Disclaimer: Fairy Tail belongs to Hiro Mashima.
~The Starlight Carries the Message of Love~
XOXOX
"Yo, Lucy," Natsu reached out, tapping the girl's forearm. The girl immediately stiffened like a frightened cat. A surprisingly small chuckle escaped from his lips. Why did he always find it cute the way she froze up whenever he said her name?
"Yeah?" she asked, turning around quickly enough for her hair to jostle around like a sea of golden waves. He felt his chest tighten, slowly losing focus of what he wanted to say to her. "Natsu?"
His mind suddenly snapped back into focus. "I read your story that was in the school paper yesterday."
"Oh," she said with an uneasy tone, looking at him with glimmering brown eyes. "Did you like it?" Her eyes grew wide as she fished around for any sort of compliment, reminding Natsu of Happy when he begs for a treat.
"I—"
"Ahh I already know!" she gushed, waving her hand at him. "You thought it was amazing and probably want my autograph now, don't you?"
"Pshhh," he scoffed with a scowl, crossing his arms across his chest. "You wish."
"Now, now," the girl chastised, "no need to be bashful!" She moved closer to him, so close that her arm accidentally brushed his and for some reason, his stomach jolted at the contact. She clicked the back of her pen and turned to a blank page inside Natsu's notebook and scrawled out, "To Natsu, Love Lucy."
His eye twitched. Was she serious? Sweat began to drip on his forehead. And to top it off, she drew out a big swooping heart, making the boy blush about a billion shades of red.
"There you go!"
"Do you always have to be so weird?" he grumbled, rubbing the back of his neck, which felt oddly hot and sweaty underneath his scarf.
"Well I have to live up to that nickname you gave me," she answered rather dryly.
He laughed, giving her a wide grin as he patted her bony back. "And you're doing a great job at it!"
"Thanks…I think..." She flushed, shoving all her books into her bag in a rushed manner and once again, Natsu found it cute how she was a fumbling mess. She straightened up and flashed Natsu a bright smile, "Well see you tomorrow, Natsu. Bye!"
"See ya." He waved, watching her retreat from the room with her hips swaying side to side along with her waist-length blonde hair. His eyes absentmindedly fell back onto her lovely autograph.
It was always like this with them. Always teasing each other in ways people would probably consider to be flirting, though they both denied it with heavy hearts. It wasn't like Natsu was intentionally flirting, it just sort of happens whenever Lucy's around—like him doing anything in his power to make the girl smile and if he got her to laugh, it was like he won a big match against Gray—or something like that because all he felt was a strange sense of pride.
Suddenly something struck Natsu like a chord on a guitar, he never did tell her what he really thought of her story and her behavior…It was like she didn't want to know what he thought either… And she probably didn't. She was always so shy about her writing and Natsu was actually the one who submitted one of her pieces to the paper—without her permission of course—because he knew she needed the push.
Natsu smiled at the memory of her anger when she discovered he was the one behind it, but he only wanted her to gain confidence in her writing, which she did because she submitted her own work ever since.
But her latest writing…he really needed to talk to her, so he promised himself that he tomorrow—except Lucy didn't show up to school the following day—or the following week for the matter, leaving a hollow hole in Natsu's stomach.
And he couldn't so much as call her because of her dad's strictness…
Though Natsu had a hunch with what was wrong with Lucy, but still, s week without hearing Lucy laugh was like a week without the sun.
XOXOX
It was one of those cold wintery nights, the kind of night where the wind howled like a lone wolf that was warning those to stay indoors, but for Lucy, it was like music to her ears. It didn't matter how cold it was so long as the sky was clear, she was guaranteed to be outside.
And tonight was one of those nights.
She sat on frozen earth clad in only her tall chestnut winter boots, thin black leggings and a pink coat that was probably made for fall rather than winter. Chills and shivers danced all over her body, but Lucy ignored it as she snuggled into the heat of her laptop that sat firmly upon her lap—her only true source of warmth.
She stared up at the starry sky, forgetting all of her self-doubts and horrendous thoughts as she marveled at the twinkling lights. Thoughts for her story flooded into her head. She ducked back down, typing away when suddenly something warm draped over shoulders, covering her exposed neck and she was immediately greeted with the adoring scent of fire.
Her hand reached out, lightly touching the soft material, gazing at its scaly pattern, resembling the skin of a dragon—or so she would imagine a dragon's skin to look like.
"Had a feelin' you would be out here."
"Natsu?" She gasped, looking upwards to see the boy standing behind her with the moon gleaming from behind him, creating a strange halo of white light around his pink hair. He was wearing a huge grin on his face along with a red winter coat and puffy white pants.
There was something off about him though and Lucy couldn't figure out what.
"How did you know I would be here?" she wondered aloud, gazing at the boy with great curiosity. This place wasn't one many people would know of. It was on top of a great big hill that was far away from any civilization, limiting the light pollution so she could view the entire night sky in its glorious beauty.
"Your stories," he said nonchalantly, plopping down right next to her on the frigid ground and not that she would ever admit it, Lucy was very grateful for Natsu's lack of personal space as she reveled in the heat that escaped his body. "You always write about the stars—er mention them I mean. Figured that was some kinda clue."
And for a moment, Lucy wondered if the temperature had warmed or if the wind had stopped blowing because she felt this strange surge of warmth pour all over her. Or maybe it was Natsu's words.
She gaped at the boy. She never expected anyone to notice her little mentions of the stars and little was what they were. It was true that her stories in the school paper always contained something about stars, but nothing significantly worth noting.
They were more like comfort words. A sense of familiarity that she needed when she wrote, something that was always constant.
The stars were her friends before she had friends and it was reassuring that they would always be there for her, especially now in her dark place in mind.
"What?" Natsu asked, fidgeting under her tight gaze and that was when she realized she had been staring at him.
Her face flushed up. She desperately needed to change the subject. "So uhh why were you looking for me?"
"I wanted to know why you weren't at school all week."
He said it so bluntly that Lucy nearly choked on her own spit. "O-Oh, right." She glanced downwards at her faded keyboard, abused from all the writing she had done on it. It deserved a better owner probably, her lips began to curl.
"So why haven't you been at school?" he pushed, grabbing a hold of her arm, which ultimately made Lucy meet his puzzling gaze. He smiled gently. "It's so boring without you!"
And once again, a strange warmth spread throughout her body as his words touched her. How was he able to do that?
His brows furrowed inwards as he glowered and lectured, "Do you know how hard it is to have to pay attention in class as opposed to pokin' you in the back the entire period?" Then his features soften. "Are you sick or somethin'?"
"Uhh well…I guess." Her eyes darted downwards, breaking eye contact with his intense, dark eyes. Was she sick? Well yes, but not in the traditional sense. More like she was mentally sick. How was one supposed to just outright say that? "I mean I haven't been feeling well."
"Maybe that's 'cuz you spend all your nights out in the cold," he chided.
"That's not it!" she said quickly, startling Natsu. "I-I'm—"
A hand patted the top of her head. "I know," he said quietly.
"H-How?" she stammered. How could Natsu possibly know about her depression? It wasn't like she gave any signs. She always smiled and laughed and kept her spirits up as much as possible. She didn't want people to know her pain.
He cocked his head to the side. "I read your stories, remember?"
"Yeah, but it's not like I write depressing stuff!" she exclaimed, feeling a bit offended. Was this what people were taking away from her writing? A feeling of depression?
"Yeah, I know," Natsu said. "But I can't explain it…it's like after every time I read them I get this weird feelin' in the pit of stomach—like when I eat something I shouldn't have, ya know?"
Lucy choked, her eye twitching slightly. Did he really just compare her writing to food poisoning? "Excuse me?"
"Gahh I think that came out wrong," he said, chuckling nervously as he ruffled a hand through his wind-styled hair.
"You think?" She could feel her eye twitch again.
"I meant that…I don't know argghhh!" He tugged roughly on his pink locks in frustration. "I'm no good with words!"
"I'll say…" she muttered, sighing into her palm.
"I guess what I'm tryin' to say is that I feel like there's always another story bein' told when I read something you write. Like you're sending a message that only I can read. Like it's written in the starlight of your fics."
And for the third time that night, the chill in the air no longer existed; Natsu's words warmed her up like she were bundled up in the thickest wool blanket ever made and yet she never felt more exposed in her entire life.
Her message reached someone.
Her message reached him.
"You're lonely."
He was right. Since her dad is so strict, she's not allowed to hang out very often, thus all of her friends had these inside jokes that she wasn't a part of. Making her feel not only left out, but out of place as well.
And that is exactly why she turned to the stars because no matter what, they would always be there for her.
But she wasn't being fair because Natsu was always there for her. No matter what, he always made sure to make her feel like she belonged. Always teasing her when she gets quiet, always begging her to hang out…
"That's not true," Lucy said, her voice barely above a whisper. Why did she suddenly find it so hard to talk? Maybe it was the harsh winds suffocating her. "You make me feel less lonely."
He stared at her with his face showing some strange, foreign emotion that no one has ever looked at her with.
And her heart swelled with this great unknown warmth. A foreign warmth to match Natsu's foreign expression.
What was this feeling called?
Did it even have a name?
Natsu unreadable expression morphed into a fanged-tooth smile as he wrapped his arms behind his head and said with ease, "Good."
It was funny how insignificant the moment was and yet to Lucy, it meant everything. She wanted to cherish this moment forever.
A moment where she and Natsu sat next to each other and watched the stars glimmer about.
"Do you think the stars get lonely?" she asked, eyeing a rather bright star, Sirius.
"Get lonely?" Natsu cocked his head to the side as though he would find some other meaning to her question.
"Yeah." She nodded, keeping her gaze trained on Sirius. "It may not look like it, but all these stars are like billions of lightyears apart. Don't you think they get lonely?"
"Hmmm," Natsu pursed his lips in consideration as he focused his gaze back up at the heavens. "Nahhh. Sure they're lightyears apart, but look at how they're connected! That constellation you taught me—Orion, the dog!" He pointed his finger up at the sky. "See how they all connect with each other to form a picture of a dog?"
"Orion's actually a hunter," Lucy sweat-dropped, squinting as she tried to see what part of the constellation looked like a dog to Natsu. "Well actually Canis Major is right over—"
"Shushh," he said. "You're missing my point! What I'm getting at is that they're all connected. It's sorta like friendship—we may not live near each other, but somehow our fates intertwined."
To further emphasize his point, Natsu's fingers laced with hers.
"If you're feeling depressed or alone, Lucy," Natsu said with a small grin, "just know I'm always here for you." He gave her hand a tight squeeze.
"I'm sorry," she said earnestly, toying with the scarf around her neck. "It's just that…" Her eyes widened, gawking at his rarely exposed neck. "Your scarf!"
"Huh?"
"Y-You wrapped your scarf around my neck?"
She noticed his cheeks darken as he quickly averted his gaze, "W-Well…yeah."
"B-But you never take it off!" she accused, remembering a time when Erza threatened Natsu's life as she begged for his scarf to hide her hicky that Jellal had given her—though she claimed it wasn't that—but that was beside the point. The point was, Natsu would rather die than let someone else wear his scarf.
And yet here was Lucy…wearing his scarf…
"Y-You looked cold!" he accused back, his face looking even darker than before.
There was that foreign feeling again brewing deep in her veins. What was it called…? She glanced at the stars for help—the stars that led Natsu to her. And she gasped as the stars answered her question. A shiver traveled through her like a jolt of electricity.
There was no way she was in l—
"Are you still cold?"
"K-Kind of…"
"How annoying," he groaned before suddenly gripping the back of her head, "Guess that leaves me no choice…" And before Lucy could even begin to process anything, he was kissing her.
His lips were like fire, sending thrills of warmth to every fiber of her being and Lucy couldn't get enough.
It was like winter was no more and all she felt was this great summer heat humming in her chest.
And finally, she understood the message the stars had given her.
That feeling she had felt…
Not that she would ever admit it just yet…
Love.
XOXOX
~The End~
Sorry if this didn't make much sense. My depression's been getting to me so I figured I would write out my pain with a bit of fluff :')
Thank you for reading!