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Fluff Week Prompt #5: Count On Me

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Weeds

By AbsentAngel

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She might have overreacted.

Scratch that – she knew she overreacted. She had told Natsu time and time again to use her door instead of her bedroom window like some creep, but he never listened. Most days she put up with it – gave him the obligatory chastising, and washed her hands of it. But damn it, she had really liked that little flower box that sat outside her window.

It always brightened her mornings to see the colorful petals swaying on their bright, leafy stems. Now they were nothing more than a pile of dirt and splinters because the poor little box could only take so much of a certain dragon slayer's abuse. So, yeah, she had been pissed to say the least when she saw the remains of her charming window box in a shattered mess on the cobbled street below. The fact that it would be coming out of her (very limited) earnings that month didn't exactly help soothe the sting of her bitterness either, but even still...

She knew she could have handled it better.

The flash of hurt that crossed his face when she screamed at him, the way he flinched back when she accused him of destroying everything, told her that she let her anger carry her words too far. Now, hours later, she found herself sick with guilt as she stared up at the ceiling. The ire that was thrumming under her skin before was now just a hollow ache – one she knew only had a single cure.

Lucy sighed, rolling to her side and swinging her legs over until her socked feet laid flat against the floorboards. She pulled on her boots with heavy hands, apprehension tightening her chest.

She needed to go apologize.

It was the right thing to do, and she would rather face an uncomfortable apology now than risk letting bitter feelings strain their friendship in the future. A window box – no matter how adorable, how cherished – was just material. Natsu... well, Natsu was the most important person in her life. He was her best friend; her partner.

Her maybe-something-more.

She allowed a soft groan to pass her lips before she forced herself from the comfort of her bed. There was already too much on her metaphorical plate to be thinking about how to spell out their relationship status. They had been teetering between that invisible line for too long, and she had kept herself up on more than a few nights with thoughts of whether she should make a move to tip the scales. She still hadn't come up with an answer and, honestly, she didn't expect to anytime soon – certainly not today. Today she needed to concentrate on mending the friendship she just bruised.

She grabbed her set of keys off her nightstand and left her apartment, pausing only to lock the door behind her. Nervous energy made her steps a little bit quicker, her pulse jump a little bit faster. Part of her was tempted to turn back and run to the safety of her little apartment and put off any possible confrontation seeing Natsu might cause, but she forced herself forward with measured steps.

She assumed he would be at the guild (he was always at the guild) but when she exited her building she nearly tripped over her own feet when she found him pacing under her window. He was covered in dirt – soil dusting his hair and darkening his skin. In his hands she spied a small terracotta pot, but before she could identify the green peaking above the rim his eyes found hers. "Lucy!" There was a panicked edge to his gaze, a stiffness in his shoulders that told her that he wasn't expecting her to find him. "I, um..."

She stepped towards him. "Natsu, what –"

He shoved the potted plant towards her, his cheeks tinged with embarrassment and his gaze averted. "Here."

Gently, she took it from his dirty, calloused hands but barely glanced at the weeping plant. Her eyes were too busy evaluating his face, trying to make sense of exactly what was happening. "I don't understand..."

"I'm sorry!" he said, his words rushed but no less sincere.

Still stunned, she looked down at the plant in her hands, examining it carefully. It had little white flowers at the top of a thin stalk and long, bladed leaves. She recognized it almost immediately – the gardner back at her childhood home used to always complain about how he could never for the life of him get rid of all of it. Looking at the care Natsu took to transplant it into the little pot, Lucy didn't have the heart to tell him that he had just gifted her with a weed instead of a flower. Besides, she found it almost… charming.

It wasn't the bright colored tulips that had graced her window up until that morning, but it made her smile nonetheless. Something about those weeping leaves and stubbornly straight stalk reminded her of her partner. Even despite being transplanted by Natsu's rough, inexperienced hands, she knew that it would thrive in that little pot. Just like him, it would be too stubborn to give way under any harsh conditions and, just like him, it was bound to surprise her by blooming every now and then.

She smiled, tucking her hair behind her ear and feeling a rush of fondness for the man in front of her. This whole time she had worried that he wouldn't forgive her. Thinking on it now she realized how silly it sounded – Natsu forgave everyone. Had she really thought he would be sulking and feeling bitter towards her? She shook her head, admiring the earth colored pot in her hands. "You know," she said teasingly, "Most guys would give a girl cut flowers."

He frowned, rubbing the back of his neck. "That's what Gray said, but he's an idiot. Why would I get you something that was just going to die in a few days?"

The thoughtfullnes of his words momentarily surprised her into silence. Suddenly the little flower pot in her hands felt so much more fragile – so much more valuable. "Thank you," she whispered, heart full. "This was really sweet of you."

He shifted his weight, eyes meeting hers hesitantly. "I know it's not the same... but maybe this will do until I can fix your other one?"

She hummed and, feeling brave, closed the small distance between them until only the potted plant separated them. As her lips brushed against his cheek she heard his short intake of breath. When she pulled away, he was staring down at her – his eyes wide and questioning. She licked her lips, suddenly unsure. "I think it will do just fine," she murmured, her heart hammering in her chest.

For a moment he continued to stare down at her, blinking. Then, his mouth curled into a grin so large that his eyes crinkled in the corners. Lucy answered him with one of her own, feeling laughter bubbling in her chest.

Natsu was a weed all right – he rooted himself in her life, and no matter how many times she managed to pull him from a particular flower bed he would always find his way back. He was stubborn and tenacious, and even when he was away she could always count on him to come back. With Natsu, she never had to worry about whether she would see him again come the following season. He was always there and, even if he could be a bit of a nuisance at times, she knew she would rather have him than any kind of temporary beauty that a flower might bring.

Besides… it wasn't really a weed if she wanted it there.

AN: A late submission to Fluff Week. :)