Who Would Have Thought?

Summary: As a small child, Lucy only had a few, good friends. Her childhood was relatively normal and fun for a little girl. However, there was one person who would ruin it every chance he got by playing pranks on her, teasing her, and calling her cruel names. After 10 years apart, will love arise? Or will old habits begin to surface once again?

Chapter 8

"OMFG, LUCY! YOUR HOUSE IS AMAZEBALLS!" Levy and the rest of the girls looked on in awe as they stepped up to the glistening front door of Lucy's home.

The blonde only rolled her eyes playfully before she took out a key to unlock and open the door wide. "That's a bit of an exaggeration, don't you think, girls? It's just a house like any other."

"Haha, so modest, I see." Wendy laughed as they all followed into the house right after her.

"Wow..." Lisanna and Mirajane looked around the home as they shut the front door behind them. "Reminds me of that resort we went to on vacation one year!"

"Right?" Mirajane agreed.

"Juvia thinks Lucy's home is nice. One day, I hope Gray-sama and I will live in such a house together.."

"Geez, can you go a day without talking about Gray?" Cana asked with a tinge of annoyance in her voice. She shook her head once she saw the daydreaming look on her face. "I take that as a no..."

Lucy began to blush at the compliments to her home. "Really, girls.. it's nothing! Hahaha.."

"Are you kidding!? Your house looks beautiful! Even more so on the inside!" Levy went on as she dropped her overnight bag on the floor and proceeded to explore the home leaving her friends behind.

"Levy, don't be rude! Pick up your bag this instant!" Erza scolded her. "And where do you think you're going without Lucy's approval? You can't just barge around anyone's home!"

"Oh, relax, Erza! This is our childhood friend, Lucy! Remember?" Levy shook the redheads threat off as she disappeared into the living room. "She doesn't mind."

Cana took more of a look around and nodded in approval at the expensive decor. "Hey, Lucy? Judging by the look of this place, you must have a incredible booze collection, right?"

"Cana..." Erza shot the known alcoholic a death glare that sent several chills down her spine. However, she was determined not to show fear.

Lucy only laughed and shook her head. "E-Erza, it's okay! You don't-"

"Princess is back from school with guests?" All of the girls looked up to the long, finely crafted stairwell to see a pink haired maid as she quickly made her way down the stairs and stood right next to Lucy.

"Is that your maid?" Lisanna asked with a shock on her face. "She's so cute! Like a porcelain doll!"

"Welcome home, Princess. I've prepared your room for you and your guests just as you requested." Virgo tilted her head to the side and did a small bow. "Oh... my apologies, I forgot to introduce myself. I am Virgo, nice to meet you all."

"Ahhh, how cute!" Wendy said in a high pitched voice.

"I'm sorry, princess. Would you like to punish me for my mistake?" Virgo's statement made Lucy gasp in embarrassment. "I've prepared the whi-"

"What did she just say?" Mirajane, along with the rest of the girls, took on a shocked look on their faces because of the unexpected question for Lucy. "Punishment?"

VIRGO!

Why on Earth would you say that!

Lucy instantly slapped a hand over Virgo's mouth and smiled cheekily as her entire face turned bright red. "Hahahaha, she's SUCH a kidder! A real sense of humor with this one! Don't mind her. Right, Virgo!?"

"Funny, she doesn't look like the joking type." Cana said with a laugh along with Lisanna, Mirajane, and Wendy.

Virgo nodded quickly and Lucy removed her hand just as fast. "Sorry, I was only joking."

Judging by the look on the girls' faces and the monotone expression on Virgo's face, Lucy knew they weren't buying it.

Great...

"Anyway, I can take your bags upstairs while Princess Lucy shows you around the house." Virgo began to take each of the girls' bags like it was nothing. For sure, none of the bags were lightweight. However, Virgo carried each and everyone of them up the stairs and out of sight.

"Wow. She's stronger than she looks." Wendy commented.

"Y-yeah... she's something alright." Lucy sighed as a bead of sweat rolled down her face.

"It's so nice to see you again, Mrs. Heartfilia! I really missed your baking!" Levy's voice is heard emerging from the living room. Lucy's mom was walking right next to her. She was wearing a long, silk blue dress, blue bunny slippers, a pearl necklace hung around her slender neck, and her hair was up in a messy bun.

Layla smiled modestly. "Please, Levy. It's Layla, alright? Oh, and the rest of Lucy's friends? It's so good to see you all again, and so grown up!"

"Mrs. Heart- I mean, Layla. You look as beautiful as ever!" Wendy commented as she went to give her a hug.

"Why thank you, Wendy. You all have grown up to be fine young women." Layla then noticed three new faces. "Awe, and who are these pretty gems?"

"I'm Mirajane and this is my little sister, Lisanna." Mirajane introduced the both of them. "We've recently become friends with Lucy at school."

"I am Juvia. Juvia met Lucy at school as well."

Layla's smiled happily and nodded. "I'm so happy to see my Lucy making new friends as well. You're all welcome in our home anytime you like! I hope you enjoy your time here and many more."

"Thank you, ma'am."

Layla lightly chuckled before she turned toward in the direction of the kitchen. "While Lucy shows you around, I'll go make sure the chefs prepare a special dinner and dessert for tonight. Have fun~"

"Haha, now that we have introductions out of the way, follow me! I'll show you guys around." Lucy lead the group of girls around her enormous sized house. From the living area, to the kitchen, the dinning room, gaming area, in home movie theater, the garden in the back of the house, the library, and many other areas in the home. They were finally making their way toward Lucy's favorite area in the house. On the way there, the girls were still making small talk.

"Hey, Lucy, I think your mom is so pretty! She looks just like you." Lisanna cheered. "And she's so nice to let all of us in her home like this."

"T-t-thanks.." Lucy blushed and pushed back a lock of hair that covered her face.

"She's always been like that. Even when we were kids." Levy commented as she slowly made her way over to the blonde. "You know, Lucy... I.. I mean we all really missed you when you moved away. It wasn't the same after you left, you know."

"Yeah, even Natsu was a little different for a long time." Wendy said offhandedly and caught Lucy's attention and made her stop in her tracks.

"N-Natsu? Different how?"

"Well, for starters, he didn't speak to any of us for a several months!" Levy exclaimed. "We tried to get him to come talk and play with us, but he just brushed us off. We practically had to drag him to the playground everyday!"

"He didn't pull a single prank for many weeks." Wendy added. "Everyone started getting so worried about him. Even our teachers were surprised."

Cana placed her arms behind her head. "Yeah, but that didn't stop Erza from scolding him every so often."

"What was I supposed to do? As a child, Natsu was unpredictable in his endeavours." Erza explained as she shrugged her off. "Never let your guard down."

"Gee... with your guard up all the time, guys are still intimidated to ask you out..." Wendy said under her breath with a giggle. "Maybe if you stop acting so mannish all the time.."

"What was that?" Erza said as she cracked her knuckles.

"N-nothing!" Wendy shook her head and widely waved her hands in front of her as if for protection from Erza's wrath.

Taking all of the information in, all Lucy could do was frown in dismay. "Hmmmm..."

Natsu...

Was he really that upset when I moved away?

"If Lisanna hadn't transferred to our class when she did, Natsu would have probably went on even longer being a mute!" Levy then said. "She snapped some sense into him."

L-Lisanna?

"R-really?" Lucy asked sounding surprised.

Lisanna shook her head and laughed as if it was nothing. "Don't be silly! All Natsu needed was a slap to the face to snap him out of it. No biggie."

"Little sister, don't be so modest." Mirajane teased. "We all know it's more than that..."

"S-stop it!" Lisanna begged as a blush formed on her small cheeks. "I'm one of his best friends and his math tutor. That's it!"

"Hahahaha, she's blushing." Wendy teased as well while she smirked. "Are you sure just friends? Ahhh, don't hit me! I was kidding! I was kidding!"

"But you two do hang out most days after school." Cana commented.

"That's because I'm tutoring him on most days." Lisanna retorted as she rolled her eyes. "Don't you hang out with your drunk buddies everyday, Cana?"

"Hey, don't turn this around on me!"

As the girls continued to joke with Lisanna, Lucy didn't notice the concerned look on her face until Levy pointed it out.

I feel strange...

"Lucy? Are you alright? You're not jealous are you?" Levy smiled mischievously that made Lucy swallow hard.

"H-huh? No!" Lucy said quickly with a nervous look on her face. She continued on down the hall toward the final room that she was going to show them. "I was just thinking is all."

"Oh, Lucy." Lisanna broke the conversation. "I don't know if I told you this before... but I heard how Natsu treated you when you guys were kids. I'm sorry that you went through such a thing. As you can tell, he's not really like that anymore. And he's told me that he feels so guilty about what he did. I gave him a good scolding when I heard about it! But anyway, I hope you can forgive him."

"Y-yeah..." Lucy stopped in front of large double doors and touched the golden handle before looking back at her friends. "I forgave him. We're friends now."

She turned both knobs and pushed the doors open. Light from the room rained down on her like a soft moonlight in the slightly darkened hallways.

Am I actually jealous?

"That's great! I hope we can all be close friends." Lisanna's beautiful smile seemed to radiate.

"Friends..." Lucy repeated her words softly with a half-sad smile on her face. "Of course."

Why do I feel like my heart was pricked by a needle?

I don't like this feeling.

Lisanna and Natsu... they're only friends, right?

"This is our music room. I come here often when I feel alone or when I want to play my piano."

"O.M.G!"

The music room was a grand space that had glass-like titled floor, silver and gold colored patterns on all walls, a bright, glass chandelier hung in the middle of the room, and there were various amounts of instruments for anyone to choose from. Violins of different sizes, a golden harp, a drum set, a silver plated guitars, and other musical devices are scattered throughout the room. However, Lucy's grand possession sat in the middle underneath the chandelier.

"My piano... my dad had to especially made for me in Hong Kong and had it transported here a few days ago." Lucy said as she walked up to it to gently stroke its keys. The piano was painted with gold and white and made of the finest wood the market had to offer. Her name was even inscribed on the side.

Levy ran up behind her. "Hey, why don't you play something for us!"

"Yeah, play something, Lucy!" Wendy chimed in with excitement. "You said you would, remember?"

"Juvia would like to hear Lucy play."

"U-umm.. okay! Let me think... I got it." Lucy pulled out the cushioned seat from the piano and prepared herself. "Sorry if I'm a few keys off. I haven't played in a while."

"Ugh, don't even start that! Just play, Lucy!" Levy begged her with puppy dog eyes that only made Lucy laugh aloud.

Music...

The piano... it's one of my escapes.

It makes me feel invincible against the world. Like I'm not alone.

When my parents were too busy with other affairs, when I missed my old home, my old school, my old classmates, my old friends, even... Natsu, the piano provided me comfort.

(The song that's Lucy is playing by the piano is called "Invincible (Piano Version) by Deaf Key)

As soon as her fingers touched the keys, her eyes closed and the room was instantly filled with a soft, yet strong melody. Her hands seemed to float across the piano keys as the room was brought alive by her music. Levy the girls looked on in awe as Lucy went off into an entirely different world that they could only experience through the sound of the piano's rhythm. Lucy was in her own habitat. So much so that she nearly forgot that the girls were around her. She bobbed her head up in down and from side to side as her fingers hit the keys at the strongest moments in the melody. Slowly her body moved to the beat of the song. Back and forth she swayed her body gracefully. Each movement had a purpose.

Soon, the melody slowed down. However, it quickly picked back up into a rush of bliss as the music carried on for only a few moments more before Lucy slowly brought the sweet tune to an end. Her eyes opened as she hit the last note. She looked up and laughed nervously.

"Like I said, I'm a bit r-rusty!"

"That."

"Was."

"AMAZING!" Wendy and Levy cheered along with the other girls as they surrounded Lucy with praise and hugs. "I didn't know you were such a musical pro, Lucy!"

"Haha..." Lucy blushed cheekily. "Oh, it's nothing really."

"Are you kidding? Nothing!?" Wendy exclaimed. "That was absolutely beautiful!"

"More than beautiful. That was extraordinary." Erza added with a smile on her face.

"Yes, Lucy. You must play something else for us!" Mirajane chimed in. However, at that moment, her stomach let out a ferocious growl that almost startled everyone in the room.

"Geez!" Lisanna laughed even more than the others. "Maybe we should eat something first before your stomach devours you."

"I think that's a good idea." A familiar voice calls to them from across the room.

"M-mom?" Lucy turned to see her mother standing at the entrance. Lucy guessed she must have been there for a while.

"I'm just glad to hear you playing the piano again, Lucy. You always play the sweetest things." Layla laughed as she entered the music room. "Anyway, dinner's is ready and served, girls."

~Some time that night~

"Man! That was delicious!" Cana let out a loud belch as she flopped down on a large, plush pillow near Lucy's queen sized bed. "Man, your chefs sure do know how to cook."

Erza face palmed. "Has anyone ever taught you manners?"

"Nope. You can ask yourself the same question considering how you scarfed down all that strawberry cake!"

The fiery red head blushed and quickly looked away from her. "I didn't scarf down anything! I just... happened to be really hungry for 8 slices of cake."

"Whatever you say~" Cana laughed as she took out a beer can from her overnight bag and proceeded to gulp it down. "And don't try to take this away from me! It's a Friday night, for goodness sake!"

The girls had just gotten back from dinner and had changed into their night clothes to settle into Lucy's room. Lucy climbed onto her bed next to Levy who had just finished putting on her pajamas.

"So Lucy..." Levy started as she crossed her legs and faced her. "Tell us all about Hong Kong!"

"Yeah, how are the people?" Wendy asked. "The towns?"

"And the food." Mirajane asked as she rubbed her stomach happily. "Is it as good as the magazines make it out to be?"

"The fashion!" Lisanna was giddy.

"And the rain." Juvia said all of a sudden and received blank looks from the rest of them. "What?"

Lucy could only laugh as she began to answer all of their curious questions. She told them everything that she could remember and more as the thoughts came to mind.

"Hey, what about your friends?" Levy joked. "Who did you replace us with?"

"R-replace? I could never replace you guys!"

Although,

Natsu replaced me with Lisanna...

No, I gotta stop thinking like that! We weren't even that close of friends before he started bullying me..

"But you did make friends, didn't you?" Cana asked as she took out another beer. "Don't tell me Natsu traumatized you so bad that he made you too shy to make new friends."

Erza glared at her. "Cana!"

"No, it's nothing like that. I made four good friends." Lucy got up and took out a photo from a journal on her desk and showed all of them. She pointed to each one as she said their name. "There is Makoto, Dao, Li, and Bon Bon."

"Whoa, the guys are pretty cute. Which of these two is your boyfriend, Lucy?" Levy had a sneaky glimmer in her eyes that sent nervous chills down Lucy's spine.

"W-what?" Lucy stammered.

"I'm pretty sure, Gajeel wouldn't be pleased to hear you say that, Levy." Wendy laughed but then yelled. "Ouch! Hey!"

"Quiet, Wendy." Levy turned her attention back to the blonde.

"But-" Cana swiped the photo from Lucy's hand. "You gotta admit the one with the blue eyes is kinda cute."

"Dao? Oh, he was the one that helped me on my first day there." Lucy remembered that day crystal clear. "He was actually assigned to show me around the school. I ended up getting scared by some girls lost pet snake, but he protected me. We ended up becoming close friends, and he introduced me to his friends. That's how we all got to together as a group."

"Really? How sweet." Lisanna smiled.

"Yeah, he's really-"

~Beep, Beep, Beep~

Lucy's laptop, that sat on her bed next to Levy, started to go off. "That sounds like my Skype."

"Oh, you gotta call this late at night!? I knew it! You do have a boyfriend!" Levy grabbed the device and opened it wide as the rest of the girls gathered around her. They nearly trampled Lucy to get to the small screen.

"H-hey, watch it!" Lucy yelled but then gasped as soon as she heard a male voice.

"L-Lucy?"

"Dao?" Lucy rushed over to see him on the screen in the Skype video chat. He was wearing a white tank top and sitting up in his bed with only a bedside lamp on. Clearly, he was confused at the sight of so many girls besides his blonde haired friend. "Oh, Dao! These are my 'nosy' friends I told you about. And I made three new ones. We're having a sleepover tonight."

"HI!"

He chuckled and gave them an award winning smile. "I see. Well, it's nice to meet you all. I'm Dao, if Lucy hasn't already mentioned me. Anyway, I don't wanna hold you girls up. I just called to check up on Lucy."

"Awwww."

Dao smiled again. "I'll talk to you later, Lucy. It was nice seeing all of you. Goodnight."

"Night, Dao." Lucy said as the call ended.

"He wanted to call and check up on you! How sweeeeet!" Wendy giggled along with Mirajane and Lisanna who sat next to her on the floor on comfy futons.

"He's even cuter in person." Cana said as she took out her third beer. Maybe it was her fourth? Who knows at this point?

"Juvia wishes one day that Gray-sama will video call me at night." Juvia blushed as her mind was filled with romantic thoughts of her and the ice boy.

"Hahaha, no ordinary guy friend just video calls a female friend." Levy closed Lucy's laptop and stood straight up to face her. "Are you sure he's not your boyfriend?"

"Kiyahhhhh, Levy! Cut it out!" Lucy pushed her off. "Why don't we watch a scary movie or something now?"

"Hehehe, sounds like a plan!"

For the remainder of the night, the girls watch scary movies, romantic T.V. dramas, chowed down on snacks and drinks, did each others make-up and hair, and shared random funny stories that came to mind. It was nearly three in the morning, and the girls decided to head to bed, so they could get an early start in the morning to meet up with the guys. Virgo had prepared futons for each of the girls to sleep comfortably around Lucy's bed. Although on the floor, the futons had enough cushion to be compared to beds themselves.

Levy decided to bed with Lucy that night just as they had done when they were children. It was quiet now, the room was filled with a clock ticking and the sound of soft snoring. Lucy laid facing Levy, who's eyes were shut. However, she couldn't sleep.

I keep thinking about Natsu and her.

They're just friends, but... the way he smiled at her when she came back after being sick. He looked so happy...

Why am I evening thinking about this?

I admit I... kinda like Natsu, but not nearly enough to be jealous.

Or am I just lying to myself? After all, he bullied me when we were children. How could he possibly like me like 'that'?

"Why does he always tease me, mom? I haven't done anything to him like that!"

"Well, I think he may like you, but he doesn't know any other way to express it."

"Mom..." Lucy whispered to herself as she remembered what her mother told her on that day she ran home after Natsu scared her with a spider in her hair.

"Well, I think he may like you.."

"The only way he can express his feelings is through teasing you.."

"Young boys are not that open with their feelings as young girls are, Lucy."

"Uuuughhh! Mom, can we stop talking about icky boys right now?"

Lucy laughed at the thought of her younger self still thinking that boys had cooties and germs that would turn her into a boy too.

"L-Lucy? Why are you laughing?" Levy startled the blonde when she suddenly opened her eyes.

"Levy!" Lucy said in a hushed whispered. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to wake you."

"Haha, it's okay, but why were you laughing? Were you thinking about your boyfriend, Dao?"

Lucy quickly shook her head 'no'. "Don't be silly."

"Or are you thinking about Natsu?" Levy asked next. She could see the faint blush form on Lucy's cheek, and she could tell she hit the jackpot. "I knew it!"

"Of course not! Why would I?" Lucy pouted.

"Because I think you like him...~" Levy said in a sing songy tone that made Lucy kick her under the sheets playful. "Don't even deny it."

"C-c-cut it out." Lucy begged as she felt her face grow hotter by the second, so she pulled up the blankets to cover her face.

"Come on, Lucy. I saw the look on your face when you first saw Natsu at school!" Levy said in a hushed voice but loud enough for only the blonde to hear, or so she thought. "And I saw the look on your face when they were teasing Lisanna about Natsu as well. You're not jealous too, are you?"

"Levy, I-"

"Would- *hiccup* you two *hiccup, hiccup* b-b-be quiet up there!? Some- *hiccup* people are trying to sleep h-here!" Cana's speech was slurred and sounded drunken as she instantly fell back asleep. She had more than a few cans of beer that night.

"Great, we get to wake up with her hangover in a few hours!" Levy groaned which only made Lucy and herself laugh. "But she's right, we should get some sleep."

"Yeah.." Lucy agreed as a yawn escaped her mouth.

"But don't think you're off the hook, Lucy. I'll get you to admit it sooner or later." Levy promised as she snugged closer to her and smiled. "Anyway, I'm glad we can be like this again. I really missed my best friend, you know?"

"Me too." Lucy smiled.

"Goodnight, Lucy."

"Goodnight... Levy."

A/N: Now, I know I have been absent for an exceptionally long time. This was due to me entering nursing school, and as most people may know, it requires heavy duty, diligent studying. This is the main reason for my absence. However, this isn't the only reason I haven't updated.

Originally, I finished this chapter a while ago, but the chapter ending up getting deleted by accident. This put me back a lot, because it was a chapter that I kinda liked, and it was fairly long. I hope I did a good enough job rewriting it the best to my abilities, but please forgive any mistakes if you spot them! I don't particularly love how this chapter came out, because my memory of the first one I had written was much better, but what can you do?

Anyway, I don't know if anyone is still interested in this story, but I'll do my best to update this again soon. Thanks, guys!

~Reviews, comments, favorites, and everything else is always appreciated!~ :)

Bye!