Hands
~o0o~
The first night Levy spent with Gajeel was on a mission. They had been the perfect candidates for it, or so Mirajane said. She wasn't so sure now that she was sleeping in the mouth of a cramped cave, guarding the the treasures that were hidden deep inside. It didn't help that it was nearing winter, and the temperature had dropped considerably.
Gajeel had no trouble falling asleep on the cold stone ground. Levy attempted mimicking him with one arm tucked underneath his head as a pillow, but she just couldn't get comfortable. She was too aware of Gajeel's body so close to her's. It took all of her energy and focus not to let herself relax. She would inevitably touch him, which would inevitably lead to an awkward conversation.
She shifted her weight so that her back was resting flush against the cave wall facing Gajeel, their noses inches apart. He must have rolled over in his sleep. Levy shivered. She realized that if he woke up now he would realize that she was just staring at him, which would be another really awkward conversation, so she shifted her gaze to his hand.
It was resting between them, limp and unthreatening for the first time in Gajeel's life, Levy imagined. She noticed, for the first time, the scars criss-crossing his knuckles in fine lines where he had split them and felt the urge to trace them with her fingers. She resisted, narrowly, and turned her attention to her own hands.
Every night before she went to sleep, Levy would look at her hands. She stared at her short fingers and small palms and thought how lucky she was to be young and healthy and alive. It was sort of therapeutic to imagine her skin becoming more and more thin and paper-like and gray as she became older and older. It reminded her that beauty was temporary, that everything was temporary. It made her want to reach out and touch Gajeel's hand while she was still pretty. Maybe pretty enough to get out of an awkward situation!
She took a deep breath, heart beating in her throat, and let herself relax, getting even closer to him. Heat radiated off of his body, making Levy shiver. It really was very cold outside. She put her hand over his, and felt a rush of warmth flood her. When he didn't stir, she took a huge leap of faith.
She took his hand and draped it across her waist, curling against Gajeel's chest, taking in all of his warmth. She felt his breath hitch and closed her eyes. Her heart was beating faster than it ever had before. She could feel Gajeel beginning to wake up and ignored her instinct to get out of there and just decided to play dead, or in this case play sleep.
"Shrimp?" Gajeel mumbled, obviously still half-asleep. He was quiet for a while as Levy held her breath. Gajeel laughed softly and pulled Levy closer. As his breaths evened out, Levy stole a look at him. He had a small smile on his lips, which would normally be somewhat frightening, but in his peaceful state it was almost endearing.
She looked at her hands resting on his chest and imagined growing old here, warm and somewhat uncomfortable on the hard ground. Levy decided she could deal with the ground if she got to sleep in Gajeel's arms.
~o0o~
A/N: Just a short one shot that I wanted to get out there. I have a much longer Levy x Gajeel story in the works, which should be really fun!