Longing: A strong, persistent desire or craving, especially for something unattainable or distant
Playlist: Fly Away by JoJo, Come Back Be Here by Taylor Swift, Alone Again by Alyssa Reid, Don't You Want to Stay by Kelly Clarkson ft. Jason Aldean
Lucy never imagined that studying abroad would be this emotionally taxing. College AU.
Lucy never imagined studying abroad would be as difficult as it was. It wasn't the course work that was taking a mental toll on her (although there were several times she stayed up until two in the morning, but which college student doesn't do that?) No, what was bothering her was the long stretch of time away from her friends. She missed studying in the library with Levy before they got kicked out for giggling and talking too much. She missed walking around campus with Erza hunting down the most perfect strawberry cake in Magnolia. Hell, she even missed Gray's odd stripping habit and the arguments and reprimands that followed. She especially missed Natsu, her boyfriend of six months, although they had been best friends throughout high school. Lucy missed his grin that could light up an entire room, she missed the way he would ruffle her hair and call her a weirdo, she missed cuddling with him on her couch until her eyes fluttered shut from feeling warm and safe. On a daily basis, her heart would hurt when they talked and Natsu told her funny stories about how Erza punched Gray in the head for being an idiot, or how Juvia would glare at any female who laid eyes on Gray and call them her "love rival".
Of course Lucy kept in touch with them; she and Natsu spent hours texting and talking on the phone everyday but it wasn't the same. Natsu's voice sounded different when he was on the phone and she always had to be careful with what she said since there were obviously other people around. She almost wished her friends had persuaded her not to travel, but that didn't happen. All they wanted was for her to be happy, and they knew that this trip would be beneficial to her career as a writer. So they had sent her off and she reluctantly accepted with lots of hugs and promises of keeping in touch. Natsu had driven her to the airport the morning of her flight. They had gone to the gate together before Lucy had broken down in tears. Natsu had comforted her with soft promises of keeping in touch every day, wiping away tears, and soft kisses that made her heart melt.
But now, after three long months, she was on her way home from the Pergrande Kingdom, the farthest country away from Fiore. According to the pilot, the plane was flying fast. In Lucy's opinion the plane should be flying faster. The smart thing to do would be to sleep, but the happiness and excitement of seeing her friends again was overwhelming. On her last day in Pergrande, Natsu had promised her a movie marathon all night long and as much ice cream as the two of them could possibly it. Their ice cream and movie marathons had been a tradition that had been formed in their second year of high school. Natsu had originally come up with the idea after going through a grueling week of tests, essays, and presentations. The tradition had become a weekly occurrence by the time high school ended, a tradition that still persisted throughout college. Both of them would drop any plans they had on Friday and hang out, 99% of the time at Lucy's dorm room, and watch movies and eat ice cream until their eyes closed and their stomachs hurt. The thought brought a smile to her face. Sure it was a break from tradition, it would be on a Wednesday after all, but she figured it was to make up for lost time.
After four hours the plane had finally, finally reached Magnolia Intercontinental Airport and Lucy was waiting impatiently for the plane to roll to a stop. When the aircraft stopped moving, she grabbed the bag she had taken on the plane with her and unapologetically pushed her way through the mass of people trying to exit through the small door. As soon as the doorway that led to the airport was in her sight, Lucy strained her eyes to try and see Natsu's bright pink hair. Damn it, he's not here. Fortunately Levy was waiting for her outside so she wasn't completely disappointed. "Levy!" she squealed and Lucy almost knocked the small, bluenette over.
"Lu!" the two friends were drawing the attention of everyone in the immediate area. A couple of people were glaring but the majority were looking upon the two with smiles. "Mavis, I missed you so much!"
"I know I missed you too! I brought you back a bunch of best-sellers there that I already read and I really think you'll like them!"
"Come on the others are waiting for us!" Levy exclaimed and the two all but ran to the baggage claim area. When they were approaching, Lucy saw a familiar flash of pink hair that she could recognize anywhere.
"Natsu!" she yelled and effectively grabbed the attention of most of the people in the area. The one person who knew her better than anyone else turned around and flashed her his mega-watt grin.
"Hey Luce! How are you?" With tears of happiness blurring her vision she dropped her bags and sprinted across the room into his arms. When her face was buried in his red shirt the tears began to fall. "Why are you crying?" he asked somewhat alarmed. Lucy let herself be comforted by the heat that he seemed to radiate year-round and the scent of campfire smoke.
"I missed you so much," she said, looking him in the eyes. "I'm never doing that again." He leaned down and kissed her forehead.
"I missed you too weirdo," he laughed at the affectionate nickname he came up with when they first met. "C'mon, we have three months to catch up on!" And with that he grabbed her hand and pulled her out the door to his car. As Natsu took his motion-sickness pill and placed one hand on the wheel, the other lacing his fingers through hers, Lucy felt the dull ache that had been consistent throughout the weeks leading up to her trip and the days during it, fade away. With laughs, jokes, and storytelling, the persistent longing that Lucy had been plagued with everyday finally faded away.