Hello, everyone !

I'm back with the third chapter :D

I hope you enjoy reading this one~

Disclaimer: I only own Haru Heartfilia and the plot

Natsu couldn't take his eyes off of Lucy's face. This was the first time he could only hear questions from one reporter among the others. Natsu also mainly gave out his answers only to Lucy's questions, while his teammates handled the rest. He still added his answers to other reporters' questions though, he didn't want to create any unnecessary news.

Who knows what kind of absurd articles would come out if the other reporters caught on that he was only mainly responding to one of them?

Judging from the way she talked and the way she looked at him when they were exchanging questions and answers, Natsu deduced that Lucy wasn't aware that they met each other at the park yesterday. The wig and the contact lenses were indeed one of the most effective simple disguises. This realization amused Natsu even more.

How would she react if she knew that the guy she met at the park yesterday was the same guy as the one she's interviewing right now?

The press conference then ended with no big issues. Fired Up! bowed again in front of the reporters, before walking out of the room. Natsu spared one last glance at Lucy and smirked to himself, wondering when he could see her and Haru again.

The band walked back towards their waiting room in silence. Press conferences had always been quite exhausting for them, with all those blitzing lights and swarms of questions—from the logical ones to the ridiculous ones or even irrational and scandalous ones. Not to mention the endless sounds of the cameras taking photos.

"I'll prepare your van, so rest for a bit. Great work at that conference." Loke opened the door and stepped out.

"Dude." Gray jabbed Natsu's side lightly once Loke was out of sight. "What's with you back there?"

"What?" Natsu raised a questioning eyebrow.

"Don't tell me you're interested in that blonde reporter." Gajeel added. "You only answer her questions."

"I didn't." Natsu quickly denied. "I answered the other reporters' questions too, you know."

"Yeah, right." Gray rolled his eyes. "You were the first one to always answer that blonde reporter's questions."

"Did I?" Natsu tried to laugh it off. Damn it, guess he wasn't that discreet like he thought he was. "Maybe it's just a coincidence I always answered Lucy's questions first."

"What kind of a coincidence is that?" Gajeel scoffed.

"You even knew her name!" Gray pointed.

"She's wearing an ID tag around her neck, moron." Natsu retorted. "Unless you can't read, then you wouldn't possibly know her name."

"Well, did you read the other reporters' ID tags?" Gray asked back. "If you didn't, it means that you knew her!"

"I just met her once, alright." Natsu sighed in defeat.

"WHERE?! WHEN?!" His band mates' eyes widened.

"Somewhere, somewhen." Natsu shrug his shoulders off. For some reason, he didn't want to tell his friends yet about their meeting yesterday at the park. "She didn't recognize me, though. I was wearing my disguises back then."

"Are you sure she didn't recognize you?" Jellal asked.

"Positive. I was wearing a wig and contact lenses back then, don't worry." Natsu replied.

"Okay, so what's with this particular attention on the blonde reporter?" Gray pressed again. "Did you fall for her at the first sight or something?"

"What? What kind of a stupid question is that, jerk?" Natsu scoffed. "Beisdes, although she's still young, she's already got a—"

Natsu instantly shut his mouth and swallowed back that one last word. For some reason, the thought of telling his friends about how Lucy had already had a son suddenly didn't sit well with him. He knew Lucy wasn't embarrassed of Haru's presence,—Natsu could tell from just one look at the way her eyes stared at Haru—but it was still her personal information. He wasn't anybody to her, he was just a random guy who played with her son at the park,—a fact that she doesn't know right now—so he felt uncomfortable in sharing her personal information.

His friends grew impatiently curious at his abrupt cut of words.

"Got a what?" Gajeel asked.

"No, nothing. Never mind." Natsu said. "The point is, there's nothing going on between us. I just met her once and that's it. You know how it feels when you accidentally meet someone you know. Sometimes you become excited, right? It's just like that."

"That's a good point." Jellal pointed.

"Are you sure that's all there is to it?" Gray asked.

"Absolutely."

"Okay, we believe you, Natsu." Jellal chuckled. "Don't forget, you can tell anything to us. 'No secrets', remember?"

Natsu nodded and gave his toothy grin. "You're the best, man."

The 'no secrets' policy was something Fired Up! came up with ever since their band officially joined the entertainment business. They knew how easy it was for all sorts of scandals to appear once they stood under the spotlight. The more spotlight they had, the bigger and the weirder the scandals could be. Therefore, they created the policy to make sure that they could straighten out any scandals that came to their way. Their band was formed not only based on their shared love for music and their passion to work in the industry, but also based on the trust they shared with each other after all these years of friendship.

If they didn't know the truth, how could they defend one of them when they were tackled with scandals?

The policy was also the reason why neither Jellal nor Gray hid the identities of their girlfriends. By announcing that they were dating, they could rebuke all kinds of dating scandals out there. That was why the only dating scandals that could be found here and there were about Natsu or Gajeel only. Although the number of those articles were minimum, due to the fact that the four of them were pretty good in avoiding the paparazzi.

The policy served as a way for them to handle the scandals, but also as a proof of how deep their bonds were.

It was also because of that that Natsu didn't want to tell his friends yet about Lucy. After all, he had just met her once and there was nothing more to it. Until he was sure that there was indeed something between the two of them, he decided not to tell his friends anything. Not that he felt like there could be something between them, anyway, considering the fact that Lucy had already had a family.

Speaking about family…

Now that Natsu thinks about it, how did Haru recognize him earlier?

Lucy herself didn't even recognize him because they met while he was wearing a wig and contact lenses. So, how did Haru recognize him? Did he know from the start that the older brother he met at the park was him?

Was it even possible for a three-year-old to know him?

A few days after the press conference, Natsu finally had a free time. He decided to go to the park again, praying that his luck would allow him to meet Haru—and hopefully—and Lucy as well. He was about to wear his wig and contact lenses again, when a though suddenly crossed his mind.

His gut feeling was telling him that it would be better for him not to wear any disguises for today. He had no reasons why, but he pretty much trusted his gut feeling.

Natsu then took a cap and wore it. Loke and his band mates would be pissed if they knew he went out with an ineffective disguise like this, but his gut feeling was telling him that it was okay. Once again, he decided to trust his gut feeling more than his logical reasoning. Besides, Gajeel was being cooped up in his room to write some music, Jellal and Gray were spending their free time talking with their girlfriends, and Loke was actually on a date with Aries.

Natsu quickly went out of the apartment and made his way to the park. The streets were empty, most likely due to the fact that it was actually weekday and everyone was working. He quickly went to the park.

Another proof of how accurate Natsu's gut feeling could be sometimes.

In the empty park, Haru was there, playing alone with his mother.

Natsu's eyes lit up and he quickly made his way to them.

"Haru!"

Haru whipped his tiny head and his brown eyes glittered upon seeing Natsu's figure. He quickly ran towards him with his chubby hands stretched out. "Yasashi-no-nii-chan!"

Natsu scooped up the toddler into his arms as he walked towards Lucy who was staring back curiously at him. "Wow, you really recognize me anywhere, do you?"

Haru nodded his big head. "Haru's great at recognizing people!"

"Uhm… Hello." Lucy awkwardly greeted once Natsu was standing in front of her. Her eyebrows furrowed a bit, as her eyes stared at Natsu in an attempt to recognize him. Natsu could blatantly saw it on her face: Where have I seen this man before?

Natsu stifled a laugh upon seeing how funny her serious look looked.

"Oh, that's right!" Haru clapped his hands. "Mommy, I haven't told you yet that I met yasashi-no-nii-chan again, right?"

"What do you mean?" Lucy asked. "When?"

"A few days ago, when I accompanied you to work, Mommy!" Haru raised his hands in excitement. His chubby fists accidentally knocked over Natsu's cap. "I recognized him—"

"Oh my gosh!" Lucy gasped in shock upon recognizing the figure who was standing in front of her. "You're—"

"Ssshh!" Natsu quickly covered her mouth with his free hand, while Haru was curiously tugging his hair from behind. He had forgotten whatever he was about to say next. "Not so loud!"

"Pretty hair!" Haru babbled. "Pretty, pretty, yummy salmon hair!"

Natsu laughed upon hearing Haru's cute babbles. He let go of Lucy's mouth and used that hand to pry Haru's hand off of his hair. "Now then, Haru, tell me something. How did you recognize me few days ago? I'm sure I have different hair and eyes back then compared to the first time I met you here."

"Oh, right!" Haru remembered. "It's from the way you walk! I am bad at memorizing people's faces and names, but I am great at memorizing the way they walk!"

"I see." Natsu said and ruffled the toddler's blond hair. "That's amazing, Haru!"

Haru nodded his head. "Haru is great because Mommy is great!"

Natsu then glanced at the still-shocked Lucy and chuckled.

"Get a grip, miss interviewer." Natsu said as he wore his cap again. "I know it's not everyday you got to meet me, but until when are you going to look like an idiot?"

"Hey!" Lucy's senses snapped back and she protested. "I just… How did you… How did Haru… Never mind."

"Mommy?" Haru tilted his head curiously. "Why are you so in shock? Did yasashi-no-nii-chan do something to you?"

"It's Natsu, Haru." Natsu gently said. "My name is Natsu. Natsu Dragneel."

"Natsu?" Haru repeated, before his naïve grin broke out the next second. "Natsu! We have a similar name! Haru is spring and you are summer!"

"That's right, little buddy." Natsu ruffled the toddler's hair again.

"Haru can easily remember that name! Like Mommy's name, or auntie's name!" Haru excitedly said. "Can I call you Natsu-nii-chan?"

"Sure—"

"Haru!" Lucy quickly covered his son's mouth. "Don't call his name out loud!"

"Fuai (why)?" Haru asked with a muffled voice.

"He's… Uhm… A secret hero!" Lucy quickly made up an excuse. Haru wouldn't understand something as hard as the need to hide a celebrity's identity, so Lucy came up with that excuse. "You remember those secret heroes in the books we read, right? They need to cover up their identities, so that others wouldn't know that they are heroes."

Haru's eyes lit up and he nodded excitedly. Lucy smiled and let go of his mouth, then ruffled his hair affectionately. "You can remember his name, but just call him yasashi-no-nii-chan, okay?"

"Okay!" Haru complied.

"Or, you can call me Natsu-nii-chan whenever there were only the three of us around." Natsu offered. "A secret identity only you and your mom know of."

Haru nodded even more furiously. A secret only he and his mom know of? That's so amazing!

After that, Natsu accompanied Haru playing at the park, while Lucy stood beside them in silence and watched them. She stared at his son who was comfortably sitting on someone else's lap as they were swinging on the swings. Haru had never quite been a friendly type, because he was a very shy and quiet little boy. Moreover, the guy who is now holding him was a complete stranger to them, he wasn't his mother's friend or any of the sort. Well, a famous stranger, to be more exact. Who would have thought that the stranger was actually the Natsu Dragneel?

Lucy let out a small sigh and smiled in defeat upon seeing how happy her son was in Natsu's arms. She didn't know how things became like this, but she couldn't rob his son's source of happiness either. Ever since meeting the stranger at the park who taught him how to draw a donkey, Haru wouldn't stop talking about him at home.

If red strings did exist, was it possible that there was one connecting Haru's pinkie to Natsu's?

"Alright, boys, we have another interview with Sorcerer's Weekly to discuss about our upcoming album this Saturday." Loke announced the schedule.

"Sorcerer's Weekly?" Natsu mumbled, a thought suddenly came up to his mind. "Hey, Loke, will we be interviewed by Minerva again?"

Minerva Orland was a reporter working at Sorcerer's Weekly who was assigned to exclusively covered every single news about Fired Up!. Thanks to that, the band and the reporter grew quite close due to their frequent working together.

"Yeah, like the usual." Loke said.

"Can we request a different interviewer?" Natsu asked.

"What?" Loke blinked.

"We?" Gray also blinked in confusion.

"I recall seeing a different Sorcerer's Weekly reporter during our last press conference." Natsu said. "Lucy, right? Can we ask her to do the interview this time?"

"Her again?" Gray gawked.

"Hold on, again?" Loke asked. "What do you mean by again? Is there something here that I don't know?"

"She's Natsu's acquaintance." Jellal answered.

"Okay…" Loke was still confused. "So… Why asking her all of a sudden?"

"A change of pace." Natsu said. "Oh, come on, she came to our press conference already, so why not asking her to interview us? Seeing someone else's face except Minerva's isn't a bad idea, right?"

"Geehee." Gajeel chuckled. "I agree with Natsu on that one."

"Yeah, why not?" Jellal also agreed. "Besides, judging from the way she interviewed us during the press conference, I'd say she is as capable as Minerva is."

"You guys are being weird somehow, but I guess it's not a bad idea." Gray added.

"Okay…" Loke agreed a bit reluctantly. "I'll call Minerva and ask her to arrange Lucy to interview you guys."

"Thanks, man!" Natsu grinned.

His idea worked! Natsu was so excited for this Saturday. He got to meet Lucy again! And if he was lucky, perhaps he could see Haru again and played with that cute kid!

On Saturday…

Lucy gulped down nervously as she stared at all of the cameras positioned around her. She read her papers again and again, feeling determined that she wouldn't mess this interview up. Her mind then recalled the talk she had with her senior two days ago.

"Hey, Lucy."

"Oh, Minerva-senpai." Lucy bowed down to greet her senior.

"You don't have any schedule for this Saturday, right?" Minerva asked.

"No, I don't."

"Great!" Minerva smiled and handed her some papers. "Here, for you. I just got a call from Loke, the manager of Fired Up!, and he said the band would like you to interview them on this Saturday."

"Fired Up!, you say? An interview?" Lucy blinked in shock.

"You did a great job at their last press conference!" Minerva encouraged. "Besides, I have another scoop on that day, so it'll be really great if you can take over!"

"B—But, senpai…"

"Don't worry, they are all very cooperative although dumb sometimes, apart from Jellal, anyway." Minerva chuckled. "I'm looking forward to your first interview with them! Good luck, kouhai!"

And without waiting for another response from a baffled Lucy, Minerva quickly ran away.

Which was why Lucy is now nervously sitting in a room prepared for her very first interview with the band. Lucy took a deep breath to calm her nerves down as she realized that the band would come in any second now.

As if on cue, the door was opened and Fired Up! stepped into the room. Lucy's eyes instantly locked on to Natsu's, and the latter greeted her with a smile which magically melted all of her nervousness. Lucy smiled back at him, inwardly feeling grateful because at least she knew one of the band members.

Okay, let's do this!

Done !

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