Hey guys! Merry Christmas! Unfortunately, I am almost done writing this story but... that means I will try to update faster. I'm just working out minor kinks and details at the end so hopefully it will turn out well.
Please enjoy and as always let me know what you think! I appreciate all the reviews.
"How is this spot?" Jellal asked as he stood with his arms full of picnic supplies. Erza and the rest of the gang followed close behind. Erza glanced at the spot Jellal was indicating and nodded in approval. "This is a most excellent spot, sweetie." Jellal smiled and dropped the items to set up the spot.
"Most excellent?" Natsu whispered to Lucy, who giggled in response.
"HEY!" Natsu's eyes went wide as he turned toward Erza, who's hair was inhumanely on fire all of a sudden. "What did you just say?!" Erza asked in a threatening manner.
"N-nothing," he pleaded as he lifted his hands up defensively.
"That's what I thought," Erza muttered before returning to helping Jellal set up the area.
"Smooth," Gray whispered to Natsu.
"You would have done the same thing, idiot!"
"Why are we setting up for a picnic? I thought we were here for the games?" Lucy asked.
"We are but this is a spot we can all hang out in between the games," Levy answered.
"So what is up first?" Juvia asked. Jellal pulled a flier out from his back pocket. His eyes quickly skimmed over the events before responding, "So first is the pie eating contest, followed by the sack race and then scavenger hunt."
"Pie eating contest?!" Natsu beamed and Lucy sighed. "When does that start?" Jellal looked down at his watch. "Five minutes at the main stage." Before Jellal could finish responding, Natsu took off in that direction.
"Guess that means I'm gonna sit here," Lucy stated as she sat down on the laid out blanket.
"Jellal and I are gonna go sign up for the egg toss." Lucy waved as Levy sat down beside her on the blanket.
"Where did Gajeel go?" she asked.
Levy huffed, "He challenged Natsu to the pie eating."
"Oh, I've got to see this," Gray commented as he began walking towards the direction Natsu disappeared in.
"Juvia wants to come too!" she shouted as she followed behind Gray' leaving Levy and Lucy alone.
"You don't want to go watch Natsu stuff his face full of food?" Levy chuckled.
"Ugh," Lucy made a disgusted face, "I've seen that enough already; I don't want to make myself sick."
"Yeah, I find Gajeel slightly less attractive when he is stuffing his face with pie."
"Only slightly?" Lucy sassed.
"Surprisingly," Levy retorted.
"Well that's definitely true love."
"Well, what about you and Natsu." Lucy's ears perked up. "What about us?" she cautioned.
"I mean you guys are engaged so obviously it's true love." Levy quietly watched Lucy's reaction to the question; she watched as she turned her head away from her and nod. "Are you happy, Lu-chan?"
Lucy paused and slowly turned to look at her best friend. That came out of nowhere… "Uh… I guess so?"
"You guess?"
"Well…" Lucy sighed, "Despite the stuff with my dad… in this moment, I would say I'm happy." Levy smiled. "I haven't been around friends in a while and it's weird, but I honestly missed my family."
"Are you going to be happy after this week?" Lucy stopped… am I? What's gonna happen after this week? Sure, I'm surrounded by friends now but after this week they will all go back to their normal lives. My family was fine now but what happens when dad starts to get worse? How long will he last? And Natsu… where was that going? We both feel there is something there, but will we really be able to explore it? How long would this 'fake fiancée' thing continue?
"After this week…" she thought aloud.
"Levy! Lucy!" The girls looked towards the voice to see Wendy waving at them from a small booth. "If you want to do the scavenger hunt, you have to sign up right now!" The girls stood up, brushed off their pants and walked over to the blue haired girl.
…
Natsu lounged on the picnic blanket as he allowed his stomach to settle from the pie eating contest. He masked his discomfort with a smug smile; content that he was not only the winner, but they ran out of pies to give him. To his dismay, the pies seemed to be a little under cooked; he preferred his food to be slightly burnt for some reason, possibly since it adds some crispness.
He sighed as he placed his arms under his head. He hadn't been able to relax in a long time; he had been pulled from job to job with no time to breathe or time for fun in between. This opportunity with Lucy brought joy back into his life; he found himself smiling again for no reason and it felt great! Thinking about her made him smile.
"Pleasant dreams?" Natsu opened his eyes and saw his father sitting beside him on the blanket. "Just thinking about the future," Natsu answered.
"I'm glad to see you're hopeful… for once." Natsu furrowed his brows as he sat up onto his elbows. "For once?"
"You were always a joyous child; always smiling and willing to help out everyone you came across. When you graduated, you seemed eager to take on the world, but something happened, and you slowly lost your fire." Natsu dropped his head; adulthood wasn't kind to him, but then again is it ever?
"It killed your mother and I to see you like that… well, hear about it since you didn't visit as much."
"Yeah… I'm sorry about that," Natsu stated as he rubbed the back of his neck. Igneel smiled and placed his hand on his son's shoulder. "We understand that you had things to sort out and that you needed space to do that."
"I didn't think you'd be proud of me," Natsu hung his head once more.
"Natsu, we are extremely proud of you. Sure, you aren't where you thought you'd be in life, but you haven't given up. You know how hard your mom had to fight to get to where she was? People told her she would never be a doctor and they made it their job to get her to quit… but look at her.
Despite the hardships you've encountered, you are still trying your best and that's all I could ever ask for as a father. And it warms my heart to see you excited for the future."
Natsu smiled to himself; he wasn't one for much emotions but in this moment he could cry. He had been trying so hard to earn his father's approval, but he already had it.
"Thanks Dad," he smiled at the older man next to him, who responded by patting him on the back. "Now…" Igneel began, causing Natsu to look at him once more, "As your father, I want to ask you a question."
"Uhh… okay?" Natsu approved hesitantly.
"Are you happy with your relationship with Lucy?" Natsu opened his mouth to respond but he wasn't exactly sure what to say. "Your sex life is your business…" Natsu couldn't help but twinge at the statement. "I'm talking about the rest of it. Do you laugh together? Support one another? Do you fight about the little things?"
"I wouldn't say we fight… mostly bicker." Igneel couldn't help but chuckle. "Overall though…" Natsu reflected, "I think it's good."
"You two will bicker for the rest of your lives and you will fight too… but it's knowing how to fight for one another and not against one another. Things will come up that will try to tear you apart, but marriage means fighting for your love. It's not easy being married. It's about finding that right person to face every absurd task that comes your way." Igneel turned to look at his son, "Is Lucy that person for you?"
Natsu shook his head and shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly, "Yeah."
Igneel shook his head side to side as he lowered it, "What I mean is, can you be yourself around her?"
Natsu looked from his father to the blonde across the lawn who was playing tag with Lector. He looked at her smile as she ran away from her nephew, the way her body shook when she laughed, the sun glistening off her golden hair and the infection of her personality. His body relaxed just by looking at her.
"Honestly, I'm more comfortable around Lucy than anyone else." Igneel smiled and patted his son's shoulder once more, "That's how you know she's the one." The one, huh?
