KTKG Says: Hey everyone! I'm back with a new chapter for you! I have to say I'm so glad that you guys enjoyed the last one. Honestly, I wasn't too sure how good it was going to turn out but apparently it was good because you guys liked it! Oh! I'm over 150 reviews! I FREAKING LOVE YOU PEOPLE! CUPCAKES FOR EVERYONE!
Ahem.
Sorry.
Now! On with the new chapter!
Chapter 12
A light groan sounded in the otherwise dark room as Lucy rolled over. In her attempt to get comfortable so she could go back to sleep, she rolled over something that in turn groaned in protest. Her eyes snapped open as she quickly moved back to where she had originally been as she warily eyed the thing she had almost squished.
The darkness of the room prevented her from seeing anything past the lump of, something, under the covers beside her properly. Cautiously, she reached a hand out and gave the lump a hard poke. Immediately a mumbled whine reached her ears.
"Lushiii~"
Oh, it was just Happy.
Sighing she placed her hand on the larger portion of the lump that she assumed was his head and rubbed apologetically. "Sorry Happy, go back to sleep." She watched as he shifted around a bit, the sound of his tail thumping against the mattress reaching her ears before he let out a sigh himself.
Waiting a couple of seconds, she listened for Happy's usually nasally snore. When the sound reached her she quietly rose from the bed and headed down the hall to the kitchen. It was obvious that she wasn't going to be able to go back to sleep so she might as well get herself a snack.
Flipping the light on, she winced at the brightness that suddenly invaded her optics. After waiting for her eyes to adjust, she shuffled over to the fridge and rummaged through it, settling on a glass of milk to go with the cookies she knew were hidden in her bottom drawer of her desk. While Natsu didn't have a sweet tooth, she knew Gray did, and seeing as he had picked up a habit of stopping over at the house as of late she had to take to hiding her treats from the ice mage.
Bring her glass over to her desk, she sat down and grabbed her treat out, munching on a cookie as she leafed through her latest chapter that she wrote. She had every intention of adding on to it, but unfortunately for her that wasn't about to happen. Her mind, as it had been lately, was somewhere else entirely.
Sighing, she leaned back in her chair as she reached for another cookie and let her eyes wander to the ceiling as she ran over what had been bothering her lately.
She still didn't know what label to apply to her and Natsu.
When they had arrived back from their mini vacation, she hadn't had a chance to really sit down and talk with him. They had been whisked away on a mission with Gray and Erza, leaving her no privacy with him to figure things out. On top of that, when they got back, things had been rather busy around town also. The two of them were still taking little side missions to raise money for her to move out and they have kept her so busy that at the end of the day, all she and Natsu wanted to do was rest. She had had every intention of cornering the dragon slayer but unfortunately she would pass out while waiting for him to finish his shower.
Things hadn't really been any clearer either and in a way, it was starting to irritate her.
Natsu's behavior had been more confusing than ever to her, and with not being able to ask him about it, Lucy hadn't been able to focus on much as it was mainly focused on him.
For the past couple of weeks, it had been as if they were in a relationship. They shared a bed, which really wasn't anything new except for the fact that he would always cuddle with her right after kissing her goodnight.
Oh, and the kisses didn't stop there.
He would always kiss her in the morning when he got up or sneak little pecks in to the back of her neck when she was attempting to write or cook. He was also always touching her, either throwing an arm around her to pull her close when they were sitting on the couch or hugging her from behind while she did her hair for the day. He was always where she was, always somewhere close, but not to the point where he was hovering or anything.
When she really thought about it, it wasn't really anything different from his normal behavior. The only difference was that he was more affectionate, and honestly, she loved every minute of it. Every kiss and touch he gave her had her melting and almost whining for more, especially the kisses.
She absolutely loved the kisses he gave her.
While all of that was nice, there was something that was bothering her about everything though. For one, the touches and kisses never went any further. They would get heated every once and a while, but needless to say they hadn't had a repeat of Akane beach, and really she couldn't understand why.
Was he waiting for her permission again? She had thought that her responses were enough but apparently not as he would always stop just before it went too far.
The other thing that confused her was he was only really affectionate when they were alone. Well, she took that back, Happy would be there too but he didn't really count. When they were at the guild, he was always busy fighting with Gray or anyone really, to be affectionate with her. That wasn't really a big deal though when she thought about it. The problem was he would hold her hand on the walk there, and as soon as they walked through the doors, he would let go.
Did he not want people to know about them, whatever they were, at the moment? Was he ashamed of her? Was it because of Lissana? The two had been as close as ever since they got back but it wasn't anything out of the norm. He still paid equal attention to her and since they were normally out on a small mission, when they were at the guild Lucy was busy catching up with Levy and Cana to notice anything.
She shook her head at that last thought, knowing Natsu would never be ashamed of her for anything but still, the thought lingered. She didn't know how deep Natsu's feelings for her ran and until things were clarified she couldn't help all thinking about all the reasons for him to hide his affections for her. She knew he felt something for her, she just wasn't sure if it was as deep as the love she felt for him.
Sighing, she finished the last cookie in her hand and chugged down the rest of her milk before getting up to head back into the kitchen.
It was no use dwelling on any of it right now. Natsu was on a special mission with Gajeel, of all people, and wouldn't be back until some time next week. Maybe then things would have calmed down enough so she and Natsu could finally talk. Her hand unconsciously played with the now scarred mark on her neck as she though about the man Natsu was on a mission with.
Gajeel Redfox.
That man had one hell of a staring problem. It hasn't been something that was consistent, but every once in a while Lucy would look up when Natsu was sitting next to her to find him looking in their direction with the most annoying smirk on his face. It was as if he knew something she didn't, and it made her want to smack the look right off his face. Natsu would generally do it for her, seeing as the staring would always lead to them fighting.
Oh well, she wasn't going to think about it too much for now. She had a small assignment in the morning to help Mira out with the bar. The guild had taken to opening their doors to the public once a week for some extra cash seeing as some members have been particularly destructive lately, and since she had nothing better to do, she decided to help Mira when she needed it.
Climbing back into the plush bed, Lucy was careful to watch out for the blue Exceed beneath the covers. Settling in on her side, Happy curled up behind her and she couldn't help the small smile on her face. The vibrations of his slight purring helped calm her racing mind to the point that she was finally feeling drowsy enough to sleep. Snuggling further into the comforter, the last thought that ran through Lucy's head was that Natsu better hurry up on whatever mission he was on. She had questions that she needed answered as soon as possible.
Plus, it wasn't the same without him beside her at night.
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"So, you and bunny-girl huh?"
Natsu paused in his eating and looked up from his plate across the campfire in question. Gajeel had already finished his food and was looking at him with that damn smirk he's been wearing for the past few weeks.
"What the hell are you talking about?"
The iron dragon slayer's smirk spread further across his face as he leaned in, one elbow propped up by a bent knee as he pointed the other finger in Natsu's direction. "Don't play dumb, you and blondie are an item now, aren't you?"
Natsu kept an indifferent look on his face as he placed his plate aside. He should have known that this was coming considering the fact that Gajeel had been snickering every time he and Lucy were together in the man's general vicinity. Now that their mission was over, he guessed it was time to settle things. Setting his face in an annoyed expression, he turned his eyes back on the long haired man across from him.
"What would make you think we were together?"
Gajeel leaned back and crossed his arms, his eyebrows coming down further on his face. "Oh I don't know, maybe because she's smelled like you since Akane beach." Natsu couldn't help his eyebrows shooting up towards his hairline in surprise. The action served to only satisfy his fellow dragon slayer as the smirk was back in full force on Gajeel's face.
Natsu tore his eyes away from his companion to train them on the fire between them for a moment. Lucy smelled like him? Was Gajeel's nose on the fritz or something? Last time he checked Lucy smelled as she normally did, like Night Blooming Jasmines. "What the hell are you talking about? She smells just like she always does!"
Gajeel let out a laugh as he reclined a bit. "Yeah, to you she does, but since you marked her she smells like you to the rest of us dragons." At the comment, Natsu's eyes widened to the size of the plate sitting next to him.
Holy shit. He knew.
No wonder the bastard had been giving him that look lately. He knew what he and Lucy had done back at Akane beach. Hell, he knew what he had done to Lucy while Lucy didn't even know!
"I have to hand it to you Salamander; I didn't think you actually had it in you to claim her. A lot of us thought you were too dense to make it happen."
Natsu had to suppress the groan that threatened to emerge from his throat as his eyes slid shut.
Natsu had been known to be dense, but he wasn't that dense, and he knew that if Gajeel knew he had marked Lucy then there was a pretty good chance that Levy knew as well. That, in turn meant that half of the guild knew as well, which could only mean one thing.
Lucy had found out while he was gone.
Shit, he was dead the minute he got home.
Lucy had no idea what he had done to her when they had… yeah. It wasn't as if he really did it on purpose, although now that he thought about it, he really had. He had been wanting to make her his for a while, even before the strip club episode, so when they had finally picked up where they had left off he had let his instincts take over completely and marked her.
He hadn't realized what he did until the next morning when he saw her fingering her neck at the train station. When she hadn't said anything about it, he opted to stay quiet until he could figure out a way to gently break it to her what that mark on her neck meant. He knew Lucy had a tendency to blow things out of the water, so he figured telling her 'oh, by the way, that mark on your neck means your mine forever' wouldn't go over too well. He would probably need a full body cast by the time she was done with him if he sprung it on her like that.
Honestly, he was scared shitless of what her reaction to it would be. It wasn't reversible; it was permanent, as in until she died. It also went the other way, meaning she would be the only one he would ever be with. It didn't bother him at all though, seeing as he could admit, if only to himself at the moment, that he loved her. The problem was, he wasn't sure how deep her feelings ran for him.
He knew that she felt something for him, considering the fact that she accepted all of his touches and kisses without complaint. In fact, if he didn't know any better he could even say she liked it. A lot. The thing was, he wasn't sure if she really wanted to be in a relationship with him, let alone his mate for life, thus the reason he experimented here and there with the kissing and whatnot. He wouldn't dare try it out in pubic though, although the hand-holding thing seemed to be working in his favor. But then again, if Gajeel knew…
"Who all knows about this?"
Gajeel paused mid-chew, the piece of metal hanging from his mouth sticking straight out for a second before he swallowed the whole thing. "Knows about what? You and bunny-girl officially being an item?" Slowly Natsu nodded, almost scared to hear what the answer was going to be.
"As far as I know, only me."
The sigh of relief that left him was loud and long. Good. This was good.
"What's the matter Salamander, still trying to keep things a secret?"
Natsu remained silent as Gajeel observed him with a critical eye. It was obvious that something was off about this situation. The flame-headed idiot should be ranting and raving about Blondie being his and no one else's, not sitting there and… thinking. Salamander never thought longer than was necessary. Not to mention the fact that he seemed like he wanted to keep quiet about this whole thing.
Gajeel was silent as well as he thought back over the past couple of weeks to what he had observed of the couple. They weren't really lovey-dovey, but then again he was one to talk wasn't he? Blondie seemed like the type that would be though, and if she had agreed to being his mate, she should have been all over him in public right? Unless…
Gajeel's eyes widened slightly as a thought popped in his head.
"She doesn't know, does she?"
He watched in amazement as Natsu stiffened in response to the question.
Holy, the man had claimed someone without them even knowing about it. "How the hell did you manage to do that?!"
Natsu glared, his irritation level going through the roof. Not only did Gajeel know about him claiming Lucy, he now knew that she didn't even know he'd done it. "It's none of your damn business! Shit happens!" Gajeel gave him a look, and Natsu couldn't do anything but sigh.
He couldn't believe what he was about to tell metal-head.
"Okay, okay, something like this doesn't just happen, Igneel explained everything to me so you can spare me the lecture. The thing is… well… things kinda got hot and heavy between us and my instincts kinda took over." He looked away to his partially-eaten plate of food, his appetite long gone with the conversation at hand.
Gajeel on the other hand was silent as he took everything in. He could honestly sympathize with the man sitting across from him, as he too had a hard time checking himself with the Shrimp, but still…
"You have to tell her Salamander. This isn't something that you can just blow off."
Natsu ran a frustrated hand through his hair. "I know that! It's just… It's not that simple." He looked up to see the amused smirk back on Gajeel's face and instantly regretted opening up to his fellow dragon slayer.
"You're worried she doesn't want to be your mate, aren't you?"
The only thing he could do was hang his head in response, making Gajeel burst out in laughter.
"Salamander, you really are an idiot."
Natsu's eyebrow arched in question and Gajeel sighed before elaborating. "It's obvious to everyone, and I mean everyone, that you and Blondie are more than just teammates and best friends. I highly doubt that she would be opposed to the whole thing." He stood up and stretched, the smirk never leaving his face. "So, stop being a little bitch about the whole thing and tell her what everyone already knows; she's yours."
With that, he turned and headed towards the tent he had set up a few hours later, disappearing into it without another word, leaving Natsu there to think about what he had just said.
True, he should just tell her, but there was always that fear he had in the back of his head that she would leave him if she knew. It was easier said than done though, but Gajeel did have a point. He really needed to talk to Lucy about it, and really, when had he been known to run away from something? With that last thought, he decided he would do it as soon as he got home.
He just hoped to Mavis that the whole thing wouldn't result in a trip to the infirmary for him.
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KTKG Says: And there you have it. I hope you enjoyed this! I'm going to try to update this a few more times before my break is over, so be on the look out for more chapters soon! I'm also thinking of adding one more chapter to Thanks Happy. If anyone is interested in that happening, let me know! And as always, REVIEW!
