(201):I turn the corner to find her walking in the front door in a tee-shirt, two different shoes and no pants. All she said to me was "I'm sad"
Lucy still wasn't home. Natsu groaned and sat upright in his best friend's bed, stretching his tired muscles and allowing a yawn to escape his lips. He decided to get up eventually and strolled to the bookshelf: If he had to wait, he could aswell use his time. Randomly, he picked a book and flicked through the pages, turning his head to the blue exceed on his shoulders from time to time to exclaim things like: "Cool!" – "Hey look, there's a picture of a dragon!" – "I think this is interesting, don't you?" Happy agreed loudly, though he wasn't paying much attention. He had noticed the word "fish" on one of the first pages and his mind had wandered off to a world of fried delicacies and white cats to share them with. A dreamy smile was plastered across his face as he stared right through the book.
"Hey, Happy, are you listening? – "Huh? Aye, Sir!" The small exceed exclaimed.
"I was just saying," Natsu repeated, "that Lucy scribbled notes all over the pages, and I think it might be for the book she's writing, don't you? Boy, I hope she writes a story about dragons too!" His face lit up. "Come to think of it, didn't she have some kind of appointment today?"
Just then, they heard the key turn in the lock. "That must be her! Let's welcome her, Happy!"
Natsu turned around the corner leading to the kitchen, and immediately froze as he saw the blonde girl walking through the door. She wore a t-shirt, two different pairs of shoes and no pants. First, she didn't even seem to notice the unexpected guests, but then she lifted her head and just stared at them blankly through her messy bangs. All she said was: "I'm sad."
No further information was needed. The gears in his head were grinding at full speed. "Okay! Happy! You go and get some strawberry cheesecake, at the place where Erza always gets it! I'm gonna take care of Lucy til you get back." The blue cat nodded seriously and flew off to complete his task, no questions asked. Natsu turned his head back to Lucy, only to find that she was not in the same place where she had been last. Except she was – only a bit lower. She had dropped to the ground and was now lying flat on her stomach, sighing apathically.
Natsu did not ask, but he was pretty sure all of this had something to do with the appointment she had had today. Something told him it had not went too well. He would have laughed if she had not been so sad. "Lucy." He squatted down beside her in an attempt to pull her up. "At least get into bed."
"Don't wanna." Her voice was muffled by the timber floor board.
He rolled his eyes and proceeded to simply pick her up and fling her over his shoulder. "Don't listen to them, Lucy! You're strong! And I love the stories you write." He tried to cheer her up desperately, not happy to see her in such a state. Carefully, he put her down on the bed.
There was terror in her voice when she whispered "You read them? Oh god." She covered her face with her hands and rolled over, pulling a pillow over her head.
Realizing he should better get her mind off the topic, he decided to ask the question that had been burning in the back of his mind from the moment she walked through the door.
"Okay but Lucy…why are you not wearing any pants?"
By the way she shot up and looked at her panties in complete shock, he guessed she had not even been aware of her attire.
She fell back into the pillows with a thud. "Kill me now." She groaned. "I can't do anything right, can I?"
He chuckled at her continued wallowing in self-pity. "Seriously though, how does one forget to put on pants?"
She glared at him, but sat up nonetheless. "Well… actually, I went to your place straight after the appointment, but you weren't there and I had no energy to go back home, so I…kinda fell asleep. I must have been really dazed and confused though, huh? OH GOD – DOES THAT MEAN I WALKED THROUGH THE WHOLE TOWN LIKE THIS?" Her face turned white, and pink right after.
This time Natsu couldn't help but laugh out loud. "You're so weird sometimes, Lucy." A pillow to his head silenced him, but to his relief he could see a small smile on his friend's lips. Finally.
"Hey Lucy, was your story about dragons?" She blinked at him in confusion. "No..?"
He grinned brightly. "You see, that was the problem!"
She laughed, then, and tried to look at him sternly, but ended up failing miserably as a fond expression spread across her face.
"Thanks, Natsu."