Revamped and updated: 7/23/19

Arts Topic: Nudity

Chapter XXI

Sting almost stopped breathing, both relieved and angry that it was him. Then, before he could utter anything himself, Laxus opened his mouth first.

"You…" He grumbled in a low voice, eyeing another man with suspicion. His frown was clearly showing his distrust, if not hostility. "Who the hell are you?"

At that, Sting really stopped breathing.

He felt as if Laxus had punched him in the gut; all air left him, leaving a feeling of emptiness and, at the same time, unpleasant heaviness. His mind was trying to process the question, simple as it was, yet, he could not force it to work under the numbing weight of the words he had heard, even without full comprehension.

Laxus… He didn't recognize him. He doesn't fucking recognize me!

He stared at his brother incredulously. Laxus still had that annoying expression of boredom and distrust carved in his features. Though the rest, his face in general, his eyes, were the same that he remembered. His older brother did not change that much… only gained muscles. So, was it him who was completely unrecognizable? Was he such a nobody that Laxus simply erased him from the memory? And that had Sting boiling with anger. That was not what he had expected. Not at all.

And yet…

Holy fuck.

Remembering he had been asked about something, Sting started opening his mouth to reply, say just about anything, fully aware of that it would not be pretty.

Fortunately, Lucy, who was observing him from the corner of her eye and had noticed his expression changing, stepped next to her boyfriend, grabbed his hand and squeezed it hard. Then, she smiled radiantly and said cheerfully to distract both men:

"Oh yes, hello, we're from another town! But I've been friends with the girls ever since the primary school. I'm Lucy," She extended her hand, which Laxus took and shook, adding without a stutter: "And this is my boyfriend—"

"Sting." The man regained his composure and introduced himself curtly, cutting his girlfriend off. He slowly reached out and, too, shook hands with his brother, his expression blank.

His brother did not even bat an eye at the familiarity of the name.

"Humm. Pleasure… Laxus here."

"So you're the guy I've been hearing from the girls about!" The white-headed girl standing behind Laxus beamed and went straight to embrace Sting friendly, then moved away and started introducing everyone around. "I am Mirajane! This woman with scarlet hair is Erza, and next to her is her fiancé, Jellal. This is Levy—"

"We've already met." McGarden grinned. "They stayed at my place. And, everyone, this handsome guy is Gajeel."

Everyone greeted Gajeel amicably, but Laxus' girlfriend turned back to the blondes and Levy afterwards, visibly shaken.

"What do you mean, they stayed at your place?" Mirajane frowned. "You got to meet him before us? Before me?!"

"We had to stay somewhere, dear." Lucy said quickly. If nothing had changed, then Mirajane could be dangerous and unpredictable when angered. "My house's available only since today. I had to get someone to prepare it for our arrival."

The woman's face brightened again and she lunged at the blonde, almost knocking her over. "LUCY!"

She laughed and squeezed her friend just as tightly. She had missed Mirajane so much, the sweet, adorable girl. Soon, Erza joined the hug and the three women were tearing up from joy. Meanwhile, the men and Levy were observing them with a mixture of amusement and pity. Feeling a little out of place and, if he were frank with himself, not wanting to be close to Laxus, Sting moved ahead and took the two free places left next to Erza and Jellal. He gazed at the tattooed man and smiled. Pleasantly, he hoped.

"I'm Sting. Nice to meet you."

"Jellal. Likewise."

Both men glimpsed at the women and exchanged amused glances.

"Are they always like this, or is it Lucy?" Asked Sting, chuckling.

"Nah, those women are all crazy. Still, they usually are a bit more toned down."

The males observed the commotion for a while before Sting turned to the other man and inquired with interest: "So, what do you do?"

"Oh, I'm a company owner." Jellal stated dismissively, not overly keen to go into detail. "Nothing big. Generally, it's connected with security stuff and it allows me and Erza to think about a wedding soon."

"Congratulations, when did you propose?" At that, Sting grinned.

"Oh, just a few weeks ago. And the wedding is planned for next year, somewhere in March."

"Awesome."

"I guess we'll meet there since Lucy's already got her invitation and she's expected to come along with a date." Jellal smirked. "And how long are you and Lucy together?"

Eucliffe snickered in response. "You wouldn't believe it."

"Oh? Try me."

Sting smirked and nodded. "Well, it's been… Around two weeks, roughly."

The other man stared at him for several moments, then laughed shortly. "You're kidding."

"No. We really just started going out."

Jellal raised his brows, but tilted his head to the side in acknowledgment. "I bet there's more to the story than that, but it's none of my business."

The blond man grinned mysteriously.

"And, say… I can see you don't really want to talk about work, so I won't bother you more, just tell me this: if someone was threatened and their safety was being endangered… Does your company take cases like that, too, or only more serious matters?"

Jellal thought for a moment and nodded once. "Yes. Such matters included."

Sting bobbed his head and changed the topic. He quickly found Jellal a bright, intelligent companion. Soon, their conversation was joined by Gajeel who had been forced to socialize by Levy. Nonetheless, the sharp and sarcastic man was somehow a good interlocutor. He offered rather straightforward but truthful remarks.

Meanwhile, Lucy was happily chatting with her girlfriends; she was delighted to have them all beside at the very last. Still, she was watching Sting from the corner of her eye, making sure he was alright. Mirajane, ever the observant one, was grinning madly at the blonde and waiting for an opportunity to ask about her new love interest.

"Mira," Lucy sighed at some point. "Shoot. I can see you're barely sitting calmly."

The whitehead didn't need any more encouragement.

"How did you meet? He's so handsome! Tell me all about it." She demanded.

"Well, we're in the same year—"

"But Levy claims you're isolating yourself? So how come you actually met him?" Erza chimed in, her arms crossed.

Immediately, Lucy sent Levy a glare, to which the bluenette shrugged. "Even if, it's nothing to gossip about. Anyway, we were assigned for the same project. It's from arts, nothing special—"

"Come on! It is." Levy exclaimed and smiled devilishly.

"Now you have to tell us!" Mirajane grasped onto the opportunity to learn more details. "We know Levy has no idea about arts, but it did get her interested… So it must be good."

"We were supposed to make a portrait of one another." The blonde groaned, avoiding the exact answer. "It took a lot of time and—"

"Oh, she's hitting around the bush. Actually, they drew nudity as their topic. The teacher allowed them to do it since they are the best in the year." Levy cut her off and supplied helpfully, ignoring Lucy's expression.

"See, that's what we wanted to hear!" Suddenly, Erza hit her hand on the table, making the blonde jump.

Mira, ever the tactful one, almost yelled: "Oh my God, so you had to pose naked?!"

It was due to some miracle that the men were engrossed in their conversation, except for Laxus, and only him eyed her curiously, if not daringly. She ignored him and scowled at her friend. "Well, that's usually the idea when you have nudity as your main theme." Lucy growled, annoyed.

"I'm impressed." Calmer by then, Erza nodded. Next, her lips trembled and she pulled the unexpecting blonde into her steel-like embrace. "My sweet little Lucy, all grown up and happy! Cannot wait to go and pick a wedding dress for you!"

"ENOUGH." Lucy grunted and, after some struggling, escaped from Erza's arms. "So what? We didn't fall in love because we saw each other naked, we eventually got to know each other and… It just… happened."

"Mm, what a love story." Mira smiled tenderly. "So, what's he like?"

The blonde was allowed a moment to ponder over the matter, then started a little hesitantly:

"Sting's… amazing. He's considerate and gentle, always takes care of me and keeps my insecurities in check." Seeing that she would not be interrupted again and that she had the women's full attention, Lucy giggled and closed her eyes, continuing with an affectionate voice and much more easiness. "He's not pushy, a bit cocky, but it suits him. His outside screams 'bad boy', but on the inside… Oh, on the inside. He's sweet and kind. He's charming, reliable, valiant, encouraging, and conscientious, it's all simply fascinating. He is genuine and honest. Talented and good at reading others. He's also a bit secretive when it comes to a few matters, but I think he doesn't know… It's all there in his eyes."

"His eyes?" Mirajane prompted.

"Yes, there. His deep blue, mesmerizing eyes. It's like a mirror to his soul."

"But he has to have some flaws, too." Erza remarked.

"Of course he does. But I hope that, in time, some things will change. Like— it's just that… he was always alone." She sighed. "He doesn't know how to talk about difficult matters. But he'll learn, I'm positive."

"Woah, she's never spoken of him like that via Skype." Levy, who sensed the blonde stopped talking to them and was musing out loud, joked; that made Lucy open her eyes and blush. "And I've been listening to her blabbering about him ever since they were put together for the project."

"And she speaks just as before she left Magnolia." Mira smiled widely. "I love this Lucy."

"I am so happy for you." Erza almost sobbed out, taken over by the emotions, her lips bowed in a beautiful smile. "Seems like you love him."

"I do." Lucy whispered.

"Okay, fine, it's all very romantic and shit, but I bet Lu wants to hear from us, too." Abruptly, Levy clapped her hands. Heartfilia sent her a thankful glance. "So, I say Erza begins since she's a very much engaged woman by now."

"Oh my God! Right, how did it happen exactly?!" Lucy cried and covered her mouth with her hands. "Erza! That's amazing… I never had a chance to tell you in person… Congratulations! When?"

"One morning I went out of the bedroom and Jellal was in my flat. He handed me a bag, saying we were going out. He did not answer any of my questions, but I eventually went with him. He took me into his car and drove off to somewhere…" The redhead giggled like a schoolgirl, making the women look between each other. It was so out of character of her. "The road took an hour. Finally, he stopped by a forest. By then I was quite hungry and thus angry, but even though usually it's enough to make others tell me everything, it was not that time."

Involuntarily, Lucy remembered all the high school drama Erza has been causing and her most unusual ways of making people follow her orders. After all, the situation with them had been handled by Scarlet… Yes. She knew exactly how to make others do whatever she wanted.

It made her admire Jellal all the more.

"He found a small hill and asked me for the bag. He… He had a blanket and sandwiches there." Erza's face brightened. "He took me on a picnic. I… I never had a picnic in my life, and it was fantastic."

"Yeah, ever since, she's trying to take us on it every Sunday." Mira joked, earning a death glare from the redhead.

"Anyway, when we were after this amazing experience, Jellal stopped me and when I turned around, he was already kneeling… his hands pulled out and a small, opened box laying on his palms, asking me to make him the happiest of men and marry him." At that, Lucy squealed. "Yes. I said yes."

The blonde threw herself at her friend, almost knocking her over. "Oh, Erza! Are you happy?"

"Never happier, actually."

The girls all smiled with glee, the cheerfulness contagious. When Lucy finally released Erza, she turned to Mirajane and asked with excitement. "Is your news just as great?"

"Nope." She laughed. "Laxus and I are together for a long time, true. But it's kind of complicated if you know how he is."

"And how is he?" She frowned.

"Well, he's crude and rude. Generally, he really dislikes people." There was so much wrong with the way the whitehead said it; a broad, genuine grin on her face. "But he knows how to be gentle when needed and how to be a good boyfriend."

"Which we haven't seen so far, but the hope is the last to die." Supplied Levy with a smirk.

Still, Mirajane only tilted her head.

Nonetheless, Lucy mused, frowning a bit. Mira, the sweetest woman she had ever known, in a relationship with such a guy? He sounded awful. Besides, he was Sting's brother… And he appeared to be completely different. Involuntarily, her sight wandered to her man having fun with Jellal and Gajeel while Laxus was sitting three chairs farther, closer to the women, only now he was listening to music on his monstrous headphones. Sting… She could see he was more than mad at his brother who had not recognized him. Damn, his name should have rung a bell, shouldn't it? Still, he was grinning and bearing it with determination and bravery. Her heart soared.

"So, Lu. How long are you staying?" Erza's voice pulled her out of her thoughts.

"Just the weekend, we gotta get back soon." She turned to her friend with a sigh. "And I made Sting come even though he didn't even have to."

"How nice of him."

"And… guys, I'm so sorry I was barely reachable and I didn't contact you almost at all." The blonde hung her head. "It was… difficult to move on."

"We get it, we really do." Mira said gently, although she was the only one who did not get it fully. She knew Lucy had gone through trauma, but she was never introduced to the details—and it was better that way, for the safety of everyone.

"Yes. Don't worry about it." Erza nodded, but then added severely. "But now it better change or I won't forgive you."

Lucy managed a soft yes and the women laughed, going ahead with the conversation.

At the same time, Sting was observing Lucy and her reactions. No one seemed to cause problems, and she was laughing easily. Even though he expected her to have some difficulties, maybe a comeback of her best or her worst memories, she seemed to handle it better than he had been giving her credit for. Also, the women seemed smart enough not to mention obvious things.

"Someone's in some deep shit." Gajeel's chuckle made him tear his eyes away from his girlfriend. Sting found the snarky man smirking at him.

"What?"

"You're head over heels for the girl."

He did not deny it.

"There's nothing wrong with that." Jellal defended the blond man, grinning.

"Yeah, sure. Says the biggest henpeck ever." Gajeel snorted.

"Hey!"

Sting shook his head and smiled a little. "I agree with Jellal, though. There's nothing wrong with being in love with your woman."

Fernandez clapped him on the back, proclaiming they shall be good friends, making the third man roll is eyes. "Whatever."

It was long past midnight when Lucy and Sting entered her house, laughing. They'd left the local together with Levy and Gajeel since they lived nearby, and enjoyed the way home, watching the two of them bicker. Especially when, at some point, Sting approached Gajeel and told him teasingly:

"Head over hills, eh?"

Which had the long-haired man sputter and act funny. Soon, they reached Lucy's locum and said goodbye to the couple. Having entered the house, Sting located the first armchair and fell on it with a groan.

"I'm exhausted. Your friends are like energy vampires."

"But… do you like them?" Lucy asked hesitantly, standing to his right. She was trying not to shuffle her feet, but she was anxious over his response.

"Oh, yes. They're pretty awesome, so accepting. I had much fun. And Jellal apparently decided we should start a bromance, according to him of course, and invited me for a soccer match they're having in two weeks." He yawned. "No, they're fine. They just require much energy, is all."

Lucy noticed he hadn't said a thing about Laxus. Not that she could blame him; his brother spent the whole evening, except for when the food was served, listening to music and ignoring everyone, including his girlfriend.

"Alright."

Sting hummed and stared at her. He slid his eyes along her form and smiled a little. "Come here."

She smiled slowly and took a few steps just to bend down and sit on his lap. When his arms circled her waist, Lucy curled there and put her head on his chest, listening to Sting's heartbeat. The man hummed again and made himself comfortable, making slow circles on her back.

In no time, they fell into a slumber and woke up only when they went completely numb.

"Damn. Let's transfer on the bed." Lucy groaned when she moved and her body refused to comply.

"Just a moment…" He mumbled and pulled himself up on the armchair. "Ugh, my back…"

Since she was already on her legs, the woman smirked, not so sleepy anymore. "If you get up now, I'll give you a massage."

Suddenly, Sting was fully awaken, too. "Fine."

So, Lucy led them to her room and smiled at her bed; it was big enough for the two of them plus another person. At least they would be comfortable.

So, she turned to her boyfriend and, upon finding him right behind, gave him a sweet kiss. Then, she motioned him to go and get cozy. Lucy watched him undress and lie down, waiting for her to get to him. At last, the blonde climbed on the bed. She threw one leg over his body and sat on his lower back. She stretched and her hands fondled his shoulders, applying some force.

The woman was listening to his reactions, wary; in fact, she had no idea what she was doing. Offering massage was something she had blurted, but it wasn't thought over; still, judging by Sting's reactions, she was doing something right.

When she could no longer feel that much tension in his muscles, Lucy stopped and lied down next to Sting, smiling at his face which was turned to her. He remained on his stomach, already half-asleep. Thus, not to disrupt him, Lucy curled into his side and closed her eyes, too.

The next day, Sting prepared breakfast for them and the couple enjoyed a perfect, peaceful morning. The conversation was smooth and unimportant; they were sharing some humor and observations about Lucy's friends. Sting, Lucy noticed, took quite a liking towards Jellal, and Gajeel seemed to be far more agreeable than he wanted to appear. Moreover, she noticed he still did not say a word about his brother, dexterously avoiding the topic. So, she decided not to ask. For now.

"Levy told everyone about our project." Lucy giggled when she had a chance. "To which Mira got overly excited, although I really do believe they would live without this piece of information just fine."

"Well, Gajeel knew about it, too." Sting huffed, shaking his head. "At some point I noticed him intending to check your ass out, but I think he did it out of spite. He really is into Levy."

"Oh, I know." The blonde grinned. "They're so cute together!"

"Jellal, on the other hand, was shocked we accepted the theme. After all, we were complete strangers at that point." Sting chuckled and munched on a piece of pancake. Suddenly, his playful expression morphed into something more serious. "By the way… Lu, I never asked, but what made you accept the topic? I remember your expression when you picked the card and read the word. You seemed terrified and shocked."

"Yes." She sighed. "I was. My head was full of doubt and the worst of thoughts, I was so scared. But then I looked at you…" She blushed, averting her sight not to see his smirk. "And you appeared to be so relaxed about it. Not ecstatic, not nervous, just… relaxed. It was important since I really expected anything but coziness from you. Also, I wanted to change something in my life of constant fear and insecurity. Thus, I took the chance. And I'll never regret it."

"Me? Relaxed? Are you serious?" He laughed incredulously. "I was anything but! I was rather startled, it was not something I expected from Reedus to give to his students."

"You hid it perfectly."

"Well. Look where it got me."

The couple smiled at each other tenderly and finished eating, minding the time. They promised to meet with Levy and Gajeel before going back, and then Lucy would take Sting around the small city. There was not much to see, but the views from the harbor were rather admirable. All in all, they spent an active but nice day. Not once was Laxus mentioned and she did not want to pry; even though she could clearly see Sting's face scrunched up in musing whenever the man thought she wouldn't realize.

While getting home, Lucy did the talking since her boyfriend became quite quiet. Moreover, right in front of the house, he asked whether she would be alright on her own and if he could excuse himself for a while. Lucy smiled and reassured him it was no problem for her.

It was early evening.

Everything was good until the night, at which Lucy began to worry. In fact, Sting'd disappeared a few hours before and she had no idea where to look for him. Naturally, she suspected where he could have been, but it gave her little comfort. He could be unreasonable when the situation was dire, and there, he was absolutely unpredictable. He had never shared his exact thoughts when it came to his brother… The only opinion she had on the matter was due to her own observations and conclusions. She even called Levy, who told her to wait and trust him. She did, she really did; however, the man's long absence and his previous mood were reasons enough for her distress.

Therefore, she waited, sitting and staring through the window since she could not focus on anything not connected to her man and his whereabouts. What if he was lost? What if he went to see Laxus and ended up arguing? Mirajane's boyfriend looked as if he could blow anyone away with one breath, and Sting, as muscular as he was, was no match to the culturist… And what it—

The thoughts swirled in her mind, almost causing her to have an anxiety attack. She considered calling Levy, but quickly shook it off; she had already talked to her friend. She would not bother her any longer.

She simply had to wait.

It was midnight when the front door opened and Lucy started from her chair to rush to the hall.

There, she stopped and gasped.

Certainly, Sting came back. Yet, his clothes were wrinkled, even torn in two places, and his face had a greying-blueish reaction. He seemed beaten up, but a bit calmer.

Upon hearing her gasp, his head shot up and he cringed when he saw his girlfriend, clearly not expecting her to be awake.

Lucy was so relieved that she filled with anger when she saw the state he was in.

So, she started yelling.

"Where the fuck were you, Sting?! Do you know what time it is? I was so goddamn worried, you…! Ugh! And! Did you fight?!"

He grimaced, be it in pain or with dissatisfaction. "I… yeah."

"Sting!" Lucy exclaimed, scolding, and hurried over to start an inspection, taking his shirt off. If he was surprised, he did not show it. Actually, his face became guarded and blank, but she paid it no mind. She tossed the shirt behind herself and held the man still. His face and the right side of his ribs were most damaged, which she decided was not that bad. But dread overcame her when she realized who, most probably,had done that to him. "What the hell happened?!"

The man looked at her, his face still devoid of anything, and took her hand, then led his worried sick girlfriend to the living room. He sat on the sofa and pulled her beside.

She had no idea how long they sat there, silent. She could not breathe normally, but knew he needed to start himself. Hurrying him would not do any good. Finally, when Lucy's heart almost burst of palpitations from stress and suspense, the mask fell off and he hid his face in his hands before muttering: "I went to see Laxus."

Her mouth fell open. "O-oh."

She knew it! She fucking knew it, and she was not at all happy about it.

"I talked to him." Sting whispered. "I-I told him."

Not thinking much, Lucy pushed aside her irritation and pulled him into her arms, well, as much as she could, cradling his head on her chest. The man shook, but did not cry. At least not yet. But she did.

"You fought your brother. Literally thought your brother."

Clearly, whatever she had been thinking before, she had underestimated the severity of the situation between the brothers.

"Only after we… um, talked." His breath tickled her cleavage, but she did not let go, petting his hair. "Lucy—"

"Are you still angry?"

Short silence followed and then the man sighed heavily, slanting in her arms.

"So angry I'm numb. I don't have the energy to be mad anymore. I'm so tired…"

She bit her lip, thinking. They could stay over tonight, too, although the next day they would miss courses. Who cares, he needs it. Besides, he was in no condition to drive that night. She would not put them both in danger because of stupid classes. So, Lucy caressed his head and kissed his temple. "Go to the bed. I'll quickly take care of your bruise before you fall asleep, but you need some good rest."

Sting lifted his eyes onto her face and asked lowly: "Are you sure?"

Her mouth twitched, but her heart almost stopped when she gazed into his eyes. He raised his right hand and thumbed tears off her right cheek. Still, she said: "So sure I'll kick you off the sofa in a minute."

Sting chuckled half-heartedly and got off obediently.

"Fine."

She did not blink an eye of sleep. She was too apprehensive.

She hated to see him that way. His eyes unseeing, his face down, the blue of his orbs bleached. He was not supposed to be that sad. He was supposed to be strong for them both. Not to seem broken. Not hurting. Lucy wanted to help him so badly, but had no idea how to even start.

Therefore, when the man joined her in the kitchen at six in the morning, she only eyed him discreetly and mumbled a hello. Sting, on the other hand, grunted something incoherent and poured himself some water. Sipping it slowly, he had his back turned to her. And she knew he was still irate.

"Sting?" Lucy asked gently, full of the best intentions.

"Not now." He grunted.

"But—"

"I said not now!"

She flinched. "You don't have to tell me anything, I just wanted to—"

"Just leave me alone!"

Lucy blinked, hurt. He actually raised his voice on her. So, without another word, she stood up and proudly marched out of the kitchen—but then stopped. Now what? She did not want to go to her room and try to avoid Sting. It was her house, and her town, and she should have a place to go to in critical situations… And then she remembered; whenever she was distressed at school, she had used to wander by the river and, once she found her special place, she had taken to sitting there for hours, observing the water flowing and the sun setting more than once. Yes, she should go there. That way, she would give Sting space and avoid having an interaction with him for a while.

Well. She hoped it would be enough.

Lucy sighed with nostalgia. It had used to be her favorite place when she had been living in Magnolia. She could peacefully think there and effectively hide from others.

Nodding to herself, the woman went out through the front door and headed towards the riverside, mulling over the situation gloomily.

She had never seen the man so livid. Apparently, it was Sting's manner of dealing with serious problems; truthfully, she would've never expected him to act so childishly, but then she never had to deal with Sting Eucliffe when truly mad. Anger was understandable, naturally, but she just wanted to help him. He didn't have to take it out on her. Still… It was now clear he never knew any other way and that was why he raised his voice. All her previous thoughts turned out to be true. Of course it hurt, because it was unfair, but it was unfair to him, too… What if what he needed was some time?

Lucy groaned. He had warned her… She just had not listened.

Heartfilia stopped and looked around herself; she was there. The place did not change much, the river flew just as lazily, the people strolled along it. Only there were more bushes and the tree she had used to use as a bench grew out. The school times flooded her mind, to which she smiled. Maybe she really needed a moment alone, if only to come back there for a while.

She was not sure how long she had been sitting there, drowning in memories, before she heard steps. There was no mistaking it, they were approaching.

Lucy did not need to turn her head to know it was Sting. He stood next to her for several seconds. Silent. Maybe trying to express himself, maybe just admiring the view. Or maybe he was staring her down, or he realized he was not ready to talk to her? Who knew. Certainly not Lucy, who tended to overthink, as seen.

But then Sting sat down next to her, still quiet. Lucy continued sitting with closed eyes, braced on her hands. One would say she was calm and collected, but in reality she was nervous. So nervous that he would walk away again. It would break her heart.

However, he remained at his place.

"Lucy. I, I'm sorry I shouted." He said softly after a while. "I… I was furious and took it out on you. It wasn't fair of me."

Lucy said nothing, so he went on, encouraged by her silence. He scooted closer, almost touching her now.

"I went to confront Laxus about the situation. I couldn't stop myself, I, I was pissed at him! I— You of all people know why." There was a pause. "Well… he let me in. Easy enough, eh? But when I saw him… something struck me. Fury blinded me. I acted on an impulse and gave him a tongue-lashing." He gulped. Thrice. "He… he was shocked. He did not even think— Didn't even realize I could be me… him… his brother." He stopped again, living through it again. "We argued. I told him what I think about his departure and the fact he took no interest in the family for so many years. Hell, he had no idea our father was dead! And then—"

"Who was the first to hit another?" Lucy asked simply.

"Laxus." Sting scowled. "But, after that, we were exchanging blows evenly. At the beginning, at least. He's strong. I admitted defeat. Well… I hate losing, you know? But what I hated more was that he tried to hold the fact that I stayed against me. He blamed me for, for so many things, but it's just so fucking unfair to blame a child…!"

The woman finally looked at him. She yearned to grab his hand, to caress his face, to touch him, but that she would not be the one to initiate contact. "And?"

"We, let's say, talked afterwards." He shifted, uncomfortable. Hopeful, his hand ran along her palm on the ground and he stared at it, tracing her long fingers with his. "He was obnoxious and said hurtful words, but I guess that's the way he is now. I… we… We'll be in touch. Somewhat. I think."

At that, Lucy nodded and stood up. "Come."

Eucliffe raised his brows, but followed. They walked in silence, but she took his hand into hers and squeezed. She felt quite comfortable in silence, but Sting was squirming, uncertain of what was happening. She supposed he deserved it a little. At last, they reached the house. The couple did not bother with taking their shoes off and Lucy led the man to the sofa, on which he sat down. Yet, she stood in front of him with her hands on her hips, apparently ready to give him a lecture. Not that he didn't have it coming.

But he did not expect her voice to be calm and understanding.

"Look. I don't know how you dealt with problems before… Although I suspect you did it all on your own, having no one to confide in, no one to share it with. It must've taken much time to figure things out. I get it." She stopped and cleared her throat. "But I need you to know. You are not alone anymore."

"I—"

"You have someone to talk to. To help you. You have me."

"I kno—"

"I want to be a part of your life." Lucy approached him and knelt down, bracing herself on his knees. Her voice did not waver, although her expression was tender and almost pleading. "It means I want to know about your problems, of your woes, and help you through them. I… I love you. Issues included. And I'll accept everything… anything… If you give me a chance."

Sting froze. He was staring at his girlfriend with shock carved into his face, absolutely amazed. He could've expected everything—sans that. He thought it probable that she would slap him or yell at him for being an ass. Not compassion and such proof of love and acceptance.

Therefore, the man slid on the floor in front of her and embraced her figure, burying his head in the crook of her neck. It was touching and he did not want to cry in front of her, but, God. She was amazing. She was everything he had been hoping for ever since his sad childhood…

She was home.

Nonetheless, even though it was as clear as a day to him, he didn't voice his thoughts. Lucy would surely be scared of the level of his attachment, and the last thing he wanted was to overwhelm her.

So, he only nodded and whispered into her skin: "I… I will try."

And it was enough for her.