Disclaimer: I do not own Fairy Tail or its characters; that right belongs to Hiro Mashima.
Squeamish: adjective - (of a person) easily made to feel sick, faint, or disgusted, especially by unpleasant images, such as the sight of blood.
His stomach was rolling as he wrinkled his nose. This was not how he pictured his day going. No, when he had awoken, he had figured that he would have a nice day off from work for the first time in a while. But no, nothing was ever that simple. And how was he supposed to know that he would be... this weak-willed in this situation.
When he had been asked to watch his neighbors child for a few hours, Lahar had no idea that the child was still an infant. A subject matter he had no knowledge of. But he had diligently followed the instructions left for him by the lady. She was a sweet person, always quiet and kept to herself. The idea neighbor. This was a small favor and concession he could grant. So, why was he having so much difficulty with a simple task?
"Captain Lahar?"
At the sound of his name he stiffened. He knew that voice, he knew it well. He dealt with that particular group of people enough to know it in a crowd. Slowly he turned his head to look over his shoulder, seeing the blond celestial mage staring at him with worry in her warm brown eyes. His body moved on its own so he was facing her, holding the infant, who was smiling demonically at him?
"Oh... I didn't know you.. uh. had a child," Lucy said as she saw what he was holding.
Mentally groaning at the misunderstanding, Lahar shook his head just as a loud gurgle sound erupted from the infant's mouth making his eyes go wide, just as a stream of hot, stinky white milk covered him. It was utterly embarrassing. Not only was he now covered in baby vomit, but the smell emanating from the child's diaper was getting worse.
"Ah... would you... Like.. help...Lahar?" Lucy asked him.
The urge to be sarcastic was strong, but he tampered her back as just lifted his head and gave a very tight-lipped smile. Glad that she said nothing more as she stepped forward and took the baby from him. Her nose wrinkling at the smell coming from the small child.
"You... go wash yourself off, I will take care of this handsome little boy," she said, her words polite as she cooed at the baby.
The moment her attention was focused on the small, non-bipedal human, Lahar beat a hasty retreat to the bathroom. Glad that no one else was in there, he ducked into a stall and bent over the toilet, dry heaving. When nothing came out, Lahar resigned himself to suffering from nausea as he was feeling as he left the stall and went about cleaning himself up.
When he deemed himself presentable, he left the bathroom. Only to stop and stare at the sight of him. There was Lucy, member of one of Fiore's most destructive Mage Teams holding the baby in her arms and rocking it. It looked so natural, he couldn't help but appreciate what he was seeing until she looked up at him and smiled benignly.
"He is so precious Lahar. I was not aware you were a father," she said softly.
Curious as to why she spoke so softly, he approached and saw that the child was asleep. Its head nestled against her chest... looking like an angel. Flushing as he stared, taking in the view and then some for a few seconds before her word finally registered.
"He is not mine. I do not have children, Miss Heartfillia," he responded, keeping his own voice quiet.
"Oh. Sorry for assuming," she whispered back, her head lifting to look at him.
It was the small smile on her lips and a mischievous glint in her eyes that put him on edge, as she spoke again, "So, that explains why you are squeamish around the smells and sounds a baby makes."
Realizing what she was implying without saying, Lahar wanted to ram his head into the nearest wall, repeatedly.
"Don't worry, I won't say a thing to anyone. It will be our secret, okay?" he heard her say.
Unable to keep from doing it, he felt his jaw drop open at the honest sincerity of her words. There was no lie, malicious intent at all. Just pure, straightforward honesty. He guessed it was worth being squeamish to see the gentle, warm smile on her face as she looked back down at the baby. But Lahar made a mental note to let his neighbor know that he was no good with kids and could not take care of the baby again.