A/N: The story will actually start in the next chapter. This chapter is for background and getting the plot ready.
Thanks to everyone who reviewed!
Name Change: So I changed the name of the story from Coming Back Down to Half a Heart. I thought that the song Half a Heart by One Direction (which I do not own) fit the story better, so I changed it. Sorry for any confusion you might have had.
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"You actually live here?" Gray asked in awe, shutting his truck off.
Lucy silently got out of the car and walked towards the grand front doors. Gray followed close behind. Three maids greeted them when they opened the doors.
"Princess," they said in unison, bowing. "Your visit is a pleasure and an honor. How may we service you?"
"Whoa," Gray whispered in awe.
Lucy smiled at the maids. "No need to be so formal; you know that." She motioned to Gray. "My friend and I stopped by to get a couple things. Is Father busy?"
The maids were surprised that Lucy was personally asking for Jude, since usually her visits were to be a secret to him. "Master Jude is in his study," the first maid said.
"Thank you," Lucy said. She looked at Gray and nodded her head inside.
The two walked through the halls. Gray wasn't sure where they were going, but it was clear that Lucy did. He could imagine that it wouldn't be difficult to learn the hallways if you lived there. He was under the impression that she hadn't been home in a while, so it was amazing that she still remembered everything.
Lucy finally stopped in front of a darkwood door. "You should probably just wait out here," she said. Gray nodded understanding. She then disappeared into the room.
A moment later Gray heard them speaking.
"What do you want?" a gruff voice asked. He assumed it was Jude.
"I got an apartment in Magnolia."
"And you came the whole way out here to tell me that?"
"No, I came to see if I could take some things from my old room."
"I don't care what you do."
Gray flinched.
"I'm well aware of that, Father."
He could hear the venom in her voice.
"Do you want something else? Did you come for money, as well?"
"I've been making it fine on my own."
There was a heavy sigh. "Just take this and don't come back."
Gray stood back from the door and put his hands in his pockets, trying to look casual. The door opened after a minute. A teary-eyed Lucy was shoving a thick envelope into her purse. "Do you need to talk about it?" he asked. She shook her head.
The two walked in silence down the hallway, once again. Every few minutes Lucy would wipe tears from her eyes or let out a shaky breath, but Gray let her be, knowing that she was working out something in her head.
When they finally stopped walking, Lucy led them through a door. It only took him a second to see that it was Lucy's bedroom. She walked up to a white box on the one wall, which he knew right away was an intercom. She click the button for the maid's room. "Could someone bring up a couple boxes?" she asked.
Lucy first went into the bathroom. When a maid brought up some boxes, Gray took one into Lucy. His eyes widened at the room. There was a large tub big enough for multiple people, a huge shower, a big sink, a mirror that took up most of one wall, and a large, glass cabinet. She was digging through it, pulling different bottles out.
"What is all this?" Gray asked.
"Perfume, fancy soap, etcetera, etcetera," Lucy said. She began putting her small stack into a box. "They're really expensive so I don't want them to go to waste. Can you get me a bag of peanuts?" She used them to put in between the glass bottles, not wanting them to break.
After she packed everything in the bathroom, she went back to her room. She opened up her large jewelry box and looked inside. Her fingertips danced over the expensive items. Gray would have bet she had one of every stone somewhere in the case at least once.
"How much do you think that's all worth?" he asked. He hadn't quite gotten used to the fact that his new neighbor could buy a small country.
Lucy hummed. "Probably over a million," she said. She closed the door and taped it off so it didn't open while they were driving. "I'll probably sell some of it when I need money."
The next thing was the massive book-shelf full of books. Scanning over the spines, Gray saw many original copies, old books that would probably break if he touched them. She packed those, too.
Lastly, she went over to her closet. She faltered when her hand touched the doorknob. She went in anyways. Gray followed behind, wondering if she'd need emotional support. As soon as he stepped into the room, though, he wasn't sure why she'd need any support looking at a bunch of dresses.
The whole right side of the closet was just for dresses. There were hundreds hanging there, all the colors there. She walked along the row, letting her hand drift along the different fabric. She stopped and pulled one out. The pink and white dress was long and full of ruffles.
"Can you put this in an empty box?" Lucy asked, her eyes already watering. She handed the dress to Gray and started looking through the other clothes that she had.
Gray nodded and carefully took the dress and put in into a new box. He could tell that the dress was important to her.
After they finished packing, a few butlers came up to put everything in Gray's truck. One stayed behind. "Is there anything else you need, Princess?" he asked, bowing.
"No, you've already done so much," Lucy said.
"At least stay for dinner, Princess," the butler insisted.
"We should," Gray said, putting a hand on Lucy's shoulder. "It's almost seven and we have a two hour drive ahead of us."
Lucy gave in, and within minutes the two were sitting at the grand dining table, enough food for an army around them. They insisted that the servants eat with them, so the table became full fast, especially since Jude ate earlier in the day.
After the filling dinner, a maid came up to Lucy and Gray. "I have a bath drawn for you if you're interested," she said.
Gray's eyes were sparkling, so Lucy knew that she couldn't refused. They went back up to her room. She was practically running to keep up with Gray. She had grown up with all the luxuries, but clearly Gray didn't. He was kind enough to drive her to Oak Town and help her move in, so she didn't want to deprive him of the experiences he wanted to try.
The bath water was warm and covered in a thick layer of bubbles, so they both knew it wouldn't hurt to bathe together. Gray stripped and got into the water before Lucy could even blink, which made her laugh. He laughed, too, and turned around while she undressed. When he heard a splash, he turned back around to face her. Her head popped out of the water and she used her hands to slick her hair back.
"I've missed this," Lucy sighed, stretching her arms out behind her. "The hotels I've stayed at only had a small shower."
"How many hotels have you been in?" Gray asked.
"I moved out of here when I was eighteen. I travelled around, staying in hotels. I would move every couple weeks," she explained. "This is my first apartment since I moved out."
"That's crazy," he laughed. "Why did you move so much?"
"I've been looking for something." She put her right hand over the mark on her left.
Gray moved closer to Lucy, trying to judge her emotions. He only met her a few hours before, but he was right when he said she was fragile and could use a good friend. He knew that she'd never had anyone there for her.
"Thank you for helping me," Lucy said. "I'm really happy that you're with me. This is pretty scary doing all this. Plus I don't have a truck. I guess I could have done this with my car, but still, thanks."
Gray smiled and hugged Lucy. He totally forgot that they were both naked in a bath tub. She either forgot, too, or didn't care, because she put her arms around his torso and put her nose to his chest.
"I'll always be there to help you," he said.
Lucy smiled and let go of his waist, letting him know that he doesn't have to hug her anymore. She looked up at him and froze. She hadn't actually given him a good look yet, and he was extremely attractive. She took in his features, mesmerized. He seemed to be doing the same, though he was more secretive about it.
Gray rubbed his thumb along Lucy's cheek, making her shiver. She had never been this close to anyone before, let alone a guy. She wasn't sure what would happen, but whatever it was, she was okay with it. As his lips drew closer to hers, the whole world slipped away. She didn't think about being in a bathtub with him. She didn't think about the fact that she was still in her father's manor. She didn't think about anything except for him. And when he finally kissed her, she had a hard time even managing that much.
X
"No," Lucy said, crossing her arms.
"Yes!" Gray said, smiling wide.
"No!" she said more sternly.
"Princess, please," the butler begged.
Lucy stopped her foot. "There is no way that I'm going to let you give me one of these!" she shouted.
"Are these not acceptable, Princess?" the butler asked, honestly confused.
"No, they're perfect!" Gray exclaimed.
"Please, Princess, I insist."
That's how, an hour later, Gray was shouting in glee, leaning over the passenger door.
"Get your head in, idiot!" Lucy scolded him. "You're going to fall out!"
"But this is so cool!" Gray continued to yell.
"Fine, but your seatbelt has to be on," Lucy said. "Or I'll put the top back on."
Gray didn't listen, so Lucy dropped from fourth to first gear. The car screamed in response and Gray nearly fell out of the window. After that he decided to listen and sat nicely in his seat.
"You can't just switch gears like that," Gray whined. "You're going to hurt her."
"Her?" Lucy asked in disbelief.
"This is a deep maroon, Jaguar F-Type. Yes, Her," he said as if it was obvious.
When they reached their apartment building, Lucy parked her new car in her parking spot. A different butler and a maid left with Gray's truck while they were bathing , parked it, unloaded the boxes, then took Lucy's car back with him, not doubt planning on junking it the next day.
"You still don't have any furniture," Gray laughed. He unlocked the door to the apartment building. His eyes widened when he saw that the boxes were no longer there.
Lucy quickly unlocked her apartment and screamed. Gray came running beside her and let out a shocked gasp of his own.
The apartment was cleaned, fully furnitured, and everything was put away. There was no doubt that the butler and maid did it all. The too looked around, admiring all the high-end items. Lucy stopped to pick a note on the kitchen counter.
Princess,
We contacted your landlord and she let us in. We took care of everything for you, so please enjoy your stay in this apartment.
Stop by again soon.
"Well that makes things easier," Lucy laughed. She turned to Gray, who was looking at all the food in the fridge, clearly surprised that they were so thorough. "Thanks again."
"Like I said, don't worry about it," Gray said.
Lucy looked around her kitchen, taking it all in once again.
Gray took that time to move in front of her and strap her between himself and the counter. She blushed and gasped in shock. "Are we going to talk about earlier?" he asked.
She was too shocked to think straight. "What about it?" she asked. It was hard to remember the day with him so close to her.
He smirked. "Well, we kissed," he whispered into her ear. He pulled back enough to put his forehead against hers. "If you don't remember, I can give you a recap."
Her face became a deeper shade of red. "N-no!" she stuttered. "I remember fine!"
Gray stepped back a foot, giving her space to finally breath. He flashed a charming smile. "Great, then I'm taking you out to lunch tomorrow." He didn't give her a chance to respond before he was walking out her apartment, successfully keeping an air of mystery around himself.
Lucy smiled shyly. "Then it's a date," she said to Plue, who was dancing at her feet.