DISCLAIMER: I do not own Fairytail or any of its characters. They belong to Hiro Mashima.

A/N: Gray has just found out the reason why Natsu is at Lucy's, and has just indirectly given Natsu a helping hand, while Lucy was being interrogated by her female classmates about her relationship with Natsu. In this chapter, we would see how a simple text could provoke such…an intense emotion. And probably create another intense and intimate moment between the Princess and her Dragon.

A Surprising Reaction

The blonde sighed as she stared out the window of her room. It was a Friday night, and she was busying herself with writing her novel. Well, she was trying to busy herself, that is. No matter how hard she concentrated on what she was doing, her mind always drifted back to that moment in the bathroom, to that scene where she could feel Natsu, could feel all of him, pressed against her. She could remember how his big hands fondled her, how his lips had scorched her skin and how his fang had marked her—a mark that would always be embedded on her skin. She reached up a hand, her fingers running along her jawline. Yes, she could remember everything. And she was still wondering what could have happened had she not told him to leave…

"No, no, no!" She yelled as she shook her head. She then slumped on the table, her head resting on her arms.

"I really should stop imagining things." She sighed. She glanced at her phone, which was silently resting near her blonde head. After that incident, Natsu had developed a habit of knocking at the bathroom door first, before entering. He did that just in case he saw the door closed, uncertain if somebody was already there. Lucy, on the other hand, had learned to remember locking the bathroom door, so that any other similar incident could be avoided. The downside of the whole thing (for Lucy, that is) was that Natsu was taking more care than ever to avoid making any sort of body contact with Lucy. If before, whenever they were outside, Natsu never wore gloves, now he did. He also made sure that he was fully clothed every time Lucy summoned him for something important. It was like the less he could feel Lucy, the more he could better control his body.

Lucy sighed. Well, she did have her wish granted, right? She had a guard who was willing to cast aside personal desires, out of pure respect and consideration. He was kind, helpful, and strong. He was sometimes a bit goofy (as what Lucy had seen a couple of times the past few weeks), but when things required one to be serious, he would definitely go into serious mode. And it was…kind of appealing. Yeah, Natsu was, for lack of better term, the perfect guy for her. The problem was…

"Ehhhhh…you're so…you're so…gahhhh!" Lucy groaned, unable to find the correct word for him. Much like a gentleman? Shy? Reserved? Oh, he was not reserved, Lucy thought as a blush crept to her face. After all, if her were like that, he would not have had the courage to pull her close to his body, to make her feel his hard-toned, well-sculpted chest, stomach and arms. To make her feel that part of him that was a tell-tale sign he was affected by her so much. That part of his she had wished had taken her then and there…

"Kyahhhhh!" Lucy almost tumbled out of her chair as her mobile phone sounded, announcing the arrival of a text message. She quickly grabbed the device, her fingers immediately setting the screen to her inbox. It was a text from Natsu.

'Oi, your door is open. I can hear you.'

Lucy raised a brow as she glanced toward her door. Yes, it was not locked and was slightly open. Was he standing just outside of her room? She shrugged. She was not going to go outside and cause him any trouble. She then quickly typed in her response.

'Hear me? What do you mean? I wasn't talking that loud, was I?'

Natsu smirked upon receiving the text. He had just arrived from some errand and was just about to enter his room when he heard Lucy exclaim something. He noticed that the door was open a little, and so he decided to stay there, out of curiosity. He was leaning against the wall, hidden from Lucy's view. The longer he stood there, the more he realized Lucy was probably thinking of…something naughty. Why?

'No, you weren't talking. You were moaning. Mewling. Are you thinking of someone right now?'

Lucy's face turned bright red upon reading Natsu's response. No way! She yelped in her head. I—I was moaning while daydreaming?! She bit her lower lip as she quickly typed in her reply. She somehow had the feeling that he was teasing her. The nerve of him! Could he not see that she was doing him a favour by not going out? She was wearing quite a revealing tank top and very short shorts, thanks to the hot weather. By staying in her room, she thought she would be able to avoid any more close encounters with Natsu—and thus prevent them from...well, having more distance between them.

'None of your business who I'm thinking about right now. :p'

Natsu raised a brow at her answer. Was she irritated? Or was she playing along with him?

'Really. Is it someone I know?'

The blonde smirked. Curious, eh? She thought to herself. Her smirk never left her lips as she typed in her response.

'Probably not. He's from FAU. Name's Loki.'

The pink-haired young man's eyes suddenly popped out of his sockets. Loki? She could not mean Leo? Loki was the nickname his classmates had given him, what with his reputation. He was a known Cassanova, dating both young and old women. He was kind and helpful and all that, but yeah, he had the habit of 'falling in love' with more than two girls at once. A trickster of the heart—that was what he was to the eyes of majority of the male population.

'Interesting. How did you meet with this Loki?'

Lucy tilted her head. How would she respond to that? She did know Loki. He was one of her most persistent suitors—even up until now, when he remembered—and he was also somewhat a friend of hers. Somewhat. Yesterday, he and a couple of his male friends from another school had dropped by, apparently trying to pick up some of the female students from FBU. Lucy happened to be just heading out the main gate when Loki and his group arrived. Upon seeing her, Loki immediately asked Lucy if she could join them for some karaoke. She declined, saying that she had to do something. The young man said it was too bad, but he still managed to give Lucy a quick kiss on the cheek, telling her that if ever she changed her mind, she could run into his arms anytime she wanted. Although that made Lucy shiver, she was glad Loki did not insist on making her go with them.

'He's kinda like an on-off friend of mine. One moment he's a friend, the next he's a suitor. Saw him yesterday. Asked me out, but I refused. But he did give me something.'

'What was it?'

Lucy could not help but chuckle inwardly. Oh, so he was that curious? She thought. Without further ado, she replied with only two words.

'A kiss.'

Lucy waited. And waited. And waited a couple minutes more. Why wasn't he responding? Wait, did she piss him off? Worry flooded her as she stared at her mobile phone. They were only goofing around, right? So why wasn't he answering? What could possibly make him mad about that text? After all, she was just saying the tru—

"So he gave you a kiss? Care to tell where?" Said a low voice behind her. She was so focused on her mobile device that she did not notice Natsu enter her room, nor did she hear the soft click of the door knob as the young man locked it (just in case somebody passed by). Natsu placed his hands on either side of Lucy, trapping her within his arms. He then leaned down, his head just inches away from Lucy's. The startled female dropped her phone on the table, her hands automatically going near her chest as she stammered.

"I-I'm sorry! I didn't mean to…I mean, I was surprised myself and—" But Natsu cut her off, asking her once more in his low, and seemingly husky voice.

"Again, where did he kiss you?" He murmured, his lips hovering just centimetres away from her ear. He then lifted his right hand, brushing the strands covering Lucy's ear and placing them behind it, allowing him easier access to the said part.

"Ch-cheek. Just on the cheek. Nowhere near my lips." She murmured, as she tried to battle the surfacing desires of her body. Not again..! She groaned. Not another moment that would make her further spiral into insanity! Not that she was against it…but it might cause the young man to distance himself from her even more! She had to control herself. She had to-!

"I see. Did you like it?"

What?! Lucy almost wanted to shout at his question. How would she answer that?! She swallowed hard as she thought of her response.

"I…I didn't." She whimpered. She could feel Natsu's smirk on her ear, his breath warming up her skin. Please…don't tease me anymore, she moaned in her head. But it seemed like the young man was not planning on giving up just yet.

"Oh? Why didn't you like it? After all, it was a kiss, right? From someone you like, probably?" He whispered, his lips now grazing her jawline once more. Lucy's breath caught in her throat. What was he saying?! But all her thoughts and her willpower were slowly flowing out of her, her mind giving up any resistance to the young man's provocation. Slowly, she turned her head toward Natsu, her brown eyes almost hidden by her half-closed lids. She allowed an inch or so of space to separate her mouth from Natsu's, a distance that could be easily crossed with just one little push.

"Yeah, it was a kiss from someone I like. Though that like only covers friendship. So I wonder…" Lucy murmured, her lips now brushing slightly against Natsu's. She could feel him tense up, could see his onyx eyes getting darker. A small smile crossed her lips as she continued to tease the pink-haired young man before her.

"Would someone like you…be able to give me…" She said as she allowed herself to press her lips against Natsu's for a very brief moment. She then broke off, her brown orbs now shining with desire as she continued.

"…a kiss that I'd like..?"

Natsu stared at Lucy, his black orbs focused on the female's parted lips. A kiss that she'd like? He smirked as he moved his head forward.

"Like? I'll give you one…" He said as he pressed his mouth against hers. He watched as Lucy finally let her lids fall, her hands going to his collar.

"…that you won't forget." He growled as he finally gave in to his desire—after weeks of holding back. He gently kissed her upper lip, and then her lower, moving from one to another in a slow fashion. He would gently suck on one lip, let his tongue run over it, before moving to its sister and administering the same motions with his mouth onto it. The moment Lucy moaned into the kiss, Natsu let his tongue dive in, the pink muscle exploring the moist cavern before him. He swirled his tongue, ran it over the front of her teeth, the roof of her mouth, the top of her own tongue. Lucy even allowed her own little tongue to play with his, trying and failing to dominate his more aggressive one.

The blonde moaned as Natsu gently sucked on her lip. Her legs were tightly crossed together, her hands gripping the collar of Natsu's shirt tightly. He was...good. Really good. Her mind was slowly numbing with pleasure as desire pooled in every sensitive part of her body. So when he parted from her for them to breathe, Lucy could not help but keep his face close to hers.

"Unfair..." She murmured, her lips still tantalizingly close to Natsu's. The young man bit his lower lip, silently telling Lucy with his eyes that she continue with what she was saying.

"You kissed me...and next thing I know, you'll place more distance between us. Unfair..." The blonde murmured. Natsu sighed, before he stood up straight. He let his hands fall on Lucy's shoulders, egging her to follow suit. The blonde did just that. Pushing aside the chair that was in between, the young man stepped forward, pushing Lucy against her desk. The female had no choice but to lean—almost sit down, actually—on the wooden top. Natsu then closed the gap between their bodies, his hips right against Lucy's. The blonde hooked her arms around his neck, her brown orbs staring up at him in question.

"Sorry about this. I just can't...stand the idea of another guy kissing you. I'm being selfish, I know." He said as he nuzzled against Lucy's neck.

"It's okay. I...kinda like it, you being selfish over me..." She murmured back, savoring the woodsy scent coming from him. She then moved her hands in order to cup Natsu's face and make him look at her.

"But promise me, you won't get any further away from me after this, okay? I can't...stand it, you not being close to me." She requested. Natsu smiled sheepishly at her.

"Yeah...me, too. It's...kinda difficult not wanting to be with you." He admitted. He kissed her lightly a couple times before he continued.

"I've so wanted to kiss you for a long time now. I was just scared of what you'll think of me. Your previous guar-"

"Was an asshole. You're different. I..." At this Lucy faltered, as the blush that had been covering her face turned into a darker shade of red.

"I like..I think I like you..." Lucy stammered. She heard him chuckle, before he allowed his face to move closer to Lucy's.

"You think? Well...I think I'd have to convince you more, then..." He murmured as he kissed her once more. The blonde smiled into his lips, savoring the sweet taste of his mouth over hers. Finally, after weeks and weeks of holding back, he finally had the courage to kiss her. Was it a dream come true? Probably. But it was far better than a dream.

"...Cause I'm already madly in love with you, Lucy."

Indeed, it was far better...