Chapter Fourteen: Babysitting
(October 11th, 2017, Wednesday Morning)
Natsu unlocked the door to his room as quietly as he could, not wanting to disturb Lucy. He was just getting off his night shift as watch, which ended at five in the morning. The sun hadn't started to rise yet, and wouldn't for another two hours or so.
He used his headlamp to help guide him, smiling when he heard something pattering across the floor. Bending down, Natsu scooped up Happy, nuzzling his face against his cat before setting him back on the ground. "Sleep well?" he whispered, scratching Happy's chin before going to the closet, grabbing some cat food.
When Natsu went over to Happy's food bowl, he glanced at Lucy, focusing on her face. She was asleep, his dragon book resting by her head. He smiled, wondering if she had a good night. It was her first night sleeping in the room without him in it, so he hoped that helped her relax.
Natsu asked her beforehand if she could try to stay awake so her nightmares didn't wake anyone else up, but he guessed she passed out. He couldn't blame her. He would have done the same thing if he was in her position.
Speaking of position, Natsu snorted when he saw her hands curled against her cheek, her expression peaceful. He looked down at her shoulders, seeing the blanket wasn't pulled up. He went to see if she shrugged it off, but his eyes froze when he noticed something odd.
His eyes widened when he realized her shirt was pushed upwards, as if it shifted in her sleep. He wanted to look away, to give her privacy, but he couldn't bring himself to do it. He was too focused on the thick, jagged scar that ran from under her shirt to down into her pants. It had to be at least half a finger's width at its thickest, tapering off towards the ends.
Natsu was tempted to carefully lift her shirt to see how high it went, but he didn't act on it. Not only would it violate Lucy, he also didn't want to see just how bad it was. Instead, he focused on the rest of her stomach. There were less cuts and bruises there, though some of that could be due to her time spent at Fairy Tail.
With no one constantly hurting her, her body was allowed to heal, even if she had only been at the base for a week.
Natsu grabbed her blanket, pulling it up until it went past her shoulders. He didn't want her catching a cold or feeling exposed when she woke up. He fed Happy before searching for his phone, finding it on the ground beside her bed. Bringing it to the window, he plugged it up, hoping it would charge once the sun came out.
He frowned when he saw the cup beside the window, little yellow droplets at the bottom. Sighing, Natsu grabbed the cup, going to the bathroom to rinse it out before going back to the room. He wasn't too shocked she still didn't go to the bathroom on her own. The halls were kind of creepy at night.
Lucy was doing a little better, finally able to go if he was in the room, but she wouldn't go if he wasn't anywhere nearby. It was a hassle, but he gave her some slack considering what she had been through.
Natsu got undressed, stripping down to just his boxers and a tank top. It was his compromise with Lucy, that way he didn't feel too constricted by clothes while he slept but she still felt moderately safe. She hadn't had a freak out since Saturday night, and he intended on keeping it that way.
Natsu crawled into bed, hoping he would get the chance to sleep for a few hours before having to start his day. It was his day off, so he was looking forward to resting.
Natsu groaned when he heard knocking on his door. He buried his head deeper into his pillow, hoping the sound would go away on its own. When it didn't, he grunted. "Max. Can you get it?"
He waited, hearing nothing before the knocking started again. Natsu slowly sat up, feeling his muscles protesting the action. He looked over, eyes widening when he saw Lucy was wide awake, most of her body hidden under her covers.
He blinked, suddenly remembering that Max was no longer with them. A shiver ran down his spine before his gut twisted. Natsu swallowed, forcing those ill feelings down. He didn't want to get emotional right now. He just wanted to rest.
However, the knock on the door again made him realize that wasn't going to happen. Lucy jolted at the noise, her eyes trained on the door. Natsu raised a hand, voice rough from sleep as he said, "It's fine."
He padded over towards the door, body feeling like it was hit with a ton of bricks. He hadn't been taking care of himself like he should, but in his defense, it was hard to stay healthy while sharing his meals with Lucy.
Opening the door, Natsu was met with a familiar pair of faces. He blinked as he looked from mother to daughter. "Hey, what's up?"
Bisca, who was holding her daughter's hand, gave him a strained smile. "I thought maybe you two could hang out for a bit?"
Realization dawned on Natsu, a chuckle forming in his chest. "Right," he whispered before stepping aside. "Come on in."
Asuka ran into his room, immediately finding Happy on the desk before grabbing the feline to play. Natsu listened as Bisca said she would be back soon, but he waved her off.
"Take your time. No rush."
Bisca and her husband, Alzack, got one condom per week, meaning they only had sex once a week. Natsu offered to babysit Asuka during that time so they could have their room to themselves. He didn't mind, even if now he preferred sleeping over watching their daughter. He was usually more rested than this.
Lucy was the cause of his poor condition, but he tried not to blame her.
"Thank you," Bisca said before taking off down the hall, probably wanting to make it back to her husband as soon as possible. Natsu closed the door, yawning as he thought about what he could do to distract Asuka while her parents had sex.
Natsu turned to look for Asuka, seeing the girl was frozen in her place. She was looking towards the beds, specifically at his new roommate. "Asuka, meet Lucy. You might remember her from the other day?"
The little girl waved at Lucy, who was still mostly hidden by her covers. She poked a hand out, waving back. "H-hi."
"Do you want to play?" Asuka asked, running over to Natsu's bookcase where his few games were stored. She grabbed one of the easiest ones, a board game called 'Othello'.
Lucy looked at Natsu, then back at the girl. "Um... S-sure."
Natsu watched as Lucy slowly emerged from her blankets. She quickly grabbed her jacket that was on the end of the bed, putting it on before standing. She was still too skinny, but she was able to carry herself better than when she first arrived at Fairy Tail.
Natsu helped set up the desk for them to play. He put his pillow on Asuka's chair so she could see the desk properly before scooting a chair to the side for himself. He didn't know if Lucy knew how to play or not, so he explained the rules quickly.
Lucy nodded before looking back down at the board, probably waiting for Asuka to start. The girl set up the game before gesturing to Lucy, prompting her to make a move. Natsu watched, his lips slowly forming a smile as the two played together. Lucy didn't say anything for a while, but her shoulders were relaxed and her eyes met his a few times.
Asuka won the game, but judging by the many chances Lucy had to beat her, he guessed she took it easy on the girl. Either way, he was happy Asuka was excited. However, since she was a little girl who was full of energy, she got bored easily.
"Can I watch a show?" she asked, jumping off the chair to head towards the window. She stood on her toes so she could grab his phone, almost dropping the device and charger in the process.
Natsu bit his tongue, not wanting to scold her. She could get emotional when things didn't go her way, much like any small child. He was just thankful the phone was fine, otherwise he would have to go through the trouble of finding another phone, charging it, deleting everything on it, then use Erza's laptop -after he charged it- to transfer his files over.
It was too tedious, so he tried to take good care of his device. He used to be the only one who handled it besides Asuka once a week, but lately it had been in Lucy's care more than not. He hoped it was somehow helping her. Maybe watching other people interact on the screen could be beneficial? He had no idea.
"Careful," Natsu said, seeing Asuka returned to the desk. She tapped on the screen, frowning when she pointed at the top.
"The battery's low."
Natsu resisted the urge to shrug. "Sorry. The sun just came out." He blinked, then looked out the window again. 'Shit!' He looked at the phone, groaning at the time. 'I missed breakfast. Damn it.'
He had a bad habit of oversleeping on his days off, meaning he usually slept through breakfast. He didn't have to worry about not eating. Mira always came by to deliver his food if he missed out, however, he preferred hanging out with his friends while sharing a meal. Plus, he hated being inconvenient to the woman.
As if sensing his thoughts, someone knocked on the door, Mira's voice following the sound. "Natsu?"
He went to the door, opening it to see the woman's smiling face. Looking down, he saw a few paper bags in her hands. She held out one that was labeled with his name, waiting until he took it from her before glancing around. "Psst."
Natsu raised a brow, wondering what Mira was up to. He leaned in when she cupped a hand over the side of her mouth. She whispered, eyes shifting around as she spoke. "I put in a little extra. Hang in there."
Natsu pulled back, eyes wide before looking down at his bag. He felt his stomach twist as his thoughts conflicted with each other. Part of him was happy to hear he was getting something extra, but the other part told him it was wrong. Everyone should only get their fair share.
Reluctantly, Natsu held the bag out. "I can't take it then."
Mira shook her head, her hand moving behind her back. "Of course you can." She kept her voice low, but oddly sweet despite the way her eyes narrowed. He figured it wasn't the best idea to disagree with her. "I can't do it all the time, but I can today. Please, just accept it?" Mira's eyes flitted from him to the classroom before returning to his face. "I'm just trying to look out for you, just like you're doing the same for Lucy."
Natsu wanted to argue back. Mira didn't know Lucy, and she didn't owe her any favors. Then again, Natsu knew he didn't owe Lucy anything either. Mira was just being kind because that was the type of person she was, just like Natsu was doing for Lucy.
Instead of arguing with her, Natsu nodded. "Thank you."
Mira's smile grew as she took a step back. "Don't tell anyone. See you at dinner."
He grabbed the door, already closing it. "See ya."
Natsu set the food on the bookcase, deciding he could wait until Asuka left before eating. As fucked up as it was, Natsu didn't want to have to share any of his food with the little girl. Sometimes he would let her have a bite or two of his meal, but with him splitting everything with Lucy, he couldn't risk it. It was better to just set it aside for later.
When he sat at the desk again, he saw Asuka watching a show. The screen was dim, but he recognized the voices, thankful she picked a moderately safe show for kids. Most of his videos were movies or shows that had violence in them, something the girl didn't need to see any more of.
The phone died after a few minutes, not having enough stored power to keep running. Asuka pouted, pushing his phone to the side before she jumped out of her chair. "I'm bored!"
"Me too," Natsu groaned, wishing the electricity could have stayed on despite the outbreak. It would have made everything a lot easier.
"Lucy!" Asuka started, walking up to the woman. Lucy pulled back an inch, but the little girl didn't notice. "Where'd you come from?"
Natsu saw the immediate panic that flashed through Lucy's eyes. Before she had a chance to freak out, Natsu intervened. "Hey Asuka! Show Lucy how fast you can sing the ABC's."
The little girl nodded as she quickly started reciting the alphabet, only stumbling over a few letters before getting it right. He watched as Lucy's wild eyes slowly calmed down.
When she finished the song, Natsu asked, "Do you guys wanna go for a walk?"
Asuka jumped up, her hand in the air. "Me!"
He turned his gaze to Lucy, seeing her lips twist before she nodded. Looking down, he saw her thighs pressed together, causing his brows to furrow. "Do you need to pee?"
Lucy nodded quickly before she stood. He gestured for them to follow him, taping a piece of paper to the door that said they would be back. It was a precaution in case Bisca came back before they were finished.
Natsu went to the male's bathroom while Lucy and Asuka went to the women's. He was pleasantly surprised when he found out Lucy successfully went by herself, but he wondered if having another person in there helped. Lucy did seem better around kids than adults, as long as there weren't too many of them.
Happy joined them on their walk around the school, the feline enjoying the exercise. Natsu finally finished his tour, showing Lucy where the soccer field used to be, as well as the football stadium. Asuka ran around the entire time, having all the energy in the world to burn through. Natsu only laughed, knowing he didn't want to run right now unless he absolutely had to.
"Hey! Don't go in the tall grass!" Natsu yelled, causing Asuka to walk along the cut path. Since they couldn't risk making too much noise, normal lawnmowers couldn't be used. Instead they either cut the path by hand or by using the reel mowers they found, which last he checked had been three total.
When they finished their walk, they returned to the room. Bisca was waiting outside, a large smile coming to her face when she saw her daughter coming up the steps. She held her arms open, Asuka running into them without any delay.
"Thank you for watching her," Bisca said, picking up her daughter.
Natsu shook his head, waving her off. "It's fine, really."
He waited until they turned to leave before leading Lucy back into the room, heading straight for the bag of food and dishes before setting everything on the desk. "Hungry?" It was a stupid question. Everyone was always hungry.
Lucy nodded as she sat opposite of him, putting her hands on the table. "Are you sure?" she asked, voice growing stronger now that it was just the two of them.
He offered her a smile before pulling out the contents of the bag. "Yeah. I'm sure."
Mira wasn't kidding when she said she gave him extra. There was almost enough for two whole helpings, making him feel both guilty and pleased. Some of that food was meant to go to someone else's mouth, but he wouldn't dare give it back. If Mira got caught giving him more than his fair share, she could get in trouble too.
Natsu divided the food, putting Lucy's on her plate so she could start eating. She was still taking her mass gainers, but she couldn't rely on them for her only source of calories.
He smiled when Lucy poured him a glass of water, scooting it towards his plate before pouring her own. It had only been a week since she arrived at Fairy Tail, but he considered her improvement great, especially given what she went through. He still didn't know the details, and honestly he didn't want them. He just wanted her to heal so she could be a functioning person like everyone else.
Well, functioning enough. He doubted they would ever return to the state they were in before the outbreak, even if everything got cleaned up now. They had all seen too much to simply go back to normal.
"Why did that girl c-come over?" Lucy asked, taking a bite of her dry cereal.
Natsu hummed as he titled his head back. "I babysit her every once in a while. That was her mom out there. They only get one condom a week, so Asuka comes here while her parents have sex."
Lucy's brows pinched together before nodding. He guessed she didn't want to hear more since she didn't ask any follow up questions.
After a minute of silence, Lucy mumbled, "You're good with kids."
Natsu shrugged, a small smile forming on his lips. "I'm okay I guess. What about you?" He paused, wondering if that was too personal for her.
Thankfully, Lucy didn't seem startled by the question. "I don't know..."
He knew better than to push for a better answer. Instead, he continued to eat his food, hoping he could take a nap afterwards.
Natsu jolted when he heard Lucy speak again, not expecting her to be so 'talkative' that morning. "What was this classroom? Before?"
He looked around, memories of his time spent in the room before the outbreak flooding his mind. He would goof around with Gray and Levy while the teacher would constantly scold them for talking. Still, he enjoyed the class. "It was a mythology class."
Lucy's eyes went to the walls, probably wondering why they were so bare. "Did you pick this room, or d-did someone give it to you?"
"I picked it," he said, smiling, "It was one of my favorite classes." The room was smaller than other classrooms, but he liked the memories that were associated with it. Besides, he liked it being smaller. It made the room feel more cozy.
"I like mythology," she whispered, eyes returning to her food. "What was your f-favorite class?"
Natsu blinked, surprised she was keeping the conversation going. "Umm, probably JROTC... Or maybe gym? What about you?"
"English," Lucy answered without hesitation.
He looked over at the book on the floor, knowing she probably reread it considering it had been in her hands a lot over the past week. "Do you love to read?"
She nodded, the smallest smile gracing her lips. "Yes."
Natsu stole a quick glance to the door, knowing beyond it was the school's library. He would have to show it to her and see if she wanted to borrow any of the books. He imagined staying inside the room all day would get boring.
"What's your favorite book?" Natsu asked, stunned when he saw a light flicker in the back of her eyes.
She opened her mouth, her voice stronger than before, but still not as strong as his. "There's too many to pick just one."
A weight seemed to lighten on Natsu's shoulders, amused and happy she was holding a conversation with him, even if it wasn't really about herself. "Name a few."
And so she did. He listened as she named her favorites, even if he didn't recognize most of them. She still stuttered a few times, but her voice stayed firm, that light flickering in her eyes every so often. He wondered if he found his way to reach her besides bribing her with food.
Maybe books was the way to get her to open up?
Deciding he could put off sleeping for a bit, Natsu stood up when they finished their breakfast. "I wanna show you something."
Lucy hesitated, but eventually followed him out of the room and down the hall. Natsu was happy no one else was out there, especially Sherry -who he had been avoiding for a week. He led Lucy to the library, just past the stairs.
He opened the doors, letting her venture in on her own. She went in slowly, using the flashlight Natsu gave her while he used his headlamp. Happy immediately got lost in the darkness, but Natsu was confident he could find his cat if he needed to.
The windows gave the library some natural light, allowing them to walk around without bumping into anything, but the flashlights were needed if they wanted to look at the specific books.
Lucy walked up to the closest shelf, dragging her finger along the spines of the books. She looked up at Natsu, eyes squinting from his headlamp's light. "Where's the adventure s-section?"
Natsu's shoulders fell when he realized he had no idea. "Umm, let's see." Despite going to Magnolia High, he wasn't familiar with the library's set up. He was never a bookworm after all. He knew Levy would know, but he figured it would be easier finding it than going all the way to receiving and asking her.
They walked from shelf to shelf, looking through the different genres. When they finally found some adventure books, Lucy started pulling books out, only to read the backs before putting them back.
He saw the frown that started to form on her face. Before he could let her get upset, he asked, "What's wrong?"
Lucy looked down at the book in her hands, fingers grasping it tightly. "I want to r-read it."
Natsu furrowed his brows, not understanding the problem. "And?"
"It's dark in here..."
Natsu's eyes widened just as his lips quirked into a grin. "You can take them back to the room."
"I can?" she asked, lips remaining parted as she looked back at the shelf.
Natsu nodded. "Yup. There's only one rule. We can't destroy them."
Makarov said he wanted the school to remain in good condition for when whatever was happening ended. That included the books. Some things weren't so lucky, but even the leader knew everything wasn't going to make it.
'Just like everybody's not gonna make it...'
Natsu gulped, trying to push those ill feelings down before they had a chance to affect him. He looked at Lucy, seeing she was grabbing a few books. "I'll help you carry them, so don't worry about how much you grab."
Lucy nodded as she started stacking them on a nearby table, going back for more a second later. He chuckled as he went to take a seat, watching the pile grow as the minutes ticked by.
When Lucy had about fifteen books, she said she was good for now. He didn't bother holding back his laugh as he collected them, carrying them back to their room. "Have you read any of these?" he asked, setting them down on the desk.
Lucy nodded as she grabbed the top book, flipping through the pages. "A few."
He grinned as he made his way over to his bed. "Levy rereads books too. You two should talk sometime about books. I'm sure she'd love that."
Lucy didn't respond, so he didn't push it.
Before he could sit down on his mattress, Natsu's fingers rubbed at his face. He frowned when he felt his newest scar, the one Lucy gave him. He got his stitches taken out yesterday, which reminded him that Grandeeney told him to bring Lucy by today to see if she could get hers removed.
'Damn it... I guess sleep can wait a little longer.'
"Hey, we gotta go do something real quick." He saw the way Lucy frowned, her eyes falling down to the book in her hands. He wanted to chuckle, finding her pout kind of adorable. "It won't take long. Grandeeney's gotta take your stitches out."
Lucy seemed reluctant to put the book down, feet shuffling slowly as she followed him downstairs. Happy was hot on their trail, making Natsu wonder if the feline knew they would be seeing Carla, but he doubted his cat figured that out. At least his cat was fixed, meaning no kittens would be running around the base if Carla actually let him bed her.
After knocking, Wendy opened the door, giving Natsu and Lucy a wave before stepping aside. "Come in!"
Despite Wendy being a kid, Lucy still stuck close to Natsu, but she didn't look nearly as tense as she did when around other adults. However, that changed when Grandeeney walked forward. Lucy took another step closer to Natsu, accidentally bumping against his arm. She quickly jolted back to her original spot, her hands wrapping around her body as her eyes fell to the ground.
Natsu sighed, reminded again that Lucy still had a long way to go. She was improving, he couldn't deny that, but the longer it took her to heal, the more of a toll it would take on the both of them.
Grandeeney kept herself composed as she pointed towards the beds. "Take a seat on any of them. I'll be there in a minute."
Natsu led Lucy to the middle bed, taking the one next to it for himself. He watched as Lucy slowly pulled her sweatpants up, revealing the healing wound. She laid down, leaving her stitches exposed, but her eyes stayed on Natsu.
He offered her a smile while they waited, knowing it could feel weird getting stitches removed. He didn't know if Lucy ever had them before, but judging by the angry scars on her body, he didn't think so. They looked poorly healed.
"Is this your first time getting stitches removed?" he asked, wondering if he should give her his hand to hold. She held it while she was getting them put in, but he knew it wouldn't hurt getting them taken out. He decided against it, not wanting to upset her.
Lucy shook her head, eyes flitting to Grandeeney when the woman started walking closer. She held a pair of scissors, the same ones she used to cut his stitches.
"This shouldn't take long," the woman said, bringing a chair to the edge of Lucy's bed before touching a gloved hand to her leg. She turned it to get a better look, Lucy willingly letting her move her body.
"I'd say they look ready to get taken out. How does your leg feel?"
Grandeeney looked just as surprised as Natsu when Lucy mumbled, "Better."
A small smile crept over the doctor's face as she nodded. "I'm glad to hear that. What about your UTI?"
Lucy nodded, her eyes falling to the mattress. "Doesn't h-hurt anymore."
"Good." Grandeeney started cutting at parts of the stitches, only to pull out the cut pieces as she went. "What do you think of Fairy Tail so far?"
Natsu wanted to warn Grandeeney not to ask Lucy too many questions, but he kept his mouth shut, wanting to see if she would answer. Honestly, he had been curious himself.
Lucy bit at her bottom lip before closing her eyes. "It's f-fine."
Considering the circumstances, Natsu thought 'fine' was a good answer. Grandeeney nodded as she finished removing the last remaining stitches. She cleaned the area with a wet wipe before standing up to dispose of her trash. "You'll need to keep it clean to decrease the chance of infection still, but overall I think you're healing nicely."
Natsu's lips pressed into a thin line as he shook his head. "Kinda hard to keep it clean..."
Grandeeney raised a brow, her hand lingering over her trashcan. "Oh? Why's that?"
"She's uh, she's not working." Natsu rubbed at the back of his neck, wondering why he didn't put his scarf on today since it was his day off. As much as he treasured it, he often forgot to wear it, not wanting to get it ruined. Well, more ruined anyway. The poor thing already had too many rips in it.
"That's right," Grandeeney whispered, throwing away her trash before removing her gloves. "I remember now."
Natsu nodded. Makarov was letting Lucy stay at Fairy Tail, but she couldn't get food for herself, take a shower, or get laundry services done. She also couldn't get anything from the commissary, but the bag Erza brought them the first day had enough clothes to last her at least two weeks, as long as Lucy only changed them every few days.
Once again, Natsu was reminded how much hygiene standards had dropped after the outbreak.
Grandeeney walked over to her desk, picking up a notebook before turning to a specific page. "I have a few more questions for you today. Is that okay?"
Lucy slowly nodded. She had sat up while they were talking, her eyes trained on her leg where the wound was.
"Can I get your weight first?"
Lucy stood, walking over to the scale so Grandeeney could get the number. "Looks like you've gained two pounds. That's great."
Natsu thought Lucy would look happy with that news, but it only made her lower her head. He looked down at her body, reminded that two pounds wasn't much of a difference. He could understand why she might be upset. She was far too skinny.
"You can sit down for the rest," Grandeeney said, gesturing for Lucy to sit on the bed again. "Have you checked to make sure your IUD is still in place?"
Lucy's cringed, a mix of disgust and confusion on her face. She shook her head as she mumbled. "No."
Natsu regretted asking as soon as the question left his mouth. "How does she check?"
"With her fingers."
Natsu's eyes fell to Lucy's lap, not needing any further explanation. He wanted to walk away from the conversation at that moment, but he stayed put, knowing Lucy had a higher chance of shutting down if he wasn't near her.
"Can you check for me now?" Grandeeney asked, grabbing another wet wipe to hand to her. "Use this before and after so you're fingers will be cleaner."
Lucy hesitated for a moment, her jaw tight as she stood up. Natsu pulled his headlamp from his pocket, handing it to her on her way to the bathroom. She mumbled a thanks as she disappeared into the room, locking the door behind her.
While he waited, Natsu laid back on the bed, his eyes sliding shut. His relaxation lasted for all of ten seconds, a weight jumping on his stomach to make him gasp. He opened his eyes just in time to see a ball of blue fur fly by, chasing after a white ball of fur.
He chuckled, rubbing at his stomach as he watched the two cats playing. Carla ran into Wendy's arms, causing Happy to paw at the girl's legs when she wouldn't let her cat down.
"Calm down Happy," Natsu said, laughing when his cat didn't listen. "Sorry."
Wendy shook her head, smiling down at Happy. "He's fine." She let Carla go, watching as the two cats went back to running around the room.
Before Natsu knew it, Lucy was coming out of the bathroom. Her face was red, the color crawling down her neck slowly. A few tears lined her eyes, but she hadn't shed them yet. She went to throw away the wet wipe before sitting down on the bed. "It's th-there."
Grandeeney nodded as she jotted something down. "That's good." She paused, pen tapping at the paper for a moment before saying, "This might sound weird, but have we met?"
Lucy furrowed her brows as she looked up at Grandeeney. She slowly shook her head, her voice meek. "I-I don't think so?"
"Okay," the doctor whispered, looking down at her notes. "You just look familiar."
Natsu wondered if they had met before, but he believed Lucy when she said she didn't think so. She told him about their connection prior to the outbreak, so he figured she would do the same for anyone else. Besides, the way she said it sounded like she was telling the truth.
Grandeeney must have thought so too, because she moved on. "Did you have any illnesses before? Any disease?"
Natsu thought Lucy would say no, but she nodded, her hand coming up to press over her chest. "I h-had a heart thing, when I-I was younger."
Natsu blinked, looking back and forth between the two women while Grandeeney wrote that down. "You did?" he asked, causing Lucy to nod.
Grandeeney was the one to ask the next questions. "Was it taken care of? Or do you need medication for it?"
"It was f-fixed," she mumbled before swallowing thickly. "When I was, umm..." She closed her eyes tightly. Natsu thought she was going to freak out, but apparently she was just thinking. "I was eleven."
"Any complications since then?" Grandeeney asked, but Lucy shook her head.
Her brown eyes slowly opened, her earlier tears gone. "No. None."
Grandeeney nodded. "Anything else?"
Lucy opened her mouth, but closed it in an instant. She shook her head, her eyes growing watery again. "N-no."
Natsu was about to tell Grandeeney not to push her, but the doctor seemed to get the idea. "If you don't want to tell me, that's fine. I only need to know if it's something that requires treatment or medication. Do you have anything like that?"
Lucy shook her head, not saying anything. Her head lowered, but she hadn't started crying yet. Natsu considered it a huge step in the right direction. Her emotional breakdowns were definitely holding her back, but if she could manage them she could get better enough to work.
At least, that was what he hoped.
"Lucy," Grandeeney said softly, waiting until she looked at her before continuing. "Can you tell me why you don't want to work?"
Lucy shook her head, giving Grandeeney her answer. Natsu sighed, already figuring she wasn't going to tell. It would be easier if he told Grandeeney or Makarov what was going on in Lucy's mind, but she asked him not to tell, and he was doing his best to respect her wishes.
"She's not ready yet," Natsu said, hoping that would be enough. "She just needs more time."
Grandeeney looked at him, tilting her head a bit. "What's she doing for food?"
Natsu already knew he was going to get scolded, but he told her anyway. "I'm sharing mine."
Grandeeney's eyes widened. "That's not a good idea. You need all the food you can get."
Natsu shook his head, muttering under his breath. "I'll be fine."
Besides, what was he supposed to do? Let Lucy starve? He knew it wasn't healthy to share, but he didn't see any other options that didn't involve letting Lucy get worse. He heard it from his friends before, so Grandeeney telling him it was a bad idea didn't change anything.
'Lucy just needs more time. I know she can get better.'
Grandeeney looked from Natsu to Lucy, then down at her notes. She shook her head before standing up, placing the notebook on her desk. "I'll be right back. Wait here."
Without any explanation, Grandeeney left, leaving Natsu confused. He turned his sights on Lucy, frowning when he saw her hands shaking. He wanted to reach out and rub her back, tell her everything would be fine, but he couldn't. He didn't want to lie to her after all, and touching her only made her upset.
"Hey," he whispered, getting her attention. She looked up, brown eyes brimming with tears that hadn't shed yet. "Don't worry. You're doing good."
Lucy bit her bottom lip as she shook her head, her arms wrapping around her stomach. "S-s-sorry," she mumbled, barely suppressing a sob.
Natsu looked over to see if Wendy was watching, but he realized the girl had left, along with Carla. Happy was pawing at the door, clearly wanting out to go follow them. 'I guess they went for a walk?'
When he looked back at Lucy, he forced a smile. "You're fine. Don't beat yourself up."
Natsu flinched at his poor choice of words. Her black eye was almost healed, now just a small bruise under her eye. Her lip was mostly healed too, along with some of the more superficial scratches on her arms and legs. The cuts were getting there, but she still needed time.
"Just focus on getting better."
Lucy nodded, her mouth slowly parting. It looked as if she was going to say something, but her lips pressed together as soon as the door to the room opened, causing her to jolt.
Grandeeney walked up to Natsu, her voice firm as she said, "I have a proposition for you, but you're not going to like it."
Natsu felt a shiver run down his spine, wondering what it could possibly be.
Despite his hands being extremely clean, Natsu felt disgusting. He never wanted to see a naked person again for as long as he lived. A newfound respect for caretakers bloomed in his chest, wondering how on Earth they managed to make a career out of it. He got the tiniest taste of it today and he was already over it.
Grandeeney was right. He didn't like her proposition, but he did it anyway. The doctor convinced Makarov to make a deal. If Natsu washed the old people, Lucy could take a shower. Grandeeney was the one who usually did it, so she was sort of getting a break from the task.
Natsu refused to wash any old ladies, to which Grandeeney said, "Fair enough."
He shuddered, hoping he never grew old. If he made it to fifty he would consider it long enough. A nagging voice in the back of Natsu's head told him he wouldn't have to worry about that though. 'If the zombies don't kill you by then, starvation will.'
He watched as the last elderly man waddled away from arena, one of the other survivors escorting him back to his room. Natsu was finally finished, but he couldn't rest. That might have been a challenge, but so would trying to convince Lucy to shower.
The woman hated being naked, and he was about to ask her to do just that. Granted, she would have some privacy, but he knew it would still be difficult. Natsu already asked Yukino if Lucy could have the locker room to herself, which thankfully the processor agreed.
"As long as her shower takes less than fifteen minutes, she can have all the privacy she wants."
Natsu nodded, knowing Yukino was being lenient. Usually people had to shower whether there were other people around or not since time was limited. "Thanks!"
He walked over to the bleachers where Lucy was sitting. She was tucked into a corner with a book, but her eyes hardly stayed on the book, flitting to anything that moved around her. She locked eyes with Natsu, her shoulders relaxing a second later.
He walked up the steps, his legs screaming at him to get some rest. Ignoring them, Natsu motioned for Lucy to follow him. "Grab your stuff."
Lucy closed the book before grasping a plastic bag with her shower stuff, a change of clothes, and a towel. She hesitantly followed him, taking a little longer than him to walk down the steps.
Natsu led her to the door leading to the women's locker room, handing her his headlamp in case she needed it. "Okay, you have about fifteen minutes to shower. Don't try to rush. You gotta make sure you're really clean, especially on your leg."
Lucy looked at the door before shaking her head.
Natsu frowned before pointing towards Yukino, who was talking with one of the other survivors. "No one's in there. Not even Yukino, see?"
Lucy glanced in that direction before looking at him again. She didn't say anything, but the pleading look in her eyes told him she still wasn't comfortable with the idea.
"You really need to take a shower," he urged, hoping he wasn't being offensive. It wasn't that Lucy smelled bad. She hadn't done much to work up enough sweat to start stinking, but she still needed to clean up.
She shook her head, causing a spark of anger to rise within him. He tried to keep the threat out of his voice when he repeated himself, needing her to understand she had to take the shower. "Go take a shower."
Natsu was tempted to tell her if she didn't go in willingly, he was going to drag her in there and wash her himself. He was now experienced with washing people, but he didn't want to force her. It would only ruin her progress.
"Please," he found himself begging, "just wash up." He didn't want to upset her, but damn it, she was making this more difficult than it needed to be. He wasn't asking much of her, just to go take a shower. He didn't want him washing a few old guys to be for nothing. He only did that for her, and she was starting to get on his nerves by being uncooperative.
"It'll mean a lot to me," Natsu admitted, surprised when Lucy's brown eyes lit up.
She carefully set her book down on the ground before padding closer to the door, opening it slowly while peeking her head inside. After a few seconds, she disappeared inside, closing the door behind her.
Natsu stared at the door, his face blank as he tried to figure out what just happened. 'What the hell? How did that work?'
He realized he didn't care why it worked. He was just glad it did. He sat down, leaning his back against the wall as he waited for Lucy to finish. His mind wandered, trying to figure out what he was going to do with Lucy after this.
'Maybe by next week she'll be feeling better and can earn her own shower...' It was hopeful thinking, but it was all he had. Natsu really didn't want to wash anyone else for as long as he lived.
Up next, Chapter Fifteen: Fed up
I wonder who's fed up? Anyone care to take a guess? So, this chapter can be considered filler? I still felt it was needed though, at least some parts. The next chapter will feature another time skip, this one longer than the last. I hope you're enjoying this story? What did you think of the chapter? Was Natsu's actions/thoughts realistic for a guy going through what he's going through, or was it far-fetched? What about Lucy's behavior? I appreciate honest feedback! And constructive criticism! Let me know if I have any spelling/grammar issues!
I wanna take a moment to thank ColeyMari for helping me out with my stories! She's a fantastic writer, and if you haven't already, I suggest you check out her stuff! She has a beautiful nalu military au and nalu college au! :D
*I draw inspiration from real life and movies/tv shows dealing with survival and/or zombies. That includes everything from 'The Walking Dead' to 'Warm Bodies'. :P I absolutely love zombies. (Except for the zombies in Call of Duty. Fuck those zombies)
*I don't know about full communities around Magnolia, but there are small groups of survivors that aren't associated with Fairy Tail in this story that they will be encountering. Also, Gildarts will be addressed later in the story. Right now he's on a mission, but they don't know if he's alive or how he's doing.
*Another slow burn warning: It will take a while until Natsu and Lucy get together. Not only is Lucy dealing with what she went through, a relationship is the furthest thing from Natsu's mind right now. Anyways, after they get together, there will be smut. I can't give an estimate on how many chapters it will take since I don't know how long it'll take me to write certain scenes, but I can say they will definitely end up together, and that they won't be with anyone else in this story (in case anyone was wondering). (We'll get a Natsu masturbation before they get together, so that's something to look forward to :P)
Thank you so much for your continued support! I appreciate every favorite, follow, and review! Shout out to those amazing people who reviewed last time: Tenma360Warrior, Animeforlife1412, A little bit of this and that, Ryu of Konoha, cOokIe-MOnzTa, Nalu-Nerd13(x2), ElementalMiko12, Screeney, Meow Orbit, Guest, ThayetJade, AgiaJorda, Ashnmarley, An Amber Pen, Sam, MnMAllyn, HollyNinetales, MorriganFae, BloodRedRubies, FairyLover01, FlameDragonHime, XINeko-ChanIX, Shirakawa Yuri, Cresentgenisi, Terra of Life, ShanaDumblond, chimushea, Sherlollylover17, ManderNaner, caslspirit15, Celestial Anime Goddess, Nightside14(x2), MeteorWars, FairyglitterXD, Guest, KitAlbert07, ColeyMari, Emy, Tohka123, GeekyAnimeGirl, LoveroftheWord, guest, turtle3334, noseinabook145, Lenachwann, and T-tawny!