Hello!
Here, I want to express my gratitude to all my readers for keeping in track with my story. I really love you guys.*flying kiss*
Lately, I've been having this strange dream. It's not that extraordinary but the thing was…..HIBIKI WAS IN IT! I freaked out whenever I woke up from the dream. But, he doesn't seem like he was mad at me for using him in my story. He was just…himself.
Naahh…Let's just drop this topic. So, I hope you will enjoy this chapter too. :3
Disclaimer: Hiro Mashima-sensei owns Fairy Tail. Need I say much? But Reika is mine! XD
She never know why her heart goes pitter patter everytime that man occurs whether in her sight or mind. It's not that she doesn't like the feeling, but it was just too…Naahh, she doesn't know how to describe it figuratively. Besides, for as long as she knew, she had always neglect flirts like him. No, ESPECIALLY like him. With that pretty face and well-mannered attitude, plus the sweet talks they spout, Reika had always regard those flirts as the taking-for-granted bastards.
But for this time, she doesn't push him away. Well, maybe his eyes are the reason. His black orbs are like Marn's, full of calmness, care, matured and fatherly-like. Sometimes she felt that she doesn't deserve to be beside him. She was so childish, immature, gruff voiced, not that pretty but not that ugly either. Easy said, she has an average face. As to compare him and herself, she felt like comparing a street-side rock to a rarely-found glittering diamond. To be honest, she always had this problem. Low in confidence.
The things that she had done before this chapter, she did them with full of confidence. Why? Because she had done it when the time she was with Marn. They went to quests together and she learned how to measure someone's magic ability by using the moisture of the surrounding.
But this matter is different from all the fightings she had fought. It was like the feeling of daunt, afraid you'll be rejected if you are to like someone. She admits that she liked him, in a way where a child loves his/her caretaker. The thing that she want to know is that whether he liked her or not. That was it! She was afraid if he saw her as an annoying noisy girl.
Yup! She is in love but she doesn't know it. Typical Natsu's twin, eh?
"Hey."
She turns to him. "What?"
"How much Iodine are you gonna apply to that wound?", he winces of pain. His ankle was bleeding just now, but stops after she swiped it away and tossed the bottle of Iodine(Literally -_-). The excess are dripping to the ground. She chuckles.
"Sorry, got my mind flew away just now."
"You better be, because those two needed that more than me." He glances at Eve and Ren that were sitting against a tree nearby, full of cuts and bruises.
"Hey, lovebirds! Are you done?", Ren teases. Eve, at the side, just 'woo'ed to add to the atmosphere.
"Drop that subject, please?". He tries to ignore their catcalls and hides his blush. Reika doesn't look this way, thank goodness but he saw something on her cheek. -Is that bruise? I don't think so. The criminal didn't even have the time to touch her. Whatever possible is…blush?-
"Done." She quickly stands and walks towards the two. Hibiki is left speechless as he blinks his eyes, not believing what he saw just now. Did she just blushed?
She treats the two Trimen a bit rougher than she treats Hibiki. Eve and Ren 'ouch'ed and 'ah!'ed as she wipes the bloods at a fast speed and squeezed here and there. Within minutes, they are bandaged. But surely, they're hurt inside out. While waiting for the elder to gain his consciousness, she sits beside him(naturally). The first aid kit box is placed at the back of their resting place.
"Feel better?"
He nods. Then, he forms a soft smile. "Thanks again."
"No sweat." She giggles. "Hey, can I ask you something?"
He faces Reika, asking her to go on with her question. "Have you ever felt like something in your tummy? Like butterflies fluttering in it?"
Confused, he cocks his brow. "What are you trying to say?"
"Actually", she confesses, "I often got this kind of nervousness in my stomach everytime you're near me or I'm thinking about you. But it's strange, I don't feel like that when I'm with anybody else. Have you casted some spell to me?" Her face is full of innocence while blurting out those words.
He freezes. -What should I say? Even I myself felt it too! Reika, we're in love, honey! LOVE!- Now he feels so happy that his love is not one-sided. -Wait…..Did those two heard that?- He switches his gaze hastily to find the two are now at their back.
"Ooohhhh….I can hear wedding bells". Ren chuckles after catching them red-handed.
"Congrats, Reika nee-chan, Hibiki nii-chan!", says Eve who had been eavesdropping since the start.
Reika is still left oblivious to the situation. -Why did they suddenly congratulating me? What did I do?- Hibiki, at the side, is now blushing furiously.
"Thank you for escorting me throughout the journey, young lads", the Duke thanked them.
"No problem, Duke", Ren answers. With the bandages, he hardly speaks as it is restraining him. The Duke locks his gaze at Reika. "Is he a friend of yours?"
"Yes", the three nod. -Though it's not really a 'he'…-, they thought. The Duke walks towards her and shakes her hand vigorously. "I've never seen a man so strong like you! Would you like to work as my personal bodyguard?"
Reika widens her eyes. -What? Man? Bodyguard? Don't say that he actually …
"Does Duke think that Reika is a man?", asks Eve. The Duke seems startled. "What? Is he not? He is so tough! Anyone can tell!"
Hibiki kept silent about the truth. It's better for them to recognize Reika as a man than knowing her as a woman with brute strength. It will be easier for him to tackle her feelings in the future, with no rivals. Ren and Eve are continuously giving him eye contacts to tell the Duke about Reika. She, on the other hand, just looks at the four with a blank stare. Her hands are still clasped to the Duke's. She is getting uncomfortable.
"Umm….sorry. Would you please let go of my hand?", she asks.
"Oh….Sorry", the Duke chuckles. "I was just too excited to know there's someone who has Herculean strength here." He lets go of Reika's hand. She looks back at her returned palm that has become sweaty. Then, she wipes them at the back of her jeans secretly, while hiding her disgusted face.
"Too bad, sir", Eve grins. "Even if Reika is to accept that offer, someone might not be pleased to that decision." He glances to Hibiki.
Hibiki, realizing that the statement was mentioning about him, retorts, "What?"
The Duke forms a confused look. "What's the matter with him accepting my offer?"
Ren interrupts, "Reika's future husband may not agree to that job. So, we apologize, sir."
…
…
…
…
…
The Duke suddenly chuckles. "Oh, my apologies. I forgot to take that into my account too. Please forgive me." He laughs nervously, it seems. "And your reward, I will ask my butler to settle them. No need to worry." With that, he walks away.
"Farewell, strong men. Till we meet again."
The Duke shuts the door behind him and sighs, "Too bad. Strong men these days are gay."
"Why did you say it like that?" His tone is like sending a sign that 'I'm gonna kill you' to the other two.
Eve and Ren look at him. "Why do you sound so mad?"
"Because you make Reika sounded like a homo in front of the Duke!", he glares at the two.
Reika, sitting beside him in the wobbly wagon, is still blank. "E-Excuse me?"
"What?", the three turn to her.
"Can I ask about what you guys are talking about?"
They facepalm. "We are talking about you, Reika!". Unbeknownst to Hibiki, he grabs her shoulders as he was so irritated at her obliviousness. She gasps. His grip is strong enough to be coming from a wounded man. But still, she was totally lost in the topic.
Hibiki, that is gripping her jacket at both sides, stares into her onyx orbs. She blinks endlessly, with her mouth slightly agaped, her mind is still catching up with the conversation just now. He stays frozen as he found that her actions are so-
"-C…Cute."
The other two chuckles. "What Hibiki? Cute?"
After snapping back to the real world, he ungrasps her jacket. But his face is now beet red.
Reika, who is still oblivious of the situation, felt again the feeling of 'uneasiness in the stomach'. She starts to detest it, but she likes it too. -Just what is this feeling?! I am fond of the feeling but I hate the effect its taking in my body. I like it or I hate it?-
She turns to Hibiki that has turned as red as a tomato. Then, she chuckles silently. -He looked adorable like that.- She feels like caressing his crimson cheeks but prevents herself from doing so.
She is still left behind in the love department, so guys, please bear with her. Although she nearly caught the meaning of that uneasiness while they're in the wagon back then, she still couldn't get the grasp of it (sadly).
And so, the wagon drifts slowly to Blue Pegasus to send them back. Reika, instead of being cocky on wanting to walk alone on her way back usually, is asking one of them to accompany her back to her house. Odd, but it's true. Hibiki, that was about to volunteer himself, was being stopped by Eve and let Ren to handle the job. They complained to Hibiki that how will he walk Reika back since he was the one who is having a hard time walking with that broken thigh. Reika was really sure that she saw he pouted. Really? Too cute to be true.
On their way back…
"Oh hey, Tan. I've got something to ask you."
"It's REN! How many times do I have to tell you, my name is not Tan!"
She blinks as her memories at the party starts flowing back. "Oh yeah! Ren. Almost forgot." She giggles.
He sweatdrops. She really has a bad memory, he must admit. Along the way, they kept talking about random things like what happens in Fairy Tail, how's her rented house doing, her jobs so far and etcetera. Then, he bluntly comes up with the topic. What else?
"I see that you looked normal around him."
"You mean?"
"You don't seem like you love him."
She raises her brow. "What's love?"
He sighs. Hibiki, you have a bad luck to have to like this woman. He explains, "Love is actually a subjective thing. Everyone's definition of love varies each person. To be honest, I myself doesn't know love that deep, but when the time comes, you just knew it. Poof, just like that."
She is listening with keen. When it comes to learning new things, she is a quick-witted fellow. Well, aside from names, she has a good memory on other things. Unstained minds has little obstacles when it was squeezed with new informations. After registering the data, she talks.
"So your relationship with that pink girl is what people call love?"
"Pink girl?" He pauses his walk. "You mean Sherry?"
"Yeah, Sherry Blend-whatever." She rolls her eyes when reminiscing that tongue-twisting name.
"Blendi." While shutting his eyes, he felt his temple twitches with anger. She's really the worst when it comes to remembering names correctly.
"Naahh….Not that her name will stay Blendi forever. I know it will turn to Sherry Akatsuki soon enough." She smirks, being sarcastic about their bond.
Ren has started to blush hardly. If he was in a comic, steams would have come out floating from his ears. Truly, this matter is a sensitive issue to any men.
He clears his throat. "We are talking about you and Hibiki just now, right? How did we skip to my oncoming marriage?" (Author: Ehem! He admits it! XD)
She smiles. Reika herself doesn't know what did she feel towards that particular flirt. Yeah, she has been a hardy fool on any species like him in the past, only to get herself excluded on the available-girls radar. Her stubbornness has overtaken her feelings of emotion. Sometimes, males of that kind often labeled her as the emotionless woman, as regarding her as not that valuable even if you had her in your grasp.
She was hurt, truth to be told. What's the problem with her poker face? Can't she have her own expressions? Does every girl have to show the very same squeal? She was just being herself. Screw all of them who had despised her in the past. She had promised not to be head over heels towards that kind of guy since then, the judging-from-looks type of male.
Is Hibiki in the group too? She can't be so sure. She doesn't know Hibiki long enough to put him in the same mentalist as those smugs. Well, let's just wait and see then…..
The next day….
"Hibiki, MEN~."
"What's the matter, senpai?", he had just came out of the library when Ichiya suddenly called him.
"Do you still remember about the quest?"
He recalls back the day when Ichiya had told him about being a sidekick in a mission. With a slight nod as the sign, Ichiya continues with his message.
"The wizard will be here tomorrow. So you can start packing your parfums tonight. It's a week long trip. Also", Ichiya stops. Hibiki turns to him, wondering why did he stop his sentence.
"The mage's smell told me that it will be a woman. Do your best, MEN~", he winks as a star blinks at the border of his eye.
Hibiki smiles. Woman, seems like he needs to flirt seven-days long after this…
As usual guys, please leave me a review. I hope I don't sound like I'm too desperate for reviews. But they did help me in some ways.
Thanks to all the favorites and follows. I was really glad knowing there are some people reading my fanfiction despite the easy grammars I keep using. Sorry guys, I'm really not into SAT a lot.*sob**sob*
About the movie, it was said that it will be released at 15th Feb. Tch, should have told us earlier...I was eager to watch it. I even got my homeworks done for I am planning to watch it during this weekend. It's okay, twinSlayer! It's just 15th Feb! A little more patience is worth the while!*nods vigorously*
Okay, until next chapter! :D