Title: Jinxed

Summary: If a clock could count down to the moment you meet your soulmate, would you want to know? You might not like the answer. AU

Disclaimer: I do not own Fairy Tail.

AN: Should I be writing this? Nope but, it's happening anyways. I blame a post on tumblr for this shiny and I hold Silver Inklett fully responsible for getting me into this pairing, even if she has no idea of that fact. Check her out, she writes beautifully.

Cana was going to throw up.

She gulped down more of the bitter beer, ignoring the way her stomach twisted uncomfortably and the way her hands shook as she dropped her beer onto the counter. She took a deep breath and gripped the edge of bar, trying to focus and ignore the way the building swam around her.

The bartender, a sweetheart named Mirajane, giggled as she walked by Cana. "Big day?"

Cana's throat went dry and she looked at her wrist. Three minutes and forty-eight seconds. She grimaced. "You have no idea."

Mirajane must have noticed because she wrapped one hand around Cana's timer and patted Cana's hand with the other. Cana nervously flicked her eyes up and some tension left her shoulders when she saw Mira's beaming smile. "It's going to be okay," Mira reassured, gripping Cana's fingers. "There's no reason to be nervous over meeting your soulmate. It's the beginning of something wonderful."

"I wished I shaved," she muttered.

Mira laughed. "It's your soulmate, they don't care. Besides," Mira drawled, raising an eyebrow, "you've had the timer on your wrist since birth. All you had to do was check it when you were in the shower."

Cana scowled. "I don't care about romance, I never have." Cana yanked her wrist away from Mira and rubbed her timer. "I don't bother checking it unless someone asks or it catches my eye for some reason. Hell, I wouldn't have even noticed if it didn't vibrate at the five minute mark." Cana blinked up at Mira, her eyes going wide and she felt the hysteria build up. "Did you even know they did that? No one ever told me. Why was I never told?"

Mira laughed and squeezed Cana's hand again. "Calm down. There's only…" Mira pursued her lips and yanked Cana closer, twisting Cana's arm awkwardly so she could read the timer better. "Two minutes and twelve seconds left. Don't worry about it. Besides, I thought you didn't care about it?"

Cana glared at Mira. "That's not the point! I'm apparently going to meet my other half in two minutes and, well…"

Mira smiled and squeezed Cana's fingers. "You never really thought about what was going to happen but you're actually looking forward to it?"

Butterflies swirled in her stomach. Cana jerked her shoulders upward. "I don't know. Maybe?"

Mira smiled sweetly. "You really want this, don't you?"

"Yeah, I guess." Cana ducked her head. "I've never had someone stick around me for a while. It'd be kinda nice knowing there's someone out there just for me and that they won't leave."

"Exactly." Mira grinned and patted Cana's hand. "Just focus on that. After you meet him, everything will fall into place."

"Or her," Cana muttered.

"Or her," Mira agreed, patting Cana's hand again. "Either way, it's your soulmate. There's no reason to be nervous."

Cana bit her lip. "Promise?" she asked quietly.

Mira smiled. "Promise," she said, waving her own timer. The bright green zeros did little to sooth Cana's worry.

Cana dragged her beer towards her, trying to draw comfort from the familiar drink. Her hands were shaking so badly, she could barely see her timer.

One minute, thirty-two seconds.

Cana slumped slightly. What the hell was she supposed to do? She was never good with any of this crap, not like Lucy, the endless romantic she was, or even Levy, who read erotic romances by the dozen. What if her soulmate couldn't stand her? Despite Mira's promises, Cana didn't believe in perfect endings or beginnings or whatevers. Her life had never allowed anything to be perfect, why should this be any different?

One minute, sixteen seconds.

She really should have shaved this morning. Why did she always ignore that stupid timer until now?

Fifty-three seconds.

Cana raised her mug and nearly knocked her front teeth out when she tried to take a gulp. Instead, she dumped most of her beer down her front.

Thirty-nine seconds.

"Shit." Cana dabbed at her shirt with her small napkin with little success and tried to find Mira for help.

Twenty-six seconds.

Cana cursed again and hastily twisted in her stool. Oh god, she reeked. Even if she didn't care about romance, this was not how she wanted to meet her significant other.

Seventeen seconds.

Her heart thumped oddly and the butterflies in her stomach twisted painfully. She must have jinxed herself. It was the only explanation as to how she managed to muck this up so much.

Nine seconds.

Cana folded her arms and threw her head on them. This was not what she had pictured this day going like.

Five seconds.

Her stomach twisted. Great, she was probably going to throw up on her soulmate now. What a perfect way to make a first impression.

One second.

"Um, Juvia's wondering if you're okay."

Cana started at the sweet voice coming to her left. She blinked in surprise, her eyelashes brushing against her arm. She went cross-eyed for a minute before she was able to focus on the timer. Zeros glared. Cana took a deep breath and sat up, turning to face the newcomer, and apparently her soulmate.

The first thing she saw was blue. Sparkling blue eyes that she could drown in, rich blue hair tumbling down shoulders in smooth curls, soft blue clothes hugging a pretty figure. Cute, she thought.

Cana surreptitiously looked around. It would be just her luck to mix up a stranger and her soulmate. No one was near the two of them.

"Er, are you okay? Juvia's worried."

Cana turned back to the pretty girl and raised an eyebrow. "Who's Juvia?"

The girl blushed, the pink making her blue eyes striking. "Oh, um, Juvia-no, I am Juvia."

Cana grinned. "Do you always speak in third-person? It's adorable."

Juvia eeped and her cheeks went from fuchsia to cherry red. She pouted. "Juvia was just trying to help!" She even stamped her foot. "But if Juvia isn't being appreciated, she'll just go back to her nice, peaceful evening-"

Cana snatched her wrist. "No!" Cana smiled nervously. "I wasn't trying to be mean and I don't care if you'd rather speak in third-person. I wasn't lying when I said it was cute." Cana's heart twinged when Juvia smiled. Was this what true love felt like? Cana licked her lips and tried to swallow, despite her dry throat. "I'm Cana. Would you like to join me?" She winced slightly at the rasp in her throat.

Juvia bit her lip and nodded shyly. She slid into the seat next to Cana, somehow managing to make the worn and stained stool look like a throne.

Cana gulped again. "So, um…"

Juvia held out a wad of napkins to her. "Juvia came over here to give these to you. She saw you spill your beer."

Cana blinked and looked down, her attention snapping back to her soaking t-shirt. Cana blushed and bit back her groan. Of course her soulmate first saw her making a fool of herself. "Oh, right."

Juvia giggled and wiggled the hand holding the napkins. "Nervous over something?"

Cana cocked her head to the side and reached out to grab the napkins, pushing her fingers out slightly farther than necessary so that she could drag them along Juvia's wrist. Cana quirked her eyebrow and smirked. "Really?" Cana drawled, curling her fingers. They brushed against smooth plastic and Cana instinctively looked down and saw that the napkins were blocking her view of Juvia's timer. She grabbed the napkins and eagerly pulled them away. "Like you don't…"

An invisible hammer slammed into her chest and Cana choked.

"Um, Cana? Are you okay?"

Cana blinked up at Juvia and tried to focus through the haze of pain ripping at her heart. "Your...your timer," she croaked.

Juvia pulled her wrist close and smiled down at it. "Yup. Only a little under a year left. Juvia's pretty excited."

Cana bit her lip to keep it from trembling and she whirled around on the stool to see if anyone else looked as lost as she felt. There was no way this was happening.

"Cana?"

Cana looked over her shoulder and grimaced. "Sorry. I…" Cana desperately looked over her shoulder for someone sitting alone. Someone who had to be as frantic as her because this couldn't be happening.

"Cana?"

Cana looked over her shoulder and couldn't hold back her wince at Juvia's worried wide eyes. "Sorry," she said, her voice coming out in a hoarse whisper. "I thought I heard someone I knew."

Juvia's brow creased in concern. She placed her fingers against Cana's cheek and she bit her lip. "You're so pale and clammy though." Juvia gasped. "Is it someone you don't like?" Juvia's frown deepened and she glared over Cana's shoulder. "Tell Juvia and Juvia will take care of them. Juvia doesn't like people who hurt her friends."

Cana choked. "Friend?" she wheezed.

Juvia ducked her head shyly. "Oh, well, um, you're very nice and Juvia thinks you'd make a wonderful friend. Is...is that okay."

No, no, no, nonononono…

"Fine." Cana's voice cracked. "The fumes are getting to me, I need to go to the bathroom."

Cana didn't wait for Juvia's reply and she raced away. She burst through the bathroom door and nearly collapsed by the sink. Her knees wobbled and she gripped the cool porcelain sides as her stomach twisted into knots so viciously the room spun. Bile rose up in the back of her throat and Cana had to choke it down again. This couldn't be happening. Not even her luck was this bad.

She sucked in a huge breath, somehow managing to calm her hysterics enough so that she could release her death grip on the counter. Cana stared down her wrist and desperately wished that she had hallucinated the zeros earlier. The green circles stayed put stubbornly and Cana had to grip the sides of the sink again just so she wouldn't collapse. Life wasn't supposed to fuck itself up. Not like this.

Mira's sweet smile flashed through her head, such beautiful a promise of happy beginnings. Hot tears slipped down her cheeks and Cana finally couldn't take it anymore. She collapsed, her chest heaving, and pressed her forehead against the cool sink.

Of course she'd be the one with a soulmate that was destined for someone else.