I knew it was a mistake the moment the word left my lips. The name he had given me was only acceptable in the private, cramped spaces of slow moving elevators, and I didn 't need the death glare he was shooting me now to make me aware of that fact. Yet there it was, the menacing look in his eyes that had me certain that he could perform the most nefarious tortures on baby kittens and still keep a bored look on his face. I could feel myself melting under the heat of his stare and contemplated making a quick exit out the nearest window of the high rise.

'What was that? '

Levi 's expression altered so quickly that I had to wonder if his face ever looked anything other than indifferent. The irritation was gone from his eyes, replaced with skeptical look that was so condescending it was tangible. My urge to find the nearest escape was no more subdued by his current expression than his previous one. In fact, as I saw a smirk twitch on the corner of his lips, I was sure this look was worse. He was going to toy with me now, in front of everyone, and we both knew there wasn 't a damn thing I could do about it.

'I asked you a question, kid, ' he prompted me once more, and this time he walked towards our little group of interns. I fought the urge to take a step back, determined to stand my ground. 'What was that you said? Just now, what did you call me? '

'I ' ' I dragged the letter out for so long that it sounded like I was readying my pipes to sing a song. My mind raced with all the words that could possibly rhyme with corporal that would get me out of this mess. Nothing was coming to mind. What a horrible word. It had to be a poet 's worst nightmare.

'Out with it, kid, we don 't have all day to wait for the fucking punch line. '

I heard Armin 's gasp beside me, and knew he was reacting to the expletive. He had never met Levi before and was completely unaware of the lack of class that the raven-haired midget was capable of exhibiting. I wasn 't even entirely certain who Levi was, especially not at this point, but I knew that he had no qualms with cursing up a storm regardless of the people surrounding him. It was almost reassuring to realize I still knew one thing about him. He was himself in spite of the fact that he was in front of his boss and wearing a suit that probably cost more than a month 's rent.

I could tell his patience was wearing thin, and I knew without looking that everyone had stopped to stare at us. They were all waiting and I had run out of ways to explain away the name. Why had I opened my mouth and said that word? I knew the answer, of course, as much as I tried to avoid it. I wanted to call him out in front of everyone and make him realize that he had been caught in the lie he 'd spun up for the past three days. Whether it mattered to him or not was another thing entirely, but it mattered to me. As stupid as it sounded, I was proud to have dug up any information concerning the man that had occupied my dreams for the past few nights. Now I was back to square one.

'Shit or get off the pot, kid. ' He said, snapping his fingers in front of my face. I recoiled from the sound like an offended cat and blurted out the word everyone had heard me say the first time around.

'Corporal. '

'That 's what I thought. '

Then why the hell did you make me repeat it, asshole?

I kept the comment to myself through sheer force of will, biting my cheek to give my teeth something to do other than flap me into another problem. He was relishing my torment, and I knew that there was more torture to come. The mischievous glint in his eyes had appeared the instant I said the word for the second time, and I had to wonder once more what the name really meant to him. I had visions of whips and chains, the scent of leather heavy in my nose and his breath hot on my neck as he ripped the word from my lips again and again.

I wasn 't entirely sure why I had to suppress a shiver, but I wasn 't about to ask my body about it now.

'What do you think this is? ' Levi continued in a mocking voice, 'The military? '

'No, I just- '

He cut me off so quickly that I was sure he thought I was about to accuse him of telling me the name prior to today.

'I 'm not Corporal here. '

I couldn 't ignore the directness of his words, and I felt a small thrill that I was the only one here that understood the meaning behind them. He may not have been Corporal in this building, but that would change the moment we were back in Trost. He would be Corporal again, and he would expect me to call him by nothing other than that name. I wasn 't even sure why I was relieved by that fact, considering I had felt a small victory upon finally learning his name. Levi. There was something strong and ancient about his name, something powerful. I wanted to feel it on my tongue.

'I know. I 'm sorry, Levi, ' I muttered. Armin gasped again, although this time it was directed at me. I hadn 't used the title with the name, but I couldn 't get myself to care. I wasn 't about to say Vice President before his name every single time I wanted to address him. I would have rather embarrassed myself some more by continuing to refer to him as Corporal. Levi 's eyes had narrowed and the dangerous look was back on his face. The stare he was giving me told me that I should lower my eyes, but I held his gaze defiantly. 'I didn 't mean to call you Corporal. My father 's in the military. It 's habit. '

The lie came out easily enough, and the look Armin shot me tipped Levi in all too quickly. Levi 's expression darkened and I could feel an apprehensive knot twist uncomfortably in my stomach. I couldn 't blame Armin for that, though. Even without Armin there, I was sure Levi would have been able to unravel any falsity I tried to slip past him.

'Is that so? ' Levi murmured, eyeing me with a skeptical stare. 'Well, kid, even if your pops is making you call him corporal day in and day out, you still need to know the difference between that and Vice President. '

Levi turned to Erwin and waved one dismissive hand in my direction, 'This is what we have to work with? I was hoping for better, but I guess I shouldn 't have expected much. '

'He 's one of many, Levi. Some of them are actually quite promising, ' Erwin assured him, and I tried to ignore the fact that Erwin 's eyes lingered for a second too long on Armin.

'Yea, we can 't all be winners, ' Jean spoke up and any appreciation I had left for him went flying out the window, 'Don 't lump us in with Eren here. I 'm not even sure how he made it in. '

Ass. Hole.

Armin nudged his elbow into Jean 's stomach and gave him a look that silenced Jean from commenting further. Not that silence was going to help him. Levi had already turned his full attention on Jean and I felt my blood run cold despite the fact that the menacing glare was not directed at me. I wasn 't sure how it was possible for a man who barely cleared five feet to look so intimidating.

'I 'm sorry, ' Levi started and then paused, 'No, I 'm not sorry. Did anyone here ask for your opinion? '

I heard Jean swallow and suppressed a smirk.

'No, I just- '

'No, ' Levi cut him off and gave a small nod, seemingly satisfied, 'That was all I needed to hear. You can keep the rest of your comments to yourself. '

For not being in the military, he certainly talked to us like we were new recruits in need of a good tongue-lashing. Of course, I wasn 't about to argue when Jean was on the receiving end. However, that all changed when Levi 's attention turned back to me and his eyes narrowed, 'Wipe that smirk off your face, Jaeger. '

I froze when I heard my surname leave his lips and my eyes widened. I had never told him my last name, and he had barely even acknowledged my first name when I gave it to him. The fact that he had that kind of information keyed me into the realization that he had known I was coming to Survey Corporation today. He had spoken with me Saturday night, all the while knowing that I would have this kind of surprise waiting for me on Monday morning. I wanted to punch him in the face, but I wasn 't sure my hand would survive the impact.

'Levi, ' Erwin spoke up. I turned as Levi did to stare at the impressive man who had chosen to remain silent while Levi managed the new interns. 'Would you join me in my office for a moment? '

Levi 's posture changed immediately from relaxed to rigid, and I had to wonder why such a simple request would have such a profound effect on him. I tried not to linger on the thought, but the look in Levi 's eyes made every hair on the back of my neck stand at attention. I had the sudden urge to grab him by the arm and drag him out of the room, as far away from that man as we could get.

'Of course, ' Levi replied.

'Mike, please continue the tour, ' Erwin said, addressing our supervisor, 'Levi and I will be joining you shortly. '

Mike gave a curt nod and directed the group towards the elevator that would be bringing us down to the mailroom. I lingered for a moment and watched as Erwin walked towards his office. I had planned to wait for Levi to follow him, but jumped when I felt a hand on my shoulder. Levi 's lips brushed against the shell of my ear, and I suddenly found myself cursing Armin for helping me pick a pair of pants that were not nearly as accommodating as I would have liked. 'There 's your Captain America, comic book boy. '

'What? ' I stammered, not at all in control of my mental faculties when his lips were on my ear.

'That 's him, ' Levi put it in simpler terms, but my mind was still having trouble registering what he was saying. I lost all hope of figuring it out when I felt his low, breathy chuckle against my neck. His hand moved off of my shoulder and I stood there in a catatonic state as I watched him walk into Erwin 's office. He left the door cracked.

'Eren? ' Armin came to my side at a short jog, 'The elevator already went down to the mailroom. Come on, we can catch up. '

'You go ahead, ' I waved him off, still staring in the direction of the office, 'I have to go to the bathroom. '

'They probably have a bathroom down there, ' he insisted, 'Come on. '

'Yea, but those are gonna be shitty bathrooms. I may as well see what the execs get while I 'm up here, right? '

Armin studied my expression and I knew he was searching for the lie. After a second of no success, he glanced in the direction I had been staring a moment before and then looked back at me. 'Do you know him, Eren? '

'Who? '

'You know who, ' Armin said with a frown. I had never been good at lying to him.

'Can we talk about this later? ' I groaned, looking back towards the door. I was eager to hear whatever it was they were talking about. With my luck it would be boring office work, but something about Levi 's expression had made me think otherwise.

I could see the hesitation in Armin 's eyes, so I insisted, 'You know you 're not going to be able to drag me down there, so just go. I 'll be there in a second. '

'Just be careful, alright? Don 't get yourself kicked out on the first day just because you had to poke your head inside the President 's office. '

'I 'm going to the bathroom. '

'Please don 't shit on his desk. '

My eyebrows shot up in surprise, 'Armin, you said shit. '

He flushed with chagrin, 'I 've cursed before! I curse! '

'Armin, any five year old with an iPod curses more than you do, ' I rolled my eyes and didn 't bother to hide my grin, 'You 're gonna be late. Stop worrying about me and go, otherwise we 're both going to get in trouble. '

Armin opened his mouth to form a retort and then thought better of it. He huffed and gave a small shake of his head, 'Be careful. '

'Yea, yea, ' I said as I waved him off. I waited until he was nearing the elevators before walking over to Erwin 's office. The hallway had been blessedly clear this entire time, and I had to wonder if anyone ever came near Erwin 's door. The fact that Levi hadn 't bothered to close it made me assume that there would be no one passing by anytime soon.

I leaned against the wall beside the door; careful not to poke my head anywhere near the open crack. Listening in on one of the president 's conversations was certainly not the brightest idea for the first day of my internship, but at least I wasn 't stupid enough to put my head in clear view of the door. Somewhere in the back of my mind I wondered if I could be removed from the program for this little escapade, but then quickly decided that I didn 't actually care. This was Armin 's kind of dream job, not mine. I was just along for the ride.

'I don 't care if you were just messing around with him, ' I heard Erwin 's deep voice through the door and my thoughts scattered, 'Do you know how irresponsible that was? You can 't just give out that name to anyone, especially not some child. What if he tells the other interns who you are? '

'He 's not going to. And he 's barely a child, Erwin. He 's almost eighteen ' that 's practically legal. '

'You 're going to get yourself into trouble, Levi, ' Erwin warned, 'You don 't need to waste your time with a teenager. Do you realize what you 're getting yourself into? '

I heard a loud drumming sound and could have sworn that someone was running down the hall. I turned to look, but there wasn 't a person in sight. It was only then that I realized the drumming was the sound of my heart, so strong and fast that its beat reverberated in my skull. They were talking about me. Not just that; they were talking about a potential relationship between Levi and myself. Even if Erwin was shooting the idea down, the fact that it was there at all made my insides light up in a way I didn 't know they could.

'First off, you 're one to talk about chasing a teenager, ' Levi shot back, 'And second, who says that 's where this is going? I just didn 't want the brat to know my real name. I have no interest in breaking in a virgin. That 's your territory. '

'Only where your ass is concerned, ' Erwin countered and Levi let out a short, humorless laugh.

'Let 's not talk about my ass right now. '

I rubbed at my chest and tried to ignore the pain that had begun to nest there. I wasn 't sure if I was angry or embarrassed, but above all I felt a fierce jealousy that didn 't even truly make sense. The fact that they had a relationship beyond saying a passing greeting in the hall at work stirred something inside me that made me question my own sanity.

'You really aren 't planning on doing anything with the kid? ' Erwin continued. I heard the sound of fabric shifting and fought the urge to look through the crack in the door. They were touching each other now.

'Not a damn thing, ' Levi said in a dismissive voice. Then his tone twisted into one of amused curiosity, 'Why, are you interested in him? '

'Didn 't we just discuss how that would be dangerous territory? He 's one of our interns, Levi. That couldn 't possibly end well. '

'He 's not the type to squeal, ' Levi paused and then added, 'Not that way, anyway. '

'You know him so well already, ' Erwin asked in a voice that was both cold and critical. It didn 't sound like it was a question, or even a statement. It was an accusation.

'Put your claws away, Erwin. I told you, I 'm not interested. '

'It doesn 't seem that way to me. '

'Oh yea? ' Levi 's voice had a challenge in it, 'Would I offer his ass up to you if I were interested in him? I 'm not the type to give away the things I want, so that should prove something to you. Go on, take him. Hang him from your ceiling for all I care. '

'That would be a sight. '

'Be sure to take pictures. '

'I 'm not interested in taking on another project, Levi, ' Erwin sighed, and I was certain I was the project he was referring to. 'Especially not some kid working here. It 's a disaster waiting to happen. '

'There 's not going to be a disaster, ' Levi pressed, 'I have the brat wrapped around my finger. I can handle him. '

'I would prefer you handle me. '

I walked away from the door and uncurled my hands, a burning sensation lighting up in the center of my palms. I had dug my nails into them as I listened to the conversation, and now there were red half moon shapes pressed into the soft skin. I watched the marks rise slowly from the offended flesh as I walked down the hall. I had no interest in hearing the rest of the conversation, and even less in seeing Levi anytime soon. Wrapped around his finger? I would crush his damn hand the next time I saw him.

A hand grabbed my shoulder and I spun with one arm up, the back of my hand slapping Levi 's away from me. He stared at me with wide eyes and it had to be the most expressive face I 'd ever seen him make. I watched in sick satisfaction when it took him a moment to compose his features back into impassive boredom. His eyes continued to hold a look of surprise even after the shock had gone from the rest of his features.

'What the hell was that for, brat? '

So I was a brat right now, huh? That seemed to be the case every time I pissed him off in one way or another, but this time I was more than happy to earn the title. I stared at him with an incredulous expression, wondering how he could even ask that question. I rolled my eyes and shook my head, deciding to turn away without wasting my time on an explanation. He caught me by the arm before I could put more than two steps between us.

I expected him to ask me what was wrong again, but Levi wasn 't the type to repeat himself. He started walking down the hall and kept a firm grip on my arm, leaving me with the option of following willingly or being dragged across the floor like a sack of potatoes. I was caught between the choices and stumbled along behind him, in awe at the amount of strength this small man was capable of. I was weak in comparison, and I had always considered myself to be fit for my age. I was proud of my strength until this moment. I tried to wrench free of the hold he had on me, but he pulled me along like I was nothing more than a pebble in his hand. It was effortless for him, and humiliating for me. So much for crushing his hand.

He turned before we could come near Erwin 's office and started walking down a hallway that Mike hadn 't shown us during the tour. There was a door waiting for us at the end, and I barely had time to read the nameplate before he yanked the door open and pulled me inside. I heard the wood slam back into place and opened my mouth to protest against the injustice of being locked in here alone with what I assumed was a lunatic. The air was knocked out of me an instant later, taking any comment I had along with it, when I was thrown down onto what would have been a comfortable couch if I hadn 't just been body slammed into it.

I wheezed as my lungs recovered and opened my mouth to speak once more, but I quickly found myself incapable of words when he joined me on the couch by straddling my hips. He set one hand flat against my sternum and leaned over me until our faces were inches apart. I could feel his hot breath on my lips, steady and smooth as if the kidnapping session hadn 't exerted him at all. The closeness of his body muddled my mind, and I found myself forgetting why I was angry with him in the first place. Hell, I couldn 't even remember my name.

'You think you can raise a hand to your superior and then walk away without any consequences? '

The deep rumble of his voice drove my mind deeper into a haze of sexual confusion, and I tried to think of a response, any response. However, the majority of my mental efforts were focused on keeping my arousal at bay. A distant thought reminded me that I was mad at him, and sporting a full erection while he straddled my hips would not allow me to leave this situation with my dignity intact.

'I asked you a question, brat. '

The name snapped my mind back into motion and I blurted out the first non-sexual thing that entered my head, 'I 'm not wrapped around your finger! '

He raised one perfect eyebrow, amused defiance taking over his expression. He rolled his hips forward in one fluid motion and I felt a rush of blood flood my face and other areas of my body as it started to betray me. I watched as his eyes turned down to direct his gaze between us, and a smirk twitched on the corner of his lips. When he spoke, it was in a voice that was so lascivious it was unfair.

'That 's not what your dick says. '

'That 's not fair, ' I groaned, and promptly agonized over the sound. 'I would react this way if anyone did that. '

'Oh? ' Levi mused as he rolled his hips once more, eliciting a hiss through my teeth this time around. 'I doubt that. '

I threw an arm across my face to cover my eyes from the sight, hoping that depriving myself of the image would help in some way. I would at least be able to hide the blush on my cheeks, if nothing else. It wasn 't fair that he could make my body respond to him so easily. I felt like a puppet that he could pick up and put down when he pleased, and the thought was just enough to remind me of my anger.

'I heard what you said, ' I muttered.

'You think I don 't know that? ' I had expected him to say something that would dismiss what I 'd heard, but he didn 't even sound defensive. 'Why do you think I left the door open, brat? You really don 't think at all, do you? '

I moved my arm to my forehead and stared at him with an expression caught between anger and curiosity, 'You knew? '

'That you were snooping around the door? ' Levi replied, 'First off, you 're not exactly discreet. I could hear you stomping down the hall. Really, brat, what the fuck is in your shoes? Rocks? '

'I was quiet! '

'Shut up and let me finish, ' he snapped with an edge of annoyance. 'I left the door open so that you could listen. I expected you to follow me there, and you didn 't disappoint. Good for you. '

'So you wanted me to hear you being an asshole? '

'I 'm always an asshole, kid. That 's my constant state of being. '

I couldn 't really argue with that. 'Why did you want me to hear any of that? '

'Because that 's the guy you 're going to fuck, and I knew we 'd be talking about you, ' he said with a casual roll of his shoulders. 'Figured I 'd give you a chance to hear him outside the professional setting. '

He leaned back and his ass pressed into my erection. His mouth twitched and I knew he was intentionally fogging up my mind. However, after that little gem of information, I could actually get my brain to focus on something other than the way his body felt against mine. Apparently I had been correct in assuming that Erwin was the man Levi had talked about on Saturday, and while he was admittedly attractive in every sense of the word I couldn 't bring myself to care about anything other than the man that was currently positioned on my hips.

'So, are you interested? ' he prompted me; his voice was tinged with annoyance that told me I had made him wait more than a few seconds in silence.

'After what you said to him? After you lied about pretty much everything I thought I knew about you? Fuck no. '

'Watch your tongue, ' he warned and I had to roll my eyes. He retorted with another push of his hips and a full-blown smirk took over his mouth when I let out a throaty moan. 'Oi, you 're a live wire, aren 't you, brat? '

I opened my mouth to respond with some comment that I could only hope would be witty, but the words choked around another moan when he swiveled his hips on mine. The deep chuckle that reverberated in his chest did nothing to calm the aching need that was now straining against the unjust tightness of my pants, 'Keep it up, kid, and I 'll have a hard time handing you over. '

'I thought you didn 't like virgins, ' I managed to speak through a gasp. I didn 't like embarrassing myself with the word, but I couldn 't resist throwing the comment back in his face.

'Maybe I 'm willing to make an exception. '

His hips were pumping a steady rhythm against mine now, and I had to struggle to form the question I desperately wanted to ask, 'Will you? '

Another deep, throaty chuckle was the only response I got as he leaned over me once more and pressed his hand against my chest just below my throat. I could feel his long, slender fingers against the raging pulse in my neck and fought back a wave of humiliation. I had no hope of hiding the fact that he was able to stimulate every inch of my body so easily. With his hand still on my chest, he lowered his head to mine and I waited for the low rumble of his voice to either piss me off or push me further into this lustful oblivion.

His warm, slick tongue licked the shell of my ear and the edges of my vision faded as I felt my body respond for me, my hips kicking up into his with a driving force that demanded he recognize the fact that he was responsible for my throbbing erection. I heard his sharp intake of breath next to my ear and relished a moment of triumph that I was able to pull any reaction out of him. My victory was quickly forgotten when his hips responded in kind, the once playful push turning into a demanding grind that left me panting beneath him. I would have never expected to feel such overwhelming pleasure from rubbing against anything, but the tension building in my lower half was too much to be ignored. My cheeks flushed as I started to give into the sensations growing within me, and I tilted my head back with a lustful moan.

'Not so fast, you greedy brat, ' he growled, but his voice did nothing to ease my arousal. 'I never said you could come. Especially not in my office, on my couch. '

'In my pants, ' I gasped, hoping the comment would be enough to assure him that I wasn 't going to get anything on his couch. His hips suddenly stopped moving against mine, and I was unable to stop the indignant cry that sprang forth from my lips.

He clamped a hand over my mouth and held up one finger, glancing over his shoulder at his door. I could only assume that he had heard something I hadn 't, but I couldn 't bring myself to care whether or not there was anyone standing outside listening to us. I was ready to give them a fucking show if I could continue to buck against the man on top of me. I thrust my hips up as if to prove my firm indifference on the issue and was pleased when he let out a small moan. He tightened his grip on my mouth and fixed me with a dangerous glare before turning his attention back to the door.

He sat there in silence for what was probably only a moment, but felt like an eternity to me. After a while I started to wonder if he was doing this on purpose as some sick form of torture. Finally, he turned back and pressed his hips into mine as he leaned over me once again. He rested his forearms on my chest and stared down at me with an expression that I wouldn 't have been able to read even if I had all the time in the world. It seemed like there were a million emotions fighting for position on his face, each of them conflicting with the other.

'Fine, ' he snapped and his eyes narrowed, 'If that 's what will get you to do this for me, fine. '

'What do you mean? ' My mind was still too lost in the haze of sexual desire to follow his train of thought.

'This is what you want, isn 't it? ' He questioned and then smirked. I wondered if he knew he wasn 't answering my question at all as I waited for him to continue. He stared down at me for a long moment before leaning so close that his lips barely an inch from mine. I could feel the heat of his breath as he murmured in a voice that made me ache for him once more, 'We 're going to make a deal, brat. '