"So Erza is rolling around on the floor, unable to get up thanks to the giant suit of armor she's wearing – don't ask me where she got it, because I have no idea – screaming at bloody murder because the giant cake Jellal made for the Halloween party was not only demolished and spread across the entire dance floor, BUT she didn't even get to see it first! Meanwhile, Natsu and Gray decided to have a jousting competition but instead of riding, they were sliding across the floor at mach speeds because of how much frosting there was – Mavis, it was terrible. Beautiful, but terrible." Levy shook her head, grinning widely. That had certainly been quite the unforgettable holiday party.
Gajeel's lips quirked in a lopsided smile. The image she was painting certainly sounded entertaining. "Jellal's the blue baker dude, right? The one who made those cupcakes you guys were fighting over?"
Nodding, she answered, "That's the one. He owns Tower of Treats. He's a phenomenal baker, you should try pastries when you get the chance. They're to die for. Although…" She poked him in the ribs, rolling her eyes. "You'd think that after being here for this long, you would have learned people's names."
He shrugged and opened his mouth, eyes glinting, but she cut him off with an excited cry before he could retort. "Oh look, it's our turn!" Turning to follow her eyes with his, he grunted when he saw that one of the cashiers did indeed have an empty counter, not entirely pleased. Although he was exceedingly glad that they were finally at the end of the massive list Lily had given him – seriously, with the amount they were buying, it was like they were stocking the store for the next four months – he wasn't at all happy that his time with the shrimp was coming to an end.
He grimaced, reflecting, as his picked up all their stuff, the small woman skipping ahead. He had basically stopped bothering to deny to himself that he had pretty much fallen ass over teakettle for the spunky blue shorty. Though it was more just giving up on beating his head against the massive brick wall that was his attraction to her than being honest with himself.
When the cashier prompted him, he wordlessly passed over his credit card. Lily had better reimburse him for this damn trip – it had taken all his cash plus a hefty chunk of his bank account. He grunted a response to the cashier's cheerful goodbye and scooped up the bags, exiting the store with Levy close behind.
Once they were out in the cool evening air, he turned to his companion and raised a questioning eyebrow. "Where's your car?"
"Er…" Levy avoided his gaze. He noticed her hesitation, raising an eyebrow and crossing his arms over his broad chest. "Out with it."
She fiddled with a lock of her hair. "Well…" Feeling his burning gaze on her, she took a deep breath and rushed out, "OKAYokaysomaybemycarMIGHThavebeenkeyedandslashedsoitMIGHTbeintheshopandiMAYhavedecidedtojustwalkherefromthecollegepleasedon'ttelltheotherstheywillKILLmeiftheyfindout-" Gajeel threw up his arms in defense, alarm written all over his face. "Whoa, whoa! Hold up, shrimp. What happened? Who would kill you?"
Flushing slightly, she slowed down. "The parking lot got vandalized today so I walked her. And several select people would be distinctly unhappy if they knew I walked from the college to here and then back home."
Huh. So that's what was going on, he mused. Well… he scratched his head. "Can't do much about the car, but I can give you a ride back. We'll need to stop by the store first, though. Need to get this crap to Lil."
Levy – still caught up in her embarrassed tizzy – stopped short at his proposal. RIDE proposal, that is.
It was probably for the best. It was starting to get late, and she really didn't want to schlepp all her stuff home with her while walking. Plus – she shivered – it was getting cold quickly, and her thin jacket definitely wasn't going to be enough.
Noticing her shiver, he shrugged out of his leather jacket and dropped it on her shoulders, grinning toothily at her surprised squeak. In answer to her questioning look, he scooped up the bags and started walking away, calling back, "You'll see. Follow me."
When she rounded the corner of the building, rushing to keep up while sticking her arms through the sleeves of the oversized coat, she certainly wasn't expecting to see a motorcycle. Though in retrospect, the jacket thing totally made sense now.
Warily, she approached the vehicle. She'd never actually ridden one, and she had to admit… it wasn't exactly the safest looking mode of transportation she'd seen. He noticed her eyeing the vehicle as he secured their shopping in the saddlebags and chuckled, swinging one leg across the seat. He swiveled his torso and patted behind him. "Here, come sit the way I'm sitting… Exactly. No, scoot forward more." He directed her as she swallowed her unease and climbed on behind him and settled with her chest pressed to his back.
Trying to ignore the feel of her pressed against him, he swallowed, hard, and pulled on his helmet. He started up the engine and pulled out of the parking space, chuckling when she jumped in surprised as it roared to life under them.
"Hang on tight, shrimp!"
Ass over teakettle: my preferred way of saying head over heels.
On a less random note, I THINK I finally have an idea for how I want the rest of this to progress. I'm having a hell of a time trying to wrangle this one into words to my satisfaction… It will be completed, of that I can be sure.
As always, I'd love to hear what you guys think.
