I am so sorry. I'll explain more in-depth of my absence in the A/N.

THIS IS JUST A SNEAK PEEK FOR CHAPTER 10. NOT THE WHOLE THING!

I feel so bad for the length of time it has taken me to publish a new chapter, and I couldn't go another day without giving you guys something. So, a sneak peek it is!

WARNING: SEXUAL JOKES.

"These are gonna look so good! Sooo cool!" Jason bursts, flipping through the raw photos on the camera lacrima as Natsu and Lucy get redressed.

"We get ta' leave now, right?" Natsu asks loudly towards Lucy's dressing room, readjusting his scarf around his neck as he walked out from behind a curtain. (Lucy insisted on dressing with the comfort of four walls)

"No, you dolt. We still have to do the interview. The thing we actually came here for," she responded as she walked out from her dressing room, thumping Natsu on the back of the head. Natsu responded by maturely sticking out his tongue at her.

"Yes, your interviews!" Jason said, his face lit up like a Christmas tree. "We'll do one with you two together, one with just Natsu, and one with just Lucy."

Lucy gripped her skirt. Who knows what Natsu would accidentally reveal without her there to guide him. Sorcerer Weekly definitely didn't need to know that Natsu frequently slept over. Not to mention, Natsu had no shame in telling people about Lucy's personal business. Once, at the guild, he had shouted across the guild at Lucy and asked, "Hey, Lucy! Is your constipation business over with or not?"

"So, whaddya' wanna know?" Natsu asked before obnoxiously sipping loudly on his drink that he had swiped from the buffet.

"Oh, not here! We've got a special interview room for this. Follow me!" Jason waved a hand back to the door that opened to the hallway they came from earlier, motioning for them to follow.

They followed Jason to the interview room, but not before making a quick pit stop for towels when Natsu spilled his drink all over the floor.

The interview room was... Unsightly. Lucy had been expecting a fun room with snacks and comfortable seating. After all, It was Sorcerer Weekly's headquarters!

It was small and devoid of color. No decoration, save for a small table with three chairs. Not even a potted plant, for goodness sake!

"Geesh, are we being interviewed or interrogated?" Natsu sweatdropped.

"Why is it so cold?" Lucy said with a shiver, wrapping her arms around herself.

"The cold increases your anxiety. Helps get the truth out. But that shouldn't bother you, Natsu," Jason replied.

Natsu grinned and produced a flame in his hand. "Not at all!" As expected, Jason went bat-shit crazy.

As they sat in the chilling metal chairs, Jason pulled out his infamous notepad, likely filled with many questions that could hopefully reinstate Lucy's reputation.

"First question, the obvious. Are you two actually married?"

Lucy sighed. "Yes, but-"

"COOL COOL COOL!" Jason cheered, immediately out of his chair and comically rolling on the floor, stars in his eyes, leaving Natsu and Lucy to wince at his outburst.

"It was an accident," Natsu spoke up. Jason sat back down.

"Huh? An accident? How?"

For seemingly the 100th time since Natsu and Lucy were thrown into this mess, they explained their situation. Surprisingly, Jason was into it.

"Oh, what a twist! That makes it even c-"

"Don't say it."

KNOCK KNOCK

Jason raised an eyebrow. "Come in!"

Surprisingly, Kim, Lucy's makeup artist, bust through the door.

"Jason, who on earth told you that you could interview them?" She huffed with a scowl. Jason's eyes went wide as he began to plead for forgiveness.

"Listen, boss, I always cover Fairy Tail stuff! I wanted to interview Natsu and Lucy so bad, and you always get the cool stories!" Jason cried on his knees.

"Because I don't scare our clients like you!" Kim shot back at Jason, staring down at him with her hands on her hips. A confident, dominating pose.

"Kim?" Lucy spoke up, "You're Jason's boss? I thought you were just the makeup artist." Kim turned to face Lucy, the bracelets adorned on her wrist jingling as she moved. The sound was oddly comforting in that dreadful room.

"No, doll. My official title is a Journalist, but the other makeup artists make our clients look like clowns." She took a breath, shaking out her frustration held against Jason, and then looked to the pair with a wide smile. "I'll be interviewing you today, Lucy."

"Uh, the guy who dressed me up isn't also a secret Journalist? Right?" Natsu faltered, worried that he would have to be interviewed by a newly bald and likely very upset journalist.

Kim chuckled. "Lucky for you, no." She paused to scan the room before a look of distaste crossed her features. "Don't worry, Lucy, I'll be taking you to a different room for your interview."

'Thank goodness.'

"Kim, if you're interviewing Lucy, can I please interro-interview Natsu myself?" Jason begged, grabbing a tissue from his pocket to shine the tip of Kim's shoe to help plead his case.

His boss stared at him for a moment. She then rolled her eyes. "Fine. But you're using my questions," she decided, bringing out her communication-lacrima and tapping a few buttons. "There. Just sent them to you. Lucy, dear, let's go have a fun girl chat!"

"Actually, I think I need to use the bathroom first. Natsu also said he had to go. Right, Natsu?" Lucy spoke as she turned to Natsu with a look Natsu had seen one too many times. It was the "go-along-with-what-I-say-or-else," look.

He gulped and then nodded.

Lucy smiled sweetly, batting her eyelashes. She conveyed a look of uttermost purity; as if she didn't have a secret plan behind her eyes. "Where are your bathrooms?"

"There's a gender-neutral bathroom down the hall and to your right. I'll be waiting in here with Jason." Kim cleared her throat before leaning close to Lucy and reaching into her purse. "You need a rubber?" she asked in a low tone, a smirk across her red-painted lips, holding up a condom between two fingers, trying to (but not actually) be as discreet as possible.

"That will not be necessary!" Lucy screeched, feeling heat spread across her face and to the roots of her hair.

Kim made an 'o' with her lips. "I gotcha'." However, Natsu reached over Lucy's shoulder and swiped the small square from between Kim's fingers.

"Thank you! I saw some of these in our hotel drawers, but Lucy wouldn't let me try one out," Natsu spoke, eyes sparkling as if he were staring at a buffet.

Lucy could do nothing but stare straight ahead, completely dumbfounded, eyes wide, and her mouth open, gaping like a fish. Kim laughed.

"Oh my! Well, don't be too long!" she winked, leaning against the table and pulling out her communication-lacrima. "I'll be waiting!"

Lucy grumbled under her breath, grabbed Natsu's wrist, and swiftly pulled him out of the room and into the hall. Once she shut the door, she stomped her foot onto Natsu's toes, making him jump into the air as if someone had poured cold water down his back, lifting his leg and clutching his foot.

"Natsu, what the hell!" she seethed, crossing her arms as she watched him hop up and down in pain.

"'Natsu, what the hell?' Um, more like 'Lucy, what the hell!'" Natsu mocked, slipping off his sandal to grasp his poor toes. Thankfully, Lucy hadn't chosen to wear heels today.

"Why did you take... that... from Kim?" Lucy's voice wavered as her stomach did somersaults.

Natsu knew all about the birds and the bees. He wasn't that stupid. Growing up in Fairy Tail, it was inevitable that he overheard sexual talk. (Macao and Wakaba in particular; they were into some weird stuff.) He had to know what a condom was. Right?

Or did he actually mean what he said? Did he really want to "try it out" with her? Yes, she liked him, but would she be ready for that if the time ever came?

'Would I say no?'

Lucy pinched her thigh to rid herself of the thought.

"Why are you so mad? I just wanted a piece of candy! You wouldn't let me have any of the ones from the hotel!"

"Oh, my God. Natsu..." Lucy grumbled, pulling Natsu down the hall, who protested due to his angry toes, fumbling as he tried hopping on one foot to keep up with her. She tugged Natsu into the bathroom with her and locked the door.

The room was small and simple, just a bathroom. It smelled nice, though. It was nothing like the Fairy Tail Men's bathroom, which was absolutely trashed.

Natsu assumed that Lucy had gone off her rocker. She ripped Kim's 'gift' from Natsu's hand. "Lucy, are you on your period?"

Lucy looked at him with death in her eyes.

"Yeesh, sorry."

She held up the small square packaging between her fingers and held it in front of his face. "Natsu. This is a condom, not candy!" she whisper-yelled.

Natsu blinked at her. "But don't hotels put little candies in your room?"

"Yes, but this is definitely not candy..."

He was quiet for a moment, observing what Lucy held between her fingers before eyes widening when he realized that it was, in fact, a condom. Then, a smile slowly crept onto his face.

"Pfft!" Natsu passed between his lips before exploding in a fit of laughter.

He was laughing. Laughing.

"Oops," he said between chuckles, not even a hint of embarrassment etched on his face. "So she thinks we're in here doing it?"

Lucy buried her face in her hands. "Unfortunately."

Two warm hands grasped hers and brought them away from her face. Natsu gave her a bright smile, canines gleaming. "What did you drag me in here to talk about?"

"Oh, yeah!" Lucy said. Natsu's stunt had made her forget what she brought him away to tell him. "Jason is going to interview you alone. He is probably going to ask-"

"Oh, Lucy!" Natsu moaned, the kind, genuine smile that was once on his face replaced with a look of mischief. He'd been bored ever since he had done all that posing, (Natsu had a very small attention span) and couldn't help but want to pull a tiny prank.

Lucy gasped, furrowing her eyebrows as she clamped her hand over his mouth. "You are infuriating!"

Natsu pulled her hand away from his mouth, keeping a grip on her wrist. "Wow, Lucy, kinky," he joked.

She ripped it away. "They probably heard that!"

"Um, duh, that was the point."

"That wasn't even the slightest bit funny, you know."

"Psh, yes it was."

"You're incorrigible."

"I have no idea what that word means."

Lucy rubbed her temples. "Are you done?"

"No promises." Natsu grinned like the Cheshire Cat.

Really, he couldn't take anything seriously.

Do I have an excuse for not publishing a new chapter since September? Not really.

I'm a very dedicated student, and most nights after a long day of hard work all I want to do is relax. So, all of my writing motivation went out the window. I've also been reading some great books, too. (I HIGHLY RECOMMEND THE A COURT OF THORNS AND ROSES SERIES)

I have no idea why, but starting this chapter was so unappealing. But, I have to push past it to get to the stuff I'm excited about :)

I don't want to rush and put out anything that isn't my best. So, I've been working on this for a little bit and I couldn't bear not giving it to you guys. I probably shouldn't be uploading this, but I am anyway. So ha. My future self will regret this in the morning.

My 2021 resolution is to finish AMD. It warms my heart how much you all are enjoying this story, and I don't want to let you guys down.

Hopefully this small bit of humor can make up for my hiatus. Thank you guys. So much. I promise I'm going to do better. Lots of stuff to come.

No promises to when the whole thing will be released. I obviously can't keep them. I'm working on it, though. Hopefully before the end of the month.

Stay safe, and Happy New Year!

Thank you all. So much. :)

Until next time!