Note: This is a bonus story to go along with my fanfic, The Video, so some events that are referenced here are in that story. Also anything that happens here does not affect/change anything in the main storyline. Think of it as another follower special, if you will.

Bonus Story: Chocolate Cake

It's a almost Christmas time, Lucy thought, The whole city's in the Christmas mood.

"Chocolate cake." She said.

"What?"

The brown eyed beauty turned to the pinkette and smiled. "Don't you think chocolate cake is a nice thing to have on Christmas?"

He looked at her and shrugged. "I guess so."

She whipped her head back around, slightly muddled. No matter, she began to hum awkwardly into her wool scarf. She was trying to find a way to subtly coax what it was that Natsu wanted for Christmas. It's hard to believe that so much had happened between them, in so little time, but it was her first time spending Christmas together with him and she wanted to get him something special.

"Well... What would you like?"

He said nothing, but stared off into a void of nothingness before he shrugged again. "I don't know."

Lucy turned away and sighed, her breathing becoming visible.

"But." He said turning to her, a mischevious glint in his eyes. "I wouldn't mind getting a little mistletoe action, and then having it become into something more and then-"

She cut him off short with an agitated hand over his mouth and a vein throbbing in her forehead.

"Oh, forget I asked. Pervert."

Snow fell all around them in little dustlings and frosty sheets of snow were on everything.

They passed by many shops on street corners, fake snowmen took temporary residency on lawns, and every building had on Christmas lights. Children were running in the winter wonderland of snow all bundled up together like babies in a blanket. Lucy pointed to a watch on display in a nearby store.

"What about that, do you want a watch?"

Natsu barely gave the display window side glance as he continued to walk and then shrug.

"Okay, what about that?" She pointed to an outfit in another store window again. He looked at it and sighed. Suddenly, he stopped walking.

"Look Lucy, this is getting annoying. I'll talk to you later, okay?"

She sharply turned around to him, her pigtails rubbing against her scarf.

"Hey, what's your damage?!"

He looked up again and shrugged.

"I don't know, I guess, I just don't see what's the big deal about Christmas." And with that he walked off, leaving her standing there in shock.

Lucy felt her chest tighten at Natsu's grievous words. She could do nothing as she watched the back of Natsu's figure get smaller and smaller as he stormed off.

"He doesn't... like Christmas?"

Bonus Story: Chocolate Cake

"So, what do you guys think we should do?"

There was an eruption of murmurs and nodding heads in the room.

"You know, I don't think I ever noticed a time where Natsu wasn't happy around Christmas," Mira mused. "But now that I think about it... Cana?"

Mira, all with all of their friends turned their heads to Cana. She nodded her head, confirming their suspicions.

"How about this," Mira interjected. "Why not throw a secret Santa party?"

Laxus scrunched his face in confusion. "Secret Santa Party?"

"Yeah, you know, we could do a secret Santa gift exchange, then throw a party on the last school day in December, exchanging the gifts."

Everyone seemed to be nodding their heads in agreement.

"And Lucy, could be the party planner." Mira finished.

Lucy sputtered. "Wha- what?"

Gajeel spoke. "Yeah, this whole thing was your idea in the first place."

The room echoed with sounds of approval.

"He's not gonna be any happier with someone throwing this party other than you." Cana spoke up.

The room was filled with "yeah's"

"So it's decided then," Lucy confirmed.

After that, for the past two weeks things have been running smoothly. Gifts were being bought, while the others spent their time helping Lucy on the party committee. Some people helped by decorating the venue, others, by volunteering to bring music and other performers as entertainment. Lastly, was catering.

While Mirajane offered to handle all the catering, (making little appetizers and finger foods to pass out on several trays during the party) Lucy told her specifically to leave the desert to her. She wanted Natsu to see her handiwork and really like it.

The Day of the party...

"What cha' doing Miss?" Lucy slowly rotated her head from her mixing bowl, to see Gray casually leaning against the kitchen counter by the big panel windows. Sunshine was pouring through the windows making him look magnificent in all his half-naked glory.

"Gray... shirt."

He let out a stream of foul language as he scrambled around to find his shirt. "Sorry," he said buttoning up his white shirt. "So much for my cool entrance."

She looked through the cookbook at the chocolate cake recipe, rereading the measurements for the ingredients, then reaching over the mixing bowl and electric mixer and picked up the flour, callously pouring it into the mixing bowl. "We're in all this frigid weather yet you still find the time to be shirtless? I hope you, Gajeel and Loke found the venue you were supposed to and secured it for us tonight."

"Yeah, yeah Debbie Nagger, we have it, it's no problem." He said, waving off her queries as if they were merely flies. "And honestly, I don't know why people make such a big deal about the weather, it's not really that cold." He said as her watched her mix in some more dry ingredients along with the flour, then continued to stare, amused, as she struggled to put in enough butter in the measuring utensils.

He secretly admired the sweat and determination dripping off her body as she continued to labor on with this cake in love. Clandestinely, he unashamedly took in how her curves managed to fill out, even when wearing an apron. Her cute little piggy-nose always seemed to scrunch when she thought she had done something wrong. Her blonde low ponytail would whip around or shake a little with every small movement she made with her head. Gray found it breathtaking.

It's official, he thought, whoever she's making this cake for is one lucky bastard.

"So..." The brunette drawled. "Who's the cake for? Your Secret Santa?" A slightly hopeful gleam in his eyes. Her Secret Santa could've been anybody. Even him.

"Nope." She said cracking an egg and adding it to her batter. "Just Natsu." She ended tersely.

"Oh..." he said flatly.

Suddenly, all at once, Home Ec. doors burst open, revealing a silver haired girl along with two blunettes.

"Who's been making chocolate cake for my best friend?!"

Lucy slammed her forehead onto the granite counter top. Forget the pain in her forehead from after that slam, nothing was more painful in this good world than having to deal with Lisanna Struass.

All the other students in the Home Ec room turned their heads towards the door where the commotion came from. Unfazed by all the negative attention she seemed to be getting, Lisanna stormed over to Lucy, blue eyes blazing.

Juvia and Levy stood in the doorway, Juvia staring heartbroken at the sight of Gray standing next to Lucy, while Gray noticed this but brushed it off.

"I heard you were making a chocolate cake for Natsu." She said accusingly, slamming her palm on the counter top.

"Shutup idiot!" Lucy admonished. "It's supposed to be a secret!"

"Well it's no secret that Natsu hates chocolate!"

"What?!" Lucy exclaimed loudly. "But I've seen him eat chocolate before!"

"Well he was probably faking it for you."

Lucy didn't have a comeback for that one, so she just stood there in silence.

"Alright," she finally spoke. "So he hates chocolate. What's your point?"

Lisanna slammed her hand on the counter top again. "This cake for Natsu, it has to be vanilla!"

"What?! Who are you to just come in here and start ordering me around? It's going to be chocolate!"

"It's vanilla!"

"It's chocolate!"

"Vanilla!"

"Chocolate!"

"Vanilla! Vanilla! Vanilla! Vanilla!"

"Chocolate! Chocolate! Chocolate! Chocolate!"

"Ladies, ladies!" Gray said nervously stepping in between the two girls just about ready to maim each other. "How about we settle this with a little competition?"

"A bake off." Lucy stated.

"Winner's cake gets to headline Natsu's Christmas party." The blue eyed teen replied.

And with that, the two girls tied on their aprons, and prepared to battle for cake-flavor dominance.

"Juvia, Levy!" The youngest Strauss sibling called. Both girls timidly reappeared from the doorway Lisanna had previously burst through from.

As Levy passed Lucy, the two made sure to avoid contact and stare at the floor, it's as if they were complete stranger's now.

Instantaneously, there was a loud voice outside the hallway. "Hey! You two, what are you doing in the halls?! Get to class!"

"Oh shit." One of the escapees crird

Suddenly, two figures quickly scampered in the Home Ec room, almost running into Levy and Juvia in proccess. "Gajeel! Loke!"

Lucy smiled at the boys' sudden arrival. "Great. Now you guys can join my team."

The two boys looked at each other. "Huh?"

"Great, so we have the teams." Gray interjected. "I'll be the referee. So who's going to be the judges?"

"We are," said an extra voice through the doorway. Everyone turned to see Mirajane, Erza and Freed.

"Big Sis!" Lisanna cried.

"Erza, Freed!" Lucy gasped, in just as much shock as her foe. "What are you guys doing here?"

"Mira and I were walking discussing something." Freed exclaimed. "Then we met Erza saying she heard the word 'cake'. And that's how we got here."

"Okay," Gray clapped his hands. "And now that we have formalities out of the way, I now officially declare this bake off... open!"

And as soon as Gray kick-started the competition, Lucy and Lisanna went straight to work, with Lisanna wasting no time.

Levy stared at the porcelain princess, eyebrows furrowed, almost afraid at the way Lisanna moved with lightning fast speed, but still kept expert technique. She supposed such a thing was to be expected since Lisanna was the little sister of Mirajane and Elfman, the two best cooks in all of Fairy Tail. So while Levy and Juvia were standing idly by in Lisanna's kitchen, meanwhile in Lucy's kitchen, Gajeel and Loke were being used as slaves.

Although, her batter was already started, Lucy was still heavily dependent on a step-by-step cookbook, unlike Lisanna who seemed to know how to make a cake from memory in her bones, giving her at an advantage. So to compensate for it, she forced Gajeel and Loke to work double time what they would normally do, and shout at them if they would mess up.

Now Gajeel and Loke were both strong in their own right, but the sight of a determined angry Lucy, was enough to reduce them to obedient zombies.

"Excellent progress you two," Lucy was finally putting the batter in oven. "At this rate we'll-"

She was cut off by a loud rude yawn. "You guys, are the three cakes ready yet?" Lisanna said lazily. "The icing's all whipped up and ready to go."

Juvia immediately had a question mark expression. "But we just put those in..."

"Shutup idiot! She's standing right there." Lisanna scolded.

Lucy was too starstruck to hear the rest. Three cake batters? That means she's made enough for the entire party already. And knowing Lisanna's skills, they probably weren't sloppily made either. At this rate, they were...

Damn that Lisanna! Lucy thought. She always has to show up and ruin everything!

Before she knew what she was doing, the blonde found herself picking up some excess cake batter from the mixing bowl, the mushy mixture cupped in her hands, she subconsciously drew her hand backwards about to fire.

"Lucy." Gajeel's voice cut through her cloudy mind. "What are ya doing?"

She sputtered, ashamed of her potential actions, when Gajeel scooped the mixture out of her hands and flung it at Lisanna's head himself.

"Without me?!"

"Hey!" Lisanna screamed. She immediately snatched an egg from the egg carton and projected it at Gajeel's face - earning a direct hit.

"Hey!" Gray called, rushing over to quell the from fight happening, but it was too late. A food fight had begun.

Flour, butter, eggs, sugar, spoons cups, anything that was accessible to the teenager's hands went flying at the enemy party.

Juvia took some store bought icing out a can, and thew it at Lucy's face. "This - is for stealing Gray-sama!"

"That's about enough!" Erza slammed her fists further unto the desk effectively extinguishing the dispute between the two parties. "Bring out the cakes - now!"

Juvia walked over to the oven, Lisanna and Lucy glaring at each other. On her way back, Juvia tripped on some butter and Lisanna's vanilla cake when flying through the air.

"Oh no!"

Everyone watched with tension and horror as the vanilla cake collided head on with Lucy's chocolate cake. Everyone in the room gasped. After a long dramatic silence, Mira walked up, and took a bite.

"Mmmm, yummy!"

Everyone looked at the eldest Strauss sibling as if she had grown two heads. Then Freed and Erza stepped up.

"This... is delicious."

"Well it's no strawberry cake but..."

"What?" Levy dipped her finger in the messy concoction and stuck it in her mouth. "This is amazing."

Soon after everyone started to dip their hands in and take a sample of the mixture of two cakes, all agreeing it was tasty. Well, all except Lucy and Lisanna. The two simply glared down at the cake, then stared down each other in a stand off. No one said anything, until Levy gave a deep sigh. "You're both acting like three-year-olds." She said, and she scooped up some mixed cake with a spoon and popped it in both their mouths. Lisanna's eyes burst open and Lucy put her fingers to her mouth.

It was delicious.

Lisanna and Lucy whipped their heads to each other and glared. Neither of them wanted to admit it.

"Well, Lisanna said. "It does have some of my vanilla in it, so I guess that's why it taste so scrumptious."

Lucy rolled her eyes. "Whatever, it's good." She couldn't help but silently notice to herself that Levy had acknowledged her presence. It was the first time in a while.

"Excellent!" Mira flew in between them, wrapping her arms around both of them. "So we'll have a chocolate vanilla mixed cake, headlining Natsu's party."

Lucy and Lisanna shared looks that both said they agreed, but reluctantly.

"Alright Lucy, you better start working on the next two chocolate cakes."

"Say what?!"

"The first one you guys made has already been dug out by us so that's no good. Also Lisanna made three cakes, so that means she has two left in the oven."

Lucy realized all that Mira said was true. She almost dropped to the floor and cried.

"Alright, see ya!" The matchmaker said, piling out of the Home Ec kitchen with Lisanna in tow and everyone else behind them including Gajeel and Loke. She noticed Erza stole the rest of the sample cake.

"I hate this..."

That afternoon at the party, food is eaten, gifts are exchanged and everybody seemed to be having a good time. The party was held in a science classroom upstairs, class 3b, it was the same classroom Natsu and Lisanna kissed Levy noticed. It was all decked out to be a winter wonderland theme. Fake snow littered the floors, the walls were spray painted white to make it look like snow was falling. There were mini trees and Christmas lights hanging up everywhere. Gray, Gajeel, and Loke did a pretty sound job.

"Natsu, come quickly!" Lucy called. The pink haired male took his phone from his ear and walked into the main room where the party was going on. Juvia walked over.

"Here," she said, dropping a small wrapped parcel into Natsu's hands. "Merry Christmas."

Natsu stared at her for a good long minute, both shocked and surprised at the sudden turn of events. "...Thank you. Juvia."

She continued to look at him then gave him a small smile. Afterwards she quickly whipped her head around. "Gray-sama!"

Natsu looked at his beloved Lucy, who was wearing a red, sexy Mrs. Clause outfit and walking around with two trays full of appetizing finger foods. "You planned this for me, didn't you?" He whispered huskily behind her ear. His breath caused goosebumps to form on her skin and heat to rise in her cheeks.

"Natsu don't do that I'm working!" She said surprised, nearly dropping the trays. She looked at the gift in Natsu's hand.

"Who'd you get that from?"

"Juvia. Why?"

She begin to look around craning her neck to somebody. Anybody. The secret Santa gift exchange portion of the party was almost over. Where was her secret santa? She had already giving her gift to Loke which was a gold chain with a lion on it.

But suddenly, it hit her, like a ton of bricks.

She forgot to put her name in the secret santa box so she didnt have anybody to get her a gift.

She slapped her hand on her forehead. How could she be so stupid? She put Natsu's name in the Secret Santa box but somehow forgot her own? Whatever, she thought, and decided that it was fine. Christmas was the time for giving, not getting after all.

"Pssst. Lucy." Someone whispered. She looked at Natsu. He shook his head. She heard it again. "Lucy. Turn around."

When the blonde did follow the person's instructions, there was a huge rectangular box shoved in her face. "Wait!" She cried, but the secret gift giver blended back in with the crowd and Lucy couldn't tell who had just blessed her with a gift. She looked at the description.

"Merry Christmas Lucy!"

No name.

Then she noticed something. Right below "Lucy" the Santa had written "Lu-chan" and then scotched it off with several scribbled lines.

Lu-chan? She thought. The only person that had ever called her Lu-chan was...

"Everybody!" Mira called. "It's time to bring out, the Christmas cake!"

The cake appeared from under the case Erza had hidden it under and Lucy had to admit, Erza and Mira did a fantastic job at decorating it. The words on the cake said, "Merry Christmas Natsu! Love, your friends."

The crowd cheered. Natsu started to blush when Cana made sure to mention that Lucy made it.

In the end, Natsu decided to split it with everyone, and the entire party had a slice of cake. Once that was finished, Natsu had disappeared once more.

It was sometime during the night, and the party had just reached its climax. Cana had just finished thanking Lucy personally for all the hard work that she's done. She told her, Christmas day, was the day that Natsu's father had decided to leave him, and that's why he's always so bitter.

Lucy found him on the rooftop of the school, where she usually ate lunch, on his phone again, staring at the sky.

"Yeah, yeah I love you too... bye." He tapped his phone to end the call.

"Hey..." Lucy said softly. He quickly swiveled his head around to find his blonde angel.

"Hi," he said his face overtaking with a smile. When she had finally gotten to the point right next to him, he began to speak.

"Uhhh,"

"I-"

They both talked simultaneously, then Lucy pointed her palm out towards him as a gesture for him to go first.

"I just wanted to say thank you, Lucy. Nobody's ever done something so..."

He looked at her and was at a loss for words. "You're amazing." He said. She smiled at him, and then her face turned slightly pink. "Thanks. You're pretty special to me as well."

There was an uncomfortable yet comfortable silence between them.

"You know," she spoke, her voice was light and eerie. "Cana told me everything." She reached out her hand in understanding. He generously accepted. "About you and your dad." She looked back up and the sky. "And how he left you alone on Christmas Eve."

The wind picked up a little rustling Natsu's pink tresses and gently blowing Lucy's blonde locks with the breeze.

"I know..." he said, bowing his head so that his hair was covering his eyes. "I know its juvenile but... I really just wanted to be with my dad for Christmas... even if it's for one last time."

The girl sighed.

"I know how that is." Lucy said quietly. "My mom died and it was like, I had no other family members. Even though my dad is still breathing." She looked at him conflicted with deep sadness in her eyes. "My Christmases were spent with the maids and the kitchen staff in my house. They took the place of my biological parents." She scoffed. "But then that's what made me realize that Christmas didn't have to be spent with biological parents, no, they could be spent with whoever is precious to you. And whoever it is that's precious to you, is where you'll find love. Not all the time in biological relationships, but organic connections you make with people, making them special to you. No matter in what shape or form."

The Christmas party downstairs raged on. You could hear Gajeel and Loke going on a rampage with the soda from upstairs.

"That's what Ms. Sphetto and the rest of the staff are to me. They are precious. They are my family."

"Yeah, that's it. That's what I'm missing."

"A family?" She asked, afraid that her words may have fallen on deaf ears.

"Of course not. Just realizing that I've been surrounded with family all this time. Cana and Gildarts, who try so hard every year to make me have a great Christmas, you guys, our friends, always worrying about me and then there's you."

"You're really something else."

"I uh, just wanted to say that, I'm glad we're..." he removed his hands and gave her a platonic smile. "Friends."

His words had struck Lucy as odd considering the circumstances. Considering that he loved her despite her not loving him back.

Perhaps it was fear. She became stricken with fear, thinking that maybe all that abuse and pushing - away finally got to him and that he decided to stop pursuing her. A fear that maybe he stopped loving her.

Maybe it was impulse, she was a normal teenage girl, after all. And he was a teenage boy.

She knew that at the moment, that she didn't want to get into a serious relationship with anybody.

But she also knew that she definitely didn't want that. For him to give up on her and move on. For him to think that his efforts were in vain. Because in a way, they weren't.

She wanted to be closer with him. How close? She couldn't tell, but her relationship with him was now teetering on the line of "nothing" and "something", and from what she was trying to do to him right now, she was practically dancing on that border.

"Lucy...?" She had reconnected their hands, staring at him with need and want, gradually leaning forward.

She wanted to be closer.

She needed to be closer. She wanted him to wrap his hands round her waist (like he had just done) and pull her tighter. She wanted him to tell her just how much he needed her.

She wanted him lean forward, and kiss her. Yeah, french kiss her in the moonlight for Christmas Eve. Why not.

Dammit! Why was his figure in the moonlight so... alluring. She thought to herself. She knew she didn't usually act like this around him. Something was different. But it wasn't just how romantic the moonlight made him look, it was all just Natsu. For once he wasn't making a joke, or giving her cheesy pick up lines, or teasing her. He was being raw, he was giving her real feelings, and Lucy couldn't help but be attracted to it.

Natsu looked at Lucy, basking in a heavenly glow. Her beauty in the moonlight... it enraptured him. As much as he internally screamed not to, he dipped his head. "Lucy..."

Why was she doing this to him? Knowing full well she probably wouldn't kiss him back, or slap him even though she was the one who initiated the kiss.

But he couldn't lie to himself for so long. He saw her hair swaying in the breeze, not yelling at him or insulting him or hurting him, she was... comforting him. She really did care. And now, as much as he didn't want to, he was now in such a compromising position with her. Hands on her waist, her body pressed against his, forehead touching, noses touching, and now lips about to connect.

"Natsu..." She whispered.

"Yeah?" He said.

"I think I lo-" But Lucy was interrupted when the door to the rooftop entrance came flying open.

"Natsu!"

It was Lisanna.

At this point, Lucy had flew from Natsu, face red, and waist over the railing about to throw up since Lisanna basically gave her a heart attack. Natsu separated from the blonde, embarrased too.

"I've been looking everywhere for you!"

"Lisanna, couldn't you have a chosen a better time to come? I was in the middle of something here!"

"No I couldn't have because my sister is looking for you and she wants you downstairs, pronto." She grabbed onto his wrist and dragged him out. "Let's go."

"But, hold on!"

"Nope, now, Natsu now!"

And despite several more protests, he was still dragged out of the dining area. After a few seconds Lucy brought her face up and looked around. Her heart was racing a mile a minute replaying the events that had just occurred in head two seconds ago. Her head was spinning and her vision was blurry.

Was I really going to...

She couldn't even finish her own thought because she knew they the answer to that.

"Yeah. You were." She said. She stared off into the deep blue space. After a while she giggled.

He smelt like my chocolate cake.

Merry late Christmas and a happy new year everybody! This is my first oneshot guys! So how is it, is it good, or is it bad? I love you all!