prompt thirty two: help

rate: T for Teens and up

Thirty two out of one hundred.

"It's not how much we give, but how much love we put into giving." —Mother Teresa

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The bass of the music vibrated within the dark bar, walls pulsing and bodies grinding. The smell of alcohol, sweat, and heavy perfume filled the air and the appeal is only there for those who were wasted out of their mind or looking for a quick, fast lay.

Not for Lucy as she was kind of dragged here after a long, awful day and she just wanted to curl up in her bed with a bottle or two of wine and a classic on her tv.

But her friends had invited her out and it was Erza's birthday so here she was, at a stuffy bar with too many people and too much chatter for her.

To make it a little bit worse, the one persistent weirdo Dan Straight continued to hang onto her like a love-sick puppy.

Honestly, it was quite flattering and adorable at first. She's never really had a guy cling onto her so hard and chase her to the end of time so she took it very seriously. He was tall and built with a handsome face and a sharp jawline. He spoke romance to her and gushed how beautiful she is so the most logical thing to do was give him a chance.

That is till she went on a date with said man and he mentioned the idea of having thirty kids together and being wed by the next year.

On the first freaking date.

So, yes, she honestly does try her best to dodge Dan as much as possible and ignore him but some days are harder than the others. Especially at a bar like this with the copious amount of alcohol buzzing in the patron's body and the close skin-to-skin contact.

"Come on, Lulu, I know I come on a little strong but it's because I am madly in love with you. There's nobody else in the world that could love you more than me."

Lucy cringed at the words this man was producing, not knowing if it was the fact he called her Lulu or him confessing his undying love for her or even how he was pressed against her side, hiccuping and slurring into her ear.

Curse her for being such a lady and being a pushover. She had turned this man down how many times? And he keeps coming back?

Her eyes scanned the swarm of people who lingered at the bar, trying her best to find someone—anyone—to come and save her from her misery. Is it time for her to use the 'I-have-a-boyfriend' card? Or that she's simply not into men anymore? Is anyone here that would be willing to play along for the sake of her sanity? But how was she going to grab someone's attention in the mere seconds and silently ask them to play along?

"I have a boyfriend," she blurted out. She wished she wasn't the one to volunteer to get drinks for their table but she honestly didn't think Dan would stalk her over here as well. "We've been going steady for a couple weeks now and I'm serious about him so I'm sorry."

As usual, Dan just scoffed and laughed obnoxiously making her insides boil with rage and annoyance.

Someone. Anyone. Please, come save me!

"There you are, babe," a new voice joined in and it had Lucy startled.

The two were quick to turn around to see who it was and Lucy was quite interested to see an unfamiliar face with a dashing grin and delicious build. He looked casual with a baseball cap on, black t-shirt, and jeans. She was pretty intrigued with his light-hearted demeanor and adorable smile.

"I've been looking everywhere for you. I even got you a drink," he thrusted one of the drinks he had in his hands towards her, forcing her eyes to dart down at it. It was hard for Lucy to even process what was going on. She knew she looked like a fish out of water with her mouth parting and closing every few seconds. Her eyes kept darting to the mystery man and the drink he held out in confusion before she heard Dan clear his throat beside her.

"I think you have the wrong blonde. Lucy here—"

"Oh, honey, I had no idea where you went!" Lucy quickly shouted, suddenly remembering how she got there in the first place. "I came to the bar to grab us more drinks without thinking. Where have you been?" She launched herself into his arms, wrapping herself around his torso to whisper into his ear. "Please pretend I'm your girlfriend. My favorite colors are pink and blue, my birthday is July seventh, and my name is Lucy."

She decided she liked this mystery man because his lips curved into an amused grin as she pulled away and smiled bashfully at him. He leaned in and pecked her right on the cheek causing her entire face to flame, her eyes widening.

"I told you I'd be right back, baby. Here," he handed off the cold blue drink with the cherry floating right on top of the ice. "Got you this one because I know it's your favorite color."

"Lulu's favorite color is not blue," Dan interjected, frowning at the couple who were too busy in their own worlds. "Shows you really don't know her at all."

"Dan—" Lucy sighed but to her surprise the man beside her chuckled causing the both of them to turn and look at him.

"I think I know Lucy a lot more than you do, buddy," he smirked, winking at the dumbfounded male. "And I know what her favorite colors are, too. Blue is one of them."

"Then what's her other favorite color?" Dan countered, glaring.

"Easy," he lifted his beer bottle to his mouth to take a sip before he smacked his lips apart and grinned. "It's the color of my hair." And with that, Lucy's jaw was dropping as he lifted his hat off to show off the vibrant pink hair he sported.

She didn't think a man could look so good with such hair color but he was rocking it. Honestly, it made him so much more attractive and Lucy swallowed thickly before she caught sight of Dan's slack jaw.

"Dan, this is my boyfriend I told you about," she quickly whirled back to face him, taking a step closer to the new man to wrap her arms around his bicep. Lucy made a mental note how big and hard his arm really was, her heart throbbing inside her chest at the thought of being so close to a stranger. "We've been seeing each other for a bit."

"Names Natsu," he tipped his chin up and Lucy sighed in relief. "Thanks for watching over my girl while I was gone. Appreciate it."

Lucy's entire face flamed up at his words, finding herself shivering at how he stamped claim on her so casually and easily. Almost as if it was natural for him and she was feeling flustered at the close proximity. "Natsu and I met at a coffee shop a couple of weeks back and it's been uphill since."

"Yeah, right," Dan scoffed once more, sneering at the newcomer as if he was some kind of pest. "I don't believe it one bit."

"Believe what ya want buddy, I know denial when I see it." Natsu turned towards the blonde to give her a wide grin, keeping his back towards the gawking male. "You ready babe?"

"Now hold on a minute—"

"Yes!" Lucy quickly squeaked, grabbing onto him to start pulling. "Bye, Dan, nice to see you! Have fun!" She gave a wave goodbye before she was pushing through the crowd with her new friend. She did her best to get lost in the crowd of people, suddenly glad it was more packed in here than earlier before she decided she was a safe distance away to let him go.

Still holding onto her drink that Natsu had given her, she turned back around and held the drink out towards him making him quirk a brow at her.

"Your drink. You can have it back."

"Do you not like it?"

"Wha—" she was taken back by his question she nearly reeled back in surprise. "Sorry, I just, this is yours, isn't it?"

"Now it's yours," he replied back, shrugging one shoulder while he brought his beer bottle back to his lips.

Lucy was quiet for a minute, studying this man and the drink in her hands in skepticism. He must have caught the look in her eyes and he snickered, "It's not drugged or anything if that's what you're wondering."

Her cheeks flushed crimson once more and it took everything out of her not to drop her jaw. "T—that's not what I was thinking!"

"I was on the other side of the bar and saw that guy all over you and you looked like you'd be anywhere else so I decided to help," he shrugged his shoulder once more and she looked at him with her eyebrow raised. "And I heard you use your sad excuse of 'I-have-a-boyfriend' card so I decided to step in."

"How do you know I don't have a boyfriend?" She cocked a brow at him, popping her hip out.

It took everything out of her not to shiver and implode when his eyes dragged up her figure in appreciation. He leaned in a bit closer and she stiffened up, cheeks ablaze as she felt the warmth radiate out of him and blanket over her like a safety net. "Because you were a bit too eager to jump into my arms for help, eh?"

Lucy didn't know how to take his answer as she was stunned to the core. She was just rooted to her spot as she stared with wide eyes at the stranger who grinned her way before he tipped his bottle her direction and finished off his beer. He wished her luck and then turned to disappear back into the crowd, leaving her confused, jittery, and a little bit smitten if she was being truthful.

What was it about this stranger that made her want to learn more? He obviously was a very observant type who had excellent hearing in such a loud establishment.

She tried to not really think about it too much as she had suddenly remembered why she was there and how Erza was going to kill her for taking so long. At least she had a drink so it's not like the mission failed but looking down at the cold drink in her hands, she wondered if it was a good idea to even drink a drink a random stranger handed her or if she should give it to her friend for that matter.

So being the good friend she is, she took a little sip of the drink to ensure it wasn't drugged or poisoned before she decided she liked it and it was safe to hand off.

The rest of the night as Lucy and her friends partied and continued to grow drunk and incoherent, the bar was growing more comfortable. Lucy wasn't thinking so much about her awful day but more so getting in the groove of her friend's excitement.

They took shots, danced on the dance floor, socialized, and laughed nearly the entire night.

And oddly enough, Lucy hadn't seen her savior since he had saved her from Dan nor did she see Dan for that matter. It was as if the incident didn't even happen and it was all a dream.

The bar was a decent size place with an outdoor patio as well so it could be likely she could have missed them both but she really wasn't keeping her eyes peeled for either since she was wrapped up around her friends.

But that didn't mean she didn't think about Natsu at all, if that was his real name, because while she wasn't the type of girl who wanted or needed saving, when he stepped up to the plate, she truly felt a sense of relief and safety near him.

Maybe it was his odd body heat or his dashing grin or maybe how he was able to see how uncomfortable she was to help a stranger out.

Stumbling out of the packed bathroom full of underaged girls and excitedly chattering, Lucy straightened her skirt out as she felt a hiccup bubble out of her throat. Her body jerked with the movement and she was a bit buzzed from the many drinks Erza had been pouring down her throat. Hence, the many, many bathroom breaks. She felt incredibly warm and sated as her body pulsed with the music.

She pushed through the line of people outside the bar and the crowd that formed in circles on the floor. She squeaked out polite 'excuse me's as did she made sure not to trip over her own feet or others since she knew she was one too many shots in.

She wasn't much of a drinker (and neither are her friends) but the once in a while partying they did was justified when it came to celebrations or even something as trivial as a bad day.

Looking up to try and find the vibrant scarlet head of her friend, Lucy surfed the crowd to see which direction she should go.

And surprisingly, it wasn't the vibrant red hair that caught her attention but the familiar vibrant pink one that did.

She felt stuck to her spot as she stared at him, a sense of relief coursing through her body as she realized he was still here. He looked as handsome as ever but with his baseball cap turned around, she found herself liking it more.

The only thing that was different was the scowl on his face as she realized that he wasn't alone. He had a silver-haired woman attached to his arm, much like Dan was, looking as if she was whining to him about something he couldn't care less about. He looked like he wanted to be anywhere else and no matter what he said or how he tried to gently nudge her off, she wasn't coming off.

Just then, his head lifted and as if he felt her eyes on him, his eyes found her in the midst of everyone in the room.

His eyes danced with some sort of relief when they met and then his eyes were brought back down to the body that was trying to morph itself into his and he was back to frowning, eyebrows knitted together.

And she decided that she didn't like that and her legs were moving on their own without her knowing until she was right near them.

"Natsu, come on, I haven't seen you in a while." Her voice was a whine and she was slurring, pink hues painted across her cheeks. "Didn't you miss me?"

"Natsu!" Lucy shouted over the music making them both snap their heads over at her. "There you are, babe!"

She moved over to his side, a soft smile to her lips as she grabbed onto his bicep once more. His arm muscles jumped at the feel of her dainty fingers wrapping around and she felt her cheeks warm at the closeness they had. "Sorry, there was a long line in the bathroom, I hope I didn't keep you long." Lucy purred into his ear, feeling the alcohol loosen her tongue. "Did you get my drink?"

She watched how an amused smile tugged at his lips and she felt her heart flutter with how his dark eyes bore right into hers, his free arm coming to wrap around her waist.

"Sorry, baby, I've been trying to get a bartender's attention but it's a bit busy."

"Um, excuse me," the woman on his other side said in a sneer. "Who the hell are you?"

"Oh, I'm Natsu's girlfriend," Lucy leaned over to peek over Natsu's figure, grinning at the woman whose face shifted into surprise. "Lucy, nice to meet you. Thanks for keeping him company. I know he gets lonely when I'm not around." She stuck her hand out for her to shake.

She heard Natsu shift to cough into his fist, most likely to hide his laugh, as she saw the way his lips curled up.

"Girlfriend?" She furrowed her brows, looking more irritated than ever as her eyes darted from her hand to her face in disgust. "Natsu doesn't do—"

"And you are?" Lucy interrupted, quirking a brow at her.

The woman looked taken back by the sudden change and Natsu took the opportunity to shake her off, stepping closer to Lucy who moved so she was more in between them.

"Nobody you have to worry about, babe," Natsu flashed her a grin, making her turn and focus her attention on him. "Want to head outside?"

"Hold on a minute!" The woman nearly shouted, grabbing onto Lucy's arm to have her spin and look at her again. "I have never seen you before! There is no way you're Natsu's girlfriend," she sneered at the word, her eyes darting up and down her body. "Natsu doesn't do relationships and he's certainly not into blondes with fake tits, you plastic bitch!"

"Touka—" Natsu was beginning to hiss but Lucy's laugh caught him off guard along with the said woman.

Lucy didn't know what possessed her to speak to a stranger this way but the feeling of protectiveness rose inside of her as she pushed him behind her and leaned in towards Touka. She had a good couple of inches against her, especially since she was wearing heels so it gave her the advantage to look down at her. Touka reeled back slightly, eyebrows pinched as she tried her best to glare at the grinning blonde.

"I'm sorry to disappoint, Touka," Her name rolled off her tongue as if she had tasted something bad. "But these are one hundred percent real. Seems like I got yours in the process, too," her eyes darted down to look at the flat chest making her gasp and wrap her arms around herself. "But Natsu and I are very much dating and I would suggest you find someone else to hang onto. Preferably someone who doesn't have a girlfriend?"

The embarrassment and anger that flashed across her face made Lucy wonder if she had taken it a little too far but she didn't seem to find the care she normally would. She felt Natsu's searing hot grip on her wrist and she turned back to see his expression had darkened and she didn't know if she had stepped over a boundary in the midst of her out of character attack.

She opened her mouth to quickly apologize but when she felt him tug her closer to him and his arm came around to wrap around her waist, she was taken back when he pulled her in to kiss her right on the mouth.

He tasted like cinnamon whiskey and his body heat was throwing the temperature haywire. Her body shivered involuntarily and she melted into his embrace, slanting her mouth to cover his more as they kissed hungrily.

It was like they were in their own world, wrapped around one another and kissing one another as if it was their life mission. They didn't even see or hear Touka shout out a string of curses before she was gone, leaving them in their own blissful state.

Lucy couldn't say she's ever experienced something as explosive as this kiss. His mouth was hot and inviting while his strong arms held her against his hard body.

Nobody else mattered nor could she focus on anything else but this man who was kissing her as if he didn't, he would die.

She was embarrassed to gasp when they pulled away and she felt dizzy as she saw the hungry look in his eyes. Her freshly kissed lips pulsed with the desire and she was one hundred percent sure she was drunk on the taste of this man.

"Thank you," he nearly muttered but she heard it since they were so close their breaths were mingling. "I've been trying to get her off my back for months."

"You scratch my back, I scratch yours, right?"

The grin that stretched across his face made her own face stretch into a grin and she was sure they looked like two idiots smiling at each other at a packed bar.

"Can I get you a drink? No strings attached?" He looked almost bashful that it made her realize how close she really was to him.

She pulled back slightly, the feel of his warm heavy arm still wrapped around her waist while she cleared her throat.

"I… would really like that." She smiled sincerely. "With or without strings attached."

X

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Fin.