Hey everybody!

Sorry it's been so long! I've been distracted with my other story and My new nephew and my job and this chapter was really hard to decide. I mean this was meant to be the end of this little drama filled story.

But anyway, here it is finally! I hope it's acceptable.

Lucy sits on the large couch in the family room. Sting and Laxus are elsewhere and if they did stumble into the room, they quickly retreated. It had been like this for three days now. She could tell they were hurt by her but she wanted to explain herself. They didn't know anything! All they knew was Natsu and Lucy had kissed at the end of the driveway. Nothing else. Lucy so desperately wanted to fix this, to make them understand. Especially Laxus. He was scheduled to leave in four days and Lucy could not handle him leaving with this between them. She couldn't imagine him going away and the entire time she would be left thinking he now hated her.

Instead of focusing on the book in her lap, Lucy watched the doorway for a sign of Laxus. All she wanted was one shot to explain herself and know that he didn't hate her now. When she had been watching the door for an hour, impatience began to settle. Was he really that mad at her that he wouldn't leave his room?

Huffing in annoyance, Lucy bounced off the couch and marched to the kitchen. She was about to go to war, she had better have a peace offering to calm the mood. Gathering the ingredients, she began to make Laxus's favorite cookies. There was no way he would reject them! She was sure about that! Making them was easy. Lucy for once was glad he liked the simple things in life. The dough for the sugar cookies was ready in seconds and on a pan in the oven in no time. But, the faster the cookies cooked, the more nervous Lucy got.

What if he wouldn't accept them? What if he refused to let her talk? Would he really go forever hating her? Questions and doubts bounced around her skull making her lightheaded. It felt like her head was stuffed with cotton.

Finally the timer dinged telling her the cookies were done. Lucy took the cookies from the oven and placed them on the spotless granite counter-top beside her. While the cookies cooled, she crossed the room and climbed onto the counter to reach a container to put the cookies in. Lucy was not technically short but the cabinets in the room was merely too high for her to reach the top shelf and unfortunately for her, what she needed was there. She found a decent sized plastic box, grinned in success, then climbed back down. Figuring the cookies were cool enough to be put in the container, she started moving them.

Now the hard part. Confronting Laxus. Lucy sucked in her breath as a form of gathering courage that she highly needed. Her feet felt their way to Laxus's room, the path programmed in them from all the years of running to him when she was in trouble or just needed someone to talk to. Standing in front of the plain white door, Lucy tried to think positively and knocked once. It was possibly softer than what she imagined and certainly less confident than she wanted. But nonetheless, Laxus opened the door and he didn't slam it in her face. She was taking that as a good thing.

"Um, I, uh, made you some cookies?" She said, her voice so small barely above a whisper. Off to a bad start already.

"What do you want?" Laxus sighed with half an amused smile. Leave it to him to always know why she made him cookies.

"I wanted to talk...about the other night." Lucy looked at her feet just in case Laxus's face changed to show some hidden emotion that he buried deep down.

"Come in."

Laxus took the box of cookies from Lucy as she walked into the clean room. It always surprised her when she walked into his room and found it clean but this was beyond that. Nearly everything was packed into cardboard boxes and his walls didn't have any posters or calendars or event papers anymore. This made the idea of Laxus leaving that much more real. For the first time since she came here, they would be separated. Her older brother that had always been there for her was leaving and she wouldn't see him for months. Tears burned in her eyes but now was not the time for that. She had to talk to him, to clear the air.

"Natsu just moved here and he just wanted friends. That's all what we supposed to be. I didn't expect him to do that." Lucy exhaled, talking really fast before she lost her nerve.

Laxus was silent. He just stood against the door, staring at Lucy who was now sitting in the desk chair across from him. Her knees were drawn up to her chest and her hands wrapped around them. She once again looked like the young delicate girl that she was when she first came there.

"How long have you been hanging out with him?" Laxus asked, putting the cookies on the bed.

"About a month."

"You didn't have extra hours at the diner."

"No."

"Why did you lie about it?"

"Because I didn't want you and Sting freaking out about this. I didn't want Sting to wrongfully punch him again." Lucy said, still refusing to look Laxus in the face.

"He's just protecting you!" Laxus argued.

"No, both of you are keeping me in a plastic bubble!" Lucy yelled looking at her brother finally.

"Natsu is just taking advantage of you!"

"No he isn't!"

"How do you know?" Laxus demanded to know, stepping towards his sister.

"I don't but the only way to know is to give him a chance!"

"And have him hurt you like Liam did?"

"Laxus," Lucy said her voice suddenly soft. "Do you want me to be lonely my entire life?"

Laxus took a long, surprised look at his sister. "What?"

"With the way you and Sting are acting, I'm going grow old alone or with fifty cats."

"Aren't you being a bit dramatic?" Laxus asked, rising an eyebrow at her.

"Not at all."

"Listen Lucy, we just don't want you to get hurt by someone who isn't worth your time again." Laxus tried again as he saw he was slowly losing to her reasoning.

"Natsu isn't Liam. This one is perfect." Lucy unknowingly smiled when she said this.

That smile was all it took to convince Laxus. She was no longer the little girl scared of the monsters under her bed that would ask him to scare them away. She was all grew up now. Strong enough to handle herself when she was in trouble. And now she had found an extraordinary love. It pained him to think that but he knew it was true.

"Fine. I promise to back off a little. But I warning you. If I hear that he hurt you, I am getting in my car, no matter the time, and I'm driving down here to beat the crap out of him." Laxus sighed then threatened Natsu from afar.

Lucy looked up at her brother with joy shining in her eyes. "Oh, thank you Laxus!" She squealed and hopped up. She threw her arms around his neck and squeezed. Laxus returned the hug then pried her off.

"Now go tell Natsu before I change my mind."

…

Lucy was grateful for Laxus seeing things her way but she couldn't go see Natsu yet. First, she also had to convince Sting. And that one, she didn't know how to do. How was she suppose to convince Sting to let her experience this magical love she had stumbled into?

Love? The realization of what it really was struck her. Had she always thought that or was this what she finally saw it as? Maybe it was always deep down in her heart and she just ignored it for safety.

Lucy smiled absentmindedly.

"What is that smile for?"

Lucy turned and saw the boy she was just looking for. Sting.

"We have to talk."

"About what?" Sting asked.

"Natsu."

Sting groaned. "Don't talk about him."

"But I have to! I need to know that you won't attack him every time I see him."

"My guess is you already talked with Laxus about this."

"Yep."

"And what I have to say won't count."

"pretty much."

"Fine." Sting conceded.

"Awesome. See that was easy."

"But. If he hurts you, I will not hold back like I did with that twit Liam." Sting warned.

….

Natsu sat on top of the watch stand at the pool, watching the teenagers mingling and the younger children splashing one another despite their floaters. But he couldn't focus on work. Every time he would try, his mind would wonder back to Lucy. It had been three days since he had heard from her and it was killing him. He had just told her how he felt and he was waiting. And he was scared. What if actually she didn't feel the same? What if she was too scared too? What if her brothers actually did stand in the middle?

"Natsu."

The soft sweet voice lifted up to his ears and his head jerked in the direction it came from. There she was. And again, just the sight of her took his breath away. With her golden hair and dazzling smile. The chocolate eyes that when he looked in them he got lost. The sweetness that was utterly Lucy. She just had this presence that drew him closer. He wished he could explain it better but there was no way. She was just beyond words.

"Lucy." He breathed.

He wasted no time climbing down the tower. In a way he hated what he had turned into since meeting her but he liked the change. It meant he was changing becoming someone better.

"Hi."

"Hey." Lucy smiled shyly.

She closed the distance between them. "The other night you told me you loved me and I said it back but then my brothers stepped in and I shoved you away.."

"Hey, I told you it doesn't matter."

"It matters to me." Lucy insisted. "I shouldn't have pushed you away like that. I should have stood up to them then because yes I do love you and what they think doesn't matter. I love you and you are all I want."

Lucy stood on her tip-toes and kissed him lightly on his lips. Just the little touch sent electricity through his entire body. A raging fire that wanted to burn brighter and engulf him. No matter how many times he kissed her he doubted that this feeling will ever go away.

Embarrassingly, Natsu sighed slightly. Lucy smiled when his breath tickled her nose.

"When did I turn into such a girl?" Natsu whined slightly.

…

one year later.

"I don't care what you say, I scored that point and you know it!" Natsu shouted.

"No you didn't! That ball didn't come near my net!" Sting yelled.

"You wanna go?"

"Bring it, Pinkie!"

"Things never change do they?" Laxus asked, looking at Lucy.

The blonde looked at the situation and laughed. Ever since the previous summer, Natsu and her brothers have been forced together to the point where they tolerated each other. Now they played sports together. And things normally ended like this. The two were throwing punches and rolling around on the ground, and Lucy thought it was about time to separate it.

"Alright you two. Don't you think that's enough?"

"Not until he admits he's wrong!" They both shouted at the same time.

"Or we could just get some food while it's still warm and not bug ridden." Lucy laughed.

The two boys immediately torn apart and raced for the food.

This was how things were and honestly Lucy loved them.