Chapter 21: I'm Coming With You
Someone was caressing her face, and the warm touch awoke Lucy Heartfilia from her slumber. She stirred and slowly opened her eyes. She saw Laxus Dreyar smiling lazily at her, his tender eyes looking rather sleepy.
"You all right there, Missy?" he whispered to her, his fingers sliding down her neck, making her shiver.
"I think so," she whispered back. "What time is it?"
"It's past dinner time."
"Really?" Lucy groaned. "Is everyone back here yet?"
"Yeah."
"How'd you know?"
"I could smell their scent."
"Oh, yeah. I forgot you could do that."
"Do you want to know how you smell like?"
Lucy blushed. "No. And please don't tell me."
Laxus laughed softly and leaned his face closer to her. "Hey, listen."
"What is it?"
"The Thunder God Tribe and I—we're heading back to the Blue Pegasus guild tomorrow morning."
"So soon?"
"Yeah."
"Oh—okay." Lucy closed her eyes and sighed.
"You all right?"
"Yeah. I almost forgot that I need to be at the studio first thing tomorrow morning."
Laxus' brows furrowed. "I don't like the sound of that."
"Oh, no, I haven't told you yet—Jason hired me as an editor-in-training." She winked at him.
"Are you serious?"
"Yeah. Today's my last day as a model. Bet you're happy."
Laxus grunted. "Can you blame me? Anyway, congratulations. I'm glad you got what you wanted. I'm happy for you."
"Thanks. Hey, can I ask you something?"
"I'm listening."
"Should we write and send letters now that we're going to be far away from each other?"
Laxus sighed and scratched his head. "Yeah—about that…"
"Well, let me know if you find another lover in Blue Pegasus."
"Be serious."
"I am."
"What about you and Loke?"
Lucy chuckled. "What about me and Loke? We're friends."
"It doesn't seem that way to me." His faced darkened.
"Get real. I'm not interested in Loke."
"So, who are you interested in?"
"I'm only interested in you," she said simply.
"All right." Laxus blew out a breath. "Well, it's not like I won't visit you here in Crocus."
"Won't you write to me?"
"No."
"Why not?"
"I'm not good with writing letters. And I have a terrible penmanship."
Lucy laughed. "So, how will I know when you're coming to visit me?"
"Oh, you'll know," Laxus growled, cupping her face.
"Hey."
"Ah?"
"Kiss me."
Without hesitation, Laxus leaned forward and brushed her lips with his. Lucy kissed him back and placed her hand on his cheek.
"You know," the dragon slayer murmured against her lips, "you quite surprised me earlier."
"Yeah, I was kind of surprised at myself, too." She gently nipped at his lower lip. "I never knew that I'd like you this much."
Laxus grunted and drew back from her. "Lucy?"
"Yeah?"
"Come with me."
"What?"
"I said come with me. I don't want to be far from you, and I know that you don't want to be far from me."
"Well—that's true, but…"
"One day, I'm going to find Gramps, and we'll rebuild Fairy Tail. If you're with me, we can do it together."
"…And as soon as I find Gramps, I'll ask him to reinstate our guild even if that means I have to beat that old geezer up."
Lucy felt a lump in her throat, remembering what Laxus had told her during their first date. She swallowed hard, blinking back her tears.
Being an editor in Sorcerer Magazine would be a big step toward achieving her dream as a writer, but her greatest dream of all—
"I'm sorry. I know it's selfish of me to ask you to give up your career when I don't even know where to look for Gramps. I just…" He took her hand and kissed it. "I think I'm in love with you."
—was to be in Fairy Tail with her friends and the man whom she was falling in love with.
"Laxus," she whispered, letting her tears fall.
"Hey, don't cry," he told her, wiping her tears away. "It's okay if you can't come with me. I'll definitely visit you here in Crocus. I just thought I'd let you know how I feel about you before I leave tomorrow."
Lucy chuckled despite her tears. "No, you misunderstand." She took a deep breath. "Laxus—I think I'm in love with you, too."
The dragon slayer stared at her, his mouth slightly open. "What does that mean?" he asked hoarsely.
"It means that I'm coming with you," she told him. Yes, that was her decision.
Laxus rolled on to his back and flung an arm over his eyes as if to hide his emotions. The celestial mage wasn't fooled as she saw his lips quivering. Hoisting herself up with one elbow, she leaned forward and kissed his lips.
He stiffened at first, but then he sank into her kiss, holding her head lightly with his hand. When Lucy pulled back, she saw tears rolling out from his eyes.
"Do you know what I'm going to do first when I get home to my apartment?" he murmured.
Lucy wiped away his tears and kissed him on the cheek. "No. Tell me," she said softly.
"I'm going to finish that damn romance novel Gramps gave me."
They both laughed and embraced each other.
"So, you're really coming with me?"
"Yeah. I'm coming with you."
*THE END*
Thanks for reading my first ever fanfiction, you guys. I know it needs more work and everything, but I really enjoyed writing it. I hope to write some more stories and hopefully improve my writing and story plots.
xoxo,
madaquarius