Hey, guys! This is mainly to remind you that I'm not dead, just suffering from a bout of writers block. But I promise I'll get back to updating Fairy Academy ASAP. Anyways, I was browsing through tumblr when I saw this prompt and I just couldn't help myself! Enjoy!
"I may have accidentally sort of adopted five cats."
"I may have accidentally sort of adopted five cats."
"Wait, WHAT?"
Natsu winced, holding his phone away from his ear on instinct.
"I said, I-I may have accidentally, uh, sorta adopted a couple of cats." He repeated. "And, I think on the way home, um, how do I put this…"
"Natsu," Lucy started sharply over the phone. "Why would you 'adopt' five cats? And how did Igneel even agree to it?"
"He doesn't exactly know yet." The boy confessed. "It's just, they were all looking so sad and so hungry when we took them in at the shelter that I just couldn't help myself. I mean, someone has to take care of 'em right?"
"That's what a shelter there is for, Natsu!" Lucy cried exasperatedly, pinching the bridge of her nose. "And it's not like you don't have a cat, I mean did you forget about Happy?"
"I didn't forget about him!" He insisted. "But I just felt so bad that couldn't help them out. Even guilty because -"
"This is worse than that time when you wanted to house a shark we saw at that aquarium because it looked 'lonely'!"
"Huh, when was that?"
"Did you forget?" Lucy's voice turned steely again. "That was our first date."
"Oh, yeah…" Natsu replied hurriedly. "That. Anyways, the reason I was calling you was…" He trailed off again.
"What?" She asked suspicion laced in her voice.
"I can't find two of my new cats."
"Once we find the cats, I swear I will skin you alive!" Lucy vowed, tucking her phone into her pocket. She held up a hand against her forehead to shield her eyes from the sun, glancing at her idiot of a boyfriend. "Remind me again why I agreed to help you with this?"
"Because you love me?" Natsu grinned impishly.
Lucy slapped the back of his head, raising her eyebrows. "Trust me, these are the times when I doubt it."
She glanced around Magnolia Park for any sign of the furry felines once again. They had been hunting for the cats for half an hour, but no avail. It was starting to get really annoying.
"At least Erza went and returned the other three!" Natsu reminded her enthusiastically. "Don't worry Luce, we'll find the rest before ya' know it!"
"Yeah, yeah." She agreed half-heartedly. "We can always just put up some posters?"
"Ugh, I'm not making them. It's too much hard work!" He complained.
Before Lucy could snap another sarcastic reply, his phone rang.
"Yo, stripper. Wassup!" Natsu greeted with an American accent.
"Fuck you, Natsu." A loud voice replied. "Fuck you!"
"Huh, what happened?"
"Did you pay two kids near my apartment to throw this bucket of weird oil on me?" Gray Fullbuster growled.
"Uh… Hehe… About that…" Natsu laughed nervously. "I'm sorry?" He offered.
"You're dead once I get my hands on you, Dragneel, don't forget." He warned.
"Uh huh." Natsu disconnected the call. "Now, where were we Lucy?"
The girl placed a hand on her hip. "You pranked Gray?" She guessed. "Again?"
"Uh… No?" He offered lamely.
"Come on, let's check the shelter again, maybe they ended up back there." Lucy said, annoyed.
"Okay." He agreed, jogging up to her. "Oi, Luce, you're not mad. Right?" He asked hesitantly, scratching the back of his head sheepishly. Natsu had known her for what - four years now? Yeah, since he entered high school, he's known exactly how the blonde would respond to questions like that. She would raise an eyebrow, huff, cross her arms and press her lips together, refusing to answer his question.
"Hmm?" She asked, feigning being distracted. "Did you say something?"
Natsu inwardly rolled his eyes, but repeated his question.
"Who me?" She replied dramatically. "That's nonsense." She raised her eyebrows, just as he predicted, crossing her arms across her chest as she walked away.
"Lushy!" He whined, lazily jogging beside her. "Come on, I promise I won't adopt any more cats, okay? Stop sulking."
"Ugh, you're so irresponsible." She complained, rolling her eyes again. "I feel like your mom…"
"Well, you sound more irritated than usual." He observed. "You're not this crabby whenever I screw up. What happened with you?"
Lucy looked surprised, caught of-guard by his question. Of course, he was normally so dense, but Natsu could be weirdly observant at times. "Nothing." She mumbled, lowering her eyes to the ground.
"Come on, Lucy." He encouraged her, wrapping an arm around her waist. "Was it your dad?"
"Hmm." She replied, refusing to look him in the eye. I'm
"Luce?"
"Yeah, it was." She admitted in a small voice. "The usual stuff about my grades and what-not. Nothing special."
"Uh huh." He didn't believe it for a second.
Natsu simply wrapped his arms around his girlfriend, gently placing his chin on her head. He smiled when he heard her sigh in relief, pressing her head against his chest as she hugged him back. Natsu allowed himself to kiss the crown of her head, taking a small sniff of her hair with a self-satisfied smirk.
Lucy felt him loosen his hold around her shoulders as he glanced down at her. "You really believe in what your old man says?" She asked her, a scowl on his face.
"Not really." She admitted. "But dad -"
"Yeah, yeah, he's your dad." He dismissed her. "But you're Lucy. Our Lucy. You're one of us now, got it?"
"Mhmm." She agreed, burying her face in his chest as she hid her gleeful smile.
Their moment was interrupted as Natsu's phone rang again. He sighed in annoyance. "It's Gray." He announced dejectedly, his finger hovering over the 'end call' button.
"Come on, answer it." Lucy said
"Ugh, fine. Hey, Gra- "
"Natsu I'm gonna kill you!" A breathless shout rang out. "There are two cats chasing after me, because of you!"
"Because of me?"
"Yeah, apparently they're attracted to the weird oil."
"Ohhh -"
"Wait," Lucy interrupted him. "Two cats?"
"Yeah. One black with white spots and the other brown and orange."
"Natsu?" Lucy glanced at him.
He nodded, gulping. "I guess we found out cats."
"And it's all because of your stupid prank…"
"What can I say?" He bragged. "I'm a genius!"
Gray's apartment was on the other side of Magnolia, and with every step they took, jogging on the street, Lucy regretting not exercising properly. If only I was more in shape, she thought between pants, I wouldn't be struggling...
She glanced at Natsu, who was effortlessly keeping up with her pace and scowled. "Life so isn't fair!" She muttered, annoyed.
"Hmm, you said something Luce?"
"Oh, nothing." She replied sarcastically. "Just promise me, no more cats next time. Okay?"
He nodded, pouting. "What ever you say, Lucy." He replied, mocking obedience.
Lucy couldn't help a small smile escape from her mouth. I'm fighting a losing battle and I know it...
"Na-Natsu?" She called out between huffs, catching sight of a bus stop. "Can't we just take the bus?"
He rolled his eyes at her. "Is your sense of direction that bad, idiot?" He pointed in front. "We're already here."
"It is not!" She protested hotly, following him. She paused near an alley, pulling her pink tank top away from her sticky skin to let some air in. The fact that it was almost forty degrees out didn't really help.
"Mhmm, Lucy?" Natsu started, looking directly in her eyes. "I think I should quit my job at the shelter."
Lucy raised her eyebrows, her mouth falling open at his words. "Ehhh? I thought you loved working there!"
"I do," he agreed, scratching the back of his neck nervously. "But working there is just too tempting. Two weeks ago, I brought a golden retriever home, the week before, that another two dogs. A month ago, I even adopted a cat because I wanted a friend for Happy. No good has come out of working there." He said glumly.
"That's not true!" Lucy protested. "We found one of those dogs a home, and gave that cat to Wendy as a birthday present. And the remaining pets are cared for as well."
"You love working at that place, Natsu." She continued, gently grasping his tanned fingers. "Don't give up on something you can't go on a day without thinking about."
He smiled at that, tightening his grip around her slender fingers. How did he get so lucky? How did he find a girl who was so different - so unique - from any other he'd met before? He met her brown eyes, gently leaning closer to her face.
"You're right." He whispered, a slight pout forming on his face. "Why are you always right, huh weirdo?"
Lucy smiled lightly, a tinge of pink appearing on her cheeks. "You don't have better comeback than that, idiot?" She raised an eyebrow, fondness leaking out of her tone. He smirked, brushing his lips against hers as Lucy's eyes automatically shut.
"Ahem!
Lucy quickly pulled away, but Natsu held onto her hand, glaring at the offender. "What?" He asked, annoyance seeping in.
"I'm being chased by two man-eating cats and you two are busy making out?!" Gray called out from above. Lucy glanced at where he was perched, and couldn't help but burst into laughter, along with Natsu. Gray was currently hugging a lamp post. Every few seconds he slid down because of the oil on his body and would scramble up in his haste. The two cats were milling around the bottom the lamppost, using it as a scratching post. "G-get me out of here." He begged.
His reaction was so unlike typical Gray attitude that Lucy sobered up. She elbowed Natsu in the gut, gesturing towards a desperate Gray. He grimaced, leaning close enough to whisper in her ear. "Remember that bet we made yesterday?"
Lucy flushed red. She remembered it all to clearly. "I'll cancel your part of the deal of you take a picture of this glorious moment." He muttered. Lucy's eye widened. He was letting her cancel something so embarrassing?
"You're kidding me." She said flatly. "You'd really give up a chance to go there for this. For something like this? After all that hard work?"
He burst out laughing. "I wouldn't call it hard work!"
"Oi, stop flirting!" Gray called out from above.
"Stop acting like a primadonna Gray!" Lucy called out, pulling out her phone. She took a nice picture of the poor guy, feeling guilty. If anyone asks, I'm blaming Natsu!
They got lucky, to say the least. Gray had somehow managed to attract the fishes with the weird oil on his body, allowing them to quickly grasp the cats, hook their collars to their leashes and take them back to the animal shelter. It was dinner time by then, and the two ended up having pizza in a nearby fast food place.
"Oi, Lushy!" He called out, his mouth full of pepperoni and cheese. "Thanks."
"Your welcome, Natsu." She replied politely, a small smirk on her face as she leaned closer to him. "This is your treat anyways..."
Natsu groaned, but rebounded with a smirk. "What do you say we get a parrot this time?"
"What do you mean 'we'?" She retorted, crossing her arms against her chest. "I'm never helping you with your pets of whatever. Except Happy. I love that guy."
"But Lushy!" He pouted again, staring deep into her eyes.
Lucy tried to maintain eye contact, but failed after a minute. She backed away, blushing, muttering something under her breath.
Natsu grinned triumphantly. "Eh? What was that Lucy?"
She scowled at him. "I said don't give me the puppy dog face!" Her facial expressions changed as she flushed. "H-h-how can I say no to that!"
I've revised the ending after realising the previous version was too abrupt. Read and review!