Chapter 4

Lucy heard Lisanna mumble something as she and Natsu left but she ignored it. She was still mad at Lisanna, even though it seemed pointless, but Lucy couldn't help but feel that the girl did it on purpose. Whatever, she thought. I'm about to go on my date with Natsu. Stop thinking about her and enjoy this evening with him. "So Natsu. Where are we going? Lisanna showed me around quite a bit today but all I really saw was the sunrise and the square. Any place special?"

"Yeah we're going somewhere that I think you'll like. How did you meet Lisanna? When did she plan to show you around?" Natsu asked thinking of what Bixlow said.

"Oh. Um, it was pretty weird actually. She showed up at my apartment saying that she heard about me from her sister, Mira, and that she wanted to show me around Magnolia as a way to welcome me. The thing is I never gave anyone my address…"

"That's odd. I wonder how she found out where you live. She could have looked it up pretty easily though. She works as an assistant in the police department so she has access to those kinds of things."

"That's intrusive. Shouldn't she have a restriction as to what she can use those resources for? I'm kind of freaked out. I mean if it was that easy for her to find me, even without those resources, it would be easy for almost anyone to find out where I live. I could understand if someone from Fairy Tail came by, because I was required to give them my address, but anyone who doesn't work there…it's just creepy, stalkerish even."

"Don't worry about Lisanna Luce. She wouldn't harm anyone who didn't deserve it. Even then I don't think she could do much damage, if getting hurt is what you're worried about anyway. Besides, you've got me now. I'll always protect you Luce, even from my friends." Natsu blushed realizing what he just said. "I-I-I mean if you'll let me. I care for you so it's only natural for me to want to protect you. GAH! I-I m-mean-uh-I-uh. Luce?"

She was laughing. At first she was blushing but now she was straight up laughing at him. She found it cute how he stumbled over what he was trying to say, and so she laughed as opposed to making things awkward for him. "You…are…s-s-so…cute!" Lucy said in-between laughs. "Oh gosh, you're funny." She said as she finally stopped laughing. The red in her cheeks didn't go away, instead it spread to the rest of her face as she realized what she had said about him. She looked over at Natsu to find him madly blushing. Lucy couldn't decide if it was from embarrassment at stuttering, or the fact that she called him cute, or both. Both of them were still blushing with hearts thumping wildly.

"You think I'm…cute?" Natsu asked in a breathy voice.

"Uuh. I-uh. I-I-I didn't mean it. I just thought that it was funny that you couldn't get the words out that you-uh-wanted to protect me."

"I-yeah. I want to protect you Luce. I really like you and hope that you'll let me protect you. For as long as you're here."

Lucy didn't say anything, she couldn't. She was left speechless by his blunt confession. Her heart raced even faster than before, which she didn't think should have been possible with how fast it was already going.

"We better keep walking. We'll miss what I want to show you if we're too late, and it's all the way across town from here so it may take a while." Natsu said. Lucy only nodded.

As they kept walking Natsu suddenly got the urge to touch Lucy. Feeling bold he reached out and grabbed her hand, lacing his fingers through hers. He heard her sharp intake of breath and saw her body tense for a few seconds before she relaxed and let out the breath she had been holding. He relaxed as she relaxed, feeling that this was okay with her, feeling that this was right.

Lucy slowly felt herself relax into Natsu's grip. She moved closer to him so that their arms were touching. She then felt him tense for so small of a moment that she thought she might have imagined it, but she knew she didn't. She smiled. It was a perfect moment that she wanted to live in forever. Natsu started slowing down until he stopped.

"We're here. We just have to go in."

"Huh?" Lucy said distracted by her thoughts. It was then that she noticed the huge building in front of her. It was a bell tower. Now that she thought about it she realized that she had seen it this morning when she gazed at the city earlier this morning. She stared up at it and saw just how massive it was. She wondered how big Fairy Tail was since she saw that building too. It's probably even bigger than this, she thought.

"This is it. Guess where we're going." Natsu said with a childish glee.

"Inside? I don't know. I've never been to a bell tower nor have I read about them so I don't know where we could possibly go here."

"Well then I guess you'll see when we get there." He beamed at her. She became lost in his eyes, yet again, as he gave her his dazzling toothy grin, yet again. "Lets go!"

"Okay!" She said, his enthusiasm rubbing off on her.

Luce sure is weird. She kept staring at me. I wonder if she even knew she was doing it, not that I mind though. I kind of liked the way she looked at me. It made me feel all kinds of things that I've never felt before. What is she doing to me? Whatever it is I don't want it to stop. It feels so pleasant and frenzied and…burning, all in a good way. I bet Lucy would describe it with larger more complex words, she's smart like that.

"Where are we going Natsu? We've been walking but we haven't gotten anywhere. We're still in the same room."

"We have to get to the back to get to the stairs."

"Stairs? Are we going up? To the top?"

"Yup! How'd you know?"

"I guessed. Stairs only go two ways and I'm pretty sure we're not going below a bell tower."

"Heh. You've figured me out. Just wait till we get to the top though. I want to show you something."

"Okay Natsu," she chuckled.

As they neared the top Natsu spoke again. "I need you to close your eyes Luce."

"Why?"

"Just do it."

"Okay…"

"Don't worry, I'll make sure you don't fall."

"I trust you Natsu."

"Just get in front of me and feel your way until you reach a door."

"Alright." She jumped as she felt Natsu's hands slip around her waist to support her.

"It's okay, I've got you."

"Mm." She acknowledged. As she felt her way slowly but surely up the steps his hands suddenly went from her waist to her eyes as her hands met a door. "Is this the door?"

"Yeah. Are you ready?"

"As ready as I'll ever be." She said a little tired from all the stairs she had just gone up.

With that he opened the door and they walked forward. He brought her to the edge, but not all the way for fear she might get scared. He removed his hands and said "Okay, now open them."

As she opened her eyes she could do nothing but stare. She gasped and brought her hand to her gaping mouth, taking it all in. It was even more heart-stopping than the sunrise. It was the sunset, the sunset over Magnolia. The view was even better than what Lisanna had shown her. She turned to look at Natsu who was already looking at her. He felt as if he had won the lottery with the look Lucy gave him. Next thing he knew her arms were around his neck and her head was in his chest.

"Thank you," she whispered. "It's more than beautiful."

He placed his arms around her waist, and then leaned down to move her forehead to touch his. "Look at me Luce."

She opened her eyes to meet his onyx ones. "Your eyes are so pretty." She said.

He chuckled lightly, he loved her eyes more than anything and here she was saying that his eyes were pretty. "It's not manly for my eyes to be called pretty." It was her turn to laugh. As she calmed down they stared into each other's eyes. Then, ever so slowly Natsu leaned his head forward closing most of the distance between their lips. He hovered just a centimeter over her lips before finalizing his decision to kiss her. As his lips met hers he could only think that they were so very soft and luscious. Her lips moved against his returning the kiss. They stayed in their embrace until they needed air. When they separated he said, "We should probably move away from the edge."

"Mm." she said with her eyes closed and forehead still connected with his.

They moved away from the edge before he said, "I brought stuff for a picnic." Natsu smiled at the thought of sharing food with Lucy. "Ready to eat?"

"Yeah. All I've had today is breakfast."

"I'll go get it then." He said while disentangling his hand from hers. When he went to return he stopped for a moment to stare at her. She was admiring the view of the city once more. The beauty of the city doesn't even begin to compare with her. I can't believe a beautiful girl like her could ever return my feelings. I know now, I like her, a lot. I want to be with her and spend more time with her. I just met her yesterday but I can't help but feel like we were meant to be together. I'm so glad she met Levy because without her Luce wouldn't know about the bar and I wouldn't have ever met her. I should head over before she wonders where I went.

I can't believe he kissed me. I can't believe I kissed him back. That was the first kiss that I've ever had that was that spine-tingling. I can't believe I just met him yesterday. I can't believe that we might be working together. He kissed me. He kissed me. He kissed me! Me! What's so special about me? A guy like him should be with someone like my cousin Michelle or something, not me. But he is with me and I should make the most out of it. What if we break up and we end up working together? Oh god I hope that doesn't happen. That would be so uncomfortable and awkward. Stop it Lucy! You're overanalyzing things again. Just enjoy this date and enjoy Natsu. Speaking of which, I can hear him coming up behind me.

Lucy turned just as Natsu reached her. "I come bearing food and a blanket!" he said.

She laughed at his enthusiasm while wondering how he wasn't as fazed by the kiss as she was. "Let me help you set up the blanket."

"Okay. Here's two corners."

They set up the blanket and Natsu laid out the food. It was chicken among other things but mostly chicken. Natsu put sauce all over his that looked like some sort of hot sauce. I didn't dare try it, I didn't have the gusto for it.

"So what are you doing at Fairy Tail. You must be good at it, whatever it is. Fairy Tail only hires the best."

"I'm a songwriter." She said

"Really? Bix and I are expecting a songwriter soon. In two days actually. Isn't that the day you said you were starting?"

"Yeah, I am. Wait, you're a singer? And who's Bix?"

"Bix is my songwriter, producer, and friend. His full name is Bixlow. I haven't released anything yet, but I'm working on my first album right now. As of yesterday I began writing a new song. It's uh-it's about you." A blush covered his cheeks as he looked away.

"Oh really?" She asked interested in this song about her. "What do you have so far?"

"For the song?"

"Yeah silly, what else would I be talking about? How much of it is developed right now?"

"You want me to sing it?"

"Sure. Sing away." In reality she was nervous and excited at the same time of someone writing a song about her. No one besides her mother had ever written anything about her, so she wanted to hear it.

"Okay. Give me a second."

"Whenever you're ready." After a moment words started flowing from his lips.

"This girl she came 'round

The corner, looking like a model

Magazine figure, she was shaped like a bottle

Long straight hair, she was fly as a bird

First time ever I was lost for words

Felt so right, it just couldn't be wrong

Love at first sight if that exists at all

I couldn't move, felt like I was stuck

And then baby girl looked up

And I said hey there pretty brown eyes

What you doin' later tonight?

Would you mind if I spend time with you?"

Lucy looked at Natsu with a fervor in her eyes.

"Was that okay? Did you like it? I know it's not much right now but it's a song in the making."

"Natsu."

"Yeah?"

"Stop babbling. That was great. You've got great vocals, and the lyrics are a bit different but they're good. I really liked it. Have you gotten a melody for it yet?"

"Not really, but I have an idea of what I want it to sound like. Kind of like how I sang it.

"Hmm...If you add guitar and some drums, as well as some adjustment from your producer it would sound really nice." She mumbled, Natsu's ears caught it though.

He thought about it for a moment and realized that she was right. She hadn't even started her job yet and he could already tell that she was good at it. I really, really, really hope that I get to work with her. I'll ask Gramps about it tomorrow. "You haven't even heard the entire song and you've already got a melody for it. You really are good."

"Um, thanks. I was taught by my parents and through listening to how they composed their songs piece by piece. I guess you can say I cheated since I started at a really young age and never gave it up. I've got twenty years on most people my age. It really helps me to snag the good jobs."

"I really hope that we get to work together Luce. I would love for us to write this song together. Maybe a few more afterwards too."

"That would be nice."

"Yeah…so I've got a blue cat named Happy."

"That was random," she laughed. "How long have you had him?"

"Since he was born. He's a few years old now and very smart. He can talk just like you and I. He loves fish and a girl named Carla, although he's never admitted it. He's visiting her today actually, I teased him a bit about it last night. He also-"

"He can talk?!"

"Yeah. I found out that it wasn't normal for cats to talk after seeing a few others and wondering why they didn't but Happy can and so can Carla. Lily can also talk. Lilly is Gajeel's cat. It's not weird for me, but it is for anyone who hears it for the first time, and the times after that. It takes a while for people to get used to talking cats but I guess that's understandable."

Natsu rambled on and on telling her more about Happy and his friends at the bar. She learned that Lisanna and Natsu had a lot of the same friends, which he also considered family. He never told her about his biological family, but she would respect his decision not to tell her no matter how much she wanted to know. She understood if he didn't want to talk about it. She would ask him later, maybe when they were deeper into their relationship. Wait? Deeper into their relationship? Was that what this was? Were they…together? As in a couple? They had kissed, but Lucy had kissed guys she hadn't ended up with before.

"Hey Natsu?"
"Yeah?"

"What are we?"

"What?"

"What are we? What is this? Are we together now or what?"

"Do you mean are we a couple now?"

"Y-yeah. That. Are we a couple now."

"Of course we are Luce. If you want to be my girlfriend anyway. I won't force you to do anything you don't want to do." He said thinking back to the kiss they had shared a few hours ago.

"Natsu. If I didn't want to be your girlfriend do you think I would do this?" she said. She blocked his view of the stars that they were previously looking at by leaning over his laying figure, hovering close to his face.

"I-I-I uh-" She slowly brought her head down and gave him a lingering chaste kiss before laying back down next to him blushing.

He stared at her, blushing too, wondering how they had gone from talking about the stars to her kissing him. Don't know and don't care. All I know is that that kiss felt really good…and I want more of it. He propped himself up on his elbow to look at her. She stared back up at him with those brown eyes he couldn't get enough of, and that was when he couldn't take the feeling of not having her lips against his any longer. He went down on her without another thought. Her lips responded to his as his tongue grazed her lips, asking for entry to her salivated mouth. She opened her mouth and let him in, his tongue invading and assaulting hers after feeling around in every crevice. At this point he had both hands pinned around her head and he was nearly laying on her, he wanted more but he knew he shouldn't. He didn't want her to think that sex was all he wanted, he wanted her. He wanted Lucy and every part of her, not just her body. He needed to stop before he went any further, that was when Lucy suddenly pulled his shirt up and started roaming her hands around his back and abdomen. "Luce," he growled "We need to stop."

"Why?" she asked, suddenly feeling hurt, thinking that he didn't want her.

"I don't want to do this. Not on the first date. I want to prove to you that I want more than just your body. I want all of you Luce, and I'm determined to show you that I mean that." He stared down at her chocolate orbs waiting for her response.

"Okay Natsu. We'll wait then. Until you think you've proven yourself to me, we'll wait." She smiled up at him amazed that he was so caring and that he didn't just want her body.

"Good," he grinned at her. "I'll walk you home. It's late."

"Okay." She couldn't get the smile off her face. He actually cared about her. Maybe this relationship will go deeper.