Fateful Flames (A NaLu Fanfiction)

Chapter 4

[Lucy]

On the way back from the garden, where I had met Natsu Dragneel, I made sure to walk rather slow than what pace I normally walked at. I smirked as I noticed Jared and Jason's slightly annoyed expressions. They knew I was walking slow for a reason.

And that one simple reason was this: I didn't want to leave.

Not yet anyways, there was so much more to explore and so many more people to meet. I met one person. One. What type a trip is that? It wasn't fair. Why was I always timed...? It's not like people are out to get me.

Right? Right.

But sadly it was beginning to come to an end when we began to approach our crowd-surrounded car.

Wait. Crowd-surrounded?

"J-Jared.." I stuttered, looking at all the people surrounding our car. What on Earthland were they doing? Were they taking photos?

"It's okay Miss Lucy, commoners like them don't have expensive things like this. Just keep walking, they will clear out of the way."

"A-Alright... " I was still stuttering. I felt self-conscious, but kept my some-what confident stride. As people made a pathway for me to move, just on the other side of the car I said oddly pink, spiky hair. "Natsu?"

His name escaped my lips rather loudly. His green eyes locking with mine.

"Lucy..." I saw him looked up at Jared and Jason. "And her freakishly huge bodyguards."

It took everything in my power to stop myself from laughing, instead I put on a small smile. Then, curiosity wormed its way in, my mind slowly forgetting the crowd of people around us. "What are you doing around here?"

It seems as if he was totally zoning out like I do at my father's meetings with other people from different companies. I tilted my head, "Uhm, Natsu? You okay?"

My voice seemed to capture his attention. He shifted his weight as he nodded.

"Yeah, yeah. I'm alright." He said cheerfully. 

"Oh, good." I paused then decided to repeat my question. "So...? What are you doing around here?"

"I just stopped to take out my phone... then I was noticing people crowd around this fancy car." He gestured to my father's car. "What about you? I thought you were walking around too."

"I was, but it's time for me to go now. So, we were making our way back to our car." I explained as I side-stepped before making my way around the back of the car to stand closer to Natsu, feeling it was a tad weird to just have a normal conversation with a huge car between us.

"Miss Heartfilia," Jason began in a slightly low tone, as if asking me to stay back. But somehow I figured it was a warning more than a question. "We need to get going... please get in the car."

A fire lit in his eyes as if he had realized something. "This is your car?!"

I took a half-step backwards in surprise at his little outburst. That was his realization? Wasn't it obvious?

I nodded in response after recovering from my surprise. "Yes. Well, it's really my father's car... But anyways.."

"You must be pretty rich then, eh?"

No. Not you too, Natsu Dragneel...I flicked my gaze away from his. I could feel my cheerfulness declining. You don't think of me like the other people... do you?

"Yep.." I said softly when I realized I hadn't given him a clear answer.

When he didn't respond right away all I wanted to do was to get out of there, to get away from this town and him in fear of being thought of the same as other people have. So, I made my way to Jared and Jason and when I got close to the back seat door, Jared opened it allowing me to sink into the backseat without any words spoken to Natsu Dragneel who just watched as if he was a little... unsure, I guess is the word, as to why I didn't say goodbye.