Chapter Eight: Confusion

"I know the lyrics."

An assertion of relief crossed the guitarist's face, as he ushered Lucy upon the stage. The audience, in turn, gave Lucy encouragement by cheering for her. However, before Lucy got out of her seat, Natsu stopped her. "Wait, you sing?"

Looking towards him, she smiled. "I used to." Noticing his raised eyebrow and his confused demeanor, Lucy shrugged her shoulders. "Why not give it a chance again?"

With that, she walked towards the stage. Shaking hands with the guitarists, she adjusted herself into a stool that was in front of the microphone stand. After clearing her throat, she tapped the microphone for a quick sound check. "It's been a while since I last sung this song, so I hope I'm not too rust for y'all!"

The guitarist started playing the song, starting with the Fmaj7 chord. Tapping her foot, Lucy found her way towards the rhythm of the song. She could feel the whole audience staring at her - including Natsu. Feeling herself slightly panic, she breathed in, and slowly breathed out… and when the guitarist hit the Am chord, she knew it was her cue.

A tornado flew around my room before you came
Excuse the mess it made, it usually doesn't rain in
Southern California, much like Arizona
My eyes don't shed tears, but boy they bawl

Lucy's chest-voice mesmerized the crowd - it was delicate, and powerful. The little runs she added in-between the lines added an uniqueness to the song - a distinction that seperated her from Frank Ocean. Having her eyes closed at that moment, Lucy didn't notice the phones that were recording her by the audience. She was too invested into the performance to care.

When I'm thinkin' 'bout you, ooh, no, no, no

I've been thinkin' 'bout you, you know, know, know

I've been thinkin' 'bout you

Do you think about me still?

Do ya, do ya?

Opening her eyes for a brief moment, she saw Natsu at the back of the room, recording her on his phone. He noticed her eyes looking at him, and flashed her a quick wink. Winking back, Lucy prepared her chest-voice to transition to head-voice.

Or do you not think so far ahead?

'Cause I been thinkin' 'bout forever

Ooh, ooh

Being able to hit the high register effortlessly grabbed the crowd's attention - including the guitarist, who was trying to focus on playing the song on guitar instead of getting distracted by Lucy's voice. She added in complex runs - earning her small, scattered applause. Natsu couldn't take his eyes off of her; Lucy was so enchanting up on that stage - she was singing the song as if she was the one who wrote it. He couldn't help but smile throughout her performance, and rest his cheek against his arm in astonishment.

I remember, how could I forget?

How you feel?

And though you were my first time

A new feel

Lost in an alternate universe, the room became empty to Lucy. After diving into the third verse, nothing existed anymore. She felt back in her comfort zone - the comfort that she had left behind months ago. It was a familiarity that she didn't know she missed until she came face to face with it once again.

It won't ever get old, not in my soul

Not in my spirit, keep it alive

We'll go down this road

'Til it turns from color to black and white

This was what she loved to do. This was her passion.

Or do you not think so far ahead?

'Cause I been thinkin' 'bout forever

After singing her last run, the song came to an end. The entire room erupted into a standing ovation. Even the guitarist stood on his feet to show Lucy the respect he believed she deserved. Glancing around the room, Lucy smiled in appreciation - and when her eyes saw Natsu smiling back at her with his arms crossed, she shot back a smirk.

"You sounded like an absolute professional!" The guitarist praised Lucy as he shook her hand in gratitude. "Tell me, are you a trained singer?"

Laughing modestly, Lucy shook her head. "Haha, no… this is just something I used to do with my free time."

"Meaning… you don't do it anymore." The guitarist asked, almost bewildered.

Sighing, Lucy shook her head again. "It's a long story… but I didn't want everyone to go home in disappointment of the show being over too quickly."

Giving her a reassuring smile, the guitarist patted her head. "I hope you find a way back to singing again. I'd hate for a talent like yours to disappear from the industry." Bowing his head slightly, he walked away from the stage - getting ready to pack the instruments and sound equipment for closing. Letting out a soft chuckle to herself, Lucy found her way off the stage… only to realize that Natsu had been standing in front of the stage already.

Extending a hand towards Lucy, he helped her get down from the sloped stage on to the ground. Afterwards, he turned to Lucy with an astonished expression plastered all over him. "How in the world are you capable of doing that…?" He placed his hands on Lucy's shoulders in excitement, making Lucy giggle in return. "That was one of the best things I've ever seen."

"You think so?" With Natsu nodding, it made Lucy smile. "I want to thank you." Sighing, Lucy's eyes fell onto the ground for a moment, before matching up back with Natsu's. "I haven't done something like that in a long time."

Natsu returned a smirk of her own, and he moved closer to Lucy… sending a shiver down her back. He was so close - she could feel his breath against her neck. "That was also one of the best turn-ons I've had in a long time."

A promiscuous grin leered upon Lucy, which made her bite her lower lip. The same feeling rushed through her body as last night - pure lust. She felt confident once again, knowing that she had that effect on him. "I turn you on, huh?"

Placing his hand across her lower waist, he pulled her closer to him - his lips close enough to touch her ear. "You do a lot of things to me…"

But before Natsu could say anything further, their moment was interrupted by the ring of a cell phone. Realizing it wasn't Lucy's, Natsu reached for his pocket, and pulled out his. Just as he answered it, a distressed voice was just audible enough for Lucy to notice.

"Why are you calling me?" Natsu began to speak, equally annoyed. Lucy took this as a cue to back off away slightly. She didn't need much to figure out that he was frustrated.

"Lisanna, just back off okay?!"

Natsu didn't notice the blood draining out of Lucy's face as soon as he uttered those last few words. Whatever he was saying after that registered out of Lucy's ears- as if she went deaf at that moment. After getting off of the phone, Natsu turned his eyes back towards Lucy, who started to clear her throat. "Hey, umm, I actually… have to go home."

"So soon?" Natsu asked, confused. Lucy tried her best to make sure he couldn't see through past her surface… but it was harder than she had initially thought. "You can't stay longer?"

"No, I… umm…" Lucy struggled to find words, making Natsu more and more concerned. "I… told my grandfather that I'd be on time for dinner. I bailed on him last night."

"Ah…" Natsu's troubled expression disappeared into coyness. "...last night."

Letting out a quiet, short laugh, Lucy nodded her head. "I'll see you later."

...

"Is everything okay?"

"Umm…" Lucy began breathing slowly; she had called Juvia to the street that Natsu took her to, and asked if she could drive her back to her grandfather's place. It was getting into the evening, and the house was fairly quiet as her grandfather was taking a nap. The two girls had been in Lucy's room for a little while, and Juvia could see distress upon Lucy's face - which made her concern grow more and more. "Remember when I told you last night that… I left the party 'cause I got bored?"

After Juvia nodded, Lucy continued speaking - this time, in a lower voice. "That's not the only reason why I left."

Juvia was quiet for a minute, which made Lucy panic as she wondered if Juvia was mad at her. However, Juvia reached for her dark-blue side-bag and pulled out her phone, and opened it. After a few more moments, she brought up her screen in front of Lucy. Juvia had opened SnapChat, and there was the video of Lucy, with that guitarist from earlier, singing 'Thinking 'Bout You' - and the caption read: I'm falling head over heels. "I was going to ask you about it later… but I guess I don't have to anymore."

"Are you mad at me?"

Laughing, Juvia turned off her phone, and looked at Lucy playfully. "Why would I be mad?"

Lucy shrugged, as she took a seat on her neatly-made bed. "I don't know… 'cause I lied to you?"

"You didn't lie." Juvia said in a teasing, yet reassuring tone, as she sat across from Lucy on her bed. "But I'll admit, I can't say I was expecting that."

Shaking her head gently, Lucy let out a sigh. "He was dating someone before… right?"

Juvia nodded her head, and her initial happy demeanor shrunk a little bit - which Lucy noticed. "Lisanna and Natsu always had a complicated relationship… but yesterday was the first time they actually broke up. They'd take breaks here and there, but they always made up."

"Lisanna…" Lucy said slowly, no longer making eye contact with Juvia. "You mean Lisanna Strauss?"