Chapter Eight – The Smile

"I get that this is your weird revenge," Bickslow grunted, arms flexing slightly. "But why isn't it just aimed at Freed?"

He grunted with a glare on his face, trying and failing to manoeuvre a double bed through a door far too small for it to fit. Holding the other end of the bed was Laxus, who was also glaring at the furniture while attempting to adjust the angle to get it through the doorway. Sitting atop the windowsill of the bedroom, was Evergreen, who was clearly doing nothing to help with the moving of furniture. In fact, she was absently applying lipstick.

"I made it very clear that I'm not helping move anything," She said as she glared at the reflection in her compact mirror. "Just here for the free pizza."

"We're not having pizza," Freed said from inside the bedroom, where he was placing his clothes in the wardrobe.

"What!" Both Bickslow and Evergreen exclaimed almost simultaneously.

"It's Sunday. Italian place closes on Sundays, and nowhere else serves it in town," Laxus explained, tilting the bed slightly and pulling at it. It slipped through the gap of the doorframe, and allowed the two men to get it into the bedroom. "The only other place is like an hour away, and it tastes like ass anyway."

"As opposed to the Magnolia's pizza," Freed said under his breath. "Which is award winning."

"You act like they poisoned you," Laxus grunted, turning to Freed. "It was a little greasy, that was all. It tasted good."

"There was more grease than there was dough, and it tasted like vomit," Freed met Laxus' eye, a challenging smirk on his face. "And we can't be sure that they didn't poison me, I have a high constitution and may have not noticed it. But I won't risk it again, which is why I chose to move in today, where there wasn't a chance of eating from the hellish place."

And thus, Freed and Laxus engaged into a playful argument between one another about the taste of a pizza they had apparently shared together at some point. Too engrossed in an intense discussion about the merits of thin crust vs deep pan, they missed the silent conversation of expressions between Evergreen and Bickslow. Looks of disbelief and a shocked shake of the head from Bickslow clearly showed just how exhausted with the two men they both were.

Because, although Evergreen had told Bickslow about their clear flirtation, he hadn't believed just how obvious it was. Somehow their argument had gotten to the point where Freed had invited Laxus to have a home cooked pizza Freed would make, on the pretence that he should know what quality food tastes like.

"Weren't kidding, were ya?" Bickslow laughed, and Evergreen shook her head.

"About what?" Freed asked, looking to Bickslow from the wardrobe while frowning. Laxus had a similar expression.

"What are we eating then?" Evergreen deflected, snapping her compact shut.

"Well, Laxus, Bickslow and I will be whatever we feel like from Fairy Tail's restaurant," Free informed her, closing the wardrobe, and walking to the bed, helping the other two men position it correctly. "You will get yourself your own food, and pay for it yourself, given that you haven't helped with moving at all."

"You are paying for my food because you insulted me-"

"I didn't insult you, I kicked you out of my house," Freed smiled. "Something I'm willing to do right now."

"You're awful at grovelling," Evergreen mumbled, jumping off from windowsill and looking around the bedroom which Freed would be staying in. "You really did make this place look great; I didn't think you could do it honestly."

Laxus grinned proudly at the compliment, chuckling quietly when he heard Freed claim he wouldn't have taken on the house as a project if he didn't believe he could make it a sound, high quality home. It was interesting for the blonde to watch as Freed spoke with his friends, as he acted quite similar to the way he acted with Laxus. It was a nice feeling, to be assured that Freed treated him with the same level of affection that he did with the only other people important in his life. Laxus liked knowing that Freed undoubtedly saw him as one of his friends.

Though of course it was perhaps more than that. Because, upon playing and replaying their last moments together in the fairground, Laxus had been sure of one thing. Freed had leant in, possibly to kiss him.

And Laxus had essentially run away.

He found himself pissed off every time he thought back to it, because that was perhaps the worse response to the situation he could have done. He couldn't explain why he'd done it, not even to himself, but he could be sure that it was a mistake. Freed's reaction had made that clear.

Even though Evergreen had assured him it wasn't Laxus' fault, and that Freed was going through a lot and didn't know how to deal with it, Laxus still felt guilty.

Because he really wanted to give Freed that kiss.

But now, all he could do was beat himself up over the fact he hadnt seized the moment when it had been there. He really didn't know why he hadn't. He'd kissed men before, taken a few of them to bed. He'd long since gotten over his internalised homophobia – as Porlyusica had called it – so it wasn't the fact that it was with a man. He'd thought about the fact that Freed was his boss, and found that it didn't bother him; a dark recess of his mind was slightly attracted to the fact. There was only one thing that separated Freed from all the other men he'd been interested in, and Laxus was slightly scared by it.

Freed didn't feel like he'd be a fling, to Laxus. Laxus hadn't ever had a long-term relationship, be it because he only wanted something casual or that he didn't like the guy enough. But with Freed, there was this feeling of… solidity with him. As if he had kissed Freed, the next part of his life would begin. A more adult part of his life.

That was a thought that Laxus pushed to the back of his mind. He didn't like dwelling on the fact he was in his early thirties, and still felt like a kid.

"Yo blondie, come back to us," A loid voice interrupted his thoughts, and he looked at the grinning face of Bickslow.

"Yeah?" He asked, blinking away the thoughts to focus on the other man.

"Freed and Ever went downstairs," Bickslow explained, and Laxus scanned the room to see that it was just him and Bickslow in there now. "We finished putting everything away, so they're ordering the food."

"We're done already?" Laxus frowned.

Freed hadn't brought a lot of his things to Magnolia, given that moving there wasn't a permanent thing. After talking for a while, he and Laxus had decided it would be best if Freed only really moved into the kitchen, bedroom, and bathroom. That way not only would moving in and out be less of a chore, but it also meant they could move the furniture from room to room when they needed to decorate it. But still, even with the small amount of furniture – and shockingly large number of books – Laxus had expected it to take longer.

"Well, I guess it feels pretty quick when you're mooning after the handsome homeowner," Bickslow taunted, grinning. Laxus snapped his eyes to the man. "Oh relax, he can't see it. He's the only one though. But, now we're alone, I kinda wanna have a chat with ya about that."

"This ain't gonna be some 'hurt him I hurt you' crap, is it?" Laxus sighed, perhaps unwisely.

"Nah. If Freed wanted to hurt ya, he could do it himself. He used to fence, might have mentioned it," Bickslow shrugged, sitting on Freed's bed. Laxus joined him, anticipating this was going to be a long conversation.

"Once or twice," Laxus laughed.

"Shocked he didn't bring the trophy with him," Bickslow laughed, before his mood seemed to turn into something more serious. "Look, don't tell him I said any of this, but Freed… he's not the best when it comes to his emotions. He can sometimes kinda bottle his feelings up, not knowing he's doing it. And we kinda think that maybe that's what he's been doing, and me and Ever kinda wanted to ask if you can… keep an eye on him."

Laxus frowned. Freed not being in tune with his emotions wasn't a shock, really. It was why Laxus hadn't brought up what had nearly happened between them. Still, to have it confirmed wasn't the best feeling.

"I guess I can do that," He nodded slowly.

"Don't worry about him, though. It's not like he's gonna burst into tears if you say something wrong or anything," Bickslow hurriedly said. "When he says he's fine, he probably means it. He's not fragile, so don't worry about him. It was just… just make sure he's okay for tonight. He's a city boy, even if he won't admit it. He likes the loudness and the bright lights, and this is kinda the opposite of that. Whenever we stayed at hotels for work that weren't in cities, he used to bring this white noise machine thing with him. I'm sure he's gotten used to it with how many times he's been here, but can you maybe, I dunno, just make sure he ain't too closed off when we're gone. He'll probably be fine, but I can't help worrying."

"Of course," Laxus nodded, feeling a little better at Bickslow's assurances. "If it helps, he seems pretty strong willed. He should be fine."

"He probably will be," Bickslow laughed. "I just get a little worried about him sometimes, I get the same with Ever. They say I'm like their mother," Then he grinned, almost manically. "But he doesn't need his mother anymore, not when he's got his daddy."

Laxus spluttered, turning redder than he had been in quite some time.

Bickslow nudged him, cackling loudly.

"Fucking hell," Laxus muttered under his breath.

"Not that Freed's the type of have a daddy kink," Bickslow continued, as if he hadn't just given Laxus emotion whiplash to the point of speechlessness. "Well, he might like it if you called him daddy. You should try it out some time. Lay the seed, y'know."

"I don't think we're close enough for you to make these jokes," Laxus said, flushing harder now.

"Probably not," Bickslow grinned. "But Freed likes ya, and that means we're friends. And you ain't my friend if I'm not making fun of you at least once a week. Oh, and speaking of that, apparently Freed's gonna ask some hot guy that Ever likes to bring the food, so I wanna make sure I see him. Think the guy's name is Elf… something. I've got a lot of jokes about the elf giving her his package for package for Christmas. Real A-grade material."

He practically jumped off the bed, leaving Laxus alone. The blonde now had a clear understanding of what Freed meant when he said all his friends were forces of nature. He took a few moments to collect himself, both from Bickslow's teasing comments, and the request that Laxus make sure Freed was okay.

Bickslow really did know how to control and steer a conversation. Him being a lawyer made sense.

When Laxus walked to the lower floor of Albion House, he found that the food order had been placed – with Evergreen also getting a meal – and that Freed had been organising the kitchen. Laxus found himself shocked when he saw the number of spices that Freed bad brought with him. He hadn't taken Freed for a chef.

True to his word, Bickslow had quite a few comments prepared for when Elfman arrived to deliver their food. Freed too seemed to enjoy the situation, offering Elfman a tour of the house to extend his time around Evergreen. The poor man had no idea that he was being used to antagonise the woman.

The woman who very clearly had a crush on Elfman. Laxus would have to store than information for later, giving Elfman just as much crap as Evergreen had gotten.

As they ate, Laxus watched as the three friends interacted with one another, often bringing Laxus into the conversation as well. Laxus also began noticing the differences in how Freed treated the two of them compared to how he treated Laxus. With Laxus, in their most relaxed moments, there was always this spark behind Freed's eyes. Often it either led to a stupid competition, playful argument or even a request to learn a new skill. This spark wasn't absent with his other friends, but it seemed different.

With Evergreen, it led to teasing comments and these odd arguments that sounded like they were on trial. With Bickslow, he seemed to have this joyous sense of fun and an entire back catalogue of inside jokes.

It was nice to see him interact with them.

It was nicer knowing that he had his own special relationship with Freed.

Eventually, the two of them needed to leave before the last train left for Era without them. Freed had decided to drive them to the station, leaving Laxus to clean up the take-out containers that remained in the kitchen. As he did, he thought back to Bickslow's request of him and wondered how he would be able to fulfil it.

The obvious answer was that he should have a conversation with Freed, asking if he's okay and seeing if he needed anything from Laxus. But, with Laxus' experience with Freed, he expected that the conversation wouldn't go well. Freed was more of a man of action, and Laxus would respect that.

He spent the rest of his time alone thinking of how he would deal with the situation.

"I think I should spend the night here."

Laxus had to almost force the words out, having been thinking them over for a good forty minutes now. It was the only thing he could think of that would let him be in a position to be there for Freed, even if the idea itself seemed ridiculous without the context. That was proven concretely when Freed, who had been sitting at the kitchen table, watching the TV they'd installed on one of the counters, looked at him with furrowed eyebrows.

"You what?"

"I think that I should spend the night here," Laxus repeated. "For my own sake, y'know. If I managed to fuck something up with the place that we can only see by being here, I should be around to fix it. Even if it would be kind of funny to see you pissed off in the morning because a window wouldn't shut."

Freed, rather than laughing at Laxus' attempt at a joke, frowned. It worried Laxus.

The other man had been down since dropping Evergreen and Bickslow at the train station. Or at least Laxus was pretty sure that he was, it was entirely possible that Bickslow had gotten into Laxus' head and now Laxus was seeing things that weren't there. It wasn't helpful that, with Freed's habit of being insular with his emotions, Laxus had to look for smaller signs to see how he was feeling. Quirks in his expressions, a change in how he held himself, or differences in how he reacted to things.

But it made sense that Freed would be feeling down. For the whole day he'd been caught up in the whirlwind of moving, and with his friends being there to distract him he wouldn't have had time to think. But being alone on the ride back from the station would have taken any distraction away, possibly making him regret his choice.

"The house is fine," Freed spoke before Laxus could think further. "You've done a good job working on it, and I wouldn't have moved in if I thought otherwise."

"We don't know how it'll work long term though," Laxus continued, acting more nonchalant than he felt. "The heating, for example. We've tested it for like an hour, but never for longer. What if it goes off in the night? It's getting colder, I don't wanna come back here and find a Freed shapes ice sculpture."

"The heating has been on since half two and it's not broken," Freed rebutted, looking at Laxus with confusion. "And there's a fireplace in the bedroom I could use if needs be."

"Okay, but what about the shower," Laxus suggested. "Bet you wash yer hair every morning, right? What if the shower just doesn't work and you look like crap, and that's how the town sees you for the first time? The crazy weird looking guy living in the haunted cottage."

"They have seen me many times," Freed deadpanned. "And it's not haunted."

"There's rumours."

"You started them," Freed exclaimed, though he was fighting a smile now. "What's the real reason you want to stay? And if you make up a hypothetical situation wherein the roof falls in on me and kills me, I will run you over."

"That's a bit of a disproportionate reaction," Laxus mumbled, a grin pulling at his lips.

"You're deflecting," Freed stated.

Laxus sighed. It was perhaps naïve to hope that Freed would just accept that Laxus was going to be staying the night without any questions, but there had been a chance that it would work out. But of course Freed wouldn't just allow Laxus to invade his home, and would have one or two questions about the situation. Which meant that they were going to have a conversation about emotions, something that neither man would particularly be good at.

"Bickslow talked to me while you were ordering food," Laxus confessed, almost laughing at the narrowing of Freed's eyes. "He just wanted me to make sure you ain't too down about not being in Era. So I just thought the best way to do that is actually being here."

"For goodness sake," Freed snapped, rising, and taking out his phone. "Why are they so insistent-"

"Would've done it anyway," Laxus interrupted, thankfully stopping Freed from scrolling to Bickslow's phone number.

"Why?" Freed asked, his tone a mix of anger and confusion.

"Because I care about ya, fuckwit," Laxus said, laughing slightly. "And this ain't some patronising shit where I think you're vulnerable, 'cause I don't. But moving away is a big deal, and you might have been… lost. I mean I remember when I moved to my college dorms and I felt sick not knowing what to do. Era's a lot further away than that place, and a lot more of a culture shift."

"I'm not a college kid, Laxus," Freed sighed, sitting down again. "I'm a grown man."

"Yeah, and one who ain't letting anybody help them," Laxus rebutted, crossing his arms. "You ain't less of a man, and you ain't less independent if you let people look out for ya. Something I'm pretty damn sure you already know."

Freed looked as though he was going to say something, but the stern expression on Laxus' face must have stopped him. He sighed and looked at the table.

"Before my mother died, people were intimidated by me," He began, his tone suggesting this was going to be somewhat confessional. "I was at the top of my field, and that garnered me respect. And then, somehow, it became common knowledge that my mother died, and suddenly the reputation I had changed. I was the person who lost their mother, and I got sympathy. People I didn't know started to treat me as though I would shatter if they said the wrong word. It was infuriating. No, it was degrading."

Laxus could understand that, to an extent. He remembered that, after his mother had died, all the teachers who used to yell at him, give him detention and hated him started to treat him differently. Now their after-class talks weren't about him hurling spit balls and starting fights, they were suddenly inviting him to talk if he needed it. It was a jarring change.

"It feels as though, suddenly who I am isn't important. People would rather I be the victim so they can look after me," Freed leant back in his chair. "I suppose I might be guilty of lashing out at people with the best intentions."

Laxus could understand that too.

"You're allowed to lash out, Freed," Laxus assured him. "And as for people not seeing who you are, you don't gotta worry about that with me. You're the guy who swindled me outta dropping your ass into ice water."

Freed laughed a little at that, and Laxus grinned.

"I'm gonna get you back for that, by the way," The blonde continued, smirking. "But what I'm trying to say is, there are gonna be people who wanna get close because they're patronising assholes who wanna make themselves feel better. And then there's people who care about ya and wanna make sure you're doing alright. You need to figure out who's who, and not push away the good people."

"I know," Freed admitted, voice soft. "And I know you're in the latter group."

"Ah, not really," Laxus laughed. "You wouldn't be so charitable if you knew some of the other ways I was gonna get you outta your funk if I had to."

"Like what?"

"I put a lot of thought into wondering how mad you'd be if I was waiting for you to get back and took the hosepipe to ya the second you were close enough," Laxus grinned.

"How on earth would that have helped my mood?"

"How could you have been all sad and crap if you were standing in the cold, dripping wet, shocked because you don't know why it's happening?" Laxus shrugged, then smirked at his friend's amused expression. "If you do start feeling down at some point I'd be more than happy to take you outside and see how well it works."

"And your obsession with getting me back has nothing to do with that plan?"

"Didn't even entre my mind," Laxus lied with a wide grin.

"You're incorrigible," Freed chuckled, almost to himself. He looked contemplative for a moment before speaking again. "You don't need to stay here, Laxus. I understand why you think you do, and I'm fully prepared to admit that over the last few weeks I haven't been the best version of myself, but I really am fine."

"I know you are," Laxus said with a nod.

And he did. Because, as he looked into Freed's eyes, he saw a level of honesty that Freed usually hid through sarcasm and a quick wit. Laxus thought that, although it was only a small sentence and barely an admission of him not being in the best place, this was Freed's equivalent to a long and heartfelt conversation. And while Laxus hoped that, at some point, he could get more out of Freed, he knew that this was a good step. And Freed wasn't going to lie about that.

The mood seemed to relax after that, and after finishing the remaining food from Fairy Tail's restaurant, Laxus confessed he was getting tired and – as Freed was an awful host who wouldn't allow his friends to stay with him, something which Freed laughed at – would the lawyer mind giving him a ride home.

Freed agreed, and they were outside Laxus' and Makarov's home within the hour.

"You were genuinely going to stay with me, weren't you?" Freed asked, just as Laxus was reaching for the car's door. The blonde stopped, looking to his friends with furrowed brows. Freed's voice was almost… wistful. "If I needed it, you were actually going to give up your night just to make sure that I'm okay. That's a very kind thing to do, Laxus."

"It ain't that kind," Laxus laughed, sitting back in the chair. "Just decent."

"We perhaps have different definitions of decent then," Freed smiled slightly. "I don't know if I can say I'd do the same. Admittedly that's because I refuse to sleep on anything other than a bed, which wouldn't have been available for you."

"I lugged the fucking thing into the house, I would have been in that bed whether you were there or not," Laxus laughed, talking again before he could process what he just said. "You'd have been there for me, even if you don't know it."

"You seem very sure of that," Freed sounded amused. "I'm afraid I'd disappoint you in that situation."

"I know you better than ya think, Freed," Laxus shrugged, opening the door to the car and beginning to climb out. "You're a good person, and a kind person. You're just a dick a lot of the time so it doesn't shine through."

Freed laughed at that.

"I suppose that's fair," He chuckled, leaning slightly so he could look at Laxus as he left the car. Laxus lingered with the door open, resting on it. "Thank you, though. Both for offering to be there and for what you said. It means a lot to me."

"Don't think too much of it," Laxus smiled. "I'm only getting closer to you so that my revenge is that much sweeter."

"I'm sure," Freed grinned. "Goodbye Laxus."

"Bye Freed."

Laxus closed the door, giving him a short wave through the window. As he did, he saw a soft smile of contentment flash across Freed's face, something that he no doubt wasn't meant to see. He looked serein, relaxed, and so beautiful.

In retrospect, that was the moment he fell in love with Freed.