The warmth of his body, the safety and security of his arms wrapped around her, and the loving, tender, and well-timed sensual touches of his hands were more than enough to have her feel safe, warm, and loved. It didn't matter what anyone else thought about her and her lover. All that mattered was what he thought of her.
His body pressed into her back and his protective arm around her held her in as close as close could get before merging into one. He pressed his lips against her shoulder and trailed slow, gentle, hot kisses that closed into the crook of her neck and Lucy felt as if she were melting. She could feel his breath tickle against her skin with each sensual kiss he placed against her and shuddered in anticipation.
It just felt amazing and she wanted to take those hot kisses to her lips. She wiggled herself from his grip a little and turned around to see his face, but found the room become completely black before she could take a long look at the man she loved. Her eyes were soon penetrated with the bright, early morning light that pierced through her window across from her bed, slowly raising over the horizon. She closed her eyes shut and stretched in her bed, feeling the cold, empty space and frowned to herself.
"Just when the dream was getting good." she mumbled.
Groggily, Lucy sat up from her bed and with tired, shielded eyes from her hands, she glanced around her room to see Natsu, her boyfriend, sleeping on the couch by the same window she wanted to curse for being open and ruining her sleep. She continued to sit there, slowly bobbing where she sat, as she slowly awakened and wondered to herself why Natsu never shared the bed with her anymore. She even wondered to herself why she felt as if she could punch him in the face. She also wondered why she felt so lonely and abandoned when her boyfriend was right there, sleeping soundly with his arms folded across his chest. But lastly, she wondered why she felt as if he wasn't her boyfriend, why it didn't feel natural or nice to be around him anymore.
Lucy decided that it was just her being angry from the morning sun ruining the bit of happiness she hadn't had in a while and decided a hot shower would do her some good to help calm her anxious feelings and wake her up. Moving around to make sure the front door was locked, Lucy glided across the floor and made her way into the shower, purposely leaving the door unlocked and wedged slightly, wondering if maybe Natsu would wake up and join her. But sadly, to her knowing mind, she knew he wouldn't, and sure enough, he didn't.
Quickly finishing her shower, she wiped herself down and exited to fetch her clothes, seeing Natsu in the kitchen grabbing for a glass. Seeing the well trained physical features of his arms and back reach up into the cabinet made Lucy sigh in remembrance, but also, for some odd reason, in indifference. As if she didn't care for him being there. What sort of girlfriend was she for feeling this way?
Looking down on her towel, Lucy thought for a second before she made her way into her kitchen and held Natsu from behind, thinking that everything would feel better if she held him; but nothing felt better, it felt worse. It felt awkward, and it felt as if she were betraying herself or someone for even touching him this intimately with nothing but a towel on. He was her boyfriend for crying out loud so why did it feel so wrong to be touching him this way.
"Morning." she sang, trying to sound as loving as possible. Maybe it was just an odd day for Lucy but she needed to root out where her feelings where. Something just didn't feel right for some reason.
"Morning." he mumbled. The tone in his mumbled sounded distant and cold and it kind of hurt to hear him speak that way to her.
Lucy let go of her grip and forcefully turned Natsu to look at her. She then purposely dropped her towel to let him get a good look at her naked body, desperate for some reaction that wasn't hinting to her guess that Natsu probably wanted to break up with her.
"Go put on some clothes." he said quietly, and turned to look at the coffee pot that had just finished brewing coffee.
Lucy said nothing as she did as she was told. In her naked self, she walked over to her dresser and grabbed for her panties and a pair of black shorts and pulled them both up with ease and wandered to her closet topless with a bra dangling in her hand. It was odd being naked in front of Natsu, but its not like she hasn't been before. As her eyes slowly scanned her closet, Lucy wondered when was the last time she and Natsu had been intimate with each other. Wait. The better question was, had they ever been intimate with each other? No, right? Yea, that's right. They've never gotten that far, but Lucy could clearly remember them experimenting a little with hands and kisses. She was absolutely sure that Natsu had seen her naked a dozen times at least so why was he not looking at her the way he used to? And then that foreboding feeling in her stomach pulled at her again that Natsu was at the point of breaking up with her.
Hearing a knock at the door, Lucy walked over and took a look through the peep hole to see an all too familiar iron dragon slayer standing with his usual, irritated expression, waiting for the door to open. He and Natsu seemed to have been on better terms with one another and he had been coming to Lucy's apartment a lot more often to meet up with Natsu before they gallivanted off somewhere. You could say that they looked pretty close now and Lucy had gotten to known Gajeel a little better too.
Unlocking the door she stepped away and went back to the closet and Gajeel entered to see Lucy topless, scanning her closet like it wasn't a big deal that he was there. Gajeel immediately shut the door and turned to glare at Natsu.
"Oi, hot head, you're going to let your girlfriend stand here copying the ice exhibitionist?" he sneered.
At Gajeel's remark, Natsu looked over to Lucy and then to Gajeel with an upset expression and grabbed the blanket that hung off of the couch and threw it onto Lucy.
"Don't be looking at her like that!" Natsu snarled.
"Wasn't looking, she just happened to be there." he scoffed.
Lucy didn't care. She didn't even feel ashamed that Gajeel had just seen her chest. It felt ok to do so. It felt natural to be topless with him around. Though her heart did pound a million times a second, it felt as if she wanted him to look at her. Was it because of the lack of attention she had been getting from Natsu the past two months? Was it because she noticed how Gajeel would subtly follow her with his eyes when he thought she wouldn't notice? Was it for that reason she wanted him to see? The fact that his eyes followed her gave her the reassurance that she wasn't ugly or unattractive as Natsu seemed to make her out to be with his distance, lack of attention, and always averting his gaze whenever she tried to look sexy for him.
'God I must be a whore for wanting them to look at me.' she thought.
"Lucy, change in the bathroom." Natsu ordered.
"I haven't picked out a top yet." she argued.
Natsu huffed and grabbed a plain red tank top and a white jacket for her and placed them in her arms while quickly ushering her into the bathroom and taking the blanket away as she entered. Lucy had no clue what Natsu's problem was but she didn't protest. Natsu had been acting weird the past two months anyways so it was best not to pry unless he wanted to talk about it.
Looping her arms through her bra, Lucy sighed heavily and looked to the mirror as she clasped the back. She was beautiful. No, scratch that, she was gorgeous. Why would Natsu reject her so much? Maybe she wasn't as gorgeous as she thought. Gajeel didn't even seem too interested in her half naked self just now either so maybe she wasn't gorgeous. Who was she kidding anyways? Its not like anyone said she was beautiful recently, or sexy, or pretty, or cute, or anything to compliment her appearance so maybe she wasn't attractive.
Shaking her head of irrational thoughts, Lucy slipped her shirt on and exited the bathroom, slowly sliding her arms into the jacket Natsu had picked out for her and saw Loke holding Natsu and Gajeel under his arms in a choke hold.
"Morning beautiful." he chirped with his prince-like smile and immediately dropped the two dragon slayers to meet Lucy. Before he could say anything more, she held up a hand for him to keep quiet and motioned to grab her other keys.
"I'm heading to the guild." she exhaled in a bitter sweet tone. "Lock up before you leave."
She grabbed a pair of low, black heels and slipped them on, her lasso, her hip pouch with some spending money, and left with an eager Loki bouncing behind.
Lucy sat in her usual sport at the bar of her beloved, noisy guild and wondered if things were really ok between her and Natsu. Was six months really pulling a toll on Natsu? Was she pulling him down somehow? Was he cheating on her? Lisanna did give her an odd look the other day so maybe Natsu was cheating. No. Lucy new better than to think that way of Natsu…right? Heaving another heavy sigh for what felt like the hundredth time today, her mind wandered back to whether she was attractive or not. Lucy wasn't vain enough to obsess over her looks but she just felt so unattractive and alone despite Loke pestering her every ten minutes calling her "beautiful" or "gorgeous". As much as Lucy appreciated her spirit's help and concern, it didn't feel right and it didn't fill the void she held in her.
Deciding to get her mind out of the dumps and raise her spirits, she hopped off of her bar stool and skipped along to the mission request board, grabbing a mission that normally would have required her to be in a team, but somehow, Lucy felt that she didn't need anyone. She felt as if she could solo it and come back safe and sound. Where was she getting all these feelings from? Was her magic evolving? Celestial mages were known to be able to scout and sense life or magical presences and other mystical abilities, so maybe she was developing an clairvoyant ability.
Pulling the mission request off of the board, Lucy smiled to herself and nodded until she felt the mission request quickly being pulled from her fingers.
"A mission? When do we leave?" spoke a familiar voice, only it sounded uninterested and bored.
Lucy frowned and turned to her boyfriend and took the mission request back from him.
"I'm leaving. You're not." she huffed.
"But Luce we -"
"No we don't. We never do. As least not anymore. I'm more than capable taking something like this by-" Lucy's words trailed off of her lips and suddenly felt dizzy. She bobbed a little before bumping into Natsu and clutched to him for support briefly.
"Luce are you ok?" he asked with concern.
What was gong on? Why did she feel dizzy so suddenly? Why did it sound as if the entire guild grew quiet? Her ears suddenly began to ring. Her head pounded for a second or two. Her heart rate sped up a bit and Lucy found herself doing the most unthinkable thing ever. She let go of Natsu, steadied her ground, and punched him clear across the face and sent him flying a good four feet. Man-oh-man did that ever feel amazing to do. She felt so satisfied with that punch and wondered how long she had been waiting for that. It was as if all the animosity she had felt this morning were gone and she could breathe with no doubts, no regrets, and most of all no Natsu.
"Luce that the heck!?" Natsu shouted.
"For some reason, that felt so amazing! You have no idea how awesome I feel right now!" she laughed. "I'm Lucy. I'm young, I'm a talented celestial mage, and I am attractive! I was stupid for letting my boyfriend make me feel unattractive and unwanted!"
"Natsu what the hell? You're supposed to be her boyfriend!" Wakaba shouted.
"If I were in your place I'd definitely take advantage of-" Macao started, but stopped as he realized just how creepy his words were becoming. "I mean, I definitely wouldn't have made her feel unattractive!"
"You did what?" Erza growled as she stood before Natsu.
"Wait a minute! Luce what did you say earlier? That we haven't gone on a mission in a while? Are you absolutely sure about that?" he asked eagerly.
"What are you talking about? We went on a mission two weeks ago."
"No we didn't. We haven't gone on a mission since-"
Lucy suddenly felt deaf as Natsu's words muffled out and her vision blurred out into black. Her chest hurt. Her body felt as if it were on fire. She couldn't breathe. She clutched her hands onto the nearest thing she could reach and gasped as best as she could. It was so painful. She felt herself being shaken to death from herself and from someone's strong grip against her shoulders. And then she saw a bright light that burned her eyes and heard a voice calling to her.
"…cy…Lu…cy….Lucy!" the voice shouted.
Lucy awoke abruptly, panting, and gripping onto a pair of arms that held onto her tightly, trying to gently nudge her into reality.
"Hey, it looked like you were having a nightmare or something. Are you ok?"
Lucy trembled and looked to man she called her boyfriend in her dream and immediately looked down to her body. Pajamas, she was wearing pajamas, and Natsu was shirtless. It was a dream. It was such an odd dream. A dream, then a dream that seemed like reality, and then now, reality. It was so odd. Lucy bit the inside of her cheek for a reality check and this time for sure, she was awake.
"Luce, are you ok?" he asked again with concern.
Hearing the familiar nickname he called her by relieved her a bit. Lucy swallowed hard, and nodded her head as she looked to him unsurely. Why was Natsu in her bed? Wait, no, there wasn't any particular reason behind it. Natsu was her boyfriend. It was obvious why he was sleeping in her bed. It was obvious as to why he was holding her so intimately. Natsu moved a few strands of her blond locks out of her face and looked into her eyes carefully as he waited for her to calm down.
"It was so weird. I thought I was awake and then I woke up but I actually wasn't awake and then I woke up and….and…I don't…I don't know anymore."
Natsu exhaled and patted her head gently and placed a chaste kiss on her cheek.
"Want some water?" he asked.
"No, I'm fine… I'm just going to go back to sleep…"
"Are you sure?"
"Yeah I'm sure." she sighed, and laid back onto her bed with Natsu joining her. She pressed her body into him, nuzzling her face into his chest, and felt his arms hesitantly wrap around her waist in a protective manner, but it didn't set her mind at ease. His arms felt nothing like what she thought she dreamt of and wondered if maybe that dream, though she couldn't remember much, was a premonition that she should call it quits with Natsu or not.
Later that morning...
It was like her dream was repeating, only in a better light. Natsu wore a cheerful grin on his face as he made coffee in the kitchen, he let her hug him from behind and he did look at her naked self, but he didn't do anything. He joked with her and told her to get ready before they headed to the guild, he playfully hugged her, he slapped her butt and kissed her cheek, he called her beautiful, this was definitely her reality. There was no way Natsu would have treated her coldly and there was no way he would have rejected her. But why couldn't Lucy shake the feeling that she couldn't accept or appreciate what Natsu had to offer? He felt like, and was, the perfect boyfriend, even if he was dense at times.
Tossing on some white jeans, black boots, a blue shirt and white jacket, Lucy grabbed for her keys, her hip pouch with money, and waited for Natsu as he sucked at the flames that came from her gas stove.
"Ok, I'm done eating!" he chirped and grabbed her hand to pull her out of the door.
Upon reaching the guild, Natsu pulled her into his arms and carried her through the threshold catching the attention of everyone in the guild.
"Natsu this is embarrassing!" she whined.
"No its not!" he said with a wide grin and trotted along.
"Well look at the lovebirds." Wakaba called out.
"If you plan on having children be sure to get married first." Macao chided.
This really was different compared to her dream. She and Natsu were an item and everything felt so alive and colorful, but Lucy couldn't shake the feeling that being with Natsu didn't feel as right as it did half a year ago and the past two months did feel off. Maybe she was hitting the wall that told her to move onto the next step of their relationship instead of playing and touching - that they should go all the way. Maybe that would spice up their relationship and kick it back into what it used to be and how if used to feel. Maybe then she wouldn't feel so off about being with Natsu.
"Natsu, Lucy, its about time! Master has been waiting for you two." Mira lectured and pointed into the direction they needed to be.
"Sure thing." Natsu beamed and carried Lucy into the direction he was pointed.
Kicking the door at the end of the hall open, Natsu cheerfully waltzed in with Lucy still in his arms.
"Yo! We're here!"
"Natsu put me down!" Lucy huffed.
"God you two are gross." scoffed a low, snarky voice Lucy knew belonged to the other male, dragon slayer.
"Good afternoon Lucy." Pantherlily civilly commented.
Lucy nodded towards the little black exceed and worriedly glanced between the fight that was about to start any minute and feared for her position in Natsu's arms.
"You're just jealous because we're so in love." Natsu teased.
Gajeel's brow twitched and a smirk formed on is angry features.
"Whatever. Sappy shit like love is for losers and I'm a winner so what does that say about you?" Gajeel sneered.
"Say that again you-"
"Stop it! Whatever it is stop it! I don't want to be caught in the middle!" Lucy wailed.
"Oh, sorry Luce."
Natsu placed Lucy onto her feet and turned to meet Gajeel again.
"Say that again you piece of-"
"He just continued from where he left off!" Lucy wailed again.
"Enough!" Makarov said gruffly, and crushed Natsu beneath a giant palm. "Now then, I've called you here because I have a mission for you."
"A mission?" Lucy chirped curiously.
"Yes a mission. I've already briefed Wendy, Erza, Gray, and Lisanna and they have already left to pack for tomorrow's departure."
"Why so many people?" Lucy asked.
"The client is a researcher searching for a specific liquid that cures all ailments and curses. He requested Fairy Tail specifically and is willing to pay forty million jewels if we-"
"That's so much money!" Lucy said with disbelief. With so much money being the reward, there had to have been a catch.
"If his research is correct and if we are able to bring the liquid to him, this man will not only endorse us for the rest of his life, he will be mass producing a new line of medication that could save countless of lives and we'll receive a fifty percent profit from it. In any case, it's a rough mission and we need a large team of skilled mages to go. Do you accept?"
"Hell yeah I do!" Natsu grunted eagerly as he desperately tried to wiggle out from Makarov's giant fist.
"You had me at money." Gajeel nodded.
"I go where Gajeel goes." Pantherlily commented.
"It sounds too shifty. A liquid that cures all ailments and curses is really shifty. If you wanted a large team of skilled mages then clearly I'm not cut out for-"
"You are especially needed for this mission Lucy and you are very skilled. Don't sell yourself short." Makarov said in a reassuring gesture. "The man who requested this mission shall remain anonymous to you but I have the details and history written in a book that Erza is responsible for. She is your team leader and I am appointing Gajeel as her second in command."
"What!? Gramps that's unfair! If anyone should be her second in command its gonna be-"
"Gajeel" Makarov finished for him. "Natsu you are without a doubt a powerful mage but I need someone with as much war and tactical experience as Erza."
"Not to mention I'm technically an S-class mage and you aren't" Gajeel sneered.
"That's it! If you want a fight you'll get one!" Natsu roared, but was smashed down again by a large fist to the ground.
"Lucy my dear, your role in this mission is a very important one. As a celestial mage your soul and magic is connected to this world and the next. The journey to the golden ring fountain will be a long and stressful one and only a celestial mage can activate the waters to be pulled and harvested. Do you accept?"
"Master, its too shifty and seems too good to be true. I've heard of the golden ring fountain but only in the stories my mother told me. It could be long gone by now or it could be there but regardless of my presence it probably won't pump anything. How am I supposed to even get them to pump?!"
"Lucy, I'm sure if its you, you'll find a way. The instructions are in a scroll for you and also in the book and I'm sure you could understand them."
Lucy thought hard for a moment on how shifty the mission sounded. Lucy knew better than anyone that regardless of the mission level, a complication could arise. Lucy knew that even the most specific, laid out journeys, always lead to side tracks or detours. No mission was trustworthy upon further thought and research into it but something just felt off.
"The journey there would take about three months and searching on foot could take a couple of months. There's the influx of monsters and then there are probably some dark guilds too. There there's the life span of the water and-"
"Lucy, I wouldn't ask the for impossible if I didn't think any of my children could do it." Makarov said with large smile and popped a pipe into his mouth. "I have the utmost confidence in all of you for the completion of this mission."
"C'mon Luce, its an adventure! Its not like you to chicken out on something like this! Fairy Tail's strongest team will be there and so will Wendy, Lisanna, and sadly, Gajeel." Natsu beamed.
"What did you just say?" Gajeel snarled.
Somehow, Lucy felt as if she couldn't really believe in Natsu's words. It must have been from the sad state of being pushed and crushed under Makarov's giant hand did it seem less believable. His smile and his reassuring words were definitely a Natsu thing, but just something about it made Lucy's reservations even more pressing. She lifted her gaze from Natsu's smile and slowly looked to Gajeel, of all people to look at, and felt as if the answer she had been looking for was with him.
Gajeel stood there, looking as grumpy as when she and Natsu had entered the room, but something about the look in the red eyes he flicked to her seemed very, understanding. Maybe more knowing? Was there consideration or concern he was trying showing to her? That was an impossible thought. Even if he and Natsu had been growing closer the past few months it didn't mean she and Gajeel were. A decision as simple as this would have had him teasing or berating Lucy to hurry up and take it but he didn't say anything. In fact, why didn't he say anything? There had to be something more if he didn't say anything. Maybe he knew something and kept quiet about it. Maybe there was something extra or hidden within the lines of the task they were presented. In any case, something about his eyes told her that she would be safe and that the mission would go well.
But what was with the foreboding feeling she had in the pit of her stomach. If felt as if tomorrow was a bad day to leave. It felt as if something would happen if they didn't leave tonight instead. Lucy bit her lower lip and looked to Makarov one last time before she opened her mouth to speak.
"Ok. Let's do it. But not tomorrow morning."
"That's my Luce-" Natsu started but was cut off as she flat out ignored him.
Makarov raised a curious brow to Lucy but said nothing as he let her continue.
"I can't explain it…but it doesn't feel safe to leave in the morning tomorrow…we need to leave tonight…or maybe I'm just paranoid…"
Makarov nodded his head in understanding and removed the pipe from within his mouth to draw a magic circle in mid air. He then took the pipe back into his mouth and blew four large bubbles that were sucked into the magical circle and disappeared.
"Alright, message sent. Everyone will take the last train to Clover town tonight. Erza will brief you once you arrive in Clover town."
Just like that, the game plan was changed? Just like that, Makarov accommodated her wishes for the mission? Things really didn't feel right but if her closest, strongest friends were going to be there, then it should be alright…right?
Later that evening...
"Flame brain don't you dare throw up on me!" Gray chided as everyone comfortably sat in their seats within the train with Natsu as the only exception. As usual, the poor dragon slayer did awful with transportation but Gajeel seemed to have been holding up as well as Wendy. Lucy allowed Natsu to lay his head onto her lap and faced directly towards Gray in case of an emergency vomit case.
"Wendy, could you please cast Troia so Natsu would be fine for the trip?" asked a bouncy Lisanna.
"If I use it now I'll have to do it again closer to the end of the train ride. Its a long journey and Clover town is just one of the many stops we'll have to make. I'm sorry but Natsu needs to wait until we get at least halfway to Clover town." Wendy apologized.
"There's no need to apologize Wendy! Its just as you said. This is a long journey. Wasting too much magic in the beginning will only make things harder in the end. So what if he gets motion sickness? He's fine the moment the train stops moving so leave him be." Charle insisted.
"Charle why do you have to be so mean? If I give you a fish would you reconsider and let Wendy cast it?" asked a sad Happy.
"No and I don't want your fish." Charle snippily replied.
"So this mission, what is our objective?" Lucy pushed in. "It's a long journey and master said a celestial mage is needed to activate the waters. Are there any clues or instructions for me to do it?"
Erza looked to Lucy in a fond manner and pulled out a scroll for Lucy to read.
"I'm sure you'll understand when you see it."
Lucy eyed her scarlet haired friend before unraveling the scroll and feasting her eyes on letters she recognized.
"Enochian?" she said doubtfully. "Why is this written in Enochian?"
"We figured you knew." Erza asked.
"What is Enochian?" Chirped Happy.
"Enochian is an angelic language that was passed onto humans from angelic beings. Contemporary scholars of magic consider it a constructed language that was nonetheless viable for magical workings, while other scholars of constructed languages simply consider it a very poor imitation of an ancient language. Not a lot is known about this language but its something celestial mages have seen at least once in their life."
"Can you read it?"
"No I can't. I only know two of the symbols here but even the meaning behind them are pretty sketchy because I can't read it."
"How does it relate to celestial mages?" Gray inquired.
"When you think of celestial mages you think of their spirits, their magic, and their soul constantly crossing back and forth from this world to the next. If you had no idea what magic was, wouldn't you say it was a divine summoning I performed if I called out Loki? Remember when we were transported to Edolas through the Anima? My magic and the anima hold the same fundamentals of opening an inter-dimensional gate from one world to the next. It would seem like a divine divide or a divine calling to pull people or things in and out of those worlds. It's a long, hard explanation but you get what I mean right?"
"I guess but it doesn't really answer my question."
"Ok, angelic beings live in another dimension or world right?"
"Yes."
"Ok so what would be your thoughts or evaluation of an angelic being? Appearance? Age?"
"Immortality? Unknown abilities…oh I see where this is going." Gray said with a sly smile.
"Right? Ok so, if those angelic beings somehow passed through the gates that connected their world to this to help or try to coexist with the people of this world, shouldn't there be a way to do it? If there wasn't a basic language to go by, wouldn't there have been something to create and share for future assistance and summoning?"
"So in turn they were really spirits that forced themselves through the gates to give humans the ability to summon them when needed."
"Exactly. The basis of our magic. Loke is a perfect example of -"
A flash of light appeared in the isle of the train and Loke flashed his best smile.
"Did Lucy just call me perfect? Why not dump your boyfriend for me and we'll-"
"Loke, we've been over this countless of times. I'm not breaking up with…" Lucy felt her words cut short and suddenly felt sick to her stomach. It was such a freak moment that she abruptly stood, causing Natsu to fall off of her lap, and she ran to the nearest bathroom. Sadly, in her attempt to make it there, she crashed into Gajeel who instinctively grabbed her arms to steady her, and everything she had consumed that day made its second appearance onto Gajeel's tunic, his pants, and his boots.
Her heart sped at the panic and embarrassment she felt coursing through her veins. Of all people to vomit on, Gajeel just had to have been the one. Gajeel, although a good friend or nakama at times, he was much more violent than Natsu. The little things pissed him off and this wasn't a little thing, this was big. What was his reaction going to be?
"Oh no! Oh no! Oh no! Oh no!" her mind screamed.
Lucy panicked more. Her breathing picked up and her head pounded, causing her to lose balance again but Gajeel didn't let go. Just as she tried to open her mouth to apologize profusely, she hurled up onto Gajeel again. Lucy had never felt so embarrassed and so mortified in her life and she was beyond scared to look up at Gajeel. Although he didn't scare her anymore from when he first joined the guild, he did have a temper she didn't want to spark. But what could she do? If she opened her mouth again, more hurling was likely to occur, so she thought she could desperately apologize with her eyes.
Upon looking as apologetic as she could, she studied Gajeel's face carefully. He wore a sour expression on his face and his left eyebrow twitched. His lips formed the hard line of his frown and his red iris colored eyes stared at her through his slitted lids, no doubt taking in her embarrassed and slightly disheveled state. His nose wrinkled and is frown grew into a grimace at what Lucy could only ascertain was because of the scent of the freshly hurled contents of her stomach. Standing before her, were now two Gajeels merging in and out of one Gajeel and Lucy could tell he looked upset. But then again, wouldn't anyone be upset of you threw up on them?
Lucy desperately apologized to him with her eyes as best as she could and felt as she was being forgiven in some odd way. His cold stare remained cold, but something about them made Lucy feel like they understood. Again, what was with Lucy looking to Gajeel for reassurance? Was it because they were somewhat on good terms now? Lucy didn't know but she felt appreciative that he didn't yell at her or threaten to kill her for puking all over him.
In a swift, surprising motion, Gajeel hoisted her into his arm and dangled her against his hip as if she were a piece of cargo or a sack of potatoes and carried her into the restroom where she continued to hurl and eventually dry heave until she was completely empty.
All the while Lucy was in there, she couldn't understand let alone believe Gajeel had just done that. He didn't lash out, he didn't threaten her, he didn't ignore her, instead, he took her to the bathroom and left. Part of her was desperate to apologize but another part of her was too mortified to even leave the restroom and look at him. The constant knocking and pestering from her female friends and Loke would not cease and Lucy figured it was only a matter of time before Erza broke the door down to retrieve her. Lucy quickly flushed the toilet once more, rinsed her mouth out with water from the sink, checked her hair for any unwanted particles of puke, and unlocked the door; sheepishly opening it to see Erza standing with a frown, Lisanna and Wendy with a worried expression, and Loke with a concerned expression but sad eyes.
"Lucy please tell me right now you're not pregnant!" Erza demanded.