Disclaimer: I do not own Fairy Tail.
Summary: In her senior year at UoC, Lucy meets Natsu. Meanwhile, her best friend struggles to balance a double major with an annoying mechanical engineer, and her new housemate learns to break out of her shell. Apartment 208 will never be the same. College AU, Nalu (main), Gajeevy, Gruvia. Slice of life.
Warning/Note: I wrote this story a few years ago and posted it for a few days, and then took it down in hopes of completing the whole story before posting it. That never happened, so I'm putting this back up now, just to let it out of the dungeon. I'm a lot older now and don't think I'd be able to write more for this, but I will try to finish up chapter 2 which was already almost done and post it. Thanks for reading!
Halycon Days
01
Chapter One - Spruce 208
It had to be at least 100 degrees outside.
Lucy Heartfilia could feel the green reusable shopping bag slipping from her sweaty fingers as she painstakingly marched up the stairs to apartment 208. Every step brought a new wave of heat and for the millionth time that summer, she cursed at herself for agreeing to live in an apartment that was upstairs.
It was a 2-story apartment, taking up the second and third floors of the building just blocks away from the university campus.
It didn't help that the doorway faced West, allowing Helios to say goodbye every evening by glaring straight into her eyes if she decided to leave the apartment.
The sun shone as brightly and unobstructed as it had in mid-June, though it was already nearing the end of August. Lucy just hoped some breezy autumn winds would find their way to Magnolia before classes started next week. As much as she enjoyed the sun, going to lectures looking like she just jumped into a pool was probably not the best way to make new friends.
Lucy pulled out her University of Crocus key lanyard (an impulse buy during her freshman year) from her purse and opened the door. She kicked her sandals off, dropped the bag on the kitchen counter, and immediately walked over to the living room. Lucy abruptly dropped down onto the tan, carpeted floor, closed her eyes, and stretched out her limbs. The cold air from the ceiling vent engulfed her and she sighed in relief.
After a few minutes of bliss, Lucy took a deep breath before yelling. "Levy! I bought the groceries!"
Levy McGarden was Lucy's best friend. By chance, they were paired as roommates during their freshman year and had lived together since. Lucy remembered anxiously waiting in the dorm room three years ago for her new roommate to arrive. A tiny blue-haired girl had then entered the room, a box full of books in hand with the most recent edition of Fiore Classic Magazine on top, and the two girls had immediately clicked. They rarely had any classes together since they were different majors, but the few G.E. classes they did take together were always fun. The two had been there for each other through all the dorm floor drama, killer finals, and drunken mistakes. Lucy honestly didn't know how miserable the past three years would have been without the sassy, almost-too-optimistic bookworm in her life.
Stacking her hands behind her head as a makeshift pillow, Lucy waited as she heard the sound of a door opening upstairs and light footsteps descending the stairs. The footsteps trailed towards the kitchen and were followed by loud rustling, which Lucy assumed meant Levy was unpacking the groceries.
"Lu-chan, our apartment looks so sad when you lie on the floor like that." Lucy could practically hear Levy's frown from the kitchen.
She opened her eyes and scanned their modest-sized living room. It was completely empty, save for the 28-inch flat screen television that rested on a stand in the corner.
"Mira really wasn't kidding when she said she was going to give all her furniture to her sister…" Lucy mumbled, still in partial disbelief.
Their old housemate, Mirajane Strauss, graduated last spring and had moved out sometime over the summer. Her younger sister, Lisanna, had just returned from two consecutive years of studying abroad and was starting her final year at the University of Edolas, just a few cities over from Crocus.
At an apartment reunion last week, Mira had bought Levy and Lucy brunch and two rounds of drinks before promptly announcing that she was taking all of her furniture from the apartment to loan out to Lisanna and quickly leaving with her signature serene smile.
Since Mirajane (who was a year older than them) already had the living room and dining room furnished when Lucy and Levy moved in, they never bothered to buy any additional furniture of their own. A decision that they were both now regretting.
"What was that? I couldn't hear you." Levy asked as she made her way over to Lucy. Her hazel eyes studied Lucy for a few seconds before she plopped down beside the blonde and joined her in staring at the ceiling.
Mira claimed that the high ceiling was what sold the 2-story townhouse apartment to her, and Lucy and Levy wholeheartedly agreed. A pair of small windows on their second floor allowed light to stream in and cast a homey glow over their living room.
"Nothing. Just saying that Mira owes us a lot more than eggs benedict and mimosas after dropping the bomb on us and running away." Lucy pouted, pointing her feet in the direction of the dining room. "She even took my seat cushion." Her pretty, pink seat cushion adorned with silver moons and stars that saved her bottom from aching during many late night study sessions.
"She must've forgotten." Levy said, patting Lucy on the arm in consolation. "She only lives half an hour away, right? Maybe we can guilt her into buying us some furniture since she's making so much jewel at her new job… I can ask Jet or Droy to drive us to visit sometime soon." She suggested. Jet and Droy were a couple of guys that lived on the same floor as them during their freshmen year. Lucy knew they both had very big crushes on Levy at some point, but the girl was oblivious to it all, always too focused on her schoolwork to notice.
As a double major in Anthropology and Linguistics, Levy spent most of her time studying and writing papers and theses for her classes. Lucy admired her drive, since she herself was always distracted by the littlest things.
"Yes, please." Lucy responded. "The sooner the better."
With one final sigh, Levy sat up. "We need a table." She stated. "And chairs."
Lucy gave her a disbelieving look. "We kind of need everything."
The bluenette stuck her tongue out at her. "Yeah, but we need a table and chairs at least since we're welcoming Juvia tonight."
Juvia Lockser was their new soon-to-be housemate, taking over Mirajane's old room. Lucy knew nothing about her aside from the fact that she was also a senior, majoring in Marine Biology, and that she had transferred from Jose Porla College last year. Wanting to give the girl a warm welcome, Lucy had suggested getting to know her over a nice, home-cooked meal. Unfortunately, that was before she knew their living and dining rooms would be devoid of any viable surfaces to eat or sit on.
"Well, it's not like we can hide the fact that we don't have any furniture from her…"
"I still don't want her to eat on the ground on her first night here, Lu-chan."
"Well of course not, but it's not like we can go out and just buy furniture right now."
Levy opened her mouth to retort, but quickly paused and frowned. "Maybe we can borrow furniture."
"Who's going to have a spare table and chairs lying around?" Lucy questioned, incredulous at the suggestion.
Levy didn't respond immediately, but her brows were furrowed deep in thought. Her finger was pointing at her chin in typical brainstorming-Levy fashion.
Lucy sighed and stood up. "While you think about that, I'll get started on the food. She'll be here in a little over an hour." She made her way over to the kitchen and began digging through the ingredients. Hopefully Juvia wasn't against eating meat, she thought as she pulled out a bag of butterfly shrimp and a tray of chicken breasts. She grabbed a large pot from the cabinet beside the oven, filled it with water, and set in on the stove.
She heard Levy get up and join her, grabbing spices and herbs from the shelves and pulling out a cutting board.
"Give up yet?" Lucy teased, washing her hands and preparing herself to peel the shrimp.
"Nope. Give me a little more time." Levy chirped confidently as she began lining up vegetables to cut.
Twenty minutes later, Lucy was straining pasta over the sink when Levy suddenly let out a victory shout, causing her to promptly lose a few linguini strands to the drain.
"Doesn't your flirty friend have an extra table? I think I saw him bring one to a party once."
"My flirty friend." Lucy repeated, confused. She almost asked Levy to elaborate, but the image of a tall, handsome, orange-haired man kissing hands and calling every passing girl beautiful appeared in her mind. "You mean Loke?"
Lucy had met Loke her sophomore year when she sat next to him in an astronomy class she had taken for a G.E. He had immediately dropped a cheesy pick-up line which she countered in stride, and this pattern continued everyday for the first five weeks of lecture until Lucy finally gave up on trying to stop him and they became good friends. They even took a few more astronomy classes together over the next couple of years. He still called her Princess all the time and put on the charm whenever she saw him, but neither of them took it seriously.
"Yeah, him." Levy confirmed.
"You mean the table he brings around for beer pong?" Lucy frowned. "It's not the classiest thing around, but I can ask anyway." She washed her hands thoroughly and dried them on a dishtowel before whipping out her phone and sending him a text.
Her phone vibrated a few minutes later and she skimmed the response. "He says we can borrow his table, but it hasn't been washed in a while, and he has some extra chairs too. He won't be back until classes start, though." Another vibrate. "But Gray and one of his housemates are home and we can go pick it up whenever." Lucy relayed.
Gray Fullbuster was Loke's roommate, a 4th year Chemistry major. She also met him during her sophomore year when he joined her and Loke for lunch one random day. They didn't talk often, but he always greeted her and made small talk when they happened to cross paths around campus. He was friendly and quite good-looking as well, but seemed to have a strange habit of stripping off his clothes. She saw him most often in the winter time, jogging past the snowy quad in nothing but a pair of shorts.
She glanced over to where Levy was taking out a large skillet and preparing to sauté.
Levy halted in her actions and hummed in thought. "How far away is his apartment? I want to make sure we have time to finish cooking."
"He lives in Manzanita, apartment 240." Lucy looked at the map on her phone, punching in their own address to find directions. "About a 20 minute walk. If we leave now, we can get back before Juvia arrives." She looked out the window. The sun was low in the sky now, preparing to set in a couple of hours. "But in this heat? We're going to melt before she gets here." She groaned and rested her head on the nearest wall.
Levy pursed her lips. "I don't think we'll finish in time if we both leave…"
Lucy's big brown eyes widened. Levy wouldn't dare…
"...so why don't you just go and ask his roommate or whoever to help you?" Levy finished with a hesitant grin. "I'll hold the fort down here."
"Oh no you don't, missy." Lucy exclaimed. She pointed at the grocery bag accusingly. "You already sent me out for groceries. I'll hold the fort."
"But I barely know Gray or Loke! It would make much more sense if you went, Lu-chan. Plus, the grocery store is not even a 5 minute walk." Levy smiled innocently at her, threw a chunk of butter onto the skillet, and turned back to the food, already having made up her mind.
Pouting, Lucy pocketed her phone and slipped on her sandals, grumbling. "Fine, but you owe me. I'm not bringing my keys." She called out as she left the apartment for the second time that day, immediately being encompassed by hot air. She waited for Levy's confirmation before shutting the door. With a deep breath, she gathered all her willpower, stepped out of the shade, and began the walk beneath the blistering sun.
The fastest way to get to Loke's apartment was to cut directly across campus. Lucy and Levy's apartment was just a five-minute walk from the campus itself. Loke's apartment appeared to be the same, but just inconveniently located in the inverse direction.
Lucy pulled her long blonde hair up into a single ponytail with a short blue ribbon, slightly skewed to the right. It was going to be a long walk… She could only hope that Gray would be willing to offer a few helping hands.
Lucy knocked on the door to apartment 240, almost in a daze. She had ignored the map and cut diagonally across campus and managed to shave off almost 5 minutes from the time. These were one of those times she wished she brought her car with her to school, but Magnolia was such a busy city that driving around often wasn't the most practical option.
The door opened and Lucy squeaked as she felt something fuzzy touch her leg. She looked down to see a blue cat with enormous, beady black eyes blinking up at her. It nuzzled its face against her shin and she smiled as she reached down to pet it. When she straightened up she casually surveyed the handsome man in front of her.
He was probably the other housemate Loke mentioned. Much to Lucy's appreciation, he was shirtless, revealing a tanned, muscular body. He looked to be about five inches taller than her and had one hand propped up against the doorframe. The contrast of his wild, pink hair made his dark green eyes look incredibly intense. An odd white scarf was tied around his head, keeping his hair out of his face, where he currently sported an attractive grin.
She remembered seeing his pink hair around campus a few times, though she had never properly met him before.
Lucy put on her best smile and stuck her hand out cordially. "Hi, I'm Lucy. Is Gray home?"
"Natsu." He responded, grasping her hand firmly with his own larger, calloused one. His voice was deep and raspy, but friendly all the same. "And that's Happy." Natsu nodded to the blue cat who was now comfortably resting on her right foot. "Come on in." He held the door open wider for her and she briefly took the opportunity to admire the strong, defined muscles in his outstretched arm..
She thanked him and, sliding Happy off her foot, entered. Standing at the doorway and scanning the area, Lucy quickly realized the reason his shirt was off was because the air conditioning wasn't on and she almost teared up at the thought of going another 20 minutes without refuge from the heat. Aside from their attempt to save money on the electricity bill, the apartment looked very cozy, modeled much like her own. Except, of course, that they had two couches and a mismatched, but modest, table for four. Skewed around the living room and dining room in a disarray were various sports and martial arts equipment, along with a few articles of clothing she guessed were Gray's. A large tv sat against their back wall, with multiple gaming consoles and discs strewn in front of it.
She watched as Natsu, with his awfully well-toned back muscles, walked over to the base of the stairs and lifted his hands to cup his mouth.
"Yo, ice princess! Some girl named Luigi is here to see you!" Natsu hollered, before shooting her another grin that was now much less charming than the first.
"It's Lucy." She repeated with a forced smile.
He frowned at her. "That's what I said."
She stared at him in disbelief and opened her mouth to correct him, but closed it when she figured she should just let it go and be polite. But what if he would keep calling her Luigi if she didn't correct him? She opened her mouth again, but decided it was better off leaving it and closed it.
Natsu was watching her open and close her mouth with a blank expression. "Weirdo." He said with a smile.
She gaped in disbelief again. They had only been in each others' presence for maybe 2 minutes and he was already calling her names. Lucy immediately pushed aside any part of her brain that considered him dateable. Lucy was all for playful teasing, but that required a good foundation. How hard was it to say 'Lucy'? She was about to retort when she heard heavy footsteps descending down the stairs and a completely naked Gray greeted her at the bottom.
Her cheeks flushed red and she hastily slapped her hands over her eyes, but it was already too late. "Gray… your clothes." She managed to let out an embarrassed mumble.
Gray swore and ran back up the stairs, coming back down with a pair of shorts moments later. "Sorry, Lucy. I swear I had them on a second ago." His voice was calm, as if this was a normal occurrence. Lucy didn't doubt that it was.
Natsu had moved to the kitchen, cackling at them and as he poured himself a glass of water. "Nice going, stripper."
"Shut up" Gray shot back without missing a beat. "Loke says you're here for the BP table and some chairs?" He walked over to a closet, opening it up and sticking his head inside.
"Yupp." Lucy confirmed and followed behind him.
"How many chairs do you need? We have four."
"Three is fine." She responded, getting her hands ready as Gray pulled out a few folded plastic chairs and pushed them towards her. She picked one up. It wasn't too heavy, but there was definitely no way she could carry three of them, plus a table, across campus.
"The table's pretty heavy. I can help you bring it to your apartment." Gray offered, ever the gentleman. Lucy nearly cried in relief.
"Thanks, Gray. I'd really appreciate it." Lucy tried to pick up the three chairs all at once, but couldn't figure out a way to hold them without being awkward. They were certain to slip out of her sweaty grasp within a few minutes if she tried.
She guessed she was very visibly struggling, because only a couple of minutes passed before Gray ushered Natsu over to help.
He was watching her with a stupid, sexy grin again—wait, it wasn't sexy—that stupid grin again. "Need a hand, Luigi?"
"It's Lucy." She bit out with a saccharine smile as she pushed one of the chairs towards him.
"Oooh okay. Could've sworn I heard Luigi." He bit his lip and Lucy tapped her foot impatiently. "Lucy, roger. I mean got it, Lucy. Must be the heat. Lucy."
Her annoyance became curiosity as the man continued to mumble her name as if he was struggling to commit it to memory.
"So Luigi-"
She took a deep inhale, ready to correct him.
"Shit, sorry. My mouth starts moving before I think. Alright, Lucy! Let's get going." He grabbed the three chairs in a sweeping motion and tossed them all over one shoulder.
Her eyes wandered against her will. She certainly wouldn't mind being tossed over his shoulder anytime—wait, no! The heat must have messed with her mind. Lucy pulled her focus back.
"Where do you live?"
"Over in Spruce." Lucy coughed, reprimanding herself for getting distracted. "Apartment 208." She felt a little guilty when she saw them both cringe, but not guilty enough to refuse their help. "It's only a 20 minute walk." She chimed sweetly with an innocent smile.
"Only." Natsu snorted, but didn't protest. "I'll race you there, stripper."
Lucy laughed at what she thought was a joke, but felt her smile freeze in place as Gray promptly picked up the long table with a grimace. She could see the sticky beer and soda stains from where she stood. Loke really wasn't kidding when he said it needed a cleaning.
"You're on." The boys exchanged a glance and, without another word, dashed out of the apartment, leaving a speechless Lucy behind with Happy scratching the couch to shreds in the corner.
"H-hey, wait for me!" Lucy yelled as she went after them, accidentally slamming the door shut behind her, much to Happy's displeasure (she heard the screech), and nearly tripping over her own feet.
Natsu and Gray were neck to neck, sprinting through the grass at an incredibly fast speed for two people carrying furniture. Behind them, Lucy jogged, out of breath, sweating up a storm.
"S-stupid guys and their stupid c-competi—" She wheezed. "—tive genes. Why didn't I go to the gym over the summer—"
"Come on, Luce! You're falling behind!" She heard Natsu's distant voice yelled.
"Shut up!" With renewed vigor, Lucy pushed herself into a run and nearly caught up with the guys before her legs gave out on her and she fell back into a light jog. She was glad she didn't bring her purse or anything with her, or it would make running in the hot weather even more unbearable.
She lost sight of Natsu and Gray as they weaved through lecture halls and buildings, and didn't see them again until she finally made it to the apartment complex. They had put the table and chairs aside and were leaning against her building sign, arguing over who got there first.
Breathless, she inched her way to her apartment, not even bothering to check if they were following her. Her legs felt like lead and she barely managed to make it up the stairs to open the door. Kicking off her shoes, she made a beeline to their wonderfully empty living room and dropped into a face plant, wishing she could embrace the cool air that blanketed the room.
"Lu-chan? Are you okay?" Levy's high-pitched voice called out to her, slightly muffled from the sound of the stove vent.
The door slammed open wider, causing Levy to jump as Gray entered the premise, table first.
"Whoops, sorry about that."
"Hello, Gray! It's nice to see you again. Thanks for helping us out, we really appreciate it." Levy was drying her hands with a towel before she made her way over to help him unfold the table in their dining room. The table was so long it nearly extended the entire length from their living room to the door.
Natsu came up moments later with the chairs and Lucy could hear him and Levy exchange introductions from her cozy spot on the carpet.
Lucy felt a body lie down to her left and heard Gray groan. "You guys keep the AC on? So lucky…"
Another body joined them to her right, so close she could feel her elbow skim their arm with every breath. "Can we just stay here for a bit?" Natsu pleaded.
Slightly uncomfortable at the contact, Lucy flipped onto her back. "Don't you guys think you're getting too comfortable? And you guys ran off without locking your door!" It was too hot to have another body so close, much less two bodies.
From her peripherals, she could see Gray shrug. "Erza should be back at the apartment soon." She could barely make out his words as his face was smashed into the carpet.
"She's the reason we had the AC off to begin with." Natsu said dejectedly. He let out a loud yawn and flipped onto his side, facing her. He moaned. "It smells so good in here. What's cooking?"
Lucy felt her cheeks flush as she was now flanked with two attractive, muscular, shirtless male bodies. One of which was looking right at her and making sexy sounds. She sniffed the air. It did smell delicious. "Cajun chicken and shrimp pasta." She replied.
This time, both of the guys groaned. "Yeah, can we just stay here?" Gray's muffled voice asked.
Levy and Lucy exchanged looks. Juvia was supposed to be arriving soon.
"Actually—" Levy started, but was interrupted by a knock on the door. "Oh! She's early." She exclaimed, slightly panicking as she wiped her hands and fixed her hair and apron.
Lucy wanted to make the same effort, but she was already struggling to just sit herself up. Natsu was smiling at her, entertained, and she felt her cheeks darken even more. With one hand, he gave her a push, his hand pressing gently against her bare back and she felt chills again. She muttered a quick thank you and stood up, tightening her ponytail and smoothing out her tank top and miniskirt.
Standing side by side with Levy, Lucy felt excitement and anticipation bubble as the door opened.
On the other side stood a pretty girl with wavy azure locks and dark blue eyes, dressed in a long navy skirt and modest black tank top with a cardigan draped over her shoulders. She wore a backpack, purse, and had a large sky blue rolling luggage beside her, with a duffle bag stacked on top. She offered them a shy smile.
"Hello. I am Juvia."
The girls quickly jumped into their introductions.
"Hi Juvia! I'm Levy."
"And I'm Lucy. It's nice to finally meet you! Come on in, you must be melting out there!" Lucy ushered the girl, who was wearing way too much clothing in her opinion, into their apartment, reaching for her duffle as Levy moved to grab her luggage.
"Oh, thank you very much. And no worries, Juvia does not feel hot." Juvia responded softly. "The food smells delicious, Levy-san, Lucy-san."
"No need for formalities, Juvia! We're housemates now." Levy grinned at her. She stuck her head out the door and looked around. "Is this all you have?"
"Yes, Levy-sa—ah, Levy." Juvia blushed slightly. "Juvia's friend will stop by this Friday with the rest of Juvia's stuff."
Levy's eyes glimmered with hope. "Did you happen to bring living or dining room furniture?"
Juvia frowned. "Juvia is sorry. Juvia thought there would already be furniture…" She looked around the apartment. There was a small, open kitchen with tiled floors to the left of the door with a small area that led to what appeared to be a toilet room right next to it. Directly in front of her was a supply closet next to the stairs that led to the third floor. Just to the right was a small dining area followed by a mid-sized, open living room. Although it lacked basic furniture, there was something very warm and homey about it. And then she spotted the two half-naked men on the floor and squeaked.
"Oh, sorry!" Lucy apologized, walking over. She prodded Natsu with her toe and crouched down to gently shake Gray on the shoulder. Natsu looked at her with a pout and she snickered. If he wanted to ignore her comfort bubble and pretend they didn't just meet, so would she. "Up, boys. Introduce yourselves."
It took a few minutes, but she managed to get the boys standing and pushed them over to greet Juvia.
"Natsu Dragneel. Nice to meet ya!"
Juvia smiled at Natsu. "Hello, Natsu-san. My name is Juvia Lockser."
Natsu shook her hand with a grin and made his way over to the kitchen to sniff the food as soon as his hand was free.
For Juvia, the next minute happened in slow motion. Her eyes slowly scanned up the tall, hunky, raven-haired male. His hand was reaching back to ruffle his hair with the other in his pocket. The cross hanging around his neck drew her attention to his toned chest and washboard abs. She eyed his chiseled chin and pointed nose, landing on those startling bedroom eyes… and then his voice reached her ears and she felt her heart sing.
"Hey, I'm Gray Fullbuster." He said with a small smile as he grabbed her hand for a shake.
Juvia had to stop herself from fainting at the contact as she repeated her introduction. "Nice to meet you, Gray-sama-san." A cringe. "Gray-san." She corrected.
Gray looked mildly uncomfortable. "Uh, just Gray is fine."
"Alright, Gray-sam-san-Gray."
Levy eyed the pair curiously and stepped between them, clapping her hands together. "...Great! Juvia, why don't we put your stuff upstairs and I'll show you around? And then we can finally eat!"
The starstruck girl barely managed a nod and absently followed Levy up the stairs. "All of our rooms are here, and there are two full baths... And here we have this small loft area that overlooks the living room, but we don't really know what to put here…"
Lucy listened as Levy's voice got further away before walking over to Natsu and lightly slapping his hand, which was holding a spoonful of sauce. "What do you think you're doing?"
Even though she had just met the pink-haired idiot, Lucy felt oddly comfortable with him. There was something familiar about him, but she knew they had never spoken in her life. She would definitely remember a grin like that… and obviously, that outworldly pink hair.
"But Luce… I just wanted to try it." Natsu pouted at her again. God, that was unfairly cute. They hadn't known each other for more than an hour, and she already hated his stupid face.
"Don't 'but Luce' me, buddy." She mock-glared at him. She would be strong.
Figuring Juvia would be hungry soon, she turned the heat back on under the skillet and tossed in the linguini pasta that had cooled on the side. Carefully, she used a pair of chopsticks and a large spoon to make sure all the strands had a fair coat of sauce and mixed it so it wouldn't bubble.
Lucy observed Natsu's moping figure that had retreated into the corner of the room, and Gray, who was sitting backwards on one of the chairs eyeing the food with wonder. She sighed in defeat. "It looks like we have enough for everybody, so if Levy and Juvia say yes, you both can stay for dinner."
Immediately, Natsu sprang up and whooped while Gray smiled at her.
"Thanks, Lucy." Gray said.
"Yeah, yeah." She waved them off. "I guess it's the least we could do for your help. I almost forgot—thank you both for helping me lug all this stuff over."
"Anytime, Luce!" Natsu threw an arm over her shoulder and Lucy felt her whole body stiffen. "We're friends now, right?"
This man… had no sense of personal space! But mmm, he smelled like a summer nights by the bonfire with s'mores and good company. She would be lying if she said she didn't take a lungful of his scent in.
"I-I guess. I-idiot! Aren't you getting a little too close?" She shook his arm off with a blush.
"Sorry about him, Lucy." Gray snorted. "He has ash for brains."
"Why, you—"
The two boys got in another spat and Lucy rolled her eyes. It's a wonder how they managed to live in the same apartment with that kind of… unique camaraderie between them.
"Would one of you mind wiping down the table? There are some wipes in that closet."
"Aye, sir! I mean ma'am."
"...And then we have that toilet and sink down by the kitchen. That's about it! Make yourself at home! It is your home now, after all." Levy and Juvia descended back down the stairs.
Lucy gestured towards the girls with her head and looked pointedly at Natsu and Gray.
Before they could say anything, Levy walked over to Lucy and peaked into the skillet.
"Wow! Looks like more than I thought… Natsu, Gray, would you two like to stay for dinner?" Levy smiled when they immediately nodded vigorously in agreement. "Is that okay with you, Juvia? I know it was supposed to be a housie bonding date…"
"It's fine, Juvia is totally okay with it! Juvia think it's a great idea." Juvia smiled at all of them, lingering particularly long on Gray, who looked away immediately.
"Perfect!" Levy clapped her hands together. "I'll set up and Lucy will serve. Juvia, you can come see where we keep all the dishes and utensils…" With an afterthought, she motioned at the table. "Gentlemen, if you would kindly take a seat first." She said with exaggerated gusto.
"It would be my pleasure, milady." Natsu did a mock bow and took a seat. Lucy laughed; he looked rather comical doing such a fancy gesture with a scarf in his hair and sans shirt. He looked up and shot her a huge smile, causing Lucy to look away and shake her head, still laughing.
Gray, not wanting to be outdone, dipped into an exaggerated curtsy before taking a seat.
Levy and Juvia doubled back from the kitchen. Juvia with her hands filled with utensils and an armful of mugs, and Levy with five mismatched plates and a stack of napkins.
"Eh, Levy..." Natsu started, "There are only three chairs."
Slowly Levy's mouth formed a small 'o', Juvia frowned, and Lucy let out another laugh from the kitchen.
"Me and Natsu can just stand-"
"Nah, it'd be more fun if we can all sit together." She waved Levy over to the kitchen and began serving hearty portions onto each plate. Then, she grabbed two plates and walked straight past the table, putting the plates on the floor as everyone stared at her, bemused. She dropped into a crisscross. "What? Don't you guys want to eat?" Lucy teased, patting the area around her.
Natsu was smiling at her again, and he stood up, chuckling. He retrieved two more plates from the kitchen and joined her on the floor.
Levy sighed, picking up the last plate and a pitcher of water and settling down on Lucy's other side. "My back is going to be killing me later…"
Gray made a sound of agreement and dropped down as well, scooting in next to Levy.
"Hey Juvia, would you mind grabbing the utensils?"
Juvia was still standing in the dining room, watching all of them with a strange expression on her face.
"Juvia? Do you need me to show you where they are?" Lucy called out, pointing across from her at the empty spot between Natsu and Gray. "There's space here!"
Juvia's heart felt warm, and she almost wanted to cry. These kind strangers, Juvia's new housemates, she reminded herself, had cooked her dinner and were so warm and welcoming. She had never had many close friends, but as Levy waved her over with an encouraging smile and Gray turned around to give her a hesitant grin, she felt almost overwhelmed with fondness towards them. "N-no! Juvia is fine."
She retrieved the items from the kitchen and Juvia lowered herself between the two guys, passing the utensils out to everybody. A big smile had glued itself onto her face.
And with that, the group of five talked and laughed the night away over Lucy and Levy's homemade Cajun chicken and shrimp pasta.
They talked about Juvia's life back at her old college and how she loved to swim and felt like she was born to be in the water. She shyly mentioned how Magnolia University's famous marine biology department was the reason she transferred schools. Her dream was to swim in all the oceans surrounding Fiore. Juvia would spend the rest of her life in the water if she could, she had stated with a blush.
They talked about Gray and how he had loved the snow and ice since he was a kid and became more fascinated with the chemistry and physics behind it when he began sculpting in high school. He talked about his annoying cousin Lyon, who also attended UoC, and how he was partially responsible for Gray's strange stripping habit. They laughed over the story of Gray and Loke's first meeting in the dorms their freshman year, when Gray walked in on Loke and a random girl getting it on.
They talked about Levy and how she was almost always glued to a book. Levy responded jokingly to Juvia, saying she herself would spend the rest of her life in a library if she could. She mentioned wanting to travel to an ancient city after she graduated to discover some hidden manuscripts to decode. Her name would be on the front page of a magazine one day, she boldly declared.
They talked about Natsu's love for pyrotechnics and fireworks. He proudly boasted about how he helped design and set up the fireworks for the annual Fantasia festival for the past two years. They cooed over the story of how Natsu and his old childhood friend found Happy as a kitten and decided to keep and raise him, and the disastrous (but hilarious) incident that caused Happy's hair to be a bright blue.
They talked about Lucy and her dream to become a famous author one day, but how she would definitely start with children's books about princesses that didn't need saving and dragons that were friends instead of foes. Maybe she'd even write a saga about magic-wielding humans, a boy who could breathe fire, and celestial spirits. More laughter ensued as Levy teasingly recounted the events that transpired on Lucy's 21st birthday and an embarrassed Lucy retaliated with Levy's.
That hot summer night, the apartment was filled to the brim with loud stories and endless laughter. It was the start of everlasting friendships and unbreakable bonds.
End Chapter One
BP: Beer pong, a game in which two people or two teams of two compete by throwing ping pong balls into solo cups on the other team's side of a long table. There are 10 cups on each side and a lot of other rules, so look it up if you're curious!
G.E.: General Education, usually extra classes you need to take outside of your college (i.e. science, social science, etc.) to show that you have a diverse background or something? I don't really know, lol. #murrica.