After eating, Gray had paid for their meal, even though Natsu had tried to insist on paying for himself. Gray told him this was his treat and not to worry about it. Now it really did feel like a date, but Natsu decided not to argue. If he were to be honest, he had a pretty good time with Gray, and he knew he'd be all for doing it again sometime, but for now it was time for him to get home. He still had a little homework to do, plus he needed to call Levy.
Gray had tried to get Natsu to allow him to walk the other home, but Natsu only smiled and told Gray he would be fine. He didn't want the raven knowing where he lived yet since they had just met. However, before the two parted ways, Natsu had given Gray his phone number and told him to call any time. He had blushed as he handed his number over and before Gray could say anything else, Natsu had taken off down the sidewalk.
By the time he got back to his apartment, it was already getting a bit dark outside. Sighing to himself, Natsu reached into the pocket of his coat and pulled his keys out before making his way to the third floor. His apartment was the last door on the left with a bronze 23 on it. It wasn't much, but it was home for Natsu. As he unlocked the door and stepped inside, warmth instantly hit him in the face along with the familiar scent of home. This was the one place the pink haired omega felt he could actually relax, let himself go. There was no one to hide from here since he lived alone.
Once he sat his keys down and removed his coat, Natsu made his way down the short hallway of his small apartment. There were only two doors to go through, one leading to a small bathroom and the other leading to his room. Natsu wanted to get himself changed into something more comfortable before calling Levy. He had a feeling this wouldn't end up being a short talk, so it was best to actually be able to relax a bit and jeans weren't the way to do that. As Natsu started to remove his current clothes, he felt his phone vibrate from his front pocket.
"Eh?" A look of confusion crossed Natsu's face. Before pulling his phone out, he threw the shirt he had removed to the side and lowered himself onto his unmade bed and removed his phone from his pocket. When he moved to the message screen, he saw that it was an unknown number.
[Unknown: Hey, it's Gray. Did you make it home?]
The message made Natsu smile slightly. He hadn't expected the raven from earlier to message him so soon, but he found it to be kind of sweet. However, after reading the message he found that his heart was starting to beat a bit faster. Was he excited that Gray had actually messaged him? It seemed like it, but he still didn't get why. Shaking his head, he decided to reply after adding Gray to his contacts.
[N: Yeah, I made it home. Thanks for checking]
After hitting send, Natsu left his phone on his bed and went to finish changing. He decided on dressing in a simple pair of white sweat pants and an oversized red shirt with long sleeves. With his clothes changed, the pink haired male picked his scarf up from where it fell and draped it over his shoulders. Before completely leaving his room, Natsu scooped his phone up, seeing that the message light was blinking once again. Gray must have responded to him, but he'd have to check that later. As he was walking back to the living room, he pulled up Levy's contact information and hit the call button before placing the phone to his ear. It only rang twice before Levy answered it.
"Natsu! I was wondering when you would call." Her voice sounded as happy as ever, it even brought a smile to Natsu's face.
"Yeah sorry. I just got back home. Are you able to stop by for a little bit? I need to ask you something." Natsu sat himself down on his dark grey couch and rubbed his eyes with his free hand. He really hoped that he wasn't bothering her.
"Gajeel and I will be there in about five minutes actually. I knew you would want to talk so we started heading over about ten minutes ago." Levy laughed gently and Natsu could have sworn he heard a scoff from the other side of the phone. He hadn't really expected Gajeel to come, but it was getting kind of dark so he understood.
"Alright. Just walk in when you get here. I left the door unlocked, and thank you." The call ended there. While Natsu waited for Levy to show up, he decided on checking the message that Gray had sent him a little bit ago.
[Gray: I'm glad you made it. Dinner was nice as well. Hopefully we can do it again sometime.]
That message caused Natsu to blush slightly. Gray wanted to go out to eat again sometime? If he were to be honest, he was a bit surprised to find that out. Granted, the two of them did have a nice time today so he didn't see why not. It was probably good for him to get out like this, it was definitely something Igneel would have wanted for him.
[N: Yeah, I would be up for that.]
After pressing send, Natsu placed his phone down on the coffee table in front of the couch and leaned back against the cushions. His heart was still beating faster than it normally did. Hopefully it wasn't a bad sign. Being around Gray had been messing with him all day, and not knowing why was irritating the crap out of him. He desperately wanted the answers, but at the same time he was worried about what they may be.
"Natsu! We're coming in!" Levy's voice was suddenly on the other side of his door. He glanced at the time and sure enough she had been right. Only five minutes had passed and she was already here. His head turned to the side when he heard the door open. Seeing her bright smile along with Gajeel's little scowl made him laugh softly as he sat himself upright. They were definitely an interesting pair, plus she was so small compared to him.
"Hey, come in." Natsu lifted his hand and motioned for the two of them to come through the door. He was still uneasy about Gajeel now knowing where he lived, but at the same time he looked like someone who would easily forget if Levy wasn't with him. Once the two of them were inside, Gajeel shut the door behind them and they came over to sit down on the couch with Natsu.
"So, what's bothering you? You sounded worried on the phone." Levy said as she shrugged off her coat and tossed it on Gajeel's lap.
"Well...ever since this morning I've been feeling strange. It started when I first met Gray after he saved me from sliding on ice. Right when we first made contact, I felt something similar to a spark and I kept feeling it each time we made contact in some way. It's been bothering me all damn day, and I have no idea why I'm even feeling this." Natsu felt that he sounded insane, but the look on Levy's face was telling him otherwise. She knew that Igneel had never gotten the chance to explain things like this to Natsu, which meant she would have to do it now.
"Natsu. This feeling is perfectly normal, though it only happens under specific situations. It happened to me when Gajeel and I first met. That feeling is a sign, if both of you feel it." Levy smiled slightly. Knowing that Natsu had felt that spark when Gray touched him earlier, it was the sign she had been hoping for.
"A sign of what?" Natsu didn't exactly get it. He hadn't expected her to be familiar with the feeling, and the fact that she had felt it when she met Gajeel. "Lev...what the hell are you trying to tell me exactly?"
"Natsu. If Gray felt it too, then that means he's the one for you. It's a sign that you've come in contact with the one you're supposed to be with." Levy already knew that Gray had felt it though since they had talked earlier, and now she knew Natsu had felt it as well, but she decided against telling Natsu that Gray felt it. It was better for him to find out on his own.
"I-" Natsu couldn't speak. This was the last thing he had expected or even wanted to hear. It wasn't that he didn't like Gray, it was the fact that he was terrified of ever finding someone to be with. His parents, his guardian, they had all left him. It was a relief that Levy was still here with him, though she had gotten very sick once and he almost lost her as well. Now he had a spark with some guy he had just met, someone Natsu would have to fear losing if he ended up falling for him.
"Natsu… It's alright. Don't think about it to much right now. You still have to find out if Gray felt it as well. If he didn't then it was just a coincidence. You've never been touched by an alpha anyways, so your body could have just reacted by instinct. There's nothing to worry about until you know if the other person felt it." Levy reached out and grasped her friend's hand tightly. She knew Gray felt it though, and once Natsu found out, she knew it would send him into a panic.
"H-how am I supposed to find out…?" Did he even want to find out? If Gray felt it too, then Natsu didn't know what he would do. He didn't want to find a mate and then have the risk of losing that person. He couldn't handle such a thing.
"You just have to ask when the time is right. Until you're ready, just try to get to know him. Get used to being around him. I know you'll make the right decision, even if you're scared of making it. Just trust yourself." Levy squeezed his hand a bit more to hopefully reassure him, but Natsu still had a terrified look on his face.
"Hey shrimp." Gajeel's voice suddenly got Natsu's attention. His gaze shifted to the long haired male who had been silent until now. To Natsu's surprise, Gajeel's large hand came down on his head and ruffled his pink hair lightly. "Try not to freak out too much. Levy's got your back, I promise you that."
Natsu may have gotten off to a rough start with Gajeel, and he was still irritated about that name but at the same time he felt himself calm down slightly. Gajeel was right. Levy did have his back. The fact that he hadn't lost her, even when he thought he would, should be enough to reassure him that she would be there for him. When he looked back toward the blue haired female, she quickly wrapped her arms around him in a protective embrace.
"It isn't just me, Natsu. Gajeel will be here for you too. He may seem rough, but he's really sweet. He just wants to hold that tough guy act for when he's around the guys." Levy laughed gently as Natsu returned her embrace. He found himself peeking toward Gajeel curiously. The taller male was actually pouting and blushing slightly due to Levy's statement.
"Unfortunately, she's right. If anyone messes with you, I'll knock them flat on their ass." Gajeel was muttering and refused to make eye contact but Natsu could tell by the tone of his voice that he meant what he said. In one day, Natsu's small world of only one friend had grown by three . Now he had Gajeel, Gray, and even Erza.
"...Thank you both." He spoke softly and slowly closed his eyes. Now all he had to do was find the right time to figure out if Gray felt the spark as well.
((Hey everyone! This took way longer than I had originally planned and I'm so sorry for that! I've been sleeping a lot once again and honestly it really sucks. Any time I have motivation, I end up not being home and then by the time I get back, I am exhausted and just want sleep. ^^" So sorry again. Anyways, I hope you all enjoyed the update! I'll do my best to update again as soon as possible. Thank you so much for your patience and thank you for reading! I'll see you guys in the next update! Bye for now!
~~MaskedNinja))