While in the middle of the previous chapter, I got the inspiration for another Gajevy AU! As always, please leave a review after reading! Thank you!

I first met her beneath the lamppost on Third Street, a few feet away from the bus stop. Even though summer had only just ended, the rain that trickled down my neck into the back of my shirt was cold. My roommate Juvia had warned me that it was going to rain that day, but I'd been adamant that I'd checked the weather forecast and there was only a thirty percent chance of rain, so I didn't need an umbrella. I cursed myself for not listening to her as the cold rain plastered my hair to the back of my head.

"Hey, are you cold?" I heard a soft voice say from behind me. I turned to see a short, blue-haired girl, a yellow raincoat cinched tightly around her and clad in bright red rain boots that perfectly matched her large umbrella."Do you want to share my umbrella? I'm waiting for bus four, so I'll be here for a while," she offered. I nodded and the girl moved closer, holding her umbrella up so it could go above my head. Or at least she tried to; she was a bit too short, so I took the umbrella and held it myself. She seemed content with the arrangement.

"This umbrella's pretty big for a little person like you," I commented, thinking that the diameter of the thing couldn't be much smaller than the girl was tall. She gave a tinkling laugh, the kind you would imagine a fairy might have.

"Oh, well, I don't like getting wet very much," she replied, motioning to her raincoat and boots. I laughed and nodded. "My name's Levy," she continued, looping her thumbs through the straps on her backpack. "I go to school at Magnolia University. Do you go there?"

I nodded. "Name's Gajeel. And yeah, I'm a sophomore here," I replied. She beamed at me.

"Really? I just started this fall, but I really like it here! I bet you can't guess my major!" she teased. I looked her over carefully.

"Hmm, I'm thinking maybe literature, or playwriting?" I guessed. Her cheeks puffed out in indignation.

"Hey, how'd you get it right? I'm double-majoring in both!" she huffed, her arms crossing her chest. Her hazel eyes scanned my face. "Well I suppose now I have to guess your major, huh?" She thought about it for a second, then held up a finger. "I know! You're definitely a music major!" she declared. I laughed and shook my head.

"Not even close; I'm studying history. I mean, I'm learning how to play guitar, but I've been told I'm pretty bad at it," I corrected her. She simply laughed good-naturedly.

"Well, I suppose I can't always be right! What do you want to do with your degree? I'm not sure what I'm going to do, but I really want to write scripts for movies some day!" she exclaimed, her eyes sparkling with excitement.

I smirked at her, shrugging my shoulders. "I'm hoping to do research on different country's mythology. I've a particular interest in dragon mythology, personally, but I want to study all of it. Maybe write a book or something about it if I feel like it." The girl positively beamed at me.

"You like to write too? That's wonderful! We should meet up and write together sometime!" she suggested, a blinding smile plastered on her face. She bounced on the balls of her feet, grinning up at me like that, and I felt an odd sort of twang in my chest.

"Er, yeah, sure," I replied awkwardly, the feeling in my chest making me uncomfortable. "If you're comfortable with that, I mean."

"Of course!" she giggled. "I live in Lotus Hall; there's a big commons area in the basement, we could meet there!"

"I'm in Lotus, too. Second floor," was my reply. She clapped her hands happily.

"I'm on third floor! Small world, huh? Oh, I like your piercings, by the way. Very tough-looking!" she chimed, pointing to the metal studs lining my brow. My hand lifted to touch them self-consciously.

"Really? I've been told they make me look scary," I mentioned. It was true; most of the girls at high school had steered clear of me because of them. Levy just shook her head.

"Nope, they just look super tough and cool!" Her grin was contagious, and I could feel the corner of my mouth twitching upwards. Luckily, I was saved from doing something embarrassing by my bus pulling up.

"Oh hey, this is mine," I told her, handing back her umbrella. "You're not going back to your dorm?" She shook her head, laughing.

"I'm going to the library! Oh, wait, here..." she pulled a notepad and pen out of her backpack and scribbled something on a page, then tore it out and handed it to me. The name Levy McGarden and a phone number were scrawled across the paper. My eyebrow quirked up in surprise. She smiled that cheerful grin at me again.

"Call me whenever you want to get together and write!" she called to my back as I boarded the bus, wondering why that feeling in my chest wouldn't go away. I glanced back down at the paper, and my mouth twitched back into a smile. Levy McGarden... What an interesting girl.

I called Levy the next day, against my better judgement. I was worried that maybe she would think it too forward, but there was just something about her that drew me in. She, of course, was ecstatic to hear from me again, and demanded that I meet her in the basement commons of Lotus Hall to do some writing- she was working on a script for a historical skit and wanted to know my opinion on some of her incorporation of Chinese mythology.

Our writing meetings quickly began a biweekly tradition. Every Tuesday and Thursday evening found us, without fail, in the Lotus Hall commons, surrounded by scribbled-on pages and research materials for our various projects. Sometimes I would bring my guitar and play for Levy, which she always told me was wonderful but I still think she was just humoring me. After the year was over and we both moved out of the dorms, we began to meet at each other's apartments, but we never stopped our meetings. After my graduation, I began my masters degree program and cheered on Levy as she began her senior design project. She told me she was planning on submitting her final script to a competition for a scholarship to a prestigious graduate arts college in Pagoda City, about twelve hours from Magnolia. I tried to fight off a pang of sadness in my heart as I told her I hoped she won. She definitely deserved to; her scripts were amazing, and if anyone should get that scholarship, it should be her.

A week before her graduation, I opened the door to my apartment and found Levy standing on my doorstep, a delighted grin on her face and an official-looking envelope in her hands. The second the door was wide enough, she tackled me in a hug, nearly knocking me over.

"I got it, Gajeel! I got it, I got it!" she cried happily, releasing me to bounce up and down in excitement. I smirked and ruffled her hair, trying not to let my sinking heart show in my actions.

"Calm down, shrimp. What'd ya get, exactly?" I asked, though I knew full well what it was. Her cheeks puffed in indignation and she swatted at me with her envelope.

"Don't call me shrimp, you meanie! And I got the scholarship! To the Pagoda Academy for the Arts! I'm gonna be a famous playwright!" she cheered, hugging me again. I awkwardly wrapped my arms around her, my heart sinking even further.

"Congratulations, shrimp," I told her, ruffling her hair again as I pulled away. "You really deserve it. When do you leave?" She beamed at me.

"Two weeks after graduation! Isn't it so exciting?! I'll miss you, of course... We'll have to write each other letters! That'll be fun; I almost never get snail mail anymore!" she chirped. I thanked my lucky stars that I never displayed my emotions much; as much as I was going to miss her, I didn't want to ruin this moment for her.

"It's pretty amazing. How about I take you out to dinner to celebrate?" I suggested. She happily acquiesced.

The next three weeks passed much too quickly. We celebrated Levy's graduation, then I helped her pack up her things for her move. Before I knew it, she was boarding the plane to Pagoda City, and I was left on the ground, watching her fly away.

For the first few months, we exchanged letters every week. She told me about all the projects she was working on, and I told her about my progress on my masters thesis. About five months in, she told me about Kael, a "really nice guy" from one of her classes that she was working on a group project with. He was going to take her on a date next week, she said. A few weeks later, Kael was all she could talk about, and though I tried to keep my bitterness out of my reply, apparently Levy picked up on some of it, because the next reply was a week late. The letters dwindled, until I was lucky if I got one once a month.

The months passed. I graduated with my masters and began teaching ancient history and mythology at a nearby community college. Levy broke up with Kael, which I tried not to act too happy about, and often sent me drafts of the scripts she was working on. She told me one of her scripts had been officially published, a romance, and that an acting troupe travelling through Fiore was going to be doing a performance of it in Magnolia on Christmas Eve. If I didn't have any plans, she said, she would send me a ticket to it, free of charge. I told her I didn't have any plans, and the ticket came with the next letter.

I stood beneath the lamppost on Third Street, hands shoved in my pockets, waiting for the bus. Juvia had told me to bring a scarf, but I'd refused, telling her that it wasn't that cold; I wouldn't need it. I flipped my collar up, trying to fight off the cold that was seeping into my coat. Snow fell softly around me. It was oddly peaceful, watching the flakes fall, illuminated only by the lamplight. A bus pulled up to the stop, but it wasn't mine. Bus two only went to and from the airport; I needed bus seven to take me to the theater. A few people clamored off the bus and bustled off into the night, leaving just me and a slight young woman standing in the snow. We stood there silently next to each other for a few moments before the woman spoke.

"Hey, are you cold?" she asked. I turned to her, my heart catching in my throat at the sound of her voice. Hazel eyes stared up at me, wavy blue hair surrounding an angelic face I hadn't seen in far too long. "I have a scarf here; I brought it as a Christmas present for my friend, but you can have it if you need it."

"L-levy?" I stuttered, far too surprised to keep my usual cool. She smiled happily at me.

"Surprise, Gajeel," she said softly, extending a brightly wrapped package to me. I unwrapped it to find a hand-knitted scarf. I wrapped it around my neck, a lump forming in my throat.

"But Levy... What are you doing here?" I asked, still shocked. She laughed.

"I'm here to surprise you, silly!" she giggled, twirling around. Then she frowned. "Well, technically I'd meant to surprise you at the theater but my plane landed early... but here is as good as anywhere!"

It was my turn to chuckle. "Well, I'm certainly surprised... But I didn't get you anything?" Levy just beamed at me.

"That's alright, you didn't know I was coming! Oh, and look, I have a ticket for the show, right next to you!" she exclaimed, showing me her play ticket. It was indeed in the seat next to mine. I smirked at her.

"Well, I guess I can tell you the surprise I'd been going to put in my next letter, then," I told her. Her eyes sparkled up at me as she began to bounce on the balls of her feet.

"Oh, a surprise? I love surprises! Tell me!" she squealed. I mock-frown, crossing my arms.

"Hmm, I don't know... Maybe I should wait..." Her cheeks puffed in indigence.

"Gajeel, you meanie! I gave you your surprise early! You can't just tell me about a surprise and then not tell me what it is!" she whined, giving me a hurt puppy-dog look. I sighed. There was no way I could resist that.

"Fine, shrimp, if ya gotta know right now. I received word two nights ago that I've been offered a position as a history professor at Pagoda University. I start in January."

Levy tackled me in a hug, knocking me to the ground. "You're moving to Pagoda City?!" she squealed, letting me get back to my feet. "This means we can see each other all the time again!" I nodded.

"Yeah, that's what I was hoping for when I applied for the job," I admitted, looking down at my boots. I saw Levy blush out of the corner of my eye.

"Oh... Well... I'm really happy, Gajeel. I've missed you a lot," she said softly, stepping in and giving me another hug, this one much softer. I wrapped my arms around her, holding her tight.

"I've missed you too, shrimp," I replied, my voice uncommonly deep with emotion.

"Gajeel..."

One hand moved from Levy's back to cup her neck, my fingers gliding through hair that was silkier than I'd ever imagined. She turned her face up as I pressed my lips to hers, holding her tightly. I felt her melt against me, her arms moving up around my neck, fingers tangling in my hair. Time seemed to stop. I'm not sure how long we stood there before the bus pulled up and we separated, cheeks flushed and both smiling slightly embarrassed grins. Levy slipped her hand into mine as we boarded the bus together, and I grinned down at her.

The knit scarf was still around my neck, and I felt the warm wool thoughtful, thinking about what Levy had asked me when she'd shown up. Was I cold? Well, I had been cold when she'd gotten there, but I wasn't now.

In fact, my heart had never felt warmer than that night, when I kissed the love of my life beneath the lamppost on Third Street.

I know this one was a little longer than usual, but I hoped you enjoyed it! Please, please review! I thrive on your feedback! Happy reading!