"Case closed!" The judge said firmly as he put down the gavel. Startled by the man's powerful and cold voice, Levy's lips formed a straight line and she tried her hardest to keep all the tears in despite the merciless stings she felt in her eyes. The sound that was made by the little gavel is the sound that made Levy realize she doesn't have a family anymore. Not a complete one anyway.

She got up as fast as she was able to in her state and headed for the exit. She wanted to leave the room right away. She already felt like she couldn't breathe. Everyone was looking at her with fake pity, like they were all expecting to see her burst into tears. Well, of course she's going to cry, her parents got divorced right before her eyes.

But she wasn't going to give anyone the satisfaction of seeing tears in her eyes, she didn't want to look weak or vulnerable. As she made her way out, ignoring everything and everyone and keeping her sad brown eyes fixated on the ground, she heard a voice. The voice she hated the most in that moment.

She stopped but didn't turn around. Her hands turned into small fists when she felt a slight touch on her shoulder. Forehead frowning, rage in her eyes, she decided to look at the woman she once called her mother.

"Dear.."

"Don't call me that!" her voice was low and angry. "You don't have that right anymore!"

"Levy.." The tears were blurring her eyes and the fact that she didn't know what to say annoyed Levy even more.

She was ready to leave again, but the woman caught her arm. She pushed her hand away and her fingers were already shaking from rage and other mixed feelings she had.

"What do you want?" she was yelling, but she didn't care. Every soul in the room was looking at her, either curious or stunned.

"Levy, I'm so sorry!" The woman looked at her daughter, her cheeks and eyelashes wet from the tears. She was biting her lip trying to find some words to say. "It's just that.."

"It's just that money is more important to you, right?" Levy finished the sentence for her. Maybe she didn't know what to say, but Levy had a lot to tell her.

She looked at her, the woman she once considered perfect. A role model. Such a beautiful, elegant woman but God, so fake and selfish. She always loved luxury, always acting like such a lady, stylish and all. She just never had the conditions for a luxurious life. Levy's father wasn't earning enough to keep her satisfied and a simple life for Levy's mother just wasn't life anymore. She put up with it for eighteen years, until she found someone able to make her happy from every point of view. Levy looked over the delicate shoulder of the woman standing in front of her and saw the tall, serious man. He didn't look happy, he looked.. almost sad, especially when he saw Levy's face so full of hatred. He felt bad for taking her mother away. Pathetic.

"Are you done? Those fake tears won't impress me, you know.." Levy's voice was cold and the woman froze hearing her. Her ocean blue eyes were blurred by tears and Levy was so happy that she had her father's eyes. The woman opened her mouth, but again, nothing came out.

"Bye mom! Have a nice life." She gave her one last hateful glare before turning around and leaving the room.

Her father was already waiting for her in the car. Levy ran down the stairs of the building, almost tripping a few times. She was more than ready to get out of that place. Her grandmother, the mother of the woman who gave birth to her – because she'll never again call that woman her mother – shouted for her to stop. She didn't. Once she reached the car, she went in and slammed the door shut.

Her father wasn't moving at all, he was looking at nothing and everything at the same time. The girl felt her heart sinking for the tenth time that day but tried to keep it together. She put her hand on the man's shoulder, finally getting his attention.

"Don't worry, dad. It'll be fine, the two of us will be fine, you'll see." Levy knew that wasn't going to happen but she still smiled, hoping that her old man will feel better. Ever since her mother left them, they both fell into darkness. Levy was always a well behaved kid. She always did her homework, she never skipped classes and she never got home late. Still, she was just a normal teenager, she liked being a rebel every once in a while. She never went too far though. Her parents never had to step in to get her out of a bad situation. But now.. well, things are on a different level. She's partying a lot, she gets drunk as often as she can. As long as she forgets about her fucked up existence, she accepts those things. She's not as friendly as she used to be. She's a lot more serious now, a lot more aggressive. Wild even, but behind her new attitude lies a ruined soul.

Her father smiled back but it didn't take long for the serious, pained expression to return. Levy saw that his eyes were finally focused and she turned to look at whatever her dad was looking and she saw her again. The man she left them for had his hand around her waist as she was walking with small steps, face still wet with tears. That guy she's with is no Adonis, there's nothing impressive about his looks really. He is tall and well-built but his posture is not the best, his sense of fashion is too serious and it makes him look older than he is and the serious look in his eyes is just creepy. But Levy's mother didn't care about stuff like that, she only cared about the guy's bank account. Money means happiness for her after all. It's so obvious. Although she claimed that she ended the marriage because her husband wasn't paying attention to her anymore. Big fat lie. No one believed that. Compared to the specimen beside her, Levy's father is a real man.

Tall with a body that can make any woman stare and intense brown eyes which compliment his skin perfectly. His amber hair makes him look so handsome and exotic. He looks incredible and Levy's never been happier to realise how much she looks like him. Well, except for the hair.

The girl looked at the other man with disgust and it may very well be the hatred in her heart, but in her mind the guy looks like a monster. How much of a gold digger can she be to choose a man for his money and leave the one who can still make all the teenage girls swoon despite being almost forty years old? Not counting the fact that there's also a child she's abandoning. Levy is starting to realise that she was always a problem for her. Sure, she loved her but she regretted having her. She would've left her father long ago if she didn't have a child.

The woman looked at her daughter for a few seconds before Levy closed her eyes to calm down. She really doesn't want to get angry again. Her mother hoped with all her heart that Levy will decide to come with her, she hoped Levy would choose to leave her father and accept that bastard's money. As if. In that respect, she was nothing like her mother and that made her so happy. Money never interested her.

The girl knows that her mother loves her but she can't wait to get away from her, to forget her existence. That perfect face of hers annoys Levy to no end. She's like a true goddess but her perfection is ruined by the one she chose as her lover. All those years, she thought she was the perfect woman. She always wanted to be like her, to look like her. Levy has some of her features, but her body is different. Her height is impressive if you think of how small she is and she's not curvy either. She always thought she looked like a ten year-old. Levy clicked her tongue just looking at her mother. She's thirty-seven years old and looks like a freaking model. Strangers always think they're sisters and every single time her mother was considered the beautiful one. Levy felt like she was way out of her mother's league, at least that's how she saw herself. Her skin being way too pale, boring brown eyes and her wavy hair has a weird shade of blue that she hates right now. Her mother's long hair has an elegant shade of blue and she always kept it straight. It makes her look younger. Her skin is the right amount of pale and her face is so delicate and just.. perfect.

"Let's get out of here!" Her voice a lot weaker now. She can't stand those eyes full of tears anymore.

The car started to move and Levy heard her name being called in the distance. If she knows something for sure, is that her mother regrets losing her, but that makes Levy happy. She really hopes that she'll never be truly happy. She hopes she will suffer just like she and her father will from now on.

The car is moving fast and the woman she once called her mother is now just a black dot in the blurry distance.

Months passed, the summer is coming and Levy really has no idea how all that time went by so damn fast. Actually, she's not even paying attention to see if it's day or night outside. She rarely goes home now and when she does, her father is not there. And if he is home, by some miracle, he is completely drunk, most of the time looking at their family photos. How can he even do that? How can he look at her? She needs to burn those stupid pictures one day. She needs to erase her from their lives for good.

At the beginning, Levy's father tried to be strong, for her of course, but it didn't work for long. The man was suffering and he started drinking trying to numb the pain in his heart. He lost his job as a firefighter and of course, they have no money now. No matter. There are other things that keep Levy alive anyway. She met some people and they take care of giving Levy what she needs. She parties a lot, gets drunk or worse, commits a lot of light crimes and she ends up at the police station because of those. It's a dangerous life but she's still alive because of it. Her father understands her behaviour but every time he goes to save her from going to jail, he looks at his daughter with such sad eyes and it's unbearable for Levy. Her dad thinks it's his fault and no matter what Levy says, she can't convince him otherwise.

The woman she regrets loving for eighteen years, still tries to get close to her. She sends a lot of gifts and every gift is more expensive than the previous one. Clothes, shoes, watches and even a car for her birthday.

A month ago, when Levy was finally eighteen years old, she wanted nothing else than to forget about everything and everyone. She wanted to go out with her new friends and not care about a damn thing. That was the plan until she saw the black car that was parked right in front of her house. It also had a big red bow on top. It was the type of car Levy loved, the type of car she always dreamed of having but in that moment, she only felt rage. So much rage. She got inside the car and drove to a lake outside the city. She accelerated right before she got out of the car and the vehicle was sent flying into the lake and sunk slowly to the bottom like all the other things she got from that woman. If people knew how much money was at the bottom of that lake, the water would crimson red because of all the people killing each other in order to get those things.

Levy herself thought of jumping in that lake and she had with no intention of coming back up but something stopped her every time. Something told her that there are some things that still need to happen.

They need money. Otherwise they risk being thrown out of their small apartment in New York. There's a big pile of utility bills on their coffee table and those explain why nothing in their house that works with electricity functions anymore. The water and the gas are next although Levy doesn't really care. Their home is now just a building where they rest whenever their bodies refuse to cooperate.

The girl that was once happy, friendly and smiling all day every day has changed completely. Her new and hectic lifestyle hasn't changed just her attitude, her body suffered changes too. She only eats when she feels too weak. Her only source of food being drugs and other similar substances. She lost some weight although the small amount of fat she had on her legs and tummy before was never visible. The size of her chest didn't change so it looks a little bit bigger now, but small compared to her bottom. That's one asset she always had. Her hair is a bit longer now so the wavy effect it had isn't as strong as it was a few months back. How funny. Now she looks a bit like that woman. It's something she tried to achieve for so many years and now when she despises her like never before, she actually resembles her. Her new behavior makes her look more mature, even a bit dangerous and that gives her a sexy aura which has a lot of guys drooling for her. That's something Levy never knew she was capable of doing. Despite her newfound sex appeal, she keeps her distance from all the guys looking her way. If she finds herself in a situation where there's even a slight possibility of her getting hurt, she immediately turns around and runs. She has romantic relationships with a lot of dangerous substances, but not with people. At least drugs and alcohol won't leave her.

With all these new changes, Levy can finally say that she's the beautiful sister and not her mother.

School starts in about three weeks and that thought terrifies Levy. It's so weird considering that not even a year ago, she loved going to school and learning new things every day. She doesn't want to go there now but her father said he will force her to go if he has to. He still has some authority over her. The main reason she refused to go to school was the fact that everyone knows her story and everyone will compare her to her mother. She's okay with having some skin and blood under her nails if someone dares to tell her she looks like that treacherous woman.

"Lev.. Levy!" The girl heard her name, muffled by the closed door. She opened her eyes and she immediately felt an awful burning sensation coming from them. Her whole body was shaking. Her addiction became very strong and she might even have some health problems, not that she cares. She fell in a black hole and she like the darkness surrounding her.

Levy closed her eyes again feeling a terrible pain in her stomach which is most likely caused by hunger. She tried to go back to sleep but she heard her name being called again followed by a strong bang that came from her wooden door.

"What?!" she screamed, getting up from her bed. She rubbed her neck that lately took a lot of damage from all the poisoned substances.

"Dear, please come out. We need to talk." Her father's voice spoke calmly and that's when she actually realised he was on the other side of the door.

"What do you want?" The girl asked with a rough voice. The same voice she's been using the last few months. She forgot to speak calmly the same way she forgot how to smile.

"Just get up and come to the living room, please!"

Levy knew he wasn't at the door anymore when he said those words. She got up rather fast and muttered some not-very nice words. The sudden movement made her gasp loudly and she covered her forehead with back of her hand. She was barely able to stand on her own two feet. Her room was a disaster and she almost tripped because of the many clothes scattered all around. She can't remember if she even tried to clean up the room after that woman left.

She felt weak and numb. Her vision was blurred as if a layer of mist covered her eyes. She never felt so goddamn awful and she needs a dose of something. Fast. The energy and euphoria she had a few hours back must have vanished while she was sleeping.

She made it to the door and opened it slowly. She went to the bathroom first and she was quite surprised to see that all the other rooms were clean unlike her room. Actually, the fresh air surrounding her clearly stated that a cleaning session has happened not too long ago. There were also some lights on. Levy has no idea how her father earned the money to pay their bills.

She entered the bathroom which surrounded her with the same clean air. Levy feels a little lost as a few things don't connect in her brain. She didn't pay attention to her house lately but she's pretty sure it wasn't so clean a few days ago. She remembers it being a total disaster just like her room.

When she got to the sink, she covered the tap with her small hand despite not being very sure of her action but again, she was surprised when a strong, crystal clear gush of water came out causing a sound that was too sharp for Levy's ears. She splashed some water on her face although some of her metal rings and leather bracelets made that job quite difficult. She was still wearing the clothes she wore outside. A pair of ripped jeans and a simple black top that looks painted on her. She wears a lot of black clothes these days.

She's not the same Levy McGarden she was a few months ago, that's for sure. The one that always woke up with a smile, greeting everyone while looking at them with warm brown eyes, the one that loved school and dreamed of a successful career, the one that used all her energy for dancing and thought that her only problem was her height.

Now, her body is the only good thing she has. Everything else went to hell and well, she doesn't really care. She doesn't care about anyone or anything. The poor girl feels she has no reason to fight anymore.

Her face was smudged by make-up and the water did nothing to help. She refused to use any kind of soap as her eyes were already burning like a bitch. She pressed a towel to her face and once again, she felt a very nice, fresh smell. She needs to find out what the hell is going on. The small towel that was white a few minutes back is now black all over with most of Levy's make-up. She threw it on a rack, without actually looking where it lands.

She left the bathroom cursing at the dizziness that refused to go away. She needs to eat something, something that's called real food but Levy knows she can't swallow anything. Her stomach stopped working properly a while ago.

Levy's father was waiting for her in the living room while reading some papers. She stopped walking when she saw him. Levy hasn't seen her dad for days but she knows for sure he became a ruin just like her, dirty clothes, dirty hair, an unkempt beard and bloodshot eyes. Not anymore it seems. He looks like the man he was before she left them. He doesn't have a beard now, he wears a simple white shirt and his eyes are crystal clear. His hair looks nice and clean and pushed back. Last time she saw him strands of hair were covering his face, but the main question is: When was the last time she saw him?

He looked up as he felt her presence and his eyes widened for a moment. She looks awful and her make-up is all over her face. She understands.

"What do you want?" She asked as calmly as she could, but her voice doesn't remember the friendly, loving tone she once had.

He made a little gesture letting her know that he wants her to sit down. He put the papers he was reading down on the coffee table. Levy tried to read some of the words written on them but she gave up when her eyes refused to cooperate.

She sat down supporting her elbows with her knees. She closed her eyes trying to drive away the fainting sensation she had. She blocked any lifeless sound that tried to escape from her throat. Levy looked up and met her father's gaze.

He looked sad. She knows she doesn't look like the daughter he always had, but his eyes are the same. He doesn't see her in a different light. He looks at her like she didn't change one bit, like she's the same girl she was before she left them. Sadly, he's mistaken. She's not same and she will never be the same.

"Dear, we can't go on like this. YOU can't go on like this. You're ruining your life, Levy!" He spoke with a serious voice.

"That's why you wanted to talk to me? I thought you gave up when you saw that I didn't care about anything!" She already feels the anger surging. Her nervous system has been quite sensitive lately.

"Yes, Levy, that's why! It ends here! We both fell too deep into the darkness and we can't go on like this. We need to get to the surface. We can't destroy our lives just because your mother left us for a better one.."

"DON'T say that word!" She yelled without holding back and her eyes must look evil judging by her father's frightened expression. For Levy, the word and the being 'mother' does not exist anymore.

The man recovered fast though and tried to look as calm and warm as it is possible. He took a deep breath looking at her angry face.

"I'm sorry, Lev, I know how hard it was for you and I'm not blaming you for the way you are now. I also fell and gave up on everything for a while but I can't let you do this to yourself anymore. You're the only one I have and the only one I love with all my heart, kid. You chose to stay with me and I'm not going to let you regret that decision. My heart broke when I saw how deep you fell but I know it felt like the only way you were able to forget about her. I too.." He closed his eyes for a few seconds and his eyelids were strongly shut, like he was remembering his entire life. That's when Levy realised that her father still loves her. And then he opened his clear brown eyes.

"We need to start over. The book doesn't end here, we just went through a very tough chapter but it ends here. There's a new chapter waiting and I'm going to make sure you recover from all this."

He finished his speech while looking at his daughter with serious, determined eyes.

Levy started laughing like she never heard something so funny.

"Dad, you think that just because you cleaned the house, cut your hair and took a shower, everything is going to change? Nothing is going to change and I don't want to change. I'm perfectly fine the way I am now. It's the only way I can survive in this world. I don't want to start over and I sure as hell don't want to go back to the way I was before, when I tried to be like the person I hate the most." Her voice was as determined as the look on her father's face.

"Alright, you don't have to go back to the way you were before, but I can't accept the Levy you are now. You need to change. You need to start over more than I do. You said this new life of yours is how you survive, but look at yourself, kid!"

Levy rubbed her arms impatiently. She wanted this stupid conversation to end.

"I woke up, Levy. A few days ago I realised that I'm losing you, that you're losing yourself. The last time I got you out of prison I didn't even recognized you. I can't believe how easy it is for you to steal, to hurt people, to get drunk and high.. When was the last time you ate?" He asked in a very judgemental tone. He knows she can't answer that question, not without lying anyway.

"Yesterday!" She said quickly while looking at the floor.

"You're lying! You and those punks you hang out with do a lot of things but eating is not one of those things. Besides, you haven't been here for the last three days. When you came in this morning I thought something bad happened to you. You looked so weak and you don't look any better now."

Levy is boiling. What exactly does her father want? Why is he so worried now? She really doesn't need this from him. This morning? She doesn't remember what time it was, she only remembers one of her friends bringing her home since her phone was constantly ringing. Well, it was probably her father but she felt so weak that she went sleep right away.

Levy looked around the room trying to find a clock. When she saw one she realised it was close to 5 PM. So what the..? She was sure it was still morning and she was about to use that in her favour so he would let her go back to sleep.

"I don't want you to see those punks anymore. Starting tomorrow, you're into rehab and I'm going to make sure you'll never touch drugs again."

"Wait, what?!" The girl got up while forcing her lungs to scream.

"You think you can change me just because you changed overnight?! I'm perfectly fine the way I am, why is that so hard for you to understand?" To say Levy was full of rage is an understatement, but she soon realised it was a bad idea to get up so suddenly.

"You're perfectly fine, you say?! You can barely stand, child!" He caught her arm before her body decided to give up and that alone was a strong argument for his statement.

"I can stand just fine, thank you very much! You didn't care until today and that was fine by me. If you want to change, go ahead and do it but leave me out of it!" She yelled trying to get out of his grip and right after she succeeded her head started pounding and something cold touched her back. She fell to the ground and despite the strong arms that came to her aid and the frightened voice calling her name, the darkness was a lot more pleasant. The darkness was such a caring, loving host and she decided to make the light lose this battle.

A horrible pain seized her body and forced her to wake up. She never felt like this and she knows she needs a dose of something fast.

Levy opened her eyes and tried to get up only to feel two hands on her shoulders that forced her to lay down. She met her father's worried face and intense gaze.

"I need some.." Her voice was hoarse and lifeless. She didn't even care that she was asking her father for drugs, but she needed them. She felt awful, her brain full of weird images that weren't even hers.

"You need food." He ended that sentence for her.

"No! Look, I promise I'll stop starting tomorrow, just give me something right now. I feel like I'm going to die!"

"Well.. if the clock doesn't lie then it's already tomorrow. It's midnight so this means you stopped doing drugs, right?" His voice showed some amusement and that annoyed her immediately. She got up and despite the pounding in her head, she made her way to her room where she had some hidden substances in a drawer.

Her legs stopped moving when her dad caught her wrist.

"Let go, dammit!" She screamed trying leave the room but his large, strong hand didn't even budge.

"LEVY!" He screamed louder than she did. Actually, she never heard him scream like that.

"Let go! I hate you!" Her mouth was loud and clear although her brain wasn't cooperating much. But she needed those damn pills, she wasn't aware of anything else.

A short growl left the man's chest and Levy found herself on his shoulder before she even got the chance to realise what happened. She was desperate and when she's desperate she's strong but she's definitely not stronger than him.

He threw her on the couch and took a hold of her shoulders. She soon felt a wave of nausea.

"Dad, if you want me to live then give me those fucking pills." The poor girl closed her eyes in pain.

"I want you to live and that's why I'm giving you this."

Levy saw a bowl of soup beside her and her stomach immediately decided it's a bad idea. The smell was awful too.

"Take that thing away from me!" She screamed using what little force she had left.

"Lev, it's just food and you need it. Your poor body needs it. Stop thinking about drugs! As long as I'm alive you'll never touch those again." His serious voice annoyed her so much but she accepted the food since she had no other choice. She just hoped he'll let her go after she eats and maybe she'll be able to take some of the poison she has before she dies, dammit.

The problem is that even if she accepts the food, it doesn't mean her stomach will too. She tortured the poor thing with so many drugs and it clearly hates her now. The taste of the food was beyond awful. She knew the soup had some potatoes and some other vegetables in it but it tasted like a cardboard mixed with mud. The worst part came after the first gulp though. She felt powerful surges of vomit rising from her stomach. She didn't even know she had something in her stomach worth vomiting. Days and days have passed since she last ate something edible.

Her father helped her as much as he could. He took her to the bathroom where she spilled everything her stomach was holding. He held her arms like she was little kid, he washed her face and gave her some water to rinse her mouth.

Her body was dead, every single muscle she has was unable to react.

Even so, he forced her to finish the bowl of soup while he fed her patiently. She struggled for a good half an hour but the man looked calm and unfazed. When she finally finished eating, her body began to swing back and forth while she held her legs with her arms. She kept looking at the white carpet they had on the floor. It looked a lot like the substances she usually takes. She acted on instinct and started crawling towards the carpet but the one man who loves her with all his heart and soul helped her again. He put her back on the couch and the poor girl was going crazy. Levy looked at her father like he was wall she needed to take down in order to get the big prize. She only wanted a drop of power, just enough to defeat him and get to her room. Was she asking for too much?

"You're strong Levy, you'll overcome this. We'll be happy again, I promise you. Like I said, we need to start over and after you get back on your feet, we'll need to make our first steps. We have to change cities. New York is full of painful memories for us. We need to leave this place."

Levy looked at him with a straight face.

"Change cities?"

"Yes, I already sold this apartment and I also decided on city. I just need to find a house there."

"Wait a second! You're saying we're going to leave New York?" Levy didn't even know what to think. This came out of nowhere.

"Yeah, I took care of everything. Soon you'll be the new student in Seattle." He said with a sincere smile.

"Seattle?! We're going to Washington?"

"Yes, dear."

"Why Seattle?"

He shrugged.

"It's a beautiful city. Why not?"

Levy's expression was unreadable. She just blinked a few times.

"It's still America, dad! You think that's enough to start over? Besides, I'm not leaving this place. I want to stay here." She was determined. She has a home here and friends that she likes, but most of all, she has her darkness which keeps her alive. She doesn't want a new place that might affect her already broken soul.

"We'll see about that!" Her father said with a subtle smile.

Here's the first chapter.

I originally thought of another couple for this story but I feel like Levy and Gajeel can rock this AU. I know Levy's a little (more) out of character but she's won't stay like this. God knows what I have in store for her. I mean, the lovers haven't even met yet.

Also, I'm not a native english speaker so please inform me if you find mistakes in the story. I tried my best, I promise. I'm also quite tired so my brain might not be working properly (right now it's 4 AM where I live).

Oh and by the way, I need a name for Levy's father. I was initially okay with Gildarts being Levy's dad in this story but I don't know. He's Cana's father and he should stay that way. So yeah, I need a name for this character. If you have any ideas, I'm all ears (eyes actually).

I hope you guys enjoyed this first chapter. I'll be waiting for your reviews. :)