Summary: Four years after a mistake on his part causes him to lose the love of his life, Laxus Dreyar finds himself with a second chance when one of his best friends is getting married and he discovers they're part of the wedding party. The catch? She lost her memories in a car accident, and he has one week to make her fall in love with him again before she leaves, for good. Mira/Laxus one-shot.
A/N: I'm not sure where this came from, but ta-da! Unrequitedlover!Laxus and amnesiac!Mirajane. I guess you could say this was slightly inspired by The Vow (I've only watched it once) and The Fault In Our Stars and Disney(!) and romance and love and whatnot. I honestly don't know how amnesia works, but seeing as it's not an exact science, I've taken liberties with it. I just really wanted to write something romance-y. So look out for fluff and stuff. Nothing rated R though. Just two lovers who find each other again after a long time, and the start of a beautiful beginning. So a slow romance if nothing else.
Infinite
Four years ago.
In hindsight, he should've brushed the girl off as soon as she approached him and asked for a word.
He knew her type and hated them – desperate wannabes who wore too much makeup and dressed skimpily and had high-pitched voices that hurt his ears.
They were nothing like her.
Mirajane Strauss.
The most beautiful girl in the world, his girlfriend, and, if all went well tonight, his soon-to-be fiancée.
Just the thought of her name made her feel warm inside.
He was so whipped, and all their friends knew it. They all thought it was amusing that he was this big tough bad boy to everyone but for her, he was about as intimidating as a teddy bear.
He blinked out of his thoughts just in time to hear the girl finish asking her question.
"I just had a couple questions about our chemistry final. When sensei was talking about a reaction, I was wondering if he meant something like-?"
And then the skank brushed up against him and attacked him with her lips. He valiantly attempted to distance himself from her, but she kept her slimy hands within reaching distance (to his utter dismay).
It was really unfortunate for him, that at that exact same second, the door opened and a cheerful voice called out "Are you ready yet-?"
The voice broke off abruptly and Laxus was finally able to shove the girl away from him, only to meet the betrayed and hurt eyes of his girlfriend.
And it struck a chord inside him that her eyes were filling up with tears and she was crying.
Because of him.
They had known each other for nearly their entire lives. They'd grown up together, and sometime between freshman and sophomore year, he fell for her, hard. But her biggest fear had been giving someone her heart and along with it, the ability to break her. So it had taken him nearly two years to convince her that agreeing to go out with him wouldn't be the worst decision of her life.
"I trusted you with my heart, and you knew what that meant to me," she sobbed, spinning on her heel and running out of the room.
He chased after her, but her brother intercepted him halfway down the hall.
"Even if you caught her, what would you do? It wouldn't be very manly to hurt her any more than you already have. Give her some time before you try to mend things." Elfman said, grimacing at the screwed up situation.
Laxus echoed his friend's grimace. He didn't want to leave her alone and hurting, but the male Strauss had a good point.
Unfortunately, what the men didn't know was that Laxus would be abruptly called away that evening to help his grandfather's business overseas and wouldn't be able to come back for at least a couple years.
And that Mirajane was about eight seconds from colliding with a car.
Present.
"I can't believe I'm getting married in a week!" Evergreen squealed happily.
"Neither can we." Freed commented in amusement.
"I can't believe you flew me across the world for this." A dry voice commented, but without malice or ill feelings.
"Well, I'm getting married, Laxus. It wouldn't be the happiest day of my life if my best friends weren't here!" The bride-to-be responded sassily.
"So who's the maid of honor?" He commented. Ever since Elfman and Evergreen called him asking him to be their best man, he couldn't exactly turn down their heartfelt request. After all, he did have a hand in getting the both of them together.
"Who else?" Evergreen answered, rolling her eyes.
But there was no denying the slight nervousness in her stance.
He looked at her in bemusement for a moment before the pieces clicked.
Elfman Strauss.
Of course.
Mirajane Strauss.
The love of his life.
"Well it's about time." He murmured.
If it wasn't too late.
"But there's something you need to know, Laxus." Evergreen's eyes were wide now, with both concern and worry.
"Is she dating someone else?" He inquired neutrally, but none of his friends were fooled.
"No, but she was in a car crash four years ago and lost her memories. She doesn't remember you."
When he finally saw her, he thought he stopped breathing.
She was just as beautiful as he remembered, and time had been good to her.
The pull was irresistible, and he found himself moving towards her before he knew what he was doing.
He was a couple feet away from her when he finally remembered that she didn't remember him, but it was too late. He had caught her attention.
Her eyes moved to his, and recognition flashed through them for a brief moment before she slightly tilted her head to the side, offering him a bemused smile. "Hello, I don't believe we've met. I'm Mirajane Strauss." She offered politely.
"Laxus Dreyar." He grunted uncomfortably.
Her eyes lit up in recognition and she smiled at him in a way that made his heart clench. "Oh, you're Evergreen's best friend and the best man! And my partner, I presume?"
"Yeah," he responded gruffly.
"Then it's nice to meet you, Laxus. I hope we get along!"
"…same."
Even after losing her memory, she still had him hopelessly wrapped around her finger. He really hated all the knowing looks/smirks his (technically, their) friends gave them.
And he had a week to make her fall in love with him or he'd lose her again, for good.
Day 1.
"So tell me about your accident." He started.
He supposed it was fate that pulled them back together after all those years. How else was he supposed to explain the fact that they were sitting at the same table for all the events of the week prior to the wedding? Of course, they were the best man and maid of honor, so that should have been no surprise. But he wasn't going to apologize for taking advantage of the opportunities presented to re-integrate himself into her life.
Her eyebrows furrowed in thought. "All I remember is that I was upset. And then a car hit me. When I woke up a couple months later, all I remembered was my name and my family. I didn't recognize any of our friends. It took me almost half a year before I was allowed to go home. It took about that long to meet everybody again. But…"
The way she looked at him stirred feelings deep within him that he hadn't felt in years.
It was a combination of wonder and curiosity and childish delight, like she had just been given a present and she was trying to figure out what was inside before opening it. "It's like I know you."
He felt the corner of his mouth twitch up in slight amusement as he finally said, "You could say that."
Day 2.
"Did we grow up together?" She wondered quizzically, observing the interactions of the people around them.
He found himself people watching with her. Of course everyone was almost intimately comfortable with one another. They all grew up together and had been there through thick and thin.
But she didn't know that, so he found himself answering, "Yeah."
A look of bemusement overcame her as she inquired, "Then how come I don't remember you?"
"I wonder," he murmured vaguely.
Day 3.
He loved her melodious voice, and the fact that she liked asking him questions about himself brought hope to his soul. "So what do you do for a living?"
"I work with my grandfather's business. What about you?"
"I model sometimes, but I really like singing and cooking. Between modeling jobs I guess I'm just trying to figure out what makes me happiest." At that, he found himself smiling softly. It looked like some things never changed. "How did you meet Evergreen?"
"We grew up together."
"Did… did we all play together?" The way she phased her question was almost… hesitant. And he found a flicker of hope passing through her eyes as her smile trembled ever so slightly, almost like…
A smirk made its way to his lips. "Sometimes."
"Nicely?" She pressed.
He had to suppress a laugh at the memories threatening to bubble up. "Let's just say that we were vengeful children."
An outrageous gasp left her lips as she realized the implication of his words. He was left laughing helplessly as she demanded indignantly, "Did you bully me?!"
He laughed for a good few moments before sobering up and confessing, "You didn't let anyone bully you. If anyone picked on you, you stood back up and knocked 'em down a few pegs. I was always proud of you for being so brave. We all felt bad for whichever fool was dumb enough to pick on your siblings. You terrified those fools."
When her eyes widened as she blushed, he grinned at her.
Day 4.
They were at a dance rehearsal when she tripped.
He wrapped an arm around her waist at the last second and ended up dipping her, leaning close as he did so. She didn't realize he had a grip on her and her arms flew up, grabbing the front of his suit for support, pulling him close so their lips were scant millimeters apart.
Her eyes were wide with surprise, and the blush on her cheeks threatened to turn scarlet.
He smirked. He knew she was attracted him from the start, just like he was attracted to her. They had always been drawn to each other, even as children. No matter what happened, they always found their way back to each other. He supposed that this was no different.
"You should be careful," he murmured, slowly bringing them back up and setting her back on her feet.
"I should," she agreed good-naturedly as she smiled at him and playfully asked, "But you'll be here to catch me, right?"
Her smile was contagious, and he matched it with one of his own. "You got that right."
Day 5.
"How come you don't have a girlfriend?" She asked curiously.
"How come you don't have a boyfriend?" He responded dryly.
She pouted. "You can't reverse the question on me like that! But to answer your question… it just never felt right. Ever since I woke up, it was like there was something inside me telling me that there's already someone. But whenever I asked, no one would give me a straight answer, because they're all waiting for my memories to come back. I'm scared to ask for the truth." She confessed. "What about you?"
"…it's complicated." He finally responded, unsure of how to answer.
She looked at him, unamused. "How is it complicated? It's a yes or no answer."
"We parted under difficult circumstances and never officially finalized anything." He finally said.
"So you guys fell out of touch?"
"Something like that."
She was relentless in her pursuit for the story. "But how come you didn't go back for her? Did you love her?"
The answer easily fell from his lips. "To the stars and back."
"That sounds like love," she smiled wistfully.
"I was going to ask her to marry me."
Her eyes widened. "What happened?"
He grimaced. "Bad timing."
Day 6.
"Do you believe in second chances?" He asked.
At the seemingly random question, she confessed, "I'd like to believe in a happily-ever-after."
He didn't say anything, but looked thoughtful.
They sat in silence for what felt like an eternity before he finally spoke. "If I told you a story, would you listen?"
"Of course."
"Even if you didn't want to hear it?"
She frowned thoughtfully. "Is it about us?"
"Yes."
"Then yes."
"I'll tell you the story if you want. But only if you promise you'll stay until the end."
There was no hesitation this time as she responded, "I promise."
A wry smile made its way to his lips as he promised, "I'll tell you tomorrow."
She nodded. "Until tomorrow then."
Day 7.
"You know what I think?" She murmured.
"I thought you wanted the story." He responded, raising an eyebrow.
She nodded. "I do, but a thought occurred to me. Well, a couple. And I do want to hear the story, but I want to clarify some things first."
He didn't say anything, letting her continue without interruption.
Her eyebrows furrowed in thought, and her lips pressed themselves into a thin line as she struggled to piece her words together. "When I woke up, I was so scared. All I could remember was my family and myself. I couldn't remember my friends or anyone close to me aside from my brother and sister. After I was released from the hospital, I came across old photo albums, and in one of them I found pictures of myself with the most handsome man I ever saw. And I saw the pictures, and I knew that he was important to me."
His eyes widened at the revelation, but she continued softly, "And I didn't know why nobody mentioned him to me. So I just asked about the past, and my siblings told me I dated someone, but they never told me his name. I found out from the back of one of the pictures. I wondered why, and no one would answer me. I always assumed it had to do with painful memories, or maybe it was related to why I felt so sad the day I lost them."
Her eyes lifted up to meet his as she confessed, "You were so handsome in person, and I felt very shy. I wanted to know why no one would tell me about you. I saw pain in your eyes and I never felt uncomfortable around you. And then you started telling me about this beautiful girl you're in love with, and I feel like everything is finally clear but the pieces don't quite fit correctly, and I need to know-"
The words spilled from his mouth before he could stop them. "It's always been you."
At his confession, she stilled completely. The only motion she made to indicate she heard him was the widening of her eyes and the shock passing through them.
"W-wha-?"
He sighed heavily before filling in the blanks for her. "We grew up together. I fell in love with you somewhere between freshman and sophomore year of high school, and it took me until senior year to convince you to go out with me. You were always this tough, brave girl, but underneath that you're actually pretty sensitive, and you were scared someone would hurt you if you gave them your heart. I thought you'd never say yes, but you did, and I was the happiest guy alive. On the day of your accident I was going to ask you to marry me. Due to some bad luck on my part, a desperate girl thought she could make a move on me. You walked in right when I was trying to shove her off."
He finally met her searching eyes as he said, "I hated the look on your face. I made you cry. I never wanted to make you cry. And then you ran off, and I wanted to run after you, but your brother and I figured you wouldn't want to see me right away. I was going to find you the next day but something came up with my grandpa's business overseas and I didn't know I'd be gone for a couple years. I tried to call you but no one picked up. I left you a message begging for you to call me back, but you never did. I tried to call you a couple more times until I found out your number was disconnected. After that, I got busy with work and I lost touch with everyone for a couple years."
His shoulders slumped. "I honestly thought I had lost you. I didn't even know you lost your memories until a week ago. I thought I lost my chance with you, but… I'm hoping I have another one. If you'll give me one."
At his admission, her jaw dropped. "Y-you… all this time?"
"I promise it's the truth. You can ask anybody here. They've all been waiting to see what would happen between us. They just want you to be happy."
She bit her lip, staying quiet for the longest time. Finally, she said shyly, "I believe you."
He finally drew her to him, wrapping her in his arms and breathing in the comforting scent of her familiar shampoo. Kissing the crown of her head and silently marveling at the softness of her hair, he gently implored, "Go out with me, Mira. Let me make up to you the years lost."
She smiled softly, leaning into the crook of his neck. "I think I'd like that."
And finally, finally, finally, he kissed her.
He reveled in the softness of her lips, the familiar smell of her that he loved, the way she fit so perfectly with him, and the way her body still responded to his after all those years.
And when they broke apart, breathless and slightly flushed, he murmured, "I love you, Mira."
And she smiled that dazzling smile of hers in response, not saying anything because he understood that she was still figuring out her feelings. He would wait the rest of their lives for her to come to terms with her own feeling if that was how long it took.
But for now, it was enough that she knew his feelings for her.
"And in that moment, I swear we were infinite." –The Perks of Being a Wallflower, Stephen Chbosky
Mini-Epilogue of sorts:
Mirajane never completely regained her memories, but she remembered bits and pieces and various snippets of her life before her accident.
It didn't take her long to fall for Laxus, hard. And when she finally blurted out, "I love you," one day out of the blue, his eyes widened comically and all thoughts left his mind, resulting in him walking into a nearby column. After hurrying over to see if he was okay, she found herself lifted off her feet by one very happy boyfriend, who spun them around in circles on the sidewalk and ignored all the attention they were getting from nearby passerby. As he spun them around, he shouted, "I'm the luckiest guy in the world!" and grinned as she blushed. When he finally put her back down on her feet, he kissed her breathless and told her he loved her, again.
She and Laxus dated for almost a year before he finally proposed with the same ring he kept all those years. They got married three months later with all their friends and family members as witnesses.
Laxus opened up a business branch in the area so he didn't have to leave Mirajane again, and if he had to go overseas, he would take her with him and they would look at it as a mini-vacation of sorts. Mirajane stayed as a successful model, taking only contracts she wanted. She also enjoyed working at the Fairy Tail bar her grandfather-in-law and Laxus owned, where she was free to cook to her heart's content and sing whenever she wanted. It helped that a majority of their friends hung out in the place, and would help keep an eye on her for Laxus when he was working.
And true to his word, Laxus loved to spoil her rotten. He got worse when Mira got pregnant with their first child, who turned out to be twins – one boy and one girl. They both turned out to be a mama's boy and daddy's girl.
And they lived happily ever after, like Mira always wanted.
FIN.