"Don't play coy with me, Lucy. You want to give Natsu a smooch tonight at midnight!" Cana said, nursing a drink and winking at Lucy.
"W-what are you talking about?" Lucy asked, genuinely concerned for her friend's sanity. Cana took a long swig of her drink, chuckling darkly.
"You don't mean you don't notice how sexy the guy is?" Cana said, and her eyes glinted softly when she turned her eyes on Lucy.
"I-I don't know what you're talking about," Lucy responded, her face flushing now. She had noticed, of course, but hadn't thought about doing anything about it. I mean, he's Natsu! She had seen him shovel 24 sandwiches into his mouth at once with sauces and toppings flying everywhere and heard him snoring uproariously in the middle of the night when he snuck into bed with her.
"Your face says otherwise, Lu," Cana said with a smirk, and Lucy hid her face in her hands. How could Cana ask her about such a sensitive topic? Especially with Natsu so close in proximity?
"Luce!" Natsu said, marching over to the women with a smile on his face. An admittedly handsome one, Lucy thought, and she shook her head to clear her thoughts before Natsu got to her. She didn't want to admit that her pulse quickened at the mere sight of him, and that she got goosebumps when he smiled at her like he was now. She liked the feelings, but she didn't like what went along with them.
They were friends. Best friends. And Lucy didn't want to ruin that for the world. It would be like ruining the most important thing that ever happened to her. She was forever grateful for him protecting her when she needed it most, especially when they met in Hargeon. Lucy didn't know where she would be without him saving her life that day. After that, they had become the best of friends, and it had stayed that way for years through all their adventures.
But when the feelings started to creep up very slowly, Lucy shoved them down. When Natsu caught her in their battle with Phantom Lord, she pushed the feelings fluttering in her chest. The time when they formed a team on Tenrou Island and he rescued her from Kain Hikaru's grip, she realized Natsu's appeal as a leader. Even when he told her he would rescue Gray and he touched his forehead tenderly to Lucy's, the feelings still felt wrong. Their friendship was more important to her than anything else in the world.
"What's up, Natsu?" Cana asked, and Lucy's blush inched her way up her face when she realized Natsu had taken his shirt off in his brawl with Gray held earlier. Gray's shirt was also off, but she didn't care. She didn't have these kinds of feelings for Gray. And if she did, Juvia would murder her with just a glare.
"Luce, I'm tired. I want to go home," he whined, and Lucy narrowed her eyes.
"Well, then, go home! I'm not your mother!" She was now getting annoyed. Since when did he need her permission to go to his own home?
"But I wanna sleep with you, Luce!" Natsu said, and Lucy froze, her blood turning ice cold in the shock.
"What?!" Lucy exclaimed, "That's not something you announce in front of the entire guild, idiot!"
"Your bed is so warm, though, Lucy! And you get so snuggly when you sleep," Natsu said, rubbing the back of his neck. Cana was now laughing uproariously, and Lucy's pulse quickened and her face turned a tomato red.
"Juvia is happy for Lucy!" Juvia shouted across the room from her spot at her table with Gray, and Levy let out a whoop.
"Nice job, Lu!"
"I don't know what all of this is about! I don't get snuggly when I sleep!" Lucy protested, standing up from her seat at the table and stomping her foot.
"Sure ya do, Luce! In fact, you hold on to me during your nightmares," Natsu said, his mouth turning up at the corners in amusement.
Lucy growled at her best friend. "Fine, let's go home. But there will be no snuggling!"
"That's what you always say, Luce," Natsu said, chuckling, and Lucy had to admit that his chuckle was adorable
Once they got back to Lucy's apartment, Lucy changed into her pajamas in the bathroom as to not give Natsu a peek at her body. Sure, she wanted him to see it one day, but today was not that day. Even if it was New Year's Eve.
"You want some wine, Lucy?" Natsu asked, and Lucy whirled around with her eyes narrowed. She was still angry from the encounter at the guild, but she was curious as to why he brought champagne with him.
In his hands was a pink sparkling moscato, Lucy's favorite. He also brought along some strawberries and fruit juice to put into the alcoholic beverage to make it easier to swallow. Lucy gasped, putting her hand on her heart.
"How did you know that was my favorite drink?" she asked, walking up and taking the bottle from him, looking at it.
"Well, whenever I stay here you always have that drink written down on your grocery list. And you always have strawberry pancakes for breakfast, so I thought maybe you might like both of those things today," he said, and Lucy grinned. Natsu was so thoughtful.
Those feelings of attraction started to bloom again when he popped open the bottle without almost any effort and poured her a glass, mixing it together with the juice and the strawberries. He knew exactly what she liked, and even though he wasn't her boyfriend, he knew how to make an occasion special.
"Thanks," she said when he handed her the wineglass, trying not to notice how their fingers brushed together softly. Natsu seemed to notice it too, but said nothing. His face flushed slightly but Lucy didn't notice as she took a few large sips of her favorite beverage.
"Luce?" Natsu asked, and Lucy's eyes popped up to meet his.
"Hmm?" she answered, downing the rest of the drink quickly and pressing the glass back into his hands for another.
"Nothin'," Natsu said, although he knew it was not just nothing. He felt it too. "Want to watch a movie?"
"Sure, as long as I can keep drinking these things," Lucy said, and she began to start on the rest of the bottle of sparkling wine.
If Lucy hadn't felt the feelings of being buzzed on her second drink, she definitely did on her seventh. Things were starting to get a little fuzzy around the edges, and everything Natsu did seemed hilarious. When he laughed at the movie it seemed a little distorted, and Lucy couldn't help but laugh at his laugh.
"Your laugh's sho funny, Natshu," she said with a hiccup, and thankfully the credits were already rolling. Otherwise both of them would be in for a long night.
"I think it's time for you to go to bed, Luce," he said, smiling slightly at her antics.
"No, I want to stay up until New Year's! And then I want a kiss!" she said, tapping her lips. Natsu gulped loudly but said nothing as he hoisted her into bed.
"Up you go," he told her, and she cheered at the movement.
"Whee!" she said, holding onto his middle tightly. Natsu chuckled and untied her hands from his waist and began to get up.
"Stay with me, Natsu!" Lucy told him, her arms wrapping over his chest and pulling him down into the bed with him. She giggled as she pulled him under the covers and smiled at him cheekily.
"I don't think this is a good idea, Lucy. You're really drunk."
"Yeah, but I want someone to snuggle with! You even said that I snuggle when I sleep," she reminded him, and he gulped once more. She had him on that one.
"True," he said, deciding that it probably wouldn't be too bad to stay for a little while.
"Nighty-night," Lucy said, tapping him on the nose with her finger. "Boop."
Natsu chuckled, and Lucy giggled at the sound. Within moments, the two fell into a light sleep until they heard the countdown start. There was only 30 seconds left of the year, and this weighed on Lucy's heart. It was now or never.
"Natsu," Lucy said, her eyes staring deep into his. He flicked his eyes onto hers, and the intensity made his pupils dilate.
"Hmm?" he asked, tipping his head to the side.
"I really want to kiss you," Lucy said, and Natsu's eyes widened.
This was like something from another dimension. Lucy wanted to kiss him? The guy who was always making mistakes and messing up, making her angry and hurting her feelings? Him?
The clock began to count down from ten, and Lucy leaned in with her lips parted softly. Natsu watched her gorgeous face come closer and closer, and he realized something in that moment.
He wanted to kiss her too.
Kissing Lucy would be like a dream come true for him. His crushing on her had made him confused for sure. He didn't want to ruin what they had: a beautiful friendship and a great team.
But maybe this kiss wouldn't ruin it. Maybe it would be a start of a whole new adventure.
Natsu cupped her face as the numbers grew closer, and he wanted more than anything to kiss her puckered lips. She was so beautiful with her eyes shut and full of uncertainty and trust in him. As he neared, the numbers became smaller.
Their lips met at the last second of the previous year and stayed together until the first minute of the new one. It was a fantastic ending of the year to say the least, and a perfect start to a year full of possibilities. When they broke apart, Lucy blushed and pushed a strand of hair behind her ear and Natsu grinned.
"Lucy?" he asked, and Lucy looked up at him once more.
"Yes?"
"Can I kiss you again?"
"Of course."