Chapter Text
Lucy looked herself over in the mirror once more. She wore work out attire that consisted of yoga pants and a tank top. Her hair was pulled back into a pony tail, with her bangs hanging across her forehead. “How do I look, Plue?” Her dog raised it’s head to look at her from her bed. “Do I look athletic?” she asked while doing a slow spin. Plue panted as he watched his owner closely. Lucy walked over to him and kissed his warm dog head. “I love you! I’ll be back in a few!” she flipped the TV on to what she thought was Plue’s favorite channel. She looked to her laptop, hoping a workout would rid her of her writers block. Beside it sat a stack of fan mail she had yet to look through. She had loved reading her fan mail until just recently when one fan in particular sent her very inappropriate things. Anything sent from Dan was redirected to the cops immediately. It put a damper on her usual enjoyable time . She shook her head in disgust and grabbed her gym bag, heading out the door towards Makarov’s Gym.
The gym was big. It had nice machinery, much of which she had never seen before. It was spacious and neat. It had a clean air to it. She felt comfortable there. She scanned her keycard at the front desk, beeping, it granted her access to go through the double doors. Lucy had barely worked out before at an actual gym. The only work out she ever got was walking Plue, but her editor suggested working out as a way to combat writers block. After placing her bag in a locker, she grabbed her water bottle and decided to walk a few laps around the indoor track as a warm up. The track was made of some rubber material, giving it a spongy feel that she liked. After her second lap she began to jog and heard hoot/ hollers coming from a group of people. She looked over to see a pink haired guy boxing a dark haired guy. Both of them appeared to be in excellent shape. There were some people gathered around them cheering and yelling things like “Hit him with the upper cut!” Lucy smiled ‘What hooligans!’ she thought.
After using a few machines she was comfortable with, Lucy found herself circling a high tech machine. How did it work? She looked at all the parts, imagining what it was used for. Maybe she shouldn’t attempt it. No, she paid money to be a part of this gym, she was going to use it! She set her water down and approached the machine. Before she could figure out what was happening, her hand was caught in a cord above her head, her right foot stuck in between two bars. Crap. She hung there, like an idiot, looking up wondering how to get down. As she focused on her escape, a voice rang out. “What in the world are you doing, ya weirdo?” Lucy looked up to see the pink haired hooligan smiling at her with amusement. “Well, I uh…don’t know…” she trailed off filled with pure embarrassment.
He laughed and stepped up to her, his hand releasing hers from the cable. He then leaned down and got her foot out of the bars, while supporting her frame. “It’s pretty evident that you don’t know what you’re doing” he giggled. She rolled her eyes “Well, I just wanted to try it!” she said to defend herself. He stood up and smirked “Here, I’ll show you how to use it.” He made adjustments to the weight, sat her down and grabbed her hands, putting them where they needed to go. “Okay, so you pull like this…” He showed her, moving her arms with his hands. She nodded “Okay…” he then moved her feet, placing them in specific spots. “Then you’ll lift your feet like this, but you can also go out to the sides… feel the resistance?” he asked. His warm hands were on her knees, showing her the motions.
Her legs were spread and he was standing in between them. She blushed at his touch, feeling awkward. Apparently, he didn’t notice that this position was odd for two strangers to be in, because when she looked into his eyes she saw nothing but friendliness and focus. She nodded “Okay, thank you… uh…” he smiled and pointed his thumb to his chest “I’m Natsu.” She smiled “Thanks, Natsu. I’m Lucy.” He held out his hand “Nice to meet you, Lucy!” he said happily. She shook his hand easily and he looked around “Well, I gotta go find my friends. No more trying new machines without help! Find me or someone!” he said playfully. She rolled her eyes with mock frustration “Uh, I won’t, dad!” he laughed as he walked away. “Until next time, weirdo!” she watched him leave the area, her heart thumping wildly. He was pretty cute. She shook her head and started her workout, trying to focus on her form rather than her odd run in with the pink haired hooligan.
Later that night, Lucy dragged herself to bed, mentally and physically exhausted from her day. Working out did help her writers block, but now she was beat. Plue curled up to her front as Lucy set an alarm “Don’t worry Plue, we will still go for a walk in the morning… but have mercy on me, okay? No funny business.” Plue moved his head up to look at her “I mean it, Plue.” She said in her sweet voice that she only uses on him. “Yes I do!” his tail started to thump against the bed “You’re such a sweet boy!” she said happily, kissing his head and scratching his side. “Night, Plue.” Finally she faded into a deep sleep.
The next morning, Lucy’s muscles felt like they were going to burst out of her skin. She had Plue on a leash, walking him on their usual path. However, today they went earlier than usual. Lucy had lost some valuable writing time and needed to make up for it today. She would start working at the diner down the street in a couple of days, meaning she would have even less time to write. They sauntered along, Plue sniffing his usual places and trotting around excitedly.
She was humming while admiring the flowers along the path when Plue let out a growl. She stopped and looked at Plue “What’s wrong, Plue?” He was pulling her forward while growling and whimpering at the same time. “It’s alright, Plue.” She tried to calm him until she saw what was causing his behavior. A snake was slithering through the grass, coming towards the path. Lucy screamed and jumped high with fear “EEEK!” she and Plue started to jog away when Lucy rolled her ankle. She fell to the ground on her hands and knees, the gravel and various debris cutting into her flesh. “Owwy…” she said in a quiet whine. She looked over to see Plue was okay and she sat back on her butt, looking at her ankle. It was beginning to swell already. “uh oh… that’s not good.” She said to Plue.
As she examined her ankle, a voice and footsteps interrupted her thoughts. “Hey, it’s you!” Lucy looked up to see none other than the pink haired hooligan from the gym. “Oh, hi Natsu.” She said, trying to hide her pain. “Ya okay?” he asked while walking closer. She nodded “Yeah, there was a snake and it scared us and I tripped.” She looked down to see a cat with a green bandana and harness. “Oh my goodness, are you walking your cat?” she asked with surprise. Natsu laughed “Of course I am. Happy loves the outdoors.” Lucy smiled “Hi, Happy!” the cat walked up to her, rubbing his side against hers.
She pet him for a second before saying “Well, I’ll be okay… you and Happy should continue your walk!” Natsu gave her a knowing look “If you’re okay, why won’t you stand?” she looked to her ankle and back to Natsu “I’m just sore and need a quick break…” she fibbed. He rolled his eyes and squatted down beside her, touching her ankle. “Your ankle is bruising as we speak… It’s hot to the touch.” he commented. Lucy bit her lip “It stings a little, but it’s okay.” He looked at her “Alright, let’s go.” Her eyes grew wide “Wait, what?! Where?!” he smiled “I don’t bite, Luce. You need a doctor to treat you and you’ll need a brace, too.” She looked to Plue then back at Natsu “Do they let dogs and cats in a hospital?” Natsu shrugged “We can drop them off at your home on our way if you want.” She nodded “Oh-Okay… My house is roughly ten minutes from here.” Natsu smiled “Okay, that’s easy.”
Lucy was looking down, when hands wrapped under her legs and back. Natsu lifted her up easily “Whoa, wait you don’t have to carry me!” he smiled “I know you can’t walk on that ankle. Besides it’ll be a good work out for me.” She looked at him with dismay “Are you trying to say I’m fat?!” she snapped. He laughed “No, not fat… just heavy.” She gasped and smacked his chest “You’re never supposed to tell a girl she’s heavy!” she scolded him. He laughed “Okay, fine. You’re very light.” She crossed her arms and smirked as Natsu said “Let’s go Plue, Happy.” He started walking and both animals stayed close. Lucy felt so bad, him carrying her like this.
“So what are your plans today?” he questioned. She looked at him, his face only a few inches from hers “Well, actually I have to write. My editor will kill me if I fall behind anymore.” He smiled “So you’re a writer, huh?” she nodded before asking “What do you do?” he smirked “I fight! I also am a trainer. The gym you saw me at employs and sponsors me!” Lucy was shocked “So that’s why you guys were romping around at the gym.” She said thoughtfully. Natsu laughed “Oh, you saw that?” she nodded “Only a little as I was warming up.” He nodded “Yeah those are my friends, most of them fight a little as well.” She smiled, starting to get a sense of who Natsu is. “So, you earn a living from fighting?” Natsu shrugged “It pays the bills for the most part, but I do some odd end jobs as well.” Lucy nodded “I have to start a second job here soon to keep up with rent.” Natsu nodded and added “Yeah, sometimes there’s a big time gap between my jobs so I have to scramble to make rent!” Lucy smiled, understanding completely. She pointed to her apartment. “That one is mine.”
Natsu walked her to the door and she handed him her keys. He unlocked the door and carried her inside. He set her down gently on the couch. He leaned down and unhooked Happy and Plue’s leashes. “Okay, anything we should grab before going to the hospital?” she nodded “My purse… I’ll get it” She went to stand, but firm hands kept her sitting. “Don’t worry I’ll grab it. Where is it?” she pointed and explained “My desk with the computer…” He left her side and reappeared with it. “Okay let’s go.” He grabbed her again and they left her house. “Hospital, here we come.” Lucy laughed and looked up at him “Thank you for helping me.” He smiled “No biggie.” She let her head rest on his shoulder, his muscled frame was pretty attractive. She blushed at the thought and smacked it away. The rest of the walk to the hospital Lucy listened to Natsu talk about funny memories with his friends. Every story made her laugh and she realized she was actually enjoying herself. There was a lot to be said about Natsu.