"Since you cooked I'll do the dishes," Lucy offered, setting down her fork.

"Veto," Natsu stood, gathering the dishes together. "Cleaning up is a part of making breakfast. Relax, I got this." He shuffles off back into the kitchen, depositing the dishes into the sink.

"If you insist," she said. "I'll just go take a quick shower then."

"Was that an invitation?" He grinned back at her, plunging the dishes into the soapy water in the sink.

"Showering is a singular activity," she responded with a glare.

"Oh Lucy you've been showering all wrong," He smirked. "Who has been washing your back?"

"Sh-Shut up," she stammered standing up from the table. "I can wash my own back."

He continued to smirk, shaking his head slightly as he reached for another plate to scrub. "Well if you need any help, just let me know. I'm an excellent scrubber," Natsu offered, holding up the plate he was scrubbing for emphasis.

"Don't hold your breath," she called back as she hurried down the hall to the guestroom. It was getting harder and harder for Lucy to keep her imagination under control. Natsu's suggestion just started kindling another fantasy she was trying desperately to get out of her mind. The thought of his hands scrubbing her back made her several shades redder than her natural complexion.

He's just teasing you. He wants you to get all worked up. Don't give him what he wants. Lucy chided herself as she stepped into the bathroom, closing the door. Even though she kept reminding herself of these words, she couldn't keep the fantasy at bay. As the warm water poured on her, her mind was imagining Natsu behind her. His strong hands stroking her back, up and down. Goose bumps broke across her skin, as she imagined him pulling her closer to him. His lips would brush against her ear as he whispered to her-

"AHHHHHHH!" Turning the water all the way to cold in order to cool her thoughts, Lucy ended her shower. "No more. No more. No more," She muttered to herself as she stepped out of the shower. Quickly toweling herself dry, Lucy wrapped the towel tight around her. Grabbing another, she gathered her long blonde hair and wrapped into the towel to dry. Cracking the door, she looked around the room to make sure Natsu wasn't hiding in there. Luckily, there was no sign of him. The bed was still unmade, and Lucy prodded the comforter to make sure another incident like yesterday didn't happen again. She relaxed once she realized she was safe. Her phone was blinking on the dresser, indicating she had a message. The screen revealed she had missed a call from Gray. Her finger hovered over the redial button when she saw he left a voicemail. She clicked on it instead and his voice played through the phone:

Hey Lucy. I hope you're alright and that flamebrain hasn't done anything to you. If he did, let me know and I'll take care of him real quick. That guy is such a nuisance. I know how much you like your quiet weekends, so I'm sorry you have to deal with that. Luckily Wendy and her parents will be back tomorrow right? Then you no longer have to deal with him." There was a pause, as if Gray wasn't really sure if those words were true or not.

Anyway, I'm calling because I'm going to have to cancel today. I know I made this big deal about hanging out and I want to. Except, I'm actually about to get on a plane right now. Some rich and titled guy wants to commission 12 portraits from me. Can you believe it? 12! He's flying me out and everything. It's for his daughter's birthday present or whatever. Look I know this is a dick move of me to cancel on you. I'll definitely make it up to you when I get back. Whatever you want to do, we'll do it the second I get back. I really do miss you Lucy. Take care of yourself while I'm gone.

The message ended and Lucy just stared at her phone for a moment. She was sad that she couldn't hang out with her friend. She had been looking forward to catching up with him. Remembering how hard Gray had worked in order to get his art acknowledged, Lucy just pushed her sadness down. He'll be back. Sending good wishes to her friend silently, Lucy placed her phone back on the side table. The overnight bag Virgo had packed was sitting in the armchair. Unzipping it, Lucy selected green shorts and a button down navy blue shirt that had tiny white flowers all over it. She rolled her sleeves to sit above her elbows. Moving back to the bathroom, she put on some light makeup and reached for the blow dryer under the sink. She brushed and blow dried her hair and tied it up in her side ponytail, selecting a white ribbon to hold it together. Satisfied with her look she went back out to the kitchen.

Since she became un-expectantly free today, Lucy thought she would invite Natsu out. Only as a thank you for breakfast. Emerging from the hall, Lucy went straight into the kitchen but Natsu wasn't there. The dishes had been dried and put away, no trace of the delicious breakfast was left. She moved into the living room where she spied Lily curled up on the couch asleep, yet still no Natsu. Levy's and Gajeel's apartment had a total of four bedrooms. One was the master bedroom, the second was the guest bedroom, and the third was being used as a library/office for Levy and the fourth was for Gajeel's music collection. He was the Vice President of a music company called Shadow Iron and had dealt with a lot of famous musicians throughout the years. Lucy checked them all, but there was still no sign of Natsu. She went back to the guest bedroom and grabbed her phone thinking to call him, but realized she didn't even have his number.

"He must have gone out for something," She reasoned aloud. Lily walked in the room, jumping onto the messy bed. Her hand reached out to pet the feline, stroking the soft fur between his ears. It was then that Lucy realized Natsu's black bag was missing. "He wouldn't leave without saying goodbye. Would he?" In response, Lily meowed before jumping down again and exiting the room leaving Lucy alone.

Wendy returned to pick up Lily late Sunday evening. She gave Lucy a tiny wrapped package as a thank you for watching Lily. The little girl gave a quick synopsis of her trip as she collected Lily's things. Her parents' were waiting downstairs in the taxi otherwise they would have come up too. Wendy gave Lucy a hug goodbye before heading back downstairs to meet her parents. Grabbing her bags by the door, Lucy turned off all the lights and locked the door behind her.

It was late when she finally made it back to her apartment. Lucy didn't even bother turning the lights on when she entered. Dropping her bags on the couch, she went straight to her bedroom, closing the door. Curling up on her bed, she stared at the darkest corner of her room. She had ran a dozen scenarios in her head why Natsu had left, all ending with him coming back. It was late Sunday night and still Natsu had never returned. She was back in her apartment, all alone and that realization made her start to cry.

"This is stupid," she cried. She had gotten what she wanted; a quiet weekend alone with no distractions. "So why can't I stop crying?" She started feeling it then. The silence bearing down on her like a choking smog.

He left. Just like he did. Like everyone. A familiar whisper echoed in her heart. Lucy felt a long forgotten fear start to cling to her heart. Her body started to shake. A flash of a memory appeared. A man with hazels eyes and a cruel smile. A bright light then darkness.

"No," she sobbed. The dark corner of her room seemed to grow, swallowing everything.

You're alone. It whispered to her again and again. Alone. Alone. Alone. Alone. Alone. Alone. Alone.

"I-I don't want to be alone," she sobbed, but no one was there to hear her.

1 Week 2 days Later

"I'm okay Virgo," She answered before her secretary could ask her for what seemed like the millionth time. It hadn't been just Virgo though. A lot of her employees kept asking her if she was alright. They finally stopped after she snapped at them, which she instantly regretted. Now she had to deal with their worried glances, she tried to ignore. Lucy didn't know what was worse. Yet, Virgo was unfettered by her burst of frustration, still stopping by her office to check on her before she left for the day. "I'm just going to approve some of the documents for Friday's meeting."

"Don't tell me you already finished everything for Thursday's document review?" Virgo shook her head at Lucy already knowing the answer.

"It's all filed and ready for tomorrow meeting. It should go smoothly. I want the team to look over some of the prints just to make sure, but I thought we could move ahead with some new client accounts," She motioned to a pile of folders sitting on her desk.

"Lucy I know you say you're fine but-"

"Virgo," Lucy held her hand up interrupting her secretary. "I like to work. That's all." She tried giving Virgo her best smile, but the woman just shook her head sadly, unconvinced.

"I'm here for you if you need to talk, you know that right?" was her reply as she gathered up her belongings.

"I know," She paused. Lucy wanted to talk to her. She wanted to explain why she didn't want to go home. Without Levy and without Gray, it was hard bottling her feelings up inside. But telling Virgo would only mean burdening her with her own personal problems. Saying them out loud would also make it real. "Thank you Virgo, but I really am fine," Lucy finished.

"Don't work too late, Lucy." Virgo gave her one last disapproving look before leaving her office.

Lucy sighed, rubbing her eyes with the back of her hands. Virgo's eyes felt like they saw right through her charade. Normally, Lucy would stay in the office as late as she could. People started calling her a workaholic, but Lucy just wanted any excuse to prolong returning to her empty apartment. Trying to surround herself with distractions, pouring herself into her work, walking home in the crowded streets, anything that would delay her from returning home. This was how she had been before she met Gray, before she met Levy. Years of work, destroyed by Natsu in one night. She thought she had gotten used to being alone, but ever since Natsu left it had become unbearable. The walls that she had built up to keep it at bay were erased by him. The old scars she thought had healed, were bleeding like fresh wounds. Lucy knew it was stupid to feel this way about someone she barely knew. Who cares if he left? It wasn't like she was anything to him or he was anything to her…. He didn't have to tell her if he was leaving or not. Yet, his sudden departure dragged up old and painful memories, memories she thought she had long since buried in the deepest parts of her heart. She didn't know how he did it, but she was back to square one.

Thinking about him was not helping either. It just reminded her how easily people can leave. "It wasn't like we knew each other well anyway," she muttered to herself. "This shouldn't bother me, but yet-" She slapped her cheeks with her hands, breaking away from that thought. With a sigh, she stood up and started collecting her things. When work stopped being a distraction, she had to move onto the next one. That was Lucy's new routine, hopping from distraction to distraction.

The streets were crowded as usual, and Lucy let herself be carried away by the river of people. It was only when she was carried to a small Thai restaurant two blocks from her apartment that she broke from the flow. She made her usual greetings to the restaurant staff as she made her way to the counter. She wasn't on first name bases yet, but they recognized her nonetheless. Lucy had been coming here for over a week, every night and ordering different things off the menu. She had almost made it through the whole thing. Without even waiting for her to order, the kindly looking woman behind the counter already had Lucy's to-go order waiting.

"This is too much," Lucy said as she went through the same conversation she had with the woman every night, if one could even call it a conversation. The woman never spoke a word to her, just smiled and took Lucy's cash and giving her the change. Lucy tried to pay for the extra meal she always seemed to get, but the woman just shook her head and shooed her out. With her arm loaded down with Thai food, she walked the final two blocks to her apartment.

Lucy's apartment building was located near central park. Well, a brisk walk and trip on the subway and viola, central park. The building wasn't the newest apartment complex either, but it had character, something Lucy was looking for when she first came to New York. After making her business successful, she could have moved into a more luxurious apartment, but none of them had the same feel hers did. It was a cozy 2 bedroom apartment with a descent rent. She contemplated taking the stairs, but after walking all night, lugging Thai food up 10 flights of steps just didn't seem all that appealing. The elevator doors slid open. She entered and pressed the 10th floor button, and fished out her keys. All too soon the elevator doors opened, depositing her back home. Every step she took to her door made her nauseous. She knew that she would probably make two bites into her food, before it went into the fridge like the rest of her take out. Turning the corner, she approached apartment 1012 and immediately stopped.

Sitting down and leaning against her door asleep, was Natsu. He was dressed in his usual all black attire, his shock of pink hair contrasting. His legs were stretched out in the hallway, his arms crossed across his chest. His head was bent forward as he slept. Her eyes darted around the hall, trying to see if anyone would give a disapproving gaze to him, if only to confirm that he was really there and her mind wasn't playing tricks on her.

"Natsu," she breathed. His eyes fluttered opened and found hers. Her heart gave a flip at the sight of him, and she could feel the corners of her mouth twitching to form a smile. She quickly schooled her features, back into a neutral state.

"Lucy!" He stood, smiling as he called out her name. "You're finally back. I've been waiting for hours. I guess I must have dozed off."

"How do you know where I live?" She managed to ask keeping her tone flat.

"I'm a treasure hunter," he smirked. "Finding treasure is my specialty."

It was just more of his teasing. Don't get any ideas. She tightened her grip on her Thai food and moved past Natsu to unlock her door. "You're mistaken then or not a very good treasure hunter. There's no treasure here." The key slid into the lock and she opened the door.

"Hey-"

"Since Lily is back at Gajeel's parents' house, you don't have to worry about feeding him. Gajeel and Levy will be back in a few weeks, so you'll be alone. If you stay that long anyway." She spoke to her dark and empty apartment not looking at him, but facing the silence that awaited her and trying to keep her voice from shaking. The silence was reaching out to her, the invisible tendrils gently wrapping themselves around her limbs, urging her to enter. The fear brimming inside of her made her shake slightly. Natsu had left her, reminding her of the trauma from her past. Levy was gone. Grey was gone. Her usual crutches weren't there. It was fine. She had gotten over her fear of being alone once before. She would do it again. She was fine. The silence beckoned to her. I'm fine.

"If you don't need anything then goodnight Natsu," She took a step forward, about to repeat the next steps of her routine: putting the take out in the fridge, taking two sleeping pills, praying they worked tonight, changing into her pajamas, crawling into the bed and telling herself over and over again that she was fine being alone.

"Damn it Lucy, stop." Natsu's hand bared her entrance as he blocked her path. "What's wrong? You're shaking."

"I-I'm fine," she whispered. He gripped her shoulders, making her face him. His brow furrowed as he stared at her, concern in his onyx eyes.

"No you're not. What's wrong? What happened?" If she said what she was feeling out loud, then she would have to start all over again. Rebuilding her walls meant ignoring the fear, pretending it wasn't there. If she told him, if she told anyone then it would make it real. She would have to acknowledge that she really, truthfully wasn't fine….

"I'm-"

Natsu pulled her to him, wrapping his arms around her. "Stop lying," He muttered. The foundations for the walls she was rebuilding were erasing themselves. She was afraid. The thought of being alone terrified her. Flashes of the dreadful memory she suppressed for so long scrawled behind her eyes.

"Why did you leave?" Her voice still flat, but hard as she pulled herself out of his embrace. It was a comfort that she couldn't rely on. It would just make the walls erase faster.

"Wait when did I-" Natsu looked at her confused, but then his eyes widened in remembrance. "Oh."

"You didn't-You didn't even say goodbye?" The tears she usually shed alone, were spilling down her cheeks. She tried to brush them away, but they kept falling. "You just left. You just left m…."

"I'm sorry!" He bowed his head low as he apologized. "I can't fully explain, but that day I got a call and I had to leave immediately. You were still in the shower and I thought I would give you a call later. But I forgot I didn't have your number and I was in a remote area so it wouldn't have done me any good anyways. When I touched down a few hours ago, I went back to Gajeel's apartment and realized you weren't going to be there. I uh…tracked down your address and I've been waiting for you since I came back." He straightened up, his eyes holding his apology. "I didn't mean to leave like that. If it had been any other call, I wouldn't have left, but this one…." His voice trailed off, and he shook his head. "Lucy, I promise I'll never leave again without saying goodbye."

When Natsu left, he had erased her walls and made the fear of loneliness make the silence unbearable. But now that he had returned, with that one simple promise she felt that fear receding. She shook her head confused. The anger, the fear, the loneliness all of it seemed to burn away from the intensity of that promise. Her tears trickled to a stop, her hand wiping the trails away. Suddenly, Lucy was very hungry.

"Do you want to come in?" She offered. "The woman who owns the Thai shop always gives me more than I can eat, so do you want to help me eat this?"

"Yeah, I'm starving," Natsu picked up his black bag and followed Lucy into her apartment. It was dark, but she flickered on the lights and set the food on the kitchen counter.

"Want some wine?" Lucy grabbed a bottle of wine off the counter, pouring herself a glass. Natsu nodded and she poured a second one for him, placing it in front of him. They sat together at the counter on her bar stools, eating the take out from the containers. It was the first real meal she had in a week. She never really felt hungry, always feeling like there was a heavy pit in her stomach. She picked at her food before, but now she ate every last bite. Even though it was just take out, it rivaled the meal she had at Etherion. Natsu dipped into a story about his time in Thailand searching for a particular statue in the middle of one of their forests. He had gotten lost for three days until he stumbled upon a village and they helped redirect him. As usual, his stories were full of his mishaps, his near-death experiences, and his awkward encounters. Lucy gasped, chastised, and laughed throughout his tale. It was well into the night, when Lucy tried to stifle a yawn.

"You're tired. I should probably go so you can sleep," Natsu stood.

"Don't!" She sobbed, grabbing onto his arm. Natsu looked at her shocked and Lucy was shocked at her own reaction. "I mean…you can stay here if you want that is," she murmured trying to recover herself. The shock of fear that hit her heart of being alone again was painful. As long as he was here, the fear was kept away.

"Are you sure?" He lifted his eyebrow, questioningly.

"Yes," she responded quietly.

"Okay, I won't go then," he smiled, giving her one of his toothy grins.

"I'll-I'll go get some blankets" Lucy rushed away, releasing his arm. "There's a bathroom over there you can use to change," she turned around and motioned with her finger, before going down the hall to gather things to make up the couch. Returning with an armful of blankets and a pillow from her bed, she quickly made up the couch for him. The light on the half bath flicked off and Natsu emerged. He was wearing the same set of pajamas he had been wearing at Levy's place. He padded over to her, eyeing the couch.

"Do you need more blankets? An extra pillow?" She fluffed his pillow, placing at the end of the couch.

"No it looks comfy. Thanks!" He laid across the couch, propping his head up with his hand looking up at her.

"Okay, well if you need anything just let me know. My room is right there, "she pointed to a door at the end of the hall as she walked towards it.

"Lucy," His voice stopped her. "Are you okay?"

His gaze was boring into her back, but she didn't turn around. "Yeah, I'm fine." She willed her voice not to break, and succeeded in keep it steady. "Goodnight."

Closing the door softly, she quickly dressed for bed and washed her face. Climbing into bed, she slipped under the covers and tried to sleep. She forgot to take her sleeping pills, but didn't want to get out of bed. Since Natsu was asleep in the other room, Lucy thought she would be able to sleep without them. Yet, once he was out of sight, she felt the smog of fear creeping in the dark corners of her room. Whimpering, she turned on her light trying to force it away. I'm fine. I'm fine. I'm fine. She closed her eyes, squeezing them shut. Go to sleep. Go to sleep. You're fine. You're fine. She chanted to herself, willing herself to sleep.

A knock sounded on her door and Natsu opened it slowly. "Lucy?" He took one look at her and quickly closed the distance, wrapping her in his arms.

She opened her mouth to respond that she was fine, but she couldn't take it anymore. She was so tired of feeling like this. "Natsu, could you…sleep here….with me tonight?" she whimpered into his shoulder, as she gripped his shirt tightly. "I don't…I don't want to be alone."

She could feel him chuckle into hair and then pull her away gently. "Scoot over," he smirked as she climbed under the covers with her. Lucy turned off her lamp and laid back down.

"Natsu," she called. His back was to her; she could feel the gentle rise and fall of the covers as he breathed.

"Yes Lucy," he spoke quietly.

"Thank you," she closed her eyes and sighed and finally drifted off to sleep.

Lucy awoke with a start, believing everything that happened last night was a dream. Daylight was streaming into her room, making her blink to adjust her eyes. She turned and saw that Natsu was still asleep beside her. Her body relaxed seeing him there. As quietly as she could, she climbed out of bed and into her bathroom. She took a quick shower, wrapping her pink towel around her. She dried her hair with the blow dryer before stepping into her closet that was connected to her bathroom. Selecting a white blouse and navy blue pencil skirt, Lucy changed into her work attire. Applying light make up and a hint of perfume, Lucy then swept her hair up into a low bun. She grabbed a pair of nude heels from her closet before she left.

When she walked back into her bedroom, Natsu wasn't there anymore. The panic started to grip her heart as she made her way down the hall. He wouldn't? He promised.

"Good morning," He beamed at her as he fumbled around in her kitchen.

"G-Good morning." The panic she was feeling disappeared and her heart relaxed. "What are you doing?" She balanced on one foot as she slipped on a heel and then the other as she slid on its twin.

"I wanted to make you breakfast before you go, but all you have is Thai food in your fridge." He looked at her bewildered. "You haven't just been eating Thai food have you?" He looked back at the fridge and shook his head. "Well not eating Thai food that is."

Lucy blushed guilty, realizing she didn't go to the grocery store this past week. "Sorry, I was…busy. I didn't have time."

"No matter," Natsu shrugged. "I'll just run to pick us up something."

"It's okay. I have a meeting I need to get to and I'm running a little late." Lucy had been getting up well before dawn and was usually the first person in the office. When she awoke this morning the sun was already shining bright in the sky. She was shocked that she made it through the whole night without waking up. Lucy was now brimming with energy after a good night's rest.

"But you need to eat something. Breakfast is the most important meal of the day," He admonished her.

"There's a café in my building at the office. I'll just pick up something there." She grabbed her purse and files from the counter where she had left them last night. Natsu stared at her, giving her a questioning look before he sighed.

"Fine," he said. "I'll just wake up earlier tomorrow so that you'll have something to go."

Tomorrow? "You're staying?" She asked shocked. Her heart did more flips at the thought of not being alone for another night.

"Who else is going to help you eat all the Thai food you bring home?" He gave her one of his signature smirks she was growing to like. She also noticed his casual avoidance of mentioning the delicate state she was in last night. He was going to stay. She wasn't going to be alone.

"Between you and me, I'm a little tired of Thai food," She grimaced thinking about all the Thai food she bought and nibbled at.

"Well if you bring back Chinese, I want the spiciest option."

Lucy rolled her eyes as she walked over to a drawer in the kitchen and pulled out a key. "Let's get one thing clear, I'm letting you borrow this okay?" Trying and failing to keep her tone neutral, she placed the key into his hand. It was the spare key to her apartment. It was small and gold with 1012 engraved into it. "It's not that I want you to stay or not," she lied. "But I don't expect you to stay cooped up in here all day. Lock up when you leave, so I don't come home to a looted apartment."

"This is a first," He stared down at the key in his hand. "Usually I have to go hunting for this. This is the first time I've been given a key to any treasure."

"Borrow," Lucy clarified. "Ugh, I have to go." Lucy's heels clicked across her wooden floors, opening the door with irritation. She took a step out, before looking over her shoulder. It was hard to believe. How quickly her emotions changed when he was near. His presence had quickly reverted her back to her old self. His smirks, his black clothes and his quips, were now things she was starting to like…need.

She hesitated leaving, afraid it would all go away if she left. Her body wavered in the doorway, one foot in and one foot out. "You'll…you'll be here when I get back?"

"I promise," he declared.

"Okay," she whispered, tucking the promise into her heart so it could burn the uncertainties away.