Wow, I'm nervous to post this chapter! haha.

The reactions to last chapter were crazy (just what I wanted, thank you heh) but I'm so so anxious to see what the reactions to this chapter will be.

So I have finally decided to make a Tumblr! I literally have no idea what I'm doing, but if you want to follow me, that'd be cool. B)

And if you want to give me tips on how to work it and stuff, I would really love that omg.

My url is amehanaaa. tumblr. com! /cries because amehanaa was taken like am I not original or what?

Well, enough self-promoting, I will let you guys read this chapter! Thank you so so much for reading!

Please enjoy! ~

Lucy kept her tight fists together until they uncontrollably shook. Her secret about leaving Magnolia was going to come out someday, but the look on Gray's face was enough for her to regret even thinking about it.

It wasn't like she had a choice, though. If she could, she would probably leave Magnolia right now.

"W-Why?" Gray croaked out after he was able to comprehend what she said. "Why would you leave Magnolia? When are you leaving? Will it be soon?"

"Gray, calm down," Lucy reached out to him except he jerked away in response.

He folded his arms across his chest, audibly taking deep breaths to let them both know he was trying to relax.

"Why are you planning to leave Magnolia?" he asked again, more controlled this time.

"Remember how I told everyone my dad wasn't feeling well? Well, he's actually in the hospital, and he's in a coma," she revealed, not giving Gray a chance to speak. "I don't know if he has woken up yet, but I'm feeling sick thinking about it."

Lucy wasn't planning on saying this much; she couldn't help herself. Blinking away the tears behind her eyes, she continued.

"I can't just stay here, worrying about him all day and night. I need to go see him. My mom already bought me a plane ticket. I don't know how long I'll be there—I just want to make sure my dad is okay."

Gray swallowed thickly, taking it all in. He knew it was wrong to plead her to stay, but he needed to try. He couldn't—wouldn't—let go of Lucy just yet.

"Levy said your dad wouldn't let this bother him," he reminded her slowly. "He should be okay, you don't have to—"

"I'm sorry, Gray," she whispered. "I have to go."

Not being able to say any more, she turned around on her heels. She only took two steps when she was roughly pulled back by her arm. She looked back at Gray with startled eyes.

"What about Natsu?" he insisted. "You like him, don't you? How do you think he's going to feel when you leave?"

Lucy felt a jab of pain in her chest, her breath stopping at the words she knew she didn't mishear.

"H-How did you know I liked Natsu?" she stuttered in surprise.

"It's sort of obvious," he grumbled, releasing her arm to awkwardly scratch the back of his head. "At least to me, it is."

"Then why did you confess to me?"

Gray sighed while falling back against a tree. He tried his best to keep his voice even as he explained.

"I've lost count on how many times I've practiced saying that I like you. It's been months, Lucy. One of the reasons why I had to wait so long was because I once told Natsu I was planning on confessing to you. He didn't react very well to it. He said something about how I wasn't allowed to or something."

"Is that why you two weren't speaking before the field trip to Onibus?" Lucy assumed softly.

He nodded. "I waited until he forgot, so I wouldn't cause trouble. It's been so long, I thought my feelings for you were going to fade away someday, but they didn't."

Lucy opened her mouth to apologize for everything; Gray cut her off.

"As long as you're aware of my feelings, it's enough for me," he assured with a tight smile. "If you're happy with someone else, then I think I'll be happy, too."

"Juvia likes you a lot, you know," she blurted out before she could stop herself. "Why don't you give her a chance?"

"Another one?" he raised a brow. "Well, I guess she deserves it."

Lucy nodded with a small smile. She was still stunned by Gray's confession, she had forgotten what the main issue was until he brought it up again.

"Just reconsider leaving Magnolia, okay?" Gray requested with a gentle voice. "It's going to hurt Natsu, and all of us, too."

"Natsu has Lisanna now, so he'll be fine," she responded plainly, ignoring the fact that they were probably together at this very moment.

"You're his best friend and his roommate," he shook his head in disagreement. "He'll be devastated."

Lucy stood there silently, not sure how she was supposed to end the conversation. Her stomach churned so much, she was beginning to feel nauseous.

"So, you and Natsu—"

"I-I'm going to go now," Lucy hastily interrupted. "See you later."

Spinning around to go back to everyone, she didn't wait for Gray to say any more. Everything hurt.

She was so sure telling someone she was planning on leaving was going to lift off the weight on her chest. If anything, her chest only felt heavier.

"I hate this," Lucy mumbled under her breath as she returned to the crowd circling around the fire. It was as if she never left. The only person who seemed to have left was Natsu.

The smell of s'mores floated in the air, subtly mingling with the firewood. Lucy stared at the flames as though she was in a trance. She didn't want to take her eyes off of it.

"Want some?" a voice came behind her.

"No, thanks," she shook her head as she turned around, viewing Erza happily munch on her s'more.

"We make the best s'mores in Fiore," Jellal attempted to persuade her.

"I'm fine, really," she waved her hands in front of her. She was positive her body wasn't going to accept a single thing for the rest of the night.

"I'm surprised at how many confessions happened tonight," Erza observed the people who were already holding hands. "I suppose the legend really is true."

Lucy didn't want to bring up that she was confessed to and it wasn't successful. She simply wanted this night to end.

"Finally some friends!" Cana proclaimed, jogging up to them. "I haven't been able to find anyone in this love crowd."

"Oh, that's right. I wonder how Lisanna's confession went," Erza recalled while scanning the area to see if she could spot them.

"Successful," Cana grinned. "I just saw Lisanna holding Natsu's hand. I didn't want to interrupt their special moment, so I didn't say anything to them."

"I'm happy for Lisanna," Lucy spoke with a hint of a smile. It wasn't a lie—somewhere within all her jumbled up emotions she was genuinely happy for her best friend.

Lisanna deserved to be with him. She'd known Natsu for longer, liked him for longer, and had more of a right to be with him.

Lucy didn't want to hurt her best friend; she'd rather hurt herself if that meant everyone would be happy.

"Let the midnight hike begin!" a voice declared through a megaphone.

"That's our cue," Jellal nodded his head to the side. "Let's go see what's so special about this thing."

Erza easily linked her arm with Jellal's, causing Cana to fake a gag. Lucy couldn't help but stifle a laugh.

Due to the crowd, once again, she lost sight of her friends. And again, she was alone.

Though she didn't mind it too much since the stars above her were absolutely beautiful. She had taken this same trail earlier in the day with everyone, but it was a whole different story at night.

It was nice—this distraction. Although, it didn't last as long as she would have liked.

"Lucy!" her name was called out.

She swiveled around to the voice, bracing herself for what she hoped she wasn't going to see. But it was there, hurting her more than she thought it would.

"Hey, Lisanna," Lucy said once she had caught up to her.

"Look, the legend worked!" Lisanna exclaimed, lifting up the hand that was entwined with hers. "You really encouraged me, so I wanted to thank you."

"You're welcome," Lucy responded as her eyes flicked to Natsu's withdrawn ones. "I'm happy for you two. I'm glad it all worked out."

"Thanks," Natsu muttered with Lisanna shouting it instead.

"I-I'll leave you alone now," she sent them both a forced smile. "See you later!"

Hurriedly walking away from them, Lucy was grateful it was dark. She was able to let a few tears flow out for a couple of seconds. Then, before she wouldn't be able to control it, she carelessly wiped them away and resumed her lonesome hike.

Perhaps it was all in her head; the teasing, the winks, the late nights playing games together, the pokes, the hugs, and their accidental kiss.

Natsu had never felt the same way she did. All Lucy did was misunderstand their friendship.

But if he was happy with someone else, she was going to be happy, too.

With that, she ripped up the paper holding her confession and threw it in a nearby trash can. It was time to forget she ever wrote it.

There was a short break once everyone had reached a certain hill. The flashlights around her still weren't enough light for her to search for her friends.

Yet while going down to the hill and retreating to the fire, Lucy felt a delicate pull on her sleeve.

"Lucy?" Juvia whispered behind her.

"Juvia," Lucy whispered back with her heart leaping into her throat. "I'm so sorry for what happened tonight."

Juvia's eyes widened as though she wasn't expecting the apology. An unconvincing smile settled on her lips.

"Where is Gray? Did Lucy say yes to his confession?"

"Of course not," Lucy shook her head. "I promised I would make Gray fall in love with you, didn't I?"

"But the legend," Juvia protested. "It didn't work?"

"It worked," Lucy paused. "It just didn't work with Gray and I."

"J-Juvia shouldn't be feeling happy right now, but she is," Juvia confessed as her gaze dropped to the ground.

"You should feel happy," Lucy sent her an assuring smile. "I hope you and Gray continue getting closer."

"Thanks, Lucy," Juvia returned her smile, much more convincing this time. "Juvia saw Lisanna and Natsu together."

"Yeah, I did, too," Lucy's heart sank in her chest. The image of their connected hands was burned into her mind. "They look happy together."

Juvia glanced at Lucy, realizing her smile wasn't matching her eyes. Before she could say anything, Lucy began to speak.

"Well, we're back now. Let's go to our dorms!"

"Okay," Juvia started to follow Lucy's quick steps into their building.

It didn't take long for the rest of the girls to enter their room as well. Once they were all there, the girl talk immediately commenced.

"Gajeel and I are going to go public!" Levy beamed.

"Natsu and I are finally together!" Lisanna grinned.

"Jellal and I held hands during the hike," Erza spoke maturely, like always.

"Feels good to be single, doesn't it, Lucy?" Cana hooked an arm around her shoulder.

"Juvia is also single," Lucy remarked, smiling slightly at Cana's enthusiasm.

"Yeah, but she has Gray," Cana answered. "She's basically with him already."

Lucy and Juvia shared a look. Both of them had agreed to not bring up Gray's confession. Some things were better kept in the dark.

"Well, since our last day is tomorrow, we should sleep," Erza stated after some time.

"We can get sleep on the ride home!" Lisanna pouted, clearly wanting the girl talk to continue.

"Juvia is feeling a little tired," she admitted.

"I think we should sleep," Lucy sided along with Juvia and Erza.

"Come on, Lu-chan," Levy whined.

"I'm feeling tired, too," Cana yawned. "You can borrow my lantern if you want."

It was quiet as Levy and Lisanna seemed to be the only ones who wanted to keep talking. Going with the majority vote, they had no choice but to go to sleep as well.

"Goodnight," Erza said.

"Goodnight," the girls responded.

Lucy shut her eyes when the lights clicked off, ordering herself to sleep.

She hoped that by tomorrow morning, the feeling in her chest would at least subside. Although something told her that it would be impossible for that to happen.

If that was the case, she was simply going to endure it.

Waking up on the last day of the school trip was definitely the most depressing one.

Having to pack their bags and take it to breakfast, the girls nearly dragged themselves to the main building.

"Why do we have to leave right after breakfast?" Cana mumbled.

"So we can get back to Magnolia during the evening," Erza explained.

Lucy was in a daze as she served herself her breakfast. Of course, all she dreamt about were the various ways Lisanna confessed to Natsu.

It swirled in her mind like a never-ending carousel.

"Morning," Natsu said while she sat down in her regular seat across from him.

"Good morning," she replied, not wasting a second to begin eating.

Natsu caught on instantly; he wasn't able to say anything due to his new girlfriend sitting beside him.

Lucy prepared herself to hear Lisanna's bubbly voice, holding her breath until it came. When it didn't, she couldn't help but look up. She was caught off guard when she saw Lisanna's rosy cheeks as she thought of how to greet Natsu.

"What's up with you this time?" Natsu chuckled at her.

"G-Good morning," Lisanna stammered bashfully.

"Just kiss already!" Cana scoffed. "We're all waiting."

Lucy's breath stopped along with Lisanna's. She was grateful once Natsu easily directed the conversation somewhere else.

Lucy didn't talk much throughout breakfast; however, she felt a pair of eyes occasionally falling on her and looking away when she looked back.

She quirked a brow once she finally locked eyes with Gray. He let out a sigh, shaking his head in response. He wordlessly went back to eating after that.

She waited for him to bring up that she was leaving Magnolia, yet he didn't.

Maybe that was why he shook his head?

Soon enough, breakfast ended and after a heartwarming speech by the staff members, the students were off to Magnolia. A bittersweet feeling drifted in the air as they walked to the bus.

"Can I walk to Magnolia?" Natsu begged, being a few steps away from the bus.

"Yeah, I wouldn't mind walking," Gajeel agreed gruffly. "Come on, Levy—"

"Nope, let's go," Levy giggled, pushing him into the bus.

"You'll never stop doing this, will you?" Lisanna laughed along with Levy, thrusting Natsu into the bus as well.

Lucy was already seated beside Cana in the bus. Not everyone was sitting in the same seats as before, so almost everyone was rearranged.

And as though it was fate, Natsu and Lisanna sat right next to Lucy and Cana.

"Luce, help me," he groaned the moment the bus's engine rumbled to life.

"Lisanna's going to help you," Lucy responded smoothly, looking at her as she nodded.

"That's right," Lisanna stated. "Now, keep still."

Turning away once Lisanna started to massage Natsu's head, she looked out at the window while the bus started to move.

Strangely enough, Natsu's groans that shortly turned into uncomfortable hums began to lure Lucy to sleep. She was thankful for it—it was nice to not being able to think for a few hours.

She woke up with a sore neck due to leaning against Cana's shoulder. Blinking a couple of times to remind herself where she was, she slowly lifted her head to not wake Cana.

The bus was utterly silent. The sole noise was the rattling of the bus while it sped across the freeway.

"Hey, Luce," Natsu's voice interrupted the silence.

Lucy whipped her head to him with large eyes. "Why are you awake?"

"Lisanna's heavy head won't let me sleep," he replied with a smile as he looked down at her.

Lucy's heart skipped a beat. How had she not noticed the way his eyes brightened up when he looked at her?

"If you lean on her head, it'll be comfortable," Lucy suggested.

"It's fine," he shrugged slightly, making sure he didn't move Lisanna's head in the process. "Anyway, how did you spend the campfire last night?"

"Same as everyone else," she answered vaguely. Natsu was not going to be the first person to know Gray confessed.

It was quiet as he nodded. Both of them already knew how he spent it.

Lucy was seconds away from telling Natsu she was going back to sleep, but he beat her to it. He was already leaning against Lisanna, lightly snoring away.

Lucy sighed under her breath. She hated feeling this conflicted about everything.

Going back to Cana's shoulder, she closed her eyes, already knowing she wouldn't be able to go back to sleep.

And just like that, in the matter of three simple days, new relationships were formed, hearts were broken, and the notorious school trip had come to an end.

Despite being on a school trip for three days, Magnolia High was still in session. While some classes were having a blast with their friends, the rest of the classes in school were doing what everyone hated most.

Studying.

It had taken the classes who went on the school trip a several days to get back into the routine of school. Yet once they did, their teachers didn't miss the opportunity to hand them their study guides.

"This is so gross," Cana grumbled the moment she was given a packet. "Are we really supposed to study right after our trip?"

"Midterms are in two weeks," Erza answered firmly. "You are expected to study every day until then."

"Want to make another bet this time?" Natsu smirked at Lucy's desk beside him.

"I will definitely beat you this time!" she stated confidently.

"We'll see about that," he responded with an unwavering smirk. "We'll think about the bet later."

Lucy nodded with a smile, returning to her work.

It was odd—everything between Natsu and her was surprisingly normal.

It was only rarely when Natsu brought up the topic of Lisanna. He was almost always home and it was as if he never went on dates with her.

Though Lucy tried her best to ignore her relief, she couldn't help but feel weirded out that it was like nothing had ever changed.

Natsu and Lisanna hardly spent any time together inside and outside of school.

Nonetheless, Lisanna's happiness only increased with each passing day. She was nearly sparkling every time she talked to Natsu.

Something about it all just wasn't adding up.

Going to her apartment with her enormous study packet which caused her schoolbag to be ten times heavier, Lucy didn't waste a second to begin studying.

She couldn't deny that she was still hurt about everything—sometimes she wondered why she felt so hurt when everything was so normal—yet there was something. Something that wouldn't stop causing Lucy's chest to sting.

Studying was fun, and it also let her ignore her thoughts for several hours.

Skimming through the packet to scribble out a schedule that would keep track of how much she needed to study, she began her first day of prep.

As always, time flew past Lucy as she studied. After reviewing for who knows how long, Lucy heard her vibrating phone buzz on her desk. She already knew who it was before even looking at the screen.

"Any new updates?" Gray texted.

Lucy let out a sigh, pressing her forehead against her desk with her eyes closed. Ever since they came back from the trip, Gray sent her a text at least once a day about when she was leaving Magnolia.

"I won't be leaving until midterms are over," she eventually texted back.

"That's a relief," he replied almost instantly.

Lucy read the text a few times until she knew she had to return to her packet. Placing her phone on her desk with the screen down, she resumed her studying.

Of course, one interruption always led to another interruption.

"Are you doing what I think you're doing?" Natsu asked, poking his head in the room.

"I'm doing what you should be doing," Lucy countered as she glanced over her shoulder at him.

"I've been thinking about the bet," he stated while strolling into her room and plopping into her bed. He grinned after noticing her scowl.

"If I score higher than you on the midterms, you have to help me set up for the school festival."

Lucy lifted a brow. "The school festival isn't until next month, Natsu."

"I know," he kept grinning. "But what if I want to do something during the festival, and I'm being forced to set up? I don't want that."

Lucy's brow remained high as she thought about her end of the bet. Really, there was nothing she wanted to bet on. Though on the topic of school festivals, an idea popped into her head.

"If I score higher than you on the midterms, you have to dress up as a girl during the school festival," she said with a sly smile.

Natsu's eyes widened; he knew he couldn't back down from a challenge, though.

"Deal," he extended his hand out to her. "You help me or I dress as a girl. I can do that."

"Or can you?" she began to tease, giving his hand a shake. She ignored the electricity that ran through her veins.

Natsu's lip twitched as he pulled his hand away and stood up from the bed.

"Study hard," he smirked before he gently closed the door behind him.

"As if I could do that," Lucy muttered into her packet that she pressed her face against again.

Even though Natsu was with Lisanna, Lucy's heart still accelerated each time she spoke with him. She couldn't help herself. She still liked Natsu a lot.

And there was nothing she could do about it.

Being his friend and his roommate—that's all she would ever be to him.