Meilin: Konnichiwa, Minna-san! Are you all ready for the next chapter?!
-Awkward silence-
*ahem*
Meilin: I said, "ARE YOU READY FOR THE NEXT CHAPTER?!"
Natsu: Who are you talking to?
Meilin: -Sulks- Myself apparently. –sigh-
Happy: Why are you making that ugly face?
Meilin: -Face saddens-
Natsu: Good job, Happy, you made her sad!
Meilin: If I owned you two I'm sure you would never upset me...but you guys are too cute to stay mad at! :D
BROKEN BIRTHDAY BONDS: Episode 2
"How does this one look on me, Loke?"
"It looks magnificent, my princess."
Loke sat on my bed watching me as I modeled all my different outfits.
"Honest?"
He stood up and straightened out his tuxedo, the fabric clinging to his well-chiseled arm muscles.
"You always look beautiful, Lucy." He looked straight into my eyes and…cracked up laughing?
"AHAHA!" He wiped a tear away from his face. "Sorry."
"What? Does it look bad?" I asked rechecking my outfit.
"No, no. You look amazing. I was just thinking how cute you are trying to impress Natsu with your outfit."
"W-what are you talking about?" My face went bright red. He looked at me and smiled. "How…how did you know?"
"I am your spirit. I can feel what you're feeling." He placed his hand on my head and told me, "Chin up, Princess. You are such a beautiful girl and I am sure even Natsu –no matter how dense he is- will go for a girl like you."
Oh him and his ways of swaying a girl's heart with his words. But I didn't expect anything less from him.
"Th-thanks."
"Anytime, Kiddo. Hm, I think those pink pumps would match your black dress. Plus, it matches the color of that Dragon slayer's hair."
"Nhn!" I nodded. "Hey, Loke?" He looked at me and I smiled. A few tears were present in the corners of my eyes. "Thank you."
"You're welcome, my Princess."
~X-x-X~
I stood before the two large, double doors of the guild. I could hear the whispers of everyone and the shuffling of feet. A big smile was plastered on my face as I placed my hands on the wooden frame.
"Shh! everyone get into place. I can hear her!"
I think that was Natsu's voice.
"Are you ready to make your grand entrance, Princess?" I confirmed his question while the Lion proudly gave me a kiss on my hand. "Happy Birthday, Lucy," Loke bade before poof-ing back to the spirit world.
"Here I go." I pushed the doors wide open and stepped inside.
"SURPRISE! HAPPY BIRTHDAY L-"
"Wait, wait!" Erza shouted. "It's the wrong person!"
Wrong person? "What's going on?" I asked, my smile slowly coming down.
"Lucy! You're just in time! Hurry and-"
"She's coming!" Gray interrupted.
"Everyone get into position!" Natsu yelled out.
"W-wait, what is going o-ah!" Natsu grabbed my hand and flung me behind him. What in the world was going on here? I'm not sure how, but I was suddenly shoved into the far back of the guild.
The doors swung open once more and a white haired mage came walking through.
"HAPPY BIRTHDAY LISANNA!"
Party poppers were shot, confetti flying everywhere, and balloons were let lose. Lisanna clearly was not expecting this, but she looked so happy and she definitely was surprised.
"I had no idea!" She gasped.
"Well, neither did I," I mumbled to myself.
"And there's a whole table filled with gifts for your honor today, Lisanna," Erza announced.
"You guys are so thoughtful! Thank you," she beamed with happiness.
"Actually, Natsu was the one who planned this party out for you. I hate to admit it, but the flame brain did something thoughtful for once."
"Hey, I heard that!"
"Good, you were supposed to!"
"You wanna go, slanty eyes?"
"You're on, squinty eyes!"
The youngest Strauss sibling intervened before things got to hectic. "Natsu, you did all of this for me?"
A faint pink brushed his cheeks and he cutely scratched his cheek. "Uh, yeah," he smiled. Kawaii!
She attacked him into a giant hug and cried his name, saying things like how thoughtful he was and how sweet, how she would never forget this moment, blah, blah, blah. But when I looked at his face, any hopes of us being together dropped through the floor like acid. Never in all my days of being with him had he looked so happy. How come I could never make him smile like that? Why didn't he ever look at me with sparkling eyes?
"Natsu," I whispered to myself. I smiled slightly despite the fact that I was hurting on the inside. Tears welled up in my eyes as I looked at them holding hands. If I had known that I was crying, I would have left, but I didn't notice until Gajeel approached me.
"What's wrong, Bunny girl?"
I broke from my frozen state, slightly startled by the sudden voice. "Huh? Oh, I, uh….it's nothing. I just got something in my eye. It's probably all the smoke from the candles and party poppers. I've got sensitive eyes, you know? Ha-ha." Of course, he raised an eyebrow at me. Who wouldn't have spotted that obvious lie?
"I won't pry into your problems." Then he walked off.
"Thank you."
He grunted, acknowledging that he heard me but chose not to say anything else on the matter.
I walked over to the picnic table in the far back corner of the guild. Before sitting down, I scanned the place. Everyone seemed to be having so much fun.
Canna was drinking more than usual.
Erza was eating an entire strawberry cake to herself.
Gajeel was singing on stage with Mirajane.
Natsu and the birthday girl were dancing, chatting happily.
Even Gray was talking to Juvia!
I sighed.
"Is there something wrong, Lucy Onee-san?"
"Eh, Romeo? No, nothing is wrong. Are you enjoying the party?"
"Yep! I think it's great that Natsu Onii got reunited with his girlfriend."
"G-girlfriend?"
"Yeah, didn't you hear? When they were kids, Natsu promised to marry Lisanna Onee when they got older."
"Lisanna Onee, huh?"
"Yeah! I think of Natsu as my brother, so if he gets married, Lisanna will be like my sister!"
Romeo was so happy talking about them like that. It was only him and his dad, so I'm not surprised that he looks up to Natsu so carefully.
But boy, did I wish he knew how much his 12 year old words were scarring me. Deep wounds.
"Well, you go on and enjoy the party, Romeo. I'm going to grab a piece of cake and eat it here." I stood up and walked past the pre-teen boy. Grabbing a piece of cake, I dodged all the flying mages and furniture and resumed sitting in the lonely corner.
My stomach wasn't in the mood for cake but if I didn't eat a piece, I would be a party pooper…but I just couldn't bring myself to eat it at all. Not even a single bite. I stabbed the cake with my fork and brought it up to my lips, but I still couldn't eat it. I pushed the cake back and forth on the plate and swirled the red and white icing together. It created a soft pink color, like Natsu's hair.
I sighed. Ugh! What is up with me sighing all the time!
"Lucy, is something wrong with the cake?"
"Nothing's wrong with the cake, Erza. I'm just not in the mood to eat it anymore."
"But we can't let it go to waste."
I looked up at her pleading eyes and noticed her eyeing my piece. "Do you want my piece, Erza?"
"Of course, I'll take it because you offered. It wouldn't be right if it just went bad. Remember not to take more than you can eat next time, okay Lucy?" She happily walked off with the cake and ate it with much joy.
Again, I was left alone without anything nearby. No, there was Canna's martini glass sitting in front of me. She left it there when Master challenged her to a drinking contest. Gildarts participated in that as well.
Splash!
"My new dress!" I said as I furiously rubbed the alcoholic drink off. I looked over to see Gray running from Juvia. When did this happen?!
"Sorry, Lucy, I didn't mean to ruin your clothes," he apologized.
"It's okay. I know you didn't mean to but maybe you should try putting some clothes on."
"Ack! When did I strip?" Juvia held her fiery cheeks as she attempted to look somewhere other than his body.
"Juvia thinks Gray-Sama's body looks good without his clothes," she stuttered. His face distorted into discomfort and made his quick getaway.
I did not stay around to witness anymore recklessness in amongst the guild. I bought a baggie hoodie from the Fairy Tail gift shop out front and escaped into the bathroom. Changing into the sweater that covered down until it hit my knees, I looked at myself in the mirror and smiled. But then my smile faltered.
Why can't I get Natsu to look at me like that? Duh, Lucy, Lisanna is so much cuter than you and look how you're dressed. You look like a potato sack.
I let my tears fall. I was in the bathroom, no one could see me. My mascara and eyeliner ran down and smudged. I looked horrible, but what did it matter? I had no one to impress now.
The doorknob shook and the door opened. I ran into a stall and locked myself in the confined space. I lifted up my legs and curled into a ball on top of the toilet seat hoping no one would discover I was here.
Giggling…she was giggling as she walked into the girl's washroom.
"You really think so?"
"Absolutely, Lisanna! You and Natsu will definitely get together. I mean, sure, it's been a while but you guys are definitely hitting it off." Does that voice belong to…?
"Thanks, Levy, you rock!"
"Aw, my baby sister is growing up!"
"Mira nee, you're suffocating me."
"Opps! Sorry," she apologized.
My best friend likes her more than me, huh? What am I saying? They've known each other for a while. They've all gotten to know one another over the years and they have bonds that they share. I just happened to be picked up by Natsu. There's no doubt that we've grown together and have some sort of connection. But I'm just a friend and that was all I'd ever be.
"Let's get back to the party. Gajeel is waiting for me and Natsu is waiting for you!"
I heard the door open and shut again, but I made no effort to move. I stayed seated in the stall and rested my head against the wall. And what did I do? I cried, cried like the weakling I knew I was.
~X-x-X~
I pulled the hood up over my head and tried to sneak out of the back door.
"Lucy! Where are you going? The party is just getting started!"
"Hey, Natsu, I'm just going to head home. I'm not feeling too well."
"Aw, don't leave yet, Luce."
Please, don't call me that anymore.
"Sorry, I'm not feeling up to partying today. Bye."
He grabbed my arm. "At least wish Lisanna a Happy Birthday. I know I've been hogging her all day and you didn't get a chance to, but I can take you to her," he grinned.
Why does he talk about her with so much…so much love?
"I would," I lied, looking over to Lisanna surrounded by a bunch of people, "but, it looks like she's busy. Maybe another time." Then I left without another word. I knew it was selfish but I couldn't hold it in anymore.
~X-x-X~
The chilly air hit my face as I stepped outside into the night. The crisp air stabbed me like a million needles.
This is so stupid. I'm acting like a love-sick high schooler.
"Lucy, be careful!" the boatman yelled from the river. "It's dangerous to walk on the ledge. You might fall in."
I sent him a reassuring smile and waved.
The sidewalk came to an end, but for some reason I kept walking. I stepped off the ledge, but-
"Lucy!" A hand attached itself to my wrist and pulled me to his firm abs. Unfortunately, we both fell into the pond. After resurfacing, he held me tight as I shivered.
I looked up at the face and met his dark alluring eyes. "Gray," I breathed through chattering teeth. The water was below 30 degrees even though it was July.
"Are you crazy!" He yelled at me. I unintentionally flinched away at his sudden raise in voice. His eyes softened towards me.
"Sorry," I apologized looking away.
He sighed, almost as if he was disappointed. "Let's get you dried off."
He offered to carry me back to my apartment, but I refused and walked on my own. Gray gently ushered me inside and sat me on my bed while he drew a steamy bath for me.
"The bath is ready. You should get out of those wet clothes."
"What about you?"
"Me? This is nothing. I'm an ice wizard, after all." He froze the water on his clothes and body and shattered them into tiny diamonds.
"I guess not getting cold comes in handy. Then, I'll be in the bath." I walked into the bath and submerged myself under the cloudy water. I had a million things going on but nothing inside my head. What was wrong with me?
Why do I get so frustrated when I see Natsu with Lisanna? I sunk lower into the bathwater and closed my eyes.
Knock, knock, knock. "Lucy, are you okay?"
Gray?
"Lucy? You've been in there for a while."
"I-I'm okay." I jolted up to my feet and all the blood rushed to my head. I felt a little woozy and my knees gave out from under me. "Ah!"
BAM! "Lucy!" Gray barged into the bathroom thinking I was hurt. His cheeks flared up and he turned his head to the side. "S-sorry," he apologized while looking at the floor. "Are you alright?"
"I just got dizzy that's all. I'll be out in a second."
Timidly, he nodded and walked out shutting the door behind him. For some reason my cheeks felt hot too. It was probably because I've been in the bath too long. I changed into my pajamas and wrapped my hair in a towel.
"Sorry I made you worry…but th-thanks, Gray."
"It's, uh, fine." He cleared his throat to make the air less awkward and asked me something that caused the atmosphere to be even odder. "So, what were you doing outside? Wasn't the party fun?"
"I, um…" What should I say? "Yeah, the party was fun." But I wasn't having fun at the party.
"So what do you think about Lisanna? It was your first time meeting her, right?"
"Yeah, she's' really pretty and sweet. We have a lot more in common than I imagined." Like our birthdays and the fact that Natsu…Natsu-
"We should all hang out tomorrow…well, if they're not all drunk and still partying. Haha. It would be good for you and Lisanna to get to know each other better. I'm sure you two would be great friends."
"Uh, y-yeah." I looked down at my lap and played with my hands. It wasn't as if I was shy or uncomfortable talking with Gray. The conversation wasn't exactly what I wanted to be talking about.
Gray grabbed my hand and pulled me up. "Come with me."
"Where are we going?"
He didn't answer my question but kept dragging me out of my apartment. We ended up at an ice skating rink.
"Gray, I don't know how to skate."
"I'll teach you," he grinned. My face was hot again…why? I thought I liked Natsu…
Taking my hand into his larger ones, he guided me to the rink. He stepped in first and helped me in afterwards. Taking one step at a time like he instructed, I began moving centimeter by centimeter around the rink. Of course, I was clinging onto his hand and arm for dear life, but after a little while it wasn't so bad.
"Look out!" A kid screamed from behind us. "I can't stop!"
He was going to crash right into me…but I didn't know how to move! How was I supposed to dodge a flying body?
Before a horrible collision could occur, Gray swept me to the side, shielding my body with his as he gracefully skated away. My heart rate sped up a little bit but calmed down.
"You're okay, right?" the ice mage asked me.
"Y-yeah, I think so. Thanks for that."
"Anytime. Let's take a break," he suggested noticing my quickened breaths. I simply nodded. Gray held my hand and guided me over to the gates. I felt his hands on my sides as he hoisted me out of the ice skating rink. "Watch your step," he warned me.
Carefully, I stepped out and he followed behind me. I stood frozen in my spot because I had a horrible time walking with the figure skates on. Again, he took my hand and walked me over to the bench and crouched down to take off my shoes for me.
"I can do it myself, Gray."
"It's fine. I want to."
He then proceeded taking my shoes off while I sat there and looked down at him. Unconsciously, my hand moved and gently traced the scar on his forehead. Where did this come from?
"Lucy?"
My face went red. "S-sorry, it's nothing!"
He chuckled. "Let's get out of here. Your nose is red. I think you're getting a bit cold."
"Yeah, that must be it," I lied.
I didn't notice it before, but when Gray took me back home, we didn't go back to my apartment. "What are we doing at the guild?" I asked bitterly. I didn't mean for it to come out that way.
"Honestly, Lucy, what's wrong? You've seem so distracted today." Gray turned his body towards me and closed in on the empty space. He put his hand under my chin and lifted my face to meet his eyes.
"G-gray, wait."
The guild doors slammed open and out came Natsu with his arms slumped over Lisanna's shoulder. They were laughing and smiling.
"Put some clothes on, ice pants!"
"Way to ruin the moment, Natsu," Gray mumbled to himself. I was the only one who caught that.
"Natsu, let's go! I don't want to wait another second," Lisanna squealed.
"Where are you guys headed?" the shirtless mage questioned.
"We're going back to the house Natsu and I used to play house in. It's where we found Happy's egg!" The takeover mage was incredibly happy remembering all the childhood thoughts that they had together.
"Stop being so nosy, Gray!"
Said boy unknowingly released my hand and pointed a fist at Natsu. "What did you say?"
"Boys, boys! Let's call it a draw," Lisanna said getting herself in the middle of the two rivals.
"Fine, only because it's your birthday today, Lisanna."
Hah. What do birthdays mean anymore, anyways?
"Lisanna! Come back inside! You have to open up your presents!"
"Mira-nee, Natsu and I were actually going to-"
"Nonsense! That can wait until tomorrow. Everyone wants you to open up your gifts!" Mira took ahold of her younger sister's arm with an iron grip and yanked her behind the doors.
I took this chance to walk back to my apartment.
"Lucy, aren't you going to come back inside and be with everyone?" Gray asked.
"No thanks. I'm still not feeling up to celebrating right now. Give Lisanna my best." I went back to my home after that. Today was okay. I had fun skating with Gray, but I didn't want to go back to the guild for the rest of the night.
Don't get me wrong, I love Fairy Tail and I still want to be with them…but right now is not a good time.
~X-x-X~Wendy's POV~X-x-X~
Wendy finally found the Venus key that Lucy has been wanting! The little dragon slayer felt bad about missing the first half of her party, but that could be easily forgiven. Besides, Wendy made it to the night party and in Fairy Tail the parties always go on for days. Heh. That's what made Fairy Tail so great.
Stepping into the guild,everyone was huddled around a single table. The little lady shoveled her way through a whole crowed of people almost getting to the center but unintentionally got shoved out.
"Careful there, Wendy. They didn't mean to push you. They're just having way too much fun," Natsu grinned after catching her.
She stood up and straightened out her blue dress. "Thank you, Natsu-san."
"Don't sweat it. So where were you at the party this morning?"
"I went out on a job with Charla and I found the perfect present to give to the birthday girl," she smiled. Lucy was going to love her gift.
"That's nice of you, Wendy. She's opening her gifts right now. Do you want to give it to her?"
The child of Grandeeney nodded. She looked to her right, and then to her left, behind her and in front of her. No sign of her.
"Where is Lucy?" Wendy asked scanning the guild to find the stellar mage.
"She went home early. She said something about her stomach feeling weird, I think" the fire dragon slayer explained.
"But why would the birthday girl leave her own party?" She mumbled to herself.
"What was that?" He questioned not catching what she asked. Then he noticed the small rectangular shaped box in her hand. "Oh, is that for Lisanna? I can give it to her if you want."
"Lisanna?"
"Yeah, it's Lisanna's 20th birthday. That's why we threw this party, don't you remember?"
"Oh, no," she gasped.
"What's wrong, Wendy?"
"Natsu-san, today is Lucy's birthday."
"No it isn't silly. Today is Lisanna's birthday."
…
A bone chilling silence blanketed over the two of them.
"Oh, no. Lucy…"
Meilin: Oh-ho-ho….now you've done it, Natsu.
Natsu: It wasn't my fault!
Meilin: How could you forget your best friend's birthday?
Natsu: What? Me! You are the one who wrote it!
Meilin: Don't sass talk me, boy. I can make anything happen in this story.
Natsu: So, what? You have a laptop and can type. Big whoop.
Meilin: -Evil eye glint-
Happy: I don't like the looks of that.
Meilin: I can see the next head light "Natsu finally gets defeated by Gray Fullbuster."
Natsu: Over my dead body!
Meilin: I can make that happen.
Natsu: O.O No, thank you.
Meilin: Hee-hee, I thought so.
Oh and sorry I updated later than I wanted to. School had been crazy. I'm in my first semester of being a college freshman and it's going to take a little getting used to. But I'll be updating faster. I promise. And the semester is almost done (a few weeks) and then I can update every week or so.
I want to thank Nightmare's Death for reading and reviewing my other stories even though they're finished. It made me incredibly happy to know that my old stories are not rotting away. AND even though they're finished he/she reviewed them anyway and that makes an author proud to write for his readers. So, thank you Nightmare's Death!
Please feel free to read my other Shugo Chara/Naruto/ Kaichou Wa Maid Sama stories!
Gimmie some love by reviewing and let me know what YOU want to happen to Natsu/Lucy/Gray!
Preview:
"I haven't seen Lucy in a few days. Does anyone know where she is?" Erza questioned.
Natsu and Wendy sat silently at the table.
"What's wrong, Wendy?" Charla worried. Happy asked Natsu the same question.
"What's wrong with you two? Did something happen?"
"Shut up, Gray," Natsu said in a deep voice. Everyone was shocked. Natsu never spoke to anyone in that kind of voice unless something was seriously wrong.
"What the hell is wrong with you?"
"Um.."
"Yes, Wendy?"
"You see, Erza, Lucy…her birthday…we missed her birthday."
"What do you mean?"
"Well…"
"Lisanna and Lucy have the same birthday and I forgot about her," Natsu finished. He slammed his fist into the table and burned a hole through it with his flames.
"Lucy…" he whispered.