Chapter 4


Lucy groggily opened her eyes at the unwelcome sunlight shining through the window and onto her grimacing face. She had woken abruptly, feeling an emptiness on the mattress beside her. Actively seeking out the warmth that accompanied the dragon slayer, she turned over to cuddle closer and noticed he was no longer there. About to call out his name, she stopped in her tracks as soon as she caught sight of him. Natsu was perched on her couch, pink hair wild as ever, smiling and talking to the little baby in his arms. She could hear little Haru coo every time Natsu would smile or say something silly. It was so cute to watch them, he had done this every morning since they'd brought him back with them, it had become part of her day to wake up early and get a front row seat to Natsu bonding with his son.

Haru had been with them nearly a week now, and it was scary how quickly they'd had to adapt. He was such a sweetie, even when he was upset. Natsu had been so attentive and protective of the little one, he never took his eyes off of him, especially when they were out or at the guild. It was reassuring to have someone around like that who seemed so natural at this.

Lucy still struggled with the tremendous amount of uncertainty she had when it came to her parenting abilities, she would question every decision she made for the boy. And yet, Natsu never seemed to doubt himself. She knew that when she agreed to take him in that she would be taking joint responsibility with Natsu, but she couldn't shake the feeling that maybe she wasn't very natural at this. Those original doubts were still there too, she really didn't know what she was doing. There were no amount of parenting books or advise from her parent friends that she could use to educate herself in being a good mother. She was kinda jealous, in a way, of Natsu's innate ability to just be a dad, no questions asked. But, hell, did it suit him!

Lucy loved watching him be so fatherly, it was so sweet and made him all the more attractive. She had always found him good-looking though, any one with eyes could see that he was handsome. He had this alluring ripped body which she would discreetly ogle, loving the way he flexed his muscles when he moved. His crazy, pink hair seemed to have a mind of it's own and yet it perfectly framed his face. His skin was darker than hers, it was more tanned which complimented his beautiful green eyes, the same green eyes she would so often get lost in. They told her every emotion he was feeling even when he couldn't express it. He was like an open book, but only to those closest to him. Every smirk and stupid grin told a different story, adding another chapter to the endless mystery that was Natsu Dragneel.

She sighed in contentment, as she continued to watch the fire breather play with the little fella, thinking back to the other night when she had bathed Haru for the first time. She remembered the way Natsu had looked at her, was he about to kiss her? Damn that cat for ruining the moment! She thought about how she'd felt as he slowly moved his face towards her, they were so close, a few more seconds and maybe-

"I know you're not sleeping." She heard his gruff voice say from across the room, snapping her out of her haze. Busted! He hadn't even looked in her direction, how the hell did he know? She quickly bolted upright, pretending to have just woken up, doing a fake, over the top yawn and began rubbing the sleep out of her eyes.

"Stop being a pervert and come join us!" He blurted, glancing over to her briefly to gauge her dumbstruck expression before returning his attention to Haru. Smiling to himself, "Your mama's being weird again!" He whispered to the baby, snickering when he responded by flailing his arms, "See Luce, even Haru agrees." He looked over to her and laughed when he saw her puffed out cheeks.

She scowled at the dragon slayer before heading over to give Haru a kiss on the head to say good morning. Glancing up at Natsu, still pretending to be annoyed, she flicked his forehead playfully, gaining a pretend gasp from him, before entering her bathroom to get showered and ready for the day. Natsu couldn't help but laugh out loud, she was so easy to wind up, it was one of his favourite things to do.

When Lucy walked out of the bathroom, Natsu looked up, about to tell her something when his words got trapped in his mouth, she looked stunning. He watched as her heavenly blonde hair cascaded down her back, he liked it when she let it down, it had grown so long. Her smooth, milky skin looked almost edible and the way her clothes seemed to hug her curves, made him drool. There wasn't any particular difference in the way she looked, yet, he was mesmerised. He couldn't look away, in his eyes she was just so beautiful.

"Natsu and I cooked you some breakfast Lucy, it's super yummy!" The little Exceed exclaimed with a mouth full of food. Knocking Natsu right out of his trance, he quickly looked away, attempting to hide his pink cheeks. Oblivious to his inner turmoil, she walked over and sat down, helping herself to some of the food on the table.

"Porlyusica said she wanted to do a full check up on Haru today at the guild hall." She said out loud, directing her gaze towards the dragon slayer who had just finished stuffing his face.

"I'll be there! There's just a few things I need to do before hand. But it shouldn't take too long." Natsu said cheerily, "Actually, I better get going. Are you going to be alright for a bit Luce, I'll be as quick as I can?" He asked, saying a quick goodbye to Haru and placing him in his crib, before making his way over to the window.

She nodded, unable to speak from all the food in her mouth. He grinned at her as he jumped out of the window and started running down the street. Lucy did wonder where he was going everyday, it had become quite a regular thing for him to just up and leave the past week, never telling her where he was off to. She had to admit she was curious, but he always returned and she had Happy to help her until he got back.

Once she had finished cleaning the awful mess that'd been left in her kitchen, Lucy, Happy and Haru made their way to the Guild hall. It was such a warm, sunny day as she walked along the canal, Lucy contemplated taking Haru for a walk in the park later. Her mind habitually drifted back to Natsu, focusing mostly on his absence. Should she have asked him where he was going? She did want to know where he kept running off to, but at the same time, she knew that he would tell her eventually. She sighed, as much as she loved Haru, being alone with him made her feel a little uncomfortable. And yes, she had Happy there to help, he was great with the baby, but Natsu seemed to just have this way of calming him when he cried, a way that Lucy hadn't mastered yet.

She couldn't help but panic when he started to wail, anxiety would course through her when he refused his milk. She felt a sense of helplessness, what was she doing wrong? Was there something wrong with him that she was missing? She didn't know, but each time he would cry for apparently no reason, Natsu had been there to soothe him. The more she thought about it, the more her good mood was fading. She couldn't help it, she wanted to be a good mother to Haru, he deserved it, but at the moment it felt like she was failing him. Natsu had tried to be encouraging when she told him about her worries, he was so supportive, but there was always this crushing doubt in the back of her mind that just wouldn't go away.

Before she knew it she was standing outside the Fairy Tail guild hall. She opened the door and walked in, greeting her friends as she sat down at the bar with Haru. Happy had flown off to go see Carla, that cat was hopeless. She chuckled to herself before starting a conversation with the girls that were so eager to hold the baby.

"Juvia wishes to have a baby. But her darling Gray won't give her one." The water mage said solemnly, looking a little defeated. Lucy kind of felt sorry for her, having a baby was a big thing as she had quickly found out, not that she regretted it but maybe Gray had the right idea for now, it wasn't something to take lightly.

"I'm sure you'll have a family one day Juvia, you just have to be patient." Lucy said, trying to console her friend, "Gray will come around to the idea, I'm sure."

"Haru is so cute! I think you and Natsu should have more sweet babies, Haru will need siblings eventually." Mira said, gushing over the baby, whilst imagining more Natsu and Lucy babies.

"Siblings? Mira! Natsu and I aren't together in that way, how could we give him siblings?" Lucy turned the colour of a tomato, what was Mira trying to suggest? Surely they all knew that their situation was a little different to other parents.

"You say that, yet you chose to adopt a child together, you practically live with one another, you're inseparable and don't make out you don't see him that way, I've seen you staring at his fire dragon!" Cana blurted, whilst swigging from her barrel of beer, "There's just so much sexual tension between you two, it's suffocating!" She finished, wagging her eyebrows up and down, enjoying every second of teasing the young blonde. Lucy's eyes were like saucers as she glared at Cana, wanting to give the brunette a piece of her mind when someone else decided to chip in.

"Open your eyes Lucy, you wouldn't have taken in a child with someone like Elfman or Laxus, right?" Lisanna asked, raising her eyebrow at the celestial mage.

"W-Well… I…er-" Lucy felt so flustered, she didn't know what to say, was this pick on Lucy day?

The worst part of it all was that they had a point. She wouldn't have done it with any one else, and yes, she did only have eyes for Natsu, how could she not? It wasn't a recent development, it was something that she had buried for a very long time. Taking in Haru had only made her attraction for the dragon slayer worse, so much worse in fact. But there was one problem with all of this, one detail they were failing to point out and that was, Natsu. She had told them time and time again, he simply had no interest in romance, if he did then surely he would have done something about it by now? She took a deep breath, trying to calm her rattling nerves.

"Guys, Natsu doesn't see me like that, he's just not interested." She said feeling sad about the whole situation, couldn't they see how much it affected her to know that? To truly like someone that didn't like you back was heartbreaking. She thought back to the almost kiss the other day, that was the only time Natsu had ever looked like he was about to do something, but they had been interrupted so now she would never know.

"Lucy, I've known Natsu since we were children, believe me, he shows plenty of interest in you, he's totally smitten." Mira looked over at the blonde, from the little baby she'd been staring at, "He would never have taken in this sweet little baby if you hadn't agreed to it. Have you not noticed that you guys are all he talks about? He's so proud of his little family, and you're the one that gave him that." Mira smiled sweetly once she'd finished her speech, hoping that her words had been taken in.

Lucy sighed in defeat and smiled at the she-demon, she hoped that what Mira was saying was true, but she assumed only time would tell. If anything was going to progress between them, they'd created the perfect situation for it. They shared responsibility for the sweet baby boy currently cuddled in Lucy's arms, and that excited her for the future, a future that might involve her and Natsu being more than just best friends.

"What Mira's trying to say Lucy, is just do it already. Bend over and let him ram it home!" Cana bursts out laughing at Lucy's horrified face, sticking her tongue out and thrusting her hips suggestively.

Much to Lucy's chagrin, every one in the entire guild had heard what Cana had just said, she was glad Natsu wasn't present. That was until she felt his strong arms wrap around her shoulders, his breath fanning against her ear, sending spine tingling shivers through her body. Quickly spinning around to look at him, bringing Haru up to her chest from her lap. He looked so casual, surely he'd heard what Cana had just shouted out if he had been that close?

"H-Hi Natsu, I didn't hear you come in." She stuttered, trying to push down the heat rising in her face.

"I didn't want to disturb your conversation, it sounded… interesting!" He smirked at her, he had only heard what Cana had said and that was enough to know what they were talking about.

He watched as the very flushed Lucy before him started to sweat as she took in his words, he could hear the other girls sniggering in the background. But as he was about to tease her further, little Haru woke with a start and began to cry loudly.

His smirk instantly dropped into a worried frown. He leaned in to get a closer look at Haru's little puffy face, wanting to find the cause of his distress. It was so heart wrenching when he cried, especially when he couldn't be soothed by milk or cuddles. Lucy tried for several minutes to calm the little boy down, but to no avail. She looked to Natsu, worry written across her face, who quickly took him into his arms and held him close. Warming his hands and stroking his back softly, he sat down at a bench and gently rocked back and forth. The wails slowly turned into whimpers as Natsu began to talk to him.

"That's it, good boy! There's no need for all of those tears." Natsu smiled lovingly at the little one in his arms as he continued to comfort him. Lucy couldn't help but watch, she loved to see Natsu like this. And apparently so did all the other girls, but for very different reasons.

"You seem to have a handle on this daddy business Natsu, maybe you two should have more babies." Lisanna giggled from behind the bar with Mira.

Lucy just wanted the ground to swallow her whole, why couldn't they just leave it? They just had to mention it in front of him. Natsu smiled but didn't respond, too preoccupied with Haru. He had heard the white haired mage, loud and clear. However, he wanted to save Lucy from any more embarrassment, especially with regards to their relationship.

"Luce, when do we have to go see that old woman?" He asked, still rubbing little Haru's back as he looked up to a now fully composed Lucy, smiling at her.

"Now actually, I think she's down in the infirmary, we should get going." She said as she stood up and gathered herself.

Natsu joined her, and gave her a reassuring grin, he could see she looked a little nervous but that was natural. He laced his hand with hers and made their way down stairs. They knocked on the door and entered, happy to see Porlyusica with the addition of Wendy, Erza, Gray and of course Happy. Lucy smiled at them, they'd remembered her telling them about the check up today.

"You all remembered! Thank you, this means a lot to us." Lucy chirped graciously.

"Of course we remembered Lucy, we wanted to be here to lend our support for you both." Erza said, as she greeted little Haru.

"Yeah, I think the girls just wanted an excuse to be around the baby, I didn't get a choice in the matter." Gray rolled his eyes, trying to act as if Haru's cuteness wasn't getting to him.

"Well, now that we have that settled, take a seat and I'll begin. Give me the child." Porlyusica barked, not remotely amused by all the people surrounding her.

She took the baby from Natsu's arms and laid him down on the table. Lucy felt her worries grow with each passing moment, her heart was beating so rapidly she was sure the two dragon slayers could hear it. The others kept offering reassuring nods and smiles as she looked at them, even Happy had come over to snuggle into her lap, but she just couldn't shake her uneasiness.

It was a check up to see how he was doing after being caught in that fire, but why was it affecting her so much? Natsu could see her growing fear the longer the old crow kept them waiting. Natsu pulled Lucy closer to him and wrapped his arm around her back, with his hand resting on her hip, caressing it softly, while the other hand rested on top of hers, lacing their fingers together.

The baby had woken up at this point and had started to whimper, obviously not recognising the woman in front of him. His whimpers turned into cries as he urgently tried to get his parents attention. Lucy instantly tried to get up and go to him, but Porlyusica told her not to intervene and to sit back down. Natsu held her closer, he wasn't entirely pleased himself with not being able to comfort the little one, especially as his cries became louder and more desperate.

"Don't worry Lucy, he'll be back in your arms in no time." Wendy said to try and reassure the blonde, who's face had started to sweat. Lucy didn't reply, too taken by the noise coming from her little frantic baby. She gripped Natsu's hand tighter, this is exactly what she had worried about, this and bad news, but Porlyusica hadn't said a word yet. Why was it taking so long?

"Luce, try and breathe." Natsu whispered against her ear, noticing that she was holding her breath, if she kept doing that she was going to pass out.

Little Haru had cried so much, that his entire body had gone completely red, his wails sounded pained and all Lucy wanted to do was pick him up and cuddle him. To show him that he hadn't been left alone, that mama and daddy were right here waiting for him.

Her mind drifted back to the day that they had found him, had he cried like this then? Was he just as scared? With no one there to help him, he must have screamed until he could scream no more. It was horrifying to think of such a helpless and vulnerable little newborn baby being stuck in that mess with no one to save him.

She couldn't take it any longer, her thoughts had become erratic and the dread she felt was unbearable. She needed to reassure her baby, he needed her, he was crying so hysterically. Without warning she stood up, pulling herself away from an equally troubled Natsu and walked over to where Porlyusica was standing and grabbed the little one from the table and held him close, rubbing his back whilst she spoke to him softly, letting him know that everything was alright until he gradually calmed down. Porlyusica stood there for a moment, dumbfounded, before piping up.

"Stop being so ridiculous! I wasn't hurting him, you've interfered unnecessarily and now I'll have to do it all over again!" Porlyusica huffed in annoyance, she couldn't understand what the problem was.

"Ridiculous? How dare you! Do you have any idea how hard it was to sit there and listen to him cry like that?" Lucy was seething, how was she being ridiculous? "He's just a baby! An innocent baby who was scared and as his parent- No, as his mother I needed to comfort him!" Her voice was raised, teeming with anger.

Surely any decent parent would want to comfort their child, regardless of the situation. She looked over her shoulder, Natsu had stood up and started to make his way over to her, probably to try and console her. But the other's were just staring at her, dumbstruck. Why were they looking at her like that? She hadn't done anything wrong, all she'd wanted was to comfort Haru so that he stopped crying and then they could have continued.

"What? Do I have something on my face?" She spat at them, not caring how they'd react, she couldn't be bothered with this.

"Luce?" Was all Natsu could say as he stood behind her and tried to reach out for her hand, stopping in his tracks from the death glare she'd given him. Before he could stop her, she bolted towards the door, Haru held safely against her and stormed out of it, walking up the stairs and out of the guild hall, ignoring anyone who tried to talk to her. She needed air, that room had been suffocating and she just couldn't shake the horrible guilt she'd felt as she'd listened to the helpless cries of the little boy in her arms.

She walked to the park and sat herself under a large tree, when she had thought about going to the park today, this wasn't what she had in mind, but she wanted to be left alone right now. She was still so angry, what had gotten into her? She never usually reacted in this way, but she just couldn't help it. Watching that woman prod and pull at her little Haru and not being able to comfort him as he cried had sent her over the edge.

She looked at the unhappy baby, who was still red and blotchy from crying, she knew what would cheer him up and took out a bottle of milk from her baby bag and fed it to him. She loved watching him feed, it was one of her favourite things. It felt like they were bonding as he looked up at her, with milk dribbling down his chin as she adoringly smiled back at him.

She didn't want little Haru seeing her so angry, and she definitely didn't want to further upset him. Just watching him had managed to calm her down, how could she stay angry when she had the cutest little baby in her arms. Once he had finished with his milk, she brought him up to lay on her chest to gently burp him, humming a quiet tune. She relaxed instantly, taking in his newborn baby scent as he fell asleep so peacefully.

It had been a little while by the time Natsu had found her under the tree. He had wanted to run after her straight away but had been stopped by the others, wanting to give Lucy some space. She hadn't noticed him yet, he wanted to gauge her mood first before he approached, not wanting to be on the receiving end of Lucy's wrath, especially when it sometimes rivalled Erza's.

He stood back and watched her for a little while, she was singing some sort of lullaby to Haru, the sight of her leant up against the tree with the baby laid against her, as she gently rubbed his back to soothe him, melted his heart. It stirred feelings within him he couldn't place with words, what a truly breathtaking scene it was.

She was always so worried about whether she was doing the right thing, that she couldn't see just what a good mother she undeniably was. She had spoken to him over her fears of not being good enough, not being 'maternal' as she put it. But he just couldn't understand how she didn't see it, she cared so much for their little boy. She always made sure he had everything he needed, so why was she so quick to put herself down?

It baffled him that she doubted herself so much, that she felt she wasn't good enough, when it was so clear to him that, together, they were little Haru's entire world. He'd decided that enough was enough, she was going to listen to him. If she was so ready to run herself down, then he would spend every minute of the day building her back up, if that's what it took.

He slowly approached, until he was standing in front of her, looking down at her almost intimidatingly so. Sensing his presence, she sighed, and looked up to him. What was she supposed to say? She felt so stupid for the way she'd reacted and the fact that she'd stormed off with Haru, without saying a word, how was she going to explain that to him? Natsu crouched down in front of her, staring deep into her eyes, she looked so lost, this was going to take some work.

"How you holding up, Luce?" He spoke softly, it sounded silly, but he didn't want to startle her and he definitely didn't want her running off again.

"I-I don't know. I can't explain what happened back there, I don't know what came over me?" She answered, trying to think of the best way to tell him how she was feeling.

He remained silent, waiting for her to speak. He knew how her brain worked, he'd known her long enough by now to let her work through everything before she spoke.

"I'm sorry Natsu, I shouldn't have reacted that way towards you or stormed off like that, god knows what the other's think." She stopped, unable to meet his gaze, feeling utterly ashamed of herself, but she needed to carry on, to get everything off of her chest, "But I just couldn't control it, I felt so useless as he cried and my mind kept drifting back to when we found him and how terrified he must have been. He has lost so much already, and he's barely begun to live. I just wanted him to know that we were there waiting for him, that he didn't need to be scared. I let my emotions get the better of me and then I ran off with him in my arms without saying anything to you." Her voice wavering as she found the courage to finally look at the dragon slayer in front of her, feeling completely overwhelmed by all of her conflicting feelings.

Natsu didn't respond straight away, sensing she wasn't quite finished. He reached out for her hand and held it, encouraging her to go on. He had a feeling that there was something more to this, something hidden that she was reluctant to tell him. He waited patiently, watching her contemplate the best way to say it.

"Why am I so bad at this, Natsu? Do you think it's because I didn't actually carry and give birth to him? I didn't have those extra nine months to bond with him like other mother's do. Surely that would have an effect?" A few tears started to spill down her cheeks, she laid Haru down in her lap to free up her arms so she could quickly wipe the tears away.

And there it was, he knew there was something eating away at her, making her doubt herself when there was just no need for it. He had to put a stop to this once and for all, to make her see that these worries were a waste of energy.

"Lucy, I need you to listen to me and listen closely." He said, voice stern and his face serious. He leaned in closer to her and made himself comfortable, eyes still locked onto hers, "The way you reacted back there, was totally normal, so there's nothing to be sorry about. Don't most parents want to comfort their children when they're upset? But you need to stop doubting yourself so much. You are Haru's mother, so it doesn't matter who carried him or brought him into the world. You're so good with him, you give so much of yourself and you still can't see it. I wish you could see yourself the way I see you, then you'd never put yourself down again. We're a team Luce, and now we're a family, and I want you to know just how important you are, not just to Haru, but to me as well. You always have been since the very beginning."

Lucy couldn't hold back her tears, how is it Natsu always knew the right things to say? She knew deep down he was right though, she needed to stop doubting herself. She would never be able to enjoy the time she has with Haru being so young with that kind of attitude, he wasn't going to be a baby forever. Natsu moved to sit next to her against the tree, he pulled her into his warm chest and wrapped his arm around her waist. She laid her head into the crook of his neck, savouring his warmth as they both glanced down at their baby.

Little Haru had woken up when Lucy had moved him a few minutes ago and now he was staring wide eyed at the two mages above him. Lucy moved her hand to slowly stroke his cheek, she couldn't stay upset for long, not with that sweet face to look at. She sighed in contentment this time, they really were a little family, her own little family that she loved dearly.

"Thank you Natsu, thank you for everything." She looked up at him, desperate to convey all her unspoken emotions.

He meant so much to her, he really had given her everything and even in times where she felt hopeless, he was always there, to offer a helping hand. He glanced at her still teary face, taken aback slightly, he wasn't expecting her to say that. And he definitely wasn't expecting her to climb atop of his lap, baby laid gently on the blanket next to them and pull him into a bone crushing hug. He couldn't complain really, the most gorgeous girl he'd ever known, had just straddled his hips and his face was currently nestled between her breasts. She smelled so good, and her skin was so soft, he could stay like this forever. He moved his hands to rest on her hips, fingers touching her exposed skin.

She pulled back to look into his eyes, she was so full of these feelings with no way to express them. She wanted to hold him, to touch him, to show him just how grateful she was to have him in her life, but not just as her best friend, as someone who meant so much more than that. She reached her hand up and gently moved a strand of hair away from his face, there was anticipation present in his eyes as he stared at her, waiting to see what she would do.

His hands had gone slightly under her top, touching more of her soft skin, stroking his thumb lightly over her hips. She let out a soft whimper at the feel of his warm hands, there was a hunger in her eyes that Natsu had never seen before. If they weren't out in public with a baby to look after he may have just taken her there and then. But he had to proceed with caution, if he got too excited, it was going to become very apparent between his legs, right where Lucy was sitting.

Lucy had moved ever so slowly, closer to his face wanting to taste his lips, and explore his mouth with her own. She figured that if he didn't want this then he surely would have pushed her away by now, but he hadn't. If anything he looked at her wantonly and that gave her butterflies, Happy wasn't around this time to interrupt them, which meant they could finally-

"Well, Miss Heartfilia, fancy seeing you here." She heard an old woman's voice coming from beside them. Why were people so insistent on interrupting them, couldn't they just wait? Lucy turned, about to tell the person to go away, when she recognised who it was.

"Oh, er, hello. This isn't what it looks like." Lucy felt her entire body flush as she quickly retreated off of Natsu and back against the tree. Natsu grabbed the cooing baby from the blanket and held him close, looking at the dumpy woman glowering at them. Out of all the people to catch them in such a compromising position it had to be Lucy's landlady.

"Don't play coy with me, it's exactly what it looks like. I must say, you're looking well for a woman that's only just had a baby. Although, I don't ever remember seeing you pregnant, but then that baby's so tiny it must have just slipped out." She looked to Natsu, not taking any notice of Lucy's mortified expression, and glared at him, "I take it you're the father, I always knew you two would end up together. Teenager's these days, you just can't keep it in your pants and now look at you both." Natsu was utterly speechless, completely gobsmacked by the woman's rudeness. This was the first time anyone had assumed the child was biologically theirs, though he knew it would happen eventually. He just wasn't ready to hear it so nastily, especially towards Lucy, from this old bat.

"Er, I think you've got it all wro-" Lucy started before she was interrupted by Natsu.

"Yes, Lucy and I have a child together which makes me the baby's father, I'm not entirely sure what you're trying to get at here or what your problem is, Lady?" Natsu blurts, not really thinking about what he was saying but letting it come out anyway, he didn't understand what their situation had to do with her and why she was being so damn rude about it. He could feel his magic burning under his skin, he wanted nothing more than to torch this woman's ass.

"Well, it would have been nice to be told that you were having a baby and had moved in together in the apartment you rent from me. I'm sorry Miss Heartfilia, but my apartment is for single people only. Now that you have a baby you'll no longer be able to stay there. You have two days to pack your things and leave, so I can find a new tenant." She said sternly, not taking any prisoners.

"Two days? What the hell, you're kicking me out?! Is this about rent money because it's not even due yet!" Lucy felt her little bubble of happiness burst as she realised she was about to become homeless in a matter of two days. What was she going to do? Her landlady didn't say another word as she trotted off out of sight.

Lucy just wanted to this day to be over, why was everything going so wrong? She leaned back against the tree and put her hand over her face. Wanting nothing more than to scream as loud as she could to get rid of all her pent up frustration.

"Why me! What kind of a person kicks out a mother and her baby?!" She shouts out loud. She was infuriated, what an absolute bitch!

Natsu hadn't said anything, he couldn't believe that old woman had done this to Lucy but he wasn't going to let it get Lucy down. He leapt to his feet with the biggest grin on his face, holding little Haru close, he looked down to Lucy and held out his hand.

"Come on, Luce. I gotta show you something!" He waited for her to take his hand but instead she just stared at him, deadpanned.

"Huh? Did you not just hear what that woman said? I've got two days to find somewhere new to live, and you're smiling!" She yelled, perplexed by his happy demeanour.

Her mind was frantic, what was she going to do? Where were all her and Haru's belonging's going to go? Lucy felt as if the ground beneath her had crumbled and Natsu was still standing there, being so irritatingly calm about the situation, how could he be happy at a time like this?

"I'm smiling because you're gonna love it, I can't wait to see your face! Let's go Lucy!" He grabbed hold of her hand and pulled her up to her feet and before she could say another word, he sprinted off, Lucy and Haru in-tow, towards his surprise.


Hi, so this chapter is another long one. I hope people don't think Lucy's being too ooc because I can really imagine her doubting herself as she often does and Natsu being there to pull her back up again. This chapter is mainly to show how Natsu and Lucy both feel about being parents so far. I hope you enjoyed reading it!