Disclaimer: I don't own Fairy Tail nor any of the characters but I do own this story plot line and any extra characters that never appear in Fairy Tail.

Chapter 10

The man she has grew to want to spend time with, was hurt at some point in time and is having trouble recovering. If she ever wanted him to consider her as his friend she was to give him all the hope he can hope for, even if the advise she gives him will never allow her to be his friend in the first place. Natsu stayed silent for a few minutes, when he had yet to say anything Lucy decide to get up and start putting things way like she should. But before she could get past Natsu, his arm shot up and took hold of her much smaller wrist compared to his own.

"What I lost can never be found, what is gone is gone." He looked at her with such sad eyes.

-O-

Lucy went straight home right after her and Natsu's little heart to heart moment. When Lucy thought about it, their conversation didn't seem to help Natsu all that much compared to Lucy. Lucy turned from lying on her side to onto her back, her eyes looked up at the ceiling while her thought went beyond the buildings roof. A sound reached her ears after a moment of silence; Lucy slowly turned her head towards her bedside table. Its surface only contained a small coral pink reading lamp, her alarm clock, and also her flashing LED light cell phone. She didn't know who could be calling her, only did she realize who it could be when she took a closer look at her alarm clock.

Cana had texted the same time she had arrived home earlier about what time she wanted to meet and where she wanted to go drinking. Lucy quick shot up and picked up the phone.

"Hello?" Lucy hesitantly said to the other person on the line.

"Hey girl! Where have you been? Did you even get my message? It's already 8:50, you know that!?" Cana started ringing of the hook.

"I'm getting ready now, I won't be there until 9. Sorry Cana, I lost track of time; I know you wanted to start at 8:30. I really didn't mean to be late." Lucy began apologizing, her head doing bows even though she knew Cana couldn't see them.

The line stayed silent for a while after Lucy stopped her string of apologies, a good minute or two went by and Lucy was starting to think Cana had hung up on her. Just when Lucy was going to ask 'hello' again to see if she was still there, Cana cleared her throat out of nowhere making Lucy jump.

"I forgive you, as long as you get here as soon as possible! I need to talk to you! I know you live near by, so don't be late!" Cana spoke rapidly; Lucy hardly was able to catch everything before Cana decided to abruptly hang up.

Lucy sighed and started to get herself ready for a night out at the bar. She wanted to look flashy, enough for some attention but not too much of it. At bars Lucy didn't need to worry about getting all that much attention because plenty other girls dressed more skanky than she did. It was one of the few places Lucy didn't have to worry about getting hit on, funny how it works opposite for Lucy than for other people who go out to get the attention.

She had decided her outfit with a popping red crop top and high wasted navy dark blue short shorts, black over the knee socks and ankle high 3-inch brown boot heels. Lucy knew the weather was dropping rapidly but she still went on a head with wearing revealing clothes, it's not like the bar they were going to was that far away in the first place.

Before leaving, Lucy lifted her window curtains and gaped at the view outside, had the temperature dropped that much sense she got home? The view outside was like a white canvas; also the air was filled with white drops of half frozen water floating slowly down to Earth. It was snowing, Lucy wouldn't of believed it if it weren't the fact that it was already mid November. The alarm on her cell went off, telling her that she now only has 5 minutes to get to the bar. Cana would surely make her down 3 mugs of beer if she were any later than she already was. She was out the door in less than a minute after her alarm went off, she speed walked through her boring beige colored corridors of her apartment building, all the while shoving on her heavier jackets she had. Lucy pushed open her buildings front door as she just finished zipping up her coat, as she stepped out into the much more chilly are than when she first arrive back home, she looked up at the dark sky. From her view down on earth it looked like the sky was producing specks of snow from only one spot yet it fluttered all over the place. She took in a large inhale of the cold air, it stung her lungs but it also made her feel like she was breathing a breath of fresh air. They were to bound to have a white Christmas this year.

-O-

It's literally a 10-minute walk or a 5-minute run away from her apartment on Strawberry Street. But due to her own carelessness and making her late, Lucy had to run all the way. Her destination: Quatro Cerberus. It's a bar Lucy didn't bother going to very often, she didn't drink all that much in the first place so she had no reason to. Although the rumors being tossed around state that it's the only place that had beer worth drinking from. So it was no surprise that Cana learned about it and would want to bring someone with her when she goes, lucky Lucy had to be the one who lived nearest.

The damned Ice Princess had invited him out to drink just to make him spill his guts about who the mysterious blond he saw him with the previous week at the mall. Honestly speaking Natsu had no trouble about explaining who she was, or how they meet but for some reason or another it bothered the crap out of him that it had to Gray to find out first. He wouldn't of minded if he told the whole tale to Gajeel or even Erza first instead of damn Ice Queen. Natsu groan to himself as he made his slow pasted way to Quatro Cerberus, the oh so famous bar that can make even the strongest alcohol tolerant person fall drunk at their bar stool.

Natsu pull out his hand from his jacket pocket to check the time on his wristwatch, it told him it was already 8:59 and that his was going to be late to show up. As he rounded a street corner, one he knew would be the last until he would reach his destination; a person ran right by him in a hurry. Before he could call out and tell the person that it was dangerous to run when it's snowing and he or she should watch out where they were going. The person in question turned back slightly and yelled out 'sorry' while still running off; he could help notice strands of bright yellow hair poking out of her light blue winter jacket. Natsu ended up just watching the girl run off with his arm out stretched and mouth wide open; she didn't seem to have time to recognize him.

-O-

By the time he finally got to the bar it was already 10 passed 9PM, Natsu could care less if he was late it's not like his in a hurry to meet Gray. Actually he really didn't want to even come but it has been a while sense his meet anyone of his friends, a couple of months to be accurate. When he walked in he could easily spot the one person who called him out, seeing as his bad habit of stripping caught the whole female populace attention. He sighed and made his way over with reluctance.

"He finally arrives! Yo Flame for Brains, what took you so long? We started without you." Gray waved Natsu over to their section at the bar counter, turns out it wasn't just Natsu he invited to hang out tonight.

Natsu took his set beside Gajeel who had a beer already in one hand, Gray moved to be beside Natsu too, putting him in the middle of the two curious males. Gajeel smirked at him and placed his cheek on his fist, supported up by his elbow on the counter top. Natsu looked the other way, only to see Gray was doing the same.

"I see where this is going," Natsu closed his eyes and folded his arms onto the table.

Lucy was breathing heavily when she came through the bars entrance and she was quick to looked around for her drinking partner tonight; Cana had taken up a corner of the bar. It was a very private area which is a little unusual for Cana, so Lucy slowly made approach and taking off her thick jacket at the same time. When she reached her friend she couldn't help notice all the beer bottles already piling up, Lucy wondered what could of gotten her friend to sit in a secluded spot and drink so much before she even arrived. Was she that late?

Cana looked up from laying her forehead onto the table's surface, Cana's cheeks were flushed and she let out a small hiccup. Lucy giggled at the brunette's already drunken state while she took her spot beside Cana.

"Umm, Cana? You couldn't have waited for me? I kinda feel left out now." Lucy smiled disappointingly; she did have some anticipation for tonight.

"I couldn't win. I never lose, why...hick..did I lose?" She hiccupped through her slurred sentence.

Lucy lifted up part of her friend's long dark brown hair out of her face, their matching brown eyes locked with each other. Lucy opened her mouth to say something but Cana quick shoved a bottle of beer into her gaping mouth.

"Drink with me Lucy! I know I can always win against you, no way am I losing to a blonde." Cana pumped her fist up in the air while shouting out with all her might.

Lucy sweat-dropped at her declaration and sudden statement of Lucy's low tolerance to anything alcoholic. Painful as it was that Cana had just shoved a glass bottle into her mouth, she couldn't help but laugh at her friend's crazy antics. Lucy placed the bottle back on the table and observed Cana as she drowned down yet another glass.

"How exactly did this happen?" Lucy asked herself.

Cana slammed the cup onto the table after swallowing the last bit of beer; the impact made the empty glasses on top the table rattle and clink together. Lucy jumped a little, eyes wide and staring at Cana in surprise. Lucy had come to the conclusion that something had happened to make her friend upset; maybe that's why she had told her to hurry over.

"The damned bartender beat me in a damn drinking contest, Lucy I lost at drinking!? Can you believe it?" Cana vented.

Now that was real news to Lucy's ears, Cana never lost at a drinking contest, not anyone she knew of anyway. Lucy was in thought about who could have managed such a fleet and was starting to wish she had arrived earlier to witness it. When I tall man with his hair tied tightly in back of his head and into a neat bun hidden by a white cloth with ruffled edges secured by a similarly colored strip; a hair style that was popular in ancient China. Place a large mug of transparent yellow liquid in front of Lucy, she thanked the man and as he was walking off Cana straighten herself up and yelled at him.

"I won't lose next time! Yer Hear!" The man pause his trip back to the back of the bar.

Cana glared at him as if her stare could burn holes in his alcoholic metabolism; so next time she would win. He turned his head to look back, his lips set in a confident and happy smirk. He had mouthed something to her, sadly Lucy wasn't quick enough to get it but Cana sure didn't. Since after he did it Cana grunted in frustration, Lucy just laughed at the whole situation. She was completely left out of the inside joke but she defiantly got the gist of it. Cana had finally met her match, the renowned bartender at the bar, Quatro Cerberus.

"Spill Salamander, you called me before saying you went to Mira's café and you were sounding more... energetic than usual." gajeel said with a grin on his pierced fill face.

Natsu had completely forgotten, that he indeed called Gajeel that day. Wanting to talk to someone about how he got there, someone to share his mixed emotions will. But now that was something far pushed into the past, he now regrets even bothering Gajeel about it. Gray who didn't know that story nodded, also wanting to know how that came to be. It wasn't unknown that Natsu has been avoiding anything related to his childhood crush in any way, especially that particular café.

"I just went there with a friend, I was just reminded of Lisanna and wanted to talk to someone. That's why I called." Natsu said, watching his words as best as he could.

"You don't have all that many friends Fire Breath, so who is this 'friend' you went with." Eagerness and suspicions was written all over Gray's face.

Gajeel had already known that story so he was as eager to know, he just wanted to know more in detail. He already knew who and why he was even there for in the first place, he just really wanted to hear the details from the man himself. That and have some fun a little while his at it; getting Gray in on the story by subtly hinting was the fun part but the moment Gray get's the whole picture is the moment of entertainment. Gajeel was about to so very boldly ask his reasons when Gray interrupted his moment with something even better in mind.

"Now, I want to know who is the hot blond you were hangout with last week at the mall." Gray let out his biggest curious subject sense last week.

Natsu's mouth thinned, he wanted to tell them all about who Lucy was but he worried that they'll never let it go for the rest of time. Also he feared that is friends intruding might scare the girl off, she was already annoyed with guys constant pursuits, why add more to the fire? He honestly didn't have to worry to much about Gajeel sense he already has a girl he likes, and even though there's a girl in Grays's life he still hasn't showed any type of acceptance to her advances, so he was pretty much still single. That could pose as a problem...

Natsu froze, what kind of thoughts were just going through his head? Was he just thinking about making an excuse to avoid introducing Lucy to his friends? Wherever his thoughts were going, a drunken woman interrupted them across the bar. The three boys heads turned to to source, there in a secluded corner of the room, was a brunette and a blond sitting alone together.

"I won't lose next time! yer hear!" The brunette yelled; a bartender stopped walking.

The supposed bartender she was talking to turned his head back and had said something no one could hear, and then went back to his duties. The woman wasn't afraid to show her annoyance by replying with an angry growl, then the blond beside the brunette laughed out loud. Natsu's eyes widen, he had seen her running off ahead earlier but he wasn't expecting her to be heading to the same bar.

Why was she out so late and dress in short shorts and over the knee socks? He had wondered about that earlier too, now it occurred to him that she was dressed the part of attending a late night out with a friend at the bar.

Natsu was just finished thinking about, what where the chances they would meet up twice in one day when a hand waved up and down in front of his face. The hand acted like a knife by cutting off his open view of Lucy laughing with a big smile on her face. Natsu felt his cheeks heat up a little and quick moved his sights back to the front of the bar counter. Now that he wasn't solely focused on Lucy he noticed it was Gray who had waved his hand mere inches away from his face. The two boys looked back and forth between Natsu and who he was so boldly staring at moments ago, Natsu tried to hide his amazement.

She was here too.

Okay, I posted this a little later than usual. I normally like to put up a chapter around noon but today I'm a little behind. For some odd and totally dumb reason, I thought I had already finished this chapter before hand so I didn't bother about checking if I truly had or not. Turns out I didn't LOL, so I had to quick write this chapter up on the spot.

So I'm sorry if there are some contradiction and probably lot's & LOT'S of spelling/grammar mistakes. I'll be going over it later, sorry for the inconvenience. (A/N: I went on and tried cleaning it up a bit, hard to say if it did any good. I hope it's not to hard on the eyes. )

Till next Chapter!

Comment & Review please. It's motivational!