Chapter Text
If you were to ask Lucy about how she felt about her friend group, she would tell you they were loud, obnoxious, and insane, with no regard for anybody’s things outside of whatever they were doing. But they also cared deeply for each other and would do anything to bring a smile to your face. She loved them, even amid all the chaos and meetings with the dean over the destruction of property.
Lucy met Natsu in her freshman year at Magnolia University, and he had decided to introduce her to the rest of his friends. The rest was history. It never mattered that the rest of them had grown up together, and she moved to their town freshman year of college; they treated her as if she had always been part of the group.
Her on-and-off-again boyfriend, Loke, had grown up in Magnolia but moved to Lucy’s city in the middle of high school. Of course, she knew where he had grown up, but didn’t think it was that small a town. Lucy started telling him about the insane pink-haired guy who punched out a teacher's aide on their first day of class and was surprised to find that he started laughing hysterically, already knowing the guy’s name.
“Honestly, I’m surprised that he didn’t punch the teacher! That guy is total trouble; he once set our science lab on fire in middle school. That’s pretty hard to do considering our science lab didn’t have any gas hooked up to it.” Loke pulled her into his lap, forcing her to straddle him, while he ran his hands down her back.
“Jesus, so he’s insane? Are they all like that? The girl he was with seemed so nice! I can’t remember her name, but she had red hair-” She put her arms on his shoulders, letting her hands dangle.
“Erza.” He stated with a matter-of-fact attitude, then planted his face in her neck, lightly kissing her.
“Yeah! That was it. She was nice! She even stopped that Natsu guy and the other guy from fighting.” She pushed his face out of his neck with her shoulder; this conversation wouldn’t be going anywhere if she didn't. He sighed, clearly annoyed, leaning back on the couch, throwing his arms on the back of it.
“That’s because she’s tougher and meaner than both of them combined. She may seem normal, but trust me, she’s just as destructive as they are. Freshman year of high school, a guy hit her lunch tray and made her drop a piece of cake, and she-”
Lucy cut him off, scoffing, “What did she shove his face in it or something?”
“She broke his arm.” He smirked when her face dropped. “I don’t know how you got involved with these guys, but if you were smart, you would stay far away from them. Your princess lifestyle doesn’t fit in with them.”
She had been staring pensively off to the side, but his snide little comment made her snap to shoot him a glare. He knew how much she hated being called that and especially how much she hated being reminded of her polished childhood. She left that behind, though he loved to bring it up. He would call her his ‘posh little girlfriend’ who grew up with a maid in a giant mansion. Lucy worked hard to make her own way in life the second she turned 18, so for him to reduce her to nothing but her father’s money pissed her off. She pushed off him and sat down on the bed, with her back against the pillows and legs flat out in front of her. She was as far from him as she could get.
“Oh, don’t even start, you know it’s a joke, babe. It’s funny, don’t get your panties in a twist.” He rolled his eyes, getting up to follow her to the bed. She crossed her arms and pulled her phone out.
“So hilarious I can’t breathe.”
“You’re being dramatic. What can’t I make jokes anymore?” He crawled over her, caging her in with his arms.
“When you learn some good ones, let me know.” Scrolling on her phone, they had this fight more often than any other fight they had. They broke up on average 2 times a month, he always crawled back and apologized, and somehow managed to convince her that he had changed.
They liked to keep some things consistent at least, but they broke up over the same issues. Loke talking to different women, him calling her a stuck-up princess, Lucy ignoring his calls when she was out, and of course, whenever Loke wanted a lay that wasn’t her or if she wasn’t in the mood. She didn’t know how she got stuck in this endless circle, but she supposed it must be love. What else would have her going back to him?
This fight was no different: a comment that sets one of them off, cold indifference, a shit attempt at making up, a screaming match, then either a round of angry sex or one of them breaking up with the other and running off. It did help that Loke had gotten a single dorm room, so at least they didn’t bother anyone else. Unless, of course, you count the people who shared a wall with them, but details, details.
They were now in their sophomore year, and Lucy grew quite comfortable in her friend group, despite Loke’s various warnings and attempts to dissuade her from hanging out with them. One night when they were out at a bar, she told them of his warnings. They had been hanging out for a couple of months at this point, and she felt comfortable enough with them to finally spill the beans. She was shocked when they weren’t surprised.
“It’s because we knew his dumbass in high school.” Gray said, taking a sip of his drink.
“Yeah, he doesn’t want us spilling his dirty little secrets to you.” Natsu said, not taking his eyes off the TV.
“Come now, boys, he wasn’t that bad; he’s probably still bitter that Gray took his girlfriend freshman year.” Erza laughed into her strawberry daiquiri. Gray glared at her.
“I didn’t steal shit. It’s not my fault he’s a fucking player who can’t keep it in his pants.” He glanced at Lucy when Erza started shaking her head. “Uh, used to be a player. Sorry Lucy”
“I’m more interested in you stealing his girlfriend. How did that work?” She knew from personal experience that he had player tendencies and, quite frankly, didn’t want to waste her energy on the thought right now. Especially since he was currently blowing up her phone.
“Gray had the same lunch with the girl, but Loke didn’t have the pleasure of sharing the period. It’s kinda hard to stop something like that when you’re not even around.” Natsu laughed with a giant toothy grin, finally looking at the group while throwing his arms onto the back of the chairs by him. The one on his left empty, the one on his right being Lucy’s chair.
“Yes, it was quite low on your part, Gray.” Erza said, nodding.
“You're both liars! She was crying at lunch, so I sat with her and asked if she was okay, and she wouldn’t leave me alone after that! Sorry that I’m a gentleman and Loke’s not.” Another grimaced glance at Lucy. “Sorry.”
“Well, that doesn’t seem all that bad. Why would he be so mad about that?” Lucy asked.
Natsu bumped her with his shoulder, “Not that bad until he slept with her.”
Lucy gasps dramatically. “Gray, you didn’t!” She leaned back, her hair falling onto Natsu’s arm.
“Oh yeah. For like a month too, it was not a one-off thing.” Natsu laughed again with a dazzling smile.
“Who am I to say no to an eager lady? Besides, if he didn’t want anyone jumping into his territory, he shouldn’t have left her alone so often! I talked to my little online girlfriend in middle school more than he did to his real girlfriend!” Gray laughed, unknowingly making Lucy’s heart clench. So, he hadn’t changed since high school, huh? She could cry if she thought hard enough about it; instead, she laughed with the rest of them.
She spared a glance at her phone and saw 38 new messages and sighed. She knew she was setting up a fight, but she was having such a good evening that she decided she would just deal with it later. Natsu glanced at her. She swore he had supersonic hearing sometimes.
“Everything good?” He asked, nudging her with his arm again.
“Hm? Oh, yeah. Sorry, just got an annoying text, is all.” She was glad that Erza and Gray were suddenly hyper-focused on whatever it was they were talking about. She thought she heard something about someone named Juvia, whom she would make sure to ask about later.
She knew it was embarrassing to have her boyfriend blow her phone up while she was out, especially when he was accusing her of lying to him to meet other guys. She liked her new friends, but the fact that they already knew exactly how he was and knowing now he hadn’t changed made it so much worse. Would they judge her more knowing how much bullshit she ignored for some guy? They seemed to have low opinions of him already.
“You sure? You seem all tense.” He sure was nosy.
“Yep. Just class updates, blah blah blah. What is it you're studying anyway?” Hopefully, a nice diversion would work on him. He looked at her with an intense look for a second and then seemingly decided to drop it.
“Carpentry. One summer, I got in trouble. I may have broken into an abandoned building and tried to throw a party.” Bait thrown successfully. She patted herself on the back in her mind.
Lucy cut him off, “You threw a secret party in an abandoned house?” She laughed, throwing her head back. She was wearing a pink tank top, and because of how low it was when her head went back, she felt Natsu’s arm against her bare back. He was warm against her.
“Tried to is the keyword,” He laughed
“So, it was a party, but maybe not so secret?” She quirked her eyebrow.
“It would’ve been perfect, I stole a whole bunch of liquor and everything! But what I didn’t know was that the neighbors saw me sneaking shit in and waited till everyone was there. They set up a fucking sting operation!” He paused to laugh again.
“This is all very interesting and hilarious, but how does this rope into what you’re studying?” She turned in her so she could face Natsu better, and if she leaned more into his arm, that was nobody's business but her own.
“Patience, Luce! I’m getting to it! We don’t do half answers around here. So where was I?” He looked up, jutting his bottom lip out pretending to think. She smacked his stomach playfully.
“A sting operation?” She offered.
“Right! Right. So, I get arrested along with these fuckers mind you.” He juts his thumb towards Gray and Erza, who now look like they’re arguing over something. “It’s 3am when my dad pulls up to get me, he’s so pissed at me, he tells me that he better not even hear me breathe in the car. He doesn’t talk to me for a week. Then suddenly he tells me I’m spending the rest of the summer helping a friend of his build houses.”
Lucy finishes her drink, laughing. “I’m sure you loved that idea.”
“Oh, I was so mad that I tried to fight my old man right then and there.” His smile drops as he frowns and rubs his jaw.
“I’m going to assume little Natsu did not win that one?” Lucy smiled at him. He was so easy to sit and talk to. She wished she could talk to Loke like this.
“Hell no! My dad is tough as shit. I swear to God, he’s built like an elephant. Ain’t nobody moving him. So, I take my ass beating, then spend the summer building houses with his friend.”
“And did you learn the power of friendship along the way? Did it guide you back into the light even though you fell into darkness?” She put a hand on her chest and put the other out in front of her as if quoting Shakespeare. Laughing, he reached up and tugged on her hair teasingly.
“Hell no. What fun would I be then? I still got in trouble and will hopefully always get in trouble. Don’t want to end up like some boring loser who follows the rules 24/7.” He laughed again, moving her hair when he realized his arm was resting on it.
She promptly ignored the way his fingers gently touched her bare skin and ignored the way she got goosebumps. If she pretended it wasn’t happening, then it wouldn’t be suspicious. Besides, he had both arms on the chairs, at least when he wasn’t talking with his left hand. Lucy wondered why he wasn’t using his right to talk as much, but once again ignored the question; probably was for the best anyway. She missed the sideways glance Gray and Erza gave them both during their conversation.
“Anyway, I actually really liked doing it. Every other career path my dad tried to shove down my throat hadn’t caught my attention, but this one was pretty fun, so I figured, why not? Eventually, I want to buy a fixer-upper and make my own perfect little house. I’m best when I’m working with my hands.” He held out his left hand and flexed it as if to prove it to her.
“And to think if you hadn’t tried to beat up your poor old dad, you may not have such a clear path.” She tried not to watch his hand, she really did. It’s not her fault that it was two sizes bigger than hers. Would it be weird to put her hand against it and see if that was true? Probably. Yes. Most definitely.
As much as Loke called her a prissy little princess, he was no better; his family had just as much money as hers did. So, he didn’t have to work for anything; his hands were used to holding pens and typing. Thin and smooth. Meanwhile, Natsu’s were calloused and thick. She wondered what they would feel like on her- she shook her head. What was she thinking? Yes, her boyfriend was an asshole, but she was pretty sure she loved him. Jesus, she needed to get a grip; no more drinking tonight. Yeah, that’s what was wrong; she had just drunk too much.
“God, if that’s all it took to get a clear path, you think I would’ve learned it earlier.” He finished his beer, tilting his head back. She most definitely did not watch his throat as he swallowed it down. “But anyway, you’re turn.”
“Hm? My turn?” Her eyebrows furrowed.
“What’re you going to school for? Erza told me you were smart. Was she lying?” He flicked her forehead lightly and grinned at her. She gaped at him, then grabbed his hand before he could move it back to the other chair. She intended to pull his finger back to get back at him for flicking her, but before she could do that or say anything, Erza piped in.
“Are you implying that I would lie?” She was glaring at him with enough heat to melt his head. He shrank back as she spoke. His hand was still in Lucy’s.
“He didn’t imply, he kinda just flat out said you did,” Gray said, resting his chin on the palm of his hand.
“Gray, shut the fuck up, man!” Gray’s comment annoyed Natsu out of his fear for a split second.
“Oh, so I’m a liar, am I? Why don’t I teach you a lesson, then we’ll see if you have the audacity to accuse me of such things!” As Erza started to stand up, Natsu grabbed Lucy by the shoulders, finally taking his hand from hers, and pulled her in front of him, blocking Erza. She giggled as he tugged her around. Natsu, she had been learning, was not a very gentle person. With all the roughhousing, she lost her balance. In a desperate attempt to steady herself, even a little, she brought her hands down, grabbing Natsu’s thigh.
Erza got up and was leering over the two of them. Every time she went one direction, Natsu would push Lucy in front of him so Erza couldn’t get him. It was working pretty well until Erza took the more forward approach and tried to get him straight on. So Natsu did the only thing he could think of and pulled Lucy directly into him, so her back was almost flush against his chest.
“Lucy, I must insist you get out of my way.” Erza picked up a knife from the table and held it straight up. How she made a butter knife look menacing, Lucy didn’t know.
“I’m not the one in control here, Erza. There must be a ghost in here.” Lucy said between giggles. Natsu’s hands are still on her biceps.
“I can feel a chill, Erza. I think she’s right!” Natsu said, moving Lucy from side to side, causing even more giggles.
“Oh yeah, this ghost seems like an absolute jackass though, Erza, I say you exterminate him.” Gray was smirking from the safety of the other side of the table.
“You’re right, we cannot let this ghost continue to harass our friend!” Erza was close to shouting now. The bartender looked over at their table with a tired expression.
“Erza, please save me! I’m scared for my life!” Lucy continued giggling as Natsu let out an offended noise.
“Don’t feed into her delusions, you wanna witness my murder?” He hissed right next to her ear. She ignored how hot it made her feel.
“My dear Lucy, I hereby swear to save you!” Erza grabbed at Natsu’s hand and twisted it back to force him to let go. Unfortunately, for Lucy (or fortunately, depending on how you look at it), this caused Natsu to lean his whole body back, accidentally bringing Lucy with him. She was basically in his lap now, though she wouldn’t call it scandalous. Her thighs were hovering over the chair as Natsu pulled her farther back.
He was writhing in pain, screaming mercy as Erza bent his arm farther back. She did not know the concept of calling for uncle. It probably didn’t help that Lucy couldn’t stop laughing.
“What the fuck is going on here?” Lucy heard someone say, assuming it was the bartender or another patron. She had been included in a couple of the group's weekend bans; they would start a fight, get banned for the weekend, and come back the next week as if nothing had happened. After the third time, she learned to stop paying attention to whoever was yelling at them. Simply laughing out an apology as she ran after whoever got thrown out.
She threw her head back laughing, resting her head on Natsu’s chest, as Erza got closer to her so she could bend Natsu’s arm back even more. Erza’s knee rested between Lucy’s legs on the chair. Lucy continued to get pulled farther back, more on Natsu than her chair now. It wasn’t until she heard Gray causally say, “Oh, hey, Loke, what’s up, man?” that she stopped laughing and looked up.
Loke was staring at her, red-faced and angry. She couldn’t fully blame him. She was on top of Natsu, his one free hand and still holding her bicep, keeping her locked in. It didn’t exactly look great; the only thing saving her was the fact that Erza was on top of her. Erza was still pushing Natsu’s arm back, with no signs of stopping.
Lucy stopped laughing, but was breathing heavy from not only laughing so hard but from being tossed around. Her hand was still on Natsu’s thigh, and she watched as Loke looked down at it. A part of her relished in how angry he clearly was; she had seen him flirt with more girls than she could count. He deserved this one time, even if it wasn’t anything to worry about. Lucy had never cheated on him.
“Fuck off, Gray.” He turned away as Gray smirked, turning his attention to Lucy. “So, this is why you can’t answer your fucking phone, huh? Just whored up with some loser I used to go to school with, real classy.”
This made Erza and Natsu finally stop. Even Gray leaned back, smirk gone, an angry scowl replacing it. Lucy just stared at him. It was far from the worst thing he had called her. Something told her that if her friends knew that fact, they wouldn’t be happy.
“I think that’s pushing things a bit too far there, Loke.” Gray started.
Erza got up and stood tall, staring Loke down. To his credit, he didn’t back down. Lucy took this opportunity to get off Natsu, sitting up in her own chair. She wanted to get up and drag Loke out of there, but Erza was in her way. Her eyes stung with embarrassment.
“I think you need to apologize and get out of my sight.” She didn’t blink once.
“Look, we were all just roughhousing, you know how it goes! It’s the Fairy way; Gray and I got all of us kicked out last week for doing the same thing!” Natsu smiled at Loke, his arm missing from the back of her chair.
“Just because you and your girlfriend wrestle around in public doesn’t mean you can do that shit with other people’s girlfriends. Good to know that you fuckers still don’t have any manners. Get up, Lucy, we’re leaving. Now.” He had to tilt his body around Erza to look at her. She rolled her eyes and grabbed her purse, her eyes widening when gray got up and into Loke’s face. She had seen him and Natsu brawl more times than she could count, but she had never seen him so genuinely angry.
“Lucy won’t be going anywhere unless she wants to. Is that understood?” Erza said with a murderous tone.
“Do you have a fucking problem, four-eyes?” Gray spat in his face. Natsu got up next, standing right next to Gray.
“I think you’ve forgotten a few things ever since you left Magnolia. Maybe we should remind you.” Natsu started cracking his knuckles.
“The only thing I’ve forgotten is how worthless you all are. You’re infecting my girlfriend. I’d appreciate it if you’d leave us alone.” Loke crossed his arms. If she didn’t get up now, he was going to throw a punch, and honestly? She didn’t think she could beat one of the guys alone, surely not both of them.
“Guys, it’s okay, I was getting sleepy anyway, I’ll just head out.” Lucy got her purse and finally got up. Erza put her hand on her arm and looked at her. She smiled softly and nodded, “It’s okay, Erza.” She moved around her and glared at Loke.
“You’re embarrassing yourself, you dumbass.” She said before walking around him to leave.
“You’re sleepy because these guys are so boring, it’s like talking to a sack of unsalted crackers. You need to be careful around them, or you’ll end up just like Gray’s daddy. Drugged up on the streets.” Loke turned around to leave, glaring at Lucy as she turned around.
Her mouth fell open. What the fuck was wrong with him? Who says something like that? She turned around and crossed her arms. No way Loke was getting by unscathed after that comment.
She wasn’t sure which of them it was going to be, but she knew someone was going to punch Loke. Gray was the winner. He grabbed Loke’s shoulder, twisting him around and punching him so hard he fell back on his ass. Loke grabbed at his face, yelling and adjusted his glasses back on his nose, then shot up to throw one back. Till he saw all Erza and Natsu standing behind Gray, who looked ready to punch him again.
Lucy smiled, dropping it when Loke turned around. He grabbed her hand and pulled her towards the exit. She looked behind her as she was being pulled through the bar and mouthed ‘I’m sorry’ at her friends. Natsu was smiling, throwing her a wink before she turned around fully.