I need more NaLu and Gruvia in my life, let's be real here. I'm thirsty for some OTP juice.
=xxx=
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Ride 'em Hard
Chapter Three
Lucy learned that the Phantom Lord gang had a bar outside of racing. In actuality, Makarov used to be partners with the boss of the particular gang, back in the old days, and Makarov himself had a record. She didn't ask many questions about the old man's past, thinking it was out of her place and rude to ask someone's criminal past and how they came to be. But, going back to present, Makarov knows the boss of the gang, Jose Porla, pretty well.
Since Makarov works for the good guys now as an undercover agent, he left to start his own 'gang' without Jose knowing his true intentions. Since then, the two men had a rocky friendship that affected them and their gangs together. However, since Makarov can still gain access to meet Jose once in a while, after races, for example, he tries to get drivers and people Jose may have picked up from the recruiting races to take back to Fairy Tail, or take them to the station if they don't wish to go with them. Since Jose has no clue that his ex-partner in crime is now working for the police department, rules apply to Makarov to put up the act of being a real gang boss.
Which means money, violence, guns and sometimes drugs gets involved.
With bringing the S-Class drivers along, Natsu explained to her on the drive there, it lets Jose know that Makarov means absolute business and nothing more. It also gives Jose a warning of not to try and attack him for ransom or even kill him (not that Jose would kill Makarov, but there is always the possibility). And, from Jose knowing that Makarov has his S-Class with him, he believes that Makarov is still on the street's side.
It also gives him a little scare, Natsu added too, but Lucy didn't want to think about that.
The bar was on the low-run part of the city, but close enough for people on the more glamorous side to come over if they wanted to. It was a brick building with two stories, and small windows that probably didn't open on the first floor. A neon-lighted sign hung on the outside, spelling out Phantom Lord with a purple design of a half circle with a tail and a dot above it. The door to enter and exit was just a large, black metal door with a slot window, reminding of Lucy of those cells in asylum films that let the doctor look in to check on the insane patient.
The parking lot was made of dirty and was empty, since the time of day would not have as many drinkers lingering around with the sun out. The little team went straight to the door and it was Erza who pounded on the steel door with her knuckles, sounding like thunder clapping to Lucy's ears.
The slot ripped open and green eyes glared out to see the visitors. Looking down to see Makarov waving with the utmost friendly smile on his face, the eyes blinked before sighing in relief.
"Boze, let us in, boy. I'm dying out here!" the old man screeched before taking his hat off and fanning his face with it, his brows raising out of the hiding spots of his sunglasses. "It's a scorcher out here today!"
"Yes, Master Makarov," the man, Boze said before slapping the slot shut and opening the heavy door for them. The dark-skinned man bowed to Makarov in greeting before smiling to him. "It's been a while, sir. It's nice to see you doing well, as usual."
"You've gotten taller again, Boze boy," Makarov looked up to the bouncer as he walked inside, his group following.
Lucy held on to Natsu's shirt as he led her inside, letting him guide her through the door and into the eerily quiet bar. Boze didn't give Lucy a second glance as he shut the door and latched it tight, thankfully, and was instantly led to a corner booth; Erza already took her seat and Gray was sitting on the edge, so Natsu let Lucy inside the booth first to sit next to Erza and he would take the other end. Lucy fidgeted under the table, and Erza noticed with a soft smile, trying to give her reassurance.
Makarov stayed standing, turning over to where the bar stood at the other end of the large room and a man was shining a glass with a rag. "Totomaruuu," he called over to the bartender, who blinked at the call of his name. "Here for my appointment with the jackass. Did he remember the good drinks this time?"
The bartender nodded with a half smile before setting down his glass and walked around the counter. "Right this way, sir," he gestured to the wooden staircase by the counter. Looking back to the corner booth, Totomaru raised his hand to them. "We'll get you drinks momentarily, guys."
"No problem, Totomaru-san," Erza waved back. The man nodded before leading Makarov up the stairs, disappearing from sight and a slightly younger woman who matched Boze's skin and dressed in a maid outfit strolled from the back and went over to the booth. Her blouse covered her skin and chest, nowhere was it attempting the imagination or sexy, as Lucy would have thought for a bar - much less having the women dressed in uniforms.
The young woman pulled out a pad of paper and pen from behind her ear. "Been awhile, guys. How have you been doing?" she said before blowing a bubble from her gum. Looking up, she tilted her head at Lucy before biting her gum back into her mouth. "She's new with you guys?" she asked with a jerk of her chin.
"This is Lucy, Sue," Natsu introduced politely. He grinned to the quiet blonde and gestured to the waitress. "Lucy, this is Sue. She's Bozu's relative and they drive together in races, like us."
Lucy offered a small smile to Sue, who nodded in return. She seemed kinda hardcore to Lucy, but her tone was a lot more softer when she spoke directly to her. "What'cha want to drink, Lucy?"
"Where's Juvia?" Gray asked Sue with crossed arms and a raised eyebrow. "She usually works the day shift."
"Not workin' today," was her response as she scribbled some notes down. "M'kay, so Erza will have the usual margarita with a double shot of cherry, no rocks. New girl, Lucy, do you want a ginger ale or something? You don't seem like you want to drink yet. It's on the house for Fairy Tail during the day."
"Uhm...sure," Lucy blinked before nodding, not quite understanding Sue's speech pattern. "Ginger ale would be nice. Thank you very -."
"Why is she not working today?" Gray asked, sitting up straighter in his seat beside Erza. His chin tilting up to glare at her more darkly, Sue, on the other hand, didn't seem offended.
Sue clicked the pen shut and shifted her weight on one leg. "She had work to do the other night. I took her shift today so she didn't have to stress herself so much and can sleep a bit."
"Is she here?"
Sue glared down to Gray, her hands on her hips. "Quit asking so many questions, Stripper. It's not your place to ask me, so shut your mouth or I won't serve you."
"Gray, you can come by later," Erza said smoothly while looking up to Sue with a kind smile. "Don't mind him, Sue. He's a little upset for what Juvia did to his ride last night at the recruiting race."
"Oh yeah," Sue said and smiled in response. "Juvia-sama used her new spear tool she conjured up in the garage one night. I'm glad she got to finally use it, especially on a certain person here." Looking to Gray with a snarky look in her eyes, Sue snickered under her breath. "I'll be back with the goods."
"W-wait!" Natsu called when Sue began walking away. "I didn't get to place my order, Sue! Sue, come back!"
"Juvia-sama instructed me to get you a special treat, Salamander!" the young woman called back before going behind the counter. Natsu blinked in confusion and sat back with a childish pout on his lips, making Lucy smile a little bit.
"I swear, Natsu," Lucy rolled her eyes and fiddled with her thumbs under the table. "So...what do we do here? We don't hang around Master Makarov?"
"Makarov tries to purchase Jose's members for Fairy Tail," Erza explained quietly to her. "We come here incase something happens, like a fight...but we just chat with the members of this gang until Makarov finishes. Nothing really happens."
"Here we go," Sue came back with a large tray of drinks, handing Erza a fruity-colored drink in a cocktail glass, a simple glass of water for Gray (that she somewhat slammed infront of the grouch's hunched form. A tall glass of ginger ale for Lucy that she placed gently to the blonde with a kind smile, and then a large chocolate milkshake with whipped cream and sprinkles and a single cherry ontop was placed for Natsu.
Natsu's eyes went large at the sight of the treat, head tilting. "Whaaa…"
"Juvia-sama told me you won your first race, so she gave me specific instructions to make you her chocolate milkshake that you like so much," Sue explained with a wink and a thumbs up. "She felt bad that she couldn't be here to tell you that in person, but Gajeel-sama would've probably have a cow if he saw this."
Lucy watched as Natsu's eyes watered with tears of joy as a weird noise came out of his nose and mouth. "Juvia is the best!" he gurgled and graciously took the spoon offered by Sue.
"Yeah, Gajeel-sama really loves Juvia-sama's milkshakes, too," Sue sighed. "No doubt he would tackle you for beating him in the race if he saw you today, but more likely for the milkshake, for sure. Swear to God, he would try to bite your ear off, or something. Anyway, congrats on your win, Natsu."
"Haha! Look at me, Gray! Your girlfriend gave me a milkshake for my first win!" Natsu snickered to the grumpy man, who stiffened. "She likes me more than you! You don't get milkshakes from Juvia-chan, do you?"
"I'm not a child, unlike you," Gray hissed in response. "And she's not my girlfriend!"
"Whatever you say, Stripper," Sue shrugged uncaringly at Gray's claim, making him go red in the face. Looking to Lucy shyly sipping her drink through the straw, the dark-skinned woman tilted her head with a small smile. "You seem like a smart chick, in my opinion. I like you already. I'm sure Juvia-sama will like you, too, when she meets you."
"Can you make sure that Juvia-chan comes to the next race, Sue? I want Lucy to meet Juvia-chan. Oh! Can Luce have a chocolate milkshake, too, please? She helped me win the race, anyway." Natsu began slurping down the milkshake at a fast pace through the straw, making Lucy notice how his eyebrow was twitching to ignore the brain freeze he was developing.
"Maybe next time, bud," Sue gave an apologetic smile to him. "Juvia-sama only gave me enough to make one for you, but I'll let her know that she owes Lucy one, too."
"You're very kind, as always, Sue," Erza complimented, making Sue blush at the sweet voice. Taking her own drink, Erza stirred the straw before gulping it all down quickly. "How have you and Boze been doing?"
"Fine," Sue shrugged and held her tray behind her, swaying her maid skirt to the redhead. "Boze and I are still being trained by Gajeel-sama and Juvia-sama all the time, but it's not all that bad. Juvia-sama and Totomaru-sensei are really nice. Oh, Erza! I'm taking classes with Toto-sensei now, and looking into biology!"
"Good girl, Sue," Erza smiled. "Just keep to your studies and don't give up, okay? You don't want to disappoint Juvia, don't you… I'm sure she's very hard on making sure you study," Erza hummed and took a glance at Gray, who stared at his tiny cup of water with disgust. Sue blinked at the look, looking between Erza and Gray before looking behind herself to see if anyone else in the bar was paying attention.
Leaning in, Sue jabbed her pen at Gray's temple with a low voice. "Juvia-sama will be working the night shift tonight, since there's no races she and her bro need to go to. Gajeel-sama won't be working until midnight and she starts her shift at eight, so that should give loverboy here enough time to see her."
"Not a loverboy," Gray growled darkly in response, butting his head with Sue who held her ground strongly. "Get that through your skull, brat. It ain't like that!"
"Then why do ya bother comin' here on a weekly basis to get your ass beat by Gajeel-sama, huh? Or is that a fetish of yours, gettin' your ass beat like that?" Sue bitterly grumbled back. Lucy fidgeted beside Natsu, who finished his milkshake and left the cherry alone. He fished it out, completely ignoring how Sue was talking down of Gray and Lucy was being uncomfortable about it.
"Luce, want the cherry? I'm full now," he asked and held the tiny treat by the stem to her, making her face flush deeply with embarrassment. "Mm? What's up, you look like you're gonna be sick. Do you not like cherries?"
"Does this…" she gestured in a whisper to Sue and Gray fighting verbally, while Erza lazily looked for droplets of her beverage in her glass, as if sad that her drink disappeared so quickly. "Is this what you guys are about?"
"Haha, nah, Gray is just a sensitive prick about Juvia," he grinned, holding the cherry to her again. "Want it? I can give it to Erza, if she wants. She usually takes it."
"Sure…" Lucy mumbled and took the treat. She continued to watch Sue stand up and pocket her pen, then lift her tray to her shoulder when footsteps creaked the wooden stairs. Popping the cherry into her mouth, Lucy saw Makarov hop down to the floor with Totomaru following. Seeing the waitress looking laxed and bored out of her mind by the table of drivers, the black and white haired man stiffened.
"Sue, we don't have time to stand and chat today," Totomaru clapped his hands for the young woman to turn with a pout on her face. "You still haven't finished the chapters I gave you last night. C'mon, Fairy Tail needs their space and you need to finish reading."
"Don't boss me 'round, Toto-sensei," Sue whined and began going back to behind the counter. "I said I would read on my break."
"You have five chapters."
"I can read fast…! Fast enough…" Sue sighed and looked over her shoulder to the corner booth. "It was nice seeing you guys again. Nice meetin' ya, Lucy; I'll let Juvia-sama know to make you a shake next time, scout's honor!"
Totomaru followed to the table with Makarov, bowing to everyone sitting there presently. "I apologize if Sue caused any problems. She's better behaved when Juvia-sama is here, but she really is a good kid…"
"She's a sweetheart, as always," Erza stated before pushing Gray out of his seat. Nearly falling on his face, Gray scrambled up to his feet and got out of her way to stand. "Don't worry about it too much with us, Totomaru. I know what it's like having little snots around."
"What's that suppose to mean, Erza?" Natsu whined as he got up with Lucy. "Ya mean Gray, right? Gray was much more bratty than I ever was back then. Remember when he used to take off his clothes and run around the garage?"
"Watch what you say, hothead," Gray shouted as he marched to the door, not allowing Boze to open it as he yanked the metal door open and left. The bouncer blinked and looked back to Sue, who shrugged from behind the counter.
Makarov raised a brow before smiling to Totomaru. "I suppose Juvia isn't here right now, hm? She's a busy young lady, no doubt."
Totomaru simply shrugged and waved goodbye to the group. Lucy took one last look around the empty bar before following Natsu closely, seeing how normal it was for something that he made a big deal for. Gray was already waiting in the car with crossed arms and a grumpy look on his face, and everyone silently climbed in and got out of the parking lot.
"Well, Master?" Erza asked once they made it to the road. Everyone was silent until then, seeing how quiet the elderly man was being.
"Apparently Gajeel and his sister didn't pick anyone out last night that they thought were worth Jose's time," Makarov sighed and shrugged. "Anyone else from the race last night may have been picked up by other gangs or arrested from the crashes you guys caused."
"There were a lot of arrests made last night," Erza noted, now remembering before glancing back to the seat behind them, where Lucy and Natsu glanced at each other nervously. "It's not a bad thing - it's good to get as many people off the streets, and you guys did your part."
"Besides breaking civilian cars on the way, too," Makarov grumbled under his breath, making Natsu straighten and pout. "You're going to have to pay that off Natsu, starting on your next job with Lucy."
"I didn't mean to, Gramps!" Natsu whined and crossed his arms.
Lucy glanced between the two. "I could help pay that off, too, if that helps. I was in the car with Natsu when he was racing last night," she offered. Looking to Natsu, she offered him a small smile. "That can double our pay and fix the damage we caused, Natsu."
"Nooo, Lucyyy!" Natsu whined again, waving his hands to her as she smiled a bit bigger. "That's going to be your money. You spend it however you want, okay?"
"Don't I have rent to pay?"
"Not in Fairy Tail, Lucy," Erza answered, peeking back to the blonde through the little mirror. "Your time spent on jobs and helping out around the garage is payment. The building is funded by the police department to our needs."
"Yeah, so, save the money for yourself, okay, Luce?" Natsu instructed before clamping his hand over her mouth, when she tried to say something. "I made the mess, so I pick it up, remember?"
"This is the most I've seen you act mature, hothead," Gray pointed out with a raised brow, making Erza snicker under her breath. Lucy glanced between the two young men as Makarov grumbled at the statement and turned on the radio.
"Speaking of acting mature, Gray," Makarov said once he picked a station he wanted to listen to, "when you come by later tonight, try not to get into a fight with anyone in the bar. Jose mentioned a little something 'bout that. Your last visit to the Phantom's bar cost Jose to purchase bottles and bottles of drinks in replacement of the ones you broke."
Beside Lucy, Gray snorted and rolled his eyes. "Whatever. It was Gajeel who started the shit last time, not me. He should've taken it outside, like a normal person."
"If I get another damage bill sent to me from Jose, I swear to God I'm going to cut your tires for three months," Makarov warned. "You're gonna go back to scrubbing the floor and toilets, if you screw up again."
Gray stiffened, and Lucy looked to Natsu for the answer. "When we were kids, Gramps used to make me, Gray and Laxus clean the whole garage floor when we did something bad. It wasn't fun, since he'd make us do it after throwing a party and people got pretty drunk…" Natsu shivered as he whispered to Lucy, who blinked and covered her mouth with her hands to keep from squealing of disgust. "Still makes me freaked out just thinking about it."
Erza smirked to herself as she stole a glance to Gray, who went green at the horrible memories of being a kid. Smiling to Makarov, Erza turned up the music on the radio to drown out the annoying whines both of the young men were making.
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Parking his sleek, black motorcycle onto the dirt corner of the Phantom's bar, Gray Fullbuster stood off of his two-wheeled ride and locked the engine with his keys. Pocketing the set into his white leathered coat, Gray yanked off his black helmet and strapped it to the back seat of the Kawasaki Ninja before looking around.
The parking lot was filled now, both with familiar cars and unknown ones that he never bothered to remember. Kicking gravel off of his black boot, he robotically went over to the tall, metal door that held back the hard music and noises of people hiding inside the brick building. Knocking with the back of his hand close to slot until it opened to show peering eyes. Raising a bored brow at the pair of eyes, Gray boredly stared back.
"Back so soon, Stripper?" Boze snickered out teasingly. "Sue said something 'bout you coming back tonight."
Bringing his other hand up, Gray held a roll of money tied together by a rubber band. "You plan on keeping it quiet for a bit for me? Gramps is on my ass about breaking something again."
"Well," Boze hummed as he opened the door and snatched the cash from Gray, who seemed unfazed by the sudden action, "we'll see 'bout that. Gajeel-sama isn't gonna be out for another few hours, so you got time."
Once stepping into the now crowded, alcohol-stenched bar, Gray tilted his head at the sudden change of atmosphere. Boze slipped his payment inside his pants pocket, snickering when he saw the new customer pinch his nose. "It's the start of Happy Hour, man. Ask Totomaru for further assistance, m'kay? Oh, and if Gajeel-sama happens to come and kick your ass, leave me outta it, 'kay? Ya paid me to get it twice as much as Gajeel-sama paid me to keep ya out."
"Whatever, man," Gray rolled his eyes and went further into the bar. Instead of going to a booth, where he could stay hidden easily from everyone else present, Gray Fullbuster went to the counter and sat at the far corner by the wall. A couple of seats were giving him space from everyone else, which was nice as he set his elbow on the wooden counter and rest his chin on the palm of his hand.
It only took a second to recognize Totomaru coming straight over to him and set a napkin in front of him. The man with two hair colors smiled in greeting. "Welcome, Gray-san," the older man said politely, which Gray mutely nodded in response. "I won't waste any more of your time. Just let me get her for you…" Turning around, the bartender strolled over to the curtained doorway and tilt his head in. "Juvia-sama! One more at the end and then it's your break. Take an extra ten or thirty for yourself, okay? You've worked too much already."
"Hai, Toto-sensei!" a bright, cheery voice perked Gray's head up a little bit. Quickly to recollect himself, he watched as Totomaru went back to tending to his patrons before the curtain yanked opened for someone to come through.
Juvia was dressed somewhat like Sue did earlier, yet her ruffled maid blouse exposed a bit more of her cleavage and her skirt seemed to hide nothing of her long legs. She had heels on compared to the younger one from earlier, and her long, wavy hair was pulled up in a messy ponytail with her bonnet helping to frame her bangs around her cute face. Instead of the smokey-eye makeup she would usually wear during races, a simple eyeliner was used to sharpen her eyes and a pink gloss to her lips added a extra cuteness to her uniform.
Once Juvia's dark blue eyes found Gray waiting for her at the end of the bar, her cheeks instantly went bright red and her lower lip quivered. He inwardly smirked at the sight and sighed when she instantly began fidgeting in her stance, when only seconds before she was confident and calm…
This usually happened when they saw each other out of their cars, and Gray was very much used to it.
Tip toeing over to where her customer was sitting silently, Juvia glanced around to the drunk, distracted or loud men and few women before finally looking to him. "J-Juvia is sorry," she said shyly, gripping her white apron. "J-Juvia is s-sorry for...ruining Gray-sama's car last night."
Gray snorted, looking up with a lopsided smirk on his face. "Not upset about it, Juvia. It just surprised me that's all," he confessed with a simple shrug. Although, in truth, Gray was nearly skinned alive by Levy until he told her who did it, which saved his ass from Levy's wrenches and pliers. "Sue said something about you comin' up with it yourself?"
Juvia's cheeks flushed deeper before hastily pulling out a pad of paper and a pen from her apron pocket. "Would Gray-sama like something to drink? It's kinda warm outside, a-and it's also really warm in here. Juvia thinks it's warm in here, does Gray-sama feel it, too? U-uh...since Gray-sama is wearing his l-leather jacket."
Raising a brow, Gray did his best to not let his half-smile grow. "You know what I like, Juvia. You're the only one who can get it the way that I like it, remember?"
"R-right!" Juvia peeped shyly as she shoved her tools back into her pocket and scurrying to the wall of drinks and glasses and other items against the wall and counter. "Juvia remembers, of course! Juvia sh-should stop being such a dork sometimes."
While she prepared his drink, Gray took the chance to look her over carefully and close up. Her movements seem to be energetic, if a little twitchy from her excitement, but she wasn't tripping or struggling to hop on her heeled feet to reach the top shelf. She seemed to be breathing normally, and her healthy blush on her face is noticeable for him, too; she was also aware and looked to be eating enough. His black eyes tried to look at as much exposed skin her outfit was revealing, and saw no scratches or scars marking her otherwise porcelain skin.
"For Gray-sama!" Juvia chirped as she placed the finished drink on his napkin. She took a step back and patiently waited until he took the glass and took a swig of it. Nipping her lower lip, Juvia tried her best to not fidget infront of him. He noticed this, and made sure to take his time drinking, which made her pout childishly at him. "Gray-sama, so mean at making Juvia wait!"
He huffed teasingly and set the drink down. "It's great, as always, Juvia," he said softly to her, watching as she finally relaxed her hunched shoulders. "Ya may put Totomaru out of business, if anyone else got a hold of your works."
"Juvia only makes things for close acquaintances and family," she reminded him with a pout, as if she was disappointed by his idea. "Toto-sensei works very hard and Juvia would hate it if Toto-sensei had to quit because of Juvia…"
"I'm just teasin'," Gray hummed before sitting up a little bit, his hand unzipping his white coat halfway and reaching inside. "You know that I like Totomaru's stuff, too. I just like your stuff a bit better."
"But Toto-sensei taught Juvia how to make it," she huffed and looked away, annoyed. "Now Juvia wishes that Gray-sama and her were in cars, so Juvia can make Gray-sama take it back. Toto-sensei is a very good teacher, for Gray-sama's information."
"How about this?" Gray offered as he pulled out a small paper bag, like the ones children use for lunches. It was wrapped and folded neatly to keep items inside from falling out, and a little drawing in marker of a familiar girl's face was on it. "Will you forgive me now?"
Juvia's head tilt at the sight of the bag being given to her on the counter, noticing the drawing right away. "Levy-chan sends a package to Juvia again?"
"She wanted to draw on it, actually. No, this one's from me," Gray shrugged and let Juvia pick up the little bag, tearing the edge open to peek inside. "It's been awhile since I gave you medication, so there's two new bottles of iron supplements for you. I don't know if your brother has gotten you any more, but I know how you barely say anything about it to him...or anyone, for that matter."
"G-Gray-sama didn't have to," Juvia whispered with an embarrassed blush on her cheeks. Closing the bag and stashing it under the counter from prying eyes, she refused to meet his eyes. "Juvia is capable of getting her medications, too, Gray-sama."
"I know," Gray nodded to her. "But you are very bad at getting things you need until the very, very last minute. I can see it now; you're crawling into the pharmacy because you're incapable of walking and have to use an umbrella to reach the shelf."
"Gray-sama is so mean," Juvia pouted at him. "Now Juvia isn't sorry for hitting Gray-sama's car."
Gray smiled at her, taking his drink back into his hands. He knew she didn't really mean it, even though she probably praised herself when she pierced his car with a harpoon-like weapon. "Other than that, have you been doing okay?"
Juvia blinked. "What does Gray-sama mean by that?" she asked with a raised brow. "Does Juvia not look fine to Gray-sama?"
"Well, you didn't seem to stay long after the race last night, so I thought you were getting sick or something," Gray explained with a shrug, pretending that it wasn't a big deal. Which, on the inside, it really was for him. "It's been awhile since you've had problems, right?"
Frowning, the blue-haired woman let him finish his glass before speaking. "Juvia is fine, so Gray-sama doesn't need to worry. Juvia just had a busy night - Master Jose has been working Nii-chan and Juvia a lot, since Nii-chan got caught again a few weeks ago."
"Yeah, saw that on TV," Gray rolled his eyes. "I'm surprised that he was able to be bailed out after causing that huge collision on the freeway in the other city."
"Master Jose has his ways, Gray-sama," Juvia frowned at him, her posture going stiff at the defense for her older sibling. "Gray-sama knows the rules, though. You shouldn't ask Juvia such questions like that. Nii-chan did what he had to do, so Gray-sama should stay out of it. Juvia is willing to help Nii-chan to pay back, so she will suck it up."
"I know you're tough, I don't doubt it one bit," Gray assured her when she snatched the glass from him, he inwardly liked how she went from gushy to full of sass in a matter of a second. "Just please don't overwork yourself too much. For Levy's sake, or she'll skin me alive… Really, for my sake, too, okay? I don't want to have to worry."
He heard her sigh lightly, but a tiny smile perked on her cute lips. "Juvia will for -!" she suddenly stopped when a loud bang erupted from the other end of the bar, where Totomaru was standing with folded arms and a stern look on his face. Turning his head, Gray saw the familiar ribbon of smoke rising from the bodies of drinking men.
"What ya mean I can't smoke in here? Didn't see no sign, bastard!" a gruff, obviously intoxicated yell sparked their attention. A man with a wiry beard and an eyepatch waved his cigarette in front of Totomaru, as if mocking the bartender. "Can smoke at any other bar, but this one? What a joke, man! I can do what I want! I can't believe my pal suggested this place!"
"Smoking is prohibited strongly within this bar," Totomaru stated in a firm voice, not caring how the man tapped his stick and let ashed fall to his shoes and onto the counter he just cleaned. "You'll have to take it outside."
"Too drunk to move, bitch," the customer snickered and took a long drag. Once inhaling, the man blew out a cloud of smoke into Totomaru's face, which he waved off. "I pay to come here and relax, and the customer is always right!"
Gray peeked back to the waitress, who was watching the scene take place, frowning deeply and bring her hand to cover her nose and mouth when that little smell drifted over their way. Eyes narrowing, Gray was about to rise from his seat when Juvia used her other hand to grasp his leather coat, making him freeze on the spot. She shook her head at him slowly, and he didn't disobey her silent order. Stiffly sitting back down, Gray heard Totomaru make a sharp whistle and watched as Boze slid off his little seat and strolled on over, cracking his knuckles.
"What's up here, Toto-sensei?" Boze barked out, letting the rest of the lively noise shrink into silence as the drunk man blinked and glare upward to the tall man. Noticing the cigarette in his hand, Boze's grin grew to a dark smile. "I see, I see. Ya know the rules here, man?" Boze hovered over the seated customer, hands grasping the shoulders in a tight hold. "No smoking inside the bar, see? Some folks here can't handle that shit, man. I'm sure you don't mind taking it outside, no?"
"Can't make me do -!" The drunk man didn't get the chance to finish his sentence when he was lifted up by the bouncer. Boze pinched the cigarette, killing the light and proceeded to drag the man away from the bar and towards the door. The man began shouting profanities and rants as Boze opened the door and practically threw him out…
Juvia's brow twitched as the stench of the cigarette smoke reached to the other end of the bar, unconsciously squeezing her hand on Gray's shoulder. He looked up to her, a displeased look in his eyes when she pinched her nose shut.
Totomaru went to the other end, yet keeping a distance from Juvia as she backed further to the wall. A sad smile on his face, the man with the facial tattoos nodded to her. "Would you mind watching the counter while I scrub my face and change clothes? I'll open the back door and bring a fan in to get the smoke smell out."
"Juvia can handle things here," Juvia said, letting go of her little nose. Using the same hand, she waved in front of her face and let go of Gray's coat. "Juvia is sorry, Toto-sensei."
"Nah, don't worry about it, Juvia-sama. It's hardly your fault," he winked at her and looked to Gray. "Keep an eye on her for me, too. Gajeel-sama asked to watch over her until he does his shift."
Juvia rolled her eyes and pointed to the curtain for Totomaru. The older man simply nodded and left through the curtain, letting Juvia wait a couple of seconds before exhaling the breath she was holding when Gray gave her the okay to breathe. Pouting a little bit, Juvia turned around to fix Gray a glass of iced water. "Juvia is not a child. Toto-sensei knows that Juvia outranks him a lot, yet he still has the balls to baby her," she muttered under her breath, yet it didn't miss Gray's ears with the background noise rising again, as if nothing happened.
Watching her talk to herself, Gray remembered the time he witnessed the outcome of Juvia when she was around cigarettes, or any other kind of smoke that could make her struggle to breathe. They were in their late teens at the time, and Gray was inside an underground lot with a bunch of other drivers smoking within their own cloud. He used to smoke, too, ever since high school to get under people's skin, but it was Juvia's reaction that changed his whole attitude to his habits.
Basically, Gajeel and Juvia entered the lot to collect their wins on foot, and Juvia became unable to breathe and got sick. With her anemia, her lungs were the most sensitive to the polluted air, and she nearly passed out if Gajeel didn't pull her out in time...but Gray got a good look at how pale Juvia could get and how she couldn't breathe without coughing a lung out and had to lay down in Gajeel's car. He remembered Gajeel coming back to the lot and beating the life out of those who were smoking in front of him (thankfully, Gray did not have a cigarette in his hand).
Since that day, Gray has never smoked another cigarette.
Even if Juvia would tell him that she's fine and healthy, he knew better than that. He checked out books and internet articles about her possible anemia after that, trying to find anything to help her out, and even asked Levy if she knew anything on how to make her stay healthy and happy. For whatever he studies and tries to get her to spill, Juvia is very sensitive about talking about her medical problems. He concludes that she lacks iron in her lungs, or she develops seizures when overworked or inhaling harsh chemicals, such as cigarette smoke. Anemia, asthma, epilepsy, Gray just doesn't know, but that never stopped him from trying to provide to the blue haired girl who caught his attention years ago and clean himself up. He can recall when Wakaba offered him a smoke and he turned it down, actually making Elfman pass out from shock...
"How is Levy-chan doing at Fairy Tail's garage, Gray-sama?" Juvia asked, knocking him out of his thoughts and look to the waitress holding his new drink out. Not wanting to anger her by not flushing out the alcohol, Gray took the glass from her hands.
"She's working on a new side project, but she won't tell anyone what it is," he shrugged boredly. "She wants to come to the next races and see you, though, so you may want to let the pile of bolts know."
"Why would Nii-chan need to know?" Juvia blinked curiously.
"So he can be less of an asshole when she's around," Gray sniffed and looked to her with a little spark in his eyes, making her flush. "Don't tell me you haven't noticed it from the last few times Levy came to the races."
"N-no… Juvia is very well aware," she blushed with a grin on her face. Holding her own cheeks with both hands, Juvia bit back a squeal, making Gray smirk behind his glass. "Juvia finds it amusing that her very own cousin and step-brother like each other. Even though Nii-chan denies it, he can't keep it from Juvia forever. Juvia always gets Nii-chan to tell her the truth about anything."
"Guess that makes you so special," Gray teased and it made the young woman jump in her heels. He hid his snicker from her as she fixed herself and pouted at him. "You know what I mean, Juvia."
It still didn't fix her reaction, since she refused to look his way when he would try and catch her sight. Behaving like a child, she turned her cheek and puffed air into them. "Gray-sama is just looking for trouble. Juvia knew you would be upset with her about ruining your car!"
Unable to fight back at being stared at, Juvia peeked at his amused face before biting back a fit of laughs behind her hand. Gray drank the last of his water and gnawed on his ice chunks once she relaxed. "Juvia is very happy to see Gray-sama again, too."
"It's -!"
"WHO LET YOU IN HERE, ICE PRICK?"
Gray choked on his bit of ice as Juvia exhaled in a sigh. Twisting his head to the flight of wooden stairs, Gray saw the tall and very pissed off Gajeel wearing the bar's t-shirt and old jeans. He was also donned fingerless gloves with metal nuts sewn into the knuckles of the leather, and a dark, yellowish bandana held his bangs back properly as the rest of his long, spiky hair was pulled in a ponytail.
Swallowing, Gray tried to keep his calm demeanor together. "I-isn't he early..?" he whispered to Juvia, who had a displeased look on her pretty face as she stood politely in her uniform. Everyone else in the bar was watching or multitasked with their play of pool or cards, but waiting for something to happen.
"WHADD'YA DOIN' WITH MY SISTER, HAH? WHAT DID I SAY 'BOUT COMING HERE?" Gajeel roared as Gray stumbled out of his stool, scrambling to put distance between him and the approaching man against the wall. Scooting as quickly as he could to the door, Gray didn't mind shoving anyone out of his way. "Who let ya in here? Get out! Lemme punch ya face first, too! Then, I'll skin you and hang you outside the bar, like a flag! But let me kill you first! Tell that Salamander that he's next when I'm finished with you!"
"Gajeel-niichan," Juvia called out harshly, making the burly man halt mid step of chasing Gray. She watched somewhat sadly as her crush managed to get through the door and have Boze close it for him. Changing her eyes to glare darkly at Gajeel, Juvia snapped her fingers for his attention and he stiffly turned himself around and stomped to the counter. Customers forced themselves out of his way as he launched himself over the counter and stood toe-to-toe with the much, much smaller woman.
"The fuck he was doin' in here again? Don'tcha remember what I said about him being in here?" Gajeel growled lowly down to her, making her roll her eyes. "Who let 'im in this time? Was it Boze? I paid that little shit to keep him out!"
"Nii-chan needs to stop yelling," Juvia said blankly, pointing a well-groomed finger out of the counter, where the customers were mute and watching with fear in their eyes. Gajeel blinked for a moment before snapping his jaw at them, forcing them to go back to their own business. Juvia crossed her arms and tapped her foot on the ground. "Nii-chan doesn't need to make a scene just because Gray-sama came to get a drink."
"The hell he come here for a drink for?" Gajeel nearly shouted, but was warned by his younger sister's deadly gaze. Grunting, the man snapped his eyes away from her. "He can get the same goddamn thing anywhere else, if he wanted!"
"Gray-sama says that he likes it when Juvia makes it for him," she said suddenly with a sweet coo in her voice. Gajeel shivered when he practically saw hearts in her eyes as she held her face with both hands. "Even though Juvia defended Toto-sensei's honor, Juvia couldn't help but enjoy that Gray-sama told Juvia that he likes her drinks!"
"You're a suckup."
"Nii-chan is a meanie," Juvia sang in response before reaching under the counter and pulling out the bag Gray had given her. Looking lovingly to the drawing Levy made for her, Juvia held the brown paper bag close to her chest and peeked at Gajeel. "Is Nii-chan feeling okay to work tonight?"
"Wanna make sure Stripper stays out," Gajeel responded darkly. Seeing the familiar penmanship of Levy's note of I miss you lots, Juju-chan! above the chibi drawing of herself, the man cocked his head. "Did that moron give you something from Levy?"
"It's from Gray-sama, but Levy-chan drew a picture on it," Juvia hummed brightly and winked at Gajeel. "Is Nii-chan upset that it wasn't from Le-vy-chan, hmm?"
The man rolled his eyes and looked to a customer who passed out on the counter, his head slamming on the hard top. "What did the little shit give you?"
"Gray-sama brought Juvia iron pills. He gave Juvia more bottles, because he thinks Juvia is out," she answered softly, looking inside the bag and suddenly realized that they were the more expensive and stronger brand. Smiling, she closed the bag and slipped it into her apron pocket, tucking it carefully inside. "Gray-sama is very nice to Juvia, so Nii-chan should be glad that he doesn't have to worry about Juvia too often."
"It's my job to worry, you brat," Gajeel scowled and crossed his arms. "I've been looking after you ever since you were a little thing. Don't take it that I'm being soft with you, got it? No way in fuckin' hell I'm gonna let that show-off stripper try to replace me, just because you think he's cute."
Juvia's cheeks went red in both irritation and embarrassment, but exhaled anyway with a light tooting noise from her lips. Smiling again, Juvia leaned her head on the man's harder than steel muscle and looped her thin arms around his forearm, snuggling her bonnet carefully on his skin. Closing her eyes, Juvia felt her anger slip away by being so close to her big brother. "Nii-chan knows that there's no one else who can take care of Juvia but Nii-chan. Nii-chan is the best in Juvia's eyes. Doesn't Nii-chan know he's the best, or does he think Juvia is lying?"
"I know I'm the best, dork," Gajeel snorted. "You just need to tell me when you run out of iron supplements. Ya know I would've gotten you some as soon as you tell me, Juvia."
"Juvia is also a grown up, too," she reminded him, looking up with her dark blue eyes and grinning when he shrugged, as if bored of the conversation. "Nii-chan doesn't need to baby Juvia so much as he used to - Nii-chan should pamper another lady in his life with things she needs and little gifts who is not Juvia...perhaps Levy-chan?"
The touching moment was ruined when Gajeel's whole face went red and spread down his neck. Fury and shock written in his eyes, the bulky man glared darkly to the waitress, who stuck out her tongue at him and winked. Uncurling her fingers and brushing her off of his arm, Gajeel stiffly went around the bar and snapped at anyone who looked his way.
"What the hell! Ya don't know nothing, kid," Gajeel told her when he looked back over his shoulder, where Juvia was waving sweetly to him. "Only reason why I put up with that little shrimp during the races is because you two are blood-related, got it? She ain't my type anyway! Don't go thinkin' that weird match-maker imagination thing with me. You know I can tell when you get your weird fantasies with that creepy look in your eye!"
Juvia sniffed with a small smile, hearing Totomaru coming through the curtain with a fresh face and clean clothes that didn't stink of smoke. When the older man glanced between the two with a raise of his brow, Juvia smiled to him before he reminded her to take an extra few minutes of her break.
"Why don't you go and grab a snack, Juvia-sama," Totomaru suggested. "You haven't eaten much today. Take your medicine, too." He gestured knowingly to the bump on her apron, making Juvia bite her lip shyly. "It was very nice of Gray-san to give them to you, Juvia-sama. Go on now, 'kay?"
Juvia nodded obediently and went back to the kitchen, away from her other job as serving drinks and grub to criminals, gang members, convicts and low-class scum. Totomaru watched as she disappeared from sight, a firm smile on his face.
"Smells like a fuckin' cigarette in here!" Gajeel roared. "Who the hell was smokin', huh? Show yourself so I can kick your ass!"
Totomaru sighed in defeat. "What am I going to do with you two..?"
Outside the bar, Gray shuddered in relief at not having any damage done to the inside of the bar, excusing him from Makarov's threat of cleaning the garage. The drunk man who was smoking was gone from sight, thank goodness, otherwise Gray would have taken the pent up energy to fight out on him (which didn't sound all that bad, considering how overly cautious Juvia was being during the scene).
Feeling a light vibration inside his pocket, Gray pulled out his cell phone and checked the ID. Expecting to see Erza's number, or even Natsu calling to ask how to properly scrub the floor, since he was hounding him before leaving while Lucy sighed in the distance, he instead saw the familiar name that made him drown out the noises of the city and nightlife.
Instantly shutting the phone off, disconnecting the incoming call, the young man hissed through clenched teeth and went over to his bike. Readying his helmet to put on his head, Gray wasn't expecting a light tap on his shoulder, turning to see the blue haired waitress standing with a little smile on her face and a healthy tint to her cheeks.
"How'd ya get out here?" Gray whispered in shock, looking between her and the metal door that had her freaky step-brother hiding inside. Not wanting to get in trouble, Gray dropped his helmet, which she caught before it fell to the dirty ground and pushed her farther into the shadows of the parking lot. There was a skinny tree there, but the shade made it more difficult for anyone to see details of their faces.
"How did you get here?" Gray freaked quietly, making the young woman blink. "What's gonna happen if Gajeel finds you out here, hah?"
Juvia rolled her eyes and held the helmet in her hands out to him, reminding him that he nearly let his possession fall to the dusty, gross ground. "Toto-sensei told Juvia to go on her break after Gray-sama ran out," she explained as he took it back. "Juvia went out the back and used the gate to find Gray-sama."
"What for? Your brother's gonna kill me if he sees you out here," Gray scolded, stealing glances back to the door while Juvia pouted at his behavior. He froze when he felt her gentle hands grasped his wrist still clamped on her shoulder, while the other held his helmet, and lifted them off her exposed shoulders. Looking back to her, he fought down the blush at her sweet smile and sparkling eyes.
"Juvia didn't say thank you to Gray-sama, for giving her iron supplements. And, Juvia is sorry for piercing your car like that, even if Gray-sama teases her," she blushed and dropped his hand, refusing to meet his gaze like a shy schoolgirl. "So...thank you, Gray-sama. Have a good night, please."
She bowed her head to him in farewell before scurrying off back to the locked gate between the bar and another large brick building. He knew she had keys hidden on her person (he didn't want to say where it would be hiding), so he watched her unlock the door and slip through, closing it behind her before looking down to his helmet that was leant against his jacket, where his cell phone was placed back in and ignored.
A half-smile spread on his lips as he lazily turned himself around and stroll to his bike. Unable to hold back the little whistle of a happy-go-lucky tune as he fished out his keys and mounted his bike, Gray felt himself feeling a bit lighter as he pulled his helmet over his head and started the bike.
He was too focused with his thoughts to notice the rusty-colored eyes watching him through the slot as he rode out of the parking lot. Gajeel grumbled as he shoved the slot closed, crossing his arms as he leaned back to the wall in his little chair; he certainly didn't miss the voice of his little sister thanking the brat he hated so much with pure joy in her voice, making his pierced brow twitch angrily.
If it's thing Gajeel Redfox didn't like seeing in his life, it's the idea of someone having feelings for his little sister. Especially if it's that goddamn stripper boy from Fairy Tail.
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=xxx=
AUTHOR'S ENDING NOTE - *humming* I'm ready for school to end and movie marathons to beginnnn (after work, if course).
