Chapter 17: Love and Champagne

Great, I scared her away, Laxus Dreyar thought as tossed and turned in his bed. It was nearly midnight, and he wanted very much to fall asleep already. But the sleep wouldn't come. And it was all because of his carelessness.

Earlier, Lucy Heartfilia had politely excused herself and left his room after they had taken a shower together. He wondered if he should have asked her to stay with him. They had such a great time together until he blurted out something that he probably shouldn't have.

He had never before told a woman that he loved her—not even in the throes of passion. Not even in an attempt to seduce them. So, he wondered why he had said those words to her—after they had sex.

"Kuso," he finally cursed, kicking the sheets and jumping out of bed. He impatiently straightened his robe and strode over to the balcony. Sliding the glass door, he stepped out and realized that it was warmer outside.

The darkness that engulfed the beach was only brightened by the moon. And the sound of waves crashing on the shore was rather soothing.

I could really use a drink right now, he thought as he deeply inhaled the salty breeze that seemed to hover over him.

Then, he stiffened. He had caught a whiff of Lucy's luscious scent. Perplexed, he turned his face to the side and actually found her leaning on the balcony railing outside her room. But she was too fixated in her stargazing to have noticed him.

Ah, just watching his lover made his heart beat faster. She was already in her nightclothes, her blonde hair tied up in a messy topknot. Her lovely face, illuminated by the moonlight, seemed serene, except for her eyes—somehow, they looked troubled.

I wonder what she's thinking right now.

In truth, he never thought that they would end up being this close in over a month. Sure, he already considered her as a part of his family since she was with Fairy Tail, but it had never occurred to him that he would feel this drawn to her like how he was now.

She was always cheerful, flirty, and fun to be around. She also seemed to be genuinely interested in his company. And whenever he kissed her, her heart would race, her body would heat up, and she would respond to him passionately.

Really, how could he not love her?

"Laxus?"

The lightning mage hadn't realized that Lucy was already staring back at him. But her sweet voice brought him out of his musings.

"Oh, hey," he managed to utter, scratching his head. He saw that her expression was a mixture of worry and affection. "Just wondering what you're doing outside, is all."

"I couldn't sleep. You?"

"Same."

She paused for a moment. Then, "You want to grab a drink at the casino?" she asked shyly.

He grinned at her. He couldn't help himself. "I was just thinking the same thing."

The casino was located in the basement of the hotel. There was a small bar on one corner with several barstools for the customers. And despite the late hour, there were still people indulging in drinking and gambling.

Laxus and Lucy, now dressed in their casual clothes, seated themselves on the unoccupied barstools and ordered glasses of champagne from the bartender.

"Ah, this tastes good!" she exclaimed after she took a sip of her drink, sighing and closing her eyes blissfully.

"Good to know that you're enjoying your drink," he told her earnestly, tilting his own glass to his lips.

She smiled at him. "You know, this reminds me of the time when I was still working as an editor at Sorcerer Magazine," she said. "Whenever we'd manage to get a great scoop, Jason and the rest of the team would celebrate and pop a bottle of champagne."

"What was it like working there?" he asked, pleased that she was talking normally with him.

"It was… awfully challenging at first, but then I got the hang of it," she told him, shrugging her shoulders. "Still, I preferred taking mage jobs. It's much more satisfying, being able to help people—plus, the reward is always hefty."

He chuckled at that. "I'm glad you chose to come back to Fairy Tail."

She nodded, now looking serious. "Of course. I wouldn't trade Fairy Tail for the world."

"Same."

She titled her head. "Say, I never got to ask you. Where were you when Fairy Tail disbanded?"

"The Thunder Legion and I joined Blue Pegasus," he grunted, trying to brush off the sordid memory of Ichiya and the Trimens forcing them to act as entertainers.

"Wait. Don't they do…?" she trailed off, a small smile playing on her lips.

"Yeah, don't remind me. I only joined them because it's the easiest way to get mage jobs. They weren't bad or anything. I just find them, you know, weird."

"I see. Well, I'm glad that you chose to come back to Fairy Tail."

"Heh."

A couple of hours went by swiftly as both mages told each other their stories about last year's events. They talked, joked, and laughed as they finished several more glasses of champagne.

Lucy's face was already red from drinking, and Laxus could sense her drunkenness as she started lightly running her fingers up and down his chest and leaned intimately closer to him.

"Ne, Laxus," she purred at him, now inching her face up to him. "Why do you love me?"

Feeling a little tipsy himself, he murmured, "Let's go back to my room."

"And would you tell me then?" she asked, lacing her arms around his neck.

She was practically leaning her entire body against Laxus now. Mavis, how her soft curves aroused him to madness! The lightning mage placed an arm around her waist and kissed her fervently. They really needed to get out of here.

A few moments later, he broke the heady kiss and handed the amused bartender a chunk of money. Then, he scooped his lover in his arms and carried her out of the casino.

Why do I love you? Because you're you. You're Lucy.