Gajeel said nothing as he made his way to the pet store in silence apart from the music being played in the car. He had almost forgotten entirely that Levy was even there until he pulled into the parking lot and heard her unbuckle her seat belt. Deciding he enjoyed the quiet, Gajeel got out and walked into the store not turning to see if she was following after him or not.
Once inside he saw that there were a lot of different pet items for way more pets then he thought that people owned. Even so he quickly found the section devoted to cats and strolled over to it.
"Your going to need more then that you know"
Gajeel scowled as he heard Levy behind him as he was only holding litter and a box.
"I know that..." Yeah like I've never watched a single piece of media where someone has had to take care of an animal before. "I may have never taken care of anything before myself but I still know...some" he said somewhat more exasperatedly then normal. Keep it up Pipsqueak, I'll make you regret it later.
"Hey I'm not calling you stupid here I just want to make sure that this poor thing isn't going to be mistreated,...sounds like he's had it hard enough as it is...so you know...thanks I guess for taking him in and everything"
Well that wasn't a roller coaster trip or anything. "Yeah whatever, let's just get what we need and go." Okay does she actually care about me or am I going crazy right now?! This is not what I signed up for. Hard core fucking and then dumping, nothing more, fucking and dumping. Gajeel repeated this to himself trying to keep himself on track feeling that his plans were being derailed. Get the shit, go home, and then start putting the moves on her. You can do this, focus.
After his pep talk to himself Gajeel felt better and was able to reaffirm to himself why he was even bothering with all of this nonsense. It will all be worth it to listen to her screaming my name. He shifted what he was already holding so he could pick up the biggest bag of cat food sold and then turned and walked towards the counter to pay for it all.
"Just get a new little one?" the cashier, apparently named Sarah, asked with more pep then Gajeel wanted to deal with at that moment.
Gruffly he answered with a noncommittal grunt, indicating how much he wanted to talk about this subject.
"Aright that will be $32.87" she said with a wide smile.
This girl can't be getting paid enough to be this happy. Gajeel rolled his eyes and then reached into his back pocket for his wallet when a small voice behind him made him stop.
"Wait, this too"
He turned to see that she had added a pile of what seemed to be cat toys onto the counter, and not a small pile at that.
"You know for when your at school and he's home all alone."
Gajeel opened his mouth to object but found that he couldn't looking down at her. After watching her tuck a piece of her hair behind her ear innocently he sighs then hands the cashier a card, his only answer "Don't tell me how much"
On the way to the store Levy seized the opportunity to eye up the inside of his car in more detail, at times unable to control her excitement. Unfortunately it was all over too soon since the drive over wasn't that long. She made quiet promises to the dash that she would be back in a moment but still exited begrudgingly. Once she got out she looked over the top of the car to where she imagined Gajeel would be however couldn't find him. After panning the parking lot Levy spotted him already far head of her and jogged to catch up with him. When she did catch up she found him in the store holding only a box and some litter.
"Your going to need more then that you know" Like you know at least some food, plus some toys for him to play with while your gone all day.
"I know that..." Your the one who said you fed him leftover steak!
"I may have never taken care of anything before myself but I still know...some"
"Hey I'm not calling you stupid here I just want to make sure that this poor thing isn't going to be mistreated,...sounds like he's had it hard enough as it is...so you know...thanks I guess for taking him in and everything" half way through she hung her head and scuffed her shoe on the floor knowing that she was being odd but unable to help herself around him it seemed.
"Yeah whatever, let's just get what we need and go"
Levy looked up in time to see that he had grabbed only a bag of food. "But...wait" she said though she knows he probably didn't hear her. Determined to see that the feline was properly taken care of she took it upon herself to pick out some playthings for it.
"Aright that will be $32.87"
Hearing the cashier state the total Levy quickly rushed over with her choices. "Wait, this too" she said softly not trying to force him but wanting the cat to be happy.
After placing everything down she turns to look up at Gajeel expectantly. "You know for when your at school and he's home all alone." Suddenly embarrassed to have him looking at her so intensely she tucks some of her hair behind her ear and looks away.
Levy hears him sigh then say "Don't tell me how much" which causes her to smile. He's not so bad after all.
The car ride to his place was much longer then the ride to the pet store. After ten minutes of silence Levy couldn't take it anymore. "How come you go to Fairy Tail High when we've passed at least three other schools?"
"No reason."
"Well there has to be cause we just passed Phantom Lord High-ew-and we're still not at your house." Needless to say Phantom Lord High were the bitter rivals of Fairy Tail taking every event sporting or otherwise way too far in the name of winning.
"Well then you can shut up cause we're here now"
"Oh?" she quieted as she gazed at the surrounding area, sure it wasn't an affluent area but it wasn't the slums either like she had half expected. He had parked in a communal lot and then was walking off towards a group of houses in front of them. She half walked half jogged to catch up with him continuing to take in the new environment around her. It could be a lot worse actually, I'm kinda surprised...how do his parents afford this and school?
The sound of a door unlocking turned her focus in front of her again as she watched him swing open a red door to a black house. Her interest peaked at the thought of being in a guy's house for the first time, it's going to be cluttered, dirty, and disgusting just like boys are. However the sight that fell before her eyes was everything but. On the left wall was a living area of sorts, clean albeit sparse and then on the right wall of the same room a small kitchen or perhaps a kitchenette depending on who you asked.
"Well make yourself at home, I'll go get the stuff out of the car"
"What? Oh sure,...thanks." Gajeel's voice had startled her slightly out of her train of thought. This isn't what I expected, especially out of someone who looks like they could eat metal for breakfast.
Before she could make up her mind about doing anything her eye noticed a black blur over by the kitchen. It seemed Gajeel had left a window open that the feline took advantage of to come and go as it pleased. "Well at least it came back, and hopefully he took care of business while he was outside too." She shuttered to think about walking into a room to find that on the floor.
"While I was outside what?"
"Oh no, I was talking about the cat, it seemed he got out while you were at school but just came back in. So...you know...hopefully he was able to relieve himself...outside and everything" Levy replied hoping that he understood what she was saying without having to spell it out.
"I'll have to make sure I close that window from now on then I guess. He has everything he needs here now anyway. So how about I start making dinner, you got anything in mind?"
"Wait you can cook?" For some reason this more then anything else that day had come as the biggest surprise. "Every time I try I wind up burning whatever it is" Probably cause I get caught up reading one thing or another but still! Eggs couldn't be that difficult...right? She noticed he was still waiting for an answer and so thought of something hurriedly "Umm... spaghetti would be easy enough right?"
"Gihihihihi, oh don't you worry Shrimp I'll make you something a little better then that."
Levy puffed her cheeks out indignantly, I hate it when he calls me that same for all of the other nicknames too. "Fine then, make whatever you want, I'll just sit here and wait"
Gajeel had almost made it home without anymore of her questions and was going to count himself lucky when a voice piped up to the side of him.
"How come you go to Fairy Tail High when we've passed at least three other schools?"
"No reason." He answered gruffly, you know just since my parents left me I've given everyone hell so now no school wants to deal with me.
"Well there has to be cause we just passed Phantom Lord High-ew-and we're still not at your house." He rolled his eyes at her display of school pride something that he could never understand no matter where he went.
"Well then you can shut up cause we're here now" Gajeel replied not caring to answer any questions too personal, an all too common occurrence around her.
"Oh?"
He got out of the car and made his way to unlock the door for her to let her inside. He turned his head to look back at her and became acutely aware of just how much she was scrutinizing her surroundings. He let his mind wonder only for a moment thinking what she thought if it all and then quickly pushed away the notion and opened the door. Again he watched as she seemed to eye every new detail and didn't care to stick around to see her disapproval, not that it matters.
Before she could start making small talk Gajeel turned and walked out back towards the car saying "Well make yourself at home, I'll go get the stuff out of the car" as he left.
Quickly he gathered up all of the bags and then came back inside hearing the tail end of what she was muttering "-while he was outside too."
"While I was outside what?" he grumbled, if you have something to say then say it.
"Oh no, I was talking about the cat, it seemed he got out while you were at school but just came back in. So...you know...hopefully he was able to relieve himself...outside and everything"
"I'll have to make sure I close that window from now on then I guess. He has everything he needs here now anyway" And more with all these fucking toys. "Anyway how about I start making dinner, you got anything in mind?" Time to get you and me in bed back on track.
"Wait you can cook? Every time I try I wind up burning whatever it is"
Gajeel snorted and tried to keep from laughing, entertained thinking of her running around the kitchen frantically trying to put out a fire.
"Umm... spaghetti would be easy enough right?"
At this he burst out laughing having to hold his sides in pain. "Gihihihihi, oh don't you worry Shrimp I'll make you something a little better then that." After a moment or two he finally regained his composure and opened the fridge to start cooking his signature meal, the one that can get me any woman I want on their back.
"Fine then, make whatever you want, I'll just sit here and wait"
Gajeel chuckled to himself then started making the required preparations for the meal, starting with taking out a big bag of rice from a cabinet. He took a large portion and set it in a bowl to soak. Noticing her look of confusion he answered her unvoiced question "It keeps the rice from getting mushy." She didn't say anything instead swiftly turned her back towards him. This made him smile for some reason, a smile which held as he continued to cook. All the while he made sure to keep notice of her slowly drifting closer and closer towards the kitchen where he had many different pots and pans set up. Each time he would say something like "Want to stir?" or perhaps "Here add this to that pot" however each time he did she quickly scampered away to her seat to pretend she wasn't watching. Once he was almost finished and she was standing right beside him he grabbed her and trapped her between his arms.
"Gajeel! What are you doing?!"
"I am not going to do anything, you are going to prepare this Shrimp, Shrimp." Usually he served some type of red meat with his dish but decided somewhere along the way that he would change it. He kept her pinned in place with his body then gently took her hands from behind "First we're going to take off the heads okay?"
"NO! Come on! Please don't make me do this! I don't to take off something's head!"
More violently now she tried to escape but Gajeel was a giant compared to her and simply pressed her into the counter. "You're not going anywhere until I say so. Now look, its already dead, you can't hurt it, and its really simple" After giving her a moment to accept defeat he picked up a shrimp and slowly peeled back the shell, the head coming off in the process. "See? Easy, now you try."
"Fine, but just one okay?"
After he nodded he watched as she poorly but successfully took off the shell and head of a shrimp.
"Okay you can let me go now"
"Not until you finish"
"Finish!? I just took its head off what more do you want me to do to the poor thing?!"
"Gihihi, you have to devein it as well, see? Like this" He picked up a small knife in reach and masterfully made two small cuts into the body taking the vein out in one piece "And then some people take off the tail as well" Gajeel mentioned as he made another quick motion to remove the tail. He turned the knife over so he was giving her the handle "Now you."
True to his word after she finished he backed up to release her from her confines even so she continued to work through the rest of the shrimp. He was surprised but allowed himself to watch her for a moment even letting out a contented sigh. Distracted from cooking he noticed something since he was so close to Levy, she smelled really good. He had noticed in the past but was never this close to her for this long before. Citrus was the dominating smell he picked up on prior probably from her shampoo now he smelled something more though, "Vanilla."
"Vanilla what?"
"Hmmm? Oh, nothing" Gajeel answered quickly then grabbed the clean shrimp, cooked them, and finished making dinner for the two of them. He put everything on the small kitchen table for two and then sat down across from Levy. As he opened his mouth to invite her to start eating a knock sounded at the door.
"Are you expecting someone?"
"No, just ignore it and eat" he replied, he never got visitors or solicitors either. They knew better then to try and bother him by this point and so just avoided the area entirely. However just as he was about to dig into his food for the second time a voice called out accompanied by even more knocking at the door.
"Gajeel, come on now let me in!"
(A/N: That's going to be it for now, as I have started up school again this week but I've also been trying to get this chapter out for over a month now and its finally done so yay! Thank you all for your patience and assistance plus your words of encouragement thus far, they have been so helpful in getting me to the point where I am now. So enjoy the chapter and speculate who's at the door! MWAHAHA)