a/n: aah, so I did some calculations and apparently this is going to be a pretty long fanfic at the pace I'm proceeding with the story. Sorry about that x Mer

Gajeel groaned for the hundredth time as he realised he had lost Levy again amongst the tall bookshelves. He had managed to lose her in the store once more. Walking around and peering into aisles, he tried to spy bright orange and soft blue in the dusty brown of the shop.

Ah, there she is. He spotted Levy sitting on the ground in one of the aisles, books lying open all around her. She seemed to be muttering to herself, running her hand through her unruly hair.

"If you could move in a fight as fast as you do in the bookshop, you would never lose," he commented as he plopped down next to her. He picked up one of the books and flitted through the pages barely reading any words. She smells like parchment too, he thought, the same smell of the book I'm holding now. He put his nose down and breathed deeply the aroma of ink and paper.

"Are you smelling books, Gajeel?" Levy stated with a giggle. Gajeel suddenly looked up and blushed. He had clearly forgotten that he wasn't alone.

"Nah, I wasn't," he shut the book with a slam and got back up to her feet. "Are you ready to go, then?" Gajeel was anxious to leave. They'd been at the store for little over an hour and he could tell the shop owner didn't appreciate having a scary looking man scaring away potential customers. I thought you said we'd be in and out in no time at all, Levy, he silently reprimanded her. Bookstores were not his most favourite place on the planet, but he would endure the taunting glares the book spines gave him for Levy.

"Uh, I think so." Levy stood up as well, looking at the three books in her hand. "But, um, I can't-"

"Take all three. Just let's get out of here." He took the books from her and headed towards the counter. Levy cleared up the remaining books on the floor and headed out to meet him outside.

Gajeel was standing outside with two paper bags in his hands. "Did you buy something too, Gajeel?" she asked, slightly shocked. Gajeel was not one for reading books.

"No. This is one of your books," he handed on of the bags to her. "I'm going to keep the other two until after the job. You need to stay focused, and you can't do that if you're constantly thinking about whether Eleanor loves Nell or whatnot."

Levy's mouth hung wide open. So he actually does care about the job and he isn't just coming along by means of apology to me. She gave him a smile. "Alright, then. But you better hide them well. I can't guarantee that I won't try to find them."

"Gihi, I know exactly where to put them, don't worry," Gajeel grinned at her.

Together they turned back around and headed back to Fairy Hills.

The sun was just about to set when they reached the building. The soft ruddy orange glow encompassed the trees in a haze reminiscent of a heavenly dream. The trees were rustling quietly in the breeze and the streets down in Magnolia were quiet.

It's rather perfect, isn't it? Levy thought to herself, admiring the view. After losing seven years on Tenrou, Levy had vowed to live in each moment, and not let one such as this go by unnoticed and unadmired.

Gajeel turned his head and looked at Levy. Her eyes were half-closed, the shadows of her eyelashes grazing her cheekbones. Her hair danced in the breeze, the glow of the sun picking out lighter strands of her amongst her cornflower blue hair. Rippling around her legs, her orange dress cradled her body, hugging to every curve. Gajeel's breath caught as he stared at her, noticing tiny details.

Levy turned her head and saw Gajeel staring at her. "Gajeel," she said quietly, "why are you staring at me?"

"Huh?" Gajeel was lost in thought, gazing at the small mage's entire being.

"Gajeel?"

"Oh, uh," he finally noticed Levy looking at him, a questioning look in her eyes. "I was just thinking, sorry.." he trailed off.

"Oh, okay then," she said, slightly disappointed about the reply but for a reason, she couldn't place. She began walking towards the main doors of the building, before turning around and saying,"Gajeel, you better rest up. I'll meet you at the guild at dawn like Mira-chan said, okay?" she smiled widely at him before turning around and disappearing into the building.

A loud sigh escaped Gajeels lips. What is she doing to me? he wondered as he ran his uninjured arm through his mass of raven hair.

Without a further thought, he turned around and headed towards his apartment on the other side of the city, glad about the day's events. Gihi, he snickered, even Lily couldn't have predicted a better ending to the day.