So, two weeks ago, I had to take the ACT (a very important test for college). It was my first time taking it, and I had no idea what to expect. But today, I found out my score and it was actually decent!
I was in such a good mood today so I ended up writing a lot for this chapter. :') Yay for long chapters!
Just wanted to let you guys know that next month is going to kick my butt, so if I don't update one of these weeks, I'm probably studying for an upcoming AP exam.
I'll try let you guys know in advance when I can't update, though. :-)
I really can't believe that this story has 700 follows. I feel so loved asfwegsidhjri
One more thing! Lately, I've been finding out that people have been trying to take my stories.
If any of you guys see that someone has taken my story, no matter what website it's on, please don't hesitate to tell me!
Hope you guys enjoy this chapter! Thanks for reading~
Like any other road trip, once the trip hit the one hour mark, everyone in the van was fast asleep.
Except Natsu and Lucy.
"How can anyone sleep with Elfman's driving?" Natsu muttered, but loud enough for Lucy to hear in the backseat.
"Did he just snore?" Lucy's eyes widened while viewing Elfman's back.
"A true man knows how to drive while sleeping," Elfman declared.
"Prepare to die, Luce," Natsu looked over his shoulder to smirk at her.
"On it," she quipped.
She tried not to shift around too much since Gray ended up leaning against her when he fell asleep.
Lucy knew she wasn't going to be able to fall asleep with the abrupt stops Elfman constantly did even if there weren't any cars in the first place.
So in the meantime, she gazed out the window, occasionally pointing to a building Natsu should look at. Due to the fact that they had to be mostly silent, they shared a funny expression as their response.
"We're almost there," Elfman announced after three hours.
"And everyone is still asleep," Lucy said.
"We should try and scare everyone," Natsu spoke with a devilish grin.
"How?" Lucy sent him a questioning look.
"When we get to the beach house, we should yell, 'We're here!' really loud," Natsu plotted.
"Oh, that's evil," Elfman responded. "Let's do it."
"I don't think we should—"
"Try to scare Gray a lot," Natsu interrupted Lucy, nodding towards the limp Gray still leaning on her.
"Well, I guess I have no choice," Lucy sighed under her breath.
It wasn't long until Elfman revved the van inside a cookie cutter neighborhood of beach houses. Lucy gulped at just how large each house was.
Slowing down to a certain house, Elfman pulled into a driveway and parked the van. He glanced at Natsu and Lucy through the rearview mirror.
"Scream on three," Natsu began to whisper. "One, two, three!"
Lucy took a deep breath and Elfman cupped his mouth.
"We're here!" the three screeched simultaneously.
Immediately, all of the lifeless bodies sprung to life, gasping for air.
"What the hell is wrong with you?!" Gajeel roared, reaching over to give Natsu a punch.
"My heart is beating so fast!" Levy proclaimed as she put a hand to her chest.
"How long have we been sleeping?" Erza asked groggily.
"I was having the best dream," Cana grumbled.
"Was I sleeping on you?" Gray inquired to Lucy.
"You were," Lucy nodded with a smile, noticing a faint mark on his cheek from leaning on her.
"You should have pushed me away," he stammered while averting his gaze.
"You looked comfortable," she shrugged.
"Now that we're here, each man needs to get out," Elfman ordered.
"My motion sickness patches are wearing off," Natsu groaned, hurriedly sliding open the door and jumping out of the van.
Once everyone was off the van—trying not to fall at how jelly their legs felt—they pulled out their luggage from the back of the van and strolled their way into the house.
"I can smell the beach from here," Jellal stated with a deep inhale.
"That's because the beach is right behind the house," Lisanna replied.
They began to roll their suitcases through the walkway to the front door; it creaked open before they reached the porch.
"You brought so many guests!" Mirajane exclaimed.
"Is the food ready?" Elfman asked as though that was the only thing in his mind—which it was.
"Food?" Natsu, Gray, and Gajeel spoke at the same time.
"I made sandwiches for everyone," Mirajane stepped out of the way for them to enter the house.
With no hesitation, the three boys—and Elfman—rushed to the kitchen despite not having a clue where the kitchen was.
Of course, they had dropped their luggage without a second thought.
"Where will we be sleeping?" Lucy questioned after Jellal had reluctantly followed the boys.
"Follow me," Mirajane beckoned them to her, bringing them into a long hallway.
"There are three beds in each room," she informed while opening the door to one room.
"I'll be with my sister, of course," Lisanna added.
"I don't want to know how Erza sleeps," Cana sent Erza a side glance. "I'll be with the sisters."
"First come first choice for the beds!" Levy shouted before scampering into the neighboring room.
Although Erza was the last one to enter the room, she was the first one to pick the bed she wanted.
"How did you do that?" Lucy's mouth fell with bewilderment.
"Skill," Erza answered from the bed.
Lucy scoffed; she had no choice but to get the bed closest to the window. Fortunately, it wasn't as bad as she thought it was going to be.
Hauling their suitcases in the room, they quickly made their way into the kitchen so they could at least get a few sandwiches.
"Your sandwiches are great, Mirajane!" Lucy complimented the second she took a bite of her sandwich.
"It's better than your cooking," Natsu joked to Lucy only to receive a kick under the table from her.
"Do you guys want to go look around the beach?" Lisanna suggested once the several plates of sandwiches were gone. "We can go swimming tomorrow."
With an accepting nod, the group rose from their seats.
"We're having hot pot for dinner!" Mirajane called out as they left the house through the back.
"I want to live here forever," Gajeel stated.
"And the tour I'm about to give you will make you want to live here even longer," Lisanna beamed. "Let's get started!"
For once, Lucy wasn't the only one to gape at every single thing Lisanna pointed out.
The beach was more stunning than she remembered it to be. Pictures of the ocean were dull compared to the real thing.
The warm sand constantly entered everyone's shoes, or sandals, but they didn't pay attention to much of it since their attention was focused on all the attractions surrounding them.
Lisanna's tour didn't finish until the sun was almost below the horizon, sinking into the ocean.
"This place is amazing," Lucy sighed with content.
She swung her feet in the air as she sat on the edge of the rocky coastline, admiring the vibrant cotton candy sky above her.
"What would you do if I pushed you off on accident?" Gray came up beside her.
"Don't do it!" Lucy shrieked, bringing her feet up to the ground. "I don't know how to swim."
"I won't, I won't," he assured with a chuckle. "Nobody has taught you how to swim?"
"Nobody wanted to teach me," she shook her head.
"I'll teach you then," he responded. "It's not hard."
"Sure," she gave him a smile, accepting his offer.
They became silent while they watched the nearly finished sunset. When there was just one more shimmer from the ocean, the sky started to dim.
"Try not to slip," Gray warned once they began to retreat to the house.
"I won't—"
"You won't what?" Gray smirked after having swooped down for Lucy to catch her.
"Be quiet," she mumbled, straightening her back and returning to the sand.
"Be ready to swim tomorrow," he instructed.
"I already am," she countered slyly.
Gray sent her a grin; Lucy returned it.
Sliding open the back door to go back inside, the aroma of delicious stew drifted inside of the group's nose.
They sat in the same seats as before. Their mouths watered at the sight of the hot pot Mirajane placed in the center of the table.
"I've never eaten hot pot in the middle of summer," Cana stated incredulously, but didn't hesitate to dig in.
"It's a manly Strauss tradition," Elfman said.
"Something like that," Lisanna shrugged slightly.
In almost the blink of an eye, the large pot was entirely empty and each stomach was entirely full. All of the boys belched while leaning back in their seats.
"What do you say?" Erza glared at them.
"Excuse me," they murmured in unison.
"So, what are we doing tomorrow?" Levy asked excitedly.
"Whatever we want to do," Lisanna answered. "And then the day after tomorrow is Natsu's birthday!"
"Gross," Gray groaned.
Lucy's heart was lodged into her throat after remembering what she had forgotten again.
Tomorrow was her birthday.
Mirajane soon began to shoo the group out of the kitchen so she could clean; Lisanna led them to the living room.
They felt as if they were going to stay up all night, being together like this, but just one yawn started it all.
"Well, I'm going to sleep," Jellal yawned. "Goodnight, everyone."
"Me too," Levy nodded. "Night."
And just like that, everyone was back in their rooms, talking and laughing until they unintentionally dozed off—completing their first day at the beach.
Lucy was the first one in her room to wake up the next morning.
She blinked at the ceiling several times to remind herself that she wasn't back in Magnolia.
Lifting her head to peer out the window, she smiled at how stunning the ocean looked with the morning sun.
It wasn't until she glanced at the time when her body froze.
"It's my birthday," she whispered.
Not feeling much older whatsoever, she slid out of her bed and shuffled to the bathroom.
There was a soft sizzle coming from the kitchen. Lucy's stomach rumbled at the smell of bacon.
She didn't realize just how smart it was to wake up early until she exited the bathroom only to collide with a shirtless Natsu.
"Get out of the way before they come!" he ordered as he pushed her aside and slammed the door behind him.
"Good morning to you, too," she frowned at the closed door.
She didn't know who they were, but it wasn't hard to figure it out after hearing the elephant-like stomps coming from farther down the hallway.
"Natsu, you have two minutes! If you're not out by then, I'm breaking this door," Gajeel threatened.
"I can't do everything I need to do in two minutes!" he protested inside the bathroom.
"Too bad, Flame-brain!" Gray shouted.
"Do you guys not know what a shirt is?" Cana inquired, poking her head out of her room to view the shirtless boys.
"Or how to be quiet?" Levy included. It was obvious she was trying to not look at Gajeel too much.
"Breakfast is ready!" Mirajane's sweet voice floated through the hallway.
"Well, that's my cue," Lucy grinned, loving the expressions of envy the boys flung at her.
"Good thing there's a separate bathroom for us," Lisanna breathed out in relief.
Lucy was halfway into her first pancake when one by one her friends entered the kitchen.
"My food better not be cold or else," Gajeel growled, roughly pulling out his chair, being the last one to enter the kitchen.
"That's what you get for not paying attention to the bathroom," Jellal replied smugly.
Like last night, the boys ate more than half of what the girls ate; however, Mirajane didn't complain.
"Let's go get ready for the beach now!" Lisanna cheered.
Returning to their rooms, they put on their swimsuits, applied a layer of sunscreen, and dashed outside to get to the water as soon as possible.
Lucy was secretly grateful Levy also didn't know how to swim. If Levy wasn't there with her, she'd be all alone creating sandcastles by herself.
Despite it being her birthday, she wasn't upset her friends hadn't mentioned it.
She'd much rather have everyone paying attention to the beach and not her, anyway.
"Luce, why don't you come in for a bit?" Natsu questioned after they had bathed in the sun for almost two hours.
"I did already," she answered.
"Having water up to your knees doesn't count," he remarked. "You need to know how it feels like to be underwater!"
"No way," she refused. "I'm fine making sandcastles with—"
Lucy paused, looking over to her side to find that Levy was gone.
"Look, even Levy knows how it feels," Natsu stated, pointing to Gajeel placing an inflatable ring around Levy in the water.
"When did she even leave?" Lucy muttered while picking herself up and brushing the sand off her legs. "Okay, I'll try it."
"You can hold my hand if you get scared," he teased.
Lucy didn't think twice to take his hand once the water reached her upper waist. Natsu grinned in her direction.
"W-Wait!" she blurted out. "I can't go any farther than this."
"Why not?" he lifted a brow.
"Gray said he was going to teach me how to swim," she stammered. "I haven't seen him all day, though."
"Last time I saw Ice Princess he was being chased by some blue-haired girl," he scoffed. "I don't think he's going to be coming back soon."
"Then I guess I just won't go underwater until he comes back!" Lucy said quickly, spinning around and treading through the water.
"I can teach you, you know," he reminded as he used their already connected hands to pull her back.
In the process of bringing her back, the slick sand under Lucy's feet made her lose her footing.
"Natsu!" she yelped before falling back.
She held her breath, already accepting that she was going to drown, but a strong arm around her waist pulled her out of the water.
"Wasn't that fun?" Natsu asked.
Lucy's eyes widened at the random question, staring at his glinting hazel eyes that were much closer than usual.
"Why are you holding me so close?" she inquired as she looked down to see her stomach pressing against his torso.
"So you don't drown, of course," he replied.
"Thanks," she averted her eyes away from him, trying not to overthink the whole situation.
"Now that we got that out of the way, can I teach you how to swim?" he requested with hopeful eyes.
Lucy looked at him with a blank expression, knowing she wouldn't be able to reject him.
"Okay, so first, you have to hold your breath…"
After at least three hours of swimming lessons by Natsu himself, Lucy was shocked to admit that she could swim decently enough to return to the shore.
"Swimming is exhausting," she let out a sigh while sitting back down in a seat near a food stand.
"Teaching someone how to swim is even more exhausting," Natsu agreed.
They shared a snow cone—half of it being a sweet coconut and the other half being a flaming jalapeno.
There was a sharp squeal in the air; Lucy and Natsu subconsciously turned their heads to the voice.
"Is that Gray?" Lucy asked curiously.
"Running away from that girl? I think so," Natsu answered with a dumbfounded expression.
"Should we help him?" she tilted her head at Natsu.
"He'll be fine," Natsu guaranteed. "He likes getting chased around."
Lucy couldn't tell if Gray was enjoying having to hastily stride away from the unknown long-haired bluenette, but she decided to believe Natsu just this once.
Once the group had noticed their skin was incredibly tanner than before, they decided to take a break from being outside.
"Gajeel actually taught me to swim, Lu-chan!" Levy exclaimed when they met up back at the house.
"Did you have to call him Gajeel-sensei, too?!" Lucy's voice matched Levy's energetic one.
"No," Levy frowned. "Did you have to call Natsu, Natsu-sensei?"
"O-Of course not," Lucy laughed anxiously, looking down at the floor. "I would never do something like that."
"Your face is so red," Levy giggled.
"It's a sunburn," she responded, spinning away from her to enter the kitchen.
"Lucy, what would you like for dinner tonight?" Mirajane questioned.
"Me?" she sent her a puzzled look.
"You get to pick tonight," Mirajane smiled.
"No fair," Cana whined, entering the kitchen with damp hair.
"Burgers," Lucy spoke before she could stop herself.
"Isn't that really hard to make?" Levy remarked.
"I can do it," Mirajane assured. "I work at Fairy Tail, remember?"
A joyous grin spread across Lucy's lips. Perhaps she was just lucky to have a special dinner made on her birthday.
"I'm about to put the secret ingredient inside the burger, so go back to the beach!" Mirajane dismissed them.
"I'm too tired to swim," Cana confessed as their feet pressed into the sand.
"How about we walk around?" Levy proposed.
At first, the girls thought their walk would get boring. But luckily, there was always a new sight to see at the beach.
"Guys, dinner is ready!" Lisanna called out once the sun began to settle down.
"Please don't tell me I'm actually smelling burgers," Natsu stated with quickening footsteps to the house.
"Where's Gray?" Lucy wondered aloud, noticing the only vacant seat at the table.
"Still getting chased by that girl probably," Jellal chuckled.
"That's a real man," Elfman commended.
"He'll just have to eat his burger later tonight," Mirajane said while placing the first plate in front of Lucy.
"Why does she get the first burger?" Gajeel scowled in Lucy's direction.
There was no answer since everyone was too distracted by the melting cheese oozing out of their burger.
Lucy had to hold back a moan when she bit into her burger. Mirajane's cooking was just too good to be true.
Gray still wasn't back even after they finished eating dinner. Worry began to enter Lucy's chest.
"Since Lucy was the first one to wake up, she can shower first," Erza announced before Lucy could go and search for him.
"O-Okay," she stuttered, pushing her chair back to stand up.
"Don't waste all the warm water," Natsu commanded as she walked past him.
"Gajeel will definitely have the coldest shower," Jellal sent him a mocking look.
Lucy was too far away to hear what her friends were saying once she entered her room.
She contemplated if she should take her sweet time showering, but after remembering there was a long line behind her, she picked up the pace.
"This was a fun birthday," she thought to herself with a small smile, drying her hair with a towel.
Opening the door to report she was finished showering, Lucy gasped when she noticed who was standing by the door.
"Gray, you're finally here!" she proclaimed.
"Follow me, I have a surprise for you," Gray nodded his head to the side so she would follow him.
"What is it?" she questioned, cautiously trailing behind him.
It was dead silent as Gray took her throughout the house, leading her to the backdoor.
"Close your eyes for me," he ordered.
Lucy hesitantly did was she was told. "What's the surprise?"
"So impatient," he scoffed while gently taking a hold of her wrist.
Lucy had no idea what Gray was doing or where he was taking her. It made her feel nothing but vulnerable.
The night summer air soon began to brush against her exposed skin.
"Why do I smell fire?" she asked.
"Okay, I want you to count to five in your head. After that, you can open your eyes," Gray instructed.
"Well, alright," she mumbled, feeling his hand disappear from her wrist.
She couldn't tell if she was counting too fast or too slow, yet once she finally reached the number five, she opened her eyes.
"Happy birthday, Lucy!" the group yelled from the sand.
"W-What?" Lucy blurted out.
"You didn't think we actually forgot about your birthday, right?" Levy grinned, pulling Lucy down to the sand with them. "Blow out the candles!"
Lucy stared at the giant cake with large eyes. Taking a deep breath, she blew out all the candles in one breath.
"That means your wish is going to come true," Cana declared.
"Here you go!" Lisanna handed her a small box. "The second I saw this, I knew it was meant for you."
"You bought me a present?" Lucy breathed out. "You didn't have to get me—"
"Well, we did," Erza interrupted. "Here's mine."
"And mine!" Levy chimed in.
"You'll like my present the most," Cana wiggled her eyebrows.
"Enjoy mine," Jellal spoke.
"I was forced to buy this," Gajeel revealed bluntly. "Here."
"Happy birthday, Lucy," Gray smiled as he handed her the gift.
"Guys," Lucy continued to whisper.
"She's crying now," Gajeel groaned.
"Thank you, guys," Lucy gave them a grin despite having tears streaming down her cheeks. "Let's eat some cake now!"
As though that was her cue, Mirajane popped in to start slicing the cake. And as always, Mirajane's cake was the best cake they had ever had in their life.
The rest of the night—that was now dedicated to Lucy—went on with more smiles, laughs, and just a few more happy tears.
Lucy couldn't remember the last time she had felt this happy.
"Well, happy birthday again!" Lisanna exclaimed before everyone was about to go back to their rooms for the night. "I hope you didn't mind spending it here."
"Of course not!" Lucy shook her head. "It was a lot of fun, thank you."
She didn't want to be the last one to be out of her room, so she was just about to hurry inside hers, but a hand grasping her wrist prevented her from doing so.
"N-Natsu?" Lucy inquired.
Just like Gray did before, Natsu took her outside to the deck in the back of the house. He released her wrist when the back door was slid shut.
"Why are you being so quiet?" she stifled a laugh at his silence.
"I got this for you," Natsu said a bit too quickly. "I don't know if you'll like it, though."
Lucy was speechless at the plain box containing a sparkling necklace inside of it. She couldn't think of anything to say.
"Thanks for putting up with me for these past few months," he modestly scratched the back of his head as she continued stared at the necklace.
Blinking down at the necklace for several moments, she slowly peeked up at Natsu.
Before she could stop herself, she leaped into his arms and gave him a tight hug.
"Thanks, Natsu," she smiled into his shoulder.
"Happy birthday," he spoke softly into her ear.
They embraced each other longer than a usual hug would last; neither of them pulled away until Lucy felt as if her heart was going to explode.
"You better give me a present tomorrow, too," he warned as they stepped back towards the house.
"I don't know," Lucy hummed.
"Come on!" he complained.
"Birthdays aren't all about presents," she scolded.
"Oh, yeah?" he lifted a brow. "Give me back the necklace then."
"No way!" she refused instantly.
They shared a laugh. Realizing just how loud they were being, they covered their mouths.
"Let's go inside now before we get in trouble," she reached for the door lock to slide open.
Lucy waited for Natsu to close the door—the moonlight creating their silhouette across the walls.
She opened her mouth to say goodnight, but catching a glimpse of the time behind him, she stopped.
"What are you—"
"Happy birthday," she whispered, her lips skimming across the edge of his ear.
She could feel Natsu's cheek warm up as he whispered back, "Thanks."
Pulling away, it took all of her strength to not hug him again.
"Goodnight," they told each other simultaneously.
And with the necklace case being squeezed by Lucy's hand, they separated to enter their rooms—their backs and chests tingling with joy until they fell asleep.