The sweltering summer sun beat down on Gajeel's back as he worked out in the field, battle training intensely. He had shed his shirt long ago, and his bare back was shining with sweat in the sun. His jeans were dusty, covered in sweat and mud and his worn out boots to match. He paused for a moment to wipe the sweat from his face with a handkerchief when he saw a small body approaching from the trail below. A smile crossed his face but he continued to work. Soon his nose was invaded by the soft scent of lavender, and his ears could pick up the sound of foot steps coming close.

He took a moment to admire what was coming towards him. A petite woman with wild, curly blue hair and bright brown eyes walked towards him. She was wearing a white sundress with little red cherries decorating it. She had a blue jean shirt on over the dress, tied up around her waist, and her feet wore adorned with little red sandals. She struggled a bit as she carried a large picnic basket, and he walked towards her to help.

"Oi, what are you doin', trying to lug that thing around" Gajeel barked as he reached for the heavy basket in her arms, "Let me take that for you."

"I can handle myself, Gajeel." She huffed as she brushed past him on her way to the flat rock near where he had been training."Mirajane sent me to bring your lunch." The short and beautiful girl claimed, but Gajeel knew better. No one could make Levy do anything she didn't want to do.

A cocky grin crossed over Gajeel's lips, "Is that so?" He watched as she hoisted herself up onto the rock and started digging into the basket for food. Inside sat neatly packed sandwiches, mason jars of sweet tea, diced fruit, and her famous strawberry-rhubarb pie, along with plates and cutlery.

"If the demon sent ya, why is there a pretty little picnic for two packed in there?" Gajeel teased, he knew that if Levy had come all this way with lunch it wasn't because anyone had told her to. This was her own doing.

Her hands stopped moving in the basket and her face turned red as the strawberry pie that awaited him. "I, uh-I just happened to be hungry myself, is all." Levy stammered as she went about unpacking the food.

"Is that your famous strawberry pie?" Gajeel interrogated her.

"I made a few at the guild." She shifted uncomfortably as she tried to cover her own ass.

"So you're telling me that you didn't pack this fancy lunch as a date for two?" Gajeel moved closer, his thighs brushed up against hers as she sat on rock with her legs dangling over.

"N-no! No, of course not." Levy made claim as she avoided eye contact with him.

"I think you did." Gajeel stated plainly, "I think you packed this lunch for the two of us, and you came all the way out here to spend time with me, not because anyone told you to." Gajeel's fingers ghosted the skin above her knee and he could see the goosebumps that formed on her skin. "C'mon Shorty, admit it."

And with that, he ruined the moment. She despised when he poked fun of her height, or any time he teased her. The blush on her face turned from embarrassment to anger in a split second, and suddenly her finger was prodding him in the chest.

"I am not short! And I did not pack a date, I packed a lunch, which I now regret doing since you've decided to be such a- such a….!" She finished her sentence with an exasperated growl, jumping down from the makeshift table and stomping away towards the guild.

Before she could get very far, he grabbed her by the hand and attempted to pull her back towards him, but she resisted. She snatched her hand away from him, glaring at him through with her golden honey eyes. It made his heart sting with pain to see her actually angry with him, not just annoyed.

"C'mon Lev, don't be that way." His tone softened in a way she had never heard before, and she almost let her guard down.

She shook her finger at him as she shouted, "No! No, you don't be that way, Gajeel! Ugh! I can't even stand to be around you!"

The hurt look that crossed Gajeel's face felt like daggers into her very soul, she had cut him deep in that moment, and she knew she had crossed a line. He infuriated her with his teasing, but he was a good man under his rough exterior. His body language changed immediately, he looked defeated as his shoulders sank and his head hung low. The large man who towered over almost everyone and could frighten enemies away with just a glance, suddenly looked like a heartbroken boy.

Levy was about to apologize when the words that could change everything left his mouth.

"Alright Lev. You tell me that you don't want anything to do with me, right now, and I'll leave you alone. You say the words and you won't ever have to deal with me again." His lips drew a thin line across his face as he waited, impatiently, for a response. Levy couldn't do anything but stare, her mouth slightly agape, unable to form coherent words.

"Well, go on, tell me! Tell me you don't love me." Gajeel's voice was firm, but quivered slightly. He was terrified of the outcome. He knew that Levy had a crush on him, according to the gossip all their friends talked, but what if she simply didn't want to be with him?

Still, Levy stood. Not responding, simply standing, awkwardly as she stared at him with an unreadable expression.

Gajeel quickly closed the distance between them, before he lost the courage to do so. His hand brushed her face and his fingers dove into her curls, and he stalled for a moment. Their noses touching, breath hot on each others lips, and their eyes locked.

Quiet words escaped her lips, and he took them as permission to crash his hungry lips onto hers like he had longed to do for so long.

"But I do love you."