Natsu and Happy were merrily coming back from a fishing trip. Happy had known about this lake just outside town with several types of fish. They had spent all morning over there and were now coming back with a basket filled with fish.
"I can't believe how many fish we caught, Natsu!" Happy repeated for what felt like the hundredth time, eyes sparkling with joy.
"I know, and it's still early afternoon!" Natsu agreed with a grin. "Too bad Lucy didn't want to come"
"Yeah, neither did Wendy and Charle…" Happy whined. "But I bet they'll want to come along next time after they see this basket!"
"Hm? Lucy?" the dragon slayer stopped suddenly, confused.
"What is it, Natsu?" his exceed friend asked.
"I think I smell Lucy's scent" he answered, looking around them. "She's here somewhere"
"Oh, I see her!" They were standing next to a tall wall, and Happy flew high enough to see over it. He could see that the other side had several tables, it was some kind of coffee shop. Lucy was sitting at the table closest to the wall, with her back to it, so she couldn't see Happy unless she turned. "She's sitting right on the other side of this wall. Hey, Lu…"
"Wait!" Natsu said, pulling Happy back to the floor by his tail. "Shhh, I have a fun idea! Let's startle her!"
"Oh, I see! It's gonna be really funny!" the exceed started laughing in advance. "She has her back turned to the wall, we can go over it and then yell!"
"No, I think we can slip one of the fish inside her blouse!" Natsu suggested, also laughing.
"But what if we…?"
"Shhh!" Natsu interrupted him, coming closer to the wall. "She's talking to someone. Go see who it is!"
"It's a man with dark hair…" Happy said, flying over the wall again and peeking.
"Gray? It doesn't smell like him…" the dragon slayer considered.
"Hm… No, it's that friend of hers from the library" the blue cat recognized him at last. Lucy had befriended a man that she met at the library a few weeks ago. He wasn't a mage, but sometimes he went to the guild to talk to her and Levy about books.
"Oh, yeah!" Natsu remembered him as well.
"Maybe we should leave them alone, then" Happy suggested, and flew some meters until realizing Natsu was still glued to the wall. "Natsu…"
"I want to hear what they're saying!" his friend determined, and Happy sighed and put his ear next to the wall as well.
"Thank you so much for meeting me here, Lucy" the man said.
"Sure, anytime!" she replied in a happy tone. "By the way, thank you for lending me the book on fairies. It's really beautiful!"
"Oh, of course! You can keep it for as long as you like" he assured her. "But, I want to talk about something important today…"
"What is it? Is everything okay?" now she was a little concerned.
"Yes! Everything's been so great lately!" he continued. "I feel this way ever since I met you, Lucy! I'm sorry for being so straightforward, but I really want to tell you… that I love you, Lucy! I don't know if you feel the same way, but please, even if you don't, it would mean the world to me if you gave me a chance to make you happy with me!"
"He liiiiiiiiiiiiikes her" Happy whispered and giggled. He looked at Natsu, hoping to share the joke. However, the pink haired man was too invested on the conversation on the other side. His mouth was slightly open and he had a frown.
Natsu was really concentrated. He was so focused, his senses became even more aware of the surrounding than normally, something that just used to happen when he was in a very serious battle. Not only he could hear the two people on the other side perfectly, even if he let go of the wall, but he also felt Lucy's body temperature raise, and he knew she was blushing. He also noticed the man moved and took the blonde's hand in his.
"Ryu-kun…" she said in a quiet voice and squeezed his fingers. "I'm really grateful… But I'm sorry, I can't respond to your feelings!"
Natsu noticed he had been holding his breath all this time. He let out a big gulf of air and the enhanced senses started to fade.
"I understand…" the man answered after some seconds of silence. "But, as I asked…"
"No, sorry, I can't give you the chance you asked" she insisted, and let go of his hands.
"Why?"
"What an insistent guy…" Happy commented, and Natsu couldn't agree more, but remained silent.
"It's just… I already love someone else" Lucy admitted. "I don't think these feelings will go away."
"That's what I was afraid of" the man sighed. "Have you confessed?"
"N-No! I'm not as brave as you, I guess" she said in a sad tone.
"Well, you should. I also don't think my feeling will go away, unless you're committed" he continued with a smile. "As long as you're single I'll have a little hope in my heart"
"I'd rather you move on… You deserve better than to wait for a girl like me, you know" she chuckled. "I'm sorry for hurting you"
"It's not your fault" Natsu heard the chair creaking as he got up and walked to Lucy. "Thank you for listening."
He kissed her cheek and walked away. Lucy remained sitting, feeling horrible. She hated to cause a heartbreak like that.
"Hi, Lucy!" she jumped on her chair and almost fell after hearing the two voices right behind her.
"Natsu! Happy! What are you doing here?" she asked, turning to find them carrying a big basket and fishing poles. "I thought you would be gone all day fishing!"
"We filled the basket sooner than expected!" Happy told her, excited. "You should definitely come with us next time! Then we'll bring two baskets!"
"I don't know… I don't like waking up so early, you know…" she whined.
"Luce, we heard your talk with the library guy" Natsu blurted.
"You what?" Lucy yelled, her whole face going red.
"Oh, boy…" Happy mumbled.
Natsu suddenly put both his hands on the table and leaned, his face getting really close to Lucy's. She grimaced and tried to take some distance. She was always uncomfortable when he did that.
"Who do you love?" he asked, dead serious.
"What?" she blinked, confused.
"I heard you telling that guy you already loved someone else. Who is it?" he explained, sighing and standing properly again. Lucy's shocked expression soon became an anger one.
"How dare you?" she shouted, getting up and facing him. "You come here, listen to a private conversation to which you weren't invited and still have the nerve to demand information?"
"I'm not demanding anything" he quickly explained. Lucy was very furious and starting to scare him. "I just want to know. Who is it?"
"It's none of your business!" she yelled, grabbing her purse and walking away.
"Natsu, I really think this time we should leave Lucy …" Happy started to say, but Natsu left him talking to run after the stellar spirit mage. "… alone."
"Come on, Lucy, just tell me!" he asked again as they made it on the street.
"Geez, are you still here?" she rolled her eyes. "Go home, Natsu"
"After you tell me" he demanded.
"I don't have to tell you anything! Go away!" she started to walk faster, but he caught up with her.
This kept going all the way to Lucy's apartment. Natsu asking her to tell him, she telling him to go home, and Happy following both of them and not really knowing what to do.
"Why are you being so stubborn?" the fire mage asked as he waited for Lucy to open the door.
"Me? I'm… You…" Lucy was so mad she couldn't even find the words. Finally, she took a deep breath and tried to calm down. "Natsu, I'm going inside and I'd like to be alone. I'm telling you, do not dare breaking in through the window, seriously Natsu, I'm warning you!"
With those words she slammed the door on his face. Natsu crossed his arms, deeply annoyed.
"Can you believe her?" he asked Happy as he approached him.
"I do, actually" the exceed answered. "Let's go home, Natsu. Lucy's upset, I think you should leave her be."
"Upset? Why?" the fire dragon slayer didn't understand.
"Well, no one likes having to reject a friend and break their heart!" Happy explained, exasperated.
"Oh, I guess you're right" Natsu blinked. He hadn't considered this. Ever since he heard her saying she loved someone else, curiosity took the best of him. "Fine, let's go home then"
"Thank you! We need to keep the fish safe" Happy smiled, relieved.
"Who do you think it is? That she loves?" he asked quietly after some minutes of silence.
"Hm… I have no idea" Happy lied. He had a very good idea who Lucy loved, even though she hadn't told him. However, he didn't think it was appropriate to tell Natsu. "Probably someone weird to match her personality"
"That's true" he chuckled, and the exceed was happy to light up the mood. "I never thought Lucy had these kind of feelings"
"Well, she's a girl, girls always think about this stuff" Happy said, hoping that would be the end of the subject. Natsu remained quiet the rest of the way.
"Lucy must love them very much" he considered once they were home and had storage the fish in the fridge. "You know, to turn down a guy like that"
"What?" Happy had completely forgotten about the matter and was now surprised that his friend was still thinking about it. "Oh, the library guy?"
"He's kind of perfect for her, don't you think?" he said determined, even though he didn't seem happy about it. "He likes to read the same books she likes, and he speaks all those big words, and she never yells at him"
"Well, he's not a mage" the exceed tried to justify. "Maybe she would like someone who uses magic as well"
"You think it's someone from the guild?!" Natsu asked loudly, eyes widening.
"It could be. She spends a lot of time there" Happy answered. Natsu went quiet again. He seemed to be considering horrible possibilities. "I think I'm going to take a nap, Natsu, I'm tired. Don't eat all the fish without me"
"Yeah, yeah, sure" he agreed. Natsu didn't bring up the subject of Lucy's love interest for the rest of the day. Happy thought this time it was really over.
Boy, was he wrong.
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Lucy woke up the next day feeling a lot better. Whenever she thought about Ryu-kun and his hurt expression when she told him she didn't respond his feelings, there was a sting in her heart, but she could soon shake it off and have a positive prospect about the whole thing. She was sure he would get over her and find someone else. After all, he was super cute.
After getting ready to leave, she had already decided to make amends with Natsu. He would have forgotten the whole thing, she was sure, so she would just pretend nothing happened. Still, she was kind of amazed on how curious he was to know the object of her feelings. And it was weird, because he hadn't acted like he was making fun of her, like when he teased her. He looked genuinely curious. Well, she thought, sighing, she would get nowhere trying to figure out Natsu, so why bother? She heard a noise on the window and watched as her two partners came inside.
"Hey Lucy!" they greeted her together. She smiled to see them in a good mood.
"Are you feeling better?" Natsu asked with a wide grin.
"Yes, thank you, I'm much better" she answered cheerfully.
"We brought you some salmon" Happy told her as Natsu handed her a package. "It's you favorite, right?"
"Oh, yes, thank you so much!" she opened the package to reveal a big rosy salmon. "Hm, I'm cooking it tonight, it looks delicious!"
"So, are you ready to tell me now who is the person you're in love with?" asked Natsu, and she almost tripped on her way to the fridge.
"What? You haven't let that go yet?" she replied, more shocked than angry this time.
"No… I want to know" he pouted.
"Natsu…" she sighed, putting the fish on the fridge and then sitting on a stool in front of him. "Listen, you can't ask this question to a girl. It's impolite."
"You said it was impolite to ask for a girl's weight" he argued.
"They're both impolite!" she yelled, losing patience. "So just forget about it, okay?"
"Friends aren't supposed to keep secrets from each other!" he shouted back. "Aren't we friends? So tell me!"
"Friends can keep stuff private too and still be friends!" she explained, tightening her hands into fists.
"Is it someone from the guild?" he questioned. "Is it Gray? You gotta tell me it's not him!"
"No, Natsu. It's not Gray" she said, putting her hand over her face.
"Then is it Gajeel?"
"No! Stop doing this, you're not getting the answer by elimination!" she slammed her hand on the counter. "Please, let this go!"
"I'm not letting it go, so you might as well just tell me!" he insisted. "We're gonna find out anyway, right, Happy?"
"Actually, I'm not as interested in Lucy's love life as you, Natsu" the exceed shrugged.
"Thank you, Happy" Lucy said, relieved to see that the fire dragon slayer was out of words after that. "Why don't we go to the guild and pick a fun job, huh?"
"Whatever" her pink haired friend crossed his arms, but followed her outside. She really had no idea why he was acting like this.
Happy told her about the fishing trip while they walked to the guild, and Natsu just followed them, grunting whenever they tried to make him talk. When they made to the guild, Lucy was hoping that talking to their friends and maybe getting into a few fights got his mind off the whole subject.
"Hi, everyone!" she said, sitting at a table with Gray, Juvia, Erza, Wendy and Charle. Happy quickly started telling them about the lake and all the fish they caught.
"Wow, it sound amazing! We should go next time, right, Charle?" asked Wendy with a smile.
"I guess it wasn't a total waste of time" she replied in her usual tone.
"What's with you, Natsu?" Erza inquired, noticing his weird behavior. "You're quiet"
"Lucy won't tell me who is the person she's in love with!" he complained, and Lucy's face went red in seconds. "I just know for sure it's not the ice princess or iron face. Oh, not the library guy, either"
"Natsu! You see, that's why I can't trust you!" Lucy yelled, desperate. "You don't even know who it is and already gossiped about it to the whole guild!"
"Well, if you had told me, I would have kept it a secret!" he mumbled. "I bet you told all the girls, anyway!"
"What is this, fifth grade?" Gray sighed. "You're pathetic, flamebrain"
"SHUT UP!" he shouted. "You're just upset it's not you!"
"Gray-sama, I can heal you broken heart" offered Juvia, also blushing.
"Enough!" Erza stopped them from starting a fight, even though Lucy wished they would, so the focus would be on them. "Lucy and Gray are right, Natsu, you're acting like a child. Lucy has the right to decide what she will and won't tell you."
"But I want to know!" he whined. "Lucy, let's fight! If you win, I drop the subject, and if I win, you tell me!"
"No way!" she said with a grimace.
"Hey, it's everything okay here?" asked Mirajane, bringing their orders.
"Natsu is upset because he doesn't know who Lucy is in love with" explained Wendy with the best of intentions.
"Yeah, great, bring more people into the subject" said Lucy ironically, already accepting she would die from embarrassment today.
"S-Sorry, Lucy-san" Wendy quickly added.
"Don't feel bad, Wendy, I already know who it is anyway" Mirajane said with a smile. Everyone went quiet and turned to her.
"You do?" Natsu asked with a hopeful expression. She nodded.
"Liar! I never told you!" Lucy said, but had fear in her eyes.
"I don't need you to tell me" she argued after putting all the drinks on the table. "I know everything there is to know about all the members of Fairy Tail."
"Really? Then what is Wendy's height?" asked Charle.
"Wendy is 1,51 meters, and growing" she answered, patting the girl's head. Charle was surprised she got it right.
"What Gray-sama's weight?" questioned Juvia, excited.
"Gray weights 66 kg, and he should eat better!" she scolded him. Juvia clapped, since she was right.
"When is my birthday?" asked Lucy, pointing at herself.
"July 1st, you're a classic cancer!"
"What's my favorite food?"
"Strawberry cake, Erza, I'm making some more already"
"Who is Lucy in love with?" Natsu asked quickly. Mira turned to him smiling.
"You"
The whole group went silent and held their breath. Natsu blinked, confused.
"… would like to know, wouldn't you?" Mira winked, finishing her sentence. Natsu laughed and everyone else breathed.
"Damn, I really thought I got her!" he continued laughing.
"We all did" Happy mumbled, but Natsu didn't seem to understand what he meant.
"Wendy… I think you need to fix Lucy" Gray said with a chuckle. The poor stellar spirit mage was frozen from shock.
"Don't be like that" Natsu said, patting her back. "Let's pick a job! I'm dropping the subject for today, but I'll get my answer eventually!"
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"Happy, I've figured out a way to know who Lucy loves!" Natsu told his partner with a wide grin.
"You did?" the exceed asked, finishing his fish. "How?"
It's been a week since they heard Ryu confess to Lucy and be rejected, and Natsu continued to ask Lucy about her love every single day. She hadn't cave yet, though. He tried to read her diary but it got him nowhere.
"Well, Juvia loves the ice bastard, right? So what does she do in her time off? She follows him!" the dragon slayer explained.
"I think it's more like stalking" Happy mumbled.
"Fine, she stalks him, that's not important!" Natsu waved him hand, impatient. "The thing is: I told Lucy we would be gone all day on a job. So that's probably when she stalks the guy she loves! So we just need to follow her, ninja style!"
"I don't think it's such a good plan, Lucy is not exactly the same as Juvia" Happy considered.
"Look, it's been a week and she's not acting different towards anyone else!" the fire mage argued. "I think she's avoiding the person she loves because she knows I'm watching her… So she'll definitely go to him when I'm gone! Then I'll finally know who it is and I can break his fa… I mean, we can tease her about it!"
"Natsu, I don't wanna spend the day stalking Lucy" the exceed whined.
"Come on, I need your help, it'll be much easier if I can fly!" Natsu insisted "I'll give you a fish!"
"Ten!"
After some minutes of arguing, Happy at last agreed to help him in exchange for five fish. They made their way to Lucy's apartment. This time, however, instead of getting inside, they peeked from the window.
"What is she doing?" whispered Happy.
"I think she's getting ready to leave" Natsu whispered back. "I knew it! She's going to see the person she loves!"
"I don't think she's dressed up enough to see whoever she loves" the exceed blinked. Whenever Lucy went on a date, she would put lots of make-up, call Cancer to do her hair, and put on a dress she rarely used. The girl inside was in really casual clothes.
"Of course she is! See, she's wearing her best outfit, T-shirt and shorts" he pointed out. "And she even let her hair loose, which makes her the most beautiful"
"You think Lucy's beautiful?" Happy turned to him with a smirk. Natsu's face went red, which was pretty rare.
"I just meant that's probably what she thinks about herself" he quickly explained. "I think she looks good anyway… I mean…"
"You liiiiiiiiiike her" he teased.
"Sh-Shut up! She's gonna hear you!" he warned, and Lucy sneezed. They both went quiet, and watched as she grabbed her purse and left through the door. "Hide!"
They fell to the ground and hid behind the flowerbed next to the stairs in front of the building, and watched in silence as she made her way to town. They walked after her, leaving some distance between them, so she wouldn't spot them. Then she went into a grocery store.
Natsu and Happy stayed behind the shelves as Lucy went around, filling her cart with various items. She didn't seem to be buying anything out of ordinary. Natsu stopped and pretended to be reading a magazine as she went to the cashier.
"Wow, you must really like spice food, miss" the cashier girls told her, noticing all the spicy snacks and pepper she was buying.
"Oh, no, not really" Lucy answered with a smile as she put her stuff in a bag. "I'm just buying for a friend who does."
Natsu peeked over the magazine and recognized all his favorite snacks and the pepper he liked to put on his food. He had no idea Lucy bought those exclusively for him. He would like to say he imagined she bought them for herself, but the reality was that he never gave a second thought about it. He was just happy to find them there.
Lucy grabbed her bags and continued walking. The streets were getting crowded, so it was easier for Natsu and Happy to hide among the people not very far from their blonde friend. They were passing a street market, and watched Lucy buying some fruit and vegetables. Then she stopped at a fish counter.
"Hello, Lucy!" the woman behind the counter greeted her. "The usual?"
"Yes, ma'am, thank you" she smiled as the woman took three of Happy's favorite fish and packed it.
"You sure you don't want them already chopped?" she asked receiving Lucy's payment.
"No, thanks" Lucy answered picking the package. "I have a cat visitor who likes them whole."
"Lucy has a cat visitor?" Happy whispered in horror. "I can't believe this, and she gives it the fish instead of me? Who do you think it is?"
"She's obviously talking about you, Happy" Natsu rolled his eyes.
"Oh! I guess you're right!" the exceed smiled in relief. "This Lucy… She's always complaining about us going to her house, yet here she is buying stuff to welcome us"
Natsu chuckled. He had been thinking about the same thing. Lucy was really one of a kind. She was carrying a lot of bags now, and he considered showing up to help her. It wasn't likely that she was still going to see whoever she was in love with after all. Before he could do that, however, he saw her stopping suddenly in front of a store and looking at something with great interest. Could that be a look of love? She stayed there for some minutes, biting her nail, and at last entered the store.
The street here was very narrow, so Natsu couldn't go and see what she was doing without being spotted, so he had to wait. Since there were a lot of people, he also couldn't hear what was going on inside the store.
After what felt like forever, he saw Lucy leaving the store with a big smile. He waited for her to walk away and ran to the store. It was a store of male clothes, and at the counter was a boy about their age. He had blond and smooth hair falling to his shoulders and blue eyes. He looked kind of dreamy, like the men in all those magazines Lucy bought. He looked really bored and was reading a book.
"What do you think she'd buy here?" asked Happy with a frown.
"Nothing… She came to see the person she loves" Natsu said, staring at the blond boy.
"What? Natsu, you don't know that!" the exceed affirmed. He was right. Natsu didn't know, he was just conjecturing. But what other reason would make Lucy leave that store with such a big smile? "Come on, let's go in and find out"
"Fine…" he agreed, opening the door. He was feeling very angry, he didn't know why. He wasn't even sure it was anger. But it wasn't good. It was like a big burning hand was squeezing his heart. And he really wanted to punch the blond boy.
"Can I help you?" he asked, raising his head as they got inside. Natsu thought his voice was really annoying too.
"Yes, please" Happy said, noticing that Natsu was just staring at the other man. "Do you know the girl that came inside just a while ago?"
"You mean the blonde with the big tits?" he said, putting his hands in front of his chest to mimic Lucy's breasts. "I bet you want to know if I have her address. Sorry, guys, she wouldn't give it to me. You'd think a girl who dresses like that would be easier, but…"
He got interrupted as Natsu grabbed the back of his head and smashed his pretty face on the wooden counter.
"You broke my nose, you maniac!" he yelled with a muffled voice, trying to stop the blood coming out of his nose, as Natsu and Happy left the store.
"So, I guess it wasn't him…" the exceed said, floating next to his friend.
"Guess not" Natsu agreed. He was upset for hearing the guy talk about Lucy like that, but the burning hand was gone, and he couldn't help to feel relieved he wasn't the person the stellar spirit mage loved.
They had lost track of Lucy, so they went back to her apartment, finding out she was already there. She must have gone there directly after leaving the male clothes store. She put everything she bought in her cabinets and fridge and sat on the couch, taking off her shoes, to read a book. It didn't seem like she intended to leave home again for the rest of the day.
"You were right, Happy, it was a waste of time" Natsu admitted, sighing.
"Why don't we go inside? We can tell her we finished the job earlier" he proposed, and his dragon slayer friend's expression lighted up. He opened the window and acted like they just got there.
"Hey, Luce!" he greeted her, and Happy noticed her expression lighting up just like his did a few seconds ago. She yelled at them for coming in through the window as usual, and they just laughed. Natsu raised her feet from the couch and put them on his lap after sitting down, so she wouldn't have to move. She blushed a little, but let them be and asked about their mission.
"Disappointing" he sighed. "I thought it would be more exciting"
"Lucy, can I eat this fish?" asked Happy from the kitchen, after opening the fridge and finding the fish he saw her buying earlier.
"You are already eating it!" she shouted, annoyed. "Geez, you guys think this is some kind of private restaurant?"
Happy and Natsu exchanged a look and started laughing.
"What's so funny?" she questioned, raising an eyebrow.
"It's nothing" the fire mage scratched the back of his head.
"Oh, Natsu, that reminds me!" Lucy snapped her fingers, and turned, getting a small bag on the table behind her and handing it to Natsu. "Look what I found!"
"What is it?" he noticed the bag had the symbol of the male clothes store she went earlier. So she really did buy something there. He opened and saw the content. "This…"
"Oh, a bracelet just like the one you lost!" Happy said when he took it off the bag. A few weeks ago, Natsu lost one of his black bracelets on a job after falling in the sea. He got pretty bummed about it and complained the whole trip back.
"It's perfect!" he said with a grin, putting it on his right wrist. "Thanks, Lucy!"
"You're welcome!" she answered, smiling. "You better nor lose it again, because the guy at the store was a real creep, I'm definitely not coming back!"
"Yeah, well, I'm sure the universe will find a way to break his nose" Natsu assured her, and Happy chuckled.
Natsu looked at the bracelet on his wrist as he held Lucy's legs on his lap. So that's why she went into the store and came out with such a big smile. She was thinking about him. He didn't know why, but it made him feel warm and happy.
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"Lucy… Who is the person you're in love with?"
"Natsu, this is getting really old"
They were at the guild. It was raining, so there wasn't much they could do, and Natsu was bored. It was now two weeks since he learned Lucy was in love with someone, and he still didn't know who. He decided to give it another shot as he sat in front of her, laying his upper body on the table. She barely looked up from book.
"Hey, let's try and guess!" suggested Cana, who was next to them and overheard. By now, everyone in the guild knew about Natsu's resolve to find out Lucy's love. "If she blushes, it's because it's the one!"
"Oh, good idea!"
"Erza!" Lucy protested. "I thought you were on my side!"
"Sorry, Lucy, I'm really bored" the red haired mage shrugged. "I'll start! I think you're in love with… Ichiya!"
"Ugh!" Lucy made such a face of disgust they knew it wasn't him.
"Juvia's next! It's obviously Gray-sama!" tried Juvia. Lucy just rolled her eyes, nothing changing about her heartbeat.
"Now me!" Levy raised her hand. "I think it's a long lost childhood friend that she doesn't see in years!"
"Yeah, right" Lucy scoffed, flipping the page from her book. Even though Natsu wasn't saying anything, he was carefully watching her face as their friends made their guesses.
"You're all wrong, it's obviously Loke!" opined Bickslow, sitting at the table with them.
"I would have to hate myself to fall for Loke" the blonde shook her head, still not having any emotional change.
"I think Lucy likes girls" said Elfman with a smirk. "I think she's fallen for my older sister!"
"Hah! If I liked girls, I would definitely fall for Mira-san!" Lucy laughed.
"What? Why not me?" asked Erza, looking very offended.
"That would be too scary, Erza" the stellar spirit mage mumbled.
"Wendy, would you like to make a guess?" asked Cana, trying to calm down the red haired.
"Hm…" Wendy put a finger on her chin. She could understand that everyone was making a game out of it, and it was an unsaid rule that they wasn't suppose to say who they really thought Lucy was in love with… So she scanned the room to find someone fun to guess. "I think it's Laxus-san!"
"Ohhhh, right, all the Fairy Tail girls have a phase of Laxus crush" said Evergreen with a smile.
"What are you talking about?" asked Natsu, blinking.
"It's true! Look!" she pointed at the girls, and all of them had a smirk and rosy cheeks. Even Erza.
"Well, we eventually grow out of it…" the armor mage explained.
"Excuse me. Lucy, can I talk to you for a moment?" a thunderous voice came from behind them, and they found Laxus standing next to their table.
"M-Me?" Lucy asked, and Natsu noticed the change in her heartbeat.
"Yes. Let's go upstairs, please" he nodded. She got up trembling and followed him. They all watched as the two went inside the Master's office, closing the door behind them. The Master had enchanted his office to be soundproof, so even the dragon slayers couldn't hear what was going on inside it.
"What do you think that was all about?" asked Happy. "I've never seen Laxus and Lucy interacting much"
"Oh my God, you think he heard me say I thought she liked him?" Wendy wondered in a desperate voice. "Poor Lucy!"
"Well, it might be the other way around" suggested Juvia. "Maybe Laxus-san loves Lucy too!"
"Please… I know perfectly well what Laxus's gonna do to her…" Cana said in a smug expression.
"How would you know exactly?" Evergreen asked, hands in hips.
"Well, as you said, we all had our Laxus crush phase… And I'm not proud to say I kind of stalked him during mine" she told with a wink. "And I've seen a lot of girls confessing to him in that time."
"Naturally, he rejects them" said Fried, crossing his arms.
"No, no, he never rejects them" Cana shook her head. "He doesn't respond to their feelings also, but he always gives them something to remember him…"
"What? What does he do?" questioned Erza, very invested.
"Well, first, he comes real close to the girl… And he whispers something in her ear, I've never heard what… But they all shivered after it" she told, and all of them were silent, holding into every word. Natsu couldn't help but imagine all the things Cana was saying between Laxus and Lucy upstairs. "Then he would grab her by the waist and pull her closer… And lean his face to hers, stopping just a few centimeters from her mouth, so she would have to move to end the distance. Then he would slip his hand inside…"
"LAXUS!" Natsu yelled, quickly getting up and climbing upstairs. Right now, he wasn't thinking about how Laxus was so much stronger than him, or that maybe Lucy didn't want him to intervene. He was seeing red and all he wanted was to sweep the image that Cana made out of his mind. He had to stop it, if he was there, he would stop it, all would be well after he stopped it… He melted the door like it was made of butter and entered.
"Take your hands off…" he shouted, but the words died on his mouth as he saw what was actually going on inside.
Laxus was sitting on a chair with a big white sheet around him. Cancer was behind him, cutting his hair. And Lucy was holding a mirror in front of him. They all stopped to look at him with confused expressions.
"Problem, Natsu?" asked Laxus.
"Just... What are you doing?" he blinked, looking from one to the other.
"I needed a haircut and Mira told me Lucy had a spirit that could do it for me" the lighting dragon slayer explained the obvious. "I came to Gramps' office to have a little privacy, but I guess you melted that idea"
"How did you do that? It was enchanted" the blonde asked in amazement.
"Well, I was just… You know" he stuttered, scratching the back of his head and feeling very stupid. "Going to defy you for a fight...?"
"Do you mind if I finish this first?" Laxus raised his eyebrow.
"Yeah, sure, take your time!" the fire dragon slayer agreed, walking backwards and avoiding their gaze.
"Cana, I swear to God, if you weren't Gildarts' daughter, I would kill you" he mumbled, sitting back at their table sulking as everyone laughed at him.
"Natsu, I think you have to stop worrying about who Lucy's in love with and start thinking about who you're in love with!" Cana advised once she stopped laughing.
"I'm not in love with anyone" he replied, annoyed, crossing his arms.
"I guess the Master's office's door begs to differ" she winked, drinking more wine.
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Even though Cana's words turned out to be wrong – Lucy came down after Cancer finished cutting Laxus' hair and told him he really just asked her help for that, and the reason for her change in heartbeat was because she was still a little scared of him –, Natsu had some trouble getting the image out of his head.
He couldn't understand how the imaginary thought of something that never happened could make him so mad. And yet, his mind kept coming back to it. Why? Why was this happening? He hadn't been the same ever since he learned Lucy was in love with someone, and the change wasn't for the better.
The idea disturbed him so much, he dreamed about it. At first, he suffered from anger and that other emotion he didn't know how to name as he watched Laxus touch and kiss Lucy. But all of a sudden, the dream changed, and instead of Laxus, he was the one touching and kissing his blonde friend. The anger went away and the squeeze in his heart loosened. He could feel Lucy's waist under his right hand and her back and hair on his left hand, plus her hands holding his shoulders. More importantly, he could feel her lips on his and smell her scent like it was the only one in the world.
"Lucy… Tell me who you love" he asked while she kissed his chin.
"You, Natsu. I love you" she answered, and he knew that was the only acceptable answer to him for this question.
Then he woke up.
He didn't move, just stayed still breathing heavily and with wide eyes, getting used to the darkness. His breath frequency normalized and he recognized the place around him. He was at Lucy's apartment. After leaving the guild, he and Happy had walked her home. As soon as they got there, however, the rain started again, and she invited them to stay the night.
Natsu had fallen asleep on Lucy's bed while she took a bath. Now he could see that she let him stay there and lay beside him, putting a pillow between them. No wonder he could feel her scent so strongly in his dream. Her head was just under his nose. Even though the pillow was still there, they both had hug it, meaning it was really the only thing between them.
Natsu shivered, remembering his dream. He had never kissed a girl before, so he wondered if it really felt as good as he dreamed it. His dragon slayer eyes could see perfectly in the dark, and his gaze went to Lucy's lips. They were ajar, as they always did when she was sleeping. Were they that soft? He raised a finger carefully and touched her bottom lip slightly. Yes, they were. They were super soft and plump, like ripe peaches.
Lucy frowned and waved her hand in front of her face right after Natsu removed his finger. She probably thought it was a mosquito. Still sleeping, she turned to the other side, so Natsu could only see the back of her head. He sighed. Two weeks prior, he would have no second thought about sending that pillow flying and snuggling against her body. But everything had changed now. Lucy was in love. She loved somebody else. She didn't want Natsu's cuddles. Just like he dreamed about her, she could be dreaming about that person too. So when she felt Natsu's hand and warmth on her body, she would crave this other person's hand and warmth.
"I think you have to start thinking about who you're in love with". Cana's words came to haunt him.
Fine.
He was in love with Lucy.
What a great time to acknowledge and admit this. When he learned that she loved somebody else.
He lay on his back, facing the ceiling. He had to know who it was. If he knew, he could do something about it. He could become stronger and better than this person, and steal her heart. Now he could see all the consequences of this uncertainty. What if Lucy confessed? What if she confessed and the person loved her back? Of course they would love her back, who wouldn't? Natsu imagined going out on a job, coming back and finding someone else lying in Lucy's bed with her. This time the thought didn't make him feel mad. It made him feel as if someone was ripping off all of his insides. He put both his hands on his head, trying to get it to stop. That's why he didn't think normally. Thinking brought him nothing good.
"Natsu…" he heard Lucy call. She had turned back and was getting closer to him again. She was still sleeping, but came following his warmth. He removed the pillow and let her body fit in his. She buried her face on his chest and smiled. He sighed in relief. At least right now, she was thinking about him. This made all the other thoughts go away and he fell asleep again.
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"Hey, Natsu, what's got you so down?" asked Alzack as he entered the guild with his family. Natsu was pouting, laying his head on the counter.
"He still had no luck finding out who's in Lucy's heart" explained Mira, bringing him some fries. "He annoyed her until she left"
"Oh, that's tough!" said Bisca, sympathetic. Natsu just grumbled.
"Can I have some fries?" asked Asuka, trying to reach the counter.
"Asuka, this was impolite. What's the right way of asking?" her father disciplined her. Asuka looked at him and stopped to think about it.
"Can I have some fries, please?" she repeated with the magic word. Her parents smiled, and she knew she got it right.
"Sure, go ahead" said Natsu, picking her up to sit on the stool next to him. They both started eating the fries.
"We're gonna look at jobs, Natsu, any problem just call" Bisca informed, and off they went.
"So you wanna know who Lucy loves?" asked Asuka as she ate.
"Yeah… She won't tell me, though" the dragon slayer shrugged. "I've asked a bazillion times"
"Maybe I can help" Asuka took her backpack and put it on the counter. She opened it and picked a book from inside. It was a children's book. It had a big heart on the cover, and written inside it was the title: "Being in Love".
"What's this?" he questioned, confused.
"It's a book that talks about what happens when you're in love" the little girl explained. "My grandma gave it to me"
"How is this gonna help me?" the fire mage frowned.
"Let me show you" Asuka opened the book on the first page and started reading it. "Being in love is feeling butterflies in your stomach whenever you see your special someone"
"Butterflies?" he raised an eyebrow.
"Yeah, it means feeling weird and getting your face red" she explained. "Have you ever seen Lucy like this?"
"She gets like that all the time" Natsu thought about it. "Whenever I come from behind her or get really close to her face… When I grab her hand and when she loses her clothes"
"I've never saw her like that when she takes me to the library with Levy-san" Asuka argued.
"Well, then it makes no sense… I guess Lucy's just weird on this matter."
"Okay, let's see the next page" the girl flipped the page and read it out loud: "Being in love is taking care of your special someone"
"Hm…" Natsu studied the drawing under the words, with a little bunny taking care of another bunny who was sick in bed. "Lucy always takes care of her friends. Once, she spent a whole week in my house because I couldn't get out of bed, you know, since I had eaten magic that turned out to be poison… She even slept on the floor."
"Has she done this for anyone else?" Asuka questioned.
"Well, there was that time…" he stopped to think about it. Lucy always visited whenever their friends were sick or recovering, but no, he couldn't remember any time in which she spend the night to take care of anyone else. "Well, I guess not, but…"
"Next!" the little girl interrupted him, flipping the page once more. "Being in love is getting jealous sometimes… But letting it go because you trust them"
"Jealous?" Natsu repeated. The image showed the little bunny holding the other close with angry eyes, like if he didn't want to share. "Ohhh, so that's what it is!"
"What is what?"
"N-Nothing" the dragon slayer quickly averted her gaze. The feeling of a burning hand squeezing his heart whenever he thought he found the person Lucy was in love with, he just realized he was being jealous. "I don't think I've ever seen Lucy jealous"
"My dad told me it's when my mom gets mad at him and he doesn't know why" she commented. "Then he finds out later it was because some girl talked to him"
A memory flashed in his mind. Lucy pouting and with her arms crossed, refusing to talk to him, he had no idea why. When he insisted, she told him to go and talk with a girl that had been dancing for him earlier. He got really confused about what one thing had to do with the other. He blinked, but his thoughts were dissipated when he realized Asuka was already reading the next page.
"Being in love is thinking about your special someone even when you're apart" she said with a smile. The drawing on the book showed the little bunny with a dreamy smile and a balloon representing his thoughts with the other bunny inside. "Well, this is a hard one… you can't really tell what Lucy is thinking about…"
Except that he could. He remembered the day when he and Happy followed her. She thought about him when she was shopping, getting him snacks and even his bracelet.
"Being in love is being there for your special someone in good and bad times" was the next page. The little bunny was hugging the other bunny as it cried.
"Well, that's more of a friend thing, really…" he mumbled, but it wasn't true. Lucy was always the first one there when he was in pain, and the last to go. The only time she wasn't was after Igneel died, and that was because he ran away before she could.
"Being in love is wanting to spend time with your special someone all the time, even if it's not fun!" Asuka continued reading, ignoring his arguments. The book showed the two bunnies doing several things, some fun, like eating carrots and flying kites, and some not, like cleaning the house and carrying heavy stuff.
"Lucy and I do everything together" he remembered all the times in which she said things like "how was I dragged along this?" She always complained, yet she was always there. He found it annoying in the beginning, like when she tag along to Mont Hakobe, but after some time, it became natural to him.
"And last but not least," she had made it to the last page "Being in love is best expressed with a big hug!"
The two bunnies were hugging, of course. Asuka closed the book and hugged it with a wide smile.
"Oh, my, you and that book again, Asuka" laughed Bisca as she and Alzack came back. "She adores it, it's her favorite!"
"Come on, sweetie, let's have some lunch" called Alzack, picking her up.
"I hope the book helped" said the little girl to Natsu as her father took her away.
"A big hug…" the dragon slayer whispered. All the times that Lucy hugged him flashed in his mind. It just occurred to him that she never hugged anyone else like that. He felt a warmth spread in his heart and the corners of his mouth curl up. "Yeah, the book helped a lot"
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"Hey, are you awake?"
"… Yes. You know I am"
Natsu, Lucy and Happy were coming back from a job they took four days ago. The client lived in a village very far from Magnolia, so far they not only had to take the train, but also walk through a forest for several hours. It was a whole day getting there, two days to complete the job and now they were going back. But they ended up too tired and stopped for camping before reaching the town where was the train station. When they traveled with Erza, Wendy and Gray, they pitch tents because the red head insisted on the matter, but when it was just the three of them, they didn't bother. So they just made a fire pit and were now lying on their sleeping bags around it. Natsu knew Happy was already asleep, but he could tell by Lucy's breathing that she wasn't.
"Lucy… How long have you been in love?" he asked. She let out an impatient sigh, and he thought she wouldn't answer him.
"I don't know… A couple of years" she said at last.
"Years?!" he repeated in shock. "That long?"
"Well, if it didn't last, it wouldn't be called love" she replied, angry.
"You've never thought about confessing?" he questioned.
"Yes, of course I have" she was still annoyed. "But he doesn't seem much interested in my feelings. That's why it hurts to talk about it."
She stressed the hurt part, hoping that would make Natsu drop the subject.
"But… Doesn't it hurt not to talk about it too?" he asked in a timid voice. This time she went silent for a long time.
"A little" she admitted. "But not so much. You know, as long as you're seeing the person happy, you can't help to feel happy as well."
This time Natsu went silent for a long time. They couldn't see each other, because the head end of his sleeping bag was just across from hers. So they just stared to the starry sky as they talked.
"Natsu?"
"Hm?"
"Why are you so curious about these things all of a sudden?" she had been avoiding this question because she was afraid of the answer. Maybe he would tell her he was in love, too. With somebody else.
"When I heard you telling the library guy you were in love with someone, it bothered me" he admitted. "I didn't like it at all."
"What?" she blushed at this honest statement. But she took a deep breath and told herself not to be let get carried away. "Oh, you mean, because you think I'm weird, isn't it?"
"No, it was because I was jealous" he explained, and she felt her heart skip a beat. "I really wanted to find out who it was to kick his ass"
"Why?" she questioned, confused. Then she let out a soft chuckle. "Oh, I bet it's because you thought if I had a boyfriend, you wouldn't be able to crash in my apartment anymore"
"Yeah, as if a random guy could stop me from doing that" he chuckled too. "But yes, it was one of my concerns"
"Don't worry, boyfriend or no boyfriend, I'll always Lucy kick you myself for entering uninvited" she assured him, and he could feel the smile on her lips. "What are your other concerns?"
"The whole thing bothered me, really" he sighed. "Someone getting all your attention, touching you, kissing you… All of this seemed a revolting idea"
"Natsu, you don't need to worry about any of that" she affirmed, not being able to control the way her face became red and hot. She was trying really hard not let her emotions fly free and convince her mind that her partner meant all of that platonically.
"Yeah, I know that now" he explained with a relieve voice. Lucy frowned, confused with his phrasing.
"You mean, now that I've told you, right?" she asked to be sure.
"No, I mean, since I've found out who you're in love with" he said, and she could almost hear the grin in his words.
"What?" she jumped, sitting up. Then she got on her knees and made her way to Natsu's sleeping bag. "You didn't find out anything! I didn't tell you!"
"I've figured out myself" he informed, still lying down, and staring at an upside down Lucy as she leaned to see his grinning face.
"No, you didn't!" she insisted, getting even angrier to see his smug expression. "Who is it, then?"
"Trust me, I know who it is" he bragged. "And now I know for sure no other man will be having his way with you"
"You're such an idiot!" she replied with hurt pride. "You think I don't have a chance, then? For your information, I'm a very beautiful woman and I can have any man I want!"
"Yeah, well, all that doesn't matter, since you're in love with me" with those words he impulse himself up with his elbows and met Lucy's lips with his own. He couldn't see Lucy's eyes, since she was upside down, but after the initial shock, he felt her trembling fingers on his cheek as she moved her lips with his. Gee, they were even softer than he had imagined. After way too short of a time for his taste, she retreated, leaving his lips with the unusual sensation of cold. He sat up and turned to face her.
"You sure think a lot of yourself, don't you?" she tried to sound mad, but he could see her lips curling up in a smile. They were both blushing, but one could hardly notice, since the only light source was the fire pit, and the shadows caused by the orange flames kept dancing on their faces.
"Now that you're all mine? Yeah, I kind of do" he grinned, pulling her close to his chest, embracing her shoulders and landing his lips and nose on top of her head, so he could smell her hair. "What made you think I'm not interest in your feelings?"
"I don't know… You never wanted to talk about it when I tried to bring it up" she answered in a muffled voice, since she had her face buried in his scarf.
"You did?!" he was honestly surprised. "I don't remember that! Are you sure it was me?"
"I guess it could have been another pink haired fire dragon slayer" she chuckled.
"Nah, Lucy, the problem is that you're terrible at confessing"
"Oh my God, you're such a jerk!"
"Yeah, you should have fallen for someone better" he laughed. "But then I'd kick his ass, so…"
"So I'm stuck with you" she concluded.
"Afraid so" he said, letting her go of his embrace. "Fine, I guess I'll have to do the confessing, then"
"Really?" she asked with a faint tone of hope. They were both kneeling now and staring at one another.
"Yeah. It's good that I've heard the library guy doing it first" he had a fun attitude, but Lucy could see he was a little nervous. "I just hope it goes better than his"
"You know how it's going to go, you cheated!" she said with a smirk, hoping it would make him feel better.
"Well, I'm..." he stuttered, looking down and staring at his friend's hands. "I never want to be away from you, and I want to be the only one in your mind whenever we're apart. I also want to be the only one allowed to sleep in your bed with you, and the one you take care, and the one you hug, because you're the one to me. And recently I've found out that means I'm in love with you…"
"Natsu…" the blonde whispered with a smile, leaning in so her forehead touched his.
"Luigi…"
"Ugh, why do you have to ruin everything?" she asked with an exasperated sigh and a chuckle.
"Because you haven't given me my answer yet!" he demanded with a grin, taking her hands in his. "Who are you in love with?"
"You, Natsu. I love you" she said with a soft smile and bright eyes.
Even though he already knew, hearing the words from her lips made him feel like his chest was exploding with happiness. He ended the distance between them and kissed her again, releasing her hands to embrace her as she slipped her slim arms around his neck.
As he tasted and touched Lucy, getting lost in her scent, Natsu was happy to find out some additional symptoms of being in love.
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