A/N: When waiting for the election results and waiting for nalu to become canon combine...and this art that Mashima did for a fan on Twitter sparked an idea I just couldn't resist writing. Especially since I've been listening to "Wait For It" from Hamilton on repeat all day as I scroll through Twitter for election updates.

After the wood God dragon was defeated, Fairy Tail threw another one of it's legendary drunken parties. And Lucy usually enjoyed them, but this time there was something different.

For once in his life Gray wasn't pushing away Juvia, Levy and Gajeel were talking about their baby, and even Erza was off with Jellal somewhere.

Love was in the air for everyone. Except for her and Natsu it would seem.

She tried not to let her dissapointment show. She had other things to be happy about after all. The white wizard was defeated and all of their friends were safe. That had to count for something. But even after three days, she couldn't stop thinking about Natsu.

She loved him. That much was certain. And she had reason to hope that he loved her too. He did have something important he wanted to tell her after the quest was over. And she hoped if he was going to make her wait so long for it, it must be something important and not a joke right? Why else would he make her wait for it?

Wait for it...

She sighs and makes her way towards the public bath in Drameel only to find all of the boys leaving the men's side fuming. Literally. And once Natsu came out laughing, then Lucy understood why.

"Damn you Natsu." The men grumbled as they walked away.

"Hey you know what they say, if you can't handle the heat then get out of the sauna!" Natsu calls after them before laughing heartily.

"Actually it's 'get out of the kitchen'." Lucy corrects and Natsu turns to her.

"Get out of the kitchen? Why would a kitchen be hot?" Natsu asks.

"I'm surprised you'd ask that, given how everything you cook ends up in flames." Lucy reminds him.

"Duh, I do that on purpose. I eat fire. Did you forget that Lucy?" Natsu asks.

"No." Lucy giggles. "But things are definitely hotter when you're around. And I don't think the others needed that extra heat there in the sauna."

"Yeah well they didn't but I did. I guess what's warm for you guys isn't warm enough for me. So I decided to crank up the heat a little bit. It felt nice, and seeing their faces like that only made it better." Natsu laughs.

"Okay well maybe next time go in there by yourself. Not everyone can handle your heat you know." Lucy says.

She turns and heads towards the changing area to join the other girls but then the next thing she knows, Natsu's hand is beside her face against the wall and he's right in front of her, looking down at her and smirking.

Lucy could hear the girls gasp down the hall as they saw what Natsu was doing. And the blood was pounding in her ears so loud that she almost didn't hear him ask "You think you could handle it Lucy?"

Lucy couldn't even begin to think of an answer. He was close to her...so...so...close to her. She could feel his warm breath on her face and it made her heart melt under it's heat. The breath of a dragon. Her dragon.

She could kiss him right now. Press her lips to his like she's wanted to for ages and finally let her attraction be known!

But she couldn't. Not now. Not here. It was too risky, and not because of their guild mates. No, most of them were already banking on the two of them getting together since the day Natsu brought her to Fairy Tail. The risk was that even after all of these years Natsu was still in many ways a mystery to her. Especially his heart which was like that of an enigma.

He had never shown interest in romance before with anyone, so even if he did love her how could she know? The answer was she didn't. And that's why even though her heart could practically burst with all of the love she had for him. She couldn't share it. Not yet. Not until she was certain he could love her back.

Because if she acted too soon she could ruin the relationship that they already had. And the thought of losing that broke her heart more than the thought of never sharing a kiss with him, taking his last name, or even ever starting a family with him. Those dreams would only ever be dreams if she acted too rashly and lost him as a friend anyway.

So as much as it pained her, she knew that Natsu would have to make the first move. She'd been watching him carefully, judging the weight of everything he had ever said to her and weaving her theories in her mind of how he could possibly confess. If he ever would. She hoped he would. As she looks into those glorious jade eyes of his shining with fire and mischief, she prays that he would give her his heart someday.

But it wouldn't be today. Or tomorrow, or even in a week. It would take a while to find the five dragon Gods and finish this quest. Then maybe she'd finally get some answers. But until then, she had to wait.

Love doesn't discriminate between the sinners and the saints. It takes and it takes and it takes and we keep loving anyway. We laugh and we cry and we break and we make our mistakes. So if there's a reason she still by Natsu's side after all of this time even after Aquarius was gone and her parents had died then she was willing to wait for it.

I'm willing to wait for it.

Just wait for it. She reminds herself as he flashes her his signature goofy grin.

They're both still young. And the quest isn't even halfway through. She'll get her answer soon. She wasn't standing still, she was just lying in wait.

Natsu faces an endless uphill climb. He has something to prove he has nothing to lose. Natsu's pace is relentless he wastes no time. So why is it different with her?

Natsu doesn't hesitate. He exhibits no restraint. He fights and he burns and he takes and he keeps winning anyway. He changes the game. He plays and he raises the stakes. So if there's a reason he's waiting for Lucy when he won't for anything else, then goddamnit she's willing to wait for it.

Just a little longer now. Wait for it.

Wait for it...

She smiles at him and plays with the end of his scarf.

"I'm not sure if I'll be able to handle it. But even if there's a chance I could get burned," she briefly remembers what happened after they defeated mercuphobia. "I'll take whatever you throw at me if it means I can be with you." She says and gently cups his cheek in her hand before leaving him flustered and bewildered as she goes to change.

"What the hell is that supposed to mean? Oh well, I guess I'll just ask her later. I can wait for it." Natsu says and walks in the other direction.

A/N: Hang in there guys. Thanks for reading!