Yeah I couldn't resist giving this drabble a german title because of the ambiguous meaning this word has in geman it just fits so nicely hehehe x)

veilchen

It was a Wednesday when he came storming into her shop after what felt like mere seconds after she had opened up.

Lucy had still been occupied with stowing her handbag into its usual spot behind the door, as active as a sloth and basically still asleep, when the door was ripped open.

"Lucy? You there?"

"Natsu?! What the hell!" she complained, groaning as his loud voice disrupted the usual quiet of her morning routine. He had just poked her inner beast with a stick. A move he would regret as soon as he'd lay eyes on her.

Underlined, sleep deprived eyes, sloggy movements, hastily fixed hair - this was Lucy Heartfilia after a series marathon that had lasted just a little too long. Three hours of sleep was all she had gotten. But the finale would air tomorrow. Of course she had had to catch up, right?

Not like she had already read the books. Twice.

But all regrets and angry thoughts were forgotten as she rounded the corner.

"Oh my god, Natsu, what happened?"

"Ah, not much… just, do you have any tissues maybe? Don't wanna go to work like this."

Lucy's hand dropped back to her hips, leaving her shocked face on display.

His right eye was a deep violet, and had started to swell from the looks of it. There was dried blood on his nose and lips, even trickles of it on his chin. He tried to grin, but the motion looked painful.

Quickly, she stepped closer, pulling a handkerchief out of the pocket of her shorts.

"Seriously though, what happened to you?"

"Some guys tried to snatch an old lady's handbag so I taught them a lesson." he declared, not without pride. Actually, it was oozing off him, and he put his hands on his hips in a victorious pose.

"Tss, you should really be more careful! You were lucky this time…" She trailed off as she wiped away some blood from his chin, staining the fabric in her hands. He seemed surprised by her care. "But what if something happens to you too?"

"Pah! They were just two."

"Just two?!"

"I do Muay Thai."

"Oh." Lucy mumbled cleverly. As if that settled the matter. Whatever that even was. Well, it sounded dangerous for sure, so she supposed it was a form of martial arts. But really, he was so irresponsible… "Well… at least you did save that old lady's bag, right?"

"I might've snatched a sandwich out of it before I gave it back…."

"You what?" Lucy snorted as she made her way to the counter in search of some provisions for the small cut on his forehead. She had a first aid kit somewhere around here, she was sure.

"Hey, I needed some energy! It's been a while since I've gotten into a fight."

"A while?"

Lucy raised a critical brow as she rummaged through the drawer where she thought she kept her first aid kid. It turned out to be the lower one. In her defense, she thought, she had barely ever needed it.

"Well…" Out of the corner of her eye, she watched him scratch his head, but then returned her attention to the drawers. "I was kinda a rowdy teenager, haha."

Lucy burst out laughing.

"What's so funny about that?" he grinned.

"Huh? What? Oh, I'm sorry, I got a little distracted by…this."

Still giggling, Lucy held up her discovery - a little pack wrapped in plastic foil.

"Eh? What's that?"

"Band-aids. But-" The corners of Lucy's mouth twitched. "They're Fairy Band-aids. They come in all the colours of the rainbow."

"….and you will…put them on me."

"I have no others."

"…"

"You should be grateful, really."

"I am so grateful, oh Queen of the Fairies!"

He actually fell onto his knees, worshipping her in a much too ironic way, if you asked her. She was still chuckling as she made her way back to him, holding the little package like a weapon.

"Calm down, Dragon Lord Dragneel. Now, sit down. Let me fix this mess."

"Aye, m'am!"

Natsu flauntered past her on his way to his beloved white chair. Really, she should probably buy a second one. One chair alone seemed to have become more and more trouble over the last months.

His constant company had brought a lot of change.

Her shortage of chairs was probably the most insignificant.

She followed him with a smile on her lips, despite her worry about his condition. Somehow, he did that to her. He came in and brought lightheartedness with him, no matter the circumstances.

He was already sitting when she came to a halt in front of him, and she did her best not to stare as he sat wide-legged on the chair. It might have just been the wounds, but an air of wickedness surrounded him, and it made him seem all the more appealing. If that was even possible.

When Lucy spotted a tiny bloodstain on his grey shirt, her mind went back to the task at hand. His treatment.

She tore open the package, grateful for the loud sound that ripped through the loaded atmosphere. The air had felt so thick, she thought she might have been able to cut it.

He had been staring, too.

But probably for different reasons. Because she looked so much shabbier than usual. It was not like Lucy to feel self-conscious about her appearance, but it just was one of these days. And his intense, shameless staring didn't help.

His eyes stayed trained on her face as she carefully applied the band-aid. She paid attention to be as gentle as possible, ghosting her fingers across his forehead and brushing away some stray strands of hair. Was she only imagining it, or did he shudder involuntarily every time she touched his skin?

When she was satisfied with her work and looked down at him, his eyes had become darker, the usual onyx replaced by an almost magnetic blackness.

"Thanks," he mumbled, eyes not leaving hers.

His tone sent shivers down her spine. Why did he not stop looking at her like that? It made her skin all hot.

Had he not been sitting, but standing in front of her, Lucy could not have guaranteed she would hve been able to resist leaning closer, letting his eyes pull her in until she could feel his breath on her lips.

Oh, she wanted to kiss him. The realization hit suddenly, and it hit hard.

He reached up, touching the band-aid decorating his forehead.

"Does it look good?" he grinned, and then immediately flinched when the smile reached his eye.Nevermind.

"Beautiful. Pink really suits you." She winked, but then her face turned serious again, and she wagged her index finger at him. "But promise me you won't throw yourself into dangerous situations just like that again! As a belated birthday present, okay?"

"Sure sure, I pr- wait what?! It was your birthday?"

"Yeah," she chuckled. "This Sunday."

"But why didn't you say anything!"

He jumped up, outraged and unable to shut his gaping mouth.

"Well," she stated, matter of factly. "Didn't just want to push it in your face. There was no reason to tell you, was there?"

"But - but I missed your birthday."

"Really, it's okay. Don't worry about it. I had a great day with some friends who surprised me."

"I… I could have surprised you too…" he mumbled, his previous enthusiasm destroyed. An aura of gloom surrounded him.

Lucy blinked at him, amused by his reaction. He seemed devastated.

"I'll make it up to you!" he yelled all of a sudden, determination blazing in his eyes. "You'll get a double super present next year, I swear! 1st of July, right? I'm great wth dates! I won't forget!"

"There's nothing to make up for."

He didn't seem to hear her. Lucy could have sworn he was standing in flames.

"It will be great!" he hollered, punching a fist into the air.

Lucy couldn't help but feel his enthusiasm seep into her. Really, he was planning her birthday present for next year. She grinned.

Her heart fell into a cheerful trot as she considered his words. Natsu still saw himself as an inherent part of her life in a year. He wanted to give her a gift, wanted to be a part of her world more than he already was.

The thought made her giddier than she wanted to admit.

And it solidified the idea that had been plaguing her ever since her heart to heart talk with Levy. Shedid have a thing for him, so much she had been able to admit to herself by now.

Not without a certain amount of fear, Lucy realized that her feelings probably had long past the stage of a mere crush.

No, the things she was feeling for Natsu confused her. She had never felt like this with any other man. This was something else. Something more.

Nervously, she harrumphed, unable to look him in the eye as she brought herself to finally ask him. Instead, she turned towards the door, fixing her eyes on the violets on top the counter.

"So… you doing anything this weekend?"

It took her courage to ask the simple question. What if he had no plans? Would she really be brave enough to ask him out?

His face lit up, as if he had just remembered something particularly funny.

"You won't believe this, but someone actually asked me out!"

"Oh."

Natsu didn't notice how her hands froze on the wooden surface of the counter, or how her face fell for just the tiniest of seconds. Natsu… had a date?

That was right. He was an attractive man.

Of course he would go out on dates. Who was to say he hadn't done so in the past months? Lucy had no right to feel so upset. They were not dating.

Still, it hurt.

Suddenly she regretted her stupid series marathon. She regretted that she had barely had time to apply make-up, that she looked like she had just crawled out of bed, that today of all things she felt not as cute as she so desperately wanted to look in this moment.

So he had spurned her. It was an irrational feeling, but Lucy felt rejected without even having exposed the feelings in her heart. Undesired.

"That's… nice," she tried, hating how the smile on her lips seemed so foreign to her, so fake.

"Ah, but I won't go," he laughed, oblivious to the weight that lifted off her shoulders as his words left his lips. He seemed oblivious to anything, really.

"What?!" she blurted out, and he blinked at her in confusion, only now becoming aware of her agitated state.

"What's with you?" he deadpanned.

"N-nothing." she snapped, trying to surpress the blush that she knew would claim her cheeks no matter what she did. "Just…surprised. Why not?"

"I didn't feel like it," he shrugged. "Not sure why. Besides, I have someone to look after at home."

And so Lucy fell out of the frying pan and into the fire.

"At…home…" she mumbled, glad for the table beneath her. Her knees would probably have buckled. How stupid could she be?

"Yeah, Happy. I told you about him, didn't I? My neighbour can't feed him on Friday, so I gotta stay at home and keep the nuisance some company."

Lucy's eye began to twitch. Really, was he doing this on purpose? She was not sure how much more commotion her heart could take. He had been talking about his damned cat. Suddenly, she had to laugh.

She sat there, giggling, and Natsu understood the world no more.

"Did I ever mention that you're really weird."

She, weird? He had been the one to send her on an emotional rollercoaster-ride with his nonsensical behaviour. Was he not aware of the things he was doing to her?

"I think you did." Once more, Lucy plucked up the courage to return to her previous endeavor. She would finish what she had started. If she didn't draw through now, she wasn't sure if she would ever dare again. "So you are free on the weekend, after all."

"Uh…"

Why did he seem so uncomfortable? There was something he was not telling her. Her heart felt heavy in her chest.

"I… got some stuff to do."

"Oh. I see."

Lucy's pride lay crumbled at her feet. Rejected. Lucy Heartfilia had been rejected, and that after it had taken her so long to muster the strength to even admit her growing feelings to herself.

Did he really see nothing more than a friend in her? Did he see even that? Maybe she was just a work aqquaintance after all, someone to save him from boredom. A tidal wave of insecurities came crushing in. She gripped the edge of the counter in an effort not to drown.

But he noticed her change in mood.

"Hey, what's up?" he asked, inquisitive and weirdly quiet.

"Nothing."

Lucy shook her head, desperately trying to fight the feelings bubbling inside her. Stupid. She was so stupid.

"Did you want to do something? We can get together next week! You wanna meet up next weekend? I can ask Sting and co! How's that sound? Lucy?"

This time, she managed a smile. He really was sweet. He did consider her a friend. Of course he did. The realization brought her comfort and reassurance, but at the same time it felt like a knife to the heart. He cared about her, she could see it in his worried eyes.

Just not as much as she cared about him. And that was okay. She would have to live with that. It was not his fault.

"That'd be nice."

"Cool! Then I'll leave you to your flowers for now!"

He seemed relieved, and inspected the palette on the upper part of the sales counter, pushing his nose against the lilac petals.

"Violets, right?"

He beamed at her, proud of his newly acquired wisdom. Had she taught him this, or had he looked it up on his own?

"Yeah."

Lucy nodded, staring at the flowers she had sat down on this very spot before he had stormed in. The prospect of replanting them seemed so much less appealing than before. He smirked at her, face still pushed against the greenery. The petals resembled the colour of his bruised eye.

"Violets."