"Good morning Mr. Ackerman, do you need something ?"

Levi rubs his nape in exhaustion since yesterday he spent all night long sitting in his study and listing all the possibilities why (Y/n) refused his proposal. With tired eyes, he sneaks a glance at the secretary who greeted him from the receptionist desk.

"Well.." He trailed off, that pair of grey eyes landed on a piece of candy in (Y/n)'s grasp. Without thinking twice, Levi snatches the sweet treat from her hands skillfully.

He pops the item into his mouth, licking his lips afterwards, "I wanted that. My blood sugar's low." Levi reasoned bluntly as he chewed on it.

But then, the longer the candy sits in his mouth and his saliva coated it, Levi froze for a split second. His taste buds does an excellent job tasting the sweet treat, and it clicks a certain memory inside him.

Black tea flavored..

On the other hand, his secretary frowns, "but.. that's the last one." she sulked.

"So what ? Do you perhaps want to take it back from my mouth ?"

"Pardon ?" Still irked, (Y/n) holds back her desire to cuss at her boss as she displays a polite smile.

Levi raises his thin eyebrows at her.

"Ah... it's nothing, sir. Please enjoy your treat."

Slowly, the vice president turns his back to her, entering his office whilst savoring the stolen treat in his mouth that tastes just like his favorite drink in victory. Yet, somewhere deep inside his heart, Levi repeats her words inside his head. About how that candy was the last one. Well..

He already gave his last candy, decades ago.... To a special someone.

And it's good to taste one.. from that person again.

---------------------------------------------

*Buzz*

(Y/n) accepted the call as soon as her phone buzzed, showing the caller ID, "Hello ma'am, how can I help you today ?" She sandwiched the phone between her shoulder and her ears since both hands are busy typing the demanded report of the day.

"Ah, yes, your son is doing alright. Mr. Jaeger has just gone into a mandatory meeting for the book concert."

"I see. Can I.. see you for a minute, Ms. (L/n) ?"

"Pardon ?"

"I'll talk to your boss myself to give you permission to visit me. It's my request after all."

Her typing speed on the keyboard slowly ceased as an uneasy feeling settled inside (Y/n)'s heart, "a-alright.."

-- Small time skip --

The elderly blonde sighs, "I know you're busy. So sorry to take your time my dear."

"Ah please don't think that way, it's alright Mrs. Jaeger. It reassures me to see that you're doing well today."

"I heard from Zeke," Dina started, "apparently he confessed something to me a few days ago. Is it true that.. you were there with him ? At that place, when you were little ?"

(Y/n) nods, "Yes, it's true. It was such a long time ago so I don't remember the details but I came across his writing and that's when I knew."

"Could you... Could you tell me more about back then ?"

The woman heaves a deep breath, ready to tell Dina about her past, "it was very cold, and a very narrow space for a bus stop. There was a boy with me, because.. I dragged him and brought him there myself. I forgot what we were running away from, but I brought the boy along with me and we ended up at that bus stop. I can't quite remember the details, but he seemed to be the type that doesn't speak a lot."

"He tried to comfort me when I started getting scared over the thunderstorm that night.."

"Ms. (L/n), I know this is a lame question, but...." The old woman leans forward, "How was he ? What did Zeke look like ?"

For a second there, (Y/n) seems to be debating to herself whether she should tell Dina about Zeke or not. But in the end, (Y/n) made her decision and told her, "he seems fine, from my memories. I took him back to his place after we got out from the bus stop as soon as the rain stopped. And we'd even promised to meet again. In my memories.. He was shy yet considerate, protecting a younger child from a scary thunderstorm, me."

"Didn't he look cold ?" Dina intrigues, "Zeke's weak against the cold."

"He was wearing a.. crippled, worn white fabric that didn't fully cover up his body. It was so thin and... dirty. Like a ripped rag cloth. "

The blonde frowns, "wait a minute.. a worn fabric ?" she shook her head, "I remember, the night he went missing for a, he wore a cardigan. That cardigan.. Mr. Tom Ksaver, the designer, had made it especially for him. And though he's my son, he looked so good in it. I still remember how cute he looked on that day when he stepped out in that cardigan

"But... Ms. (L/n).."

"Yes ma'am ?"

"Zeke never had tattered clothes," Dina uttered, "let alone a rag looking fabric. So how-"

"Oh hey, you're here, (Y/n)."

The two women in the conversation turn their heads towards the person who just entered the room they're in, "you should've said you were paying a visit. Considering it's your first time meeting my mother."

(Y/n) bowed politely to Zeke in response, greeting him who just came home.

"The meeting went pretty quickly, I assume ?" She smiles at the blonde, who returned the favor.

Zeke nods, "Yeah. And by the way, you should stay for dinner."

"Ah no. I have a lot to do at work today, so..." (Y/n) politely declines.

"Then let me see you off. Just wait here, let me grab my car keys real quick. I gotta change too."

------------------

A man plops down himself on an empty chair in a conference room where a meeting about the book concert was just being held, he then grabs an awfully decorated thin book that's laying across the table.

He flips open the first page, only to be greeted by a set of messy writing.

[To Mr. Blanket]

~ Today dad bought black tea flavored candies. I left some for you, but my friend, Porco, tried to eat it. He even almost crushed this candy with his jaw because wanted to be a cool character named Jaw Titan. Bad Pock. Still, I managed to save them for you ! ~

The corners of his lips curl upwards.

-- Flashback --

The rain had stopped. Leaving a whiff of petrichor.

The two children walked back inside the Underground place, however the boy refused to show her where his place was. Instead, he told her to leave him at the place where she met him the first time. They stood there, ready to part ways.

But it seemed like (Y/n) still yearned for his warmth. So the little girl hugged him again, holding the boney boy close to her.

"Will I meet you again ?"

Her soft tiny hands grasped into the old crippled shirt that clung to the boy's body. He looked at her with a gaze that she couldn't read, "I- I don't think we can.." he stammered.

"Then find me, and marry me in the future !" The little girl cried, "promise me that we'll meet again !"

A new wave of emotions that he had never felt before washed over him.

"I'll try, I'll try to find you again.." He linked his skinny pinky to hers.

"And then I'll marry you."

-- End of Flashback --

His rare smile remains there as the man is too absorbed by the old diary that once belongs to a certain.. someone.

"I'll be more than glad if you remove your fingers from that diary, captain."

In a blink of an eye, the smile on the man's face drops. As if it was never there in the first place. With an expressionless face, Levi puts down the thin diary back to where it was.

"It's something that's precious to me." Zeke said.

The blonde had just brought (Y/n) back to the office as he promised. At that time, Zeke remembered that he left (Y/n)'s diary in the meeting room when he was discussing the book concert. It must've slipped from his bag. (Y/n) gave him her diary on the previous day, to help him gain some memories, if possible. Turns out, Zeke found the vice president reading the diary that he left behind.

Levi stood up from the chair and was about to leave when Zeke stopped him, "thanks to you, I was able to meet (Y/n). Thanks to you for knocking me out and ditching me at that bus stop that day."

"And thanks to you, for hiring (Y/n) as your secretary. It's all thanks to you, from the very beginning."

The stoic man stands with his back turned to Zeke, his feet planted to the floor. Levi then lazily turns his head to glare at the blonde, "yeah. Keep on thanking me all you want, pig. Because thanks to me, you'll be able to see more of her."

"Because soon, she's always going to be right next to me." 

.