A/N: I've been depressed lately so this happened. If you want it to be multi-chapter, tell me in the reviews.
Disclaimer: I do not own Fairy Tail nor it's characters. If I did, Lucy, Laxus, Gray and Loke would make a very confused love triangle - er, square.
Ever fiber of her being was shrouded in misery and depression. She was a mess; clothes dirty, hair unbrushed, red eyes shadowed from the the sleepless nights spent crying. Her once warm and lively chocolate brown orbs were dark and lifeless, glazed over as she sat huddled on her bed. Her typically neat house was dark, the lights off and blinds drawn.
It had been three weeks since she returned from Tenrou Island and found that her father had died but a month before. Even though their past had been rocky, she had finally begun to build a good relationship with her father. Granted, it was unstable, but his death had struck a mightier blow than she had let on. When Natsu and Happy had yelled at the two girls that were going off about how awful their fathers were, she hadn't shown her true feelings then. The words she had heard then just rubbed salt into the wounds his death had made. After she got home and cried over her father's presents, she had taken a shower and changed into clothes suitable for bed; white cotton pajamas with pink flower embroidery. She hadn't changed or even showered once since then, and it was obvious. She couldn't help it. She was so depressed that the first week after her return, she considered suicide. She had the small dagger Erza had convinced her to have, but she just couldn't steel herself to do it.
Every once in a while, Virgo would pop out to care for the girl, giving her enough food that she wouldn't suffer starvation. Contrary to what the Spirit wanted, the girl remained unresponsive the entire time.
She knew her friends were probably worried, but if they were, wouldn't they have come to check on her by now? Oh well; if they cared they would come by sometime. What she didn't expect, was a certain Dragon Slayer to come knocking down her door.
At the guild, everything was what could be considered normal. Natsu and Gray fighting, Erza eating her cake and going on a rampage when one of the typical brawlers destroyed it, Mira and Lisanna going around and serving different people, Happy trying (and failing) to woo Charle with a fish, and Levy in her corner reading a book as Jet and Droy fawned over her.
Lately, Lisanna had been going on more and more of Team Natsu's jobs with them. It had started as a simple 'Hey Natsu, can I go on a job with you guys?' but it slowly escalated into every job they went on. To a certain someone, it seemed as if Lisanna was steadily replacing Lucy, but the thought didn't seem to run through anyone else's head. Finally fed up with the lack of attention Lucy seemed to be getting, Laxus stood and strode out of the guild, leaving a stunned Rajinshuu behind him.
"Laxus? Laxus, where are you going?" Fried called after him.
"Somewhere. And don't even think of following me," Laxus called over his shoulder. Fried silenced immediately.
It had unnerved him. He knew he had feelings for Fairy Tail's Stellar Spirit mage, but he didn't know exactly why. She was pretty, yes, but he didn't know much about her. He just knew that she was known to care for her Spirits and they in turn cared for her, but that was all.
After the first week she was absent from the guild, Laxus found himself scanning the area for her familiar hair. Each day, he was disappointed. he had even stopped taking jobs just so he could keep an eye out for her. It particularly pissed him off that the girl's own teammates didn't notice her absence. So, he decided to take Lucy's welfare upon himself and check on her.
It was only when he was a good distance away from the guild that he realized he had no clue where Lucy lived. Frowning deeply, he scented the air around him to see if he could find and trace of her lavender and vanilla scent. His eyes then widened as he found he was right in front of her house. He walked up to the door and knocked twice; two sharp raps on the wooden door. Concerned by the silence on the other side, he raised one foot and kicked down the door, which caused a cloud of dust to rise up.
Afraid Lucy had done something reckless, like suicide, Laxus made his way though the house looking for the girl. He then came to her bedroom and visibly relaxed as he saw her there, curled up on the bedsheets. Her eyes were open and staring, but he could see the faint rise and fall of her ribcage as she breathed. Uncaring of her messy appearance, Laxus strode over to the bed and gather her in his string arms, crushing her against his muscular chest. It took a minute for her to register his presence.
"Laxus?" she rasped, voice hoarse from lack of use.
Remaining silent, the man just released her from his vice-like grip and placed her back on the bed. Examining her, he murmured, "You look awful. Go take a shower."
Lucy turned questioning eyes on him and he looked away, unable to meet them. "Just do it," he muttered, stomping towards the kitchen to make some food. Still uncertain, Lucy got up from the bed and staggered toward the bathroom, her legs regaining the blood they had lost from her weeks without moving. She locked herself in the small room, turning on the shower and putting it at scalding hot. She let the water heat up as she took off her clothes and climbed in. Her tense muscles relaxed under the steamy spray. She stood for a few minutes before scrubbing her scalp with shampoo and her body with soap. The water rinsed it away and she stepped out, wrapping a fluffy blue towel around her body.
She walked in her room and rooted through her dresser, searching for clothes to wear. She settled for knee-length black shorts and a white tanktop that had a small, heart-shaped pocket on the left breast. She walked out of her room, sleepily rubbing her eyes as she looked for Laxus. She found him sitting at the table, a plate of bacon in front of the chair across him.
Laxus's eyes never left her as she made her way to sit across from him. As she sat down, she returned his gaze, a thousand questions burning in her eyes and making him glad that she looked more like herself, even if her hair was wet. "Eat," he gruffly ordered, and she obliged, if somewhat hesitantly. When she was finished, she licked her lips nervously.
"Why...?" she quietly started, only to trail off as Laxus shook his head.
"You haven't been to the guild in three weeks and nobody in the guild has even shown signs of knowing that fact." Laxus crossed his arms and looked at her expectantly, only to be disappointed as Lucy looked down and stayed silent. "Why have you even been holed up in here?" he asked, a bit gentler this time.
At this, Lucy felt a fresh wave of tears coming along. As they spilled over her cheeks, Laxus began to stammer, "W-wait! D-don't cry! Why are you crying?" which only made Lucy cry harder as she brought her hands to her face. Resorting to a last-ditch attempt to calm her down, he stood and scooped her up in his arms again, made his way to the couch and plopped down, making Lucy sit on his lap. "Quit crying," he said gently, pushing a strand of her wet hair behind her ear. His warm breath tickled the appendage, sending pleasant shivers down her spine. Her sobs stopped, to be replaced by soft and irregular sniffles. "Now can you tell me why you were crying?"
Fighting away a fresh set of tears, Lucy mumbled, "My father is dead." All Laxus could catch was 'father' and 'dead'. He frowned beginning to rub soothing circles into her back. He wasn't the best at soothing people, but he had gotten the gist of it from the books he read (yes people, the great and almighty Laxus reads). She steadily calmed down and relaxed as she turned her eyes to face him.
"You said nobody in the guild even realized I was gone. So why did you?" she asked, a devious glint forming in her eyes.
Laxus returned the look completely and adequately. "This is why," he murmured, raising a rough, calloused hand to hold her chin in place as he softly brushed his lips against her's. When he pulled back to look at her face, her eyes were wide and her mouth slightly open, eliciting a small chuckle from the man.
"How about we go to the guild now?" he questioned into her ear softly. She shuddered with pleasure and nodded, unable to form words.
As the two walked toward the guild, she discreetly walked closer to him and with a small smile, he twined his fingers with her's.
A/N: Okay, I love this story too much to be one chapter, so I will do a couple more. So, review and tell me what you think!