Author’s note: Ok, I have been playing A LOT of Grand Theft Auto Online lately  (I’ve also been listening to Green Day’s song Outlaws) that it’s unbelievable. I’ve been working on my character in the game, trying to get somewhere in it and sadly lagging behind a bit in my work (I also have some personal things going on, family is moving). So I guess the game has been a way to also help me take my mind off of everything going on in my personal life. Ok I’m getting off topic, I thought of this as a perfect one-shot to break the monotony for me a bit! Here we go! I don’t own The Grand Theft Auto Series.

Outlaws
by MangaGuitar96
Rated M

All he had to do was just rob this store and he could get by for the week. Just this one robbery and he could afford another week. He never expected to get her involved in this situation.

The summer night air was humid and had somewhat of a crispness to it.  A man in his early to mid twenties was outside this night. He was sitting on the hood of a car he stole, a half empty bottle of whiskey was dangling between the fingers of his left hand, and a lit cigarette in his right hand while he looked out to the night sky. This man had tan skin, chiseled features, long, naturally spiky black hair, piercing blood red eyes, piercings where his eyebrows should be, piercings on the bridge of his nose, and under his lower lip. He also had a few on his forearms. He was wearing a green, lumberjack shirt, a pair of blue jeans and a pair of work boots. This man was known as Gajeel Redfox or “Black Steel” Gajeel as he was known on the streets. And right now, he was going to do something that will make him hate himself even more.

Why didn’t he just say no to himself?  You may ask, why can’t he walk away? Well, he wanted to  walk away. But the truth was he couldn’t. It wasn’t for the reputation or the glory, it was because he needed to get by. I think the best thing to do is to go back to the beginning of all this. It all started two months ago when Gajeel’s father suddenly passed away. He was a healthy man his father, which is why his death was such a shock to him. Gajeel’s father Metalicana was a man in his fifties. Never smoked, drank only on occasion, never touched drugs in his life. That’s why everyone was shocked when Metalicana had a heart attack while fixing his property one day. That one heart attack is what killed him. Since he didn’t expect to die so suddenly, Metalicana never had his will notarized. Therefore the bank was taking the family house to sell and all of Metalicana’s money. For his funeral, Gajeel was forced to use most of his life savings to send his father off and his boss decided to be a dick and fire him because “Nothing was keeping him from doing so.”

He was in a total rut at this point in his life until he received a call from his cousin Natsu who lived in Oak Town that was located on the other side of the country.  Natsu learned about his cousin’s issues and offered him to come live with him in Oak Town until things were better. Gajeel had heard of many rumors and stories of Oak Town. He heard this was a place where many rich people got their start, a place where someone who was dead broke could become a billionaire in three months, this was a place where dreams were made of. But his opinion changed the moment he got off the plane. When he got his first glimpse of this so called “great city”, he was automatically disappointed. It was similar to Crocus when it came to being a major city; but Gajeel could see it was riddled with crime.

Now you see, Gajeel wasn’t a stranger to committing crimes. He did steal a few cars for fun in his teens but gave it up for his dad’s sake. He never imagined that all those people who became rich got that way because of thousands of underhanded deals.
“You can thank the fucking politicians for this.” Gajeel remembered his cousin Natsu telling him “Our economy was going down the sewer for years and they did nothing about it. When elections came ‘round they promised us a way out of this and that everyone would have a job. When voting day came and they won, the moment they got into office, they broke all their promises. Not a single place is hiring, so don’t bother going for a job at a liquor store. The only thing keeping our economy going is the crime industry. If you want to survive into next week, you’ll have to do some illegal things. Trust me, I had to get in on it myself. I have a few contacts I can get you in touch with to help you get started.”

He thought his cousin was messing with his mind at first, but when he saw everything for himself, he had no choice but to get back into the one thing he hated. Normally, Gajeel would’ve just walked away and be on his own. But truth was he spent the last of his money to buy his plane ticket here and Natsu was his only family; he had nowhere to go. Having enough with remembering everything, Gajeel got off the car hood and placed the mask he bought earlier today on his face and tucked his hair into the back of the hood. He pulled out a semi-automatic belt feeder he had been carrying around for a few weeks, passing by a motorcycle that was parked outside the store.
Good getaway vehicle Gajeel thought to himself before making his way into the store.

“Welcome!” the store clerk welcomed “How may I help you?” he looked around the store and took in the scenery. It was your average convenience store. Had rows upon rows of shelves filled with items you’d need, a slushie machine in the corner, a few soda machines, a few freezers and refrigerators. But what caught Gajeel’s eye the most was a girl in a skyblue dress, milky white skin, messy blue hair held back by a white head band, honey brown eyes with a pair of white biker boots. Gajeel had one word for this woman and it was something that wasn’t in his vocab: cute.
Gonna need to get her number when you ain’t dressed like this. a thought came in Gajeel’s head Alright, enough of the hot chick, time to rob this mother fucker.

Gajeel pulled the semi-automatic into the air and pointed it at the clerk.
“Give me the fucking cash!” Gajeel yelled “All of it!!!”
“Oh my God!” the clerk yelled “Put the gun down! I won’t give you a single cent!” Gajeel shot the gun near the clerk, purposely missing him “Ok! Ok! I’ll give you the cash!” He began to punch in the numbers on the register to open it. Gajeel did a quick glance and spotted the girl in blue hiding behind some of the shelves, clutching onto the side of her leg; she had a gun too “Ok! Here!” the clerk said to Gajeel, handing him a shopping bag filled with cash “I hope you’re proud of yourself! By the way, the cops were called.”
Motorcycle outside it is. He ran out of the store and made his way to the motorcycle. He climbed on and began to start it up.

“HEY!” he heard a woman’s voice scream. He looked to his left and discovered the girl from the store, staring him down like an angry mother.
“The hell you want Shrimp?” he groaned. Her angered expression changed to that of someone who’s baffled.
“I’m not a shrimp!”
“Hell yeah you are! You’re tiny as fuck!”
“Knock that off will you?! You’re on my bike!” he looked at her with surprise.
“You own this thing?!”

“Damn right I do!” she cursed “Now get off!”
“Nah,” he smirked “I need the bike right now.”
“Get off! It’s my only form of transport at the moment!”
“Still no.” they suddenly heard the sirens coming in the distance “Shit! They’re coming! I need to get out of here!”
“Not a chance! I want my bike back!” Gajeel let out a growl at her words.
“Ok, I’ll give you yer fucking bike back after we get the hell away from here! You happy?”
“That’s the best I’m going to get out of you?”
“Damn right.”
“Fine.”
“Good. Now get on!” the woman got onto the bike and placed her helmet on.

He revved up the bike and began to drive away from the scene of the crime. The sirens were blaring in the night sky as he tried his best to jaunt his way the hell out of this area. The blue haired woman looked behind herself and spotted a few police cars catching up to them.
“Umm….. hey,” she pointed out to Gajeel “We have a few cops catching up.”
“How many?” he asked.
“Two I think.”
“Damn, there’s assholes shooting everyone up for fun and we get cops after me for one robbery.”  He revved the bike even more “Hang tight, we’re taking a detour.” he took a sharp turn and made the bike hit the local terrain. Oak Town was a desert town so it was mainly cacti or bushes. It barely rained here after all.

“You sure this is a good idea?!” the girl asked “Don’t you think this is going a bit far for only a thousand dollars?”
“I ain’t turning myself in!” Gajeel growled over the motorcycle motor “Cops are fucking corrupt thanks to those politicians. They shoot first and ask questions later!”
He has a point. a thought came in the girl’s head.
“HANG ON!” she gripped tightly onto Gajeel’s waist as he drove through the terrains. It was a bit bumpy and for sure, Gajeel thought they got away from the cops when he heard the sirens dying down… he didn’t expect the motorcycle to hit a rock and send them flying about two feet away. Nor did he expect the cops to surround them out of nowhere.

“OAK TOWN POLICE!” the cop hollered on the loudspeaker “WE HAVE YOU SURROUNDED!”
“No shit sherlock!” Gajeel yelled while beginning to raise his arms. The girl, following not too far behind.
“Well well well.” a cop smirked evilly “We finally caught that little troublemaker that’s been running around for a month, Black Steel Gajeel.” The blue haired girl looked at Gajeel with shock; this petty robber was Black Steel?!
“And look!” another cop pointed out “He has a friend with him!”
“Hey,” said the third cop “you’re right! And- no way, it’s the leader of Shadow Gear, Levy McGarden.”

Gajeel’s eyes bulged out of his skull and he stared at the bluenette. Shadow Gear was considered one of the most ruthless biker gangs in all of Oak Town. A good portion of them have criminal records that stack up to four feet tall! They were rumored to be cop killers, drug dealers, had so many crimes under their belt, Gajeel had lost track. This blue haired girl was their leader?!
“What should we do with them?” a cop smirked knowingly.
“Hmmm…… the girl is pretty hot.” he first cop snickered “I could have fun with that.”
“And Black Steel?” the second asked.
“Let’s just kill him. I’m not in the mood to fill out paperwork.”

“Looks like you’ll have to fill out paperwork then!” Levy suddenly hollered. She pulled out a few grenades and pulled the pins out with her teeth. She threw them into all directions of the cops and ducked down with Gajeel. Gajeel expected an explosion; but instead, he heard a Pop! and watched as smoke filled the area. Tear gas?!
“Come on!” Levy hollered at Gajeel. He looked to his left and found her setting the motorcycle up “We got to get out of here!” with no argument, he ran to where she was and they drove away on her bike as fast as they could “You know a place we can go?”
“I live with my cousin!” he told her “I’ll give you the directions!” she nodded and drove as fast as her bike could take them.

---

Gajeel looked out the window of the apartment he was sharing with his cousin for any sign of the police and so far, nothing. He pulled the shades back and looked at Levy who was sitting on the couch in the small living room. The apartment itself was nothing special to be honest, it was one story,  the walls were differently painted (Mainly reds and greens) a few pieces of expensive but nice furniture some rich guy left at the curb and Natsu took them with a pickup truck he stole one day, a small kitchen where a few liquor bottles were on the tables, a large, big screen tv in the living room with a coffee table and a white L shaped couch, a few movie or band posters on the walls, a bookshelf in the back, the place had a faint scent of pot, .99cent store air freshener and male musk. It was nothing special, but it served it’s purpose.

“Are we in the clear?” she asked him.
“Yeah,” Gajeel sighed with relief “we’re in the clear.”
“Thank God! Those cops are a nightmare.” she fell back more into the couch while relief washed over her.
“They’re fucking corrupt. Heard last week they shot a dog that wasn’t hurting anybody ‘cuz ‘he looked dangerous’.” Gajeel made air quotations with his fingers.
“You sure we’re safe here?”
“This is my cousin’s apartment. He’s out right now causing shit and a few fires. so he’s going to keep the cops occupied for a while.” he sat next to the tiny blue haired woman, pulled out the shopping bag filled with the cash he stole and began to count everything.

“Um… hey, Gajeel?” spoke up Levy.
“Hnn?” he responded while still enumerating the cash.
“If you don’t mind me asking, why did you rob that store?” he stopped keeping tab of the cash for a moment and put what he was counting down, planning to count later.
“Well, you sure as hell know the reason, considering yer the fucking leader of a biker gang.”
“Well, I knew you were in it for the money considering no place is hiring here. But, I could tell you weren’t really that keen on doing this. So I wanted to know why did you do this when you could’ve walked away?”
She could tell?! he perceived If she could see ya weren’t into it, might be best to be honest. After all, she’s more dangerous than you.  He let out a long, exasperated sigh.

“I didn’t have a choice.” Gajeel explained “I want to get out of this fucking town as much as the next guy; but I need the cash to get by and get outta here.”
“How long have you been in Oak Town?” queried Levy.
“A month, didn’t really have a choice moving here to be honest.” he leaned back on the couch and looked at the ceiling   “Two months ago, my dad died of a fucking heart attack.” her eyes filled with sympathy when she heard him admit this personal moment.
“I’m so sorry.” she placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder and he gave her a smirk of thanks at her action.
“Thanks, he would’a liked ya  I could tell ya that gihihihi; but trust me it gets better. Since the will was never notarized, the fucking bastards at the bank took everything and I had to pay for his funeral. My cousin who lived in Oak Town for a few years already offered me to come live with him till I could get on my feet. Used the last of my money to get here. I ain’t no stranger to crime, I stole a few cars in my teens but gave up for my dad’s sake. Never expected in my life I’d need to do this shit again.”

“I understand in a way.” Levy sympathized “I’m not fond of the things my gang and I do either; but if it means trying to do all of this to better ourselves in the end, then we have no choice.”
“Yeah, I got a question for you small fry.” he stared “Why didn’t you kill those bastard cops? Ain’t your gang known for cop killing?”
“That’s a rumor someone made up.” she waved “I don’t like the idea of killing police officers or anyone of any kind, unless it’s seriously necessary. Otherwise I try to encourage my gang to not kill and only maim if need be.”
“So you don’t do that cop killing shit?”
“No, a lot of us do want to pull the trigger on our guns at them; but we want to be the better individuals in this situation.”  he nodded in understanding. An awkward silence formed between the two for a brief moment or so before Levy decided to break the ice again.

“Do you have any plans on where to go once you leave Oak Town?” she spoke out. Gajeel was slightly taken aback by her question since no one ever asked him; but she seemed like a nice person so he didn’t mind telling her.
“To be honest,” he breathed “I got no fucking idea. When I first heard of this town, I was expecting it to be a place where I get discovered and get pretty fucking well off. Didn’t expect the pamphlet to lie.” she laughed at that little moment.
“I was tricked by it too you could say; but I’m looking to get out of here one day as well. I’m getting close to making the money, I would say a few more months.” an idea popped up in her head and she looked at Gajeel “Hey, you’re good at riding bikes from what I’ve seen. Tell me, you good at mechanics?”
“Yeah, my old man used to run a shop. Taught me the ropes in case I was in a situation. Why?”

“Our mechanic unfortunately was gunned down a few weeks ago and we’re in dire need of a good mechanic.” Levy explained “If I can help with your current situation, you’re more than welcome to join Shadow Gear! We also have a bit of a er… "Side Business” we’ve been working on for the past five months and it’s going really well!“ Gajeel cocked a pierced eyebrow at her words.
"The fuck you doing?” he joked “Cooking meth?” Levy’s eyes became wide as saucers and her pale skin grew even more pale. That’s when he realized what was going on “Holy shit woman! Yer a fucking meth dealer?!”
“H-how did you know?!”
“I was kidding! I didn’t expect to hit the nail on the fucking head! Sheesh!”
“Well, now you know. Yes, we have a meth lab in the outskirts of town. But we only decided to get into this just to get the money needed until we can leave this God forsaken place.”

“How much is the pay if ya don’t mind me asking?” queried Gajeel.
“From the meth?” Levy asked “We make over $400,000 a shipment.”  Gajeel’s eyes turned wide as they could get.
“Holy shit!”
“We all get a small cut evenly. About $3-5,000 a person depending on how well we do that week. If you become our mechanic, you’ll not only get a cut of the profits but you’ll get paid quite a bit for fixing our bikes.” Gajeel sat there for a moment in deep thought. This literally was an offer he couldn’t refuse! It was better doing mechanic work for a group of bikers than robbing a convenience store every week for only like a thousand dollars (three thousand if he’s lucky). He thought about it for a second looked at Levy.

“Alright short stuff.” he smirked “I’m in.” she looked up at with with a smile.
“Really?! Thank you!!!” she suddenly grabbed a piece of paper and a pen and began to write down a location and a phone number “This is the address to the club house and my cell number. Call me if you need directions!” she looked at the clock on the nearby table and realized the time: 11pm.
“Oh God!” she piped “I didn’t realize how late it was! I need to get home, we have a shipment of supplies coming in tomorrow!” she got up from her seat, grabbed her purse and held her hand out to Gajeel “It was nice meeting you Gajeel. We’ll be happy to have you on board.”
“Same here Shrimp.” he smirked “Can’t wait to start.” her smile turned into a frown.
“You know, I’m your boss now.”
“Doesn’t mean I ain’t gonna stop.”
“Whatever, just be in by noon tomorrow.”

She made her way to the door with Gajeel following behind to make sure she got out safely. He watched as she placed her helmet on her head, got on the bike and then revved it up. She waved goodbye to Gajeel who waved goodbye back. She drove out of the driveway and made her way down the streets. Gajeel made his way back into the house and looked at the piece of paper with a sincere smile; things were finally looking up.

The End.