Lucy giggled, her eyes trained on the whining Natsu. He was dressed in a bunny outfit similar to her own, and Lucy couldn't seem to stifle the peals of laughter that threatened to consume her.

"You look ridiculous...!" She chortled, clutching her stomach. He grumbled under his breath, still doing what Laxus had ordered of him. Natsu was...dancing.

"Shut up, Luce! It isn't funny!" He protested, shying away from the glare he got from Laxus.

"It's very very funny," She corrected, taking out her camera. Lucy muffled another laugh. Oh, this was going to be great blackmail.

"Lucy," Laxus spoke. She turned her brown and blue flecked eyes to him and yelped when he chucked another outfit at her.

"Let's go..."

"Where are we going?" She wondered curiously, waddling over to him.

"Somewhere special..."

Lucy nodded and walked off, excited to finally be rid of the stupid bunny outfit she was wearing. She crumpled it up and tossed it to the floor.

When Lucy unfolded the outfit Laxus had given her, she unknowingly smiled. Why did he know her so well?

He had given her a pair of worn skinny jeans, along with a pastel pink and onyx black hoodie. She quickly dressed in the clothing and combed her fingers through her silky blonde locks. She relished in the amazing feeling of the baggy hoodie and plucked the bunny suit off the ground.

"Oh, I'm definitely burning this later..." She mumbled to herself, before stepping out of the bathroom.

When she reached Laxus again, she noticed that Natsu was no longer in the bunny suit.

"Awww, I guess it was fun while it lasted..." She muttered unhappily. She had wanted to get more blackmail...

"You ready to go?" Laxus questioned gruffly, tossing her a half-smile.

"Yup!" She chirped and started skipping towards the exit. Natsu watched the two leave, his eyes lingering on Lucy.

Once the two were out of sight, Natsu slumped down and allowed a single heartbroken sob to flood the room.

He had...lost. Lost her forever, to Laxus. And there was nothing he could do. As his jealousy overcame him, Natsu sat down on the ground.

He had ruined things with her, and now he'd have to live his life watching her be in love with another. Natsu slammed his fist on the floor. A crack splintered the floor, and he flinched at the damage his anger had done.

He had to control his jealousy and anger...or he'd do something crazy.

"Damn everything..." He choked out of clenched teeth. A single, rage-filled tear slid down his cheek before he furiously wiped it away.

***********************************************

Lucy laughed, and it wasn't any stereotypical laugh that you'd read in a novel. She had a laugh that was in her opinion, ugly. She tended to snort when she laughed too hard, and once she had even snorted chocolate milk out her nose.

She kicked her feet, watching as her legs cut through the crystal clear water. They were sitting on an old rickety dock, watching the sunset. They had just gone out to eat, and Lucy had begged to go back down to the ocean. He had complied, knowing she had a certain obsession with the sea, and water in general. He guessed it had to do with her magic, but he shrugged it off. Not like it mattered anyway. Lucy loved the water, and that was all that mattered.

Lucy took in a huge breath of the salty breeze. She absolutely adored the water. She had loved it ever since she was a kid. There was just something freeing about being in the water. Her hair would be flowing behind her, her arms and legs pumping to get her flowing along the current.

The cool mist brushed up against Lucy's arms, and she closed her eyes.

"Hey, Laxus..." She said softly, startling the blonde who was watching her with an unusual softness in his gaze.

"Yeah?"

"I have to tell you something," She responded coolly. She was ready...she would tell him the truth.

Lucy seemed calm, and nonchalant on the outside, but on the inside she was a shuddering, sweating mess. She wiped her palms on her jeans and swallowed loudly.

"L-Laxus..."

"You're the most important person in my life...I-I...I wouldn't be where am without you. You believed in me when nobody else did, and you saw me when I was invisible to almost everybody..."

Laxus froze, unsure of what to say. He watched her nervously start twiddling her thumbs and try to avoid eye contact with him.

"You helped me become strong...which meant a lot to me....but most importantly, you became my friend...You made me feel wanted, and cherished...and that helped me a lot. Losing my friends, and being treated like an outcast hurt a lot...but you helped me...even though we weren't friends, and had never spoken to each other...you still supported me."

"I'll always be indebted to you...but, that's not what I wanted to talk to you about..."

She took a deep breath.

"Laxus Dreyar...I love you. I love you more than I had ever loved Natsu, or anyone else. You make me a better person, and when I thought you were dead, I had a mental breakdown. I didn't tell any of you guys, but Fairy Tail wasn't pretty...I was the only thing holding it together, and yet I sometimes broke under all the pressure. Once...I almost quit to join Sabertooth with Sting...but I ended up changing my mind."

"Laxus...you've saved me time after time, and I know I shouldn't like you this way. It jeopardizes our partner relationship...but I can't help it...I love you so much it hurts. I just had to tell you...I don't want to lie about my feelings anymore...reject me if you want..."

A jolt of pain rips through Laxus's heart at her unsure, and guarded expression. He envelops her in a hug, and her eyes widen.

"How could I ever reject you? Lucy, I have loved you for a long time. I know during the games it was all envy, and over the top jealousy, but those feelings were genuine for me. I couldn't stand the thought of Natsu winning you over..."

Lucy sat, limp in his arms, tears pouring down her cheeks. She pulled away from him and noticed the raw emotion in his eyes.

Their eyes stayed interlocked with each other until Laxus started to lean forward. Lucy noticed what he was doing, but didn't move at all. She unconsciously tilted forward, her head angled up.

Their lips met, sending a resounding shock through Lucy. Laxus slowly began to kiss her, with Lucy shyly responding. Their bodies seemed to melt against each other, and Lucy's hands trailed up to his blonde locks. Her fingers tangled themselves in his hair, and he grunted in appreciation.

His arms wrapped around her waist, tucking her body tightly against his own. She licked his lower lip, making him shudder.

He opened his mouth, and soon Lucy's tongue timidly met his own. They fought for dominance, which Lucy competitively refused to lose.

She pulled away a couple seconds later, gasping for air. She wiped away the trail of saliva. Her eyes gradually moved up to meet his, and she was surprised to see a blush on his usually calm and collected features.

"Awww, you're blushing!" She cooed, making his blush darken.

"Shut up, blondie..." He grumbled.

She pouted.

"Are you still going to call me blondie? My name is LUCY!" She whined, punching him playfully.

"You'll always be my blondie....Lucy," He said, a chuckle reverberating through his chest.

"And you'll always be my pikachu...lightning crotch!" She said cheekily.

"Don't call me that!" He snapped at her, attempting to grab the now running blonde.

"Catch me if you can, lightning crotch!"

He growled, but a contradictory grin was on his face.