Summary:

Everyone dies... someday and somehow. Lucy Heartfillia is not your normal teenage girl - although she is pretty talented at pretending she is. Lucy is dying of cancer, but when it seems that all hope is lost she will find the people who make her want to fight back, harder than ever before. Can she live the life of a normal, healthy teenage girl when she can't seem to go a few days without a visit to the hospital? And most importantly, can she fall in love when she doesn't know how much time is left?

"Lord, make me a rainbow, I'll shine down on my mother.

She'll know I'm safe with you when she stands under my colors."

-If I Die Young, The Band Perry

Chapter 1

A wad of paper flies across the room, hitting my ear with a soft thud and dropping to the floor. My heart jumps as my eyes open wide, glancing at Mr. Macao who is still standing in front of the class droning on about the supernatural elements. I twist in my chair, my body aching at the sudden movement, scowl automatically at Erza. English used to be my favorite subject... until I transferred here and discovered just how boring being taught by a mindless zombie could be.

Scrunching up my face, I peek up at the clock, realizing that there are only 5 minutes until lunch. I missed the whole lesson. Rubbing my forehead, I reach for the ball of paper. Carefully unfolding it, I am rewarded by a list of quick notes from the lesson. Immediately forgetting my annoyance, I turn and grin at Erza two seats diagonally to my right. She smiles back, silently giggling at my sleepy expression.

"Lucy Heartfillia," Mr. Macao had suddenly stopped droning on and is looking at me angrily.

"Yes?"

Oh dear. I silently try to recall what he had been saying, subtly glancing at the notes in my hand. Natsu and Gray laugh openly at my confusion and I feel the heat radiating from my cheeks. They only laugh louder as my embarrassment escalates and I become visibly flustered.

"I hope those are your own notes from today's lesson Miss Heartfillia because you will need them for the two thousand word essay on the extent to which the supernatural elements in Macbeth are responsible for the tragic here's downfall." Mr. Macao glares as the bell rings, effectively punctuating his threat.

Oh no. I nod meekly. "Yes Mr. Macao."

The class shuffles past as I quickly write down the assignment, internally groaning at the impossible task ahead of me.

"You will hand the completed essay to me before first lesson on Monday," Mr. Macao commands as I move hastily from the classroom.

I am momentarily blinded by the bright afternoon sun outside before my leg catches on something and I careen into the closest person. Gray catches my arms and pulls me upright. He brushes his raven hair off of his face and stares down at me with eyes that are the same clear blue of the sky on a perfect day. No wonder all the girls swoon when he and Natsu walk into the room. My heart beats faster at our proximity.

He smirks down at me while Natsu yells, "Careful clumsy." He barks with laughter behind me. Gray shoves me aside and the pair quickly melts into the stampede of people heading for the cafeteria.

Reluctantly, I head towards my locker, stuffing my books into the messy shelf and grabbing a textbook for my next lesson and a small apple.

"Lucy!" Erza appears at my side, "Hey, are you okay? I saw Natsu trip you."

I nod quickly. She narrows her eyes in concern, "Are you hanging with us today?"

"No, I need to get started on that essay for Macao- I'm too busy this weekend."

Erza bites her lip, "Okay, let me know if you need any help."

I nod again, giving her a quick smile as I shut my locker and head in the direction of the library. As soon as I'm out of sight I turn away and head towards the western buildings. Pushing against the heavy door, I slip into the drama room and walk across the cluttered space, sinking into the soft couch in the corner. Lying in the empty room, I can feel the exhaustion washing over me, I allow my eyes to close and quickly sink into darkness.


SMASH...

I wake up with a start, my ears ringing. Natsu is standing over me with a pair of metallic pots and the rest of the class is sitting on the floor, staring at me expectantly.

"Care to join us Lucy?" Gray grins, evidently pleased with their practical joke.

I drag myself off the couch and take my place in the circle, giving Gray my best if-looks-could-kill glare. Natsu gives the pots one more whack- right beside my head- and also sits down.

"Well now that Lucy is awake, everyone collect a script and grab a pen and a highlighter," Mr. Wakaba, our eccentric drama teacher commands in a booming voice that prompts a dull pain in the back of my head.

"We'll work with pairs today, with one group of three," Mr. Wakaba said as everyone had their scripts ready.

"Gray," he said looking at his right, "You can go with Miss Heartfillia over there."

The class erupts into laughter, I looked around confused as Gray stands and makes his way over to me, standing in front of me and offering his hand.

"Come on Heartfillia, you heard the man." he grins.

Taking his hand, I stand and follow Gray into a separate corner. I sit facing the class and Levy, a nice but fairly quiet girl in a few of my classes, gestures to my forehead, tracing a lightning scar on her own.

Groaning out loud I turn to Gray, "Is there a lightning scar drawn on my forehead?"

He grins, "Sure is! I hope you like it, I worked really hard on that."

"Great," I mutter.

"You're welcome Lucy."

I sigh, rubbing my head profusely as I attempt to erase the ink. "Let's just get started."