As soon as I got back to my dorm I dropped my bag on my desk and booted up my laptop. As I waited for it to load, I checked my phone to see if any of my friends had texted me. My screensaver stared up at me announcing the lack of mail.
The sound of my laptop finally coming to life brings my attention back to my main focus. I type in my password and immediately log onto my email, scanning through the multitude of spam emails until I find the one that makes my heart jump.
I click on it and tap my foot as I read the short email. The words on the screen make me squeal with joy and jump up from my seat.
'Miss Lucy Heartfilia,
After close analysis of your entry, and numerous editors reading it thoroughly, we are glad to say that we would love to publish your novel. Please contact Mr. Dreyar immediately to set an appointment to draw up a contract and assign you to a permanent editor.
Thank you for your time,
Mavis Vermillion'
I re-read the email five more times before my phone rings. A nightcore song blares from the small speakers as I pick it up and answer the call without looking away from the computer.
"Hello?" I say, not having looked at the caller.
"Lucy, what's up?" Erza Scarlet asks as her voice drifts through my phone.
"Well, I just got some really exciting news!" I say, my voice's pitch skyrocketing.
"You finally got a boyfriend?!" a voice in the background calls. I roll my eyes and respond with a sour
"No, Cana, I didn't get a boyfriend. It's something even better!" I say with a small squeal accenting my words.
"You got laid?!" Her incredulous voice shouts, it's obvious she's taken Erza's phone at this point based on the volume of her words. I hear a gasp from Erza as she yanks the phone away from Cana.
"That is not an appropriate question, Cana!" a short pause. "But, did you?" I roll my eyes again before saying
"No. But my novel was picked up by a publishing company! They want to draw up a contract with me!" my voice getting progressively louder.
"Good job Lucy! That's an amazing accomplishment for a senior in college! I'm so proud!" Erza says. The warmth in my chest grows, happiness filling me even more.
"We have to celebrate! The Blue Pegasus frat is having a party tonight. Let's hit it." Cana calls. Erza hums in agreement.
"Um, I hate to be the party pooper for my own party, but Cana you aren't supposed to be around booze right now. Remember what GIldarts said?"
"I'm twenty-one, for God's sake. I'm allowed to drink as much as I want as long as I don't try to operate heavy machinery!" She exclaims. I sweatdrop and say
"Yeah, but Gildarts is campus security, and if he even catches wind that you're at a party, not only will he shut it down, he'll put you back on probation." Cana groans, but folds.
"Fine, you guys will have to go without me tonight. But tomorrow you'll take us out to dinner, Ms. Author." She laughs.
"Deal."
"So, Lucy, when do you want to head over?" Erza asks, a quiet shuffling in the background as she moves to look in her closet. I look at my own wardrobe and say
"Wanna meet in the quad in twenty minutes?"
"See you there." She ends the call and I start to work. I open the doors to my closet and survey my options.
After close examination, I choose a pair of black tights to go under a short black dress. As I pull on the dress I realize that it's much shorter than I originally thought, and that it shows off quite a bit more cleavage than I anticipated. I shrug to myself as I search for shoes. I opt for a pair of open toe, heeled boots. I walk into the bathroom and run a brush through my hair, then put on a thin line of eyeliner along with some mascara. I nod to myself and walk back out to grab my phone.
I notice the number of the publishing company at the bottom of my email, and I type the numbers into my phone. Butterflies go crazy in my stomach as the phone rings, and finally someone picks up.
"Hello, Fairy Tail publishing, Mirajane on the phone. How can I help you?" A bright, kind voice says.
"Hello. My name's Lucy Heartfilia and I've called to set an appointment with Mr. Dreyar." I say, recalling the name of the man I had originally met with to introduce my novel.
"Ms. Lucy! I've been expecting your call. How is tomorrow evening at 6 for you?" She asks. I nod for a moment until I blush, realizing she can't see me.
"That sound perfect." I say, excitement bubbling over in my voice. A tinkling laugh comes over the line as Mirajane says
"Alright Ms. Lucy. We'll see you then." The line goes dead, but I'm too over the moon to notice. I squeal and wrap my arms around myself while I dance around. I check the clock and see that I have five minutes to meet Erza in the quad. I grab my dorm key and leave a short note for my roommate, knowing that Lissana would worry if I didn't tell her where I was going. I also invited her out to dinner tomorrow, knowing I might not see her before then.
I rush out of the room and down to the quad. It only takes me a moment to spot the bright spot of red hair standing next to a tree. As I get closer I take in Erza's outfit.
She's wearing black skinny jeans with a black corset-esque top, which shows off a bit of her flat stomach and her chest. Her strapped heel boots catch my attention as I reach her. I give her a quick hug before asking
"Hey, aren't those mine?" I point to the shoes. Erza looks at me with an apologetic smile.
"Maybe." She says with a sweet smile. I roll my eyes playfully and link arms with her.
"Ready to have some fun?" I ask as we walk. Erza nods and we continue on in silence. When we reach the frat house, the party is already in full swing. Which makes sense as it's already 9:30 on a friday. We walk up the crowded steps and straight through the open front door. We're immediately swept up in the craziness, and almost get separated. We unlink arms and agree to meet up outside if we get lost.
We stop and talk to a few people we recognize for a while before the hosts of the party bear down on us.
"Lookie here. It's Erza and Lucy." one of them says as they drape their arms across our shoulders.
"Hey guys. How's it going?" Erza asks politely. They all three shrug and Hibike says
"Pretty good. But what are you two doing here. I thought parties weren't your thing."
"Have we managed to convince you otherwise?" Ren says, his voice flirtatious. I shrug his arm off and say
"Nope, we just have a reason to celebrate." Erza follows suit and steps a bit closer to me.
"We're just here to listen to some music and socialize. No need to disappoint your other guests." She says as she casts a glance at a couple of cute girls that just entered. Eve looks at the girls and politely excuses himself to go greet them.
Hibike wraps his arm around my waist and turns me to walk towards the drink table. "See anything you like?" he asks, glint in his eyes. I notice Erza following behind us with Ren at her side from the corner of my eye.
"I'm good. But thanks for the offer." I say, trying to escape his grasp. A practiced pout adorns his face as he says in a fake whine
"Aren't you going to participate in any of the party activities?" I see Erza trying to back out of her conversation with Ren and a devious idea comes into my head.
"Why, of course. Me and Erza would just love to do some Karaoke." I say, looking over at the machine that a tall, black-haired boy was currently scatting into. His voice made me flinch a little bit, but I kept my smile as I turned towards Erza. She furrows her brow but nods, going along.
"I've always wanted to sing in front of a group of drunk college students." She mutters. Hibike lights up and leads us over to the machine. As soon as the black-haired guy is done, he hands me and Erza some mics.
"Song selection is connected to the internet, so pick any song you want. I mean, you can even dedicate it to someone if you want." He says with a wink. I roll my eyes as he walks away and whisper to Erza
"Take a hint, you lead." She nods as a serious look dawns her face.
"I shall be the greatest performer here." She says. I chuckle and select the song. The beat starts and I see Hibike, Ren, Eve, and a group of other people watching us. Most of them have either beer or soda in their hands, so I'm not too surprised.
The moment for Erza to start singing comes and she's silent. I look and see her frozen in front of everyone. I sigh and wait for the beat to repeat.
"Why am I always hit on by the boys I never like? I can always see them coming from the left and from the right." I sing, hoping Erza will take the cue.
She does, and from that moment on we go through the song smoothly. We do indeed put on a show, much to the crowd's enjoyment. We circle around Hibike and Ren while singing certain parts of it, and catch Eve laughing at their expressions.
After the song ends, I'm laughing so hard I lean a bit on Erza. The two boys walk up to us with sheepish grins. We simply smile at them and give a nod of recognition.
"Alright, I think that's more than enough party for me tonight." Erza says. I nod with a small laugh at her still slightly blue face. We step outside and Erza wraps one arm around my shoulder.
"I really am proud of you. You're an amazing writer, and soon more people will know." I smile brightly, but then say
"Do you think Cana will be pissed that we went to a party without her and didn't bring her any booze?"
"I'm so not risking Gildarts finding out." Erza says.
I stand from the semi-comfortable chairs in the waiting room as Mirajane calls my name. Her bright smile and shockingly white hair hair fit her voice, and remind me of my roommate. I smile at her as she ushers me into the meeting room.
Laxus Dreyar sits behind his desk, a short bluenette standing beside it. He stands to shake my hand and starts speaking.
"Hello Ms. Heartfillia. This is Levy McGarden, your future editor. I'm sure you two will love working together. Now, about your contract-"
"You're the girl from the party!" The bluenette, Levy, shouts. I look to see her pointing at me with wide eyes and a smile on her face. Laxus looks at her in confusion.
"What party?" He asks. I feel a blush creeping up my neck and onto my cheeks.
"This girl and her friend were at this college party my boyfriend dragged me to last night!
They went up and sang right after he did! They totally told off the hosts that kept flirting with everyone!" She cries. Laxus looks to me with a raised brow.
"Impressive, Ms. Heartfilia. I had no idea you were also a singer. Maybe you and your friend could join Mirajane at the weekend karaoke parties."
Levy laughs and casts me an amazingly bright smile.
I can tell that I'm really gonna love working here.