A/N So I've managed a weekly update! Let's hope it continues! I've really enjoyed writing this chapter, especially the beginning and the end, although I have a feeling it's a little rushed. And for those here for the drama, it should start in the next chapter.

It's been brought to my attention that my grammar is lacking. The issue is, I don't know what I'm doing wrong! So I've decided that I need a beta reader. If there's anyone out there who's willing, it would be really appreciated. Even if you don't want to beta, if you see something drop a review telling me what it is so I can fix it!

Thanks to everyone who reviewed/followed/favorited! It means a lot. And to those who just read, thank you as well, for taking the time to read this!

Chapter 2-

"It's finished!" Lucy hummed in appreciation, "I wonder if he'll like it."

Dressed in her school uniform, Lucy glanced at the clock. It was seven fifty in the morning and Lucy was about to leave her apartment and head for school. School didn't start until eight thirty, but Lucy lived a fair distance away from Magnolia High, so the trip there in public transport took quite some time. This wasn't unusual for Japanese students, with some even traveling for an hour and a half to their schools. Lucy was rather lucky in that her trip only took thirty minutes.

Suddenly, there was a banging on her door.

Lucy froze, "I wonder who it could be." she muttered to herself. The only person who knew this apartment was Nastu and her landlady, Spetto-san.

Opening the door, an extremely disheveled Natsu greeted her.

"N-Natsu?" Lucy said, her eyes wide, "W-What are you doing here?"

"Lucyyyyy" he begged, "Please! Give me food! I ran out!"

The panic left her in one big sigh, "Breakfast? Really? Nastu, I have to leave in ten minutes."

He brushed past her, charging into her kitchen and taking out her toaster and some bread. He was, undoubtedly, making himself at home.

"How could you run out of food?" Lucy inquired, "Last night it seemed like you had heaps of food at your place"

He finished making his toast and then proceeded to shove the food in his mouth,"Nope. Ran out. Was gonna die"

Lucy eyed him critically, "You don't die from skipping breakfast."

"Lucy," he said seriously, "I was going to die. Stop being so selfish!"

She frowned, "Natsu, you didn't run out of food, did you?"

He didn't answer.

"Natsu?"

"Fine, fine" he confessed, "No, I didn't."

"Then why did you come here?"

He stopped eating for a second, caught her eyes and held them, and said sincerely, "I was lonely."

Lucy felt her breath catch. What was with him? Why was he so honest about his feelings? He was so much different than the rest, yet...

So much better.

"I understand" she gave him a sympathetic smile, "It gets lonely here as well. But don't you live far away? It must take you forever to get here"

He gave her a confused frown, "Far away? I live five minutes away from here"

Lucy felt her jaw drop, "What!?"

"Yeah. C'mon, you can see my place from your balcony. I'll show you"

They stepped outside onto the balcony. Although it was spring, Lucy felt a shiver run across her bare arms. It was cold in the mornings, and her uniform wasn't helping keep her warm.

All of a sudden, she felt warmth around her neck. Her hand flew to her neck to surprise; it was Natsu's scarf.

"Just wear it" he said gruffly, "I'm not cold, anyway"

A huge, grateful smile covered her features, "Thank you" she whispered. It was so thoughtful. Again, she was blown away by him. Although a jacket would've warmed her more.

"So, it's over there" he said, pointing in the distance.

Lucy followed his finger, "Where?"

"There. Next to that building"

"I can't see it"

"It's right there! Just look!"

"What are you pointing at? The sky? Yes, Natsu, I can see the sky. It's a sky. It's kinda hard to miss"

He made an annoyed sound, "Not the sky!"

She leaned closer towards him, trying to see it, "The clouds?"

He choked back a laugh, "Stop looking at the sky."

"I give up. One day, I'll visit your apartment and see it for myself"

"It's a deal" he grinned.

As he said that, Lucy realized how close they were standing. His lips were inches away from her own, their bodies pressed against each other. She had a feeling she should move away, but for some reason her limbs weren't listening to her.

Her brain was fuzzy, yet somehow one important fact leapt into her brain.

"School!" She blurted, "We're gonna be late"

"School" he repeated, slightly distracted, "Right"

"It's the second day of school!" She panicked, rushing inside and grabbing her bag, "I don't wanna be late! Hurry up!" When she realized he wasn't moving, simply staring at her, she exclaimed, "What!?"

He shook his head, looking slightly confused, "Nothing" he said at last, then ran inside grabbed his own bag and her hand. When she gave him a puzzled look, he flashed her a smile and said, "Let's go! You don't wanna be late, right?"

A smile spread on her features, "Right!" She agreed.

Ten minutes later, when they finally reached the train station, she was regretting letting him grab her hand.

The guy ran like a lunatic, and he hadn't stopped, not once. When they'd finally finished weaving through streets and people, he barely looked puffed. Lucy, however, was another story. Red faced and sweating, she gasped for breath.

"I... Hate... You" she panted.

"You're really out of shape" Natsu commented, then grinned, "Don't worry! I'll make you run every morning until you're fit. We could be like a team! Team Natsu!"

"Oh...Mavis... No.."

He laughed, offering her a hand up. She accepted it, and he pulled her up with ease. Her breathing now under control, she glared at him.

"I told you to stop running."

"You did?" He said, feigning innocence.

"I told you," she repeated, "to stop running."

He was looking past her at something, and then he said, "Shit, our train's about to leave!"

And then he had grasped her hand and was dragging her to the train. This time, she didn't even bother complaining or resisting, she just let him drag her into the train. It was then she realized the odd glances they were getting, and her cheeks lit up. This must've looked awful. They must've looked like a... A couple, or something.

They burst into the crowded train, stumbling into other people.

"Hey, watch it!"

"Sorry" Lucy muttered.

The seats were all taken. She and Natsu had to stand, rather close together at that, whilst all the people bustled around them. The train jolted into motion, and Lucy lost her balance.

"W-woah!" She cried out, toppling slightly.

Natsu lunged over, grabbing her arm and pulling her up.

"Thanks" she said shakily, "Wow, I don't think it's ever been this busy."

He cast a worried look around and murmured his agreement, "Don't let go of my hand. We might lose each other."

She nodded. His hand was warm, and slightly rough. After holding it for so long, it was also... Kinda comforting.

And that was how they spent most of the train ride. Sandwiched together, clutching each other's hands as though they were lifelines, and occasionally passing a few words in conversation. A part of Lucy was embarrassed, but another part of her was... Strangely calm. And it was the latter part of her that been growing since yesterday, a bolder, stronger and more confident part of her that Lucy was growing to like.

When they finally got off, Lucy let out a sigh of relief.

Natsu noticed, "I hope everyday isn't like that"

"Me too"

They walked to school, carrying an easy conversation. Lucy discovered that they had nearly all of their classes together. She found out that he was an only child. He wanted to get a blue cat and name it Happy. The last statement made her laugh.

As she walked, she saw the same sakura blossoms that she had seen yesterday. Recalling the conversation she'd had with Levy, she glanced over at Natsu.

New beginnings, indeed.

"Lu-chan!" Levy called, walking over to her, "Good morning!"

"Good morning, Levy-chan"

Levy paused, noticing Lucy's partner, "Good morning, Natsu-san"

"Just Natsu is fine" he said cheerfully, "Can I call you Levy?"

"S-sure" Levy shot Lucy a questioning glance. The meaning was clear, 'What were they doing together?'

Natsu, realizing that Levy wasn't comfortable around him excused himself and left.

As soon as he was out of earshot, Levy hissed, "What the hell was that?"

"What the hell was what?"

"That! I thought you liked Gray!"

"I do! But with Natsu... It's not like that!" At Levy's skeptical glance, she persisted, "Really! Natsu's like... He's really nice. And he knows what it's like to live on your own, and to have a father who hates you, and he knows what it's like to... To..." have a crush on someone who barely notices you.

Levy's eyes widened, "Oh, Lu-chan... I'm sorry, I didn't realize..."

"It's okay, don't worry about it" Despite the reassuring words, Lucy's voice was a little terse.

"Oi, shrimp, bunny-girl" Gajeel's gruff voice interrupted them, "Are we going to start walking or just stand around all day?"

"Morning, Gajeel" Lucy said brightly. A year ago, when she'd first met Gajeel, she'd been terrified of him. Now, not so much.

"I'm not that short! Stop calling me shrimp!"

Gajeel simply stared at her, then finally said, "Yes, you are, shrimp"

"Alright, lovebirds, knock it off" Lucy rolled her eyes and started walking.

"We're not lovebirds!" They screeched in unison.

"Right" Lucy turned her head around slightly, so she could make eye-contact, "So are you dating or not?"

Blushes appeared on both their cheeks as they looked in opposite directions. "We're dating" they muttered sullenly.

Lucy allowed an amused smirk to emerge, "I'm never going to stop teasing you" she laughed, "It's too fun!"

"It's been four months since we've started dating, Lu-chan. Aren't you bored?"

Just as Lucy was about to answer, her attention was taken by the loud argument she could hear in front of her. Whipping her head around, she turned to see... Natsu and Gray.

"As if you got 98% on the maths test! You're such a lying snowball!"

"Why, is it so hard to believe that I'm smarter than you?"

"A dumbass like you probably cheated!"

"I cheated!? You probably cheated off of my paper!"

"Oh, yeah?"

"Yeah!"

"That's enough!"

"Oh, it's the Salamander" Gajeel said interestedly, "Looks like he's about to get a lecture from Titania"

Lucy winced in sympathy, "Is this normal?"

"Yep" Levy affirmed, "The year before Natsu left, they were like this every day. Our class became a lot quieter when Natsu left last year"

"So you guys all went to the same middle school?" Lucy asked interestedly.

"Yeah, you and Gajeel were the only new additions to our class, I think. Oh, and Juvia. But she's sick a lot, so it's not like we see her much"

Lucy had only seen Juvia on a few occasions, and from a distance. Juvia was usually on her own, and she had a habit of staring out of the window at the stormy sky. For some reason, Lucy could never shake off the feeling that Juvia's eyes held sadness... And lots of it.

"Save us!"

Lucy's attention snapped back to Natsu and Gray, who were trying to run away from Erza. It was a futile attempt. Soon Erza had them lifted by the collars of their shirts and was hissing threats at them.

People were talking about her.

Lucy noticed it almost immediately. When she'd walked by people, they'd lean over to their friends and speak in hushed whispers. When she talked to people from other classes, they had been friendly enough, but a little distant.

The question was, what about? Lucy hadn't done anything recently that warranted gossip. At least, not anything public. It irritated her to no end, and for the rest of the day she was self-conscious, wondering what she had done to deserve it. She hoped it wasn't anything too bad.

Her suspicions were confirmed at lunch, when Lisanna charged at her.

"Lucy!" She exclaimed, "Is it true?"

Startled by her friends enthusiasm, Lucy queried, "Is what true!"

"That you and Natsu are dating!"

Lucy had been putting a piece of food in her mouth. At Lisanna's statement, she immediately began to choke.

"Lu-chan" Levy said worriedly, "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine" Lucy gasped, "Just surprised..."

Levy turned to Lisanna, "What do you mean?"

Now Lisanna was confused, "Didn't you tell me yesterday Lucy was going to confess to the guy she likes?"

"Yeah, I did."

"And that I would find out who it was when they started dating?"

"I said that."

Lisanna grinned, "All the rumors today are about Lucy and Natsu! Cana saw them leave their apartment together, and Loke saw them on the train together! Apparently they were standing really close."

Lucy flushed, "It's not like that! I'm not dating him!"

Lisanna frowned, "Then were the rumors a lie?"

Her blush deepened, "N-Not exactly... I mean, we were on the train together, but we're not dating..."

Lisanna looked skeptical, but didn't comment further.

'This is bad' she realized, 'If everyone thinks we're dating, I'll have no chance with Gray! And Natsu won't have a chance with Lisanna...'

She was so upset, she completely forgot about the extra bento in her bag.

"Lucy!" Gray called, walking over to her desk.

"Y-Yes!?"

She was stiff, her heart thumping way too fast. Her mind was whirling, and already she could feel a blush creeping into her features. Her palms began to sweat, and her fingers started drumming on the table, an unconscious habit Lucy had whenever she was nervous.

"I've heard you and the flame brain are dating," He smirked, "I don't know why you chose him, but congratulations!"

"U-um... Thanks?"

He left, and then Lucy realized what he'd said. She charged after him, "No, wait! NatsuandIaren'tdating"

He frowned, "What?"

"Natsu and I aren't dating" she forced herself to calm down, "We're just friends"

"Oh," Gray said, "Okay"

They stood there in silence before Gray excused himself.

'H-he didn't seem upset that me and Natsu were dating! He seemed happy! N-no way... Does he really have so little interest in me? I didn't expect him to be in love with me or anything... But he doesn't care at all?'

Dismay drenched her, sticking to her like a second skin made of lead. It weighed her down, and for the rest of her classes she was in a glum mood.

Lucy walked home alone.

Her reasons were simple. If anyone saw her and Natsu together, more rumors would spread, thus ruining their chances with their respective crushes. And she wasn't walking home with Levy, because she didn't want to handle her friends prying questions about how she and Natsu met.

How was she going to tell Levy about how she met Natsu? She couldn't betray Natsu by telling Levy about his crush on Lisanna, but she also couldn't betray Levy by not telling her anything. Levy was her best friend after all, and that meant she deserved answers, whether Lucy was willing to give them or not.

She heaved a sigh, her heart heavy and her mind full. She should've expected this. What had she been thinking? She'd invited Natsu into her life so quickly on an impulse. And now things were tumbling down so fast and she just wanted everything to stop for a second so she could look around and understand what was going on, and what she had to do.

"Lucy!"

Hearing her voice, she turned around. It was Lisanna.

"Lucy," Lisanna huffed, gasping for air, "Are you deaf? I've been calling out to you for an entire minute!"

"O-oh" Lucy murmured, "Sorry"

Lisanna frowned, "Are you okay? You haven't been yourself recently."

It was then Lucy remembered how perceptive Lisanna could be, with her own feelings and those around her. The youngest Strauss triplet had always been that way, for as long as Lucy had known her. Lisanna possessed the rare talent of knowing what to say and when to say it, something Lucy had always envied.

"I'm fine," Lucy tried.

Lisanna winked, "Liar! But y'know, if you want to talk, I'm always here."

'But I wasn't lying when I said I can help you. I'll ask her about it tomorrow'

Her eyes widened slightly, 'Natsu! I promised him I'd find out what guy Lisanna likes... I might not be able to stop the rumors, but I can still help! I'm not completely useless!'

"Lisanna," Lucy said suddenly, "What do you look for in a guy?"

Lisanna pressed her lips together in thought, "Like a boyfriend?"

"Yeah."

Lisanna nodded slowly, "I want a guy who will treat me right, make me laugh, listen to me and accept me."

Lucy nodded.

"And, um... I don't know, it's hard to think of it right on the spot. If I think of any more, I'll let you know."

"Thanks, Lisanna" Lucy said sincerely, "And sorry for asking you such a weird question out of nowhere"

"Don't worry about it. What else are friends for?"

When Lucy reached her apartment, her door was open.

Naturally, her first thought was, 'Oh my god. There's someone in my apartment"

Inwardly debating on calling the police, she took a tentative step in. And immediately scowled.

"Natsu, what are you doing here?"

He was sitting on the floor, and gazed up at her innocently, "Nothing"

Her eyes surveyed her apartment quickly, trying to assess the damage, "How'd you get into my apartment?"

"You forgot to lock the door this morning. Probably 'cause you were late to school"

Then she saw it. Placed behind his back, there were a stack of papers. A stack of papers no-one should ever see.

"My novel!" She screeched, lunging over and rescuing her papers, before delivering a kick right into Natsu's stomach. Of course, her legs didn't no much damage, and Natsu's abs were like goddamn iron, so she nearly broke her foot doing it. Still, it made her feel better.

"Lucy" he whined, "I was up to the good bit! Give it back!"

"No!" She snapped, her voice hard, "This is private! It's really important to me, and you're not allowed to read it!"

He looked slightly ashamed, "Sorry, Luce. I didn't know you'd get so upset if I read it..."

He looked like an injured puppy, and Lucy softened, "Sorry for yelling. It's just, I don't like anyone reading this... Not even Levy or Lisanna has read it"

He nodded, then frowned, "What's wrong with your bag? There's rice spilling out of it."

She glanced down at her bag, and indeed, there was rice spilling out a hole in the corner. She gasped, "Your bento! Oh, no, not after I spent so long making it..."

She dropped her bag and rummaged through it, salvaging the box. The bento that she had so lovingly prepared the night before, the bento that was shaped like a dragon (because he'd told her his favorite animals were dragons) was ruined. The head and stomach had mixed together, the ingredients muddled into an unidentifiable mess.

To her horror, her eyes filled with tears, "Nothing's going right!" She cried out, "Everyone thinks we're dating, I forgot to give you your bento, you saw my novel, Gray congratulated me and now your bento's ruined! It was so good, too, Natsu, I really tried and-"

She was silenced by him wrapping his arms around her. Strong and warm, they locked her in an embrace, and she hid her face in his chest, a smell of cinnamon and smoke filling her nostrils. Her face heated up from the humiliation of nearly crying in front of Natsu. And then her blush deepened when she realized they were hugging. She'd never hugged a guy this tightly before- she was an only child and her father had never been the hugging sort, and the only boyfriend she'd ever had was a guy from her middle school who held her hand, called her beautiful and kissed her cheek (she'd dumped him because she realized he'd only dated her for her father's money)

She stepped back, confused. He looked just as confused as she did.

"W-W-Why did you do that?"

"I don't know! I just... Whenever I was upset when I was a kid, my dad would come and hug me and it made me feel better. I thought maybe it would work on you, too"

Lucy lowered her head, her blonde hair falling as a shield to hide her burning face, "O-Oh," she said quietly, "Thanks, Natsu. It worked. I think I've calmed down"

"And I don't think any things that bad," Natsu reasoned, "Sure, your second new bag is ruined. I'll just buy you another one, it's no big deal"

He knelt down and extracted her books from the mess and placed them on the table.

"See?" He nodded, "They're fine! But when you open them, rice might fall out. That's still awesome though! You have an excuse to get away with eating in class now! I'm so jealous!"

"Natsu" Lucy whispered, finding herself unable to whisper anything else.

"And it doesn't matter about the bento being ruined. It sucks that I didn't get to see it, but I bet it still tastes great. Oh! Maybe we can fix it if we move the rice and the meat around, like this..."

"N-Natsu... What are you... I don't understand..."

"Look!" He said proudly, showing her the bento, "I made a key!"

Lucy smiled softly, "A key?"

"Well, sorta." He squinted, and turned his head slightly, "If you look at it from this angle though, it looks like a key. From a normal angle, you can't see it"

Lucy rubbed her eyes, the last of her tears going away, "A normal angle, huh." she whispered.

"And I'm really sorry about seeing your novel," he said, handing her one of her textbooks, "Here. Hit me on the head as hard as you can and see if it'll give me amnesia. Then I'll forget your book."

She laughed, "Amnesia? But what if you forget something important?"

"It'll be worth it," he said confidently, "Cause you look better when you smile"

She hesitantly accepted the book, her smile growing, and tapped him gently on the head.

"Harder!" He demanded, "I can't get amnesia from a lousy hit like that!"

"How about I place a magic spell on you instead?" Lucy asked, "It'll still make you forget, just with less pain"

"Alright. Let's do that"

She knocked him on the head, "Open, gate of the dragon! Natsu! I, Lucy Heartfilia, command you to forget my novel!"

"I think it worked!" He said sincerely.

She giggled, "If it worked, how would you know what we were talking about?"

He frowned, then sighed, "You're right. Looks like magic spells don't work."

"No, Natsu, I think it worked just fine."

She met his eyes and they shared a smile. There were so many emotions churning within her, but there was one easily discernible: happiness.

"As for the rumors about us dating, leave it to me." He informed her, "Tomorrow morning, you'll come to school and no-one will be talking about us."

"How are you going to do that?"

"With my dragon-slaying magic. But it takes a lot of energy to use it. I think I need you to make me another bento so I can replenish my energy afterwards."

"And dinner too, right?"

He beamed, "And breakfast?"

Lucy pretended to be angry, "Am I your maid, now?"

"You make good food, so... Yes"

She shook her head, "I've never met anyone who can eat as much as you. You should enter a food-eating competition"

"What's that?"

"It's where people give you food for free to see how much you can eat."

He all but began to drool, "Free.. Food..."

She swatted him on the head, "You'll get fat if you eat too much. Now, c'mon, you're helping me cook."

"Again?" He pouted, and damn was he adorable, "But Luce, I can't cook."

"You're going to learn," she decided, "How am I supposed to stop worrying about you if you can't cook? You need to eat properly!"

"You worry about me?"

His simple question made her pause. Sucking in a deep breath, she nodded, "Yes. You're my friend"

"You're my friend too, Luce!" He said cheerfully.

"Right, let's start cooking."

Oh, they are just too cute. So, Lucy and Natsu are now friends, (That was quick) and there are rumors being spread about them, not to mention Lucy is now on her third bag! Will this bag stay intact, or will the flimsy material let her down once again?