Watching people come and go to the dance floor and tables, Gajeel leaned back in his seat and sipped at the beer in his hand, content just to be where he was out of the way. The DJ was good at his job; the music was loud and upbeat and pleasantly appropriate for the happy setting. Although the ceremony was held outside just hours before in the hot July sun, the large reception was indoors in the conditioned air.
The evening was passing, turning the sky dark. The temperature had cooled with the cold front moving in. Rain was likely.
He noticed the pretty bridesmaid he had been paired with for the ceremony now dancing with the rest of them. A mass of light yellow summer dresses congregated in a loose group, along with a long white gown in the center. The young women were laughing together as they danced to the music.
Levy’s wavy blue hair was pulled back. Wisps of the curled hair were falling out of their pins, but Gajeel thought it just added to her beauty. Her skin was sunkissed now that the wedding party had taken hours to do photos by the park. It could have also been the time spent in the hot sun the day before. Her legs poked out from under the hem of the dress. She was more than pretty. And single.
The song ended and there was a slower song to replace it. Levy quickly wandered back to their table and roughly sat down in the chair where she had left her heeled shoes. The perfume she wore wafted to him the second she sat down, his eyes involuntarily shifting to her breasts as they bounced and settled within the light material. Her bell-like laugh was contagious to Gajeel.
She was obviously feeling the glasses of wine she had consumed during dinner. Her hazel eyes darted to his, creased at the corners in a genuine smile. “You’re missing everything sitting here!”
“Am I?” he replied. He moved forward off the chair’s back, setting his beer on the tablecloth then leaning an arm on the table. “I’m not much of a dancer, ya know.” He stared hard at her.
“You don’t have to be good at it,” she said quickly before taking a long sip of her wine. “Ya know?”
Gajeel let out a chuckle. He hadn’t known Levy prior to arriving in the groom’s hometown. He wished he had though. The slightly drunk woman sitting right next to him was his type in all the ways. His eyes shifted up from the necklace dangling from her throat to her big eyes, which were intent on him.
Surprise entered his red ones, fully expecting some sort of reprimand as it seemed as though he was staring at something else below it. Levy’s eyes narrowed, but she only smiled, showing her white teeth. She leaned a little closer towards him be heard over the loud music. “So why is Gajeel Redfox still single, hmm?”
The two of them sat together, drinking and talking for another few hours, enjoying each other’s presence. They ignored everyone else. It wasn’t on purpose. It was a tie of common interest. Perhaps sexually as well. Halfway through their conversations, Gajeel had stopped drinking, and Levy in turn. The more they learned about each other, the less they craved the social crutches the alcohol provided.
A rumble rolled outside, softly before it grew. The thunder shook them with a deep toll. Gajeel glanced at the dark windows. It was wet. Water drops were falling down the glass. Beyond it, neither could see except for their own reflections with the rest of the reception enjoying the night.
He turned back to Levy to find her gazing at him. Her eyes were still glassy, but he could see she was level-headed. Her questions and replies to his own had become more in depth. The woman wanted to know more about him. It was as if she thirsted for it.
Her fingers found his on the table. A small smile was spread across her lips.
Should he? He looked at the clock on the wall. It was nearing 11:15 pm. They were in a strange beach city, neither one of them familiar with the roads and where places were located. But he wanted to be with her. To take her out to dinner, or just drive in the hot sun to who knew where, just to be out in the nice weather. With her.
“So,” he glanced at the woman he had escorted down the aisle. His eyebrow arched as he spoke. He said suddenly, “You wanna ditch?”
Levy’s eyes widened a bit, the smile never faltering. She gazed in surprise. “W-what? You mean right now?”
Not missing a beat in his black slacks and white button-up, he twisted his lips into a half grin. His eyes twinkled as he replied, “Yea, why not? No one’s gonna miss a bridesmaid an’ groomsman now that we’re this far into this shindig.”
“But we can’t leave!” She laughed, her fingers still entwined with his. Her eyes darted around. “Where would we go this late at night?”
My hotel room for one, he instantly thought. And though it was an honest feeling coursing through his veins, Gajeel didn’t want to ruin what they had established with one night full of sex and nothing else. There was still a chance for more. A potential relationship.
“We can go to the beach,” he said simply.
“But it’s raining. And it’s really late.”
He shrugged, his black hair tugged a little out of his band at the nape of his neck. He’d have to take it out soon. “So?”
Levy giggled, still surprised that he would suggest heading out together and before the reception for their now married friends had officially ended. “Are you sure?”
Gajeel stood up, taking her hand he was holding with him. He waited on her to stand up as well. He wasn’t going to force her to follow him. Her hand was limp in his large one, as if she was still thinking. Still reserved.
He kept the eye contact until he felt her grip tighten on his fingers and she popped up. Thunder rolled outside once again. The sound of rain falling outside was now a roar. Sneaking off towards the exit, he had to hush her giggling by bringing her hand to his lips. Down the stairs to the main double door entrance, they both halted to watch the rain fall in thick, transparent sheets. Lightning flashed, white-hot light forks zigzagging through the black sky.
“On three,” Gajeel murmured, his breath slightly frosting the glass. His stature was almost a foot taller than Levy’s, and she looked up.
She breathed. Excitement coursed through her. Her hand clutched his arm, feeling the bicep bunch under her slender fingers.
His gaze flickered down to her. “Three,” he said and opened the door.
Immediately a stale, warm air hit them, almost taking their breath from their lungs. The cold rain splashing onto the walkway created a fine mist which found them even before they stepped into the rainfall. Gajeel grabbed Levy’s hand and they rushed into the parking lot. Their hurried footsteps were drowned out by the rain and their heartbeats in their ears.
He kicked up the water already pooling into muddy puddles, maneuvering around parked vehicles to find his own. Levy let loose a squeal that turned into a boisterous laugh. By the time he found and unlocked the red jeep, both were cold from the wet. Levy’s hair was flattened a bit and she could smell the product in her hair.
Watching him as he started the vehicle and turned on the heater, she said with a slight shake, “I can’t believe we’re doing this.”
He smiled. There was a hint of nervous excitement in her tone. And after learning she was a good type of girl, he suspected that she felt somewhat guilty of leaving the party now, knowing everyone left behind would be cleaning up when it was over.
There were plenty of people who would clean the venue spotless the way they had found it. Tearing down was easy. At least he and Levy had helped put up the day before. “Don’t worry, they can manage.”
“We’ve both never been to this beach. How do you know how to get there?”
He held up his GPS with the typed in general address of beachfront establishments. “We’re not alone, that’s how.” He chuckled again and shivered from the chill creeping in from getting wet. Looking at her made his stomach flip; she was so damn beautiful.
They soon were heading down the road away from the wedding reception and towards the interstate, and for Gajeel, everything was all right with the world. He leaned his arm on the middle console and offered up his hand. The woman in his passenger seat glanced at it and slid her small hand into it. They began to talk once again about anything and everything, with the GPS intermittently directing them to their destination.
The device’s robot-like voice directed him off the interstate and into the city. Once there, they started down the beachfront strip.Tall hotels and restaurants lined the four-lane street. Neon lights were lit and some blinking. It was a Saturday night and many places were open late, though some were closed.The side streets and parallel parking spaces were filled with parked vehicles. People were walking down the bright sidewalks. With about ten minutes till midnight, the strip was alive despite the time.
Gajeel finally spotted a Dairy Queen with an empty lot. “Fuck it,” he murmured.
He parked the jeep right there in the middle of the five spaces. No other cars in the lot. The rain was still falling, though not as hard as it had before they left the venue. Thunder growled.
“Can you park here?” Levy asked curiously. Everything looked ominous, eerie at night with no one about at the popular location.
“I just did,” he said and got out. “It’s midnight. No one’s gonna get ice cream.”
Levy rolled her eyes and watched Gajeel round the hood and open her door. He gave her a smile. The bluenette took his hand and together they ran by the Dairy Queen’s picnic area and crossed the short grassy distance to the edge of the beach.
There were no lights along the beach. Levy could hear the ocean roar in rhythm with the waves on the shoreline, but all she could see in that moment of time was a darkness. She had never been to the beach. Slipping out of her heels and letting go of Gajeel’s hand, she quickly walked from the concrete steps to the coarse sand. Her feet sank into it.
The farther she walked forward, the louder the waves and more coarse the sand became. She no longer perceived the rain. Her eyes adjusted to the dark void before her until she saw the white foam of the waves rolling up the sand and dragging back to meet the rest of the salt water. Dropping her shoes, she stared.
Thunder rolled again in a series of low booms following brief flashes of zig-zags. When the lightning came again, she saw the horizon separation of water and sky. Inching forward, Levy felt her mouth open, her lips parting and spreading back in a wide, awestruck smile. All she could do was stare; it was a breathtaking sight. So enthralled with the picture she was hardly aware of a presence beside her.
Gajeel’s deep voice almost whispered. She gave him a fleeting glance and breathed, “Pretty… It’s so beautiful…”
He had taken off his black shoes which were now in one hand. In the other were her heels. He stood with his pant legs rolled up to the knee.
“It’s too dark to get a picture. Even the flash wouldn’t do,” she said lightly. Even though they stood inches away from the ocean in the middle of a summer thunderstorm, she deliberately walked into the water with no hesitation.
The waves washed up over her ankles. She kept moving forward, careful so that she not trip or step on something that might have been uncovered by the erosion of sand. The water became rougher when the waves reached her knees. It crashed over her legs, causing her to squeal in delight.The water line broke over her thighs. It splashed up her dress, drenching the lower front of her dress and spraying up into her hair. She was sure her eye makeup would start to run.
Gajeel set down their shoes and quickly walked up behind her. He wrapped his arms around her waist as a smaller wave approached them. His large form kept her steady, laughing with her. Levy’s hands closed on top of his when they slid to her stomach. She leaned her head back against his wide chest.
When he kissed the top of her head and straightened, Levy giggled and took off at a jog up the shoreline. Her lively joy burst from her lungs. With no one around to stop her, no one to bump into, she just let loose Levy looked over her shoulder at him.
A snarl escaped Gajeel’s lips. He ran up the beach after her, thrilled that the woman he enjoyed being around was that frisky. “Come ‘ere!” He called.
Levy turned to the left up the beach and away from the water, circling back towards their abandoned shoes. Her playful actions took him by surprise. The giggles and screams were pleasing to him as it was a sign that she was having a good time.
“You won’t catch me, Gajeel!”
The tiny bluenette’s dress twirled around her hips as she attempted to fake him out once more, but he was too quick. His large hands caught her sides. He swept her around and he pulled her into his arms. When she turned to face him, her infectious laugh enveloped him like her arms that wrapped around his neck.
Gajeel patiently watched her face until she was done and calm. His smile met her when she opened her hazel eyes. “So was it a mistake ditching?”
She closed her eyes again. “No,” she replied. “It wasn’t.”
Their faces were close. They could feel each other’s hot breath on their cold cheeks. They were drenched head to toe from the rain and the waves but it didn’t matter to him. Levy McGarden was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen, never mind that her eyeliner was smudged and her hair was falling from the updo that it had been in. She shook from the cold and even more when his body heat warmed her.
“I’m gonna kiss you now,” Gajeel’s voice was low and thick. He brought his lips to hers.
Half-lidded eyes watched his mouth erase the distance between her own. She tilted her head into the kiss. Their breath mingled together, and for the moment they weren’t cold as they held each other. A small hum in his throat caused him to deepen the kiss. His lips worked a little faster when Levy whimpered and tightened her hold on his neck.
Levy gently pulled away to suck in a breath. She watched his expression as he gazed at her. “What’s going to happen? We’re only here for one more day.” Her eyes conveyed her fear. “And… I-I don’t want to lose you. I want to be with you.”
He knew what she meant. The fear of never seeing her again bit at him, especially when he the two of them had clicked early on in the weekend. Helping set up the reception area and the wedding decorations and going out for the night on the town was an experience neither of them would forget. It’s where they met. Just thinking of letting this woman get away was not what he wanted to think about nor experience. Instead, he planted a kiss on her nose, and then on her parted lips and said, “Then come with me.”
“Come with you where, exactly, Mister Redfox?” Levy questioned with a raised eyebrow. She knew what he was suggesting. And it did sound appealing. Since she had started talking to the gruff man, the feelings she had for him had kept growing. She couldn’t keep her lips from twisting upwards.
Gajeel matched her expression. “Stay with me tonight.”
She felt his gentle hands on her sides, then when he brought one to the side of her face. She was where she wanted to be. With him. In his arms.
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