A/N: Waah! I updated! I didn't expect that. O.O Haha! Seriously speaking here, I definitely have NO confidence with this chapter. The whole story, even. Aww! T.T I feel like I'm getting worse day by day. :/ There's still plenty of room for improvement, right? Right? T.T I feel awful but still I did what I would call my best for this chapter. I sure do hope you'll still read it ;(
Oooooooooooookaaaaaaaaayyy… enough of my drama and all. I won't be able to forgive myself if I don't do this…
Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! For all those who read this story, reviewed it and added it to their list of faves and all. I love you all so so much :') You guys keep me going. Thank youuuu T.T *hugs and kisses* I honestly didn't expect to get such good feedbacks from you :') I'm just so happy ^^
Le' CarolinnaXannej421ahaha I know I've already PMed my reply to your review and all but since your someone I'd call special here, I'd like to thank you all over again little Rin-chan! Waah! Miss ko na sister ko :'( You take care, okay? ;)
Ichigolover I'd like to thank you twice! For this chapter and the previous one! Thank you so so much! :') Hehe your reviews mean a lot, you know ;)
Hinagiku Zeelmartuwaah! I'm afraid so ^^" Was that too mean? Sorry! Hehe and… thank you for the review! :')
LoveIsARoseAre you a magician or something? You made me smile so much! :') Thank youuuu! I'm very much grateful to your kind words ^^ I do hope I don't disappoint you. I'll do my best to prevent that :'))
fairytaillover416thank you so much for the review ^^ Nothing much happened in this chapter though. Sorry! I'll make up at some time. :')
Guest 10/30/12 ahaha oh yes , yes ^_^ more GrayLu is what I'd love as well :DD Thank you for reviewing, ne? :')
Bob Bandicootuwaah! You could've seen how glad I was to see your review! Thank you! I appreciate the advices VERY MUCH ^_^ Was the ending confusing? Hehe sorry!
Well then, here's chapter 10. Nothing much happened here I tell you. But I dedicate this and some other chapters to come to my beloved friend, weirdismyname, who was the very or even the sole reason that I added this one pairing yet to be introduced. It won't be a major though. ;)
Chapter 10: School Nurse
Lucy's POV
Murmurs, stares and more murmurs… I don't think I can handle this any longer.
"Um, G-Gray? You can put me down now. I can walk on my own you know." I said in a sweet voice but Gray just kept on walking like he didn't even hear me. "Gra—"Trying a second attempt, I found myself getting cut off.
"There's no way I'll let you walk with that foot of yours Luce! Shit, I swear whoever did this to you is gonna get it! Damn!" He exclaimed, making me gasp in shock to his multiple cussing. He must've noticed my surprise at his sudden outburst so he gave me a soft apology. "S-sorry."
I shook my head in response to tell him I understand. Well, sure he'd get worried. My foot was practically dripping with red, sticky blood. I don't even want to guess how deep that nail went. Gray had always been a serious person, didn't think he'd get this serious over this matter. I've never seen him so furious before. First it was those messages then now, this. It's one thing after the other. Who could do such a thing? I squeezed the memo pad I found in my shoe locker earlier. There's no way it could be Juvia-san. Why would she even? Still… I slapped myself mentally for even thinking of that.
Without me realizing it, my arms tightened their hold on Gray and I was already snuggling unto the warmth of his broad back. "Am I not too heavy?"
"Nope, not heavy." He replied, grunting.
"Not heavy at all?" I insisted, his heavy pants beg to differ.
"A little."
I gave him a playful slap on the shoulder and he laughed softly. "Not nice to say especially in front of a lady." I told him.
"You kept on asking." He replied with a smirk that faded away as soon as his eyes landed on my still bleeding foot. "Does it still hurt?"
His question caught me off-guard. Come to think of it, it's as if I forgot about the pain until he mentioned it. Was being this close to him this distracting? "Maybe, just a bit."
Gray turned to me with gentle, concerned eyes. "Maybe? Well, better than stinging. That's good to hear." And as he spoke, I could clearly tell the traces of relief in his voice.
I tugged on his shirt and asked for a short stop. "Lend me your ear for a bit." I told him.
He raised his brow questioningly but did what I asked for anyway. "What are you—" And his voice trailed off as I implanted a quick kiss on his now reddish cheek.
"Thank you, Gray." I flashed him a smile but he was still lost in his own world, staring blankly into empty space with his mouth hanging open. I have to admit, it was cute of him to look like that.
Gray's POV
The spot where her lips just brushed against left a burning sensation for what lasted like hours, or so I'd like to describe it. It was awfully hot and maybe the heat even reached to my ears. Is summer that near already? It took me a while to even my breathing. I didn't know even my little angel had a devilish side like that. Admit it Gray, she just got you completely. I must be painted bright red right now. Damn blush, go away!
"Ah! I just remembered!" Lucy tugged me again, on the collar this time. Not only did she snap me out of my trance, she almost choked me to death. She let go as soon as she noticed. "I'm so sorry!"
I gave out a brief cough before speaking. "Urgh… What is it this time, Luce?"
"Can we… stop by my brother's room?" She started, uncertain whether she should even mention it. "He made me promise to tell him if something happened again." As soon as she finished talking, she flinched in pain.
The word 'again' got special attention from my sharp hearing. What did she mean by that? Did something happen that I didn't know of? Was she… hiding something from me? "No can do, Luce. That wound is getting worse. Your brother's room is far off in the next building. Say we just entrust someone from our class to bring the message to him? We'll pass by the room along the way to the infirmary anyway."
Lucy nodded and sunk her face on my shoulder, eyes evasive.
Instinct or not, I knew she was hiding something from me. So as I walked, careful enough to not trigger any pain from her injury, I let my inner self speak for me. "And maybe you ought to tell me something else along the way. Something so important you chose to keep from even me." I tried to hide the creaking, pained voice from her– useless attempt.
She raised her head up and met my gaze. "Y-yeah. I'm sorry. I just… didn't want you to wor—" I didn't let her finish when some unknown feeling got into me. Anger? Frustration? I don't know.
"I'm worried enough here, Lucy!" I couldn't explain what it was but I knew that it was strong enough for me to lose myself for a moment. I can feel her hold tightening as she forced her voice back by biting her bottom lip. Great going Gray, you just scared her. I wanted to apologize right away but the thought of her hiding something from me left me feeling betrayed. Well, not like I ain't hiding something from her as well. For years I've kept this one thing from her. Still, this and that are two different things.
∞Ж∞
The room came in sight without any conversation between me and Lucy. Sliding the door open with my foot, I peered into the room and caught sight of her blue-haired friend. "Levy!"
Levy smiled as she approached me. "There you are Gray! Where's Lu-chan?" But that smile was nowhere in sight when she found what erm.. who she was looking for. Her eyes went wide as she gasped at the sight of Lucy's bleeding foot. "What happened?!", she exclaimed, her outburst catching the attention of those few left inside, Natsu, Erza, Lisanna Gajeel and Loke to be specific. They probably waited for us before going to P.E. class.
"I'm taking her to the infirmary but she says she'd like Laxus to know. Is it okay for you to do it, Levy?"
Gajeel stepped up and placed an arm over Levy's head just when the latter was about to nod. "I'll go with shorty. Leave it to us."
Levy's cheeks flushed red as she eyed the tall guy. She was silent but I guess she took the offer nevertheless.
I mouthed them a 'thanks' and hurried off, completely forgetting to congratulate Gajeel for a job well-done. Well, I won't be in any position to say so anyways. It wasn't long when the sound of footsteps following us caught my attention. I heard it well since Lucy here has been silent for a while now. Is she mad or something? Damn.
"Gray! Wait up!" From the corner of my eye, I sighted Natsu and Lisanna, rushing to catch us. It was such a rare sight though. I guess Natsu didn't care as long as he gets to Lucy. Ignoring them, I stuck with the thought that whatever they have to say has to wait 'til we get to the infirmary. Lucy is my top priority here.
As if understanding this, they adapted to with my haste walking. "Lucy…" Natsu muttered softly, now walking at my phase. "I'm sorry about before."
Lucy just gave him an understanding look then turned to Lisanna, indicating that she isn't the one he's supposed to be apologizing to. Ugh… my conscience is eating me up. I too, have to apologize, SOON. And I mean it. I don't think I can bear it any longer. I'm dying of guilt here. "L—"
"Hurry Gray, I already informed my sister." My words were left stuck in my throat when Lisanna spoke a second faster than me.
"Your sister?" I asked in surprise.
"Haven't you heard? The school nurse is on a maternity leave since last week right? She took the place temporarily. So instead of the self-service clinic you had for a couple of days, you have her. And to tell you, she's really pretty!" Lisanna explained, taking pride in her relationship to the current school nurse. I haven't met her sister before. None of us did, maybe.
I turned to Natsu, expecting a reaction from him but he was busy playing with Lucy's hand, fumbling with her fingers and such, probably to distract her from feeling the pain again. "You okay? Here, here, little Lucy! Natsu is here so you won't cry!" Lucy chuckled at this; freely allowing Natsu to play with her slim fingers more.
Good, she doesn't seem to be mad or anything. Wait! When did he even take hold of that? And when did she take an arm off? I opened my mouth to tell Lucy that she might lose balance if she doesn't hold onto me properly but when I saw her smiling face, the words just drifted off.
"And where do you think you're going?" I snapped out of my trance at the sudden question of my silver-haired friend. Okay, so not so sudden question. She was standing before a door and I think I just walked past her. I looked up and saw the 'Infirmary' sign a few steps behind me.
So not cool. I sighed. "Sorry. Something on my mind…"
And for the first time since our mini fight, Lucy spoke to me again with a worried look. "You okay?" She patted my shoulder gently, calming my nerves instantly.
I let my cheek touch her hand, since I can't squeeze it with my own 'cause of the piggy back ride and she blushed from the sudden contact. Cute. "Yeah, fine. By the way Luce…"
"Hm?"
"Sorry about… you know, snapping a while ago." Finally. I felt like getting a thorn out of my chest. Though not much of a quarrel, the very thought of something wrong between me and Lucy is something I totally can't go along with.
"No, I'm sorry as well, Gray. I should've told you sooner." Oh. Right. We were supposed to talk about something but that's not possible with Lisanna and Natsu around.
Lisanna slid the door open and peered into the room. She stepped back a few with a light blush tinting her cheeks. "Uhh… did I disrupt something here?" she uttered, a hand pressed over her mouth. Is it just me or was there really a hint of mocking in her tone?
Without second thought, I stepped in. "Excuse me." For Pete's sake, she should just get in already. Lucy's bleeding here. It's not like we came to disturb— "Wha…?" I stood there, frozen on my tracks.
A girl in a white coat with long, wavy, snowy hair greeted me through a shy smile. Her pale skin made the pink tints on her cheek visible to the eye. She sat on the bed and on her lap, sleeping, was my homeroom teacher.
"Freed?!"
A/N: What an awesome way to address your teacher, Gray! Ahaha xD Okay, kidding aside. Nothing much happened right? Well, this was supposed to be longer but I cut it off into two just now. Reason? I don't really know either. ^^" Gomen! I'm a little out of it lately. Stress, perhaps? Ugh… stupid Research paper. =.=
Oh, to make up for well… a lot of things? Here's a preview :')
"You'd pass for a professional actress, Missy." Laxus smirked and stood up, following after her. He found it amusing for her to act all cutesy with other people and all snobby with him.
"Whatever, Mister." The youngest Strauss once again rolled her eyes and walked faster now.
"Hey, wait! At least tell me the way to the infirmary!" Laxus called out, halting briefly at the feeling of being watched. He turned around and saw nothing but an empty hallway. "That voice earlier… Is it my imagination? Of course… it can't be." Shrugging, he went on with his chase. "Hey!"
Uwaah! I really want "them" to meet already! Hihihi ;P Care to guess who?
Well, that's all I have for now. And I'll try to update once every two weeks as much as possible. ;) Likely since I'm done with the next chapter since last, last week. Still a lot to redo though.
I'd really appreciate it if you'd review. Don't hesitate, ne? ^^ I don't mind criticisms. Just please be nice. X_X I know I still have a looooong way to go. :')
Love love lots,
MartiaLae :')