A/N: hey everyone! Ok, so I haven't managed to get my quota for magic merge yet so I figured I'd get the plot bunnies that had built up over my assessment week over and done with. This is the shortest one, but it's still filled with Laxana-goodness, so I hope you enjoy! The idea for this story came to me when my friend told me a story about a man who forced the door open on the train and delayed the whole train because the techies had to come out and fix it, and the driver made continuous update, in which he thanked that one special passenger. Combined with a song that came up on my ipod whilst going to school, I just couldn't resist.
This fic is dedicated to LaxusPlayer for convincing me to get this out there and Winter Orion, sorry this wasn't the update you wanted but I hope you like it anyway
Anyways as anyways read, review and enjoy!
p.s.
sorry i had to take down this story and republish- i didn't realise song lyrics weren't covered in the disclaimer (as i was aptly informed by a... pm). if your interested in seeing what this is based on look up kiss you through the phone by solja boy, if not just enjoy
Disclaimer: I do not own Fairy Tail
Cana stood by the phone, her hand resting against the hard plastic. A thousand thoughts were running through her head, an infinite array of memories of waiting up late, of being stood up, of cancelled dates and yet she couldn't say no, not to him. He was just too much to give up. Her grip tightened as she came to the realisation once again that no matter how many times he was late, or didn't come home, she would still be there waiting, no matter how long- a terrifying realisation that made her want to follow Lucy's advice and flee, start new and be with someone who would always be there for her. But she knew it was impossible, so swallowing her fears she flipped open her small silver phone and dialled the familiar number. Holding it to her ear she closed her eyes, not sure whether to hope for his voicemail. To her surprise he answered after only a few rings, and she reacted without thinking.
"Laxus?"
Laxus ran a frustrated hand through his short blonde hair, irritation seeping out through his pores as he walked the familiar paved route to the train station. The sparse trees implemented by the town council doing little to make to cold grey buildings any more welcoming. He discarded his headphones back into his pocket, the familiar song unable to block out the earlier conversation with his colleagues.
"You know any normal girl would have dumped your arse by now, she must be pretty damn desperate!" Ever laughed, sipping her coffee from her regular place in the staff common room. The statement got Laxus attention, was she going to dump him? Sure they'd had a hard time being in the right time in the right place at the moment, actually for a while now. If he was being honest they rarely saw each other, and when they did it was always plagued by unuttered questions.
"Shut up Ever, as if she'd dump the Boss. It just means she knows a good thing when she sees it." Bixlow snapped back, taking in Laxus' now pale face, gripping his cardboard cup dangerously tight. Ever clicked her tongue, rolling her eyes in one smooth movement, arms crossed across her bountiful chest.
"What sort of woman is willing to put up with never seeing her boyfriend? Maybe a woman who has another?" she offered, a shred of pity forming in her eyes as she looked over her friends tense expression.
"Cana's not cheating one me- she's not that kind of woman!" Laxus snapped, crushing the delicate cup in is large hand, scalding hot coffee spilling over his skin. He gasped, stepping backwards as he released the cup but the bright red marks covering his skin refused to desist, throbbing as Ever quickly produced a soothing balm, rubbing it into irritated skin.
"I'm just saying Laxus, if you like her as much as you think you do, you need to change something or it's just going to end badly a lot sooner than you think, ok?" Ever proposed, Laxus' tense expression the only response she needed.
He ground his teeth, running though Ever's words over and over again. Was it possible that Cana was getting her needs from someone else? When he saw her she always seemed so happy, but he always wrote that off on them being together. That bastard Bacchus was always hanging around her, though she seemed to do a pretty good job of putting him in his place. Then there was that idiot Loke who seemed to be willing to fuck any woman with a pretty face, and Cana had that in abundance. Laxus shook his head to clear his largely unwarranted thoughts. He walked up the grimy concrete steps, welcoming the busy hustle of the train station. A few hundred meters in front of him he noticed Grey and Natsu, the two idiots he unfortunately had to work with on the current case, though in past cases they had more than proved their worth. Investigating arson was a lot more complicated than most people realised, Laxus' job as electrical technician sent him all over the country for his internationally renowned skills. Grey and Natsu were well on their way to gaining the same recognition in their separate fields- fire extinguishing on both wide and small scale, and fire ignition, from the result to the original point of the blaze. The bickering duo seemed to be nearly coming to blows when Laxus decided to intervene, better before than after they'd destroyed something expensive.
"Oi, idiots" Laxus called and to his comic relief the two turned to greet him, they make this too easy. "cool it. Every time you dumb bastards break something it looks bad for the company." Laxus warned, eyeing them, the threat obvious in his voice. They swallowed loudly, considering taking a step back. Laxus was about to turn away when Natsu just had to try to defend himself.
"It's not just us who destroy stuff!" he said, his intelligence despite his talent not much higher than a ten year old. Grey obviously wanted to hit the man but decided against it as Laxus' eyes narrowed on the pink haired man.
"You're right Natsu, between the two of you accidentally destroying equipment, or entire buildings and Erza destroying even more to come and save your dumb arses I'm not sure who wins in that department." Laxus snapped, taking a threatening step forward to which the pair took a subconscious step backward. Laxus rolled his eyes, bored at the lack of resistance. He stepped back, glancing around the station for something more entertaining before giving them a final warning glare. "Don't break anything." He warned, moving back out into the crowd, but not before he heard their sweet sighs of relief. He chuckled, walking towards the notice board, scanning the trains for the next arrival going to their apartment. His eyes locked onto the orange glowing letters, the time due in a few minutes away. He had plenty of time to get to the station, but as he turned to leave his phone pressed against his leg within his pocket, making him consider calling Cana to let her know he'd be home soon; he just needed to hear her voice. Without thinking he reached into his pocket and clutched his phone. He stared at the slick black object in his hand, fingers poised to dial and yet he couldn't- what would he say? But just as he was about to regretfully slide it back into his pocket it began to ring, the familiar picture of Cana kissing his cheek appearing on the screen. Laxus eye's opened wide in surprise; tapping the green icon he raised it to his ear.
"Laxus?" a familiar voice called from the device. He smiled despite himself, the sound of her voice instantly comforting.
"Yeah babe?" he asked, too enthralled to notice he'd stopped in the middle of a stairwell, glaring commuters parting around his massive form.
"I was wondering if you wanted to have dinner together tonight, just the two of us?" she asked nervously. He hated the strain in her voice, Ever's words once again polluting his train of thought.
"Yeah, of course." He replied, fiddling with his tan leather belt. "I should be home in half an hour." He said, quickly moving into action, running down the stairs three at a time.
"Okay, I'll have everything ready by the time you get back." She assured him, her tone a little lighter now, the difference making his lips curl slightly.
"Bye, I love you." He said, a little out of breath. He waited for Cana's reply as she paused. True enough it wasn't the most romantic way to say those words for the first time but right now he was desperate for anything to delay their separation.
"I love you too, Laxus." She said quickly before hanging up.
Natsu and Grey walked down the corridor to their platform, unfortunately for them the company had housing estates which it rented to its employees for very low rent and their girlfriends had insisted on being neighbours. Fairy Tail Inc. covered nearly every field of study and industry conceivable, which meant that their girlfriends also both worked for the company, although in completely different fields. Some faceless commuter in a similar suit shoved Natsu, causing him to topple into Grey whose immediate reaction was to push back, forcing Natsu to topple to the floor. Natsu quickly got to his feet, raised his fist to start one of their innumerable fights when Laxus' hand closed around his fist. Natsu looked up in terror, not willing to take yet another beating from the overly muscular man within 48 hours; his ribs throbbed at the memory.
"Grey started it!" Natsu interjected in a desperate bid to save his life. Grey was about to offer a retort when Laxus cut him off.
"Do either of you idiots know where they sell flowers in this god forsaken place?" he snapped, glancing at his watch frantically. Both paused for a second, Natsu completely blank. Grey raised his arm, pointing down one of the almost identical passageway.
"Down there to the left." Grey said, Laxus gave a curt nod of thanks before sprinting at full speed in the direction he'd indicated. Natsu lowered his fist, completely dumbfounded which was his usual state these days after Lucy's false pregnancy alarm.
"Why would Laxus want flowers?" Natsu asked, imagining Laxus in the flower arranging class Lucy had forced him into. Grey rolled his eyes, walking towards the platform once again, Natsu jogging to catch up nudged him for an answer.
"They aren't for him idiot," Grey answered, eyes flicking to his watch, the trains arrival moments away.
"Who are they for?" Natsu asked in confusion, eyebrows knitted together. Grey glanced at him, his frustration growing once again.
"For Cana you idiot!" Grey snapped, the breeze building as the train came into view on the horizon, coming closer and closer at incredible speeds. Grey tried to ignore Natsu who seemed to be thinking very hard about Greys comment, glancing around he couldn't see Laxus.
"Lucy's been talking a lot about Cana lately." Natsu offered, remembering how Lucy strictly implemented 'listening time' lately. He didn't really understand most of what she was saying but he seemed to get that Lucy though Cana should leave Laxus because he didn't like her enough or something like that. Grey turned to look at Natsu in surprise, he hadn't realised that the idiot had enough brain cells to keep up with a girl like Lucy.
"So has Juvia." He offered, meeting the flame brained moron half way. Natsu nodded in agreement, though what he was agreeing to Grey wasn't sure. The train pulled into the station, mechanical door opening with the familiar groan. Grey glanced one last time over his shoulder before walking onto the train, sitting in his usual spot with Natsu beside him. Across from him sat a beautiful woman, her long pink hair settling around her knees though his eyes merely glazed over her, staring out the window. That's when he saw him, Laxus, rosses in hand, panting wildly.
Grey nudged Natsu, grinning as he pulled out his phone he quickly clicked the record. He dashed forward but the doors had already begun to close. The gap grew smaller and smaller but before it closed completely Laxus managed to stick his free hand between the doors, using his muscular form to viscously rip the doors apart, throwing himself forward to land on the grimy floor of the carriage, still panting. He grinned in victory, not moving to catch his breath. But within moments that grin turned into a grimace as the train slowed to a stop.
"Thanks to a certain passenger we will need to delay the train until the door in the second last carriage has been repaired which should take approximately 20 minutes." The driver's voice announced throughout the cabins. Laxus groaned loudly, as Grey stopped recording, quickly lowering his phone. He repressed a chuckle but Natsu didn't seem to realise the mood of the situation.
"See, you break stuff too!" he called, grinning like an idiot. Laxus seemed to transfer all his energy from lamenting his own stupidity to punishing Natsu's.
"What did you say, idiot?" Laxus snapped, getting to his feet, the roses doing little to lower his intimidating glare. Natsu gulped, leaning back in his seat, looking to Grey for help who just shrugged him off.
"N-Nothing." Natsu replied, relieved as Laxus seemed to relax slightly, walking over to the pair. He sat down adjacent Natsu, running a weary hand through his hair. Grey looked over nervously, sending a message to Juvia, or more correctly to the first person on his most recently contacted list, which surprisingly wasn't his girlfriend.
Cana felt her phone vibrate; retrieving it from her bra she flipped it open, a message from Grey flickering in her notification stack. She clicked the message, noticing the film attachment.
Hey Juvia,
I'll be runnin late tonite.
I thought it'd b easier 2 show u y,
so watch the vid.
I luv u- G
Cana smirked, so Grey really did have a sweet side. Cana considered not watching the video in case it was something personal, but her curiosity won over. She clicked the attachment, after a moment it began to play and to her surprise she saw Laxus, panting and clutching a bouquet of roses. It took Cana a moment to realise this was being shot from inside a train car, then she saw a flash of pink hair and realised Natsu must be with him which wasn't too surprising.
"Is that Laxus?" Natsu asked, though Grey didn't seem to be paying much attention. Cana noted that Grey must have gotten a new phone because the definition was amazing, she saw clearly as Laxus ran forward, forcing the doors open to fall flat on his face. But the gem in the crown was the slowing of the train and the bitter announcement, followed by Laxus' loud groan.
Cana's mouth was caught half way between a smirk and a shocked 'o'. She closed the file and sent a reply, before reconsidering her plans for the night, something a little more interesting in mind. But before she could get to her preparations her phone rang, Laxus' smirking face filling up her screen. She took a deep breath before answering.
"Cana?" Laxus' somewhat stressed voice. Cana grinned at the thought that he had no idea that she knew about his little fuck up.
"Yeah?" she asked, her tone childishly excited.
"I'm going to be a bit late, umm a freight train derailed and it looks like it'll take them about half an hour to fix it." Laxus said, obviously stressed out about something.
"Oh," Cana said, grinning, though her tone was utterly deflated. She heard Natsu in the background.
"Smooth man." He said, then there was the sound of crashing and quite a lot of groaning.
"Shut up idiot." Laxus snapped, before realising he was still on the phone to Cana. "Sorry, not you babe. This dipshit sitting next to me just doesn't know when to keep his mouth shut." He said, the threat clear in his voice. Cana grinned, placing a hand over her mouth to stop her chuckling.
"So when do you think you'll be home?" she asked in a quiet voice, trying to play along. He paused, obviously affected by her little ruse.
"7…" he said, downtrodden. Cana felt a pang of guilt, but consoled herself with what would take place when he got home.
"Goodbye… Laxus" she said, before quickly hanging up to block out his words. Cana sighed, staring at the phone's screen for a few moments, ignoring the vibrating as Laxus tried to call. She was about to slip the phone back into her pocket when she had an awe inspiring idea.
"God damn it, pick up Cana!" Laxus snapped into the phone, his grip on the roses dangerously tight. Natsu had learnt his lesson and was sitting quietly between his two work mates. He glanced at Laxus, hoping Cana would pick up the phone out of nothing more than self-preservation. Grey's phone buzzed with the annoying nokia tone that seemed to be the most boring thing Natsu could think of. Grey offered a glare to Natsu who was looking at him with distaste before unlocking his phone. He clicked on the message, the name Cana slightly surprising him. As he read the message he paled considerably, hands shaking.
C u when u get home honey
Luv u 2
-C
"No, this isn't happening." Grey gasped out, sparing a glance at Laxus who was hunched forward, his head in his hands. He flicked through his sent messages and realised he sent the message to Cana instead of Juvia. He was faced with three problems; Juvia didn't know where he was, when Juvia found out he sent it to Cana instead it would be open season and Laxus would kill him before he got the chance.
"What?" Natsu asked, trying to look at his phone. Grey froze shoving his phone back into his pocket- under no circumstances could the biggest idiot to walk the earth know about this if he wanted to escape this train alive.
"Nothing," he said casually, but Natsu wouldn't be sated so easily, he reached for Grey's pocket but he managed to fend him off long enough to come up with a good lie.
"Nothing, it's just that Juvia found my mum's wedding ring that I'd been saving and now she thinks we're getting married." Grey blurted, and this made Natsu pause, his face wrinkling in confusion.
"Married?" he asked, sliding back into his seat, but Grey's words had attracted Laxus' attention just to make everything that much more difficult.
"Wow, that's tough man." Laxus said, appreciating the difficulty of a situation like that involving any woman, especially one as crazy and Juvia. Grey swallowed nervously, nodding as he placed a protective hand over the opening to his pocket.
"I should marry Lucy!" Natsu exclaimed, jumping to his feet, fists balled. Laxus' mouth opened slightly, eyes squinted he stared at Natsu as if he'd just said the stupidest thing he'd ever heard.
"What made you think that dip shit?" Laxus snapped, looking to Grey for support, which he willingly gave.
"Well Lucy is pretty and smart and really strong! She'd make a great wife-person!" Natsu said, grinning wildly.
"Do you even know what getting married is Natsu?!" Grey asked, glad that after Laxus' first few punches the passengers had fled the carriage.
"Yeah, it means you live together and have the same last name and have babies!" Natsu said, sitting across from the other two men. Before Grey could intervene Laxus cut him off.
"I think that's the most he's ever going to understand." Laxus said, waving off Natsu's idiocy for something much more melodramatic- Cana was going to dump him, he just knew it.
"Why don't you marry Cana? Then Lucy would shut up about-" Natsu said but was cut off by Grey's hand clamped over his mouth.
"What?! Lucy would shut up about what Natsu?" Laxus said, flinging Grey off Natsu with only one hand. Grey stood out of Laxus' line of sight and shook his head wildly but Natsu persisted.
"Well Lucy told Cana she should dump you but Cana said no. If you marry her she can't dump you right? Then Lucy will stop talking about it!" Natsu said cheerily as if it he'd come up with an option that solved everything. Laxus stared in shock, this entire time Cana had been told by her best friend to dump him and she'd refused? And he'd hand no idea about any of it! Grey was afraid that Laxus would actually kill Natsu this time so he decided to distract him.
"Juvia's been trying to get Lucy and Cana to stop fighting about it, but they're both as stubborn as the other." Grey offered, both relieved and terrified as Laxus turned towards him.
"Why does Lucy think Cana should dump me?" Laxus said, not wanting to sound like he overly cared, but despite his efforts his pain was obvious.
"I think it was you're around too much, I didn't really understand much after that." Natsu said, scratching his head.
"You mean not enough dumbass." Grey said, saying a silent prayer that at least he would get out of this alive. Natsu shrugged and to Grey's surprise Laxus seemed to be in a state of shock, he retreated, taking a seat next to his roses. Laxus sighed, running both of his hands through his hair.
"Fuck…" Laxus muttered, almost drowned out by the noise of the train restarting. The slow but steady the train crawled along, the engineers that worked in the background of the three men, finally disappeared, glad to get away.
The rest of the trip was spent in silence, for Grey's part it was mainly in fear, Natsu of course rediscovered the joys of motion sickness, and Laxus clutched the railing, face pale as he attempted to not gag. Thankfully their station quickly came and Grey was able to escape into the crowd. Laxus took a deep breath and took off at a sprint, Cana was waiting for him.
Laxus burst through the door, roses still intact clutched in his hand, his massive chest expanding and contracting with every laboured breath. Cana stood before him in a tight scarlet dress, the neckline almost too low. A pattern danced across the fabric in black lace, thin and dainty. Her hair was up in a loose bun, her face framed by rippling curls. Her lips were the same scarlet as the dress, in contrast to the shimmering gold eye-shadow. Cana didn't need mascara to make a man notice when she batted her eyelashes but she wore it now, giving her appearance a sophisticated air. Laxus stopped breathing for a moment as Cana smirked, walking towards him, her hips swaying from side to side and her red high heels came into view. Laxus gulped as she leaned forward, her chest brushing against his as she reached behind him, pushing the door shut behind him, the lock clicking into place of its own accord. She reached up, pulling his lips against hers lightly.
"Wanna have a shower before dinner?" she asked before lightly kissing him once again, revelling in his wide eyes which never left her.
"Ahh, yeah ok." He murmured, taking in the feel of her lips on his. Soon her scarlet painted finger nails were dancing across his buttons, then across his skin. She broke away, taking a step back she retrieved the roses, their scarlet the same depth as her dress. She smiled, clutching them to her face as she took in their scent.
"They're beautiful, Sparky." She said, big brown eyes like hypnotising discs.
"I'm glad you like them, though I think they need some water he said, stepping towards their kitchen, but Cana blocked his way.
"And so do you." She said, pushing him towards the bathroom until he gave in with a sigh.
"Fine, " he conceded, but risked one last look, his eyes raking over her. Cana smirked, shutting the door firmly between them. She chuckled, reliving the feeling of his eyes on her.
"So, what's been happening with you lately?" Cana asked, pushing away her empty plate in place of her glass of wine. Laxus frowned, not wanting to ruin the night with the news, but decided lying would only prolong the calm before the storm.
"I've been asked to go overseas, there's a specific case which apparently needs my expertise." He said, eyes dropping to his hands.
"Where about?" she asked, her shoulders folding inwards slightly. Laxus glanced up, her wide eyes melancholy with the thought of even more time apart than they already had. Laxus gave her a comforting smile, sliding his hand across the small table to clutch hers.
"It doesn't matter because I'm not going." He reassured her, watching the relief and astonishment plant themselves on her face made his smile widen.
"Why?" she asked, obviously not wanting him to stay on her account. Laxus shrugged, taking a sip of his wine.
"I have more important things here." He said, his grip on her hand tightening. Before Cana could protest he roughly pulled her to her feet, his thumb stroking her cheek as he pressed his lips against hers. "I love you." He whispered before brushing his lips across her cheek.
"I love you too." Cana whispered back, her lips curling upwards at the corner. Laxus rested his forehead against hers, their eyes locked.
Laxus' arms wrapped possessively around Cana as she snuggled closer to him, their skin slick with sweat. The white sheet rustled as Cana hooked her leg around his, trying to be as close as possible.
"I think you should take the job." She said, kissing his chest where she had bit him earlier that same night. Laxus snuggled ever closer to her, clutching her to him.
"I don't want to lose you." He said to Cana's surprise, her head pressed against his chest, his heartbeat a comforting melody.
"You'll never lose me, I'll be right here." She reassured him but her words did nothing to calm his tense muscles.
"I want to be where you are." He replied, kissing the top of her head. When she didn't reply he feared his words were too heavy for whatever Cana thought this was. "What are you thinking?" he asked, loosening his grip on her slightly.
"If only you could kiss me though the phone." She whispered back, chuckling at the stupidity of her comment.
"I won't need to kiss you through the phone if we're never apart." He said, lightly kissing her temple, a habit of his.
"Or you could just kiss me so much now that I won't need you to kiss me?" she offered, rubbing her hips against his slightly.
"I don't think I could ever get enough of kissing you," he replied, returning her action, "but I can't hurt to try."