Fifty-Five - Erza Scarlet
Erza was so tired of being patient, but she did her best as she waited for Jellal to speak. They had been walking around the outside of the school building for some time and he hadn't said much. She wondered if there was some way to set him at ease. He was clearly very nervous, and she was pretty sure she knew why. Just as she was about to speak, he stopped walking.
Here it comes, she thought, excitedly and nervously. He's finally going to tell me.
She turned to face him, trying to keep her heart beating at a steady pace and failing entirely. He was looking down, not meeting her eyes, as he grabbed her hands in his own. She smiled, tilting her head to the side slightly. He was still silent for several moments as they stood in the shade of a large tree. Finally, he let out a deep breath and looked up.
"Erza..." he said. He paused for a long time, staring into her eyes.
"Yes?" Erza prompted.
"I-" he began, leaning forward slightly. Erza's heart fluttered. "You-" he started again.
And then, without another word, he kissed her. Before Erza could really even react, he pulled back, his hands on her shoulders. She blinked in surprise. He had pushed her away again. She sighed in disappointment.
"I'm sorry," he said. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to-"
"It's okay," she said. "I thought this was what you pulled me out of school for."
He shook his head and looked down. "No," he said. For a split second, Erza's heart started to fall. But then he looked up again. "I mean, yes," he said, "but I didn't mean to do that first. I was supposed to speak first and do that later."
"Jellal…" she breathed, not sure what else to say.
"I love you," he interrupted. "I have for a long time. And I'm sure you already knew, but I needed to say it." He placed a hand gently on her face, brushing her cheek with his thumb. "I can't hold it in anymore. I love you, Erza. I'm in love with you."
It was exactly what Erza had been hoping for, and even expecting to an extent, but she wasn't ready for how those words made her feel. She was overwhelmed with emotion. She was so happy she wondered if she might start to cry.
"I- I- Jellal," she stammered, trying to calm herself enough to get the words out. "I love you, t-"
He cut off her reply by pressing his lips to hers once again. She threw her arms around his neck, determined to keep him from pushing her away this time. He seemed to be in the same mindset as he wrapped his arms tightly around her back and held her close. When they finally did pull apart from each other, his hands lingered on her waist. Erza smiled up and him and was glad to see him smiling right back.
"Well," Jellal said softly. "I think-"
"That it was about time?!" a voice shouted.
They both looked towards the school building to see Natsu's head poking around the corner. Behind him was what appeared to be almost all of their friends. Even a lot of the teachers were out. Erza would have been embarrassed to have such a large audience except that she was just too happy to care. Jellal took hold of her hand and smiled at her.
"Yeah," he said. "It was about time."
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The End
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I hope you guys liked it! 55 chapters and over 50,000 words! Wow!