Chapter 14

Waking Up

~Lucy~

Lucy found herself in paradise, a world free of her father, where she could spend time with her mother and dear spirits, where she was stress free and happy. She couldn't feel any better.

~Juvia~

Juvia couldn't tell whether or not Gray was still okay. When he had first walked into the kitchen, he gawked at how amazing it looked. Juvia had been very proud but was still concerned about his head. He had said he was fine but he still looked a little weary and when she changed his bandage, she saw that the skin was still very red and oozed puss. Yuck.

"This food is very good," Gray commented.

"Thanks, you sure you're going to be okay?"

"Yeah, what makes you think I'm not?"

"The fact that your face looks hot and the spot on your head is still very hot and dry no matter how much I hydrate it."

"Whatever," Gray muttered. "Why are you still here anyways?"

"Because you were being an idiot and almost burned your kitchen down!" Juvia stood up from her chair and banged her hands against the table, leaving minor dents. "You were being wreckless and could have gotten yourself killed! I've already lost Lucy and Natsu, I couldn't bear to lose you too." Tears started streaming down her face and onto her plate.

She saw Gray look out the window and mutter in an angry tone. "Why am I always making her cry?"

"Oh, It's not your fault." She sniffled, "I just cry a lot, that's all. It's nothing to worry about."

Gray turned to look at her. He looked surprised that she had heard him. She quickly wiped away her tears and gathered the dishes. "Here, I'll wash them while you go and lay down some more. After I finish, I'll go by the store and buy you some medicine to put on your head. It's starting to get late and I don't want to be out in the cold when it's dark." She put the dishes in the sink and guided Gray to his room.

"You don't have to help me with every little thing, you know."

"And what would you do if I didn't?"

"I dunno."

"You would act like an idiot and run out in the snow, that's what!" That's when she realized she had made a mistake. "You stay here. I'm going outside."

"Uh, Juvia, I don't think you should do outside." He said slowly.

"And why not?" What was he, mad?

"You're only wearing that shirt I let you borrow."

She looked down and realized that she had never changed out of it. Had her clothes even gotten cleaned? She had been over at the boy's dorm for the entire afternoon and this was the first time since she got dressed that her clothes had been mentioned. "Did my clothes ever get washed?"

"uh, no. I don't wash my own clothes. That's Reedus' job. I pay him 30000 jewels a month to do my laundry."

"You're hopeless." She sighed. "If that was the case, you should have just let me go over to the girl's dorm and we wouldn't have this problem would we?" She scolded. "Now I have to call up Levy and see if she can bring me some clothes."

"Or I could go." Gray suggested.

"In your condition? NO way!" She might have been a little too concerned at that point, but she didn't want to take any risks. She couldn't take care of him forever.

Gray went into his room and pouted.

Juvia reached for her purse. That's when she realized that she didn't have her purse. It was in her dorm room. What was she going to do now?

~Lucy~

"Lucy, you have grown tremendously since I last saw you." Her mother said warmly as she poured a cup of hot tea and handed it to her.

"Thank you." Lucy took the cup and took a sip. Mmmm, so warm and calming. So much better than what they served at the guild. At the guild all they had was beer. Yuck! She would rather have tea or wine.

"Are you enjoying this visit?" Her mother asked calmly.

"Oh yes! I've missed you so much, Mother! I want to stay here forever with you!" Lucy exclaimed.

Her mother looked at her with a sad expression, "You know you can't stay here forever, right?"

~Erza~

Erza pressed her lips against Jellal's again, she couldn't resist holding back another minute. His lips made her soul burn passionately hungering for more and more. She completely forgot about everything else and just thought about Jellal, every moment from when she first met him all the way to the kiss she had just planted on his lips.

He smiled but looked startled at the same time. Was he enjoying this? She sure knew she did. She released her lips from his and hugged him tightly, ready to fall asleep. "Jellal, I love you."

He pulled away from her hug and said, "You told me already."

Erza couldn't read his emotions. Why had he pulled back? Why had he told her she had already said it? Did he not love her back?

"I'm sorry Jellal, I –" That's when he leaned forward and kissed her! Erza could feel her whole face turn red. Jellal seemed to notice but did not pull away. He kept his lips pressed against hers and the two of them just sat there, with locked lips, as if time were frozen.

~Lucy~

"Mother, what do you mean I can't stay here forever?" Lucy was confused. Why couldn't she stay in this paradise forever?

"Lucy, you have all your friends waiting for you to wake up." Her mother told her.

"Wake up?"

"Lucy dear, you're dreaming. Once you regain consciousness I will be gone as everything else will be too."

"No!" Lucy shouted. "If that's the case, then I will never wake up!" She said stubbornly. She had just gotten her mother back and she was not about to lose her again.

"But, Lucy-"

"NO! If I wake up, then I won't ever get to see you again!"

"Lucy, dear, it's a dream. You can dream about me as much as you want, but right now you need to wake up!" Her mother persisted.

"Why?" She asked, "Why do I have to wake up? I'm here with you and nothing else matters!"

"Oh, but Lucy, your friends! Natsu, Gray, Juvia, Cana, Wendy, Happy, Charle, Mirajane, Erza, and what about Levy? She must be worried to death! You only had the chance to meet your new friend Lisanna once? Wouldn't you like to see her once more? And for gosh sakes Lucy, you have a young man sitting by your side waiting for you to wake up! How sad he must be!"

"But Mother-"

"Lucy, you must return to your friends!"

~Juvia~

"This is all your fault, Gray!" Juvia screamed as she threw random household items at him. "If you hadn't been so wreck less, we wouldn't be in this mess!"

"Ouch!" yelled Gray, who was trying to protect his head and face from the objected being hurled at him. "I am injured, remember?"

She stopped throwing items and snorted, "So?"

"Weren't you oh, so concerned about my injury five minutes ago?"

"Ugh! I hate you Gray Fullbuster!" She screamed.

"Hate me?" Gray laughed, "Really, now? Didn't you just confess to me this morning and become utterly miserable after being rejected?"

No, he did not just go there. Juvia's rage reached its peak. "I HATE YOU AND I NEVER WANT TO SEE YOU AGAIN!" Juvia stomped out of the dorms and headed back to the girl's dorm, caring not that she was wearing only an oversized t-shirt.

~Loke~

Loke heard Lucy's breathing slowly become faster and heavier, closer to the breathing pace of a conscious person's. was she finally going to wake up? His heart beat faster and faster, as it filled it's self with joy. His dear Lucy might wake up! Oh, how he longed for the hour to see the cute smile and the beautiful eyes that made his heart jump and the laugh that made him want to embrace her and press his lips against hers and tell her that he loved her more than life itself.

He saw her roll over onto her side and give a heavy breath. Oh, the joy having seen her sleeping face, so sweet, so innocent, so young… he couldn't wait another second. His lips slowly parted as he whispered the words "I love you, Lucy."

But, then, he wished he hadn't because the name she whispered back wasn't his, but Natsu's.

~Gray~

Okay, so she left, no big deal. He could take care of his injury on his own. Besides, He kind of earned it, teasing her like that. Though, she kind of brought it upon herself, getting mad at him the way she did. His laziness gave her no excuse to throw things at him.

He did regret it though. "I hate you Gray Fullbuster, I hate you and I never want to see you again!" The words rang through his ears and stung his heart.

Maybe he shouldn't have said the words that he said. Maybe he shouldn't have hurt her like that.

He took a deep breath. He didn't have a phone and it was way too dark to chase after her, and if he did, she would probably throw more things at him.

What if she was still mad tomorrow? Would she yell at him in front of the whole guild? If she wasn't still mad, wouldn't she be angry about him walking around carelessly with a severe head wound? He was dreading tomorrow.

~Lucy~

Lucy sighed. She absolutely loved the time she was spending with her mother, even if it was only a dream, but she couldn't go against her mother's will. Besides, she would have more dreams about her mother in the future.

"So, will you wake up now, Lucy?" Her mother said, the dream already beginning to fade.

"Yes. I hope to see you some time soon." Lucy smiled and hugged her mother.

"Now, Lucy, remember this," her mother began, but before she had the chance to open her mouth again, the dream faded completely and was replaced by another voice.

"Lucy." The voice sounded calm, but slightly gruff.

Her mother was right, there was a young man waiting for her to wake up. She smiled. "Natsu," she whispered back.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME! I am now 17 years of age! One of the first things I did this morning was get on my laptop and watch the new episode of Fairy Tail. For those who haven't watched it yet, I'm going to try to not spoil. All I am going to say is that it was AMAZING. But, the new animator is really pushing NaLu . you can just tell. If you are looking to watch the new episode online, look for Fairy Tail Season 2 not episode 176. I was waiting all night for it to get posted on as episode 176. I only made the realization this morning...

Anyways, I want to thank all my lovely reviewers: Jerza Fernandes, Guest, acousticbabyy, and ProfessionalOtaku17. You are all so kind ^.^

I hope you enjoyed the chapter. I have to go now because my parents have work to do, plus, my boyfriend might be taking me to lunch and I have prom tonight. PROM! SO EXCITED. BEST BIRTHDAY. EVER.

See you next Saturday when I post chapter 15:A Talk with Makarov

Jaa ne, wish me luck~

-Ashlie Swifty