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Poetry In Motion
the final downpour of metaphors
Chapter Three: The Line That Must Not Be Crossed
Jellal wondered how much of a bore his first three weeks had been in Fairy Tail University.
He was a pre-med sophomore student, twenty-one and available.
None of the girls in class or even in campus had piqued his interest. They were either too full of themselves or too tongue tied to even speak. Some were just annoying and the remaining—well, they were lurking in the shadows somewhere and were contented with licking pictures of him and building shrines. The point was, even if the girls flocking around him or flooding his locker with love letters were beautiful, or sexy or some idol fished out from the internet, he couldn't bring himself to care and this was because none of the girls were really serious about getting to know him. He was always viewed as the sexy Jellal Fernandes with the perfect face and perfect body and perfect attitude and perfect grades—well, the epitome of perfection to sum it all up.
But Jellal Fernandes was far from perfection.
Hell he wasn't even close to perfection.
The better word suited for him would be quite the opposite.
He was a mess.
He was damaged.
And he was damaged beyond repair.
"Oi Jellal," his blond friend greeted him, slapping him on the back when he was caught staring off into space. "I'm going to head out to the cafeteria. You comin'?"
He just nodded as a reply, shoving his hands deep inside his scrub pants before walking along side his best friend.
Laxus Dreyar and Jellal Fernandes go way back.
To Jellal, Laxus was almost like a brother to him. And it was the same with the blond although they both wouldn't admit it verbally.
"So," Molten gold searched for food laid out on the counter. "You gonna tell me what kind of roommate you have?"
Ah.
"Now that you mention it..." Jellal picked up his own choice of food, going for something light this lunch.
"Well, is it one of those nerds like Rufus?" Laxus stuffed his tray with heaps of bread and milk cartons and everything else that was on the menu.
Jellal snorted.
"Hell no."
"Is he gay like our P.E. teacher, Bob?"
"Fuck you."
Laxus merely laughed at this before paying for his lunch.
"You could really eat a lot." commented the ultramarine who was already indulging on his melon bread.
"Well are you gonna fuckin' tell me or do I have to keep guessing?"
"The latter."
"Fuck you!" the blond slammed his tray on the table and Jellal snickered at his friend's predictable reaction. "What, no clues?"
"It's a girl."
"Get the fuck out of here!"
The tattooed ultramarine raised his hands as a gesture that he was not kidding and that only made him smirk.
"Hmm, okay this calls for the Scale and Rate."
Jellal crossed his leg over the other and taunted him to start.
"At the scale of beauty—Old Lady Porlyusica to Mira."
"Damn, do you always have to rate Mirajane as the prettiest?"
Laxus chowed down his soba bread with a smug on his face.
"Can't help it, she's my girlfriend." he winked.
He thought about it for a moment, remembering how his roommate looked. It wasn't as angelic or ethereal as Mirajane's but it was captivating enough and beautiful in another definition.
"She's more of a Mirajane demon version."
"Hoh," Laxus was quite pleased with the description of the lady and continued on with narrowing her assets down.
"Okay, scale of chest size—"
"Definitely Lucy's."
Laxus crushed a milk carton and narrowed his eyes, pointing accusingly at the ultramarine.
"If this is Mira I swear—"
"She's not." he assured him while finally finishing his melon bread.
"Is she white-haired?"
"Laxus, she isn't Mirajane."
"Just answer the damn question." he snapped.
"No."
"Blonde?"
"Nope."
"Blue-haired?"
"Far from it."
"Black?"
"You're not trying hard enough."
"Brunette?"
"Almost there."
"Fuck! I got this one! She's a ginger ain't she?"
"Bingo."
Laxus slumped at his seat shaking his head from side to side.
"I can't imagine the nightmare you're having, sharing rooms with bitch Flare Corona."
Jellal laughed.
"What?" the blonde raised a brow at this.
"It's not Flare, Laxus."
"You're bitchin' with me aren't you? There no one else in campus who has a red—"
The ultramarine was smiling from ear to ear, amused that his dumb of a friend had already guessed.
"Shit, is it Natsu?"
"It's Erza Scarlet you fucking idiot."
"Oh...oh! Well that's anticlimactic." Laxus threw him an empty carton of milk and the ultramarine caught it with one hand.
"Why is that?"
"Well she ain't hot—"
"Laxus, Mirajane's the only one hot for you."
"Touché, and Erza's not a bitch either. She's fucking average. She's five out of ten. Someone who hangs in the middle. Not ugly, but not too stunning either."
Jellal didn't know but he just found himself smiling.
"I wouldn't call her average. She's...different."
"Different? And that's a good thing?" Laxus snickered, shoving chunk after huge chunk of bread into his mouth.
"Well she's not drooling over me."
"Oh sure, so she's one of those licking-pictures-building-shrines stalker then?"
Jellal stood up, fishing his cellphone out of his breast pocket.
He smirked.
"Let's just say she's more of a...challenge."
Laxus watched in confusion as the ultramarine left.
Erza sneezed.
"You got a cold Erza?" asked a friend of hers.
The girl's name was Lucy. She was filthy rich if someone's splitting hairs. The blond was the daughter of Jude Heartfilia who founded the renowned Hearfilia Konzern and the railways, making up for most of the transportation in Fiore. Erza's first impression of her was that of a snotty brat, but once she got the chance to know her—it was during algebra class of her first year in Fairy Tail University—Lucy was a really kindhearted and warm person.
"No, something just irritated my nose." the redhead pinched her nose bridge, clearing the passageway of dust and other foreign agents that might trigger another unceremonious sneezing. "Must be Cana and Levy talking about me. It's a miracle I've slipped out of them. Good thing they both don't have accounting as a subject."
Lucy took a seat beside her and started unloading her books on top of her desk. "Let me guess, it's about moving in the boy's dormitory and specifically being Jellal Fernandes' roommate." the blonde sighed, as if pitying her condition. "Everyone knows about it Erza."
Erza looked surprised. She didn't even tell a soul about this.
It had barely been a week and the whole campus knows about it already?
It's not like she cared or anything. She was just boarding in a room with a guy she barely knows and that's that.
"What's the big deal anyway?" she asked, almost irritated at how everyone seemed to make a big news out of it.
"Well let's just say that none of his fan girls are pretty happy with you two living under the same roof."
"He isn't even my type." she stated dryly, feeling the need to explain all of a sudden. "Let them think what they want to. I don't really care. It's a waste of time having to explain things to people who won't listen and understand. And besides, I hate repeating the same things over and over again."
Lucy opened up her notebook and shrugged.
"Well, that's Erza for you." The blonde suddenly remembered something because her eyes lit up and she was immediately holding the redhead's hands with much excitement exuding all over her. "Say, Natsu, Gray and I are planning for a movie marathon this weekend. You coming?"
Erza was ready to reject the offer but then Lucy interjected right before she could speak.
"And you really need a break from your part-time job right? Come on, one weekend wouldn't hurt, and your boss would understand right?"
She sighed, there was really no way out of this now.
"I suppose I could take a leave and explain things to Gildarts later."
Lucy pumped a fist in the air.
"Come to my room this Saturday 'kay? Twenty-fifth floor, room thirteen."
Erza smiled.
Yes, it was probably time to relax for a bit. After all it was just the third week of her second year in college, and she was really working her ass off from the last shifts at the convenience store. She was sure Gildarts would understand.
She needed this.
She needed a break.
Jellal was staring hard on the wall clock as the seconds ticked away. It's almost seven and Erza was nowhere near coming back.
Did she forget that she still has unfinished business with me? Honestly, she just ran away this morning and she hasn't given me her schedule and we haven't discussed the matters regarding the rent's share.
It was when he heard a familiar sound of clanging of keys that he hurriedly opened the door.
Jellal immediately found her confused face as her hands stopped right in front of her, just as she was about to open the door. She recovered quickly though, and it must be because she had to cope up with the ultramarine's surprises. Like this one.
"You're late." he flatly stated.
Erza gave him an incredulous look before setting her bag on top of the dining table and letting her hair tie loose. She shook the strands of her hair and completely ignored the ultramarine who was following her every movement.
"Where have you been?"
The redhead slammed the fridge shut after grabbing her bottle out.
"You're not my dad or boyfriend. I don't have to report to you."
"Fair point," Jellal idly rested on the counter opposite her and took an apple from the fruit basket aligned next to the kitchenware. "So, do you want to talk about the rent now, or save it for tomorrow?"
"Wow. Talk?" she drank from her bottle before continuing, shaking her head while enjoying an inside joke all to herself. "Do you even know what that means?"
"Of course I do, unless..." Jellal smirked as his playful gaze met hers in an electrifying and gravity-defying sort of way. The ultramarine brought his lips to the surface of the apple, taking his precious time choosing the perfect spot before opening his mouth with a low sigh. He sank his teeth into the juicy fruit, biting off a huge chunk and chewing slowly before turning his hazy olive green eyes to a pair of shocked and offended pair of chocolate orbs. "...unless you have other things in mind."
"Okay," she croaked, and almost kicked herself for sounding like she was affected by his tantalizing way and display of eating a goddamned fruit. "Then talk."
Jellal took a step forward, and narrowed his eyes when she took two steps back, hitting the counter behind her as she winced in pain.
He smirked.
"Talk where I can actually see you from a distance." she commanded, placing a hand in front of her to mark the limit of their proximity. The redhead shifted uncomfortably under his gaze, trying her best to remain unfazed by his smoldering presence.
"What's wrong, Erza?" she nearly fell flat on the floor if it wasn't for the vice-like kind of grip she hand on the edge of the counter. His low and husky voice and the way her name smoothly rolled on his tongue made her weak on her knees.
Did he just cast a spell on her?
Step by agonizing step, he finally closed in on her and she nearly suffocated from the heat alone that radiated off of his body.
"The bill comes during the last Friday of the month." he whispered, taking another bite and never breaking connection with her saucer-wide eyes. "The electricity and water bills are inclusive to the rent's twelve thousand rate. We'll divide it by half...six thousand each."
Erza gulped before realizing she was dancing right onto the palm of his hand, falling into the devil's well orchestrated play. Jellal flashed a victorious smile, stretching a free hand out to her.
"Your schedule please?"
She gritted her teeth.
Cocky bastard. Two can play at this game.
Erza slowly tugged on his arm as he was about to take yet another bite and this caught him by surprise because as far as he was concerned, she didn't want any kind of skinship. Slowly, ever so slowly, she used both hands to glide across the length of his forearm, sending delicious waves of friction coursing out through his entire system and causing muscles under taut skin to ripple and contract at the feathery light touch. His jaw clenched and his body went rigid when her delicate fingers wrapped around his own and the fruit, and much to his surprise, Erza started bringing the apple closer to her lips.
Doing all that without breaking eye contact.
She didn't know she was capable of doing something so...daring that she even surprised herself. This was uncharted territory for her. Something foreign and new and probably insane since the risks were similar to that of gambling. But she couldn't brush off the feeling that was lurking inside of her, something dark and growing. A little bit of that was going to do her good, but too much was going to be dangerous.
The redhead copied what he had done to her earlier, casting her own version of the spell—mewling in delight as the fruit's flavor burst inside of her mouth.
Jellal darted his tongue out, bringing the soft muscle to lick his seemingly dry lips. He swallowed hard at the sight before him.
"What's wrong Jellal?" the ultramarine couldn't find the right words to say. He was rendered speechless. And by a girl no less. Erza smirked at the obvious winner of the duel and was able to sigh in relief now that this was all over. She inserted a small card containing a computerized copy of her schedule right into the tattooed man's chest pocket. She gave it a light tap before heading out to the living room in search of the switch.
"Well would you look at that, it's already seven." Erza flipped the switch off, their room being eventually flooded in darkness. The light from the hallway though, managed to seep in through the gap under their door which was enough to illuminate the room, casting molten gold and a heavenly glow to both their figures.
Erza brushed past Jellal, relishing how dumb and steady he looked.
This was her win.
Nothing reached Jellal the moment she disappeared inside her room. He was still too stunned to move. The trick she managed to pull off still had this unbearable effect on him that he couldn't describe.
Jellal could feel the slight rumble forming against his throat and the tugging of his face's muscles to bring his lips upward. He released a quiet laughter all to himself, placing a hand on his mouth as he silently enjoyed the genuine joy that cracked him up.
He wasn't perfect.
He was a mess. A sick, sick mess and he was damaged beyond repair.
There were still skeletons in his closet and he was looking for the perfect way to keep him from looking back.
The search has ended.
He needed a distraction.
And Erza Scarlet was every bit of the distraction he needed.
A/N: Well, I just couldn't butcher Erza's personality by making her jelly in Jelly's sinful ministrations right? This is Erza Scarlet we're talking about! :D Things are going to pick up the pace on the succeeding chapters, which may get the rating to go up. This is sort of new to me and I'm hoping not to screw this one up. :P I tried making a oneshot that's rated M and I got a handful of good feedback [and I am hoping for more, just for the encouragement and as I've said, to not make a mess of this story.] :D
Tried changing In A Heartbeat's rating to M but couldn't. I keep getting an error message. Hmmm, something's definitely wrong with the site. I'll probably do that after FFnet's fixed. Oh and CEAPR's next chapter will be posted next week I guess? Still not done with a couple of things. Yeah. That's all for now, leave out your love!
:)