It was late in the day, but it was difficult to tell thanks to the cloudy weather. Levy sat perched upon a bar stool, accompanied by Pantherlily whom stood on the bar's counter. The script mage was gushing over a new piece of literature she had fallen in love with, but the exceed had failed to detect the sudden distraught weaving into her tone.

Thunk.

The young woman continued to ramble about the novel, suppressing the undertone of her discomfort with a forced laugh.

Thunk. Thunk.

Levy quickly buried her nose into her book. The mage tried to calm her precarious nerves, but the fainthearted ache remained. Her words had fallen to silence while her mind was raking for the perfect escape route.

A pair of heavy boots stopped just to the left of the bluenette. Said bluenette peaked over the pages, her eyes swiftly sweeping over a large figure sitting down on the neighboring stool. Returning her gaze to her beloved book, she pretended to be thoroughly speculating the words, but in actuality, her mind had difted off the pages.

She could practically feel the static frizzing her blue locks.

Lily by now has wondered off to wherever exceeds wonder off to, leaving Levy in the company of the S-class dragon slayer.

Not to be taken as out of character, Levy herself is a very forgiving person. Even if he hadn't formed an apology, she had already forgiven him. Besides, it has been long enough to leave it in the past.

"Something's bugging you."

The voice of Mirajane snapped Levy out of her thoughts.

"Is it about Gajeel?"

"N-no!" Levy sputtered, her cheeks tinted a shade of pink. Those rumors were going to be the death of her.

"When's he coming back?" the barmaiden asked.

"How should I know?"

Mirajane gave Levy a look.

"...Tonight," the latter admitted after a long stretch of silence which received the smallest of smug smiles.

"You better go then," the white haired woman offered.

Levy agreed to her proposal and hopped off the stool she was rested upon. With a "Oh there you are, Lily!" the script mage headed to the train station with the exceed at her side.

It has become routine for Levy to greet Gajeel at the train station when he returns from his quests. Of course, she would pull the iron dragon slayer off the train since he would be too disoriented and sick to find the exit. Then they would take to longest route to Fairy Hills to drop off the bluenette. Finally, the man would fade into the dark night without another word, drained from his travels.

Levy waited on a bench by one of the terminals. Her hands were stuffed into her coat pocket, fighting off the cold running through her. Winter was approaching, the weather was chilling, and the extent of sunlight significantly dwindled each day. Dusk swooned the sky, the latter falling into submission. Lighting the imminent night were lamp posts, standing sequentially parallel to the tracks.

The young woman watched as Lily paced along the cobble stone, the exceed anticipating his partner's arrival. His ears twitched suddenly, and a blare of a train screeched, startling Levy. She waited until the vessel was docked before she hurried to the doors. She was pushed aside by weary travelers and like folk, but she managed to slip inside and spot Gajeel spread awkwardly across one of the seats with cold sweat rolling down his face. She did the best she could to haul him to the doors, stumbling from his weight, but still managing to exit with his arm slung over her shoulder.

She gave Gajeel a moment to regain his senses before setting off in a random direction. They never really cared if it took them an hour or multiple to get her home. It just seemed fun to be lost together. At least then they would have an excuse to stay out longer at night. Levy smiled to herself. She was glad to know that he didn't mind doing this for her.

Levy looked over the late night shops and head over to a -you guessed it- bookstore. Gajeel was her shadow, following along without a word of protest.

The bell jingled as the duo along with Pantherlily entered the quaint store. Levy quickly browsed, aware of the shop's impending closing time. The mage didn't have a specific novel in mind, but she felt the need to look for one anyways. This reminded her of something: she had left her book at Fairy Tail in her rush. Hoping that Mirajane would find it and return it to her, Levy forgot about it for the time being. She ended up purchasing the second volume and left with empty pockets. She made a mental note to fill out a job request the next time she could.

With the book clutched in her chest, she strolled on. The three walked by the park and cut through the grass. It was a noiseless night. Levy had the feeling Gajeel was too exhausted to talk about his excursion, but she found that this walk was getting really boring.

"It was raining, you know," Levy said.

"Hn," Gajeel grunted.

"It was a lightning storm," Lily added.

"Oh."

That was the end of the discussion. Gajeel isn't known to have deep conversations, but this was ridiculous. Levy pouted a little, disappointed. She was excited for him to return after the weeks he had been gone, but she never expected it to be this... lame. He wasn't sharing any stories. He didn't even look at Levy or Lily. There was something seriously peculiar about him. Perhaps something happened to him while he was away?

Levy glanced at him but held her tongue; she decided against asking him. He appeared disengaged from his surroundings. She stole back her eyes and stopped for a moment, hesitant if taking a shorter path would be appropriate. She found that today must have been a long day for Gajeel and took the quicker route.

It wasn't long until the three reached Fairy Hills. Levy gave a thankful smile to the others, receiving a nod from the exceed and a grin from the dragon slayer. Her smile widened, and she waved them off as they descended down the hill. Levy was relieved. His smile was genuine.

"Levy?"

"Lucy," the script mage greeted.

"What are you doing here? And at this hour?" Lucy asked, wrapped in a blanket. It was probably five in the morning. Disregarding the early time, Levy was at Lucy's apartment before the sun was out.

"I couldn't sleep," Levy explained. Her blue hair was in disarray and bags laid under her hazel eyes. She looked exhausted.

Lucy understood that she needed to talk and led her inside. Levy hung her coat on the coatrack. Her blonde friend handed her a blanket, and both girls sat upon Lucy's bed. It was quiet for a while until Levy spoke.

"I think I love Gajeel."