I apologize for the long wait but we reached the end of this story. I hope you enjoyed the story and thank you for reading this far into the story. I appreciate all that you guys have done and I thank you from the bottom of my heart. :)
Regular story line
Lucy gingerly strokes Natsu's hair to distract him from the pain. He is surviving the trip, but the damage from the fight plus with his motion sickness doesn't give him a pleasant trip. Natsu opens his mouth even though they told him countless of time to save his strength. Lucy opens her mouth to scold him once more until he shakes his head. He touches her hand carefully as he looks into her eyes.
"We'll give you two your privacy, right?" Adora says as she nudges Kaden to leave his seat.
Wendy and Carla follow suit as Happy hops off his seat. Alone, Lucy looks back at Natsu trying to control her emotions. He gives her the same soft smile like always then suddenly frowns.
"I'm sorry for leaving you behind, Luce." Natsu apologizes as he fights his motion sickness. He was thinking about her all this time while he's in this condition. Natsu closes his eyes and Lucy begins to panic until he hears him speak.
"I… I shouldn't have left you behind." Natsu reminisces the time he left her for a year to go train. He was reckless and selfish for leaving her behind again when she was clearly upset at him.
"You were all fired up, right?" Lucy mutters as she holds back her tears once again. She doesn't want to cry in front of him.
"You know when you held my hand, I felt a warm feeling inside my chest. I never thought that today would be the day we held hands, but if only it was a better situation." Lucy adds
"How many times have I made you cry?" Natsu mumbles
"Don't worry about that right now, okay?" Lucy begs as Natsu winces from the pain. Lucy can see Magnolia up ahead. She looks back at Natsu to see he is blushing.
"My girl." Natsu mutters as Lucy leans close to his ear and smiles.
"You're my everything." Lucy confesses. She back away and starts to chuckle thinking this is the first time they ever acted like a couple.
She watches Natsu attempting to smile at her comment. As the train gets closer to Magnolia, his lifeline becomes shorter as the toll of the battle take full effect on his body. The more he resist to stay alive, his body fights back with a vengeance.
Happy watches from afar and lets out a muffled laugh. He turns back to the group to give them a thumbs up as everyone lets out a sigh of relief. The train stops at Magnolia as Kaden rises up to go assist Lucy with Natsu.
"Just a little longer, Natsu. We're almost home, okay?" Kaden reassures as he grabs a hold of Natsu, but something isn't right. His above average temperature body suddenly becomes tepid.
"Don't ask questions and go straight to the guild, please." Lucy begs as she sees a worried look in Kaden's eyes.
"As you wish." Kaden says softly as he dashes out of the train. Everyone dashes out of train fighting against time to give Natsu the proper treatment.
Regular Story Line: Guild
The guild is restless as they wait for the rescue team to return from the mission. Makarov gloomy looks at his beverage hoping his brats make it back safely. He received a call from Erza and Gray that the culprits were apprehended by the council. Not to mention, they were willing to let this incident slide by considering they found the infamous dark guild. That piece of good news wouldn't mean anything if he finds out that one of his children come back battered.
The door busts open as Kaden dashes upstairs with Natsu in his arms; he's in bad shape. Makarov takes a sip of his drink, it's bitter. Adora and Wendy race upstairs to where Kaden was and begin to do their best to continue treatment. Lucy pants as she attempts to run upstairs until Makarov blocks her way with his hand.
"Please, let me go upstairs." Lucy begs as the guild avoids looking at her distraught face.
It pains Makarov to see his children cry in front of him, but like any parent, they do their best to protect their children. However, the look in her eyes breaks him. She wasn't there when they found him dead in the forest, a painful memory which will always haunt her. He releases his hand as Lucy looks at him quizzically.
"You should be the first sight when he wakes up." Makarov confesses as Lucy runs up the stairs.
"The eyes of someone in love." Makarov whispers as he takes another sip; it's sweeter. He hears the door open and closes then hopes that this will be their last obstacle to happiness.
Regular Story Line
The bright light emitting from Wendy and Adora blinds Lucy for a moment as her eyes adjust to the brightness. Lucy notices beads of sweat on Wendy and Adora's forehead; their magic is slowly draining and if Natsu found out about this it would kill me. Adora and Wendy step away from Natsu with a satisfied look on their faces. Wendy notices Lucy standing by the door then smiles.
"He'll be just fine, Lucy." Wendy smiles as Adora gives her a thumbs ups. An elated Lucy collapses on the floor feeling a huge weight lifted from her body. She can finally breathe normally now as she looks at the healing duo with tears in her eyes.
"Thank you." Lucy acknowledges as Wendy walks towards to Lucy then hugs her tight.
"He always protects us, Lucy. I'm just glad we are able to do the same for him." Wendy confesses as she hugs Lucy tight. Adora and Kaden give each other a satisfied look then give each other a high five.
"Aren't you lucky I had that armor?" Adora quips as Kaden rolls his eyes
"Yes, I am." Kaden says in an exasperated tone then gives her a smile.
"Come on, let's give everyone their privacy while we discuss the future of Team Kaden." Kaden quips as Adora sighs.
"We're not picking that name." Adora retorts as Kaden has his hand on the door knob.
"Fine, Team Nedak." Kaden reasons as Adora scoffs.
"That's your name backwards." Adora quips as Kaden opens the door.
"Oh, now's the day you're sharp as a tack." Kaden quips as the duo playfully continue to bicker outside.
Wendy lets go of Lucy and looks back at Natsu; his body is perfectly bandaged from head to toe. Wendy heads towards the door and opens it to see Happy standing in front of her.
"Is he okay?" Happy ask timidly as Wendy nods her head. Happy's eyes widen as he jumps on top of Wendy.
"Thank you!" Happy cries as Wendy hugs him.
"Remember to thank Adora too, she helped too." Wendy says as Happy nods his head then hops off and stands next to Natsu's side.
"I'll leave you guys alone now." Wendy says as she leaves the room and closes the door.
Lucy gets up from the floor then gingerly walks towards Natsu, he looks so peaceful sleeping on the bed. Lucy sits on the chair and looks at his hand; how can these be the same hands that can knock out any opponent but can hold her hands so delicately.
"Hold his hand, Lucy." Happy urges as Lucy touches his hand, his eyes twitch for a moment. Lucy watches how his fingers intertwine with her as if he knew it was her.
Happy lays next to Natsu's and closes his eyes to rest for a bit. Lucy watches the two most important people in her life sleep in front of her and smiles tenderly at them. Lucy's eyelids become heavy as she lets her head rest on the bed.
An hour later, Natsu slowly opens his eyes to see Happy and Lucy sleeping next to him. He grimaces as he turns his head to face her and smiles at her. She has changed so much since the first day they met. At first he was a bit annoyed with her but later on he saw her true strength flourish. Her love for her guild and friends surpasses his, her ever growing strength, and her kindness have captured him.
He waited for someone like her to come along for a while, but he never expected to fall for her the moment they grew closer. He wanted to treat her right but was afraid to make a mistake. An overwhelming pressure fills his chest as he looks back at all of his past actions and mistakes. His eyes are becoming teary as he squeezes her hand; she lets out a soft moan then opens her eyes.
"Natsu?" Lucy questions as she sees him crying in front of her.
"I'm so sorry for not taking this seriously. This is what makes it alright, your hand touching mine. When you… when you leaned in close to me, my heart stopped. ." Natsu confesses as Lucy remains speechless.
"I don't want to lose you." Natsu adds as Lucy feels her cheek become moist.
"You know you're my everything, but don't die for me. If I lose you then I lose my best friend. I don't want to lose my best friend, my partner, and my future." Lucy says as she lets her tears roll down her face.
"I should have been patient, but I wanted to hold your hand for a while now and feel you closer to me. When you were taken, I thought I lost you again and I'm not ready for that to happen." Lucy confesses as she squeezes his hand.
Natsu uses the bit of strength he saved and approaches her then places his forehead against her. Her eyes widen as she stares deep into his eyes and sees the boy she fell for long ago.
"You won't lose me again, Lucy. I'm yours now and forever." Natsu whispers as they both lean closer.
His lips are soft against her and his touch felt so warm. He places his hands on her cheeks as he kisses her softly. They both lean away from each other as he rubs her cheek gently. She places her hand on top of his and smiles at him.
"Wanted to do that for a while." Natsu confesses as Lucy blushes. Natsu slowly closes his eyes and falls back to sleep while Lucy watches him sleep. After a while, she falls asleep on the bed with a smile on her face.
The End
