Chapter 17: Bad Habits
"E-Erza... you awake? Erza?"
Lucy pepped in her head with a tray of muffins and blueberry tea. The named woman rustled around in bed, eliciting a small smile from Lucy. "I'll leave you be, then," She said.
The blonde woman slipped away from Erza's room, walking down the hall to her girlfriend starting to make breakfast. "Hey, glad to see you're up," Juvia greeted, too busy with cooking to look up. Lucy set down the tray and grabbed a little muffin and bit a chunk off. Juvia looked up finally from grabbing the eggs and rumpled her eyebrows.
"Luce, I'm making breakfast. Don't eat," She reprimanded, hitting her gently with an egg carton. Her girlfriend only rolled her eyes and placed the muffin, carrying the tray to the rest of the muffin tin. "Sorry, sorry - I guess I'm a little preoccupied," She apologized. Two sausages were dropped right into the water. Juvia pivoted around and huffed.
"Lucy? What's wrong?" She said, softly. The investigation subject turned to meet Juvia's eyes, coming to realize the tears bubbling to her eyes. "Hey, hey... Luce, are you ok?" She came to hug Lucy, who felt the tears trail down her back and stain. Masterfully, she tried to swallow them back to not stain to Juvia's shirt.
"I don't know what to do about Jellal, and yeah, Natsu apologized but like... I don't know what to do. This... I don't know, it's scary," Lucy admitted. The woman hugged her tighter to her chest and kissed Lucy's hair, carding her fingers through the golden locks. The comforter attached herself to her girlfriend and nuzzled her head into Juvia's neck.
"You two are very cute, truly."
Lucy peeked over the curtain of blue hair and saw fully-dressed Erza, who was sleepily rubbing her eyes. Sizzling sausages alerted Juvia to reality and ran to the starting-to-burn-pieces-of-meat. The other woman tried to flick off her tears and readied herself to the woman.
"Hey, good morning!" She said, plastering a smile on her face. Raising her eyebrows, Erza smiled. "Good morning - Lucy, Juvia. Thank you for having me, but I'm going to go," She said. She brought her hands up to gesture to her long keychain. Nodding quickly, she went to hug her and Erza reciprocated and also shared a hug with Juvia.
"Are you good to drive home?" Juvia said, pouring in some cheese on some scrambled eggs. Erza smiled sweetly and nodded her head. "Good, I'll see you later then," Lucy said, apprehensively. The red-haired started towards the door and went to the door, before realizing something.
"I just remembered that I don't have my car, will you please drive me home?"
"Sure"
After turning onto Viola Drive, Erza had sighed in relief to see her little apartment come into view. She had gotten out of the car, albeit wobbly, but managed to heave herself up the stairs and followed the steps she had always used.
Her door was in sight after traveling down several flights of stairs and burst into tears at the sight, happy to find comfort after such a long weekend, year-she didn't know how long.
Erza opened the door to be hit in the face with a wave of cool air, mixed in with the scent of strawberry from her candle. She stood - one foot in the threshold, one apprehensively crossing the boundary - reveling in the scents of happiness.
Putting down her coat, she walked towards her room and texted Lucy to let her know she got in just fine. Lucy texted back immediately, saying she was grateful and she was welcome to stay anytime.
The redhead turned towards her nightstand and ran her eyes over the petite picture frames. Her eyes lingered on one with a blue-haired man, on one knee, with a blushing Erza covering her mouth. Engagement photo.
Subconsciously, Erza mirrored the past her in the photo and her face become red as a strawberry.
"I think you suit the name Scarlet, don't you think?"
"Scarlet's such a beautiful name... but, I don't think I fit it."
"That's bull... I think your new name should be Erza Scarlet, Queen of the Fairies, defender of Fiore. How does that sound?"
"W-Wonderful"
Erza buried herself deep in her subconscious, her mind pulling out memories of long ago. When she was ok when he was ok - when the pining game never happened.
She wanted to reach that state of mind again... although it must've withered by now, Erza could rekindle it.
She had to.
The sound of the beeping machines was enough to make a woman go mad... crazy, from all of their inexact sounds going off at once. Like seagulls squawking at the same time.
But Erza had been here enough times for her to get used to the beeping... instead, focusing on the misshapen, figure lying in the covers of the thin hospital sheets with a mop of blue hair sticking out.
"Hello... Jellal. Good to see you're still alive. I'm sorry I hadn't visited you for a few months... I had a few things going on," She said softly. You would only be able to hear it if you were right against her ear, but Erza believed he could. Jellal had to.
"You've met my friend Juvia before, right? She's the bluenette.. the one who you'd thought would marry the Lucy girl. Yeah, they've been dating for a year now. Crazy right? Yeah, I predict they're going to get married in the fall," Erza continued, now starting to rest her hand on the bedsheets.
No sound or anything came from the person in the bedsheets, only the beeping continued. Erza paid it no matter, though.
"I'm sure I'll be invited.. you too. They'll look so beautiful; hopefully, one day I'll be like that too," Erza said, dreamily. 'With that Natsu boy.' A lingering, nagging thought had ripped into the nice, chill atmosphere.
"No," She said, finding Jellal's arm to grab. She shook herself of the tears that followed, holding onto them. 'You know you like him.. love him even; he's cool, he cosplays - what else do you want. Besides, he was a mysterious Prince Charming, who wants that?'
She thought of when he first showed up, looking semi-ridiculous in that whole... who was it, Tuxedo Mask she believes. Someone who looked so ridiculous, but yet, had an aura of an enigma to him that no one wise could match. Like one of her old, romance novels.
The ones where this semi-ridiculous person shows up to take the main character off their feet, saving them from a life of misery with their other partner.
Was that all Jellal was? Misery? And if we're going there, a partner?
Erza didn't have it in herself to do anything else but cry.
... so, um, sorry to all those Jellal fans who wanted him to have a nice redemption. Guess that's not happening. Anyway, he'll only be around for a couple of chapters then... well, that's a spoiler. Haha.
Also, Erza is having an identity crisis. I mean, who doesn't when your boyfriend/imaginary boyfriend/husband is kinda dying, right? He's honestly not a character but um, he's more of a plot device.
Anyway, have a good day/night and I'll see you later! Bye~!
