Here it is, the promised update for Coffee to go! FINALLY! Guys, I'm so so sorry that it took me so long and I cannot make a promise for when the next update will be up. But I thank you all for your patience again and hope that some of you are still interested in this story of mine. Hopefully this chapter is enjoyable and as always feedback would be very very appreciated.

Ever since that tingling feeling appeared it didn't vanish completely anymore. It seemed that whenever he was talking to Freed and see him smile, be it because he was passionate about the conversation's topic or a different reason, this feeling increased for the briefest of moments. Laxus couldn't deny that it was confusing him but he tried not to put too much focus on it because truth be told, he was enjoying this... date.

The music was still loud and at the beginning it had really bothered him a lot. Not just because his senses were rather sensitive but also since the loud drumming and banging was making it harder to hear anything else properly. After getting their drink the two men had withdrawn to a less crowded corner, though.

"The beer's very good," Laxus admitted after he'd emptied his second mug and Freed agreed with a smile, happy that the other found something he enjoyed. "I had though ya'd get yourself a glass of wine."

The greenet's lips curved at this statement. "I'm not certain if they offer wine here. But I do enjoy a good beer as well." He turned his head looking at him with an almost challenging expression. "Is that really so surprising?"

"Well uh..." Dammit, he was doing it again. But this time it wasn't because of that intense look and that ever so slight smirk that did look rather attractive – no, this time it was because he truly didn't know what to answer. Laxus didn't want to offend Freed in any way so that's where that small stutter came from. "I mean.. You always give a very proper impression. 's not too surprisin', I just meant that-"

But Freed laughed shortly, the sound making the blond interrupt and watch how the other's features softened again. "It's fine, Laxus. I do enjoy some things people would label as... 'proper'. Though let's say I am not a book someone can judge by its cover only," he added with a playful spark in his eyes then took another sip from his beer.

Yea, Laxus had noticed that there was more to this pony-tailed guy that worked at Café Strauss, polite and proper. And it seemed that this very waiter had the potential to break Laxus' hard shell even further than his best friends could. Perhaps this was also part of what was making him nervous and insecure – opening himself towards someone even more. But that's what love is. Trust, being able to be oneself, comfort.

"Tchz." That was his only reaction to the greenet's tease but he had to grin a little himself putting the empty mug aside on a nearby table and seeing Freed chuckle. He had to admit that the evening was enjoyable so far but perhaps that was only because hadn't been dragged into the crowd yet. Or because his noisy and nosy friends had yet to create chaos.

Ah, and speak of the devil...

"There you are!"

Apparently the 'alone time' was over for now and Laxus almost emitted a low groan without noticing as he saw Cana and Bixlow making their way through the crowd, waving towards the two men cheerfully and not caring about the people that bumped into them. He secretly hoped that his best friend hadn't consumed too much alcohol yet. His tolerance was miserable – when Laxus wasn't even tipsy, Bixlow was usually drunk already when he decided to drink alcohol.

"Thought you could escape from us?" Cana grinned once standing in front of the tall blond and the shorter green-haired man. She gave Freed a grin as well who responded with a simple 'hey' directed at the new company. He'd met both of them already after all.

"No one's escapin'," Laxus grumbled before pointing out that they had been the ones vanishing to... do what exactly? Get candy? Alcohol?

"Yea yea, sure. So what have ya been doin' here?"

"We talked and enjoyed some beer," Freed answered the brunette and proceeded to take the last sip of the alcoholic liquid before letting his mug join Laxus' on the bar table. "The beer is really good actually."

"Hell yea, it is!" Cana agreed casually before she gave a small wink at what Laxus snorted quietly. "But not better than what I mix at the club."

"Your cocktails do taste amazing. I'm willing to try another one the next time I visit the Donnerhall Club." Freed hadn't taken note of the snort coming from the man next to him and gave a sincere smile. Cocktails could be great if mixed correctly – and Cana honestly did an awesome job.

"Sure thing, Freed."

"So ya've talked?" Bixlow threw in, about to continue but Laxus' glare stopped him. Oh the blond knew what he was wanting to say.

"Yea. We did."

And Bixlow just raised his hands innocently making Laxus roll his eyes.

"So where's yer squad at?" The brunette noticed the exchange of glances between Laxus and Bix but only grinned to herself. Honestly, the blond and the greenet were just perfect to tease though she didn't want to push it to far and risk ruining things for them. She could tease them all she wanted once they were an actual and official thing – and she was positive that these two were going to be exactly that. She'd never seen her friend and boss like that – thoughtful, nervous, dating...

"Oh they must be somewhere near." Freed blinked and glanced around briefly to try and see if he could spot any of his friends. "If Elfman has arrived then I'm sure he's somewhere with Ever. Mira and Lisanna are probably dancing." That's what he would guess at least.

"So... Mirajane's here, too, yea?"

All of them had grown together a bit more. It was great. It was like... becoming a bigger squad, a small family. That's what they all thought but no one had voiced it yet. Still, this question came unexpected.

"She is," Freed nodded and then tilted his head a bit. Laxus had raised his brows and Bix was looking at Cana with curiosity.

"Oh that's cool." Was there... a hint of a blush on the brunette's face? No, this must be pure imagination. Cana hardly ever blushed unless it was from the alcohol or anger. Nonetheless Laxus couldn't help a small grin – now that he did spot the chance to tease her back for once he just had to grab it. "You wanna tell us somethin', Cana?"

The brunette suddenly felt like their stares were burning on her skin, all three men looking at her attentively and every of them with a slightly different look. There was Laxus' cocky grin, the big silly curve on Bixlow's lips and a hardly visible smirk in Freed's face. The latter was something she would have to get used to still while she'd seen the other two plenty of times before – just not directed at her.

Furrowing her brows Cana gave a defensive 'tchz' and waved her hand. "Nah, nothin'!" It was obvious she tried to sound a little exasperated, or outraged maybe. "Whatever, you guys can stay here and be borin' but I'm gonna dance," she added quickly before anyone else could respond and then turned around with another wave of her hand.

Laxus just kept a light grin knowing that he had struck a nerve and the three men exchanged swift glances before Freed sighed quietly. He hadn't bonded with anyone else so fast since Evergreen and him encountered the Strauss Family but it was feeling good and he found himself glancing at the spot where Cana had vanished into the crowd.

"I think I'm gonna join her," Bixlow thought aloud. "You gonna join us, too?"

The question made Laxus and Freed look at each other with almost the same expression and it almost caused the blue-haired male to cackle. It was like he could read what was on their minds at this very moment but he stayed quiet and just awaited their reply.

"I um... don't usually dance," the greenet stated a bit hesitantly and slowly detached his gaze from Laxus to put his focus back on Bixlow instead. "Unless one of the girls drags me onto the dance floor." He thought back to the time Ever and him had visited the club, the evening he had discovered that the blond was the manager of it. It had been the evening that led to their first date and the thought made Freed smile inwardly before Laxus' voice dragged him back to the here and now. His date.

"Me neither. You know that." Especially not in public. Laxus huffed at his best friend and crossed his arms. He was the manager of his club for a reason, not an entertainer, and he hardly ever stepped onto the dance floor to do what it was thought for – to dance.

"Aaalrighty but if you happen to change your mind then you know where to find us." Truth be told, Bixlow had expected this answer already but he didn't mind much. He liked dancing because he didn't care how he looked while doing so and because it could be a hella lot of fun. Apart from that though he was totally fine with granting these two a bit more time for themselves. Well, kind of with all these people around.

Laxus nodded and then watched how his best friend disappeared into the crowd as well, off to find Cana.

"I'm a little hungry." Freed wasn't going to admit that he had barely eaten anything before they had headed out for the festival and if he was going to drink a bit more then he would have to consume something being perfectly aware of his low tolerance for alcohol. "Do you want to go look for something to eat?"

"Sure." Now that Freed mentioned it he wouldn't mind that at all. "You want anythin' special?"

"Let's go see what they offer. I've spotted a candy shop and one where they offer pizza already."

"Anythin' but candy," Laxus groaned making the other chuckle. "No, don't worry. Candy wouldn't satisfy my hunger anyway," Freed added quickly and kept the light curve on his lips. Candy wasn't exactly his thing either although he would admit that he enjoyed fruity chocolate or pudding every once in a while.

"And no mussels."

"I don't believe that they offer this kind of food here anyway." Freed laughed a bit, remembering their conversation about mussels at their first date clearly. Man, this evening had gotten interrupted really badly but this time it seemed that everything was going well. He felt comfortable, thought that Laxus was feeling less awkward, too. That's what counted and he was unable to prevent the warm feeling that claimed him.

"Good." Laxus left a snort but grinned a bit before the two went to search something for them to eat, avoiding to dive into the horde of people as long as they could.

The festival's atmosphere was incredibly good and thus far nothing bad had happened. They had spotted police men here and there but it was just the usual safety precaution at such a big event. Weather was on their side and they had gotten more or less used to the banging of music.

After walking around and chatting for quite some time they settled for simple pizza. Freed chose one with tuna and mushrooms and Laxus got himself a classic salami and ham one and the hum the greenet gave let the taller man assume that he too was enjoying this snack.

"I don't eat pizza very often," Freed admitted with a quite contented expression as he took another bite. "This one is surprisingly good for a festival's pizza. Just like the beer."

Laxus agreed silently, nodding as he watched him while eating as well. Perhaps he had wanted to badmouth this event at the very beginning because he barely ever attended such. But now he would confess that it had indeed not been a bad decision to come – if anything, it had been a great one even though he still wanted to avoid staying in the middle of the crowd for too long.

He had Freed to focus on and funnily enough this realization almost made him avert his eyes. Even more so when he spotted the bit of sauce on one corner of his date's mouth.

For a couple of heartbeats all Laxus did was to stare at this spot whilst Freed kept eating his slice of pizza, unaware of the other's gaze. The tall blond was unable to remember any moment he had been in a situation like this one, simple because there had never been one before. Usually he couldn't care less about such little things but he caught himself thinking a quite bold thought. Quite bold.

Quickly blinking twice he got rid of it as fast as he could, a frown forming on his face immediately and grumbling as he took another bite of his own pizza. Thankfully Freed had been busy watching the other people while eating and took note of neither his grumble nor the previous look he gave him.

But it turned out that the spot of sauce on Freed's skin wasn't going to leave him alone, nor did the greenet took note of it. So after they had eaten up Laxus cleared his throat, expression as neutral as possible and his tone a familiarly neutral as he pointed at the other's mouth subtly what earned him a wondering look. "You uh-"

"Freed!"

The addressed man was just about to ask what Laxus was going to say as the familiar voice made him turn his head and right after a smile settled on his face. "Lisanna," he greeted his friend and then watched her turn towards the other man briefly.

"Hi!" She smiled brightly, seeming to be perfectly contented with the tiny nod she received from Laxus in response.

"Where are Evergreen and Mira?"

"Ever sneaked away with a certain someone." She chuckled, briefly nudging Freed's side who immediately began to smirk slightly. "I knew it," he hummed before letting Lisanna finish. "Mira went to dance while I promised to get us some pizza. And uh- Freed." The female tilted her head, her wide smile becoming rather amused. "You've got... a bit of sauce there." She gestured to her own mouth and observed how the man blinked before the realization dawned on him and he quickly raised a hand to make this little mishap disappear.

Laxus grumbled quietly but he still enjoyed the tiny blush that settled on the greenet's face.

"Thanks," he mumbled throwing a quick look at the blond and then one at Lisanna. "Well now you know that we just ate something as well. The pizza is definitely recommendable."

"Good because I was gonna get one for my sis and myself. If you want you can wait and then we'll go look for the others together."

Freed and Laxus exchanged a look but ended up silently agreeing that they would accept Lisanna's suggestion. Privacy was hard to get around here anyway and while the chance of getting teased was so much higher when they were with this bunch of lovable idiots it felt like the right thing to do for now.

So they waited, chatted a bit until the female returned with two slices of vegetarian pizza for Mirajane and herself. "Here we go. So let's look where they went," Lis chimed and took the lead, leaving the two men behind a little but they made sure to follow.

It wouldn't be all too hard to spot Elfman; it was just impossible to oversee the bulky over two meter man. Mira wasn't tall but her vibrant white hair would be easy to see once they came closer. Bixlow was quite noticable as well. They would find at least one of them for sure, and once they found one then the one or other would be near, too!

The three continued to slither through the horde of many different kinds of people and Laxus frowned feeling quite uncomfortable to do so. One time he thought to see Gajeel with his long wild hair but the man vanished out of his sight too quickly as that he could be sure about it. He stayed close to Freed who never left his side either as they followed Lisanna and the greenet threw a glance and a small smile at the taller man and then blushed a little as he almost bumped into Lis who had stopped walking.

"I think I've found two of them," Lis pointed out leaning closer to the two men and gesturing towards the two female figures in the middle of the dancing area.

"Is that.. Mira and Cana?" Freed blinked as he saw the two leaned in rather close towards each other. Mira giggled and Cana had a soft grin on her face as far as he could see. The brunette seemed to be rather caught off guard when the white-haired café owner suddenly returned her subtle grin but a moment later they were laughing, never breaking the eye-contact they were holding.

"Liar," Laxus rumbled. His lips were slightly curved upwards though, thinking back to the conversation Freed, Bixlow and him had with Cana before she left to dance. The greenet chuckled at this short statement, agreeing silently.

"I hadn't seen this coming," Freed admitted and Laxus shrugged, snorting. "Tch, me neither." Then again... well, he had known that Cana had a thing for both genders and she flirted a lot but Laxus couldn't remember her being having a sincere crush on someone.

"Wow," Lisanna mumbled. "I think my sis has to tell me something later."

"Perhaps," the greenet agreed and his chuckle turned into a small smile. Maybe he would ask Mira about it at work some time.

The two men stood there with crossed arms and Lisanna kept watching her sister and Cana for a few short moments longer. Her expression turned thoughtful briefly and she looked to and fro between the females and the two males by her side one time before a smile with the slightest of teasing touches blossomed on her face.

"You know, the way Mira and Cana are looking at each other. I've seen it somewhere before in my circle of friends before." She focused the men intently in silence but then suddenly turned and left into the direction that led to her sister and the lady bartender.

Freed and Laxus were left gazing into each other's eyes, the meaning of Lisanna's words so obvious that both of their faces heated up slightly. But then they looked away in unison, feeling this tingling feeling again and Freed cleared his throat before he asked Laxus if they should follow and he just nodded.

Dammit, maybe I should have kissed him, Laxus thought...

Perhaps this would have been a good moment to kiss him again, Freed thought...

And heartbeats later they were greeted by cheerful shouts if Cana and Mira, Bixlow not far away.

That's it for now and I hope you liked it! The Canajane was not planned at all but it somehow happened haha. Stay safe you all and have a great weekend!