Hiya! Here's 24!

If you thought the birthday was done, you thought wrong! Happy Thursday update! I wasn't working Tuesday and it threw me off my week, would have forgotten to update if my co-worker hadn't been bragging about his long weekend all day!

Happy reading!

Lucy guessed where they were headed as soon as they got to the neighbourhood. It was another one of those places where she hadn't been to for a while – last time would have been little less than a year ago. Probably a couple of weeks before Cana had gone head to head with her dad, resulting in her cutting contacts with her friends for so long.

Though she didn't voice her guess, she still felt like she had won when Mavis pulled into the parking lot of her favourite all-you-can-eat sushi restaurant. The hostess took them to a private room, and they all sat on the cushions around the low table. Soon, they were brought pitchers of water, pots of green tea and a bottle of wine between Laki and Cana.

They ate and talked late and Natsu made a point of finishing up all the food that was left on the table, despite everyone feeling kind of sick as they watched him. Even Gray had to surrender. He couldn't eat another bite. Mavis paid the tab, and when Lucy tried to argue, her friends reassured her that they had all pitched for their meals already.

After the table was cleared, Cana and Laki said they had to go to the bathroom and soon came back with bags and boxes – gifts for Lucy, she realized.

"You guys didn't have to!" she tried to argue. "Today was everything I could ever ask for!"

"Good thing you didn't ask, then," Cana winked.

And Lucy didn't argue any more. She knew her friends had been happy to give her something. Levy had gifted her with a few books that she had told her about through the school years. Juvia and Gray offered her an actual quill with a pot of ink and a small book on calligraphy. Cana gave her a $100 gift card to a lingerie store, saying she could take her there too. Laki had played it safe with a beautiful notebook. Wendy and Shelia gave her an assortment of chocolate. Mavis only gave her a card, since she had already bought her a necklace for prom. She wasn't surprised when Natsu had nothing to give her. He had got her breakfast and planned the whole day. She wasn't expecting anything more from him.

...

Lucy was tired when they got home, but still went to grab her pyjamas before going in the bathroom to get ready for bed. She was surprised to notice there was no toothpaste. She was fairly sure the tube had been full this morning.

She forgot about it when she came out, the whole apartment was lit by candles. Natsu grinned, placing a cake down on the counter. They had stayed for so long after dinner that Lucy felt like she could indulge in a slice before bed.

"What is it?" she asked, moving closer. She couldn't quite make it out in the candlelight, and her nose wasn't as keen as Natsu's.

"Guess you'll just have to try it," he grinned. "I made it myself." She smiled. He was adorable and so terribly sweet for planning the whole day for her. "Well, go on, make a wish," he urged her when she just kept staring at him. She kept looking in his eyes, a soft smile on her lips. She leaned forward and blew out the candles on the cake.

"Thank you so much for today, Natsu," she whispered as he removed the candles to slice the cake. "I had a blast."

"That was the point," he grinned. He handed her a plate and sat next to her with his, obviously waiting for her to dig in. She grabbed a bit on her fork and smelled it first. She should have known he would go for cheesecake. All of today had been about her favourites. She took a bite, letting it melt on her tongue. Chocolate and strawberry. How did he even pull that off?

"Oh god, this is the best cheesecake ever!" Her second bite even had fresh strawberry in it.

"Glad you like it," he grinned. Soon, he took the empty plate from her and quickly washed them up, covering the cake before placing it back in the fridge. Lucy stood and grabbed him, pulling him in a tight hug.

"Thank you so much, Natsu. For today. For everything."

"You're welcome," he said softly, holding her tight. "Happy birthday, Luce." Lucy didn't know exactly what had gotten into her, but she felt bold. As Natsu withdrew, she stood on her toes and kissed his cheek. She didn't hear his breath catch over the pounding of her own heart, but she couldn't miss his blush – though she was blushing just as much.

"I don't know why I did that," she admitted with a nervous laugh.

"It's okay," he chuckled, squeezing the hand she hadn't realized he was holding. "Let's get ready for bed."

"Oh! Where's the toothpaste?" she asked. Natsu grinned and pulled it out of one of the cupboards. "Why was it there?" she questioned.

"I couldn't have you brush before you had your birthday cake," he explained. She found it hard not to hug him again. She had never thought he was the think ahead kind, but he had to have done it before they had left that morning. She took it from him.

"Thanks, it wouldn't have been as good," she laughed.

"I bet," he agreed. When she came out from brushing, Natsu was struggling to hold the patch on his wound and tape it at the same time.

"Let me help," she offered. He smiled and handed her the tape. Lucy tried to lean forward, but the height was awkward, so she opted to kneel instead. Natsu tried to ignore the fact that Lucy was kneeling in front of him, which was especially hard when her fingers kept grazing at his abdomen, securing the patch there. He let himself breathe again when she stood once more. Was he… blushing? "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," he replied. "Thanks for the help." He spun on the stool and stood with his back to her, making for the bathroom quickly.

"I'm gonna go to bed," Lucy called, wondering what had got into him.

"I'll be there soon," he answered. Though she was fairly sure it took him longer than usual to get ready – and uncharacteristically didn't leave the bathroom as he brushed.

"Is he being weird, or am I?" Lucy asked Happy when he hopped on the bed. The cat simply purred and snuggled by her side. But Natsu seemed like his usual self when he got in the room, flipping the light off before making his way to the bed in the dark. Lucy waited for him to settle and rolled over to face him. She still couldn't quite make his face in the dark. "Say, Natsu?" She heard him shift to look at her more than she saw him as he hummed. "Thank you for helping with that creep today."

"Anytime," he replied, and she could hear the grin in his voice.

"You know, for someone who can't lie, you did pretty good there," she chuckled. "I was impressed."

"I wasn't lying," he argued seriously. "You are sleeping in my bed." She would have slapped him lightly on the shoulder if she could actually see where his shoulder was.

"Oh, hush," she chuckled. "I meant, you really seemed angry that he was hitting on me."

"I was." Lucy wished she could see him now but was also glad he couldn't see her blush. "I mean, not that he was hitting on you. Just that he wouldn't drop it."

"So you don't mind people hitting on me? Cause if I remember correctly, you threatened Loke for it too." Natsu was silent for a moment.

"Did I?" he finally asked.

"You did," she assured him.

"You probably looked uncomfortable," he shrugged.

"So you wouldn't mind if someone was hitting on me in a non-creepy way?" she questioned. Natsu squinted in the dark, trying to make out her expression, but also trying to decide how to answer her question.

"Should I?" he finally asked back. "I guess I might," he added before Lucy could reply. "In a non-creepy way. Is that a problem?"

"Depends why," Lucy replied, feeling much more serious now than she had first intended. She used to tease people the same Cana always teased her, but this one was starting to backfire. Maybe it hadn't been smart to tease the boy who lived with her when they were laying together.

"I don't know," Natsu admitted. "I guess it's a bit selfish, but I like what we got, and someone else might not get it and be jealous. I'd hate to have to beat up your boyfriend."

"You wouldn't," Lucy called him out and he laughed.

"Probably not," he conceded. Lucy's eyes were used enough to the dimness that she could faintly see him looking at her, and she saw the smile vanishing from his lips. "Is there someone hitting on you in a non-creepy way?" he asked. Did he really sound defeated, or did she want him to?

"No," she assured him and she heard what sounded suspiciously like a sigh of relief.

"Good, I can't beat anyone up yet. Doctor's order," he added with a laugh.

"You're a dork," she chuckled.

"And you're a nerd," he threw back.

"Can't say you're wrong," she agreed.

"I'd need to know what it means to tell you if you are," Natsu confessed.

"Uh… let's see. I guess you could call someone who's kinda out of the box in a nice way a dork. Like, you can act silly and be yourself without caring what people think of it," she tried to explain. "It's a bit hard to explain, but I mean it in a good way."

"You can call me what you want, Luce," he laughed. "Even babe." Lucy blushed.

"That was a necessity!" she argued. She could see his smile.

"Just saying, I don't mind." He yawned and stretched, settling a bit more cosily, which included shifting the now warm blankets away from him. "Bedtime now," he mumbled, his voice already getting thicker with sleep. "Night, Luce."

"Night, Natsu," she replied.

...

Two weeks later, Lucy was surprised to wake up alone. She got up and went around the apartment, quickly realizing that Natsu wasn't even home. She went to grab her phone and saw he had texted her. 'On my way back!' Three minutes ago. It was just past 9:30 AM. 'Where were you?' she texted back. He didn't reply, so she started on breakfast. It took him fifteen minutes to make it back, and he was panting.

"Are you okay?" she asked, concerned.

"Yeah," he huffed. "Ran back... I gotta… build my cardio… back up." She gave him a glass of water and he grinned, drinking it so quickly he almost choked on it.

"Easy," Lucy scolded him. "Mavis told you to take it slow."

"I'm fine. Just didn't have much time." His breathing was still heavy, but he was no longer panting.

"Where did you have to go so early?" she asked. He grinned and fumbled with the zipper of his small pack, handing her a gift bag. She looked from it to the bag in confusion.

"It's your birthday gift," he explained. "It got in today."

"But… You planned everything. You didn't have to get me anything else."

"But I wanted to," he grinned. "Come on, take it." Lucy hesitated and took it from him. Noticing his expectant look, she sat down to open it. She pulled the gift out of the bag, chuckling when she found it to be neatly wrapped too – either Natsu had some unknown skill, had taken his time or had someone else doing it. She tore the wrap and frowned at the blue and red cover. It didn't seem familiar. As the last of the paper fell, she realized why.

"No way," she breathed.

"Yes way," he grinned.

"When did it come out?"

"Today! I had the store put a copy aside for me a month ago." She bounced from her seat and hugged him tightly – rather, she slammed into him hard enough that he stumbled back.

"You're the best, Natsu! I can't believe it's finally out!" She was holding the latest album from her favourite band. Then she pulled away, looking at him with stars in her brown eyes. "Do you have a CD player?"

"Well, sorta," he grinned. He turned on the TV and set it to the proper HDMI channel then turned his PlayStation on, letting Lucy prop the CD in there. She squealed with excitement as the music started rolling, bouncing on the spot with delight. Natsu watched her with a soft look on his face. He didn't know that he had seen her this happy in a while.

...

"What is it, Lu?" Lucy was sitting at the café with Levy, sipping at her London Fog.

"What do you mean?" Lucy asked, forcing her eyes to focus on her friend's face.

"You've been zoning out again."

"I'm just tired," she replied. Levy cocked a brow at her.

"You're not working today. Why didn't you sleep in?"

"I did… Well, I tried."

"I thought you didn't have nightmares anymore now that you… you know." As much as she appreciated Levy's discretion, Lucy still blushed.

"I don't," she agreed. "But Loke called at 6AM to ask Natsu if he wanted to pick up an extra shift and I couldn't go back to sleep after."

"So now you can't sleep without him?" Levy teased.

"No, he's just been… I don't know. He's been weird in the last few days."

"Weird how?"

"I don't know. Like, if he wakes up before I do, he rushes in the bathroom, but if I wake up first, he won't move until I'm out of the room. And I know something's up cause he can't lie, but he won't tell me."

"And he never did that before?" Levy questioned.

"I don't know, maybe once or twice, but now it's almost every day." Levy hummed pensively, then her face flushed, and she lowered her head on the table with a groan. "What is it?"

"Cana's weird is finally getting to me," Levy complained. "Cause all I can think about is that he's got morning wood." Lucy blushed too. It… it actually made a lot of sense, as much as she hated to think about it.

"You think it's because of me?" she asked in a small voice.

"Nah, it's probably just a hormonal thing. I'm sure things are gonna get back to normal sooner or later." Lucy sighed and took another sip of her drink. Levy cocked a brow, carefully waiting for her friend to set her drink down. "Do you… want it to be because of you?" She was glad she had waited because Lucy would have choked on her drink.

"Levy! No! Of course not!" she exclaimed.

"But you do like him, don't you? Like… like like him." Lucy looked at her drink, shaking her head. "Lu, Cana isn't here, and I won't tease you if you do. You know that. And you know I'm not like Juvia either. Cana can't make me talk."

"Honestly, Lev, I don't know," she admitted. "If I had had this sort of a relationship with him before everything, I would have tried to make a move by now, but now… I don't know. I can't even make sense of how I feel."

"You've been through a lot of trauma, Lu. It's normal that you would be confused, especially on something like that." Lucy gave her a small smile, appreciating the support and the lack of judgment. "But between the two of us, what would you rate him?" she asked, leaning in closed.

"If I tell you, you'll tell me where you rank Gajeel?" Lucy asked. Levy flushed but nodded. "He's definitely a 10. Not just on his best day."

"You said the suit was a +2."

Lucy laughed. "Cause he's a 12 in a suit. Your turn."

"Honestly, same," Levy chuckled, leaning almost head to head in confession. "I'm really digging the bad boy look, but the suit he had at prom. Damn!" They laughed together, leaning back, and Levy's expression became serious once more. "I need you to promise me something, Lu," she said.

"What is it?"

"I can't… pretend to say that I understand what you've been through but promise me you won't close yourself up because of it."

"I'm trying," Lucy replied, "but I'm… I'm scared."

"Why?"

"Because… Tyrus couldn't wait for us to get together and… What if I can't do it, Lev? What if I can't ever bring myself to be comfortable with it?"

"Oh, Lu… I wouldn't worry about it too much. Especially if we're still talking about Natsu. He knows what you've been through, he would never push you."

"What if I'm the one holding him back? That's not any better."

"Well, once you know how you feel about him, maybe try to bring it up. I know it sounds crazy and it's definitely easier said than done, but maybe it isn't important to him. I wouldn't be surprised."

"That's unlikely," Lucy scoffed.

"Is it? Can you say it's as important to me as it is to Cana? Why would it be any different for him?"

"But Cana had sex before. She didn't care for it as much before that," Lucy countered.

"You think he had it before?"

"How would I know?"

"Well, either way, he doesn't seem to care much for it now," Levy stood by her point.

"I guess you're right," Lucy admitted. "But… I don't know, Lev. You know, we live together too. If I mess it up, what then?"

"Aren't you working now? You could find your own place if you need. I know I'm staying home until I'm out of school and Juvia is much of the same, but Cana is planning to move out in the next year."

"She is?"

"Yeah. She started working today, but didn't say where."

"I didn't know that!" They kept chatting a while longer, then Lucy headed home.

So that was 24! Such goodies! I absolutely loved writing this chapter, and the finale with Levy and Lucy's talk is just icing on the cake! So, we're seeing some changes in Natsu now. Do you think they'll talk it out? And Lucy is finally admitting that Natsu is hot, but can't really blame her for not knowing what to make of it. What did you think of this chapter? Anyone else gets super excited when their fave drops new music?

Artemis Kross: Thank you! Happy to see you on board!

Bookwork129: I'm in the Northern hemisphere, but my birthday is in July. Unfortunately, weather here is not good enough for water park, so I'll need to travel east next summer to get my water park birthday! Did not address much of how Natsu felt about all of it, but he did say he would pretend anytime ;)

Copperreign12: Natsu is a pretty thoughtful guy when it comes down to Lucy, that's for sure. I honestly laughed when I wrote the scene with Natsu saying that. Cause yeah, not a lie lol

SummeryNights: Glad you enjoyed it!

Valerioux: I mean, who would mind? haha