A/N: Heya there! This is my first attempt at writing an one shot with Stingue as a main pairing and I'm both excited and nervous! I was going to write a short one full of fluff but then chapter 480 happened and pretty much ruined me ಥ⌣ಥ
I hope you'll enjoy this little one shot full of angst and with little details of humor.
I want to thank mavis-118 for helping me keep these two dorks in character and onlywordswithoutsense for beta reading it even if she doesn't ship this pairing (ﾉ◕ヮ◕)ﾉ*:･ﾟ✧
Disclaimer: I don't own Fairy Tail or its characters, they belong to Mashima sensei.
It was really over.
The war against the Alvarez Empire belonged to the past, but Sting still hadn't recovered for all the happenings that had taken place. He was trying to forget, to heal his wounds, but he couldn't. Not when his fellow guild members had been hurt because of his incompetence.
Sting sat up slowly, grimacing for the sudden pain in both of his sides because of the wounds the Spriggan had inflicted into him with two sticks that time while he was being tortured before being crucified along with his guildmates. But he wasn't the one that had been in the verge of death because of the cruelty of war: Rogue was now sleeping, he and his right eye covered in bandages. He remembered how the shadow dragon slayer had almost lost his life while protecting him in the battle against Acnologia. If he had been stronger, none of this would have happenned. He didn't deserve to be Sabertooth's guild master.
The light dragon slayer got up from his bed while clutching the bandages that covered almost all his upper body and put on his jacket over his shoulders. He peeked over his right shoulder to take a last look at Rogue's relaxed figure before leaving the infirmary. Sting just needed some time to think apart from the cruel reality.
He kept walking until he arrived to the outdoor swimming pool and sat on its border, immersing his feet in the water. In that precise moment, he started to revive that day in which he along the rest of guild members had inaugurated it, just before Lector had brought the news that Frosch was missing. Sting hadn't realized it at that moment but now he was starting to notice that that had been a turning point in Sabertooth dynamics: the Guild became his family, a place he knew he belonged to.
And he failed them.
"So you were here…" Sting startled when he heard his partner's voice. Since when he –the hyperactive and hothead guild master of Sabertooth- was able to get so lost in his own thoughts to ignore his enhanced senses? Moreover, he felt some tears that were still running down his cheeks. "Great, now this dork is going to think that I'm just getting emotional over a swimming pool."
"Oh, hey Rogue…" The blonde sniffed and cleaned the tears with the sleeve of his jacket as he turned around to face his partner. Even if nearly a month had passed since the war ended, Rogue was still far from being recovered. He had his now longer hair combed in a disheveled ponytail, strands of hair covering his bandaged eye. He was also wearing his black long jacket, which was opened and showed part of the bandages that covered his torso. "You should be resting."
"Look who's talking." Rogue rolled his left eye. "What happened?"
"Ehhh… Nothing! Don't worry about it!" Sting jumped so abruptly that he felt a sharp pain in his stitched wounds from his sides and clutched his torso and faced him.
"Yeah, right," the shadow dragon slayer replied. "Because you are the kind of person who would cry over a swimming pool."
"N-No, it's not! It's not like that!" Sting stuttered while moving his arms as Rogue was making a smug grin. "And don't look at me that way you punk!"
"So, are you going to tell me or…?" The light dragon slayer looked at the ground, thoughtfully. He hated lying to his partner, but what more could he do? Rogue just would get angrier if he knew that he was willing to leave Sabertooth because of not feeling worthy. Plus, the raven haired one would probably know that he was lying to him, but he hadn't another choice.
"I was thinking…" Sting started to say, scratching the nape of his head with one of his hands and looking upwards. "Thinking in… Things…"
"Oh, so you actually think?" Rogue chuckled, crossing his arms.
"Oi! I'm more mature now, you know? And what's with this sudden sassiness?"
"Dork," the shadow dragon slayer replied. "Now don't change the subject… What were you thinking about? And don't try to tell me some made story because you are a terrible liar." Sting's blood went cold after realizing that he would tell the truth and that his partner would get mad about it. Sting coughed and looked at the ground, trying to hide his face.
"I… I should leave Sabertooth," he muttered against the collar of his jacket.
"What? You want to leave our guild?" Rogue cried and put both of his hands on his shoulders and began to shake him as if he could knock some sense in that dork of a guild master he had. "But why? Are you nuts? This has to be one of your 'drama queen' moments!"
"Rogue…" The light dragon slayer touched his hand as he reunited enough courage to face him. As Rogue realized that he was actually being serious, he looked at him confused. "You know what happened in the war… I… I failed you… Everyone… And someone who isn't strong enough to protect his friends doesn't deserve to be in this guild…"
"You have to be kidding me…" Rogue began to tremble, the feeling of betrayal reflected on his hurt expression. "Since when you've started to speak like Jiemma?"
"It's not that…" Sting looked away from him. It was too painful to look at him at that moment. Not when he knew that he was the cause of his pain.
"Then what? What are we going to do, the rest of us? What I'm going to do?" Sting sensed how Rogue moved his left hand to wipe of the tears that were falling down from his left eye.
"Rogue… I'm scared…"
"Do you think the rest of us aren't?"
"Ro-"
"Let me talk this time." Sting looked at him, surprised. It was unusual that Rogue -quiet and introvert Rogue- would lost his temple and, much more, talk to him like that. "Do you really think that the rest of us aren't?" he continued. "I've already told you… About the nightmares I'm having because of this." The shadow dragon slayer touched the bandages that covered the place where his right eye was. "Natsu-san told me about it… About that future me that brought the dragons from the past to rule the world who looks so much like me now that have lost my right eye. Since that moment, I can't help but think in the possibility of losing Frosch, become him and hurt you. I… "
Without any second thought he embraced him tightly, ignoring the pain. Then, Rogue started to bawl, expressing all the emotions that were repressed for too much pain. Sting caressed his back, trying to calm him as he felt how his sight began to blur because of the sudden tears.
And they stayed like that for minutes, on their little bubble apart from the real world. Since when had they become so dependant on each other? It was true that they had been together for a long time but since they thought they had lost each other in the war, they became closer. He didn't know what it was… But with Rogue he felt more complete, like he was his soul mate.
"Sorry…" the shadow dragon slayer mumbled against the crook of his neck. "I just… You are the most important person in my life and… And, well, obviously for all the guild…" He sniffed as he cleaned some tears with his hand. "It doesn't matter if we have weaknesses… The most important thing are the bonds we created between each other. That's what Fairy Tail teached us… Being stronger because of our friends, right?"
"Rogue-sama!" He embraced him tightly, making the raven haired boy groan in pain. However, Rogue did the same, caressing his back with one of his arms. "I love you!"
"What?" Rogue began to blush because of the sudden show of affection from his partner. Stupid brain, you had to fuck it up all, hadn't you? What would Rogue think about him? It's not like he was developing a crush on his best friend, right? He was going to stay quiet and they sure would forget about this awkward moment. Yes, he was going to do that definitely and everything would be alright.
"Can you just marry already?" Minerva cried while leaning on the border of the window from the infirmary. "I know you are just in denial, but you're finally going to end being canon!"
"Minerva-sama!" Yukino chuckled at Minerva's side.
"You like it or not, I'm going to keep this in my memory." Rufus added.
"Oi! What is this sudden plotting?" Sting protested, too flustered to even work. Wait, what? Why was he even flustered? Then, he looked at his partner, who was still hiding against the crook of his neck, blushing. "You all are going to bed right now!"
"Ohhh, do you all see that?" Minerva made an evil grin. "Our Master is trying to get serious. How cute."
"Let's leave him some privacy, guys." Yukino winked an eye.
"I can't believe this." Sting rolled his eyes. "Let's go, Rogue, you have to rest."
The light dragon slayer put Rogue's arm over his shoulder -ignoring the other one's complaining, of course- and returned to the infirmary.
There were still battle wounds, both mental and physical, that still have to cure and that probably would leave scars on them. Scars that wouldn't only remind them the battles they had lost but also that they were still alive.
It was true that the feelings both dragon slayers were developing for each other were still to be handled. But that belonged to another chapter of their story.