Because of You

Bracelet

July 2nd
(Guest bedroom)
8:12 am

"I'm sorry!"

"It's okay." Gray says and smiles as he holds his hand

"What happened?" Natsu asks

"I scratched him.." Looks down at my lap and bites my lip "I don't know what came over me. I'm sorry."

"It's okay. I'm just glad that I was able to get the stupid bracelet off." Gray says and hugs me

Looks at my wrist to find a burn "Am I stuck with this?"

"I can try to fix it up." Gray says and grabs a bag that I didn't see before

"How?"

"Using this." Gray says and pulls out a small container "Made it myself."

Watches him open the container to reveal an ointment before putting some on my burn "Since when have you been into this kind of stuff?"

"Ever since I started fighting Natsu. I didn't want to have the nasty burns that he left me." Gray says "If you put it on every three hours then it should be gone in two days."

"Thanks." I missed you Gray... "How is Juvia?" Watches his face fall quickly before he smiles

"She's fine." Gray says "So you're with Sting?"

"Yeah!" Smiles as I think of Sting "Where is he?"

"He went to find out who gave you the bracelet." Natsu says "Take care of her." He says before walking out

"Gray?"

"What's up?" Gray asks

"Can I tell you something? But you can't tell anybody else if I do tell you."

"Of course you can tell me." Gray says and sits beside me

"I kissed Natsu.. multiple times...."

"Why? Are things not going well with Sting?" Gray asks

"They're great! But Natsu..."

"It's the lingering feelings right... The what if of the situation." Gray says with a sigh

"Exactly!"

"You have to stop with the what ifs. They are holding you back from your relationship with Sting." Gray says

"I know.." Looks down at my lap and bites my lip

"Do you want things to continue with Sting?" Gray asks as he lifts my head gently

"Yes."

"Then you'll have to tell him about what happened between you and Natsu." Gray says "The guilt will eat away at you if you don't tell him."

"I know that but... I just don't want to lose him.."

"Natsu or Sting?" Gray asks

"Natsu..."

"Lucy come on. I th-" Gray begins to say

"I already lost him once! I don't want to lose him again! It killed me when he left!!" Tears up and looks away from him

"If Natsu cares about you as much as I think he does then he won't leave." Gray says before hugging me

"Are you sure?"

"I'm sure." Gray says before letting me go

Grabs my communication lacrima and bites my lip harder before sighing "I'll try to get him to come back. Sting."

"Did something happen?!" Sting asks as soon as he picks up

"No but.. we have to talk."

"I'll be there in a bit." Sting says before hanging up

"There. Now tell me what happened to Juvia."

"What are you talking about?! I said that she was fine!" Gray says defensively

"Tell me."

"I didn't want it to happen!" Gray says as he tears up

"Didn't want what to happen?" Holds his hands

"I was trying to complete a mission and a part of m-" Gray begins to say before Sting runs in

"Sting!" Hugs him and feels myself relax

"We'll talk later" Gray says before walking out

"Are you okay?" Sting asks as he wipes sweat off his forehead

"Yeah. Oh and Gray even gave me some ointment to help get rid of the burn."

"I'll thank him later. What did you want to talk about?" Sting asks as we sit on the bed

"Natsu and I kissed.." It's better to be straightforward

"He told me." Sting says with a sigh "I get why you did it but I still have to ask you."

"Ask away.."

"Do you have feelings for him? I can't be with you if you have feelings for another guy." Sting says

"It's the what ifs that I ask myself. What if I had told him that I loved him? Would he have stayed? But whenever I ask myself any of the what ifs I always end up with the same conclusion. I never would have gotten together with you if he hadn't left. In a way I'm glad that he left. Even though it killed me when he did... I was able to find somebody that I loved much more and that wasn't going to leave me."

"Promise it won't happen again?" Sting asks

"I promise it won't happen again."

"Good." Sting says and kisses my nose

"I thought that you would be angry. You know like wanting to beat the shit out of Natsu type of angry."

"I wanted to kill him but I had to stay calm and wait for you to explain the situation to me. Give me some credit Blondie. I won't just go kill somebody without knowing both sides of the story." Sting says and holds me "It was hard to not kill him though. The thought of you in somebody else's arms or somebody else holding you... it pisses me off."

Kisses him and smiles "I want you Sting and only you."

"Lets hope it stays that way. I'll put off the search for today so I can spend time with you." Sting says "I'm sure Natsu is looking as well so it'll be fine."

"Let's watch a movie!" Jumps to my feet and runs to the living room

"I'll make some popcorn." Sting says as he walks into the kitchen

"Can you bring me some water?" Puts a movie in and jumps on the couch

"I'm heading out for a bit." Gray says as he steps out

Looks at my burned wrist and sighs What did I do to deserve this? Looks at my right hand and feels my heart drop Did I do something wrong? Is this my punishment for giving up on bringing everybody together again? Is this my punishment for moving on?

"What's wrong?" Sting asks as he hands me a bowl of popcorn before sitting down beside me

Smiles and kisses his forehead "Nothing.. Everything is perfect." Where did I go wrong? I know I messed up a couple of times..but where exactly did I mess up enough to deserve this...