I'm on time again! Yay!
This chapter doesn't do much in terms of plot (sorry) but I just really like writing the conversations between the friends! I... might have gotten a little carried away though, and this ended up being the entire chapter :(
-KingRadish
Inside and Out
3- Take My Hand
"Ew." Gray pulls a face. "You're primping."
Natsu shoots him a glance in the car mirror as he tries to flatten the one strand of hair that always stuck up. "The hell? Am NOT." He told Levy to cut it off but she'd insisted that it stay. Part of your charm, she said.
"Uh, yeah you are. Look in the mirror, ya fool." The raven fumbles around in the glove compartment and pulls out a tube of hair gel. "Here, try this."
Natsu unscrews the cap and sniffs the contents. "It smells like you."
Gray rolls his eyes. "Yeah, no shit Sherlock. It's my hair gel. Smack some on that cowlick."
"Do girls actually like guys who smell like girls?"
Gray scoffs. After a moment of silence, he leans in. "It's not like Lucy hasn't seen your gross face and your ugly-ass hair before. What gives?"
"What?"
"This. What are you doing? When did you start caring about how you looked?"
Satisfied, Natsu flips up the car mirror and leans back into his seat. "I dunno, man. I don't know why she always dates those other guys. What do they have that I don't? Levy said that I smell like a trashcan and look like I crawled out of one. Not true, by the way. Well, I figured that it couldn't be that hard to look like a pansy."
Gray almost chokes himself laughing. "Dude, you stupid? What you don't have is maturity! And brains. You're obviously lacking in those-"
"Hey guys! You seem to be getting along well!" Lucy pulls open the car door and tosses in her backpack.
"Lucy!" Gray smiles broadly. "We were just talking about how we couldn't wait to see you! How was the flight?"
"Ugh, don't get me started! The guy next to me was snoring like crazy! Can you pop the trunk for me? Gotta throw in this suitcase."
Natsu was already out the door and hauling Lucy's pink suitcase toward the back. "Hey, it's fine! I got it, Luce."
"Thanks bestie!" Lucy giggles as she hops into the back seat and leans forward. "Did Natsu just get a haircut?"
"Yeah. You noticed, huh?" Gray couldn't help but grin a little.
"Well, of course! He looks… a lot fresher. More mature?" She taps her chin thoughtfully. "And he doesn't smell like armpits anymore!"
"Ha! Well, you can tell him that. He did it especially to impress you."
Lucy looked up quickly, then averted her eyes. "Call me impressed." She mumbles.
"Yo guys! I'm done!" Natsu hops into the front and slams the door. "That was one hell of a heavy suitcase. What do you keep in there, Lucy? Rocks?"
"No, Natsu! Just my textbooks! I also brought a couple for Levy-chan." She glances sheepishly at Natsu. "Couple… dozen?"
"Oh, c'mon Luce! You're only back once a year. Just chillax a bit. Lay back. Drop the books for a while."
"Never! The journey of an architect is a long and arduous one! By the way, nice haircut. It looks good on you."
Natsu reached self-consciously upward to touch his hair. "Thanks, Luce. Thought I'd make it shorter for the summer."
Gray scoffed. "Only 'cause Lucy's visiting."
"What! No way! I mean, yeah, sort of. But not really." Natsu punches Gray in the arm. "Shut up, ya bastard."
"Hey! Careful! I'm driving here, stupid."
Lucy laughs. "You guys are cute as always! I missed you so much. It's really lonely at FTU. I mean, I've made good friends but they'll never be like you guys."
"Aw, I'm tearing up, Luce."
"Shush Natsu! You didn't miss me as much as I missed you."
"You have no idea," Natsu scoffs, letting a little too much bitterness seep into his words. There was an awkward pause. "Anyway, how's life, Luce?"
She sighs. "It's been alright. A little busy, but nothing too crazy. And… I guess it's been quiet since… y'know, Dan and I broke up."
Natsu grinds his molars together and looks away. Gray frowns. "Sorry to hear that."
"It's okay! I'm pretty much over it. Natsu consoled me for, like, three hours that night and I felt a lot better afterward. After that it was just a recovery process. And, I mean, it helps to get away from it all and come home."
"Yeah, good to take your mind off things and hang out with your best buds!" Gray pulls into the parking lot of 8-Island. "This is Councilman Yajima's new restaurant. Awesome reviews so far. And dinner's on me-"
"Yosh! Food!" Natsu was out the door as soon as the car stopped moving. "C'mon Luce! Let's go!" He grabs her hand in his excitement and drags her toward the restaurant entrance.
She looks up in surprise, then grips his hand tight as they run together through the parking lot. If anyone asks her why her eyes are watering, it'll be because of the dust, she decided. It's just the dust.
Leave me a review if that was alright!
The next update might be a while! Sorry... I'm lazy and it's summer vaycay. I probably need to update some of my other stories first!