. Count on Me .
"You can count on me like one, two, three,
I'll be there,
And I know when I need it I can count on you like four, three, two,
You'll be there.
'Cause that's what friends are supposed to do."
~ "Count on Me" by Bruno Mars
A few days after her interesting conversation with Natsu found Lucy boredly tapping a pen on the counter in front of her bakery's register. She pressed her lips together unhappily. She'd had plans with Levy for the day. A nice outing to a nearby park, since Levy didn't often go outside without someone to keep her company. Not because she didn't know where she was going, of course, but simply because she didn't feel the need.
But a younger employee had called in sick and no one had been able to fill in for the shift, so Lucy found herself taking over again and wondering if it was really worth keeping the untrustworthy employee. This was the umpteenth time they'd called in sick. Lucy had no doubt they really weren't.
Yep, Lucy decided with a groan, she'd be firing them. She'd send them a curt e-mail as soon as she got home to her lonely large apartment that evening. She checked the clock and fought the urge to show it a rude middle finger. She still had several hours before Lisanna showed up to take over or even help.
Lucy was just beginning to consider calling Levy to invite her over and chat - it was a rather slow day with very few people coming in and out - as she wrote out an order being given when the bells connected to the door rang. She didn't bother to glance up, thinking it was another customer as she called, "I'll be with you in a moment!"
"Wow, thanks, Lucy, been gone a whole damn year and you'll be with me in a moment?"
Lucy stopped dead, dropping her pencil as she snapped her head upright. Her eyes lit with joy at the familiar sight of the man who was grinning at her from just inside, hands shoved into his pockets and his black hair sticking up in every direction. "Gray!" she cried, abandoning what she was doing and darting around the back of the counter. She ran through the tables, ignoring curious stares, and slammed into him with a laugh. She threw her arms around his neck, hugging him incredibly tight. "You're back!"
He cracked a grin, ruffling her blonde hair with a teasing glint in his black eyes. He didn't look any different from what she remembered, even had only one button on his button-up shirt undone. She was impressed. "Anything exciting happen?"
"You wouldn't believe," Lucy said in a deadpan voice, "just how much you missed. For one, my bakery almost burned down." He sputtered, and she found herself bouncing, giddy that her closest friend outside of Levy was back after his trip. She led him through the tables to one they always occupied when he came by. She'd deal with angry customers later, when they came over and demanded to be served. Gray looked amused as he flopped into the seat across from her.
She'd known Gray Fullbuster for many years, before she'd even known Levy, and she appreciated him more than he would ever know. He'd been there during rough times and she loved him like a brother. She'd missed him dearly while he'd been away for a year long trip to a mountainous area with his adopted brother. She couldn't remembering what he'd been up to in that time….mountain climbing? Something similar.
"Please tell me you're joking," Gray said regarding her comment about her bakery almost burning down.
"Nope. Lisanna isn't good with the toaster, but it's fine now." Lucy flashed him a blinding smile. "By the way, watch your shirt."
Gray's chin touched his chest as he looked down to check and see what she was talking about. He squawked, swore, and then swiftly re-buttoned his shirt. Lucy smirked; it was an odd habit of his and neither knew where it came from. Certainly not his adopted family, who were as unsure about it as he was. He'd had it as long as he could remember.
"Anything else been happening?" Gray asked, glancing at her as he settled back.
"Not much," she laughed. "Levy's been doing more out of the museum, which is really good for her. I took her to a lecture not too long ago...oh!" She became more serious, leaning in, and he copied. He braced his elbows and arms on the table, moving so he wasn't far from her. "It's weird, but I've been having these dreams…" She launched into an explanation, giving every detail she could think of. Gray, the good friend he was, didn't speak at all throughout her long-winded speech.
When she was done, however, he said quietly, "So let me get this straight, Lucy." He leaned in even further, and she sat back as he squinted at her. "You had these really weird dreams that made you so upset you cried and the first thing you thought to do about them wasn't to call me, or even explain in detail to Levy, but to turn to this complete stranger who was having weird dreams about you and think it's a good idea?"
"Sounds about right," Lucy said with a shrug.
"Lucy."
"What? It helped. I haven't had any more dreams." Lucy waved off his worry. Her dark, puzzled eyes studied him for what he really thought. "I've been thinking about contacting him again. He left his number with me. And besides, he's different. Interesting. I like him."
Gray made a sound of disgust. "Don't get mushy on me."
She puffed up her cheeks in agitation and swatted at his face. "There's something about him that I can't put my finger on him. Something important - really important, Gray. Like there's something I don't know but it's a key fact that I have to know." She looked him up and down from beneath her lashes. "Have you ever met someone like that?" All it took was Gray faltering, looking away, and she grinned almost maniacally. "Talk."
Casually, Gray looked out the window beside their table, tapping his fingers on the table's surface as he sat back. "You know how Lyon and I were out teaching some people rock climbing and stuff?" She nodded. "There was something strange about one of them. This girl...she seemed really...not odd, but it felt weird whenever I looked at her, I guess." He let out a low gust of air, thoughtful. "She felt the same. She was really confused, too, said she thought the same about me. We didn't talk much about it, but…"
Lucy studied him with a smirk tugging at the corners of her lips. "Interesting," she said after a moment. "So did you get her number?" Gray hastily pressed his lips together, a hint of a flush spreading across his face, and Lucy grinned widely. She'd known him long enough to simply know. "When's the date, Gray?" she teased.
They kept up like that for nearly an hour. Lucy eventually just closed the shop early, apologizing to the people who were grumpily glaring at her for not getting to their order. She promised them a free muffin if they came the next morning to order something, and that seemed to soothe bad tempers.
She and Gray simply hung out as evening began to fall, and she was caught surprise when the bells jingled, signaling that someone was entering the bakery. Both of them paused and looked over to discover none other than Natsu, standing hesitantly and awkwardly in the doorway with a young blue-haired girl clinging to his sleeve, smiling shyly at them. "Natsu!" Lucy called in friendly voice, waving. Lowering her voice, she muttered to her friend, "That's the guy I was telling you about, Gray."
Gray studied him with a nearly harsh look, scowling. Lucy didn't notice, instead waving him over. Natsu faltered before reluctantly striding over. The girl scampered alongside him, her brown eyes studying Lucy closely as Lucy smiled warmly and greeted in a friendly voice, "You must be Wendy. Natsu's told me about you. Natsu, Wendy, this is my good friend Gray Fullbuster."
"It's nice to meet you," Wendy said shyly, fiddling with her fingers as Gray flashed her a grin and another look at Natsu. She hesitated, and then said hastily, "Do you want us to leave? The shop door said closed, but Natsu said it'd be okay if we came in anyways-"
"You don't have to leave," Lucy replied firmly. "You're welcome to hang out if you'd like. I'll get you something to eat. What do you want to munch on, Wendy?"
Wendy thought it over and then voiced what she wanted. Lucy nodded her approval before climbing to her feet, waving for Natsu to join her, much to Gray's annoyance and the pink-haired man's wariness. He looked reluctant to leave Wendy alone with Gray until Lucy said casually, "He's not going to eat her, Natsu. Gray's fine."
Huffing, Natsu trailed after her as she turned and headed for the kitchen. He caught up to her after a few seconds and when he had, Natsu said grouchily, "Why is he looking at me like that?" Lucy glanced at him, confused. "Like I'm the scum of the earth or something."
"Gray and I've known each other for ages," Lucy said with a shrug. "I told him we've been chatting lately and he's just suspicious because he doesn't trust very easily. Don't worry, he won't go after you or anything." She patted Natsu's arm comfortingly and he blinked at the sensation. She ignored the jolt that raced through her when she did. She wasn't even touching skin, she thought grouchily, getting to work. She loaded up a large plate with a variety of snacks, and she grinned when she caught Natsu licking his lips excitedly. He was quite fond of her food, something Lucy was quite proud of. "So what are you two doing here?"
Natsu glanced up and said, "We're waiting on Gajeel to finish an exam so we can head to the store and then to the museum. Levy must have liked him, 'cause she offered a free private tour to the three of us." Lucy looked up, surprised. Levy had liked the terrifying man that Lucy had abandoned her to? Levy hadn't said a word about him since then, other than a quick "He was fine." Natsu cocked his head. "Are you going to be there?"
"Levy didn't mention it," Lucy admitted, "but I'll probably show up." She cocked her head in thought. "I want to thank Gajeel for helping Levy, and Levy's in the middle of some research, which means that I have to bring her some dinner, so...yeah, I'll be there more than likely."
Natsu lit up in excitement, his face bright with happiness. "Great!" He said a little to happily, earning a laugh from Lucy.
From where they were sitting, eavesdropping on the somewhat loud conversation, Gray narrowed his eyes at Natsu and then looked over when Wendy whispered, sounding shockingly hopeful, "He's never been on a date before. I hope he doesn't mess up."
Gray lifted a brow. "I didn't hear a single 'date' in all of the words they just said." He leaned back, looking somewhat nervous suddenly. Lucy wasn't careful when it came to meeting people, trusting some far too quickly. He just hoped that she didn't suffer because of it.
Suddenly, Wendy gasped. He looked over, finding her staring at him in utter terror. "What?" he huffed, and she sputtered, waving at him, slapping her hands over her eyes.
Gray looked down and squawked, hastily re-buttoning his shirt.
Re-written as of August 1, 2018!
