A/N: Hi friends! Please forgive me for not updating for so long-I got caught up in writing other things and I was really, really busy with work and family things. It was my birthday on the fourth of July, and I had a lot of fun with that. Anyway, I hope you enjoy this chapter! I made it a bit longer than normal because I love you guys so so much!

Natsu woke up with a grumble, realizing it was still early. His alarm had yet to go off, but he needed to wake up at this time for a reason. Today he had to be at work early because he had taken time off at the end of the day to go on a date with Lucy.

It was a surprise for her, after all, and it was a big date that he planned. He had been planning this for a while, and everything was about to fall into place. He was just excited to see everything happen and to hear Lucy's reaction.

Stretching for a moment before throwing the covers off himself and getting out of bed, Natsu headed to the shower with renewed energy and excitement for his date with his girlfriend. It felt weird to call her that, but that's what she was now. They had only been dating a week, but it felt as if they had gone through life together as an old married couple. Helping Lucy with her anxiety had made him feel closer to her than he had ever felt for another person, and such a thing could possibly become dangerous. He did not want to hurt her or make her feel like he was going too fast...but he also wouldn't mind kissing her more and spending time with her physically.

Reminding himself that he wanted to go slow, he showered quickly and changed into his work clothes with a bounce in his step.

"Morning," he greeted Gajeel, who was still up watching TV reruns. The man had to watch his cooking shows, and apparently the only time they were on was in the wee hours of the morning when Natsu awoke for work.

Gajeel shushed Natsu violently and pointed toward his lap. Natsu peeked around the couch and find that Levy was asleep with her head on Gajeel's thighs. Natsu smirked, turning around and beginning to make his breakfast. He didn't want to tease the man further, as he would most likely become grumpy and start yelling, causing his girlfriend to wake up. And when Levy didn't get her solid eight hours of shut eye, she became a monster that scared even her own boyfriend.

Tiptoeing out the door after preparing a lunch, Natsu saluted his roommate before leaving the apartment and making his way to his car. Now all he had to do was schedule an alarm so he could text Lucy good morning and then drive to work. He always had wanted to text the girl of his dreams good morning when she woke up, but since Lucy worked in retail she had a rather interesting schedule. She would work four days in a row then not for another two, then for six days and then she would be off for three. It made their date times quite rough for scheduling, but Natsu had her work agenda in his phone so he could message her at any time whenever she had to wake up for the day.

Planning the alarm to go off at 8:59 sharp so he had time to text her a sweet message, he slipped his phone back into his pocket and grimaced as he realized he hadn't made coffee. Oh well, guess he'd fall asleep on the ride there. Or at work, which was even worse. His boss was great, but a bit of a hardass when it came to people sleeping on the job. She enjoyed putting on a fairy outfit and tapping people on the head with her wand, making an ugly face before they awakened. It would scare them awake, and she would chuckle and whip her red hair while walking away and going to work on a computer or wake up another unfortunate soul.

But it didn't matter if he fell asleep, or if he didn't make coffee this morning. He had a date with Lucy tonight, and that was what mattered for today.

Now, if he could only get through work without messing up on a computer because of tiredness…

Lucy's alarm blared, playing Ke$ha's new song at a level that scared even Lucy out of her slumber. She was like Levy-wake her up during her sleep, and she was a zombie for the rest of the day. Though, Levy was a little ruder than Lucy. The woman was positively sweet most of the time, but if the two had a sleepover, their boyfriends would be confused as hell to see them in their tired state.

Searching around for her phone groggily, Lucy sucked in a breath when she turned her phone to check her messages. The brightness of the screen was blinding in the dark room, and she had to push her phone closer to read her emails. Ever since she had gotten contacts, she had to take them out every night before falling asleep. The nightly ones were too expensive, and she was worried that if she got the ones she could sleep with on that it would get lost in her eye and never come out. It was an irrational fear, yes, but it was still a fear.

When her emails finally loaded, Lucy was excited to discover that her package of books she had ordered a week back would arrive today. It was almost too tempting to fall asleep and wait for the doorbell to ring. But, she resolved, she needed the money from work to pay for more books, bills, her portion of the rent, and helping out the boys with their eating habits. If it weren't for her being one of the primary cooks of the house, she swore the boys would eat fast food almost every night.

Lucy noticed that a text was sent to her phone, which was confusing. Usually the entire group of the six of them used a messenger app to communicate, making texts rare. Clicking on the text notification, she saw that Natsu had sent her a message.

'Good morning, Luce!' it read, and a smile curled around her face as she scanned the words. 'Hope ya have a good day at work. Check the note on the kitchen table to find your next clue!'

"Clue?" Lucy wondered aloud, "Clue for what?"

Scurrying out of bed and taking the blanket with her, she waddled over to the kitchen table and searched around it with her eyes squinted. She didn't have her contacts in, and her glasses lay forgotten on the nightstand in her bedroom. Finding the piece of paper with the note on it was going to be rough. And she had just woken up, too!

Grasping her glasses and shoving them on her face when she made it to her room, she exited her bedroom once more and began to read the note. It told her that there was to be a package for her outside with her name on it. Lucy's mind was rather addled with all of these new things arising, but she was determined to figure everything out.

Lucy opened the door and let the chilly autumn air in for a moment; the cold aided in awakening her tired eyes and body. Her eyes searched across the stoop on their apartment until they caught on a package that said her name in big letters. Natsu's handwriting was unmistakable, and Lucy ripped it open after going inside without a moment's notice.

Inside the box was a gorgeous olive green dress that Lucy had been fawning over last time she and Natsu had gone inside a store together. The neckline was very low, but it went down to her ankles and slit up to her knees on both sides of the dress. So Natsu did remember that she wanted that one! It had been weeks since she had been shopping, so she hugged the new dress to herself as if it was life-giving. Included were a pair of gold strappy sandals with mid height heels which would make her tall enough to see eye to eye with Natsu. Checking the shoe size, she found that they would even accommodate her high arches.

Snatching up the note, she studied the words Natsu had scrawled over the pink paper. It told her to go to work and then report to a store she had never heard of at five thirty sharp. Natsu was never one to tell her to be somewhere 'sharp' or buy her expensive clothes for that matter. Every piece of the ensemble had come from her favorite store and did Lucy ever know how expensive that store was. Each item was over $60 at least, and she loved drooling over every handbag, hat, top, shoe, and skirt the store had to offer.

With a smile, she hugged the items to her body and squealed, bouncing around the room until someone from the apartment below told yelled up at her to shut up. Even that did not quell her excitement, and Lucy bounded into her room and picked out her clothes for the day with a bounce in her step.

Nothing could ruin this day!

...Except customers. Lucy swore that they knew when she was having a good day because they would be in an exceptionally bad mood that particular moment when she walked into work. She had just stepped in the door when a woman with her chihuahua in her designer bag stormed up to her and began to complain.

"Miss, this hasn't reduced my stress at all!" a woman said, shaking a lavender incense in the air in Lucy's face, "I swear I have such bad anxiety that I should be admitted to a hospital!"

Lucy hardened for a moment. Did this woman even know the difference between stress and anxiety? She certainly did, and she was starting to feel it at this very moment. Her head began to hurt with a headache pulsing at the very back of her mind, and ice spindled up her stomach and clutched around her neck as if threatening to suffocate her. Lucy tried to speak, but she could barely breathe, much less talk to someone.

"What can Juvia help you with? Lucy needs to go put her apron on in the back, so please excuse her." Juvia said from behind Lucy with a hand on her hip. The other hand shooed Lucy away in a firm but gentle way that reminded her that Juvia had her back. A small smile was shared between the two before Lucy hustled to the back, closing the door behind her with a relieved sigh.

Lucy breathed steadily in for eight seconds and out for five for a few minutes before her anxiety began to dwindle, and she cursed herself for working in such an environment that would give her such bad attacks such as this. But with her coworkers at her side, Lucy felt more empowered than ever. She had Juvia to thank for being such a lovely boss. She would figure out some way to repay Juvia for the kindness she had just given to her someday.

Tying her apron around her back twice, Lucy put her hand on her hip in a power pose that wouldn't quit. She wanted to convey that she was confident to the customers even though her anxiety still prodded. No matter what would happen to Lucy today, she had a date with Natsu tonight, and that was all that mattered.

Now if she could only get those shelves to stop being so dusty every day she came in…

After work was over, Lucy dragged herself home and crashed on the couch. Her shoulders and arms ached from how long she had been dusting shelves, and she hated how messy her hair was. She had just taken a shower this morning and now her hair was full of dust and dirt. With a sigh, she flopped down on the sofa and let herself fall asleep for just a few minutes.

Peeking at her clock, she noticed it was five thirteen. Jumping off the couch with a shriek, she quickly searched on the internet how far the address was from the apartment. Ten minutes. If she hurried with getting dressed and brushing her hair, she could still make it in time!

Running a brush through her hair while practically ripping her clothes off, she shoved the dress on her body and applied a little mascara. She wiped underneath her tired, baggy eyes with a makeup wipe and reminded herself to put on a little lip gloss. With a turn to stare at her reflection in the mirror, Lucy sighed when she saw what she looked like.

It would just have to do. She knew Natsu would love her no matter what she looked like. But still...she wanted to look nice for him no matter where they were going.

Slumping over, Lucy frowned at her reflection in the mirror one last time before making her way to her car. She waved to her neighbor on her way out, who gave her a thumbs up. Well, at least someone liked how she looked today!

Her spirits a little higher, Lucy broke the laws of traffic to get to the address. But when she got there, it wasn't a restaurant at all. It was a...salon?

Well. Maybe Natsu really did think of everything.

Stepping inside, she was greeted by the sweet brown-eyed, plum haired receptionist named Shana who told her to have a seat while she grabbed Lucy a mimosa. Eyes widening, Lucy took the stemmed glass with a meek thank you and a smile. Shana told her that her nail tech would be right with her.

'Nail tech?' Lucy wondered, looking at her nails. Grimacing, she noticed for the first time that day that there was dust on top of them and underneath them, and the mold she had scrubbed off the corners of the bathroom made them appear yellow underneath. Maybe Lucy really did need a manicure.

"Hello, Lucy! Nice to meet you. I'm Evie." Lucy looked up from her glass and saw one of the most stunning women she had ever seen in her life. Her long brown hair was wavy at the bottom and rivaled Cana's in terms of silkiness, and her eyes were a forest green not unlike Natsu's. Lucy shook her hand with a soft flush on her face, cursing her bisexuality for being so obvious.

"Come on back here with me," Evie said, motioning toward the nail table. Once Lucy sat down, she asked what color her dress was.

"Olive green," Lucy replied, thankful for the mimosa for loosening her up a little. "What color nails would you suggest?"

"I think a french tip with gold tips would look stunning on you, Lucy. l will go get the polish right away! Do you want gel polish or gel with acrylic?" Evie stood, staring Lucy in the eyes for a moment.

"I-I don't know what any of those words mean," Lucy said with a blush, partially because she was embarrassed. She was a woman, she should know!

"It's alright," Evie laughed, "We'll go with regular polish for now, and if you decide to come back to me, we'll discuss afterward."

Lucy looked at her nails as Evie shuffled to the back to pick the perfect color for her. Evie knew what she was doing, and if she did well enough with nails, she would definitely come back. Lucy would definitely have to thank Natsu for getting her pampered.

"What do you think of this gold?" Evie asked as she sat down across the table from Lucy, displaying a gorgeous gold with glitter that was sure to go well with Lucy's coloring. Lucy nodded her head with a grin, and Evie's lips curled up into a smile too.

After all the shaping, filing, massaging of the hands, and the base coat was finished, Evie began to paint and have a conversation with Lucy. Both women found out they were writers and shook their heads about the problems of being one on the internet. Evie asked a few questions about Natsu, and Lucy told her new friend about how Natsu romanced her and the entire story they had gone through.

"What do you think?" Evie asked, showing Lucy's pinkie to her. It looked more polished and beautiful than her nails had looked in quite a long time. Nodding with a soft squeal, Lucy knew she was coming back now. She could afford it after paying all of her bills for the month-and it wouldn't hurt to get pampered once in a while!

Evie finished up in around an hour, and Lucy sat with her hands underneath the blue light in order to harden them. As she turned to leave, Evie stopped her.

"You're not done yet, Lucy! We still have hair and makeup to do!"

"H-Hair and makeup?!"

A little more than two hours later, Lucy walked out with soft highlights in her newly trimmed hair and a makeup look that was sure to stun Natsu. She barely wore makeup around him, but when she did he was shocked. Now she wore eyeliner, mascara, a bit of eyeshadow, and a highlight that was going to knock out everyone around her.

Shana handed Lucy another note from Natsu with another address on it-thankfully being one for an actual restaurant-and Lucy headed on her way to her actual date. Ruffling her hair up a bit to give it that sexy, lived in look, Lucy stepped out of the car and into one of the fanciest restaurants she had ever been to. If she had thought the salon was fancy, she should have looked at this place first. There was an honest to God chandelier in the entrance!

"Name?" the guy at the front desk asked, and Lucy gave him hers. Leading her to a table with Natsu at it, she was surprised to see a few other familiar faces at the table.

"Levy! Juvia! What are you two doing here?" Lucy said with a large grin as each woman got up to hug Lucy.

"We were just as surprised as you, Lu! Gajeel planned this for me too!" Levy smiled, twirling a tendril of curled blue hair. Her dress was a silver which Levy would have never picked out herself, but she looked gorgeous. The straps on her dress were thinner than Lucy's, and the sweetheart neckline and mid length gave Levy height that she so desperately desired. On her feet were black heels that were higher than Lucy's but slightly lower than Juvia's.

Juvia wore a purple number that highlighted her legs and made them look long enough to go on for days. The neckline was high, but so was the length of the dress. Her heels were a darker color than her dress, but even they made her look taller than Lucy had ever seen her. Juvia wore a grin brighter than the lights in the room, and when Lucy looked at Gray he seemed content just gazing at his girlfriend.

"Gray-sama told Juvia to get off work early so she could go get her nails done. Juvia thought that was the only surprise, but Juvia was shocked even more to go to this place!" Juvia said, clutching Gray's arm with a smile.

The six sat down from where they conversed, each couple across from each other. Natsu tapped his fork against his wine glass, and everyone turned to pay attention to him. Raising his glass in the air, he grinned as each person followed suit.

"I'd like to make a toast," Natsu said as he stood once more, eyes focused on Lucy. "To Lucy Heartfilia, the world's greatest girlfriend. She made me into the man I was supposed to be a hell of a long time ago, and she's helped us all out a lot. To Lucy!"

"To Lucy!" everyone echoed with large grins, clinking glasses and taking drinks of their sparkling wine.

"Now," Natsu replied, "Let's eat!"

A/N: Hope you all enjoyed the chapter! I would really love to get a review if you did :) I will try to update more often, probably around twice a month or maybe three times if I have enough time on my hands!

Until Next Time! 3