Natsu's phone went off almost instantly after he texted Lucy back; she was good like that. He felt guilty about giving her the cold shoulder the past few days because she responded saying that he shouldn't worry about it and that it was totally okay, everyone needs a break. Natsu hastily shoved his phone in his pocket and brought his attention back to his group of friends; he might as well have fun on his night out, right? That was if Loke didn't get himself slapped by some girl or Gray didn't get too tipsy.

Makarov found them shortly after they had entered the bar; he was red in the face from the alcohol he was no doubt consuming. The short little Russian man always drank like a fish. That was probably the reason why he didn't notice just how many free drinks he was giving to the boys. Makarov tottered over behind the bar and told the girls working in that their drinks were on the house. Natsu felt nervous being so close to the blonde down the other end of the bar, but he sucked it up and took a seat between Gray and Gajeel. One of the girls, a tall brunette with big eyes, placed a beer in front of each of them. When she got to Natsu she fluttered her eyelashes and winked. He smiled cordially and thanked her. He was no stranger to girls flirting with him, he apparently was quite the heartbreaker back in high school, but that was just what Lisanna had told him. She was a hopeless romantic and loved to tell him whenever a girl had a crush on him. He hadn't really paid much attention to girls up until his college years, but he didn't think he missed much. Natsu had had a handful of "exes" since he came to Magnolia University, but can you really call a month here and a month there a relationship?

"So, how do you guys know Maky?" The brunette broke through Natsu's thoughts and he was a little perturbed, he really wasn't up for conversation at the moment nor up for the terrible nickname the girl had given Makarov.

"He's our friend's grandfather." Gray answered, taking a swig of his beer. "Good guy." The girl nodded animatedly as if whatever Gray was saying was the most important thing in the world. Geez, how desperate was this girl? Natsu snorted quietly and shared an eye roll with Gajeel who was successfully ignoring the girl in front of them. The other bartender shot her coworker a dirty look as she took on more customers than need be, and then called to her, Natsu didn't catch her name and he didn't care, to come help her with the onslaught of orders. The girl ruefully dragged herself away from the boys and Natsu felt like he could relax a little more. Makarov had teetered off to the upper level where his "private courters" were, Natsu shuddered at the thought of what went on up there, he didn't dare ever ask.

Suddenly, Natsu felt a poke in his ribs and he turned harshly, it had made him choke on his beer. His eyes blazed, ready give Gray a punch in the side of his jaw, but he stopped when he saw who it actually was.

"Hey, buddy!" Cana crooned from behind his stool and Natsu relaxed a bit, though he felt a little annoyed at being bothered. Does the girl ever take a break? He thought not considering she seemed to already be drunk and bothering him. Of course he really did like Cana, she was an interesting companion and it made his eight o'clock class just a little less shitty, and that was saying something considering Macao's lessons were always a little boring.

"Hey, what's up? Didn't see you here before." Natsu told her and she cracked a smile.

"I'm just over there with some of my friends." Cana informed him, jerking her head towards the group of girls that had the blue haired girl that Gray was afraid of. "We thought we'd go out tonight." She sighed and sipped at some sort of clear drink he guessed to be a margarita. Natsu smiled and began to answer her only to stop dead in his tracks, choking on his words, as he put two and two together. Cana was friends with her. They were in the same group, he was friends with her!

"W-wait, you're friends with that girl over there?" Natsu stammered out and Cana looked at him curiously. "The blonde?"

"Huh, oh yeah!" Cana smiled, "That's L-" Natsu was hasty and cut his friend off.

"That's her, that's the girl I was telling you about!" Natsu told her quickly and something like shock flitted in Cana's eyes. But if it was, it was quickly gone, almost too fast for Natsu to be sure that he even saw it. Her look was replaced by the shit eating grin that Cana usually sported. "C-can you introduce me?" Cana deliberated for a moment, sipping her drink slowly, purposefully dragging out the answer to his question.

"Hm… You wanna meet her?" Cana simpered and Natsu frowned slightly, his heart banging in his chest. "Really bad?"

"Yes!" Natsu blurted out before he had a chance to think. The girl was his dream girl practically, to put it clichély. Of fucking course he wanted to meet her. He soon felt guilty though, Lucy still sat in the back of his mind, definitely not forgotten. "B-but… Lucy…" He almost whimpered out; girls had never had him this fucked up. There it was again, Cana's eyes flashing mischievously, a knowing look etched in her features.

"Mm… I could do that. But what about Lucy?" Cana murmured, a smirk quivering at the corner over her mouth.

"I'm not saying I'm gonna date this girl… But I've seen her for so long, it would be great to finally talk to her. I haven't actually had the guts to talk to her…" He admitted sheepishly and Cana snorted.

"No balls!" Cana declared and let out a cackled. Natsu glared, slightly ducking into his scarf for comfort. There was truth to her words though, he truly didn't have the balls to go talk to the blonde and he felt pathetic trying to go through one of her friends. He had never had this much of a problem with girls before. It was something that should be easy, he figured, but he did suppose that if it was just supposed to be something casual and for one night, then it would be easy. Getting a great girl would take time and effort and wouldn't be easy, but he was okay with that. If it meant he got to talk to the mystery blonde, who he just couldn't help smiling and winking at because it made her flustered, then he would do anything.

"Hello, beautiful." Came a voice from behind Cana and Natsu growled at the intrusion. He was so close and this dick had to go and interrupt them. "Natsu, aren't you going to introduce me?" Loke questioned and eyed Cana who gave him a slight scowl and a reproachful glance.

"Loke, not now." Natsu grumbled and his friend pushed his glasses further up his nose in response. "Cana doesn't wanna-" Cana cut him off, waving her hand hap hazardously in his face.

"Nuh, nuh, nuh, I got this Natsu." Cana dismissed him, down the rest of her drink, and seemingly snuggled up real close to Loke's chest. She took her finger and slowly dragged it up his chest, stopping when she got below his chin. Loke swallowed, his throat bobbing in nervousness, and Cana dragged his face down so it was millimeters from her own face. She smiled impishly, and ran her thumb over his bottom lip. "Not even in your dreams, sweetheart. And if I am in your dreams, I'm gonna shove my foot straight up your ass. We're talking here." Cana murmured out dangerously, a smirk never leaving her lips. Loke's eyes widened and he shot Natsu a look of something like terror.

"W-who the hell are you friends with, Natsu?" Loke whispered out and then backed away, his hands in the air. Admittedly, Natsu felt bad for Loke. Outside of his "lady killer" persona, he was actually a decent guy and really smart too. He's helped Natsu on more than one occasion with particularly tricky homework. Natsu sent him a vague apologetic look and turned his attention back to Cana who was giggling like mad.

"Thank… You?" Natsu said in almost a question and Cana clapped her hands together. God, she was fucking terrifying.

"Okay, yes, yes. I can help ya meet my friend over there, but what's in it for me?" Cana quirked a brow at him, mischievousness practically pulsing off of her.

"Free… alcohol…?" Natsu asked and her eyes widened and she perked up even more.

"Really? You can do that?"

"Yeah, easy. The guy who owns this place is a friend of mine's grandpa. Consider it done." Natsu shrugged cockily and Cana grinned devilishly.

"Sounds like a deal. Just one more thing," Cana seemed to sober up a little and stared straight up into his eyes. "I want you to treat both of my friends well, that includes Lucy. I don't want you going and breaking her heart, not that she's head over heels for you because you never even gave her the time of day to meet her." Cana's eyes flashed and guilt wracked through him.

"Lucy and I can still be friends even if something does happen between me and your other friend." Natsu told her and Cana seemed to frown slightly.

"Alright, just make sure she knows you want to be 'just friends' then." Cana warned and Natsu nodded and Cana saluted him in a weird goodbye, and headed back to her friends. Natsu's excitement bubbled in his chest, the thought of actually meeting the girl in his apartment complex made him feel giddy.

"So… What the hell was that about?" Gray suddenly asked, Natsu had momentarily forgotten that his other two friends were sitting next to him.

"None of your damn business." Natsu hummed out and Gray snorted while Gajeel seemed disinterested.

"Someone sounds like a little kid in love." Gray commented and Natsu aimed a flick of his hand at Gray's beer causing it to spill a little on his shirt. He cursed Natsu out, but Natsu was in too much of a good mood to truly be bothered by it, and threw his head back, laughing loudly.

"Hey, where'd you go?" Lucy questioned amusedly as Cana returned to their group. Cana flashed a smile at them and just shrugged.

"I saw someone from class and just went to say hi." She informed them and ordered another margarita, slapping ten dollars on the bar.

"Anyone we know?" Erza asked curiously and Cana shook her head.

"Nah." Lucy hummed in response, enjoying her friends' company.

"Hey, thank you guys for coming out with me, I feel a lot better." Lucy smiled at her friends and the four other girls lifted their glasses to her. "Sorry for being so silly, who cares if Natsu doesn't like me, it's not like we were a thing anyway." Lucy laughed lightly and she thought Cana whispered something that sounded suspiciously like 'yet', but she brushed it off.

"Juvia is glad that Lucy is feeling much better!" Juvia chimed in and Levy nodded.

"Yeah, Lu! I hate to see you down. Don't let any stupid boys get to your head!" Levy smiled at her and Lucy squeezed her hand.

"Yes, you have the best friends right here." Erza gave a warm smile, nodding her head in approval.

"I really do, don't I?" Lucy giggled and took a sip of her drink. Yes, she did have great friends, and if that's all that her and Natsu were to be, then so be it. Maybe she would talk to that skater boy inside her apartment complex…

Natsu decided that maybe asking Cana for help with girls might not have been one of his best ideas, but he hadn't had much of a choice. She had ribbed him about it all week while simultaneously made sure that he wasn't being a 'dick' to Lucy. Which he was not, thank you very much. He and Lucy had had great conversation, and they both seemed to be on the same page friendship-wise. They fell into comfortable conversation at night and were perfectly okay if either of them went a day or so without talking. They talked about anything and everything, and Natsu felt really happy to have her in his life. She was a really great friend and he was glad that she seemed to understand his predicament. Not that he brought it up, she actually did later one night. He was surprised that she had said something, and also cursed Cana that night, but it was surprisingly not awkward to talk to Lucy about it.

"Hey, sorry if this sounds weird… and don't get mad at Cana, but she told me that you like someone, and I just want you to know that's totally okay! Er, not that you need my permission…. But Cana did have us text each other in a whim, so it's not like I expected us to hook up or anything haha wait that came out wrong…"

Natsu had snorted out a laugh by the end of it; he loved how honest Lucy was, and he had truly poured his heart out to her in replying.

"Wow, well, I do feel like I need to brutally murder Cana, but when do I not? But… Thank you for understanding… I'm sorry if that made anything weird for you… But I just want you to know that I'm really happy to have you as a friend :)"

"When do I not want to murder Cana? Haha and no, def not weird. I'm glad that we can talk about it… I completely understand :)"

Natsu had breathed a sigh of relief that their conversation went so well, and he was sure Cana was somewhere sneezing… After that, he and Lucy talked frequently; he even planned to ask Lucy if she wanted to hang out at some point, but at the moment he was preoccupied with Cana's plan for him to meet the girl from his apartment.

"Hey," Cana poked at his cheek and broke him from his thoughts. His head was resting on his folded arms, bulky headphones shoved over his ears. He wasn't actually listening to any music anymore, he just wasn't ready to start his day. Natsu pretended not to notice her at first, but she always persisted, so he eventually dragged his headphones down to his neck and shifted his gaze to meet Cana's violet eyes. "I've thought more about this plan." She informed him, and Natsu perked up slightly.

"Okay, what's up?"

"Okay, so you know where she lives, obviously. You two live in the same complex." Cana stated the obvious and continued. "She's got this little white dog, named Plue, who she adores. If he ever were to, I don't know, run out of her apartment… Well, she'd just about freak out and have a conniption." Cana laughed lightly and Natsu eyed her in confusion.

"And… How does this have to do with me meeting her?" Natsu asked slowly and Cana beamed at him excitedly.

"Oh, I don't know… Everything?" She huffed vaguely and Natsu rolled his eyes.

"Enlighten me." He asked her exasperatedly and Cana laughed at his expression.

"I'm going to accidentally let Plue out of her apartment and you're going to be there to stop him." Cana said as if it were obvious. "She's going to freak out, but you'll get to be the hero. You save the dog, she's super thankful, wing bang boom! You're in her bed!" Cana threw her hands up and Natsu grimaced, they were getting weird stares from their classmates again.
"U-um, that's a great plan and all, but I don't think that normal human beings just throw themselves into bed with a stranger." Natsu poked fun at Cana, but it seemed to go over her head. "Anyway, I guess that could work. Just tell me when to be there…"

"Great! I'll talk to Lucy and we'll make plans. I'll let you know what's up." Cana promised him and he grinned at her.

"Thanks."

Lucy was scrolling through the pictures she took with the girls the previous weekend, smiling down at the captured memories. She was just about through when she got to one that was a group shot of them, all smiles up at the camera. It wasn't them that caught her eye, it was what was in the background, or more like who was in the background. She spread her fingers out across the screen of her phone, zooming in, and sure enough, she was right.

"I knew I saw him there!" Lucy squeaked out and Levy dragged her gaze up from the book she was reading to look at Lucy curiously.

"Hm?"

"O-oh, sorry. I was just looking at our pictures from last weekend, and look…" Lucy passed her phone to her friend who squinted at it, looking at the picture. "I thought I saw him at the bar, but look! There's the skater guy!" Lucy pointed out excitedly and Levy bit her lip and nodded.

"Yeah, that's definitely him! Aw, too bad you guys weren't closer, you could have talked to him!" Levy pouted and Lucy's heart fluttered.

"I don't know if I would have been able to…" She admittedly sadly and Levy sighed.

"Girl, you need to woman up!" Levy scolded her, shaking her small finger in her face. "If you like him, you should talk to him! Don't let a little nervousness get in your way!"

"Is that why you are avoiding the coffee shop where that pierced buff guy works?" Lucy snickered sarcastically and watched as Levy's face went red.

"Th-that's different!" Levy stammered and Lucy rolled her eyes.

"Sure." Levy sniffed in response and found her book very interesting again suddenly. Lucy snorted softly and eyed the picture once more. It was then that Cana appeared beside Lucy's chair, and startled her slightly. "Cana? What are you doing here, you never come to the library." Lucy laughed and Cana shrugged.

"First time for everything, right?" Cana laughed a bit louder than she should have receiving a few grumpy stares in response. "Nah, I just came to ask you when you'd be free to hang out?"

"Oh, hm…" Lucy thought for a moment, it wasn't unusual for Cana to spring plans on her and she rather liked the company. It got lonely in her apartment sometimes. "How about Friday night? Levy, you wanna come too?"

"I told Jet and Droy that I'd hang out with them Friday, but you two have fun!" Levy responded cheerily and Cana nodded.

"Okay, Friday it is! How about around six?"

"That sounds good to me! What do you want to do? I'll probably be catching up on some homework for a while, but you're more than welcome to join me." Lucy told her and Cana smiled.

"Yeah, we'll do whatever. Maybe we can order a pizza and watch a movie or something?" Cana shrugged and Lucy appreciated that she could sometimes be domestic and not 'black out drunk Cana' for a little while. Lucy loved her either way, but sometimes she preferred the latter.

"Great!" Lucy smiled and Cana looked eager, suddenly taking out her phone and typing rapidly. Lucy thought it was odd that she would immediately go text someone after talking to her, but Lucy brushed it off as Cana's usual behavior. The brunette then bid them a goodbye, she wanted to go pass out for a while, she had had an early start to her day. Lucy laughed lightly and went back to scribbling notes in her journal- what she was doing before she had started looking at her pictures and spotting the disgustingly hot skater guy. Lucy silently begged herself to work up the courage to talk to him, but it would be awkward if he didn't feel the same way. Maybe he was just being nice to her? Maybe he was actually making fun of her and didn't actually think she was pretty? The second option caused Lucy's face to drop, she had a habit of overthinking things and working herself up. She sighed to herself and shook her head trying to rid the thoughts from her mind. Maybe she should just take a break from worrying herself over boys, after all, she didn't go to college to be a doe eyed school girl…