Hi everyone! I thought I'd try doing the a-z 'challenge?' not sure what it is but a collection of small GaLe stories!
-I'm currently on spring break and being the typical college student, I'm going to be updating every day! (I need a life.) either this or my other stories will be updated daily!
-pretty sure the other stories will get smutty. Just in my nature. i'll change the rating as it comes.
ART -
Throughout the years knowing him, Levy knew Gajeel wasn't much into the arts. I mean, his only form of expression usually was an ear scratching sound that he called singing. Usually this was accompanied by the equally bad guitar playing 'skills' which he took pride in, way too much if you asked anyone in the guild. Yet throughout it all, she still cheered him on, well the times he didn't force her into that embarrassing bunny outfit and make her parade around the stage. It was only when he accepted his feelings for her (yet didn't have the courage to admit it) did he stop with the outfit claiming she was only his to view.
For this, the blunette was grateful for because that outfit was just not for her she thought but she still couldn't help but imagine why she was called 'his.' Yes, the petite mage knew she had feelings for him long before but her timid nature stopped her from saying anything until she's 100% sure he feels the same way. Yet he kept his mouth shut and so did she even though their mutual love was evident to the whole guild.
As frustrating as it was to everyone else, they both seemed content (well for now) spending time together. The odd sight of the long haired man who easily towered over the petite woman with light blue hair was no longer rare. She wanted to know everything about him yet he still was a mystery. Aside from being raised by a dragon, being a loud brute, and his love of fighting not much else was known.
A typical morning at the guild consisted of the script mage head deep into a book while simultaneously scratching Lily's head who found a nice spot on her lap. Aside from being undeniably cute, Levy knew being close to Lily would mean being close to Gajeel. The little exceed knew the pair that was too stubborn to say anything, should be together. He saw her tame him for the better not changing him but developing him further. All that was missing from this picture was the iron mage himself who daily almost on cue pushed open the front doors making his grand entrance. Known for not being the kindest, the only one who immediately approached/said something was the pink haired mage looking for a fight. He was more than willing to oblige but not today. Looking around, he found his favorite head of blue hair. Sure Juvia has blue hair also along with the smallest dragon slayer yet it was nothing compared to his petite mage. –great, obsessing over hair now.
"Now or never." He mumbled to himself while cautiously approaching the table even though he was greeted by her warm smile. "Good morning Gajeel." While her heart beat faster by his presence, she kept her cool and held back from turning into Juvia. The sight of his best friend along being on Levy's lap angered him in such an odd way he didn't understand but that was to be dealt with another day.
"Let's go shrimp." All the man could say before walking out in his usual rough fashion which he thought was actually being nice. Confused but curious the blunette stood up after a few seconds of considering her options, she didn't notice but her nervousness kicked in and held Lily close to her taking him along. "Um Levy, I think Mira called me." He said quickly escaping her embrace and flying towards the barmaid. –no, don't leave me alone.
Even more nerves kicked in while she walked behind him watching his hair flow. At the moment they both stood outside the guild, he looked down as if the words he needed were written on the ground.
"I'll say this quick so listen, we're having dinner tomorrow at 6 pm alright?" the iron mage spoke in his usual gruff demeanor yet there was a tinge of sincerity that made his demand not seem so bad. Hmph. The script mage could think of many come backs to what seemed like a request but she ignored all those as all she did was timidly blush and bite her lip after she said, "sure." All her emotions were screaming 'YES YES!'
With all the courage in the world she asked. "Well for now, would you like to get some breakfast, I just finished helping Mira cook." She said with such a sweet smile it almost hurt him to refuse. "Sorry shrimp. Quick job. Lily let's go." And with that, he yelled to inside the guild and walked off with the exceed landing on his shoulder as Levy waved them goodbye.
The past few minutes didn't register right away until she was left alone and turning back to open the guild door. Dear Mavis, did Gajeel really just ask, well force me to go to dinner with him!? A bright red tone brushed over her cheeks that rived Erza's scarlet hair. C-can't have anyone know.
Xoxoxoxoxo
"So what excuse did you give her?" Lily questioned.
"That we're goin' on a job." The long haired man explained, "Give us time to get things ready." – "Seriously, the things I do to help you." – "shut it damn cat."
The walk back to the home the two shared was frustrating to say the least. Little jokes here and there about Gajeel's crush on the petite mage and his still rough demeanor. –damn it, this is why I never tell anyone anything. But the jokes strangely didn't bother him much, all he could focus on was making tomorrow perfect. On the outskirts of Magnolia is where they both called home. Quite a large home for the both of them they noticed. Three bedrooms and two baths, yet little in the form of decoration. It actually wasn't until Lily moved in that he actually remembered that there was a hardwood floor underneath all that scrap metal. Once or twice the image came to him of having a spare room turned into Levy's personal library/office area and he could just spend the day watching her in her element. He knew he would never get to that point if this dinner didn't go as planned.
Lily pretty much kept the house clean but if he was going to make an impression he'd have to do much more –only for you. The sun beat down mercilessly throughout the day but the iron mage fought through it well into the night. "Done." He said finally getting up and stepping back to admire his work. "Now the shrimp will have no reason to not be mine, gi hi." With a devilish smile he dragged Lily into their room for a much needed night's sleep. Unfortunately shades of blue haunted him and replayed worst case scenarios in his mind kept him up. Nudging to get up, a tiny paw pressed against his chest stopping further motion. "Stop, she likes you for you, no more is needed." –great, wise words coming from a cat.
Xoxoxoxoxo
-earlier in the day—
"Please heart stop, you're going to beat out of my chest." Levy mumbled to herself holding a hand to her chest as she tried to walk back in as if the moment she waited for didn't happen. Quickly she sat back down trying to get back to her book but her hands shook finally defeated placing it down trying to catch her breath as the white haired barmaid crept behind her. "What a proposition, well actually I should say demand." With a smile she said. The blunette turned around startled looking around as if everyone knew. "h-how do you know?"
"Hmm? I can't give away all my secrets, but don't worry, I only told Lucy." She proudly spoke as if such a great accomplishment. –Well she does tend to tell the entire guild gossip so a slight accomplishment, maybe.
"Please don't tell anyone else." The petite mage begged facing the barmaid. "I'm just slightly nervous, I don't know how to approach this." She spoke softly laying her hands on her cheeks trying to hide her apparently blush. Just with that, the devil showed through on Mira, "I'll help, to win him over you're going to have to." She leaned in close enough to touch foreheads. "You'll have to wear that bunny suit he likes so much." And with that, Levy moved away in fear. "No, no, anything but that!" she said at the top of her lungs making everyone question. Slowly she sunk back into her seat while Mira apologized for teasing her.
"No of course not! You're going to have to tease him but not with that. Lucy was more than willing to help."
"Help?" oh she knew what help meant. Now her best option was to avoid her best friend at all costs, good thing Mira assured her she left for a job minutes after letting her know the current 'situation.'
As much as the barmaid would love to tease yet cheer on their odd love, she needed to get back to work leaving the script mage alone. Slowly with her plagued thoughts of her favorite dragon slayer, she walked home to fairy hills. The rest of the day was spent replaying the morning events and fiddling through her closet wondering which outfit to wear. Finally after a long needed hot bath, she found herself slipping into bed rather early. She missed sleeping near Gajeel. The many times they've gone out on jobs usually ended up with them in the outdoors sleeping in nothing but tents. She'd never felt so good, even her soft bed couldn't compare to being near him. She reached for the closest thing that reminded her of him. A stuffed lion he had won for her a few months back, she named him Kurogane. –she'd never tell. Into a slumber she fell.
Once the sun rose, Levy slowly woke clutching her lion.
A slow morning, it was spent thinking and hoping Gajeel would make it back on time and of course hoping he was safe. –of course he was safe. It's Gajeel we're talking about. A quick thought of what was to come gave the mage the biggest smile and pinkest tone to her cheeks. After a moment spent in bed she rose making her bed and placing Kurogane into his spot on her bed.
Up from a high, she maneuvered through the piles of books taller than herself into the living room which revealed Lucy who sneaked in through the window, defiantly something she learned from Natsu.
"Lu lu? Weren't you off on a job?" she asked slowly backing up while the blonde mage stepped near her.
"Yes but I couldn't stay away for long, this is such a big moment! Now come on, we're going to have to pick out the perfect outfit to blow him away." The sprit mage spoke while bypassing her friend and walking straight into her room rummaging through her closet making piles of clothes.
"Wait, did he tell you where? Gotta have the right outfit for the right restaurant!"
Restaurant? I really didn't think of it, but the thought of him in a classy environment where he has to behave it totally out of his element.
"I-I'm not sure." For the first time, this bookworm was caught up in her flustered thoughts and didn't think ahead that far with her mind still cluttered with that smile he possessed.
"Well don't worry, we'll figure something out!" the blonde said confidently while continuing to rummage through the closet. "Now, where do you keep that bunny outfit?" teasingly spoken.
Xoxoxoxo
-jump ahead to 5 pm—
(Levy's small apartment now is filled with the entire residence of fairy hills) "You know, this isn't really necessary." A small beat of sweat dripped off Levy's forehead while watching the commotion of everyone gathering around.
"Of course it is, we're all here for you!" Mira spoke with a smile while the rest of the women cheered.
-and just like that, a knock at the door.
"Oi, short stuff." The gruff voice quieted everyone while they almost all in unison pushing Levy towards the door.
-why am I so nervous? It's just Gajeel, Gajeel who asked me out on a date, is it a date? Oh no. Just open the door. Open it.
Reaching for the door knob, the door was suddenly opened by Gajeel. His slight smile at the blunette turned sour at the sight of all the women inside the room. He gave them the typical dirty look he gave them in the guild hall causing everyone to look away. A giggle left her lips at the sight of everyone finally shutting up like she wanted hours before. Stepping out of room and shutting the door behind her was the time that Gajeel really got an eye full of the petite mage. While she timidly blushed looking to the side, time seemed to stand still while he made a note of just how good she looked. His eyes ran down to her small waist where her skirt flowed out to just above her knees giving him the best views of her curves he wanted to drag right into bed. –no, she's different. She deserves much more than that.
"hmm?" the blunette looked up at the man towering above her who had a slight blush on his cheeks slowly growing while his eyes kept focus on her. She stepped slightly back snapping out of his trance. "L-let's go." The long haired mage spoke walking away hiding his flustered demeanor before she could notice further. Walking down the stairs behind him there was just silence while she admired him slightly dressed up in a button up shirt and dress pants, til they reached the front entrance the blunette had a chance to walk up next to him.
"Can I ask where we're going?"
And just as if the question struck him odd he began laughing his signature laugh "gi hi, it's going to be a mystery til we get there, got it shrimp?"
-shrimp. Hmph. It was those damn nicknames that she began a love/hate relationship with.
He laid a hand on top of her head tousling her hair which hours were poured into but she didn't mind it one bit. Slowly they walked across town laughing at the odd looks they received and ignoring the comments. Before she knew it, they were at the doorstep to his home. She'd never been to his house before and imagined something more run down in all honesty. In the mist of the pleasant surprise while walking through the front door she neglected the main question.
"Wait, why are we here?" She hesitantly spoke while being gestured to sit on the couch.
"Enough questions."
-but this was my first one.
-hmph. "Just sit."
Gajeel retreated to the kitchen while Levy sat down nervously waiting for him to return. Suddenly a little black figure appeared in her peripheral vision. Turning to see she couldn't contain herself and lunged at the cute figure before her taking him in her arms. It was Lily in a little tuxedo.
"Too cute!" she squeezed the small exceed holding him while petting his head.
Busy embracing Lily, the script mage neglected the album in front on the coffee table. She looked around, no sign of Gajeel. Good. Quickly flipping through the large book noticing a lot of drawings of Lily and Metalicana while flipping through her laid her chin on the small cat's head getting lost in the beautiful artwork. "Who drew all of these?"
"Who else? The big lug. I just placed them in there." The small exceed spoke like a proud papa framing their child's artwork.
"Wow." The blunette spoke softly smiling before stopping at a drawing of her. "w-what?" her voice lowered timidly hiding her blushing cheeks behind the exceed's head while she kept her eyes on the drawing. It was a drawing from a far angle of her reading a book smiling while getting lost in each word with flowers bordering it, the same flowers that she wore on her headband. She held Lily tighter admiring each line blushing at the thought that she was the only one drawn aside from Lily and his father.
Disregarding the sound coming from the kitchen she kept smiling at the drawing not paying attention to the figure behind her.
"Oi, shrimp." He spoke with the gruff voice that almost made her melt.
"Gajeel…"
He looked down past her viewing which page of the book she was on causing a smirk to appear. "Snooping around now?"
"No no. I-I'm sorry." words she quickly uttered while shutting the album.
"Don't worry about it." He walked away gesturing for her to come to the dining table while he left for a moment to get dinner coming back with two plates setting one in front of Levy now seated carrying Lily with her.
"You know those drawings are actually really good Gajeel. Actually, the might be better than Reedus' drawings." She laughed slightly while the long haired mage reached out taking her hand in his.
"S'not that good, just don't let him know. Gi hi." They shared a laugh while Levy held onto Lily tighter as Gajeel held her hand before he let it go.
"Sorry Levy p-please let me go." Cried the exceed slowly maneuvering out of her embrace and jumping on the table. He brought out a wine glass setting infront of the petite mage before pouring the contents for a bottle no bigger than he in his present form. She giggled at the sight and thanked him for his service holding his small paw.
"Let me know what you think." As he watched her take her first bite.
She cut a piece of the steak presented in front of her and slowly chewed making slight moans off delight while eating. "Wow its good!"
"Really? Hmm good. If it came out bad then I would have blamed it on Lily. Gi hi." He chuckled giving an eye to the small cat.
"y-you cooked this?" Levy spoke up with a slight surprised look that then turned pleasant.
"Yea, I kinda had to learn to cook by myself once Metalicana left." He spoke while scratching the back of his head. "Just don't tell anyone, I don't want everyone showing up at my door."
The blunette giggled. "Of course not." She marveled at his culinary skills smiling before realizing from his personality, he had to be pretty desperate to learn something like cooking but it paid off.
"Shrimp? Are you ok"
"S-sorry. It's just really good that's all."
Suddenly, a slight smile crept in the corner of his lips –something of an odd but very welcomed sight.
-under his breath; just for you shrimp.
-5 hours past; time spent talking well mostly making fun of Natsu, they both lost track of time when they looked outside noticing the pitch darkness.
"Don't worry, I'll walk you home." Gajeel spoke taking his coat and draping it over her shoulders fighting the temptation not to laugh as the coat swallowed her petite frame whole.
"Are you sure?" Levy blushed at his offer while trying to support the surprising weight of the coat.
"Either that or you're going to stay here locked in my room." He bent down looking at her face to face smirking trying to jokingly intimidate her. What he received was a deeper blush and a laugh. –she doesn't fear me anymore. I'm relieved.
-The walk back to fairy hills seemed to pass by quickly as their conversation continued. Suddenly they were at her door. An odd aura was over them, the awkwardness of the present situation. Through the way too many romance novels she read, this was the part where they passionately kiss while he takes her off to bed. A deep blush swept over her cheeks. He took her face cupped gently in his hands rising her head slightly up as he bent down –she's so small. Perfect. And kissed her forehead. He moved his hands in his pockets expecting Levy to walk in a shut the door behind her rejecting him but with all the courage in the world she reached up and gave him a quick soft kiss.
His hands quickly seemed to move on their own as he wrapped them around her waist holding her close as he leaned in for another kiss.
An unfortunate interruption came in the form of Ms. Erza Scarlet who peaked out from her door before walking down the hallway not saying a word but wore the most menacing look.
He took longer than Erza would like to let her go before kissing the petite mage's forehead once more.
"Guess that's my cue to go."
She laughed. That cute laugh that could make an honest man out of him. "Goodnight."
-the smile she loved appeared on his face.
"Goodnight, shrimp."
As he ran away trying to avoid the red headed woman, the blunette walked inside her apartment flustered pressing her fingertips against her lips. –I just got a kiss…from Gajeel. While hiding her blushed face in her hands she at first failed to notice the object on her coffee table. Once she uncovered her face the object became clear to her.
-a bouquet of roses.
"Hmm? How did these get here?" Walking towards them she realized they were made of metal, each perfectly sculpted. The petals seemed to glisten under the light. The biggest smile erupted from her lips as she reached for the card.
It read "magic." In the handwriting she quickly recognized. Well that answers that question.
"Thank you, Gajeel." She quietly spoke to herself before turning the card over. "Don't mention it."
for fun; guess the letter B!