Anyone He Wants
For the longest time, Lucy Heartfilia was sure there was nothing she would change about her life. Yet, when her last hope for love fails her, Lucy finds the answer to her dilemma might just lie with her playboy roommate and best friend, Natsu Dragneel: the man who can get any woman he wants. But why doesn't he want her?
Chapter 1:
She Wouldn't Change a Thing
"Alright, that's a wrap for today. Great job, Lucy!" Robert, editor of Sorcerer's Weekly, and Lucy's boss, called from the table where he watches the shoot.
"Amazing job, Lucy! You were so cooool!" The photographer screamed as he removed the camera from around his neck.
"Thanks Jason. I hope those shots turn out well!" She gave the slightly-older man a thumbs up before grabbing a moist towel to wipe off some of the oil they used to give her body that shiny glow.
Lucy loved how amazing she looked in bikini shots, enjoying the way the spotlights reflected in her long blonde hair and gave her chocolate brown eyes a golden glow. Bikinis always managed to do justice to her long, creamy legs, her flat stomach, and her large breasts. When she saw those photos lining magazine racks, she couldn't help but gage the reactions of the men who wanted to sleep with her and the women who wanted to be her. Just thinking about it boosted her confidence.
The blonde covered herself with a robe before making her way through the studio to her dressing room. When she was younger, the shy english nerd who was Lucy Heartfilia would never believe she would turn out as a model for Sorcerer's Weekly. Younger Lucy longed to be that beautiful, but could never imagine putting herself on display in such a fashion. In her high school years, Lucy would rather stay in, read a good book or write her own stories than go out and flaunt her body. Honestly, those things never changed. She was still an english nerd, or rather, an english major at Fairy Tail University. She loved literature and wished she could share her own stories with the world; but, if someone wanted to pay her for looking hot, who was she to say no? This was just one of the many reasons Lucy loved her life.
As Lucy turned to the hall that held her dressing room, she spotted two of the other reasons waiting by her door.
"Hey Natsu, Gray. I just need to shower real quick, then we can head to dinner."
"Sounds good, Lucy." Gray answered, not bothering to look up from his phone.
"Hurry up, Luce. I'm starvin'." Natsu blurted, earning a punch in the face from the other male.
Lucy had known these two practically all her life. They had met in middle school, quickly becoming friends, and the trio hasn't been separated since. Gray was tall with pale skin, ink black hair, and dark blue eyes. On the other hand, Natsu had a sun-kissed complexion with unruly pink locks and eyes a deep onyx reminiscent of a fire's last burning embers. Where Gray was cool and icy, Natsu was warm and colorful. One thing was for sure, both boys were toned like gods and damn hot.
The three of them were seniors this year at FTU, and thanked their lucky stars they had all managed to stay together this long. These two idiots were Lucy's best friends and she wouldn't change a thing about them. Sure, Gray had some weird stripping habit and Natsu was the biggest womanizer on campus, but it all made being with them that much more fun. Moving in with Natsu at the start of college was one decision she had been sure she would regret, but it turned out to be just the opposite. She wouldn't change a thing.
Lucy rolled her eyes as she shut her dressing room door behind her, searching for a shower cap before entering the bathroom to rinse off the rest of the oil. Once she patted herself dry the blonde dressed in one of her favorite outfits: black combat boots, black knee-length socks, light pink mini-skirt, plain black tee, and a black jacket. She combed through her straight hair before dressing it up with a light pink bow, and made her way out the door.
Locking up behind her, Lucy turned around to find one of her dates was missing. Her lips turned down at the edges as she asked, "Where's Natsu?"
She and Gray started towards the building's exit as he answered, "A girl walked by, so of course that flame-brained idiot went running after her." The duo rolled their eyes at the pinkette's predictability. "There he is." Gray pointed over to the desk where the magazine's newest intern sat, laughing at what one could only guess was a lame joke Natsu just told her. The girl smiled as she wrote something down on a piece of paper and handed it to him. The pinkette grinned.
That grin was wiped off his face as he felt something pinch his earlobe, and soon enough he was being dragged away from the intern's desk. "What the fuck are you doing?" He protested, earning his ear back as he continued to follow the blonde who harassed him so.
"You told me to hurry up, and then you run off and find some chick to fuck?" Lucy didn't bother looking at him as she replied. This kind of behavior from Natsu was no longer surprising. "Besides, you already got her number, Dragneel. That's all you were after for today."
"You could have at least given me some dignity. Pinching my ear, really?"
Lucy just smirked. Truthfully, the playboy her friend had become after entering college was a never-ending source of entertainment to her. The blonde linked arms with her two best guys as they continued to walk down the street towards... where?
"So where are we headed tonight, boys?"
"Fire Dick over there said he's in the mood for Chinese, so we were thinking of heading to the buffet. Juvia is gonna meet us there." Gray supplied.
"Speaking of, did you finally hit that, Gray?" Lucy elbowed her friend and sent him a suggestive look. However, he maintained his straightlaced demeanor.
"Yup." He answered nonchalantly.
The blonde stopped in her tracks, causing the boys to jolt back. She unlinked herself and turned her attention to Gray, grabbing him by the shoulders. "Are you serious!? When? Give me details!"
Gray shrugged. "Not much to tell."
Natsu started cracking up. "Oh man, I swear I don't think I would ever wait a year just to sleep with a girl." He wiped a tear from his eyes. "But I guess I'm just not asexual like you, Stipper."
Natsu could push Gray's button's better than anyone. "Shut up, Flame Balls, not all men are fucking douche bags like you. I'm actually dating this girl." Lucy was now standing to the side, watching her best friends clutch each other's collars.
"Enough, guys. Let's go eat. Juvia is probably waiting." Lucy pulled them apart and continued their arm-linking.
"Besides," Natsu began, "The real question here is if Lucy's fucked her new guy yet."
The blonde's face burned red as she struggled to keep her body moving forward.
"Lucy, you're dating someone!?" Gray was shocked. It had been about a year now since Lucy had been out with a guy. "Time for you to spill details."
"Not much to tell." Lucy retorted with a smirk, causing Gray to scoff.
"His name is Hibiki Lates." Natsu blabbed. "He just transferred here from Blue Pegasus University."
"BPU, huh? I heard those guys really know how to treat a lady. Congrats, Lucy." Gray spoke.
"T-thanks," Lucy stuttered, still embarrassed. "It's nice to get all dressed up and go out on dates again."
"I'll never understand it," Gray started, "You're a pin-up model for one of the most popular magazines in the country, and yet somehow you still have a hard time getting dates. Oh, we're here." Gray slipped his arm from Lucy's as he opened the door to the Chinese buffet and made his way inside to find his girlfriend, leaving Natsu and Lucy behind.
Lucy stood still, staring blankly into space as Gray's words echoed in her ears. She was so preoccupied trying to prove him wrong that she almost missed Natsu calling her name over and over.
"Hello? Lucy Heartfilia? Anyone home?" Natsu finally stopped when brown eyes landed on his own. "Are you okay, Luce?" The typically Happy-Go-Lucky boy looked at her with a concerned expression.
Lucy's eyes wandered to the ground before meeting his again. "Yeah." She answered, forcing a smile on her lips. "I'm all good." The blonde took this moment to open the door to the restaurant and head inside.
Her pink-haired roommate watched her make her way over to the table where Gray and Juvia sat, happily starting conversation with that same smile pasted on her lips.
A large hand ran through pink locks as the student sighed. "Oh, Luce," He muttered as he pulled open the heavy glass door.
The next morning, Lucy sat on the couch in her apartment. She was still dressed in her white and black, star-printed pyjamas, drinking her coffee and doing the crossword from the morning paper. On the table in front of her sat an empty plate sporting nothing but left behind crumbles of the pancakes and bacon she had made for breakfast on this fine Saturday morning. On the table in the kitchen sat enough bacon and pancakes to feed a small army.
Lucy loved Saturdays like this. Outside she could see the fall leaves brilliant colors as they swam around in the wind. Everything was quiet. Everyone slept in and there was nothing to distract her mind from all the ideas roaming in her head. This is when she loved to read, write, or do the crossword as she is now. It was a simple pleasure, but she enjoyed it all the same. On Saturday mornings she was not Lucy Heartfilia: the college student, Lucy Heartfilia: the bikini model, or even Lucy Heartfilia: the daughter of the wealthy business owner. She was just Lucy, and when her roommate woke up, she would be Luce.
Her peaceful silence was broken as the floorboards of Natsu's room began to creak. Ah, yes, another part of Lucy's Saturday routine. She only hopes the pancakes are still warm. The click of his bedroom door sounded, followed by the pitter patter of footsteps coming down the hall. It was clear the tiptoes were trying to be quiet, but one could hear if they were listening for it. Lucy knew it was only a matter of seconds now. Three...
Two...
One...
And...
"Oh, hello." Blast off.
Lucy lifted her head to look at the woman standing at the end of the hallway. She was around Lucy's age, thin, dressed in wrinkled, semi-professional wear. By her short, brown hair, Lucy recognized her as the intern from Sorcerer that Natsu had been flirting with the day before.
"Hello!" Lucy offered her chipper greeting with a small wave.
"Shit, his roommate really is Lucy Heartfilia." The intern's eyes widened in disbelief.
"You didn't see me yesterday when I dragged him away from you?" Lucy asked, getting up from the couch to give the woman a handshake.
"I saw a blonde, but I didn't believe him when he said it was you. I'm a huge fan!"
"Aw, thank you!" Lucy used her most bubbly persona when dealing with Natsu's conquests. "I made some breakfast if you're hungry. Pancakes and bacon." Lucy sang.
The intern looked at the food longingly before allowing herself to give in. "Would you mind?"
"Not at all!" Lucy smiled, taking a plate from the cupboard and filling it with breakfast food. "Would you like syrup? How about some orange juice?"
"Both of those sound nice, thank you." The intern watched a real-life model poured her a glass of orange juice, placing it next to her plate at the end of the kitchen's island.
"Have a seat." Lucy urged.
The intern did just that, still in shock that her date's female roommate turned out to be a model who made her breakfast. Lucy watched the woman eat, waiting for the right time to move on to phase two.
"So, what do you think about Natsu?"
The intern set her glass of OJ down, wiping her lip with a napkin before answering. "He's really charming. When he first started following me to my desk yesterday I was annoyed but that guy really knows how to talk to a woman. Not to mention, he is probably the hottest guy to ever ask me out."
"Yeah, he's a looker, ain't he?" Lucy responded with sarcastic thoughtfulness.
The intern took another bite of bacon before answering, "Oh god, yes. His body is just delicious. Not to mention how good he is in- You know, you're his roommate, you probably don't want to hear about that." The brunette was blushing bright red as she started working on her last pancake.
"Oh, don't worry. He likes to brag about that too much, if you ask me." The intern simply laughed at Lucy's statement.
The blonde took a look at her guest's plate determining if it was time to transition to phase three.
"So did he say he would call you?" Lucy inquired.
"Oh, I don't know." The intern flushed, trying to hide her smile at the thought of going out with Natsu again, "He didn't mention it, but I'm hoping so. I had a nice time with him."
"I'm sure he had a great time with you, too," Lucy smiled, continuing the conversation cheerfully, "But I really wouldn't get your hopes up."
The intern looked at Lucy to see if the blonde woman was joking, but frowned when no traces of jest were found.
"Natsu, he's not really the type of guy to date, if you know what I mean. He's got some major commitment issues. It's a shame, because I really enjoyed meeting you."
The intern was clearly upset. She placed her fork down, staring at her plate for a minute before working up the courage to look Lucy in the eyes again, "Maybe- Y-you could put in a good word for me?"
"I'll try, but Natsu's a real idiot. He doesn't like to listen to me."
The brunette woman sat up quickly, grabbing her shoes and her bag from the floor and racing out the front door before losing her composure. She reacted better than most.
When the door slammed shut, Lucy emptied the woman's plate into the garbage before yelling across the apartment, "Natsu! You can come out now, she left!"
Natsu's bedroom door flew open almost as soon as the words left her mouth, and out came the pinkette wearing nothing but socks and boxers.
"Haven't you ever heard of pyjamas, Dragneel?" Lucy questioned as she filled the plate in her hand with as much pancakes and bacon as would fit, slathering the whole surface in syrup. She rolled her eyes when warm arms encompassed her body from behind and hugged her tight.
"You are the greatest, Luce. What would I do without you?" The playboy nuzzled his nose against her neck, causing the blonde to sigh in annoyance before turning around abruptly.
"Probably starve for one thing," She answered, handing him his breakfast. "And for another, you would probably face the reality of all the girls you've rejected over the years."
Natsu ignored her and simply sat down on the same stool the intern had used, shoving fist-fulls of food into his mouth.
"You also probably would have been slapped more often. And there would be no one to save you when you choke on all that food you don't bother chewing. Seriously, Dragneel, learn some decency."
"Come on, Heartfilia, you've known me for like ten years, accept that this is who I am." Natsu replied by shoving another whole pancake in his mouth.
"You're an idiot." Lucy's face fell to her palm, head shaking in defeat.
"But I'm your idiot." Natsu answered playfully, launching himself at his roommate only to knock her to the ground and reward the girl with a syrup-y kiss on the cheek.
"If you were my idiot I'd have killed you by now." Lucy pushed the boy's face away, standing to dust herself off before turning towards the hallway. A snickering Natsu remained seated on the floor. "I gotta go get ready. Levy and I are going out today."
Supporting his weight on his palms, the pinkette watched as his roommate moved down the hall to her room. From behind him a small, blue cat trots into the kitchen, exploring the cause of the noise that woke him from his morning nap. Natsu lifted one hand to scratch the feline below the chin, coaxing the animal to purr against the man's body.
"Now what should you and I do today, Happy?"
"Me-ow?"
"Good idea, buddy."
Sitting just outside a peaceful cafe, Lucy stared out into the sparkling view of Magnolia's beach painted before her eyes. The soothing melody or a wave's crash plays in the distance, bringing with them a chill breeze. From her bench on the boardwalk, Lucy sits dressed in cute and comfortable fall wear, sipping a steamy latte to keep warm, and swapping gossip with her closest gal-pal. Levy McGarden had been shy and introverted before bumping into Lucy in the library on the first day of high school. The two immediately bonded over their shared love of reading, giving birth to a beautiful lifelong friendship neither girl would trade for the world.
Recently, the sweet and celibate little Levy had finally landed herself a boyfriend, but it's the last person one would ever expect.
"I gotta say, Lev," The blonde spoke, "I know you guys had been flirting for what feels like years, but I still can't believe you fell for Gajeel of all people."
As if painted by a fairy itself, a light pink dusting appeared on the other girl's cheeks. While Levy was barely five feet tall, flat chested with short blue hair that made her look like a real-life pixie, Gajeel was about 6'6" with a long, black mane and piercings on nearly every part of his body. Both were attractive in their own ways, but on paper they didn't seem like a match.
"You don't know him like I do, Lu. He may seem like a devil-may-care bad boy, but deep down he's a sweetheart- responsible, too." Levy buried her reddened face deeper in the orange scarf wrapped around her neck. "Enough about me, though. Tell me about Hibiki." The small, blue-haired girl sang each syllable of the blonde's beau's name as she teased her friend.
Lucy was caught mid-sip, shooting her friend a reluctant glance before speaking, "Things are going good. He's such a gentleman. You should see the menu prices at the restaurants he takes me to; my father would be proud." The blonde tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear before continuing. "I like him a lot. I thought all guys from BPU would be Natsu-level players, but Hibiki is a really smart guy."
Levy kept her eyes on the blonde, taking note of the yearning her marron irises held on the seafoam frothing in the distance and the way her voice seemed to lack that excited spark of newfound love.
"I couldn't land a guy here for a year and the first transfer student I meet scoops me right up and showers me with affection... It's perfect. He's perfect." Lucy ignored the lump in her throat as she spoke.
"Then how come it doesn't sound perfect, Lu?" Levy carefully placed a hand on her friend's shoulder, drawing her out of her trance.
"Gray mentioned something the other day," Lucy hesitated to allow the thoughts to leave her lips, afraid of the ramifications of their admittance, "He said he doesn't get why I have such a hard time dating as a model. Think about it, Levy. Hibiki is my first actual boyfriend in over a year. Even back when I was dating, I couldn't hold a guy longer than two months, tops. So if I have the looks, what's wrong with me?"
Lucy turned to look her best friend in the eye with a pained expression. Truth be told, she felt she knew the reason none of the blonde's past relationships had worked out. However, Levy also knew that Lucy wasn't quite ready to learn that answer just yet.
"Nothing is wrong with you, Lucy. None of that worked out simply because those guys weren't right for you." The brown-eyed woman simply offered an unbelieving sigh at her friends retort. "But..." Levy traded her resigned tone for a more optimistic one, "You said yourself this guy is perfect! It's been a few weeks already, so things are bound to be better this time."
"You better be right." The model went limp, allowing her head to rest in the lap of her best friend and stare up at the sky. "It's just not fair! I wanna meet my Gajeel."
The bluenette giggled, smiling into her coffee cup as she took another sip of her hot chocolate. The two women continued their girl-talk for about a while, relishing in the beautiful view and each other's company. Lucy felt lucky to have moments like this one, and to have friends like Levy who helped quell her curse of overthinking.
That evening Lucy and Natsu sat side-by-side in the living room of their apartment, papers littering the surface of the coffee table in front of them. Lucy was all primped up and ready for a date with Hibiki when Natsu asked if his roommate could help him look over a writing assignment. While the blonde excelled in the written arts, Natsu was more of a science guy, studying chemical engineering.
So far, the process was going as any of their other interactions.
"Why didn't you take composition during your first two years like a normal person, you idiot."
"Oh, look at me, I'm Lucy Heartfilia and I'm a genius." The pinkette mocked.
"And don't you forget it!" Lucy smirked as she reached for his laptop.
"Yeah, uh-huh. I remember a certain blondie who came crying to me last semester when she was failing chemistry."
Lucy reached for the pillow beside her, knocking it into the pinkette's smirking face. "I was not failing chemistry, you dope!"
Natsu had been her best friend for most of her life, yet the two never ceased to push each other's buttons. In this way, Lucy liked to think of the pinkette as the brother she never had. Natsu drove her nuts, but when it came down to it the two cared very deeply for one another. If you messed with Lucy, you were met with Natsu's horns. If you talked bad about the playboy, you earned yourself a nice stern talk from a certain blonde.
"Okay, Luce, remind me the difference between covalent and ionic bonds then." Natsu returned the pillow to the blonde's own face.
"My mind shredded that useless information, dork!" Lucy returned the blow with a full-force pillow to the gut.
"Hey! No one calls the sex-god Natsu Dragneel a dork!" He argued.
Lucy had once been afraid living with Natsu would be a nightmare, or awkward considering how often he entertained "visitors". Three years went by and those adjectives transformed into "comfortable" or, dare she say, "homey."
"What kind of sex-god stays in doing homework on Saturday nights!?" She threw back.
"I have a system, Luce. Fridays are for fucking, Saturdays are for studying and booty calls." Natsu punctuated each his description of each night with by smacking the blonde in the head with the pillow.
"You're messing up my hair, Natsu!" The female ran her hand through her locks to straighten them out before shoving her pink-haired roommate in the shoulder. "God, you're such a pig!"
He was a pig sometimes, yes. Yet, the blonde wasn't sure she would have him any other way.
Onyx eyes flashed with an evil glint as the male readied his finger for some tickling. "Oh, is the model afraid I'm gonna mess up her hair?"
"Stop! Natsu! You're gonna wrinkle my outfit." Lucy struggled to get her words out through her laughter, trying to push the pinkette away to no avail. "Stop!" The two were lost in the throes of their tickle war, paying no attention as they slid their way off the couch and onto the floor, the pinkette landing on top of the blonde and continuing his torment with no mercy. Neither of them heard the click of their apartment door opening and closing.
"Natsu! I swear to God, if you don't stop I'll send Erza for your head!"
"Hello?" Lucy's eyes shifted to greet the upside-down image of her boyfriend sporting a very confused look. She stared at his well-dressed form, grinning and giggling as she choked out a greeting. "Hibiki! Get him off me!"
"Hey dude, just giving your girlfriend some much needed tortu- ARGH!" Lucy took advantage of Natsu's distraction to send him a swift knee to the stomach. "I call foul play, Luce!"
"And I don't give a damn." Lucy pushed the pinkette off her body and stood up with grace, straightening out her outfit before walking over to give Hibiki a kiss to the cheek, smiling up at him. "Hey, babe. Ignore that loser. Let's get going!"
Lucy took the hand of her attractive, tall, brunette beau, leading him out the door. Hibiki took one last look at Natsu, studying the pinkette's proud grin before turning away. The brunette opted to wrap his arm around the woman, pulling her in for a kiss on the head. "Come on, baby. I have a nice night planned for us."
As the door closed behind them, the pinkette walked to the fridge to grab a beer before heading back to his table full of homework. He checked his phone, only to find it blowing up with texts from various women. Natsu untwisted the small metal cap of his beverage, taking a quick sip before holding in the power button on his device. Tossing the small object to the other side of the couch, Natsu took up his laptop once again.
A/N: I was reading too many Playboy!Natsu AU fics and this idea happened. I'm very excited to share this first chapter with all of you. Please review and let me know what you think; reviews inspire faster updates!