A/N: Hi guys :) So I really love boxing and Gajevy, so I've decided to combine the two into a one-shot. Just so nobody gets confused this takes place during the Industrial age. You know, when the world was covered in factories and working in the mines was common.
Anyways I'm sorry if any of the characters are a little bit oc, it's become a habit of mine XD I can't stop it. I'm also very sorry for any mistakes I might make in this story, let's hope I don't make any ;)
I hope you all enjoy this one-shot :D
Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Fairy Tail characters.
The sounds of iron smashing into coal soothed the black haired male with ash and rubble all over his face and his clothes. Gajeel wouldn't want it any other way. His shiny iron pickaxe smashing into rocks and coals under his feet.
"Ah, never gonna get tired of that sound gihi!"
He wiped the sweat off his forehead as he stared at his fellow co workers right beside him, smashing their pickaxes on the ground and at the wall.
"Oi! The boss said we can take a break!", a voice yelled into the mine along with the ringing of the dismissal bell.
Everybody in the mine shuffled out of the cold tunnel and into the cool fresh air that was Magnolia.
Gajeel's long black hair flew with the wind after he took of his yellow miner's helmet.
"Oi! Gajeel you gonna go see the fight?", Gajeel's' co worker Natsu asked him as he took of his helmet revealing his flashy salmon colored hair.
"What kind of question is that Salamander? Of course I am!"
"I'm just askin! Last time you ditched Lucy and I to go train at your boxing gym"
"That's cause Coach called me in at the last minute!"
"Well that's sucks you missed a really great fight"
Natsu and I started to walk over to the center of Magnolia. That was where all the fights were held, whether it be an actual match, or just two idiot who called each other out for some stupid reason. Either way they were always really fun to watch. They were one of the reasons why Gajeel and Natsu became boxers.
It wasn't for the money, but it was more for the love of the sport.
"So who ended up winning?", Gajeel asked as he stuffed his hands in his pockets.
"Who do you think?"
"So, Jason ended up winning again?"
"Yeah unfortunately, everyone who faces him ends up with a bloody face and a broken skull. There's no way anyone can beat that monster"
"So not even the great Salamander can take him in a fight?", Gajeel smirked making Natsu's blood boil.
"Oi! I didn't say that! I just don't want Lucy to worry about me!"
"Oh yeah I forgot that the hot headed Salamander somehow got a girlfriend"
"Tsk!"
"Speaking of Bunny Girl, how's she doing?"
"Natsu!"
"Well speak of the devil"
The blonde haired girl named Lucy jogged over to Gajeel and Natsu. Once she was close to them, she hugged Natsu's arms and walked beside them.
"Natsu! You said that you would pick me up after work to go see the fight together!", Lucy pouted as she playfully punched his arm.
"S-Sorry! I got caught up talking to Gajeel", Natsu responded as he scratched the back of his head.
"Well since we're all here, we might as well go see the fight together", Gajeel suggested as he looked at the lovey dovey couple.
Couples for some reason irritated Gajeel, but Natsu and Lucy were different. Gajeel didn't mind them when they acted like a couple, he actually encouraged it, and he didn't know why.
"Speaking of the fight we should probably hurry up", Lucy stated as she checked the silver watch on her wrist, that Natsu had given her on their second date.
"Yeah, I heard that Jason's opponent today is really strong. People say that he's even stronger than Jason", Natsu said as the three of us picked up our pace.
'Stronger than Jason? Ha! Don't make me laugh Salamander! No one can beat Jason….no one!'
…
Crowds of people gathered around the wooden ring, that was placed in the center of Magnolia. Natsu, Lucy and Gajeel had barely made it in time, but they managed to get into the center of the crowd.
It gave them a clear view of Jason and the opponent's face. Jason's face looked twisted as ever. Almost as if the blood of the opponents he faced, was smeared all over his face.
His smile always looked sickening, you could tell that he was only a boxer because of one reason. To beat the crap out of people, almost to near death.
To Gajeel a man like Jason didn't deserve to be a boxer, he deserved to be shunned.
Jason's opponent was a different story. His gigantic upper body muscles and his legs were prove, that he had trained really hard. Not to beat the shit out of Jason, but to win the fight, to win victory as a true boxer. Now that was someone who deserved to be a boxer.
"My money's on the challenger", Gajeel said as he crossed his arms and waited for the referee to step up in the middle of the ring.
"You sure about that Gajeel?", Natsu questioned as he looked at the fighters above them.
"Hell yeah I'm sure! The challenger is going to win this fight! Without a doubt he'll destroy Jason!"
"Wow, you're putting a lot of trust into the challenger, what brought this in?"
Gajeel took another glance at the challenger's determined face as he jumped in place in his corner.
"I can tell, that the challenger has trained really hard for this fight! Natsu! You and I both know how hard a rough training is, so you should know that he…..is ready for this fight"
Natsu and Lucy just stood in silence as they looked back at the challenger.
"Well if he can take out Jason, the he's ok in my book!"
"Yeah!"
The referee walked up into the middle of the ring and called both of the fighters to the center.
Once both of the fighters walked up to the center, the referee pulled out a mic and spoke into it.
"Ladies and Gentleman! Welcome! Today's fight will be a 12 round fight featuring these two excellent fighters. In the blue corner, weighing in at 225 pounds, we have the unstoppable fighter, his record is 42 wins, 0 draws, 0 losses, and 42 K.O.s, give it up for Jason!"
The whole crowd around the ring boed making Jason's smirk widen.
'That little shit! He enjoys the hate!'
"Jason you suck ass!", Gajeel yelled making Jason turn his gaze over towards him.
Jason locked eyes with Gajeel as he smiled sinisterly at him.
'I can't wait to see you fall on your ass!'
After the audience settled down, the referee continued his introduction.
"In the red corner, weighing in at 165 pounds, we have the brave challenger, his record is, 10 wins, 0 draws, 0 losses, and 10 K.O.s, give it up for Sting Eucliffe!"
The blonde haired challenger raised his fist into the air, as the crowd violently cheered for him with all their might.
"Go get him Sting!"
"You can do it Sting!"
"Beat his ass Sting!"
The referee signaled that the two fighters touch gloves, so Sting placed his fist in front of him, while he waited for Jason to fist bump him. But Jason didn't fistbump him, instead he slapped his arm away.
"That's rude!"
"Show some sportsmanship you dick!"
The more the crowd got anger, the more Jason's smile grew. It was a sickening sight.
Sting seemed a little irk too, but he didn't let it get to him, because after the bell rang, he would be given the chance to punch Jason as much as he'd want.
The two fighters went back to their corners, and waited for the ref to start the fight. The ref walked into the center of the ring and raised his hands.
"Round 1! Box!"
Ding!
The two fighters clashed at the sound of the bell. Sting threw two jabs to keep Jason at bay. But Jason didn't back away from Sting's jabs.
Instead Jason parried all of Sting's punched with ease.
Sting started panicking as Jason kept moving forward, getting closer and closer to him.
His panic led to him throwing a slow powerful right. Once the punch was thrown, Jason threw a right cross at Sting's exposed ribs, making him grunt and flinch in pain.
'What the hell?! This fight isn't fair! Jason is way bigger that Sting! Which means that Jason has the advantage here!'
Sting put his guard up as he tried to recover from Jason's last powerful punch but Jason didn't let him.
He smashed right through his guard with a powerful right. Sting's face was wide open, and Jason took that chance. He smashed his face in with a barrage of hooks. Blood and sweat flew everywhere as Sting's head flew back and forth.
"Why the hell isn't Sting fighting back?! He's getting his ass handed to him!", Gajeel yelled in annoyance as he clenched his fist.
"That's because Sting has a condition that makes his head fragile", Natsu responded not taking his eyes away from the fight.
"Fragile?"
Natsu nodded, "Those hooks that are smashing his head in, must be taking a toll on him"
"All the more reason for him to hit him back!"
"Gajeel! You're a fellow boxer as well! You know that horrible pain he's going through right now!"
"Tsk!"
Jason smashed a body blow on Sting's gut making him wince in pain and bend down. Once Sting's head was down, Jason bent his knees and charged up the right side of his body.
'Oh no! I know what's coming!'
Sting didn't raise his head, he was too busy clutching his stomach.
'It's….'
Jason shot his charged right upwards and into Sting's chin. Sting's body was sent upwards, as his feet left the ground.
'...An uppercut!'
Sting's damaged body flew across the ring until he landed on hard floor with a loud thud.
"Down!"
"No way!"
"Well what do you expect he took quite a beating in those two minutes, but if uses this time to recover, he might still have a chance"
That somehow calmed Gajeel down a little bit, until what happened next.
Jason was supposed to return to his corner but he didn't do that. He went past the referee and smashed a right into Sting's face, while he was on the floor.
"WHAT THE HELL?!", the whole crowd shouted as Jason continued to smash hits on the defenseless Sting.
"Oi! Jason stop! He's down! Get back to your corner!', the referee yelled but Jason ignored him. Every gruesome punch he landed on Sting's face, made his smile grow more and more.
Sting's face was starting to become a bloody mess, almost unrecognizable.
"Stop!"
"STOPP!
JASON!"
Once Sting's arms went limp, and his face was covered with covered with nothing but shiny red blood, Jason stopped his barrage.
He stood up and went back to his corner and smiled a gigantic sinister smile. The ref immediately went up to Sting's limp body.
"We need a doctor! Quick!"
The crowd went crazy as half of them went over to Sting and the other half went over to Jason.
Gajeel, Natsu, and Lucy went over to Sting's corner.
"I thought he stood a chance!", Gajeel punched the corner of the ring with his right fist in anger, as he stared at the beat up Sting.
"Hey take it easy! I'm as pissed as you are!"
"No! I'm going to confront that peice of shit now!", Gajeel marched over to Jason's side where he saw a small bluenette shouting at Jason.
"You're a horrible man! You shouldn't even be a boxer!", the bluenette yelled as she punched Jason's chest.
Jason smiled sinisterly as he raised his fist and punched the bluenette across the face. Her tiny body fell to the ground in front of Gajeel, as she held her wound, and time seemed to have stopped for Gajeel.
That shattered a nerve in Gajeel's head. That sight was enough to make him go on a rampage.
"You little shit! What gives you the right to punch her?!", Gajeel yelled as he helped the bluenette up.
"She made me angry I couldn't help it!", Jason said in an irritating tone.
"You just keep getting worse and worse by the minute!"
"Do you have problem with that?", he smiled as he inched closer to me. I gently pushed the bluenette away from us and walked straight up to his face.
"I do!"
"Then why don't you do something about it!", he threw a right at my face, but I saw it coming so I dodged to the right.
"Fine by me!"
I tried charging at him but someone prevented me from doing that by tugging on the back of my shirt.
I turned around and saw the bluenette holding onto me.
"Don't…", she whispered
"Tsk! Why shouldn't I?!"
"You should listen to your girlfriend!", Jason said in a mocking tone.
"No way! I'm going to kick your ass!"
"The how about we have a match? I mean after all you are a boxer right?"
"How did you know?"
"Well you dodged my right earlier, only a fighter can do that"
"Alright! I accept your challenge!"
"Great! I already have a lot of fights booked, so let's have ours three months from now, the winner gets to keep the girl"
"What do you mean by 'gets to keep the girl'?!"
"Yeah I'm not an item of possession!", the bluenette yelled alongside Gajeel.
Jason didn't say anything he just started to walk off into the distance.
"Oi! Answer us!"
Jason turned around and smiled one last time, "Oh and you better be entertaining, I like to have fun with my opponents"
"That little…", Gajeel muttered under his breath as his fist trembled with anger, but something seemed to sooth that anger.
It was the small soft hand that belonged to the bluenette. She gently held Gajeel's rough hand with her small soft one.
Gajeel made eye contact with the girl and immediately felt weird, her beautiful eyes made him feel some weird feeling inside the pit of his stomach. Almost as if he had swallowed a cage full of butterflies.
"What is it?...", the now flustered Gajeel asked softly as the bluenette let go of his hand, blushing the same amount as him.
"Uh….I-I wanted to know...why...you stood up for me", the bluenette whispered as fiddled with the bruise on her cheek.
"I'll tell you later, right now we have to fix that bruise on your cheek", Gajeel said as he pointed at the side of her cheek.
The bluenette poked it once more before she placed her hands in front of her, "N-No it's fine! Really!"
"What do you mean fine?! You just took a hit from a man who's triple your size!"
The girl looked like she was going to say something else, but she immediately gave up.
"Fine", she whispered, "But no doctors!"
'What are you four?'
"Why would we have to take you to a doctor? It's not like you got sliced in half", Gajeel chuckled to himself as he signaled the bluenette to follow him.
She took his signal and ran up to his side.
"So what's your name?", Gajeel asked as they continued down the busy street.
"Levy...Levy Mcgarden", she said softly, "What's yours?"
"Gajeel…..Gajeel Redfox"
"Wait a minute! I think I know you!", Levy exclaimed.
"Huh?"
"You're the one who had the match against Rouge a week ago right?"
"Y-Yeah, how did you know?", Gajeel asked, sounding a little bit surprised.
"Because I see every fight!"
"Every fight?!"
Levy nodded with a smile, "I guess you could say I'm a die hard boxing fan"
"No kidding, the fact that you see every fight proves it", Gajeel muttered in disbelief.
"By the way why is that?"
"Why is what?"
"Why do you go to every fight?"
"...I-It's not anything special, I-I just like to watch them", Levy stuttered as a tint of pink covered her cheeks. She was not about to admit that a certain black haired boxer had taken her interest.
"Fair enough, still I don't think it's a good idea for you to be alone at a stadium"
"And why is that?"
"Well you're a tiny shrimp in a crowd full of gigantic rowdy people"
"Shrimp?!"
"Also, what were you thinking?!"
"Huh?"
"Why did you go up to Jason and punch him?!"
"Because….that idiot deserved it"
"Yeah I know he did, but-"
"He has no pride as a boxer whatsoever! All he wants to do is beat up people! And that to me really gets to my nerves!"
Gajeel stared in shock at Levy. She was one of the first people to feel exactly how he felt.
"I...I completely agree….but you don't have to worry about that anymore!", Gajeel clenched his fist as punched the air.
"Because I am going to take him down!"
…
Once they reached Gajeel's small apartment, he immediately went to the Kitchen and pulled out some ice from the freezer. Once he had it in his hands, he returned to the living room and found Levy sitting on his couch petting his black cat, Lily in her arms.
"To think that a man like you would have a cat", Levy mused as she stroked the feline's back slowly.
"Oi! What's that supposed to mean?!", Gajeel huffed as he sat down next to Levy and Lily.
"Nothing, I just wanted to tease you", she stuck out her tongue, making Gajeel avert his gaze.
"That's probably not a wise thing to do, seeing that I'll be the one rubbing cold ice all over your face", Gajeel smirked as he raised the bag of cold ice just inches away from her face.
"I can do it myself, you know"
"No you can't, you have Lily in your arms, so that means only I can do it", Gajeel raised the bag of ice and gently placed it on Levy's black bruise. She flinched a little showing that a stung a bit, but after a while she got used to it being on her face.
"I feel like you're just using this as an excuse to get close to my face", Levy whispered.
Gajeel blushed a deep shade of red. It was true, his and Levy's face were really close to each other. He could practically feel her warm breath on his face. If he moved a little bit in his and Levy's beautiful pink lips would be one.
That feeling from earlier started returning in the pit of Gajeel's stomach, but this time it was way stronger.
"The blush on your face….also seems to prove it", Levy whispered as she blushed her own shade of pink. Gajeel took notice of it once he pulled away the bag of ice.
"Then! Then why the hell are you blushing Shrimp?!"
Levy seemed to blush brighter at the question she was asked.
"I...It's probably because of the ice bag!"
'Damn! She has an excuse!'
"Tsk! Whatever!", Gajeel huffed in annoyance as he turned his gaze away from Levy.
There was a brief moment of awkward silence before Levy decided to break it.
"...So are you really going to go through with it?", Levy whispered making Gajeel return his gaze towards her.
"Go through with what?", Gajeel responded matching the tone of her voice.
"...Are you really going to fight Jason?"
Gajeel took a quick look into her eyes before he stared down at his clenched fist.
He inhaled and looked into Levy's concerned eyes. He couldn't help but notice how intriguing they were. It was almost as if he could get lost in them, if he stared more intently at them.
"Of course I am", Gajeel responded in a soft but strong voice.
"You can't be serious! You saw what he did to Sting and all the other boxers he's faced before! So why are you still going through with it?", Levy argued as her eyes grew more and more concerned.
"He hit you Shrimp!", Gajeel argued back without even noticing.
"He put his stinkin fist on your soft face! He deserves to be taught a lesson!", Gajeel smashed his right hand into his left, while Levy stood up and placed a hand on his big shoulder.
"Don't tell me…...you're fighting for me?", Levy whispered softly, making Gajeel tense up.
"..."
"You don't have to you know…..you can just drop this whole thing. Just pretend it didn't happen", Levy said softly making Gajeel's eyes sharpen.
"Do you really want me to do that?", Gajeel whispered back as a dark shadow covered his eyes.
"Do you really just want me to pretend like nothing's happened! There's no way in hell I can do that Shrimp!", Gajeel shouted as he gently removed Levy's arm away from his shoulder.
"So please….let me fight him, not just for our sake, but for the boxers who have lost to him"
Levy gave Gajeel a sympathetic look, she couldn't help but agree to let him fight. Even though the idea of him fighting Jason really made her worry.
"Fine…..but on one condition", she whispered making Gajeel focus all of his attention towards her.
"What?"
"That you don't get hurt…"
Gajeel inhaled deeply as he stared off into space. Was that something he could really do?
He took a quick glance at her soft eyes. They reminded him of the eyes of a young innocent child. They were simply eyes he couldn't say no to.
"Alright…..", Gajeel said softly.
Levy's head perked up, as she looked at the soft side of Gajeel.
"Promise?"
"Tsk!"
"I'm not letting you fight him, if you don't promise"
"Fine! I promise!"
After hearing him say that Levy smiled brightly, "Good! You better keep that promise!"
"And if I don't?"
"Don't say that!"
"Why not?"
"Because…..I have faith in you….."
Those words sparked something in Gajeel that he hadn't felt in years.
Hope
That small blue haired girl made him feel like he could do anything. And there was no way in hell that he was going to let her down.
"Then I guess, I'll keep that promise no matter what!", Gajeel smashed both of his fist together as he smiled a toothy grin, "Just watch me Levy! I'll take him down no matter what!"
…
"Oi! Gigi!", Gajeel called out as he walked into the sweaty loud boxing gym. The sounds of rattling chains and jump ropes could be heard throughout the gym. Along with the smell of wet hair and sweat.
But that didn't bother Gajeel, this was practically his second home, and he wouldn't want it any other way.
"Oi! Gigi! I need to talk to you! Come out already!"
"I'm over here!", a deep voice responded from across the gym. Gajeel immediately ran towards it. Once he reached the other side of the gym, he was faced with a small old man with a long white beard, holding a long brown cane.
"What is it boy?! Can't you see that I'm busy coaching!"
"That's exactly why I came to you! I need you to train me!"
"What are you talking about? I'm already training you!"
"Yeah! But I want you to give me the harshest training you have!"
"Why? You don't even have a fight scheduled"
"Oh I do!", Gajeel's statement made Coach tense up.
"Gajeel….don't tell me...that you accepted a fight without my permission!"
"What if I did?!"
"You know you're not supposed to do that! Are you stupid!", Coach gripped his brown cane and smacked Gajeel across the face with it.
"I've told you countless times not to do that!"
Gajeel rubbed at the spot where Coach hit him, as he looked at the angry old man.
"I didn't have a choice! He deserves to be beaten to a pulp!", Gajeel retaliated back, as Coach took deep breathes to calm himself.
"So who is this man, that you're going up against?", Coach asked as he finally calmed down.
"...It's Jason", Gajeel whispered as Coach grabbed his cane and repeatedly smacked Gajeel with it.
"YOU STUPID IDIOT! HOW CAN YOU BE THIS STUPID?!"
"Oi! Stop hitting me!"
"No! Not until I smack some sense into you!"
Coach winded up a slow swing and swung it at Gajeel. Gajeel grabbed the cane halfway through the attack and pulled it towards him, leaving Coach unarmed.
"Would you just listen to me! For like a second!"
Coach stopped moving as he crossed his arms and glared at Gajeel.
"...Alright go ahead"
"Thank you", Gajeel sighed as he tossed the cane back to Coach.
"I have a very personal reason why I want to fight Jason. But I know that I can't beat him the way I am right now. That's why I want you to train me like you've never done before!"
"Please! Give me your craziest training that you have to offer!", Gajeel bowed in front of Coach, as Coach thought about it.
"Well I can see from the fire in your eyes that you really want to win this fight. So I'm guessing that you're not going to back down, no matter how hard I try to persuade you"
"You got that right!"
Coach sighed as he stared intensely into Gajeel's red eyes.
"Alright! I'll train you! But I'm warning you now! This training is going to be really difficult!"
"I don't have a problem with that!"
"Are you sure?"
"I'll do anything!", the fire in Gajeel's eyes flickered brighter, giving Coach goosebumps.
"Alright! We'll start tomorrow morning! Don't be late!"
"Aye!"
…
6 am
"Alright first things first! If you're going to fight Jason, we're going to need to work on your stamina!", Coach yelled out as he hopped on a black large automobile.
"I want you to stay as close to this vehicle as you can! No walking! You hear me!"
"Aye sir!"
Coach began to drive slowly in front of Gajeel. He started to jog after it, but he wasn't fast enough. The vehicle was starting to get faster and faster, to the point where Gajeel had to sprint just to keep up with it. His legs and feet flying up into the air.
"FASTER!", Coach yelled as Gajeel used all of his lower body muscles to keep up with the vehicle. He could feel the burning and heaviness in his legs. It was almost as if his legs were now boulders of steel.
'Push! Push! PUSH!'
Gajeel and the black vehicle continued to move under the hot sun for about 30 minutes. At this point Gajeel was covered with hot sticky sweat. His black hair was drenched and his legs were sore. He couldn't feel them anymore. All he felt was pain. A pain that wouldn't go away.
"COME ON! FASTER!"
Gajeel's lungs felt as if they were going to explode, he had no air in his body whatsoever.
'Come on body! Keep moving! Please!'
8 am
"Now! Do 100 push ups!"
"You gotta be kidding me!
"Do it!"
Gajeel jumped down into pushup position and lowered his body.
"One!"
"Two!"
"Three!"
"LOUDER!"
"FOUR!"
"FIVE!"
"FASTER!"
…
"NINETY-EIGHT!"
"NINETY-NINE!"
"ONE-HUNDRED!"
Gajeel slumped down on the floor as his arms burned off. The pain in his chest grew along with the pain in his abs.
He huffed heavily as he pushed himself back up with the remaining might he had.
"Good! Now do 200 situps!"
Gajeel didn't have the energy to fight back, so he just laid on his back and raised his knees.
"ONE!"
"TWO!'
"THREE!"
Gajeel's body collapsed. He couldn't take much more, the pain was already getting to him. It was almost as if his spirit was crushed.
"COME ON! Are you just going to quit?! Are you really going to take the easy way out?! I thought you could handle this! I guess I was wrong! You're weak!", Coach yelled relighting the fire in Gajeel's eyes.
He raised his knees and bent his stomach upwards.
He ignored all of the pain on his abs and gut.
"FOUR!"
"FIVE!"
…
"ONE-HUNDRED AND NINETY-NINE!"
"TWO-HUNDRED!"
Gajeel slumped all over the floor as his chest and his abs bounced up and down. Sweat covered all of his body along with abnormal heat.
"Oi! What are you doing resting?! We still have a lot more training to do!"
"...Coach…..I….need….to...rest", Gajeel whispered in between breaths.
"You don't have time for that! Unless you want Jason to beat the shit out of you! Now stand up! We have mitts next!"
Gajeel groaned as he used all of his might to stand up. Once he was up he slumped over to Coach.
"Here put these on!", Coach tossed him two big black pairs of gloves, along with some white hand wraps.
"Put them on, and step in the ring!"
"Aye!"
Gajeel quickly wrapped his hands with the hands wraps. Once they were fully wrapped, he put on the two big rusty black gloves, and stepped into the giant ring.
Coach stepped in front of him and raised his hands in front of Gajeel. On Coach's hands were two big red circular mitts.
"Hit these with all your might!", Coach yelled as Gajeel got in his orthodox stance. His left fist was in the front, while his right fist was tucked behind the left.
"Aye sir!"
Gajeel threw a quick jab at Coach's left mitt. His arm went flying backwards, while the sound of impact echoed through the gym.
"Hmm….that was pretty good, but let's see all of your other punches", Coach smirked as he moved the mitts around in front of Gajeel.
"One-Two!", Coach yelled as Gajeel's left and right arm hit Coach's right mitt at high speeds. The power that Coach felt made him smile at the boy.
'Maybe he does stand a chance after all!'
"Alright boy! Don't get too cocky! We have 3o minutes of this so show me what you got!"
"Aye!"
…
Gajeel's arms were on fire as he sat on one of the benches in the gym. The mitt session he did with Coach was intense, they made his triceps and biceps really sore and worn out. Good thing Coach was feeling generous enough to allow Gajeel rest for a little bit.
He lowered his head and placed a wet towel on top of his head.
'Tsk! I have to do this everyday! For three months! What the hell is wrong with me!'
Gajeel wasn't sure if it was the fact that he was lightheaded, but for some odd reason Levy appeared in his head.
Her smiling face just kept appearing in Gajeel's head, making the fire inside of him burn brighter.
"Because…..I have faith in you….."
Gajeel chuckled to himself as he rested his head on the back of a wall.
"To think I'm doing this mostly for her", he whispered as he removed the towel from his head.
"Oi! Boy! Hurry up we got more running to do!", Coach yelled as he exited the gym doors.
Gajeel sighed as he pulled himself up, "Well if it's for her….I don't mind that much", he smiled as he jogged outside the gym doors and into the hot sunlight.
…
8 pm
"You did good today Boy! I'm expecting a lot from you these three months! So don't let me down!", Coach grinned as Gajeel stretched.
"Tsk! Whatever Gigi!", Gajeel yelled as he stood up.
"Come here everyday before and after work! I don't want any excuses from you! The more you train, the higher chance you'll have of defeating that scumbag Jason!"
"Oh I can't wait until I smash his stupid face in!", Gajeel smashed his right fist in his left as he smirked.
"Me too, well then I'll see you tomorrow Gajeel, Goodnight", Coach said as Gajeel opened up the gym doors, revealing the night sky.
"Night Gigi!", Gajeel slumped both of his tired arms behind his sweaty head as he walked outside into the fresh cool breeze, that the night had to offer.
The walk to his apartment felt amazing. The cool air breezing through his sweaty air, soothed his stressed body.
Once he reached his apartment complex, he started to walk up the stairs to the second floor. Never in his life had those stairs felt so hard and painful to climb.
But once he reached the top he spotted a shadowy figure with blue hair standing right next to his door.
A smile formed on Gajeel's lips, once he spotted the blue hair.
"I didn't know you were a stalker Shrimp!", Gajeel teased making Levy step out of the shadows flailing her arms.
"I'm not a stalker! I was just waiting for you!"
Gajeel cocked an eyebrow, "Why? You could've waited until morning you know"
"Yeah, but I wanted to give it to you after your hard workout", Levy blushed as she raised a small picnic basket up to Gajeel.
"...H-Here", she whispered softly, as Gajeel stood there shocked.
'S-She cooked something….for me!'
A soft shade of pink coated Gajeel's cheeks as he took the basket from her soft hands.
"...T-Thank you", he whispered as he averted his gaze.
"Well it's the least I could do, you're probably starving", she said softly as she smiled at him.
"Well I'm not that hun-", Gajeel's stomach did a loud growl, scaring both Levy and him to death.
"You were saying?", she smirked as Gajeel blushed from embarrassment.
"I didn't say nothin!"
She giggled, "Well anyways I hope you enjoy the food! I'll see you- tomorrow!"
"What are you talking about Shrimp? Don't tell me you're actually planning to walk home by yourself at this time of night?"
"Yeah, why wouldn't I?"
"It's dangerous! There's a lot of bad men out there!"
"What are you my Mom?", she giggled, making Gajeel's blush return.
"Tsk! I was going to walk you home, but now I'm not so sure!", Gajeel pouted, and Levy couldn't help but find it adorable.
"Were you now?", she asked as a small smile appeared on her lips.
"Yeah, but it looks like you don't my company so goodnight!", Gajeel started to unlock his apartment door, but a hand on his arm stopped him.
"Actually…..I wouldn't mind", Levy whispered as her face turned bright red.
Gajeel smiled softly at her, "Alright then let's go, the faster I drop you off, the faster I get to enjoy this meal", Gajeel said as he pointed at the picnic basket in his hand.
"You know you can just eat it on the way, right?", Levy said as her and Gajeel started to walk farther and farther away from Gajeel's apartment.
"Really? What did you make me?"
"Open the basket", she said as she pointed at the brown basket.
Gajeel raised it up to his chest and opened it, he peeked inside and pulled out a neatly wrapped gigantic sandwich.
"Woah! You made me a sandwich?!"
She giggled at his shocked face, "That's not all"
Gajeel looked back inside the basket and found another sandwich, but behind that sandwich he could see something else.
"What's this?"
He grabbed the cold item and pulled it out of the basket. Once it was in the moonlight, he recognised what it was.
"Uh….Levy?"
"Yeah?"
"Why did you put an iron rod in the picnic basket?"
"So you can eat it"
"Huh?!"
She burst out into a small laughter, "I'm kidding!"
Gajeel grumbled as he chucked the iron rod down the street.
"Man, you sure do like to tease me a lot Shrimp!"
"I can't help it, it's so much fun!", she smiled brightly at him.
'I guess she's got a point, it's really fun when I tease her, so I guess I'll call it even'
They continued to walk in silence but it didn't feel awkward, it was the opposite, it felt relaxing.
That is, until Levy broke the silence.
"Ne, Gajeel?"
"Hmm?"
"You know it's not too late"
"For what?", Gajeel said as he unwrapped one of the sandwiches, and took a bite into it.
"For you to cancel the fight", she said softly.
"...And why would I do that?", he matched the tone of her voice.
Levy played with her fingers as she stared at the ground.
"Well…...I've been thinking….and I think the reason you want to fight Jason….is because…..of me"
Gajeel finished the last of his sandwich, and looked at Levy. He placed his giant hands on her tiny shoulders and looked her in the eyes.
"...Uh….Gajeel?", Levy barely whispered as Gajeel continued to look into her glowing eyes.
"No, I'm not fighting because of you…..I'm fighting for you!"
Levy's face lit up as her eyes widened.
"But….why?"
Gajeel raised two fingers up to her forehead, and flicked her playfully.
"That's a secret", he whispered as he smiled softly at her.
Levy smiled back, as they continued their walk.
"But I want you to do something for me too", he whispered to her.
"What is it?"
"After I kick Jason's ass, I want you to make me more of those sandwiches, gihi!", he gave her a toothy grin, that seemed to be making her heart melt.
"You got it!"
...
2 Months Before the Fight
"What the hell is that noise?!", Natsu shouted as he looked in the cold tunnel.
"That's just Gajeel training!", one of the miners said as he continued to slam his pickaxe on the ground.
"Where is he? I need to see this "training" for myself!", Natsu asked the miner.
"He's just past that corner", the miner pointed at the edge of the tunnel.
Natsu nodded in appreciation as he jogged over to where the miner pointed.
"Oi! Gajeel what the hell are you doing?!"
Once Natsu turned the corner, he spotted Gajeel punching the iron walls around him with all his might. (A/N: Don't actually do this for training, it won't make your punches stronger. It'll just end up shattering your knuckles, and what's a boxer without his knuckles.)
"So this is your so called training", Natsu said as he walked over to the sweaty Gajeel.
Gajeel didn't respond, he just kept throwing more and more punches at the solid wall.
"Does Coach know you're doing this?", Natsu asked as he leaned on the wall next to Gajeel.
"Hell no!", Gajeel grunted as he slammed a heavy right on the wall, causing it to shatter and crumble.
"Then why the hell are you doing it?"
"Because, I want to leave a dent on Jason's stupid face with my powerful knuckles!"
'Wow, so he really wants to beat the shit out of Jason!'
"Hmm! Then I guess I'll leave you to it", Natsu patted Gajeel's back before leaving the area.
Once he was gone Gajeel took a look at his fists.
'Are these fists strong enough to hurt Jason? I guess there's only one way to find out!'
Gajeel threw his most powerful right at the wall, causing the whole wall to collapse underneath him.
The floor rumbled as mountains of rocks and stone crashed on the floor.
The sight satisfied Gajeel, he couldn't help but smirk at it.
'Only two more months…'
…
1 Month Before the Fight
"FASTER!", Coach yelled as Gajeel kicked his two legs as high as he could.
"IF YOU CAN'T CATCH UP TO ME IN 30 SECONDS, I'LL MAKE YOU DO 500 PUSHUPS!", Coach yelled as he accelerated the black motor vehicle.
"AARGHH!", Gajeel shifted all of his weight to his toes and lower body, and sprinted with all his might over to Coach.
His legs felt like they were going to melt, but he couldn't stop, he had to keep going.
'Breathe in! Breath out!'
Coach smiled in satisfaction as Gajeel caught up with the vehicle.
'Don't worry Boy, you only have one more month until fight night, once it's over, you can rest all you want'
…
"USE MORE POWER!", Coach yelled as Gajeel barraged his mitts with punches.
"AYE SIR!", Gajeel placed all of might on his arms, and slammed the mitts with tremendous power.
'Is it just me? Or does the boy's punches feel much more powerful?!'
Coach's arms flailed backwards as Gajeel continued to pound on them.
'He must be doing extra training outside of the gym!'
Coach took a quick look into Gajeel's eyes as he focused on the mitts. They were so full of life and energy, just like a newly lit candle.
It sent shivers down Coach's spine.
'I can tell that he really does want to win this fight!'
He threw a powerful one-two catching Coach off guard, causing him to fall down on his ass.
Gajeel's concentrated look immediately turned into a concerned look.
"Oi! Gigi! You alright?!", Gajeel tossed his gloves off and slowly helped Coach on his feet.
"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine, I just kinda doze off"
"Why the hell would you do that during our training!", Gajeel roared.
Coach shook his head, "I don't know, but anyways, let's continue!"
'My guess is that he's fighting for some girl', Coach smirked to himself as he looked back into Gajeel's motivated eyes.
'Yup! Definitely a girl!'
…
The Day Before the Fight
Since the fight was tomorrow Coach decided it was best for Gajeel to rest all day today. But Gajeel was already hating his decision.
He was so bored, he had nothing to do.
He planned to spend the whole day with his buddy Natsu, but earlier, when he went to his place, Natsu told him that he was going to spend the whole day with Lucy.
'Sheesh thanks a lot Natsu! Because of you I'm all bored now!'
Gajeel rolled around the floor of his apartment, as he thought long and hard about what to do today. But he just couldn't find an answer. That is until someone knocked on his door.
Gajeel immediately sprang up from the door and unlocked the door. He expected Natsu to be there, but instead he was greeted by none other than Levy.
"Hey Gajeel! I wanted to know if you wanted to hang out today!", she said as she smiled brightly at him.
'Well she's cheery as always'
"With you?", he responded with a hint of playfulness in his voice.
Levy's face immediately turned twisted, "What?! You're saying that you don't want to hang out with me?!"
"Maybe", Gajeel smirked as he grabbed his wallet from the counter.
"Jeez! You're so mean!", Levy pouted as she crossed his arms.
Gajeel chuckled softly, "Gihi! I'm just teasin Shrimp!", he ruffled her hair and walked outside of the apartment, and next to Levy.
"So what do you have planned for us?", he asked her, as they started to walk down to the first floor.
"Well, I thought we could get some ice cream and hang out at the park", she said softly as Gajeel slumped his arms over his head.
"Ice cream, huh?"
"What? You don't like ice cream?", she asked with a worried look on her face.
"Nah, I like it, it's just that, the way you described it kinda sounds like we're going on a date, gihi!"
Levy's face turned red as a tomato as she began to fidget nervously.
'That's the reaction I wanted to see', Gajeel chuckled as he sent her a toothy grin.
"I'm just messin with you! No need to get all embarrassed Shrimp!"
A pout appeared on Levy's face as she kicked him in the shin, "Then don't say stuff like that!"
Gajeel grunted in pain as he rubbed his shin, "Oi! Don't beat me up before the fight!"
Levy stuck out her tongue before she began to run down the street over to the ice cream parlor.
"Oi! Wait up!", Gajeel sprinted after her with a smile on his face.
'She can be so childish at times…'
…
"I'll have one scoop of strawberry!", Levy told the man at the counter before she turned over to Gajeel, "What about you?"
"I don't know, I hardly eat ice cream", Gajeel stated as he browsed all of the flavors.
"I don't know why, but chocolate seems to suit you", Levy said with a small giggle.
"Oi! What's that supposed to mean!"
"Nothing!", she continued to giggle as Gajeel ordered one scoop of chocolate.
"Jeez! You're too much to handle!", Gajeel grumbled playfully making Levy stick out her tongue again.
"You are too!", she shouted, which made a smile appear on Gajeel's face
"I guess we're perfect for each other", Gajeel said in a joking manner as he took both of the ice cream cones from the counter.
Levy blushed a small shade of pink as Gajeel handed her the pink ice cream cone that was in his left hand.
'Shit! Did I say something wrong?! Her face is matching the same color as her ice cream! I knew I shouldn't have said that!'
"Yeah...I guess so", she whispered shocking the living hell out of Gajeel.
'What?! She agrees?!'
Now it was Gajeel's turn to blush.
He tried his best to suppress it, but the warm feeling on his face wouldn't go away.
'What the hell is she doing to me?'
…
After getting their ice cream from the parlor, the two of them sat down at one of the benches in the park, licking their cold sweet ice cream.
The cool breeze around them felt amazing as they gazed at the beautiful flowers gently dancing in the wind.
So far this was one of the best days Gajeel has had in years. He simply didn't want this moment to end, but he wasn't the only one feeling like that.
The blue haired girl next to him felt the same way.
'I wonder what he meant by "I guess we're perfect for each other". I really want to know'
Those seven words were bugging Levy so much.
'Does he feel the same way?!'
She took a quick glance at Gajeel finishing up his ice cream, he looked so calm, and at peace.
'I guess there's only one way to find out'
"Uh….Gajeel?", Levy barely whispered, but Gajeel heard it clearly.
"Hmm?", he hummed to show that he was listening.
"W-What did you mean…...when you said…..we're perfect for each other?", she asked softly as Gajeel's eyes widened.
'Shit! What the hell am I going to say?! I can't possibly tell her that I….'
Gajeel stared off into the distance as his face grew hotter and hotter by the second.
"Uh….."
"Because I've been thinking and I've finally come to the conclusion…..that I…", she stared at the ground as Gajeel looked at her intently.
"I lo-"
"Save it", Gajeel said completely cutting her off.
Levy returned her gaze to Gajeel, while having a shocked expression on her face.
"Gajeel…", she said softly as her eyes filled with worry.
"Save it till after the fight", Gajeel said as he stood up from the bench and stuffed both of his hands into his pockets.
"Why?! I want to tell you now!", Levy blurted out as she stood up as well.
"That's not a good idea Shrimp, the last thing I need is stress before a fight", Gajeel replied calmly as he waved at Levy.
"Where are you going!", he heard her shout.
"Home, I need some shut eye!", he replied as he continued to walk farther and farther away from the park, and Levy.
'Shit that was close!', Gajeel wiped the sweat off his forehead as he continued to walk home.
'I just had to panic didn't I?! Good job me…..good fuckin job!'
…
15 MInutes Before the Fight
Jason's Locker Room
A devious smile appeared on Jason's lips as his coach handed him two silver brass knuckles. They reflected off the light in the locker room, making it seem as if they were glowing. But that only made Jason's evil smile grow more.
"Are you sure you want to do this, Jason? I mean you've never cheated before. Why start now?", his coach asked him as Jason put on the heavy brass knuckles on his fists.
"Because…..I want to make that fool bleed! I want to rip his face apart, so that no one will recognise him after the fight!", Jason shouted more to himself as his eyes grew wide with anticipation.
"I only have to wait 15 more minutes. 15 more minutes until I get to make that man suffer….", Jason whispered as he placed his two black gloves over his fists, covering the brass knuckles, making them unnoticeable.
He then stood up and walked over to the brick wall next to him. He pulled his right arms back, and then slammed it into the wall causing the brick wall to fall apart and shatter.
'Ohh…..I can't wait!'
…
15 Minutes Before the Fight
Gajeel's Locker Room
Gajeel's right leg bobbed up and down as Coach handed him the two big black gloves that matched with his black trunks.
When Gajeel took the gloves from Coach's hands, he noticed that Coach was looking as his leg.
"You nervous?", Coach asked as he bent down in front of Gajeel and looked him the eyes.
Gajeel immediately averted his gaze, "H-Hell no! My leg's just shaking because I'm excited!", Gajeel shouted, trying his best to believe in his own words.
Coach grabbed Gajeel's face and made him face him. His eyes widened once he saw Coach's determined look.
"You shouldn't be nervous Boy! We trained hard for this! Those three months weren't for nothing! Now go out there and beat the living crap out of the guy who disrespected your girl!", Gajeel's eyes widened with shock.
"H-How…..did you know?", he breathed out making Coach smirk.
"I can tell just by looking into your eyes, that you're fighting because of some girl!", Gajeel lowered his head in embarrassment.
"When you say it like that, it sounds pathetic", Gajeel mumbled under his breath but Coach heard him clearly.
"It's not pathetic, I think it's the manliest thing a man can do in this world!"
"So go out there, and no matter what you do…..WIN FOR HER!", Coach shouted making Gajeel jump up from his seat as he placed his two black gloves over his two iron fists, along with his mouthpiece.
"AYE SIR!"
…
"Ladies and Gentleman! Welcome to the main event! Today we have two big fighters squaring off with each other in this very own ring! But they're not fighting for any sort of belt or money, oh no no no! They're fighting for their pride! So let's make some noise for these two!", the referee shouted making the whole audience shout inaudible words at the top of their lungs.
Even with all those people shouting, Gajeel could hear Natsu, Lucy, and Levy cheering for him.
A smile appeared on his face when he saw their faces right below him. But that smile soon disappeared once Jason made his way over to Gajeel and got up all in his face with his evil disgusting smirk.
This one action made the whole audience go beserk.
"Oi! What the hell are you doing!"
"The fight still hasn't begun Jason!"
"Get your ass back in the corner! You disrespectful twat!"
Jason's smirk grew as he took in all of the shouts. It was like he could feed off of them for energy and power. Which was the opposite of what they were meant for.
The Ref made his way over to Jason and tried to pull him back but Jason didn't move one bit. He kept on looking right into Gajeel's eyes, but that didn't intimidate Gajeel one bit. He stared right back at him.
"Oi! Ref! Start up the match already! I'm starving here!", Jason yelled at the fer, not taking his eyes off of Gajeel.
"B-But! I haven't even finished the introductions!", the Ref yelled as he shook in fear.
Jason turned his gaze over towards the ref and glared at him scaring the shit out of him.
"Start it! Or else you'll be the one I'll be punching!", he yelled in a threatening voice.
The Ref immediately bowed in front of him.
"Aye sir!"
The Ref ran over to the middle of the ring, as Jason walked back over to his corner.
Once Jason was at his corner, the Ref raised both of his hands together and signaled them to start.
"ROUND 1! BOX!"
DING!
They both dashed at each other at the sound of the bell.
Once they were close to each other, Gajeel threw a powerful right as Jason's stomach. It landed causing Jason to grunt in pain as he lurched over.
'Perfect! Now I can land another one!'
Gajeel winded up another punch and threw right at Jason's lowered head, but Jason ducked at the last second.
'Tsk! Don't get cocky punk! I'm just getting warmed up!'
Jason raised his head and threw a lightning fast jab at Gajeel's face, landing it with precision. Gajeel's head was sent flying back, as his eyes widened with shock.
'What?! I didn't even see him throw the punch! How is that possible!'
Jason's coach smirked as he witnessed Gajeel's stunned face.
'Yeah that must've been a shocker for you kid! Jason's jabs aren't something you should take lightly. They're lightning fast, and also filled with powerful. Just like a lightning strike!'
Gajeel looked at Jason's smug face as he started to keep his distance away from him.
'Shit! I should've studied him more!'
Jason bobbed up and down as he saw Gajeel step farther and farther away from him.
'Aw don't tell me that my jab was enough to scare the living shit out of you! I haven't even gotten started!', Jason smirked as he dashed at Gajeel, 'But I will soon!'
'Crap! He's coming to me!'
Gajeel raised his two gloves to his face as Jason started smashing punches at his guard. His punches felt so heavy and powerful to Gajeel, almost as if they were made out of steel. His arms were already beginning to shake as he tried his best to hold them up.
'Tsk! Why the fuck are your punches so powerful?!'
Gajeel couldn't take the barrage of punches anymore, once Jason threw a right Gajeel rolled up upper body to the right and threw a clean jab at Jason's unguarded face. Causing spit and a little bit of blood to fly out of his mouth.
'Argh! You little shit! You got lucky, but now it's my turn!'
Jason stepped in and prepared to throw a one-two but Gajeel stopped him halfway with a right cross on his ribs.
Jason's eyes widened with pain as he bent over in pain.
Coughing a little, he slowly raised himself up to see Gajeel throwing another right cross, but this time it was aimed at his face.
'Shit! I can't block this one!'
DING!
Gajeel stopped his punch at the halfway mark, as his face scrunched up in annoyance.
'Damn it! I was so close to messing up his disgusting face! Why the hell did the bell have to ring right now?! DAMN IT ALL!'
Gajeel lowered his fist and walked over to his corner where Coach was waiting for him with a stool and a towel.
Gajeel sat down and Coach immediately began to dry off the sweat that Gajeel produced during the fight.
"You're doing great Boy! If you keep this up, you'll have him down in no time!"
Gajeel took in deep breaths as he stared at his gloves.
'I don't know about that Coach! He hasn't even shown his true strength yet!'
"What hell are you doing Jason! You let him beat the crap out of you this round!", Jason' coach shouted at him as Jason's face looked emotionless, until a smirk appeared on his face, followed by some blood curling chuckles.
"I was just testing him out this round, but now I'm going to destroy him!", Jason's eyes widened as he smiled wildly.
BUZZ!
"Seconds out!"
Coach gave Gajeel a pat on the back as he made his way outside of the ring. Gajeel put his mouthpiece back in his mouth as slowly made his way over towards Jason and the Ref.
"ROUND 2! BOX!"
DING!
Gajeel charged at Jason without hesitation. Once he was in range he threw a barrage of hooks at Jason's body. Jason blocked them all with his arms.
'Do you think that's going to hurt me you weakling!'
Gajeel backed away slightly as he charged up a heavy right. But he was too slow, Jason stepped in and prepared his right faster than Gajeel.
'I'll show you true power! This'll shake you to the core!'
Jason threw the heavy punch at Gajeel's moving body, and Gajeel could see it clearly.
'Shit! I can't stop! My body's already in full motion!'
SLAM!
The punch collided with Gajeel's tough face making him stumble backwards.
He couldn't feel his nose or his eyes, all he felt was a heavy burning sensation on his face. Almost as if he was wearing a hot sweaty mask.
The pain only seemed to be growing more intense by the second.
'Heh, you got me good….but I'm not going down that easily!'
Gajeel stopped his body from moving by planting both of his strong feet on the mat. They began to shake uncontrollably as Gajeel did his best to stay up.
'C'mon legs! All that running I did! Did that mean nothing?!'
Jason spit out his mouthpiece and licked his lips.
'Look how defenseless you look! Your face….is just priceless…..give me more!'
Jason threw a right cross into Gajeel's ribcage making him bend over in pain. It felt as if his whole right side of his body had collapsed inside of him.
'Tsk! His punches! They feel like they're made out of steel!'
Jason followed up his right cross with a liver blow, shaking Gajeel's body to the core.
Gajeel spat out his mouthpiece sending it flying into the crowd as he reached for the rope right next to him, gripping it like his life depended on it.
He took in deep breaths as he tried to steady himself.
'How is trash like him….so powerful!'
"Boy! What are you doing?! Fight back!", Coach yelled from the sidelines making Gajeel slowly push himself up into his fighting position.
'That's easier said than done, Coach...this dude's no joke!'
"Yeah! Listen to your pathetic coach! Fight back you coward!", Jason yelled breaking one of Gajeel's nerves.
"Pathetic….coach?", he whispered to himself as he raised his fists.
"I'll show you who's PATHETIC!", Gajeel pushed his legs and charged at Jason landing a clean jab at his face.
Jason's face was sent upwards as sweat flew off of his face, making it seem as if it was raining in the ring.
'How did that one feel Jason?!'
Jason slowly lifted his head and glared at Gajeel with a sickening smile.
'What?! Did he not take any damage from that?!'
Jason threw a left hook into Gajeel's liver making his shocked expression grow wider.
'How?! How?! Are my punches weak?!'
Gajeel straightened himself and started to slam heavy punches into Jason, but Jason didn't flinch. His evil smile never left his face, and Gajeel's worried face only seemed to be making it wider.
'To be honest your punches really hurt, hell I can't even feel my arms anymore. But I can't let you know that!', Jason ducked under one of Gajeel's wide swings and slammed his right fist into Gajeel's solar plexus.
"ARRGH!"
Gajeel's body came to an immediate stop. He couldn't move a muscle it was like he had been frozen.
'What…..what is this?', his body began to tremble as he tried to move his legs, but they wouldn't budge.
'Why….why can't I move? Why?!'
The fire in Gajeel's eyes were replaced with a deep pool of fear, and Jason could see it clearly. He winded up a powerful right and threw right into Gajeel's vulnerable face.
SPLAT!
'Got you!'
Gajeel's whole body gave up on him as he started to fall back.
'Shit! I don't think I'll be able to stay up!'
The only thing Levy and the others could do was watch in horror as Gajeel's body got closer and closer to the mat.
'Please…..Gajeel land on the mat…..I just want you to get out of this fight….before something bad happens to you…..please!', Levy prayed as she closed her eyes. But they popped right back open once she heard the audience cheer wildly. She looked up at the ring and saw the barely conscious Gajeel holding onto one of the ropes.
'Fuck! That was close! I'm lucky that I was near the ropes!', Gajeel huffed as he traded glares with Jason. He could feel the trembling in his legs and his arms as he held onto the ropes with the all of the remaining strength he had.
'I guess that punch wasn't enough to take you down, but don't worry this one will finish the job!', Jason charged at Gajeel with his raised fist, making Gajeel let go of the ropes and get into his defensive position.
Once his arms were up, Gajeel closed his eyes and waited for his arms to be bombarded with painful punches, but a glorious sound saved him just in time.
DING!
'Heh….that's the first time I've heard the bell be filled with relief instead of disappointment'
Gajeel slowly opened his eyes and saw that Jason had stopped his punch midway. His face was filled with annoyance.
'You lucky little shit! Saved by the fucking bell!'
Jason pulled back and made his way to his corner. Gajeel tried to do the same but it was way harder for him. The beating he took in this round left him drained and powerless.
Coach stepped into the ring and helped Gajeel to his corner. Once they were in the corner he laid Gajeel down gently into his seat, and poured ice cold water over his head.
"Boy! You okay?!", Coach yelled as he wiped off the water and the sweat off of Gajeel's body.
Gajeel's chest heaved up and down as he inhaled and exhaled heavily.
"I….I'm….fine", he said softly.
"Alright don't talk, conserve your energy"
"You've almost got him Jason!", Jason's coach exclaimed as he poured water into Jason's mouth.
"If you keep hitting him like that, you'll have him down in no time!"
"Down?"
"Who said anything about me putting him down?", Jason breathed out as a deadly aura started to surround him.
"I don't want to make him go down….I want to kill him!"
BUZZ!
"Seconds out!"
Coach gave Gajeel a worried look as he made his way out of the ring.
There wasn't anything he could do except worry alongside all of Gajeel's friends.
'C'mon Boy! I know you can do this! Just hang in there!'
Gajeel lifted himself up and made his way to the center of the ring alongside Jason.
Once everyone was in the middle Gajeel lifted up his arms and covered his upper body.
'So you're not going to surrender even though I gave you a hell of beating? I got to admit you've got guts, but your bravery won't help you this round! Because I'm going to finish it in this round!'
"ROUND 3! BOX!"
DING!
'His punches don't feel right. They feel like they're powerful, but they're lacking something'
Jason smashed a right into Gajeel's guard.
'There it is again. I can feel it! His punches…'
'Are you that worn out that you can't hit back? Well if that's the case I'll finish you off right now!'
Jason stepped back and put all of his strength into his right arm. He charged over to Gajeel with all his might and attempted to smash his powerful right against Gajeel's skull, but he missed.
'What?! Where did he go?!'
Jason looked down and saw Gajeel underneath him with his knees bent. He saw that his eyes held some sort of flame in them. A flame that flickered brightly by the second.
'His punches are fake!'
Gajeel jumped up and landed a powerful uppercut into Jason's chin sending him flying upwards.
'What?! How?!'
Gajeel didn't stop there, he threw multiple punches at Jason's body and his face.
'There's no way I'm going to let you beat me with those fake punches of yours!'
Jason trembled as he felt the full force of Gajeel's punches. He started to fall to the mat but he saved himself by grabbed the edge of a rope just in time.
'This little shit! Where did all this strength come from?!'
'This fight has gone on long enough!'
Gajeel shifted all of his weight to his right side. He pivoted his right foot and threw a right hook at Jason's head.
But Jason saw it in time.
'I'm not going down until I kill you!'
Jason countered Gajeel's right hook with a powerful left hook of his own. The force caught Gajeel off guard, sending him into a deep shock along with a feeling a fatigue. His face and knees felt really hot and heavy.
'Tsk! I just had all of my power returned to me!'
Gajeel's legs started to tremble more violently.
'My legs aren't going to support me much longer!'
Jason spat out his mouthpiece and slowly walked over to the trembling Gajeel.
"IT'S OVER!"
Jason landed his most powerful punch on Gajeel's face. Gajeel was sent flying to the mat as his face spewed out fresh blood.
He landed on his back with his eyes closed. Fatigue and pain was finally taking a toll on him.
'I….I-I can't move!'
Instead of cheering for the down, the audience stayed silent as they watched the horror unfold in front of their eyes.
Gajeel's body looked lifeless and messy. Almost like a bloody corpse.
What Jason did next shocked the crowd. He spat on Gajeel's face and proceeded to hit him while he was defenseless.
"Oi! He's down!"
"You can't hit him while he's down!"
"You little shit!"
Jason's twisted smile grew more and more as the blood and the audience's pleads fueled him.
"Die! Die! DIE!"
Levy watched in horror as Gajeel was becoming more and more hurt. Her heart felt like it was about to explode.
She couldn't bear to watch anymore.
"STOP! JUST STOP! STOP HITTING HIM!", Levy cried out as she began to sob.
"PLEASE stop!", she fell to her knees, "I'll do anything"
'That sounded like Shrimp's voice….'
Gajeel slowly opened up his left eye. It hurt to have it open but he had to make sure that it indeed was Shrimp's voice.
It was a little blurry but he saw Levy kneeled on the floor crying?
"Fine…..but on one condition", she whispered making Gajeel focus all of his attention towards her.
"What?"
"That you don't get hurt…"
Gajeel smiled softly through Jason's punches.
'Oh yeah, that's right! I promised Shrimp that I wouldn't get hurt!'
Gajeel turned his gaze over to Jason's insane stare.
'I guess since I broke that promise, I'm going to have to make it up to her by winning this fight'
"Well this fight was fun! But I'm itching to kill you, so I'll do it with this last punch!"
"I guess….we….both have….that same….in mind….", Gajeel smirked making Jason's eyes widen.
"Because I'm also itching to kill you!"
"Why you little-", Jason swinged at Gajeel, but Gajeel blocked it with ease. He pushed back Jason and stood up.
"Now If you wouldn't mind…..could you please fight like a true boxer!"
"Tsk! Shut up you weakling!"
'Levy I'm sorry for making you worry. I should've kicked this guy's ass from the start. But now that I've had some sense smacked into me, I'm finally ready to go!'
Jason charged at Gajeel and threw a bunch of wide swings at him. Gajeel ducked under all of them.
"This one's for Sting!", Gajeel landed a heavy blow at Jason's liver making his face scrunch up in pain.
"You….little-"
"And this one's for me!", Gajeel's right fist collided with Jason's chest making Jason hunch over and cough out blood on the mat.
'Shit! How did his punches become so strong?!', Jason looked into Gajeel's flaming eyes. The burning flame inside of them flickered wildly as he winded up his next shot.
"And….", Gajeel gritted his teeth.
"THIS ONE'S FOR!", Gajeel threw his most powerful right at Jason's face.
CLINK!
The heavy punch smashed Jason's face into a squashed tomato. Blood and teeth went flying everywhere as Gajeel's fist went through every fiber of Jason's bloody face.
"LEVY!"
'H-How?!...'
Jason's body smashed to the ground causing the audience to go wild.
'How did he….how?!'
The Ref ran over to Jason's bruised body and started to count. But when he saw that Jason had closed his eyes, he concluded the match.
"Winner! Gajeel Redfox!", he shouted as he raised Gajeel's tired fist into the air.
The audience cheered loudly as they all raised their arms in joy. But Gajeel ignored all of them. There was only one person he really wanted to see right now.
'Where is she?'
Suddenly Gajeel felt two small arms embrace him from behind. He immediately knew who it was. A smile traced his lips as he put both of his tired arms over hers.
"I can't believe you broke our promise…..idiot", she said softly as her arms began to tremble.
Gajeel spun around and cupped her face gently with his right glove. Levy's eyes glowed brightly as she stared into Gajeel's warm eyes.
"Will this make up for it?", Gajeel leaned and placed his warm lips onto hers. At first Levy was surprised but she soon melted into the kiss.
Even though Gajeel's lips were bruised, it was still an amazing kiss.
A/N: Thank you for reading! ^.^