Lucy Heartfilia

My entire body was trembling back stage. I could literally only hear my heart beating and nothing else. I wanted to just turn around and disappear from my spot instead of having to get on stage in front of all the people I disappointed when I left.

How do I do this anyways?

"Hey." Zeref's voice suddenly came out of nowhere. He's like some dark devil in the dark or something ready to pounce at people's weaknesses.

"Nervous." I gulped.

"Don't be." He mumbled as Makarov read off the starting line up. "My wife does a pretty good job of making sure these kids understand the true meaning of family. So yeah there's gonna be the initial shock of seeing you out of nowhere but you just gotta take that first step."

He's right.

I need to take the first step myself if I want to make sure my teammates actually want me back or not. I can't stand back here and just cower like a helpless coward. That's not who I am.

"Our striker is." Coach paused, probably trying to accept the entire situation himself.

"Lucy Heartfilia."

Okay.

Zeref gave me one last pat on the back. "You got this."

I took the first step, wobbly with anticipation, fear, nervousness, just with everything in general. The entire room went silent at my mention. Even the cameramen looked like they're about to see a ghost come up to the stage.

And a ghost is what they will see.

The lights burned into my skin and I almost lost my cool completely.

"L-Lucy?" I heard somebody stutter on stage. I didn't need to look to see and recognize who it was.

Levy.

I just smiled at her, trying to maintain the professional look Mavis told me to keep. There's no way I can let everybody know I just wanted to break down and cry in front of all the peering, shocked gazes.

Nothing about me needs to show weakness.

I can't let them know...

"Y-you're home?" Erza's voice snapped me right around. I tried not to gape at her, my hands tightening around my golden dress.

Then just like that.

The almighty captain dropped her shock look and replaced it...

Arms suddenly wrapped around me then another and a couple others. Loud cheers and sobs overtook my hearing. Enough so I wanted to break down, too.

"Lu!" Levy was the first one to cry out my name. "You're back! You're really back!"

"We missed you!"

"I can't believe this!"

One by one, everybody gave me their greetings, each with a look of warmth I couldn't quite place. I was stupid to think these guys would ever be mad at me for leaving. Even Gray, who was still around by his table, sprinted all the way onto the stage. In one overbearing hug, he lifted me in the air.

"The Celestial Striker is back!" He exclaimed. The cheering erupted a couple notches higher. I couldn't help but pump my fist in the air.

"Let's go!"

The cheering and homecoming continued on for a couple more minutes before Coach cleared his throat into the microphone. "Settle down, nitwits. We're supposed to be professional."

"What the fuck..." a familiar growl made my skin crawl. Through all the excitement, I completely forgot the main reason why I was so scared in the first place.

Natsu Dragneel.

My ex-fiance is standing in his spot, his fists closed tightly and his eyes casted downwards. Nobody seems to have heard his words but me. He finally moved his gaze to meet mines and I almost shivered at the intensity...

Of so much hatred he had for me. 

A hand suddenly grabbed his and my eyes followed to who it was.

Lisanna Dragneel-Strauss.

His beloved wife.

"Natsu. Don't. Behave."

At her words, he looked away from me growling something under his breath. 

My heart suddenly ached, seeing how a different woman can have that affect on him to just calm him down so easily. She really is meant for him.

Not me.

"Natsu make your way to the stage, please." Coach suddenly said.

"What?"

"You deaf, my boy? Get your ass up here."

"No." Natsu hissed. "I only want to be up there with my team. Not someone who abandoned her team for some fame and good money to live a better life leaving us all in the dust to suffer alone."

I was afraid of this.

"I am not getting on that stage unless someone else makes it as striker." His eyes fixed on me. "Not her."

All the cameras were on us. 

We were once the power couple everybody feared when we took the field. His passes, my awesome goals. We were one of the main driving forces that gave Fairy Tail their countless wins. But now the "power couple", can't even stand on the same stage as one another. The press is really gonna love drinking all of this up.

"Natsu -" Erza tried to cut in. 

"It's okay." I suddenly said, surprising everybody else. "No matter what at the end of the day we're still teammates. I'm staying in Fairy Tail until the end of my soccer career and I'm not leaving. I don't give two damns if they like me or not. This is my home and with the open arms I just received, I was foolish for leaving in the first place."

I really was.

"Don't feel foolish for leaving so you can see the world." Jellal said. "You are still young. We all are. Seeing what's out there is something everybody should do before life got way too serious. Be happy and proud you did. Welcome home, Lucy."

With that, the cheering resumed. Makarov gave up trying to get Natsu to cooperate and just closed out his speech. After dismissing everybody to enjoy the drinks and the food, Erza was the first one to come up to me when we left the stage.

"Erza..." I tried to say something but was cut off when the captain pulled me into a bone-crushing hug.

"Shut your face and just hug me. It's been too long." I returned the hug with a giggle. Jellal came up to us when she finally let go and put an arm around her waist.

"Thanks for what you said up there, Jellal." I smiled at him. "It saved me some face."

"Natsu was in love with you, Lucy." He said. "He's just hurt you left in the first place. Don't let him make you feel guilty for it."

But the thing is, I do. I really do feel guilty for not being by his bed side when he received the treatment or provide to him like I promised I would. We had everything together, a place to call our own, a future we drew together. I threw it all away when the Barcelona agent gave me the contract to sign.

So no.

I have no right to watch him be with another woman who can calm him down or make him happy and feel pain because I chose to throw that all away. At the end of the day, I chose myself over a possible life with him.

"That was a shock." I was snapped out of my trance when that husky voice suddenly intruded our conversation bubble.

A pretty handsome guy with spiky blonde hair, slanted dragon-like blue eyes and a smirk that could make any girl swoon. I took in his entire outfit as quickly as possible without it seeming like I was checking him out. He was wearing a dark blue vest with a dark blue tie.

Because low-key...I was.

He was lean but at the same time, his white dress shirt sculpted his arm muscles perfectly. He was a little taller than Natsu and he might be a little older than us, too. He had a scar on his right temple, running kinda close to his eyebrows and it ended right before his eye. On his left ear, a long crystal earring hung beautifully.

"Sting Eucliffe." I mumbled his name. The new up-incoming striker of the brand new Sabertooth FC. I saw some of their matches and I will admit.

He's definitely has the skill and talent of a top-notch striker. 

"I'm honored." He held his hand out. "The elegant and beautiful Celestial Striker knows my name."

"I know the name of all my potential opponents." I gently grabbed his hand, thinking it was just a regular handshake.

Nope.

Instead, Sting took my hand up to his lips and kissed it gently right where my Fairy Tail mark was. My mouth dropped opened and not only that, my injured heart started beating at an impossible rate. 

"Opponent sounds too challenging." The striker smiled at me, never once losing his confident mask. "How about rivals? Makes us seem..." His eyes scanned me quickly. "Close."

Uh...

"Here's my number." He took out a napkin scribbled with his number I'm assuming. "I already have yours but." W-what? "I'll let you reach out to me first."

With that.

He left with a wink and disappeared into the crowd of busy bodies.

Although everywhere around us was quiet, it was quiet between Erza, Jellal and me. For the brief moment, I even forgot they were there.

"D-did he just -" I stuttered.

"Yeah." Jellal.

"He just did." Erza.