What am I going to do? What am I going to do? Lucy is going to get all weird again, or even worse, she's going to kill me!

Natsu had been pacing back and forth in his house for the past 10 minutes. The two of them had arrived in Magnolia after lunch, and after dropping off the gifts at the guild, they had agreed to meet up later and head to the Christmas Eve party together.

Maybe I shouldn't tell her…

Truth be told, his heart had been hammering in his chest ever since the incident in the Hargeon. Lucy had been so close, her smell so intoxicating, and he kissed her… He didn't know a lot about that, but he knew only people in love did it. Did he love Lucy? Was it just like Mira had been telling him? Ugh, Mira. That reminded him…

"Natsuu, are you okay?" A small voice piped up from above him. His Exceed partner flew in front of him, a concerned gaze on his face. "You didn't even say hello to me when you came back." He pouted.

Natsu blinked, and then reached out his hand to pat his friend on the head. "I'm fine, Happy. It's just Lucy…" He frowned.

"What's wrong with Lucy?" Happy asked immediately.

"Nothing's wrong with her, it's me…"

"What's wrong with you?! Did you get infected by her weirdness?!" Happy exclaimed, horrified.

"No! Well, maybe." Natsu frowned again and scratched the back of his head. He really didn't know anymore. "It's just that whenever I see her, my heart begins to beat really, really fast." He put his hands to his chest.

Happy's eyes widened and his mouth began to twitch.

"I even told her about it, but she just became so weird." Natsu continued. "You should have seen her, Happy! She thought everything was a dream, then we fought, then we got trapped in this freaky rune trap, then we ki—" He couldn't even finish his story before Happy blurted it out.

"You llllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllike each other!"

Natsu normally let that phrase go in one ear and out the other. I mean, it was obvious that he liked Lucy; that's why they were team mates! But this time, he just stopped to stare blankly at the Exceed.

"I even said it longer than usual this time." Happy merely stated proudly.

"You think Lucy likes me?" Natsu gaped.

"Well, duh. People only let you sleep in their beds if they like you." The Exceed reasoned.

"Really?"

"Yeah! That's why I've been asking Charle if I could sleep with her." Happy said excitedly. "I don't know why she keeps getting angry at me though, it's not like I'm going to do anything." He mused.

"EH?! But that means she's liked me all this time!"

Happy shrugged. "I guess. Wait… does that mean I like her too?! What would Charle think?!" He wailed in dismal.

Meanwhile, Natsu fell back into thoughtful silence. He thought Lucy didn't like him after what had happened in Hargeon. After all, she didn't want to kiss him, and she had been cursing Mira and Freed too. That meant she didn't like it, right? He even comforted her about it. But now, according to Happy, she had liked him since they formed a team! Agh, girls were so confusing! Did she like him or not? Maybe he needed to ask someone other than Happy…

"Hey, Happy." He interrupted his feline partner who was still worrying about Charle. "Who do you think would know whether Lucy liked me or not?"

Happy stroked his blue chin thoughtfully. "Levy, I guess? They're always sitting together and talking about books." He wrinkled his nose in distaste. "I don't know what's so nice about that."

"Me neither, bud." Natsu stretched his back. "I'm going to find Levy, wanna come?" He headed to the door, leaving it open just enough for his furry friend to fly through it.

"Aye, sir!"

The guild was in a hustle and bustle preparing for the night's festivities. Even from a mile away, Natsu could smell the feast cooking and his stomach had growled in anticipation. He would have said that the view upon arriving at the guild was even better – if possible, it was even more extravagantly decorated than it had been when they left it five days ago; the humongous tree taking centre stage in what had been transformed into a Christmas wonderland, with giant candy canes and an actual Asuka-sized gingerbread house – but to be completely honest, he was more interested in the food. In fact, it was no surprise to anyone that his first destination was the kitchen.

Natsu stopped at the entrance and inhaled deeply. "Mmmmm, when can I eat?"

The Fairy girls turned to look at him. Lisanna, being the nearest to him, reached out to wipe the drool trailing down the side of his mouth. She was wearing a white apron, just like all the others whom had volunteered for kitchen duty. "I'm afraid you'll have to wait until tonight, Natsu." She giggled.

"Oh, I don't know, maybe we can spare him something. He did help transport all the gifts for Santa just now." Another white-headed maiden popped up from behind his childhood friend and winked at him.

"Even for me, Mira?" Happy piped up excitedly.

"Yes, for you too, Happy." She said, smiling.

Soon, the two were stuffing their faces happily with plates of piping hot food. That's when Mira decided to interrupt their eating. "Hey, Natsu, how did your 'job' with Lucy go?" She asked, winking again.

"Natsu said that his heart was bea—" Happy began, but found himself unable to continue as Natsu shoved a fish head into his mouth.

"It was fine!" He said, a little too quickly.

"Did anything happen between you two?" Mira pressed on.

"Well, actually we—" Natsu started, but then he suddenly remembered who he was talking to. "Hey, I just remembered! It was you! You did that to me!" He stood up and pointed accusingly at the barmaid.

"Natsu!" Lisanna pushed his arm down forcefully. "What are you doing to my sister?!"

"It's nothing, Lisanna." Mira smiled at her.

"It wasn't nothing!" Natsu yelled, his arm bouncing back up again. "How could you even do that?!" A thin cloak of fire began to coat his body, and Lisanna jumped back a little at the sudden heat.

"Natsu, what are you doing?!" Happy yelled from his side.

"Mira…" Natsu said threateningly, ignoring the voices around him.

"Natsu…" Mira was frowning, her own white figure beginning to glow dark around the edges.

Suddenly, the kitchen door slammed open. "WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON HERE?!" The familiar voice rang out through the kitchen. Natsu's jumped back in shock, his fire winking out. He whipped his head around, only to come face to face with the one person he really didn't want to see.

"E-e-e-e-e-e-e-e-erza!" He yelped, backing up as far as possible from the entrance. The requip mage was dressed in a Santarina outfit with furry white trimming, complete with red gloves and a hat. Very festive, if not for the devilish glare she was shooting at him right now. Did he also mention that she was brandishing a giant candy cane like a sword? He gulped nervously.

"What were you doing to Mira, Natsu?" Erza prodded him harshly with the edge of her candy cane.

"N-n-nothing, Erza!"

Mira, whose dark aura had disappeared as well, placed her hand on the red head's shoulder. "It really was nothing, Erza." She smiled her signature smile at her.

Erza squinted at her suspiciously, and then shot another glare at the helpless dragon slayer before finally pulling back her red and white striped 'sword'. "If you say so, Mira." She said, and turned around to talk to the takeover mage, her back facing the dragon slayer.

Natsu breathed a huge sigh of relief. Beside him, Happy nudged him quietly. "C'mon Natsu, let's get out of here and find Levy."

Unfortunately, he didn't say it softly enough, because Natsu immediately found himself pinned against the wall again. He whimpered as Erza pressed the candy cane even harder against his chest.

"What do you intend to do to Levy?" She asked threateningly.

He raised his hands in innocence. "N-n-nothing! I just want to ask her something!"

"Yeah, he wants to ask something about Lu—" Happy added, but he suddenly stopped when Natsu nudged him harshly with his foot. "Owww, what was that for, Natsu?!"

Erza noticed it and much to Natsu's horror, began to use even more force. "Is that any way to treat your partners, Natsu?" She growled.

"S-s-s-sorry Erza!"

"Don't say sorry to me, say it to Happy!" She yelled.

"Sorry, Happy!" Natsu yelped, terrified.

Meanwhile, Lisanna leaned towards her sister and commented on the scene before them. "Natsu's acting weird today, isn't he? I mean, even more than usual."

Mira just turned to her sister and smiled knowingly. "I think we'll find out why soon enough." She then reached out to tap Erza on the shoulder for the second time that day. "Erza, why don't you just let Natsu go? He looks like he's learned his lesson already, and it is Christmas Eve." She reasoned.

Erza looked hesitant to let go, her hand still gripped tightly around her candy cane which was forcing Natsu into an early death. "Santa Claus might not come with your gift if you don't behave, you know?" Mira pressed on.

The redhead's face instantly paled. "R-really?" She loosened her grip, causing the candy cane to fall to the floor and unfortunately, land right on Natsu's toe.

As he hopped around on his good foot, yelping in pain, Lisanna sweat dropped. She also put the fact that Erza still believed in Santa away in her mind for future 'purposes' (What? You learn things when you're Mirajane Strauss' younger sisters).

At that moment, said red-head was holding up a ghostly pale Natsu up by the collar and dusting him off roughly. After a couple of solid thwacks ("He's a person, not a carpet!" Lisanna thought, but dared not interrupt), she sat him down on the floor again and stiffly pointed in the direction of the door. "Levy is in the library."

Natsu, after blinking a few times, sprang up from the ground and ran out of the kitchen, Happy quickly following behind him. Walking out right behind them, Erza beamed at the Strauss sisters. "I bet Santa will bring me a gift now." She said proudly, before closing the kitchen door behind her.

Mira turned to her sister and smiled. "Erza is cute, isn't she?" she said. Lisanna returned the smile, sweat dropping. She wondered if people knew that some of Fairy Tail's strongest members were this weird.

Snip, snip.

Sigh.

Snip.

Sighhhh.

"Are you not satisfied with my work-ebi?"

Lucy blinked confusedly. Cancer was making a concerned face at her in the mirror. She shook her head. "Your skills are flawless as usual, Cancer."

Her blonde hair was styled perfectly into light waves that fell gently past her shoulders. She had told him not to put it up as she usually did for flashy events; she was just too nervous for that, and she had found that this look framed her face much better anyway.

"Then what is the matter-ebi?"

Lucy stared at her reflection contemplatively before shrugging. She lifted her eyes to meet her spirit's. "How does one go about confessing to another person, Cancer?"

Cancer rubbed his claw against his chin in thought. "Good question-ebi. I guess it would be to—"

"Did I just hear the word confess?!" Another voice suddenly piped up, which shouldn't be possible unless someone broke into her house again, her bed gained self-awareness, or—

"You don't have to spare any breath from your pretty little mouth, Lucy-chan, because I already understand what it is your heart desires and my answer is yes!" Loki suddenly appeared in her doorway. He flashed Lucy a dazzling smile before walking over and taking her hand. "When shall we set the date? In a month? Next week? In fact, why not now?"

Lucy, whose patience had already began to go downhill the moment she had heard his first exclamation, suddenly whacked him solidly on the head. Loki fell to his knees sobbing. "What did I do wrong?" He wailed, one hand rubbing the sore spot on his forehead.

"Actually, the right question would be what you did not do wrong-ebi." Cancer commented. Lucy stifled a giggle.

"Well, today is just one day." Loki recovered surprisingly quick and smoothed his hair back fabulously. "As long as I live, I will never stop waiting for Lucy-chan to return my feelings. And when that day finally comes, I will look back on these days in fond memory—Hey, are you even listening to me?"

While Loki had begun his relentless romanticising again, Lucy had turned back to Cancer to continue their previous conversation.

"Like I was saying-ebi, I think the best way to confess to someone is just to tell them straight. Nothing is better than the old-fashioned shoujo manga method of confessing-ebi." Cancer nodded his head sagely, before blushing when he made eye contact with his master. "Not that I read those things-ebi."

Lucy grinned, then her face turned serious again. "You think something so simple will work? What if I lose my nerve?" Her eyebrows furrowed in worry.

"We are talking about Natsu-san, right-ebi?" He looked at Lucy, who nodded, blushing. "Then I think something simple would be the best-ebi."

"What's so good about Natsu anyway?" Loki suddenly interjected, which only caused her to blush even harder.

"I-I don't know."

"It is because he is always protecting her, isn't that right, hime?" A new voice entered the conversation.

Lucy's eyes widened. "Virgo! What are you doing here?!" Her most trusted spirit had suddenly appeared in front of them in her usual maid attire.

"Would you like to punish me, hime?" Virgo cocked her head to the side expectantly.

"No!" Lucy instantly responded.

"Then what about later, hime—" Virgo was suddenly nudged aside by intruder #1.

Loki stood in front of Lucy with crossed arms. "Is it because he's always protecting you?" He said with a threatening tone.

"You didn't have to do that to Virgo, Loki." Lucy reprimanded him.

"Just answer me." He said equally stern.

Lucy eyed her spirit judgingly. "What's wrong, Loki? Do you really need to know?"

"Yes."

"Then I deserve to know why."

Loki returned her gaze for a moment before turning his head away. "A lot of us are worried about you. We know you're serious about Natsu, but judging by the amount of sense he has, he might end up hurting you. As your spirits, we cannot allow that to happen."

Lucy looked from Loki, to Virgo and Cancer. The latter two were nodding their heads in agreement, despite their initial support. "I'm touched that you would worry so much about me, but I'll be fine. Natsu would never hurt me." She walked over to Loki and patted him on the shoulder.

"And if he does?" Loki turned to meet her eyes.

Lucy stared back determinedly. "Then you can beat him up."

A grin spread over his face like wildfire, and he let out a short cackle. "If you're that certain, then who am I to argue with you? Natsu is a lucky guy." He let out a small sigh as he smiled at her.

Lucy returned the smile. "So you're finally done with your daily bout of drama?" She teased.

"Oh, no! If it is you, I would do this tens of thousands of ten thousands of times over as long as I may be graced with the slightest bit of your attention." This time, it was Virgo who kicked him squarely in the head.

"What did I do to deserve this?" Loki wailed.

Lucy giggled. "I think it would be more appropriate to say—"

"—what you did to not deserve this." Cancer finished her sentence.

The two of them plus Virgo exploded into laughter, and even Loki couldn't help but smile at the sight of his master being happy again.

Natsu walked down the street to Lucy's apartment, one hand tightly clutching the bouquet of flowers Levy had firmly placed in his hands, the other hand pulling nervously at the tie Erza had forcibly strung around his neck. He wished Happy was here with him, but he had been 'convinced' into staying behind at the guild (Mirajane said she would help him impress Charle that night) and Natsu was really beginning to feel the absence of his company.

Not only was the walk to Lucy's place longer than it usually seemed, it also seemed that the more he walked the tighter the noose around his neck got, and after a few more feet of walking, Natsu finally pulled it out and tossed it aside. After that, he ran his fingers through his overly gelled hair frustratedly, wondering what the hell he had done to get into this situation.

"Levy! I need to ask you something!" Natsu called out, barging into the library. Suddenly, he screeched to a halt at the doorway, causing Happy to slam into his back.

"Natsuu, why'd you stop?" Happy asked, rubbing his squashed nose.

Natsu merely pointed in front of him, his face slowly turning pinker and pinker. It turned out that Erza had forgotten to mention that Levy wasn't alone. In fact, she looked incredibly comfortable with the fact that she wasn't alone, leaning in intimately towards her companion… until the door was slammed open, of course.

"What the hell do you want, Salamander?" Gajeel growled. Levy squeaked and backed away to the other end of the table, her face completely red.

"What were you—In the guild, really?"Natsu continued staring in disbelief.

"So what? And answer my first question, you fire-breathing idiot."

Natsu walked to their table, scratching his head awkwardly. "I just wanted to ask Levy if she knew something… about Lucy."

"Hah, you're finally realising your feelings for bunny girl, eh?" Gajeel's tone switched from menacing to teasing.

"Shut up, you metal freak!"

"Why you—" Gajeel's smile turned downwards and he stood up from his chair, his fist tightening. Levy immediately ran to his side and held onto his hand.

"Don't, Gajeel. Why don't you go outside? I'll catch up with you later." She said. The iron dragon slayer sulked, though he listened to his girlfriend's orders. Natsu smirked at his obedience, but was immediately silenced by a particularly scary glare from Gajeel before the door was slammed shut once again.

"So, Natsu," Levy began. She was leaning against the table, a slight pink still dusting her cheeks. "What did you want to ask me?"

"Right." He felt his own cheeks flaming up. "I just wanted to ask if you knew whether Lucy, uh, liked me or not." Levy gaped at him.

"Yeah, he was thinking so much about it he didn't even say 'hi' to me when he came home!" Happy added cheekily, suddenly appearing after he had made himself scarce the moment Gajeel growled at them.

"Is that so?" Levy's face suddenly took on a mischievous expression that Natsu didn't like. "When did you realise this?" She asked, looking directly at him.

Natsu avoided her eyes. "I guess it was when I realised how nice she smelled and it took away my motion sickness." He mumbled.

"Awwwww, that's so sweet!" Levy clasped her hands together. Her eyes were sparkling. Natsu gulped nervously.

"So, do you think she likes me?" He asked again.

"I don't see why she would not, but to make sure, I've got perfect idea. The first thing we'll need is to dress you up!" Levy took a few steps back and surveyed him from head to toe. "And I think I know just the person to help me do that!" She began to skip towards the door and out of it, and much to his horror, bringing back the one and only person he still didn't want to see.

"Will doing this really make Santa come earlier this year?" The person asked as she entered the room.

"Definitely!" Levy beamed at her, and Natsu's face began to pale.

"No no no no no. Not her… of all people…" He said, backing away to the furthest corner of the library as the ladies came closer and closer.

"You want Lucy to like you back, right?" Levy coaxed.

"Happy?" He called out desperately, but his furry friend had suddenly made himself very scarce once again. "Anyone?" He yelped. The requip mage was now within punching distance.

"We have to do this, Natsu. It's for the good of Santa. And of course, Lucy." She said, lifting him up by the collar.

"Let go—agh!" He struggled tirelessly, but she had an iron grip… and a very large candy cane. Before he was knocked out, the last thing he heard was Gajeel snickering loudly at the doorway. That jerk.

Natsu scrunched up his face. He shouldn't be thinking about this. He was on his way to Lucy's house wearing a suit for Mavis' sake! What should he do? What should he say?

"Knock on the door, hand her the flowers, and then kiss the back of her hand."Levy reminded him in his head. "And don't forget to say 'my princess, I'm here to pick you up." She had continued excitedly.

Natsu shook his head, chasing Levy out of it. Her advice just sounded like something that womaniser Loki would say. Natsu didn't want to be anything like that guy, but well, now he was even dressed like he was. He surveyed himself for the hundredth time since he left the guild. Did Lucy really like this kind of thing? Natsu frowned. Well, she did read a lot of books like that, and she did go on a lot of dates with those types of guys. Did that mean he'd always have to be like this for her to like him? He didn't think—oh look, he was already here.

Natsu stared up at Lucy's apartment and gulped nervously. There was laughter coming from her apartment; he could easily distinguish her giggles from the rest. His heart began hammering again. When did it become so nice to hear her laugh?

More importantly, why was he so nervous? His feet felt like they were made of lead as he ascended the steps one by one. Was it because Happy wasn't around to boost him up the window? That probably wasn't it. He looked at his hand; it was shaking. What the hell? Natsu felt a strange combination of annoyance and fear as his hand wavered in front of Lucy's apartment door, refusing to go near enough to knock.

Suddenly, the chit chat in her apartment subsided and he heard some shuffling sounds. He didn't expect, however, for the door to open and hit him right in the face.

"Ow, what the f—" He groaned.

"Natsu? Is that you?" Lucy peeked out her door.

"Damn right it's me." He mumbled, rubbing his sore forehead and moving so that he was in her view. He was about to begin complaining about her door opening skills, but the words stalled in his mouth when he took in the sight of her.

Now, Lucy had a great body; everyone in the guild knew that, but at that moment, Natsu couldn't think of any other moment where she had been any more gorgeous. He couldn't quite put it into words. Was it because she was wearing the dress he bought her? Or was it because her scent made his mind feel all fuzzy? Uhh, he didn't know. His heart was pounding so hard that he couldn't think. He didn't even realise his mouth was open until Lucy leaned over and closed it for him. Her fingers felt so soft... wait, what?!

Natsu jumped back at the sudden contact, breathing hard. Lucy was as startled as he was, if not more.

"N-natsu? What's the matter?!"

"I-I-I-" He stuttered. What was wrong with him? It was just Lucy; who looked like a goddess in that red dress that reminded him exactly of his flames, which was the second most important reason why he bought it for her. Right, just Lucy. He wiped his sweaty palms against his dress pants nervously, completely forgetting about part two of Levy's advice.

The flowers scattered at his feet and Natsu felt his heart stop. Oh shit. Oh shit shit shit shit shit. He looked from the flowers to Lucy, and then forced his lips into a smile. "Uhh, these were for you but uh, I thought you would like it more if they were… on the ground. Yes! Flowers should be in the ground, right?" He faked a laugh.

As his laughter slowly died out, there was a silence as Lucy just eyed him with a strange look on her face. Natsu gulped nervously. Okay, next step, next step. What the hell did Levy say already? Door, flowers, hand. Hand? What the hell is that supposed to mean?!

Before he could give it any more thought, his hand had already stretched out and grabbed hers automatically. For the first time in his life, he cursed his habit of doing things without thinking.

Natsu Dragneel, why do you have to be such an idiot! Now Lucy's looking at you funny. Quick, think! What do people do when they grab a person's hand?

He did the first thing that popped into his mind. Natsu shook Lucy's hand. As the action sunk in, he felt the colour drain out of his face. What the hell was that?! What kind of person shakes hands? Who does that anymore? "Uh, Lucy, I can explain…" He began, but he was cut off when she suddenly burst into laughter.

"Pfft, I can't take this anymore!" She exclaimed, doubling over in glee. After a long while, in which Natsu just stared at her blankly wondering what in Magnolia was happening, Lucy stood up and wiped the tears of mirth away from her eyes. "What are you doing, Natsu?" She giggled.

Natsu gaped at her. "I—"

Before he could even think of an answer, he was interrupted. "Oh crap, look at the time! We're going to be late!" Lucy exclaimed, rushing back into her apartment. She returned quickly with a small bag. "Shall we go?" She smiled at him.

Natsu blinked a few times blankly before nodding. He felt her hand close around his, gently tugging him along. Suddenly, it stopped as Lucy bent down and picked up a flower, a small white one that hadn't yet been snapped or trodden on.

"And thanks for this." She showed it to him before tucking it behind her ear. "It was really sweet." She said softly, her cheeks turning a little pink.

A smile tugged on Natsu's lips as he followed her down the steps of her apartment. Maybe Levy hadn't been totally wrong.

It seemed as if the whole town of Magnolia was in the Christmas spirit. Lucy's street, which was usually quiet and rather deserted in the evenings, was surprisingly merry. People were milling about; some rushing off to Christmas gatherings, some couples just spending time together in the snow. Just like they seemed to be, Lucy realised, blushing.

Ever since they left her apartment, they'd been holding hands and it didn't seem like either of them had the intention of letting go. Or at least, that's how she felt. While the rest of the world was cold on her bare skin, the side of her that was nearest to him was warm. She didn't realise before this, how large Natsu's hands were; her hand was completely hidden within his. Nor did she realise how rough they were, weather-beaten from the countless battles he'd been through.

Truth be told, it was taking all of her willpower not to lean closer to him, or to be completely honest, just jump him right there and then. It wasn't like with her other dates; where she always wanted things to go slow and coy, like how it happened in romance novels.

With Natsu, she just wanted him in the most basic meaning of the word. She had realised in Hargeon that she didn't want to see him with anybody else other than her. To Lucy, Natsu wasn't just her team mate, he was her source of comfort, fun, the person she could trust the most, and the person she least wanted to lose.

But while that made a good friend, he also made her heart beat senselessly, invaded her thoughts with no restraint, and was the person who gave her a home when she had none. He meant more to her than anyone else now. The only problem was how would she tell him?

They were nearing the guild now, and the streets were slowly emptying as more people reached their destinations for the night. Lucy was still contemplating the possibility of confessing to him when a snowflake fell onto the tip of her nose, sending chills straight down her spine.

"You should have told me you were cold, Lucy." Natsu piped up. And before she knew it, he was discarding his coat and draping it over her shoulders instead. "Better?" He grinned at her.

Lucy nodded furiously to hide her growing blush.

"Good. It's not like I needed the coat anyway. It was just something Erza forced me to wear to impress y—" Natsu suddenly stopped mid-sentence. His face had suddenly turned extremely red.

"What did you say?" Lucy asked, even though she had a good guess. Her heart began thumping.

"I was forced to wear the coat for, uh, what I mean to say is—" He scratched his head nervously. "Uh, nevermind. Should we hurry? We're kind of late and all." He said, suddenly increasing his pace.

Since when did Natsu worry about being late? Lucy grabbed onto his arm without thinking, causing him to turn around and face her. "Hold on. I didn't hear what you said before, could you repeat it?" She asked, realising a little too late how desperate she sounded.

"It was nothing, Lucy, let's just go." He said after a moment's hesitation, grabbing onto her hand again and pulling her along with him. Refusing to give in to that lousy excuse, Lucy tried to dig her heels into the snow in rebellion. Unfortunately, you didn't have a lot of snow to work with if you were right beside a fire dragon slayer. So she resulted to other methods.

"But Natsu, what's so secretive that you can't even tell me about it?" She asked, increasing her pace so that they were walking side by side once again. "We are best friends, right?"

Natsu merely turned his head away. Lucy could see that he was blushing. It suddenly became so obvious to her; he liked her. Her suspicions were right all along! What other reason would make him blush like that? He even showed up at her doorstep wearing a suit and offering flowers. It was so uncharacteristic of Natsu that it had to be true. I mean, what other word would follow after y—

All of a sudden, a small thought piped up from the back of her head. What if he doesn't like you? Plenty of other things begin with a Y and rhyme with 'you'. Like, for example, Yukino! Lucy's eyes widened in realisation and her movements slowly decreased in speed.

Right, I could have always be over-romanticising it. I mean, besides the flowers, what has Natsu done to show me that he liked me? He protects everyone, has fun with everyone, he has a ton of trusting friendships. That doesn't make me anything… special.

Lucy felt herself slowly coming to a stop. All of a sudden, she shook her head and slapped herself; she was going insane with all these thoughts. Get a grip of yourself, Lucy Heartfilia! In front of her, Natsu had turned around to face her.

"Lucy, you're right. You're my best partner. I shouldn't be hiding these things from you." He said determinedly. Her hands that were firmly placed on each cheek slowly lowered to her sides. Her eyes widened.

"The truth is, I really, really," Natsu stop to take a large breath. "really, really, really like y—"

"Yukino?" She squeaked, the words coming out of her mouth before she could even digest them. Lucy clasped both hands across her mouth. Her face paled.

"Ye—wait, no! W-why Yukino?!" He yelled, but Lucy was already running away.

Shit, did I really say that? How could I say something so embarrassing?! He could have been saying that he liked me. I thought he was the one that did things without thinking. Stupid Lucy, stupid stupid stupid! She thought, knocking herself on the head as her legs kept pumping through the snow.

Behind her, she could hear the sizzling sound of snow melting. "Wait, Lucy! What's wrong!?" Natsu was yelling.

She would tell him but she didn't know herself. Why was she running? Why did she think he liked Yukino instead of her? Why did the thought of it sicken her so much that she couldn't even be near him? Why, why, wh— Lucy felt her body make contact with something solid as she was tackled fiercely from behind.

Why did she feel like she had been in this situation before?

Lucy slowly opened her tightly closed eyes and saw that Natsu was on top of her; to her left, the cold and unforgiving wintery landscape, to her right, a Christmassy wonderland…?

"Hey, hey, look who's the most recent couple to be trapped by Freed!" Someone exclaimed loudly.

"You mean, Mira." Another person, a female voice this time, noted wryly.

"You say that like you hated it, gihi."

"Gaj—Mm!"

"Oh you two, get a room!" Someone shouted from a distance.

"Yeah, as if I hadn't seen enough kissing since the night began." This time, the voice came from a closer source.

"Does that mean Gray-sama did not enjoy being united with Juvia under mistletoe-san?!" A female voice shrieked.

"What the hell, Juvia? And mistletoe-san, seriously!?"

"Gray! Go console your girlfriend before she floods all the Christmas decorations!"

"How many times do I have to say this, she's not my girlfri—"

A small cough brought Lucy back to the situation at hand. Right. Trapped. Mistletoe. Kiss. Got it. She blushed. "If you don't want to do this, we can just do the same thing we did before." Natsu mumbled on top of her.

Before she could stop herself, the answer was already slipping out of her mouth. "No! No, I mean, I don't mind if you don't mind." She said, her voice getting softer and softer.

"Are you sure?"

"I guess." Her heart was pounding. "I mean, it's f-fine if it's you."

"Why is that?" His face had turned completely red again, and Lucy suspected that he wasn't asking that question just for fun.

She felt her own cheeks flaring up. It was probably now or never. "I mean, it's o-okay since I l-l-like you." She stuttered.

"WHAT?!" Natsu exclaimed right into her ear, causing her to wince.

"I said!" She began, this time louder. "I l-like y—"

Lucy was cut off midway by a sudden warmth on her lips. Her eyes widened in shock as her brain slowly registered the sensation. It wasn't perfect. In fact, it was pretty clumsy as kisses went. His lips were pressed too hard against hers and she couldn't breathe, but it didn't stop her heart from beating a mile a minute. When he finally let go, he was panting like he was the one who had been running miles, while Lucy just laid back on the ground in complete shock.

"N-n-n-natsu!" She managed.

"I'm sorry, Lucy!" He exclaimed hurriedly. "I shouldn't have done that without asking you first, but I was just so happy when you said you liked me that I couldn't stop mysel—"

Oh, screw it. Lucy reached out and wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him in for another kiss. At first, Natsu froze in panic, but Lucy slowly began to realise what they meant when they called a person a 'fast learner'; and Natsu, if it wasn't clear enough already, was a very fast learner.

When they finally broke apart, they were both panting so hard that you would've thought they'd run from the guild to Lucy's apartment and back instead of just locking lips on the ground in front of the guild. In the background, there were a chorus of wolf whistles and cheers.

"It's about time you two hooked up!"

"Can Juvia and Gray-sama k-k-k-kiss like that too!?"

"Mira-nee, don't faint!"

"Making out is man!"

"C-can we do that again, Lucy?" His voice pulled her back once again. Lucy finally felt her heart beat slow down to its normal rate as she locked eyes with the man on top of her.

His hair was a mess, his lips looked swollen, steam was literally rising from his face; Lucy suspected that she didn't look any better. But he was Natsu; her goofy best friend, her reliable team mate, and now… her lover. She pushed him into sitting position and wrapped her arms around his neck. Leaning even closer, she whispered into his ear: "Later."

Even though she couldn't see his face, she could feel him grinning into her neck and Lucy couldn't help but crack a smile of her own. All of a sudden, she felt herself being hoisted up by the waist and enveloped into a tight hug.

"Lucy! Lucy, Lucy, Lucy!" Natsu called her name over and over, swinging her around. She felt the wind whipping through her hair, breezing away all her worries and doubts. "Yes, Natsu?" She replied in-between giggles. Slowing down, Natsu lowered her so that their noses were touching.

"Just checking. But does that mean you like me back?" He asked.

"I think it does." She giggled.

In a quick movement, he landed a peck on her lips. "I love you, Lucy." He said quietly, before flashing his signature grin. The warmth quickly spread to her cheeks, as fast as the smile appeared on her lips. "I'm getting quite good at that, eh?" He added, smirking.

Lucy whacked him playfully, before leaning in for a kiss of her own. "Merry Christmas, Natsu." She murmured against his lips. A small blush appeared on the dragon slayer's cheeks.

"Merry Christmas to you too, Lucy." He smiled.

Note: Finally, it's come to an end! I'm sorry towards the end I had to become one of those writers who are totally off-schedule. It's literally been one month since Christmas and only now I finally post this last chapter. Oh well, I hope you all have enjoyed the ride! I am planning to write an epilogue, so if you have any ideas/requests of what you'd like to see in it, I will gladly consider them! (hugs for everyone)