Jellal rolled out of the futon groggily as the sunlight tore through the thin fabric of the doors. For once, he did not wake up with a mop of disheveled scarlet hair lined up against his face. He frowned when he could not feel any hand tugging on his body or the soft sting of fingernails digging into his abs or pectorals.
His hand lazily searched for Erza beside him in the futon, only to see it empty. Groaning out loud, he got up to see Erza's toothbrush wet, and a few strands of red hair on her hairbrush.
Assuming that she had gotten ready and left, Jellal started off his day. Even while brushing his teeth, he could hear the chatter outside the room.
As he peeked out of the room, he could hear a few members of Fairy Tail barking out orders, and as he turned to the other side, he saw Erza standing in front of two old women, with an exceptionally flustered look on her face.
The women had soft teasing smiles on their faces and Erza continuously bowed down in contrition. Why was she apologising? Jellal brushed it off as the women's attempts to set Erza up with their sons or grandsons, and she was probably just being polite to them.
Giving up on those thoughts, Jellal carried on with his day, until his eyes spotted the suit Erza had chosen for him to wear. By all means, he was in no way a fashion icon, and he knew better than anyone else not to trust himself with picking out the right outfit to be the best man in his best friend's wedding.
There was still quite sometime before the ceremony, and he overheard some of them complaining about Laxus being nowhere in sight. Knowing his best friend, Jellal walked towards the bar.
As expected, he was lying on the counter with a newly opened bottle of whiskey. The bar was dimly lit, and nobody was in sight. After all, it is not every day that you see someone day drinking, least of all the bridegroom. But it was understandable. The azure-haired wizard took a seat next to his best friend, and in the most friendly greeting, he slapped the back of his head.
Laxus shot up with an expression that could make Asura proud and glared at Jellal, raising his glass like a weapon. Jellal shot up on reflex with a smile on his face, teasingly taking a combative stance. Laxus stared at his best man's face for a second before giving up, and patted the barstool next to him, asking him to sit down.
"So...why is the bridegroom day drinking?"
"Cause why not?"
Jellal had no response to his question and watched as Laxus emptied his glass. The blonde groaned out loud and turned back towards him, and Jellal knew that he was in for a long sermon.
"This day SUCKS! I mean...yeah, I am getting married to a woman I love, and well...that makes me happy, no doubt. But WHY do weddings have to be THIS difficult?
I should have chucked this offer down and opted to have a wedding in Fairy Tail. That stupid guild hall would be enough for us. I should have-"
"Will Mira be fine with it? What would she say if she heard you say this?"
Jellal flashed him a smile before raising his eyebrows.
"That woman will throw me off of a fucking cliff", he groaned and pushed the bottle away. He grinned and turned towards Jellal, and that smile was more than enough for him to realise that he was already in Laxus' trap.
"Forget about me. What about you? When are you going to ask Erza to marry you?"
Jellal had no response and ran his hand through his hair, messing it up further. A part of him was annoyed and another was disappointed in himself for allowing this question to be brought up again and again.
But before he could give him some half-hearted answer, Laxus spoke again.
"Not one of us thought she was cute, you know? Yeah, most guys drooled at the sight of her body, but she always wore a frown on her face, she was annoying and loud - just like the rest of us. It's probably one of the reasons why she fits in best with us"
Jellal was about to retort instantly. What did he mean by 'nobody thought that she was cute'? Countless situations flew inside his brain and before he could fight back, Laxus thrust his finger towards Jellal's sternum.
"Until you came back into her life again. We've all seen her smile and laugh, almost on an everyday basis. But seeing her nervous about choosing her clothes, seeing her blush like a normal girl, and many more! I can't remember the others.
All of those began when you popped back into her life. Erza is tough, and we have no doubts there. But I guess a part of her wanted to be protected by someone she loved - someone with who she can be weak and depend upon without hesitation. That someone who she could trust was you, Jellal. I know you trust her the same.
Look at her now. She hasn't changed much, but...she is much, much happier than she was ever before. I know you have heard of it a hundred times from her mouth before but...you are the reason behind it. The man who hates himself to every end of Earth is the greatest source of warmth to the woman he loves.
Ironic isn't it? But it's not just her. You're probably one of the handful of people I can truly be myself with. Even if it isn't the same for y-"
"Of course not!", he snapped with a horrified expression on his face. Jellal had his share of issues with emotions, but even then, he could never ignore such statements.
"Then why haven't you told me what's bugging you for the past few days?"
Wait for a small opening, and go straight for the throat - a perfect example of Laxus' fighting. Jellal sighed as he realised the trap and pursed his lips, narrowly avoiding the other man's gaze.
Laxus flicked Jellal's forehead as the latter buried himself in his thoughts again.
"I won't pry, fool. But know that some people can have your back and that depending on someone does not necessarily make you weak.
I respect someone who is strong enough to handle something on their own, but I look up to someone who is strong enough to ask for help"
With that, he patted his back and got up, ready to leave. Lots of work remained, and if he didn't get up and pull his weight, Mira might not hesitate to kill him once and for all. A powerful grip held his wrist and Jellal pointed towards the barstool, asking him to take his seat again.
"Think you can spare a few minutes?"
Jellal knew that he would not be able to deal with it on his own, but was afraid of bringing Laxus into the mess. After all, each time Laxus had been killed in battle, he was involved with Jellal, and almost always, his mother killed him with sheer brutality. With that knowledge, Laxus should be the last person he should look towards, but for some reason, he could not stop himself from spilling the beans.
He did not leave a single detail out, and Laxus listened with rapt attention. The Lightning mage did not have an attention span to boast about, but this was probably the first time in his twenty-seven years of mental age that he genuinely paid attention to a conversation that lasted for more than a couple of minutes.
Beads of sweat dripped down his forehead as he saw Laxus' blank stare. Understanding that it might have been too much to take, Jellal tried to change the topic with some unnecessary jargon about wedding myths and Laxus raised his glass, aiming to hurl it right between the Meteor mage's eyes.
"Fucking idiot!", he growled and Jellal grabbed his wrist.
"If your past life, who could screw you with more than half of his life drained, what can you do all alone? Even if you managed to keep Mira and me out of the loop, what CAN you do? I'm going to assume you managed to do so in one of your past lives. Did we survive any time?
Think, genius! Personally, I would rather face death in the face than die without knowing how or why I died"
The bridegroom groaned again as he saw Jellal buried in thought yet again. He knew it, and so did the other man. This was an impossible fight, and it would need a miracle for him to win. Jellal knew the truth but was in denial.
It was probably the fear of losing another friend because of him, and this time, it would fall entirely on him. Knowing Jellal and his tendency to religiously blame himself for whatever tribulations happen, Laxus knew that if something were to happen to him or Mirajane, whatever bits and pieces of his confidence that his best friend had built over the years would topple with no remorse.
"I'm not that easy to kill, Jellal. Don't sell me out short", he groaned and pushed the man playfully, in a vain attempt to cut the tension.
"And forget about this. It is sorted out now, but you better tell the rest of them about this. You ought to know that we are all here for you, and you have Crime Sorciere with you.
There is something else you have to do, and I think it is time you do it, Jellal"
He knew what was coming up, and Laxus' disappointing attempt to beat around the bush served no purpose.
"Marry Erza"
It was not as simple as that. Erza was the one for him, and it was a fact. He was no fool to doubt that, but he was afraid for her.
Even after all of those years of blood, sweat, tears, and near-death experiences, people never acknowledged him for who he was. If word spread out that Erza was marrying such a man, what would happen to her?
What would happen to her image? Did he truly have any right or the heart to step in and ruin everything she had done for herself and her guild?
Jellal pulled out a ring from his pocket and placed it on the counter.
"I have been trying to...for almost a year if I am being generous. But..."
Laxus could feel the energy coming out of the ring, but it was not exactly the brightest. It was almost akin to the Jellal he met all those years ago - filled with guilt and a dearth of life.
It was almost symbolic. That ring might have been Jellal's older self, and placing it on Erza's finger, she would meet the man in front of her - the man who had changed when she came back into his life. Laxus assumed that the alcohol had begun to buzz in, and in no way would he ever have such thoughts when he was sober. But a part of him was proud of Jellal, in a way. All he needed was to take the final step over the line.
"You don't think twice before ploughing her into oblivion, do you? Then why hesitate on this? You know more than anyone else that she wants it, and you know that you want it. I really don't know who you are fooling with this"
Laxus was visibly getting tired of the conversation, and it was understandable. As he got up and turned to leave, Jellal cleared his throat and tapped the barstool again.
"I know that I want her, Laxus. Erza mocks me for my poor prowess in lying, but I can't say she's a pioneer in that field. Each time she 'jokes' about wanting to get married, I know that she throws hints about her true feelings. I know I can be pretty dense at times, but that is something I never really missed - that yearning look in her eyes, it almost tears me apa-"
"Then do what you must do, moron. The ring is not going to speak for y-"
"I know! And I...ought to do it pretty soon", he mumbled. Laxus frowned as the former began to fidget. Once again, it was clear as day that the man was hiding something, and Laxus had enough. Before he could go on another tirade, Jellal beat him to the punch.
"Erza is pregnant"
With a dumbstruck face, he approached Jellal and smacked the back of his head like an annoyed mother.
"Then, what the hell are you still waiting for? The only thing stopping you from marrying her is yourself and some scenarios that you create inside your head"
Laxus internally sighed in relief as he could feel Jellal's defense weaken. Perhaps his sermon was not an entire waste of breath. All that man needed was one more push from his closest confidantes.
"It might be our wedding, but you can ask her whenever you want to do so. You have my permission and Mira will probably force you to propose if she hears us"
The two men shared a smirk picturising the silver-haired woman dragging Jellal into her plans.
Jellal held on to the ring with a tight grasp before the corner of his eye glossed over the scarlet-haired beauty running after somebody.
"Yeah, I'm ready"