"Hey, Lev'?"
"Hmm? Oh, what's up Gaj?" Levy looked up from the literal tome she was reading - for fun, Gajeel remembered, still baffled by her choices in books after all these years.
"Yer doin' okay, yeah?" He came and sat beside her, squinting down at the tiny lettering squeezed all throughout the margins. "I haven't seen ya doin' much o' anythin' lately. An' we got this press thing comin' up, I'm gonna be gone fer a while. I just wanna make sure yer gonna be okay without me here. Or ya can go stay with me Pops, I know he'd love to have yer? Or Bunny girl..."
"Gajeel. I'm fine. Really. It's very sweet of you to worry about me, and of course I'm going to miss you while you're gone, but I have plenty of things to occupy myself with." Levy closed the book, shifting it onto the coffee table with surpring ease, given that it had to weigh almost half as much as she did by Gajeel's estimations. "I already spoke to your Dad, and Erza is moving in with Jelly so I'll have yet another person hovering nearby. Besides, you should spend more time worrying about yourself - the rumour is that you're going to have a 'guest' on the press junket." She whispered conspiratorially, raising a perfectly arched brow at him.
"Yeah, I heard that too. 'Salright, Cobra's gonna keep an eye on her."
"Who's going to watch you lot then? He's only got the one!" Levy watched, smile stretching across her face, as her fiancés shoulders began to shake at her terrible joke, glad to hear him laughing again.
"I'm gonna call ya every day, Kitten. An' ya can
text me, jus' like we used ta all them years ago." Gajeel winked down at the bluenette, loving the way she still blushed so easily. "Fuck, I'm gonna miss ya Levs'. Come 'ere".
Levy went to him, letting his arms draw her in against his chest as her face tilted up, their lips meeting in a kiss that felt almost desperate. She knew he was feeling the same way she was, like these two weeks apart were going to either break them, or strengthen their relationship. Levy knew only time would tell as she pressed one last soft kiss against his lips, smiling as he pulled back at the sound of the car horn.
"Go, before Erik drags you by the hair. I love you, Jeel."
"I love you, Levy. Git to plannin' that wedding, I wanna marry ya already."
And with one last kiss he was gone, the car disappearing from view before Levy let her guard down, facade crumbling when he was safely out of sight and the tears falling as she let herself inside to curl up in the bed with its still rumpled covers and pillows that smelt of him.
What time is it where you are?
I miss you more than anything.
Back at home you feel so far.
Waiting for the phone to ring.
It's getting lonely living upside down, I don't even wanna be in this town. Tryna figure out the time zone's makin' me crazy.
Gajeel was tired. Tired of hotel rooms and empty beds, of eating out and room service. He missed home, hearing Lily protesting when they forgot to bring him home a kiwi, he missed cooking. Gajeel just missed Levy, and having to constantly field questions about her, about their relationship, from journalists who so obviously didn't care, left him grumpier than usual - so much so that even Wendy was watching herself around him, choosing her words carefully so to avoid setting him off completely.
What time is it where you are?
Five more days and I'll be home.
I keep your picture in my car.
I hate the thought of you alone.
I've been keeping busy all the time, just to try to keep you off my mind. Tryna figure out the time zone's making me crazy.
Levy was honestly counting down the hours until Gajeel was back home, in her arms again. She'd done what she said she would and kept herself occupied the whole time. The house was spotless, and she'd rearranged everything at least twice. She'd spent time with Lucy, with Erza, and Metalicana had come to stay which had been a fun couple of days - her future father in law was a huge softy and Levy was convinced he was almost more excited for the wedding that either her or Gajeel was. She'd been by the usual haunts, spent some time mentoring at the University, and even started writing again, pouring her grief and hope into lyrics, one or two good enough that she was contemplating asking Gajeel to compose something to match. Levy could understand why he wrote from the heart like he did, the whole process had been incredibly cathartic for her.
I miss you so bad (I miss you so bad)
I miss you so bad (I miss you so bad)
I miss you so bad
I wanna share your horizon
I miss you so bad
And see the same sun rising
I miss you so bad
And turn the hour hand back to when you were holding me
Two days. Well, 46 hours, 15 minutes and a handful of seconds until she would be in his arms again - not that Gajeel was counting. They were up to twice daily video calls, and every available second Gajeel had was spent either scribbling away furiously in his notebook, or texting Levy. He never remembered it being like this before, where he missed her almost to the point of physical pain, and he was glad he's roped his old man into laying the groundwork for wedding planning. Gajeel really was excited to marry her, more than he ever thought he would be about the prospect of settling down. Although, it helped when the girl he was going to spend forever with was a stunning, fiery, blue haired spitfire of a woman. Not for the first time, Gajeel thought about his mother and how much she would have loved Levy, and he found the more he thought about her, the less it hurt.
You say good morning when it's midnight
Going out of my head, alone in this bed
I wake up to your sunset, and it's driving me mad
I miss when you say good morning, but it's midnight
Going out of my head, alone in this bed
I wake up, to your sunset
And it's drivin' me mad, I miss you so bad
And my heart, heart, heart is so jet-lagged
Heart, heart, heart is so jet-lagged
Heart, heart, heart is so jet-lagged, is so jet-lagged, is so jet-lagged
Tomorrow. Just one more night, that's all Levy had to survive in their bed without him. Burying herself in the shirt that still faintly smelled of him, she put Lily down on the doona beside her and settled back against the pillows, content to read and plan while she waited for sleep to take her. The next day couldn't come soon enough - she'd have her man back in her arms, her family back around her and she could finally venture back onto the internet without being bombarded by the ridiculous rumours that seemed to have Minerva in some kind of love triangle with Gajeel and Erik. Honestly, that one Levy had to laugh at, having met Erik's husband and knowing how dedicated they were to each other. Of course, reading her interviews hadn't done Levy's confidence any favours and so she'd turned on every filter known to man and blocked any mention of her name, of Gajeel and the band, and basically just stayed off the net for the last ten days. Which had honestly made wedding planning difficult, especially when the only answer Gajeel ever gave was "whatever makes you happy". But now? They were about to be reunited, and Levy was almost beside herself with excitement and, bizarrely enough, nerves. When she yawned loudly enough that Lily opened an eye to scowl at her, she smiled, scratching behind one fuzzy ear as she set aside her folders and curled around the purring cat as she let sleep claim her.
Sorry for the wait guys! I've honestly just been so uninspired with everything the last little while. Most of my state is back in lockdown, which is a huge bummer (Guest - you were close but I am indeed an Aussie!) but I'm doing my best to push through the bleurgh and get stuff written because I love you all!
I tried something new with the song this time around, let me know what you think? I'm not sure I like it, but maybe that's just because it's new? Anyway, the bold italics are Gajeel, and the plain italics are Levy.
The song is Jetlagged by Simple Plan (feat. Natasha Bedingfield)
Sending you all love and health! Please drop a review if you have a moment, it would mean the world to me (seriously, Dragonflies you guys are keeping me motivated!) xoxo