm usually pretty good about making some time for myself to revisit the chapters, edit at needed, and publish when the time comes. every fifth chapter (or as needed) I will still be leaving little notes, so we can still talk.

now, regarding future content, the next batch of chapters involves sexual content. I know, I know, it's what so many of you have been waiting for. however, just keep in mind that sex is not in any way the main point of this story. yes, Levi is hot. but it's not the point. otherwise, these next five chapters don't discuss anything too crazy, but it does mention going to college!

yes, I know that university/college life isn't for everyone, however I feel it is a big step in a lot of people's lives and as such, I mention it, but I don't specify major, degree program, etc., to be mindful that there are many different ways to go about life after high school.

if you're wondering why I am being as vague as possible with these things, it's only because I found that I put too much of my personal opinion into the writing, things like how in middle school I hated heels and so at the wedding, I wrote - not that you had a choice - but that you just wore sneakers or something, which I don't want to do in this version.

I am writing it, but imaginative interpretation is up to you, loves. it's why I don't mention really what you wear, how you style your hair if you have any, and things like that. I find that being too specific takes away from the experience for a self-insert story. for something like B&W, I could get away with saying such things because Amaya was my character. but you, my darlings, are not.

...that's about it for the important things!

as of a few weeks ago, the trailer for s4 pt 2 of aot came out! and I am very, very excited! if you read b&w through to the end you'd know that I released a note about ch139 of the manga (because yes, I read the manga each month), and you'd know that I loved it. I was uncertain at first but it definitely grew on me especially as I considered it with the entire narrative in mind. I could talk about it all day and why it does fit and why it's not a bad ending (looking at you, r/titanfolk), but anyway...

I'm very excited to see a story I've followed since I was in middle school (it was actually only a few short weeks after finishing watching S1 that I started reading the manga and actually wrote the original LTNS story) come to an end.

spoiler alert!!! look away if you didn't read the manga!!! I am not ready to see colt die. I know he's a minor character but all he wanted to do was protect his little brother and he died holding falco and just... reading it, I might have shed a few tears. watching it? I'll probably cry. spoiler alert over!!!

ok, so a final thing. now that I'm done writing this book (again), I decided to start going through and reading some of the other Levi x Reader stories on this site and... I don't mean to say this to be offensive or try to promote myself over everyone else, because I know this site is free and people write for fun, but some of the stories that receive the largest followings and have the biggest numbers are baffling to me.

maybe I'm just too picky or my standards are too high, but a lot of the stories with huge numbers feature OOC characters, poor grammar, notes thrown in the middle of paragraphs that distract from the content, and MC's that are quite Mary Sue. not only that, but they put too much of their personal opinions on characters into their writing. 

for example, an author that might hate Floch would write him as nothing more than an asshole. is he a little shit? yes, but he had something he believed in; he didn't want to save Erwin just so Armin would die, but because he genuinely believed Erwin was the devil they needed to continue fighting. he's a complex character and considering the narrative as a whole, I love him. but I've seen the same treatment for Erwin (which I cannot understand), Mikasa (like, how??), and of course, Petra (she's actually great, fight me).

I know there are certainly people who enjoy reading those kinds of stories, and that's fine, but I find myself wondering how their numbers are so high when say, for a published book, you wouldn't ever pay money for something so messily written. as a storyteller and aspiring author in real life, I find it incredibly strange and even a bit demoralizing.

I am not in it for the numbers, nor am I ungrateful for the numbers I have on my stories; I am extremely grateful to each and every reader I have. I just want a place to share my stories. however, seeing how popular stories written with so little regard for grammar or prose or, you know, a coherent plot are, it makes me wonder why I put so much effort into my writing here. that's not to say I'm going to write any differently, it's just incredibly strange to me.

I don't mean to hate on those authors or their stories. those stories are just not for me, and if they're successful, then kudos. maybe it's just something about getting older - I certainly used to be a frequent offender of putting too much of my opinions into the writing, interrupting paragraphs with a note, and perpetuating unwarranted hate of Petra. that's why I'm rewriting LTNS, I suppose; to show how I've grown as a writer and as a person. anyway, sorry for the tangent. just felt like it should be said.

anyway... this note is so long and if you read it to completion, congrats! if not, I completely understand. at any rate, thank you all so, SO much for reading my story and supporting it. I love you all so much, words could never truly express it. see you all in the next chapter... or in other words, see you on Monday! <3

(and thank goodness I finished writing the book, because today is when the pokemon diamond and pearl remakes come out, which I preordered... which I will be playing until I'm old and gray. but anyway, love you all lots!)