"I'm not asking you to forgive me. I know others have held grudges for far less. Lucy…" He held out a notebook, the one she'd dropped yesterday. The same one with the words she'd written during their time with Sorano. "…It was wrong what I did to you. I'm sorry that your assumptions about me were correct. I won't talk to you, or be near you again if you don't want me to. Here, this is yours."
For the first time since he started talking, Lucy looked at him. Her pencil had ceased writing. She looked at the notebook with a blank expression. Wordlessly, she took it from his hands and stared at it. Cobra backed up a few steps. He'd accomplished what he needed to say and now wasn't sure how long to wait for a reaction.
The flame inside started to shrink as the silence stretched on. Lucy opened the notebook, still not looking at him. Cobra inwardly retreated. He'd done the best he could. Now he needed to move on.
Painfully, he finally turned his back to her once he neared the entryway. He reached for the doorknob, debating what to say to Mirajane. Only then did he hear a whispered voice, too quiet for any normal person to pick up, say, "Is it always like that for you?"