A/N: I really want to wrap up this story soon but there are so many things left to do and uGH WHY DID I DRAW THIS STORY OUT SO MUCH I JUST WANT TO GET TO THE SCENE ALREADY

Dedication to @Sasukeee-kun for your BOSS HKC ENTRY I LOVED IT plus that makoharu icon doe

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9:44 AM

Gray's POV

Okay, Gray, I commanded myself sharply. I know you're painfully in love with this boy and a mere hand-holding sends you into a frantic tizzy, but pull yourself together. Stop being so lame.

I felt my cheeks flood with warmth as his hand squeezed mine tighter in his dreamland state. Natsu had bags under his eyes, like he hadn't been sleeping well recently, but he had a sleepy smile on his face, and it was so cute that it was physically painful to watch. There was a pulling, reflexive urge to lean down and place my lips softly on his forehead, surely he wouldn't find out, it'd be completely-

"Hi, is that Natsu Dragneel?" A lady's voice asked from the doorway. I jolted my head sharply to look at her. She had pastel pink and pistachio green nurse's scrubs on, white sneakers, and blonde hair in a ponytail. "I'm Nurse Jackie."

"Hi," I waved, pulling myself into a standing position. I forgot Natsu had a death-grip on my hand and nearly tripped when I lurched back downwards. Nurse Jackie looked fairly amused, but she turned her eyes away, staring at her clipboard.

"Since Natsu's asleep, can I ask you a couple questions about what happened?" She requested. I nodded, currently yanking my hand of Natsu's.

"Sure," I agreed when my hand was finally free. It was squeezed white, but color returned when I shook it out. I took a seat on the chair across from her and waited as she stared at her clipboard.

"What exactly happened?" Nurse Jackie questioned.

"Natsu was attacked by a bully, who punched him in the stomach, but according to Natsu, it's his rib cage that hurts," I explained.

"Those are extremely fragile and it's likely that one of his floating ribs could've broken," Nurse commented. I nodded calmly, feeling bad. I should've interfered, I knew I should've, but I also knew Natsu would've hated me forever by making him look weak and victimized, so I had forced myself to hold back and remained blended in the crowd.

Natsu sure did stand up for something he believed in, I thought proudly, remembering his list. There was another thing, checked off. I knew there weren't many things left, and we were coming to a close on our senior year.

Will everything work out in the end? I couldn't help but wonder. Will Natsu finish his Drunk List? Will we continue to be friends afterwards?

Will Natsu and I ever start a relationship?

I kept thinking about one of the list items, 'dance and kiss in the rain.' It's like it was crazy-glued to my brain, it wouldn't leave and it kept torturing me. Would he kiss me?

God, I want him to kiss me so bad.

"Thanks for your help. You can get back to class, when Natsu wakes up he'll probably be very tired and will go home for the rest of the day." Nurse Jackie told me. I felt slightly disappointed because I didn't want to leave his side, also since I promised to remain in here.

However, I couldn't just tell her a flat-out no, so I picked up my backpack, slung it over my shoulder, stared at Natsu for a brief second, and then left the room.

From down the hall, I could hear the principal and that asshat Laxus shouting. The principal was telling him something along the lines of "unacceptable behavior" and "a major disappointment". Knowing it'd be rude to intrude and eavesdrop on their conversation, I continued to walk away and left the main office, wondering if Natsu would be alright.

His stomach has already dealt with enough.

- - - -

12:19 PM

Natsu's POV

"Oh good, you're awake," The nurse's voice echoed from somewhere far away.

I felt a sharp ache in my ribs and bright light flood into my eyes. I groaned with pain, squeezing my eyes shut again. "Somewhat," I responded dully.

"How are you feeling?" The nurse asked. I flopped from my side to my back so I was looking skyward.

"My ribs hurt a lot," I stated the obvious.

"On a scale of 1 to 10, one being hardly anything and ten being unbearable, searing pain, how is the pain?" She asked worriedly.

"Um... maybe a 5? I'm not sure. They just feel achy," I mumbled. "Can I try to sit up?" I asked.

She looked skeptical. "Um, if you feel up to it. Don't strain yourself," She told me. I nodded, opened my eyes, and slowly pushed myself up into a vertical position. My rib cage and stomach hurt like hell, but it could've been worse, I realized.

"So, my prognosis is that you've got some bruised ribs, and they are most likely not broken, but if they hurt enough, we may need to get you to a hospital for an x-ray," The nurse offered. A diploma on her wall said her name was Jackie. Nurse Jackie tapped her clipboard with her fountain pen absentmindedly. "Would you mind if I took a look at your stomach? To see if any bruises have formed, I mean."

As if on reflex, my hands flew to cross over my torso. No way in hell was I about to let anyone seem y stomach. I dont' care if she's the school nurse and it's her job, absolutely no one will touch me there.

"Um... that won't be nessecary. Neither will the hospital. Actually, the pain is starting to subdue, so I'll just be on my way," I explained skittishly, standing up abruptly, which caused a stinging pain to shoot through me. I kept my face straight, trying not to wince or cry, and looked around for my backpack. I was approaching the door when she jumped in front of me (but not literally of course, because that would've been extremely amusing and kangaroo-like).

"Hold it!" She held a hand out. "What's the problem?"

"There's no problem, miss," I told her politely, smiling as cheerily as I could muster. "If you'll excuse me, I have a class to get to. Thanks for your help!" I finished the conversation, stepping by her and shimming through the door frame. I didn't bother looking back to see her lost, confused expression. I heard her sigh sadly and the door shutting behind me.

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7:53 PM

Natsu's POV

With little to no effort, I made it through the day.

Screw that sunshine and rainbows beam of optimism. It was practically killing me, one blow at a time.

Every step I took to class, another dull ache arose in my abdomen. Sitting down, standing up, speaking, breathing, moving, it was like someone was repeatedly kicking me in the stomach with razor-sharp cleats.

I bet you're wondering, Natsu! Why are you such a simpleminded idiot that you'd go through school in as much pain as this? Surely there is some other option for you!

The way I saw it, I had three options. One, go back to the nurse, succumb to her procedure, and most likely end up going to the emergency room (because later on when I locked myself in a bathroom stall, I most certainly did have bruises decorating the milky flesh of my stomach).

Two, fake sick and go home, but then my parents would get worried over their son, rush home immediately, and eventually realize I was in a fight in school and ground me for life.

Three, cut class. Ha, like I was about to make that mistake again after the anonymous stalker's lovely comments this morning. I had the scorching agony to prove I would not be skipping school anytime soon.

You can see why none of these options seemed too appealing to me.

"Thanks a lot, Laxus," I grumbled under my breath. "Asshole."

Anyway, somehow, buy some miracle by an omnicent force, I made it through the remaining four periods and slipped by without anyone noticing anything too fishy. Sure, plenty of people were whispering to their friends and not-so-secretly pointing in my direction during transitions, and the occasional person came up to me to say they were amazed by the way I handled myself and it was cool being "who I was".

Oh my God, I came out as gay to the entire senior student body this morning.

I was only trying to complete my math homework without dying of misery, but no, I had to realize what I had done. I covered my head in my hands and slumped forward on my desk, resulting in major pain shooting through my abdomen. "Ow! Damn it," I cried in to my hands softly.

"Natsu? Dinner!" My mother called from downstairs.

Grateful to get away from trigonometry, I happily shut my math textbook and limped downstairs, still shaking from my epiphany. What was everyone saying about me? This is not good, now they know everything is sort-of true! I'm going to be bullied and outcasted forever.

Calm down, Natsu, my subconcious assured me. It's only two more weeks until summer vacation, and then college. It'll be a fresh start. You'll escape these idiots once and for all and you can start over. It's going to be alright. Breathe.

I took a deep breath in, and released it slowly. Honestly, it didn't help much, but I felt myself calm down the slightest bit, as by head decided to stop swimming, and I descended the last of the marble stairs, careful not to trip and fall. The smell of chopped onions filled my sinuses and I realized we were having Caesar salad. Yay, vegetables.

When I entered the kitchen, Wendy was busying herself by setting the table with plastic bowls and salad forks. Mom was steaming some pork and doctoring it with some sort of barbecue sauce. "What does everyone want to drink?" I offered, gravitating towards the mug drawer.

"Ice water for me, thanks," Mom answered.

"Dr. Pepper," Wendy said, back turned to me.

"Water for me too!" Dad called from the study, voice travelling through the high, modern ceilings. I filled up four swirly-design ceramic mugs of chunky ice and two of them with refridgerator water, quickly setting them all down in their respective places. Then, I stepped into the garage to get to the party fridge, grabbed a Dr. Pepper for Wendy and a Cherry Coke for me, the cold condensation freezing my palms as I hurried back inside, hissing through my teeth from this stupid, pointless rib pain.

I popped the soda tab of the Coke and it hissed as it opened. I took a swig and poured the rest into my mug, taking a seat in my usual chair. Soon after, Wendy joined me, sitting in her chair next to mine.

My mom, who was decked out in a floral apron and rubbery red oven mitts, carried the steaming pork over and set it on a previously laid out mat. She began to dish out salad for herself, taking a seat as well.

"Igneel? Dinner's ready!" Mom announced loudly, using the salad scoop to pick out extra tomatoes. A rustling of papers and a shutting of a laptop could be heard in the other room, followed by soft pattering of bare feet. Dad appeared from around the corner, smiled at us cheerfully, and took his seat.

We all got our desired amounts of food, and I scooted by unnoticed with only a small scoop of salad, mostly freshly-washed lettuce and a carrot slice here and there. I poked at the pathetic meal and shoved a small bite in my mouth, nearly cringing at the bland, bitter taste of the plain leaves.

"So, how was everyone's day?" Dad asked happily, cutting his pork.

Uninterested, Wendy popped a cherry tomato in her mouth, crunching down and staining her lips. "Natsu got in a fight!" She declared joyously.

My eyes widened abruptly and I glared at her. How did she know...?

"What?!" Mom screeched, voice shrilly like nails on a chalkboard.

"Shut up, Wendy!" I hissed.

"Everyone's talking about it," Wendy continued on, twirling her fork in her salad. She seemed almost pleased to confirm my demise.

"When?" Dad said, shocked.

"This morning before first period," She answered dully.

"What exactly happened?" Mom said in her no-nonsense tone. You know the mom voice, we've all experienced it one time or another.

Before I could speak to defend myself, Wendy cut in for me. "This jerk named Laxus came up to Natsu, teasing him about some anonymous loser post about him and Gray, calling him a fag and whatnot, and Natsu totally slayed him by saying 'you can't punch the gay out of me' and other things that totally stumped him because Laxus is an idiot, but Laxus got super angry and broke his ribs," Wendy explained in one breath.

"Well?" Dad turned to stare at me. I couldn't tell what kind of emotion he was feeling right now. "Is all of this true, Natsu?"

I couldn't bear to look at them. I pictured their angry, disappointed faces with desperate eyes and clenched jaws, wishing I'd say she wasn't right.

"Yeah..." I mumbled, voice barely above a whisper. "She's right."

I heard my voice broke, and I gulped down the present lump in my throat.

"Okay, wait. Wait a second," Mom rubbed her temples, closing her eyes. "Let me process this for a second. Okay. Why didn't you call us? Did he hurt you?"

I nodded. "I think my ribs are just bruised. It's fine, really."

"Show me," Mom demanded.

I gasped and immediately shook my head, reflexively covering my torso like the nasty habit that it was. "No, I told you, I'm fine!" I raised my voice, breathing harshly.

"And I told you, show me!" Mom repeated with a loud voice, clenching her fists.

I stood up and lifted the hem of my baggy t-shirt, revealing the purple bruises that were already fading to a mustard yellow tint. Everyone dramatically gasped, and I would've laughed if I wasn't the thing they were so shocked at.

"Natsu..." Dad trailed off.

"I know they look kind of bad, but honestly, it doesn't hurt," I shooed them off. "Really, it's better than you- ah!" I shouted with surprise and pain when Dad pressed two fingers lightly to my rib cage.

"They're broken, I can see it," His hand lingered on my torso.

"How?" I echoed. He wasn't a human x-ray. Was he kidding or something? No, not at a time like this, my brain argued.

"Because your.... your ribs are sticking out. You're too skinny...!" Dad gasped, taking a step back. "Natsu! What exactly is going on?"

"What do you mean?" I cried, feeling tears on the brink of my eyelashes, but they didn't fall pathetically down my cheeks, not yet. "I'm not skinny!"

"You look way underweight! Have you not been eating or something?" Mom added in with a mixture of anger and disappointment in her tone. I flinched away from them and stared out the window. The sky was already beginning to darken and black storm clouds were brewing in the distance.

"Okay, I'm sick of this quietness. Tell me the hell what's going on before I get really angry," Mom stood up in her chair. She was still shorter than me by a couple inches, but temper-wise, she hovered over me like a looming skyscraper over a measly mouse.

"I-I-" I stuttered, not wanting to say anything else, my only desire to get out of here. "I-"

"You what?!" Mom screeched.

"Grandine, please," Dad held up his hand to silence her. He turned back to me, waiting expectantly for my response.

"I've been making myself throw up, because I eat so much junk food and I put on so much weight and it's disgusting and I have to get rid of it somehow," I whispered, the room deathly silent around me. The only sound was heavy, disoriented breathing of four broken family members.

"Natsu..." Dad's gaze softened.

Mom, however, was a different story. She took a step forward, and before I could duck out of the way or she could go with her better judgment, she lifted her hand, and next thing I knew, I felt her hand drag across my face and a sharp, stinging pain on my right cheek. Shocked and ready to cry, I took a step back, clutching the side of my face tenderly. From where my hand rested, I could feel where she hit me by the uncomfortable tingle.

Mom looked just as surprised as me. Maybe that snapped her out of it or something. "I- That was out of line. I'm so sorry, baby. I'm just so angry that you would do this to yourself! Listen to me- you're-" She reached to place her hands on my shoulder tenderly when I lurched away.

"Don't touch me!" I sobbed.

Mom looked even more regretful and concerned. "Natsu, I'm your mother, I never meant to hurt you-"

"Mothers don't slap their already-broken children!" I shouted, now crying hysterically. I felt myself shake with sobs and released anger. "Or any kind of child, for that matter!"

I continued to cry, burying my eyes in the crook of my elbow and sobbing into the flesh. I heard Mom begin to cry too, muffled by the sound of her head in her hands. Through my bleary, watery eyes, I could see Dad rubbing her shoulder tenderly in a futile attempt to soothe her. Wendy stayed stone-statue silent, wide-eyed at the scene that had just unfolded in front of her.

"Um, I know this probably isn't the right time to say this, but Natsu, are you gay?" She mumbled, looking scared and fearful for my well-being. Mom whisked into another round of sobs, as did I. I stood there, continuing to cry and cry until the only thing left was a short sniffle.

I rubbed my blotchy eyes. I had a headache, my face hurt, and I felt so tired the marble floor looked appealing. I mustered an exhausted smile, staring my parents right in the eyes.

"Yes, I'm pretty sure I am. Mom, Dad, Wendy, I have something to tell you. I'm bullimic, and I'm gay. Sorry for being the failure child," I announced jokingly, although I wasn't joking one bit.

I swear I could hear my heart beat in my ears betwixt the silence that followed that bombshell.

And I couldn't take it. It was too deafening, too suffocating.

So I ran upstairs before I heard their response.

- - - -

Probably gonna double update tonight because I have time and ideas are flowing so quickly.

I think I re-wrote this like, three times to get it right. I wanted so many different things to happen (i.e. Wendy coming out as well, angry parental reactions, hospital, etc.) but this is how it's going to go.

Get pumped because there is more to come, yesss.