Chapter 8

Gajeel made it back home around 1 in the morning. He was glad he knew Levy would be asleep by now. Didn't want her to see the blood on his suit. Not his blood, of course, but that would have just made it worse for the shrimp to have seen.

Natsu greeted him in the foyer, having seen Gajeel getting dropped off through the monitors. The pyromaniac was tired, Gajeel could tell, but he'd done his job and had protected Levy dutifully. Had to give him perks for that. Natsu reported that nothing eventful happened. Levy and Lucy bonded over books and babies or something. Gajeel was glad he'd suggested Salamander bring his wife. Levy needed a friend in this world. He could tell she was getting stressed out from having to go through all this with only him to talk to. Having some girl time was probably the best thing for her. Apparently, it was good for Lucy, too, who'd been in a slump lately and had been worrying about the delivery of her baby. The shrimp apparently offered to do the delivery for her.

"They're upstairs, sleeping." Natsu nodded towards the stairs. "I'll grab Luce and we'll be outta your hair, boss." Now Gajeel knew the kid was tired; he never called him boss unless he was too beat up or too exhausted to crack jokes.

"Don't worry about it. Go sleep with your wife, you can leave in the morning." Gajeel sighed. He wasn't heartless. The boy was tired, and his pregnant wife was asleep. Making them leave would be rather cruel, in his opinion.

"Thanks, boss." Natsu all but yawned. He didn't need to be told twice to go catch a wink. He hurried upstairs to his sleeping wife and was dead to the world before his head hit the pillow. Gajeel shook his head and made his way to the laundry room. He stripped off his bloodied suit and pulled on some jeans that were in the closet. He insisted on keeping a few clothes in the laundry room for times like this, when his clothes were too, er, dirty to take throughout the house. He tossed his suit into a nearby hamper. Virgo would make sure it was cleaned and pressed properly.

Walking topless up the stairs, Gajeel wondered about the shrimp. He knew she would ask Lucy questions that she wasn't ready for yet. But he also knew Lucy wasn't stupid enough to tell her that stuff. Still, he wondered what they talked about while he was gone. Lucy likely told her about the family's history, and he knew the shrimp would certainly ask about his claim on her. He honestly hoped Lucy was able to make the shrimp understand his intentions, because he could see that Levy didn't fully understand... and he wasn't very good at explaining things.

He ended up in front of Levy's door without thinking about it. Opening it quietly, he peeked inside. He grinned at the sigh before him. The shrimp was laying spread out on the bed, one hand above her head and the other hanging off the bed. Both her legs were dangling off the foot of the bed. She wore a tight tank top and pink boy short undies. Her top had shifted up, giving him a nice view of her toned stomach and a peek at some under boob. But what made him grin the most was the little naval piercing that glinted in the moonlight. The shrimp has a piercing... damn, that was hot. He silently moved closer to inspect it. It was just a simple barbell piercing with a little orange gem dangling off of it, not even a centimeter in length. He found himself wondering why such an innocent looking shrimp had a piercing like this. Then a thought crossed his mind and he had to grin. He wondered if the shrimp would be open to more piercings. Later, of course. But the thought was still there, and the image of this tiny attractive shrimp with piercings in scandalous areas made him need to leave the room before he woke her up with his lecherous chuckles.

He silently padded out of the room and shut the door, shaking his head at himself even though he was still grinning. Damn he was a pervert sometimes.

"You look very lovely, milady." Virgo complimented Levy as she helped her zip up the dress Gajeel insisted she wear. They were finally going on that date Gajeel wanted to take her on, and she was so nervous. "Master has good taste."

"Er, thank you." Levy blushed at the praise. She shifted nervously as she stared in the floor length mirror. The dress was very nice and surely very expensive, not that she would know considering Gajeel bought it without her even trying it on. Somehow he picked the perfect size, too. It was a very pretty dark blue dress with a rather deep V neck that, she had to say, made her bust look larger. The skirt was ruffled and went just a little past her knees. She'd paired the dress with the black flats he'd bought her, though she wondered why he didn't get her heels. Then a thought crossed her mind. Did he... did he like that she was short? Like, way shorter than him? She blushed at the possibility. She had to admit, she found it quite attractive that he was as tall as he was. Even though he made her feel little, he also made her feel safe. Besides, he was an attractive man, anyways... height didn't make that much of a difference, especially when he had a chest that looked like it had been chiseled out of stone. Oh, her thoughts were taking her to scandalous places, and her face was really heating up now.

"I believe you would look wonderful with a necklace." Virgo smiled, either not noticing or not caring about her blushing. The maid pulled out a necklace seemingly out of nowhere, and put it on Levy before she could comment. Levy looked at the necklace in the mirror. It was simple, just a silver chain, but the pendant was an intricately carved black metallic dragon with a ruby for an eye. Each scale had been hand carved and the pendant had been expertly polished to a beautiful shine. It was not something she would have chosen to wear, herself, but it was beautiful and, oddly enough, went very well with her dress. "Master bought this for you to wear. The black dragon is his personal symbol, so wearing this tells everyone that you're his."

"Eh? B-but I haven't even d-decided yet..." Levy blushed furiously.

"It doesn't matter. Until you reject his claim, you're technically his girl." Virgo giggled at her as if she was a silly child. "Please, wear this until then. It will confirm that you have the family's protection, in case you come across a member that doesn't know you." Levy still blushed but she nodded and accepted the necklace. Virgo smiled and adjusted a strand of hair that had fallen out of Levy's bun. She put a few more pins in and then stood back with a smile. "All done, miss. You look just lovely. I'm sure master will be happy."

"Ah, um... thank you for your help." Levy blushed. She wasn't used to having help getting ready for a date. She wasn't used to dating, in general. Oh, she was so nervous. What if she was her usually clumsy self? What if she made a fool of herself?

"Come, let's head downstairs. I'm sure master is waiting for you." Virgo led the way. Levy couldn't tell if she didn't realize how flustered she was... or if she simply didn't care. Virgo was hard to read, considering she was constantly smiling that same, kinda creepy, smile. Levy found Gajeel waiting for her near the front door. She'd seen him in a suit before. In fact, she'd only seen him in a suit. But this was different than the typical black and white suit he wore for 'work.' This time he was wearing black slacks and a black blazer, but he wore a dark blue shirt under the blazer that matched her dress perfectly. Levy blushed at this. He was matching her. Not only that, but he looked stunning. Who knew that changing from a black and white suit to a blazer and a colored shirt could do so much to an appearance? She found herself blushing even more as she realized that he wasn't just attractive; he was downright hot. She blushed deeper as he looked her over with a pleased grin... not once, but twice.

"I knew you'd look gorgeous." he winked at her, and Levy didn't think her face could get any redder. He held an arm out to her with a grin. "C'mon, shri- er... Levy." He caught himself. "I got us a reservation at a place I know you'll like."

Twenty minutes later found the couple walking into a restaurant Levy had heard of but had never dreamt she'd get to eat at. It was one of the most exclusive restaurants in town, reserved only for the richest of the rich. The hostess took one look at Gajeel and instantly escorted them to a private table in the back without a word. Any conversations going on in the restaurant paused as they walked past. Gajeel was obvious well known here. Levy could only look around with awe as she followed Gajeel's lead, holding onto his arm as he escorted her. He glanced at her and grinned; he knew she'd be impressed.

Not ten seconds after they were seated did a server come over and smile politely at them. "Welcome back, Mr. Robertson. It's an honor to serve you tonight." The man gave a bow. He then handed the couple menus. "May I take your drink order?"

"Water, for now, wine with the meal." Gajeel told him as he was already looking at the meal. "Levy, get whatever you want."

"Um, er... do, do you have hot teas here?" Levy asked the server.

"We have anything you can think of, my lady." The server smiled.

"Ano... may I have some green tea with honey, please?"

"Certainly. I will return momentarily with your drinks." The server hurried off. Gajeel looked at Levy with a smirk now.

"Tea, shrimp? They have a full list of wines and other drinks." he told her.

"I... don't really drink that often. I don't hold it well. T-that time with the whiskey, it was just a really bad day... and I fell asleep right after." Levy blushed. Surely he didn't think she was an alcoholic?

"Lightweight, huh?" Gajeel smirked. "That's kinda cute." he admitted, which made Levy blush again. She tried to change topics now, and she looked at the menu.

"U-um, where are the prices?" her question earned a chuckle from her date.

"You don't come to a place like this if you're worried about the cost. Pick whatever you want, shrimp." he told her with a grin. She looked back at the menu with a nervous shift. Being in such an expensive place like this, it was a bit nerve wracking. To top it off, most of the menu was in french! "Need help?" Gajeel saw her struggling and took pity on her. She nodded eagerly, earning a grin. "Alright, what do you like to eat? Favorite meal?"

"U-um, I really like a lot of things." Levy sighed. "I don't have any favorites, really."

"Hm... anything you in the mood for? Chicken, steak, pasta, seafood?"

"Um, a steak I suppose." Levy blushed. Gajeel just grinned.

"Red meat girl. I like it." he chuckled. Then he looked at the menu. "They've got a lot of steak options. You mind if I just pick one for ya?" he grinned. Levy blushed a little.

"S-sure." As if sensing a decision had been made, the server returned with their drinks and asked for their order. Gajeel got a hefty T-bone, and then ordered Levy a filet mignon, much to her surprise. They chatted for a bit as they waited on the food. Usual date conversation about hobbies and places they wanted to visit. When the food arrived, Levy nearly cried, her food was so delicious. She'd never had a steak so tender and juicy. It melted in her mouth!

"Here, try this." Gajeel grinned, holding out his fork with a nice cut of his T-bone on it. Levy blushed and let him feed her the bite. Mavis, it was fantastic. Different seasonings than her filet, but still so tender and delicious. Gajeel offered her a sip of his wine after the bite, saying that it paired perfectly with it. And it did. And it was enough to convince her to get a glass of wine, herself. Despite the wonderful food keeping them occupied, they never stopped talking about this and that. Levy learned that he loved to sing, and would sometimes go to preform at dive bars where nobody would know him. He invited her to come with him sometime and she accepted happily.

By the time they left the restaurant, Levy had practically forgotten he was even in the mafia. All she saw when she looked at Gajeel was just... Gajeel. It was a wonderful change, and it made her feel so much more comfortable around him. Gajeel escorted her out of the restaurant, keeping a close eye on her. She wasn't kidding about being a lightweight. She wasn't drunk, but just one glass of wine had made her a bit tipsy. Despite this, he was grinning. It had been the best date he'd ever been on, by far. And he knew it was the same for her.

"This was really fun." Levy smiled up at him as they walked back to his car. "I was so worried I'd end up making a fool of myself. But I had a lot of fun."

"Glad you enjoyed it." Gajeel chuckled lightly as he looked at her. She was humming some song he didn't know and she was leaning on him quite a bit, but she had a dazzling smile plastered on her face. She was really beautiful, and this date had only served to prove what he knew already. He really liked her. Liked her sweet personality, liked the way she blushed when he said something sweet to her... and, boy, did he love seeing her lose her temper. They rounded a corner and Levy found herself gently pinned to the wall of a building. She looked up at Gajeel eyes full of confusion but the fear she'd used to have for him was gone. He smiled down at her and cupped her face with one hand. "Shrimp... Levy. Be mine. I'm asking this for myself. Not because of any obligations I have to you. I'm asking you this because I really like you and I want you to be mine. So, please. Be my girl, Levy." his tone was softer than she'd ever heard it before, and his sweet words made her blush and her heart race. He really liked her, and really wanted to date her? Truly?

"I..." she paused, feeling nervous. If she said yes, she'd be forever tied to the mafia. But... she really liked Gajeel. He made her heart race, made her feel safe, made her smile, made her feel beautiful like no man has ever done before. If she said no, she'd be walking away from a potentially wonderful relationship... and she might regret it forever. "Gajeel, I... I'll be your girl." She breathed, making her decision. His genuine smile was worth it. And the kiss that followed, even more so.

It was a light kiss, very gentle, but there was a promise behind it. Meaning. It was as if he was sealing the deal before she could change her mind. She was his girl now, and he would protect her and treat her as such. She was his. His.

Eeee! I made them kiss! XD

A really long chapter for you lovely readers, and they finally got their date, yay!

Please let me know what you think. There's gonna be some action soon, and of course Lucy will have her baby soon. Please give me name suggestions, cause I'm really drawing a blank with the baby name.

Thanks for reading!

-Everythingnerd12