Disclaimer; I do not own fairy tail or any of it's characters Hiro Mashima does...I only own the idea to my own made up story line for the characters haha.
A/N This story had been edited to fix any mistakes and improve the experience for all you lovely reader
*Lucy's p.o.v*
I can not believe how angry I was right now! I have never felt this kind of rage before, like I wanted to kill someone. But here I was, dragging my dense teammate away from the dance floor, towards the garden at the back of the guild, while reminding myself that if I did, in fact, try to kill him or attack the guy in anyway, I may come off worse for wear. Though I was tempted to call Capricorn out and have him teach Natsu a lesson in decorum... Wait considering how I was dressed I'd most likely be the one to receive the lecture. So yeah that's a bad idea.
"Let go of my scarf," Natsu demanded. In that whiny tone he used when he wanted me to go along with some crazy ass scheme of his. "Please."
What was that last word he just said?
"What did you just say?" I whirled around to face him, dropping my hold on his scarf as I did so. I'm sure I must have misheard him. Natsu never says please, EVER!
"I said let go of my scarf," The pinkette grumbled. Loosening and re-wrapping his beloved scarf around his neck as it had slipped from my fingers due to the disbelief at what I had just heard.
"After that," I blushed, looking to the side as I noticed that his shirt had popped open during his brief fist fight, to reveal his very nice set of well defined abs. You'd think after so much time hanging around, the usually, half naked guy I would have become accustomed to this sight by now? Wrong! It always took me by surprise actually with how much the sight still managed to rob me of the capacity to think straight and caused my cheeks to colour in a rosy blush. Why this guy had such an effect on me was a mystery. A truly maddening mystery at times but what can I say, even after everything that's happened in the last month, he still seemed to have a hold on me some how.
"Oh, I said please." Natsu's voice snapped me out of my inner babbling and made me turn my attention back to him. I was thankful for the interruption to my thoughts otherwise I may have wandered further into that hurtful line of thought. Oh so it hadn't been my imagination The mighty Salamander, had actually asked me to do something for him politely. Had pigs learned to fly?
"Who are you and what have you done with my friend?" I demanded, poking my finger at him.
"You're weird you know that right, Lucy?" He chuckled, giving me one of those heart warming grins that made you melt. It was almost as if nothing had happened and as if the two of us were still best friends who spoke everyday. If only that were true, I missed him, I missed our friendship.
"I am not." I huffed, folding my arms across my chest. This man was so annoying at times, what gave him the right to call me weird?! Had he looked in a mirror recently? All I had to say was pink hair! Natural pink hair! "I've just never heard you say that word before is all. It took me by surprise."
"What are you talking about, I say please. Don't I?" He inquired, with that cute head tilting look he gets when he's confused. How can a male teenager be so cute? It's not fair, I mean come on at least give me a shot at staying angry at you, for heavens sake!
"Not once since I met you do I recall hearing you say the word 'please' to me." I replied, putting my cool wall back up. I was still upset with him and he wasn't going to worm his way back into my good graces by being Natsu! He effectively broke my heart less than a month ago and had punched my dance partner only a few minute prior.
"Don't be stupid, I must have said please when asking you to form a team with me?" He pondered out loud. Okay, I was quickly reaching my patience limit. If I didn't somehow manage to get us out side so we could have a serious talk I think I might loose my cool and say something, I really don't want heard, out loud.
"No, you said lets form a team, no please just a demand." I retorted, before turning around and continuing to walk out into the back yard of the guild. I needed to get some fresh air to help cool me down a little. Then I could talk civilly to Natsu before returning to Sting and apologizing profusely. Then maybe I could go back to enjoying myself and letting my hair down. Maybe even trying to move on from this one sided love affair I kept having...Now I could truly understand how Juvia must feel.
"Oh," He replied. I didn't bother to look back and just moved to my destination. I knew he'd follow me even without seeing it for myself. He always followed me at times like these.
Seeing one of the outside deck chairs, I decided to go and sit closest to the water, just in case he needed a lesson from Aquarius but hopefully that wouldn't be necessary as I'd only end up getting washed away too.
"Sit." I commanded as I saw Natsu enter my line of sight. See I knew he'd follow me.
"Aye sir." He squeaked, doing as he was told. Whoops I hadn't meant to sound like Erza, but if it got Natsu to do as he was told with out complaint, then never mind, sounding like my red haired friend was a good thing.
"So, why did you attack Sting like that again?" I sighed, being blunt was the best course of action here. I could have sworn he was said something about protecting me earlier.
"I was protecting you." He replied looking at me steely. How can he be so serious all of a sudden?
"From what? Having fun?" I scoffed, deciding to stare him down with a serious look of my own. Two can play this game.
"From that Sabertooth guy, he was touching you all over." Natsu hissed. I could tell he was angry from just bringing up the memory because the area around us seemed to warm up drastically. I couldn't complain though as I'd been feeling slightly cold in the evening breeze and the warmth Natsu was now emanating was lovely. It was why I never got mad in the winter when he used to sneak into bed with me, as it kept me cozy.
"We were dancing, of course he'd touch me." I sighed, rubbing the bridge of my nose feeling a headache coming on. "Gray and You have danced with me before so what's the problem?"
"I didn't like it." He pouted hunching into his scarf and folding his arms across his chest. "I didn't like him touchin' you."
"Why didn't you like it?" I inquired, more than a little puzzled at this turn of events. I was so confused, he seemed to be admitting to me that he didn't like other guys touching me, but he didn't seem to realize it himself. I mean wasn't he in love with Lisanna for mavis' sake...Or that was the impression I'd gotten when he'd brazenly declared his feeling to her in front of the entire guild.
"Because, you're my teammate." He grumbled, his head somehow managing to retreat further behind the scarf. He looked just like Asuka when she didn't want to eat her veggies. It was kind of adorable but it sparked a weird feeling in my chest that I couldn't quite identify. The guy I liked shouldn't remind me of a child I regularly baby sat should he?
"Then why didn't you get this protective of Erza when she was chatting with Jellal or Wendy when Romeo was holding her hand?" I asked gently, pulling my arms around myself to keep off the chill. Seeing as Natsu's rage had subsided the air was getting colder again.
"That's because..." He trailed off a bewildered look starting to creep over his face. He truly didn't know why it bothered him, did he?
"Is it because you might like me?" I blushed, looking downwards so as not to look at him directly. God what had possessed me to ask that question out loud?! Was I a masochistic or something? I knew that couldn't be true.
"Of course I like you." Natsu stated adamantly. He probably had that stupid grin that I loved so much plastered over his face. "You're my best friend."
I felt my heart break all over again as that small shard of hope that had re-blossomed shattered once more. Did he not get how much his innocent denseness hurt me at times? Didn't he have a clue at all about how I really felt, especially after how his confession to Lisanna had ended? Did he not realize how much words could hurt?
"Oh," I gasped standing up and turning my back on him so that he didn't see the tears that had sprung to my eyes. I shouldn't have been so foolish, I should have kept my mouth closed. I'd had a full month to come to terms with his none interest in me as more than a trusted ally...So how could I have been so stupid as to ask that ridiculous question? I'd already know my answer.
Snap out of it Lucy! I scalded myself. You are not one to fall apart over some guy. But it wasn't just some guy, he was Natsu, my dragon slayer. This was different to my usual silly crushes of old. I'd come to feel as if we were two sides of a coin. One never without the other but maybe that was what being best friends was all about. I'm being silly pull it together girl who cares if you've been friend zoned, falling for this dense idiot had been a mistake in the first place!
"Why are you crying?" I felt a warm hand grasp my shoulder and spin me around. Damn his ability to sense everything.
"I'm not." I hastily rubbed at my eyes trying to remove the traitorous tears that had escaped, before remembering the makeup I'd applied would have smeared all over my face with that one action. Oh great! Why hadn't I worn the water proof stuff? Oh yeah because I hadn't expected to be made to cry yet again by this guy duh!
"Hahaha," Natsu burst out laughing, pointing and gwaffing at me.
"What?" I huffed, feeling somewhat offended by being laughed at, especially by him.
"You...Look just..haha...like a panda," He pointed at me, while I desperately tried to sort the mess without a mirror.
"It's not polite to compare a girl to a panda." I snapped. This was not the way I'd wanted this talk to go!
"But you'd make a cute panda." He smiled and ducked back behind his scarf. Wait was that a blush I just saw on his cheeks...and did he call me CUTE?
"Would not." I snorted and started to head back towards the guild. First stop ladies room to redo my makeup...
'Whack'
"Ouch." I moaned stumbling backwards after hitting what felt like a brick wall. "I'm sorry." I looked up to see if the person I'd walked into was fine only to find a wall of purple runes encasing us in about a 20 metre radius. What the hell was Freed doing leaving one of these set up here?
"You okay?" Natsu asked walking up to see what the matter was. "Huh, why is there a rune trap here?"
"I dunno do I," I replied rubbing my nose feeling extremely sorry for myself, these things really did pack a wallop. "But go ahead and read the requirement to leave already, would you." My mood was already soured I did not need this right now
"Okay," Natsu mumbled, trying to figure out what we needed to do to leave. "Well that doesn't make any sense."
"What doesn't?" I replied, reminding myself to work on his communication skills at some point in the near future.
"Well it says 'whoever is trapped here must give their partner a passionate fish to leave' but how can I give you a passionate fish when I'm stuck in here with you?" He replied puzzled. I had to agree that sounded like an impossible request even for Freed to write.
"Are you sure that's what it said?" I shook my head, looking up at the rules panel to double check. That says kiss not kisu...I could totally facepalm right about now.
"It means a passionate 'kiss' not a 'fish'." I stressed each word so that he could understand clearly. It was a common mistake so I couldn't really scold him.
Hang on a passionate kiss? We would have to kiss to get out of this trap? Was tonight going to get any worse? I didn't want to kiss him again especially seeing as he didn't like me like that.
"Right, so how do we do that?" He asked turning his head towards me a look of genuineness plastered all over it. Is he messing with me? Please tell me he is.
"You never cease to amaze me at times," I sighed. Well if I wanted to get out of here, looks like it's up to me to make it happen. Okay here goes nothing, even if it means nothing to him this can be my goodbye to these awful feelings I have for him. No more unrequited love, this was it! I swear.
"Um, Luce what are you doing?" Natsu questioned, as I grabbed hold of each side of his torn shirt and pulled his body flush with my own. I would be lying if I said I'd never dreamed about kissing Natsu like this and now was the moment of truth...I wonder if the real deal will be better than the dream?
"This is a 'kiss'." I whispered in my most seductive tone, lowering my lips closer to his, tilting my face slightly so that our noses wouldn't bump together. My heart started to beat faster and I let my eyes start to flutter closed. I never expected my first proper kiss with Natsu to happen like this (the peck I'd given him under the sakura tree didn't count) but beggars can't be choosers I guess. I think I should be thanking Freed later for this opportunity or chewing him out depending how it goes.
"Wha are you do.." I pressed my lips over his drowning out what he had been about to say. I fully closed my eyes and sank into the feeling of his body being so close to mine, the feel of his warm lips melted with my own, the way he was wrapping his arms around my waist and was returning my kiss...
"You...kissed me back?" I murmured as we both pulled away for air. I couldn't believe what was happening, was I dreaming? Had I just shared a proper kiss with Natsu? Please oh please don't let this be a dream. He didn't answer me right away, but his grip did tighten around my waist as he rested his forehead on mine staring straight into my eyes. A strange look had appeared in his eyes, one that I knew from movies and books but had never expected to see on his face. It was Lust.
I felt as if I was on cloud nine being held like this, his arms so tight around me as if he was afraid I'd run away at any moment. That lustful look made my breath catch in my throat and my pulse quicken even more than it already was. If this was a final farewell to my feelings then, by the gods, was it one hell of a farewell party.
"Again," He whispered huskily, his eyes never wavering, as his lips descended this time taking me off guard. I never thought I'd see Natsu like this as if he was someone else entirely...No more over thinking Lucy, just live in the moment for once, it's not every day you have the opportunity to get a chance to change you're clueless crushes view of you. But I'd been so adamant this was it no more feelings for this goofball, was it really ok to let this moment over whelm me and allow those thoughts of romance to bloom again? Oh what the hell, I could figure all this emotional baggage out later, for now I just wanted to kiss him like that once more!
"Again." I breathed as I moved the short distance and met him in the middle. This time it wasn't so timid, our lips moved with a little more urgency, a little more passion and a lot more confidence. I couldn't put it into words but the way this made me feel was as if I was finally been seen as a woman for the first time. I sighed into the kiss as I wrapped my arms up and around Natsu's neck, I was in heaven. That earlier pang in my chest completely forgotten about as I sank into the bliss of my dragons embrace.