Previously

He left Lucy's house that night and released the breath he never knew he was holding. His eyes stung with unshed tears and a bitter laugh escaped his lips.

He looked at the night sky, as if trying to stop his tears from shedding.

It was really unmanly of him to cry, but he couldn't help it. He opened his phone and called the person he knew he could always rely on.

"Hey Rogue... Mind going out for a drink?"

Chapter 7 (Past Tears and Thankful Lucy)

"What are those?", Natsu asked while pointing at the screen of Lucy's television.

"What?", the blonde replied, munching on the popcorn.

They were watching some movies that day because they were both feeling too lazy to go outside.

Natsu had grown again that day and it had been another eventful morning for Lucy.

As usual, the pink-haired refused to sleep anywhere without her so they ended up sharing a bed that night. And of course, she woke up again with Natsu growing overnight.

She would later deny how her eyes raked his mature body or how she drooled upon seeing those six-pack abs. She briefly wondered how they would feel under her palm...

She blushed and scolded herself for having such thoughts.

"That! That place! I saw you go there once before. You were acting weird and stuff."

Her eyes scanned the television.

The characters were in a place that was dark, has loud music, dirty dancing, flirting and shots of vodka.

The club.

Yup, definitely the club.

"Wait, you watched me whenever I go there?!", her ears turned pink, embarrassed at how this pink-haired had watched her while she was drunk.

Well, she usually didn't remember how she acted whenever she was drunk but with Levy's un-amused face and scolding every morning, she knew it wasn't good.

"Yeah, your face gets really red and you even tried to kiss this blue-haired chick.", Natsu grumbled the last part, and it was enough to make Lucy pounce on him. Her eyes frantic as she covered his mouth with her hands. She was in so much panic that she didn't notice how provocative their position was.

"Don't. Talk. About. It.", she warned. Her face was glowing red with embarrassment.

She remembered that night all right. It was the night that she broke up again with her new boyfriend because she learnt that he was just after her money and her body.

Just like the rest of them.

She remembered getting drunk and asking Levy what in hell was wrong with her.

She was gorgeous, had the body many women envy, had a successful career and lots of money.

She was perfect... and loveless.

How pathetic.

All they wanted was to get money and take her in bed. And with all the men trying to get to her, she was surprised that she was still a virgin. She didn't know why, but every time she tries to do it, she always gets interrupted.

It was frustrating because she was always left sexually frustrated but at the same time, relieved because she'd later learn that they were all douchebags.

But she still cried over them anyway.

She's not an emotionless stone. Just because she learnt that they used her didn't mean she'd forget the memories they had shared. Yes, she was angry at them but most of all, she felt lonely. It hurts her to see her friends get married and create a family of their own while she...

She was left alone.

It was damn frustrating and she was losing hope of having her own family.

Her mother died when she was young, she was neglected by her own father, and she knows that Levy, her best friend in the whole world, would be married to Gajeel soon.

She knew that marrying Gajeel would not stop them from being friends but she knew that something will change. And maybe that's why Gajeel hasn't asked Levy to marry him yet. Because he knows that she still needs Levy. She knows that despite his glaring red eyes and intimidating self, he cares.

And she was taking advantage of it.

She knows that it was very selfish of her. That's why she let Levy and Gajeel leave without her. So she can accustom herself to not having Levy around everyday and let the couple think about themselves for awhile without thinking of her.

But honestly, that day on the airport, she felt like she was already saying goodbye.

They are all making a family. While she was left with her riches that she didn't care about. That's why she was so happy when she found Natsu. He sparked a certain feeling in her that maybe, maybe she could finally have the family she wanted.

She didn't care if he was odd. She didn't care if he was not human. Natsu... he's all she has right now.

She was snapped back to reality when she heard his worried tone. She stared at him and felt a strong urge to hug him.

"Luce-"

"Hey, Natsu.", she whispered then engulfed the pink-haired in a tight hug. She was happy she found him. She was happy that he was there for her.

"Thanks... for being here."

"Where did that come from you weirdo?", he said and surprisingly, it didn't earn him a Lucy-kick in the face. Instead, the blonde hugged him tighter, with a smile and a light blush adorning her face.

Natsu blushed when Lucy, as in Lucy his dream mate, told him that she was thankful that he was there.

It was a wonderful feeling, to know that the one you love wanted your presence. He wrapped his arms around her torso, feeling the tears of happiness stinging his eyes.

For Lucy they might be simple words, but it meant the world to Natsu.

It took a while for Lucy to break the long hug and he was surprised when she wiped the lone tear cascading his cheeks.

"Why are you crying?", she whispered as she stared at him with those beautiful brown orbs that he fell in love with.

He smiled at her and gently cupped her face.

"I'm just happy, to be here.", he said then captured her lips in a kiss.

It was a slow kiss, as if the two of them were memorizing each other.

There was no haste, no worry and no lust.

It was just the two of them, as they tried to convey what words can not measure.

Expressing the emotions and feelings that nobody but them could understand.

Their eyes were closed, but in their mind were the memories and some fragments of the future they imagined with each other.

It was a kiss...

That told Lucy that maybe...

...maybe she had fallen in love.

To this awesome virtual people:

lily . weissmangmail . com, Diamondzzz123, YuYui-hime, Trollala.X, nicole143mb, Rose Tiger, Destructive_diva, Meowie07, OgaxHilda, IamInk, alenaluvhuskies, Celestialite, TigerArrowgirl, Ikityan, MeGustaZeref, ddrockdoesfanfic, Sawakaze-Steph16, ilft . natsu, DestinysRequiem

Guest (Sept. 5) : Thanks for sharing your story. It made me feel better. But your story is so sweet by the way, age doesn't matter when I comes to love! Oh! How romantic! Oopps! I accidentally went into fan girl-mode haha.

Thank you, IamInk! For beta-reading the chapter :)

So I hope you enjoyed the chappy! Thanks for the favorites and follows!

EDITED-11-03-18 *UNDER CONSTRUCTION* Not much changes again.