TWO YEARS LATER
★ ★ ★

It had only been a few weeks since Lucy's new life had begun.

Her new world was buzzing, her usually still and lifeless phone vibrating vigorously from the rush of notifications she was getting. This would be her first public appearance in years, so it was no surprise that the public was intrigued.

She smiled smugly as she stared out of the taxi's window, admiring the scenery of her new home– Fiore's capital city, Crocus.

She couldn't help but feel awestruck. Thanks to her recent job offer, she now had the opportunity to live in a place she'd always admired growing up.

Don't get her wrong, she never took her comfortable life in the mansion for granted. But this place provided her with a fresh start– a chance to reconnect with her hopes, aspirations and herself.

The disorderly buzzing on her lap was replaced by a rhythmic tune. She flipped it over and read the incoming FaceTime from Levy, answering immediately.

"Hey Lu! How's my favourite girl doing?!" her lively voice bounced off the walls of the vehicle.

"Great!" Lucy beamed. "I feel like I'm floating, this all just feels like a dream, you know?"

"I'm so happy for you!" Levy squealed excitedly. "And so are your fans, you've seen Twitter, right?"

"Of course not! The first rule of celebrity culture is to never read what people are saying about you, I've clearly outgrown that!" she lied, fighting the smile forming on her lips from the thousands of compliments she'd just finished reading.

Levy raised her brow, and she thought she heard her manager beside her snicker, but chalked it up to a harmless cough.

"Alright. So you're on your way to the party now?" Levy asked curiously.

"Yeah, we're approaching it now," she eyed the street ahead.

"Then have fun!" she wished her luck as Lucy unbuckled her seatbelt and grabbed her purse.

"One more thing, Lucy," Levy said. Lucy listened patiently.

"You're a wonderful person, so be yourself, okay? Don't worry about anything else," she reassured her.

Lucy smiled at her. "I will," she smirked. "They won't see what's coming." Levy laughed and ended the call.

Lucy thanked the driver as she exited the vehicle, Aquarius following. As she stood in front of the red carpet, she took a deep breath in.

She waved politely to the paparazzi, shielding her eyes with her hands from the vibrant burst of camera flashes.

This was the start of her new career. One she'd have to make for herself, without the help of her parents' influence or money.

Being an actor was going to be hard work, she knew that. She was a rookie in the field and was going to be surrounded by a cast full of experience. She'd have to break her back to even begin to compare.

But she had a chance to prove herself. And in this moment, she was confident.

She'd spent the last year meticulously curating the perfect character, after a year of feeling hopelessly sorry for herself. And now that she was reborn, nobody was going to be able to stop her.

This was it. The start of her new life.

The inside of the venue was bustling with people. She was standing at the mere entrance and the place was exuding glamour. It was as if the air was different, full of talent and expensive alcohol.

"Woah..." she marvelled, as she strolled in.

Dressed in stylish attire, industry professionals and artists interacted, discussing their various ongoing projects as they drank.

She bit her lip, suddenly intimidated. These were people who had lived in this world for years, decades before her. How was she going to fit in with them?

No. She shook her insecure thoughts away. She wanted to do this, she needed to do this. She wasn't going to find excuses to back away.

She regained her composure, deciding to start a conversation with the next person she saw when an arm suddenly swung around her neck and a body was leaning into her.

"Heyaaa!!!" the woman excitedly squealed. "I haven't seen you before~ You new here?"

She slurred her words and held onto her tightly for balance, very obviously drunk.

"I am," Lucy replied politely. "My name's Lucy Heartfilia."

"Luffy? That's a strange name!" she laughed, smacking her back repeatedly as she did. "The name's Cana. Nice to meet ya~"

"Nice to meet you too, Cana," she replied, amused.

"Let her go, Cana," a defeated but authoritative voice came from beside them. "And it's Lucy, not 'Luffy'".

Her eyes widened and she smiled in relief when she saw Mirajane, the one person she knew in this building, standing there.

"Mira!" she exhaled happily.

Lucy had met Mirajane a few years prior. Since she was also in the idol industry, they'd grown close due to the frequent collaborations their fans demanded, and the boring annual award shows they'd helped each other get through.

Mira hugged her in greeting, after helpfully prying Cana off of her.

"It's so nice to see you again after all this time," Mira said sweetly, holding both her hands. "What are you up to, these days?"

"Well, actually," she looked around. No one was listening, and the news was going to be released soon anyway. "I've been given an acting contract under Fairytail Industries!"

Mira's eyes widened and her jaw dropped in shock. She had to stop herself from screaming. "That's amazing, Lucy!"

Lucy laughed sheepishly. Then Mira turned around, still holding onto her right hand as she began to walk.

"I have to introduce you to the rest of our actors here, they're lovely!" she told her. Lucy nodded in excitement.

She led her to the garden, where most of the party was. Outside seemed even more lively. It was beautifully decorated, small trees were planted uniformly around the area and were covered with white ribbons and golden string lights. In the middle was a fountain, also decorated with lights, making it look like it was flowing with champagne.

In front of the fountain were a group of people, who smiled upon seeing Mira approach them.

"This is Lucy," Mira introduced like a proud mother.

Lucy smiled and returned the chorus of welcomes and nice-to-meet-yous. She recognised all of them from movies she'd watched.

Erza Scarlet, who was the lead of the fantasy movie she'd just finished, 'Titania: Queen of Fairies'. Gray Fullbuster and his girlfriend, Juvia Lockser, who'd just won 'Best Couple' for their recent drama, 'Rainwoman'. And a few other actors from the shows 'Thunder Legion' and 'Sky Sisters'.

She let herself relax, feeling warmly welcomed by their friendly reception.

She was laughing at one of Gray's jokes when she spotted a familiar figure behind the fountain. Her smile faltered, and she shifted nervously, then her heart dropped when the water changed its pattern and she clearly made out their pink hair.

She quickly turned away, not wanting to make eye contact and tried rejoining the conversation. Aquarius looked at her with concern on her face.

"Are you okay, Lucy? You look pale," she asked.

Lucy returned her look, faking a cheery smile.

"I'm fine! Just..." She spotted a table with a bowl of punch. "Thirsty. I'm going to grab a drink."

Without waiting for a response, she sped her way to the drinks table and poured herself a glass, chugging it in one go before panting a heavy breath.

She turned back around, attempting to return to the group when she face-planted into something. She groaned quietly and rubbed her head, mumbling an apology.

When she looked up, her soul left her body.

There he was. Natsu Dragneel. Stood in front of her, staring down into her eyes with a look she didn't recognise. She gulped, eyes not leaving his as they stood in silence.

He hummed, as if in acceptance, then cleared his throat.

"Hello," he greeted. It wasn't friendly.

"Hello," she said in the same tone.

Natsu's gaze bore into hers, his expression unreadable yet tinged with what she could tell was resentment. She looked back confidently, trying to appear composed as she felt her heart racing with both anger and anticipation.

"You're looking... well," Natsu remarked, his voice carrying a hint of sarcasm.

Lucy clenched her jaw, fighting the urge to snap something back. "And you're looking... familiar."

His lips twitched into a half-smirk. "Funny how that happens when you spend a night together."

The mention of their past encounter hung heavily in the air, like a thick cloud of tension hovering above them. She closed her eyes and breathed, not letting his words get to her.

"I wouldn't expect you to remember much from that night," she retorted, the faux smile on her face falsely advertising the bitterness in her voice.

Natsu's eyes narrowed slightly, a flicker of annoyance passing over his features. "Unlike your other play-things, I remember enough."

She scoffed and his smirk returned, like he thought he'd just won something. She refrained from rolling her eyes, deciding to change to topic.

"So what have you been doing?" she asked. "Still lurking around places you don't belong?"

"I've been doing just great," he smiled back through gritted teeth. "How about you?"

"I'm pursuing a career in acting now," she told him. Yes, she was feeling petty and wanted to prove herself, but she didn't know why she wanted him to know about that.

Natsu's eyes flickered with a mix of surprise and amusement as her words registered. "Acting, huh?" He placed his champagne glass down.

"Makes sense. You're good at pretending to be someone you're not."

Lucy's eyes widened, feeling her heart slightly clench. That hurt quickly turned to anger, though, and she felt it surge at his meaningless remark.

She let out a laugh of disbelief. "Have you always had a talent for being a self-centred jerk?"

Their verbal sparring reached a tense standoff, the air crackling with tension. Both ignored the lingering sense of longing, their shared history refusing to be buried.

As they stood, locked into their silent battle, Natsu's expression softened slightly, a twinkle flashing in his eyes. With a sigh, he leaned in closer to her.

Her breath paused in her throat as his face slowly inched closer to hers before he swiftly moved towards her ear.

"You know," he began to whisper, his tone mocking. "If you're going to make it in this industry, you might want to look where you're going."

Lucy's face reddened with irritation and embarrassment, her simmering temper starting to boil. She clenched her teeth, forcing a smile.

"Thanks for the advice. I'll be sure to watch my step... and my back." With that, she turned on her heel, leaving him standing alone in her wake.

Body now riled up, she grabbed a glass of wine from the tray of a butler walking past and downed the entire thing. She was going to let herself go tonight.

★ ★ ★

Lucy woke up the next morning with a pounding headache, the sharp sunlight seeping through the curtains and stabbing through her eyelids like shards of glass.

Blinking away her restful daze, she groaned, her mouth feeling dry. She forced herself up, her body was heavy with the weight of whatever she'd done last night.

Her memory of the night was blurred. She vaguely recalled rejoining the festivities after her unfortunate run-in with him, then losing herself in the blur of laughter and many drinks. The last of her memories were fading scenes of her dancing and singing, like some sort of movie montage.

Dragging herself out of the sheets, she stumbled into the bathroom, grabbing her toothbrush. What happened at the party wasn't important enough for her to worry about today. Today was officially her first day of work.

She had a meeting this afternoon with the other people working on "Feather in the Night" with her, the upcoming drama of which she'd been awarded the lead role.

Yesterday's events allowed her to meet a few of the cast beforehand, which she applauded herself for, as it had been extremely useful. The actors she had met were very welcoming, and the atmosphere was nice and refreshing. She had worried about making a public appearance after so long, but last night reassured her and gave her more confidence for today.

If last night was her trailer, today was her debut.

She threw on some sweats and stuffed her phone into her pocket, almost forgetting to grab her wallet. She sighed as her temple throbbed, reminding her of her hangover; she needed coffee.

As Lucy stepped out of the elevator, her eyes widened in awe at the sight before her. When Aquarius had asked her where she wanted to stay, she only told her 'The Carnation' because it was the first thing that came to mind due to an advertisement she'd flipped past in a magazine.

Her subconscious only knew her too well, as the apartment complex stood as a modern marvel, definitely worthy of its 'Top in Crocus' title.

Upon entering the grand lobby, her gaze wandered toward the concierge desk, where formally dressed staff were sat, attending to residents. She remembered the text from Aquarius she read earlier, telling her to meet her in the café when she was awake.

Eagerly, she made her way to the front desk. A young, brunette girl with a cute round bob flashed a friendly smile at her in greeting.

"Good morning. My name is Alice, how may I help you?"

"Can you please tell me where the café is?" Lucy asked.

"No problem. It's down the hall and to your left," she answered politely, then grabbed a pen from her desk and pulled out a brochure, opening it and drawing a circle on the page. "I've marked it on this layout, which you can use for reference in the future."

"That's very helpful, thank you!" Lucy smiled gratefully.

"You're welcome!" she beamed, her eyes sparkling. She stood up quickly, holding out her hand in excitement. "It's so nice to meet you!"

Lucy blinked dumbfoundedly, but nevertheless complied and shook her hand. "You too, Alice!" she bowed then took her leave.

The apartment had a wide range of activities, according to the brochure. The facilities ranged from a gym for the residents, to a swimming pool, to an arcade. She couldn't imagine what the cost of staying here was– thank goodness it was being funded by the moviemakers.

"There you are," her manager greeted her when she reached the café. "I trust you rested well."

"I did, thanks," then she remembered she never knew how she got home last night. "How did I...?"

"Taurus carried you," she answered, then snickered. "You put up quite the fight."

Lucy instantly felt guilty, she'd been told stories of how wild she became when drunk. "Sorry, Taurus..." she said apologetically.

Taurus held his hand up and shook his head, smiling as if his arms weren't covered in bandaids.

"Anyhow," Aquarius changed the subject. "You should order something, then get ready for the day. The meeting is in two hours."

"Yes, ma'am," Lucy saluted her then made her way to the till.

After she placed her order, the barista processed it and she swiped her card. They were about to hand her her receipt when their phone buzzed.

They checked it quickly and then looked up at Lucy in shock. Lucy returned the look, tilting her head in confusion.

"Are you... Lucy Heartfilia?" they asked slowly.

When Lucy nodded in reply, they let out a squeal.

"Congratulations on your new role! I'm so happy for you!"

"My role?" she repeated, perplexed.

The announcement of the drama wasn't scheduled to be released until next month, once they'd begun filming. It had been confidential, so only those cast knew that it was happening.

But when the barista turned her phone around and showed her the article, her heart stopped. Not because of the leak, however.

The article read: "The comic 'Feather in the Night' to be adapted into a series, starring Lucy Heartfilia and Natsu Dragneel!"

She stared back up at the barista, who was seemingly waiting for a response, but Lucy wasn't able to form proper words in her mouth.

She let out a forced chuckle and bowed politely before taking her coffee cup and walking away.

She didn't need coffee anymore, because she was most definitely awake now. With the gears still turning in her brain, she walked stiffly back to her room.

When she closed the door behind her she let out the breath she'd been holding. She let out another sigh, then closed her eyes and pinched her nose bridge.

"This is fine," she told herself. "Everything's going to be fine."

She scoffed, then snickered, and before she knew it she'd erupted into a fit of laughter in the middle of her apartment.

"I'm doomed."

★ ★ ★

The meeting was at the same venue the party had been the other night, which happened to be the headquarters for Fiore Studios, the main company that managed all its smaller branches like Fairytail Industries.

Lucy was surprised at how quickly they seemed to reorganise the place. Even without the decorations and crowds of people, Fiore Studios was an architectural marvel.

The first thing that caught her eye was the intricately designed marble flooring, laid out in a mesmerising pattern that seemed to lead you further inside of the building.

Soft, warm lighting emanated from ornate chandeliers hanging gracefully from the high ceilings, casting a soft glow that enhanced the interior, resembling a spotlight.

The crowded, lively foyer from yesterday was now a plain empty entrance, with two people sitting at the front desks.

She showed her ID to one of the receptionists, who pointed her towards the left hallway. The meeting room was the seventh door in the hall, labelled with a sign reading 'Feather in the Night - Fairytail Industries'.

When she opened the door, a middle-aged man she recognised as the man who recruited her, was already in the room.

"Hey there," he greeted her and stood up to shake her hand.

She'd only met Gildarts once before, last year, when he strolled up to her father's mansion begging to recruit her for a new drama he'd be directing. She admired his passion and was looking for a new career path, so– after finally convincing her father– here they were.

"Welcome to Crocus, Lucy," he smiled, which almost always looked like a smirk, a feature of his that she thought made him interesting. "How are you enjoying it so far?"

"It's beautiful!" she recalled the multiple parks she'd seen in passing while on the drive there. "I haven't been able to do much sightseeing, though."

"You'll have plenty of chances for that," he reassured. "The show is set all around the city."

"That's awesome!" Lucy beamed.

Within the next few minutes, the rest of the cast casually strolled in. Lucy recognised some of them from the group she'd met at the party last night, like Erza and Gray. There were quite a few who she didn't recognise, but she made a note to formally introduce herself later.

She wondered if the people from the party were all as equally hungover as she was– probably not, as she was extremely weak to liquor.

Finally, the last member of the cast walked in. His eyes met hers briefly as he shut the door behind him. He must've seen the article already, Lucy concluded, as he didn't seem too surprised by her presence.

"Glad you could make it, Natsu," Gildarts motioned to his seat, then pulled out a pen.

"All right, let's get down to business," Gildarts cleared his throat, demanding everyone's attention.

Lucy fixed her posture in her seat, keeping her hands in her lap and she twiddled them nervously.

"Today's meeting starts the production of 'Feather of the Night', our latest project. As you all know, it's based on the popular comic book series by Mavis Vermillion. She'll be working with us on set, making sure everything is accurate, so you all should probably read it fully to get on her good side."

That was no problem for Lucy, as during her childhood confined in her room, she'd read every book cover to cover so many times she practically knew it by heart.

"That being said, I know some of you will ignore that advice. So here is the basic premise of the story."

Everyone listened quietly as he gave a summary of the show. The story followed Iris Featherwilt, the only heiress to a wealthy hotel dynasty. Her life, however, takes an unexpected turn when she's kidnapped for ransom due to her father's entanglement with the mafia.

Just as she's about to lose hope, she's rescued by the secret agent, Night, who was coincidentally tasked to take down the mafia members who took her. However, by doing so, he'd unknowingly revealed his secret. Inspired by him, she manages to escape and is somehow able to follow him back to his headquarters.

There, she's caught by the building's security system, but she rapidly explains that she's not a threat and expresses her desire to join the agency. However, Night's superiors reprimand him for allowing a citizen to witness his operations. Luckily, they see potential in her, so as punishment, they task him with being the one to train her.

Night, who's used to working alone, is now forced to bring Iris with him on his missions. He must learn to handle it and Iris must get used to the dangerous world of spies, and over the course of the series, they fall in love.

Lucy was, of course, going to be playing the role of 'Iris', which meant that Natsu was going to be acting as 'Night'.

She found out that Mira was given the role of 'Miss Fortune', the handler who sent Night and the other spies on their missions.

Erza was 'Knightwalker', the best-performing spy in the agency. She was the one who trained Night when he first joined.

Gray was 'Frost', Night's rival, who was also trained by Knightwalker alongside Night. Spoiler alert: he turns out to be working with the main villain, Storm.

And Laxus Dreyar was the main antagonist, 'Storm'. Followed by a few other actors, who served as his underlings.

The meeting only held the characters with the largest roles, as holding a meeting with the entire cast would've been too complicated and time-consuming.

Lucy thought that it was very informative, either way. The director explained the filming schedule, which would begin in the next few weeks. In the meantime, they were to rehearse their lines on their own. The main cast would undergo combat training, as they would be diving into intense action sequences.

Lucy remembered Aquarius mentioning hiring her a personal trainer to help her along with that since she'd been slacking from the gym.

"I have confidence that each of you will do an amazing job," Gildarts finished. "So work hard. The meeting is adjourned."

As everyone gathered their belongings, Erza approached her.

"Congratulations on your role, Lucy," she congratulated her. "I'm looking forward to working with you."

"Likewise!" Lucy beamed.

"Since we're two of the few women in the team, we should get to know each other more," she pulled out her phone and handed it to Lucy. "Take my number."

"Of course!" she typed her number into the keypad, returning the satisfied smile Erza gave. "Feel free to text me anytime."

She spotted Natsu a few steps ahead once she was in the hallway. After multiple moments of biting her lip in hesitation, she made her way to him, jogging a little bit to catch up.

"Natsu," she called out to him.

He stopped walking, then turned around slowly, one brow raised in confusion.

"What is it?" he asked.

"We're co-stars," she said, plainly. She continued when he gave her a blank stare, telling her she was stating the obvious. "So, I think we should try to be civil."

She held her hand out, hoping he couldn't see it slightly shaking. "Let's put our past behind us, just for the time we spend working together."

She watched him in anticipation as he only stared at her hand. He then let out a chuckle and decided to finally shake it.

"Let's work hard!" he said in a faux-excited tone, his smirk making it clear he was teasing her.

She simply returned the smile, not caring how fake it looked, or how badly she wanted to smack that smirk off his face.

She decided to take the long walk home, needing a breath of fresh air and time to herself after letting him work her up again.

The path she took was through a public park. It was the beginning of spring, so cherry blossom petals were scattering as she walked.

The park was alive with all kinds of sounds– leaves rustling and birds chirping. Each tree swayed gently in the light breeze as she walked past them, casting dappled patterns of light as the setting sun shone through between the branches.

Lucy could get used to this life.

She yawned once she reached her apartment, her body picking the perfect time to clock out. She scanned the seventh floor for the apartment labelled '720'. When she reached her door, she tiredly typed her code into the electronic lock.

The lock gave its sound of approval at the same time the door to apartment '722' opened. She gave a polite smile to her pink-haired neighbour, then returned to her door.

A quiet second passed, and then both heads snapped to look at the other. Natsu's eyes grew wide as Lucy's mouth gaped in shock.

No way... No way.

Standing there was her co-star, Natsu, in his workout clothes, carrying a sweat towel, coming out of the apartment right next to hers.

She couldn't believe it. She wouldn't believe it.

What were the chances that her ex-fling, slash co-star was also her...

"Looks like we're neighbours," Natsu let out a breathy laugh.

This was only the beginning of what was going to be a long, long journey.

★ ★ ★

the story's finally beginning!!! I'm coming to accept that each chapter will probably be 4K words minimum...

thoughts? please feel free to comment 🙏
it's lonely out here 😭😭

edit: is it just my wattpad glitching, or is the text placed in the middle of the page?
sorry if you guys are also experiencing it, i don't know how to fix it 😭

edit edit: fixed it!