Halves

Levy- Matchmaker

Hello and welcome to my first published story! I really hope you like it! I'm not the most eloquent or talented writer, but the only way to get better is to try, right? So I'm making this public so I can get tips from other writers, and learn and grow. If people start following my story, I'll also need to write often, so hopefully I can get even better! Thank you so much for coming here to read- even if it's just this chapter- thank you so so much, I hope you enjoy this journey with me! Thanks, Mikayla💛

📚———Levy- Matchmaker ———📚

The guild was quieter today. There was still a bubbly, chaotic feel- the occasional shout and small brawl- but it was noticeably more tame.
Without the resident troublemaker, Natsu, there was no one to challenge a member to a duel, no one to shout 'FOOD FIGHT!', no one to start an argument about nothing.
And, Levy noticed, no one to cheer up Lucy.

"Luce? Lucy? Lucy!"
"Huh? Oh, sorry Levy. What's up?"
"I could say the same to you. What's up with you lately?" Levy questioned.
"Nothing! Sorry! I'm fine! Just a little- tired. That's all."
Levy knew Lucy was lying. There was something on her mind. For the past week she'd been moping around, dragging herself into the guild hall at midday and staring off into space until she left for the night.
It was like she was on auto pilot.
And it all started when Natsu left.
"Don't try to hide it! You've been out of it for a week!"
"It's really nothing, Lev. I'm fine."
"You miss him?"
"Huh? What? No! Well I mean of course I do- we're best friends! But it's not that."
"Mm? Well then, what is it?"
"I- I'm not sure."
Levy looked at her friend. She could clearly see that she was skipping over something important, but she let it go for now.
"Okay then. Tell me if you need anything"

She stood and made her way through the guild to the request board. There weren't many requests- it was pretty peaceful in Foire- just a few household jobs, a couple of monsters to be beaten, nothing too big.
Apart from one. There were maybe three or four of the same poster, sporadically stapled on the board, all asking for the same thing.
'700,000 JEWELS! URGENT! VILLAGE IN NEED OF SALAMANDER! 1-2 WEEK JOB. BEGIN ASAP.'
And in smaller print on the bottom:
'Come alone.'
Lucy had seen it too late. When she asked Mira about it, she had told Lucy that Natsu had already taken the job.
He'd already left.
Without saying goodbye.
After that, Lucy seemed to shut down. Whenever Levy tried to talk to her she would just brush her off and say she was busy, even though she was doing almost nothing. Levy thought Lucy would snap out of it after a day or so, but the next day came, and the next, and the next, and she was still somewhere else. Lucy seemed to be in her own world; difficult to talk to and impossible to reach.

A week later and she was still distant. Levy sat at the bar and turned to Mira.
"Can I get you anything, Lev?"
"No, all good." She paused, then spoke again, "Have you noticed anything with Lucy lately?"
"Yes. She's missing Natsu."
Levy studied Mira. She was always so straight to the point; she noticed everything about everyone and was not afraid to say what she saw.
"Yeah. She doesn't seem to want to admit it though."
"Of course she doesn't!" Mira cheerfully remarked. "She won't let on that she has feelings for him. She's not great at that sort of thing."

It was true. Everyone could see it. Lucy clearly liked Natsu, and not just in a But-he's-my-best-friend! way. You could tell that Natsu felt the same. It seemed that everyone knew.
Apart from Lucy and Natsu.
That's when it hit Levy.
She was Lucy's best friend! She knew her better then anyone else. She knew all of her secrets- even the one she herself didn't know yet.
So why not just help push her towards that realisation?
Levy was going to be a matchmaker.
———————————-

And so it begins. I'm very nervous to publish this- but I'm also equally excited! I hope to update this story soon- by Wednesday (hold me to that!). If you have any advice on how I could've worded something better, or other writing tips (or just comments and notes) please leave me some advice. Thank you all so much!
💛 Mikayla