Kiss it better
It was a cold day in Magnolia. Fresh snow lined the streets and settled upon rooves, window sills and just about anything that it could settle on. Yes, it was Winter, and the first snow of the year. Children were building snowmen and having snowball fights, young couples were skating hand in hand on the frozen lake and the elderly were sitting on park benches, all bundled up in the warmest clothes they posessed whilst reminiscing about the past Christmases they had when they were children.
Parents hurried about the various shops and stalls in a mad dash to buy gifts for their little ones before they had to collect them from school while tourists strolled around the town, admiring the lights and decorations put up by the townsfolk.
Amongst all of the hustle and bustle of the holiday season was Team Natsu. They had been requested by the mayor to erect the Christmas tree in the square. Or more specifically Gray and Erza. Natsu had somehow managed to singe a few of the branches at the top of the tree through the constant snowfall, and Happy couldn't take the combined weight of both Natsu and the tree. They ended up tying ropes around the middle and bottom sections of the giant conifer with an additional one at the top to prevent it from toppling over.
Gray held the base steady for Erza as she pulled the tree upright and because he could fly, Happy's job was to decorate. Albeit with strict instruction from Erza.
Lucy was tasked with keeping Natsu occupied and out of trouble, so she decided to take him around town for a bit.
"Ne, Natsu..."
"Hah? Whatcha want, Lucy?"
"Do you wanna get some hot chocolate? I mean, it's the perfect weather for it and all."
"Yosh! What are we waiting for, let's go!" And with that, he grabbed her hand and ran off, dragging Lucy along with him.
"N-Natsu, wait! It's slippery out here!"
"Two hot chocolates, please!"
"Of course, sir."
Natsu took the drinks and paid the person behind the counter. Lucy watched to make sure he actually paid. If he didn't...
"Yosh... thanks, man! Yo Lucy, here!"
Lucy grabbed at her drink and blew the steam away as the two of them made their way to the park. Once there, the duo sat down on a nearby bench.
"Kanpai!" They cheered as they clinked polystyrene cups. Natsu chugged his and it was gone in seconds. Lucy blew on hers again and sipped. She instantly regretted the action. She had assumed that, because it was cold, her hot chocolate would have cooled down quicker. Boy was she wrong.
She plonked her cup down on the snowy ground and clamped her hands over her mouth while sucking in air to soothe her poor tongue.
"Lucy?! Are you ok?!" Natsu was beginning to panic now. What had happened to the Spirit Mage?
Her only response was a series of distressed noises and a pained "Does it look like I'm ok?!"
He came to the sudden realisation that the hot chocolate had sill been too hot for her to drink and had burned her tongue as a result. A metaphorical light bulb lit up above his head and he blurted out the only thing his panic induced brain could think of.
"How about I kiss it better!"
Lucy stopped nursing her mouth for a moment and took the opportunity to gape open-mouthed at the pink-haired idiot. Said dragon slayer was grinning his signature fanged grin complete with a faint pink hue dusting his cheeks. His head was tilted cutely to the side.
Lucy was at a loss for words. He looked so adorable. Too adorable.
"If ya don't want me to, just say it! It's not like it's gonna kill ya or anythin'."
She opened her mouth to object but no words came out. It's not like she didn't like him, if anything, quite the opposite. She loved everything about him, even if he broke into her apartment and ate all of her food at least twice a week.
She didn't want to make things awkward between her and her best friend is all.
While all of this was going through her mind, she hadn't noticed that Natsu had gotten closer. Only when he was inches away from her face did she snap back to reality, her pain forgotten.
"So... Y-you're fine with it then?" He breathed softly.
She froze. Her heart began to pick up speed and she began to sweat, but that all melted away when he leaned in, and their lips finally met.
The kiss was short and sweet. To random passers-by it was nothing but a common public display of affection. However, to the two blushing magic users in question, it was more than just that. Much more than that; this was the exchange of unspoken feelings.
In this space at this moment, time seemed to stop yet at the same time, an age seemed to slip by unnoticed. Almost as if the world froze and an eternity passed all at once. Time stilled for them and them alone, just to allow them to savour the moment.
To random passers-by it was nothing, but to them it meant the world.
They pulled apart for air, eyes still closed and foreheads pressed together, panting softly. Natsu was first to open his eyes, followed shortly by Lucy.
"What did you do that for, you idiot?" She questioned softly.
"Well, you burned your tongue on your drink and you look like you're fine now, so..." He scratched his head nervously, "I helped? Kinda?"
Lucy laughed at his cuteness. She had to admit that he had successfully distracted her from the pain. "Yes, Natsu, yes you did."
A look of relief visibly washed over him. He grinned, grabbed her hand once more and tugged.
"C'mon, we should get back to the others! Get you some rent money too!"
She smiled and nodded, "Unh!"
And with that, they raced off, the hot chocolate that started the whole incident -now stone cold- was left long forgotten and abandoned in the snow.