1- Always (NaLu)
I enter my home, throwing my purse down onto the floor. It's easy- I've stopped locking the door to ward off my teammates. Natsu and Happy have an especially nasty habit of coming in through my bedroom window.
I've grown used to it, though. Natsu, Erza, Gray, and Happy have been there for me every single time I've needed them, so it seems reasonable that they have access to my home.
Today, though, it's eerily quiet in my home. Most of the time now, I come home from the guild hall to noise upstairs. It's usually Gray and Natsu arguing loudly or having a pillow fight while Erza and Happy rummage through my personal belongings or raid my fridge. But I hear nothing at all, except for the sound of my own footsteps and breathing.
Maybe less of them came today... No. Even if it's only Natsu and Happy, they make noise upstairs.
Confused, I open the door to my bedroom and peek in. I don't see anyone or anything at first, so I head to my closet to get ready for a quick bath. It's not a walk-in closet, so I just have to change in my room. But since I'm alone, It shouldn't be a problem. I remove my clothes and wrap myself in a thin, fluffy bathrobe.
"That's better," I tell myself. "That bath was exactly what I needed to relax!"
I loosely clutch the bathrobe around my body. I don't feel the need to be so compulsively modest- I'm alone in my own house.
When I walk into my bedroom, I immediately manage to trip over something, and as I fall, the loose knot of my bathrobe that hides my body comes undone.
"Stupid me, leaving a pile of books by the door that I can trip on."
As I bend down to figure out what I tripped over, I realize that it is most definitely not a pile of books.
Natsu is lying on my floor, right in front of the doorway. My face instantly glows crimson as I whip the bathrobe around my exposed body in a fierce protective gesture.
"NATSU! You idiot! Don't you know that I have a right to have privacy in my own bedroom! If you're gonna intrude at least be sure that I'm DECENT! It's like, COMMON FREAKING COURTESY! If I ever... Natsu?"
He hasn't moved since I tripped over him. I double tie my bathrobe knot, just in case. I squat down to get a good look at him. He's breathing, but it sounds labored and shallow, as well as gravelly. His face is contorted oddly, almost in an expression of discomfort or pain.
Happy doesn't seem to be with him... I wonder why that is, since they're almost always together. I wonder if he came in through the door while I was in the bath.
"Hey, Natsu, Natsu, are you awake?"
I gently shake his shoulder.
"Naaaaatsu~..." I try using a sing-songy voice. "Waaaaaaaake up~!"
He stirs, but only a little bit. He opens one eye, then the other, peering at me with his dragonesque pupils. He seems to have trouble focusing on me.
"Is... Is that you Lucy?" He whispers.
I can barely hear him, and he sounds so raspy.
"Yes, are you alright?! What are you doing here? You don't look so well..."
"...yeah, I might be comin' down with something..."
I reach my hand out and feel his forehead.
"You're burning up..." I murmur.
His body temperature is usually a couple degrees above normal because of his fire magic, but this is unusual even for him.
"But I feel so cold... What am I sick with, I wonder, that can make the Fire Dragonslayer feel cold..."
"I'm sorry, but I don't know... I wish I could help." I sigh, feeling sorry for him, he looks really really sick...
"Oh, it's ok, Lucy. I'll just a- ask the other one. Hey Lucy, what do you think I've come down with?"
Other Lucy... Is Natsu so delirious that he's having double vision?
I play along.
"I don't know either. But maybe it'll help if you get some rest... Do you think you can make it back to your place?"
He simply nods his head. He makes it look hard, and he's trembling so hard. I pretend not to see it and act like he shook it.
"Ok, well, you can stay here until you feel better," I offer.
"That would be... I mean, you don't have to..." Natsu says to me.
"Yes, I do. You're a close friend, and you need my help. I can't ignore that. Come on, Natsu." I say firmly.
I offer a hand, and he grasps it weakly. I somehow manage to pull him to his feet.
I take note of his heavy eyelids as they droop further and further down, and with some difficulty, I carry him over to my bed.
"There you go, Natsu." I drape my fluffy pink bedspread over his shivering body.
Enveloped in the warm and soft blanket, he finds enough strength to raise his head.
"Thanks, Luce. But... Where will you sleep?"
I pause. I hadn't thought about that...
"Don't worry about me, I'll be fine. I'll sleep on the couch until you're 100% recovered!"
That's a blatant lie... I don't know where I'll sleep, but he needs to think about getting better rather than me and my needs.
"Oh, ok. If you're sure..." He trails off.
"Natsu, I'm positive. Don't worry about anything besides getting well and letting me take care of you."
Woah. Where in the world did that last bit come from?!... It's not like I was planning to just ditch him and let him sleep it out all alone while I go crash at someone else's place. I go with it. Natsu is probably my closest friend in Fairy Tail. I owe him this.
"Stay here and lie down, okay? I'll go make you a cup of tea. Do you want some soup? Maybe some toast? Both?"
"Tea and soup would be nice, but you don't have to trouble yourself... I'm a Dragonslayer. I'll get along just fine, Luce, I promise."
"I insist."
I smile at him before retreating into my kitchen. Thirty minutes later, I've brewed up two perfect cups of jasmine tea and boiled up some tomato soup.
I bring it in on a tray.
"Luce... You didn't have to do that for me. I'm already stealing your bed..."
I wave it off as I pull a bedside table over to him and give him the tray. I help him prop himself up to a sitting position.
"I told you, Natsu, don't worry. I'm fine, I have a-"
"Luce." He says tiredly. "You can't lie to me, I've been through the window of almost every room in this house. You don't have a couch."
I sigh as I stir my tea.
"Ahhhh, well... I don't care, you're my friend and right now, you need this bed more than I do, so no buts."
He slumps in defeat- but that could be the fact that he's weak right now, being sick and all.
I take the bowl and spoon from him, and scoot my chair closer.
"Here, Natsu. I'll help you."
I feel a bit awkward feeding him like this and all, but it's got to be awkward for him too. He's so strong and independent, usually... and it's no fun to be in the state where you're too weak to feed yourself.
The constant motions from a routine rhythm, and he finishes the bowl.
"Thanks, Luce... I really appreciate all that you're doing for me..."
Like a complete idiot, I responded without thinking.
"It's nothing, Natsu, I'd do anything if it meant I could see you smile."
A tinge of pink colored my cheeks.
Natsu is blushing also, but that could be the fever.
"Ahem, so if there's nothing else I can do for you, I'll just be going. To the other room. Where I will be. Okay... Hehehe..."
As I turn to awkwardly exit the room, Natsu grabs my hand.
"Hey, Luce... Wait..." He says weakly.
"Huh? What is it?" I ask nervously. Despite his sickness, he is clutching my hand firmly, and my heartbeat is increasing rapidly as a result.
What is this... I feel so weird!
"Luce... Don't go yet. I don't wanna be lonely..." He sure does look lonely... How can I say no to that face?
"Sure, okay. But first, do you need anything else?"
"I'm getting kind of cold again..." Natsu says.
"Oh! I think I have some spare blankets in the other room. I'll only be a second."
I keep to my word, but I return back empty-handed.
"I'm sorry, Natsu. They're in the wash right now, and cold wet soggy blankets are the last thing you need."
"..."
He's remaining rather silent...
"Um... Hey, Luce?" He begins, sounding as awkward as I feel.
"Yeah, what is it? Are you okay?!" I panic a little at the worrying tone his raspy voice carries.
"Um, maybe if you could, um, sit with me, I could be, um, warmer."
I didn't think it would be possible, but he managed to blush a deeper pink than the fever. Not that I was any better... My cheeks were probably around the same color.
"Oh, is that all it is? Hold on, be right back."
I quickly change into my nightgown so that I can get back to Natsu. He's still propped up with the blankets around his shoulders, shivering.
"Haha, um, let me in silly, or you'll freeze to death!" I laugh off my nervousness as I climb over him to squeeze myself next to the window.
My bed isn't the biggest, so I'm squeezed up between Natsu and the wall. I can feel him shivering with cold, but to me his skin feels hot and dry. I sit against the wall, under the blanket with him, trying to help him keep warm without making it too awkward. As he drifts off to sleep, he grasps my hand again, and squeezes it.
Surprised, I squeeze his hand back. He smiles a small smile, which brings a grin to my face. I watch him start to drift off to sleep... A few minutes later, his breathing is starting to even out and his face is relaxing, from what I can make out in the pale beams of moonlight. I untangle myself from the blanket, intending to get out and find somewhere else to actually sleep.
"Hey Luce?" He mumbles into the cool night air.
"Natsu..." I whisper back, a bit startled. I thought he was asleep already.
"Don't leave me... please..." He whispers as his eyelids droop down.
I freeze, the air stopping in my throat. Even just thirty minutes ago, I would have felt awkward about it... I still do, sort of. But the more I think about it...
...The more I find that spending the night caring for Natsu and keeping him warm is something I truly want to do.
He squeezes my hand again.
"Stay with me..."
I squeeze back, conveying all of my emotions into this one action- and this one word.
On instinct, I stroke his pink hair in a soothing motion.
"Shhhh, it's fine, I'm not going anywhere, I promise."
"Lucy... Will you stay with me tonight?"
I continue to stroke his hair, nodding slowly.
"Always."