Hey, everyone! This chapter is going to be a bit shorter than the others, but the next will be longer. This chapter is to shed a little light on how Lucy is feeling about their situation. I warn you now: Graylu fluff ahead! I don't own Fairy Tail or its characters!
Frozen and Forgotten Feelings
Guilt
Lucy POV
"I told you, no interruptions!"
I dropped the rice ball as he towered over me, my body trembling. Tears gathered in the corner of my eyes as he continued to shout and throw papers. "But, daddy…"
His eyes burned me to the core as he stood from his desk and grabbed my hair, causing me to scream in pain. "I don't want to eat your silly rice ball! If I get hungry," he growled, yanking me toward the door. "I'll call the chef. Now, stop being such a pest! I'm busy!"
I fell to my knees as he practically threw me out of his office, the door slamming behind me. My scalp throbbed painfully from his rough treatment but nothing compared to the one in my heart. "…today is…my birthday…" I sobbed, curling into a ball.
"Lucy?"
I bolted upright, finding tears streaming down my face. "Sorry, I didn't mean to wake you guys," I mumbled, wiping them away and bringing the room into focus. We had stopped at an inn after the visit back home, but we could only afford one room; hence the two additional beds. "Go back to sleep."
Movement from the bed to my left told me that Gray stood. "How could I possibly sleep when you're sitting here crying? Unlike him, I don't sleep through other people's nightmares."
Something gripped my gut, making me winch. "You guys are doing so much for me, and I'm doing nothing but making things harder."
His hands suddenly grabbed my shoulders. "Don't you dare think that this is your fault, Lucy, because it isn't."
"But it is!" I shouted back, slapping his hands away and running out the door. It wasn't until I reached the lobby that I heard his footsteps. "Stop following me, Gray! I mean it!"
"Not on your life!" he shouted back, his footsteps getting closer.
I quickened my pace and darted around the corner of the inn, hoping that he would keep going. The door opened and I ducked, but it was just an elderly couple. Sighing, I rested back against the brick wall, my heart pounding. "Sorry, but I'm going the rest of the way on my own…" I whispered, turning.
"Not a chance."
I shrieked as arms wrapped around waist, keeping my arms pinned. "Let me go! I can't take this anymore!"
Gray pushed me up against the wall, his hands keeping my own above my head. "Tell me what you are feeling."
My spine stiffened. "I don't know, I can't put a name to it!"
"How does it make you perceive yourself?"
"Like I'm a nuisance!" I shouted, my head hanging.
His hands slowly released my wrists, but kept his hands on either side of my head, blocking off any way of escape. "Lucy, you're feeling guilty for all this, but you need to get over it."
My head shot upward at his harsh tone, my temper flaring. "Excuse me?"
"You heard me," he said, his voice low. "Get. Over. It. We would do anything to help you, Lucy," he whispered, sliding until we were sitting. "You are very special to us, as well as the guild; we are a team, a family."
"I'm sorry…" I swallowed, trying to force the lump in my throat to disappear. He leaned forward and drew me into his arms as I began to cry. "I'm so sorry that I'm causing all this trouble… Because of me, you two are all the way out here, in the middle of nowhere, with a girl who can't feel anything!" My tears suddenly increased tenfold as his arms tightened around me. "I'm sorry for putting you both through all this!"
…..
Gray POV
I could only hold her as she continued to cry, her tears leaving hot trails down my chest. She felt so fragile and small in my arms that I was afraid that she would either shatter into a million pieces or be swept away by the wind. I began rocking back and forth as she began to tremble from crying for so long, running a hand up and down her back to help her calm down. "Lucy, can I tell you something?"
She hiccupped, nodding.
My fingers gently tilted her chin upward until her tired eyes met mine. "When I first met you, I thought that you were like any other chick, nothing too incredibly special. That changed though as I got to know you more, and I felt guilty for putting you in the same category as normal girls," I smiled as surprise and curiosity entered her eyes. "I've come to think of you as a really close friend, a sister, a comrade. You are truly unique, Lucy, and I don't want you to ever forget it."
A smile slowly bloomed across her face. "It's nice knowing that I'm special," she wrapped her arms around me, nuzzling into my chest as her tears finally ceased. "hearing that from you really makes it ironic though."
I blinked, my face flushing. "Oh really?"
She stood, smiling. "You're a different kind of special, with you stripping all the time."
My eyes shot downward and my face heated up more. "Crap!"
