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Laxus knew that Freed was a handsome man.
Well, probably everyone knew that as he was on the list of Fiore’s ten most attractive wizards. He didn’t even have to undress, he was naturally attractive. Maybe it was his way of behaving, confident and proud, with a regal bearing and the authority he emanated. Maybe it was because of his pretty face, his intense blue eyes capable of hypnotizing anyone and his flawless skin. Or maybe it was his way of talking, since he always seemed to have the right words to charm anyone. Laxus didn’t know, the only thing he knew was that Freed was handsome, a lot, and that he didn’t need to see him naked to know it.
Obviously, seeing him naked changed everything, because at that moment Laxus wouldn’t have called Freed simply handsome. No. He would have called him seductive, sexy, or fucking hot.
Because in that fucking magazine that Mirajane passed him, there was a picture of Freed printed on it. A very unchaste photo of Freed. A photo that Laxus had limited himself to take a look at -maybe two- so as not to drool over it in the middle of the guild. But, fuck, who the hell couldn’t drool in front of a picture like that?
Definitely not Laxus, who was already tempted to take a third look at the photo. A quick and short glance, just because the first two glances were so quick that they didn’t allow him to enjoy the photo. But when Laxus looked down at the magazine, the look was much longer than he had planned, because even though Laxus knew that Freed was beautiful without having to see him naked, and even though he had seen him at the spa or in public baths, at that moment the friend seemed to embody beauty in person.
He was incredibly sexy and Laxus just couldn’t take his eyes off the photo. And after all he was on the top floor of the guild, so he could afford a longer look, no one would have noticed.
Freed was immersed in a lake, the water reached mid-thigh. He wore a completely wet white shirt that adhered to his defined muscles. His damp hair was completely down and sticking to his already beautifully exposed body. As if all of that wasn’t enough, the sun’s rays flirting in the branches made him look even more beautiful.
Laxus looked up from the magazine with slightly flushed cheeks, and was relieved to see that no one had come up to that floor. And since he knew no one would be up in the next few minutes, Laxus allowed himself to flip through the magazine, just to see if Freed had taken any more photos. Turning the page, he discovered that Freed had taken many more photos. And very hot. His teammate had taken an entire photo shoot and the more Laxus looked at the photos, the more he felt his throat go dry.
Freed immersed in the lake taking off his shirt, lifting it up and giving a completely free view of his defined abs.
Freed pulling his hair up, the pants down at his hips and his biceps flexing.
Freed undoing his pants, showing the fabric of the light-colored boxers he was wearing.
And then Freed with only the boxers on, wet and tight. The drops of water that passed through his defined muscles, which ran down to the brim of his boxers and then further down, the locks of hair that surrounded his perfect features, the sunlight reflecting on his abs.
The more Laxus flipped through the photos, the more it seemed that Freed was stripping, showing himself more and more naked and wet, and Laxus kept flipping through almost hoping to see Freed completely naked at some point. At that rate it would have happened, and if it hadn’t happened, the increasingly wet boxers would surely have shown more, because the water of the waterfall and the lake had to make the fabric transparent.
They would, right? They were going to show Freed in his glorious whole body, right?
Oh fuck, what the hell was he thinking? Was he hoping that his guildmate had posed naked? What the hell was wrong with him?
But no matter how much Laxus thought it was inappropriate, all he could do was look at the pictures, flip through the magazine and hope that that last layer of fabric disappeared quickly. Hell, the boxers were practically transparent now and only the green hair prevented him from seeing beyond, he might as well show everything.
The sound of approaching footsteps woke him from his trance, and Laxus was never happier to have such fine hearing. He quickly closed the magazine and pulled out the Lacrima plugged into the headphones, pretending he was picking a song. He just hoped he was believable enough, because he felt his face flushed and his pants tight, and the only images that filled his mind were of Freed naked and wet. In particular, that last photo of Freed under the waterfall, with his hair attached to his back and the curve of the...
“I ordered two beers, okay?” Freed asked as he sat down next to him and Laxus nodded absently. He just hoped that his expression wouldn’t show what he was thinking.
Fortunately, when he looked up, he noticed that Freed was more focused on the magazine than on him. Laxus also thanked the fact that Freed dressed so much, because he wasn’t sure how he would react to seeing his friend in tighter or lighter clothes. Probably bad, because even with that heavy coat covering him, all Laxus could think of was the toned body Freed hid beneath it. The strong arms, the hard pecs, the muscular thighs, the bulge in between…
Damn, that wasn’t happening.
He couldn’t get an erection in the middle of the guild because of the dirty photos his friend had taken.
He just couldn’t. And the fact that Freed was sitting right next to him made Laxus even more nervous, because he had no idea how to behave. If only he had been less cowardly and more sincere about his feelings, Laxus would have dragged Freed into a closet and pressed himself against him, making out and taking what he wanted. But Laxus was a jerk, and he knew it for himself, so all he was doing at the moment was moving around in his chair as discreetly as possible trying to find a comfortable position that didn’t squeeze his balls.
“I see Mira gave this magazine to you too,” Freed said after a while.
Ah, shit. Why the fuck did he have to talk about that magazine?
“Honestly, I don’t even know how she convinced me, only she could force me to take a photo shoot in the middle of nature” he commented absently.
Laxus swallowed nervously, and wondered how long the fuck would that beer take to arrive. He felt a great need for it.
“Really?” he asked and thanked the fact that he had perfected an indifferent tone over the years. At least, he hoped he sounded like that despite the heat he still felt. Damn those tight pants, he just hoped Freed wouldn’t look down. He really needed a beer.
“Yeah, I thought she made you look at it like she did the rest of the guild,” Freed joked with a small smile. “I don’t know if she wants to embarrass me or if she wants to advertise.”
“No, she just passed it to me, I haven’t seen it yet,” Laxus lied.
“Better that way, it would be pretty awkward,” Freed said as he opened it and flipped through it quickly. Laxus quickly turned his gaze before he started drooling over the damn photos again. Better to focus on something else and divert the conversation. Immediately.
“The old man wants to give us a spy mission,” he said.
Fortunately, Freed closed the magazine, put it down in part and gave Laxus all his attention. Laxus, more relieved, began to tell what the mission would consist of, finally managing to get rid of the unchaste thoughts he was having about his friend. When the beer arrived, he felt even better, and thanked the fact that Freed was completely oblivious to his feelings. But he already knew that that night the unchaste images of his friend would reappear in his dreams.
***
Laxus had been right of course. Freed had populated his dreams that night and Laxus wasn’t surprised that he wet the bed, because his friend in his dreams was nothing like the serious and composed guildmate he was used to.
Freed in his dreams was much more naked, much wetter and much more mischievous. He had dragged Laxus into the lake and pressed their bodies against each other, whispered dirty promises in his ear and then realized them. Laxus still remembered the words he had said, remembered the way his tongue had run down his neck, and the way their bodies had joined, and now all Laxus wanted was that this wasn’t just a goddamn dream.
He wanted to grab Freed and slam him against a wall, kiss him madly and indulge his instincts. But of course, he couldn’t do it. Not in that moment that he, Bickslow and Freed were having breakfast.
“Did you sleep well?” Bickslow asked with a maniacal smile on his face.
“I slept little, I was up late translating a parchment,” Freed replied with a yawn. Laxus refused to answer and just tried not to look at his friend’s ass who seemed even plumper in those fucking sweatpants. Good heavens, how the hell was it possible that he wasn’t able to keep his thoughts quiet? He had wanked himself in the shower ten minutes ago, he must have gotten it out of the system by now. And he saw Freed in that damn pants every morning, for God’s sake!
“Haven’t you heard some strange noises?” Bickslow asked with a teasing grin.
Freed stared at him in confusion, and again yawned. “What do you mean?”.
“They came from Laxus’s room, did you hear them?” Bickslow asked the Dragon Slayer who for a moment looked at him confused, not understanding at all what he meant. But when he noticed the amused glint on his friend’s face, Laxus blushed and his throat went dry. He didn’t mean what he was thinking, did he?
“Why do you have that maniacal smile on his face?” Freed asked sleepily staring at Bickslow and Laxus stared at him again in silence, with his cup of coffee in mid-air and panic filling his stomach. No, Bickslow wasn’t saying that. He could have fun at his expense, but he wasn’t such an asshole. Besides, had Laxus really moaned that night? And at what volume, since even Bickslow had heard it from behind the door? Hell, he didn’t even want to think about it.
“Oh nothing, I just had a pretty nice dream,” Bickslow replied, and Laxus let out a tiny sigh of relief.
“I don’t want to know,” Freed said and yawned a third time. “I’m going to take a shower,” he announced before putting the coffee cup in the dishwasher and leaving the kitchen.
Bickslow smiled at Laxus and lowered his voice a little. “Aren’t you going to keep him company?”
“Shut that fucking mouth,” Laxus growled feeling the heat creep up his skin.
“After how much you moaned last night, I thought you might like it,” Bickslow grinned. Laxus felt the redness increase, and gave his friend the middle finger who giggled amused. “I don’t understand what you’re waiting for baby, if you walked into the shower Freed would be happy, we both know.”
Laxus remained silent, almost considering the idea. Bickslow wasn’t all wrong, Laxus was pretty sure that if he got into the shower, Freed would react pretty well after a moment of surprise. Maybe he would even do what Laxus had dreamed of, kneeling between his legs and... for God’s sake, he wouldn’t go into the shower while Freed was washing! That was a fucking perverse thing!
Bickslow laughed at his expression and Laxus put his head in his hands. “I hate you,” he muttered.
“No, you don’t” his friend laughed and then threw something on the table. Laxus looked up and saw that it was the magazine with Freed’s photos. “Hold it, you didn’t finish looking at it yesterday” his friend smiled. Laxus looked at him confused at first, then, when he noticed Bickslow’s tikis flitting around him, he understood and blushed.
“Mind your fucking business” he growled. Bickslow laughed louder and walked out of the kitchen, while Laxus cursed again and glanced at that damned magazine. In the end he decided that there was nothing wrong with looking, so he took it and went back to his room. This time, however, he would be careful that those damned totems didn’t spy on him.
***
After two terrible nights in which he had done nothing but dream of green hair and naked bodies under the falls, Laxus finally felt balanced again. More or less, the temptation to reopen that magazine and enjoy some more Freed’s photos was great, and the idea of joining his friend in the shower still hadn’t totally passed, but he could finally stay in the same room with Freed and manage not to daydream. And luckily Freed was always dressed buttoned up to the neck, and he didn’t seem to notice anything, unlike Bickslow and Evergreen who kept teasing him. All in all, now the two friends seemed to be fed up and more than anything else they asked him when he would decide to tell Freed, putting pressure on him that was even worse.
It was his fucking business when he decided to talk to Freed about his feelings, and he didn’t see why he should speed things up. Well, showering with Freed was a good reason to hurry, but still. He certainly couldn’t get in the shower without even clarifying what exactly he felt about Freed. And then what was he supposed to tell him? The thought made Laxus sick, and annoyed him in an exaggerated way. It was much better to ignore all those feelings -and therefore also those instincts that told him to throw himself at Freed- and spend some time in order to clear his head.
Yes, that was the best thing to do, so Laxus went on with his life as if nothing had happened. He continued to joke with Freed, to spend his time with him as two friends, and if sometimes his thoughts drifted towards exciting worlds there was nothing wrong. Laxus would fix everything by touching himself and then be Freed’s friend again.
At least, that was what he thought before going down to the guild showers, exclusively to cool off after a workout with Erza. He stopped halfway up the stairs hearing all too familiar voices.
“What are you doing?” that was Freed’s voice, clearly irritated, and Laxus already knew what expression his friend had every time he spoke in that tone.
“I delight as a photographer” and that was Mirajane. What the fuck was she talking about? Laxus’ thoughts immediately went to the photos at the lake, but he shook his head. There was no way Mira was photographing Freed naked.
“Can you stop it? This is ridiculous,” Freed said.
“It’s not. And anyway, you have already posed for that magazine, I don’t see what problem there is in doing it with me too. As soon as Laxus sees these photos he will go crazy!”.
Laxus choked on his saliva and his eyes widened. She didn’t say it out loud, did she? So Freed knew about his crush on him? He would have killed Mirajane. He had no doubts, he would have fucking killed her.
“Sure, as he did for the others,” Freed replied. Laxus recovered from his moment of panic hearing a clear ironic tone from his friend. “Seriously Mira, that’s enough. I satisfied you with the other photo shoot, and I don’t even know why I did it. We clearly saw Laxus’ reaction, that was nothing, so how do you think this can magically change things?”.
Freed’s irritated tone and his words greatly relaxed Laxus, who thanked God that Freed really didn’t notice, or it would be terribly embarrassing.
“Laxus is attracted to you, only he doesn’t show it. And even if you don’t believe me, what does it cost you to take pictures?” Mirajane insisted.
“It costs me time, effort, and at least three flirtations from a man I don’t want to see anymore and two women who are convinced they have a date with me,” Freed snarled. Mirajane’s laughter reached the stairs.
“Because you’re hot,” she said.
“No, because you convince me to do absurd things!” Freed exclaimed. “If I hadn’t done that damn photo shoot, I would never have met that pushy fucking photographer,” Freed snarled. Laxus frowned. What was he talking about?
“Did he make you uncomfortable?” Mirajane asked.
“No, but he’s been calling me for days to have a date with me. He doesn’t understand that a ‘no’ won’t magically turn into a ‘yes’” Freed snapped.
“Well, you should accept,” Mirajane said.
There was a moment of silence and Laxus felt a certain discomfort in his stomach. In short, the photographer who had taken the photos had fully enjoyed the show that Freed had given him and was now flirting with him. Freed clearly wasn’t interested, but that didn’t mean Laxus wasn’t bothered. Because, if only he hadn’t been a jerk unable to admit his feelings, he would have had the front row show of Freed half naked and completely wet. And surely Freed wasn’t going to do that goddamn photo shoot.
By the way, had he done it just to get his attention? Laxus had never thought about why Freed would have to shoot -too busy enjoying the photos- but in fact he should. So, Freed had driven him mad on purpose, albeit unknowingly, it seems.
“Whatever is on your mind, no, Mira.”
“But Laxus might get jealous,” the girl retorted.
A deep breath filled the room and then Laxus heard Freed’s voice again, this time calmer and more controlled. “Look, Laxus doesn’t care, no matter how many shoots I do or how many guys I hang out with. He won’t suddenly get jealous or whatever you are thinking. That’s not how it works. I made peace with it, you can do it too”.
Laxus was a little surprised at that statement. Freed really had no idea of the effect he had on him. He had no idea that those tricks were actually working all too well, and that just knowing that this photographer had a live view of Freed already bothered Laxus enormously. He didn’t even realize how much Laxus drooled behind him, which was a miracle since the blonde had been very easily distracted in the last few days.
On the one hand Laxus was happy, on the other... maybe he would have preferred that Freed knew, and that he made a first move on him. It would have made things easier, without any doubt.
“You’re really blind” Mirajane sighed. “Well, I give up, you won”.
“Thank goodness,” Freed murmured.
A little later Laxus heard footsteps climbing the stairs and for a moment he was unsure what to do. He recognized Mirajane’s step, it was she who was leaving the room. He was almost tempted to escape but eventually decided to screw his insecurity.
Freed had done the photo shoot for him.
He had undressed with the one and only goal of making him mad. And he had done it quite well, the problem was that he didn’t really realize it and someone had to solve that problem right away. And if Mirajane couldn’t do it with her statements, or Bickslow with his sharp jokes, that was up to Laxus.
Mirajane stopped on the stairs and jumped in surprise. “Laxus, what are you doing?”
“A shower,” Laxus snapped as he passed her. He felt the girl’s eyes on his back, and then luckily he heard her footsteps up the stairs back to the guild.
Meanwhile, Laxus went downstairs and entered the guild’s locker room. Freed was standing near a closet, he must have recently finished washing because his hair was still a little damp and gathered in a high ponytail. He was fully dressed except for his coat and was pulling his boots out of a locker. Freed turned to him.
“How did training with Erza go?” he asked with a small smile.
“We interrupted it before it became too destructive” Laxus merely replied as he approached Freed, who in the meantime had put his boots on the ground. The Lacrima contraption Warren had invented began to play and Freed rolled his eyes a little.
“The photographer?” Laxus asked.
“Yes,” Freed snorted. “He hasn’t giv… wait, how do you know about the photographer?” he asked, turning sharply towards him. Laxus blushed slightly and Freed’s eyes widened as his cheeks reddened and the awareness hit him. He was about to say something but at that moment Laxus decided to stop the bullshit. He pushed himself against Freed and without thinking twice kissed him.
He felt Freed jump in surprise, but a moment later the wizard was already reciprocating, dipping his fingers into his hair and pulling Laxus to him. The passion with which he reciprocated ignited a fire in Laxus’s stomach, and the Dragon Slayer pressed even more against Freed, pushing the wizard against the wall. He ran his hands along Freed’s body, touching for the first time what he had only been able to see and dream about up until now. And live, it was so much better. The kiss, the touches, his strong body, Freed’s hands that were going down to his neck. None of what Laxus had seen in that magazine matched the feeling of having Freed kissing him, stuck to his body.
When they broke apart, they were both panting and both were red in the face. The Lacrima contraption was still playing but all they could think of was the fantastic kiss they had just shared. Laxus still had his hands pressed to Freed’s hips and had no intention of moving them. He didn’t even intend to move from that position, not now that he was finally able to be so close to Freed.
If only he could find some decent words to explain what he was feeling it would have been even better, but Laxus hoped that Freed was actually the first to speak. Freed, however, didn’t seem to have the intention, he seemed a bit stunned and was incredibly attractive. Again, without even trying.
The Lacrima continued to sound annoyingly.
“I... I think I should answer for a second,” Freed said after a while. Laxus frowned in annoyance. He had thought of a lot of reactions from Freed, but not that one. Without distancing himself too much from Freed’s body he reached out and grabbed the Lacrima, glanced annoyed at the photo of the photographer -who had a shit face- and handed it to Freed.
“Tell him to fuck off fast,” he growled without bothering to keep the jealousy in his voice. Freed looked at him strangely.
“You’re jealous?” he asked confused. God, Freed was smarter than that. Laxus tried not to blush and not to mess with his words.
“Are you so surprised?” he grumbled.
“Wait, so Mira was right? Are you jealous of the photographer?” Freed snapped and in that moment his brain probably began to think and connect everything that somehow had been lost in those days. “And you actually looked at the magazine. You looked at it, Mirajane certainly opened it to you on a page, so you must have seen my photos, you lied to me that day.”
Laxus felt himself blush a little and Freed’s eyes widened slightly. He was noticing too many things at once.
“Yeah, well, I did. What the fuck is the problem? You took those damn photos for me.” Laxus blurted out embarrassed to admit something like that. “Can you turn off that thing?” he growled at him, that ring tone was getting on his nerves, as well as that guy’s fucking face.
Freed smiled gleefully and his eyes sparkled with a new light. “I could do another photo shoot”.
“Not with him,” Laxus immediately growled and immediately regretted it. Heck, they weren’t even together and he already got nervous if anyone flirted with Freed.
The rune wizard laughed slightly and ran his hands through Laxus’s hair, with an expression halfway between uncertainty and malice. He chewed on his bottom lip as if he were evaluating something and Laxus just hoped that Freed was pretty uncertain at the moment. If it was already difficult to resist Freed when he did nothing to be attractive, he didn’t know how he would do it when Freed did it intentionally. Unfortunately -or fortunately- Freed opted for the second option, and a provocative smile filled his face.
“So, how about trying the showers?”.
Laxus’s throat went dry, and without even thinking he rushed back to Freed’s lips, starting to kiss him again as he dragged him towards the showers.
A few minutes later Laxus found himself immersed under the jet of hot water, his clothes lying on the ground and Freed’s naked body pressed against him. Only then did Laxus realize how stupid it had been to wait so long.