Sum: There was no way she could mess it up.
The bakery was hidden between a baby store and a consignment store. There was barely more to it than a door and a small window, and the only hint at what was behind the door was a small cupcake painted on the window under the name Metalicana's Cakes.
She hovered outside and glanced down at the paper crumpled in her hands. When she'd been complaining about the need for a new job Natsu had told her about this place and quickly scrawled out a map, but now standing in front of it …
"Are ya coming in or not?"
She jumped and glanced towards the door where a man stood. A scowl pulled down his lips and his eyes – she didn't know eyes could be red like that – glinted dangerously. Metal covered his face and she could see a tattoo peeking out from under his shirt collar.
Scary.
"I – uh –" she stuttered, quickly dropping her gaze. The paper crinkled as she crushed it and she swallowed thickly. What was Natsu thinking sending her to him?
"You're Levy, right?"
Her eyes went wide and her mouth dropped in a small gasp of surprise.
"How do you …"
"Natsu called. Said he'd sent you my way. Now c'mon, I ain't got all day." Then he turned and disappeared into the bakery and for some reason Levy found herself following.
Although once she stepped foot inside she had to pause to take it all in. It was quaint, a bit small, but definitely homely. The walls were decorated with paintings of landscapes and there were small metal sculptures dotted across the shelves. The one next to the register interested her the most and she carefully picked it up. A dragon. The wings were unfurled and it had risen to its back legs, the mouth open in a roar, or maybe it was preparing to breathe fire.
It was beautiful.
"Hurry up," the man snapped from behind the desk and Levy started, gentling placing the metal dragon back in its place and scurrying to the back.
He stood in a kitchen. He'd pulled his hair back into a ponytail, wrapping a bandana around his head, and there was a black apron thrown over his clothes. Something hit Levy in the face and she squeaked, barely catching it before it hit the ground.
"Put that on."
She quickly threw the apron on and tied her hair back, matching him.
"You're Gajeel … right?"
"Who else would I be?"
She bit her lip and once again wondered what Natsu had been thinking. Gajeel didn't exactly seem to be an ideal boss, and although Levy was desperate for a job … she wasn't sure she was that desperate.
"Bake a cake."
She blinked, the command drawing her from her thoughts.
"What?"
"If ya want to work in a bakery, then ya need to know how to bake." Gajeel stared at her, one of his metal ringed eyebrows quirking. "You do know how to bake, don't ya?"
"Of course I know how to bake," she snapped, indignation replacing the fear. He was making fun of her, it was obvious in the way his lips curled in that smirk. He didn't think she had what it took to work for him. Well she'd show him.
She stepped into the kitchen and got to work collecting ingredients. She'd never actually baked before, but how hard could it be. All it really was was mixing together the right ingredients. She'd read plenty of books about it. There was no way she could mess it up.
Or so she thought …
Twenty minutes later the kitchen was absolutely covered in flour, making it look like a blizzard had blown through, but she had a cake … sort of. She wasn't actually sure the lump could be called a cake. Were cakes supposed to be hard like that?
"I – uh …"
"Give it here."
She blinked and looked at Gajeel. "Why?"
"Taste test."
She glanced back at the cake and shook her head. "You're going to eat that?"
He rolled his eyes and grabbed a fork, somehow managing to get a piece of the cake to break away. She winced when he put it in his mouth and began chewing, surprised that his teeth didn't shatter.
"Hmm, not awful for a first try."
"I'm sorry."
He snorted and tossed the fork in the sink. "Don't be. The first time I made a cake I burnt it to a crisp, and my old man still made me eat it."
She giggled, covering her mouth with her hand. "That's awful."
"It was. I couldn't even look at another cake for weeks."
"And now you run a bakery."
He rolled his eyes and she smiled softly. He wasn't as scary as he first appeared.
The sound of a bell rang through the small room and he glanced towards the front.
"I'll be back."
He disappeared through the door and Levy followed, peeking out to watch.
"Gajeel!" The customer was a young girl, probably no older than six, and she had a large grin on her face at the sight of Gajeel.
"Hey there, Asuka. Which cake do you want today?"
She pointed at something in the case and Levy smiled softly as she watched Gajeel box it up and slide it across the counter, accepting the bill that Asuka gave him.
"Remember to brush your teeth after eating," he said, as she headed towards the door. Then she was gone and the smile that pulled at Gajeel's lips was all gentleness and love. And Levy knew then that this was where she wanted to work no matter what.
"Hey Gajeel," she called, smiling when he turned to face her. "Will you teach me how to bake a cake?"
end.
