"Well, one of them was boasting about their strength, especially about that Sting guy. He made it seem like they were famous—"
While Natsu and Lucy were busy prattling on about their recent job, Gray's ears had unintentionally picked up on some of the words that Karissa had spoken. It didn't seem like they were discussing about Old Main anymore. He didn't mean to. It must have been the way he was sitting. Body angled enough for him to rest his arm comfortably on the backrest of his chair.
Gray glanced towards Karissa's table.
"That's because they are." Warren deadpanned as he shuffled the cards in his hands.
"Can't say much about Rogue since he was quiet. But Sting walks around showing off his shoulders and abdo muscles. He's attractive and strong, I guess. He carries himself as 'cool' as well." She spoke in a matter-of-fact manner, her face looking apathetic with a tint of boredom. "If that isn't a traditional recipe for fame amongst girls, then I don't know what is. Girls can really boost a dude's popularity, I mean, take a look at that... what's it called? Uh, that boyfriend list thing in Sorcerer Weekly."
"Attractive, huh?" Max repeated, an eyebrow quirked at her.
"Don't tell me you fell for his charms too?" Warren spoke sarcastically since she mentioned he was attractive.
"I just stated a fact."
Romeo waved his hand dismissively. "There's no way Karissa would just fall in love with Sting out of nowhere. She's too logical for that."
Delighted by what she took as a compliment, Karissa nodded.
Gray turned his gaze away and looked down at the table, specifically where his other hand was resting.
…
…
…
"Why not tell her how you feel?"
"It's a little hard to gauge how she feels since she's pretty secretive when it comes to how she feels…" Gray finally spoke, rubbing his nape. He glanced to the side and spotted Mirajane talking with Levy and Lucy.
"True." Cana sighed and rested her cheek in her palm. "That's one thing I hate about her."
"But that's one of her strengths because she's able to stay strong until it's time to let it out. I don't know if she feels the same." Gray sighed and stared at his water. He stared at his reflection and couldn't help but dislike how troubled he looked over it.
"Well, you won't know unless you tell her that's for sure. Go ahead and confess. There's no harm in doing it."
Should he?
Was it too soon?
He narrowed his eyes at the water.
He always thought that a man should say what he's feeling instead of hiding it. So, why should he be an exception?
Maybe he should tell her instead of trying to figure her out.
Yeah.
But…
"Not now." Gray lifted the glass and gulped down all the water as if he was drinking up his courage. He slammed it down on the counter and looked ahead. "For now, I have something else to focus on."
It was almost time for the S-Class Exam. As much as telling her how he felt was important, becoming an S-Class mage was also something just as important to him. He wanted to focus on that first before doing anything else.
He swore to himself that once it was all over, he would do it.
…
…
…
He frowned to himself.
…
…
…
After enduring interviews from Jason from Sorcerer Weekly for the rest of the day, Karissa decided to head to Hargeon again the next day. Her destination? The Landervilles' bakery. It just felt good to be out and away from the guild. Also, she wanted to grab some goods from the bakery to share with her siblings. The stingy part of herself when it came to money seemed already quite displeased with her consecutive spending.
After one last confident smile to the mirror, she set off for Hargeon with her headphones on her head.
But when she got there, she stumbled upon Arthur arguing with his daughter, Stella, while Noelia tried to diffuse the situation. When her eyes landed on Stella, she was surprised to see that the girl she knew as 4'8 was now about her height (Karissa wasn't exactly as tall as Erza to begin with anyway…). Still, it was surprising because this was a person she knew as a child. Now, Stella had to be at least fourteen if her birthday had already passed.
Curious about what was happening, Karissa casually walked up to them with her hands in her hoodie's pockets. Noelia had heard her intentionally loud footsteps, and turned around to see if it was a customer.
"Oh, Karissa. You're here again?" Noelia smiled sheepishly.
"Mhm. I thought I should buy some more bakery-stuff for the family. Pandora and Van would like it."
"Aw, that's sweet of you. Hold on, I'll be done in just a second…" Noelia turned to her family and put her hands on her hips. "You two, stop it! You shouldn't be arguing outside like this! It's bad for business!"
"If dad would just back off, then we wouldn't be doing this!"
"I'm not letting my daughter go into a lion's den!"
"You're overreacting! Just gimme! I'll deliver it for you!"
Karissa's eyes slid away from the two and landed on two rather large boxes situated near the door inside the bakery. Casually, she slipped past the family and entered the bakery as if to wait for Noelia inside. But she was actually driven by curiosity to discreetly peek at the box's attachment. Karissa stood awkwardly on the side with her head angled slightly to the side to cause her bangs to drift into her sight, hiding her eyes from the Landervilles, to be able to read the attachment.
Looks like a shipment for Blue Pegasus.
The door of the bakery flew open, causing Karissa to yelp and back away in fright. It was Arthur. He was walking towards her with a panicked look on his face. "Can I request the help of a Fairy Tail mage?!"
Well, this is unexpected.
"Uh… you can submit a request by going to the—"
"No, I need one right now. It's urgent! Will you help me, Karissa?!"
"Did you say Karissa?"
Stella peeked into the bakery to look at the owner for the name. Karissa must have completely slipped past her sight if she was really caught up in the argument with her father. The Fairy Tail mage tipped her head to look at the younger girl.
Stella Landerville was a young fourteen year old girl, the only child of Noelia and Arthur. She had her mother's long ash blond hair and her father's crystal green eyes. Her skin was fair as well, making her seem somewhat delicate. She was currently wearing a midthigh light green dress with white straps that fell to her shoulders and knotted in a knot in the back. She also had white bell sleeves on her arms. And in contrast to light colours of her top, she wore black knee socks with brown boots.
Her face exploded in light as she smiled brightly. "You haven't aged at all!" She exclaimed, approaching her quickly with a bounce in each step. Karissa leaned back with a little gasp when Stella leaned closer to her curiously.
She definitely grew up into the extrovert category!
"Uh… yeah. Y'know… island magic stuff."
"Do you still remember me?!"
"Stella. You once tripped and landed in the mud."
The younger girl flushed in embarrassment.
"Why is that the first thing you say?!"
"It was the easiest to recall." Karissa smirked a little as she shrugged.
That was their first encounter on a day post rain. Karissa was twelve at the time and Stella just happened to be running around when she and Laxus were passing by to grab a snack from a store. Stella literally tripped and landed in the mud, nearly splashing it onto Karissa if it were not Laxus yanking her away.
"Karissa, would you do an escort job for me?" Arthur interjected. Stella huffed when she was brushed aside by her father. "Stella won't back down from delivering these orders."
The boxes seemed rather troublesome to carry but it wasn't impossible. Surely Stella would have no problem carrying these items to wherever they needed to be.
"… Where is she bringing this?"
All of a sudden, Arthur's face darkened with pure seriousness.
"Blue Pegasus."
Ah.
Now this makes a lot of sense.
Karissa was sitting across from Stella on the train. She was just minding her own business, eating her cream cheese salmon bagel, staring out the window while occasionally glancing over to Stella. The young teen had pulled out a little mirror from her handbag and was checking her appearance with a giddy smile. There was comb on her lap to adjust any imperfections.
Arthur's request was to accompany Stella to Blue Pegasus for the delivery and act as her 'bodyguard' around the inevitable playboys. Seeing how Arthur was willing to pay her the proper escort fee, Karissa didn't see any reason to refuse. It was keeping her out of the house and away from the guild anyway. Surprisingly, Stella didn't have any objections and instead appeared quite satisfied with Karissa accompanying her. The ice mage seriously thought it was all going to be okay. That is until they made it onto the platform where Stella began telling her that she was glad Karissa was her companion for the trip because she wouldn't be so harsh with her job. And even though Karissa insisted that her father told she was supposed to keep the boys away, Stella said that there was no harm in simply socializing for a little while. In her defense, there weren't many boys around Hargeon that were just as good looking as the men from Blue Pegasus.
Stella set down her mirror with an excited grin. "Karissa." The said girl lifted her brows and looked at her curiously. "I bet you've met some of the men from Blue Pegasus already. What are they like?"
"How are they like? Well, they're good to work with on a job. I was once chosen as a member for a temporary alliance against a dark guild so I had to work with them."
The ash blond girl's eyes lit up in interest. "And~?"
"Well," Karissa put a thoughtful hand on her chin. She wasn't sure what she should recount to the younger girl. The part where they socialized with Wendy and made her wonder if it was consider pedophilia? The part where Hibiki placed a hand on her without invitation? The man with the weird smell fetish? The part where all three of them only annoyed her and Lucy after the Cait Shelter secret was revealed? She couldn't decide on what to talk about for a few seconds that Stella started wondering if she was still mentally present.
"Karissaaa?"
"Hm, oh well, they're… attentive to their allies…?"
Stella pouted at her boring reply. "Don't you have anything else on them other than work?"
Karissa puffed her one of her cheeks and went back to being interested in her bagel. "Look, they flirt and I'm not into it. What else can I tell you?"
With a dramatic sigh, the teen leaned back in her seat and crossed her legs. "Figures. You've always had some of that lone-wolf vibe."
Seriously?
"I-I do?"
A laugh escaped Stella. "Duh. You're always quiet and always looked uninterested. You barely smile from what I remember too."
Karissa chuckled and wiped the cream cheese on the corner of her mouth with her thumb. "If those are the qualities that keep most men from me, then I wholeheartedly embrace them. I don't like attracting attention."
Stella grinned as if she discovered a little treasure. She sat up a little and pointed at her lips with a finger. "But when you do smile and laugh, I like it. It just proves you don't fake your emotions when you smile."
The older girl licked her thumb, her expression surprised more than confused. "You think so?"
"Mhmm."
Karissa jolted up the boxes in her arms with an aggravated sigh. She was beginning to regret carrying both boxes. She wasn't cut out for labor work. It clashed with her lazy personality trait.
Upon arriving at the station in the town in which Blue Pegasus was located in, Stella and Karissa carried the boxes of bakery goods to the guild, but the latter ended up carrying both halfway due to Stella's insistence that she should make one more final check to look presentable. After much begging and whining, Karissa gave her the permission to socialize with the men from Blue Pegasus, only socialize. If there was any walking out of the guild or any inappropriate touching for a fourteen year old, they were out of there before Stella could even blink. If that was the only condition Stella had to abide, then she despondently accepted.
"We're here!" Stella squealed.
Karissa couldn't share any type of enthusiasm thanks to her sight being directly blocked by the boxes. She tipped her head and caught sight of Stella already walking through the doors. Her anxiety shot up when she realized how they were going to simply walk in there! Gods, this girl had more courage than she did!
"St-Stella! Hold on!" Karissa hurriedly walked after her to keep within the younger girl's shadow. The ice mage nervously looked around and already found men and women looking in their direction. The interior of Blue Pegasus looked way more extravagant compared to Fairy Tail's current guild hall. There were tables situated nearby, and she could see regular people chatting with some Blue Pegasus hosts and hostesses. Yeah, this definitely wasn't her type of scene.
"Oh, hello, little lady. Here again with the orders, I see."
"Oh, Hibiki! Hello again!"
Karissa paused to tilt her head and look in front. A seven-year-later-looking Hibiki (which actually doesn't look much different at all) was greeting Stella with a sweet smile. The young girl was beaming at the welcoming gesture that was situated atop her head, an affectionate head pat. They looked more friendly than...flirty? That's good at least. Upon seeing Karissa behind the boxes, Hibiki's face lit up joyfully.
"Miss Spring. It is so good to see you again!"
"Miss Spring?" Stella and Karissa echoed pure confusion written on their faces.
Hibiki leaned over towards Karissa with almost a puppy look. "Forgive me for not being present when you all return to from Tenrou Island. But rest assured, we, Blue Pegasus, did not rest until we found any sign of you. As scarce as the signs were, we never gave up the search for you, our old allies."
Karissa had to admit. She was touched by their dedication towards searching for them. Blue Pegasus and Lamia Scale truly never gave up on them. "Thank you for searching for us." Karissa could only thank him in this moment. A small smile appeared on her face to showcase her gratefulness.
"Of course. We couldn't forget about the women who were lost and crying out for help. My heart was breaking every day from the thought of you, Erza, Lucy, and the others lost at sea…" Hibiki placed a hand where his heart was and lightly clutched the front. Feigned sadness written everywhere across his face. He then placed a hand on her cheek. "My heart mends at the sight of you standing well in front of me now."
"Hibiki."
"Hm?"
"Please remove your hand because I need to deliver these boxes. They are so heavy that I think I am going to drop them."
Please remove your hand from my cheek if you don't want my hand on your neck.
Her diplomacy quickly worked as he backed off and offered to carry it.
The female mage simply side stepped away from his reaching hands.
"Actually, these boxes aren't so heavy after all. So, yeah." Karissa took a step back and spun around her heel to head to the counter where she spotted Master Bob earlier. Stella, who was watching the entire scene, giggled in her hand. The way Karissa coolly acted was almost too funny.
Hibiki dropped the womanizing act for a second and smiled gently.
"It really is good to see you again, Karissa."
…
…
…
"Ack—!" Karissa wheezed when Master Bob all but grabbed her into a hug. He was singing words of joy upon seeing her, giving his heartfelt welcomes for her long absence. A few seconds ago, all she did was set the boxes on the counter as gently as she could while the Master was facing away from the counter and read out the attachment that Arthur had given her. Master Bob wasted no time in phasing through the counter to grab her when he realized who was there.
Now, here she was standing in front of the man, enduring the way he pinched her cheeks like he usually did. However, instead of trying to break free, she decided to let the man be. Seven years had gone by after all. Why not indulge those who missed her? It was the least she could do.
"I assume the others are doing just as well?"
Master Bob was situated behind the counter again. Karissa was sitting on the chairs, rubbing her cheeks gently to soothe them. "Yes. We're all okay."
"Thanks very good to hear." The cross-dressing Master of Blue Pegasus smiled with a hand on his cheek once he poured Karissa a glass of water for her travels. "I'll have to find the time to drop by and see Makarov myself."
"Oh, um, I'm sure he'll like that." She thanked him for the ginger cookie.
"It's almost been a week since you've returned from Tenrou Island. Has everyone gotten used to the current world yet?"
"Aside from the current state of the guild, financial situations, and current jobs available, I don't think there's anything that's taken us for a loop."
"Hm… is that so? I suppose that's a good thing. Only time will tell however." It's true that the world did not greatly change in their absence, but that isn't to say there wasn't any change at all.
As promised to Stella, Karissa allowed her to socialize with the hosts for a good twenty minutes. She was being generous with those extra five minutes. Thankfully, she managed to wrap up the conversation with the Master of Blue Pegasus who she spent mostly talking about all the events of Tenrou Island in detail. She thanked him for the water and snack and then proceeded to walk towards the area where Stella was happily chatting away with a young mage. When she appeared in her field of vision, Stella made a quick hand sign that meant she was going to wrap up the conversation in just a second.
Karissa sighed and leaned back against a beam. Her hand fidgeted with her shoulder bag absentmindedly. She knew that standing like this would obviously attract the attention of those hosts. Her goal was to not stand out. The place where she was situated only allowed half of the room to see her but at the cost of being sore thumb to those on the other side, the side where all the hosts were all gathered.
"Hey."
Here we go.
I probably should have counted how long it takes for them to do this...
She looked to her left and founded, lo and behold, a Blue Pegasus member. Brown hair nicely styled and charming violet eyes with a pretty face such is the standard of Blue Pegasus. He was doing what Blue Pegasus hosts do best: flirt.
She couldn't possibly have interest in this man with how her heart was already taken by another. Another who unfortunately didn't feel the same as her. It made her think about what she talked about with Juvia when it came to knowing someone to fall in love with someone. As she stared at this Blue Pegasus member, she wondered how she would feel if she somehow went through Juvia's experience with love. Would she be stupidly in love like the water woman? Would she try to socialize with this man?
Any questions she asked herself had the same answer: no.
Different personalities meant different reactions and thoughts. She could fall in love with this person, but she'd never have it in her to shamelessly wave her ass and ask for this man to sit on her. A disgusting thought, really, now that she thought about it.
The needless hypotheses she asked herself served no purpose other than to drag the seconds until her mind started wandering back to Gray. If he were here right now, would he shoo away this man like he did back during the alliance?
Discreetly, she glanced around the room and saw other Blue Pegasus members, who weren't part of the whole host and hostess shebang, talking amongst themselves, and then she spotted an obvious couple holding hands and smiling at each other. They looked so happy. The thoughts she had already left in the past, the curiosity of those what-ifs scenarios, were coming back to her as she continued to observe them curiously.
How nice would it be to have him by her side like that?
How great would it be to just hold his hand, and be with him?
Could they be just as happy as those two?
But what's even the point of wondering?
This was not fun at all.
She was literally counting the seconds now.
Maybe because she wasn't making an effort to let herself be entertained...?
But even if she did decide to just let herself 'have fun', she'd still end up comparing him to Gray, her chill best friend whom she cared so much for.
The whole time, Karissa answered the Blue Pegasus' member's questions with the most deadpan expression even while being half lost in her own thoughts, wishing, praying even, for Stella to hurry up and finish her conversation. One of the Gods out there, maybe the God of Impatience, must have heard her prayers because Stella finally stood up and waved goodbye to the host she was talking to. At that point, the host near Karissa whose name was Zander placed a hand on her shoulder that was quickly grabbed and nonchalantly tossed aside in the most half polite way she could muster.
"Look, from the bottom of my heart, I genuinely just don't care… sorry."
Zander was just left there frozen from the cold that her words summoned once she started retreating for the exit. Her words and lack of reaction made the cold powerful.
"Sorry, pal. Karissa just isn't so easy." Stella snickered, sympathetically patting the man's shoulder when she could see his self-confidence drop down one level.
The man just stood there and watched the young girl run after the older woman.
On the way back to the station, they actually ran into Sherry and Ren. It was surprising to hear that the two were actually engaged. The alliance from seven years ago must have been the start of it all. Even though they were engaged, it didn't stop Ren from acting so coy. It made Karissa wonder whether or not his coyness was actually part of him and not just and act as a Trimens…
Ren also welcomed her back to the world just like those who knew her seven years ago.
Sherry reported to Karissa that Clavis sent word to Lamia Scale that he would be returning in at least four days. That immediately made Karissa look forward to the coming days in which their inevitable meeting would finally come.
…
…
…
"Hey, Karissa. Do you have anyone special in your heart like Sherry from Lamia Scale?"
"Nah."
"I don't either." Stella propped up her chin in her hand as she stared out the window of the train. "But seeing people in love makes me envy. It makes me wonder if falling in love is a real thing. So far, I've recently become friends with Rayis, the guy I was talking to. Seriously, we talk like good friends now and he said that he completely forgot he was being a host for a second." she rambled with a laugh.
"Your parents are very much in love." Karissa snorted, flipping through a magazine she swiped from the previous station.
"I mean, I haven't felt it so I can't call it real. It's like when someone says they don't believe in anything they can't see. I haven't fallen in love with anyone so I can't say for sure that it's real."
… I can see her point.
"That's why I try socializing with Blue Pegasus guys who are around my age. I figured that getting to know someone would maybe ignite those kinds of feelings even if it's one-sided. I'm just so curious. But I thank that's not working, I'm just making friends." Stella lightly threw her hands up as if to show defeat.
Karissa paused for a moment to collect her words. How would she put what she felt into words…?
"Being in love is like…" Karissa started, catching Stella's full attention.
What is it like…?
…
…
…
"Make your own bed." He complained while prodding her side with his foot, "Come on, get off. I'm tired."
She squirmed and smacked his foot away and just rolled onto her back while still occupying his futon and gave him a pleading smile while pointing at the corner where the futons were, "Can you get me one?"
Gray deadpanned which made her laugh in amusement like a little kid. She held up her hands and put them in a praying motion, "Pleaaase?" she squeezed her eyes shut. The dark haired guy didn't reply and just picked up the edge of his cover and proceeded to roll her off his futon, making her yelp, and then was about to slip inside until Karissa started fighting him over the futon.
"The hell, look at all this energy you got! Go get your own!" Gray was pushing her away when she tried to slip under the blanket.
"Nah, don't feel like it." Karissa cackled and started pushing him back, "And I thought you were sleepy! If you have energy to get all pushy then you can be nice enough to set up a futon for me!"
"You lazy idiot!" Gray poked her sides to try and get her to jerk away from him and off his futon. She wasn't the type to start exploding in laughter but it certainly did coax out reactions that got her to move away whenever she got poked there. He mercilessly jammed his index fingers onto her sides which got her to constantly recoil and try to keep his hands at bay. Even so, she refused to give up.
At this point they were wrestling for the bed.
Gray Fullbuster proved to be the victor of their little wrestle after her successfully dragged her away from his futon and pinned her to the floor. He smirked at the look of annoyance on her face when he stared down at her. He had her hands pinned next to her head while he straddled her, leaving no chance for her to wiggle her way out.
"I'm super sleepy right now." Karissa mocked him childishly, "My ass." She deadpanned.
"Hey, you started it." Gray reminded flatly, "I'm just finishing it so I can go to bed." He leaned his face closer enough for the tip of his hair to tickle the tip of her nose, smirking triumphantly, "So, get your own."
A little peeved by his smirk, Karissa stuck her tongue out like a child, "Alright, fine. Get off you, big ape." Karissa tried to throw him on the floor while he took his time getting off her but failed which made him laugh at her attempt.
"Jeez, the fuck…" Karissa laughed pathetically, wiping her tears, "Ugh, sorry. I know you can't handle this type of crap." Karissa groaned, annoyed at herself for just putting Gray on the spot. The reason for being alone in the dark in the first place was to avoid being seen by someone else and maybe getting questioned. The last thing she wanted was to worry someone over spilled milk.
"I'll just take a walk and calm the hell down. Maybe the sound of waves will help."
"Wait!" Gray instantly shot up leaned forward and latched his hand around her wrist before she got too far. "I'll go with you. I can't leave you alone when you're crying."
"What? But… you can't really handle crying girls, right? Last time I checked, I'm a girl." she sniffed while giving him an unsure look.
"Forget about me. Just think of yourself." He grumbled and stood next to her. He gently placed a hand on her back to push her along as he started walking. The surprising turn of events made Karissa blink dumbly and stare at him as he faced forward with a somewhat straight face.
"Pfft—!"
Gray looked at her strangely.
Karissa was chuckling while casually turning her head to the side.
"What's so funny?"
"You. I can tell you're freaking out on the inside."
That made him scowl a little in embarrassment, "I said to forget about me."
"I couldn't protect you."
Karissa watched him clench both his hands tightly, he was angry with himself in addition to the guilt. The girl didn't know what to say, or more like she was hesitating on choosing the right words.
After a brief pause, the girl grabbed his hands and undid them gently. When they laid flat on his lap, she took his injured hand and sandwiched it in hers. "Hey, you're not weak. I know for a fact that you are very strong so I don't know what you're talking about. And look, I don't know how I broke free of that mind control. All I did was cry out helplessly while crying like a pathetic child, I don't think any of that contributed to breaking the spell. So, I don't think it's your fault if you couldn't break out of it."
"It doesn't change the fact that I was the one who ended up hurting you so badly." He told her sadly, his other hand holding one of her hands so that he could hold it the same way she did. Her hand was soft. He was glad her hands came out unscathed. They were important for her to draw.
He turned his head back to face her, his eyes solemn, and said, "I didn't want to hurt you. I never want to hurt you."
He sounded so hurt.
She bit her lip.
She understood his feelings because she felt undoubtedly the same.
He was squatting next to her.
"Man, that lightning really hit you hard."
"No shit. My legs feel numb… I'll be fine maybe after an hour." She looked at him with an exaggerated look of pain. "Go on without me." She told him dramatically while trying to lift her hand.
"You sure about that?" He raised a singular brow at her. "You want me to leave you here?"
She dropped her hand. "No, I was kidding. Please don't."
Gray sighed and ran his fingers through his dark locks. "You're hopeless." He gave her an amused smile.
"You try getting hit by lightning that's worth fifteen lacrimas! We're not built like Erza!"
"I guess we gotta go like this." He shrugged and started helping her sit up while she just looked at him in confusion before gasping when he started putting her on his back. She didn't have enough strength to just slip out of his grasp and walk off.
Karissa frowned and didn't make an effort to cross her arms around his neck just in case he changed his mind. "Hey, you sure? We both got hit by lightning."
He suddenly jolted her up on his back which made her squeak in surprise. He laughed at the sound and started walking. "I can make it back to the guild like this no problem. Besides, you need help getting back... unless you were lying just now which I doubt."
Karissa softly rested her chin on his shoulder, slowly submitting to him. A little embarrassment is what she felt right now.
"Thanks."
"Don't mention it."
"I can't answer all those questions." Gray told her. "But from what I remember, your parents definitely loved you. I don't think you should doubt that. I also don't think you did anything wrong at all." he wiped away another tear when she blinked.
"I don't mind being alone sometimes. But being alone is different than being alone after being left behind. That thought of it... kind of scares me." Karissa admitted with a murmur.
"Our guild won't let that happen. Pandora and Van won't leave you alone. I definitely won't either. Shouldn't you know that by now?"
"I do... but it's still not a pleasant thought." she turned her face as if to try and hide, basically nuzzling her face into his hand unintentionally. Seeing this, Gray moved his hands away from her face and put his leg down, causing her to blink and pull away when she believed she got too comfortable and overstepped a line. To her surprise, she felt him grab her arm and tug her into him sideways. It was obvious to him that she was in need of a hug right about now. His arms circled around her with one hand resting on her head to keep her tucked into his shoulder.
She was hesitating to fully yield to him, but the more she thought about receiving potential warmth and comfort, she eventually found herself nestling into him. Hugs were never a bad thing.
Karissa shut her eyes, already feeling a little better. "You're warm." her voice was muffled. Her brain that was racing with unanswered questions was slowly coming to a stop as it began releasing happy serotonin.
"Yeah?" Gray turned his attention to the open window.
"Mhmm." she nodded against him, making her bangs slide and cover her left eye.
He rested his chin on top of her head. "Listen, don't let those thoughts linger for too long. Think about it once, and then try to drop it, or else you're going to dig yourself a hole and you'll find yourself drowning in it. Trust me, you don't wanna get there. Can you try to do that?"
She nodded against him silently. His hand on her head patted her softly.
Gray scratched the back of his head as they walked further away from the building "I thought you were crying or something. You had your head down and you were wiping your face with your sleeve."
She let out a small laugh as they walked past the name of their guild hanging above them. "I just had something on my face." Her hands went inside her pockets when she smiled a little while showing off her eyes to prove that there were no tears. "You came running just because you thought I was crying?"
"You don't expect me to think you're crying and just ignore it do you?"
"I…I don't know?" Karissa rubbed the back of her neck; she didn't expect him to answer her like that. She turned her face and hid the little smile on her face that she couldn't fight back. With a sigh, he stopped walking with one hand in his pocket. His other hand reached out and grabbed her head to gently pull her towards him. She stumbled in surprise and stared at the ground, confused.
"I told you." He looked towards his left and gently patted her head. "I'm not going to leave you alone if you start crying."
Karissa blinked.
"Karissa."
"Huh?"
"Face me."
When she turned towards him, she stepped back from being a little startled when he draped his jacket on top of her head. The jacket was long enough to cover her entire back. It took her a second to just register what he did. Her dark brown eyes blinked a few times and stared at him blankly.
"It'll keep your head covered at least."
"Oh. Thanks."
She held the lapels of his new jacket a little tightly.
Again. Her heart felt touched by his gesture.
"We're heading to my place." He said bluntly after twisting around the handles of his bag to seal most of the opening.
"Your place?"
"You wanna stay here?"
Karissa pouted and looked away. "… No."
His shout was muffled by splashing water.
Karissa threw her head back, laughing loudly at his karma.
He resurfaced a little farther away from her and shot her an annoyed look. "What the hell was that for?!" he spat, wiping the water off his face.
"For laughing at me, jerk!"
"God, you can be so petty!"
"Aw, there, there." She reached over and patted his cheek while he scowled. With a cackle, she stuck her tongue out and moved back to the edge to finally get out of the pool.
Gray's dark blue eyes glinted, then a smirk stretched on his face. He waited until she had one knee on floor to grab her elbow and yank her towards him, she flailed with a squeak and was once again plunged into the water.
When she resurfaced, she grabbed his lapels as he laughed and glared at him in annoyance. "You…!"
Gray just sniggered at her, unable to take her seriously when she was soaking wet with her hair all over the place, and just lazily lolled his head to the side. "You started it."
"And I finished it until you decided to be petty too!" she dropped her hands and opted to splashing water on his face, making him sputter.
"Oh shut up, you didn't need to pull me in too." He lightly pinched her cheek in retaliation which just made her pinch his nose as a response. He pulled his face away and let go of her cheek, wrinkling his nose.
Curiously, he lifted his arm and checked his watch.
It was midnight.
Karissa saw him smile at his watch before dropping his arm back in the water. He looked back at her with a gentle expression, using the other to brush away the hair on her face that was out of place.
"By the way, happy birthday." he said, voice soft akin to a whisper so that only her ears may hear the words he uttered.
She gave him a slight pout.
"Thank you."
Abandoning her feigned anger, she chose to hug him, tightly, selfishly indulging herself in her first chosen gift of her day. He wrapped his arms around her tightly and closed his eyes as he relished in the feeling of holding her close to him.
And how do you know?
…
…
…
Karissa's breath hitched when she and Gray stepped into the light of the lamp post, she suddenly stopped walking to stare down at the ground nervously. Edolas Lyon told her that it thinking about it wouldn't be so bad, but she was beginning to think he was wrong as she could feel her heart beating fast again and she was getting extremely nervous.
Gray stopped in his tracks, glancing over his shoulder curiously, finding her staring at the street without saying anything.
"Karissa, what's wrong?" he wondered innocently.
With a sharp intake of breath, she hesitantly looked up at him, finding him standing a few steps away from her, standing in the light with his hands in his jacket, looking all casual and cool as usual. He didn't do anything out of the ordinary.
She met his dark blue eyes again and just stiffened.
…
…
…
"It's real… it's soft and sweet, but it can also be scary and comforting... mostly in a good way depending on the situation. It's also fun." Karissa chose the first words that came to mind once she laid out her memories. "It's difficult to just find it on your own. It's like what people say, when you least expect it then that's when it just hits you, and it makes you feel in awe when you finally get it."
The young teen blinked, a tad bit surprised. To be honest, she wasn't expecting a long answer like this one from Karissa. She thought she'd tell her some vague answer or that she simply didn't know. But who was she to know when she didn't know much about her life anyway?
Karissa shrugged and rolled her shoulders back. "At least that's how one of the novels I read described it. I think you can trust the words of an author because they take pieces of their lives and put them on paper."
"I see..." Stella paused with a thoughtful look, as if she was letting her indirect quote sink in. Karissa made sure to act as unbothered about the subject as she usually does to not give Stella any ideas. She flipped a page of the magazine nonchalantly to add more to her life.
The rest of the ride didn't cover the topic of love for too long, thankfully, since they shifted to what happened on Tenrou Island. It was enough to keep Stella entertained the whole ride back, even on the way back to the bakery. When they made it back, Karissa left out the detail of Stella's time spent with a host from Arthur. It wasn't like she allowed someone to inappropriately interact with the young girl, so she figured it was okay to keep that a little secret. As promised, Arthur paid her agreed sum and even added one free chocolate donut along with the items she bought.
…
…
…
She was back home.
Back in Magnolia.
With her thumb, she gently brushed off the crumbs of the donut she just finished near her mouth. The bag of goodies were neatly placed inside her shoulder bag. She even made sure they were all angled properly to avoid being crushed. As she cleared her throat, she patted her hands together to rid of whatever remnants of the donut was left on her. Her eyes focused on her surroundings and her ears listened to the ambience of Magnolia. People were talking, children were laughing and running around, she could her water drifting along a river nearby. The afternoon sunset was glowing Magnolia in gentle orange.
Karissa breathed in as she enjoyed the calm afternoon sunset that gently kissed her skin. There was something oddly nice about just walking around like this. But it was beyond her to know why.
She was going straight home now. There was nothing more she wanted to do but take a nice shower and relax in her room before dinner. Maybe she'll leave her window open later… No, that would just invite pesky mosquitoes. She wasn't trying to have swollen eye the next day.
The peace in her mind was temporarily shaken when she recalled her day. She specifically recalled how she tried to give Stella an idea of love despite being such a neophyte at it.
"... Soft and sweet, huh?" She mumbled as she stared at the pavement. A soft chuckle escaped her and she lightly shrugged her shoulders. Maybe that was a silly way to describe it. Perhaps there was a better way to put it? No use dwelling on it now though. Her lie was out there. With a sigh, she placed a hand on her neck and stared to the side as she lightly angled her head. "As tempting as it is, it's better to turn and walk away from it. It's not really worth the hurt."
And besides…
…
…
…
"What about you?"
The taller mage blinked. "Huh?"
Karissa held her left arm behind her back. "… What am I to you?" She couldn't stop herself from asking. She was curious. If he was going to get an answer then she wanted one as well. It felt fair.
He held her stare silently and before skittering it away to look at the bright blue pool, fidgeting his hands. " Isn't it obvious?" he reached behind his head and ran his fingers in his hair. "It's almost the same as you. You're important and special to me. I'm also grateful that you're here by my side. You're... precious to me."
…
…
…
Isn't that enough?
After a nice shower, Karissa descended down the stairs with her hair wrapped up in a towel. She wore a long red t-shirt that was clearly not her size that descended past her thighs. She also wore red shorts that reached her knees.
Pandora glanced over to the stairs in the middle of cooking tonight's meal, stir-fry flat rice noodles with beansprouts and green pepper. Van was sitting on the couch reading a book, waiting for dinner to be done. He had already set the table for everyone while Karissa was in the shower. He looked over to his little sister and found her walking to the little shelf they had in the corner of the living room.
"Karissa, you want me to dry your hair?" Van chirped from his seat, lowering his book on his lap.
"Hm? Oh, sure. Lemme just grab a book."
"Mmkay, just make sure to pay me alright?"
"What the hell? Forget it then."
"I'm kidding." Van chuckled and beckoned her over playfully. "Your love is enough payment." He bookmarked his book and set in on the coffee table. "Oh, I'll go grab your brush."
"Geez, I'm getting spoiled tonight."
"Is that a crime?" Van smiled at her and then went upstairs. Pandora snorted at how Van practically bounced up the stairs.
Karissa turned to the bookshelf and sat on the floor. Her eyes carefully looked at each spine. Most of the books were either novels for or magic books for studying. The latter was usually the one she most reached for when she visited their little library. With a finger, she effortlessly pulled out a book with enough strength to let it plop onto her lap.
I think I'll do some training starting tomorrow. I can continue with stuff I left off.
The distance she placed between her and her childhood friend was mostly meant to clear her mind and to lessen the hurt in her heart in hopes of triggering the beginnings of moving on.
Yes. It hurt. It felt like picking at a scab over and over again, meaning that it was still bearable.
If she didn't feel dramatically crushed and cry on the spot when she heard him, then perhaps, if not impossible, that moving on should be easy to get into? Maybe? If so, hopefully it wouldn't take as long as she's loved him because that would be quite troublesome...
If not, then that was going to be fine too.
Because her friendship with Gray was not worth so little for her to ignore him or do whatever foolishness that came with love rejection fiction.
If he finds someone else to stand by him, I'll be fine.
It's okay if he lets me go.
No matter what happens, he'll always be my close friend.
Karissa flipped the book open and landed somewhere in the middle of the tome. It was close to where she last bookmarked it.
I've always been caught up in hectic crap. Only the gods know what kind of hell I'm going to be through next time.
So yeah, training it is.
Better safe than sorry.