Hello all! Happy Nalu Week! I hope you all have enjoyed this story so far and continue to enjoy it. Thank you for all the reviews and messages about the story; they brighten my day when I read them.

Anyway, enjoy. I don't own the characters but I use them for my own evil purposes. Mwah haha! Enjoy! ;)


Lucy's eyes went wide; she slowly turned her head to look at her sister-in-law. She expected Yukino to react but the white haired girl simply stared happily out the window at her son.

"W-what do you mean?" Lucy hesitantly questioned.

"Oh, please, Lucy, I know you and Natsu are faking the engagement," Yukino glanced over at the blonde before returning her eyes outside.

"You know?!" she yelled. Yukino quickly shushed Lucy before walking here away from the door and into the kitchen. "Lucy, be quiet unless you want the whole town to know."

"How do you know?!" she whisper yelled.

"Sting told me." She deadpanned.

"He told you?"

Yukino crossed her arms and sighed, "Of course he did. We are married, we tell each other everything." Yukino paused to chuckle, "Well… that and he left the house fuming last night then came home in a calm but furious state."

"So he told you," she reasoned.

"He needed to vent. As much as I truly love the idea of you and Natsu together," Yukino didn't pause enough for Lucy to interrupt, "It was hilarious to see him all worked up."

Lucy turned towards her sister-in-law and grasped her hand within both of her own, "Will you please keep the secret?!"

Yukino sighed and smiled, "Of course, Lucy. You are my sister too, so what happens in the family, stays in the family." Lucy and Yukino shared a hug before Grandine returned to the room.

"I was able to put Star down so hopefully she will be asleep for a few hours." Grandine stated.

"Then it looks like I have some time; what do you need help with?" Yukino offered. Grandine instructed the girls on how to complete the different sides she planned on making. Luckily, Yukino arrived just in time for them to finish just as the festivities were starting.

Lucy grabbed the bowl of potato salad she prepared, walked outside and placed it on the designated food table. She had just enough time to set the bowl down before she was tackled by 3 pairs of arms. "Lu-chan!" her best friend called out.

"Levy-chan! Juvia! Erza!" Lucy responded as she reciprocated the group hug. The girls laughed and giggled as they held each other tightly. "I'm so happy to see all of you!" Lucy added.

"It's great to see you too, Lucy," Erza stated. The girls broke apart but Levy quickly grabbed onto Lucy's left hand. "You have to tell us everything!" Levy squealed. Lucy's shoulders slumped slightly as the other girls around her jumped up and down.

"I'm sure there is plenty of time later to talk about me. I want to hear about each of your lives," Lucy glanced around at her closest friends. Erza, Juvia and Levy looked at Lucy the one another confused. "Are you kidding? We can talk about our boring lives later. We want to hear all about you and Natsu!"

Erza and Levy started to squeal again while Lucy laughed nervously. "Umm… Lucy?" Juvia asked, drawing the attention of all the girls. "Where is your ring?" The girls paused and simultaneously glanced down at Lucy's bare hand. "It's, uh, in the shop."

"The shop?" Juvia asked.

Lucy nodded, "The ring needed to be sized so we had it taken into a jeweler."

"Oh, but I bet it's beautiful!" Erza cooed. Lucy knew Erza was always a secret romantic, but it wasn't truly evident until Jellal proposed to her. Ever since then, she was a huge supporter of the relationships of those within their friend group; she was a big proponent of getting Levy and Gajeel together and she pretty much had Gray and Juvia on lock down.

"So how did he propose?!" Juvia inquired.

Erza placed a hand under her chin to think, "Natsu doesn't strike me as someone who is romantic or even in tune to anything dealing with romance so I can't imagine what it would be." Juvia and Erza got into their own discussion about possible romantic proposal ideas and stories.

Levy took advantage of the discussion to whisper into Lucy's ear, "Are you okay, Lu-chan?" Alarmed, Lucy turned to her best friend. "W-why would you say that?"

"You just seem a little frazzled, that's all. Are you worried about how we would react to you being engaged to Natsu?" she inquired. Lucy began to hesitantly respond but Levy continued, "On the phone you sounded excited for bringing your mystery man and I couldn't be happier for the two of you." Levy placed her hand on Lucy's shoulder. Why was she being so supportive?! It almost made things worse.

"I guess I'm just nervous to share it."

"Why would you be nervous? We all love Natsu and honestly, I'm pretty sure I'm not alone in wanting this to happen for years." Levy responded.

Lucy's chest tightened again, "I just know how over the top Igneel and Grandine can go."

Levy nodded like she finally understood, "That makes sense, but I bet they are just as, if not more, excited than we are." That's definitely true.

"So?!" Lucy and Levy whipped their heads around to face Erza and Juvia. "How did it happen?" Juvia implored. Lucy opened her mouth but nothing came out; she could see her friends waiting expectantly for the story to begin.

Lucy shook her head before responding, "I just remembered something important I needed to tell Natsu." She walked past her friends and down the porch to go out into the backyard. "I will be right back, promise!"

As soon as Lucy turned her back, the smile she wore immediately fell from her face and was quickly replaced with a scowl. This was more difficult than she thought. She lost herself in thought as her feet carried her towards the pond located near the back of the Dragneel property. As a teenager, she loved jumping the fence and walking down there to think or even just relax. She didn't realize it then, but things were so much simpler when she was in high school.

She chewed on her right thumbnail as she walked along the shoreline. Lucy was too lost in thought to hear the sounds of footsteps coming towards her.

Natsu stopped and eyed the blonde curiously. He couldn't help but giggle at her nervous tick and watched her for a moment longer before he interrupted her train of thought.

"How's my favorite fiancee?" The blonde twisted her head towards the voice to see Natsu standing there staring at her with a smirk on his face. Lucy huffed and threw here arms down to her sides with a slap. "What's wrong?" he asked her.

"Nothing… I just needed time to think." She continued to pace.

Natsu quickly ran his eyes over her, "Uh huh, I see that… Having second thoughts?" he raised his brow. She turned to face him, wearing a stern look on her face. "Of course not." The blonde continued to pace before stopping to turn and face him, "What about you?"

A smile grew on his face, and not a sly or fake one but a genuine smile which surprised her. "I'm just where I want to be." Natsu uncrossed his arms and walked towards her. "I've actually been looking for you."

"For me?" she questioned as he walked right up to her.

"I have something for you," he stated as he reached into his pocket and removed a small black box. Even though she knew it was fake, her breath hitched in her throat. As almost in slow motion, Natsu opened the box to reveal a beautiful diamond ring decorated with spirals and silver stars around the main diamond.

Lucy's body went stiff and she shook slightly. "Is that..."

"Yep," he simply stated.

"Where did you get it?" Lucy gazed with wide eyes at the pinkette before her.

"Your dad gave it to me. He wanted you to have it."

She paused for a moment. Lucy's eyes met Natsu and honestly, he was confused to see anger in hers. "I am NOT wearing my dead mother's ring!" she yelled.

"Why not?" he asked.

"Why not?!" She grabbed her head with both hands and began to pace. "First of all, it was my DEAD mother's wedding ring. As in the ring my father used to propose and marry my mother with in a profession of their love for one another. A symbol of unfailing love between two people, a promise of a lifetime and you are using it as a ploy for our lie?!"

Natsu matched her attitude, "Luce, if we're trying to convince everyone, including your dad, we are engaged, you need to wear the ring." Lucy didn't budge. "Your mom vowed with this ring to make your dad happy for the rest of his life… and nothing would make your dad happier than to see this ring on your finger." Lucy crossed her arms across her chest and released a big sigh.

"I thought you wanted to do this for your dad?" he pushed.

"I do." She answered defensively.

Natsu shook his head before responding, "Look, all you have to do is wear it for a couple of days then you can take it off."

Lucy pondered about the statement for a moment before agreeing. "Alright fine," she said as she held out her left hand.

"What are you doing?" he asked confused.

"I'm not putting it on myself." Natsu gave her a look before rolling his eyes. He removed the ring from the box but fumbled it as he went to put the box in his pocket. In the confusion, Natsu dropped the ring into the grass. He cursed under his breath as he knelt down to retrieve the ring.

"I can't believe this is really happening! Nalu is finally realized!" Erza cheered. The girls decided to walk over to the ice chests to grab something to drink while they waited for Lucy to return. "I don't know how many times we tried to set them up throughout the years but it seems all that work has finally paid off!"

"How do you know all of what we did influenced their getting engaged?" Levy questioned. Erza paused as if not knowing the answer. "It doesn't matter," the redhead triumphantly stated, "What matters is they are together now!"

"But why would she not say anything? To anyone… especially me?" Levy sulked, as she walked over to lean on the deck railing. Juvia walked over to her blue-haired friend and gave her a reassuring rub on her back. "I'm sure she just wanted to surprise all of us," Juvia reasoned.

"Is it me or does she seem put off by our questions?" Levy asked. Juvia and Erza paused at the statement. "What do you mean, Levy?" Erza asked.

"I mean, wouldn't you think she would be ecstatic to tell us all about it? The dates, the proposal, what the ring looks like?"

There was a pause before Juvia spoke, "Lucy does seem like the person to boast about those things."

"You're talking about the girl who posted on Facebook every time she was in a new relationship in high school." Erza reasoned.

"She did say she was nervous…" Levy added thinking out loud.

"Maybe that's why she isn't acting normal," Juvia theorized. Erza glanced up and her eyes went wide. "Guys, guys, look!" she whisper yelled as she whacked the girls with her flailing wrist.

The girls glanced up to see Natsu on one knee holding a ring out to Lucy standing before him. Erza gasped and clung onto the railing before her. Confused from her reaction, Levy and Juvia turned to see what Erza was gazing at, only to be struck themselves. "He-he's giving her the ring!" she cooed.

"And on one knee too!" Juvia added as she barely clung to the redhead's shoulder.

Natsu slid the ring onto Lucy's finger. She gazed down at it on her hand as he stood.

Levy smiled at the scene before glancing at the friends beside her. "Let's give them some time to themselves, girls" She stated as she shooed them away from the railing. "They are going to be bombarded all week so they deserve some time together." The girls agreed and walked back inside the house, not before Levy stole one last peek.

"I guess it's official," Natsu stated with a joking smile but Lucy could not look away from the ring. She always loved this ring and dreamed that one day she would have one just like it. Thinking of her mother and of the ring itself made her tear up.

Natsu's smile faded when he saw the girl cry. "What's wrong? Does it not fit?"

Lucy shook her head before responding, "No, it fits perfectly."

"Then what's wrong?" Natsu further questioned, this time with a deep concern in his voice.

"I've waited my whole life for a guy to love me so much he would give me an engagement ring, let alone my mother's ring, and well… I got it," she stared down at the diamond once more. "It's just… I didn't think this is how I would get it."

She finally looked up from the ring and met Natsu's eyes with her own watery ones. His heart broke a little to see her upset. He knew how marriage crazy she was in school… constantly sharing her ideas for color ideas and destinations for the ceremony; he knew how bad she wanted this.

He sighed but in resolve to make sure they would make it through together; he raised his arms and enveloped her in a hug. Lucy was just the perfect height to tuck her head underneath his chin. He cradled her head in his hand while his other hand wrapped around her sides. Lucy wrapped her arms around Natsu's waist and clung to his shirt. She nuzzled her face into his shirt and tried to calm herself down. Somehow, Natsu had a way of calming her; his arms and scent were a huge comfort to her and after a few minutes, she was ready to return to the party.

"I'm good," she stated as she pulled away.

"Are you sure? We could stay for a few more minutes if you need." He offered but she shook her head as she wiped her eyes. "No, I'm ready."

Natsu simply smiled and held out his right hand to her, "Well, let's go then." Lucy giggled and responded by taking his outstretched hand. The two walked back up the hill towards the house, hand in hand, ready to conquer the world… or at least get through this week.