~ About 2 months later ~
Lucy's stomach was big now. She felt like she was carrying around an entire world. Well, there were two babies in their after all. She kept having to remind herself of that. She was gigantic because there was not one, but two babies inside of her. She could firmly feel their kicks now. She smiled faintly as she remembered the first time she ever felt a big kick, one that was big enough for even other people to feel.
About one month ago she was out walking with Natsu. The day was cooling a bit and they were walking hand-in-hand around Magnolia. They had just finished eating at a small cafe and were in their own little blissful world when she felt it. It was a strange sensation, but it was movement. More than the butterflies she usually felt. She looked down at her ever expanding belly for a moment before continuing her conversation with Natsu. He had looked at her, slightly concerned, but when she didn't say anything he let it go and they carried on as usual. About fifteen minutes later she stopped suddenly. She had felt it again, even stronger this time. Her hands flew to her belly, and, sure enough, she could actually feel it. Her eyes widened and she gasped as she immediately reached out to grab Natsu's hand. He looked startled but as soon as his hand was on her tummy the babies started kicking like crazy. He could feel their little kicks against his hand. She was starting to tear up and she couldn't stop a giant smile from spreading across her face.
"Natsu… There are really little people in there. Babies…"
He seemed frozen. His face was locked in one of shock. She was starting to feel nervous when he squared down and placed his other hand on her belly as well. His face seemed to melt as a smile spread slowly across his lips.
"The babies…" He muttered under his breath before he leaned in and kissed her stomach. The feeling of his kiss and their kicks nearly sent her over the edge with happiness. "I love you little ones." With that she was pulling him up and into a desperate and loving kiss, her belly and the kicking babies pressed firmly between them.
It wasn't until a week later that she thought about how Gray would feel.
They were at the guild hall and the others were discussing their recent jobs. Ever since Natsu and Gray's fight, they had been splitting her rent. It seemed to calm both of their tempers, at least for a while. But, while she was with Natsu almost every day, she didn't see Gray much except for at a doctors appointment (which Natsu now attended also) or at the guild hall. Without her even realizing it, he was getting left out of the entire experience. They were all talking and she went quiet. She could feel the babies kicking again. She looked over at Natsu happily and grabbed his hand and put it on her stomach. Not thinking first she said, "They are kicking again…" She closed her eyes and leaned her head over onto Natsu's shoulder. Only when he slowly pulled his hand away and she opened her eyes did she notice the suddenly tense atmosphere at their table. Gray was staring daggers at Natsu before his eyes trailed slowly to her belly. He just looked at her longingly. Juvia reached over and grabbed his hand. He didn't let go, but tightened his grip, entwining their fingers. Still, his gaze did not move from Lucy. His eyes went up to meet hers and she realized what she had done. She had excluded him from an important moment in the pregnancy. He had missed the first kick of his babies, but, even worse, was that she had never told him it had happened in the first place. She felt a pang of guilt and regret shoot through her as the realization truly hit home.
"Gray, I'm sorry…" Her voice trailed off, weak and timid. His face steeled over as he stood up from the table, dragging a sad Juvia behind him.
"It's fine." His voice was firm leaving no room for debate or further apologizes. Lucy looked down at the table for a moment before looking up and seeing his head was turned away from her and Juvia was staring at her with the most disapproving look she had ever seen on her face. "We need to go." Juvia grabbed onto his arm a little tighter and within a minute they were out of the guild hall and Natsu, Lucy, Erza, and Levy were all sitting in a silent stupor at the table.
"So, the babies kicked, huh?" Erza smirked with a happy smile as she tried to dislodge the stiff atmosphere.
That memory still haunted her. She had let Gray down. Ever since, she had tried to keep him more involved. But, he didn't leave anywhere near her. Natsu came over every night and Gray was usually with Juvia or on a job. She still only saw him at doctor appointments and at the guild hall. The atmosphere between them was still a bit tense. She knew that she had hurt him and she was determined to keep him involved, but it was much harder than she had thought it would be to actually do that.
She tried to forget what had happened for a moment as her and Natsu walked around Magnolia. They were doing this a lot lately and she was so thankful, she needed that bit of exercise instead of sitting in one place all day. She needed to be up and moving, to be active. They were just passing a baby store when it hit her once more that they needed to start buying stuff soon. She had also realized a few weeks ago that she would need to find a bigger place to live. She didn't like thinking about that though,s he loved her apartment. She stared at the store, pausing her walk. Natsu smirked slightly and his hair flopped to the side making her smile. He reached out and grabbed her hand.
"Do you want to go inside?"
She had been trying her best not to explore the baby stuff too deeply with him around. While most of the time he seemed like he accepted the whole thing, sometimes, she could see the crack in the facade. Of course it still bothered him. But here he was, supporting her, loving her, and being with her all the time. They still hadn't done more than kiss, it seemed wrong when her belly was ever-expanding with Gray's twins. Plus, she reasoned with herself, it was too soon to take it any farther with him. He was being the most amazing and understanding boyfriend ever. She still couldn't help but be surprised by just how understanding and tender he could be. It was a side to him that she hadn't seen very often before they became a couple.
She nodded at him and they went inside. She still didn't know what the gender of the babies were. They wouldn't stay still so the sonogram technician couldn't get a good picture. Still, she couldn't help but stare at the baby clothes. All the adorable dresses seemed to beg her to buy them. She separated from Natsu as she looked around, when she found him again she saw that he was holding a small stuffed dragon and a deep red fuzzy blanket. He was feeling the material and looked up at her with a hesitant, but hopeful, gaze. She went over and gently grabbed them from him, feeling the soft and fluffy material. Her heart leapt into her throat, he wanted to get these for the babies, she knew it, because they reminded him of Igneel. She didn't need to say a word, all she did was nod and his smile lit up the store as he went up to the front to pay for them. He bought them. The first real things the babies were ever bought. As they walked out of the store she leaned against him, holding his arm, and breathing in his scent. She wanted to memorize every part of him. Even though they spent everyday together, it never felt like enough. She would never become tired of him.
"I love you, Natsu." She smiled into his shoulder, breathing in deeply.
He laughed a little and leaned down to kiss the top of her head. "I love you too, Lucy."
Their quiet little moment was then promptly interrupted by the scariest moment of her life.
It was odd, she felt a slight pain in her stomach. She looked down at it but then decided it was nothing before looking back at the items Natsu had bought. A few minutes later the pain was back, but much stronger. Immediately, she keeled over in pain, dropping to the ground with a loud grunt.
"Lucy! What's wrong? Are you ok?" Natsu's worried voice floated around her head as his head reached down to pull her up. But, before he could do that, another pain tore her body in half. She tried to stifle her loud moan of pain but he still heard it. "You're not ok." He looked down at her determined before lifting her up in his arms. Normally, she would worry about how heavy she was in that moment, but all her thoughts were on the babies. "I'm taking you to the hospital." She nodded in silent agreement as she wrapped her stomach in her arms. She couldn't loose them… She loved them so much already… She couldn't loose them…
She could feel the fear spilling out of her, small tears dripped down her cheeks. She looked up at Natsu and his jaw was clenched tight. He was running with her, as fast as he could, to the hospital. He was worried. They both were. She couldn't help but be terrified. Soon, they are in the hospital and the staff quickly got her into a bed. Their reassuring smiles only made her more uneasy as the Doctor began various tests. The pain had started to fade away and her heart was gripped with a kind of panic that is impossible to describe. Natsu sat with her, holding her hand, face tight and brows furrowed. He was trying hard not to show how worried he was. Even though these babies were not biologically his, he had fallen in love with them.
When the tests were finished and they were waiting for the results Lucy finally managed to think clearly for a moment. She rubbed the back of Natsu's hand lightly with her thumb and leaned in for a reassuring kiss. His kiss was soft and caring. He wrapped his arms around her and she dug her head into the crook of his neck and, in that moment, she couldn't hold it back anymore. She cried. He rubbed her back softly and kissed her head and cheek, ever so slowly helping her to calm down. She leaned back and stared at him. He was her home.
"Natsu, I think we need to get Gray…" Her voice trailed off and his eyes lit up with the sudden realization. Gray had been left out again, not intentionally, but still. He was missing something important, something terrifying that he really needed to know about. He couldn't be excluded from this. "Could you please go get him?"
"Are you sure? We don't know when the doctor…" She didn't let him finish. She laid her hand gently on top of his and the look in her eyes simply said, 'now'. He nodded and in a flash he was out the door and on the way to get the real dad of the babies. As much as they didn't want to face the fact, Natsu was not the biological dad. Things were going to be complicated, and that was that.
A few minutes later the doctor came in. He sat down beside her and explained the situation. Everything was ok. She was only having early Braxton Hicks contractions and the babies were moving there positions. They had done a scan to ensure that they hadn't moved in such a way as to have the umbilical cord hurt them and he ensured her that they were perfect fine. She breathed a sigh of relief and the massive amount of tension and anxiety that was bottled up inside of her seemed to disappear in an instant. She was fine, the babies were fine, they were all fine.
About twenty minutes later a crazed Gray ran into the room. He looked wild. His eyes were fierce and filled with worry, his hair was in a disarray, and he was nearly out of breath. Natsu came in shortly after him, a bit more calm and collected, but also almost out of breath. They must have sprinted here as fast as they could.
"Lucy! Are you ok?" Gray was by her side now, a worried look plastered on his face. She reached out and grabbed his hand and placed it on her stomach. She could feel the babies gentle kicks once more and was relieved. Gray's face froze for a moment before a nervous smile spread across his lips. She hadn't done this yet. He had never felt them kick. As soon as she saw his face light up with child-like joy she gave them both the news.
"It was nothing, really. The doctor said that the babies and I are going to be completely want me to stay overnight just to check the cord position but everything is ok." She could hear Natsu let out an audible sigh of relief, but he didn't come sit next to her. Gray muttered a, 'thank goodness', but simply placed his other hand on her stomach, entranced by the kicking of his children. Lucy looked over at Natsu and saw a pained look on his face. He was staring at Gray, at his hands on her stomach, and at the image the two exuded in that moment. From an outsider's perspective, they looked like a perfect and happy couple expecting their first bundles of joy. They looked like they were together. Of course, Natsu knew better than that, but still, the image of them together, of Gray having something so intimate with Lucy that he did not have, was yet another painful reminder of their situation. He took a step back and simply waited. It seemed like forever, but it was only just five minutes, before Gray removed his hands. He looked at Natsu and Lucy before leaning back in his chair and making a declaration.
"I can't do this anymore."
Lucy's eyes widened and Natsu simply reacted with a loud voice as he came beside Lucy. "What do you mean you can't do this anymore?!"
Gray's eyes were a bit cold and he shot a warning glance at Natsu. "I'm missing out Lucy. I'm missing out on everything I should be a part of." His gaze darted to her stomach for a second before he continued. "I need to be involved, you promised me that Lucy."
Lucy nodded. "Of course your involved…" His disapproving look silenced her. She knew it, he knew it, Natsu knew it, everyone knew it, he was missing out. She sighed and grabbed Natsu's hand to calm his fiery temper. She felt him relax beneath her touch as he sat down beside her. "What can we do to fix it?"
"I thought of something." He paused for what appeared to be dramatic effect before continuing. "We should move into together. You need a new place now anyways, yours is too small."
The air was stiff between them before Natsu exploded. He was standing up, fists clenched, as he tried to keep his voice level. "You are NOT moving in together."
Gray just looked at him with steely eyes. "They are not your babies Natsu. They are mine, and you are getting to do all the things that I should be doing."
Lucy could feel Natsu's temper rise even more and she carefully placed her hand on his chest, silently begging him to relax and calm down. His eyes flashed down at her and she could see the fire inside. He was hurt, he was angry, and it even seemed like he was a little scared that she would say yes.
"You're right Gray," Natsu tried to start protesting but she shot him a glare, "I do need a new place. I was just thinking about that actually." Natsu seemed to visibly relax a little bit at her words since she hand't outright agreed with Gray. "Still, I don't think we should live together." Now she could feel Gray's frustration beginning to seep over and she put up a hand asking him to wait. "I don't think Natsu or Juvia would like that. I don't think it would work out well in the end for us or the babies. But…" She trailed off as she composed her thoughts. "What if we lived next to each other? Apartments or houses beside each other? That way you are just right next door, you wouldn't miss out on their lives." She looked down at her stomach and placed both of her hands lovingly on top of it. "What do you think? Natsu? Gray?" She turned to look at them and they both seemed lost within a haze of their own frustration and hurt. She could feel the babies moving again so she grabbed one of both of their hands and placed it on her stomach. All the tension, the frustration, and the hurt seemed to evaporate in that moment. Those babies were just love personified. This situation was difficult, but they were a family. "We are a family now. We need to learn how to make this work, even though it is hard. We need to learn for these two little ones because we already love them with all our hearts. We need to give them a good life. So please, agree to this. Lets live beside each other."
It was silent for a moment as they were both lost in thought before they each muttered their acceptance and continued to feel the babies move within her belly. This was their family. Their odd, misshapen, family, and she loved every one of them.
~ Hello, everyone!~
I hope you enjoyed the chapter. What do you think? Should they get apartments or houses? What gender do you think the babies are?
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Thank you for your support.