~Levy~
"I told you to stay put! I can't help you if you keep on moving! I already told Lily to go get help." I can't bear to see him like that. A narrow slit gaped upon his chest. I don't know how deep it is but I tried to patch it up with bandages to at least stop some bleeding.
"Look at me, please! Don't die on me, not now! I know you are strong, I know you can make it. We can make it, Gajeel, I believe in you so please!" I held his hand and laid his head on my lap. Lily wasn't with us because he went to get help. I insisted to keep Gajeel company and to take care of him until he comes back with help. Lily please hurry.
"H-Hey, Shrimp." He said as he held my face, "Don't cry. Thank God you're safe. I don't know how long I can keep this up." He coughed out blood which made me more worried about his condition.
"Stop talking. Please, reserve your energy. And stop talking like that! I know you can make it. I promise you we will get out of this. Just stay strong!" I told him.
"Hey now. No need to cry. I promised you that I can handle them and I kept it. You lost the bet so you'll have to keep your promise, too. Gihihi" He said while wiping the tears that fell from my cheeks. Even though I lost the bet, I can't help but smile.
"This might be my death b-" He let out a loud cough then continued what he was saying, "This might be my death bed so please tell everyone that I upheld Fairy Tail's name 'til the very end. I'm really proud to be a member of our guild. No, Fairy Tail is more than a guild. It is a family. I'm just really happy that I became part of it" he said. He held my hand close to his lips and kissed it. He looked at me then smiled. I couldn't help but smile back.
"You know why I'm happy? Eh, Shrimp?"
I sobbed, "Why?"
"Because the last thing I get to see before I leave is you. So please, for one last time, I want to see your smile again."
"Tch, stop saying that" I said while my cheeks turned red but the worry in my eyes didn't fade, "We will get out of here. Lily is probably on his way back with the others." I said while brushing some of his hair away from his face. I held his head close to me so I can hug him properly. A long silence came until Gajeel spoke up.
"Levy?"
I was shocked that he called me by that name. I looked at him as he was trying to hold my face. When he reached it, he smiled, closed his eyes and his hand dropped dead. My smile turned upside down when I saw that his eyes were closed.
"Hey, Gajeel. Hey. Don't joke around like this please? Open your eyes." I said, trying to keep a smile. Please, not now. Not yet. I leaned over to his chest, trying to hear his heartbeat. My heart sank, knowing that there was none to be heard.
"Gajeel!"
2 weeks ago
~Gajeel~
"Tch, there isn't any job worth taking. Its pays are low and it's all so far from Magnolia." I was seriously annoyed as I was scanning the Request Board because of the fact that there were no proper job for me and Lily to take on.
"Well, if you want to take a job near Magnolia, we can go here," Lily said, "Balsam Village. It says here that we just need to decode a book that an old man wants us to retrieve. Its pay is 30,000 jewels. It will suffice you and Levy even though it's a small pay. It is already reasonable since you just need to retrieve and to decode a book."
"Tch, fine. But wait, why me and that small fry? Don't tell me she's-"
"Hey Levy!" Lily said as he flew towards the direction where Levy was. That stupid cat. Tch. It'd be good to spend time with the little one again, though. It's been awhile since the last mission we had together. I went and sat down near the counter, looking annoyingly at Lily as he speaks to Levy.
"What's with the deadly glare, Gajeel?" Mira said while wiping beer glasses and putting them on the shelves.
"Nothing that concerns you." I said. I looked behind me and there she was, heading towards me. My heart started pounding really fast as she got closer to me. This girl really is something.
I was in awe and I caught my self smiling when suddenly, I snapped out of it.
"H-Hey, you okay? Is there something on my face?" Levy said while her cheeks turned red. She wiped her face to see if there was something.
"Nothing! What do you want anyway?"
"Lily told me that you need me." Those words made my cheeks turn red. What am I thinking? Snap out of it!
"What? I think I'll pass. I don't need a Pipsqueak in my life."
"W-what?! Th-that's not what I mean! Idiot! I mean with the job!" My eyes grew wide, coming to the realization that we weren't on the same page. Great. Thanks, stupid brain.
"I knew you'd eventually fall for her. I just know, and I was right." Mirajane butted in, winking at me which caused my cheeks to turn pink. I looked behind me and Levy was looking at me waiting for a response, feeling embarrassed. Well done. Just great! I put my palm on my face then sighed.
"Hey Shrimp, sorry about that. Come sit down, we'll make things clear." I said as I tapped the seat beside me.
"Well then, Lily can you please help me bring in more wooden keg? I bet Cana will take these down in no time." Mirajane winked at Lily, signaling that they weren't needed there. Stupid Mira. I know what she's doing and it won't work. Levy sat down beside me but she was still looking at her lap.
After I was done eating the burger I ordered, I sighed, knowing that I need to explain myself to Levy. "Hey Shrimp, about earlier" my cheeks turned pink as she looked at me.
~Levy~
Okay, play it cool. It's no biggie if I come with them. Though it's been awhile since I joined them, I'm still glad that he's going to ask if I can come. I looked at him while he was eating a burger. It was an unusual burger though. Its patty is not made out of meat, instead, it is made out of metal and the buns are made out of large metal bolts. I watched him eat and I can't help but smile. The way he ate that huge burger in a couple of bites looked cute to me. He sighed then looked at me, blushing.
"Hey Shrimp, about earlier" he said, "Sorry about what I said. I didn't mean to say that I don't want you in my life or anything." Those words made my cheeks turn red.
"What?" I said. I can't help but smile.
"No, no! Wait, let me rephrase that. Gah! Damn it, would you like to come to another mission with us again? Forget what I said earlier, it was nothing" he looked away, feeling embarrassed.
I giggled, which made him annoyed. "You coming or what?" he said.
"I'd gladly come. Though when it comes to fighting, I'm not that reliable." I said, feeling embarrassed about what happened during the S-Class Promotion Trial.
*FLASHBACK*
"I only came to this island so I can have a chance to beat up Erza or Salamander. Walking through caves and fighting over-sized lizards is not my idea of time well spent" Gajeel said, irritated at how this trial was getting him nowhere.
"Oh! So it wasn't to help me get S-Class?" Levy said angrily at what Gajeel said.
"Huh? What are you getting all worked up at, Short Stuff?"
"You just said that the only reason you're here is so you could beat up our friends! You don't seem to care about me at all! I'm right aren't I?!"
"Awwww. Is someone feeling left out?" Gajeel said as he started patting Levy's head. "So you wanna get my attention is that it, Half Pint? In that case, all you gotta do is to get strong enough to actually be a challenge for me."
Levy looked down with a frown, "So what you're saying is that I'll never be up to the task…. 'Cause I'm too weak."
"Not that this ain't fun but you got a lot more important things to do than…." Gajeel fell on the ground because of Levy. She hit him with her bag and ran off.
"Fine! Who needs you anyway, you Iron-Hearted Jerk!" tears falling from her eyes.
"What's with him? I was starting to think he's a nice guy until this. But he's not! He's just arrogant and selfish!" These thoughts filled Levy's mind. She reminisced everything she had to do together with Gajeel. "I hate him"
Suddenly, Levy was ambushed by two human-sized animals.
"Ahhhhh!" Levy let out a loud scream which caught Gajeel's attention.
"Levy! Tch, that stupid girl. Running off on her own. How am I going to take care of her now? Idiot!" Gajeel said as he ran towards the direction where he heard Levy scream. He saw two creatures, a humanoid goat and a humanoid chicken. He looked for Levy, who was being held down by the chicken. The goat unsheathed his sword, preparing to cut through Levy. Tch, these bastards are going to get it. He ran fast, just in time to block the goat's attack and hit the chicken so that Levy won't be restrained anymore. Levy looked at him in surprise.
"It's hard to keep track of you if you run off on your own, Shrimp." Gajeel said. Levy looked away and blushed, still there were tears hanging off of her eyes.
"Seriously, don't leave my side ever again, you hear me, Short Stuff?"
*END OF FLASHBACK*
The thought of it made me blush. I looked at him and he was smiling. Why is he smiling?
"If you ever stray away from me again, I swear…." He said.
"What? You won't care anymore?" I said. I turned around and looked down at my lap feeling sad.
He stood up and looked at me. He patted my head while smiling, "I'll look for you again no matter the cost. So don't ever think about leaving my side again." He said, smiling at me even though he was blushing. Those words made my heart beat fast. Heat climbed up my neck and redness appeared on my cheeks. I watched as he walked away, heading towards the outside of the Guildhall. I put my hands near my heart and smiled. "I know you will, you Big Chunk of Metal" I shouted at him. The whole guild looked at me with confusion and I felt embarrassed. Gajeel raised his hand, telling me to come with him. I ran as fast as I can, not minding the glares they are giving me. I'm just glad he'll always protect me.