Work Text:
Lucy was like the summer: warm, awe-inspiring gold. Her entire being was lustrous, her essence enveloping everything she touched in a gentle glow. She was fiery when she held her ground, warm and gentle when Wendy came flying into her chest, and utterly radiant when she smiled at Natsu.
At least, that’s what Natsu would love to say, words articulated so perfectly to capture just who Lucy was to him, something more than just a good friend.
Truthfully, Natsu knew Lucy was more than that, more than a comrade or family member of the guild, more than just a constant presence at his side.
No, Natsu knew.
To him, Lucy was everything.
The celestial wizard encompassed every moment of his waking days. Her feather light touches that scaled up his arms, fingers tactful as they loosed kinked muscles or weaved through his unruly hair. The little plushies or ornaments she would “forget” around his house, always feigning innocence when he asked if something was new. Her voice was a magical array of energy, like the sun beating down on his back as he trained away the day until sunlight welcomed dusk.
“How the hell am I supposed to write something so corny!” Natsu exclaimed, head falling back as he tapped his feet against the wooden floorboards of his home. He sat on the floor, a makeshift work table in front of him, with a piece of paper and a pen sprawled out in front of him. “Happy, I can’t believe you think this will work.”
The flying blue cat swoops in next to Natsu, perching up on the table. His round eyes blink repeatedly, looking at the paper, then to Natsu, then back to the paper. “Natsu-!” Happy pointed a round paw at the dragonslayer, a snicker bubbling from his pursed mouth. “This is terrible, you might as well give up.”
“What the hell, Happy!” Natsu goes to swat his best friend away, a twitch in his eyebrows as he huffs out a small fireball at the pesky feline. “You’re the one who told me this was a good idea!”
Happy hovers in front of the table now, far enough away from the feisty fire dragon. “Technically, Lushi gave me the idea, I only told you what she wanted.”
Natsu clicks his tongue, eyes closing as he heaves out a breath, shoulders relaxing just the slightest at the motion. His gaze falls back to the paper, one single line scribbled in chicken stratch–oh, god! He really did have terrible handwriting–glaring back at him.
Lucy is really cool, and I like cool things.
“Shit, this is bad.” Natsu wanted to throw that piece of paper away, that taunting, defenseless white piece of scrap that basically just spit in his face. “I can’t do this, Happy. I’m not the writing type.”
“But Nat-suuuu!” Happy whined, fluttering wings disappearing as he stands on the table again, pudgy paws animated. “This is what Lushi needs. It’d make her happy! Like how fish and Carla make me happy.”
“I get that buddy.” Natsu gruffs, picking up the pen again just to twirl it around his fingers. “It’s just… I don’t know.”
Happy’s tail sways as the cat thinks, flicking wildly as an idea seems to erupt. “If you don’t write it, someone’s gonna steal Lushi–!” The cat's voice was high and teasing, drawn out in the perfect way to irritate Natsu.
“What’s that supposed to mean?” The fire dragon holds back a snarl, lips curling slightly as he glares at his feline friend. Even the thought of some scumbag putting their fingers on Lucy, grimy hands with nefarious intentions, made Natsu’s blood boil.
“Lushi’s gonna get tired of waiting for you, Natsu. And some cooler and stronger guy is gonna sweep her off her feet–” Happy mimicked the action as he swayed in the air. “It could even be happening right no–”
Happy couldn’t even finish his teasing before Natsu was storming out, fire licking up his feet and arms as he sprinted out of their forest hut. All Happy can do is watch with wide eyes and a slightly guilty look to his feline face, paw scratching at his head as Natsu trailblazed towards town.
“Oops.”
~~
Lucy was standing in front of her wardrobe, hands shuffling through her clothes debating if she really wanted to wear the dress she had on, when she felt an overpowering and hot pressure building up near her apartment, the kind that immediately had her rolling her eyes and stalking towards her window.
She’d given up on locking her window ages ago, finding it much too time consuming to always worry about repair costs and angry letters from her landlord, and just settled on propping it open for the dragonslayer that always happened to be just two minutes away.
This time though, Natsu was already at her window before she could reach it, darkness casted over his face as he all but ripped her window out of its place, shattering the glass into a million pieces as he sniffed hysterically around her room.
“Uh, Natsu?” Lucy questioned, eyebrow arched and one hand on her hip, eyes squinted as she gazed at the ash-covered dragon on her bed. This was slightly new, a sight that would have had Lucy giggling if not for the dire look painted over Natsu’s face. “You okay?”
Her words didn’t break through his senses, narrowed eyes flicking through every corner of open space, his nose twitching as if he were sniffing someone out.
“Where is he?” Natsu finally hissed, his body slinking forward as he peaked around corners and opened her bathroom door, movements feral and driven by animalistic sense.
“-sleezy, ass dudes–”
“-whisking Lucy away–”
Lucy watches in confusion as Natsu continues to mutter under his breath, seemingly getting madder with every word he speaks.
“Natsu…?” She moves forward without thinking, no apprehension in her steps. Maybe someone else would be scared of the fire dragon in his anger-induced state, but not Lucy. Not after all they’ve been through. “Nat-suu–” she drawled out his name, head tilted to the side with her arms behind her back, hands interlocked. “Who are you looking for?”
The fire dragon sniffs again, eyes relaxing slightly as fruity vanilla swims over him. He peaks at Lucy once, giving her a quick once over, pupils dilating at the sight of her outfit. She was wearing a tight dress, light blue and short, resting at her upper thighs with a small slit on the side. It hugged her waist, licking up her body and forming around her chest in an impressive grab, the fabric molding to her like it was made for the blonde. Even her hair was different, curled at the ends with sparkles flickering through the blonde strands, emphasizing Lucy’s celestial aura. He stared at her face even harder, nostrils flaring at the signs of makeup painted over her skin.
“You’re meeting some guy after all!” Natsu accused, finger poking into Lucy’s collarbone as he turned to fully face her. “What the hell, Lucy!”
“Wai–woah. Hold on a minute–” Lucy tried speaking, hands perching on her hips as she leaned forward, chest pushing outwards. “You don’t get to come storming through my apartment and then have the audacity to get mad at me!”
Natsu’s jaw clenched, tongue pushing against the inside of his cheek as he tightened his fasts into tight balls, sights drenched in frustration at the sheer thought of Lucy going on a date with some guy who didn’t deserve it; didn’t deserve her.
“His name–” His voice was low, hot and heavy in the space that disappeared between them, melting over Lucy like a molten vice.
“Wh-what?” Lucy stuttered, feeling herself get pushed backwards until she hit her closet, doors open and forcing her knees to buckle at the drawer that sat halfway in her wardrobe.
“What. Is. His. Name?” Natsu repeated himself, each word enunciated as he zeroed in on Lucy. His nose twitched again, searching for it, a hint or clue to the truth. His hands grasped the edges of the doors, bracing his weight on it as he leaned towards Lucy’s half-sat figure.
Lucy blinks, brown eyes speculative and confused. She truly had no idea what Natsu was going on about, prattling about some guy, but she had enough sense to figure out what was going on.
“Natsu–”
“Luce, I’m serious.” The dragonslayer cuts her off, dark eyes swallowing her whole. She didn’t mind, of course, admitted to herself years ago that she wanted more than anything for Natsu to give some hint, even an inkling would be fine, as long as he let it be known that there was something more between them than just friends.
And this? It definitely fell into that category.
“So am I.” Lucy retorts, her hand coming up to rest against his cheek. He flinches slightly at the touch, her hand cool on his overheated face.
Natsu stills for a second, eyes observing her every breath, every blink of her eye as her lashes flutter softly against her cheeks, every rise and fall of her chest as air filled her lungs, and every soft touch of a finger as she traced the scar on his own face.
A moment passes where neither of them speak, but gears have begun to turn in Lucy’s head, amusement tickling up her spine.
“You’re right.” Lucy starts, deciding to do things the fun way rather than the easy way. She never said she’d let him off easy after all, might as well make him sweat a little more. “There is a guy.”
A thick silence festers, heavy as a smoke plume, but Lucy holds her ground, eyes never once averting from Natsu’s face.
The sound of splintering wood broke the silence between them, Natsu’s fists no doubt breaking the doors of her closet as he clenched his hands into the obstruction. Lucy would worry about it later, far more enthralled with the twitch in Natsu’s brow and the smoke basically falling from his mouth.
“Who?” Natsu growled out, eyes narrowing. “What guy could you have possibly met when you’re always with me.”
Lucy hid her smirk behind her hand, feigning her innocence behind fluttering lashes, dewy cheeks, and glossy lips. She leans forward, body halfway out of the wardrobe before she swiftly passing under Natsu’s arm, sauntering towards her desk.
“Someone I met in passing.” Lucy hums out, her voice light and airy. “You might know him, actually.”
Even without turning around, Lucy could imagine that heated look on Natsu’s face, the fire dragon certainly one push away from going ballistic-an incoming inferno.
Just a little more.
“The only loser I know is Gray,” Natsu grumbles as he turns, feet prattling until he’s behind Lucy. “So I really doubt it, Luce.”
“It’s not Gray.” Lucy slips onto her chair, chest pressed against the back of the chair as she taps her feet on the ground, head cushioned by her arms. “And he’s not a loser–but actually, he is someone in the guild.”
“In the guild–!” Natsu is beyond flabbergasted, reactions comically funny to the blonde observing his every move. “You found someone in our guild?”
“Yu-uup.” Lucy drawled the word out as she watched the gears turn inside Natsu’s head. She could almost hear the list he was going through, likely trying to narrow down the list of subjects.
“It’s Laxus isn’t it, that bastard.”
“Nope.”
Natsu blinked, arms crossed over his chest.
“Then…maybe Reedus or Max?”
Lucy shook her head no. Natsu blinked again.
“Bickslow or Freed?”
“Not them either.”
Natsu plopped down on the floor, his anger dissipating as his brain worked in loops trying to figure out Lucy’s mysterious date.
“Oh, I know–” Natsu smacked his hands together as if he just solved the biggest puzzle. Lucy arches a brow, nodding her head just the slightest to encourage Natsu to continue. “It’s gotta be Loke. That damn cat finally got to you, huh?”
This time, Lucy laughed, and she laughed hard. She laughed so hard her stomach ached and tears formed around her eyes, falling down her cheeks as she curls inwards with amused giggles.
“It's–ah! Oh my gosh! Natsu–it’s not Loke either!” Lucy wiped the tears from her eyes, a soft and sincere smile on her face as she looked at the suddenly pouting fire dragon on the floor. “Don’t look so upset, you’re nearly there.” Lucy leaned the chair forward, feet bracing the chair as she moved, and poked the dragonslayer on his nose. “Wanna try again?”
“No one else at the guild makes sense…” Natsu muttered as he started listing off all the members that were already together and shaking his head in further disappointment. “Are you sure it’s in our guild? Imma be mad if it’s Sting or Rogue, Luce.”
“Well,” Lucy pulled the chair back up, eyes drifting to the window so she could 'ponder' his statement. “It actually is a dragonslayer.”
Natsu pauses, face frozen as he stares blankly at Lucy, his lips thinning out as his eyes glared up at her. He stared at her like he was trying to fish inside her brain, scoop up the information in an easy manner without this weird game of roulette they were playing.
“A dragonslayer?” He repeats back at her, eyebrows furrowed in a grimace. “In our guild?”
“Hmm.” Lucy hummed out her response, legs kicking back and forth slowly as she waited for Natsu to put two-and-two together.
“Lucy…”
Here it comes…
Natsu places his hands on his knees as he leans forward, expression hard to decipher. “You can’t take Levy’s man. Gajeel is taken, right?”
Wait…what?
Seriously?
“NO-! And it's not Gajeel either!” Lucy exclaimed, hand pinching the bridge of her nose, completely and utterly exasperated.
“Well, it can’t be Wendy.” Natsu states to himself. “And you already said no to Laxus.”
“Uh huh.” Lucy deadpanned, no longer finding this amusing.
Why was he like this?
Natsu pauses again, slowly rising to his feet. He looks around her apartment, eyes trailing over every nook and cranny. His shirt was on the side of her bed, one he had left a few days ago after camping out. A bag of dried fish for when Happy needed a pick-me-up. A dragon plushie on her desk, next to the box of letters she’d written to her mom. Even the window was almost always unlocked now, as if Lucy wanted Natsu inside.
“Lucy?” Natsu tilts his head down towards the blonde, finger pointing towards himself. “I’m the only dragonslayer left.”
“Indeed you are.” Lucy clapped slowly, slightly mocking but still lighthearted. She pointed her own finger towards him, index finger pressing into his abdomen. “So–?”
“So-ooo…?” Natsu repeats back, nose scrunched as he starts putting pieces together.
“C’mon, Natsu. I know you have an idea in that brain of yours.” Lucy teases softly, words light. She moves her hand to rest on his arm, fingers dancing across his tanned skin. “Tell me what you’re thinking.”
“What I’m thinking–” Natsu cuts himself off abruptly, breathing in deeply. The only scent he can smell is Lucy, her silky smooth fragrance that tightens around his senses, vanilla and fruit binding together in the perfect dance. On the backside of the note is a woodsy-summer scent. The smell of the forest and moss, bridled with fire and smoke–his smell.
“Natsu?” Lucy repeats, expression soft but he can feel her hand tighten around his arm.
“It’s me…” Natsu’s eyes widened slowly, the realization pouring over him in one swift movement. “The answer is me! How did I not notice...” He scratches the side of his neck all before falling into his own fit of laughter, and Lucy can’t help but find herself joining in.
As Lucy laughed, Natsu felt himself stopping, eyes drawn to her amused giggles. Her entire being radiated with golden rays, every tone and syllable falling past her lips stunning Natsu into place. Lucy was breathtaking, a pure breeze that brought Natsu to his senses.
He loved Lucy.
“It’s always been you, silly!” Lucy says with a laugh, her eyes twinkling with joyful tears as she finally stands up again. "Every part of you, Natsu. Even the parts you don't like." She brushes her hands over the fabric of the dress, wrinkles smoothing out under her touch. “Ironically, I got some advice saying to wear this around you and something great would happen, I just didn’t expect it to be true.”
Lucy reaches for one of Natsu’s hands, searching deep within his eyes as she does for any sign of resistance, to which there is none, and places it on her waist. “I wasn’t expecting you to come over in a jealous rage, though.” She slips her hands around his arms again, trailing upwards until they’re ghosting over his biceps. “I almost thought you were gonna destroy my place for a second.”
“Shit, I know.” Natsu sighed, eyes diverting to the mess he made. “Happy kinda put it in my head–”
“Happy?” Lucy gasps, her eyes crinkling at the corners as a comically wide smile covers her face. “That damn cat.”
“He got you, too?” Natsu tightens his hold on Lucy, bringing her in closer until he can rest his chin on the top of her head. She nestles her face into his chest, wrapping her arms fully around Natsu’s back. “He’s so sneaky…”
“We should probably thank him.” Lucy whispers, voice light. Natsu could feel her smiling through his shirt. His heart fluttered. “Pushed us in the right direction after all.”
“I guess.” Natsu grumbled, shoulders shrugging slightly. “I was actually tryin’ to write a letter for you. Happy said it sucked.”
Lucy stifled her laugh as gently as she could, before shifting in his grasp. She looked up at him, eyes gentle and curious, no mocking expression hidden in her sweet features. In fact, she looked rather touched–like Natsu just confessed to something amazing.
“What did it say? Will you tell me?”
Natsu grimaced at the thought, but looking at Lucy with her big, round eyes, he knew he couldn’t say no.
“You sure? It was kinda lame.”
“I’m sure.” Lucy slipped her hand down until it lay over Natsu’s, squeezing it gently in reassurance.
“Ah, fine. Don’t say I didn’t warn you.” Natsu huffed out a deep sigh. “It said Lucy is cool and I like cool things.”
“Cool things, huh?” Lucy smiled at him, all softness and sunshine, just like the beating sun or wispy fires.
“Yeah, cool things.” Natsu repeated, his ears tinged in pink.
Lucy wrapped her arms around his neck, toes pressed into the floor as she tipped herself up, face just close enough to press her lips into his cheek.
“I like you, too, Natsu.” Lucy smiled at him, wide and genuine, like the weight of the world had been lifted away. “I like you a lot.”
“Sheesh,” Natsu grumbled, a nervous tint to his face, “puttin’ me on the spot like this.”
“You don’t need to say it,” Lucy whispered, lips hovering just over his. “I think I know.”
“Good.” Natsu threaded his finger through blonde locks, his other hand caressing the sensitive skin of her jaw. “I’ll tell you next time, though.”
His thumb trails over her jawbone, his actions smooth and weightless. He’s just a breath away from Lucy, his dark eyes captivating her, leaving her utterly breathless as she felt his lips finally connect with hers. The kiss was slow and unsure, timid motions laced in every press of his lips, but Lucy loved it either way.
“I’ll be waiting for you, Natsu,” Lucy sighed happily, head leaning against Natsu’s as she gazed into his eyes. “Always waiting.” She closed her eyes as she leaned in, closing the space between them. The kiss was soft, full of words and emotions that Natsu wasn’t ready to say, but his heart screamed them proudly as their lips connected.
'I like you, too, Lucy.'