A.N: I love all of your guys' support and commentary! I was just a little shocked that I didn't see anyone notice and point out Lucy kissing Natsu on the forehead (maybe it was just hidden? Lol) but here's another chapter for y'all!

Natsu was curious as to what his girlfriend had to say, it was completely unlike her to ask something out of the blue. He replied to meet at his house because it'd be easiest.

And he didn't know if another fight would break out, and that's the last thing he needs to have on the local newspapers about him outside of boxing. A public display would not be his kind of audience for this.

He sighed and ran a hand through his hair, exasperating, "Lis, what's up?"

He saw her gulp, raising an eyebrow until she said, "I need to come clean."

The boxer tapped his fingers against the kitchen counter, glancing around. "About?.." The question hung in the air momentarily.

"All the things I hid," Lisanna sighed, reaching back to tighten her low pigtails. "And about us, I don't know how to say it though."

Natsu's eyes widened, his breath and heart freezing after the words slipped from her lips. He couldn't tell if this was a fluke, or if this was truly about their relationship.

"I don't deserve you, and I'm sorry that I'm telling you this now." Lisanna looked up to see Natsu's heavy gaze locked on her, the sorrow and regret already building up in her chest.

Natsu didn't speak, only rolling his hands into fists, then loosening, repeating over from the heavy weight that began in his chest. The way she shifted, fingers touching her hair and clothes, he had an awful feeling swell.

"I don't want to hurt you because I've done awful things behind your back," Lisanna whispered, tears prickling her eyes already.

His eyes hardened. "Well it sure sounds like you will anyways."

Her lips pressed together, keeping from tears to spill. "You're a great guy, and our friendship means everything to me, I don't want to keep fighting these meaningless arguments and believe it's an excuse to run off."

Natsu blinked, his heart throbbing in anticipation.

"I don't love you, and I can't keep lying to myself or you."

When the words fell, Natsu didn't feel any pain, and that moment froze in time to admit to himself.

He didn't love her either.

"I know you don't love me like that either, and the way things are between us, it's not right."

Natsu nodded his head, biting his tongue. "You're right, and I... Gray and Levy, they've told me that they think believe that you've been cheating on me."

Lisanna inhaled sharply, the fear sinking in. It whispered to her in its cackling voice, taunting her from her mistakes, reminding every weakness that soon made her heart ache.

She was going to put it on the line once and for all.

"They're not wrong," She choked, wiping tears that fell onto her cheeks.

"What?" Natsu's voice rose quickly with every muscle in his body tightening. "What the hell do you mean by that?"

"I've been cheating on you with Bickslow, I'm sorry," Lisanna broke down, covering her mouth to hold back sobs.

"Unbelievable, fucking unbelievable," He scoffed, taking one glance at a certain spot on the wall.

"Natsu, please understand.."

"Do you know what loyalty fucking is? Do you?! Because that's what I gave you!" Natsu raged, yanking his hair between his fingers. "I didn't cheat on you once, and this is what I receive? What the fuck, this is bullshit." He swung a fist and smashed a whole in the wall. "For how long?"

"I'm sorry," Lisanna whimpered, jumping as soon as his fist connected, tears flowing from her eyes. "I'm so, so sorry. I love you, but as a friend. It's been long, I don't even know how many months. Na-"

"How long were you going to keep this from me?"

A smile cracked through her silent sobs for a moment. "If I hadn't met Lucy, I wouldn't have ever come clean."

Natsu froze.

Lucy had something to do with this?

"She knew you were cheating on me, is that what this is?" He bellowed. He took a step closer. "Tell me what the fuck do you mean about Lucy?!I thought you hated her."

"No, she helped me be honest with myself, and I realized that I was only playing my part in this reltionship because I didn't want to break your heart. I see that it was long past due, but she told me being honest is the best thing I could do," Lisanna sobbed, wiping her eyes. "I wasn't brave enough to tell you how I truly feel!"

Natsu took a few deep breaths, hearing her out.

When did her and Lucy ever talk?

"She's a beautiful person, Natsu. Inside and out. Don't ever take her for granted, because she'll treat you better than I ever have or will."

What was she talking about?

"We're over, I hope you know that, I'm done," He hissed, partially from the throbbing pain shooting up his arm. "I gave you money, a home to share, me, and you couldn't have told me before you went with that fucking ass?"

He was livid, the fire burning in his bones so wild that it'd sure make him break more things in the house. Never had someone thrown away his trust for nothing. Months, he'd stood up whenever Gray'd made some sly comment, but it turns out he was being played the whole time. What else was he supposed to give her?

All he knew at this point that Lucy would never lie like her.

"Lisanna, if you'd told me earlier, this would've been easier because I've been thinking we should break up." Natsu glared at her, his bitter tone rising. "But to lie and use me, I would've still cared for you, relationship or not, but I can't fucking believe it. With my used-to-be best friend too?"

Lisanna nodded her head, hiccuping in between sobs and praying that the floor would fall through and swallow her. "I'm sorry, I don't have feelings-"

"It's not about fucking feelings, I've been doubting for a long time, and now I know ever since she came!" Natsu slammed his palm to the wall again, keeping his hands away from yanking his hair out of his scalp.

"Why didn't you say anything then, either? I've seen it since you met Lucy, I'm not stupid. I'm not oblivious to when you look at her Instagram, or whenever you smile after she texts you."  Lisanna gave a shaky breath, composing herself. "I've been spending my time with Bicks because I didn't see why I should put in effort when I wasn't getting your attention."

Natsu swallowed hard.

"Does she make you happy?"

Her voice rang in his head again, too many times to keep count, and she was right all along.

A small smile formed on his lips and chuckled, nodding his head. "I guess I'll help you move your stuff out of here in the next few days, huh?"

That girl saw the good in everyone, and he didn't understand why. Every time he pictured her in his mind, it was like the sun. She'd light up everyone around her, bringing out their best without having to try. Just a smile and everyone brightened. A cheerful personality, complete honestly without sugar-coating and still sounding like word of poetry.

Lisanna bit back a smile from the soft gaze in his eyes, having a guess on who he was thinking about. "Yes."

He wouldn't be lonely for too long, she was sure of it.

__________ ∙∘✧❀✧∘∙__________

Lisanna drove to Bickslow's apartment, speeding over the speed limit. She had to let him be the first to know, he deserved it.

Her hands shook as she used the extra key to unlock the door and stepped inside to see him playing a computer game with a basketball game on the TV.

He looked over with a grin, his eyes lighting up. "Hey Lis, I've been missing you like ca-razy!"

"You dork, it's only been last night," Lisanna laughed, leaning against the small dining table.

"I was lonely, thought you weren't gon' come back," He teased, sending a wink before turning back to his game, but took his gaming headphones off.

Lisanna took a slow breath, biting back a smile. "Speaking of coming back.."

The tapping from his fingers on his gaming console stopped, turning his head a sliver to let her know he was listening.

"I think I want to stay with you."

All the gaming stopped, his blue hair falling in his face when he snapped his head around. "What are you saying?"

Lisanna smiled brighter, rocking back and forth on her toes excitedly and her heart aching in her chest.

Bickslow slowly stood up. "Don't tell me you... you and him?.."

Nodding her head, "I want to really be with you."

Happy tears poured down as Bickslow paced around the room, the brightest smile she'd ever seen on him, his hands waving and running through his hair.

He turned on his heels and brought Lisanna in his arms before he began to sob in her shoulder, his tears seeping into her clothes. Hot and jagged breaths nipped at her neck, his hands clutching her dearly. "I love you, I love you," he said repeatedly.

Her fingers wove through his navy hair, arms around his neck and placed butterfly kisses against his cheek. "I'm so sorry for everything," Lisanna whispered, nuzzling into him closer. "I really do love you, I'm sorry it took me so long."

"I'd wait forever, I don't care, you're always gonna be mine for now on and nobody else's." Bickslow gripped her thighs, sneaking his hands behind and picked her up, her legs latching around his waist. "I can't fucking believe it, and if you're lyin' I swear-"

Lisanna leaned in and gently kisses Bickslow's lips, feeling them shape into a smile. This was the feeling she loved, she felt like she was walking on air. It was entrancing, the way he kissed her was passionate but soft, tender.

She laughed as he brought and laid her down on his bed, placing tickling kisses all on her neck, jaw, cheeks, and lips. "You do this to me, all these feelings I have, you have no idea," He mumbled between, glancing into her eyes. "Have you told anyone else?"

"I wanted you to be the first to know." She hadn't felt this happiness in the longest time. Ruby eyes gazed into her with excitement and lust, a genuine smile seen after every kiss. "I promise I'll be better."

Their foreheads touched, matching smiles and loving kisses that were long due, but nothing was worth more than the moment.

__________ ∙∘✧❀✧∘∙__________

Natsu was processing what happened earlier today.

He was fucking single.

And he's never gone through a breakup before, all he knew is he was livid, anger still coursing through him like untamed flamed because of how she treated him.

He picked up his phone and dialed her number, already memorizing it by heart.

The sound on the other line picked up. "Aloha, Natsu."

"I need to talk to you, I'm coming over to your place."

"Wait, what? Something wrong?" Her voice perked up.

"I'll be there soon."

"Maika'i, drive safe."

He smiled at her words, saying a quick goodbye before hanging up, grabbing his backpack and taking off on his motorcycle. As he arrived at a stop light, his deceiving mind just needed to remember that dream he recently had, and he almost had a panic attack.

How the hell was he supposed to act normal around her? Deep breaths? Don't think about anything, just be cool. Right?

A car behind him honked, scaring him shitless from spacing out before speeding up just a little too fast, the tired skidding on the ground, most likely to leave a random mark on the spot.

It didn't take long for him to pull up in front of the apartment building, not surprised to see her in her usual outfit, sitting on the stairs by the door.

"Hey."

He didn't see that she'd noticed his slumped shoulders, his voice softer than normal. Right now, he felt confused, frustrated, and all of the above. Talking to Gray would only rile him up to socket him in the gut, and he certainly didn't look forward to Gajeel's antics.

He needed comfort, a soft place to relax and have someone who was honest and gentle.

"I'm sorry if my place isn't exactly up to par with yours, it's a little embarrassing." He followed her through the small door and narrowed, rusty hallways, then taking an elevator to the fifth floor.

He hadn't expected her place to be this small. A tiny living room space, a kitchen, and a short hallway he assumed it lead to her room. "It's alright, don't worry about that."

His heart skipped a beat realizing this was the first time walking into her home.

He met Lucy's eyes, giving off an embarrassed vibe. "E kala mai." She shifted her feet, rocking back and forth. "There's not much here."

"Weirdo, I don't care. I just didn't want to deal with the shit I have to do at my house now."

"I guess I should get comfortable because," Lucy kicked off her shoes all the way to the doorway and smacking against the wall, "someone needs to spill the tea."

Natsu's jaw tightened. "Yeah, and you're in it."

He had almost regret saying those words from the scarce look flashing in her eyes, audibly gulping. All he wanted to do was lie on her small couch and maybe have her tell him a story, he knew she loved reading and writing by now.

He just had to find out why Lisanna brought her up.

"Okay..." She mumbled.

He didn't hesitate to sit on the left side of the two-person couch, shaking his head. "I'm just pissed."

"About?"

"Lisanna." His hands clenched to see her eyes widen. "You knew about it."

She opened her mouth to reply, but fell short.

"You knew she was fucking cheating on me and didn't bother to tell me."

Her soft gaze hardened, taking him by surprise. "I've known only since last night, don't blame me because I knew twenty-four hours before you did."

Natsu gapped, but heard her continue. "And don't think for a second I'll put up with being put down from not hearing my side of the story."

He dryly gulped.

"I just don't understand, I thought that you and her-" He breathed heavily through his nose, "I think it's skeptical for her to tell you before me, that's all. She didn't like you at all."

Lucy softly smiled. "That was a while ago, but she had her reasons."

"And why tell me now? After months of lying to my face, and she said that if 'she hadn't met you she wouldn't have gotten the courage to tell me' bullshit, why's that?" He questioned, narrowing his eyes. "You're really taking her side on this? I broke up with her, and not to mention I've been thinking about it for a while cause Gray n' Levy wouldn't shut up."

"I never said I took her side, I told her to be honest with herself, and you especially. I said she needed to tell you the truth of what she was doing." She shook her head, a saddened gaze in her eyes. "I never said what she did to you was right."

Natsu stared at her, realizing her words. He'd cussed her out for knowing behind his back, but really she was doing him a favor. The biggest favor he's wanted, for Lisanna to tell him the truth, that's all he asked of her and never received it. Nobody had that kind of power on her until now.

"I'm sorry," Natsu said softly, "I shouldn't have said that to you. I should be saying thank you, I don't know how you managed to do that." He chuckled, rubbing his arms. "How do you do that? You're friends with everyone."

"I just try to be my best, I think everyone has a good side to them. Well, most people."

Most people, and he knew she was excluding Loke from that statement.

"No, really. Thank you for somehow pulling all her bullshit out. If you hadn't... If I hadn't met you, I'd still be fucking miserable in that relationship."

Natsu saw she had a worried look on her face, a deep expression in her eyes. "I'm sorry she cheated on you, that's something I can't control."

He waved it off. "It's whatever, just mad she couldn't tell me earlier because this could've been done and over with several months ago, damn."

Lucy perked up with a questioning look. "You're just mad because she didn't tell you earlier?"

"I really haven't had the same feelings, just goin' through the motions, y'know? I didn't want to break up with her because I thought it was too long. Sorta funny that I thought that until you told me about you and Loke," Natsu chuckled, running a hand through his hair. She made him see a lot of things differently now, as by cutting off anything that wasn't helping him for the future.

"Lisanna told me she was scared to tell you, she didn't want to intentionally hurt you that bad. She still cares for you, you should be lucky for that, Loke never had that kindness."

Natsu sadly smiled. She still managed to calm him down, convince him to be grateful that Lisanna never wanted to hurt him in the long run. Yes, maybe they weren't dating anymore, but she still cared for his wellbeing.

He frowned, wondering what Loke could've done to her that even she wouldn't give him benefit of the doubt.

"You need anything? I know it feels awkward, did you come straight here after breaking up?" Lucy asked, poking his leg with her socked foot.

"Yeah, you're a good person to talk to. Wouldn't trade ya for the world." He grinned at the subtle rosy color blossoming on her face, but eyed her foot after a moment.

"Thanks, that mean a-sto-op!" Lucy screamed once he grabbed her foot and started tickling it, erupting into a frenzy. "I have a kick that your face doesn't want to meet!"

Natsu smirked. "We'll see 'bout that." He grabbed her legs and wedged them between his, now trapped. His laughter boasted like ripples in a pond that met her rebelling shrieks, frustrating her to no end as his fingers kept running across the bottoms of her feet.

After a few minutes of "torture", according to Lucy, she'd successfully landed a kick right to his chest that made him shut down and keel over. "Ha'i iā'oe," she fired back, sticking out her tongue. "Means I told you so."

Natsu wheezed, clutching his hands on his chest, "got it."

He felt her hand run through his hair, bringing a smile to his face, leaning into her touch until she got up and walked to the kitchen.

"So, how does it feel to be single?" Lucy teased, grabbing out a jumble of chicken flavored ramen packets.

"Never felt better," Natsu coughed, easing his way to sit up again. Man, that kick was going to leave a sore spot, and tomorrow was another big night for him too. "What do you do usually? I mean, I've never actually dealt with this before..."

"Get drunk and listen to every Taylor Swift album." Lucy laughed when Natsu gaped, then chuckled and ran a hand through his hair. "Drown in my own tears."

"You're not serious."

Lucy glanced at him, a serious glint in her eyes. "If you're not going to respect Taylor Swift, you can leave because I know every song and album she's put out."

Natsu audibly gulped, nodding his head. She can be scary when she wants to be that's for sure. He was so used to Lisanna refusing to play any tune that had the young artist in it, she despised Taylor Swift with a passion. "Yes ma'am."

He heard no response, so he glanced over to see her making something on the stove, then heard a  jumpy song play softly in the background. "What are you playing?"

"Taylor Swift."

Guess he was going to have to get used to this, but moving on from the past was everything he needed.

Natsu got up and hovered a few feet away, leaning against the counter. She picked up one of the empty packets and held it up for him to see. "Chicken flavor?"

He laughed, nodding his head.

She didn't seem to mind him watching her shuffle her feet to the music, humming along with the melodies. He thought she was very entertaining, whereas Lisanna would be completely silent while making any sort of meal.

They were quite different, but he was really liking the change already. It was more lively; as if every rain cloud in the sky cleared for the sun that brightened everything in its path.

Natsu shifted his weight. "I really mean it, thank you for what you did."

Lucy caught his soft gaze, smiling back.

She smiled wider when he took a few steps in and pulled her close, wrapping his arms around her. His embrace was warm, mumbling a few more 'thank you's' over and over again into her shoulder. She returned it and snuggled closer, "I'm glad you feel better."

"Mentally, yeah. Physically, fuck no, I have a fight tomorrow, weirdo."

She laughed, knowing that he meant the sore spot where her foot collided into him. "Guess you'll just tough it out."

__________ ∙∘✧❀✧∘∙__________

To be Continued

"You want to ride with me instead? I can get you in for free," Natsu whistled, grinning back.

Lucy laughed and smiled, "If you're offering, I won't turn that down anytime."

"Alrighty then."

Fight for Glory
❀ by queen_random1 ❀
comments & votes are
always more than welcome.
❤️Thank you for reading❤️