The air is cold around me. Snow touches my bare arms while I'm running as hard as I'm able to. It's winter and I'm not dressed for the season but I don't care. I just need to see him. He had been gone for so long. He had be gone for months, I never gave up on him. I knew he would come back. I just wished it wasn't like this. Why couldn't he just come back uninjured. Smiling his stupid smile and saying sorry for being late. I didn't even know what was wrong with him, but Mirajane's panicked voice asking me to come to the guild as soon as possible said enough. This is going to be bad.

With my cold skin, burning lungs and tired legs I finally manage to reach the guild. I open the doors and for a moment I notice how people look at me. Pity is what is written on their faces. An emotion I could only recognise in the short moment I saw it because as soon as I looked around they looked away, almost if they were scared to look at me. My heart races and I'm starting to feel sick. Cold sweat covering my body. I need to see him. I run to the infirmary where I bump into Mirajane. "Levy! You're he..." I couldn't listen to her, my mind was focused on one thing and one thing only. Him.

I open door one and I frantically look around. He wasn't there.

Door two he wasn't there.

Door three. My hand trembles as it rests on the doorknob. Suddenly I'm scared. It's the last room, I know he is in there. What if he is barely alive. What If he is a lost cause. I try to calm myself. It won't be like that, I tell myself. Gajeel is one of the strongest people I know. He will be okay. He must be. I open the door, and as soon as I do I wish I hadn't. The strongest man I know doesn't look strong at all. He looked pale, way paler then his normally tanned skin. He was covered in bruises and cuts, but that wasn't the worst. The tubes, those made my stomach turn. So much tubes and needles. He is even hooked up to a monitor showing his vital signs and heart beat.

I feel a lump in my throat and somehow I'm unable to move. He has been bruised and injured like this before but something felt so wrong. I notice Mirajane entered the room. I try to speak but my voice got caught in my throat. A soft hand touches my shoulder.

"Wha- what's wrong with him?" I barely whisper. Mirajane enters my eyesight, looking worried as ever. "We don't know yet. Physically he is alright, he'll live. He is just not waking up." Now I know for sure I'm feeling sick. "Levy, you look really pale please sit down." So I did, I followed her like a lifeless doll and took a seat. "Were you aware of the kind of mission he went on, Levy?" I shake my head. He didn't tell me about it, not really. He was really vague about it, said he wanted to get stronger, he would go train for some months, fight some bandits here and there, he didn't even take Panther Lily with him. I didn't even think about it twice back then. I should have. "Tell me what happened Mira." I said softly.

And she did. Guess what, stupid Gajeel went on a mission to infiltrate Phantom Lord. He got found out. They apparently kept him as a prisoner after that. We don't know what happened to him there. Makarov lost contact with him after that. Months later they found him, deserted in the woods that are surrounding Magnolia, beat up almost to the brink of death. And now he doesn't wake up.

So here I am, it's been almost three weeks and I haven't left his side ever since. I've been keeping an eye on him day and night. Making sure his hearth wouldn't stop all of the sudden. But his hearth kept beating. The beeping sounds of the monitor became comforting to me. Of course those sounds wouldn't let me sleep, but I didn't really want to. I wanted to keep my eyes on Gajeel all times. But I was really getting tired. And a lot of my friends started to worry about me.

"Levy, you need to eat." Yet would say. "Levy, you need sleep." Droy would say. Lucy would visit me a lot with a concerned look in her eyes. Even Master Makarov came by a lot, Mirajane told me it's out of guilt. Master Makarov feels like it's his fault that Gajeel is like this now. I don't really want to think about if it is his fault or not. Gajeel would do anything for master. He's past never really left him, it followed him like a shadow. He always got reminded of his darker days, his Phantom Lord days, and he feels like he should do anything to make up for what happened back then. Makarov said he would never forgive him for that and so Gajeel has never forgiven himself. I feel like I can't really blame Makarov for asking Gajeel to do this. And I can't blame Gajeel for accepting. The only one I want to blame is the person who did this to him. The bastard will pay, I will seek my revenge. But for now I just have to stay by Gajeel's side.

I stare at him, at his body. He is healing, but the dark blue almost black bruises have turned yellow and green, some even brown. Like leaves changing colour when summer turns into fall. His wounds are closing up. Some big long cuts on his back are taking their time though. His wounds are awfully suggesting, and I keep thinking about the scenarios that could have happened for him to end up like this. None of them were comforting. I tried not to think about it. I just try to keep focussing on making him better. Like Makaroc said, him getting better is the priority, questions and pay back will have to come later.

This happening to him, he should have seen how everyone reacted. Word got out what happened to him. What kind of mission he went on for Fairy Tail's sake. He came a long way form being the hated lonely enemy. From taking Yet's, Droy's and Laxus' hits, hoping it would satisfy their need for payback. Hoping that would make it a little bit more alright. He came such a long way. And now everyone is realizing his worth, like I did.

Natsu wasn't at the guild when Gajeel came in. After Natsu heard the news, when he returned from a mission he got angry. He stormed into the infirmary, fire breathing and all. He started yelling at him. To stop his stupid joke and get up already. He's words sounded like he was joking around, but his eyes told another story. Gajeel and Natsu shared the same sad story. The story of their dragons disappearing. They may fight a lot. But they have also bonded a lot.

At one point Natsu's rage disappeared. Nowadays he always visits after he comes back from a mission, and he will tell Gajeel all about it. Porlyusica said there's a chance he can hear us, that he might be conscious but that he's unable to move his body. Natsu thought Gajeel would be bored out of his mind, so he made it his job to bring him entertaining stories. I know Natsu's isn't as dense as he looks. And at first sight it might seem like he isn't taking this hard at all, but I know Natsu cares a lot and he is not stupid. But even when it's obvious that he is faking his smile and excitement like nothing is wrong, I do appreciate it. Most people are so serious, the pity me, pity Gajeel. I know Gajeel would hate it if he knew they did. So I appreciate that Natsu is treating him the same as he did before. Gajeel would like it.

Wendy is having a hard time I noticed. As a fellow dragons slayer and a guild mate she looks up to Gajeel and Natsu. I think she might even see them as big brothers. She doesn't visit as much as Natsu but I get why. She doesn't deal with it like Natsu does. She can't pretend like everything is fine. Wendy gets really quiet and really sad when she sees Gajeel. Just like me she sees him like such a strong person. It is hard to see someone you look up to like this. I get it. Luckily Natsu looks out for her. He always tries to lift her spirit and make her laugh.

Of course there is someone who visits him the most. Panther Lily. The bond between those two is stronger than most can imagine. Pather Lily feels terrible seeing his partner like this, but he hasn't lost hope once. We actually find it comforting to talk about him together. About some sides of him that only people close to him know about and about the adventures the two of those went on. We got even closer since Gajeel got injured. Panther didn't sleep at home most of the time. He said he was restless and that he fell asleep easier next to the iron dragon slayer. Even though he said that, a lot of those nights were spend wide awake. Just like mine.

I'm almost done changing his bandages when Lucy comes in. "Hey." She says while leaning against the door frame. "How is he doing?" She nods her head towards Gajeel. "The same, I mean physically he's healing. But... yeah, still the same." Lucy sighs and with a determent look she closes the door and takes a seat across of me. "Look Levy. The whole guild is thinking the same thing for a while now and no one is speaking up but you need to hear this." I couldn't say I was surprised. I knew this was coming. "We're all worried about you. You don't sleep, don't eat. You need to take care of yourself." "Lucy, I'm fi-" "You're not Levy, and you know it." Lucy interrupts me. "Just please go home for one day, take a relaxing bath. Have a good night of sleep. Eat a good meal for once. Gajeel wouldn't want you to be like this." I couldn't really defend myself, because I know she was right. I perfectly well imagine Gajeel nagging me for doing this. "I just don't like the idea of leaving him." I say while staring at my hands."Just one day, Levy. Gajeel will be alright. He's been stable for a long time. A lot of people are looking out for him." I look at Gajeel's face. "I don't know Lucy, what if something happe-" "You'll be the first to know, really Levy it will be okay." I stare into Lucy's eyes, I know that look and that's when I know there's really no way she's giving up. She has set her mind on this, she will probably go as far as forcefully dragging me to my bed if she has to. "Okay." I say. Giving in is my only option now. "I'll do it. But only for one day." Lucy starts smiling and looks relieved. "And I'll come back as soon as I wake up." "Deal!"

Only after reaching fairy hills did I realize how tired I actually am. Not giving in to the desire of just collapsing on my bed to sleep, I decided should take a bath and eat a meal. Lucy can be really scary if she want's to be. And honestly a bath sounds really nice. I open the room to my door and notice the nice smell of food lingering in my house. I close the door behind me and reach the kitchen to find the source of the smell. I smile when I see the cooked meal in my kitchen. I read the note next to it. 'Don't you dare order some kind of fast-food! Enjoy this meal instead. - Lucy' A smile at her note. Lucy is such a great friend. I take a seat and enjoy the soup Lucy cooked for me.

After my stomach is filled and my body is relaxed from the bath I took, I collapse on my bed. I thought I wouldn't be able to sleep without the comforting beeping sound that accompanied me these last weeks. But my tiredness proved me wrong. I fell asleep almost as soon as my head touched my pillow.