The same vintage car from the day before was parked outside Lucy's house. She had managed to quickly snag a book and her phone off the counter before Laxus had ushered her out the door. He opened the passenger side door for her before rounding the car and getting in. Once comfortably cruising down the road, they got to talking about their respective days. Lucy thanked Laxus for his recommendation and told him all about Romeo, the donkey, the boring bus, and the gorgeous view. Laxus's day had been far less eventful as he spent it catching up on work.
"Aren't you not working?" she asked, remembering that he had finished the work for the magazine.
"I'm rarely not working. People ask for photographs, and if they can pay, I comply. I'm constantly collecting a roster of shots to sell to various websites and magazines. After taking the photographs I need to select the best one, then edit it on my computer to colour correct and adjust the tones and contrasts, then render a high-quality image before sending it out. Invariably, the client will email back asking for some tweaks, and so I gotta re-edit it, sometimes twice or thrice, before they're happy. It isn't necessarily very hard, not like if I was a surgeon or something, but it is time intensive."
Lucy nodded, feeling a new found sense of appreciation for what he did. They fell back into their comfortable silence as they listened to Laxus's music. Lucy was itching to ask him about the kiss, but every time her brain tried to form a sentence, she couldn't think of what to say.
Looking outside the window, Lucy assumed that they weren't going to the beach that she had visited. Eventually, Laxus turned the car off the road and onto a small sandy path, driving a little further before bringing it to a halt and turning off the engine. Lucy could see that the sandy path opened up into a narrow curved cove. They got out of the car and Laxus opened the back door, pulling out a basket, an icebox, and a blanket.
"Picnic?" Lucy asked excitedly.
Laxus raised both eyebrows with a smirk, as walked up next to Lucy. She stretched her hand out, offering to help carry something, and he handed her the blanket. They walked out onto the cove and Lucy gasped as she looked around. The beach, while a little narrow, had soft yellow sand, and the water brushing up onto the shore was a clear, light blue. The occasional shell dotted the soft landscape, and a few large rocks created a pseudo barrier behind them. There were two other people in the water, and Lucy noticed their belongings neatly folded several feet away from where she stood, but besides them, the beach was empty.
"There's barely anyone here," she noted, flummoxed at why a place this beautiful wasn't thronging with people.
"One, it's right off the road and two, the beach is really narrow, so bars and restaurants weren't able to set up shop here. The tourists congregate around where the action is, and this place doesn't fit the bill. Locals come here sometimes to swim," he gestured at the two figures in the water, "and there's the occasional visitor, like myself, inquisitive enough to come here, even though it means no easy access to food and booze," he explained as he opened up the blanket and placed it onto the sand. He plopped down and dragged the basket and icebox close to him.
"But don't you worry, I got us covered." He showcased the contents of both to Lucy. She felt a pull of affection as she saw carefully packed sandwiches and chips, as well as several beers.
She sat down next to him and pressed a kiss onto his cheek. "You're a gem of a man," she said happily.
"So I've been told," he smirked in response.
Laxus pulled two beers out, tossing one to Lucy. They popped the tabs, and Lucy's promptly fizzed over drenching her thighs. She yelped, quickly bringing the beer to her lips and gulping before any more spilled over the lip. Laxus was no help at all as he leaned back on his elbows and stretched his legs out while laughing at the blonde woman. Lucy downed her beer in record speed before quickly standing up and discarding her skirt, eager to wash off the stickiness from the beer.
She ran into the sea, but not before making Laxus promise to join her as soon as he finished his drink. As she waded in, she made eye contact with the other couple in the water. She waved at them with a smile, and they waved back before returning their attention to each other. Lucy walked in until she was chest deep, and she sighed in contentment. The water was the perfect temperature - cool enough to feel glorious against the hot sun, but warm enough to not make one's muscles ache or teeth chatter. Lucy gazed out to the horizon as the water gently lapped against her chest. All thoughts slowly emptied out of her head and she felt perfectly serene. When she heard the noise of soft splashing she knew Laxus was walking up to her. He came up behind her and slipped his arms around her waist, pulling her frame into his. Lucy felt heat rise to her cheeks as his bare chest caressed her back.
"I've been meaning to ask," he interrupted the silence, "what's this?" He touched his finger to her side, on her ribcage right under her left breast. Her breath hitched as he stroked her tattoo with his thumb.
"It's a constellation. Aquarius. My mother was an Aquarius. She passed away when I was little," Lucy finished a little sadly.
"I'm sorry," Laxus whispered, dropping his hand.
"No, it's okay. I was so young that I barely remember her, but my dad's told me all these lovely stories about her. Really, I'm okay," she assured, looking up at him over her shoulder.
Laxus smiled at her, and then they both resumed gazing out to the horizon, Lucy tucked into Laxus's chest.
Suddenly, Laxus tightened his hold around Lucy's waist before spinning her around and depositing her into the water with a splash. Lucy stood up with a yell, and then quickly clamped her hand over her mouth, not wanting to disturb the other couple. She looked around but couldn't see them anymore, and then noticed their little pile of belongings was missing.
They must have left when I wasn't paying attention, she figured. The two of them had the entire beach to themselves. Now unafraid of causing a commotion, Lucy got an evil glint in her eye. As Laxus stood laughing at her, she sent a large splash of water straight into his face.
His laughter immediately ceased. "Oh, you've done it now, doll," he said before charging at her and tackling her into the water. They continued to play for a while, splashing and laughing, before Lucy called for a truce. They were both out of breath as they continued to snicker, making their way back to the blanket. Once on dry land, Lucy ran to the blanket and flopped down.
"I'm exhausted!" she exclaimed, looking up Laxus who stood towering over her. He sat down and pulled out another two beers. Lucy gratefully gulped hers down. Thirst satiated, she reached for her book and flipped it open. She turned onto her stomach and began reading, her beer can sitting next to her within easy reach. She heard the sound of a shutter and looked up to see Laxus pointing his camera in her direction. Normally, she would have squealed and asked him to stop, but for some reason, she didn't care. He then padded around the beach, taking multiple photographs, while Lucy lost herself in her book. Several pages later, Laxus heavily flopped down next to her. He propped himself up on his elbows and rested his chin on Lucy's shoulder, looking at the book.
"What you reading?" he asked.
"A romance," Lucy replied dreamily. Lucy expected him to stick his tongue out, but instead he asked, "What's it about?"
"Just the usual. Star-crossed lovers who have to battle the odds to stay together. It's an easy, fun read. With a lot of steamy sex," Lucy looked away from her book to smirk up at him.
"Sounds interesting," he said, with no reaction.
Man, he's good at this deadpan thing! Lucy was secretly astounded.
Laxus pulled out his camera and scrolled through the photographs on the tiny screen while Lucy continued to read. Soon, however, the sun had set too low and the dim light was making reading a little difficult.
Lucy sat up and looked at Laxus, expecting him to get up and pack things away. She wondered where they were going to go to eat the sandwiches he'd packed. But he didn't move. Instead he leaned into the basket, and after shifting the food around, retrieved a small pile of tealights and a lighter. He placed them around the blanket and ignited their wicks. He stood up and deftly stepped over the candles, walking in long strides to the car. Lucy watched as he pulled out a small bag and a throw blanket. He sat back down next to her, handing her the bag first, which was filled with more tealights, "For if these extinguish." He then handed her the throw. "For if we get cold."
Lucy put the throw on the blanket next to her and she handed the tealights back to Laxus to put into the basket.
"You really thought of everything, didn't you?" Lucy was so touched by the lengths he'd gone to.
"You're worth it," he shrugged. Lucy pulled her knees close and hugged them, as if she could hold herself together while her heart exploded.
"You cold?" he asked, reaching for the throw.
She looked at him and shook her head. "No, just happy," she smiled.
Laxus distributed the food between them and they tucked in. They faced each other as they ate, sitting with their legs crossed. Lucy told Laxus more about her mother, and Laxus told Lucy about his grandparents.
"They pretty much raised me after taking me away from my deadbeat dad. He used to get drunk all the time and yell at me, but one day, he shoved me into a table. After that, they came and got me, taking me back to theirs. I lived with them until I left for college, and I haven't seen my dad since the day I left his house. Not that he cares." Laxus's voice had a slight edge. "Anyway, a couple years after graduation, my grandma passed away. My granddad went soon after. That's why I'm so fond of Maki and his wife. They remind me of my family." Though Laxus did a good job of concealing it, Lucy could hear the sadness in his voice.
She put her empty sandwich wrapper to the side and leaned over. She reached a hand up to his face, and Laxus closed his eyes. Lucy gently trailed a finger along the faint scar that went down his right eye. She recalled that it had become an unspoken University law to not ask him about it.
"Is that how you got this? When your dad…" she asked hesitantly, her voice full of sorrow for the amazing man in front of her.
"Yeah." His voice was stiff, but then he let out an exhale and held Lucy's hand as it rested on his cheek. He brought it to his lips and kissed her fingertips as he opened his eyes.
They collected the empty wrappers and threw them back into the basket before finishing the last of their beer. Laxus ended up needing to relight the candles after their meal. Lucy watched him carefully flick the lighter against every candle as she stretched out on her back, bent elbows keeping her propped up. When Laxus was done, he draped the throw cover over Lucy's legs before sitting down. Lucy lay down completely and looked up at the stars. Laxus lay down next to her, briefly lifting the throw and placing it over his own legs. Their shoulders and knees touched as they observed the twinkling lights. Lucy had never seen stars this bright, and she was sure that even without the candles, she'd have been able to see clearly.
She turned onto her side, now facing Laxus. He mimicked her, turning onto his side as well.
"You know, since the day I bumped into you at the pier, I have gone to bed every night thinking 'this day has possibly been one of the best days of my life'. And the day before I met you, I cried myself to sleep, miserable about everything I'd been through. When I told you that I was well on my way to moving on, it was because of you. Whether you realised it or not, you helped me put myself back together. Thank you, Laxus," she finished her speech by cupping his jaw. She looked into his eyes and saw his affection for her, and how touched he was by what she said.
Neither one said anything, laying in silence as Lucy's outpour of emotion washed over both of them. Laxus finally asked her throatily, voice barely above a whisper.
"Lucy, can I kiss you?"
A/N: I am genuinely in love with my Laxus. I'm just making him embody everything I want in a man (of course minus the deadbeat dad thing; that was just me tying in a little bit of canon). I was so excited to write this chapter, because right after I got done with chapter one, and I roughly knew where I wanted to take this story, two chapters popped into my head, basically fully fleshed out. This was one, and another is going to come later.
I hope you like this chapter! Leaving it at a tiny cliffhangery moment, but I will upload the next chapter very soon, promise!