Saving Levy

Chapter Two

Gajeel watch as the soft eyed blunette sipped quietly at her strawberry orange shake. Her eyes, big and hazel, held so much sorrow, fear, and pain. The silence ran for about fifteen minutes, until the man just couldn't take it anymore, brain frantic with thoughts racing over ways to get the tiny shrimp to talk about herself.

"Shrimp?" His gruff voice sounded oddly soft as he tried to gain her attention. The sun was dancing in her soft blue locks as a butterfly landed on the fake flowers on her bright orange headband. Gajeel took a moment to take in the girl's true beauty. She was quite a few inches short of five feet. Her head barely reached his chest, so he was nearly two feet taller then her. She had soft, pale skin that held a slight dusting of pink across her nose. Delicate, pink as a rose lips held scarring and cuts from her teeth, a habit of picking at the skin around her mouth a sign of her overwhelming anxiety. Dressed in a simple orange tank top under a black hoodie and a pair of cut off blue jean shorts faded from years of wear, she kicked one foot ever so gently forward as an old pair of white converse, riddled with quotes from her favorite books, dangled inches from the concrete. Small scars marked her knees from childhood adventures, gradually blending back in with the paleness around them as the years passed, leaving only ghosts behind. She was gorgeous. Unaware of the boy staring at her, drinking in her beauty, the tiny girl stared hard at the table.

"Why do you call me that?"

"What? Shrimp? Well, because you're so goddamn tiny." Levy stared even harder at the table, puffing out her cheeks angrily. He'd hit a nerve. "Besides, Shrimp is much better than chipmunk."

"Chipmunk?" Levy questioned glancing up momentarily.

"You're face. When you're pissed, you puff out your cheeks like a fucking chipmunk."

"You're so mean." Her tiny voice could barely be heard. "Why did you bring me here, if you were just going to make fun of me you could have done it at school."

"I ain't here to make fun of you, Squirt, I'm here to talk about you."

"Why? I could disappear tomorrow and it wouldn't effect you at all. Why do you want to know anything about me?" Her voice was quieter then before. Slowly, she lifted her gaze to peer out into the empty street before them. Her hand tapped softly against the patio table creating a beat that seemed all too sorrowful to be coming from her tiny fingers. Moisture began to cloud her eyes, rising steadily over her irises until her pupils began to drown in the salty fluid. All too soon, the liquid fled her gaze to race down to her jaw. She made no move to wipe away her tears, however. "No one would care if I never showed my face again. They won't miss me when I'm gone."

Wrong, Shrimp, I would. Your friends, teachers, and classmates would. You may think you're invisible, easy to miss, but you're not. People just don't see you when it's crowded cause you're a goddamn shrimp of a girl. Gajeel could see it. The pain, the sorrow, the self hate; all swimming inside her, building into a whirl-wind of darkness. One that was nearing a destructive end if left to brew. How far had she taken things already? Was it too late? Could he even save her? He had to know how far into the darkness she has sank. Slowly, so not to scare her, he took hold of her wrist. His hold was gentle, in the event that she was already to that point. She fought at first, but gave up way too easy. It was a major flag. She was giving up. It was her final attempt to ask for help. Was it already that bad? No. He had to try. He had to save her somehow. Why? He had no clue, but something deep inside his soul screamed at him to protect the small, fairy like girl before him. "Oi, Shrimp. Will you let me see?"

"Not here. Can we go somewhere else? I don't want others to know." Shame darkened her voice as she looked away from him.

"Sure, Shrimp. Lets head to my house. There's no chance of any onlookers out that way."