A/N: *shaky laugh*...it's been a while...I CAN EXPLAIN. First I was abroad for two weeks and then I came home, wrote one story...before somehow becoming cursed with writer's block. Because of that, I struggled to write this but I still wanted to update since it had been such a long time! (PS: anyone have a cure to writer's block? Help a fellow writer out xD)

Anyway, I hope you still like this little piece!

Title: Excluded
Rating: K
Summary: Regardless of how late, he was always there in the end.

"Better late than never."

Excluded

In a sea of people, her eyes would always seek him out, even if she knew he wouldn't be there.

Sat in the corner of the guild hall by herself, Erza sipped at her drink, sinking lower into her chair and desperately trying hard to blend into the shadows.

It wasn't that she was unhappy with Elfman and Evergreen's announcement. Their engagement was definitely an event to celebrate, especially after it took Elfman so many years to realise that Evergreen was just the right amount of 'manly' for him.

What made Erza miserable was that everywhere she looked, all she'd see were happy couples dancing together. Natsu stepping on Lucy's toes, Gajeel swinging Levy round and round, Gray with his face as red as a tomato, being led to the dancefloor for what was the fourth time now by a laughing Juvia.

She, on the other hand—after spinning Kagura so hard that the swordswoman ended up crashing into a dinner table, unable to continue—now sat alone, having nothing better to do than count the number of dances other people were having.

Turning her head slightly to the side, her chin propped on her hand in defeat, she even got a glimpse of Happy and Carla together, swaying side to side with their tails intertwined and their cheeks pressed together.

Much to her chagrin, she realised even the Exceeds were getting more action than she was.

Couples everywhere. Singing, dancing, laughing—and yet, he was nowhere to be seen.

Her eyes continued to wander from person to person, in search for that familiar tangle of blue hair.

She didn't know why she was searching for him, why she had thought in the first place that he'd come to the engagement party. He probably had more important matters at hand, like taking down dark guilds and refraining his fellow guild members from killing one another.

Still, as she took another sip of her drink, taking some solace in its sweetness, she couldn't help keep some hope that any moment now, she'd look up and see him, smiling that same easy smile that always pulled her in.

But rather than the blue haired man she'd hoped to see, her eyes found none other than Ichiya instead, dressed in a white suit with his hair sleeked back in a way that had her wondering whether someone had cracked a dozen eggs on his head or if he had stolen Gray's whole supply of hair gel.

Ichiya had his eyebrows raised and his nose pointed up in the air, undoubtedly attempting to sniff her parfum from the other side of the room. And somehow, the sight of him puckering his lips and flashing bedroom eyes in her direction had her dinner rising all the way back up her throat.

Erza jerked her head away, quickly downing the remainder of her drink and thinking to herself how she was better off alone than in the arms of Ichiya.

Heaving a sigh, she got to her feet, easing the trembling of her fingers by smoothing down her dress and tucking a stray lock of red behind her ear. It was probably best for everyone if she left now, before her feelings of anger and being excluded kicked in. The last thing she needed was a repeat of the Christmas party. She was pretty certain that Elfman and Evergreen wouldn't appreciate the 'Guild Master' game being played at their engagement celebration. In fact, after the mental scarring she probably inflicted on the other guild members the last time they played, she was sure that no one would appreciate it.

Erza tried hard to bite back her frustration, setting her mouth in a tight-lipped smile as she wandered further and further away from the uproar of her friends, out through the doors, up the stairs and onto the balcony where everything was quiet aside from the soft sound of the night breeze in the air.

She took a deep breath, taking in the calmness, the silence—the lack of couples dancing around, singing about their everlasting love—and finally felt at peace. If he didn't show up, she knew it wasn't because he didn't want to see her. He'd have a reason, and it'd be a good one, because every moment they spent together was cherished by them both.

It was cool outside, the hairs on her arms sticking upright. As she took another step forward, leaning over the balcony railing, the wind whistled around her, picking up her hair and dress in a way that made her feel as though she could spread her arms and fly off into the night sky at that very moment if she wanted to.

She didn't mind waiting, not when the wait was for him.

And so she continued to look out over the rooftops and buildings, her mind buzzing with thoughts of where he was, what he was doing, whether he was thinking about her too.

Maybe he was.

"Sorry, I'm late…" a voice came from behind her, low and amused; a voice she never had trouble recognising.

Erza smiled to herself, her heart catching in her chest. Turning around slowly, she brushed back her windswept hair, giving him a glimpse of that very smile that had now spread wide across her face. "Jellal—you came."

He stood just metres away, dressed smartly in a black suit and tie with his face hidden behind a masquerade mask, though it didn't do much in concealing his identity; she could never mistake the blue of his hair.

He walked over to her, one hand dipped into his pocket, the other reaching up to lift the mask off of his face. He smirked. "Jellal? Who's that?" he asked, tilting his head slightly to the side. "I'm just your fellow guild member, Mystogan."

Erza shot him a sceptical look, rolling her eyes. "Mystogan wouldn't ever reveal his face," she said, flicking the mask down again.

Chuckling, Jellal slipped the mask off once and for all, placing it on the balcony railing before turning back to Erza with a playful gaze. "It's a shame, really. He's quite the handsome guy, wouldn't you say?"

Arms folded, she raised a disapproving eyebrow. "He's late is what he is."

"I had some trouble finding a babysitter who could handle Meredy, Erik and the others," Jellal said, grinning. "I apologised, didn't I?"

"You did," Erza replied, squinting at him.

"And you forgive me, don't you?"

She sighed, her face softening and lips twitching into a smile. "I do."

"And that's another reason why I love you," Jellal told her, pulling her towards him to plant a soft kiss on her head. "You know when to forgive and forget."

Erza hummed against his chest, losing herself in the steady beat of his heart. "And I love you because regardless of how late you are, which you are a lot of the time, you're always there in the end."

"Hm." He considered this for a moment. "Is that a backhanded compliment? Should I be insulted?"

She laughed, reaching up to lace her arms around his neck. "I missed you."

Jellal smiled at her words, dipping down for a kiss which she eagerly returned. Her hands were cold as they toyed with the blue hair at the nape of his neck, but her lips were warm and soft under his own, a small reminder of what it was like whenever he was with her, and what he was missing when they went their separate ways again.

It would always hit him suddenly, how much he missed her. Sometimes, when he'd be lying in bed awake, no one to talk to, no one to hold, and there would be a small ache in his chest because the nights spent with her were the best, and the bed was always a little colder without her there. Other times, a stray strand of scarlet found on the shoulder of his cloak would be all it took to remind him that she wasn't by his side, that he couldn't see her whenever he wanted to.

These moments they shared were hard to come by. They were just short one-liners in a book that hadn't even been opened halfway yet. But still, they were their moments.

"I missed you too," he told Erza, holding her a little tighter.