Beauty of Fairy Tail (Gale/Gajevy AU)

Chapter 17

Levy

          I miss Gajeel. Trying to help my team and I wish I could have hugged him. I don't care if we were in the guildhall, I needed him, then, like I need him, now. We haven't talked or had any real contact and it's killing our relationship.

          At least Jet and Droy are almost completely healed, after a week of rest. I'm letting Wendy finish Jet's rehab for his semi-new leg. The first time he put weight on it, it gave out on him and he's been on crutches. Today, they're heading out to a track to get him back in working order. They can take Droy, too, and help him get back in any other shape than spherical.

          I'm sitting at my favorite table. I have a good book and a piece of uneaten sandwich. Just as I open my book, I'm interrupted by another being slid into my elbow. The bright window, behind Gajeel, makes him look like a shadow. I see that the book that collided with my arm is Beauty and the Beast; It's the book I picked for him.

          "You finished it?" I ask, numbly.

          "Yep. Figured you'd know were it was in the library." Gajeel was just as indifferent to me as when we first met. He may have been very open, but he keeps it in the past.

          I take the book back to the library. Gajeel follows. I walk along the rows of stories and into the romance section. Still, he follows. I place the book in it's place. Gajeel stopped. I look at him and wait for him to say something. I can tell there's something on his mind.

          "How have you been? I haven't seen you for a while," the Dragon Slayer wonders. He's just staring at the floor with his arms crossed, leaning up against the shelves.

          "I've been better," I respond. I hug my arms to my sternum and wait. "I've missed you." He looks at me with a weak smile.

          "I've missed ya, too. You, uh... wanna do something later? I'm getting real sick of being without ya, Shrimp," Gajeel asks.

          I agree with a small, "Yeah. Uh... Sounds good. How does seven sound?" He nods and walks out with his hands in his pockets. I walk after him and back to my table. I pop the rest of my sandwich in my mouth, grab my book, and continue reading. I can't wait for tonight.

          "Oh! Levy," a certain white-haired waitress calls, "I have something that to ask you." I get up and sit at the bar. Mira leans on the bar, so we can talk.

          "Alright. Tell me. What's with you and Gajeel? A petty fight like yours can't go on like this forever. Honestly! It's messing with my ship." The last bit was made to sound like a joke, but, knowing Mira... I mean, I've seen her closet.

          Besides her dresses and Nalu Army outfit, she has a suit for all sorts all sorts of people. She has Elfgreen, Gruvia, Bixanna, and one marked for someone named Gale.

          "We've talked. I forgave him. That's why we were in the library. Also," I explain, "he needed to return a book."

          "That's good. I'm that glad you two could put the past behind you. If the fight had gone on any longer I would have..." Mira stops to think, giving me time to interject.

          "Go Satan-Soul, throw us into a magic mobile compactor, and keep us there until we were doing the naked Lambada?" We laugh. Thank Mavis that we can talk without interruption or someone overhearing us.

          I say my farewells to Mirajane and go home to get ready for my... hmm. I guess I could call it a date. I undo my sandal straps, grab some clothes, and hustle to the bathroom for a quick bath. I pour in some peach and orange oils and a hint of vanilla. I soak, until my fingers a get a bit pruney, then dry off.

          I give my wet hair a quick brushing and dry it, with some Solid Script: Air, in no time. I pull it back with a white headband that compliments my outfit. I want to look nice, so I got out a pair of black jeans and a short, light blue tank dress with straps that tie around my neck. I need the jeans, beacause my top goes just past my butt and would be a bit too revealing.

          Once I have my sandals on, I walk out to meet Gajeel. I assumed that he was going to meet me at the guildhall, but no. He came and is waiting outside the gates of Fairy Hills. He's wearing black jeans and a white button up. He also has his hair pulled back in the most rediculous ponytail. I'm laugh at it and he frowns.

          "What's so funny?" Gajeel asks.

          "What on earth possesed you to wear your hair like that," I said through my laughs. "Here, let me help you." I reach around Gajeel's neck and take his hair down, then run my fingers trough it to smooth it back out.

          "There. Much better." Gajeel take the opportunity to try to kiss me. Unprepared, I pull away. He stares at me in confusion. I used to meld with him, like clockwork, but, now, we're distant. Like the sun and the moon, dictating the separations of time. We are day and night, brightness and shadow. More opposite than when we met.