A/N: Late update, I know! Sue me, I've been busy lately. Anyways, I'm gonna try to update at least a chapter a week. Mostly on Thursdays with Killing me Softly. Thank you guys for waiting and please review and favorite when you have a chance to. I would greatly appreciate it. Love you guys!
Chapter Four: Cinderella
Two weeks ago in Akane
She wasn't use to silence.
Not when she was getting to know someone. Levy wasn't entirely sure about what to make of Gajeel. Earlier, she assumed that Gajeel was some nice guy who wanted to ward off the unwelcome guests, and to sneak in a nap to avoid the attention of his companions. Now, she didn't know what to think. He bought her a drink; a ten dollar vodka with a dash of lime juice and mashed lime, and he hadn't said another word to her since he placed the rocks glass in front of her. Lucy was telling Natsu a story about one of her co-workers at the magazine. This was only the third time that Levy ever saw or spoke to Natsu, so she wasn't entirely sure if he was quite interested in her tells or her breasts spilling over the simple pink tank top Lucy had on. As much as she wanted to add her two cents into Lucy's story, Levy refrained and let them have their amusing talk.
With annoyance, Levy sighed and eyed the band currently playing on stage. They were a much heavier band than the previous progressive group and the one before that. She really couldn't make out the lyrics with the incoherent screaming through and through their performance. In truth, Levy quite enjoyed all kinds of rock, including metal, though constant repetitive noise was simply…noise. And the lack of words and story in a song was a bit of a turn off. For her at least.
"Not bad," Levy caught Gajeel muttering under his beer breath. She wasn't surprised at his interest in the music, considering his appearance. He looked like he could be part of that band or the few fans that make them known in front of the stage, head banging like a mad men or women.
"You like this?" Levy let out an uneasy chuckle. Gajeel responded with an unsure shrug, giving her a brief side glance before returning his eyes to the stage. "I can't make out the words. The singer's voice doesn't compliment the music and the guitarists are fighting for dominance in their unnecessary solos."
"Whoa," Levy caught his attention. "We have a critic in the house tonight. And how did you know they were fighting?" She mimicked the same response by shrugging her bare shoulders and gave him a short side glance, but instead of turning to the stage, she gave a small smirk and set her eyes on her drink.
"The way the two guitarists look at each other." Levy pointed out. "It's obvious, don't you think? Their stances as they face each other and not the audience. And see?" She grabbed his bicep and pointed at the drummer, not paying attention to the crowd but the two alpha males trying to out play the other. "The drummer is giving them the look."
"What look?" Gajeel inquired.
" 'Would you stop it' look." Levy leaned in and whispered it to him. "And now the harmonies are out of whack and the songs they play are just noise."
"Huh." Gajeel grunted, probably taking in Levy's observations, though that was what she assumes Gajeel was thinking about. Regardless of their brief talk, Levy still could not make out Gajeel's unreadable character. "Explains their music."
"Huh?" Levy raised a brow.
"Chaos." Gajeel's turn to point out. "The style is chaos. It works for them."
"How so?" Levy watched him pounder at their sound.
"It looks like they're fightin' but they ain't fightin.'" Gajeel explained, moving his seat a little closer to Levy so she could hear. "They are playin' for who's the loudest." The way he spoke was similar to Natsu. The accent he adorned was that he grew up in the city; rough and dynamic vowels.
"And you call that chaos music?"
"More or less, shrimp." Gajeel sighed. "Music is in the eye of the beholder. Same goes with religion, politics and other opinionated crap." He straightened his back and crossed his arms. "It sounds like shit to you, but they like it." He nudged his chin at the wild fans jarring their heads and long hair around. "You can't have chaotic music without chaos."
Her eyes moved from the crowd to Gajeel's chiseled face. The hard line of his jaw, the simple tarnished metal rivets that lined his ears, matching the two that pierce the bridge of his nose, and the long fringes of black that framed his face; Gajeel was really handsome. It may be the alcohol, but even so Levy could give Gajeel a chance. Besides, it would seem like they were both dragged as the third wheel by their friends. She might as well make a new friend.
"Not bad," Levy smiled and listened to the band with Gajeel.
The entirety of her week consisted of Levy meeting the demands of her superiors at the Academy. As the junior of the English teachers, they'd put much of the tedious tasks to her. Which she really didn't mind taking tutoring hours during her lunch for students who needed it. Everyone always needed something from her and despite the demands she never questioned or faltered whatever the demands were. However, when it came to choosing a movie for her date with Gajeel, Levy couldn't help to play twenty questions on what kind of movie he would like to watch. Regardless of him asking her to pick a movie, he had to remind her that he chose her to pick the damn movie.
She, without a doubt, regretted the choice she'd made with a children's movie; Cinderella. Levy couldn't tell if Gajeel dreaded her choice too, but he agreed without question and bought the tickets. Surprisingly enough, Gajeel was quite taken of the movie, engrossed in the movie as if he was a child. The treachery of the step sisters and the menacing stepmother. And the overdramatic heroics of the prince would have him squeezing her hand as the movie went on. Levy found his intrigue quite charming.
"Hungry?" asked Gajeel once they exited the theater. The spring air was cool, raising gooseflesh on her skin. Her flowy green skirt didn't do much for warmth and the deep violet t-shirt wasn't much either. Lucy's pick with a pale lavender cardigan she happened to leave in Gajeel's truck.
"I could eat." Levy smiled, shivering and slowly leaning in against his arm. "You have something in mind?" It was already late and eating establishments were limited. He explained he had a place in mind, but unfortunately they were closed. Bars were the only other options, and Levy really didn't want to drink anything if popcorn and nachos were the only things in her stomach.
"New York isn't the only city that never sleeps, y'know?" Gajeel laughed when they pulled up to the lot beside one of the hospital buildings where people in scrubs of different colors flocked around two metal food trucks. Chalkboard menus and their serving windows were lined with colorful Christmas lights, providing color to the dismal lot.
"Taco truck?" Levy hopped out of the truck with Gajeel's assistance and looked beyond the lock barricade. Spanish music was playing over the loud speakers of one of the trucks and groups of employees were crowding around one table, cheering obnoxiously. "Wait, this is where you work?"
"Yep," Gajeel grabbed her hand and they walked towards the guarded gate. "Best Mexican food in the city if you ask me." Two security guards stuffing their face with taquito stopped them, but they relaxed when they saw Gajeel holding up his employee access card, letting them in welcomely. Levy gave a curt nod of thanks and followed suit.
"Service elevator and the back lot restaurant at the hospital?" Levy laughed, inhaling the intoxicating smell of seared meats and peppers radiating from the food trucks. "Now, I call this VIP treatment right here."
"I don't know if you're kiddin' or serious, Shrimp." Gajeel grumbled. "If you wanna go somewhere—"
"No!" Levy slapped his arm. "I'm starving and it smells freaking good! So far this beats waiting in line, getting a table and waiting to get served."
"Okay, then." Gajeel smiled approvingly. "I'll make it up to you next time."
"Is that a date?" They stopped at the end of the short line. She stared up at Gajeel, sporting the same hard stoic look he always had, though this time Levy swore she could see a tint of red on his high cheekbones. Reveled
"Name the day." Gajeel grunted, turning away to avoid his secret to be known.
They ordered their food along with a couple of cold Coronas and lime, and enjoyed the late night spectacle in the lot. Two nursing assistants were competing in arm wrestling and nurses and doctors were placing bets and round duties on the table to see who wins. On and off, Levy and Gajeel would make their own bets and loser has to buy the next round of beers. Gajeel had the upper hand as he knew the competitors, leaving Levy to buying their second round. A pair of muscular female doctors was up next and the crowd went wild at their bets. Their thrilling battle was stop short when the intercom called all available doctors and nurses to the ER. The crazy and fun festivities came to an instant close and almost everyone in the lot cleared out. Silence loomed over them as fast as the crowd shuffling back to their duties.
"Is it always like this?" Levy asked Gajeel. Both of them sitting on the table with their feet on the picnic bench. "The arm wrestling and the gambling."
"Nah," Gajeel shook his head, taking a swig from his beer. "Only the night shift on slow nights."
"I can see it being slow one minute and then busy the next." Levy pointed out. "It must be crazy, huh?"
"You can say that." Gajeel sighed. "I use to work the night shift after I took my NCLEX. Every night. Seven days straight of ER madness."
"Do you miss it?" Levy questioned the melancholic look on his face. "It seems like you love being in the ER."
"Of course," Gajeel exasperated, rubbing the back of his neck. "It beats sitting at the nurse's station and organizing paper work and rotations."
"But, your place is in pediatrics." Levy inquired. "Sick kids need someone to sing Taylor Swift songs to them." Levy laughed when Gajeel slightly pouted his lips. Or was that gritting his teeth. "I'm kidding! What you're doing is great."
"I guess," Gajeel shrugged. "Work is work, y'know?"
"Well, work that makes a difference in someone else's life." Levy stated. "And yours. Don't forget that." For a moment they sat there in silence, drinking in the remnants of what happened between the hospital staff. The kiss of lime lingering upon their lips. Levy wondered if Gajeel tasted of lime too as she enjoys the tangy fruit in her usual vodka drink.
"Yours too, right?" Gajeel broke the silence.
"Huh?" She turned to him.
"Your job." Gajeel cleared his throat. "Teaching kids? It's the same, right?" Levy blinked, trying to comprehend the comparison.
"I don't know if teaching teenagers allegory and dark imagery is the same as healing them." Levy smiled. "Though, I can make them go to sleep by teaching them about the Shakespearian language and you can give them pain medicine to knock them out."
"I help them deal with pain." Gajeel guffawed. "You teach them to think. If they didn't know how to think, how could they understand the damn world? Good teacher make good people."
"I see your point." Levy agreed. "But, that only applies to good teachers."
"You think yer not?" Gajeel asked as if he was offended by what she said.
"I don't doubt my knowledge." Levy shrugged. "I can go on and on about historical literature. I just don't know if they're listening to me."
"They're listening." Gajeel sighed. "The brats that do well in your class are listening. Trust me." Levy wanted to jokingly tell him if that was a confession of a upstanding student, though it only brought back the secrets that were spilled about Gajeel a week prior to their date. The truth of his past. That, even though he stated she had a good guess, the truth was far beyond what she would have thought. Recalling her assumptions brought the uneasy embarrassment back into the pit of her stomach. She was a fool, and clearly she couldn't handle the truth.
"I never liked hospitals." Levy finally spoke.
"Huh?" Gajeel raised an eyebrow.
"Hospitals." Levy repeated. "I never liked them." She paused, waiting for him to say something but only a grunt was his only response. "I told you about my mom, right?" He nodded. "I never told you what happened to her. She—became sick when I was a senior in high school. I didn't know about it until a week of my last semester, she collapsed behind the bar during a heavy night.
"She was stubborn. My mom never wanted me to find out until after I left for college. She knew I would stay behind and help her. Luckily for her, I attended the university with one of the best cancer facilities in the country. We moved here the following summer and got ourselves situated…that year was my mom's last Christmas. She passed on Valentine's day."
"Stage three?" Gajeel asked.
"Four."
"Shit," Gajeel cursed. "Metastatic spread."
"Yeah," She nodded. "I spent most of my study and free time with her. I had a family friend who attended NW with me to help keep her company."
"How long ago?"
"Seven years ago." Levy answered. "Since then, I never liked hospitals."
"Ain't the best place." Gajeel laughed, taking a swig of beer. The familiar silenced loomed over them again. "Sorry to hear about yer mom."
"Thanks, but I—made peace with it a long time ago." Levy exhaled contently, breathing in the cool spring air. "I kept my promise and I'm living my life." It was strange to speak of her past so easily to Gajeel. She rarely spoke of her mother, although when she did it was with people who knew her. Nevertheless, Levy felt she was obligated to tell Gajeel something of her past, and at the same time she needed to talk about her mother.
Like hospitals, she'd never liked to talk about her.
"A meaningful life." Gajeel said, catching the attention of Levy. "You're making a difference. Teaching brats to have an open mind."
"And you sing Taylor Swift to little girls to ease their pain." Levy added, nudging her elbow against his arm.
"Occasional Katy Perry and Demi Lovato." Gajeel wrapped his arm around Levy. She leaned in, resting her head on his shoulder. His cologne she grew fond of from their week away wafted to her nose, mixing very well with the hoppiness of the beer and lime. She recalled the first time she saw Gajeel at his work, sporting his navy blue nursing scrubs, and the way he smelled was so foreign and yet strangely familiar. The sterile smell of rubbing alcohol and rubber gloves triggered a haunting memory.
"How do you do it?" Levy's voice cracked, craning her neck up to meet his gaze. "I couldn't see my mom go through that. You see patients like her everyday." The chemotherapy took a tremendous toll of her small frail body. The machines that measured the extent of her sickness. The dreaded alarm of her monitor when something went wrong, causing Levy to cower helplessly to the side while they stabilize her. She couldn't do it.
"I just do." Gajeel shrugged his shoulders. "It's my job."
"Oh," Levy gaze dropped. He sensed her disappointment and tried to figure out what else to say. He wasn't lying. It was his job.
"It's not easy." Gajeel added. "Working here is like working over there." Levy assumed that he meant in Iraq and Afghanistan. "Y'don't know what's gonna happened next. Things change in a matter of seconds. You just have to—"
"Endure?" Levy looked up.
"Yeah," Gajeel grinned. "Endure. Adapt. It doesn't matter how you feel about the person. Y'gotta get the job done." His eyes met hers, colorful shimmering lights reflecting off her honey pools. She had lost someone too. Someone very dear to her and it was easy for Levy to share this part of her to Gajeel. For so long, Gajeel never understood the appeal of telling his life story to others. Even with his squad, not once did he share it despite the others dishing out incredible stories. He spent years getting to know them. Not even a month and this woman already knew too much.
"Gajeel?" Levy gasped when he took her chin between his fingers, guiding her sweet lips to his own. He tasted like bitter lime, tart, sweet and overall enticing against her tongue. They weren't alone in the lot. Other hospital employees were out there along with the food truck people, but that didn't stop them as they continued their heavy kiss.
Levy wasn't afraid of him. That surprised him the most. Nothing seemed to scare her. Not that he knew of anyway, although he was scared of something. Gajeel was afraid if Levy knew everything, would she still remain at his side.