Greetings awesome people who are taking the time to read this! I am so pumped by how many people have read the first two chapters, and so excited to have people following this story. For those of you who favorited my story...I am so flattered, and I hope that my writing continues to be worthy of that honor. THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU to those of you who reviewed so far, and I hope that I can get some more reviews for this chapter too! - Special thanks to Alexa for helping me decide on the POV of chapter three. I plan on making this story mostly from Lucy's POV, but I do plan on switching to a few other characters from time to time. Ok, with that said, please enjoy Chapter 3!

Natsu sighed as he slumped down further into his seat by the bar. Even Mira's efforts to cheer up the normally upbeat and energetic dragon-slayer had failed. Although his guild mates were concerned, they knew the only person who could cheer him up was certain celestial mage, and she was currently away on a job.

Natsu shifted uncomfortably on the bar stool, wishing Lucy would hurry back from her job. He felt as if there was something important missing, and although he couldn't figure out why, he only felt better when Lucy was there with him. He opened his mouth to let out another sigh, but was interrupted by a cold fist slamming into the side of his face.

"What the hell popsicle prince?!" Natsu yelled, jumping up from where he had been knocked onto the floor. "You wanna fight me?!"

"I just got tired of you making pathetic faces and sighing all the damn time!" Gray answered with a smirk, "I know that you miss Lucy, but you moping around like this is seriously grating on my nerves."

"Hmph," Natsu grunted, turning away. "Whatever, I don't feel like wasting my time fighting with a freaky frosty like you." Natsu noticed his guild mates staring at him in surprise.

"What'd you call me you idiotic inferno?!" Gray snapped back, recapturing Natsu's attention. "I never thought I'd see the day ash-for-brains would turn down a fight. Do you finally admit you can't defeat me?" Anger flared inside Natsu, and his longing for Lucy was temporarily forgotten as he threw himself into another pointless fist fight with Gray.

An hour later, after demolishing two tables, five chairs, and a few other various guild property pieces, Natsu stumbled back over to the bar. His head still ringing from a lucky right hook from Erza, he sat down and let his body fall forward, resting his head on the counter. "Are you alright, Natsu?" Mira asked, approaching him with a kind smile. Natsu head throbbed with pain, but his pride wouldn't allow him to admit it. Deciding to give a noncommittal grunt, his turned his head to face her. "I'm sorry you are feeling so down, but I'm sure Lucy will be back soon! The job she took was only supposed to last a day," Mira said, trying again to cheer him up. Natsu sensed that feeling of being incomplete creeping back into him, and grew even more depressed. Noticing this, Mira tried again with a different approach. "If you are worried, I could give you the details to her mission. It isn't to far, I bet you could catch a train and meet her there before she rides back home."

"No," Natsu spoke, waves of regret and frustration rolling off of him. "Last time I followed her it didn't go so well, remember?" Natsu caught Mira's wince out of the corner of his eye, and felt a grimace forming on his own face as the memory of that disaster returned to him. "I'm going to go home for the night, see ya later," Natsu said, sliding off of the bar stool. As he walked towards the door, he felt the pressure of his guild mates eyes on his back. Ignoring them, he continued on his way home. Natsu got about half way to his house before he remembered that his flying feline companion wouldn't be there. Happy had gone on a job with Wendy and Carla and wouldn't be back until tomorrow. Natsu changed his mind and began walking to Lucy's apartment instead.

As he walked through Magnolia, he passed by a magazine vendor's stand. Natsu felt rage boiling underneath his skin as he remembered what he had found there two days before… Natsu had been walking to Lucy's, feeling excited about the latest job he had picked out for them. They had been going on a lot of jobs with the whole team lately, taking on more difficult (and more high paying) jobs with Erza and Gray. Although it made Lucy happy to take on those jobs, simply because she didn't have to go on as many to make her monthly rent payment, Natsu wanted to go on a job with just Lucy. When Happy told him he wanted to go on a job with Carla and Wendy, Natsu knew it was his chance to spend some time with just Lucy. Although he didn't really understand why, he had been feeling a little annoyed lately by how much time Lucy had been spending with Erza and Gray. Refusing to admit he was jealous, Natsu repeatedly interrupted Lucy's discussion with the other two members of Team Natsu. Butting into conversations, and sometimes even physically placing himself in between them and Lucy, he had pissed off his teammates enough to earn him several punches and sharp glares. After Happy announced he was leaving for the job with Wendy and Carla, Natsu had shot off to the guild hall. He almost laughed, remembering the surprised faces of his fellow guild mates when he proudly declared he was taking a SOLO mission with JUST LUCY! Everyone had sweat dropped, but Natsu had simply shrugged and then began running towards Lucy's apartment. Along the way, Natsu's ears picked up someone saying "Lucy" and "Fairy Tail". His curiosity peaked, Natsu had stopped and gone over to the vendor's stand. A group of teenage boys were standing in a circle, all looking at a magazine and snickering. A bad feeling had begun to grow in Natsu's stomach as he observed their jeering faces. "What'd you say about Lucy?" Natsu growled threateningly. Natsu struggled to contain his rage as he listened to the stuttering boys pathetic explanation. "Let me get one thing straight before I beat you senseless," Natsu hissed, "Lucy has earned her place on the strongest team in Fairy Tail because she is one of the strongest wizards in Fairy Tail. She is also the strongest person I knew, and one of my most precious nakama. I won't tolerate you scum even thinking of her as weak." A smile formed on Natsu's face as he remembered how great pummeling those pathetic trash-talkers had felt. After teaching them a lesson, Natsu had given the terrified vendor all of the money he had with him, and ripped every single magazine with that stupid article off the shelf. Gathering them in a pile, Natsu had felt great satisfaction when he lit them on fire and incinerated every last one. With that finished, he had continued on to Lucy's apartment. Since it had taken him a while to get there, Lucy had already woken up by the time he arrived. Hearing the sound of rushing water, Natsu assumed she was in the shower. After helping himself to everything in her kitchen, Natsu had collapsed onto Lucy's bed to wait for her to finish getting ready.

Returning to the present, Natsu held a hand to where she had Lucy kicked him upon discovering him in her room. He still didn't understand why she was so mad, but he hadn't been able to focus on her yelling at him either since she was clad only in a much too small bathing towel. Natsu shook his head, trying to clear it of that mental image. Natsu groaned in frustration as the image continue to tease him. Natsu knew that he was physically attracted to Lucy, he wasn't quite as dense as most people believe him to be, he just didn't understand why. Natsu recognized that most of his female nakama had bodies that most men would drool over, but he had never been affected by them. He saw them as nakama and respected them for their strength and talents. Confusion and vexation coursed through him as he ran a hand through his salmon locks. He just couldn't figure out why he had such weird and strange feelings when he was around Lucy these days. It wasn't just her body that was affecting him either though. Lately, there were so many little things she would do that would set him off. Sometimes when Lucy would laugh, it made him feel warm inside. This confused him because he was a fire dragon slayer so he was used to being warm, but for some reason this warmth felt different. When Lucy would get mad at him and puff out her cheek in frustration, she looked so cute he couldn't help but continue to tease her. This confused him to. Since when did he start thinking of things as cute?! But the worst was when Lucy smiled with that special smile that was just for him. It made his heart skip a beat and strange emotions rush through him. It also made him have to most bizarre desire to hold her close and never let her go. Natsu let out a nervous laugh as he pictured Lucy's response to him grabbing her close like that. "She would probably blush and get all flustered…and then Lucy kick me," he mused.

"Oi! Pink-haired loud mouth!" screamed a irritatingly familiar voice.

"What do you want you old hag?" Natsu responded, looking up to find himself in front of Lucy's apartment.

"Remind that blonde bimbo that rent is due tomorrow and if it isn't on time, I'm doubling it!" screeched Lucy's landlady.

"Yeah, yeah, she'll have the money on time…bossy old hag," Natsu answered, mumbling the last part. The landlady's sharp glare warned him that his mumbling had been heard and he took off before she could retaliate. Waiting until the old hag had departed, Natsu scaled the apartment with ease, making his usual entrance through Lucy's window. Natsu braced himself for a Lucy kick, a shrill scream, or even an exasperated "Natsu!", but was greeted only by silence. Although he hadn't really expected her to back from her mission already, disappointment washed over him in waves. Natsu wandered around Lucy's apartment a bit, helping himself to a "few" snacks in the kitchen before climbing into Lucy's bed. Settling down into Lucy's super soft and comfy bed, he breathed in deeply. If he was honest with himself, he loved how comfortable Lucy's bed was, but the best part was being immersed in her scent, which always lingered, even if she wasn't home. Even though Natsu knew Lucy would be angry to find him in her bed, he wanted to be the first one to see her when she got back…even if she Lucy kicked him.

Aw...so much fluff at the end. ;) I know that Natsu may be a bit OC, but I'm trying my best to balance his normal "Natsu charm" with his changing feelings toward Lucy. Thank you, again, for all the support I have received so far, and I hope that you will continue to do so. It is really encouraging and exciting when people review, so I'd love to get some more reviews for this chapter.