I do not own Fairy Tail or its characters, I only own this story.

WARNING: Sexual violence

Chapter 4

"Buckle up, Luce. We're gonna have some fun and make ya forget all about bein' sad."

She didn't know why but seeing him smile at her like that made her smile back with all the sincerity in her being. Her heart was pounding against her chest and when she spotted the blush on his cheeks she couldn't help but chuckle.

Lucy buckled her seatbelt and looked around at the interior of Natsu's truck. "This is a pretty cool truck, like my father would never own something like this because it's so old, but I really love it, vintage is so cool, I actually own a lot of antiques, it's kinda a hobby of mine, I also like to write—"

She shut her mouth when she realized she had been rambling, her cheeks immediately began to heat up with her blush.

Oh my god~ How embarrassing! I can't believe I just started blabbing my big mouth!

Glancing up at him, Lucy noticed he was smiling at her. Catching her eye, he tipped his head to the side, "Why'd ya stop talkin'? I told ya I'd listen."

"Uhh," Lucy didn't know what to say at first, she just stared at him with her mouth half-open.

She saw Natsu's eyes fall down to her lips and his adam's apple bob against his throat. He looked away and pulled his key out of his jacket pocket then started the truck, "What do you like to write about?"

"Well, I've been working on this novel for a few years…" She bit her lip and sideways glanced at Natsu, who was paying attention to the road. "It's about a girl whose mom dies when she is seven and her father changes after that. He treated the girl different after that, like a business tactic—something he could bargain with."

Lucy could feel fresh tears pool in her eyes, but she decided to keep telling the story, "She never goes to a public school, her father is wealthy and instead hires tutors to teach her. Although she is brilliant and scores high on her exams, her father always criticized something. He'd say 'You spelled this word wrong. Your handwriting is sloppy, I can't even read it. What a disappointment you turned out to be.' He would hit her as punishment. When she would talk back, he would choke her with his belt."

She closed her eyes and felt a tear slide down her cheek, "When she got her first period, her father told her she was old enough to start fucking. He decided he'd be the first one to do it. She was thirteen. She cried the whole time, begged for him to stop, but once he did he ended up shoving his dick down her throat. After he ejaculated in her mouth, he said to her, "I fucking own you. Don't ever forget that. Whenever you misbehave from now on, I will punish you like this. Now get your fat ass out of my office.' Then—"

"Stop."

XxX

Natsu's entire body was shaking, and not because he was getting carsick—he was fine if he was the one driving. Listening to Lucy talk was nice, but… Well, he wasn't sure at what point had he realized this was not just some fucking novel Lucy was writing or talking about.

This was her story.

As much as he wanted to know more about her, he couldn't listen to another moment of her describing what her father fucking did to her.

He needed it to stop. He was gripping his steering wheel so tightly his knuckles were turning white.

Natsu pulled up at the diner he wanted to take her to and killed the engine. He hadn't looked at her since he started driving. When he turned to her and saw her looking embarrassed, he chuckled, "Hey, thanks for tellin' me 'bout your story, Luce. Let me repay ya with some food."

Unbuckling his seatbelt, Natsu opened the driver's side door and jumped down to the ground. He ran around to open Lucy's door open for her before she could do it herself.

When he held her hand in his as he helped her step down, Natsu noticed the blush on her cheeks. He didn't let go of her hand as they walked up to the door to the diner and Natsu pushed that open, dragging Lucy in behind him.

He led them to a small booth in the corner and saw Lucy looking around the place with curiosity. "Whaddaya think? They've got really great breakfast food here."

She giggled, and oh did Natsu love the sound, "It's like ten at night."

"So, what? Breakfast food is good whenever."

Lucy rolled her eyes and took a look down at her menu with her lips puckered as if she was thinking hard.

"Penny for your thoughts?"

"Huh? Oh," she blushed and tucked a loose strand of her long hair behind her ear. Her eyes met his and she answered, "I've never done this before."

"What? Eat breakfast food at night?" He teased with a playful smile.

Lucy just shook her head, then bit her lip, "Umm, no…"

Natsu cocked an eyebrow up at her, "Well are you gonna tell me or do I have to keep guessin'?"

Her mouth fell open and god if Natsu said he didn't love the way it looked he'd be lying. "I've never eaten at a place like this with someone…"

Before Natsu could ask more, the waitress came over, a brown-haired girl named Cana, "Hey Natsu! Who's this?"

"Cana, this is my friend Lucy. She works at Fairy Tail."

Please don't you dare say a fucking word, Cana, I swear to god…

"Ohhhh, is this the Lucy you spent all week frantically writing a song for?"

XxX

What?! Is this Cana girl for real?

"Did Natsu really do that?"

"Cana~!"

She laughed and snorted, "Natsu, you should see your face! Priceless, honestly. Anyway, Lucy—yeah, he really did. Looks like it must'a worked too since he brought you here. He's been dying to talk to you since Monday."

When Lucy turned to Natsu with a huge dorky grin on her face, she saw how much he was blushing, even up to his ears and honestly it was adorable. His arms were crossed, and he was glaring at Cana with a look of betrayal.

"Natsu, is that true?"

His eyes met hers and for the first time since they met, she realized they were a dark green color, similar to a pine tree. It was breathtaking.

"Ughhh, yeah—damnit Cana!"

The brunette laughed, "Anyway, what can I get you two to drink?"

"I'll have a water, please."

"Come on Luce, that's all? They've got milkshakes here. Any flavor ya want."

His grin was infectious, "Umm, okay… How about strawberry?"

Natsu's eyes shined brighter and stayed on hers as he ordered, "I'll have the vanilla."

"Vanilla?" She teased, "I thought you'd make fun of me for being plain."

He narrowed his eyes on her, bit his lip, then smirked, "I don't think there's anythin' plain 'bout ya."

Lucy felt herself blush, but she couldn't look away from his eyes.

How can he just say something like that? Why does it make my heart pound?

Cana returned with their milkshakes, placing them on the table, "Are you ready to order? Or…?"

Lucy began to blink and remembered where they were, "Oh, sorry. Yeah, I'll have waffles please."

"I'll have my usual, Cana." Natsu's grin was earsplitting.

She smiled back and took a long pull through her straw and tasted the delicious sweetness of a strawberry milkshake. "Mmmmmm, this is so~ good!"

"Glad ya like it," he wrapped his lips around his straw and sucked up his vanilla one.

Suddenly his face scrunched up into a pained expression, Lucy became worried, "Natsu? What's wrong?"

He swallowed the milkshake in his mouth and began shaking his head, "Brain freeze."

Instead of feeling sorry for the guy, Lucy burst out laughing, "You idiot! You shouldn't drink it so fast!"

Nastu still was shaking his head with his eyes squeezed shut, "Shuddup!"

The smile on her face made her cheeks hurt, but Lucy couldn't help it. Seeing Natsu look so pathetic made her happy, so she continued to laugh at his misfortune. She took small sips through the straw of her milkshake, being careful not to give herself a brain freeze, like what Natsu had done.

After Cana returned to their table with their food, Natsu seemed to forget all about things like table manners and began to shovel food into his mouth.

Lucy stared at him with a horrified expression, "What the fuck? Are you even using your silverware?"

"Huh?" He glanced up at her as he licked his fingers.

"You know…a fork?" He still was looking at her funny, so Lucy grabbed the unopened bundle sitting on the top of the table and unwrapped the silverware from the napkin, "Whatever… I'm not going to eat like a goddamn animal."

He shrugged his shoulders and continued eating without using silverware.

What the fuck…?

XxX

Natsu finished eating his food a lot faster than Lucy. He watched as she delicately cut her waffles with a knife into smaller, bite-sized pieces then dipped them into a small amount of syrup before carefully bringing it to her mouth.

Ehhh? Luce really acts fancy… Her father must've somethin' to do with it… She mentioned not goin' to public school and havin' tutors. She's even sittin' up straight like she's got somethin' shoved up her ass.

"Luce," he caught her attention, "Is everythin' alright?"

She gave him a puzzled look, "Yeah, why?"

"Why do ya look so uncomfortable?"

Her eyes darted away, back to her lap. Lucy's eyebrows pulled together, "What do you mean?"

Natsu sighed and rolled his eyes, "You're actin' like this is some fancy restaurant we're at." He knew what he said was spot-on after Lucy's eyes met his again, "Luce, this is a cheap, 24-hour diner."

She nodded her head and Natsu saw her shoulders relax a bit, "Yeah, right… Sorry."

He wanted to say something, tell her she didn't have to apologize, but instead Natsu found himself unable to fine the right words.

Fuck… I really don't know a damn thing 'bout her, do I? Maybe I should've let her keep talkin' before. But… I don't think I could handle hearin' more 'bout her father…

"So, Natsu." Her voice broke him out of his trance, "How long have you been in a band?" She was waiting patiently for him, with an eyebrow raised.

"Umm," he had to think about it, "I guess it's only been a couple of years… At first I was just writing stuff on my own. Been doin' that since I was little, none of it was all that good though. I've gotten better at it with practice. I can play guitar and piano, but Gray and Jellal usually play those parts. Loki plays bass, I'm not really all that good at it… And no one is better than Gajeel on the drums—that guy is insane."

"Is Gajeel the one with all the piercings?"

Her question caused him to grin, "Yeah, at first he started to get a new one every time he broke another drumstick," Natsu laughed at the memory, "But after a while he gave up with that."

Lucy laughed with him, "Can any of the other guys sing? Or just you?"

Natsu shrugged, "Kinda… They just decided that I've got the best stage presence—plus I've got the most range, so I can really sing whatever."

She was now finished eating and had pushed her plate to the side, "Ahhh, so you can sing girly stuff, too~?"

"HEY!" He scowled at her and crossed his arms, "I don't sing like a girl if that's what you're implyin'."

The soft chuckle and light blush that crossed her face wasn't what he expected, but honestly Natsu wasn't sure what to expect from Lucy.

"That was exactly what I was implying," she smiled across from him with a playful look in her eyes.

"Hmph!" Natsu studied her expression intensely, "I didn't think ya'd say such a hurtful thing to the guy who wrote a song 'bout ya."

He watched as her calm exterior fell and Lucy scowl, "W-what?"

"Ya heard me," Natsu leaned across the table so his face was closer to hers, "I'll admit it. I wrote a song 'bout ya."

Lucy shook her head, "So what? You said so yourself that you've always done that."

Natsu shrugged, "Yeah, I've always written music—I just don't usually write for anyone."

"Okaaaay… So, what's that supposed to mean?" Lucy cocked her eyebrow at him, "You write for yourself?"

He scratched the back of his head nervously, "Yeah, somethin' like that."

"Oh, come on, Natsu~!"

With a sigh of defeat, Natsu peaked at Lucy, "Don't laugh, okay?"

Her expression softened, her brown eyes went from irritated to patient as Lucy nodded.

"Well," Natsu cleared his throat and nervously laughed, "It's kinda embarrassin', but I've never written somethin' like that before… Usually it's not so… I dunno, sappy?"

"SAPPY?! You call that sappy?! HA!"

Okay, so Natsu really didn't know what to expect from Lucy.

"What? You don't?"

Lucy rolled her eyes and snorted, "Oh please. You've got to be kidding me, right?"

Natsu crossed his arms again, "What?"

She shook her head, "Nothing, it's just—"

"Do you two want anything else? Dessert? Or should I get the bill?" Cana came back to their table at the most inconvenient moment possible.

She probably does that on purpose…

"Would you like anything else, Luce?"

Her cheeks were tinted pink from her blush, she looked flustered, it made Natsu smile.

"N-no, I'm fine."

Turning to Cana with a smug grin, Natsu shooed her away, "Just the bill."

Once she was gone, Natsu turned back to Lucy to ask her to continue what she was saying, but she was frowning, he didn't like it.

He paid the bill, keeping his promise to treat Lucy to some food, then they walked back out to his truck.

When Natsu was back in the driver's seat after helping Lucy get in on her side, he glanced over to the blonde, "Hey."

xXx

The sound of Natsu's voice broke Lucy's concentration. It was so soft, and gentle, he sounded concerned, just from the one word.

Once she turned to face him, Lucy noticed the pained look in his eyes, "Luce, what's wrong?"

That nickname sent shivers down her spine, Lucy looked away and shook her head, "Nothing."

Natsu didn't appear to like that answer. His voice pierced through the awkward silence, "Quit lyin', Lucy."

Her head snapped in his direction, her eyes were wide with shock from him using her name. This was even stranger than him calling her that nickname.

"I can tell somethin's buggin' ya, just spit it out."

Her heart was beating so fast in her chest. Lucy wanted to turn away from his intense eyes, but she couldn't. Natsu looked stern and serious, but there was something different about his eyes. They still appeared to be tender and understanding, something that was so unfamiliar, but comforting.

"It's… I've never, umm." Lucy shook her head and closed her eyes, clearing her jumbled thoughts. After taking a deep breath, she tried to simplify everything by simply stating, "This feels like a date."

There was a moment of complete silence between them, it was thick and suffocating.

"Oh."

'OH' THAT'S ALL HE HAS TO FUCKING SAY?!

Lucy opened her eyes and saw that Natsu was blushing and avoiding her eyes.

"Natsu~."

She watched as his Adam's apple bobbed against his throat as he gulped, then turned to her. Lucy stared at him, expectantly.

"Well~ that's not really what I intended…"

Groaning loudly, Lucy rubbed her temples, "What the fuck is that supposed to mean, Natsu?"

"I just didn't mean for ya to think this was a date!" She turned to listen to what he had to say, "I just wanted to spend some time with ya. Ever since we talked on Monday, I've felt like such a fucking asshole. I wanted to do somethin' nice for ya, every time I see ya workin', I can't help but wonder what you're really like. It's obvious you're fakin' that smile ya give everyone! I can see it in your eyes, how fuckin' much you're hurtin' inside. And I can't stand how all those guys at the bar look at ya, Luce. It pisses me off, alright?!"

Uhhhhhhhhhhh… What? What, what, what, what, what?

"Fuck, Luce… I know, 'kay?" He sighed and ran his hand through his pink, spiky hair, "It sucks bein' treated like that. It sucks knowin' that some people don't give a shit 'bout your feelin's and are only tryin' to use ya."

Natsu… What are you saying? Does he really know what it's like? It seems like it…

He took a deep breath and turned to her, "Look, I just wanna be your friend, alright Luce? Ya wouldn't need to pretend around me, just be yourself. Ya can talk to me 'bout stuff if ya want, or we could just I dunno, hang out—cause that's what friends're for."

Lucy nodded her head, "Yeah, okay. I've never really had a friend before."

That confession didn't make him smile, Lucy wished it had.

"You've never had a friend before?" He asked in disbelief.

She looked away, embarrassed and a little ashamed, "No… not really. I've moved around a lot since I moved out and haven't ever felt very comfortable with people…"

Natsu nodded his head, "Huh, 'kay… I guess that makes sense."

Lucy scowled at him, but Natsu just smiled at her as he turned the key to start his truck.

"Where do ya live? I'll drop ya off at home."

AN: Hey everyone! Thanks for reading, this chapter was much longer than the first three, that's just how it happened. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed reading thus far, I am planning on writing more so stay tuned.

Also, shout out to FairyTail9908 and Densolator for leaving reviews ;) Thanks a lot!

Please write me reviews people, that shit FEEDS ME.

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