Everyone chuckled and laughed at the round table they were seated at.
The music rang around them, adding a soothing element to the night.
People danced and giggled, giving life to the party.
The duo sat beside each other. Natsu had his hand wrapped around Lucy's as he conversed with Erza about things the blonde couldn't understand.
They talked about sales, some names, their image (she thinks?), and maybe some paperwork.
It all sounded gibberish to her.
Loke and Levy were also there, seated somewhat across the blonde, getting to know Nathan's friends.
As social as Lucy was, she felt intimidated by them. So she mostly stayed quiet, listening in on everything.
She felt Natsu's thumb stroking her hand as he gave his attention to another woman, which made her smile.
"I named it that because shrimp is my best dish, what kind of question is that?!"
She heard Levy yell at the metalhead seated next to her.
The blonde chuckled.
They got along well, she thought.
She saw Loke flirt with the pretty girls next to him, too. Girls known as Cana and Lisanna. He attempted to flirt with Erza a while back, but he just got punched.
She liked that. How he was getting along with everyone. She hoped he'd fit in well with them, and he seemed like he did. She just wanted him to be happy.
"Why are you so quiet?" She heard Natsuwhisper, his deep voice tickling her ear with his breath.
She shrugged her shoulders,
"I'm just enjoying everyone's company," she smiled as she looked into his eyes.
"Do you wanna go somewhere alone?" He asked, his face too close to hers.
His friends—mafia team, to be exact—had lingering eyes over them, wondering what he was telling her.
She shook her head with a slight blush,
"No no, I'm liking it here." She paused. "Your friends all seem really nice, the weather is good and..."
He chuckled,
"You don't need to convince me to stay," he said. "I'll do whatever makes you happy."
Heat rushed to her cheeks as she felt her stomach flutter.
He always knew the right things to say.
"So, Lucy," a raspy voice interrupted, catching her attention. "What did you do to make Nathan here go crazy for ya, huh? What's your secret?" The blond smirked, leaning back on his chair as he eyed her.
She giggled, truly not knowing how to respond to his words.
Is his name Laxus?
Loke rolled his eyes. He hated everything about this night. Everything but the pretty girls, that is.
"I'm taken, Laxus, focus on your wife," Natsu responded for her, causing the whole table to laugh and giggle. Lucy included.
Taken?...
She felt her heart skip a beat as she registered his words.
Did he really say that?...
Natsu leaned into her ear,
"I'm taken, right?" He whispered.
Her cheeks were now just as red as her bloody dress.
"I... think so," she responded, her heart beating a million times per minute.
He smirked as he leaned in, his eyes drifting to her plumped lips the closer he got.
"H-Here?..." she mumbled quietly when she realized what he was about to do, her eyes stuck on his lips, too.
He pressed his soft lips against hers, holding the back of her head, digging his fingers into the strands of her hair as he went deeper into the kiss.
If there was one thing you should know about Natsu, it is that he doesn't care who's looking. He'll do what he wants.
Lucy, on the other hand...
The whole table stood still, Levy in shock and Loke sighing and drinking, before they forced themselves into talking and ignoring.
Her heart thumped and her whole body tingled, feeling her heart flutter. Her face flushed red.
She felt him lick her lips, letting himself enjoy the sweetness of the kiss.
His tongue leaked into her mouth as he explored it, swirling it around with her own tongue, licking every inch.
Her breathing grew heavy as he went deeper and deeper into it; both their eyes were shut as her heart pounded out of her chest.
He finally backed away as a string of saliva formed in between them, allowing her to catch her breath.
She opened her eyes slowly as she looked into his jade orbs, admiring the depth of his un-explored soul with her gaze.
He looked into the different shades of brown pools in her orbs, too, looking deeply into them as he slowly drifted his hand away from her.
"What about now?" He asked, smirking, his eyes gazing into hers.
This was unusual for his friends to see—only because their Don was always very private.
Or maybe because he'd never done it.
No one knew his secrets or what lied in his personal life.
Or if he even had a personal life.
No one knew anything about him dis-involving the mafia.
So it was just weird, seeing their Don kissing someone.
Someone he wanted to kill.
She nodded, her face flushed and her feelings heightening.
"Y-Yes... you're taken," she smiled.
She hated how shy that sounded. She usually wasn't like this. He just had this effect on her.
Ring-Ring Ring-Ring
Her phone buzzed loudly on the table.
He leaned back on his chair, satisfied, his hand still holding hers.
Ring-Ring Ring-Ring
His eyes lingered over her screen before she picked up her phone.
After a paused second of her staring at the caller, she spoke up,
"Sorry, I have to take this," she stood up from her seat, her eyes stuck on her screen as she walked away.
"Who was it?" Erza whispered to Natsu.
He sighed as his gaze drilled into Lucy's back.
"Her father."
.
.
Lucy walked in between the crowd to take this phone call, spotting a place at the corner.
She had been receiving calls from him every day for the past week, and she was over it. He'd never been so persistent, so she was getting concerned.
"Hello?" She answered after placing the phone against her ear, closing her other ear with her finger due to the loud music around her.
"Daughter..." the old man responded from the other end of the line.
"What do you want, daddy? Didn't I tell you to stop calling me?"
"I just... I need you here, I miss you."
"That's not my problem,"
"Please don't hang up, I finally got you to answer,"
She sighed.
"I don't owe you anything."
"I know— look, just come back home for a while,"
"Seriously? You called me to tell me that? You know I'd never come back. I thought this was some kind of emergency,"
"It is, Lucy," he paused. "This is urgent... and, I need you back here,"
The blonde stood there, quiet, unsure of what she should do.
Her dad never sounded that desperate. He'd never called her that much. His voice never sounded this weak. He never begged, ever. Something was definitely wrong.
"When do you need me to be there?" She questioned, a hint of worry in her voice.
He let out a sigh of relief,
"As soon as you can," a smile plastered on his face.
She scratched the back of her head, thinking hard about her schedule.
"I have stuff to do...work...I don't know," she paused. "I'll be there in two weeks from today," she said.
"I will count the days,"
"If this is some kind of trick I swear—"
"It isn't, Lucy, just come."
And with that, the blonde hung up the phone.
She stood there, staring at the stone ground beneath her, thinking of what kind of emergency this might be.
She sighed and shook her hands, thinking it would get rid of her thoughts and worry as she walked back to her table.
She felt her chest clench at his weak voice, still. She wasn't used to hearing him like this. Maybe he really was sorry.
But it doesn't matter. He's dead to her. Isn't he?
Once she helps with whatever this emergency is, somehow, he'll just die again in her mind.
That's the best way to cope, at least.
"Who was it?" Natsu asked as she reached the table.
"Oh, it was just my manager, calling me in for work tomorrow,"
Natsu paused.
Erza paused.
They both knew she was lying.
"But it's the weekend?" Erza spoke up.
Lucy flustered up as she took her seat.
"Y-Yeah, it's just, there's this paper she wants my assistance on,"
Erza nodded.
Natsu stayed silent, not looking her in the eye.
Why would she lie, he wondered. What could she be hiding from him.
"It's getting late, Lucy," Loke stood up and said from across the table. Everyone went silent. "Let's leave?" He asked.
She nodded, grabbing onto her purse and standing up.
"It's ok, Loke, I'll be taking her home." Natsu intervened, standing up too.
"No, it's alright, I'll just go with Loke." She said, looking over to Natsu.
He nodded.
"Alright then,"
She leaned in and pressed her lips against his cheek, giving him a kiss as he had his hands in his pockets.
The Don stood still as everyone at the table held in a gasp.
Yes, this definitely wasn't normal. No one gets this close to the Don.
"I'll see you soon?" She asked.
He nodded.
And just like that, Lucy, Loke, and Levy left the scene and went back to their homes.
It was just two weeks from now, that they had to worry about, though.
.oOo.
"And you said you'd be going?" Loke asked.
She nodded as she looked out the window, watching the moon following their car, the buildings passing by, and the cars driving.
"I didn't have a choice, he said it was an emergency," she responded.
"You always have a choice Lu-Chan, how can you trust what he says?" Levy argued.
"I don't." She responded. "But what if I don't go and end up regretting it?" She paused. They all paused. "No... I'm definitely going,"
Loke sighed as he moved the wheel,
"Well, do you want me to come along? Y'know, to make sure it's safe and to be there for you," he said, his eyes stuck on the road.
She smiled as she looked towards him.
"I think it's okay. Thank you, though. For everything that you do for me."
He turned and looked into her eyes, and paused for a moment.
"Of course," he said in a soft tone, his eyes too lost in hers.
"Eyes on the road!" Levy screamed from the back, snapping Loke out of it.
.oOo.
"Everyone," Natsu called out to his round table, where his most trusted members of his mafia team were seated.
"In the beginning, I said I'd be handling the Heartfilia family. I still am and will be. However, I need your eyes, your ears, and your minds. I need you to track her calls, her emails, who she sees, who she's with, and everything that surrounds her. Got it?" He spoke out, one hand laying on the table and his back comfortably leaning against the chair.
His voice was heavy and hanging in the air in between sentences.
His word was the order in which they followed.
His word was their law.
Their mission was his command.
And that's why, no one responded. Because it was rhetorical. Of course they would. It is their identity to serve the Head of Asia's mafia, after all.
He stood up.
"I'll be sending you her house and work address. Keep eyes and tabs on her." He said. "And, Loke. Keep an eye on him too. He's trouble." He continued.
"Yes, we will." Responded Erza.
"I'll be heading back. Enjoy yourselves," were his last words before he took off.
And just like that, he had stripped Lucy of her freedom.
The same freedom that was stolen from her by her father.
The same freedom she left home for.
Freedom he didn't understand.
Freedom he didn't have, being the Don, being someone always watched and spied on.
Being someone always followed, known, listened to, and observed.
Freedom he didn't have, being the person to which all looked up to.
Which is why, freedom to him, was nothing.
When to her, it was in fact, everything.