It's our last day in town. We've made a lot of progress with repairs. Not everything is finished but the majority of the heavy lifting is over. Our things are packed and we're ready to go. Payment from the council will be delivered to the guild in a few days.

I poke around at my breakfast in disappointment. This wasn't how I wanted our time here to go. At least Lucy and I have broken past some of the ice that was between us for most of the week. Now that we've moved past avoiding eachother, everything is just an uncomfortable silence.

Every time she looks up at me, she looks like she wants to say something but sighs and goes back to her food.

It's just the two of us sitting in a booth at a little diner that managed to get back up and running after a few minor repairs. The food tastes pretty good but the uncomfortable silence and awkwardness between her and I, kinda makes everything else feel dull. When I occasionally glance at her I see she doesn't touch her food much either.

I take a small bite of my food. The idle chatter of other patrons in the diner is a steady thrum in my hears. Her voice rings like a clear bell above all of it.

"Natsu? Can I ask you something?" Her voice is quite and unsteady. Like she hasn't made up her mind on what she's about to say.

Hum a yes as I nod and swallow. "What's up, Luce?"

She sighs and sets down her fork. The metal hits the porcelain of her plate with an uncomfortable clatter and we both wince.

"I uh... heh... hypothetically speaking..." she hesitates and stare down at her hands. "If someone had feelings for someone else but they've been acting weird for over a month every time they're together and then he started uh... avoiding her?" Her fingers tap against the table anxiously. "Uh... what advice would you give her?"

What kind of question is that? I eye her up and down. She's clearly nervous, it's written on every part of her. The way she won't look me in the eye, the biting of her lip, the nervous tapping, and the way she shifts uncomfortably in her seat.

I may be dense sometimes but I'm not stupid enough to know that this isn't a hypothetical question.

So who's the guy? If it was me, wouldn't she feel safe enough to say so? Wouldn't she trust me?

"Luce, is this about us?" She quickly looks out the window and her shoulders tense up.

"D-don't be silly Natsu! Why would I be asking about us? You're my best friend!"

Nausea hits me like a truck. I push away what's left of my food. The jealousy and the hopelessness hit me where it hurts most. My gut feels hollow. Would I ever feel ok watching her with someone else?

No

It would shatter me every single day.

But would I be willing to go through that and stay just her dense best friend so that she could be happy?

I'd sure as hell try.

I slouch back in my seat. Defeated, a little hopeless, and just tired... So very tired... "Luce, if you really love him, don't give up on that ok? You deserve the best. If he keeps acting weird, just be honest with him. Some guys are stupid but anyone would be a fool to let you go, ok?"

She sits there quietly, looking a little stunned. I can almost see her trying to sort through her thoughts. I grab enough jewel from my pocket to pay for the meal. "I'm gonna grab our bags, I'll meet you at the station ok Lucy?"

I don't wait to hear her response, I just head out. The dreary and cold weather matches the aches and emptiness in my chest somehow. Who knew the one thing that'd finally make me feel truly defeated would be watching her fall for someone else.

Natsu spends the entire train ride stubbornly away from me, attempting to sleep despite his clearly miserably nauseous state. He doesn't speak, just stares out the window.

Every time I try to think of something to say, the beaten down and exhausted look on his face makes me hesitate. I don't know if I've ever seen him look so... shattered.

That look doesn't fade from his eyes. It holds steady when we make our way back to the guild. It's there during missions. It lingers during fights with friends.

Gone is the smile in his eyes. Even on good days it's like something is missing. When I'm near him he doesn't stay close, glued to my side. His laugh loses it's magic.

An invisible barrier between me and my best friend. All the confusing and churning emotions I feel get twisted in my gut. Warmth and joy, the feeling of safety and happiness I had with him are morphed into something empty and cold.

I miss his warmth. I feel pulled towards him. A silent call drawing me closer. A hunger. A pull from a link in a chain that connects my heart to his. But it shatters each time I see the look in his eyes. Something cold. Lacking. Broken.

Empty.

It's getting late. The sun's long gone and people are slowly trickling out of the guild and heading home. I'm at the bar sipping a strawberry smoothie and pretending to pay attention to Mira, Cana, and Lisanna's conversation. Honestly I lost track of what they were talking about twenty minutes ago.

Natsu is chatting with some of the guys on the other side of the guild. Gray pats him on the back and Natsu waves at Gajeel and Elfman. His hands make their way into his pockets as he turns on his heel and heads for the door.

The familiar tug that's been pulling me for two weeks since we got home, pulls ones more. As he passes me, he glances my way. His eyes widen as his gaze catches mine and he momentarily freezes.

He shifts his gaze to the floor as if he's making up his mind. He shakes his head and keeps walking.

"This isn't right... it's not supposed to be this way..." I mumble.

I hastily grab my jacket and throw my bag over my shoulder. Hopping off my barstool just as Natsu pushes open the doors to the guild and leaves.

"Natsu!" I pant. The doors close behind him as I'm weaving past those that still linger in the guild hall.

I push the heavy doors open. My heels hit the pavement and I break into a sprint. "Natsu! Wait!" He's already pretty far ahead of me. The crisp night air rushes into my lungs and I chase after him.

"Natsu! Natsu please wait!" He keeps walking, I swear it almost looks like he's walking faster.

"Natsu! I know you can hear me!" I scream as I'm only a dozen or so meters away.

He stops dead in his tracks. I can see the huff of his breath in the cold air. "What do you want Lucy?" His tone is sharp. He spits out my name like a bitter venom on his tongue.

I stop just short of reaching him, startled by the anger in his voice.

"Why are you mad?"

He scoffs and starts walking again. I follow behind him. "Why do you care? It doesn't fucking matter what I feel."

"Of course it matters! You're my best friend!"

He runs a hand through his hair. His movements are tense and rigid. Pain and anguish written across his features.

"Right... You dense friend." He bites the final word. His hands gather into fists.

"What's that supposed to mean?" I shout. His pace keeps picking up and I struggle to keep up as my heels beat a rhythm into the pavement.

"I don't know! You fucking tell me Lucy!" He roars.

"What is going on with you? Ever since that day in the park you've been weird. One minute we're closer than ever, the next you're pushing me away! I don't understand what I did wrong!"

A roaring groan rips through his throat. "Why are following me Lucy? Why don't you go hang out with the asshole who was eating your face in the park!"

I reach out to grab his shoulder, trying to slow him down. He strugs me off and picks up his pace. "What does he have to do with any of this? I haven't seen him since then!"

Natsu shakes his head and scoffs. He makes his way down a narrow street and I stop a quarter of the way through.

"I thought we were partners!" I scream. He freezes a few meters away. "I thought we were supposed to have eachother's backs! You keep pushing me away. I can never reach you. You're so angry and bitter and I have no fucking clue why!" My anger bubbles up in my chest. Something snaps inside me. Weeks of loneliness and pain float to the surface. No longer burried and out of sight.

"The second I finally realize just how important you are to me, you shove me aside like trash! Like the way you held me and touched me meant nothing to you! It fucking hurts!"

A bitter laugh bubbles up through him. He turns towards me slowly. "I'm the one who threw you away?! You're the one who kissed me back! Strung me along and then tossed me aside and told me you had feelings for someone else! You could have reached out too!" His hands gesture wildly, the anger moves through him in sharp motions but there's something unsettling underneath. "You could have closed that gap anytime you wanted to but you didn't. You decided that the second you had me and made me feel like I could be enough, you'd rather have someone else. You sat me down at that dinner and told me you were in love with someone and it wasn't me." He's standing close enough now to loom over me. Close enough to smell smoke and sandalwood. Close enough to reach out and touch me. His screams give way to a defeated and solemn pain in his voice. His gaze holds mine for a moment, searching for something. He sighs and looks down at the pavement.

"I'm just your dense best friend right? No one would ever expect or want more than that from me right?" His words are vulnerable. Quiet and broken.

I reach out my hand towards his. His pain ripples through my chest and I know I'll drown if I don't find a way to make it stop. When my fingers graze his, he pulls away. It stings the back of my throat and my eyes with the whisper of tears.

"I lied..." I mumble. His gaze snaps to mine.

"What?"

"I lied. It wasn't hypothetical and it was about us..."

He just stares for several silent beats. When he does speak, his question is quiet as his voice breaks in his throat. "Why? Why would you do that?"

"I was scared... I feel like I can't breathe when we aren't okay. The weight of the pain crushes me, Natsu. It's terrifying to love someone so much that it hurts. To watch your relationship with them stumble and change. I'm so terrified that I'm losing you..."

My voice cracks and hot tears spill against my cheeks. I take a step back. It's just too much. The way he looks at me like everything is crashing down around him. I turn away and desperately try to wipe away mt tears.

Warmth, smoke, and sandalwood envelopes me. His arms wrap protectively around my waist and his head rests on my shoulder. "Please don't go Luce... I love you so much... Please stay." He pleads against the shell of my ear.

I lean against him and rest my arms over his. Our bodies fit perfectly against eachother. My back against his chest. Just two puzzle pieces falling into place. His arms are home. They're my refuge in the storm.

Hope and joy well up in my chest. My heart aches and swells. Did I really hear him say that? The hope fills me and pushes against the walls of my chest. I feel weightless against him. I know I'd foat away if he let go.

"I-I love you too. I'm right here, I won't go anywhere. I don't know when or how but you made me fall so hard for you. I don't want to be anywhere but here."