Flashing Smile

She was like a goddess smiling at the camera, but the one behind the flash noticed the lack of life in her eyes. And he's here to show her not everything's gone. [Model/Photographer AU].

"Just don't screw up this time Natsu," secretary Levy warned him as he passed trough, "She's very famous and we need her for this month's cover,"

Natsu Dragneel, young man and veteran of the company, rolled his eyes at the little blue haired girl standing behind the counter. "Got it," he said.

Ignoring all the others warning coming from the girl's mouth, he opened the steel door to his studio, the place where he could create magic with his camera. The sound of all the chatting from the reception died down, leaving him alone with white walls and tons of tools for the model to pose with. Those went from hats and sunglasses to skates and snowboards. He supposed that Fairy Tail, being as the big magazine it was, needed all of them to create perfect pictures.

"Okay then," he murmured to himself, placing his bag on the floor and starting to adjust his camera.

The sesion started in five minutes, so he guessed he still had to wait until the model arrived. Who was she, again? He couldn't even remember her name properly, and she was some international superstar... Luigi?

What a weird name, he thought with a chuckle.

The door swung open, and Natsu lifted his gaze with bored eyes... until he saw her.

Standing there, was one of the most attractive girls he'd ever seen. Man, he wasn't one to go drooling over other girls, or even all the women he'd photographed, but this girl was in other level.

Shining blonde hair, long up her tiny waist. The body of a goddess, with porcelain skin and the amount of assets Natsu liked. The short skirt she was wearing let him see creamy, long legs that drove him crazy.

The only thing she lacked of, the thing that didn't make him fall in love in that instant, was life.

Her eyes, -a pretty shade of chocolate brown- were empty. Emotionless, numb. There wasn't a light of happiness, it was as if she was some sort of puppet, a walking machine.

It made Natsu sad. It wasn't the first time he took photos of a girl who lost her shine. It was a shame, really, how the world messed them up. Though he always did his best to cheer them up, deep inside he knew they would return to the real world soon.

"Hello," the blonde beauty said. "Is it Natsu Dragneel's studio? Because the secretary told to come here for the sesion," She had a very sweet voice.

Natsu grinned at her. "Yo, it's me. You came to the right place. Luigi, right?" he asked, because, how could he forget her name?

The girl's eye twitched, but she gave him a tense, small smile nonetheless. "Actually, it's Lucy Heartfilia."

Natsu choked. His eyes widened as he looked at her again, and confirming the fact that he was going to photograph the icon of the moment. He knew she was an underwear model, but he recalled seeing her on TV shows and some movies.

Was he really going to shoot her?

"Oh," he said. He felt stupid, but he shrugged it off seconds later. It wasn't like he was going to impress her, anyways. "You can change over there," he pointed at the door behind her, the dressing room.

"Okay, thank you." Lucy said, and with that she went to the room to get ready, closing the door softly behind her.

Natsu ran a hand through his pink locks, sighing out. Now he understood why Erza threatened him more than usual, and all the warnings Levy gave him... It sure was an important issue for Fairy Tail, if they called Lucy Heartfilia for the cover.

Still, pride travelled his body as he acknowledged the fact he was chosen for such an important job.

Around fifteen minutes later, Lucy came out of the room with an outfit not very different from her previous one, but Natsu bit back his tongue to not let himself say things that may anger Erza. Besides, Lucy looked really pretty with her sleeveless blue tank top, brownish skirt and high boots. She had tied up her hair in a side ponytail, though some bangs fell over her face, framing it.

He smiled brightly at her before saying, "Great! Shall we start?"

Lucy shyly smiled back. "Yeah, sure."

Natsu took his camera, and she posed. She made it so easily, with such an attitude it left no wonders why she was number one. The camera loved her. Natsu only had to press a button, because no matter what angle, what pose, what illumination, she managed to pull it out. He felt captivated. It was almost as if she was happy.

Almost.

Unconsciously, Natsu let out a heavy sigh.

"Something's wrong?" he heard. Looking up from his camera, he saw Lucy looking at him with curiosity in her brown eyes.

"I only wish you could smile sincerely," Natsu said, though he only later realized he did.

He watched her as she struggled, opening and closing her lips like a fish. He could see the engines in her eyes working, thinking about something she could say, but it seemed she found nothing, because she only looked away and crossed her arms.

Natsu didn't miss the pink of her cheeks.

"I think we're done with this outfit," Lucy said quietly, but Natsu heard her thanks to his sharp ears. "I'm gonna change,"

And as she closed the dressing room door again, Natsu panicked. Did he piss her that badly? Now Erza for sure would kill him. She would grab him by his arm and then she would-

"KYAAAA!"

Natsu ran at his maximum speed towards the room, opening the door as he yelled, "WHAT'S WRONG, LUIGI?"

And what he saw startled him. It was her, pressed against the wall, looking at the blue cat with shock, who looked at her bored, purring and moving his long tail in curiosity.

And she was only in her bra.

Lucy looked at him with wide eyes, covering her chest with both arms. "WHY ARE YOU HERE, PERV!" she shouted.

"You fucking screamed!" Natsu said, shaking his head in utter surprise and mock. "Who gets scared by a cat, anyways? You're such a weirdo,"

"Why is a blue cat here?" Lucy asked. "And why is it even blue?" She eyed the animal again, a frown in her cute face.

Natsu rolled his eyes, crouching down to lift the cat in his arms. He patted the blue fur of the cat, a smile spreading out in his lips. "He's Happy, my cat."

"You brought your cat to job?" Lucy asked, amazed.

"Don't tell Erza!" Natsu pleaded, an alarmed look on his face. He held out Happy in front of her. "If I leave him home, he'll get lonely! Look at his face and tell me he's not worth the risk!"

He watched Lucy's surprised expression as she shifted her gaze between him and the cat in front of her, as if it was something that never had happened to her. After thought, Natsu realized it probably hadn't, but there was a first time for everything, right?

"Maybe..." she mumbled, looking at the cat with a face that he had come to know very well since owning Happy.

He smirked, his lips transforming in a mischievous line. Lucy squirmed under his gaze. "Wanna hold him?" he asked.

His smirk grew wider as he saw Lucy's cheeks turning slightly pink. "Can I?" she asked, too shy for his own taste.

"Why so shy?" he asked. "Of course you can hold him!"

She gently took the animal from his hands and held it close to her chest. She looked cautious, as if afraid she would let the cat drop. Seconds passed before she dared to pat the blue head of Happy, who purred contently in response. It was amazing how, after that, her eyes shone as she continued caressing the cat, the corner of her lips tugging up.

"He's so cute!" Lucy exclaimed. She looked cute too, Natsu thought, until she added, "It's a shame you have such a perv owner,"

"Hey!" Natsu replied. "I came here because you screamed!"

"I wonder..."

"Shut up." Natsu said trying to sound annoyed, but looking at her petting his cat, a new sparkle on her eyes as her lips turned into a smile, he failed. How could he be mad at her when she looked so... happy.

And people laughed at him when he told them he named his cat Happy because it was that made him feel everytime they were together. Happy made Lucy happy, so everything was alright.

He had come fond to her smile.

"Glad you're enjoying him," Natsu commented. It came from the bottom of his heart.

Lucy stopped her movements. She seemed to reconsider what she was doing. "Oh, sorry," she said, pushing Happy into his chest, leaving him with no choice but to grab him, too astonished from the change in her attitude to reaction.

"Umm..." Lucy said. "We should got back to work now,"

Natsu frowned. "What's up with you?"

"Nothing."

"You're weird."

"I'M NOT WEIRD!" she yelled, puffing out her cheeks.

"And you're soooo loud," Natsu whined, looking mockingly at the blonde model.

"I'm not loud!" she hissed.

"Don't you know to say something else than denying who you are?" Natsu joked. "Weirdo,"

"I'm not weird!" Lucy said. Realizing her mistake at seeing his grin, she added, "You shut up!"

"I like it when you're like this," he commented nonchalantly, but he felt his cheeks heating up, just a little bit.

Lucy, on the other hand, looked taken aback. Her eyes bugged out, and her face turned like a tomato.

"Uh," Natsu started, scratching the back of his head, nervous. "I mean, like, you know-"

"When I am like what?" Lucy asked softly, her eyes suddenly glued to her toes.

Looking at her like that, so flustered and shy and nervous, awoke something inside Natsu. A sudden instinct to protect her, to comfort her and held her tightly against his chest. She looked insecure, which was pure irony, considering the fact that the world recognized her as the most beautiful girl in the world.

And then it struck him, like a lighting falling from the sky over him.

She may be secure about her looks, but inside, she felt lonely. Maybe no one knew her, and that made her so shy; because she didn't know how to act around others.

"When you're you," Natsu said, giving her his most big grin, the one where even his fangs showed.

She looked at him as if he was some sort of messiah. Her eyes were wide, both in amazement and in fear. It made Natsu's heart clench. Were all superstars like this?

"But you don't know me," Lucy retorted.

"I may know a lot more than you imagine,"

Lucy scoffed, lowering her head so the bangs covered her eyes. "Yeah, what the magazines say,"

Natsu then realized his mistake. But he wasn't going to give up on her anytime soon. "Who cares about them," he said. "I'm pretty sure you're not just Lucky Lucy Heartfilia."

"Then who am I?" Lucy shouted, angry tears gathering in her eyes.

Natsu put a hand over her shoulder, squeezing it reassuringly. "You're Lucy!"

Her head shot up, the incredibility written all over her expression. Her mouth opened and closed as a fish again, and a single tear rolled down. He wiped it off with his thumb.

"Who the heck are you," Lucy murmured before placing her forehead against his chest in seek of comfort. He chuckled, wrapping his arms around her body.

"I'm Natsu," he said.

"Sorry," she said, her voice coming out muffled by his shirt. "I'm weting your shirt."

"'S okay," he said. He had a goofy smile playing in his lips. He hoped she let him take care of her more times in the future, though, he thought, if she had endured it all this time, she sure was a strong woman.

"You know something," Lucy said moments later, still in his embrace. "Actually, I'd always wanted to be an author."

That took him by surprise. He was sure he hadn't read it in any report about her. Was this some big secret? If it was or not, it made him feel all warm inside. A different kind of warm of the one he always seemed to have.

"Why aren't you one?" Natsu said.

"Stuff," Lucy only said. After a pause, she added, "I may tell you someday."

His stomach did a weird flip flop. What was she doing to him? He hoped she gave him enough times for him to find out.

"I'll hold you on that," he managed to say through his racing heart.

"You know something else," Lucy said.

Breathless, he murmured, "What?"

"I'm still only in my bra and if someone walks in, you'll get arrested for sexual harassment."

"Hey!" he said, and slowly broke off the hug, looking at her with incredulous eyes.

But then, something way better than the fact she was still in her bra, or the luck nobody had entered, or probably even more than his whole day happened: she laughed.

An actual laugh, one that reached her chocolate eyes and made her lips reach her ears and obliged her to bend over her stomach as her body shook. A happy laugh. He didn't care she laughed at him as long as she held that expression.

"Y-Your face!" Lucy said, laughing even harder.

And how could he not laugh? She had one of those melodic, sweet laughs that forced you along even if you were feeling really down.

They kept laughing until who knows how long, until Lucy finally calmed down and wiped the happy tears off her face. She kept the smile on her face, though. Natsu liked it.

"You know, you're kinda cute when you smile."

That seemed to catch her with her guard off, because suddenly her face turned a tomato even brighter than before. Her eyes bugged out, and she started to stammer nothings. He couldn't help but laugh at her misery; he liked that expression on her face too, as long as he was the one who caused it.

"Shut up," she murmured, frowning at him.

"What's wrong?" he asked curiously.

"Nothing," she said, averting his gaze.

"C'mon!" he insisted. "Tell me!"

"No!" she said. After taking a deep breath, she added, "We really should go back to work. I don't want you to get in trouble because of me."

Natsu shrugged. "I wouldn't really mind," he said. "But if you insist, let's end this quickly so we can go have lunch at this place near here that's really awesome,"

Lucy looked at him as he was a dragon. "Really?"

Suddenly he felt all nervous. "Umm, it's okay if you don't wanna..." After all, who was him to take out on lunch the most beautiful girl on the world?

Lucy giggled, and then she gave him one of the prettiest smiles he'd ever seen.

"Actually, I'd love to, Natsu."

Hope you enjoyed it! Let me know whatever you think about this, your reviews are really appreciated. Thank you for reading, it means a lot!