Counting on Forever Epilogue
They had made it out of the forest and to their rendezvous point without incident, for which they were all very grateful, before boarding the waiting aircraft. After a seriously stressful few months, Jellal, Laxus, Natsu, Gajeel, Cobra, Ultear, and Meredy were very glad to be heading home. Jellal was ready to see his wife and son, Laxus was ready to see his wife and daughter, Natsu was ready to see his girl as was Cobra, Gajeel was just glad to be done with this stupid mission, and Ultear and Meredy were ready for a fresh start in a new city. However, this did not stop Laxus from getting indignant with the men who rescued him.
"What the hell do you mean I can't use your cell phone!" Laxus growled at Cobra while said man leaned back in his chair on the plane.
"We're on a plane, genius," Cobra sneered, highly enjoying mocking Laxus since he had been able to do NOTHING for their entire stupid mission. "You can't use transmitting devices on a plane."
"I want to talk to my WIFE, you asshat!" Laxus snarled, lunging towards Cobra before Jellal reached out and grabbed the back of his shirt with a sigh. In any other circumstance, Jellal would not have been able to stop Laxus since the man outweighed him by a good twenty pounds, probably more, but since he had been held captive…well now Jellal could haul Laxus back rather easily.
"Look, Laxus," Jellal said tiredly as Ultear ran her fingers through Meredy's hair and they both watched amused, "We really are not supposed to use transmitting devices while in the air, but I get where you're coming from." Jellal watched as Cobra's eyes widened and Natsu grinned as he edged closer to Gajeel, who also had his phone out, "So, Cobra, give Laxus your damn phone. He hasn't talked to his wife in six months and I know for a fact you talked to Kinana last night."
With a grateful smile at Jellal, Laxus took the cell phone from Cobra's hands while the maroon-haired man spluttered and Natsu took Gajeel's. They had not talked to their girls in over six months; it was past time they got to hear their voices, regardless of the disgruntled look on their comrades' faces. With slightly trembling hands, Laxus walked to the back of the plane while Natsu walked to the front. Taking a deep breath, Laxus dialed the number for Mira's phone.
He listened to the ring as the call was connecting with trepidation. He had not heard her voice in far too long… What would she have to say? Would she be angry with him? He had done his best to come back to her long before now…he just had not been able to manage it. Laxus sucked in a huge breath when he heard the line connect.
"Hello?" he heard her voice come over the line and he almost fell to his knees in relief. Hearing her voice now was like hearing the voice of an angel. It meant everything was finally, finally, over. He was actually on his way home; he wasn't still trapped in that damn cell with no way of knowing if he was going to live or die. He wasn't going to wake up any minute to find Gajeel ready to pound him into the sand, something he would have to pay the bastard back for later…
"Hello?" he heard Mira's voice ask again, puzzled, "Is anyone there?" He couldn't speak, though, not past the lump of emotion in his throat. How he had imagined hearing her voice over and over again…but even all of his imagining couldn't compare to the real thing. God knew how much he had missed her soothing voice.
"I'm hanging up now," he heard her say then, a slight note of irritation coming over the line. Panicking, he struggled to speak past the relief and overwhelming joy currently choking him. He couldn't think though! He didn't know what to say! What do you say to your wife after six months away? Six months of time where she probably thought you were dead? He could practically hear her finger moving towards the phone to end the call when suddenly he just said the same thing he always says after the completion of a mission…
"I'm almost home baby."
Natsu was practically giddy as he gleefully stole the phone from Gajeel's hand. He was going to talk to Luce! He was finally going to hear his beautiful fiancé's voice after so long without it! Luce had the best voice; not that he was biased or anything. Mira's voice was nice and Juvia's was…weird and Erza's was just plain scary but his Luce had the best voice, even when she was shrieking at him in rage. It put a grin on his face just thinking of her yelling at him he had missed her voice that much.
As he was putting in the number he had taken FOREVER to remember, his finger suddenly stilled over the phone. What if Lucy hadn't waited for him? He knew they had been dating for the better part of four years, but still…what if she couldn't handle knowing he had gone missing in action? What if she had found comfort in someone else? What if she thought he was dead so she just moved on? What if, what if, what if!
Natsu's finger hovered over the call button as doubts suddenly swarmed his mind. Lucy wouldn't do that though, right? Lucy loved him; she had told him so many times…AND she had agreed to marry him; that meant something didn't it? She wouldn't just move on without knowing if he was dead or not, right? Suddenly panicking, he hit the call button with an unnecessary amount of force and shoved the phone against his ear.
"Come on, come on," Natsu chanted irritably as the phone rang. She had to answer her phone! Lucy had to pick up because he had to know she still loved him! He still loved her, with all of his heart, and she was the only thing that had gotten him through those six months of hell. Without her, he didn't know how he could have kept going. He needed to hear her say she loved him!
Even before Lucy had fully answered the phone and said 'hello', Natsu was speaking, rushing through the words in his panic.
"LUCY!" he yelled into the phone, ignoring the looks he got from his comrades further back in the plane, "Luce tell me you still love me!"
"Oh my god," he heard her choke, and his heart sank. She hadn't waited. She was probably with some new guy right now… "You're alive. Oh my god Natsu you're alive!"
She was yelling and sobbing into the phone now and Natsu was utterly bewildered. Why did she sound so happy if she was with some new guy?
"Natsu I missed you so much! I never believed them when they said you had died. I never believed it. I worried but…Natsu you're okay! You're alive!" Natsu grinned as he listened to her. She wouldn't be saying those things if she was with another guy.
"So you still love me?" he asked, his grin widening, as he heard her take a moment to breathe.
"Of course I still love you!" she shrieked, her voice going up another octave, making Natsu wince but smile just the same. "Why would you even think I didn't?"
Natsu shrugged in response to her question before realizing that she couldn't see him, "I dunno."
Suddenly the line went almost deathly quiet, and Natsu grew concerned. Did Lucy pass out or something?
"Uh…Lucy?" he asked carefully. He definitely wasn't expecting the explosion that happened as her voice came screaming through the line.
"YOU COLOSSAL MORON! I WAS SO FUCKING WORRIED! I THOUGHT YOU HAD DIED AND I WOULD NEVER GET TO SEE YOU AGAIN AND YOU WORRIED ME SO MUCH I AM GOING TO KILL YOU! HOW DARE YOU LEAVE ME FOR SIX MONTHS WITH NO WORD! YOU BETTER BELIEVE YOUR ASS IS IN SERIOUS TROUBLE WHEN YOU GET HOME!" Natsu cringed at Lucy's threats, even as he heard her crying coming through the line.
"I missed you too," Natsu said quietly when Lucy finally took a breath to bring more oxygen into her system. He could almost hear her rage leave her in a gush as she sniffled into the phone.
"I was so worried," she admitted in a whisper and he wished he was already home and could draw her into his arms. He would have done almost anything to be able to reassure her in that moment, to be able to hold her and to be able to kiss her and tell her he would never leave her again.
"I'll be home soon," was all he said in response. He would spend the rest of his life making this up to her if he had to, even though it really wasn't his fault. He would never give her reason to worry like that again.
"Are you nervous?" Laxus asked as he stood next to Natsu, who was fidgeting with the scarf wrapped around his neck.
"Me?" Natsu asked, his voice cracking up an octave, "Of course not!"
Laxus laughed along with Jellal and Gray, who were standing with them at the front of the church.
"You're nervous, Flame Brain," Gray said jokingly, reaching around Laxus to clap Natsu on the shoulder. "It's okay to be nervous. It is your wedding day, after all."
Both Jellal and Laxus smiled in response as Natsu's grin widened. He was finally getting married to Lucy. It had taken over four years, six months of that time missing, and three months back home to get to this point, but he was here and he was ready, even if he was a bit nervous.
He could remember his and Lucy's reunion like it had happened yesterday, even though it had now been three months since he, Laxus, and Jellal had first come home…
"Stop your incessant bouncing, Salamander!" Gajeel growled as Natsu bounced on the balls of his feet while waiting for the plane to land. Jellal just smiled good-naturedly while Ultear and Meredy both laughed; Cobra looked utterly bored but gave his two cents as well.
"You know we're on a plane, right? A plane that's about to land? And when you're on a plane, that's going to land, you should sit in your seat?" Cobra pointed out. Natsu didn't listen to him, though, and stayed standing. Laxus eyed Natsu from his position in the first seat of the plane, closest to the door. Natsu may be standing almost directly in front of the door, but he was bound to fall once the plane fully landed, and then Laxus would be the first out of the plane and the first to see his wife. Not that it was a competition or anything…
"I don't care," Natsu growled as the pilot announced their descent into Magnolia. He was more than ready for this. His phone call with Lucy had been entirely too short for his liking and he was ready to just SEE HER ALREADY!
"Natsu you really should sit down," Jellal stated, gesturing to the seat beside Laxus. Natsu just snarled as he braced himself against the door as they could feel the plane's altitude drop even more. The blue-haired man shook his head while Meredy giggled at Natsu's antics. She found his and Laxus's devotion to their girls heart warming and something to hope for in her future, but she wouldn't tell anyone so. She was a TEENAGER after all; she had some pride.
Natsu wordlessly snarled at them all again. He was far too agitated to sit down. How Laxus was doing it, he had no idea, because he felt like his heart might just explode out of his chest he was so overwhelmingly excited.
With a roll of his eyes, Laxus leaned forward and jerked Natsu down into the seat beside him. If the damn fool wouldn't listen to Jellal's very sound advice, then Laxus was going to take the initiative and MAKE him. As his commanding officer, it was his right anyway.
"Natsu just stop," Laxus said tiredly as Natsu struggled against the iron grip his commander had on his arm. All of the excitement and traipsing through the woods, though, really did a number on his remaining strength and prevented Natsu from escaping. Hm…maybe it wasn't such a good idea to stand in front of the plane's door when he couldn't even get Laxus off of him…
With a stern glare at his commander, because he couldn't just give up THAT easily, Natsu buckled himself into his seat as the wheels finally touched the ground, jolting them all. Begrudgingly, Natsu admitted his friends had been right and was glad he had not stayed standing. He would have been hurt even more if he had stayed standing, he was sure. And then Lucy would be angry. And Lucy angry was like…the MOST terrifying thing in the world. Even more terrifying than stealing Erza's cake or disregarding Mira's matchmaking skills.
"So your girls will be meeting us at the airport?" Ultear asked curiously as the plane slowly made its way down the runway to the private airfield. Jellal and his team had such perks to their job…
"Yeah!" Natsu said ecstatically. "Lucy is the most beautiful girl in the world and I think you'll really like her! She's really nice and sweet even though she has this crazy temper and an amazing kick… And she smells nice all the time, like coconut and strawberries and chocolate! And she is the best cook ever and she is a super awesome writer and the best friend I've ever had," Ultear and Meredy stared at Natsu as his eyes took on a faraway, dreamy look. They had never seen someone look like that while talking about their girls; not even Jellal who they knew was head over heels for his wife, Erza. It made Ultear feel wistful, having never experienced a love like that, and Meredy excited for her future; if she could get a man half as devoted as any of the others on the plane with her, she would know she found a good match.
Suddenly, or so it seemed since everyone had been focused on Natsu, the plane ground to a halt. Immediately Natsu and Laxus unbuckled their seat belts and launched themselves out of their chairs, tapping their feet impatiently on the ground as they waited for the door to open. Cobra rolled his eyes at their antics as he and Gajeel stayed in their seats. Ultear and Meredy smiled at the two lovesick men, then laughed at the anxious look on their leader, Jellal's face, as well. With a sheepish grin, Jellal unbuckled and rushed to stand at the door with his comrades; he had not seen Erza or Simon in over eight months and he desperately missed them.
"NATSU!"
"LAXUS!"
Both men froze as they heard their girls' calling out for them as the pilot opened the door, having somehow managed to squeeze between them to do so. Their girls sounded like they were sobbing for joy as they called out their names and they felt like their hearts had stopped.
"JELLAL!" they heard Erza shout, followed by a "Dada!" from Simon. Natsu and Laxus broke from their frozen state to turn and look at Jellal, who looked like he had been pierced through the heart, in a good way, at his son's cry. Then all three men rushed down the stairs, Natsu somehow having managed to be first, but Laxus had no eyes for the pink-haired man, and neither did Jellal. They both descended the stairs, their eyes searching out for their wives and children, and their breath almost stopped as they found them.
Jellal couldn't hold back his grin as he caught sight of Erza, holding Simon's hand as he stood on finally steady feet beside her, gripping the teddy bear Jellal had bought him when he was first born. As he stared at Simon, he couldn't help the tears the pricked the back of his eyes as he saw the shirt his son was wearing. It said, "My daddy is my hero". As Jellal rushed to his wife and son, Simon giggled and held his hands out to him, taking a few steps to meet his father. Jellal swept Simon up into his arms and twirled him around, loving the sound of his son's laughter, as Erza walked forward with the largest grin he had ever seen on her face.
"Thank you, Jellal," she whispered as she embraced both her son and her husband, "Thank you so damn much for what you have done for our family." Jellal finally felt a few tears fall as he heard his wife's heartfelt words.
"Anything for you," he whispered as he buried his face in her hair while keeping a firm grip on their child. "Anything for you…"
Laxus had faltered at the bottom of the stairs of the plane. He had rushed to get off, had been so excited to see Mira and finally, finally meet Mavis, but once he caught sight of them…he found himself unable to move. A vice like grip had taken residence around his heart and he had faltered. He could see her there, his beautiful Mira, and he could see a pink-wrapped bundle in her arms, and yet he couldn't make his way to them. His feet might as well have been sunk in the concrete where he stood.
As if understanding Laxus's predicament, Mira made her way towards him with a brilliant smile on her face and tears rolling down her cheeks. She walked right up to him, stopping barely a foot from him as she drank in the sight of him. She could see he had lost weight, could see how beaten he was, and yet she had never seen him look more handsome.
"Would you like to meet our daughter, Laxus?" she whispered as she turned Mavis towards her father, thankful that their beautiful little girl was fully awake, revealing his eyes in her face. She heard Laxus's breath catch as his eyes slowly moved down from Mira's face to look at Mavis.
"She's so…so beautiful," he was finally able to choke out, his hands aching to reach out and hold her. "Can…can I…?" Laxus asked, his voice rough with emotion, as he reached out to take her from her mother. With a hiccupping laugh, Mira nodded and carefully handed Mavis over to her father, her eyes full of love for the man who had made his way back to her.
"She's so tiny," Laxus whispered as he cradled Mavis in his arms. His little one cooed and giggled as she looked up at her father's face, reaching out with her tiny fist to pat at the scruff on his face. A single tear made its way from Laxus's eye down his cheek and into his rather impressive beard as he watched Mavis. "She's perfect," he told Mira as he looked back up to his wife with a grin.
Mira held her hands to her chest as she watched the very first father-daughter moment between Mavis and her husband. Her tears continued to roll uncheck down her cheeks and she couldn't help but fall even more in love with Laxus as she watched the wonder and joy cross his face as he took in the sight of their daughter in his arms. This moment with him…with THEM…it was everything she had been waiting for and so much more.
With a huge grin, Laxus shifted Mavis into his left arm to reach out and pull Mira to him with his right, wrapping his arm around her as he placed a gentle kiss to her temple. In this moment, he finally had everything he had ever wanted. He had his wife, he had their daughter, he was alive, his family was alive and reunited with their loved ones…it was the moment he had been waiting for.
"LUCE!" Natsu screamed as he raced towards Lucy as fast as his beat up body could handle. She had a huge grin across her face even as tears streamed from her eyes as she raced to meet him. They met in the middle in a passionate embrace, Natsu cupping Lucy's face as she wrapped her hands in the shirt Jellal had given him, pulling him tighter to her as their lips met.
Lucy refused to let her eyes close even as they kissed, something she thought she would never do. But she couldn't help herself; after having missed him for so long, and having been unsure if he lived, she just couldn't let him out of her sight now, and it seemed Natsu felt the same way as he stared deeply into her eyes with his one good eye.
God how he had missed this woman! he thought as he kissed her, stroking his hands over her cheeks, across her forehead, down her nose and chin, to cup the back of her neck, deepening the kiss even as both of them finally let their eyes flutter shut. This moment…this moment is what had gotten him through six months of hell. He knew, knew without a doubt, that this moment would be coming, that he would see his Lucy again, and he had imagined it hundreds, no thousands, of times. And yet…none of those imaginings could live up to this moment as he was wrapped up in her presence. None of them could compare to the truth of having her in his arms, to feeling her hands on his chest, to feeling her lips moving against his own. There was nothing in the world like it; there was no one in the world like HER. And this moment with HER…it was perfect.
Natsu grinned wider as he recalled the reunion with his Lucy, and then with the rest of his family a few days after. He and Lucy had spent almost an entire week holed up in their house to let him heal and to just have some time with one another after so long apart. It had been one of the best weeks of their lives and Natsu wouldn't have traded it for anything in the world. And now, now he was finally going to marry his best friend and the love of his life.
With a sense of happy trepidation, Natsu looked at the people around him as the bridal march began and his friends, his family, all stood from their seats. He turned slightly to take in the look of Laxus, Gray, and Jellal beside him, all of them looking ecstatic, and then across the stage to look at Levy, Mira, Juvia, and Erza standing as Lucy's bridesmaids. Each of the girls had looks of pure joy on their faces and were sniffling and trying to hide their joyful tears.
Natsu heard the gasp as the people around him took in the sight of his bride. Unable to look at her yet, Natsu took a deep breath and looked at the ground before slowly lifting his eyes to take in the sight of her advancing, Capricorn escorting her, and felt his breath catch in his throat. She looks so beautiful…he thought, drinking in the sight of her, her now short hair pulled back to stay out of her face and her gown fitting her body like a glove. He had no other words as Capricorn took her hand and placed it in his, and the two were unable to look away from one another, even as the pastor started the ceremony.
It all passed in a blur and suddenly they were exchanging rings and repeating the vows after the pastor and the man was announcing that Natsu and Lucy were now joined as one, as husband and wife, now and forever. With a grin, Natsu pushed the birdcage veil from Lucy's face. He could finally kiss her. Finally, finally, finally kiss his WIFE.
Cupping her face in his hands with a gentleness most had never expected from Natsu, he leaned in, his breath fanning across her lips as he whispered, "Forever," and proceeded to kiss her with all of the love and passion his heart contained. A small tear made its way out of Lucy's closed eyes as she wrapped her arms around Natsu's neck and repeated in her head, Forever…
AUTHOR'S NOTE: YAY! First completed fanfiction! I hope everyone who read it enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it. I also want to take a minute to thank every single person who has reviewed, favorited, and followed Counting on Forever; you guys are the absolute best! :) Lastly, I own nothing.
