Bonus Round 6/15: Video Games; where our two lovebirds get a little bit of a helping hand from a dear friend and a healthy dose of competition.

Lucy huffed as she watched Natsu and Gray spar for the umpteenth time that day, sitting in the shade of the giant Sakura tree in South Gate Park. School had let for the Summer only a mere two days prior and the two young men were already 'bored beyond belief'. While she had her books, apparently her two best friends had dates with each others' fists.

"Can't we do anything else today?!" she bellowed, her frustration peaking. The two huffing teens immediately ceasing in fear of receiving 'Lucy Kicks' if they didn't listen.

"What would you rather do, Princess?" Gray mocked, earning him a swift punch to the abdomen from his pink-haired friend. "What was that for Flame Brain?!"

Natsu sighed as he made his way to where Lucy was seated, bending to grab his shirt from the ground. "You know how much she hates that nickname, Ice Queen."

Gray didn't get the chance to retort before Lucy hopped up while brushing off the backside of her jeans, literally standing between them. "Why don't we go back to Natsu's and play some video games?" she offered, knowing it would suck both boys in. She added an extra incentive to sweeten the deal. "I'll even make those nachos you guys love so much…"

"With extra jalapenos…"? Natsu pouted playfully. He threw on his own black, cotton tshirt before grabbing both his and Lucy's bags from the ground, leaving Gray's right where it was.

"Only on your side, Volcano Head," Gray rebuked, gathering his own things while grumbling to himself. It didn't even bother him that he had lost his own shirt sometime during the scuffle. He simply pulled a new one out of his bag and buttoned it up before the three of them set off down the block toward Natsu's.

Upon arriving the three teens threw their bags by the door to Natsu's room before settling in their typical spots. Gray grabbed a pillow from Natsu's bed and sat on the floor, his back resting against the mattress. Natsu laid on his stomach to ensure an unobstructed view of the TV, but instead of sitting at the head of the bed like always, Lucy chose to sit beside Natsu in the middle of the bed. Lately, she'd been trying to find moments to be close to him and would take what she could get. Unfortunately for her, one best friend happened to be more dense than concrete when it came to 'romantic matters' which meant she'd probably never get through to him and the other was entirely too perceptive for his own good.

Noticing the change, Gray hatched a plan. All he had to do was wait until the time was right and then he could strike. Grabbing the controllers from the charging dock, he handed one to Natsu as they booted up Injustice 2. Lucy always insisted on it because it was the only multi-player game Natsu had that she understood. Granted, she always picked Wonder Woman and button-mashed, but sometimes she got lucky and came out on top. However, Lucy winning wasn't part of Gray's Master Plan.

After multiple rounds of changing off between the three of them, Gray noticed it was getting late. He didn't have long to enact his plan, so he decided to go for it.

"Who's up for making this a little bit more interesting?" the raven-haired teen offered. "We go up against each other tournament-style. Winner gets whatever they want. Sound good?" He knew Natsu couldn't turn down a challenge, but he needed Lucy to agree too. Finding her eyes lit up in competition, Gray knew he'd reeled her in too.

"You're on!" both teens shouted in reply, the three of them bumping fists. Gray quickly brought the focus back. "Alright, what do you two want if you win?"

Natsu was the first to answer. "I want to go camping this weekend if I win!" the pinket replied excitedly. Their larger group of friends always took multiple camping trips ever Summer so it wasn't like he was asking for too much. Gray smirked at the thought of his request.

"If I win, we're going to see that new Jenny Realight Friday night," Lucy answered, eliciting groans from both teens. Leave it to her to choose a chick flick as her reward.

"What do you want, Gray?" Natsu asked, "And no ice skating. We've already done that this week."

Grinning wickedly, Gray cracked his knuckles. "If I win, you have to kiss Lucy, Cotton Candy Crotch." The two other teens paled at his request. "And none of that cheek bullshit. Full on, on the lips. Do we have a deal?" Honestly, with the look Natsu was giving him, Gray thought he might actually tap out and turn down a competition for the first time in the pinket's life.

"That's fine because you won't be winning," Natsu snapped, not realizing the slight look of disappointment in Lucy's eyes. However, just the chance that it could happen made her heart race. Before long, a controller was thrust into her hands. "Come on, Luce, let's show him how it's done."

"HOW THE HELL DID YOU BEAT ME SNOW FAIRY?!" Natsu shouted, Lucy taking the controller before he chucked it across the room (like the last time Gray beat him. Thank Gods for warranties).

Gray couldn't stop laughing. "That's what you get for picking The Flash," he mocked, further lighting the fire under his best friend's butt. "He's got nothing on Captain Cold." Chuckling to himself, he looked out and saw his two buddies staring at each other, faces red from nerves. Part of him felt bad for using their competitive streaks against them, but something had to be done. Gods knew Natsu would never figure it out on his own and if Lucy wouldn't look at Gray the way she did at Natsu, and the least he could do was help them sort out their feelings. Being the gentleman he was, he even offered to leave to give them privacy. He grabbed the nachos that had been long forgotten and began to snack on them as he left the room.

Natsu and Lucy both gulped as their gazes locked on each other. Neither spoke for what seemed like an eternity before Natsu broke the silence. "Look, I'll lie," he offered, panic written across his face. Lucy couldn't help but find it adorable. "I'll tell him I did it, okay? I don't want to make you do anything you don't want to do and it was a dick move of him anyw–"

The salmon-haired gamer didn't get a chance to finish his statement before Lucy closed the gap between them, taking matters into her own hands. Literally. Placing both hands on either side of Natsu's flushed face, she pulled him into her and pressed her lips against his. They stayed like that, locked together until Lucy pulled away with blushing cheeks of her own.

"Okay, Gray! You can come back in now!" she shouted, laughing as Natsu fell back against his bed in utter shock. "But this time, you're going down!"