~Levy~

“Are we still going home this weekend to visit mom?” I asked Gajeel as he came into the kitchen, yawning as he rubbed sleep from his eyes. We had stayed in our campus apartment so I could take summer courses and continue working at the library. Although I had told him he could go home for the summer, he told me he wasn’t going anywhere. He had even gotten a job at the library with me, since Lucy had taken the summer off to return home so her parents could meet Natsu.

“She’d kill us if we didn’t,” he grumbled, accepting the cup of coffee I poured for him.

“It’s your birthday,” I grinned. “She’s excited.”

“I’d much rather stay here all weekend alone with you,” he said, smirking.

“We should get packed,” I mumbled, feeling my face turn scarlet. We had been together for about four months now, and still had yet to do anything more than some heated making out. Although I’m sure I wouldn’t deny him if he tried, Gajeel was ever the—frustrating—gentleman, and he never went any farther than just kissing.

“I’d probably die from embarrassment if anything ever did happen, though,” I sighed to myself as I packed, feeling pathetic. Gajeel was my soulmate, and hopefully one day we’d get married, so things would eventually lead to that.

I shook my head, not helping the blush covering my entire face and neck. Images of Gajeel and me as a married couple seemed kind of funny, but it also gave me butterflies.

“Shrimp,” Gajeel knocked on my door, causing me to jump.

“W-What?” I asked, stuttering like I had just been caught doing something wrong.

“Are you ready to go?”

“Yeah,” I called. “I’ll be out in a minute.”Get ahold of yourself, Levy! You and Gajeel just found out that you’re soulmates, so it isn’t the time to be thinking about marriage. I sighed.I’m sure marriage hasn’t even crossed Gajeel’s mind.

~Gajeel~

The next two days were the longest of my life. By the night of my birthday dinner with mom and Levy, I was a mess of nerves.

“Happy birthday, Gajeel,” Mom smiled, giving me a tight hug as I came downstairs for dinner. She had made homemade pizza, and had even baked and decorated a birthday cake. “How are you feeling?” She asked with a reassuring smile as she rubbed my arm.

The little black box in my pocket suddenly seemed huge, and I pulled my red and black plaid button-up down over it, hoping the shirt would conceal what was in my pocket. Before deciding to go through with anything, I had called mom to have to talk me out of it. Unfortunately, she had done just the opposite, encouraging me even more.

“Here she comes,” mom whispered to me before turning to Levy. “Just in time!” Mom told her. “I need you to keep Gajeel occupied in the living room while I finish setting up.”

“Okay,” Levy grinned, grabbing my hand and pulling me towards the television hooked up to our game systems. “How about a round of Mario Kart before dinner, birthday boy?” She asked, throwing me a controller.

“Are ya gonna let me win this time?” I smirked.

“Tch,” she snorted. “No way in hell.”

As the race began, and we neared the final lap, I glanced over at Levy, who was staring intently at the screen. I chuckled, amazed at how much I could love one person. Taking a deep breath, and telling myself to just grow a damned pair, I looked over at Levy again. “Shrimp?”

“Don’t ask for mercy now,” she giggled, bombing my kart as we entered the final lap.

“I want to make a bet on the winner,” I said.

She glanced at me, intrigued. “Go on.”

“If you win, I’ll do all the chores around the house for an entire month.”

“And if you win?” She asked, smirking because she was several places ahead of me, and would most assuredly win.

“You have to marry me.”

She dropped her controller with a small gasp and turned her wide hazel eyes to stare at me just as I crossed the finish line ahead of her. “G-Gajeel…” she stuttered, her entire face turning an adorable shade of pink.

“So?” I asked, turning to her. I pulled out the small black box and opened it, revealing the ring I had spent three weeks deciding on. It was a simple silver band with a little blue diamond in the middle, the same color as Levy’s hair.

“Are—are you…is this…G-Gajeel,” she breathed, staring at the ring.

Feeling restless as I watched her take in what had happened, I got off the sofa to bend down on my knee in front of her. Might as well do this right. “I’m kind of an asshole, and I’m a complete idiot for waiting so long to tell you I loved you, but I didn’t want to ever make that mistake again. I know we still have a couple years left of school, so I don’t expect you to marry me right away. I just…I wanted you to know that I’m all in—forever. I love you more than the damned sun, Levy McGarden. So, will you marry me?” By the end of my speech, my own face was just as red as hers, and I felt a little bit like throwing up from all the nerves.

When tears began streaming down her cheeks, and she nodded her head, I let out a loud, disbelieving huff. “Is that a yes?” I asked, stupidly.

She let out a little laugh that sounded on the verge of a sob before nodding her head more vigorously. “Yes. Yes! God, you idiot, of course I’ll marry you!” She allowed me to put the ring on her finger—which took nearly a full minute because both of us were shaking so damned much—before wrapping her arms around my neck. I’d never admit it to anyone, but my eyes stung a little with unshed tears she sobbed happily into my shoulder, telling me she loved me.

“I love you, Shrimp,” I said, holding her tightly.

“I love you, too, Gajeel,” she smiled, pulling away to meet my eyes. “I love you so much.”

I pulled her close, then, kissing her. Even before I had even realized I was in love with Levy, I knew I couldn’t live without her. When I had realized it a few years before, and had thought her clock was ticking without me, I had felt my entire world shatter. But, I had always had hope that some miracle would happen and we could be together.

Never in my greatest hopes had I ever imagined that Levy would love me back as much as I loved her. Nor did I think we would ever be able to have this kind of future—one where we could actually get married and be together for the rest of our lives, raising a family together.

“Let’s celebrate!” A teary-eyed Diane announced, smiling lovingly at the two of us.

I stood and helped Levy off the floor, holding her hand all the way to the kitchen. She smiled at me, her teary eyes filled with so much love that I couldn’t stop myself from kissing her again. “Thank you,” I whispered against her lips.

“For what?” She asked, still smiling.

“For the best birthday present of my life,” I grinned, laughing as her face an even darker shade of red.

She giggled, wiping at her eyes. She then reached up on her tip toes, planting another gentle kiss on my lips. “Happy birthday, Gajeel.”

{IT'S SO DAMN FLUFFY AND ADORABLE IT HURTS. WAY TO GO WIFEY!}