When Feelings Face One Another
The next morning was a rainy sunday and Natsu woke up on the same chair from the previous night. Lucy was peacefully sleeping still, curled up in his arm.
He stretched and yawned before standing up carefully as to not wake the snoozing blonde beside him. He lay a blanket over her shoulders and looked at her. Just looked, in silence for a moment.
It made his heart ache and yearn for her. He hadn’t even realised how quickly these feelings had crept up on him. Only just about a couple weeks ago, he would’ve been perfectly satisfied by a wave and smile from Lucy in the hallway. But now it felt like nothing was enough unless she was in his arms.
He hated this feeling. He just wanted to go back to when they could hang out together as friends. He hated that it meant he couldn’t ever focus on any other aspect of his life. He hadn’t felt this heavy sense of longing since his father, Igneel, died.
Obviously it wasn’t the same and Natsu knew that, yet it left him feeling the same emptiness when he saw Lucy with anyone else. He said he hated it because he knew it was love.
Lucy woke up about 20 minutes later. It took her a few moments to realise where she was. She looked down at the soft burgundy coloured blanket that was rested gently on top of her. She could’ve sworn something important had happened last night, right before she fell asleep but she couldn’t for the life of her put her finger on what exactly that was.
It wasn’t completely her fault for her poor memory though, as the night before had been one big mess for the girl. She could just barely remember what had taken place at the Hogshead let alone once she was back at the school.
“Lucy!! Hey girl! Feels like forever since we properly spoke.” Cana skipped down the stairs and jumped onto the chair beside Lucy.
“Cana! Hey, yeah i’m sorry yesterday was..confusing. I honestly don’t even know half of what went down.” She rubbed her temples in a tired annoyance, a poor attempt at collecting her thoughts.
“You’re telling me? After rejecting Loke, you come up here and fall asleep cuddled up to Natsu! What a night for you hey.” Cana chuckled and slapped Lucy on the back intending to be playful, though it came across much more of a beating.
However the girl couldn’t focus on that. She rejected Leo? Not only that, but she fell asleep in the arms of the guy she liked and couldn’t even remember?!
“Hey.. you okay?” Cana noticed her unnerved expression.
Lucy looked back at her for a second before reaching out and hugging her friend tightly. “I’m so confused..everything is just so much right now. I’ve been a bad friend to you and Lis, I’ve barely spoken to Juvia and Levy for about a week now and Natsu…”
The brunette didn’t question her behaviour, instead gently hugged her back. “Hey, nobody thinks you’re a bad friend. We just want you to talk to us. If you’re worried about something don’t keep it bottled up Lulu.”
“Thank you Cana. I’m sorry.” Lucy loosened the hug and smiled at her friend.
For the next hour or so the two girls sat together whilst Lucy relayed all her worries and news to Cana. Half an hour in, Lisanna found the pair and joined in with the discussion.
“Wow.. I mean I know we teased you about Natsu but I’d never have thought it would become this big.” Lisanna admitted at the end of their talk.
“I just want to be around him constantly, when I’m with him the world makes sense but when we’re apart I don’t know what to do with myself. Sounds cringey I know but-“
“Lulu no! It’s adorable. I really think you should tell him.” Cana added, cutting her off.
Lucy thought about this. Genuinely questioned whether or not to admit her feelings to Natsu. “Maybe one day.”
This sentence ended the conversation and not long after the trio headed to the library to finish their homework.
Just before they made it to the building Lucy stopped. “Damnit! Sorry girls you go on, I left my wand in my room.”
The other two nodded and giggled slightly at the girls constant forgetfulness.
Back in the common room, Lucy was frantically searching for her wand. It was made of oak wood and had a beautiful floral carving that wrapped around the bottom. She loved it and it was her most prized possession so whenever she lost it she became panicked very quickly.
Natsu strode into the room and upon seeing the blonde, dropped the half eaten chocolate bar in his hand. This startled Lucy who turned to see him and in doing so, a natural smile appeared on her face.
“Hey!” She beamed even brighter.
There was a long awkward silence. Natsu was trying to say something but every time he opened his mouth to do so, nothing came out.
There was a moment in which Lucy tried to break the silence by asking; “You haven’t seen my wand anywhere?…Maybe?”
But still Natsu could say nothing.
He wanted to. He wanted so badly in that moment to spill all his feelings to her. His chest was tight and he felt as though he couldn’t breathe.
Lucy was still rummaging around for her wand and eventually squealed and pulled it out from underneath a small coffee table in the corner.
It was at that point she realised there was something wrong with Natsu. That dampened her mood instantly. She hated how quickly her mood could change depending upon how Natsu felt. And so, without really thinking, she rushed towards him and wrapped her arms tightly around him.
For a moment, he didn’t even think about what was happening and instead just stood. Then as if it were instinct. He embraced her just as tightly.
After about 2 minutes, Lucy gently broke away but was still very close to him. There was a tension in the air that was so intense and indescribable that neither knew what to do.
Natsu cupped Lucy’s face in his hands but she didn’t for a moment think about breaking away. They both felt like it was so right.
And so Natsu leant down and kissed her.
It was a small, gentle kiss. And yet it had all the passion and feeling that they were holding back.