Category: Romantic Fluff

Characters: Sting Eucliffe, Yukino Agria

Requested By: anubislover (Tumblr)

Yukino's toffee-colored eyes were scrunched up in nervous panic as she slowly poked her head into the threshold of the door to peer into the bustling party within. Lucy had been kind enough to invite her to the celebration of her publishing deal, and of course Yukino had elected to attend the fellow Celestial Spirit mage's honoring of her momentous achievement. However, though she felt very comfortable around Lucy and her inner circle of friends- comfortable enough to have paid many visits to her apartment in the last several months- she was suddenly feeling a little out of place surrounded almost entirely by Fairy Tail mages. She wished she had at least brought along a plus one; Lucy wouldn't have minded in the slightest.

Sting would have come with me… she thought with a blush creeping onto her cheeks. There was nothing for it now, however; she was all trussed up and at the venue, so she might as well give Lucy her congratulations. She sucked in a sharp breath through her nose and straightened up, making sure the flowy skirt of her long white dress contained no creases before confidently striding into the large hall.

A few of the mages gave her passing glances, and a few of the friendlier ones jovial waves and cheerful greetings, but for the most part Yukino was unnoticed as she proceeded into the crowd. She found the pretty blonde by the refreshments table chatting animatedly with a short, petite blue-haired girl Yukino dimly remembered as Levy. Yukino approached cautiously, not wishing to interrupt an obviously animated conversation, but the other girl noticed her incoming and pointed it out to Lucy. Yukino's cheeks reddened a little as Lucy spun on her heel with an excited squeal and dashed right up to throw her arms around Yukino in a firm hug.

"Yukino! I'm glad you could make it!" Following the initial shock of the sudden embrace, Yukino relaxed and returned the sentiment.

"Of course. Congratulations on your publishing deal. I know you've worked very hard!" she said while patting the top of her head affectionally. Lucy pulled back to give her a beaming smile that scrunched her eyes up into little crescent moons. Yukino always had marveled at how the girl could smile with her entire being. Lucy's face then took on a playful and almost mischievous grin.

"So? Where's Sting?" Yukino released a very unflattering choking sound at the very brazen inquiry and the even more brazen implications. Despite herself, Yukino maniacally glanced around the nearby crowd to see if she could catch a glimpse of him; when she could not, she began to suspect that Lucy was cruelly joshing her and gave her a dour pout. "Don't look at me like that! He's really here; Rogue, too! Natsu invited them, supposedly." Yukino knitted her eyebrows together critically. If he was invited, why didn't he tell me? Sting had been nonchalant about approving her venture to Magnolia for the party and had made no mention that he would be attending. Surely they would have traveled together if that had been the case! What motive would he have had for not telling her? Lucy looked just as puzzled as she. "Wait… Did you guys not come together?"

"Ahhh, damn it. Now this is awkward," Yukino heard a groan from behind her. Cheeks pink, she whirled around to see Sting meekly rubbing his neck with a discomfited smile. "I was gonna surprise you, Yukino…" Lucy squeaked and put her hands over her mouth in mortified guilt.

"I'm sorry! I didn't know!" Her apology was muffled by her interlaced fingers. Sting gave her that cocky smirk that made Yukino's heart melt every time it graced his fine features and waved dismissively before sliding his hands into his pants pockets.

"Don't worry about it." Yukino compulsively straightened her back as his glittering gaze landed on her. He looked exceptionally handsome, dressed in a pair of black slacks, a matching black vest with silver adornments, and a white dress shirt underneath. As dapper as he was, he was still Sting; the man despised sleeves and so they were rolled up above his elbows, buttoned to hold them in place. Yukino was stupidly aware of how his biceps bulged underneath the taut fabric, and really couldn't help but gawk for a few precious seconds. It was only a few seconds, but apparently long enough; when she finally willed herself to tear her gaze away from the rugged muscles and give him the proper courtesy of speaking to his face instead of his arms, he was smirking perceptively. She gulped loudly and felt the smoldering heat rising to her cheeks. Shit… "I'm here now, so that's what matters." Yukino knew he was talking to Lucy, but his eyes remained fixed on her, very much implying that the words were for her alone.

"Right! Thank you so much for coming. Enjoy yourselves; I'd better go make sure Natsu isn't getting himself into trouble…" Though incorrigibly rude, Yukino couldn't bring herself to look at Lucy as the girl dashed off into the crowd. She was still owlishly staring at Sting, who was still wearing that smirk like it was all he needed for currency. She couldn't stop the jolt that jerked her body as he abruptly stepped toward her. Her heart had begun to hammer in her chest so hard that she just knew he could hear it. He could see and hear and know the things he was doing to her, simply by appearing before her like a cunning demon who could lay claims to her soul… If he'd only asked her for it.

Yukino didn't know how long she'd been in love with Sting. It had just gradually grown over time, a seedling budding in the recesses of her mind until its flower bloomed with radiant brilliance to make itself known. It was a rose, devastatingly beautiful but rich with thorns of longing and pain; she treasured it immensely, watered it with her hopes, but found herself constantly pricked by its barbs of possible rejection. She dare not bring it forth and bare it to him, so there it subsisted in the greenhouse of her heart, shielded by blacked-out windows waiting for its chance to see true daylight one day.

"Yukino, you're so spacey." Yukino's face blazed pink when she realized he was standing right in front of her and knocking on her forehead to bring her out of her thoughts.

"O-oh… Sorry…" she meekly answered while rubbing the small pink mark he had pushed into her forehead. He grinned radiantly and dropped his hand, pleased that he finally had her attention. She blushed darker when she looked at the collar of his dress shirt. "You, um… You look really good in white."

"You think so? That's good. I wore it for you." Yukino squeaked as her heart rate rocketed into critical levels. She glanced up, thinking that surely he was messing with her, but the expression on his face was terrifyingly calm. "It's your favorite color. I knew you were going to wear white, too." Her teeth worried her bottom lip to channel her screaming anxiety when he reached up with light fingers to play with the satin straps of her sleeveless dress, which were looped loosely around her neck. As he played with the silky fabric, his fingers occasionally brushed against her collarbone and the surrounding area, sending electricity spiderwebbing through her nerves. "You look beautiful, Yukino."

His husky whisper and the way he closed the miniscule distance between them to very purposefully bump his chest into hers sent her heart rate blasting into orbit. Her eyes were blown so wide the muscles surrounding them strained but she couldn't help it; there was something so captivating and dangerous about him and what was happening right now. She simultaneously felt like a princess under his reverence and a captive under his control. Surely… Surely now is the time, she thought distantly.

She reached for the flower, marveling at how its petals had increased in sheen in the last few minutes, but the thorns sank deep into her palm.

"You shouldn't tease, Sting," she grumbled and pushed into his chest with the flats of her hands. The smirk finally fell from his lips, replaced by a befuddled frown. Sting was naturally flirtatious. She was no one special and believing anything but would only set her up for bitter disappointment. "I'm going to say hello to Rogue," she huffed, trying to mask the hurt in her voice and turning her face as the tears stung her eyes. She quickly gathered her skirts and went to turn on her heel, but he caught her wrist in a tight grip- desperate but not painful. Sting immediately realized what he had done and hurriedly retracted, loosening his grip to slide his hand up to her elbow and pull on it invitingly. Eyebrows cinched in confusion and worry, he gestured with a jerk of his head to the side of the venue, behind a row of columns and curtains that would provide an ample amount of privacy.

Yukino felt bile bubbling up in her throat as her anxiety mounted; the wounds from the thorns still leaked red blood and she did not know if she had the courage to reach again. Her legs tensed, ready to bolt once more, but then he gave her the most sad, pleading look.

"Yukino… Please."

She did not resist him as he tugged on her elbow more insistently, guiding her body. Her heels clacked unsteadily against the tile floor as her feet moved on instinct, traveling in the direction he willed her. Gently, keeping his troubled gaze on her all the while, he escorted her to the side of the spacious room. They tucked themselves away in the shady alcove, hidden. She was beginning to score the skin of her bottom lip with how much she was tearing into it; she watched him nervously as he checked to ensure no one would come after them before looking at her with incredulous hurt. "Yukino, I… What do you think this is?"

The poignant question threw her for a loop. She wasn't sure what she had expected to come out of his mouth, but it wasn't that. She opened and shut her mouth a few times, struggling to form words, before finally squeaking them out.

"I-I don't know, Sting. I don't know." It was a pathetic answer perfectly suited to her pathetic self. Mortified, she hung her head to spare herself his likely scathing reaction. She had tried not to cry, because she would look frightful from her mascara running, but the black-dyed tears began rolling down her cheeks all the same. "I'm frightened of what it could be." Her body tensed instinctively at the sound of his dress shoes striking the tile floor, and through her tear-laden lashes, she could see their shiny surfaces appear at the edge of her vision. It was disgusting, really. She was normally so confident and sure; however, she was everything but when it came to Sting. She never knew what to do, or what to say, because she was scared- scared, that it was all in her head and she would make a fool of herself.

Yukino had been humiliated once. It was the most awful experience, the lowest she had ever been wrought. She could never, ever feel such shame again. "I'm afraid you'll make fun of me…" she admitted through a heaving sob and put her face into her hands. She knew she would smudge the black tears into her foundation, but it was better than them staining her pristine white dress. White, her favorite color. White, which he wore for her. The thought made sour acid spread over her tongue.

"Yukino…" His voice was so soft, so welcoming. She didn't tense this time when his hands gently enveloped her wrists to pull them away from her face. He pulled them down to rest on his forearms before cupping her face on either side, catching her cascading tears with his thumbs. "I promised you that I would never let you be humiliated and laughed at again. Do you really think that I would ever make fun of you?" Yukino sniffed miserably in response. Of course he wouldn't. It was stupid of her to think that he would; after all, it was Sting. Sweet, kind, supportive Sting. Timidly, she raised her face a little to look at him.

His sweet smile took her breath away. She had never seen him look so gentle and tender. His blonde hair bounced a little as he tilted his head and continued to stroke her cheeks with feather-light touches. "Let me tell you what this is, Yukino," he purred, and the sound rumbled through her entire body, quieting every screaming nerve to awash her with tranquil calm and trust. Trust in his words, in that smile that was undoubtedly full of love. "I'm so in love with you that it's stupid. You're the most beautiful girl I've ever had the privilege of meeting. I could try to compare you to the most beautiful things- angels, goddesses, queens- and they all fall drastically short of you. I should've said something sooner, but the truth is I felt so unworthy of you that the words never could come. Then tonight, you walk in here in that dress looking like the moon herself and I finally had the guts to tell you the truth. And now look…" She hiccupped pitifully as he brought his face closer, lips twisted into a miserable smile, "I've gone and made such a pretty girl cry. I really am hopeless." Yukino couldn't help but tearfully giggle at his self-deprecating romances.

"Don't apologize… I shouldn't have freaked out," she sighed contritely. Really, she ought to be a blushing, stuttering mess at his entire confession, but she was oddly calm. Still trapped in that blanket of tranquility Sting had wrapped over her, warm and safe and at peace. It felt like she was bathed in sunshine and no shadow in the world could creep close. She licked her lips anxiously, then added in a meek voice, "I-I love you too, you know. Very, very much."

"That's good, else this would've been the most embarrassing day of my life." They both laughed in ugly snorts and her head bumped against his as she looked down, shoulders shaking with barely-constrained giggles. Happy tears threatened to leak over the dam of her eyes, so she hurriedly pushed the base of her palms into them.

"I probably look like a frightful hag," she laughed derisively, feeling more mascara smudge underneath her eyes.

"Nah. Still beautiful to me." Yukino dropped her hands to give him a questioning smile, and he took advantage of the momentary drop of her guard. He swooped forward to claim her mouth in a searing kiss, and her falling arms settled around his neck as if they belonged there. She pushed herself up onto the tips of her toes as he tugged her against him by the waist, angling his head to kiss her with a ravenous hunger. Her fingers toyed with the ends of his spiky blonde hair, while his found purchase in the sweeping folds of her dress, digging into the fabric in an effort to bring every inch of her into contact as possible. Yukino felt like she was blossoming under his fiery touch, like a flower that had long since closed its petals to the darkness finally being graced with invigorating light. She was her flower of love incarnate, finally brought forth into the world by his words shattering the glass cage.

They kissed there for several minutes, in the secluded corner of the venue, before braking apart with flushed faces and ragged pants. Yukino laughed at the smears of pink lipstick across his face, and she had no doubt her make-up was effectively ruined now. Still, he was looking at her like she was the most radiant creature on Earth.

"A magnolia," he said abruptly. She narrowed her eyebrows curiously, wondering if she had kissed his mad. He laughed at her incredulous look and pulled her close by the waist again, tucking a swathe of her light blue-white hair behind her ear. "That's what you remind me of. The most beautiful magnolia." Touched but also embarrassed, she snorted again and tucked her face into the side of his neck to hide her burning blush.

"You're too good at the flirting thing…"

"I did a lot of practicing. Lector plays a very good Yukino; he blushes almost as much as you." She didn't know if he was serious but the thought of him flirting shamelessly with his Exceed partner made her begin to giggle hysterically. He enveloped her in his thick arms to give her an affectionate and crushing hug, all while nuzzling his chin along the side of her head. "He's more of a dandelion weed than a magnolia, though."

"How cruel! He's way cuter than a dandelion weed!" she laughed while lifting her head. Seeing her happy smile made him grin, and he leaned in to press a chaste kiss to her lips. "… Thanks, Sting."

"No need to thank me, darling." The pet name sent all the blood rushing right back to her face. Sting grinned devilishly, an obvious sign that he had meant to embarrass her. With a squeal, she buried her face back into the shielding embrace of his neck. His body shook violently with his raucous laughter. "You're so cute when you're blushing! Come on, don't hide, lemme see." She squeaked protests and squished her face further into him, stubbornly to the point that it was hard to breathe through her nose. "All right, all right, I relent; please, Yukino, come on." With a click of her tongue, she obediently retracted and looked up at him with a childish pout. True to his word, he no longer teased her, but offered the handkerchief tucked into the pocket of his face for her to wipe the make-up from her face. She took it gratefully and did her best to remove the ruined cosmetics, using her distorted reflection in the white tile as a mirror. "Whelp, Lucy's calling for you," he remarked as he peeked out from behind the curtain.

Yukino hastily removed the last streaks of the make-up from her face before straightening up and adjusting her disheveled dress. Before she could instruct Sting to stay a while to keep people from talking, he grabbed her hand and yanked her out from behind the alcove. A few people definitely glanced at them and grinned, which made Yukino's face blaze the color of a rose.

"Sting! What are you doing?! People will talk!"

"Let them!" he grinned jovially and settled in beside her, lacing their hands and giving her that smirk, that one that was all he needed to get by. "Let them talk. I want the whole world to see just how much I adore my pretty magnolia." Yukino flushed and cringed into herself at how stupidly sweet yet excruciatingly embarrassing the sentiment was. Sting called out to Lucy as she strode by in a tizzy; the blonde whirled around, about to say something, but froze when she saw the two holding hands. She then grinned knowingly and wiggled her eyebrows at Sting, pointing at his mouth. Yukino gasped and wiped at the smears of her lipstick still on his face, which she had neglected to remove, while Sting squirmed and protested at the harsh scrapes of her palm. She finished just as Lucy began to sidle up to them mischievously, and Yukino could only sigh and look at the grinning Sting.

If I'm a magnolia… Then you're definitely the sun that makes me bloom.