An AU of Fairy Tail in the normal world. Lucy is a single mother who juggles taking care of Lulu and running a very successful publishing company while Natsu is her bounty hunter ex-boyfriend. Lulu is fast asleep when her dad decides to pop up and have a word with Mom.

EDIT: Guys, it says COMPLETE for a reason!

In all honesty, she had really no clue what she was doing. It was the middle of the night and the dead of winter. The weather had been abnormally bad, with random snow storm alternating with equally as random rainstorms.

Lucy knew there was nothing on television, what could there be at twelve o'clock at night? Sure there was the news, but it was really boring. And then there was the more-than-slightly adult programs, but 1. Lulu was asleep in the other room and she would rather DIE than let her daughter catch her watching those and 2. Lucy had way too much dignity.

Nothing on the radio either other than lonely Christmas songs and boring talk shows. Lucy also knew better than to call up Levy, Erza, or Juvia. After all, Erza always stressed that busy women such as them (with her reputation as a merciless lawyer and Lucy's fast paced joirnal editor career) needed at least eight hours of sleep. Gajeel would tear her up if she woke his now six month pregnant wife up and she was positive Juvia and Gray did not want to be disturbed. Which brought her to her own love life as Lucy's gaze fell onto a photo of her, Lulu, and her ex-boyfriend.

Though they had been broken up since before Lulu was born, he had made it his mission to be in their lives. He was there for every birthday, recital, playdate, Christmas, Easter, you name it. He called every morning before school, picked her up and took her to his house, than stayed for dinner so he could personally say goodnight. The school even sent him a copy of her report cards. In fact, he was there way too much for an ex-boyfriend.

Lucy guessed she should be happy he was so involved, since most unmarried parents tended to abandon children. Case in point, Cana Alberona, whose only support were her friends and father. Lucy sighed.

Natsu had always had that obnoxious, but sweet thing going for him, especially for a guy who hunts down criminals. There had even been ideas of a more solid future, but then...

Before she could finish that thought, someone pounded on the door. Donning a red robe, she hurried to the door of her two bedroom apartment and swung it open. There was Natsu Dragneel, veteran bounty hunter and father to Lulu Heartfilia. "Natsu? Why are you here," Lucy hadn't expected him, especially this late. He flashed her his signature grin.

"Hey, Luce. Just thought I'd visit since I can't seem to get any sleep." He looked at her attire. Her hair was pulled into a messy ponytail, her pink pajama pants were wrinkled, and her white tank top was sliding off her shoulder to reveal a tantalizing amount of skin. "Sorry, did I wake you? I can come back later if-"

"No, it's fine. I've been up for hours. Come in, it's cold." He walked inside, taking off his coat and gloves, leaving his signature scarf tightly wound around his neck. She looked him over while he took off his shoes. Even in just a pair of old jeans and a My Chemical Romance tee-shirt, he was gorgeous. How did he pull off that "salmon" colored hair anyway? "Sorry I look like such a frump. I didn't know you'd be here and I didn't want to change."

Natau thought she'd look beautiful in anything. The fact that she was still wearing the robe he had bought her when she was pregnant made him nostalgic. He grinned, "you know you'd look good in a paper bag, Luce." She scoffed and lead him to the kitchen, where he proceeded to raid her fridge. "So, Lulu asleep?"

"Well duh, it's twelve."

"You never know with her. Remember when we caught her putting on your make up at three in the morning?" Lucy groaned, remembering how she had to clean the bathroom after scolding Lulu's ear off. Natsu still laughed. He put her inbtime out, but he laughed while doing it.

"Touche." She went into the living room, since he knew his way around, and sat on the couch. He came in a second later with two cups of coffee and sat next to her, handing her one. She took a sip and smiled. French Vanilla, lots of cream and sugar, with a dash of cinnamon. He remembered.

"If I remember, she wanted to be as pretty as Mommy." Lucy grinned. That little comment during the whole Make Up Mayhem had not saved her from getting a turn in the time out chair, but it did get her chocolate chip pancakes for breakfast. Natsu teased Lucy endlessly for it. "You are such a softie."

"Me? Who was it who cried when Lulu knocked out her tooth for the first time?" Natsu face turned red.

"I felt bad! That had to hurt!" Lucy laughed.

"Lulu cried for ten minutes, then hugged you because you cried for thirty!" He pouted. "God, that was cute. 'Daddy hewts bad too, Mommy. He needz ice cweam.' That was just too much,"

"I got the ice cream, didn't I?"

"While Lulu patted your head and said 'it okay, Daddy'." Natsu huffed and then smirked.

"I wasn't the one who called the school every twenty minutes when she started first grade." She glared.

"You sat in the daycare for a month when she moved to the big kid room...just to scare the other kids so they wouldn't bully her."

"You and Levy staked out her first slumber party."

"You freaked out when she first caught a cold."

"You wouldn't stop taking pictures of her when she first came home."

"You wouldn't put her down the first month of her life!" They glared at each other for a long time, then began laughing. "I remember that." She sighed, suddenly a bit...meloncholy.

Natsu smiled softly and sat closer, "remember that day...? You called me at three in the morning and told me your water broke. You couldn't reach your dad or Erza and I ran three lights and seven stops to get to you." She nodded, barely registering how he was playing with her hair. He even pulled it out of the pony tail, Natsu loved it down.

"You literally broke down my door and found me in the bathroom, I was in so much pain. You carried me to the car, you never even picked up my bags, and just put me in the car. And you rushed me to the nearest hospital, carried me in, and said-"

"My girlfriend is going into labor." They both said.

"...I remember you never let go of my hand, you stayed right there...you were always..." She could still hear him telling her that it would be okay and that he wasn't going anywhere. Natsu stared at her. She was always so...perfect. The way she talked and held herself...the way she smiled or frowned or laughed. It was enough to keep him up at night, thinking of how long they've known each other as far back as elementary.

She was the It Girl, with perfect grades, popular friends, and expensive clothes.

He was the Problem Child, getting into fights over nothing, cussing out teachers, and skipping class.

But he never hurt her, though all his schools feared him and his friends. She was always the one he strived for and he thought she knew that. So...why...

"Why did you leave me?" It was out before he could stop it and he wished he could kick himself. She stared at him and he stared back. Oh well, better roll with it. "I mean...I thought we were doing great...we were gonna have a baby, we...we had enough money...and...I thought you knew I loved you, I did everything I could to prove it, but...then you just...you broke up with me, but you never told me why..." She stayed quiet before speaking up.

"...Natsu...I just...I mean...I couldn't stay. You would come home covered in bruises and cuts...you even came home with bullet wounds and I couldn't stay home and wonder if you'd make it that night...if this was our last day together..." She felt like crying, "I had nightmares of police officers coming to our door to tell me you had been shot or stabbed or...I couldn't watch you die, Natsu." He stared at her before sighing.

"...I get it, Luce...you never did like me fighting...but...I...would rather have been shot or stabbed or worse...than not have you..." she didn't respond, "call me selfish, but I would rather have died knowing you love me than die with us being 'just friends'. Luce, you can call us friends all you like, but I can never think of you as just my friend or even my ex." She still didn't respond. So, he leaned closer, pulled her to him, and kissed her.

It was deep, rough, and commanding. It showed Lucy that he was every bit of male women thought he was. It proved that he was the bad boy her friends dreamt of in high school and college. He expertly moved his lips against hers, a kiss he had perfected just for her, just so...as he pulled away and saw those big, doe brown eyes that gave him a moony stare, he'd get the same look. "...I love you...I want to be in your life...Marry me?"

"Natsu...I-"

"I got accepted into the Police Academy." She stared at him. He had been trying to be a police man since he had been saved by one as a kid. "...I want you to be there for me...I want to be there for you and Lulu..." He grabbed her hands and looked down at her, "please...say yes...?" She stayed quiet before smiling.

"Promise to leave your work out of the house?" He grinned.

"I promise."