Going back into the very depths of where he came from was the worst thing imaginable for him. What a shitty way to live, Natsu thought to himself as he looked down at his father asleep in a pile of vodka bottles.

Well, this is better than when he's awake, he grimaced at the thought almost subconsciously. He slowly creaked his way past his passed-out father, making his way toward the end of the hall where the entrance to his room lied. Each step brought with it the chance to wake his father up, and all that came with that action. Each step added to Natsu's anxiety; something he had learned early to control when at home.

His foot slowly pushed his ajar door open, and his hands held the door frame to balance himself. He was now in his room, and all of a sudden a rush of relief hit him all at once; So what was the point of sneaking into school to get my uniform, if he was asleep the entire time?. He laughed, ever so quietly. Natsu knew that his father was odd; in so that he usually waited for him to arrive from school and expected everything to be perfect and in order; but the second he began drinking, usually later in the day, he could care less where Natsu was or what he was doing.

Still. Natsu didn't know what to do tonight. Most nights, he would head down to The Shack, a bar owned by one of his friends' older brother, and see where the night took him. But as he got himself ready, he had one persistent thought flash across his mind, You said you'd go to school tomorrow.

"Ah fuck it" He said out loud, before opening his window and walking out. Natsu was fully able to go out the front door, but he had learned early on that his father would forget he wasn't home and would lock the front door on him. Plenty of nights spent sleeping on the porch had taught Natsu that it was a lot more convenient to go in and out of his bedroom window; which stood at nearly footstep height for him.

***

The Shack was a really beat-up looking oasis for anyone who valued recurring company and an easy-going mentality. It, quite literally, lived up to its name by being a wooden run down structure at the edge of town, with only a few lights illuminating the walk way toward the establishment. The neon sign at the front was in utter disarray, with half of the letters either shut off, or at a dangerous angle to tipping over.

"Yo." Natsu announced as he walked through the gritty front door.

"You again.." A man standing behind the bar counter grumbled without looking up. The man stood impossibly tall, with a size to match. He had a short black beard, shoulders too thick for an average person, and hair nearing bald status.

"Toru, what kind of welcome is that" Natsu jeered a bit as he approached the small group of people sat in a corner booth.

"The one you deserve you cretin."

Natsu laughed. Toru had always been a grumpy older brother to him, and the rest of his small group. It was easy to mistake his tone and attitude as dislike, but Natsu knew better. He knew that Toru saw them all as his family, and if push came to shove, he would always be there to help them out of any trouble. As he walked toward his usual booth, he saw most of the regular patrons there.

Ari was the tomboy of the group with her short brown hair and usual gym attire on. Boro, who was known far and wide as "The Tank" was a large guy, who was mostly muscle even though he at first glance seemed stockier than most. Gale, the blonde playboy type that all women were into, was the younger brother of Toru who owned The Shack.

"Haven't seen you in a while" A long-black haired boy in the corner of the booth quietly said, his eyes hidden behind the mass of hair. Natsu only knew him as everyone else did, "The Shadow", the town's resident assassin. Not an actual assassin of course, but his fighting record preceded him. He was known to get the best of his opponents before they even had a chance to notice his approach.

"I'm sure a lot of people could same the same about you Shad" Natsu joked back, before sitting next to Ari. "What the hell have you guys been up to?"

"Your dad been on you again?" Ari asked, ignoring his question and giving a worried look. Natsu turned blank for a second before regaining his composure.

"You know how it is.. We drinking or what?"

"Got a round coming" Boro replied, noticing the micro reaction from Natsu, "Toru, another beer to the order"

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

"Hrmm." Toru grunted back, as he went back toward the tap to pour Natsu's drink.

"Going to ignore the question Nee?" Ari asked, bubbling up her girly side as much as she could in an attempt to get Natsu to open up. Something he was already used to.

"Yup. Ignoring all the way. Unless I get a good amount of beer in me" He snorted back. Ari responded with a concerned look on her face. She was probably the only other person who knew what he had to deal with on a nearly daily basis. Still, she quickly recovered as not to alert anyone else, and beamed at the mug put in front of her.

"What do we cheer to?" Gale asked, as he raised his glass up in the air.

"To another day alive" Shadow responded in his usual quiet voice, as he hit Gale's mug with his own.

"To another day alive!!" Everyone else echoed his message and smacked glass together, before taking a large swig of the beer in front of them. As they all chugged the liquid in front of them, Ari stopped sooner than the rest.

"You guys still going to school?" She asked. She was the only one in the group who had already graduated high school and so she often took the motherly role for them.

"When I can" Boro said.

"They don't notice me much, but yeah" Shadow replied.

"Of course. I still need to get into college" Gale said.

All eyes shot to Natsu, the only one that the question was really aimed at. He felt nervous for a second and took another drink before addressing the group.

"Well.. Not a whole lot, but I'm going to start now"

"Are you really?" Ari responded doubtfully.

"Yeah, my class prez is being annoying as hell and forcing me. Something about her records being hurt by my absence."

".. that's all it took?" Ari asked, not believing him. Natsu stayed quiet for a second, and took the silence as an opportunity to order another beer.

"Forget all that, I heard you beat up a bunch of dudes from Nisha?" Boro asked right after burping.

"They jumped me, what was I supposed to do?" Natsu said in a more serious tone. No one in this town seemed to understand that he wasn't looking for a fight. Yet, he seemed to be the most targeted out of everyone. I mean, sure, I enjoy the feeling of adrenaline from fighting and winning, but when the hell have I ever initiated a fight?

As if to break up the awkwardness of the conversation, the front door swung open. The darkness of the outside took a little bit for everyone to adjust to, and slowly a silhouette revealed itself. Standing there was a red haired, heavily muscled, male. Natsu immediately recognized the uniform he was wearing.

"I don't serve kids wearing uniforms" Toru grumbled out loud toward the newcomer.

"Old man, I'm not here to drink that disgusting grubble. I'm looking for someone" He announced in a voice too loud and too proud for the locale that he was at.

"Who the fuck are you looking for?" Boro yelled out at the stranger.

"A loser referred to as The Demon" The stranger yelled back defiantly. He took a conceited face while staring back at the group, "I heard he comes here a lot." The entire group, including Toru, turned their heads toward Natsu. It was obvious he was looking for a fight, but they all knew better and waited for Natsu to start the exchange.

"Who's asking?" Natsu said back.

"I am Akemi!" He yelled, a little too loudly, back at Natsu, before striking what could only be described as a pose, "You beat up my comrades earlier today, I'm here for revenge!". Everyone stared back at Akemi with a blank stare, Who the fuck talks like that? Revenge?!, They all thought to themselves.

"Listen dude, I don't know why the hell you're here but if you want to fight then I'm all for it" Natsu said while sipping slowly from his drink.

"So you're the demon?"

"That's what they call me" Natsu replied playfully, though the ones closest to him heard the tinge of sadness in the statement. Akemi seemed to switch personalities after hearing his acceptance, and got into a fighting stance with the most serious face they had seen.

"Alright then. Once I beat your ass, you better calm down and go home. I don't want to deal with your injuries" Natsu said, getting serious and finishing his drink. He stood up, hands in pocket, and stood in front of Akemi with a blank stare, "Your move"

To everyone watching, the fight went faster than they probably could capture; but Akemi and Natsu felt every second of it. Akemi started by throwing a simple jab, which Natsu caught and pushed upwards toward the sky to throw him off-balance. Having put a good amount of power into the punch, Akemi fell forward. As he did, Natsu took the opportunity to throw one of his own at his exposed chin. Natsu's fist hit his chin upwards, causing Akemi to fall back for a split second before he threw a kick toward his face. Natsu, expecting this, grabbed his ankles before he pushed it up, causing him to stumbled backwards, and threw a hard punch at his nose.

Akemi absorbed the full power of Natsu's punch as he fell towards the floor; already knocked out.

"Well.. Wasn't looking to knock him out"

"Went full demon mode huh?" Gale asked laughing, before ordering another round for the table, "Come drink one on your win!"

Natsu went back toward the table and sat down silently. He drank the next beer that was placed in front of him in seconds. He said nothing as he looked back at Akemi's body. He chose this, he thought. As he ran through a flurry of thoughts, ignoring what the rest of the table had started talking about, he remembered something.

"I have to go." Natsu spoke up.

"Where?" Boro asked, a bit belligerently.

"I just have to go" Natsu replied, getting up out of the table with a slight stumble. He said his goodbyes to the rest of the group, including Toru. He walked toward the front door, stepping over Akemi, before turning back towards the group, "Thanks for the drinks Gale", and he was gone.

I have to be at school tomorrow.