Warning: Triggering content. Please be warned.

I adored the ocean the most. I loved the aroma of the woods, the peace that the sky brings, but the ocean's mystery enticed me like no other. The way it sparkled under the sun and moon, and the sound of its calming waves, it was so beautiful.

That's why I have never imagined that the adoration I felt towards it would turn into fear. I never thought I wouldn't be able to feel the small waves on my feet anymore...

EARLY IN THE morning, I had tried to open up the outing to Natsu, but I found myself failing to gather enough courage. I already knew that he wouldn't allow me based on what I had gone through before I got him to allow me in swimming class. So instead of letting him know about it, I would just make an excuse.

"Natsu, tell Loke or whoever will pick me up later that I'll be going home late."

When his eyebrows furrowed, I stuffed a ham in my mouth as I looked away. I knew it. He'd be so strict again. Why was he even acting so overprotective?

"Who told you that you're allowed to go home late?"

I rolled my eyes, reaching for the glass of water after swallowing my food. "I'll just go to the mall with my friends! Is that wrong? And why are you limiting me when I remember you're wilder when you're my age!"

He's a racer, if I remembered it correctly. He's fascinated by danger!

"Stop comparing us, Lucy. We're different! What if something bad happened to you?"

"I can handle myself—"

"Don't give me that reason!" I pressed my lips in a line as we glared at each other. "Have you learned self-defense? No. Even if you have, is it enough to keep you safe? No. So don't be stubborn. Now if you may excuse me."

My eyes widened when he stood up to leave. Damn it! "Wait, Natsu!"

He halted on his feet and faced me again. He looked exhausted. "Fine. You can go but in one condition…"

I felt my eyes sparkle. Of course! I'd do everything just to make him let me—

"...bring Gray with you."

"What?!"

What the heck? What if I was really having a bonding time with my girl friends? Gray would follow me around? Not only that, it would feel so awkward! My friends might also feel uncomfortable, so was Gray! Just imagine a grown man tailing teenage girls around. He's not even my bodyguard!

Natsu raised an eyebrow. "Don't give me that look. I'll have him look after you from afar."

"That's still not fair to him, Natsu! Gray has his own life, too! Just having him, as well as your other friends, to pick me up in school is already a huge favor!"

"Tss. I'm paying them, okay?"

"H-Huh?"

"You heard me," he turned his back. "Hurry up. You're getting late."

Then I realized, I had no way out of this, giving me an only option in my favor. Talk to Gray about it and convince him to let me go. I knew it wouldn't be easy because his loyalty was on his friend, but there's no harm in trying, right? I couldn't help it! It was my first time to have friends on this island, and I didn't want to waste this chance. I wanted to have some fun, too, with more experiences and memories.

So all I did the whole day was think of ways on how to get Gray on my side. Or maybe...

I would just go without telling him anything at all.

That's decided.

After the swimming lesson, we immediately went out of the building. While everyone was talking about Hakobe Falls, I was busy looking around to check if Gray was already here. But he's not yet, making me sigh in relief.

"Lucy-san!" Wendy's voice stopped me from entering the white pick-up truck Bora had prepared. My friends were already inside on their comfortable seats. Laughter and chatter filled the vehicle, while I turned to Wendy with a smile.

"Yes?"

"Uh, here. You forgot this," she handed me my lunch bag, and tiptoed as she took a quick look at the people inside. "You're going to Hakobe Falls?"

"Thank you... By the way, how did you know that?" Her eyes returned to me, full of innocence yet filled with enough knowledge.

"I just heard yesterday…"

"Lucy! Let's go!" Sherry called from the second row of seats, tapping her side next to the window reserved for me. Bora was already on the driver's seat, eyes were also trained on me that made me look away.

"Um, I have to go, Wendy. Aren't you going home yet?"

"I'm still waiting for Mama…" she stepped back before waving her hand. "Take care."

Ruffling her blue hair, I gave her a smile. "You, too!"

While on the way to the falls, my friends were so energetic and loud as they jammed with the stereo. They were all having fun, making me feel a little out of place. They were talking to me, too, but I would just respond with a short answer if they asked a question, or just smile when someone was telling a funny story. I was busy dealing with the guilt and fear in my chest. Guilt because I knew Gray would look for me and he would be in trouble.

Feeling bad, I had just sent him a message that I was going somewhere and he shouldn't worry, before I turned my phone off.

Gray

Just pick me up in front of FSS later at four. And don't tell Natsu anything.

Sent 1:14 PM

Of course, I also felt afraid of Natsu's anger once he found out. But then, I kept on telling myself to enjoy the present, and deal with the consequences later. He couldn't do anything once everything's done already. He would be mad, but I was sure he would just forget that this happened the next few days.

It was almost a thirty-minute trip until we reached our destination. The way here was actually just like the one to our private property—secluded and surrounded with trees. It seemed refreshing here in the afternoon, but would probably appear creepy at dusk. Not that we would stay that long here, though. We agreed to only spend three hours and then we would go home.

It was currently past one o'clock, so I was confident that I would arrive home before the darkness took over.

"Whoa! I can hear the waterfalls even from here!" Millianna exclaimed, a picnic blanket on her arm.

"Hakobe Falls is one of the most popular tourist attractions of Tenrou," Hibiki said as he brought the basket of snacks. "And it's cheap, too."

"Is anyone managing the falls?" I asked, now walking through a more narrowed passage towards the inside of the woods. The fresh smell of leaves and song of birds made me relax.

"There is. A caretaker is the one maintaining the cleanliness of the surroundings," Beth answered me. "You know, a lot of people are visiting here, and so it really needs someone to take care of it."

I only nodded, the sound of the falling water was becoming louder as we neared the entrance. An arc made of woods could be seen from afar, covered with vines that served as its decoration. It displayed the words Tenrou's Paradise: Hakobe Falls.

"I hope there's no people inside!" We laughed at Eve's remark. "It'll be more fun if we occupy all the space, don't you think?"

"Agree…"

And it's like their wish was granted. They jumped in delight when we found no one but the caretaker. A middle-aged man gave us a kind smile. He told us that the early visitors had already left almost ten minutes before we arrived. So that explained the vehicles we had passed by earlier leaving the area.

As soon as we found a perfect spot for our picnic, the others already ran away to change into their swimwear. Not that I was ashamed of my body or what, but I felt more comfortable wearing a simple shirt and shorts when swimming in a public place like this. Even in class, the girls' attire wasn't revealing as it reached our mid-thighs and had short sleeves. It was provided by the school.

One of the things I had heard from my grandma was if you wanted people to respect you, you should appear respectable, too. But then as I grew up, I learned that it wasn't the problem. Even if you acted so politely, or you dressed conservatively, if a person wanted to do something bad to you, they would do it. It's not how we presented ourselves. It's the way of thinking of people around you. Everyone, regardless of their gender, should be able to wear whatever they wanted…whatever that gave them comfort, or made them express themselves better.

It was so clear in my head that I could still remember every bit of it even if seven years had passed already...

My friends were enjoying themselves. Hakobe Falls was indeed beautiful. With its clear sparkling water, refreshing air and atmosphere, and the orangey rays of the sun passing through the lively leaves of the trees that surrounded the area, and reflected through the water... It was so breathtaking.

As the boys were busy playing some games, the girls were busy trying out everything they learned from our swimming lessons. At first, I was enjoying it with them. We were having so much fun that we didn't notice we already doing it on our own. I hadn't noticed that I swam further than I had planned, until I needed to breathe for air.

"Huh? Damn, I got separated," I murmured, seeing them far from where I was.

The level of water where I stopped wasn't so deep as I could still reach the ground with my feet, but it was deep enough to slow down my movements. It reached just below my chest.

However, before I could swim back, someone appeared right in front of me from the water, making me mutter some curses in shock, especially when I felt an arm wrapped around my waist.

"W-What the hell?! Let go of me—hmmp!"

My eyes widened when Bora covered my mouth firmly, now pulling me in a nearby small cave. Fear coursed through my chest, panic overwhelmed me as I realized what's about to happen. I tried to fight back and used all my strength to push him away, but to no avail. He successfully brought me inside, keeping us secluded from the others.

I groaned in pain when my back suddenly hit a rough surface, with Bora caging me who clearly had no plan on letting me out of here alive. His once polite smile had gone, and was replaced by demonic smirk. His eyes were bloodshot with darkness, bringing terrifying scenarios in my head.

"I've been dreaming about this day, Lucy." His voice was rough and deep. I began to shiver, not because of the cold, but fear for myself. "The day when I can have you all alone."

Warm tears threatened the corner of my eyes. All I could do was try to pull his hand down from my mouth, but my strength wasn't enough. I tried pushing him with all my might, but that only gave him reason to press his body harshly against me. Tears rolled down my cheeks when he started kissing my cheek, while his other hand wandered on some parts of my body. Not getting contented, he slipped his hand under my shirt and roughly touched my breast.

"Hmm!"

It was a nightmare.

I managed to scream when he let go of my mouth in an attempt to kiss me. "Ahh! Stop! Let me go, you fucking—" My words got stuck in my throat when he caught my neck. I stared at him in horror, slowly losing air as his grip on me tightened.

"Try making some noise again. I'll kill you."

He moved closer again, planting disgusting kisses on my jaw to my neck. The feel of his tongue and hand against my skin made my tears fall like there's no tomorrow. I felt disgusted...for myself. I felt dirty. The beat of my heart was still erratic despite the lack of air. I could even feel that I would lose my consciousness soon, as my eyelids started becoming heavy, and Bora would surely do everything he wanted to me when that happened.

I was losing hope...

Until I heard Natsu's voice.

I didn't know if it was just my hallucination from my vanishing consciousness, but I really did hear his voice. He was calling my name. Repeatedly, loud, and desperate.

"N-Nat...!"

When Bora was about to kiss me again, I forced myself to raise my knee and hit his crotch. But because we're in the water, it didn't have much force, although it was enough to hurt him and move away from me. The moment he let go of my throat, I found myself coughing and desperately catching for air. Not wasting the chance to escape, I used all my strength to move away. I held onto the sharp wall of the cave, not minding the cuts I gained on my palm and fingers, as I helped myself walk out and survive.

"Lucy!"

He's here. He's really here! Natsu!

"Lucy!"

I'm here!

"Where are you?!"

I'm here! Natsu!

My cold lips were parted in need of air. Being in water was already difficult to have a steady breathing, and what Bora did earlier made it worse. My throat was dry and it hurt, but I needed to let Natsu know that I was here. With all my strength, I yelled his name...

"Natsu!" ...before I felt myself being pulled back by my hair.

"You bitch!"

I cried in pain as Bora's fingers dug on my scalp, gripping my hair so tight. I closed my eyes when he suddenly pushed me down in the water. All I could do was to wriggle out of his grasp, a bit of water entered my nose and mouth. I thought he'd never give me a chance to breathe again, when he pulled me up and threw me against the wall. Everything on me ached so badly.

He lunged on me again, rougher than before. But unlike earlier, I didn't do anything. I just let him do what he wanted on my limp body as I remained my eyes shut. Lips were trembling, tears warmed my cold cheeks... I endured everything. I just wanted him to get satisfied already and leave me alone.

That's why I almost fell on the water when Bora was suddenly being pulled away. An arm caught me, Gray's familiar voice started ringing in my ears.

"Lucy?! Lucy, wake up!"

I forced myself to open my eyes, only to feel it slowly widen when I saw how Natsu slammed Bora's head on the wall.

"N-Natsu...?"

"Let's get out of here!" Gray helped me move. When he realized that I had no strength, he made me ride on his back. As we walked out of the cave, my head remained looking at Natsu's direction, his shouts of rage and his darkened expression brought so much fear in me.

My friends were waiting for us, extreme worry was etched on their faces.

"Lucy!" Sherry wrapped a towel around me before pulling me for a hug. Her warmth, and the feeling of her comforting arms around me had me burst out in tears. Slowly, the thought that I was finally safe was sinking in my head.

Relieved... I was so relieved that it's like the first time I had felt something like this in my life. I was given a second chance to live...

"Oh my god!"

Their screams caused me to pull away from Sherry. Behind me, I found Bora lying on the ground. He was still conscious, but barely moving and bathing in his own blood. I stared at Natsu in horror as he pulled himself out of water with bloodlust strong in his eyes. His white shirt was tainted red, but it seemed he had no care about it as he attacked Bora again. Sherry pulled me away, while everyone only watched the scene, terrified, other than Gray who had enough strength to stop Natsu.

"Dragneel! You'll kill him! Stop!" He looked at us over his shoulder. "Please... Please get Lucy away from here!"

Without a word, Sherry guided me to leave the area. My knees were trembling, and I couldn't walk properly so the girls were helping me. Silence enveloped us for a moment, before Millianna decided to speak.

"We're sorry, Lucy. We didn't notice!"

"We were so preoccupied that if Natsu didn't come, we still wouldn't know what's happening," Jenny added, almost a whisper, guilt dripped from her voice.

Even if I wanted to assure them that it wasn't their fault, I just couldn't find the strength to speak. I was still thinking of what had just happened, especially about Natsu. He was there, enraged and breaking Bora's face. I wanted him to stop... I didn't want him in jail.

But I wasn't in the right state of mind to do anything.

"We have already called the police. They're on their way here, so don't worry."

When we reached the arc, we found Loke outside who immediately stood up straight from leaning against Gray's car as soon as he saw us.

"W-What—" His words hung in the air. Instead, he scanned every part of me in silence. He was about to reach for my arm when I stepped back in instinct, suddenly feeling so scared as tears trailed my cheeks again. Loke clenched his jaw, dropping his hand on his side before turning away.

"Get inside, Lucy. I'll take you home."

"W-What about Gray and Nat—"

"They can go home on their own." He opened the passenger seat for me. In the corner of my eyes, I spotted two motorbikes, one was familiar as I had seen it once in our garage. "Don't be stubborn."

Don't be stubborn... Natsu's voice echoed in my head. It was the same thing he said to me.

They were right. I was stubborn. It all happened because of my own doing. It's my fault.

Bowing my head, I entered the car and let myself cry in silence. Everything flashed back, from early this morning until in the cave. The feel of Bora's hand still lingered, sending shivers in every part of me. The feel of the water, the image of myself in the middle of it, it became one of my fears. My nightmare.

When we arrived at the mansion, I found Lisanna waiting for us at the entrance. She immediately asked what happened after seeing my state, but all I did was cry on her shoulders. Spetto was also very worried, but instead of forcing me to speak, they attended to everything I needed. After taking a bath, after I felt satisfied in rubbing off those disgusting feelings on my skin, I went out of my room and joined everyone in the living area.

Natsu wasn't still home, but Zeref and Mavis had already arrived.

"We know it's still fresh and painful for you, Lucy, but we want to confirm what really happened so we can take action as soon as possible," Mavis softly said, giving a gentle squeeze on my hand.

Eyes were still on the floor, I tried to tell them everything, but I ended up voicing out a single word. "Assaulted…"

Before any of them could ask further, a violent roar of engine from the outside caught our attention. Soon enough, Natsu entered, wrath was still visible on his face. Marks of dried blood was on his fists and white shirt, causing me to swallow hard. His eyes found me, and my heart started pounding painfully when he walked towards my direction.

"N-Natsu—"

"What did I tell you?" I only stared at him, feeling a lump forming in my throat at the way he looked at me. He gritted his teeth at the lack of response. "What the fuck did I tell you, Lucy?!"

I jolted on my seat when his voice thundered. Instead to respond, I only dropped my gaze on my trembling hands. My eyes welled up with tears again, and I hated myself for it. His loud voice was what covered us and no one dared to interrupt.

"Don't show me those tears because if you only listened, you'd never end up this way!"

I knew it's my fault...

"I've given you permission because you said you wanted to learn! But I really shouldn't have allowed you to enroll in that fucking Swim School!"

I couldn't stop a sob from coming out.

"All you bring is trouble since I met you! And it doesn't change over the years!"

"Natsu! What the hell?! She's harassed, don't make everything worse!" Lisanna stood up for me.

I clamped a hand on my mouth as my cries started becoming louder. An arm embraced me, Mavis' soothing whispers filled my ear.

"I'm here. Don't cry. Please stop crying, Lucy…"

Maybe he wasn't really treating me better because he saw me as his friend, but because he took the responsibility of looking after me. He's doing it because that's what he was asked to do.

It just hurt. So much.

"They're coming," Zeref soon announced as he entered the mansion.

Natsu's loud sigh made me look at him. Even with a blurry vision, I could still see the anger in his eyes...and its familiar coldness. It's like he went back to how he used to be towards me. More ruthless.

"Your parents are on their way here. So start packing your things." My nails dug on my lap as I clenched my fists, watching him turn his back and walk up the stairs. "Go back to where you truly belong. I don't want to see your face on this island ever again!"

I was thankful to him for saving me, for being nice to me even for a short span of time. But the hatred that started growing in my heart that day couldn't be stopped. I hated him for hurting me again, for suddenly abandoning the relationship we'd built together. And I hated myself for believing there's such a thing between us...even friendship. I was just a spoiled little brat to him. A troublemaker. An eyesore.

I went back to Crocus with trauma, especially towards any body of water. Wanting me to be comfortable, my father fired all the men that were working in the mansion. I felt bad, but I couldn't stand having them near me. Mama had also transferred me to homeschooling. It would have been sad and devastating if everything was still normal, but I preferred it more that way after all that happened.

They were also the ones dealing with the case. I had heard that Bora's family was kicked out of Tenroujima, while that bastard himself was imprisoned in Hargeon.

I was having therapy for years. And it was a big help. I was slowly healing, but never came back to how I was before. I was always on defense and distant, and my fear of being in water had never gone. I couldn't use a bathtub, or even just hang my feet on the side of the pool. It was hard at first, but I had grown to get used to the changes. After four years, I had finally managed to interact with anyone again without being paranoid. I continued my modelling career, and my parents were giving me all the support I needed.

I did my best to forget everything and I succeeded. I lived my life like the tragedy never happened, like I never met him. All the memories were buried in the depth of my heart that I didn't plan on remembering again. I was doing just fine...

...until that issue with Sting Eucliffe exploded.

Men really did nothing but bring me pain.

Now, after seven years since that day, I'm back.

"You're still the spoiled little brat back then, I see."

My eyes narrowed as I clenched my trembling hands. "And you're still the grumpy old man back then, you brute."

I didn't have any idea what he was doing here, because I refused to talk to Papa before my departure. Mama didn't mention anything to me as well. I wondered if they knew about this.

I stepped forward, not planning to spend the whole day exchanging glare with him.

"You left this island because of the trouble you've made. And you came back because of another problem?"

Even annoyed, I just walked past him and opened my door. Before I could close it, he spoke again.

"You never changed, Lucy. Still so stubborn."

Can't he just shut the fuck up?

I slammed the door shut, gritting my teeth as my chest heaved for air. We had only met for minutes, yet he was already getting on my nerves!

I promised I wouldn't let him affect me again the way he did years ago, let alone meddle with my life. I ruled myself, I would do what I wanted. Not even an alpha like him could tame me.