Chapter 7

It was Sunday morning and Laxus and Gajeel were packing to spend the week away. Gajeel, of course, didn't have too much. He stood at hi messy closet, looking at the tattered t-shirts that fell from the hangers, on the box full of cds. He, sleepily, scratched his head as he closed the closet door. He had no decent clothes to wear. Though, he did steal one of Laxus' hoodies, which was a tad too big for himself, actually. He took it anyway, yanking it from the closet and threw it on his bed.

That's it. The hoodie, and some socks. His sneakers too. Gajeel sighed as he gave in, grabbing his best t-shirts from the closet, checking it off his list. Tops, shoes, underwear and socks. He needed shorts, sandals, and swim trunks-shit, shit, he didn't own a pair of swim trunks. Off to Laxus' room. He sighed. This was the worst part.

"I can...I can buy you some," He said.

Thank god.

It was hot outside. Bixlow's van carried so much, but left plenty space. The strauss siblings waved as Laxus entered the driver's seat on the right, and Gajeel quietly stepped in, sitting in the passenger's seat beside him. Laxus, with a fist, brushed his blushing cheek. He wasn't used to going out with Laxus and his friends, whether he knew them or not. Bixlow climbed in the back seats and sat beside Lisanna, followed by two others. Evergreen and Freed. Evergreen looked like she may have been an actress-turns out she was. She snuck away from her security guards. Freed dressed in a floral t-shirt with the words "Nice" on the back. They were Laxus' friends as well. Evergreen adjusted her glasses as she exclaimed, "There's no room for me to move!"

"Hey, this is a good van, we'll crowd with the luggage together because we're all family!" Bixlow said with a cheesy tone. The back of the van showed seats going around the van, stopping at the door. Behind the seats were everyone's luggage. In the center of the seats was a table attached to the van, which provided cup holders. Evergreen would have plenty room if it weren't for her excess luggage sitting beside her, near the van door.

Laxus laughed, "She's gonna stab you with her glasses," he said, adjusting the mirror. They group in the back made loud conversation, which gave Gajeel time to speak to Laxus.

"Laxus."

"Hmm?" Laxus responded.

"I...need medicine."

"You bought it, right? It's in your back."

"No...I ...have motion sickness." He admitted. Laxus grabbed a small bag beside him, which was sitting in the pockets of the door. He pulled out a box that read, "bronine."

"Take this," he said, "I have it too."

Blushing, again, Gajeel took a pill, swallowing it with bottled water. "T-thanks."

"No problem."

They both looked away from each other as Laxus drove off. Bixlow played music in the back, and they all sang badly, save for Mirajane. Laxus eventually started singing. Gajeel kept his mouth shut. He was terrible at singing...not that it was so bad his voice would crack and break windows...It just wasn't "good." They laughed at Bixlow's obviously exaggerated tone, forcing his voice to crack and flailing his arms in his girlfriend's face as she laughed, trying to push them away. Evergreen fixed her glasses, "By the way, who's the new guy, Laxus?"

"Oh!" Bixlow interrupted, "That's his-" He paused, sensing the deathly glare aimed at him. "fffffffffffriend. That's his friend- his roommate!" Bixlow motioned towards Gajeel, "Ever! You remember that kid with the nose?"

"It's Gajeel…" Gajeel muttered.

"Oh, Gajeel? Huh, that's funny, I haven't seen you since-"

"A-anyway!" Laxus stopped her, changing the subject, "Tell us about your new movie."

"Ah!" Evergreen was pleased, clasping her hands together, "My new film! The Queen of the Fairies, I am the main character, the princess, learning how to become queen with the love of my life, a prince! Oh how I've always wanted to be with a prince! And how I've always wanted to be a sort of ruler, and my dress is absolutely marvelous, with sparkling green gems and golden jewels, I make the perfect princess!"

"I wish i could be a princess," Mira said. Evergreen pointed a finger towards her lips, "Now now, dear Mirajane, you are more of a princess than you believe!"

"I...am?"

"At most, to me, darling!" She smiled as she held her with one arm. Elfman blushed, not wanting to assume what was going on.

"Oh wow, you get to act more like a princess than you already do, huh?" Bixlow teased. Evergreen slapped him with a white glove, pouting as he laughed.

After two hours of driving, they'd stopped at a breakfast buffet. The sign read, "Pancakes and Iced Cakes." They served various breakfasts and desserts. Evergreen sat with Mira and Elfman at the corner of the front of the restaurant, discussing the script of Evergreen's movie. Bixlow and Lisanna sat behind them, facing the window, and eventually inviting a lonely Freed to sit with them. Laxus and Gajeel sat more towards the back, also by the window. Gajeel kept his hands clasped, looking away from Laxus and through the window. outside was the sidewalk sitting between a small set of gardens with lively flowers. The sun showed with clear skies. It would look better if it weren't for the parking lot.

Laxus took his chin and turned his head towards himself.

Gajeel looked at him, shocked, yet still silent. Laxus looked around to see everyone completely distracted, and not many other people were around. They couldn't be seen by their friends due to the chairs being as high up as they were. Laxus leaned in and kissed his lips, lightly and softly.

Gajeel kept looking, his face completely red. Laxus snickered as he placed a finger on his lips, cleaning off the drool that slipped out his gaping mouth. He sat back the minute the waitress came and asked for their order. "Pancakes for both of us," Laxus said. The waitress smiled, nodding as she wrote the order down, strutting her way back to the kitchen.

"What are you...what are…" Gajeel stuttered as Laxus cupped his cheek again and pulled him into another, deeper, kiss. No one saw. They were invisible. The atmosphere grew warmer and warmer as the kiss went deeper, and their tongues played with each other. He gently pushed Gajeel away, back into his seat, as he was sure the waitress would return. She did, and with two plates with pancakes, stacked, and covered in syrup with a slice of butter. She smiled, placing their meal on their table.

"You okay?" Laxus asked Gajeel when the waitress left for the kitchen. He, slowly, nodded as he turned his head back towards the window. Laxus forced him to turn back around, "C'mon, just eat with me, okay?"

He nodded again, reaching for his drink. He ate slowly. They ended up spending an hour their due to the longevity of Evergreen's conversation with Mira, Bixlow's flirting with Lisanna, Freed switching between the two tables, and Gajeel hesitantly eating. Laxus scrolled through his phone, patiently waiting for Gajeel to finish, and not quite planning on waiting for anyone else. Eventually, Gajeel finished, and Laxus paid their bill. Bixlow and Evergreen also chipped in, and Mirajane offered to tip. They headed out, Gajeel walking much slower than the others.

What is he doing to me?

Another hour stuck in a cramped car, this time, in traffic. Laxus sighed as he rested his arm on the wheel, turning to Gajeel. "Hey, is your medicine wearing-?"

He was asleep.

Laxus reached an arm out towards him, wanting not to wake him up, but to just touch his cheek. He wasn't sick-warm, but he gave off a warm feeling. Gajeel moved a bit, but remained asleep. Laxus grinned, grabbing a coat from his luggage strapped on his seat, behind him. It was long enough to work as a small blanket for the time being. The whole van was quiet, so he figured that everyone else was sleeping as well. He pulled the coat over Gajeel and made sure his head rested comfortably before traffic moved again. Right before, he kissed his forehead.

He moaned, sweetly.

They were there, after so long. It was four in the afternoon and everyone was too beat to not go into their rooms and just take a nap. "We'll rest for a few hours," Laxus said, after they'd finished bringing the luggage into their rooms, "Then we can go eat."

"I want to eat somewhere fancier," Evergreen stated, "Maybe a seafood restaurant?"

"Nah," Bixlow denied, "Maybe somewhere less expensive, like...there's a place that sells chicken wings across the street!"

"Disgusting!" Evergreen said, slapping Bixlow with her glove.

"Can't we...just go get pizza?" Gajeel muttered, loud enough for them to hear. They stared at him as if he had two heads. He didn't talk much, and he figured that may be the reason. "Or, y'know...something like that…?"

"Actually," Mira spoke, "There's a pizza place that way. They sell wings too, and ice cream!"

"Oh, Nee-san," Elfman said, "My mouth is watering! Pizza is a delicacy! A man like me's gotta keep fit!"

"That doesn't mean you can't have pizza every once in a while!" Lisanna laughed, "C'mon, let's rest up a bit, I'm not ready to eat yet," She held her still pretty full stomach. Bixlow pat her back and smiled, "Yeah, I'm takin' a damn nap, see you when I see you."

They waved and opened the door to their room, next to the group. Evergreen left with Elfman and Lisanna, and Gajeel and Laxus were left in the hallway. Gajeel scowled as Laxus nudged his arm, snickering, "Why the hell're you so nervous?" He asked. Gajeel glared at him, turning away and entering their room, ignoring Laxus' calls.

Once their door was locked, Gajeel finally turned around and pushed at him with his hand. "Care to explain what the fuck that was?"

"What what was?" Laxus shrugged, only to be pushed again.

"At the fucking...at the diner! You fuck...you kissed me...why the fuck did you kiss me!?"

"What-what do you mean why?"

"You kissed me! For no reason? Why did you kiss me!?"

"Well you didn't seem that bothered when I first did it, what's the big fucking deal, Gajeel!?"

"I...You...I don't fucking know! You can't just...kiss me for no good reason! You can't…" He panted, holding his head, confused. Gajeel was red-faced, humiliated. He gave the impression that he was a nervous wreck to everyone. He wasn't fucking shy, no, he was strong. He was tough and he knew what he fucking wanted. Though, now, he didn't know what he wanted. Gajeel already admitted to himself, he loved Laxus. Not just as a close friend, but he was pretty much a crush now, but why was he angry? What did Gajeel want?

"You okay?"

He looked up, slowly, at Laxus who'd placed a hand on his shoulder. He looked twice as concerned when he saw the tears falling down Gajeel's face. "Gajeel, w-what's wrong? Did you need anything? Are you..are you alright?" He asked, Placing both hands on Gajeel's shoulders. Gajeel looked down at the floor. Their feet were very close.

He leaned in, resting on his chest. Laxus immediately held him, rubbing his back and saying, "You're okay, don't worry too much about it, I won't do it again, I promise-"

"No."

"...What?"

"...Just," Gajeel looked up again. Was he really going to let him do this again? How would it feel? Good? Bad? "Kiss me again. O-on my head, please."

He did so. They stood there, in the middle of the room, silent. After a minute, Gajeel moved out of Laxus' grasp, "I'm gonna take a nap."

"Okay."