HAPPY BELATED 4-MONTH-AVERSERY, LOVELY READERS!
Wish I had something special planned for this chapter, but alas, I don't ^_^;
But nonetheless, enjoy!
XOXOX
All that yelling Lucy did to her irksome group chat had resulted in irritation to her abdomen and not only just to that, but irritation to the entire hospital. She was scolded by the head doctor on the floor for causing too much of a disturbance.
Lucy, of course, had only sheepishly blushed, wondering how much the hospital had heard from her conversation, praying that she hadn't screamed anything about her smut fic, but to her chagrin, the doctor had specifically stated, "I don't care what kind of kinky story you wrote, just don't go screaming about it for the whole hospital to hear! I have patients asking to read it!"
"S-Sorry!" was the only thing she had managed to say.
Even though a couple of hours had passed by since then, the memory was still very real and very embarrassing. She sunk under the covers of her bed, trying to hide from the mortifying pain.
What an awful day…
Her dad knows her friends are all people she met on the internet.
Natsu read her smut fic.
Everyone's going to Comic Con—except her.
Natsu told everyone that she wrote a smut fic—and even the hospital knows…
And everyone is still going to Comic Con…
And she was trapped in a hospital...
Her hands clenched into fists and her throat threatened to release an agonizing scream, but she bit it down.
Tears wanted to spill so badly, but she fought hard against them because what good would crying do? She still wouldn't have Comic Con tickets and she still wouldn't be able to meet her friends.
Ping.
Like a reflex, Lucy sat back up and looked at her lit-up Skype chat. "Lucy?" the message read. "Can we talk?"
Well in all honesty, she didn't want to talk to anyone. She just wanted to be alone to wallow in self-pity but for this person, she would make an exception.
"Sure thing," she wrote back.
A video request was sent and Lucy accepted it without a second thought.
On the screen, a girl with spiking blue hair appeared with such warm and kind brown eyes that seemed to melt the icy throb in Lucy's chest.
"Hi, Lucy," the girl sheepishly grinned.
"Hi, Levy," Lucy found herself grinning back and all the pain and bitterness from before evaporated like morning dew on the grass.
"So umm…" Levy fidgeted a bit in her desk chair, revealing one of the many ginormous bookshelves in her library-bedroom. Lucy could make out an extensive manga collection on that shelf, ranging from shoujo to shounen to even sports manga, which made her heart jolt with jealousy.
"I'm so sorry I didn't tell you about the ticket earlier! I was just scared that you would be all sad—and why are there wires hooked up to your arm—OH MY GOD, ARE YOU IN THE HOSPITAL?!"
"Uhhh," Lucy laughed uneasily as she subconsciously tapped on her IVs. "Kind of?"
"KIND OF?!" Levy's eyes were round with horror as her palms flattened against her desk and she bolted out of her seat. "HOW CAN YOU BE KIND OF IN THE HOSPITAL?!"
"Okay, okay," she put both her palms up in a surrendering motion, "I am in the hospital."
"YEAH I CAN SEE THAT! WHAT HAPPENED? ARE YOU SICK!? OHMYGOD YOU'RE NOT DYING, ARE YOU?!"
"Ahah nothing happened!" Lucy tensely smiled as beads of sweat coated her forehead. "Just an appendicitis."
"WHAT?!" Levy went ghostly white. "SO THAT'S WHY YOU HAVEN'T BEEN ONLINE?!"
"Yes?" she squeaked, feeling a bit interrogated.
"AHH IT'S OFFICIAL; I'M THE WORST PERSON IN THE ENTIRE WORLD!" Levy collapsed back into her seat burying her face into her hands.
"No you're not!"
"TAKE MY COMIC CON TICKET!"
"LEVY, NO!"
"I FEEL SO BAD!" the girl sobbed loudly with her forget-me-not-blue hair shaking all around. "AND THE WAY YOU FOUND OUT! I'M A TERRIBLE PERSON! I SHOULDN'T HAVE KEPT IT A SECRET!"
"It's seriously not a big deal!" Lucy said earnestly. "I probably would have done the same, so don't feel bad! And I don't even care about Comic Con. I just want to hangout with all of you!"
"Lucy…"
"And if I take your ticket," a coy smirk coiled onto her lips, "then you'll never get to meet Gajeel."
Levy noticeably and audibly gulped, "Why-Why does that matter?"
"Because you liikkkeeee hiimmm."
"Don't pretend to be Happy," Levy chided while blushing. "I'm nervous to meet him..." she twiddled her thumbs.
"Well I'm sure he will be nervous to meet you also—"
"What if he thinks I look like a little kid?" her blush deepened to a lovely shade of fushia. "Everyone always tells me I look like I'm 12! What if Gajeel also thinks that?! Who would wanna date someone who looks 12?!"
"Levy, you're being ridiculous!" Lucy giggled at the girl's absurdity. Levy was beautiful and by no means looked like a little kid with those all-knowing eyes and her delicate facial features. "You don't look 12!"
All the color slowly drained from Levy's cheeks as she wailed, "I DON'T WANT TO MEET HIM ANYMORE! JUST TAKE MY TICKET, LUCY!"
"I'M NOT TAKING IT!" Lucy yelled, ignoring the stabbing pain in her stomach. "You're going to have the best day of your life! And don't-not-go because of Gajeel, go because you'll get to meet Mira, Cana, Erza, Gray, and…" she dropped her gaze to her now-trembling pale hands, "Natsu."
"Lucy…" Levy's huge eyes glistened.
Lucy turned away, forcing her stare out the window. "It'll be fun." The sky was a brilliant shade of pink and orange thanks to the now-setting sun. "Trust me."
"You're right." Levy's voice was calm and then she asked, "So, uh, how did you get an appendicitis?"
She stiffened, feeling all flabbergasted as she turned her head back to the screen.
Levy deadpanned, "Let me guess, you got salmonella from Plue and that caused your appendix to rupture?"
Lucy flinched, awkwardly dropping her gaze to her lap, "Maybe…"
The tiny girl pursed her lips, "I told you not to put him near your face!"
"I know," Lucy chuckled.
XOXOX
It was much later in the evening, the clock rearing towards eight p.m. as Lucy picked at her late hospital dinner. It was supposed to be a salad, but whatever that green stuff was—it was certainly not lettuce…
"LUCCYYY!" heavy foots bellowed into her room, "I'VE COME BEARING PRESENTS!"
"Eh?" Her head snapped over to the door to see her father caring a gigantic bag while bending over with his hands on his knees as he gasped for breath. "Dad?"
He stood up straight, smoothing out his crinkled suit and grinned, "Lucy! How are you feeling?"
"Alright," she scratched her head, eyeing the suspicious bag that was resting on his right shoulder. "You have presents for me?"
"Yes!" he moved closer to her and slid his free hand into the backpack. "First things first!" he pulled out a bulky, bulging black folder. "All the school work you have missed!"
Her lips drew thin as she said dryly, "Wow, thanks." She took the folder from him with one hand and nearly dropped it since she wasn't expecting the weight, "Gahh how much work could I have possibly missed?!"
"Also!" Jude said, ignoring her, "I bought you tickets to your Spring Formal!" He pulled a pair of tickets out of his pocket.
"You shouldn't have," she exasperated, rubbing her tired eyes, "I told you I'm not going,"
"Well the money for the tickets go to charity so whether you go or not, it's not a waste," he said. "Anyway," he reached into the bag again, "I brought you books!"
"What?" she watched as he pulled volume after volume after volume of Fairy Tail. "Dad!" she beamed, nearly jumping out of the bed in excitement, but reframed from doing so. "Thank you so much!" She was so close to completing her set, she nearly glowed from the thought.
"Anything for my precious daughter!" He took a seat on the chair next to her bed. "So how's Natsu?"
Her eyes peeled as she suspiciously answered, "He's alright." Did her father get over the fact that she met Natsu off the internet yet? The churning in her stomach seemed to answer no.
"Good, good," he nodded, unconsciously rubbing his chin signifying he hadn't heard what Lucy had said. "Look, Lucy, I've thinking about this all day…I have to do what's best for you and that is to call Natsu up and tell him that he is never to contact you again."
"Wait what?" she sat up straighter, ogling at her father's keen expression.
"I'm only kidding! I just want to chat with the lovely fellow." He pulled out his phone, dialed a number, and then put it on speaker.
"I don't—" Lucy started, but her father immediacy shushed her. Her lips jutted out into a pout as she glowered at him.
It rang and rang and by the third ring, someone finally answered, "Hello!?" Sounding out of breath, Natsu's voice rang between the silences of the still room. Lucy's brows pulled inwards, scared of what was to come.
"Old man?" Natsu sounded bemused. She watched as her father's face fell into a scowl, causing her to smirk in response, "What's up? Is something wrong with Lucy!?"
He sounded so worried, that her insides went erratic.
"ANSWER ME, YOU BASTARD!" Natsu's voice bellowed.
Lucy slapped a palm to her face the second the word bastard echoed into the room. She snuck a peek at her father, who looked beyond disgruntled as he rubbed his left temple with his free hand.
"IS SOMETHING WRONG WITH LUCY?!"
Now pinching the bridge of his nose, her father, at last, decided to answer, "No, Natsu, nothing is wrong with Lucy."
"THEN WHY THE HELL ARE YA CALLIN' ME?" Natsu raged.
"I wanted to—"
"IT'S CONSIDERED HARASSMENT, YA KNOW!"
Her father looked incredulous with his face twisting in all sorts of directions, "How is this harassment?" Then he threw his arms up, "And you're one to talk, young man!" he chastised. "You called me every half hour the first night Lucy was in the hospital! Now that's harassment."
"Dunno what you're talkin' about, old man," Natsu said with such a careless ease; it seemed to tame Lucy's unstable heart.
"Of course you don't," her dad sweat-dropped. "I'm just calling because we never had the pleasure of officially chatting."
"Officially?" Natsu repeated. "Whatchu mean? We've talked loads of times. Don't tell me you're goin' senile."
Lucy smacked her hands over her mouth to stifle her laughs—but the inward laughs angered her lower abdomen, causing her to wince.
"That's not what I meant, Natsu," Jude looked on edge with the way his jaw locked up.
"Can't you just get to the point already? I ain't in the mood to talk."
"Fine, now that I know who you really are," he clarified. "I want to ask you a few questions."
"Who am I really?" Natsu questioned.
"You're-You're some creepy pervert my daughter met off the internet who lives in Magnolia! That's who you really are!"
"IT'S LUCY'S FAULT THAT IMMA PERVERT! I DIDN'T WANNA READ IT, I SWEAR!"
Lucy struggled to breathe as all the oxygen left the room. He was not bringing that up again!
Jude blinked, "Wha—"
"OKAY SO MAYBE I WANTED TO READ IT, BUT I DIDN'T THINK SHE WOULD ACTUALLY LET ME! BUT LUCY'S THE REAL PERVERT FOR WRITING—"
All the blood in Lucy's body rushed up into her cheeks. She opened her mouth, prepared to shout anything that would block out Natsu's next words, but she was beaten to it.
"Hey!" Jude yelled, cutting Natsu off. "Don't call my daughter a pervert!"
"But she is—"
"What did I just say, boy? Don't make me use my bat on you!" Lucy could see her father's expression was very much playful, not matching his threatening speech.
"Sor-sorry…" Natsu sounded surprisingly afraid, causing Lucy to muffle another laugh. "I don't think Lucy's a pervert!"
"So what do you think of Lucy?" her father asked curiously.
Her stomach twisted into a tangled web of knots. Why was her father doing this? Was this considered the third degree that fathers are supposed to give to their daughter's boyfriends? Was Natsu even her boyfriend?
She anxiously brought her hand up to her mouth and chewed quietly on her nails.
Nothing but silence came out of the phone.
"Natsu?" Jude called out.
Her heart raced.
It felt like hours went by before Natsu simply said, "I think Lucy is Lucy!"
"And what's that supposed to mean?"
"Well I guess it sorta means weird, but not exactly. Like when Lucy says or does something completely mind boggling, I think, 'Oh! Lucy's just bein' Lucy again,' ya know?"
"Uhh," her dad shot her a quizzical look, but Lucy was too distracted by the pounding in her chest.
"Like when she randomly bought Plue—that was Lucy bein' Lucy because who goes and buys an iguana thinkin' it's a salamander?! And her liking m—" he quickly shut up before finishing the word that was probably me. "I mean she's just weird—just Lucy."
Jude didn't say anything and neither did Lucy. No matter how many times he's called her weird or Just Lucy, it still managed to her heart turn all gooey. How was Natsu capable of turning the word weird into a compliment? The way he uses the word, it's as if it's one of the grandest compliments out there. It was almost like an honor to be called weird by him.
Natsu filled the silent void with one last sentence, "And I like that about her."
"Well, Natsu," Jude said, coughing to clear his voice. "It was sure interesting chatting with you. Do expect another one of these someday. Good day."
"Bye—"
"I'm still not quite sure what to make of him…but I still think Gray's more masculine than him," Jude said to Lucy, as he went to put his phone into his suit-jacket pocket.
"OI! YOU DIDN'T HANG UP YET, YOU OLD BASTARD!" Natsu's voice echoed. "AND LIKE HELL HE IS! I'M WAY MORE MASCULINE AND WHO ARE YOU TALKING TO—WAIT! WAS LUCY LISTENING TO OUR CONVERSA—"
"Whoops," her dad said before actually hanging up.
"You wanted him to hear that," Lucy smirked.
"Nahh," he winked. "Anyway, I better get going. Plue is probably starving…"
Lucy gasped, "OHMYGOD, PLUE! I HAVE TO GO HOME TO TAKE CARE OF HIM!"
"Don't worry!" he waved her off. "Plue and I have been spending a great deal of time together."
"What?!" she asked in utter disbelief.
"He sits on my lap while I read the newspaper."
"But what about him being a monster?!" Lucy exclaimed, not quite believing what she was hearing.
His eyes narrowed, "Lucy, don't call Plue a monster. He is an adorable creature that deserves better."
"Umm?" she was completely baffled.
"Well I best be off," he smiled, putting his bag back over his shoulder. "Call if you need anything!"
And then he left.
"What the hell just happened?" she asked no one as she scratched her forehead, before shaking off her father's oddness.
She thought back to Natsu, And I like that about her.
Maybe today wasn't so bad after all.
XOXOX
For those wondering why my updates have been slower: I started school (already have two essays due next week :0 ) and also work so I'm trying to get used to my new schedule, but I'm still gonna attempt to do two updates per week!
And for those asking about my update schedule:
I update randomly so I recommend you following this story on FF but if you don't have an account, I tag all my updates on tumblr under Virtual Flames so if you track that tag, it will hopefully notify you that I updated!
Anyway, thank you for reading!
Sorry for another filler chapter, but I felt like I had to add this in :') hope it wasn't too bad though!
Good luck to all of you going back to school and just good luck in general because we could all use a little bit of luck!
