I had originally intended for Friday updates, but this is coming out on Saturday more often than not, so I'd say be prepared for either Friday or Saturday. Also, thank you to those of you who left reviews. I like reviews. It makes this feel less like I'm screaming into the void.

Levy had just about zero experience with being in the halls during class hours. Okay, she had exactly zero experience with being in the halls during class hours. Until now, that is.

"What if we get caught?" She impatiently looked over both her shoulders. "I don't want any of the teachers starting to think we're hooligans or troublemakers."

"You don't want them starting to think you're a troublemaker. They already know I'm a troublemaker," Gajeel said, smirking down at Levy.

"Haha, you're hilarious. But I'm serious, Gajeel, what if we get caught?"

"Relax, shorty, there's hardly any teachers out in the halls around this time. They're all in class, remember?" Gajeel replied.

"Where are we even going?"

"Don't know. Doesn't really matter."

"Well if we're not going anywhere then why did you insist on leaving?"

"I like to stretch my legs when I get the chance. I hate sitting still at those stupid desk chairs all day. Makes me antsy."

"Well if you don't have anywhere to go I could show you where the library is. That way you'll know for when we meet up to study, and if we do get caught outside of class we'll at least look like good students."

"Sounds fine with me," Gajeel shrugged, shoving his hands in his pockets.

"I'll lead the way, then." Levy bounded forward through the halls with Gajeel just behind her.

Gajeel watched as Levy's choppy blue hair bounced along in her wake, swooping around every corner and swaying with her short, perky steps. He swore he could smell marshmallows, and he bet it was coming from her.

'So cute,' He thought to himself, smirking.

"Why do you do that?" Gajeel asked.

"Hmm?" Levy looked up to meet Gajeel's eyes.

"You always worry about what people think."

"I just don't want to be branded some sort of troublemaker, is all. I'm a good student, I don't want to start getting in trouble half way through high school."

"Then you may want to reconsider who you're wanderin' around with next time you cut class," He said, smirking down at her.

Levy pouted at him, hating his use of the phrase 'skipping class,' but she could feel the blush begin to rise to her cheeks. She looked straight ahead of her in hopes that Gajeel wouldn't notice. She wasn't going to pretend she couldn't see that he was attractive in a rough and tumble sort of way. She just...wasn't going to tell anyone. Ever. She was really awkward about things like this, and there was no way a guy like him who fixed cars and enjoyed skipping class would find too great an interest in a mousey little bookworm like her. Which was fine. She was content just being friends.

Gajeel smirked seeing his friend blush. Levy was a weird little thing. If he was honest with himself, she fascinated him. He had nearly sent her to the hospital when he first met her, and not he was almost as close to her as he was with Juvia, who he'd been close with for years. He frowned, remembering what had happened between them during the summer before his junior year of high school.

Levy, Jet, and Droy were walking back to Levy's house one Saturday Night. They had been spending the day studying for finals and went to the corner store for snacks and soda. It was an innocent enough trip until the walk home. They turned onto a side road lit only by a few streetlights. At the base of one of those lights was a group of five ruffians. Upon hearing footsteps, all five of them immediately looked up and stared at the three friends. There was one boy who loomed over all the others, a miserable looking girl, a boy with a thick line tattooed across his face, and a boy who looked too skinny to have all his organs and ribs intact. Leaning gruffly against the lamppost was a boy with piercings all over his face and arms whose red eyes were staring directly at Levy.

Gajeel.

Levy slowed to a cautious stop as Jet and Droy stepped protectively in front of her. Gajeel smirked at how obviously intimidated the three were being. Honestly, it was like they were asking to get jumped, really. Gajeel stepped forward and jumped into something with his buddies that he would end up regretting for the rest of his life. He hadn't meant for it to get as far as it did. The five of them circled Jet, Droy, and Levy. They tossed around insults and started shoving in what they saw as a playful manner. It wasn't long before things got way out of hand. Gajeel knew it was wrong, but he let it all happen anyway. That's who he was then. His school wasn't in the best shape, his home life was falling apart, and the top guns at Phantom Lord School wanted him around so yeah, he took it. He couldn't see until later that they didn't give two shits about who he was, they only cared that he was strong and looked like he could probably kill you. So when his buddies went in on those three random teenagers none of them even knew Gajeel joined in. It wasn't until they all heard the girl scream out in pain that everything stopped. She hit the ground hard. Everything had been such a mess that no one saw exactly who had hit her or what happened, but there were bruises all over her skin and blood was beginning to seep through her shirt. Her two friends rushed to her side as Gajeel's friends fled the scene before anyone else could see. Gajeel was screaming at himself to get as far away as possible, but he couldn't seem to make himself move. As he stared down at Levy, this girl who he didn't even know and had just helped to injure who knows how badly, realization ran rampant through his mind. This was who he was. He was the kind of guy that beat up outnumbered and unsuspecting strangers for shits and giggles and then wanted to run away when things got serious. He felt like he was going to be sick.

He was snapped out of his realization when he felt his friend Juvia tugging at his arm. She hadn't touched the fight after it started getting physical. She'd yell and cuss at anyone she saw fit to, but Juvia didn't get into fights unless it mattered.

The five didn't end up getting in trouble. No one had seen their faces except for Jet, Droy, and Levy. Jet, Droy, and all their parents had wanted to contact the police, but Levy just wanted to forget the whole thing and move on. Everyone agreed not to get the police involved, but Jet and Droy had made it their personal responsibility to make sure everyone at FTA knew just who had hurt Levy.

Gajeel went to Juvia after two days of skipping school and brooding alone in his bedroom and told her he couldn't be a part of that life anymore. He didn't want to be the guy that made people cry in pain if they didn't deserve it, he wanted to be the guy who helps protect those who don't deserve it. He wanted to care about something for once s maybe he could stop hating everything. Gajeel hated who he was. Juvia said she knew a boy at FTA who suggested she transfer, and she asked Gajeel to go with her. When he walked through the doors on the first day of junior year, the first thing he saw was Levy hiding behind her two best friends as a number of students lashed out in anger that he had been allowed to attend. The two locked eyes and Gajeel felt a sharp pang of self-loathing stronger than he'd felt in years. Being at Phantom made him push it to the back of his mind, but seeing those big brown eyes staring at him like that reminded him just how much he hated himself. The bastard they all hated was the bastard he hated too.

"Hey!" Levy's voice broke through Gajeel's unpleasant memories.

"Hmm?" He looked down at her and met her eyes. He had spent a lot of time looking at Levy's eyes. Any chance he got he searched for signs of the fear he saw in them when he first entered FTA, but he hasn't seen it there in almost a year. Levy had forgiven him. She had welcomed him. She had befriended him. She was so kind and gentle to everyone, and when no one was willing to talk to him she gave him a speck of hope that someday he could change. Gajeel had never told anyone this, and he wasn't sure he ever would, but she was the reason he was able to change. She was one of the only people to have seen any of what he was like during his time at Phantom, yet she still saw the good in him. He wanted to be someone who was worthy of having a friend like her.

"Are you okay, Gajeel? You looked really upset about something."

Gajeel smiled down at her. "Nah, I'm all right."

"Are you sure? Because you can tell me of something's wrong."

Gajeel snickered and ruffled Levy's hair. "I know that, shrimp. I'm fine, really. I was just thinking about some stuff is all."

Levy groaned at her rumpled hair but made no more attempts to ask Gajeel what was wrong. She knew exactly what he had been thinking about. Juvia told her how bent up he still is about what had happened between them. It broke Levy's heart to know that he still lets himself be haunted by that.

Suddenly, Gajeel froze in place. Levy took a step or two further before realizing he'd stopped and looking back at him.

"What's wrong?" She asked.

In the space of about a second, Gajeel grabbed Levy's hand, pulled her into the nearest storage closet, and shut the door quietly. Inside he held Levy in place by the waist and held a hand over her mouth.

"Hey, what's going on?" Came Levy's muffled voice from beneath Gajeel's fingerless gloves. "What are you doing?"

Gajeel leaned into her ear and whispered: "Someone was coming, sounded like a teacher."

The warmth of Gajeel's voice against her ear sent a shiver down Levy's spine that, of course, he felt thanks to how close they were in the cramped closet. Gajeel bit back a snicker as he flashed the girl a mischievous smirk. Levy blushed feverishly as she scowled at the older boy. She bit his hand and he retracted it with a soft yelp.

"I can stay quiet if I know what's going on," She whispered.

Gajeel looked away, hoping Levy didn't notice his ears getting red, and placed his now free hand on the other side of her waist. Levy's arms had been caught in front of her and her hands rested on the front of Gajeel's white button down. The two watched between the slats of the shade on the small window as the teacher that had approached handed out a detention slip to another student she had found in the hall.

"I told you this was a bad idea," Levy whispered.

"I thought you said you could be quiet," Gajeel whispered back.

As the teacher left the two waited for a few moments longer then emerged from the closet.

"Next time, don't even bother asking me to leave class early," Levy said pointing sharply into Gajeel's chest, "Because I am not doing that again."

She turned and continued off toward the library.

'So damn cute,' Gajeel thought as he began to follow her once more.