A/N: I was in Kyoto, Japan until yesterday. It was for work. My flight was delayed, so I decided to spend my time in a café outside my hotel, typing the previous chapter up. Surprisingly, a stranger approached me after a while. Before that he was sitting right behind me and incidentally saw me type the names 'Natsu' and 'Lucy'. He turned out to be a huge NaLu fanboy and took a real interest in this story. Well, one thing I realized from this experience is that- it's fun to meet someone who is interested in what you write.

Anyway, some General Facts from the chapters so far:

~Loke doesn't have feelings for Lucy.

~Macbeth's interests in Lucy aren't sudden.

~Gray had been in love with Lucy for over seven years now.

~Natsu never actually cheated on Lucy. And even though most people think otherwise, Lucy herself is very much aware of this.

~The first two sentences in the previous chapter -written in Italics- are actually Natsu's inner monologue over his jealousy + concern for Lucy.

~Erza is still prepared to tell Natsu not to attend her wedding- if Lucy changes her mind and doesn't wish to show up because of him. Even if it's at the very last minute.

Chapter 8 - Wavering Will

-Eight Years Ago-

"This is the new transfer student I was telling you guys about yesterday. Both her parents are from Japan, but she was born in London and raised there by her aunt. After seventeen years of living abroad, she came to live in Japan with her parents. All of you! Behave properly and be friendly with her!" The older man, tall and too muscular for a high school teacher, finally turned to the girl in question with a kind smile. "You can introduce yourself by your name now, young lady." He told her with the same smile, as she responded with a shy one of her own.

He was asking her to tell her name, after spilling out her entire background beforehand.

Pushing away the growing feeling of awkwardness in her head, the young blonde finally turned her complete attention to the entire class as she noted the slightly overwhelming curious gazes of her new classmates.

"Nice to meet you. I am Lucy Heartfilia. I hope we get along well." Lucy made a small bow as murmurs of cheers echoed in the previously silent classroom. She straightened up to find warm and welcoming smiles on the unfamiliar faces, a gesture that made her feel giddy. Her restless eyes moved around the class, until they came to a stop at one particularly odd sight.

A frowning young boy was staring intently at her from the very back seat of the center row, an expression that unsurprisingly stood out in comparison to the rest of the class' happy ones. Yet the aspect of him that felt most out of the place was those unnatural locks of spiky pink hair? Lucy's curiosity got the better of her. Since she didn't stop her eyes from checking him out hurriedly.

The first couple buttons of his shirt were loose, and the long sleeves were rolled upto his elbow. Lucy noticed a single piercing on his left ear, the tiny silver ring gleamed under a ray of sunlight shining through one of the open windows. A delinquent? She thought to herself, before finally snapping back to reality at the deep voice beside her.

"Alright, quiet now! Lucy, your seat is the last one on the second row from the windows."

Wow. It's right beside that delinquent. Lucy remarked to herself disappointingly.

Oblivious to her inner monologue- the man continued, "I know I've already introduced myself, but I'll say it again. I'm your homeroom teacher, Gildarts Clive. And I teach PE."

PE, huh? He had only told her his name before but now that he mentioned PE, Lucy was finally able to make some sense of his overly strong built.

"Come to me for anything that you might be having trouble with." Gildarts flashed her a wide grin- making her wonder if the teachers in Japan were as kind and nice as him.

She wasn't the brightest student in her previous school back in London, but getting a treatment as nice as that from a teacher on the first day itself, motivated her to do her best.

Lucy gave him a grateful smile. After making sure to thank Gildarts in the most genuine way she could manage, she finally made her way to her assigned seat. A feeling of nervous excitement rose in her chest as she passed by the students, most of whose eyes still seemed to be glued on her. Maybe seeing a foreign student was pretty rare for them, after all.

Upon reaching her seat, Lucy silently sat down. Gildarts started calling out the names for attendance and as Lucy waited for hers, a tanned masculine hand slipped a small piece of carelessly folded paper on her desk. Blinking in confusion, Lucy moved her gaze to the owner of the hand at the seat beside her. That was when she saw it. An innocent wide grin deprived of any ulterior intentions. And before she could even register the image in her head, it made her heart skip a beat.

"Welcome to the class, Lucy!" He spoke in a whisper, the silly grin plastered on his face, not wavering. His attention then was stolen by Gildarts calling his name.

"Natsu Dragneel."

"Present, sir~!"

Natsu Dragneel.

Lucy repeated the name in her head a couple times, until her mind was able to focus on the small piece of paper still laying untouched on her desk. Throwing a glance at Natsu, who was now busy in a conversation with a raven haired guy on his other side, Lucy took the paper in her hand, carefully unfolding it to check the contents inside.

"Sorry for staring rudely! I thought the new transfer student would be an over the top arrogant foreigner. So seeing someone so normal surprised me! Which is good! I hope we can become friends! :)

P.S: Relax and smile more. Everyone seems to like you!"

Lucy stared at the sloppy handwriting for a few more seconds before folding the paper back, neatly this time, and gently tucking it in her bag.

She was never going to judge anyone based on first impressions again. It was a silent promise to herself, while unknowing to her, a soft smile had broken on to her lips. And it did not go unnoticed by the person responsible for it.

Natsu stared at her for longer than he meant to, before turning ahead with an excited grin of his own. He noted how he was looking forward to school days even more now.

"It's already been a week since she transferred here, but Lucy's popularity isn't going down at all." The raven haired boy beside him spoke, and Natsu raised a brow at the comment. A pair of black eyes moved to the front of the classroom where a hoard of girls were all over the new girl.

He leaned back on the seat, his gaze fixed on the troubled blonde.

"She looks overwhelmed..." With a hint of worry, he murmured just loud enough for the male beside him to hear.

"I know right? I haven't even talked to her directly yet. It's so hard to step into a crowd like that. And she always seems to be attracting people like a Queen bee attracting the worker bees. You're lucky to be sitting right beside her!"

"Dude, that comment about Queen bee is kinda rude towards her. Though I do agree a little. She attracts the people around her. I think that's one of her charms." Natsu smiled fondly as he watched her laugh at something one of the girls said. She did look overwhelmed but she knew how to manage the never ending attention. "Also, you need to stop thinking I'm lucky, Gray. I barely even talked to her since the first day. She always looks so focused on the lessons, it's hard to call out to her."

Observing Natsu's expression carefully, Gray leaned on his desk as he rested his chin on his palm. "Does the dense pink-head have feelings for the new girl~?" He cooed with a teasing smirk as it made Natsu narrow his eyes with a not-so-impressed look.

"What are you even talking about?" He arched an eyebrow at Gray, to which the latter chuckled.

"It's written all over your face, buddy." His laugh only got louder at Natsu's frown, attracting some unwanted attention while the latter continued glaring at him, hoping he'd stop.

"Shut up already, Gray!" Natsu looked uncharacteristically flustered, especially after noticing even Lucy's eyes on them.

It took the raven head a few more moments before his amusement finally settled down. The eyes he was attracting towards him were now back at their own specific tasks. Letting out a heavy sigh to calm his mirth, he stole a glance at the new girl. "I wonder if she's having language problems with the lessons. You did say she looks really focused during classes."

"What are you talking about? She got higher marks than either of us in the literature test yesterday." Natsu spoke in the most obvious tone, not seeming bothered about getting beaten by someone in Japanese when they studied abroad all their life.

"You can't be serious..." Unlike his best friend's reaction, Gray's expression spoke of a huge shock. His competitive nature kicked in as he stared down at his desk with his head hung low, sulking over the fact that he was losing to someone who hadn't even seen the face of Japan until a few weeks ago.

Natsu sweatdropped internally at the sight. "Dude, you're overreacting..."

"How would you know what I am feeling?! You don't even care about your grades!"

"That's because I am not a drama queen like you." Natsu replied with a sigh. "Seriously, cheer up! Wanna hang out at the arcade center after classes today? My treat." He did not understand the motivation behind Gray's over exaggerated reactions when it came to academic performance, but he knew it was genuinely affecting the dark haired boy. Maybe informing him about her scores wasn't the right choice after all.

Gray looked back at him with a grateful expression on his face, his eyes sparkling with unshed tears. "You're an angel in the form of a human, Natsu." He said dramatically with a tone of admiration.

"That coming from a guy doesn't make me pleased at all..." The slightly younger boy chuckled nervously.

Gray looked like he had a proper response prepared for that remark, but before he had the chance to speak, the door to the classroom slid open with enough force to make both the boys flinch in shock. Their attention along with the rest of the class, turned to the small frame of a girl who was now standing at the entrance. She was crouched down with her hands on her knees, huffing and puffing as she struggled to catch her breath.

"Levy?" Natsu raised a brow while Gray gaped at her, very surprised at the girl's entrance. So there was someone dramatic enough to give him a run for money.

"LUCY!" Levy, who had finally gotten a hold of her breathing, swiftly made her way to the blonde in question. Her eyes very clearly shone in pure excitement as she easily broke into the crowd before throwing herself at the only person of her interest.

The pair now had the entire class's attention, most giving them looks of confusion and surprise, while the crowd around Lucy looked bewildered at being brushed aside so easily.

"Levy! It's really you!" Lucy spoke with the same tone of excitement as she hugged the shorter girl tightly.

"It is me! And I had such a hard time believing it was you when I first heard the new transfer student's name! Why didn't you tell me?" Levy exclaimed while pulling away from the hug as she brought her hands to hold Lucy's, intertwining their fingers together.

"I wanted to surprise you but I had a hard time looking for you." Lucy confessed with a sheepish smile and it didn't take Levy long to catch up on the reason behind her struggles. She turned to the small crowd around the two girls that hadn't shown any sign of moving even after Levy's interference.

"You guys! Don't you have anything else to do? Give her some space to breath! She might have gotten here from a different country but she is still a human being, you know? Stop treating her like some kind of an alien!" She scolded them with an unimpressed look as they started to move away, most of them going back to their seats looking displeased.

Gray finally chuckled at the scene in front of him as Natsu didn't look any less amused either. The two boys gave each other a knowing look before leaving their seat. They approached the girls with Natsu waving a hand as a greeting.

"Hey, Levy!" He spoke with a cheerful grin as he stood beside Lucy while leaving a comfortable distance between them.

"Hi Hi!" Gray said next with a smile, forgetting his sore mood from before.

"Natsu! Gray! I haven't seen you two around recently, what have you guys been up to?" Levy asked with a surprised smile, confirming the boys' suspicions that she hadn't noticed them until then.

"Well whenever we hang around your class during breaks, you're always in the library." Gray answered for both of them and Natsu shrugged, silently agreeing with him.

"Ah, that's why! Well, good to see you two doing well!" Levy said in a content tone. Natsu's eyes moved to Lucy next who was watching their conversation with a thoughtful expression, her head slightly tilted to the side. And the first thing to cross his mind was the word - cute.

Feeling his eyes on her, Lucy glanced over at Natsu. A look of surprise crossed her face as her eyes met his. It managed to pull Natsu back into reality. He finally looked away with slightly tinted cheeks, failing to notice the same expression on her.

"So, you two know each other?" Gray spoke first, his eyes moving from Levy to Lucy and back, as he looked completely oblivious to the silent interaction between his salmon haired best friend and the latter.

"That's right! I met Lucy back in London. My Dad is an occasional business partner with Lucy's aunt! We're childhood friends and we're always together when I'm visiting London with Dad!" Levy replied, not catching up on the awkward silence between the two either.

"Isn't your father the President of a Toy Company?" The dark haired boy asked again, his curiosity really piqued this time.

"Yep and Lady Anna, that is her aunt, is the President of another one in London. They often collaborate on various projects together." Levy then turned her attention to the other two in the group, finally noticing their uncharacteristic silence. "What's wrong?" She blinked in confusion, directing Gray's curiosity to Natsu and Lucy as well.

"Are you two okay?" Gray asked and Natsu shrugged, trying to shake off the awkwardness on his side.

"Was just listening to you two talk." He said, to which Lucy gave a sheepish smile.

"Yeah, I didn't want to interrupt." Gray chuckled at Lucy's response.

"Interrupt? We were talking about you." He remarked gleefully. "I'm Gray, by the way. We see each other everyday in class but I never got a chance to talk to you." Gray talked to her not like a stranger, but a friend that he'd known for a while. The carefree tone in his voice made Lucy relax instantly.

"I'm sorry it took me so long to talk to you. I should have greeted you first. I'm Lucy." She spoke with an apologetic look before holding out her hand. And Gray took it almost instinctively.

"Don't worry about that. Glad we finally have our introductions out of the way." He said honestly with a chuckle, while giving her hand a gentle shake. Her skin was noticeably warm to the touch. The insignificant realization left an unsettling feeling in his now empty hand as he let hers go.

Brushing aside whatever it was that he felt, Gray gave Natsu a nudge with his elbow. "Hey, where are your manners, Natsu?" He asked in a teasing manner, making Natsu glare daggers at the raven haired boy.

"Yeah Natsu, you've been acting a little weird." Levy remarked with a concerned look, clearly not understanding the reason behind the difference in his usual cheerfulness. Natsu simply gave her a reassuring smile.

"I'm fine. You're reading too much into this, Levy." He told her as a matter of fact. And then directed his attention to Lucy. "We've talked before for a bit but I don't think I introduced myself, haha.." He laughed nervously before holding out his hand to her on his own. "I'm Natsu Dragneel! The future of the voice acting world!"

"So lame~" Gray cooed with an unimpressed look. Lucy giggled softly.

"I'm Lucy Heartfilia. I don't have any big ambitions yet, but well, call me Lucy."

"Looking forward to a great year with you, Lucy!" Natsu gave her his widest grin. Her hand that was still in his, made Lucy's heart suddenly thrum in her chest. It was getting too loud for her comfort and she prayed to heavens that the others wouldn't be able to hear it. Color rose to her cheeks as she tilted her head a bit to the side, lifting her shoulders slightly with a warm smile.

"Same here, Natsu."

'What do I do? I am already hopelessly in love.'

Two voices spoke simultaneously to themselves.

Natsu's eyes jerked open as his upper body instinctively shot up on the couch. He was sweating, his heart struggling to slow down with the rapid uncontrollable beating. Looking around him he noticed how he was in the living room instead of his bedroom. Rays of sunlight had started peeking inside, through the curtains covering the glass doors to the balcony.

Did he fall asleep while working? Questions rose one after another in his head, before the lingering warmth of a hand running through his hair snapped him back to his senses.

Vivid memories from the previous night came rushing back to Natsu, as he hid both his face in the palm of his hands. The realization of all the things that he had told her, left him shaking in disappointment at himself.

"Why did I have to blabber all that?", were the first words that he murmured. He asked himself the question partially in shock, but mostly in regret.

Natsu didn't get the chance to think further about his dilemma, as a sudden burst of pain in his head left him groaning. He threw off the thin blanket over him, paying it little to no mind. Stumbling to the kitchen with the constantly growing headache, Natsu struggled to find something in the fridge. When his blurred vision finally settled upon a bottle of water, he grabbed it hurriedly.

After frustratingly taking off the tight cap with shaky hands, Natsu emptied the whole bottle over his head. It was painfully cold but somewhat soothing at the same time. Seconds later the overwhelming pain started to subside, as he leaned forward on the basin. He took deep breaths while patiently waiting for the headache to disappear completely.

Finally able to regain his composure, Natsu's eyes moved around the little view he had from the kitchen door of his seemingly empty apartment. Erza was not anywhere to be seen and he realized that she had left while he was asleep. A wave of relief hit him at the thought. Since the last thing he wanted at the moment was to have her see more of his pathetic side.

Natsu finally let himself slide down onto the plain white tiled floor, now a little wet and slippery from the water. His head rested on the wooden counter behind him as he stared into the distance, not letting his eyes focus at anything in particular.

Cold droplets of water slid down his hair and onto his face. His indifference to the sensation reminded him of his numb state over and over again.

This is the worst. He thought to himself, strong emotions dancing in his seemingly shaking dark eyes. He was never good at hiding something. He knew it and yet he had tried so hard. Only for his feelings to take over all his reasoning. Not once, but twice.

And as if that wasn't enough, he ended up giving Erza the chance to force her way into his thoughts and ruin most of his remaining efforts. His carelessness only led him to remember and dream of memories that he struggled to forget.

Natsu gritted his teeth. The frustration and pain made breathing uncomfortably hard for him. All until everything in him shut down, as a series of voices started playing in his head.

You're a failure, Natsu. You always will be.

That was disappointing.

You're just not good enough.

"Shut up."

I had hoped you to be as talented as your brother.

I might consider casting you if you introduce me to that girl of yours.

"Shut up!"

You're still sulking despite all these opportunities? What an ungrateful man.

Are you sure you aren't the one to blame for his death?

"Shut up!"

I am sorry, son. I have an important meeting to attend. I can't be at the funeral.

Accept it already. She is too good for you.

"SHUT UP!"

Natsu snapped back out of his thoughts at the loud echo of his own voice. He stared ahead intently, the only object in front of his vision was the empty water bottle lying on the floor. He hadn't realized how heavy his breathing was, until his chest hurt from supposedly holding his breath for too long.

"Ugh.." He groaned clutching his head in his hands. It hurt so bad. And this time it wasn't just his head.

"Lucy."

The all too familiar name escaped his lips, ultimately breaking the dam of bottomless emotions that he had been holding back.

And the tears that followed, showed no sign of stopping.