Surfer!Levi x Surfer!Reader- Water Dancer, Soldier

    A crisp glass of lemonade rested comfortably in your hand, clasped in moist fingers, as condensation was dribbling down the side of the vessel. Raising it to your lips, you took a sip, relishing the tart aftertaste and the initial sweetness. Lemonade was your absolute favorite part of summer, and definitely the ultimate summertime beverage.

    You pushed open the swinging screen door that led to your porch, stepped on the deck, and grabbed one of your surfboards. It was leaned against your house, sandy from the storm that had whipped up the beach yesterday.

    The day was overcast, but warm- the sticky humidity making the lemonade even better. Tying your hair in a messy bun, you set the lemonade on the banister of your porch railing. You grabbed the surfboard with both hands, and gently placed it on a modified ironing board, which you'd whipped up for this exact purpose.

    The stand was in front of your porch, in the beachy equivalent of your front yard. Its feet were stuck under the coarse pale sand, and the actual portion where one was supposed to iron clothes had been removed, leaving the bare legs jutting out of the ground. Your board was placed on the stand, leaving you a waist level work-space.

    With the wide variety of boards available to you, you chose to maintain and clean your fish-style board- stubby and agile, it was your favorite. You grabbed a sponge and a gentle soap solution, and began scrubbing the filth off of the surface.

    Your mind drifted- cleaning your beloved equipment had that effect on you, letting your mind take over and unravel the knots in your life. You enjoyed the serenity that came with it.

     You immediately thought about beach party tomorrow, celebrating the beginning of the school year before the waves got really crazy during the winter season. That's when bands of tourists and sports sponsors came in, targeting the crazy big-wave surfers raised in your little seaside town.

    During the party, however, people wanted to do some sunset surfing.

    While you had wanted to try surfing at that time, doing it in front of everyone- all of your beach-going classmates, made you nervous to attend. You didn't want to mess up, and have that documented, forever seared into the minds of those who witnessed it.

    But you knew the reality of the situation- and that reality was that you were scared of messing up not in front of everyone, but in front of Levi Ackerman. Popular, mysterious, and the opposite of you entirely. Yet there was an allure to him, the mystery of someone who was fantastic at what they did.

    Surfing those giant winter waves... Surfing those monstrous titans, for lack of a better word.

    God, he was fantastic.

    Biting your lip, you scrubbed at a particularly pesky spot, elbows burning with the strain.

    You were drawn to him. You had a crush on him, arguably, but you were the girl who preferred surfing the small waves, while everyone else was training to be in huge competitions. There was always the big waves during the winter, but your real passion was dancing on the water, with the medium swells and smaller surf.

     While you were afraid of the winter waves, Levi ripped open the world with his skill- agile and fast, he surfed tidal waves like they were enemies, giants that he could defeat. There was a televised competition once, with Levi as a prominent star.

    You remember watching him slice across a monster, fifty feet tall and roaring, like it was nothing. How stern he looked, but he was fluid and amazing. He made it look so easy. 

    You were nothing, and you loved him anyway, with his cobalt eyes, his dark hair, and his personality that was like burnt bread- with a hard, uneven crust- and an inside with texture that could have been soft. While the bread might taste okay, there was always a hint of smoke, and flame...

    Get your mind off of Levi, [First.] You chided yourself. He's not some angsty roleplay character... 

     That stupid party...

    But yet, Eren wanted you to go. You'd even been choosing to not go to dances and other high school activities because of that fear, that paranoia. You owed him the beach party, especially after you kept putting off plans. You were obligated as a friend, and you hated being backed into a corner like you currently were.

    It- he- was an issue for certain, but you'd talk to Eren, see if you had to go through the entire thing. After all, you reflected, smiling at the overhead clouds and the grit that you'd scraped off your board, you could surf a few waves, talk with Eren, participate in the awkward practice of dancing in sand, and go home at night.

    After the daylight leaves the world, the waves are no friend to a surfer. Sunset surfing was a limited time frame. You could only go so far before it got too dark for comfort. And by then, the party would pitter out like the end of a rainstorm.

    Examining the surface of the board for scratches and missed pieces of gunk, you grinned at your handiwork. Efficient, quick, and issue-free, your board was now clean and you'd come to a few conclusions.

    You folded up the stand, laying it flat on your porch, and leaned your board against the teal siding of your house. Grabbing the cup of lemonade, which was now lukewarm, you walked inside, satisfied.


    "Eren, this was a terrible idea." You said, nervously looking in his direction.

    Said boy had a determined smile on his face, and was happily walking towards the source of a loud bass thrum. Lights were flashing, and you could hear the happy yells of teenagers. The music was blaring loudly, and you noticed tightly packed bodies swaying and jumping to the tune of music.

    An inkling of doubt trickled into your chest.

    Bikini-clad girls and boys wearing shorts were brushing bodies, lips upturned in seducing grins. Thirty or so surfboards were leaning against a sand dune on your right, their owners in the fray of waving hips- and hands brushing down bodies- theirs or otherwise- in a sensual display.

    You wrinkled your nose. With your surfboard tucked under your right arm like a package, ankle guard already wrapped and secured around your foot, you looked entirely like a surfer, not a teenager. Glancing nervously down at your chest and body, you suddenly felt insecure- you were protected with a rash guard, and your torso was encased in board shorts. If not for the fact that the top hugged your curves, you could have been mistaken for a boy.

    Eren didn't notice your anxiety, choosing to walk towards the crowd. Trying to yell to the boy, you tapped him on the shoulder, gesturing towards the surf twenty feet away. It was a little quieter there, so the two of you paused before entering the group of teenagers.

    "Do you want to do some surfing, Eren?" You asked, smiling in his direction, looking hopeful. "When it gets darker you could go back and dance. The waves are nice right now," you grinned, "and I'm not all that comfortable with all of the people." You added silently.

    He rubbed the back of his head, eyes drifting from your own. You knew this expression. Your heart dropped.

    "You see [First,] the waves are okay, but people are going to try to surf the green flash. You can go now, if you're not comfortable." He added. "It'd be awesome if you could dance, though!"

    Dejected, you watched him jump back towards the party.

    The green flash was a ridiculous chance to take, because it occurred just as the sun set, just as it was about to get dangerous. When the sun set, you only had a few minutes before it got too dark to properly surf.

    There was also an aura of excitement though- thinking about how awesome it would be to surf the green flash. When the fiery sun dipped behind the horizon, the water would sometimes act as a stained filter- sending a teal flash into the heavens.

    Gorgeous, but difficult to capture, and after that it got dark, so what was the point of surfing then?

    You frowned. Why waste good surfing time, when you weren't even going to enjoy the party?

    You turned to the water. Might as well enjoy it, the waves would get crowded, after all. You waded out beyond where the ocean crashed to the shore, and pushed your board forward.

    You enjoyed the feel of water, so you didn't mind the slight chill.

     Ah, water- these were its syrupy qualities, the cool, sterile atmosphere that didn't warp things like the air did. Everything underwater was tinted with the color and rawness, putting a filter of reality on the entirety of what you saw. You wished for nothing more sometimes to inhale the rawness, the brutal honesty.

    You supposed that's why humans really couldn't breathe underwater. They couldn't handle the truth of the ocean.

    You climbed onto your board, laying on the surface and gazing at the medium swells of the waves. The ocean was alive, the waves were its heartbeats. Paddling forward with cupped hands, you entered prime surfing zone and waited.

    Sitting on the swaying surface of your surfboard, you gazed at the sandy bottom. There was probably crabs and stingrays down there. Before the surf got crazy in the winter, you'd have to do some freediving. The sand-dwelling wildlife isn't as appreciated as it should be.

    You turned your gaze back towards the water, feet dangling towards the bottom. Swells would rise and fall in the distance, until you noticed white tips of froth threatening the top of a wave. That was it! This would be yours.

    You turned from the oncoming force, and paddled towards the beach. The water around you was sinking, meaning you'd entered the trough of the wave, until a force gripped your board and began pushing it forward more strongly.

    Ripping your body from the board and standing, you stretched your fingers and began to twist in artful twirls. Your hips swiveled, sending drops of water flying into the air, only to be lit by the steadily sinking sun. The roar of the wave was your music, and the surface was carved with your agile form. Twisting and leering, your figure was not but a silhouette, lit by the sun and outlined in a golden glow. When you climbed the crest, where water churned most rapidly, you looked like a goddess, the glass beads of water suspended in air around you, glittering with gold and fire.

    You were distant, but those on the beach observed your faint smile, matched with determination and glee. Orange and red danced in your hair, pooled on your cheeks and dribbled down your visage. The sun had kissed your being, and you were a fiery figure dancing on the waves, throwing crystalline droplets of water in the air with every one of your graceful swipes.

    The dancing on the beach stopped, the crowd gathering around the surf to watch the performance. The bass, which had encapsulated the beach in its entirety, was no longer gripping their bodies. Instead, they observed and listened to a surfer at one with the ocean.

    "Beautiful." Eren whispered, gazing at your figure.

    It was true. You were graceful, lithe arms following your body like ribbons. It wasn't beauty in appearance, or scenery, it was beauty of grace, beauty of determination- this was your destiny, surfing on the gentler waves. These waters were like brothers- the large waves like soldiers.

    You just weren't a surfer ready for war.

    The ride was slowing, and you rode the wave into shore. Your twists, while elegant, grew lethargic and eventually stopped. It- the wave- was pushing you home, pushing you to safety. The duet was over, it was time for the performer to leave the stage. As your board grazed the sand, you landed in front of the people on the beach.

    Forming a semi-circle around you, they backed up and let you step off of your surfboard. Toes firmly embedded in the sand, you bent down, grabbed your board, and tucked it under your arm. You brushed the sand off your knees, and stood up, just as the sun dipped behind the horizon.

    A green flash exploded across the sky, illuminating the drops of water sliding down your legs, arms, and face, glimmering with the properties of an aquamarine stone, and then disappearing behind the horizon, sucking the color from the gems that decorated your figure.

    Smiling weakly, you waved at the crowd. What were they staring at, you wondered?

    Cheers suddenly erupted from all around you, and then you were swarmed by your fellow classmates. Receiving pats on the back and high fives, you looked wildly around for Eren.

    Overwhelmed, you spotted a trace of impish hair outside the crowd, and pushing and shoving through the group, you managed to break outside the mob. Eren, Armin and Mikasa stood there, Eren smiling giddily.

    "What was that?!" you yelled, gazing fearfully in the direction of the crowd. "It was a good run, but..." You stiffened. "They weren't... all watching, were they?"

    "Yeah, they were. Fantastic surfing! We were going to head out, but we saw you and well, we just had to watch. No one is going to bother surfing now, especially since all those big wave surfers can, in no way, top that."

    "Eren, thanks, but it was just surfing. Maybe we can catch a small one before it gets dark, like I promised, eh?" You smiled. "Get their minds off of that run."

    Armin smiled. "No way. That wasn't easily forgettable."

    You shrugged, and turned around. "Whatever you say, Armi-"

    Someone was right behind you, and upon whirling around towards the beach, you'd slammed into them. Reeling for a moment, you caught your balance and looked up. A blush was immediately painted on your cheeks.

    "Hi. Sorry, I didn't see you there." You were keeping a straight face as best you could, you'd just slammed into him.

    Yes, him.

    Levi.

    Toned, gorgeous, shirtless... Levi. You felt the beginnings of a nosebleed in your sinuses. In the fiery last breath of the sun, the sheen of sweat on his chest and face glistened, and when his eyes made contact with yours, you froze.

    "Nice run, brat." He said, not-so-subtly looking up and down your body. He got closer to you, with his hair tickling your face.

    You knew he was a smug sonofabitch, and his eyes shone with his lips just inches from yours. Tease, tease, tease! This man knew exactly what he was doing, damn him!

    "Come here tomorrow, and the Legion will see if you're worthy to join the team. Once in a lifetime offer, shitstick." He pulled away from you, leaving your jaw agape and eyes wide.

     Turning away, you saw his back, rippling with muscle. Grabbing a surfboard, just before he got out of hearing range, he smirked in your direction. You could only see one of his ashy eyes, but when he turned to you, you could see the gears churning in his mind.

    "Don't fuck it up." He added, before diving in the water, board and all.

    You dropped your surfboard. Standing there, you tried to process briefly what the hell had just happened.

    Oh, yeah. Levi, fabulous, gorgeous Levi, wanted you to surf with him and his team.

    Bitch, yes, yes on so many levels!

    You immediately scooped up your board, grabbed Eren's arm, and cackling with glee, you sprinted into the waves, giggling and laughing.

    Eren just sort of followed along, sharing your happiness, try to keep up with your absolute ecstasy.

    "Good for her." Mikasa muttered, staring at the duo apathetically, watching as you threw handfuls of water at Eren.

    Yeah. Good for you.

    Guess beach parties weren't all bad.