"It's gotta be more like falling in love, than something to believe in. More like losing my heart, than giving my allegiance. Caught up, called out, come take a look at me now. It's like I'm falling. It's like I'm falling... In love."

-jasongray, "More Like Falling In Love"

-

Freed POV

I officially know what the second worst experience of my life is. It's impossible to describe how terrifying and agonizing it is, to be surrounded by flames in a collapsing building, pinned beneath heavy pieces of debris that are completely crushing bones and tendons alike, as white hot pain creeps up on you and slowly picks you apart, piece by piece until all you can do is scream.

I'll never tell what the very worst thing I've ever experienced is, but being trapped in that building... Was the second worst and that's all that matters.

I vaguely remember what happened when the building collapsed. The roof suddenly made a horrible groaning noise and came down on top of me. I remember the excruciating pain that ripped through my left leg and my torso as I was suddenly knocked down to the floor and crushed beneath what used to be the ceiling.

I tried getting out by my own power, but it was too heavy and I was weakened by pain and all the smoke swimming in my lungs. It was terrifying, being completely stuck, my leg being slowly crushed further into the floor, pain and nausea rolling through my body in sickening waves, unable to move as flames sprang up from what was left in the building. My enchantment would ensure the fire didn't touch me, but I knew any minute now the building would come down completely and I'd be crushed to death.

I struggled for what felt like an eternity, until it hurt too badly to even inhale properly. Not that I could anyway, the smoke was suffocating me. And I mean literally suffocating me to death. Every breath I took was more shallow and hurt worse than the one before. My hair was strewn out around me, partially covering my face, absolutely atrociously messy. I could feel warm blood trickling out from beneath the chunk of stone and wood on my mangled leg. I thought I was done for. There was some much pain...

But then I heard the most lovely sound.

"Freed!" Laxus's achingly familiar voice shouted, muffled by the collapsed walls around me.

I nearly fainted with relief. Laxus knew I was still inside, and he was looking for me. "Laxus!" I screamed, at the top of my lungs. "Help me!" my voice became a shriek.

Laxus shouted something I didn't quite understand, it sounded like "fucking alive" and then, "Hang on, Freed, I'm coming!"

I was beginning to panic even though I could hear him pushing his way through the twisted wreck of building. I couldn't breathe, my lungs and throat were burning, and I was in so much pain I wanted to scream and scream until it didn't hurt anymore.

When Laxus found me, I was sobbing almost hysterically from fear and agony, lapsing in and out of unconsciousness. I was so scared, I thought I was going to die before he could get me out.

Next thing I knew, he was carrying me, and we were out of that burning building I hated so much. I just knew everything would be okay after that. Some small part of me had always known he would get me out and make sure I was safe.

Now, I was sitting up in bed, quietly reading a book. I was in the Fairy Tail infirmary, kinda recovering from everything. I had been internally bleeding in several places, and my leg was so completely crushed into a bloody pulp that the healers fixing me had actually run out of magic energy, so they only managed to heal all the internal bleeding and repair some of my damaged leg. Then they ran off to take naps, promising to be back in twelve hours. That was well over three hours ago.

The numbing magic they had put on me to ease the pain was beginning to wear off. I kept wincing and rubbing my thigh as my leg began aching and throbbing. It was really painful, but not as bad as it had been when I was trapped in the building. That was ten times worse.

The book in my hand was written in the ancient rune language I used to write my enchantments, and there was a blanket tucked around my waist, concealing the lump of bandages that was my leg from view. I was honestly quite comfortable and the room was pleasant, with tan walls and a large window on my right side with rays of sunlight pouring through the glass and spilling out on the floor, which was whitewashed wood. My waist-length green hair was tied back in a low ponytail to keep it from getting in my face while I read.

There came a soft knocking at the door and Laxus poked his head around it. I glanced up at him.

"Hey, Freed, I just wanted to check in and make sure you're doing okay." he greeted, smiling and waving one large hand at me. "May I come in?"

"Of course, Laxus. Make yourself at home." I smiled in return and waved him inside, turning my gaze back to my book. "I feel like I should be the one checking in with you. How's everything going out there?" I asked.

"Somewhat decently, I suppose." Laxus strolled in, closing the door behind him. He sat down on the edge of the bed, staring off into a corner of the ceiling as he spoke. "Makarov applauded our bravery for trying to handle the fire, he wasn't upset at all that the building came down. And Evergreen's been worried sick about you."

"Well. That's sweet but I'm alright." I said, turning the page and squinting at the new set of complex runes before me. "Make sure you tell her that next time you see her, it's gonna be another day or two before I'm free to leave."

"I love how you tell me you're alright then immediately follow it with the fact you're not gonna be able to leave this infirmary for a couple days." Laxus sighed and shook his head. "You're such a dork."

"And you're a blockhead." I replied, without skipping a beat.

The truth of the matter was, I had... Conflicted feelings for Laxus. I always believed we were friends, but recently... I don't know how to explain it. It's like... I started blushing sometimes when he spoke to me, and I got all nervous whenever he looked at me and smiled. I felt the need to impress him, to show him I was there and worth something. But I refused to acknowledge the fact I... Might like him in that more-than-just-friends way people are always talking about.

"Do you always tie your hair back when you read?" Laxus suddenly asked, jolting me out of my thoughts.

"Yeah, I suppose so." I absentmindedly reached behind me and touched the black elastic keeping my hair restrained at the base of my skull, making sure it wasn't coming lose. Already, a few wayward strands had managed to get free and were conveniently settling in my face to annoy me. "It makes my life a lot easier. I'm considering cutting it, though. What do you think?"

"I don't think you should. I like it long." Laxus tilted his head, eyes locked on my hair. I felt like his gaze lingered on me for just a moment too long, but I must've been imagining things because he had already looked away before I could say anything. "I also like it tied back like that." he added.

I felt the warmth creeping into my cheeks and raised my book a little, trying to subtly hide my blush.

"Okay, I guess I'll keep it long than..." I muttered, trying to keep my voice from shaking.

"What even are you reading?" Laxus frowned and scooted closer, pulling his feet up on the bed and curling up beside me.

I turned the book so he could see the thin, eloquently drawn purplish-black runes on the yellowing old pages. His frown deepened and he stared at it for a moment, not knowing what to make of it.

"Uhh... How the hell... I can't read whatever language that is, Freed." he finally admit.

I chuckled softly. "I'm one of the only people who can, don't worry. But maybe I could teach you sometime. It's really not hard at all once you get the hang of it..."

"And how did you learn to read and write in runes?" the thunder dragon slayer questioned, leaning closer as he tried to make sense of the glyphs on the pages of my book. "They look like absolute gibberish to me, nothing more."

"Well, you see..." I began to explain, very slowly. "All of us wizards are kinda born with our magical abilities. Just like how Juvia was born with her body being made of solid water, I was born with the ability to read runes. I eventually learned to write them too, and discovered the hard way that you should never write in the air with your finger when it comes to runes or else it casts a spell."

"Ohh... So that's where your magic comes from..." Laxus stared off into space for a moment, processing everything. "It's cool and all that you could just... Read them from the very beginning."

"Thanks." I grinned and showed him the book once again, pointing to a rune shaped like a little squiggly bridge. "You see this one right here? The two vertical lines represent the presence of an "A" but because the little line connecting them is above the halfway point, it's actually a "Y". Pretty interesting, huh?"

"Uhhhh..." Laxus gave me the most confused look I have ever seen in my life. "I doubt I'll remember that. But it's amazing that you can read those damn things because I sure as hell can't."

I laughed at that. "I'm sure with enough hard work and dedication you could learn."

"Those are qualities I don't have, I'm lazy." Laxus leaned back against the headboard of the bed and clasped his arms behind his head.

"Makes sense..." I absentmindedly rubbed my leg as another wave of aching, burning pain rolled through it.

Laxus noticed. He always noticed the little things when it came to me. "Are you alright, Freed?" his goofy grin faded and morphed into a concerned frown, much to my chagrin.

"Y-Yeah, I'm okay." I reassured. "Whatever the healers did to numb the pain is wearing off, that's all. But I can live with it, it's not that bad... Yet. Anyway, that's not the point, I'm fine..."

"Freed. The more you sit there and tell me you're fine the less I believe it." Laxus remarked.

"Too bad." I grumbled, turning back to my book.

He plucked it out of my hands and closed it, much to my annoyance. I flinched when his fingers brushed across mine, even for just a second, as he stole my book from me. I quickly recoiled, hiding my hands by crossing my arms. I hated it when people, even Laxus, touched my hands.

"Gimme that back. You don't need to be rude." I gave him what I hoped to be a withering glare, but he wasn't buying it.

"You're so damn stubborn... So no." Laxus replied, evenly. Now he was glaring at my hidden hands. He really did notice everything. His expression softened slightly when he realized I was trying to hide them, to keep them from being touched. "Oh. Did I touch your hands on accident? I'm sorry, Freed..." he softened his voice too, giving me a sympathetic look.

"I-It's alright. I know you didn't mean to." I turned away, sighing softly. I glanced down at my concealed hands. Sometimes I hated them. "Really, it's no big deal."

"Speaking of which... I know this might seem nosy... But why don't you let anyone touch your hands?" Laxus asked, keeping his voice soft and tentative, as if he knew I wasn't gonna like the question.

I stared at the window for a second, watching white specks of dust float lazily toward the ground in the golden sunlight, trying to follow the complicated patterns with my eyes. I had always known this question would be impossible to avoid, it had to be asked someday. I was honestly grateful that Laxus had resisted the urge to ask for fourteen years straight.

Laxus was staring at me, and I realized I had been silent for at least a full minute now. He poked my forearm. "Hey. Silence is not an answer." he said.

"S-Sorry." I tried to collect my thoughts together and said, "The thing with my hands... T-That's a story I'll never tell."

"Okay. That's fine." Laxus slid his strong hand under my chin so he could gently turn my head and tilt it upward, making me look him in the eye. I saw worry and compassion in those beautiful golden orbs set into his skull, and tried my hardest not to blush. "But I hope you know that if you ever want to talk about anything, I'm here for you. Okay?"

I swallowed hard and nodded my head. "Okay."

Slowly, I uncurled my hands from where they were tucked under my arms, stuffed between my biceps and my ribs, relaxing a little. There was no reason to keep hiding them, I decided. My friend seemed satisfied by the small gesture and smiled a little.

"You're extremely brave, Freed. I'm lucky to have a friend like you." He told me.

For some reason, the word friend hurt me. I felt like he had taken a knife and stabbed it into my heart, but I didn't know why. I winced a little but managed an inconspicuous smile. "T-Thanks, Laxus... I feel the same about you." I need to stop lying. Especially to him. I should never lie to Laxus.

There was dead silence for a long while. I was trying my hardest to keep a straight face rather than allowing a hurt frown to cloud my features. I couldn't imagine having to explain to Laxus why I looked like I was about to cry.

"Freed?" Laxus called out, after the silence had become unbearable.

I let out a breath I hadn't known I was holding and glanced at him. "Yes?" I reached up and began pulling the elastic out of my hair, letting it tumble down my shoulders to my waist like it always did. "Since you're obviously not planning on giving my book back, I'm gonna stop holding my own hair hostage."

Laxus chose that exact moment to set my book in my lap. I threw him a look, but he wasn't even looking at me so he missed it entirely. "Have you ever let anyone touch your hands before?"

I immediately recognized his ploy to try and get enough information to accurately guess what had happened to me, and I wasn't having it. "When I was very young, yes. But that was years ago. And a lot has changed since then." I replied, tersely.

"Oh." the dragon slayer shot me a weird look out of the corner of his eye.

I shook my head and opened my book, flipping through the thin, fragile pages, trying to find where I had left off. The runes all pieced themselves together in my head to form actual words that made sense, symbols, letters, numbers and every other component that forms literature. Laxus watched curiously for a moment, and once I had found the right spot and continued to read, he scooted closer so he was shoulder to shoulder with me.

It brought more color to my cheeks. He doesn't realize it but he seems to insist on tormenting me with little things that make me question if he actually just wants to be friends or perhaps... Something much more...

"What does that say?" he asked, tilting his head to one side like a curious puppy.

"Hmm?" I glanced at him briefly before my eyes darted back to the glowing purple runes on the page. "Oh. This. It says 'love is the most beautiful of all things because it is indeed love. It has no limits, boundaries or restrictions. Those true of heart understand that none should be judged because their one true love looks or acts different, or is of the same gender.'" I read out loud the entire page, barely stopping to breathe.

"What kind of book even is that?" Laxus wrinkled his nose as he glared at the book, trying and failing to make sense of the complex symbols on the page.

I sighed, slightly annoyed. "It's a book written on the vast concept of love, baka."

"I'm... Surprised you'd want to read about something like that." He sidled just a little closer so he could squint at the runes.

"I do rather enjoy books like this. They are so full of emotion it's absolutely beautiful. The authors are incapable of lying when they write in runes, so everything in these pages is pure and true." I explained, turning the page and continuing to read.

"You're such a nerd." he remarked, before hesitating and giving me a goofy smile. "But you should let me braid your hair while you read to me."

"Nani??" I was completely taken aback by his sudden request and whirled to face him, this time unable to stop the blood from rushing to my face full force and turning my cheeks a delicate pink color. "Since when do you know how to braid?"

"I have a little cousin. She's ten now, but when she was super little, I taught myself to braid so I could teach her." Laxus told me, spreading his hands in a helpless gesture. "And you need to tie your hair back when you read anyway so it doesn't annoy you. Might as well make something productive out of it."

I rolled my eyes, pretending to be exasperated even though I was absolutely enthralled on the inside. "Alright. I suppose." I slowly turned so my back was facing him and returned to my book.

I read out loud in a steady, unwavering voice as he gently finger-combed my long hair before starting on one long, thick braid that trained down the middle of my back like a second spine. A green spine. The thought made my lips twitch upward in something of an amused smile.

Laxus seemed genuinely interested in the book. I knew he was listening, because his gentle fingers would pause occasionally in the middle of braiding as he contemplated what he had just heard. And I really enjoyed sharing something like this with him, I loved my books so much and had never thought he'd enjoy them any. Philosophy just wasn't his thing. Yet he still managed to appreciate this moment.

"I honestly don't know much about love..." Laxus admit to me as I paused to take a breath. He began gathering up loose strands of hair from the nape of my neck and gathering them into the tight braid he had assembled. I couldn't help but hum contentedly as his fingers brushed across my skin, the touch surprisingly soft and sweet. "It's kinda interesting, listening to what the smart people have to say about it."

"You are smart, Laxus. You just put your big brain energy into other things." I shook my head slightly, smiling a little. "Like electricity for example. And who knew a tough guy like you could braid?"

"Nobody knows, other than my cousin." Laxus chuckled softly, his voice sending shivers down my spine. "I honestly really like how your book lays down the concept that you shouldn't be judged based off your personal love interests."

"Me too." I said, but on the inside I was screaming, if only you knew... "It's always somewhat refreshing to read books like this."

He finally tied off the long braid and flipped it over my shoulder so I could see. It was perfectly woven, shockingly well-done. Plus, I had to admit. The soft, earthy green color of my hair looked great braided up like this.

"I'm done." he said, simply.

"It looks awesome." I replied, honestly.

There was absolute silence once again. It annoyed me because I didn't understand it. Laxus was so loud and outgoing and conspicuous that literally everyone had voted him as extrovert of the year during the holidays. The fact he was exercising his stunning lack of ability to be silent... Was unsettling to say the least...

"Why so quiet?" I asked, daring to disturb the peace.

"I'm just thinking about everything I heard from that book. It kinda made me question some things about myself, to be completely honest with you..." Laxus trailed off with a slightly nervous laugh.

Like what? I wanted so badly to ask, but I instead nodded and said, "Literature often has that effect on me, too."

For whatever reason, the silence amplified my other senses. Laxus's spiky blonde hair, well-tanned skin rippling with corded muscles, and well-defined, sharp facial features all stood out to me in sharp contrast with the rest of the room. The long, jagged brown scar twisting over his eye like a lightning bolt also stood out, but even that looked beautiful and charming on his face.

I returned my attention to my book, only to realize we were done reading together for the time being. "Do you want me to stop reading this book unt you're in the mood to read it with me?" I called out, glancing at the dragon slayer.

"It would be nice if you waited for me. I do like it a lot. And it's super cool that it's written in runes but you can read it out loud with absolutely no trouble at all." Laxus beamed as he praised my reading skills. I blushed and waved him off, smiling, but he continued. "Your voice didn't shake and you never once stumbled. It's really impressive, Freed. That's quite the gift you have."

"It's really not." I shrugged, trying my hardest to be modest about this whole thing. "I'm not that special, really. With enough hard work and dedication, absolutely anyone here, not just the wizards, could read, speak in and write with runes."

"Hmm." Laxus considered it for a moment before laughing. "Unfortunately I'm too lazy to even know what the definition of hard work is, so maybe you can teach me when I'm not so lazy."

"In other words, never." I chuckled, closing my book and setting it down on the the bed near his leg.

"Exactly, bruh. Now, I'm really sorry but I'm gonna go let Bix and Evergreen know you're okay and make sure they're getting on alright without me." Laxus slowly rose to his feet, obviously hesitant about leaving me by myself. "Will you be okay on your own for a bit?"

"Yeah, definitely. Go." I nodded, and he gave me a grateful smile as he hurried out, closing the door behind him.

Now that I was alone, the silence that settled over me was absolutely deafening. I slowly lay down on my back, being careful not to aggravate my injured leg, which was throbbing painfully. Staring up at the ceiling, I quickly became lost in my own train of thought.

Well, that was interesting... I do wonder what he meant by things he's reconsidering about himself... My mind immediately began replaying my conversation with Laxus. He's perfect just the way he is, I don't know what he'd want to change. Or even consider changing. So what's his opinion of love, than? He admit it himself, he doesn't know much about it... But I wonder where he stands in the matter. Perhaps... Perhaps maybe someday he'll develop feelings for me. Then what would happen?

I realized I was letting my mind wander too much and groaned, covering my face with both hands, flustered by my own stupidity. "Go away, gay thoughts..." I mumbled, entirely to myself, pressing the heels of my hands against my closed eyelids.

Still, I couldn't shake the warm memories that kept crashing over me. Laxus's gentle fingers combing through my hair as I read out loud to him. The way he smiled when he was telling me how much he liked the book. And then the way he laughed when he called me a nerd and asked to braid my hair, which was both the weirdest and the sweetest request I have ever gotten in my life. It was such a strange, beautiful, sweet moment. I wanted to remember it, to cherish it forever, because finally, all my hard work was paying off and I had achieved something of a close bond with Laxus.

...But I wanted to forget it because I knew I was overthinking things and getting my own hopes up for no reason. He was just being a good friend, trying to help me feel better while I was injured, almost completely incapacitated and unable to walk. He was also being clingy because he was probably still in shock from thinking I had died when the building came down on top of me. I'll admit, I thought I was dead too, so it was a very logical explanation. There was no way in hell Laxus could ever love or even notice someone like me.

Laxus is... Well, he's Laxus. Tall, smart, strong, good-looking, and wildly extroverted. He's the kind of person other people wanna be around and be friends with. He's the kind of person to selflessly run into burning, collapsing buildings to save his friends. And I... I am just Freed. Shy, quiet, silly little Freed who always has his nose stuck in a book. Who could ever love someone like me? Certainly not Laxus. That is a certainty. I'm not even worthy of his attention anyway...

I sighed sadly and folded my hands neatly over my chest. My hands that I never let anyone touch. I hated them. With a burning passion. Sometimes I wished I could just cut them off, but without my hands, I couldn't use my magic, which required being able to write somewhat efficiently and quickly in the ancient, elegant language of runes. I wished I could find a way to help Laxus understand why I was the way I was, but I didn't know how.

So I guess I'd have to be content with going by unnoticed and unloved for the rest of my life. It didn't seem so bad, really. Not like it was anything I wasn't already used to, or anything...

To be continued...

A/N: Okay so that's the end of this chapter. Hope you enjoyed it. I'm actually having so much fun writing this, I put a lot of care and effort into these chapters. In fact I've been putting a lot of other things off just to do this fic, including neglecting my other fics (whoops). Oh well, I guess this is what happens when I fall in love with a new ship to the point where it's actually bad for my health... Anyway, thanks so much for reading! See you next chapter!