Love-struck - Laxus x Reader

Memories

The woman picked it up and awkwardly handed it to Laxus, avoiding eye contact. His face burned as he forced the corners of his mouth upwards into a smile and mumbled a quick thanks. He pictured Y/N across from him. She would have snorted with laughter, trying to stifle it behind her hand and collapsed into her seat. Her giggles would have been contagious forcing him to join in laughing loud enough to gain disapproving looks and tuts from the tables nearby. When they had calmed down, he knew he would have plucked the scarlet flower from the ceiling and presented it to her. In his mind, he could just picture her wide-eyed with surprise, cheeks coloured with a deep blush matching the shade of the petals, beaming at him, lowering the irritated and awkward feelings inside him.

"Laxus?"

The image of Y/N vanished and he noticed the woman looking at him, pointing to the name of a fancy red wine on the drinks menu. Her eyebrows were raised, waiting for an answer.

"Oh... Sure. Whatever you want," he replied.

Slightly disheartened by his response, a frown flickered across her face before she hid it behind a menu. After taking some time to decipher the flowery worded dishes, Laxus ordered for them both, and the waiter returned, pouring dry wine into the fragile, gold-rimmed glasses. Laxus tried to focus on the woman. He tried to listen to her talk about herself, her café and her hobbies passionately. He even nodded often to show that he was involved and tried to laugh at her jokes, but very quickly the conversation slowed to little more than a trickle, and by the time their meal arrived, he could see she was regretting her decision to invite him here.

They ate quickly, the food in front of them doing nothing to disguise the uncomfortable silence. He took the last bite of his steak, guilt turning it sour in his mouth, and chewed thoroughly. Freed's words echoed in his head, "She would want you to be happy."

He tried one last attempt to save the night. "Uh, you look nice by the way."

The woman paused in surprise, fork halfway to her mouth.

"I just mean the dress y'know? Suits you. Evergreen has something similar. She spent the whole day twirling around in it like a damn ballerina after she got it."

"I see... thank you," she said softly. She carefully placed her knife and fork side by side on her plate and stared at it, strands of hair falling across her face.

"Do you want dessert?"

"No, thank you. I think I should go home now."

After the waiter had cleared the table, Laxus paid the bill and led the way outside. Tears welled in the woman's eyes and she remained silent until the restaurant door clicked closed behind them. They both stood facing each other, the cold breeze nipping at their skin, the dark streets empty save for a few stragglers.

"Thank you for dinner." The woman turned to leave, but Laxus caught her gently by the shoulder,

"Wait. Tonight was nice. I'm sorry I wasn't good company, it's just..."

"I know. I used to see you with her around town. Once, you both even came to my café." She faced Laxus again, saw his blank expression, and sighed in frustration. "The cat-themed one I told you about, remember?" The tears were almost spilling down her face by now.

"Ah... I remember."

"Look, I have to go. If you want to try this again sometime then you can find me at work. No pressure though." she smiled sadly, already accepting that this was the end. He nodded carefully, afraid of doing more damage, unsure what to say next. With a small wave, she quietly turned and walked quickly out of sight. Laxus started walking in the opposite direction, not entirely sure where he was headed, alone with his thoughts.

Once Laxus had reached the riverside, he noticed a familiar figure in the distance, sitting by a tree. It was Y/N, gazing up at the stars, still as a statue, a thick, patchwork blanket pulled tightly around her against the cold. He moved hesitantly towards her, eyes firmly locked onto her and scarcely making a sound, afraid he'd shatter the moment with even the slightest noise. When he reached the tree, she finally noticed him, patting the ground beside her in invitation, her smile warming up the surrounding area. He slumped down onto the grass and soaked in all her details lit softly by the dazzling moonlight.

"I'd love to learn the constellations one day. The sky is just so beautifully lit up on nights like this." She raised a hand and delicately pointed to a cluster of stars. "Levy told me that this one is Ursa Major and there is another one similar but I can't find it. Ursa Minor, she called it."

"The Dippers." He nodded, recalling overhearing the conversation.

She grinned as she turned to him, "They say that Ursa Major is always chasing Minor around the sky, but can never quite catch her." She looked back up at the sky with a sad smile on her face, "Maybe, just maybe, he'll catch her someday. Wouldn't that be wonderful?"

Laxus slowly lifted his hand towards hers and tried to grasp it, his fingers closing on nothing but air.

"Leaving me again, eh?" he whispered, wiping his eyes with the sleeve of his jacket. "Look at me, you made me weak."

Heaving himself up off the ground, he brushed off stray leaves and dirt on his trousers and took one last look at the constellation Y/N had pointed to.

"I'm so tired of waiting, Y/N," he said to the stars before slowly heading back home.