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Rogue tried to steady his breathing as he dialed Loke's number. When he picked up, he demanded to have Lucy's address. It took a while, but Loke finally gave it to him. Once he had it, he put the car in drive.
"Okay, Rogue, just ease down the driveway."
Rogue began going down the driveway.
"Turn signal. Good. Now slowly increase to the speed limit."
Flipping on the right turn signal, he gently turned the wheel. Once he was a safe distance from the house, he turned his lights on. It wasn't long before he was going the speed limit.
"There's a stop sign, so slow to a stop. Don't be too jerky."
Rogue took another deep breath, slowly hitting the breaks.
"Whoa! Easy there."
"It's okay, Babe, you'll get it!"
"That was good for your first time, Rogue. Don't listen to Dad."
"Hey, shut up! I'm the one teaching him here!"
"Yeah, hardly."
"Guys, stop fighting and let me drive!" Rogue yelled. His eyes widened and he slammed on his breaks. He took a breath to calm down.
How was he going to make it to Magnolia like this?
X
"Where are we going for breakfast?" Lucy asked, laying on Layla's bed. Laxus was curled up into her side, fast asleep.
"I was thinking about going to that nice restaurant downtown. You know, the one Ivan proposed to me at?" Layla hummed as she ran her fingers along all the dresses. She pulled a couple out to show Lucy.
"Definitely the red one," Lucy said, nodding. "And that sounds really great. Are we three just going to go?"
"Yeah, that's the plan." Layla slipped off her pajamas and changed into the red sundress. She turned to Lucy and smiled. "Can you take Laxus? I need to grab his bag from his room."
Lucy scooped her brother into her arms, amazed that he hadn't woken up yet. It amazed her how lightly he slept. It also amazed her at how excited she was for him to be there. When Layla first got pregnant she was angry because she loved being an only child and resented Ivan completely, but when Laxus was born she fell in love instantly. Ivan even began growing on her.
When Lucy was downstairs, she grabbed a water bottle and filled it from the sink. She hummed to herself as she went into the living room to grab a sweatshirt from her back. As soon as she picked one she heard a screech outside.
Running to the door, she flung the door open. Her eyes widened when she saw a car in the driveway that she didn't recognize. Layla came running up behind her, looking to see what the noise was for. They both looked in the car, trying to see who was driving.
"I hope it's not a drunk driver," Layla said, walking off the porch. "That would just ruin my morning."
"Mom!" Lucy gasped, shutting the door and going after her mother. "Be careful! You don't know who that is!"
When they got close to the car, the door opened. Layla's eyes narrowed when the man stepped out, wobbling and shaking. "Are you drunk? I will personally call the-" She stopped talking when she saw Lucy run forward to catch him before he fell over.
"Mom, help me," Lucy said, trying to help him back to his feet.
"Lucy, do you know this man?" Layla asked sharply, still assuming he was drunk.
"He's not drunk!" Lucy shouted. "Just help me get him inside!"
The two blondes managed to get him inside with little trouble. Lucy sat on the couch with his head in her lap while Layla went to get a glass of water.
"Rogue," Lucy said with worry. He was barely able to open his eye. His face was wet with tears and he was still shaking. "What the hell were you thinking? What are you doing here? I thought you didn't have your license!"
"Lucy," Rogue sighed, closing his eyes happily. "I'm so happy you're here. I was worried. Zeref said you ran off and I didn't know why. I was worried I did something. I know now I did. I'm so sorry. I just don't…"
"Shh," Lucy soothed, running her fingers through his hair. "It's okay. I'm okay. You're clearly not, though."
"Lucy," Rogue said again, opening his eyes. He brought a shaky hand to her neck, pulling her a little closer to him. He used his other hand to hold himself up so he could meet her lips. They only kissed for a second.
Lucy was the one to push him back. "What happened? You're a mess." She didn't understand why he needed to drive. If he would have waited until morning he could have gotten a train.
"I didn't kill anyone this time," Rogue said before his head went limp to the side.
"Rogue," Lucy said frantically. "Rogue? Rogue!" She tried shaking him, but he wouldn't wake up. "Mom! Rogue! No, wake up!"
"He's fine," Layla said, putting a hand on Lucy's shoulder. She laid a wet cloth over Rogue's forehead. It's just the stress. "Here, let's get you up." She helped Lucy get up and slipped a pillow under Rogue's head.
"Are you sure he's okay?" Lucy asked. "He doesn't look okay."
"He's fine," Layla said, hugging Lucy to calm her down. "Who is he, anyways? How do you know him? Why is he here?"
"That's Rogue," Lucy said, hugging Layla tightly. "He's a friend from Oak Town." Are we even dating? Is it official? "I don't know why he came. I do know that he shouldn't be driving."
Layla nodded, letting go of Lucy. "Yeah, it's very clear that he shouldn't be," she laughed. "Promise me you'll never drive with him?"
Lucy laughed, too. "Don't worry, I won't." She looked to Rogue again. "Can he stay here?"
"Of course," Layla said, kissing Lucy's forehead. "You know I don't leave anyone in need. If someone needs help, we help them. Now, I'm going to go cook some pancakes."
Lucy nodded as Layla left. She sat down on the floor beside Rogue. She couldn't quite figure out why he would run away with the car. His reasons didn't add up. Even if she did run away, it was extremely reckless for him to steal his parents car and drive it two hours without a license. She couldn't help but smile about it, though, because he did it all for her.
X
"Where do you think he could have gone?" Mavis asked, pacing the living room. "And why would he take the car?"
"He obviously went with Lucy," Zeref said.
"He's coming back, right?" Romeo asked, tears in his eyes.
A loud ringing startled everyone. Zeref grabbed his phone from his pocket, lighting up when he saw that it was Lucy. "Is Rogue with you?" he asked.
"Yeah, he's right here."
Zeref sighed in relief. "Thank god! Is he okay?"
"He's a little shaken up. When he showed up he was clearly crying and kept shaking. I can't believe that he took the car."
"What?!" Zeref shouted, standing up. His eyes snapped to the hook on the wall by the door that should have the keys. "Holy shit. Is the car okay? Are you sure he is?"
"He took the car," Mavis said in amazement. She hadn't even thought to check if it was there, since she thought Rogue would never drive again.
"He passed out a couple minutes ago. My mom said it was from stress. He's going to be with me, so don't worry. I'm sorry about your car, but I don't know when you'll get it back. I might have Mom bring it up today and ride a train back. Rogue might stay with me a couple days, okay?"
"Yeah, that sounds fine," Zeref said. He let out a sigh of relief.
"Okay I need to go. I'll text you if she's bringing the car. Bye."
The call ended. Zeref fell to his knees in tears, happy that his brother was alive and safe.
X
"Two pancakes for Princess Lucy and a half for Prince Laxus," Layla said, placing pancakes onto plates. "Of course Queen Layla gets two, as well." She set her plate on the table. "And how many will your prince want?"
Lucy spit out the milk in her mouth. "Mom!" she gasped, laughing. "Rogue will probably eat three."
Layla smiled and went back into the kitchen to make more. Lucy just shook her head and turned to Laxus, who was sitting in his high chair. She cut the pancake into little pieces so he could eat. He happily grabbed one and shoved it in his mouth. "Sissy!" he yelled happily, grabbing another.
Lucy smiled and ate some of her own pancakes. Layla came back in shortly with another plate with pancakes on it. She sat across from Lucy and began to eat her own. "So how did you meet this boy?"
Lucy laughed. "It's actually a funny story. When I was first going to Dad's this summer they didn't have much space so they stuck him in my cabin. He had motion sickness so I helped him out. Then later at the arcade he showed up with friends. He bought me a milkshake to thank me and I ended up smashing it on Sting Eucliffe's head."
"No way!" Layla laughed. "I used to change his diapers!"
"Yeah," Lucy laughed. "Then one day I stopped at this cafe that his family owns. We started meeting there and BOOM, instant friends."
"Just friends?" Layla asked, raising an eyebrow.
Lucy blushed in embarrassment. She was about to tell her mother that she didn't quite know where they stood, but she heard coughing in the other room. She jumped up and ran into the living room.
Rogue was half sitting up, coughing into his hand. Lucy quickly handed him the glass of water sitting on the coffee table. He drank it all down quickly, laying back down with a groan. "My head hurts," he said, draping his arm over his face.
Lucy giggled. She could see him faintly smile. Her face became stern. She jumped onto him on the couch, making his eye fly open. She started hitting his chest. "What the hell, Bastard!" she shouted. "Don't ever scare me like that again! Do you realize what could have happened! You drove a car-"
She was silenced with lips against her own. She instantly fell into him, putting her forearms by his head. He smirked into the kiss, grabbing her head to pull her closer. She broke away from him, trying to continue yelling at him, but he pulled her back down again.
After a couple minute, Lucy rolled beside him, gasping. She tried to remember what she had been yelling at him for, but her mind was in a daze. With the smirk he was giving her, though, she knew it was something important. When she finally remembered, she pushed his head away. "Really, though, what were you thinking?" she asked.
Pain shot across Rogue's face. His face went pale and his stomach churned. His vision began to blur and he felt nauseous. Images of his first drive ran through his mind, making him feel more and more sick. When his brain produced an image of his brother's head in his lap, he fell off the couch and a hand flew to his mouth.
Lucy's eyes widened. She grabbed Rogue as fast as she could and led him to the bathroom upstairs.
Rogue fell to the floor by the toilet and gasped. He could only guess that Lucy was talking to him, but all he could hear was tires squealing, glass smashing, bones breaking, Milliana yelling. It all spun around his head until he vomited. He didn't have much in his stomach, so he didn't throw up much. He still coughed and gagged until his head felt like it was about to explode. He closed his eyes, leaning back against the wall.
When the noise faded, he regained control of his body. He slowly opened his eyes and saw Lucy in front of him, tears rolling down her cheeks. When he could hear again, all he heard was her shouting his name while she shook his shoulders. He immediately grabbed her shoulders and pulled her to him, hugging her tight.
"Rogue, don't ever do that again. I was so scared. Please don't leave like that. You really scared me. I thought something was wrong," Lucy ranted.
"Just breathe," Rogue said. He wasn't sure if it was for her or himself, but he just knew that it needed to be said.
"Rogue, you're seriously scaring me. You keep freaking out over everything. I need to know everything right now," Lucy said, trying not to get frustrated.
"I was driving," Rogue said slowly. He hugged Lucy tighter. It felt like his body was about to crumble into a million pieces. "I had just gotten my permit. We didn't get very far. Dad was in the front with me and Milliana was in the back with Alzack, my eldest brother. They all wanted to be there for my first drive. The truck didn't stop and neither did I."
"Shh, it's okay," Lucy said soothingly, rubbing his back. "It wasn't your fault."
"It was!" Rogue said a lot louder than he planned. "My dad went right through the windshield. Alzack was r-r-right in my l-l-lap. They both d-died! Milliana broke her arm. I was fine! I didn't get hurt at all except for my stupid eye!"
Lucy didn't know what to say. She had never had a family member die, so she didn't know what it was like. She really wouldn't have an idea unless she was driving in that car that day. "It was your first time driving and that truck should have been watching. It isn't your fault, so please don't blame yourself. We all love you and are glad you're here too. Could you imagine if you were gone, too? Could you imagine what your family would be going through, too?"
Rogue knew that Lucy was right, but he couldn't drown out Milliana's voice, her shouting that he was a murderer. She had driven him to the darkest places, ones he never wanted to see again. If it wasn't for Sting…
"How about some breakfast?" Lucy asked, cutting his train of thought. "Mom made some pancakes for you. too. I'm sure she'd be glad to see you up and moving. I would, too."
Rogue almost couldn't believe that Lucy knew everything and still wanted him. He showed her the darkest part of himself and she still wanted to help him. He couldn't imagine what he would do without her.