Ta-dah! Next chapter, out sooner than any of you expected, huh? :D I'm on an updating spree, I guess! :D

Disclaimer: I Do Not Own Fairy Tail!

I do, however, own the plot of Signed, Lucy.

Dear Journal,

People have been looking at me suspiciously for a while now.

I don't blame them.

If I saw a girl dressed in a dirty tracksuit with her blonde hair tied into messy pigtails hiding behind a low wall as she watched one of the hottest jocks from her old school in front of the mall…

I'd be scared, too.

I shifted my weight from one foot to the other.

Gray was standing there.

And as alone as he was, he didn't look completely loser-ish like I would have.

Maybe it was due to the fact that he was…hot.

Or maybe because every female in the vicinity was rejoicing over the fact that he was alone.

Or maybe that he managed to look cool just by playing around with his phone.

As I furiously scribble these observation notes in this dearest journal, I probably look like some crazed stalker.

And-

Holy macaroni! Holy macaroni pieces! He's found me! He's found-!

S*L*S*L*S*L

Once again, Lucy Heartfilia is proud to say that she survived.

And as much as I am freaked out, I have to say that AGAIN…

I am…blissfully HAPPY.

Gray found me.

Yep.

And then.

"Really?" he said. He sounded exasperated, but not totally put off.

It was if he was already getting used to my weird habit of hiding behind stuff.

I blinked. Then I tucked my journal into the backpack I had brought.

Trying to maintain my image (laugh your ass off if you must), I gave him a V-for-victory sign, and smiled.

"'Sup," I managed to say.

He raised an eyebrow. "Very cool, OtakuGirl321. Now get up. You look like you're stalking me."

Reluctantly, I obliged and stood there as he looked up and down.

Glaring at him, I snap, "Are you checking me out, stripper?!"

His mouth fell open a little. "Stripper? I don't strip!"

The heads of about a thousand females turned our way when he said that.

I could have sworn their noses were bleeding.

"What kind of girl are you to come to a date wearing that?"

"This isn't a date!"

"Then what is it?"

I blinked.

"It's a reunion. Yep."

He looked at me with a disbelieving expression.

He turned around suddenly to face the sky.

He put his cupped hand under his chin, and shook his head.

"How can you ruin Gray Fullbuster's sexy image like this?"

I slapped his forearm, and he retaliated.

"Ow!"

Gray rubbed his arm reproachfully.

"Stop being so egotistic," I scolded, crossing my arms. "You're such an ice princess."

"Does it make you happy to insult me like this?"

I feel my mouth curl up into a smile. "Kinda."

Gray blinks rapidly before he turns his head away.

Even from this angle, I can see that the tips of his ears are a bright pink.

"Shall we go inside then, AnimeGirl123?" he said finally after clearing his throat.

I squirmed a bit.

"We can go watch a movie," he suggested.

I glared at him.

Gray raised his hands defensively. "No date included. Like you said…it's a reunion."

"Fine," I huffed. "There's a film I'd like to see, anyways."

Two hours later, Gray walked out of the movie theater with a green face.

He leaned against a wall as he shot me an accusatory glance. "A horror movie?! A bloody, splatter, gory horror movie?! Do you not know the meaning of reunions, or what?! Couldn't we have watched something that wouldn't have made me feel like puking?!"

I finished off my bag of popcorn.

Shrugging, I threw it into the trash. "Sorry if you aren't man enough to stomach this kind of thing."

Gray's eyes narrowed. "You sound like Mira's little brother."

I'm pretty sure that somewhere out there, "Mira's little brother" sneezed.

"Be a man," I continued, and laughed when he scowled.

Gray caught up to me as I approached the food court.

"How can you eat after watching something like that?"

"You're not in the mood to drink some milkshakes after watching a guy's body being dismembered?" I asked, feigning shock.

Gray placed his hand over his heart. "Don't remind me. Please."

I snickered.

Gray held onto his stomach as we got even closer to the delicious aromas.

And that's when it happened.

Dun. Dun. Duuuun.

"Luce?"

How many times must that freaking nickname make me want to pee myself?

"Gray?"

"We're doomed," the raven-haired boy announced as we both turned around.

Natsu stood in front of us.

To his right was Erza Scarlet, and to his left was Rogue Cheney.

Why?

Why must it be determined that when the main character girl goes on a "reunion" thingy with another guy, this other guy that she…might…like…sees her?

I looked down at my wrist. Aha! There was a watch this time! Thank you!

"Look at the time," I nodded. "Elie and Haru – you know…my unicorns - must be hungry."

Gray looked at me.

The expression on his face said, "Even when you have time to make a good excuse, you only have that?"

Well, excuse me if I care about my unicorns and don't want them to go extinct!

"Are you guys…on a date?" Erza asked, her eyebrows rising.

"What? No. NO," I said, laughing nervously.

"We're having a reunion," Gray replied.

Erza looked confused.

"Is that a…codeword for 'date'?" asked Rogue.

"Maybe," Gray uttered, and shrugged.

Without thinking, I shove my fist into his stomach.

"Holy crap!" he wheezes, bending over and coughing.

Erza looks like she approved of the situation.

"We're not on a date."

"Really."

I lift my head to meet Natsu's gaze.

He looked angry.

"Gray…you bastard!"

The salmon-haired boy surged forward, winding back his fist as Gray regained his composure.

No.

Not a fight!

NOT IN THE MALL!

I scream, and the next thing I know, Natsu crumples to the floor.

I turn to Gray.

"HOW COULD YOU KNOCK HIM OUT LIKE THAT?!"

The raven-haired boy gives me a look. "What. Are you losing it, Lucy?"

I blink.

And then I look at my outstretched fist.

It stings.

It is red at the knuckles.

And-

HOLY CRACKERS!

"I KNOCKED OUT NATSU DRAGNEEL!" I howl.

I punched Natsu.

If there's anything more horrible, and life-ending than dumping food on the most popular jock in the whole school…IT'S PUNCHING HIM OUT COLD IN A PUBLIC PLACE!

I start screaming at the top of my lungs.

We start receiving looks from all the people around us.

"Lucy! Calm down!" Erza says in exasperation. "Calm yourself!"

Still yelling, I bend down, and grab Natsu's collar.

"NURSE! NURSE!" I shout.

I start running.

And I'm dragging Natsu right along with me.

I hear him groan as I approach the stairs.

"What happ-?"

His head slams against the first stair and he goes unconscious again.

"AHH!" I cry in despair. "I KNOCKED HIM OUT AGAIN!"

And so.

I drag him up the steps until I finally had enough sense to enter a store and ask for an ice pack if they had one.

Fortunately for Natsu (and me since I would probably have gone berserk again if they said they didn't have one), they did have one.

A young female employee seated us in the back and told us that we could stay as long as we wanted.

From the twinkle in her eyes, I think she thought we were a couple or something.

There were merchandise stored everywhere.

I guess she wasn't concerned that we might have stolen something.

There were probably cameras everywhere.

I sat on the stool they had provided, holding the ice pack to Natsu's head.

What was I going to say when he woke-

"Lucy?"

"KYAA!"

"Don't knock me out again!" he yelps, shielding his face with his arms.

The ice pack drops to the ground with a solid thud.

When it's apparent that I have calmed down, Natsu lets his hands fall to his side.

He then bends over to pick up the ice pack and lift it to his head.

Natsu takes out an ice cube, and presses it to the place on his jaw line where I had punched him.

"S- sorry," I say before he can say anything.

He looks at me.

"Sorry for…?"

I blink in surprise. "For knocking you out…twice. What else?"

Natsu shrugged.

"How about answering none of my calls or texts, but then going out with Gray?"

"This was involuntary," I replied. "He gave me no other choice. And I'm not going to apologize for anything else but this."

Natsu fell silent.

"I mean…" I said, and winced when my voice broke. "What about you?"

"Then sorry," Natsu said immediately. "Sorry for being an insensitive jerk who tried to understand you when he really couldn't, sorry for suddenly confessing to you, sorry for accidentally kissing you, sorry for insulting you, sorry for making you feel insignificant, sorry for blaming Sue's and my break up on you, sorry, sorry, sorry! Sorry for being a sorry ass excuse for a friend. I'm so, so, so sorry."

I avert my gaze, and bite my bottom lip.

"I'm really scared. I really did love Sue. But before I knew it, that kind of changed. The thing about our break-up was that I felt like I had broken my promise to always be by her side and love her. It was always about the promise. I don't even know how it is to like someone anymore. And then I kind of met you. You're amazing," Natsu says.

I keep on not looking at him.

"When I first met you, I thought you were weird. Super weird. I started to try to notice you before you noticed me so I could avoid you."

I looked down at the floor. I remembered that.

Natsu continued.

"That changed though. I noticed that you are really pretty. That you are really smart. Really funny. And despite everything you think about yourself, I think you're awesome and brave. Even if something horrible happens, you still move on."

"That's not true," I interrupt, turning around. "My mom practically dragged my ass back to school after I dumped my lunch on you."

"At least you listened to her and went."

"You care about your friends. You notice some things I don't. Overall…I probably don't even qualify to be your friend…much less your boyfriend."

I feel the temperature around me rise at the last word.

"With any other girl, I can just compliment them on their good points right away. I can't do that with you. It's hard, because I feel like one compliment just won't summarize it enough."

My cheeks are on fire now.

"I can't just say that you're pretty, because you're stunning."

Silence.

"I can't just say that you're smart, because you're a genius."

Exaggeration, I swear.

"I can't just that you're funny, because you're hilarious."

I am NOT.

"I can't just say that you're amazing, because you're…"

I look away.

"Stellar. Fantastic. Magnificent. Extraordinary."

"Stop Natsu!" I interject, meeting his eyes again.

"Sorry," he whispers. "Sorry."

"That's enough. It's…weird hearing such a passionate apology like that when we're in a room like this."

Natsu blinks. He looks around us.

Frilly pillows. Cute key chains. Heart-shaped plushies. Fluffy, pink blankets. It was like a storeroom for a five-year-old girl, or a cutesy, too, too sweet teenage girl.

"Right."

We looked at each other.

And laughed.

"I've been stupid," Natsu said at last.

"Yeah. Just a little."

He flicked my forehead.

"What? I'm not going to disagree with your revelation," I answered.

He laughed softly, and stared at me.

The distance between us suddenly decreased.

"Natsu?"

His face was approaching mine.

My face was getting hotter and hotter by the second.

And then.

The door opened.

"Are you two-"

The employee stopped.

I was pressed up against a shelf.

Natsu was leaned close to me, and his hand was placed to the side of my face.

Oh.

Oh….

"Kyaaaaa!"

The employee looked like she had just watched a shoujo manga come to life.

"Go on! Go on!" she yelled. "Sorry to disturb you!"

She ran out.

Natsu pulled away.

"Oh. I forgot about…the cameras…in here."

"Oh."

I blinked.

"Oh."

His face was so red.

"Sorry."

"Ahem. We should, uh, go."

Yep.

We made a smooth exit out the store.

We didn't see anyone else we knew.

So.

Yeah.

I am…still processing what happened.

Yep.

Signed,

Lucy

Yep. I couldn't go another chapter without some NaLu. Next chapter, I'll probably sprinkle in some StiCy, as well.

As always, thanks for reading this chapter!

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Hope you liked this chapter!

Until next chapter!