Abyss: Chapter 12
Gajeel had carried her into town, demanding entry to the large estate that housed the man who had placed the job team Shadow Gear took. He was shown to a guest room almost immediately upon seeing the battered Levy in his arms, though the collector had given him a suspicious glare and a sniff. Gajeel had glared right back at him. To hell with people and their assumptions of his character based on his looks. Knowing time was of the essence to get back to Jet and Droy, Gajeel placed Levy onto the sprawling bed in the bedroom. She awoke as soon as she left his arms.
Levy panicked as she was placed on the bed and opened her eyes to see Gajeel leaving the room quickly. Before she could say anything he was gone, the door clicking shut behind him. She huffed a sigh, then relaxed, trusting that he was probably leaving to find her comrades. Before long, the soft comforter and mattress of the bed lulled her back into a peaceful sleep, sucking her down into its white and fluffy depths.
It didn't take long for Gajeel to convince some workers at the estate to help him tie up loose ends. Then men were probably too afraid to reject, assuming he'd pummel them if they did. Jet and Droy were taken to the hospital in Hargeon to receive treatment for their poisoning and Audrick was handed over to the Magic Council.
Gajeel returned to the estate the next morning with the artifact in tow. He had found it tucked away in the cave Levy had been held in. While he was snooping around he had found traces of Levy's blood all over the cave floor. It rekindled the anger in him towards the ex-Phantom Lord member. It seemed he had tried to use Levy to get back at Gajeel for being the catalyst in breaking apart Phantom Lord. As he walked out of the cave he thought on that. Being closer to her meant that she would be at more risk of things like this happening; Gajeel's past coming to bite him in the ass and she would continue to be at risk of being used against him. Was it worth the risk? Was he willing to jeopardize her safety so he could be friends with her? He knew that once she let him in, he wouldn't be able to let her out of his sight and he was more than capable of protecting her. You're no better than I am. Audricks words echoed in his mind. Sure, the him of the past wasn't any better. But he was different now. He wanted to be different. And he would be there to protect Levy from this moment on. Instead of using his power to hurt people, he'd use it to protect her and all of Fairy Tail. It was the least he could do; it's what he wanted to do.
He'd handed the artifact back to the collector, although the man refused to pay him the reward. He'd simply shrugged and walked away towards the room where he had left Levy the night before. He opened the door quietly and was shocked to see her still lying where he'd left her and even more surprised that she was still tattered and torn up. Had no one come to check on her? He scowled darkly and stalked from the room. After a heated discussion he shortly returned to the room thereafter with a bowl of warm water and bandages.
Levy woke slowly when she heard shuffling in the room. Her left eye opened more readily now and her hazel hues rested upon Gajeel sitting on the edge of the bed by her head.
"Oy," he grinned down at her and she couldn't help the smile that crept across her lips.
She moved to sit up then and Gajeel shifted to give her some space, his arms suddenly crossing his chest as his expression changed to a scowl. Levy gulped.
"Why'd you turn away the nurse, pipsqueak?" He growled low.
Ignoring the not so endearing nickname she crossed her own arms and lifted her chin in defiance.
"Because I do not want anyone else fussing over me. I will shower and clean up myself when I am good and ready." She huffed, and just to prove her point she moved to slip off of the bed, but her legs betrayed her and she began to fall forward. Gajeel reached out and caught her arm easily, gently pulling her back up. He didn't let his hold go until Levy looked to meet his gaze. He looked nervous and slightly amused at her display. He stood then and lifted her up under her arms like a child and placed her back down on the bed. Levy huffed indignantly and her cheeks blushed with what he assumed was embarrassment. She was so stubborn.
He stood over her then, finally letting go of her. "Let me fuss over you."
Levy's breath caught in her chest and she couldn't help but lift her eyes to meet his gaze. He smiled easily, the sight of it sending shivers through her body. She felt a hot blush staining her cheeks.
"That's what…friends do for each other, right?" The Dragon Slayer asked. Levy was too awestruck to respond with words. Instead she nodded faintly and watched as he stepped closer to her, leaning so close she could feel his breath against her cheek. She felt like she was about to faint. Then she felt his fingers brush the skin of her shoulders as he grabbed the jacket he had loaned her last night and gave it a few gentle tugs to pull it down off of her arms, revealing the cuts and abrasions.
After the initial butterflies of being so close to him and once her skin stopped tingling every time his fingers brushed against her, Levy began to relax and managed to restrain from giggling as she watched his facial expression. He was concentrating hard, his brows furrowed and his lips pulled down in a scowl as he worked on gingerly cleaning her wounds and dressing them with bandages. It was endearing and she felt more of that warmth growing for him as it had the day she had watched him with Kosuke.
Suddenly thinking of her little brother she groaned softly, causing Gajeel to pause in his ministrations and look at her. His gaze was suddenly intense. Worrying that he had misinterpreted the noise as pain he may have caused her, she quickly explained herself.
"Kosuke is probably worried sick about me." The intensity of his gaze didn't relax though, and she watched as he leaned back away from her, clearing his throat quietly.
Gajeel had been walking a fine line inside himself. He was not prepared for the feelings in his body that came alive once he started cleaning and bandaging Levy. He struggled to reason with himself as he worked slowly. He'd touched her before, but not like this. The times his fingers brushed her flesh had sent sudden jolts of heat through him and he tried his best to ignore it as it built up in his belly. He'd never felt these sensations before and it scared him; he was scared of what it meant. He wasn't so dense as to not feel the friction in the air between them initially, though Levy's seemed to subside. At one point he fought the sudden urge to kiss her; the urge to brand her with his lips. He had swallowed hard, pausing for a split second to recompose himself. What the hell? He growled in his thoughts. Kissing was certainly not something friends did. Then she had groaned, the noise almost pushing him over the edge. He had to move away from her before he did something that they both would regret.
"He's home and doing just fine." He finally managed, his voice sounding a little strained. "Him and I had some discussions and decided it was not like you to take this long on a mission, so I promised him that I would come to check on you."
Levy smiled brightly then, dazzling Gajeel. He'd made her smile more than once now and it made him feel good. He'd never imagine in a million years that he'd be making her smile like that so soon. But then, Levy was just that kind of person.
"Besides," he continued a little more easily with his thoughts distracted away from his previous desire, "Kosuke and I both had little faith in your two team mates to help you get the job done."
Levy gasped then, guilt and worry washing over her face as she suddenly tried to bolt towards the door. How could she forget about them so easily? Gajeel caught her shoulders and shoved her back down, keeping his hands there until her eyes met his.
"They're fine. I took them to the hospital. They're being treated for poisoning and will be recovered in no time." Levy relaxed slightly, but the guilt was still there.
"We'll go visit them later, alright? Just let me finish taking care of you first."
Gajeel continued with his task, having had the chance to rid himself of his devilish thoughts. He'd have to be a little more careful about getting too close to her physically in the future.
"Thank you," Levy's quiet voice broke his thoughts. She was smiling faintly and looking down, suddenly embarrassed to meet his gaze.
"Any time, shrimp." He grinned. Again with the not so flattering nick names. Ohwell, Levy thought. It was cute in Gajeel's own way.
