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Fluff Week Day #6: Show Me

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Drabble Babble # 7

For Kicks

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The first time she felt the stirrings of life in her lower belly she debated on whether it had happened at all. The touch was so light, no more than a tap really, that she almost believed she imagined it. When it happened a few moments later, still just as soft but no less there, she knew she wasn't going crazy.

She smiled so wide that her cheeks ached, her hand passing over the small swell of her stomach lovingly. Natsu, noticing her sudden silence, paused in taking another bite of his sandwich. "Luce?"

"I felt a kick," she explained, excitement coloring her voice.

Immediately Natsu shoved his lunch aside on the coffee table and closed the distance between them, his eyes bright. "Really?! I want to feel!"

She took his callused hand in hers, guiding it to the left side of her abdomen. "It was right here..." Seconds passed with no movement, and with each empty moment the crease in Natsu's brow deepened. Finally, she felt another kick and she beamed up at him. "There! Did you feel it?"

He frowned, disappointment evident from his face. "I didn't feel anything..."

The admission made her smile falter, before she gave his hand a reassuring squeeze. "It's really light. As the baby gets stronger you'll be able to feel it."

"That's so not fair," he whined, rubbing circles on her stomach before leaning forward and talking directly to the little being behind the bump. "You gotta get strong real soon, ok? Don't let Mommy hog all the fun."

She rolled her eyes but refrained from reminding him that the 'fun' had come at the expense of feeling nauseous twenty four seven for the first four months. Not to mention the breast tenderness and the frequent bathroom trips. "Well, I think Mommy earned a little fun."

He gave a quick kiss to her jaw, smiling. "I guess you're right. I can be patient." She raised a skeptical eyebrow. "What? I can!"

Lucy hummed, unconvinced. "We'll see."

She had been mostly teasing, but she could honestly say she hadn't predicted the amount of patience her husband would actually need.

Their baby got stronger alright. Tiny taps quickly grew into sharp jabs and borderline painful kicks in the coming weeks. They became powerful enough for her to even see the movement under the taut skin of her belly. Yet every time the baby became active and she guided Natsu's hand to her stomach, the movement would stop just in time for him to miss it.

Every. Time.

Natsu, thin on patience to begin with, began to place his hand over her baby bump at every opportunity. When they slept, when they ate, when they cuddled on the sofa - anytime she was in reach he was there. And every time he had to move or he grew discouraged and gave up, his hand sliding off her with disappointment, the baby would choose at that moment to deliver a swift kick.

Today was, apparently, no exception.

He held his head in his hands, groaning as he eyed her swollen stomach miserably. "Our baby hates me."

She rolled her eyes, though her voice remained empathetic. "The baby does not hate you. You must just have a calming effect on him."

He flopped onto their bed, pouting up at the ceiling. "It's so unfair," he whined, looking at her longingly. "You get to feel everything.

She kissed his cheek, climbing between the sheets with as much grace as her stomach would let her. "I think I'll remind you about that when I'm in labor."

He grumbled under his breath, but didn't argue as he draped his arm over her waist and placed his hand over her stomach.

She gave the appendage a loving squeeze, sighing into her pillow. It had been a long day, and the process of building a whole other being was more draining than she could have ever expected. "Turn the light off when you go to bed, ok?" She hummed, shifting one of the pillows so that it rested between her knees. She knew that it was still too early for Natsu to go to sleep, but it certainly wasn't going to keep her from getting some much needed shut eye.

He nuzzled the sensitive skin behind her ear, murmuring into her skin. "I'm in bed."

She gave him a half hearted jab to the ribs with her elbow. "You know what I mean."

He chuckled, kissing her shoulder. "Yeah, yeah. I'll turn it off. Get some sleep."

He really didn't need to tell her twice. Lately she had been having trouble sleeping - she was still struggling with the change from sleeping on her stomach to her side - but tonight her mind had mercy on her. She fell into a comfortable sleep within mere moments and would have stayed blissfully unaware of it weren't for the hands shaking her awake half an hour later.

She started, her brain struggling to come up from its sleep induced fog. "Wha-" She rubbed her blurred eyes with the back of her hand, her voice muddled. "What is it?"

Natsu's excited grin filled her vision, the energy buzzing under his skin a sharp contrast to her own lethargic movements. "Luce! Luce! I felt it!"

It took her a moment to register what he was talking about, but when she registered that his hand was still on her stomach she moaned, burying her face back into her pillow. "That's great," she murmured, mind still foggy and begging for some more rest. "Why don't we talk about it in the morning, ok? In like, eight hours."

He laughed, giving a kiss to her temple. "Sorry," he whispered, "I just got really excited! Go back to sleep."

"Ok," she mumbled, eyes already slipping shut while she waited impatiently for sleep to come back and claim her. "Love you."

He held her close, his thumb stroking over the taut skin of her stomach and his smile ghosting over her shoulder. "Love you both."

The baby kicked against his hand and, even in her exhaustion, Lucy found her lips curving into a smile.

An: Figured I should make up for my angst week submission "Ashes to Ashes".