Out of My League
A/N: This is technically a birthday fic for Lucy! :) And yeah, sorry for publishing it late—exam days so we were strictly prohibited on using gadgets. (Plus, Social Science sucks!) And yeah. Anyway, I HIGHLY recommend you to listen to Lovely by Scouting for Girls, and Out of My League by Stephen Speaks. ESPECIALLY Out of My League! It's really cute! I just love his voice and the song till I die!
WARNING: The story will be in Lucy's POV. And this will also be a multiple pairing fan-fiction; but it will end out as GraLu—but still, no hate please~ and sorry for the future mistakes~ and credit goes to Scouting for Girls and Stephen Speaks for the songs!
DISCLAIMER: I donut own Fairy Tail. Hiro Mashima does.
Butterflies.
Those imaginary things seemed to evade me now.
I bit my bottom lip as my mouth stretched into a crooked smile. Standing in front of this many people—relatives, friends, and my parents' friends, actually—will inevitably make you nervous, unless, you have high self-confidence.
Which, I, myself, lack of.
I felt mum's hand tugging mine. Instinctively, I looked at her. She was smiling proudly at me. "Happy birthday, Lucy," she whispered, making me smile. Yes, it's my eighteenth birthday today—and my parents wanted to make it big and formal, to make up for their two-year loss because of their business—they went abroad in short terms.
I nodded in thanks then faced the crowd in front of me. Dad handed me the microphone, kissing me on cheek as he did so. I smiled at him and tapped the microphone, checking if it's on. When it was, I cleared my throat before bringing the contraption near my lips. "Hello everyone," I began smoothly, glancing at their faces. "Thank you so much for coming to my party," I nervously—yet formally—said. "Um, I'm not really fond of giving long and dramatic speeches so… thank you for coming and let's have the greatest night of our lives!" I suddenly shouted through the microphone as I pumped my fist in the air, making the crowd do the same.
I handed dad the microphone with a grin on my face. He smiled back, and neared the microphone on his lips. "Happy birthday to Lucy!" he shouted, a big smile on his face. I've never saw him like that before.
"Happy birthday, Lucy!" the crowd shouted. I smiled at them, feeling my eyes being pricked by my tears of joy. I blinked them away.
I then sat at a Victorian styled sofa, watching my friends and relatives being blissful. My parents excused themselves since they had to mend the broken bond between their friends since the past two years.
"Happy birthday, Lu-chan!" I looked at the owner of the voice, and saw that it was Levy. I abruptly stood up from the sofa I was sitting on and tightly embraced the blue-haired girl. She hugged me tighter, which comforted me in a way. I'm really a cuddly person. When we both let go, she squealed at what I was wearing.
I loved it, as well—it was a simple vintage white-laced strapless cocktail dress. Elegant white laces ran down the beige-colored dress and ended just below my chest, snowflake-like designs with frills diagonally going down the dress were then patterned on the see through like portion of the dress until it ended just above my knees.
I smiled as I said my thanks, which made her smile back. She then looked up and around the place like a cute five-year old. I chuckled. "Wow, it must've taken you a lot of money to rent this place, ne, Lu-chan?" she asked me, still looking around with her eyes filled with wonder.
"Obviously, you little shrimp," Gajeel suddenly said—and appeared at the scene—as he reluctantly placed his arm on her head, making Levy complain childishly. I laughed at their antics. Gajeel then looked at me after their small argument—with Levy crossing her arms, a pout on her lips—boredly. "How are things goin' with ya?" he asked me monotonously.
"Great!"
"Great," he said, suddenly smirking. "You're literally gonna have the night of your life, blondie." He said.
What did he mean?
I tilted my head to the side as I narrowed my eyebrows. "What do you mean?"
He gruffly chuckled. "Nothing," he said, and walked away with Levy—who was complaining.
I began to be more curious.
Something was definitely up.
I just didn't know what.
_oOo_
A tap on the microphone was suddenly heard through the room, making a loud screech after the short tap. Some of the people covered their ears in reflex, some people just kept on doing their businesses, while some people looked at the one who made the noise. I was one of the third option people. And to my surprise, I saw Natsu at the front, grinning wildly.
He was the only one that I saw because of the crowd—I was at the back, talking with Levy, Erza, and Lisanna.
I narrowed my eyebrows as I heard him clearing his throat. "Sorry for the interruption everyone," he began. In the sidelines, I heard Levy and Lisanna giggling and squealing. Don't ask me why, though, because I was seriously clueless at what was happening. "But let me borrow your time to sing a song," he paused for a moment. I felt him grinning. "For the lovely birthday girl—Lucy Heartfilia!"
I let out a sharp gasp as blood immediately rushed to my cheeks. I then felt the girls' grip on both my arms—courtesy of Levy and Lisanna—and on my shoulders—Erza, who was behind me—then before I knew it, I was being dragged to the front because of the trio. When we were nearing Natsu, I saw that the sofa that I was sitting on before was moved—instead of it being placed at the front of the room, it was placed facing Natsu, just meters away from him.
The girls then let me sit on the sofa, much to my dismay and shock. After letting me sit down, they disappeared in the crowd, successful smiles on their faces. I turned my head in front, and that's when I realized that Loke, Sting, and Rogue were also at the front—with Natsu, who was holding the microphone, a bass guitar in his hands while grinning widely. I blinked and saw that Loke was in charge of the keyboard, Sting of the drums and Rogue with a guitar just like Natsu's. They all had microphone stands with the microphones placed in their handles.
"Happy birthday, Lucy!" Natsu shouted, grinning at me as he pumped his fists in the air. I felt myself flush.
Without a moment to waste, they began with Natsu quickly strumming his guitar's strings two times in a row, Rogue clapping with the beat. Loke followed, playing almost the same tune in his keyboard, a smile on his face. Sting then tapped his drumsticks on the cymbal, making the beat faster after doing so. After, he just kept on tapping his stick on the same cymbal, a grin on his face—Loke was the one who harmonized since he fastened his playing with a different tone this time.
I laughed—the music was so upbeat!
"I love the way she fills her clothes," Natsu began slowly with the beat, leaving the strumming to Rogue. Loke, meanwhile, played the same tone as the one he did from the start of the song. Sting tapped the same cymbals occasionally.
I clapped with the beat—smiling. Who knew that Natsu had a deep and husky voice that fitted the song so well? The crowd cheered for Natsu and the boys, clapping with the beat.
"I think that she is beautiful," he paused for a moment—I was still blushing madly—and let Sting do his magic. After he beat some parts of his drum, Natsu's grin widened. "She's so lovely, she's so lovely, she's so lovely, she's so lovely," he sang, strumming with Rogue this time. After the fourth line, the boys sang with him, blending their voices—Loke was the second voice, singing 'she's so lovely' in the background. It sounded so perfect.
Natsu then started with the second verse of the song—which kinda told almost everything that I do, and it made me feel warm again.
Singing the chorus, Natsu's feet tapped the floor with the beat. Feeling as if this was a concert, he suddenly—and swiftly—removed the microphone from the handle and pointed it to the crowd, who shouted, "She's so lovely!" making me laugh with the boys in front. He then sang again with the boys singing in the background.
After a few lines, he then pointed to me, singing, "I think that you are lovely, I think that you are lovely," I blushed harder, making him chuckle as he sang. The boys smiled as they sung, "You are," in the background. Natsu, as he sang the same lines all over again—as if he was forcing me to remember that I'm really 'lovely'—then slowly walked to me. As he was an arm span away from me, he grabbed my hand, making me stand up. We were both staring at each other, smiling like idiots. He then held up my chin, forcing me to stare into his onyx eyes. "I think that you are beautiful," he sang as he intensely stared at me, making me flush—my legs felt like jelly.
He grinned and went back to his place—thankfully—as they all sang the chorus of the song. I heard the people squealing behind me, which made my temperature go higher and higher. I sat on the sofa again, inwardly fanning myself.
"I don't know, I don't know, I don't know how we'll make it through this," he sang repeatedly as he shook his head. After repeating a number of that line, he stopped singing—ending his part as he returned to strumming his bass guitar. Loke, Sting, and Rogue ended their song with their perfect blending of 'ooh's.
"Happy birthday, Lucy!" they all shouted through their individual microphones once again, wide grins on their faces. I smiled, tears gathering in my eyes. I mouthed them my thanks, in which they returned with nods, grins — and a wink from Loke and Sting. I laughed. The crowd clapped loudly, while some were whistling and hooting in joy. I clapped with them.
I guess I was right—this is gonna be the night of our lives.
"Thank you for the performance, Loke," I gratefully said, smiling at him with one of my hands on his shoulder, while his large hand was holding the other one. We both swayed to the slow music, our eyes never leaving each other. The smile on my face never disappeared.
He winked playfully, making me chuckle. He never changed. "Of course," he said. He left it hanging in the air, and then he neared his head towards mine, his forehead inches away from mine. Heat rushed to my cheeks as I slightly withdrew my head from his close distance. Sure, he always treated me like this but I wasn't getting used to it. I heard him chuckle as I avoided his gaze. "Everything for my little princess," he whispered in my ear.
Oh my god, I feel the temperature rising by the second. Damn Loke.
"Lay off, Loke," I hissed, trying my best to sound irritated. But his statement just kept on replaying in my head like a broken recorder.
He chuckled, deep and husky, and then said, "Happy birthday, princess," before he spun me around. Once I faced ahead, I then found Sting in front of me, a smirk on his face. I laughed and stepped forward. His hands snaked around both sides of my waist, sending shivers up and down my spine, as he locked his hands behind my back. I wrapped my arms around his neck.
"What did that perv tell you now?" he asked me, sounding annoyed yet his face was decorated with a smile. We both danced to the music in harmony. I didn't know Sting was a good dancer, it made me laugh mentally.
I smiled and said, "Nothing special, Sting," in a teasing manner. He rolled his eyes and chuckled. I laughed. "Hey, thanks for the performance. You didn't have to," I said, suddenly feeling warm once again. What they did really made my day special; I never regretted meeting them all.
"Oh, but we did, didn't we?" he smirked. Pulling me near him, he whispered in my ear, "Sometimes, people are worth singing for, especially when they became part of your life."
I withdrew my head, feeling very warm, as I stared into his blue eyes. He was smirking. The butterflies invaded me once again. "You're kidding, aren't you?" I asked him dubiously. He only laughed through his nose and shook his head, his eyes never leaving mine. I bit my lip as I adjusted my hands around his neck.
"I know you feel awkward, hell, I know that you wanna melt away," he smugly said, making me stick my tongue out at him. It was true, though, but it'll be awkward once I admit it. "But you can't fight the truth, Lucy. You've become part of my life," he said. I felt myself flush as I tried my best to keep having eye contact with him. "And I will never allow you to slip away from my grasp. So if ever you try to do that, I'll beat you up and lock you inside my closet." he said, his smirk growing wider. I felt my lips twitching upwards in an attempt to laugh, and I tried to force myself to keep a straight face, but I failed. I laughed at him fondly, his words touching my heart.
"Aye sir," I said. He laughed. I believed his laugh. He held me tighter. I did the same—both of us smiling widely.
After a few seconds of dancing quietly, both of us still smiling like idiots, Sting suddenly spun me around like what Loke did and mouthed me, "Happy birthday." I then found myself in Rogue's arms. He had a small smile on his face, which made me smile back.
"Happy birthday, Lucy," he said as we both swayed to the slow love song. I laughed and nodded.
"Thanks for the performance," I told him.
He smiled, "No problem, it's your day after all," he said. I felt warm once again and laughed. He chuckled. "If you need to tell me anything, just tell me. I'm always here." He then spun me around once again after he kissed my hand—which was kinda embarrassing. But I flushed nevertheless. I felt wobbly after he spun me around.
"Hi'ya, Luce!" All I saw at first was a blur, but then my eyes adjusted for a moment, and revealed Natsu grinning at me as he caught me in his arms. I hazily blinked as he laced his hands around my waist, like Sting, and clasped his hands behind my back. It took me a few seconds before I wrapped my arms around his neck. "Did you like our gift?" he asked me cheerily.
I laughed as I looked up at him. "It was amazing, Natsu. When did you come up with it?" I asked him.
"That's a secret, Luce," he childishly told me. I laughed, nodding. "But avoiding you was worth it." he said, grinning.
I pouted at him. Was that their reason? They avoided me in school for two whole weeks without me knowing. I admit that I cried, thinking that they got mad at me or something, then it was all for the party. I should've known, it was Natsu anyway. "I can't believe you avoided me for that!" I exclaimed, pinching his neck, making him wince. But even though, he was right—it was worth it.
"Hey—ouch!" he said after I pinched him. He removed his hand from my waist and pinched my hands behind his neck. This time, I winced. He just grinned evilly at me. After a few seconds, we both found ourselves in a laughing fit. "But really, you should've seen your face when I glared at you, Luce!" he laughed.
"Hey! That's not funny at all," I scolded him, but he just continued laughing. I felt myself blushing more and more by the second.
Melodious and somewhat passionate high-pitched playing of the piano resounded through my ears, causing me to blink at Natsu, who had a sly smile on his face. I looked around, slowly letting go of my grasp from Natsu's neck and planting them on my each side. The crowd started whispering—in confusion, curiosity, and… joy. They all went to the front—where Natsu and the boys sang awhile ago. I swallowed a lump in my throat and looked at Natsu once again, making sure that I looked bewildered enough for him to notice.
"It's her hair and her eyes today," someone suddenly sang, voice harmonious with the piano, causing my heart to flutter unknowingly. "That just simply take me away." I tried to keep my breathing slow and my heartbeat slower, but it seems that I couldn't stop it. I looked around once again. Everyone was at front, watching whoever it was who sang, calmly, sweetly.
"C'mon, Luce! I wanna know who's singing that!" Natsu exclaimed, and dragged me to the front with a grin. In every footstep, in every click of my heel, I felt like I wanted to collapse. I felt like I wanted to tear up. I didn't know why. My heart was beating at an extraordinary rate as Natsu and I were nearing the front. We squeezed through the four layers of bodies, saying our excuses and just simply sliding through two bodies. I bit my lip and scanned the whole place once again—they all looked as if they were seeing a celebrity, eyes filled with amazement and astonishment for him. And it made me wonder more who he was.
We made our way to the front, finally.
"'Cause I love her with all that I am,"
No.
"And my voice shakes along with my hands,"
I can't believe it.
"'Cause she's all that I see and she's all that I need, and I'm out of my league once again."
I stood there staggered, slack-jawed, confused as I watched him open his eyes once again, his gaze staring beyond me. I once again turned to Natsu, my heart beating faster. My eyes stung, brimming with tears. My throat squeezed as if it didn't want any air to pass through anymore. My chest ached in longing, realization. He only gave me a reassuring grin as he gently pushed me forward, my legs shaking and my feet numb. My mind shut down, and I felt knowledge-less. Covering my face with my hands was the first thing that popped into my mind—and was my only solution for now. So I did.
Natsu's hands disappeared from my shoulders, and I felt as if I were alone in a world of darkness, which was covered by my hand. Tears ran down my closed eyes and met the palm of my hands, causing my cheeks to also be wet. I stopped my mouth from opening wider. My lips involuntarily stretched into a stressed frown. I felt my shoulders shake. I sniffed. The thought of the hundreds of people standing behind me left, and what remained were his voice, the sound of the piano, and the feeling of not knowing what to do next. It was like a strategy game, and I was stuck in a level I didn't know how to pass.
"And I feel like I'm falling but it's no surprise," his voice was nearing me. I felt it. But I didn't move. I had no tears to let out anymore, yet I was still standing there, hands still covering my face. I bit my lower lip. Breathe in, breathe out. Breathe in, breathe out.
I felt hands on mine. Warm ones, and it melted away the coldness of mine. Slowly, my hands became warmer and warmer, and were being removed from my tear-stained face. "'Cause I love you will all that I am," he sang, my hands completely removed from my face, but I kept my eyes tightly shut. My hands were still in his, and the fact that they were sweating caused my cheeks to become warm. The butterflies returned, and I could feel that they recruited new ones, for I felt sicker—but in a good way, strangely. My chest stung in an exciting way. My head felt light. "And my voice shakes along with my hands," He continued singing, his voice as strong as the sound of the piano. "'Cause it's frightening to be swimming in this strange sea," I felt my lips twitch upward. I knew he meant the crowd. "But I'd rather be here than on land."
He inhaled, and I sensed longing. "Yes, she's all that I see and she's all that I need, and I'm out of my league once again."
The sound of the melodious playing of the piano remained. I still had my eyes closed. But hearing that he didn't sing anymore caused me to gallantly open my eyes, slowly, in anticipation. Everything was a blur for a moment, colors mixing, lights in an array of colorful blurry dots, but I knew he wasn't in front of me anymore. "It's her hair and her eyes today," I jumped in shock and instantly turned around to find him standing there, smiling at me. Finally, I had the courage to smile back, but my eyebrows were slightly narrowed rather nervously. "That just simply take me away. And the feeling that I'm falling further in love makes me shiver, but in a good way."
"All the times I have sat and stared, as she thoughtfully thumbs through her hair, and she purses her lips, bats her eyes as she plays with me sitting there slack-jawed and nothing to say," he closes his eyes as he slightly raised his head, eyebrows furrowed and the microphone pressed against his lips. "'Cause I love her with all that I am," he opens his eyes slightly, gently grabs my bundle of hair and runs his palm through it. He closed his eyes again. I bit my lip and stared at the ground, my face hot. "And my voice shakes along with my hands." He sang in a high tune, the piano in the background playing the still sweet melody.
"And it's frightening to be swimming in this strange sea but I'd rather be here than on land." He breathes in, tilts his head slightly even more upwards. "Yes, you're all that I see and you're all that I need, and I'm out of my league once again."
The sound of the piano remained, and it played a tune burning with passion and love. He slowly opened his eyes and directly, he gazed into mine. "Happy birthday, Lucy," he said into the microphone. The crowd clapped aloud, accompanied by cheers and hoots by my friends and relatives. My vision became blurry and I knew that I was about to cry again. My lips once again stretched as I brought my hands to my eyes and tried to rub my tears off. "Why're you crying?" he asked, and I flushed.
Nonetheless, I answered: "Because you're here," in a shaky voice, my hands over my face once again as I sniffled and let out sobs.
He chuckled. By now, everybody returned to their original business, leaving us at front. "Why? Don't you want me to be here?" he asked me, and I knew he was smiling. I didn't answer him, and once again hid my face from him. I felt a hand on the small of my back, pushing me towards a warm wall, which was heaving up and down as slowly. He was hugging me. And I didn't struggle. I breathed with him. "I'm like a thief on a warm night, Lucy," he said, calmly, seriously. "I creep into your house silently, my footsteps as swift as the wind and as light as a feather, take anything and everything I catch at first glimpse, and leave the house within a fraction of a second," he let his words hang in the air for a moment, "oblivious of the shock which later on turns to grief of the person in the house, stolen things in hand."
We were both silent. I still had my face buried in his chest.
"I'm a thief who steals feelings and emotions rather than material things, Lucy," he said. "And I strongly believe that it was your house I crept in."
I finally had the courage to look up to his face. "It was. And you should've let me know that you were coming in my house to steal everything I have with me." Otherwise you couldn't have left me in shock, which later turned to grief at the realization that a thief broke into me.
He broke into a goofy smile. "Thieves don't do that, Lucy Heartfilia."
"But a Gray Fullbuster can." I countered.
His smile grew wider, and his eyes droopier. "This is exactly why I came back," he said.
I raised a brow. "Why? So you could steal everything from me again?"
He shook his head no, the goofy smile still on his face. "Close enough," he said. He looked at me, and I could see his eyes crinkling. "I came back so I could steal a Lucy Heartfilia," My lips tugged into a smile, then a grin. My face felt warm as I stared into his eyes. He broke the eye contact and stared at the ceiling, his head slightly tilted upwards. "You see, Lucy, boys are astronomers and girls are the stars. We, the astronomers, always tend to look up the sky and search for a really captivating star," he explained, looking at the ceiling as if it's covered with stars. "And when we do, we study that star—why it's so beautiful, what's so captivating about that star. Everything. We study everything about that one star.
"And I happen to find myself a Lucy Heartfilia, and thought, 'wow, how couldn't they notice a star as bright as her?' Then that was the moment we both started talking, and I know from then that I always wanted you around," he smiled at me as he faced me. I grinned. "And then I took back what I said," he said, his smile soft, "because I got myself a star named Lucy Heartfilia, and I don't want anyone to take her away from me." He paused for another moment as I flushed more and more, yet still grinning at him. "Because I'm in love with her." he quietly said, and all I could do was stare at him in shock.
"Gray,"
The only sound I heard was his and my breathing, and my own heartbeat. "I'm in love with you," he suddenly and quietly said. He was staring at me, and up this close, I could see the corners of his eyes crinkling. "If you think that what I admitted is a laughing matter—it's not. I'm in love with you, and though I meant to shout it into the microphone, and out into the world, I wanted it to be a secret between us instead. Growing old, toothless, and slowly dying is inevitable, and there will come a time that technology will be even more modernized and robots and flying cars would exist, and I know Science is true and that the world is meant to disappear into nothingness one day, but nothing will be truer than my love for you, Lucy Heartfilia."
"Gray," I said, not really knowing what to say. I'm still incapable of building random syllables in my head to create words for the boy in front of me.
He grinned. "Let me rephrase it for you, Lucy," he said. He still hadn't removed his eyes from mine, and as if time had fast forwarded, his lips clashed with mine. His eyes were shut closed, and mine were still slowly closing.
After two years, I'm finally out of my league once again.
A/N: I deeply apologize for the corny moments here in this story, for I just couldn't think of any cute, squeal-worthy and bone-melting sentences from the boys, lol. :( I based the last part (Gray's confession) from Augustus Waters's confession, but revised it a tad bit. I hope that's what you found cute, lol. Anyway, think of this as a make-up gift for being absent in updating Young Love-if you were actually looking forward for the next chapter.
Also, this is dedicated to the July celebrants present here on FFN and all over the anime and real-life world! :) HAPPY BIRTHDAY!
I hope you enjoyed this corny one-shot and I CANNOT WAIT FOR GRALU WEEK! It's this September 1-7, so GraLu fans, be prepared! :D
Link to my blog (currently not updated yet, and be a member, too!):
www . fianan-gleoite . blogspot . com
Ask me here:
www . ask . fm / caelalee
Please read and support my other FT fanfics: A Wait Longer Than Eternity, But You're Not Here Anymore, and Young Love!
Please also give this a shot: Secrecy! Thank you!