Chapter Text
The glass fogged up with the warmth of their breaths as their noses pressed up against the barrier separating them and the fish. There’s a sign not even five feet from them that states in bold letters PLEASE DO NOT TOUCH THE GLASS, but Lucy simply assumed they had either ignored it, or saw it and took it as a challenge to make as much skin-to-glass contact as they possibly could.
"You’re not supposed to touch the glass, you know," she scolded, as if her pointing it out would stop them.
The two of them were getting weird looks, and they were definitely going to get in trouble if they didn’t stop any time soon, but Lucy didn’t have it in her to reprimand them too much because it was honestly kind of endearing.
"If I didn’t know any better, I would say you two had never seen a fish in your lives up until now."
She wasn’t too far off in her observation; the aquarium they’re in is certainly larger than anything Natsu and Happy had seen in their lives. Every tank was filled to the brim with different exotic-looking fish, the likes of which the two had never seen before, and by the looks of things, it seemed as though they were trying to burn the image of every new creature into their brains.
Even though she had lived in Crocus for a year, Lucy had never been to the local aquarium herself. She’d known of its existence, of course; it was a big tourist draw for the city outside of Grand Magic Games season, but she had never felt compelled to visit herself until now. At the time, she thought it might have dredged up memories of her partner that she wasn’t in the right frame of mind to deal with. Going there would have only reminded her how much he and Happy would have adored a place like this.
It seemed that her assumption was correct based on the way the both of them ooh-ed and ahh-ed at each passing fish.
Deciding that her attempts to stop them from trying to become one with the glass were futile, Lucy instead joined their side in hopes of figuring out what all the fuss was about. Admittedly, she understood their fascination. Coral and creatures of every colour practically glowed under the blue lights, flowing through the water with ease. They needn’t worry about anything, perhaps unaware of their enthusiastic observers as they continued to glide along in their inclosure. It was calming, borderline mesmerising to watch.
"This is so cool," Natsu declared, drawing Lucy’s attention away from the water and over to him and his wide grin. "Thanks for bringin’ us here, Lucy."
What had begun as his typical, unrestrained Natsu grin had softened into a gentle, genuine smile, going all the way up to his eyes, where he looked at her with all the adoration in the world.
"Yeah, it’s no problem," she affirmed, trying to keep herself from melting into an ooey, gooey mess right in front of him.
He didn’t give her much time to recuperate before her hand was in his, and he was dragging her over to the next tank that caught his eye in a not-so-romantic reminder that this was technically a date. That reminder was affirmed when they finally made it to the exhibit Natsu had his eyes on, and he still kept her hand held safely in his own, his thumb dragging across the back of her hand in an act of silent affection.
While his gaze was fixed on the new species of fish that filled the overhead tank, Lucy’s eyes trailed down to see where their bodies met, fingers intertwined together.
It wasn’t anything new; they’d been together romantically for several months at this point, and they’d been best friends for even longer. It was a comfortable transition, easing into it so naturally as though fate itself had placed them together.
She liked it like this.
She liked being best friends who went on silly aquarium dates where they held hands in the shark tunnel.
She liked watching his fascination with all the sights and sounds.
She liked him.
A lot.
In a soft moment of adoration, she squeezed his hand.
He squeezed hers back.
Looking back up at him, his eyes were still fixed on the display, watching a stingray glide past overhead. He let out a soft breath of awe, and she, in turn, breathed out a gentle giggle that captured his attention.
"What?" He asked, his attention now on her as he gazed down at her.
"Nothing," Lucy hummed, her lips pursed together to hide her amusement at this softer, cuter side of Natsu.
He wasn’t given the chance to interrogate her further before Happy’s voice called out to them from further in the tunnel, beckoning the pair to his spot.
"Wo-oah! Guys! Come look at this!"
His little paws pressed against the glass, clearly having not learned his lesson from before, as he watched a shark pass him by.
"Look! A real-life shark!" He exclaimed, practically shaking with excitement. "Oooohhh, I’ve never tried shark before, but I bet it’s so yummy~"
Lucy rolled her eyes, unsurprised that this was what had been on his mind the whole time.
"Nah, the skins probably too tough to get through," Natsu dismissed.
"You probably shouldn’t be talking so loud about eating the animals," Lucy added. "Besides, I think a shark is more likely to eat you," she pointed out.
Her words caused Happy to shudder slightly in fear, and Natsu chortled at his reaction, his laughter causing her heart to skip a beat in her chest.
He and Happy continued to chat away about the display of fish, with Natsu’s hand never leaving hers. Lucy held little interest in what they were talking about; their words little more than background noise in her head as she watched on. The blue and green hues of the water surrounding them rippled against the floor, the colour distorted light, defining Natsu’s features as he spoke.
It wasn’t until Happy flew off to follow a particularly tasty-looking fish that Natsu noticed she was staring.
"Are you having fun?" She asked, trying to divert attention from the fact that she had just been caught.
"Are you kiddin’? This is the best date ever," he grinned.
Something akin to pride swelled up in her chest. Perhaps it wasn’t the most romantic of dates, but Natsu was happy, and that was enough for her.
He looked at her for a moment, and almost as if he had read her thoughts, he brought his hand up to cradle her cheek before dipping down to join his lips with her own. It was short and soft but didn’t fail to leave her breathless, just like he always did.
"There, that romantic enough for ya?" He asked, barely making it through the sentence before Lucy’s hands were on his cheeks, pulling him down for another.