Holla! How are you guys doing?
Anyways, just a little note: I decided to make Gray a tad more OOC. I love him to bits but sorry, he'd be a jerk here this time. I'll make it up to him on my next story!
And oh, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THE HEARTWARMING REVIEWS!
DISCLAIMER: HIRO MASHIMA OWNS FAIRY TAIL
CHAPTER FOUR
YOUR VOICE
It was very strange.
It was like having a nest inside your head and then there are birds chirping inside.
It was weird but it made her feel so giddy.
She can barely stand it.
For a foolishly excessive degree, Lucy Heartfilia felt… bizarre.
No.
It was almost kind of freakish.
The incessant ringing of the wake up call from the hotel's lacrima on the bedside table woke her up from a particularly odd dream. The moment that Lucy opened her eyes, she was filled with a big amount of energy and she had no idea where it came from. For some reasons, she felt really refreshed and brand new like a newborn chick that just got out of its shell. It must be because she had never slept so well her whole life but there could be other reasons. If Happy would see her now, for sure the cat would not hesitate one moment to comment on her disposition and call her weird again but that greedy blue cat was not around so Lucy decided to let her the silly grin stay.
Shrugging it off and enjoying the sunny sensation, Lucy got out of bed, skipped towards the bathroom while singing and humming and took a long, good shower. Drying herself off with a towel, Lucy went out of the bathroom and blow-dried her golden hair that had grown longer over time. She went to the walk-in closet and picked her outfit, taking her sweet time, when it suddenly occurred to her that she was supposed to do some packing up.
"Oh, holy fish." She muttered to herself dryly, feeling her fingers grow cold.
Lucy remembered her deal with Laxus but for some reasons, it did not dampen her high spirits and she felt almost excited. Hosenka was a town known for its world-class spa resorts but she only get to indulge herself in it once because of the sudden unexpected turn of the events. Either way, she was going to Akane Beach Resort anyway so it doesn't hurt her like how it was supposed to. Regret was just nowhere to be found.
She picked out a cream-colored summer sleeved mini dress that reached her mid-thigh with a thin braided belt on the waist, where she strapped her keys and whip in, and finished it off with a flat brown boots that reached just below her knees. She twirled around the mirror, seeing the ends of the dress swirl around her, she giggled to herself feeling like a girl. Well, technically she was, but you get it.
Packing up her stuff hastily, Lucy checked the time and saw that it was only a little after 6 o'clock and that there was no need for her to be up on her toes and rush. She still had a little bit of time left to spare so she decided to style her hair in messy rope braids and let the ends fall down her shoulders before putting on a make-up, going for a natural look, and went down to the hotel restaurant to have her breakfast.
Arriving at the open restaurant, she ordered a cup of coffee and some French toasts. She decided to sit on the corner, enjoying the serene atmosphere of the place and loving the warm heat of the sunlight that hit her, bathing her milky white skin. After a while, a group of five, probably a family, went in and had their breakfast, filling the room with noise. She smiled subtly while watching them, not minding how noisy it had gotten. She was used to it anyway and it was because of Fairy Tail.
Lucy was sipping her coffee nonchalantly, thinking of this and that, when she saw a golden lamppost walking towards her table. She must have been really distracted not to notice his entrance. His appearance made her blush, adding color to her already pink cheeks.
Apollo?
Zeus?
He was looking at her when their eyes suddenly met, she remembered, and a bad time at that, for she suddenly choked on her coffee and almost spilled the hot liquid on her dress. Her heart started to throb wildly and she felt funny in the stomach, making her want to puke. Laxus smirked and took a seat across her.
"You okay there, Blondie?" he asked her, feeling smug. "Didn't take you as the type who likes to choke."
"S-shut up." She said, covering her mouth with a napkin and looked away when she heard how high her voice sounded.
Laxus only chuckled lightly and ordered breakfast while Lucy decided to play with her toast, trying to calm the erratic flipping of her innards. When his food arrived, Laxus immediately started eating and Lucy found herself staring at his face. She noticed that his hair was still slightly wet. Her eyes trailed downwards and settled languidly on his infamous lightning bolt scar. Whenever people would look at him, Lucy noticed, they always feel this sense of power and authority emanating from him. At closer look, Lucy also realized that he does not actually look scary as how people pegged him to be. His face, in fact, actually looked calm and collected and the color of his eyes added to that appeal. Moving away from his scar, Lucy's eyes fell on his lips and saw that there was a slight cut. Her breath started to hitch. She almost wanted to jump out of her seat and rush to the bathroom and throw up.
She nervously looked away and reached for the forgotten cup of coffee in front of her as an act to exorcise the little demons playing inside her belly. She hooked a finger around its handle and brought the cup upwards but for some reasons, the almost empty cup felt too heavy for her. Her fingers were starting to shake and she gave up, putting the cup back with a loud clang that made Laxus look up. He was about to open his mouth to say something but before he could, she cut him off.
"D-don't say anything!"
Laxus closed his mouth and raised an eyebrow. He was about to react once again but Lucy raised her hand in his face.
"Shush!"
Lucy saw the mischievous glint in his eyes as he smirked once again. She started thinking that he probably had an idea why she was acting that way and he was eager to make fun of her about it.
Stupid fucking alcohol, playing with her brain.
Little did they both know that they were currently thinking about the same thing: something that had happened last night.
When they arrived in front of the hotel, with Lucy now clinging in his arm for support, Laxus suddenly let out a dry chuckle. Lucy looked at him in question.
"Well?" she asked.
"Nothing," he sighed. "It's just that I happen to check in here as well."
"Oh. Let's go then."
They went to the front desk to take their keys when Lucy noticed that his key holder had the same color as hers. Laxus, having realized it too, looked at her and both started laughing. The personnel at the front desk only looked at them in confusion but thought that it must be the couple's own private joke and how good they looked together. The pair left and took the elevator up to the fifth floor in silence.
"What a coincidence." Lucy remarked as they reached the front door of her room.
"Yeah. My room's right across yours." He said as she let go of him. They continued to look at each other, not exactly knowing how to part.
"So, good night then, Blondie. I'll see you tomorrow?"
Lucy bit her lip, obviously trying to bite back a smile that was starting to grace her lips. It must be because of the alcohol that she felt herself grow bold or it could be that she did not want to let one good night end just like this. Being with him made her feel almost like a woman and the way that he would look at her made her feel strange in a good way.
Never in a million years had Lucy thought that she would be having such a good time with him, much less hold a proper conversation with the Lightning Dragon Slayer without feeling too awkward or too intimidated by his good looks or his domineering character. She had always thought that he was nothing but a rude jerk who only knows how to piss and bully someone who would come near him within a one-inch space but somehow, he had been kind of nice to her the whole time, even if they did not talk that much.
Back at the guild, Lucy would sometimes find herself thinking of trying to approach and talk to him but the chance never showed its face to her since Natsu would always haggle her most of the time and her attention would be directed to Gray. Whenever both boys were away, Laxus would be out of the guild with his team for a mission and he always hangs out at the second floor that was designed exclusively for S-class mages. Plus, if she did approach him, what would she say? The Thunder God Tribe always surrounded him anyways.
When the dragon slayer turned his back to get inside his room, Lucy felt her arm move on its own, grabbing the sleeve of his shirt. Laxus stopped on his tracks and looked back at her.
"Uhh." She looked down, trying hard not to fidget and unsure why she did what she just did but what he did next took her off guard. Suddenly, he grabbed her chin gently and lifted it up until they were seeing each other eye to eye.
"Yes?" His voice was husky and she felt her throat go dry.
With that one touch, Lucy felt her body shiver. No wonder he was a lightning dragon slayer. His eyes looked dark and electrifying and it reminded her of the sky when it was about to rain. Laxus stepped closer towards her and it was almost as if something took hold of her.
"Do you want to… uh… maybe come in?"
When he knocked on her door earlier, she did not answer. A couple of thoughts went through his mind. She could still be sleeping; maybe she's taking a shower. He waited for a moment, his patience growing thin before he decided to knock again, loudly this time. After waiting for a couple of seconds, he started to feel uneasy. Maybe she ran away?
The thought of being ditched made him growl silently in the empty corridor but he figured that it was not the case. Although he barely knows her, he was sure that she was just not that kind of girl. He can smell her scent and it was strong, so he figured that she was still around. Laxus stepped away from the door and tried to follow her the trail of vanilla and something pleasant and it led him to the restaurant.
When he saw her, Laxus was almost blinded for a moment. She looked like an angel in her dress and the light of the sun that hit her skin made them look as if she was glowing gold. Her golden hair was lighter from the sunlight and each and every batting of her eyelashes made her look as if she was a goddess who got lost on Earthland.
Laxus noticed that Lucy was lost in her own little world and his guess was right when her eyes met his because she suddenly choked on her coffee, making him wanting to laugh then and there but he stopped himself immediately, thinking that it would be too weird if he did. Taking the seat in front of her, he noticed the nervousness that was emanating from her.
Before he could say anything, the blond started to blab and stutter about him shutting up. Seeing how flustered she looked was way too amusing for his own liking but he kind of liked it, it made her look cute and it made him want to just look at her forever as he observed the constant ebb and flow of her emotions that were projected directly at her face. Never had he felt like this before but he decided to go along with it, not wanting to ruin the moment.
While he was eating, he can feel that she was looking at him, boring holes through his body but decided to ignore it anyway, quite enjoying the fact that she was looking at him. He almost wanted to tease her about it but just when he was about to, he heard a loud clang in front of him. The girl just keep on amusing him and he did not feel bored being in her company. She was not like one of those whiny girls that he used to go out with.
Laxus by now wanted so bad to talk to her and ask her where's the fire but twice… twice he cut her off and it clicked in his mind that it had probably something to do with what happened last night. He did not expect that she would actually invite him inside her room.
When he bade her good night that time, he could sense the uneasiness in her but even if he wanted to, he decided not to push his luck, especially not with her but that was before she held him back and asked him to come inside. The girl in front of him was just so hot for him to look at, not to mention the sweet and intoxicating scent that her body had been giving off all through the time that they had been walking together but the smell was growing stronger now, and he had an idea where this was leading to until his animal instinct took over.
When Lucy opened the door with trembling hands and stepped in, he followed after her, closing the door behind him with a loud bang and without further ado, he pushed her against the wall beside the door and crashed his lips on hers. She struggled for a moment but his body only listened to the lust that took over him and trapped her with his arms. Soon enough, the girl finally gave in and opened her mouth to let out a soft moan and without hesitating, Laxus drove his tongue inside her wet mouth, tasting the alcohol, tasting her sweetness, feeling her tongue.
He sensed her wiggle slightly; asking for space and she brought her arms around his neck, then brushed the tips of her fingers through his hair, caressing the ends of the strands at the back of his head. He felt tingly from her soft touch and pressed his hips close to hers, taking in the wonderful sensation as he grinded his erection against her. Breaking off their kiss, Laxus moved his head downwards, trailing light kisses on her jaw up to the crook of her neck and licked it, making the girl whimper out a moan that he badly wanted to hear again and again.
Bending his arm, he moved his hand on her arm, gripping it tightly before brushing his rough palms on her skin up and down and reached for her breasts, groping it lightly, eliciting another moan from her. He wanted so damn baldy to just rip off her clothes and take her there without care in the word but she suddenly grabbed his head and started to kiss him in the mouth once again. Laxus directed his need to the kiss and started sucking her lower lip aggressively, drawing blood.
Lucy cried out in the pleasurable pain that she felt at the moment and suddenly bit his lip in return, making him pull away in surprise. He looked her and saw her lust-filled eyes, as he groaned out in frustration. He can almost imagine how wet she was down under but suddenly, the girl gasped at him with her eyes wide.
"Sorry." She said, breaking him out from the trance and reached towards his lips.
He felt his body shudder lightly when she brushed a finger on his lip and suddenly hissed from the light pain. When Lucy finally moved her finger, Laxus saw a bit of blood in it. He licked his lips and tasted blood. The damned vixen can actually bite. He grabbed Lucy's wrist that was in front of him and licked the blood off her finger.
"It's fine. Just a little cut."
"Yeah. Uh. We should probably go to sleep." Her voice was low and breathy.
He grunted in reply, still high from what they just did. "Yes. I think we probably should," He moved away from her and opened the door. "See you tomorrow, Blondie."
Neither of them said a word for a moment, as their thoughts took a trip back to what happened the night before they finally retreated back to their respective rooms. Laxus could tell from a single glance that the girl was bothered from what went on between them.
'What a great start.' He sarcastically thought to himself.
He could not decided whether or not to thank the damned lion spirit or curse him for making him go through such a difficult situation but he was also somewhat to blame. Now, how were they supposed to enjoy their trip later on to Akane Beach Resort without feeling uneasy just because of them almost doing 'it'? Laxus sighed and finished eating.
"Does it hurt?"
He looked at her and saw worry in her eyes.
"I mean the cut on your lip."
"Oh," he drank some water and wiped his mouth with a napkin and shook his head. "Nah. This is nothing compared to what I've been through."
Lucy hung head on the side, thinking what he could have meant by that before finally speaking again.
"Are the S-class missions really that hard?"
"Nothing's hard for me, Blondie," he said with a smirk, obviously putting one foot forward.
She smiled at him. "I went in once though, on an S-class mission, with Natsu."
Now, he was taken somewhat a back. As far as he can remember, the boy was not an S-class mage. He waited for her to continue and sensing this, Lucy laughed a bit.
"It was a long time ago. Natsu and Happy stole an S-class mission from the board at the second floor and I got dragged along since I was his partner. At first I really did not want to go with them because, well, they were obviously breaking the rules when Mira explained how S-class missions work but then I saw the additional reward of having the Gate Key to one of the Twelve Zodiacs so I got really tempted and before I knew it, we were on a boat to Galuna Island. I kind of knew that Natsu and Happy purposely left the flyer for the mission when I turned them down. I felt kind of stupid when I realized I fell right through the trap of a cat and an immature idiot."
Laxus nodded his head. "What was the mission about?"
Lucy thought for a moment. "I can't really remember much since a lot of things happened and the seven year time skipped fogged up my brain but apparently, the island was hunted and the people who put up the request seemed to be suffering from a curse. Some of their body parts were that of a demon's and then there was that ominous and creepy looking moon that everyone believed to be the cause why they were transforming. In the end, it turned out that Lyon, you know him right? Well, he was trying to resurrect Deliora so he could defeat the beast in order to surpass his and Gray's teacher."
As soon as Lucy slowly recalled the events that had happened, she started to remember what Gray had gone through that time. He almost sacrificed his life to freeze back Deliora but Natsu got in the way and stopped him. Being a beginner as a mage in a guild, Lucy also remembered the difficulty that she had gone through, fighting with the few number of spirits that she had at that time but she knew that her battle back then cannot compare to what Gray had experienced both physically and emotionally. Sensing that her thoughts were running about again, she mentally slapped herself and focused back to Laxus.
"Sounds like you had been through a lot, too, Blondie," he said. "But I figured that being around Natsu, you have to be prepared for anything. Whenever I see him he would be up to something troublesome with a flame inside his mouth. Heck, even I have no idea what is going on through that pea-sized brain of his."
Lucy laughed at his words and received a smile from him. That took away the tricky moment that they had just a little while ago.
"Well, we should probably go. Don't want to miss the train."
Lucy nodded and grinned at him, willing to forgo with her want to confront him about what happened. "In that case, I'm all fired up!"
Finally back at the guild, Gray reported his mission as success. He had planned to split the reward with Juvia since she also helped him with the job but the Rain Woman insisted that he take all of the reward since he was the one who took the request and she just kind of helped. Not wanting to argue with her, he decided to accept the money and they went back to Magnolia. The Water Mage, as usual, decided to go straight home, and Gray, after making sure that Juvia really went home, he went directly to the request board to snatch up another mission, this time, determined to go by himself.
"Yo, Mira."
The barmaid looked up to him and smiled as he sat on the bar and ordered a drink. Looking around, he was glad that there were only a few people inside the guild at that time.
"How's the mission?" She asked, handing him his drink.
"It's fine. Where's Natsu?"
The older woman thought for a moment as she proceeded to wipe the glasses on the sink. "He told me he would be out for the day fishing with Happy."
Gray smiled at her and quickly finished his drink before placing the mission flyer on the table. "Great. I'm taking another one."
"Eh? Won't you rest for a while? Maybe you can take it tomorrow instead."
The Ice Make mage shook his head. "Nah. I'd rather go now. I don't want Natsu to get in the way and go home with a deducted reward."
"If that's what you want then." Wiping her hands clean with a towel, Mira took out the stamp and approved the mission that he took after reading it. The boy did not waste a minute to get it from her and walked away in gratitude.
"Be careful, Gray." Mira called out to him who, in turn, waved his hand up in the air and exited through the door.
He wanted to be away from anyone as much as possible, not with his thoughts in turmoil. He did something stupid again and he wondered what was going to happen by the time he comes back at the guild. He was really tired but he figured that he could take a little rest on the train. Buying a ticket for one, he boarded the train just in time for departure. His luck seems to be walking in a different path and not where he wanted it to run.
Hearing the usual whistle as a sign of departure, Gray sank on the two-seater bench of the train compartment all to himself. He leaned on his head on the window to relax his stiff muscles and waited for sleep to come and take his stress away but his thoughts kept him awake. He did not want to remember what happened.
It took them almost one whole day to finish the entire mission. Gray inwardly cursed, knowing that Juvia was mainly the reason why the job dragged on but he did not want to offend the girl by telling her off so he decided to keep it to himself. After they got out from the mayor's office and after getting their reward, it was almost dark and the last train back to Magnolia had already left 30 minutes ago. He badly wanted to get home but seeing that it was no longer possible, they decided to check in at a nearby inn so they could directly head out to the train station by the next morning.
During the whole time, from dinner onwards, Juvia mostly kept her mouth shut and Gray did not particularly mind since he was in no mood to talk. He just felt off for some reasons, especially after remembering the whole deal with Lucy. As soon as he was back in his room, he decided to take a cold bath and went straight to bed but then he heard a knock on the door.
"Gray-sama? Are you still awake? Can Juvia come in?"
Gray groaned and wondered what could she possibly want at this hour. He sat up, turned on the lights and opened the door. The Water Mage, dressed in her sleeping clothes, went inside the room.
"What do you want?" He tried so hard not to sound rude.
"Juvia just wanted to ask Gray-sama if he's okay. Juvia knows it's none of her business but if there's something bothering Gray-sama, Juvia is here to listen." The Rain woman said with her usual timid voice.
"And what makes you think that there is something that is bothering me?"
"That's because Juvia knows Gray-sama well. Juvia has been observing Gray-sama for a long time that's why Juvia knows if Gray-sama is feeling well or not."
"Damn." He muttered under his breath walked towards the foot of the bed and sat there. Juvia followed after him and planted herself beside him.
"Gray-sama? If you don't mind Juvia asking, did something happen between you and Lucy-san?"
Gray looked at her, flabbergasted. Just what the hell is going on through her head? Lucy again. Lucy this, Lucy that. It's the same thing at the guild.
"Nothing happened, Juvia, and why did you think that?"
"Well, it's because I heard that Lucy-san suddenly left the guild and that Gray-sama decided to take on this mission alone when he could have gone with Natsu-san after hearing that Lucy-san was away."
He only sighed. Of course, she would think that. "No. Nothing happened between Lucy and me, and this has got nothing to do with her."
"If Gray-sama says so."
At last.
Just when he thought he was off the hook for the night, the girl beside him did not move nor showed any signs of leaving.
"Is there something else?" he asked her, trying to fast forward everything.
"Gray-sama, do you have someone you like?"
What the hell? Does he really need to deal with this? He should have made her go home when he had the chance earlier.
"No."
"Then why won't Gray-sama look at Juvia? Is there something wrong with Juvia?"
"Look, Juvia, I know you're tired and I'm also tired. Get some rest and we'll talk in the morning."
Juvia stood up but she went in front of him and kneeled down so they were face to face.
"Sorry, Gray-sama but Juvia really wants to know. When will Gray-sama look at Juvia as a woman and not as a friend or as a guild mate? I know that you already told Juvia that Gray-sama just doesn't see her that way but still, Juvia is hoping that maybe, one day, Gray-sama will give her the chance."
"Juvia." Gray warned, agitated.
Juvia only shook her head and Gray could almost see that she was trying hard to be honest with her feelings for him once again. She just never stops. When will she ever learn?
"I know Gray-sama likes Lucy-san. I can see it in his eyes. That's why Juvia knows that Lucy-san is her love-rival even if Lucy-san would always deny it."
"You're wrong, Juvia."
What. The. Hell.
This was too much. Where did she get this whole idea between him and Lucy? For all he knows Lucy likes Natsu but thinking back, why would the girl even sleep with him, much less give her first to him, when she likes that Flame-Brained idiot? Nah, it was just because she was smashed that time. Yes. That's it. It was all thanks to the mighty alcohol, making people do things that they were bound to regret later on but seeing the look on the blue-haired girl's face, she was not buying it.
Then it made him think, does he like Lucy? Hell no. Just as he said, she's a friend for god's sake and she's almost like a sister to him. Sure, he thought of her as interesting and cute and not to mention her gorgeous body that's to die for but that's about it and Natsu seemed to have placed first dibs on her but the idiot was such a dense fool to even realize it. Gray sighed in resignation. He just wanted to get on and over this.
"What do I have to do to make you stop?"
The girl looked nervously at him for a moment but then cleared her throat, her face reddening.
"Just one night, Gray-sama. That is all that Juvia is asking from Gray-sama. Just give Juvia a try and if you still don't feel anything for Juvia then… then Juvia will leave Gray-sama alone."
"What do you mean?" Of course he knew what the girl means but he didn't want some confusion to happen so he had make sure he got the message loud and clear.
"Sleep with me, Gray-sama."
He froze for a moment after hearing her words but it wasn't Juvia's voice that he heard. It was Lucy's and that night came to him again. He heard her voice again, it was louder and it was clearer. It rang inside his ears and shot through his heart. It was Lucy's voice, Lucy's words.
"Sleep with me, Gray."
And that's when he lost control.
TBC
So, what do you guys think?
Is it bad?
Thanks for the reviews and all! I appreciate everything guys.
Please don't forget to R&R and I'll see you all on the next chapter!
