The Iron Dragon's Mark

Can We Do It Again?

"Oi! Shrimp! Why don't you lay back and enjoy the show?" he asked as she yawned for what seemed like the tenth time. "Relax a little."

She turned to look at him, eyes wide. "Oh! I thought you were asleep!"

"Nah. Just listening is all." He patted the space next to him. "Come on. I won't bite." He chuckled. "At least not right now."

She smiled and lay on her back, looking up at the stars. "Wow, it sure is beautiful tonight, isn't it?" She started pointing out constellations to him. He could care less, but just liked hearing the sound of her voice, so stayed silent.

"Did I put you to sleep?" she joked, after she had finished and he hadn't responded.

"No, I'm still here," he told her, eyes still closed. He felt her shiver. "Cold?"

"No," she lied, not wanting to lose this moment just yet.

"Liar," he chuckled, and reached out and drew her to him.

Snuggled up next to him, Levy didn't know what to say. Yes, he was always resting his arm or his head on hers, and he usually threw an arm around her or picked her up and carried her places, but this felt different.

After a length of silence, he put her hand on his chest and started playing with her fingers, weaving them in and out of his. "Levy, can I ask you some advice?"

She opened her eyes and looked towards him. When he called her by her given name - not short stuff, shorty, shrimp, or whatever - she knew he was serious about something.

"Sure?" she said, wincing when she realized it sounded more like a question.

"So Jet and Droy. Your Shadow Gear team. How close are you to them?"

She frowned. This was more a question, not advice, but she'd play along. "We've been friends for a long time. Why do you ask?"

"Well, they act all goofy around you. I just wondered if you felt the same about them."

She paused, wondering exactly what he was asking. "I'm not sure if I know what you mean by goofy, but we're a team and teammates do look out for each other."

"So you're not like dating them or anything, right?"

"Um, no! I don't think of them like that!" she giggled. Was he trying to ask her out? This is so Gajeel, she thought with a smirk.

"Oh, okay."

There was silence and she waited for him to speak. When he didn't, she decided to jump in.

"So, those are more questions. What advice did you need, Gajeel?" she said, hoping he couldn't see her grin.

"Oh, um,nothing. I mean....Lily's really the one who needs advice." He flinched at his lie, wondering if it sounded as flimsy as it felt.

"Lily, huh?"

"Yeah," he continued. Great, now what do I say? "There's this girl, and he doesn't know how to approach her and, um, asked me about it."

"A girl, huh? Would this girl be another exceed?"

"Uh, yeah. That sounds right."

Levy sat up and looked at Gajeel, not holding in her laughter this time. "Okay, I'll play along. So what does Lily want to do with this girl?"

Gajeel opened one eye and looked at her. "Not buying it, huh?" He sighed and sat up, looking at her, his arms resting on his knees.

"Levy, I, um ...." he rubbed the back of his neck, not sure what to say.

Levy blushed, still smiling at him. "What is it, Gajeel?" she asked, enjoying giving him a hard time. Payback for all the times he had embarrassed her!

"I'm not good at this," muttered Gajeel. Reaching over, he grabbed Levy and pulled her down on the blanket with him. Before she could cry out in surprise, he covered her lips with his.

He pulled back and looked at her, hearing her heartbeat quicken along with her breathing.

"Is that okay?" he asked her, worried he had taken it too fast.

"That was nice," she replied softly. Blushing, she asked, "Can we do it again?"