Chapter 19
Lucy could almost feel her veins pop in annoyance as she tries to ignore the pink-haired president, who relentlessly keeps on pestering her as she works. Having enough of his talking, Lucy suddenly slams the table with her palm as she turns her head to glare at the pink-haired man.
"Why do you keep on asking?!" Lucy bellowed as she watched the man step back away from her
"Woah," Natsu expressed as his eyes grew wide at the blonde, "I didn't mean to make you mad," Natsu then tries not to chuckle
"Well, who wouldn't get mad at you when you keep on annoying me about going out?!" Lucy fully turned to look at the pinkette before she steps down from her high chair and placed her hands on her hips
Without realizing the meaning of her words, Natsu immediately smirked mischievously at the blonde and attempts to tease the woman, "Look, Luciya, I'm not asking you on a date. But if that's what's on your mind, I can take you out for a date,"
Lucy then blushed, but she quickly shook her head as she answered, "That's not what I mean!"
"Oh, really?" Natsu teased then chuckles at the flustered woman
"Yes! I was implying about you insisting on...going somewhere! Or something! I don't- I don't even understand what you were trying to insist on me!" Lucy then huffed as she looked away and crossed her arms
Natsu just then chuckles at the blushing blonde. For some reason, he's enjoying this Luciya. She was more natural with her expression like they were longtime friends. He never felt so comfortable around a new person. Luciya maybe just new around the office, but having her around makes him feel like himself like he doesn't need to be serious all the time.
"Let's eat out," Natsu suddenly said, making Lucy look at him with hesitation
"See what I mean?" Lucy stated as she widens her eyes at him to prove her point. Natsu just shrugged his shoulders like he isn't bothered at all being proven wrong,
"Why?" Lucy suddenly asks dubiously after seeing Natsu's reaction
"Well, first, I'm hungry and second, I want to thank you," Natsu then grinned, which Lucy has never seen with him for the time she has met him. For some odd reason, she felt the warmth of his smile.
"Thank me for what?" Lucy asks as she drops her arms and takes her seat instead
"Reasons," Natsu said shrugging his shoulders again as he takes the seat next to the blonde. The two then turned around to look back at their work but they didn't move to begin their task.
"What do you mean 'reasons'? You can just tell me the truth," Lucy said back as she looks down at her previous papers and began trying to read it but her mind was more on the conversation she has with the president
"Well..." Natsu trails off as he puts down his paper and looked at the blonde, "It's kind of cheesy...and lame,"
Lucy scoffed at the pinkette, "Right...just tell me," she then shook her head as she tries to hide her smile
"Fine..." Natsu then looked back at his papers, pretending to be working, "I just want to thank you for helping me out during the meeting,"
Lucy then looked at Natsu to counter him but Natsu looked back at her and continued his explanation, "I know its part of your job, but it feels like…you helped me in more ways than you think,"
Lucy was then silent, uncertain of what to reply to the man. With what Natsu had said, Lucy couldn't understand the feeling she was having in her chest. She feels all tingly, bashful, and happy, though, she's quite confused why she's feeling like that.
"You know what," Lucy cleared her throat as she looked away from the pinkette and pretended to work, "Why don't you just treat everybody? I think they deserve some good snacks," Lucy then glanced at the man and looked at his expression
Natsu is just nodding his head as he tries to hide his forming pout, "Yeah, I think that is a good idea,"
"So…what food do you want me to call up?" Lucy asked as she leans forward to see the face of the man, but Natsu finally turned his back on her. Soon, Natsu leaned on the table with his arm prompting up his head and this made Lucy chuckle.
Hearing Luciya chuckle, Natsu couldn't help but make peek at the woman at his back. But he quickly looked away when he saw that she was looking at him, although, a smile quickly appeared on his face when he realized that he liked how Luciya was smiling.
"Mr. Dragneel, will you look at me?" Lucy said with an amused voice
Natsu abruptly turned around and stared directly at Luciya in the eyes as he said, "Yes,"
With this sudden attention, Lucy unconsciously leaned back as if she was afraid that she and Natsu would bump. But later on, she chuckled along with the man, not sure why they were even laughing.
"Dinner, my treat," Natsu suddenly said as soon as he was able to slow down from his laughter, "Now that sounds more like a friend asking a friend out for dinner,"
As Lucy slows down from her laughter, Lucy just shook her head as she thought how persistent Natsu can be when he wanted something. For some reason, Lucy admires this determination that Natsu was showing, although he may be childish at times.
"Alright…dinner," Lucy then nods her head as she smiles at the pinkette
"Yosh!" Natsu exclaimed as he raised a fist in the air, making Luciya chortle once more.
Admiring the blonde, Natsu just smiled at Luciya as he thought of how beautiful Luciya looks when she smiles. But he quickly shook his head when he realized that he was overstepping his boundary.
"Maybe we should invite Cana along? You know, since this is a friendly dinner," Natsu suggested as he shrugged his shoulder
"Yeah, I think that's great!" Lucy widens her smile at the man before she jumped out of her seat and tapped the shoulder of Natsu as she calls on the brunette
"Yeah…" Natsu replies softly as Luciya walked away from him. Natsu then tightens his lips as he realized that he was pushing his limits of being a friend to Luciya. He is in an engagement and having thoughts of liking the blonde is a bad idea.
When office hours were done, Natsu quickly called on Luciya and Cana to grab the dinner that he had promised. Although, on their way out of the building, Natsu mentioned that there is some slight change of plan.
"So, we're not having dinner?" Cana asked as she looked at the pinkette
"No, we'll do…" Natsu replies back as he shook his head, "It's just that…it's not just the three of us,"
"Oh, so, your bringing others?" Lucy asked this time
"Yeah…" Natsu scrunches his face as he answers, "but…they're not officemates. They are my friends,"
"Ah," Cana then nods her head, "Okay, the more the merrier,"
Natsu then smiles at the comment of the brunette. But somehow, he was unsure with the look of Luciya, like all of a sudden, she looks hesitant.
"Don't worry, um, Lisanna and Levy are coming," Natsu reassured the blonde, which took Lucy by surprise with the sudden concern from the man
"Oh, I'm good!" Lucy quickly replies as she tries to make Natsu believe what she had said, despite being a little nervous, "I'm…fine. It's fine with me," Lucy then looked away to hide the nervousness she feels.
After a short drive within Magnolia, Natsu and the two girls arrives at a restaurant that looked newly constructed. With this sight, Lucy and Cana widen their eyes in amazement as they looked at the signage of the place.
"Devilish Bar and Resto," Cana and Lucy said together before they looked at one another and chuckled at their unison
"Yeah, I know weird name. But it's good here," Natsu said after he had closed the door for Lucy and lightly placed his hand on the small of the back of the blonde, "This place is owned by the sister of Lisanna. You know Mira, right?"
"Yeah, of course," Lucy replies back as she walks along with the others
"Well, this is her new baby…well technically, her and Laxus' new baby," Natsu added before he realized where his hand was resting. So immediately, Natsu pulls his hand away from Luciya's back and shoved his hands into his pants' pocket
"Laxus?" Cana questions as she looks around the place, which was big but nearly empty
"Yeah, he is the grandson of Mira's boss," Natsu then grinned, "Lucky bastard," Cana and Lucy then rolled their eyes at the pinkette before they walked further inside the restaurant.
"Natsu? Why is there no people?" Lucy asked as she looked around the place
"Oh, the restaurant hasn't opened yet. This is just an informal opening," Natsu replied, "Closed for friends," Lucy then nods her head as she looked away and observed the place.
Soon enough, new voices were heard and one by one a figure stepped out of the kitchen. In an instant, Cana waved at the familiar blue-haired petite woman, who was thrilled to see them.
"Oh, my goodness! You guys are here!" Levy hurried walked towards the newcomers and embraced the brunette, then Lucy, and last Natsu, "When you called Natsu and told me that Lu-chan and Cana would be coming with you, I literally screamed at the top of my lungs," the trio then chuckles at the bubbly blunette.
"Hi," Mira suddenly spoke once everyone was still. Natsu immediately snapped out of his spacing out and opened up his big arms
"Congrats Mira!" Natsu exclaimed as he tightly hugged the older Strauss
"Thanks, Natsu," Mira replies as she pulls back from the embrace, "So, would you like to introduce your companions?"
Natsu suddenly raised his brow at the woman. He leaned closer to Mira and whispered, "Don't you know them? I mean, you met them at MAI,"
"Oh, I know…" Mira then winked at the pinkette, making him gawk at the Strauss
"Um," Natsu then leaned away from Mira as he cleared his throat, "Well, uh…Mira, this is Luciya Hart and Cana Alberona," Natsu said as he pointed each woman, "They are my officemates,"
"Officemates," Mira repeated as she looked at Natsu with a mischievous grin
"Hi," Lucy quickly greeted as she noticed the look Mira was giving Natsu
"Hi!" Mira chimed as she opened her arms and embraced the blonde instead of shaking her extended hand. Mira then hugged the brunette as she greets her as well, "Welcome to my restaurant. I'm glad that you came along with this man,"
Lucy then chuckles at the comment, "Well…he said he wanted to thank me for some reasons,"
"Really? He said that?" Cana suddenly comments as she turned to look at the blonde, "You said that he had some free meal stubs,"
Lucy suddenly blushed as she looked at Cana abruptly, "W-well…"
Suddenly, they heard Mira chuckle making the two girls glance at the white-haired woman, "I like these two. You should bring them more often Natsu," Mira then looked at Natsu and gave a smile that told him a lot of things. Mira then walked away and told them, "Come on guys, take your seats, we're about to serve food,"
As Cana exclaimed her excitement, Lucy glanced at Natsu first before she walked ahead of him. But as she did, Natsu suddenly leaned close to her ear and whispered, "Meal stub? Really?"
Lucy quickly looked up at the man and gawked at him, "Wa-" Lucy uttered as her eyes grew wide at the man, who just chuckled away as he takes his seat next to a man with black hair.
Once Lucy was seated next to Natsu, the whole table was full of people that Lucy hasn't met. Cana was able to introduce herself quickly and get along with the others as she shares some glasses of wine with them.
"So," Erza suddenly spoke as she looked at Lucy with great interest, "Who is this new girl?"
"Oh, um…guys," Natsu spoke as he looked at everyone before he glanced at Luciya, "This is Luciya…my officemate,"
"Hello," Lucy greets as she smiles at each one of them and bowed her head
"And over there is-" Natsu was then cut off when Cana spoke, "They know me already Mr. President. Don't worry,"
"Oh…okay," Natsu then looked at Lucy when everyone started laughing
"Wait…why does it feel like I've seen you before?" Gray suddenly said as he points at Lucy, who was taken aback for a moment until Mira suddenly spoke
"Come on guys, let's not be rude to Luciya,"
"Please, just can call me Lucy," Lucy suddenly suggested, making Natsu gawk audibly at the woman next to him. But Lucy just shrugged her shoulders as she looks away and smiled at everyone
"Okay, Lucy. We'll introduce ourselves so that we could all be friends," Mira then smiled sweetly at her, "I'm Mirajane Strauss, sister of Lisanna. You can call me Mira," Mira then bows her head as Lucy bows her head in return. The white-haired beauty then looked to her right and tapped his thigh, "Your turn," she said
"Laxus," the man said, which earned him a harder slap on the thigh by the woman on his left. As Laxus raised his brow at the woman, Mira widens her eyes at him telling him to be nicer, "Dreyer, Laxus Dreyer, one of the owners of this restaurant," Laxus continued as he looked away from his girlfriend and gave Lucy a small smile after
"And I am Bickslow!" a man with a tattoo on his face said as he raised his hand like he was having his attendance, "One of the best friends of Laxus and boyfriend of Lisanna,"
"Oh," Lucy then grinned as she looked at the short-haired woman, who quickly blushed at the sudden attention
"We'll skip you Lisanna because obviously, you work with her," a man with green hair said before he looked at Lucy, "Freed Justine, but you can call me Freed. I'm a friend as well," the man said as he introduced himself, which Lucy acknowledged with a nod
"Evergreen Stone," a woman with a honey brown hair said as she sat up straight, "I'm a friend of Laxus and Mira,"
"Mira's future sister-in-law!" Bickslow added, making everyone laugh while the woman scowled at the man
"Hi," Lucy greeted softly before she looked at the next person, who was a big man with white hair
"Elfman Strauss," the big guy said, "I'm the only man brother of Mira and Lisanna," Lucy then giggles as she nods her head.
"Hello," a blue-haired woman on the right side of Elfman suddenly introduces herself, "We've met before in the bar,"
"Oh, right!" Lucy chimed as she recalls the time she and Cana asked for her help to get inside Blue Pegasus bar, "I remember…you were asking for a bucket of ice for someone…"
Cana, Juvia, and Lucy then laughed together as they remembered that night, while the others were amused to see that the three actually knew each other longer than they know.
"Yeah, it was for Gray-sama after Erza-san punched him in the nose," Juvia shared before she looked at the man next to her, who immediately touched his nose
"I did?" Erza asked surprised as she couldn't remember she did that to Gray
"Yeah you did," Gray replies back as he gives a light caress to his nose
Lucy then awkwardly laughs as she eyes the woman then to the man next to her, "I suppose you're 'Gray-sama'?"
The said man then blushes as he looks at Lucy, "You can call me Gray,"
"Or ice princess," Natsu subtly whispered and somehow Lucy heard it and made her chuckle
"What? Ice princess?" Lucy asked as she looked at the pink-haired man, who was already chortling in his seat
"Oy!" Gray retorted and this caught Lucy's attention, "Don't believe that idiot. He likes calling me names,"
"The two of you actually do," Mira added as she smiles at the two boys while the others chuckled at their embarrassed looked
"Oh!" Juvia suddenly perked up, "Lucy-san, you don't happen to be interested with Gray-sama, right? Because if you are, Juvia shall consider you as her rival,"
"Juvia," Gray whines as he looked at the blue-haired woman, deepening his embarrassment
Lucy just chuckled at the two before she answered, "Don't worry Juvia, I'm not into black-haired guys…"
"Oh~" Mira's eyes then twinkled as she leaned forward, "Then what guy are you interested in?" Mira suddenly asks the blonde but then Natsu cleared his throat and gave a look to the silver-haired woman
"Let's continue the introduction?" Natsu stated as he widens his eyes at Mira, who later on pouted at him
"Okay, I'm Levy-"
"Oh come on Levy! She knows you already!" a man with orange hair expressed
"Fine!" Levy then pouted as she leaned back in her chair, "Your turn,"
"Already?" a man with long black-hair said
"Yes," Levy insisted before she sighs in exasperation
"Oh, uh... Gajeel Redfox…a friend and cousin of Natsu," Gajeel then nods his head at the blonde, who perked up a little as she discovers a family relative of the pinkette.
The man with orange hair then stood up and walked closer to the blonde, who was taken aback by the sudden attention. The man then kneeled down on one knee and grabbed Lucy's hand, who quickly yelped in surprise.
"Oy! Loke!" Natsu exclaimed as he gawked at the man, but then Loke ignored him as he introduced himself to Lucy
"Good evening, my princess. I'm Loke De Leon, you're knight in shining armor," Loke then kissed the back of her hand, making Lucy tug her hand away as she awkwardly laughed at him
"Hi…but um, I don't think I would need a knight in shining armor," Lucy said before she smiled at him. Loke casually accepted the rejection as he shrugged his shoulder, "It's okay, at least I tried,"
"Anyways," Natsu suddenly uttered, which surprised the people next to him, "Introduce yourself Jellal,"
"Jellal Fernandez, a friend," Jellal then gave a polite nod to Lucy, which she returned with respect
"And I'm Erza," Erza said as she extended her hand to the blonde. Lucy professionally accepted the hand like she was making some business deal with the scarlet-haired woman, "Nice to meet you," Lucy replies before they pulled away.
"Okay, now that the introduction is done, can we start eating now?" Natsu asked Mira as he leaned over the table. When Mira chuckles, she suddenly claps her hands and said, "Alright, dragon boy, let the food be served!"
Immediately, waiters of the restaurant step out of the kitchen bringing out the meals prepared for them. At the sight of food, everyone awed and exclaimed how the food smelled delicious. Soon enough, each one of them grabbed their food and feasted.
As they chatter to one another, Gray couldn't help but wonder where he had seen Lucy. Although, he knew to himself that he had never seen her before, but it feels like he had seen her or heard of her. Suddenly, it clicks to him, making him slam his fist on the table and points at the blonde.
"I remember!" Gray shouted with wide eyes
"Gray!" Mira and Erza scolded together but the raven-haired man ignored the two as he continued to look at Lucy
"I know I haven't seen you anywhere, but I'm sure I have heard of you," Gray then glanced at Natsu and gave him a mischievous grin, "Right, Flame-head?"
"O-oy!" Natsu stutters for a moment when he recognizes the look Gray was giving him, "Shut up! Ice Princess!"
Lucy then furrows her brows as she leans forward to look at Gray and ask, "You have heard of me?"
"Y-yeah!" Natsu abruptly looked at the blonde with a little frantic in his eyes, "t-the Ice Princess…um, heard of you as-as um, part of MAI!" Natsu then looked at Gray and glared at him, "Right?" Natsu said it with a threatening voice but it did not faze the man. Instead, it sparked a challenge to the raven-haired man.
"No, no…that's not it," Gray then looked at Lucy with playfulness in his eyes, "I've heard a lot about you from someone," Gray gave a short glance at the pinkette who was mentally strangling him to death. With this look of Natsu, Gray couldn't help but chuckle at his friend.
"From someone?" Lucy repeated, totally intrigued by the words of the man, "What do you mean, you heard of me from someone?"
"Gray, what are you trying to say?" Levy suddenly asks as she looks at her friends from one to another
"Oh, come on Fullbuster, enough with the suspense!" Bickslow exclaimed before he grinned at the pinkette
"Well…" Gray then looked at Gajeel, and Jellal, who finally understands what Gray was trying to remind them
"Ohh…" Gajeel and Jellal at the same time expressed, making the pinkette look at them and gawk
"The hell?" Natsu whispered softly but this did not go unnoticed by the blonde
"What's wrong?" Lucy asked, almost chuckling at the worried look Natsu have on his face, "You look nervous,"
"Huh?" Natsu suddenly looked at Lucy, "Me? Nervous?" Natsu then awkwardly laughed as he said, "No…No,"
Natsu looked around the table, and all of a sudden, he felt like he was being ganged up by his friends. Now, he realizes the impact of Lucy to his friends and having her around him.
"Lu-Lucy is a…" Natsu suddenly uttered and Lucy somehow found it odd because he was like trying to defend something that wasn't required to be defended, "Um…good officemate and um…"
"Why are you stuttering Mr. Dragneel?" Cana suddenly asks as she notices the behavior of the man, "You seem to be nervous and fidgety,"
"Me?" Natsu points to himself as he looked at the brunette, then he laughed boisterously as if trying to drown the topic, but he knew it isn't going to end soon, knowing Gray.
"Oh, don't mind the idiot," Gray suddenly said, making him earn the attention of everybody, "Natsu is just…shy,"
"Shy?" Lucy then looked at Natsu in disbelief before she chuckles at the thought, "I've never thought that Natsu would be a shy type,"
"I'm not," Natsu defended softly but was quickly ignored
"Fullbuster!" Erza suddenly bellowed, making the called man shiver in his spine as he sat up straight, "Tell us already! From who did you hear Lucy about?"
"Oh, obviously Natsu!" Gray then glanced at the pinkette and grinned at him, "He's fond of her,"
Natsu's eyes grew wide in horror after hearing what Gray said. He suddenly felt afraid to glance at Lucy, knowing that Cana was giving him a smile that told a lot of things.
"You talk about me?" Lucy curiously asks the pinkette, leaving Natsu no choice but to look back at the blonde
"Um…yeah," Natsu then smiled sheepishly as he tries to defend his case, "Cause you're awesome…and you rock!" Natsu said with a tight fist in mid-air
Lucy skeptically looked at him back and whispered, "Right…"
"Anyways!" Mira suddenly interjects as she clapped her hand to get her friends' attention, "Let's not gang up on Natsu and let's just enjoy our desserts! Erza, I made you your favorite cake, Strawberry shortcake,"
"Yehey!" Erza gleefully danced in her chair.
As everyone began to eat their dessert, they all became preoccupied with their small conversations. Mira is engaged in knowing Cana better as they both converse along with Jellal, Levy, and Gajeel. Laxus and his friends were all talking about a certain event that they had gone to while Lisanna, Gray, and Juvia listened to the group. Erza, on the other hand, was so engrossed in her cake that she didn't care to listen to any conversations close her, not until she finished her cake.
As Erza happily puts down her fork, she looked up to smile at the people around her. She had the look of satisfaction after eating half of the strawberry shortcake that Mira had baked. But her expression quickly shifted into curiosity when she saw how Natsu looked at Lucy while he watched her eat her strawberry cake. Erza looked down to Natsu's plate and suddenly noticed that half of his cake was only eaten. Suddenly, Erza had the urge to ask Natsu if she could eat it instead but the thought was quickly dismissed when she heard Lucy somehow scold the pinkette about wasting good food.
Hearing Lucy scold the man, Erza couldn't help but be intrigued by the blonde. So, she silently watched the two and observed.
After the scolding that Lucy did, Erza heard Natsu reason out that he wasn't really fond of strawberries. She was about to react to Natsu's comment when Lucy suddenly tilt her head and asked him about what his favorite dessert is. Natsu answered that he wasn't really into sweets and that he was more into spicy foods. All of a sudden, Lucy perked up and said to the pinkette that he'd like desserts with Cinnamon and somehow, Natsu brightens up as well as he said that he does like food with cinnamon flavor and in fact that he likes it in his black coffee.
As the two continues to talk within themselves, Erza suddenly thought how the two seem to ignore everybody else like they were in their own little world. It has been years since she saw Natsu act the way he does at the moment. In fact, she had never seen Natsu like that around a girl.
Tilting her head in wonder, Erza thought hard about how Natsu acts around them. She thought Natsu is usually perky, playful, and noisy even. When it comes to conversations, Natsu usually just listens when the girls make the conversation but if it's with the boys, he won't last a good ten-minute talk with them without having a banter with Gray.
"Huh?" Erza sighed in contemplation, catching the attention of the blue-haired man next to her
"What's wrong Erza?" Jellal asks as he leaned closer to his girlfriend
"Look at Natsu," Erza instructed and Jellal did, "Do you find him…different?"
"Different?" Jellal echoes back, "What do you mean different? Like he's unique or he's acting unusual?"
"Unusual," Erza then looked at Jellal as she whispers to him, "He's acting different, right?"
Jellal shrugged for a moment as he tries to observe the two in front of him, "Well, not…so much," Jellal then looked at Erza and asked, "Why?"
"Well…it's not that it's bad," Erza glanced at the two, "It's just…different and new…something,"
"Nice to see?" Jellal finishes for the scarlet-haired woman, who gave an expression that she wasn't convinced
"Something like that but not really like that…am I making sense?" Erza questioned after hearing her question which didn't make sense to her as well
Jellal shook his head as he gave a small smile at the woman, "No…maybe we should just be glad that Natsu is like this," the two then looked at Lucy and Natsu, who was still into their conversation
"Yeah…but I'm wondering, who is this Lucy?" Erza then leaned back in her chair as she crosses her arms and continued to watch the two.
Time went on and soon it was getting late. One by one, they bid goodbye to everybody and said that they should meet up again. Without realizing, it was Erza, Jellal, Mira, Cana, Laxus, Natsu and Lucy who is left in the restaurant. They were just finishing their drinks when Laxus started cleaning up the table for everyone.
As Laxus stood up and carried all the empty glasses, Mira looked up at her man and watched him enter the kitchen. A mischievous smile suddenly appears on her face before she looked at her friends, "Do you guys mind if I leave you all here first? I'll just help Laxus wash the glasses,"
"Yeah, sure," Natsu grins back at the woman before she dashes off to the kitchen.
"Kampai!" Cana suddenly shouts as she raises her arms with an empty glass on her hand while half of her body laid down on top of the table.
Everyone left on the table suddenly looked at the brunette and raised their brows at her drunken state. Lucy couldn't stop from chuckling along with Natsu, while Erza and Jellal smiled at their new-found-friend.
"Is she like this when she's drunk?" Erza questioned as she points at the sleeping brunette
"Well…sometimes when she overboard her limit," Lucy said with a shrug of her shoulder
"Wow…" Erza expressed with wide eyes before she looked around the table and saw all the empty bottles close to the sleeping woman, "Did she finish all these without us noticing?"
"Yep," Jellal replies before he picks up one bottle and read what kind of alcohol did she drink, "She's a hard drinker,"
"Yep, that's Cana," Lucy then smiled at the man
"Well, I think we should bring her to a coffee shop," Erza suggested before she sat up straight and looked at Lucy with determination in her eyes, making the blonde a little confused
"You want me to drive you to a coffee shop?" Jellal asked and Erza looked at him with a smile on her face
"No, it's fine. I was thinking if Lucy could come with me instead," Erza then looked at Lucy, who was stunned at the request
"Oh, uh, you want me to come along?" Lucy asked as she points to herself
"Yeah," Erza replies with a smile
"How about I'll just buy the drinks instead?" Natsu injected as he notices the look Erza was giving Lucy, and knowing the scarlet-haired woman, Natsu knows she has something in her mind that he might cause him to shovel his own grave instantly
"No, it's fine…right, Lucy?" Erza questions with a little intonation in her voice
"Yeah, of course," Lucy answers before she stands up along with Erza.
As she stood up, Lucy could feel the stares that Natsu was giving her. She'd like to ignore the look that Natsu has on his face, but she thought, she'd need to be cautious, after all, Erza is a close friend of Natsu.
Soon enough, Erza and Lucy walked together to a nearby café. For some reason, their walk was silent, as if they were testing the water, whether they should converse casually or act cautiously with each other. They would glance at each other and give small smiles before they would look away and continue to walk. But Erza had enough of their silence after they had ordered their coffee and sat down for a moment to wait for their order.
Clearing her throat, Erza tucked a loose hair behind her ear as she looked at Lucy sternly, "So, I noticed that you're close with Natsu,"
Lucy stared at the woman for a moment before she answers, "I don't think so. I mean, I just met Natsu a few times before and it's just been a week since I worked under him"
"Well, that's odd," Erza then leans forward as she places her crossed arms on the table, "You and Natsu seem to get along very well for a short span of time,"
"...Well, I guess that would be beneficial for us since we'll be working together for three months," Lucy then gave a stiff smile, like she was really stopping herself from bursting in annoyance
"Then that's good. It's just new for me to see Natsu so close to someone that he just recently met," Erza then took off her crossed arms from the table and placed it over her chest, "That's why I'm wondering, what kind of relationship do you have with Natsu,"
"Erza," Lucy then gave a smart look to the woman, "There is nothing between me and Natsu. We are just working together and there is nothing to expect more,"
"Don't take this badly," Erza softens her look to the blonde when she realized that she might be giving the wrong impression, "I actually like you,"
"Like me?" Lucy repeated, confused to what Erza was talking about
"Yeah, to be our new friend, and maybe…lover,"
"Lover?!" Lucy exclaimed before she looked around the café when she thought she said it too loud, "Erza, I…I don't do…" Lucy suddenly trails off as she points herself then back to Erza simultaneously, "girl to girl relationship,"
"Huh?" Erza questioned the blonde before she recalled what she had said, "Oh!" She quickly blushed before she shook her head and said, "That's not what I mean! I… What I meant is that, I like you to be a lover for my friend…"
"Ah," Lucy awkwardly nodded her head before she chortles along with scarlet-haired woman
"My goodness, I'm sorry. I must have shocked you. It's not that I have anything against lesbians, but yeah, I'm not into it too,"
"Same," Lucy then smiles at Erza before she thought about what Erza had said, "So…you want to set me up with a friend of yours?"
"Yes," Erza gave a mischievous smile, "But not as of the moment…I just have to make some little arrangements,"
"Arrangements?" Lucy echoes back as she slowly chuckles, "You know what Erza, you are one unique woman. You're interesting,"
"And so are you. The feelings mutual,"
Soon enough, the Barista called on Erza's name and the two quickly stood up to gather their drinks and head back to the restaurant. As they walked back, Erza couldn't help but feel a little excited. She couldn't wait for the time that Lucy will be the reason for Natsu to cancel his engagement because if it does happen, she will definitely support his decision.
To be continued…