Goose Bumps

"Do you think Nashi's going to be alright with that snow cone?"

"She'll be fine, Natsu. She likes them. And if Gray is unlucky enough to be caught in one of her notorious sneezes, Juvia will be there to douse him with water. Besides, we're only going to be gone until tomorrow morning. The only thing I'm worried about is you throwing up on the train." Oh, Natsu was worried about that too. He was looking forward to spending time with his wife alone – which is something they hadn't been able to do recently. Either he or Lucy was out of a mission, leaving the other home alone with their child. And when both of them were home, they were never truly alone. Nashi and Happy were just down the hall.

And they both realized that they haven't been on very many dates since Lucy's pregnancy. So they decided to leave Nashi and Happy at Gray and Juvia's place while they took the day off. It was Natsu's idea to take a train to Hargeon – the place where it all began – and Lucy put up no argument. She was actually impressed that he wanted to take a train to go to a different town, rather than just go somewhere in Magnolia. Although she wouldn't care either way.

Thank goodness the ride to Hargeon was only an hour and a half. It seemed Natsu's motion sickness gets progressively worse as he gets older. At least he wasn't on a mission with just Erza and Gray. Now, he had Lucy, the only one who can make him feel better in situations like this. With his head in her lap, he stared at her face through half-lidded eyes as she looked out the window, watching the scenery go by, her hand gently weaving through his hair. As her fingers stroked his scalp, he could feel his motion sickness gradually ebbing away. He could've fallen asleep right there if he wanted to, which he did. But they'd only been on the train for a couple of minutes, much to his discomfort.

He must've made a displeased noise, because Lucy switched her gaze from the window to him. She smiled and combed his bangs with her nails. "Get some sleep, Natsu," she said softly, leaning down to kiss his forehead. "Okay?" The fire wizard nodded slowly and leaned into her stomach, letting his eyes fall closed. He fell asleep within seconds. Lucy laughed lightly and shook her head. She really was in love with a toddler.

That evening, in Hargeon

Hand in hand, the two wizards walked along the beach, their bare feet sinking into the flawless sand with each step. The sun was setting, and the sky was stained orange, pink, and purple. Natsu watched as the sun slowly sank beneath the sea, while Lucy stared at the sand as they walked, enjoying the vanilla ice cream cone in her hand. Natsu glanced at her through the corners of his eyes, quickly ducking his head to steal a mouthful of her ice cream. He wasn't one for sweets – he preferred his treats spicy, usually sticking to Hot Tamales and cinnamon flavored gum – but he couldn't resist. That look of feigned anger she sent his way was something he found utterly cute, and made him a little weak in the knees.

"Natsu!" she cried, untangling her fingers from his to smack his arm. Her hand was instantly cold from the lack of warmth, but she kept it away from his. She inspected her ice cream cone and dejectedly slumped her shoulders. "You ate nearly all of it…" she said sadly. Natsu laughed and licked his lips. His own hand felt a little too cold for his comfort, so he reached over to try and lace his fingers together with hers, but when they touched, she stuffed her hand into her pocket, making him frown.

"Luce…" he whined, trying again. She stepped away from him, sending a fake glare in his direction. He pouted and grabbed her elbow, pulling her back to him. "Don't be like that." Lucy huffed and turned away from him, tossing the remains of her ice cream into a nearby trashcan. "Lucy… I'm sorry." The celestial wizard turned her head away from him. The Dragon Slayer glimpsed down at her exposed neck and smirked. She was going to ignore him, eh? He lowered his head, positioning his mouth a mere inch away from her neck and blew a puff of hot air onto her skin. She jumped, a surprised eep sounding from her throat. She looked up at Natsu with wide eyes. She squealed when he grabbed her waist and pulled her to him, nuzzling into the nape of her neck and nipping gently at her flesh.

"Natsu!" she screeched, trying to pull his arms away from her waist, but to no avail. They were locked in place, preventing her from breaking free. "Natsu, stop! You're giving me goose bumps!" After a tiny wrestling match, she finally managed to turn around in his arms, placing her hands on his chest and pushing him away. "You're a jerk…" she breathed between giggles. Natsu laughed as well, keeping his arms around her waist and leaning his forehead against hers.

"I'm sorry I ate your ice cream cone," he apologized softly, his fangs flashing as he smiled. Lucy rolled her eyes.

"Who cares about the ice cream cone, you dolt." They laughed for a moment before Lucy pulled away slightly, glancing at her arms, which were still covered in goose bumps. She sighed and vigorously rubbed one to smoothen out her skin. When it didn't work, she sighed again and glimpsed up at her husband. "Do you see what you do to me?" His chest vibrated as he chuckled.

"You like it." Oh, she did. She knew she did. Only Natsu could give her permanent goose bumps, and she loved that about him. Lucy laughed lightly and looked back up at him, and was caught off guard at the look he was giving her. It was that rare, far-off look. The same look he had when he first held Nashi, the look he gave her on their wedding day. She was glad that the sky was now dark, because she could feel the temperature in her face gradually rising.

"W-what're you looking at me like that for?" she sputtered, shyly averting her eyes. A small half-grin formed on his mouth as he shook his head.

"I don't get it," he said bluntly. Confused at the vagueness of that statement, the blonde slowly lifted her head.

"What?"

"I just… I just don't understand how… someone as perfect as you could fall for someone like me," he said slowly, his eyes never wandering from hers. The longer she continued to gaze into those obsidian orbs, the weaker her knees felt. He had this very intense, smoldering stare that always made her legs feel like they no longer existed.

"Really?" she asked quietly. "It's pretty obvious to me. I mean, it's you. Natsu Dragneel, Fairy Tail's Salamander, the man who would do anything to protect his nakama. It doesn't matter to you what the odds are; there's no such thing as 'losing' to you. You may be a headstrong, stubborn idiot that rushes into the lion's den without any plan of attack or knowledge of your opponent, but you're the nicest man I've ever known. I mean, I was a complete stranger to you when you brought me to Fairy Tail. You gave me a home, a family that loved me for me, something I didn't have before then. You introduced me to the greatest friends I could ever ask for." She paused, lifting a hand to his cheek. "You gave me all that I ever wanted, Natsu. You made my dreams come true.

"You're always there for me," Lucy continued, stepping closer to him. "You're always there to protect me. I would yell at you and hit you every time you snuck into my house, but you didn't care. You were loyal to me, to our friendship. You always know what to say to make me feel better. You know exactly how to make me laugh. You're the sweetest man I know, and you don't even try. You're my best friend, the greatest friend I've ever had. A better thing to be confused about would be if I didn't fall for someone like you."

With incredible speed, Natsu crushed his lips to hers, catching her off guard. She recovered quickly, though, wrapping her arms around his neck.

Natsu and Lucy stumbled rather ungracefully into the hotel room they booked for the night, their lips frantically messaging each other, barely letting in an efficient amount of air. Lucy's arms were tangled around his neck, her fingers grasping desperately at his hair, while his hands were perched on her hips, slipping passed the hem of her blouse. The door slammed shut behind them as they staggered further into the room, bumping furniture and knocking lamps onto the floor, causing them to break and send the room into darkness, the only light being from the moon shining through the crevasses in the curtains.

The back of Lucy's knees collided with the bed, knocking her off balance, bringing Natsu down with her. The Dragon Slayer slid an arm around her back and lifted her up, positioning her further up on the mattress as his mouth latched onto her neck. The words "I love you" fanned across her collarbone as a puff of breath, his hand running beneath her shirt and lifting it over her head, the action causing the same delicious goose bumps to erupt down her arms.

Author's Note: Ne, mina! No lemons for you! I don't do that kind of thing. :D I personally hate Hot Tamales and cinnamon flavored gum. Now, don't get me wrong, I love spicy food. But when I eat candy, I expect it to be sweet, y'know? I really hate when I'm eating a bag of Jelly Bellies and I automatically assume the red one I picked out was a cherry one... But it turns out to be cinnamon... There's no getting that taste out of your mouth. Once it's there, it stays there... Bleh.

So… someone told me that they preferred the old title, and I have to admit… I wasn't really feeling the new title either. So I changed it back. And someone else told me that it'd be cute if Gray and Juvia had a daughter and named her Ur. I really have to agree with that, but I already have plans for their names. Since they're gonna have twins, maybe I'll consider giving them a third child, and name her Ur. But I don't know. We'll just have to see, now won't we?

Reviews are awesome and inspire me to keep going. So if you like the story and want it to continue, leave a review! You will be rewarded with… uh… with a new chapter, of course! xD