【Re:Freezing】 | Gray Fullbuster x OC

22. Calling All Allies

Karissa shut the door behind her and shut off the lights in her room. With only her memory to guide her, she easily wandered towards her bed and got underneath the covers after settling in.

She was exhausted after the whole Fantasia, she just wanted to sleep.

Karissa nuzzled her face into her pillow.

Earlier, when she came back home, Pandora had given her something. It was a pair of headphones in her favorite colour. It was also a type of model she was looking forward to buying herself. She thought Pandora had bought it for her until she cut off her word of thanks by saying that Laxus was the one who got it for her. She honestly didn't know how to feel when she heard that. Did she want to cry? No. But she remembered feeling so shocked and speechless. She just had a hard time believing that he would give her another.

According to her sister, he was too much of a coward to give to her in person.

Laxus had gotten her a new pair of headphones because hers was old. She didn't think he would notice that it was all cracked up before it broke. The cracks were usually hidden away because they weren't visible when it was placed on her head or around her neck. There was no way he would have known. Why would he go through all the trouble in the first place? Unless he did notice it somehow?

She didn't think she'd find the answer unless she asked him.

However, she sort of found the answer after tinkering around with it. The flat lacrima crystal situated on the outer side were meant to be replaced if they were to break. That meant that it wouldn't have the same problem as her old ones since those ones had lacrima crystals on the inside. She would be able to keep her new pair without worrying too much about the lacrima.

...

...

...

Seated at her desk, Karissa knitted her brows as she carefully took out the lacrima on the right side. They were shaped like coins. Gently, she placed them on her desk and went to do the same for the left. To her surprise, it was much easier to take off compared to the right one. It felt like it wasn't properly placed inside. But when she removed it, a small piece of paper fell out. It was folded.

She blinked and tipped her head. "... the heck?"

She put down the other lacrima and gingerly picked up the small paper that was folded at least three times horizontally.

Her eyes widened.

There were only two words written across the small paper that was the size of a fortune paper from a fortune cookie.

It was his handwriting.

I'm sorry

That's it. That was all it said. And yet, it was enough.

She let go of it and it soundlessly fell on her desk. With a heavy sigh, she dropped her head forward and ran her fingers in her hair messily. This was not what she expecting at all. Her dark brown eyes were shut tightly. What if she found out about it in a distant future when the lacrima needed to be replaced?

Gray helped her finally accept that people just change and bonds don't always last. However, now she realized that it didn't mean that the person stopped caring. It was the same with Lyon. She may not have the same relationship with him, but she still cared about him because of their history.

Laxus cared about her, and he apologized through his gift for causing her to feel small around him.

It wasn't a random gift either. He chose a model that she only spoke of liking several years ago in a colour that she liked.