Bickslow hated that Lucy and Gray were dating. He silently fumed about it, wondering why she had chosen to date the ice mage. He stared at the picture that stayed in his drawer, because he couldn't bare to throw it out. Didn't she love him at all? Didn't she know how much he wanted her back? He laid his head back on his pillow. Why did he ever leave her in the first place? At the time it had seemed like a good idea, like his happiness depended on it.
He shifted in his bed, so he could stare at the picture of the two of them. Whatever could have possessed him to think he could be happy without her? She was the single most important thing in his universe and without her he felt lost. He sighed, too late for that now, though. Closing his eyes, he forced himself to try and get some sleep.
Lucy was enjoying her time with Gray. Kissing him softly, she said goodnight, wondering what adventure the two of them would go on tomorrow. Her smile slipped once she was inside her apartment. Being with Gray was fun, but it wasn't the same as being with Bickslow. She sighed, thumping her head against her door. She knew she needed to forget to Seith Mage. He had left her after all, so why was still concerned with him. She shook her head as she taped the photo strip of Gray and her to her fridge, smiling at the memory they had created.
No, Gray was not Bickslow, but that was the appeal. She knew he wouldn't intentionally break her heart. Gray was serious, grounded like the Seith Mage had never been, while still being a lot of fun to be around. The two were similar enough that Lucy knew that she would enjoy being with Gray while being different enough that it would never be the same and she would never mix the two up in her mind.
She hummed softly as she wrapped herself in the shirt he had given her, her smile coming back once more. The humming stopped, however, when she noticed the black rose that was sitting on her bed. Her smile fell away and tears filled her eyes as she lifted the flower. There was no note, but there didn't need to be one.
Whenever Bickslow had something important to tell her he left her a black rose somewhere in her apartment. It had become a custom after asking her out while holding one. She sat heavily on her bed, staring at the rose. She could meet him, they always met in the same place and she knew that he would wait there for a full twenty-four hours before deciding that she wasn't coming, he was surprisingly patient with these sort of things. She shook her head, meeting him could be a huge mistake though.
She did something she'd never done before. She threw the rose away, ignoring it as she crawled into bed, drifting to sleep.
Bickslow clenched his fists in anger, watching as Lucy so carelessly tossed his flower away. She'd never rejected him before and now it was killing him to know that was what she was doing. She didn't understand how much he needed to speak with her, to tell her that he'd messed up big time. The two had rarely fought, mostly because he was too easy going to allow things to get to him and most of the time he would just go along with whatever she said.
Now, however, he knew that a fight was brewing. He wasn't going to give up until he got to say his piece, even if it meant leaving her a dozen roses or confronting her in guild. He was determined to tell her how he felt.
"What are you doing out here?" A cold voice asked.
Bickslow turned to see the very person he was the most angry with standing behind him, arms crossed.
"I came to check on my girl," He replied in annoyance.
"In case you haven't been paying attention, she's not your girl anymore. You left her, now she's with me," Gray replied, just as irritated.
"She's still my girl. She will always be my girl because she was mine first."
Gray growled, "You'd better watch what you say."
"Or what? You're going to turn me into a popsicle? I'm sure that Lucy would really love it if you did that," Bickslow sneered.
Gray shrugged, "She might. She's still pretty torn up about what you did to her."
Bickslow growled, "What I did was for her own good. She didn't need to be with someone like me, not after what happened."
"You mean the baby?" Gray asked. "Yeah, she really needed you then, you moron. She was hurting and you just dropped her like her feelings meant nothing."
"I 'dropped' her as you say because she was hurting. She needed someone else, someone who could be there for her and take care of her like I couldn't."
Gray looked at him in surprise. No one had ever thought that Bickslow blamed himself for the miscarriage, but here he was, looking bitter and defeated as he confessed that he had failed the one person he cared about.
"You really think that? You really think that if you had been there then Lucy and you would be having a beautiful baby?" Gray demanded.
Bickslow's shoulder's slumped as he nodded. Gray sighed and sat down across from the man, staring at him in defeat.
"I think you both would have witnessed the lost of a beautiful life," Gray replied. "It just wasn't time yet, but that's not a reason to leave Lucy. That's the reason to hold her close and try again when you're ready."
Bickslow looked away, staring up into the window that he knew was Lucy's.
"You really care for her?" Bickslow asked.
Gray nodded, gravely, "I do."
"Then take care of her, alright? I had a chance and I blew it."
Gray watched the strange man leave, a thoughtful expression on his face.