Jellal made sure to keep the redhead in sight throughout their labour time. He kept hoping to catch her eye and offer a supportive smile, but she seemed to be in her own little world. He also noticed that he was not alone in eyeing the girl; another boy, one who had come in with Erza's batch of prisoners kept glancing at her as well. He had medium skin and dark hair, and could either be older than them or just large for his age.
Seeing this other boy looking at Erza made Jellal's stomach turn in annoyance. He had to remind himself that he had no right to feel annoyed at this kid - he was probably just a friend who knew her before being kidnapped, he had seen them talking before and deduced as much. Still, it irked him that they already had some kind of bond established, it meant that he would probably have to be extra assertive to gain her full attention.
When their round of construction was done for the day, the prisoners began to file a line heading back to their cells. Jellal noted how Erza seemed so caught up in her own little world, she didn't notice the jagged rock at her bare feet that she was bound to step on and injure herself. Jellal rushed forward and reached Erza just as she began to stumble, grabbing her around the waist to keep her upright. Erza gasped in shock, turning to face Jellal, starting to say "Thank you" when their eyes met for the first time. She did a double take and blushed. The action was so endearing it made Jellal's heart sing.
"Watch yourself there, the guards here don't exactly help with injuries, or give you breaks if you're hurt. We wouldn't want you to have to work while hurt now would we?" Jellal offered with a smile. The girl turned even more red and said "No, thanks very much" with a small smile.
"I'm Jellal by the way" he said. "I'm Erza" she replied. Jellal wanted to dance and skip around because of how well their first conversation was going, though he suspected that would probably get him in trouble with the guards, and might make him look strange to Erza.
They walked back to their cell together in silence. Jellal noticed when they entered the cell that the dark-haired boy frowned upon seeing them enter together. I see how it is. He thought. A love rival, huh?
The boy approach the pair. "Are you okay Erza? I thought I heard you stumble back there" he asked. "I'm fine Simon, don't worry about me" she responded with a small smile. "I'm Jellal. You're Simon I assume?" Jellal asked. What was that old proverb? Oh yeah, keep your friends close, keep your love rivals closer.
"Yeah" said Simon briskly, with a small frown. A few other children joined the trio's conversation just then, two boys and a girl. They all looked to be two to three years younger than them.
"Hey guys, my name is Wally, this is Sho and Milliana." Said the black haired boy, gesturing to a blond boy and brown haired girl respectively. "We figured that since we're all stuck here together, maybe we could play games. Grandpa Rob said that it might help get us through this."
"Sure! Sounds like fun!" said Jellal, the younger kids smiling at his enthusiasm. If we regularly play together when we can, I'll be able to constantly be around Erza!
"Well I'm game!" exerted Jellal's love rival. "My name's Simon Mikazuchi. And the girl over there is Erza." Trying to assert that you know her well enough to do introductions for her, huh? We'll see about that.
"Nice to meet yah. I'm Wally Buchanan. So what about you, Mr. Tattoo?" Questioned the black haired boy. He had a very pointy nose. Jellal frowned. "It's a birthmark" This seemed to surprise the children, though none said anything. "My name's Jellal Fernandes" he continued.
"Whoa, that's a tough one. Don't get sore if I forget it." laughed Wally. "I won't have a problem with yours." Jellal replied. "Wally Buchanan huh? It's kinda boring" He could tell that Wally was the kind of person who enjoyed banter and making fun of eachother.
Wally turned to Erza next."Alright red, you're Erza what?"
"Nothing, that's all I got. Just plain old Erza" She smiled as she spoke, but Jellal could tell there was sadness behind it. Her scarlet hair framed her face so adorably. I wish I could think of a way to touch it. Then he had an idea. "Well you gotta have a last name" he told Erza with his eyebrows raised. He remembered something his Mom had told him about how marrying someone meant giving a girl a last name or something. He had been playing with his telescope-lacrima, so he hadn't been entirely attentive, but he knew it was something like that. He walked over to Erza and finally, after a day of resisting, gave in to his desire and ran his fingers through her scarlet locks.
Erza gasped and jumped at the sudden contact. "What's the big idea?"She asked, evidently freaked out. "You're hair is pretty, that's all" Jellal assured her. All of her is very pretty. Erza stilled and began to blush. "You think so?" She asked him. He didn't reply. "I got it! How about we make your last name Scarlet?" Please say yes. Please say yes. Please say yes.
"You gotta be kidding me! You can't just make up whatever name you want!" Yelled a clearly agitated Simon. But Erza interrupted him. "I like that a lot! So now, I'll be Erza Scarlet." Jellal smiled. It was getting increasingly tough not smirk at Simon. He promised himself right then that he would always be the bigger person in their rivalry over Erza. Jellal could somehow sense that that was what Erza would appreciate more than him acting possessive.
Still, if there was anything he had learned since laying eyes on Erza, it was that he was no saint. Hah! He thought. Take that Simon! You may have known her longer and had more chances, but Erza and I are practically already married. And though he had a very incomplete idea of what marriage was, and almost no idea of how to know once you're married, Jellal decided to let himself fall asleep to the idea that he and Erza were going to be together...Whatever that meant.