AN: Personally, I love to cuddle. And I bet Gajeel secretly does, too – Lily is a good enough example.
Disclaimer: I do not own Fairy Tail or its characters – Hiro Mashima does.
"(to) cuddle": verb. To hold each other close, as for affection, comfort or warmth.
"You're always so warm."
The mumbled comment was followed by a head of messy blue hair burrowing into the crook of his neck, and then a pair of cold-as-fucking-death feet tucking against his side as Levy pulled her knees up. Jerking away in surprise, Gajeel hissed sharply through his teeth.
"Shit, Shorty, the hell is wrong with your damn feet?"
A slim arm sneaking around his chest kept him close despite his attempted escape, and he clenched his jaw as her cold toes brushed against the skin of his hip.
"Please stop squirming, Gajeel."
"Put some damn socks on!"
He could feel her pout against his neck. "But you know I don't like sleeping with socks..."
The Pout. Damn it all to hell.
"Besides, they'll be warm in a second!"
"That's 'cause you're stealing all of my warmth!"
Levy grinned. "You'll live."
"Say that again when I'm frozen to death tomorrow morning."
"I'll have Natsu warm you up."
"The hell you won't!"
"I will if you don't stop complaining. And stop squirming – you're ruining the cuddle!"
"The f- I don't cuddle!"
"...then what are we doing?"
"..."
"Gajeel?"
The grin against his neck was a smirk now, and he cursed the day she'd picked up that particular habit. Probably from him, too, which meant he'd screwed himself over.
Great.
"We're not...cuddling." The word was sour on his tongue, like week-old milk. And he didn't even like milk when it was fresh.
She snorted – another thing she must have picked up from him. Damn it. "You make it sound like a disease. It's just cuddling."
"We're not cuddling."
At his tone she pushed herself up on her elbow, brown eyes meeting his, challenge swimming in them.
And then she glomped him.
"This is cuddling!"
"The hell? Get offa me!"
"Not until you admit that we're cuddling!" And damn it all if she wasn't a persistent wench. Sneaking her arms around him and tangling her legs with his, pressing her frigid little feet against his poor shins, he couldn't have shaken her off even if he'd actually tried.
"Oye, shrimp, leggo dammit!" Rolling over, it didn't make the situation better, as she stuck to him like glue, tightening her hold.
"Admit it."
"This ain't cuddling! This is...this is assault!"
"Ho, am I overpowering you? Is that what you're saying?" Her laughter reverberated through her small frame – the kind of laughter she only shared when they were alone, all throaty and rambunctious and completely at odds with her usually docile nature. And if he hadn't been so busy trying to get her off his person, he might have been a little charmed.
"Alright, that's it."
Rolling sharply off the bed, Gajeel rose to his feet in one fluid motion, making her yelp in surprise before scrambling to keep herself attached, and as a result of this, wrapped her legs soundly around his waist and hoisting herself up so she was at eye-level with him. Pulling back to get a better look at him, she bit down on her lower lip to hide the smile threatening to break out across her face. Gajeel answered with a glare, which only made her smile even wider, and...
Oh.
"This isn't cuddling," she said, her smile taking on a decidedly wicked edge. Another trait of his, but this being one he didn't mind at all.
Bare walls were so convenient sometimes, he decided, as he pressed her up against the nearest one. Feeling a feral sort of grin tug at his lips, Gajeel regarded the shrimp wrapped around him.
"Nah, it definitely ain't."
"He totally cuddles."
Catching the muted comment, Gajeel looked down from his place on the second floor, eyes seeking out the two girls by the bar – Levy and the bunny-girl, who had just spoken. Wait, scratch that, three girls. The barmaid wasn't fooling anyone – if there was gossip to be heard, there was no way she was actually focused on polishing those glasses.
Damn meddlers.
"I know, right? But he wouldn't admit it even if I promised him iron every day for breakfast and lunch." Levy's hands twitched around her mug, the way they did around her pen when there was a script-related problem she couldn't solve. "Is it a guy-thing?"
He would never understand women and their need to shareeverything. He was a possessive hoarder by nature – 'sharing' was as foreign a concept as 'feelings' and 'sympathy'.
The blonde shrugged, sipping her coffee. "Beats me. Natsu cuddles."
Gajeel felt his eye twitch as they so casually compared him to the Salamander. Of course that idiot...cuddled. Damn it, could a word get any more pansy-assed?
"He'll cuddle Lily openly."
Well, of course he would. Lily was his cat.
"Perhaps you should borrow Erza's naughty kitten costume?"
"Lu-chan!"
The stellar mage hid a smile behind her hand, sharing a look with the equally grinning barmaid, but Gajeel was having a hard time listening to what they were saying now that his head was filled with images that was bound to result in the need of a very cold shower.
"Don't discard the idea so casually, Levy-chan! Who knows? It might work," the barmaid added her two cents with a conspiring wink, but where he had expected absolute mortification from his shrimp at the suggestion, he was surprised when all she did was push her mug to her lips and avert her eyes to the side.
He almost didn't catch the shy mumble that was partway concealed by the enormous sip she took.
"I don't think cuddling will be the primary thing on his mind if I dress in...that, Lu-chan."
Gajeel snorted. No fucking shit, Shorty.
"Oho, Levy-chan, your cheeks are looking a little red. Are you alright?" the bunny-girl leaned in closer.
"Yes, Levy, what is the matter?" a fourth voice joined the fray.
"Erza!"
The grin on the bunny-girl's face reminded Gajeel of himself. It was creepy as hell.
"Hey, Erza-"
"No, Lu-chan-!"
"What is it, Lucy?" the redhead asked. Lucy's smile widened.
"Levy was just talking about how she wishes to borrow your cat costume – do you still have it?"
Titania turned her gaze on the now absolutely mortified script-mage, pleased surprise evident on her face. "Indeed, Levy-chan? Then we shall dress up together!"
"G-guys!"
Gajeel grinned down at the flustered little mage as she attempted to deflect a surprisingly persistent Titania going on about the latest fashion.
"Enjoying yourself?"
Turning to his partner, the dragonslayer grinned. "Immensely."
Lily raised a brow. "That grin can't be good. What's got your spirits up?"
Gajeel shrugged, casting a glance back down into the guild hall, where the commotion had escalated to include more curious guild-members itching for a brawl. Levy had her face buried in her hands while the women around her were in rapt discussion of the most potent costume – bunny or kitten, to which even the kid had taken part, cat ears perched on her head as always, although Gajeel doubted she knew what they were really discussing. In the corner of his eye, he spied Levy making a break for the exit.
"Gajeel?"
Flashing another grin at his cat, Gajeel made a leap across the railing to land amongst the chaos that had broken out in the hall. The action was a normalcy and thus hardly noticed by the others, although he thought he caught a smirk from the bunny girl as he passed the bar on his way out, and he had the brief feeling she had known he was there all along...
Oh, well. He had a shrimp to catch.
"Oye, Levy!"
Upon hearing her name called, the tiny mage flashed him a smile, and he was pleased to see the blush hadn't completely left her face.
"There you are – I was going to look for you," she greeted. "Are you hungry? I thought we might get something to eat." He nodded his assent, falling into place beside her as they made a trek towards her favourite diner.
They didn't make it far down the road before he cracked.
"So...naughty kitten costume, eh?"
Her entire posture went rigid at that, and the grin on his face only widened in return. Risking a glance up at him, her blush darkened at the look on his face, which he guessed was nothing short of disturbing.
"You...heard that?"
His grin was crooked. "Damn straight."
She was silent for a moment, before her lips quirked up into a smile. "I'll consider it."
He felt his metal-studded brows raise at the statement, not quite believing his ears. "Really?"
The grin on her face turned wicked again, and she tucked her hands behind her back, inclining her head towards him and smiling in a way that was much too innocent to be anything but conniving.
"If," she began, and he nearly rolled his eyes. A catch. Wonderful. Then she grinned. "I want to cuddle," she declared, raising her chin proudly. He raised a brow at that.
"Don't we already do that?"
…
Damn it!
If the grin on her face had been wicked before, it was downright devil-like now. "Did the great Gajeel Redfox just admit to – dare I even say it – cuddling his woman?"
"Shaddup!"
Her laugher followed him down the street as he stomped away with all the indignation of a five-year-old. Calling his name, he heard her jog after him, although her giggles were hard to restrain. He stopped some paces away, glaring menacingly back over his shoulder as she caught up with him. Out of breath, cheeks flushed and eyes full of her laughter, he had a hard time keeping his glare intact. Averting his gaze sideways, he crossed his arms over his chest, and grumbled,
"I'll do it if you don't call it 'cuddling'."
Her smile outshone the sun above them. "I'll settle for that." Tucking her small hand into his, she tugged him along behind her. He only shook his head, never failing to be amazed at her simple acceptance of all things Gajeel. Of course, she wasn't one for demands in the first place. At first, he'd assumed she'd need more from him than he was capable of giving, but it had quickly become clear that she was more than willing to have him for who he was, and despite his numerous flaws and oddities. And he'd found that, it felt good...having someone like that in his life.
…
Although he'd rather dye his hair as pink as Salamander's before ever willingly admitting to 'cuddling'.
It just wasn't happening.
AN: Levy strikes me as an enormous cuddler if given the chance. She'd prefer being the little spoon (who wouldn't, with Gajeel?), but sometimes she'd want to be the big spoon, because she can.