I don't own fairy tail or any of it's characters, I just like using them to entertain you ;)
"My comrades, we must be strong! If we can all fight as one, the enemy will be destroyed," Erza declared to the huddle.
"This is just a volleyball game, right? Should Juvia be concerned," Juvia whispered.
"Just let her have it, she's on a roll," Jellal winked.
Erza stood tall and pointed to the other side of the net where the Thunder Legion, the Strauss's and Orga all waited for the game to begin. "Do your worst villains! You will not prevail!"
"Like hell we won't!" called back Lisanna, to the cheers of the rest of her team.
"Cana, stop drinking! We need you focused on the game!" Erza called to the brunette at the edge of their sandy court.
Cana quickly chugged her margarita and then handed the glass to Makarov, who sat watching with a smile on the sidelines. "Okay, okay, I'm coming. Don't get your panties in a bunch!"
Levy sat enjoying her book and Lucy was passed out on a towel, unable to be much use to anyone after a night of overindulgence. Erza was still confident they would win, Gajeel and Juvia were very athletic. Also for once, Laxus would not be on the other side of the net. Since Lucy couldn't play with her hangover, Laxus had offered to take himself out, and left to walk up the beach. The team across the net was without it's leader and Erza was not above taking advantage of it.
With Natsu making the first serve, the game was on. Back and forth the ball bounced, with the score remaining close and everyone doing their best. Finally, after nearly an hour and three times of rescuing the ball from the ocean, it was tied up twenty to twenty. They were playing to twenty-one and the next score would win. Erza had the perfect serve, it arched over the next, just missed by Everygreen, hitting right in front of the make-shift line. Her whole team cheered and hugged in celebration, but when she turned to look to the other side, Evergreen's arms were folded across her chest. "It was out," Evergreen said.
"Excuse me?" Erza said, rising to Ever's challenge.
"It was a crap serve and it was out," Evergreen firmed her jaw.
"It was not out, it was an excellent serve, you just weren't wearing your glasses," Erza said, warning in her tone.
Evergreen approached the net. "I am wearing contacts so I can see just fine. It. Was. Out."
Erza stormed towards her opponent, "It. Was. In."
The two woman now stood nose to nose, only separated by a flimsy net. Natsu came behind Erza, standing with a frown and his arms crossed, "Are you sure those contacts are working? It was in Ever. That's bullshit."
"It was definitely out, and lying isn't manly Natsu!" Elfman came up behind Evergreen, setting a supportive hand on her shoulder.
"What did you see Jellal?" Erza asked over his shoulder.
"It was in, obviously," Jellal said, crossing his arms.
"You would take her side, you're her fiance," Evergreen said, not taking her eyes off Erza.
"Alright, Makarov, did you see if the ball was in?" Jellal asked the tiny man on the side.
Makarov raised his head like a startled prairie dog, then gave a closed eyed smile and waved his hands in front of himself in defense, "Oh, no, no, no. Can't see very much these days, I wouldn't be a very good judge. You kids figure it out."
"It was in," Levy said, not looking up from her book.
"No way you could see, you haven't stopped reading this whole time," complained Bixlow.
Freed had a look of disapproval, arms folded and nose in the air, "This is ridiculous, let's just ignore the point and do the serve again."
"But then you might win when we already won fair and square!" Erza yelled.
Then Evergreen crossed the line created by the net by shoving Erza hard in the middle of the chest. "You did not!" she said. Erza promptly punched her in the face. Evergreen used one hand to hold her face in shock, the other to grab Erza by the hair and they went down in a ball of scratches, kicks, and hair pulling. The rest of the group watched in shock, for a moment unsure if they could even break it up if they tried. Jellal finally came and attempted to pull Erza off of Evergreen, but the brunette was not willing to give her opponent up.
There was a collective sigh of relief when Laxus ran up and laced his arms into Evergreen's, successfully pulling her back. "What the hell? I could hear you fighting down the beach! Do you want someone to call the cops on you?" The two women ignored him and continued to try to pull towards each other, snarling like attack dogs.
Makarov finally stood and yelled "Enough!" His commanding voice causing everyone to stop and stare at him. "You all are ruining a perfectly good afternoon," he scolded. "You all should be ashamed of yourself, you're adults. I suggest you all split up for the night, maybe some of you go downtown or out to dinner with your loved one. We've all spent just a little too much time together for our own good. This game is over, we are stopping."
Erza crossed her arms and looked away from Evergreen, "Of course we can stop, after all we did win."
Jellal threw her up on his shoulder and headed to the house, "Good time to hit the showers I think!" Erza kicked and squirmed, enraged by the smug look on Evergreen's face and the way the woman mouthed "it was out."
"Put me down, Jellal! You are making it look like I lost!" Erza raged.
"Nobody thinks you lost the game Erza, everyone just thinks you lost your mind," Jellal chuckled, completely ignoring her punches to his back and her attempts at pulling his hair. "This should really not be turning me on right now," he muttered to himself, blowing out a deep breath as he pulled open the door to their room.
He pulled it closed behind them and shut the curtain, making the room dark. Jellal readjusted Erza on his shoulder and headed to the bathroom where he unceremoniously dumped her in the tub and turned the nozzle pressure up to high, blasting her in the face with cold water. "What the hell do you think you're doing!" she sputtered, trying to protect her face from the water with her hands.
"Helping you cool down, do you feel better?" Jellal said.
Erza slumped forward and let the cool water soak her hair. Now that she was no longer seeing red, she was a little bit embarrassed. Punching Evergreen in the face may have been taking it a little too far. "I'm sorry, I may have let my temper get the best of me. I was out of line."
Jellal sighed, a small smile on his face, "Well Evergreen was a little over the top as well. She's always been good at pushing all your buttons."
Erza curled tighter into a ball, "I am ashamed. She just makes me so frustrated!"
Jellal looked at her for a moment then stepped into the tub in front of her. He pulled the curtain and adjusted the temperature, then grabbed her by the hand, pulling her to her feet and into his arms. Erza's eyes widened in surprise and she pushed back slightly with her hands on his chest so that she could look him in the face. "What are you doing?" she asked, although she felt she already had a pretty good idea.
He leaned into her, smiling when their noses touched. "I was thinking I could help you work out that frustration," he said, his hand starting to play with the strings of her bikini.
She smiled and hummed, "Yes, I think that is exactly what I need," leaning in to complete the kiss.
"Venturing out on our own is going to ruin my whole sabotage the love plans," Cana said, taking a sip of the daiquiri in front of her.
Lisanna bumped her with her shoulder, "Who was the target tonight?"
"I was a thinking Jellal. I would have gotten Erza drunk, but that's dangerous for everybody, including myself. I've never seen Jellal wasted though, he always seems to have his wits about him. Would have been nice to see him let his hair down," Cana grinned.
"I knew you were doing that on purpose!" exclaimed Mira from the other side of the kitchen bar, where she was loading dishes into the dishwasher. "You had better not be considering doing anything to Orga!"
Cana gave her a wink, "We'll see!"
"Why didn't you get anyone on the first night?" Lisanna tilted her head thoughtfully.
"I tried!" Cana exclaimed. "You wouldn't believe how much liquor I got into Gajeel, every time he turned his head I refreshed his drink and he didn't even notice! But in the end all he did was peacefully fall asleep in a chair in the living room, and then he woke up fresh as a daisy! That man is a worthier opponent than I expected. It's too bad he's staying here and not coming to the bar with us, I would have liked a good challenge."
"The bar?" Mira asked.
"Yea, we were going to go down to Mermaid Heel and let the all the couples have snuggle time here. Makarov wanted us to separate so it made sense."
"Oh my god! I love Mermaid Heel! I want to go!" Mira cried just as Orga entered the room.
He looked confused, "What's Mermaid Heel?"
"It's a bar downtown," Mira explained.
Orga's face dropped, "I thought maybe we could go get dinner alone tonight."
Mira frowned, "But we go out to dinner alone all the time. Don't you want to go out with everyone? It will be my siblings, Cana, Bixlow, Ever, Freed, and Laxus."
Cana noticed that Orga looked like he got a bad taste in his mouth at the mention of Laxus. She wondered how Mira hadn't noticed how her relationship with the blond was affecting her own boyfriend. She always seemed so in tune with other people's romances, it was odd that she could be so clueless about her own. His frown turned to a scowl, "I suppose if that's what you really want . . ."
The pair stared at each other, each hoping the other one would be the one to back down and compromise. Cana wished she had some popcorn, this drama was so fantastic. She turned to look at Lisanna wondering if she was sharing was also enjoying the show. Lisanna put a finger to her lips and then leaned forward on the kitchen bar counter. The women took sips from their daiquiris and watched the couple with large eyes and secret grins, waiting for the staring contest to have a victor.
Finally Mira sighed, "I suppose we could always go to the bar another time."
Orga smiled and walked over pulling Mira into a big bear hug, "Fantastic! There's a seafood place that looked top notch! I'll go call and make reservations." He set her down with a quick kiss and disappeared from the room.
Mira turned to Cana. "I guess I wont be coming with you guys after all," she said with a frown.
"I could still get him drunk you know," Cana offered with a grin.
Mira waved her off, "No, no, don't you dare. I can be a good girlfriend for one night. You kids have fun being young and single. Go tear up the town."
"Thank goodness, the old maid isn't going to bring us down," said Cana rolling her eyes.
"Yes, it's good you aren't coming out with us Mira, I don't think this place has senior discounts," Lisanna teased.
"You all are just jealous because I have a hot date, and you have to spend an evening with Bixlow, Elfman, and Laxus,"
Cana grinned a wolfish grin, "Are you sure we're the ones who are jealous?"
Mira pouted and threw a dish towel at Cana, "You watch your mouth missy, I'm off to go get ready, you girls have fun!" She started to leave the kitchen, then stopped for a second and turned back to them, "I'll have you know Mermaid Heel has excellent senior discounts." She winked, "You learn these things going out with Makarov a time or two."
Dinner was great, well, maybe not great, but it wasn't terrible. Mira had found herself distracted and bored through most of the meal, she just didn't understand why Orga didn't want to hang out with everyone else. He wasn't a loner, he hung out with his friends all the time. In the beginning, he had seemed to get along great with her group as well, but lately, this trip especially, he kept finding reasons to pull her away from them. She would have to ask him about it. Maybe Cana was too much? Or Bixlow had offended him somehow?
Mira pulled her hair up and checked her reflection in the mirror. He would be waiting for her upstairs, as soon as she was done getting into something more comfortable, they were going to join the game playing with everyone else.
She liked Orga a lot, but she didn't know what she was going to do if he made her pick between her friends and him. That would be like abandoning family for him and she couldn't do that. She blew out a sigh that made her bangs flutter into the air. Maybe she was over thinking this, maybe he was just trying to spend time alone with her. There was nothing wrong with a boyfriend wanting to have alone time with his girlfriend right? She was always forcing him to go back and hang out with her friends at the bar. She would sit down and talk to him about it when they got home, she would hate to cause a conflict while they were here with everyone.
When she came upstairs, Orga was nowhere to be found. Everyone who had stayed behind from the bar was still playing cards against humanity at the large dining table near the kitchen, except for Levy and Gajeel who sat in the living room, Gajeel rubbing Levy's aching feet.
Natsu burst out laughing, "Gray would poop out same sex-ice dancing!" He was laughing so hard there were tears in his eyes.
Gray threw his head back in exasperation, "For like the eighth time man, that wasn't my card!"
Mira tapped Lucy on the shoulder and whispered, "Have you seen Orga?"
Lucy smiled, "Yea, he came up here and said hi, but then went out on the deck."
Mira nodded and then headed out the side door. She found Orga on the upper deck, leaning hunched over the railing, staring out at the ocean. She wondered why he would separate himself like this. Hadn't he said they could spend some time playing games? "Whatcha doing out here?" she asked with a light tone in her voice.
When he turned to look at her, she could tell he was not happy. She dropped her smile and came towards him, unable to resist the urge to comfort him. He seemed to flinch at the touch of her hand on his arm, his brows furrowed and lips tight. "Is something wrong?" Mira was so confused. Had he not had a good time at dinner? She wasn't sure how to read him right now.
"Mira we need to talk," Orga said quietly, and Mira's heart dropped to her stomach. Those were never good words. He turned, breaking her physical contact, and leaned back against the railing and putting his hands in his pockets. Orga still avoided looking her in the eye, instead he seemed very interested in his shoes. "I can't do this anymore Mira."
"What do you mean do this?" Mira laughed uncomfortably. Was Orga breaking up with her?
Orga took a deep breath, as if there was something heavy on his chest. He closed his eyes, "It's just, I really care about you Mira, but the whole time we've been together I could tell that you have been holding back. Like there's a part of you that you don't share with me. I thought that maybe with time, when we became closer and you got more comfortable that it would open up, but it hasn't. I've had a suspicion for a while but this week has solidified it for me, you've already given that part of you to someone else, and I don't feel like there's anything left for me."
"What are you talking about?" Mira's chest felt tight and already it felt like tears were threatening to break lose. Orga was what she needed, he was dependable, he wanted a family, he wanted a future. She had been trying so hard to be what Orga would want, what he would need. Hadn't she done everything right to be the perfect girlfriend? How could this come out of left field?
"Please don't act like you don't know what I'm talking about, please don't make this hard Mira," Orga choked out. Mira still didn't understand why he was doing this, especially when he seemed to care about her as much as she cared about him. "Laxus, Mira," Orga said, this time lifting his head to give her a straight look in the eyes. Mira felt like she was going to vomit.
"I see it when you're with him, you seem so light, so free. Did you guys have something?" He closed his eyes and put up his hand, "You know, actually, I don' t need to know that. I know what I see Mira, whatever your history with him, I'm second place here. I just can't be with someone who's settling for me, I'm sorry, I have to be first."
"But I'm not settling for you! I want you!" Mira cried, grabbing hold of his hands.
"You don't! Damnit Mira, I'm not blind. You want him, I can see it Mira! What's even worse is I see the way he looks at you when he thinks no one's looking and it kills me. I can't be in the middle of whatever the hell you two have going on. I deserve better than this Mira," he pulled his hands away and put them back in his pockets. "I'm going home okay? I've already got all my stuff in the car."
"You're already packed?" she choked out. How did she not notice his stuff missing from her room?
Orga scratched his neck, "Yea, I did it while you were getting ready for dinner. I wanted to try, hoping maybe I was wrong and I could put it all back when we returned, but the whole meal you seemed annoyed that you were alone with me and not out with everyone else." Orga pushed off from the railing and headed towards the stairs, concentrating on his feet as if he was afraid of tripping. "I'm sorry Mira. If you ever figure this out and feel like you can truly leave him behind, give me a call. I really like you Mira, and I wanted to be with you, but not like this. I'm not what you want and it hurts, I can't do it anymore."
Mira's lip trembled, "Orga?" He looked at her one more time, sorrow in his eyes, but he said nothing and disappeared down the stairs. For a bit she was in denial, he was just having a small tantrum, he wouldn't actually leave her here and embarrass her like this in front of all her friends and family. Then she heard a car start up. Mira ran to the front section of the upper deck and watched him turn onto the main road and drive away.
For what seemed like an eternity, Mira stared into the street in disbelief. She was doing so well. She was in a normal healthy relationship, with a great guy. Weren't they happy? Then her sorrow changed to fury. Laxus, he was still ruining everything. He had broken her, she was ruined. She would be alone forever and it was all his fault.
She stormed into the house, casting an irritated glance at everyone playing cards. She envied them all in their happy partnerships. Soon they would all be married with children of their own, and she would still be slaving away at the restaurant, alone and empty. Recognizing the sadness that was clouding her judgment, Mira realized she needed to leave and find a way to calm herself down before she said something crazy. The last thing she wanted was to hurt someone's feelings or, even worse, to be the object of their pity. She dug a bottle of rum out of the cabinet. Thankfully everyone was too much in their own worlds to notice her when she slipped out of the kitchen and up the stairs.
"That guy had it coming, who did it think he was trying to challenge you!" Laxus smiled at Cana who hung off of his shoulder, using his body and Freed's like a pair of crutches.
"I know right? What a tool! One comment about his manhood and he was sputtering like broken record," Cana slurred out with a huge grin. She then frowned slightly, "I feel bad for the bouncer though, he was a nice guy, and those pants are probably ruined. I don't think I've ever seen puke that color."
"It's the bouncers own fault. You never throw a guy out of a bar without making sure he's facing away from you. That's man sense," said Elman, getting an excited noise of approval over his shoulder from a drunk Evergreen, who was currently getting a piggy back ride home.
Lisanna giggled, "Of course Elfman."
Laxus smiled, this was a good night. Life was finally getting back to normal. He had his friends, he had his family, he was glad he had agreed to go on this vacation with all of them. The bar down the street had been a good time. It was nice to get away from all the happy couples and spend time with his crew. He wished they had done this sooner.
The group all stumbled up the stairs to the large beach house laughing and cheering, not caring who they woke. When they got up to the main living area, they caught Gray and Natsu wrestling in the living room, while their girlfriends ignored them and drank wine on the back deck. Gajeel and Levy must have turned in for the night, and he didn't want to think about what Erza was doing to poor Jellal right now. Mira and Orga were nowhere to be found, but he didn't want to think about that for a whole other reason. Gramps would have gone to bed a long time ago.
"You take it back you freezer burned nutsack!" Natsu yelled, he was sitting on Grays back with his arms laced through his adopted brother's thighs.
"I won't because it's the truth you flaming pile of dog crap," Gray grunted out, digging his elbows into Natsu's back.
Laxus sighed, those guys never changed. His friends had all ignored the wrestling match and were taking seats in the Adirondack chairs out back, joining Juvia and Lucy to look at the ocean. Laxus crossed his arms and looked down at the tangled mess of arms and legs on the floor, "You guys should really just get a room already, this is embarrassing."
Predictably, this caused Gray and Natsu to bounce away from each other. "Don't be an idiot," said Gray, crossing his arms and pouting.
"Yea, gross Laxus. I don't know where Gray has been," Natsu scowled.
Laxus rolled his eyes. "Can you tell the others I'm going up to bed, I'll see ya all in the morning."
"Sure, night man," said Natsu, and Gray gave him a slight nod of the head, both of them heading in the direction of the back deck.
Laxus ascended the stairs to his room on the top floor. He was beat, the alcohol in his system was doing it's best to slow him down. When he got to the top and opened his door, he was surprised to see Mira, sitting on his bed and staring out the window. Was the alcohol melting his brain? What the hell was she doing up here? He stepped in and closed the door behind him. Then he raised a brow and tilted his head, "Mira?"
She turned her face to him and her expression radiated fury. In the moonlight she looked like a terrifying angel of vengeance. He swallowed deeply and licked his lips, afraid to take another step towards her, "It's been a while since I've seen you look at me that way."
She made a noise low in her throat, like a growl, and turned her head back to look out the window. Laxus's mind was screaming at him to run, nothing good could come from being in this room with her in that state. But his heart whispered for him to touch her, get close to her, she obviously needed him. Maybe this was all a dream anyway, a hallucination from his tired, slightly inebriated brain. His body started to move on its own accord, quietly edging towards her. When he came up next to her, she turned suddenly, her face still twisted with anger. Laxus took a deep breath and tried to focus. She probably needed a friend right now, not someone checking her out in her thin tank top. Damn, he wasn't strong enough for this.
"Where's Orga Mira?" he tried.
"He left," she snapped, turning her head back to the window.
"Why did he leave? Did he have work or something?" Laxus asked.
"No, he left me," she said simply.
"What? Why?" Laxus was stupefied and angry. Orga wasn't supposed to leave Mira, he was supposed to make her happy. What the hell had he been going through all this for if Orga was just going to break her heart. He started to reach out to her to comfort her, but quickly pulled his hand back. He shouldn't touch her, he had no right to do that.
She turned to look at him again, "He left me because of you Laxus."
"Me?" Warnings went off in Laxus's brain. He should leave, she was mad, she had obviously been drinking, and she wasn't thinking straight. He knew exactly what that had led to in the past. Yet he couldn't move, he just stared at her transfixed, watching the way her breathing made her chest rise and fall, the way her bright blue eyes seemed to glow in the moonlight.
Mira narrowed those eyes and poked him in the solar plexus, "Yes, you! You Laxus, because you decided you don't want anything real with me but you keep looking at me with that stupid face!" she poked him harder, "and no matter how I try I can't leave you behind! I can't move on and it's bullshit!"
Laxus didn't know what to say. When had they morphed into this, weren't they just having fun? It was just supposed to be two friends keeping each other company every once and a while. Now it was twisted and perverted, the deepness of it threatening to swallow them both.
"Now I'm just broken and there's nothing to be done about it!" Mira yelled.
"Stop it Mira, you're not . . .what are you doing?" Laxus exclaimed as Mira began tearing off my shirt.
"Giving you exactly what you wanted since apparently it's all I deserve anymore," Mira said, tossing her shirt on the floor. She shoved him roughly on the bed.
"No, Mira, stop, don't do this," Laxus tried. She was so hot, but she didn't want to do this anymore. He knew she was just acting out of anger. Still, no matter what he told himself he was unable to look away when she stepped out of her shorts and climbed into his lap. "If you don't have sex with me right now, I will never forgive you."
He turned to look her in the eye and she stared right back, daring him to turn her down. It felt like an eternity, but it was only a few seconds before Laxus groaned in defeat and his mouth came crashing down on hers.
Laxus watched Mira sleep, pushing the hair back from her face and smiling when her face slightly scrunched up in protest. This was his Mira, cheeks flushed and skin pale in the moonlight, a small satisfied smile on her face. There were splotches on her chest and her arms from where the stubble on his face had rubbed against her. She was beautiful.
He didn't know when he started loving her, but right now, in this moment, he felt overwhelmed with it. He prayed he hadn't messed everything up by giving in to her desperate commands, but if he had, at least he got to have one more night with her. Laxus wrapped an arm around her and pulled her close, nestling in behind her and closing his eyes, falling asleep to the sound of her breathing.
He knew he should have said something, anything, before she had fallen asleep. Instead he had chosen the cowards way out and decided to just pretend like everything was the way it used to be. Like tomorrow would come and everything would be normal. It was a decision he would regret, because when he woke the next morning, she was gone.