AN: Hey guys! What's happening? Anything? No? Cool! Hope you guys like this chapter! Enjoy!
Notice: I own nothing, for I am not Hiro Mashima. Amen.
Chapter 9: A Date Gone Wrong, Plus a Little Spat
"We're not really dating if we don't go on dates, right?"
God. Why the hell had he said that? How could Rogue have been so stupid?
Rogue ambled awkwardly down the street in his uncomfortable suit, which had taken much pestering, poking, prodding and wrestling for Sting and Lector to convince him to wear. How the hell could people do anything in these infernal suits? Rogue could barely breathe, what with the stupid polka-dotted necktie.
Not only that, but he was about to enter a fancy restaurant for the first time in his life. On his first date. With his first girlfriend.
Nope. Not nervous at all.
Why did I even suggest that in the first place? Thought Rogue to himself. It's not like things have been going badly the last couple of weeks.
In all honestly, Rogue had suggested they go on a formal date to get some air. Since the night of Sting's surprise visit, Kagura, Rogue and Frosch had practically become an official team. They went on every job together, and Rogue couldn't have been happier about that.
The only problem: Kagura really liked kissing Rogue. Like, she really, really, really liked it. No, more than you're imagining right now.
Kagura didn't care where they were. She didn't care what they were doing, or who was watching. She didn't care what reason/excuse she had to use to kiss Rogue. Oftentimes there was none. She would pull him in for a kiss in the middle of a crowded train station when he successfully found their destination on the map. She was always delaying their missions by dragging Rogue off into some closet to make out (She brought Frosch along, too, of course- they didn't want him getting lost, and besides, Frosch had no idea what was going on and wouldn't tell anybody). Kagura even made out with Rogue on long train rides, when he was in constant danger of throwing up (It actually helped to soothe his motion sickness a little, but Rogue wasn't about to tell Kagura that).
And before you get the wrong idea- it wasn't that Rogue didn't like it; on the contrary, Kagura made him happier than anything else ever had. The past two weeks had been undoubtedly the best of his life. It was just- well- Rogue had absolutely no power when they were kissing. He was terrible at it; Kagura walked all over him (she had become an expert rather quickly). Not only that, but Rogue had been picking up major hints that she wanted to progress farther with him- and Rogue wasn't sure if he was quite ready for that yet.
At any rate, Rogue asked Kagura on this date because he wanted to just talk to her like they used to for a change. And, well, he literally needed some air.
Well, he was here. No use putting it off any longer. Rogue had reached the restaurant. A sign almost as large as the restaurant's name (The Tastebud Lacrima) read "No Indecent Displays of Affection." Oh, great. This was not going to be easy.
Kagura wasn't there yet, so Rogue got seated at a back table and casually flipped through the menu. He had no idea what anything on the menu was, so he just picked something random he would order and waited, sipping an elaborate martini. It tasted horrible.
Ten minutes passed, and finally someone came through the door. Rogue looked up expectantly, then his face deflated. The four wizards who entered were very familiar, but none of them were Kagura.
"All right! I'm all fired up now! Where the bar fights at?"
"Natsu! Come on, don't destroy the place!"
"Hey! Let go of me, Lucy!"
"Ooooh! She loooooves you."
"SHUT UP, CAT!"
"Jeez, Natsu, could you get any more idiotic?"
"Oh, yeah, Gray? As a matter of fact, I could, if I copied you!"
"What was that, Flamebrain?"
"I don't know, what do you think it was, Frostballs?"
"ENOUGH!"
Rogue watched the poor greeting waitress awkwardly escort Erza and the four other terrified Fairy Tail members to a large booth a few spots away from Rogue's table.
Rogue put his head down so he wouldn't be noticed. The last thing Rogue wanted was for the word about him and Kagura to get out, much less to the Salamander. Actually, if Titania were to find out, that might conceivably be even worse.
He nursed his revolting drink and listened to the antics of the Fairy Tail members. Despite himself, Rogue found himself smiling. These people may have been irrational, overly boisterous, and just a little insane, but- Okay. Completely insane. But they had the biggest heart, the most powerful camaraderie Rogue had ever seen. That camaraderie had been what made Fairy Tail stronger than Sabertooth in the Grand Magic Games, what Sting had based his whole vision of a new Sabertooth on. Even though Sabertooth was very different now, Rogue had to admit it couldn't even come close to matching Fairy Tail's heart.
"Wow! I still can't decide what kind of fish to get! They have so many…"
"All right! My ultra-spicy deep-fried Bulcan legs came! Fire in my belly, here I come!"
"Natsu, you're getting food all over the table!"
"Goddammit Natsu, can't I enjoy my frozen Bulcan barbecue in peace?"
"Shut up, Gray! What kind of doofus eats something like that anyway?"
"What was that, you pyro?"
"Will you idiots SHUT UP?"
"*Yes, ma'am.*"
Rogue still had his head down and couldn't see them, but he could practically smell the bewildered stares the oblivious Fairy Tail wizards were receiving.
"Is that you, Erza? Wow, I haven't seen you in ages!"
Wait. That last voice was different. And familiar.
Rogue glanced up. Erza appeared to be hugging someone, but Rogue couldn't see whom. Erza separated to reveal Kagura standing behind her, a huge smile on her face. Rogue didn't catch much of their ample chatter. He was too busy gawking, wide-eyed, at his girlfriend.
Kagura wore a tight, dark purple dress that hugged her skin and accentuated her curves. It went down to about her knees. Her hair was done up in the back, tied into a simple ponytail, and her bangs still hung down in the front. She looked nothing short of amazing.
Rogue's mouth was wide open, and his eyes and jaw were twitching uncontrollably, but he managed to pull himself back into realty to listen to what they were saying.
"…You look great! So what're you wearing that for?" Erza exclaimed. The two had their palms clasped, their fingers intertwined.
Kagura blushed. "Oh, I'm here for Rogue's and my first date. You haven't seen him around, have you?"
Rogue spit his drink out. Lucy jumped up and started congratulating Kagura. Gray swallowed his frozen barbecue wrong and started choking. Natsu and Happy jumped up and started dancing on the table, singing teasing songs that involved the spelling of the word "kissing." Erza turned white as a ghost and stared for about a minute. Then she went into hyper-enthusiastic overdrive, her dramatic and excited gestures upending tables and sending food flying everywhere. It was nothing short of an absolute disaster.
Needless to say, the Fairy Tail wizards, along with Kagura, were promptly kicked out of the restaurant.
Rogue sighed exasperatedly. Not only had those insane wizards completely destroyed this nice restaurant, but they'd also completely ruined his nice dinner date with Kagura. Rogue quickly paid his jewels for the disgusting martini and slipped out of the restaurant in the form of a shadow, much to the surprise of the waiter.
Rogue knew exactly where Kagura would be. She didn't live too far from the Tastebud Lacrima, so Rogue headed straight to her apartment, slipping through the wall in the form of a shadow. He emerged in Kagura's empty living room. "Hey, Kagura, you home? It's me, Rogue!"
"Oh, hey, Rogue!" her voice called back from the kitchen. "Sorry, I got kicked out of the restaurant. You'll never believe who I found there, though. How long did you wait for me after you got there?"
Rogue headed towards the kitchen. "Yeah, I know. It was Natsu's team from Fairy Tail."
"Wait, what? How did you know?"
"I was already-"
Rogue stopped, his face a steaming shade of crimson. Kagura was standing at the sink washing dishes. More importantly, she wore nothing but a white lace bra and panty.
"Hey, handsome." Kagura winked right at him.
"Uh…uh-uh…uh-huh-uh…" Rogue's jaw was going out of control again. How did Kagura do this to him?
Kagura's hair was wet. Rogue figured she must've just gotten out of the shower. Not that that had anything to do with anything. His jaw started twitching even faster.
"You were already what?" Kagura said, looking at Rogue inquisitively. She didn't seem at all bothered by the fact that she was standing in front of Rogue in her underwear.
I think Erza's starting to rub off on her…
Rogue calmed his jaw enough to manage a reply. He explained how he'd already been at back of the restaurant and had watched the whole scene unfold.
"Wait… So how come you didn't tell me you were there? How come you didn't say hi to any of the Fairy Tail wizards, not even Natsu?" Kagura looked and sounded upset, and that snapped Rogue out of his trance.
Yes, she was definitely upset. Now that Rogue thought about it, his decisions had definitely seemed a little fishy from Kagura's perspective. He had better explain it to her, and fast.
"I… uh… sort of didn't want them to see us together."
Kagura's eyes were tearing up. "Wait… what are you saying, Rogue? Are you saying you're… ashamed of me?"
Oh, boy. That was the wrong thing to say.
Rogue held out his hands in a peacemaking gesture. "No, no, nothing like that! It's just… I knew the Fairy Tail wizards are a rowdy bunch, and I didn't want them to mess up our date. You know, our first date… It was kind of important."
Kagura blinked. "But I'm here now… you're here… why does it matter?"
Rogue looked down. Looked like he was going to have to say it.
"Look, Kagura…" Rogue ventured. "It's just… you've been kissing me a lot. And it's great. But there's a limit, you know? There's a point where you can have too much of a good thing. And I… I just feel like I have too little control over any of it- how long it goes, when we do it… I just feel like you're dragging me down this road I'm not sure I want to follow. And I'm sensing hints from you… you wanting to go further with me… but I don't think I'm ready for that yet. I really looked forward to our dinner because I just wanted to talk to you, Kagura. I feel like we haven't done that in weeks."
Kagura was silent. The tears in her eyes began to spill.
"I'm so sorry, Kagura. I didn't mean to unload all that on you, I-"
Rogue's breath caught in his throat as he felt Kagura's arms wrap themselves around him, felt her face pressing deep into his chest.
"I'm so sorry, Rogue," Kagura mumbled. "I… I enjoyed it so much that I never considered the possibility that you might not be as into it as I was."
Rogue was dumbstruck. His chest was wet with Kagura's tears, and his cheeks were wet with his own.
"I promise," Kagura continued, "I'll be more considerate of your feelings from now on. If you don't feel like doing something, please just tell me. I would hate to feel uncomfortable. Please, just don't ever let me be making things difficult for you without even knowing it. I'm the worst girlfriend ever…" she sobbed.
Rogue felt a newfound surge of courage overcome his fear and awkwardness. He brought Kagura's face up to meet his own. For the first time ever, he initiated a deep kiss himself, and led Kagura all the way through it, just the way she had done so many times for him. "Please don't cry," he whispered against her lips. "You're so much more beautiful when you're not. And honestly, a lot of the time I'm too shy, so I like it when you lead me. I'm just so happy that you listened and responded to what I had to say. Not many people could do that as well as you did. You're not the worst girlfriend at all… you're the best."
Kagura smiled and hugged him close again.
"And for the record," Rogue continued, "I promise I don't give a crap who knows about us, all right?" He gently extricated himself from her arms. "I'll go get Frosch, all right? What do you say we just hang out here together for the night?"
Kagura smiled and wiped away the last of her tears. She gave Rogue one slow nod packed with much more meaning than could be imagined at first glance.
Well... That happened. I mean, I think it did. Hey, so, thanks for reading! Don't forget to favorite, follow, review, all that good stuff. Also, wish me luck on my SAT's tomorrow! Have a day better than my tomorrow will be :P