Disclaimer: I don't own fairy tail or any of it's characters.
After two weeks of long days, the guys finally had the restaurant the way Mira liked it. She leaned back against the bar and stared out at the dining room. "Those guys do really good work, don't they?"
"Yea, it's a good thing they are good with their hands cause," Cana whistled and pointed to her head, "not a lot upstairs between the four of them."
Mira giggled, "You're always so harsh on them Cana."
"It's how I show my love," Cana grinned and leaned onto the bar. "Mest already is working Max like a dog back there getting the kitchen prepped. I spoke with Chico, Enno, and Kinana, they know to get here at five to taste things and get a feel for this menu. Everyone is coming around six right?"
"Yes, this will be a fantastic opening night! We had so many friends to invite, it will feel like a party! I can't wait to see everyone!" Mira smiled cheerfully. She turned to Cana, "I'm really sorry we don't have help for the bar yet. I have a few people lined up for interviews next week. We can start by hiring our favorite and if we find we need more help after a month or so, we can go from there."
"Don't worry about me, I don't mind working a lot. This is where I would be if I wasn't working. I've got nothing better to do anyway," Cana said with a wink.
"Well I don't know about that, if you wanted to, there are lots of things you could do Cana. I'm so lucky you like bartending and you are so good at it, I know I can rely on you!" Mira gave Cana a kiss on the cheek and patted her arm. "I'm off to check on Mest, let me know if there is anything else you need here!"
"Aye, aye Captain!" said Cana, giving Mira an exaggerated salute.
Lucy was so excited to catch Levy out front of Fairy Tail. Pulling the tiny woman ahead so that Natsu and Gajeel were forced to fall back, she whispered, "How are you doing? Are you going to be able to eat tonight?"
Levy grabbed Lucy's hands and grinned a large grin, "Yes! I'm so excited! All the nausea is finally gone! Although, now I want to eat everything, but I can't think of a better place to do that!"
"I hope the new chef is good," said Lucy.
"I'm sure he is, Mira has very good taste. Even her bar food was better than most restaurants I've been to. And I can't wait! I hope she has some good red meat on the menu tonight, for some reason that's all I want to eat right now! This baby is like a little carnivore!" Levy smiled big and rubbed her little tummy.
When they got into the dining room, Lucy and Natsu sat at a table with Levy, Gajeel, Gray, and Juvia. The entire place with buzzing with all of Mira's family and friends. They were having a private party for tonight to give her staff a nice dry-run before opening up their doors for to the public. Lucy was so excited to have an evening with Levy and Juvia, even if it meant risking a brawl between the guys. At least if they acted up Erza was just one table over and, worse comes to worse, Mira had the magical ability to appear just in time to quell their discord.
When Mira sat them at the table she winked at Levy, "You know this would be the perfect night to make an announcement Levy. Everyone is here! Just let me know!" She handed them all menus and left before Levy could close her surprised mouth.
"Announce what?" asked an oblivious Natsu.
Juvia clapped her hands, "So it is true Levy? Juvia had her suspicions but knew it would be so rude to ask."
Levy looked at Gajeel who shrugged with a small half smile on his face. Taking a deep breath she said, "We are pregnant."
Juvia clapped wildly and Gray stared at Levy as if she had grown two heads. Natsu slammed his fist on the table, "Damnit!"
"What kind of a reaction is that Salamander?" asked Gajeel, aggressively sitting forward in his seat.
"Now you're going to have a baby first! Lucy they are winning!" exclaimed Natsu.
"It's not a competition!" Lucy chastised.
Gajeel grinned, relaxing back in his seat,"It is now, and I'm the winner." Levy smacked him over the head with her menu. He grinned widely, "Sorry shrimp."
"When is Levy due?" asked Juvia.
"In October," Levy smiled.
Juvia clapped her hands again, "Oh Levy should let everyone know! It will make the night even more exciting! We have to all throw Levy a baby shower! Juvia can't believe Gajeel is going to be a daddy! This is going to be so much fun!" She gave Levy a big hug, "Sorry, Juvia is just so excited for you!"
"I don't know how I would announce it, wouldn't that be weird? What would I do, stand on the bar and shout it?" Levy grimaced.
"I know, I'll sing a song about it," Gajeel offered. Natsu and Gray both groaned loudly.
Levy smiled sweetly and patted Gajeel's knee, "As wonderful as that would be, why don't we ask Mira what she had in mind for announcing it. I don't want to take away too much from her big night!"
Now that Laxus had finally put his issues with Mira aside the Thunder Legion could come to Fairy Tail again, and Freed couldn't be happier. Mira had sat him at a big round table with his band mates and her siblings, Lisanna and Elfman.
He wasn't sure where Mira had found this chef of hers, but the menu looked fantastic! He hoped it all actually tasted as good as it sounded. "Everything sounds so delicious, I don't know what to get!" he frowned and read through the options for the tenth time.
"I know!" said Lisanna, "We almost all have to order something different and share, it's so hard to choose!"
"Gross, I don't want to share food," Evergreen wrinkled her nose.
"Yea, I was thinking of just getting two entrees for myself because that's manly and I'm really hungry," Elfman said, frowning at his menu.
Bixlow smiled, "I'll let you try some of mine if you want. Don't worry about Ever, she's just cranky because she wanted to sit alone with Elfman and she's stuck sitting with the rest of us."
Elfman looked confused, "Huh?"
Ever pointed a butter knife at Bixlow and said through clenched teeth "I never said that!"
Mira's voice came loudly over the sound system "Hello everyone!" temporarily putting all arguments on hold. She stood at the front of the restaurant with a large happy smile on her face. Freed had noticed that the new guy she was seeing sat at the bar, hanging out with Cana. He thought about how easily Laxus could have been sitting there and he couldn't help but worry about his friend. Freed shifted his eyes to look at the hulking blond next to him. Laxus watched Mira with studied indifference, but Freed could see the small hint of a smile forming on his lips.
"I just wanted to thank all of you for coming to celebrate our grand opening of Fairy Tail Restaurant and Bar! I'm so thrilled to see my dream coming true and be able to share it with you!" The whole restaurant cheered, everyone was so happy little Mira was finally getting what she deserved. "Our chef Mest has worked really hard to put together a fantastic menu for you all tonight, and Cana in the back will make sure to keep the drinks coming! Please enjoy yourself and let us know what you think on the comment cards we have at the tables!"
"Lastly, I have very exciting news to share! Soon there's going to be a new little one in our family here!" Freed nearly spit out his water, surely Mira wasn't announcing that she was pregnant! Unable to help himself, he looked at Laxus. All signs of smiles were gone, Laxus was pale and frowning, breathing heavily through his nose. He was definitely upset. "Levy and Gajeel are expecting a new little one in October! Please be sure to stop by and give them your congrats! The waitresses will be by to get your orders and bring bread and appetizers soon. So be ready! Thanks again, I love you all!" Mira blew a kiss out to the crowd and everyone sent cheers back.
Freed noticed Levy's face was completely beet red, he guessed that was not exactly what she expected Mira to do. He looked back at Laxus, thinking he would see the same relief that he was feeling. Instead Laxus had a look of restrained anger, that was furrowing his brow.
Laxus turned and caught Freed looking at him. He gave a forced smile and stood suddenly, "Can you just tell Kinana I want the steak, I'm gonna head to the restroom," and he headed in that direction at a swift pace. Freed frowned. He knew now that he had been right, Laxus really wasn't doing as well with the situation with Mira as he was pretending.
Laxus splashed cold water on his face, trying to cool himself down. He had to get ahold of himself, Mira was not his anymore. Really, she wasn't ever fully his because he wouldn't let her be, this whole situation was his fault. Laxus had met Orga and the guy was actually a good guy. A guy that Laxus felt he could actually respect. It almost made it worse, because it meant that Orga probably wasn't going anywhere anytime soon.
Laxus couldn't understand what was going on in his head right now. He didn't want kids with Mira, so why did the idea of her having kids with someone else hurt so bad? Did he really expect her to give up the things she wanted just to mess around with him? Or was it possible that he was starting to feel that he could get used to the idea of those things just to be with her? Laxus felt ashamed to be so selfish about this. It was ridiculous that he would feel like she couldn't be with anyone else but him, when he was the one who drove her away. He took a deep breath and dried off his face. He could be a decent human being, at least for tonight, he owed her that much.
Everything went fantastically well at the dinner, and the following night at their grand opening they were packed. Word of mouth in the community had really done Mira well. Cana couldn't believe how quickly Mest could pump out the food. His insanely hyperactive personality and attention to detail made him a monster in the kitchen. Cana was going to need help behind the bar though, Mira had to step in a few times to help, especially since when they were full, people would just grab a stool and order at the bar. Cana had been relieved when she woke that morning that they would finally be interviewing people. However, after five complete messes, one of which had showed up in pajama pants, her enthusiasm was at an all time low.
"These bartenders are awful Mira! Where did you place a want ad? A clown college?" Cana made a sound of disgust, "That last one couldn't even make a long island, I'm pretty sure this is just sweet tea and vodka."
Mira smiled, "Oh they couldn't have been that bad! And I see you're drinking that terrible tea anyway!"
Cana looked down at the drink in her hand and screwed up her face in revulsion. "Damnit!" She dumped the rest of the mixture down the sink.
Mira giggled, "The next guy coming in is someone you know, so maybe it will go better?"
Cana perked up, "Someone I know?" Mira's grin grew a little more mischievous and Cana became worried, "Oh no, this isn't going to be payback for Azuma is it? Mira. . ."
Mira gave her a wink, "I'll never tell, but I'm sure it's going to be a wild good time!"
Cana's mouth dropped, "You didn't!"
Mira just headed to the back, "I'll be in my office when you decide to hire him!"
Ten minutes later and Bacchus was strolling in through the door. Cana hadn't seen him since New Year's Eve. It had been a really nice night, but that was all it ever was for them, a little fun and they go their separate ways. Cana wasn't sure how she felt about him invading her inner sanctum here.
"What are you doing here Bacchus?" she said lazily, leaning back in her chair.
"Is that any way to greet me babe?" he asked, clearly not put off by her accusatory question.
"I don't think Goldmine would be very happy to know that you are sniffing around," Cana raised a brow.
Bacchus sat across from her at the table giving her a crooked grin, "I don't think it's any of his business."
Cana leaned forward on the table and regarded him shrewdly, "Alright, I'll bite, why would you want to work here of all places?"
"My soul is telling me this is where I need to be, I'm tired of serving college kids at Quatro Cerberus, it's time to move up to a man's job. I've seen what Mira's done here, it's going to be a nice place, a nice place attracts more quality customers and they tip better. Give it a few months this place will be a goldmine. I know I'm a good bartender, one of the best! A place like this is the logical next step for me. Not to mention, I'd get to work with someone who shares my wild spirit," he gave Cana a wink, "letting this opportunity pass me by . . .I just couldn't do that."
"This would ruin our pact you know, I can't sleep with you if I'm working with you," Cana said.
Bacchus just laughed, "I'd like to see you try and resist this!"
Cana chuckled, "Well, I know very well that you can make anything, so it's not as if I need to have you do that for me."
"But you're still hesitant," Bacchus raised a brow and crossed his arms.
"Maybe," Cana replied.
"Then let's decide this the way we do best, drinking contest," He got to his feet and slammed a fist on the table. "I win and the spot is mine, you win and I walk away."
"I can't do that," Cana said quickly.
Bacchus gave her a shocked expression, "What? Why not?"
"I'm just not drinking like that anymore," Cana fidgeted with the pen in her hand. This was definitely one person who wasn't going to understand the changes she was trying to make.
Bacchus gave her a sardonic smile, "Well that's stupid, what made you decide that."
"It's just it's time to grow up," Cana defended.
"Grow up? What kind of bull is that! I've seen it up close and I can tell you that body of yours is definitely grown woman. What are you going to do now Cana? Find a man, settle down, stay home, raise some babies? Is that growing up to you? Cause that's not the Cana I know," Bacchus scoffed. "You're Cana, you're wild and beautiful, like a panther. You can't be caged! You can drink any man under the table and get up the next day like nothing happened. You can talk to anyone and make friends, travel anywhere and fit in with the locals, you get what you want when you want it and you don't let anyone tell you you can't do what you want to do. I don't know what asshole tried to tame you, and fill your head with this nonsense about what's grown up and what's not. You should pick the path you want to go on even if it ain't the well beaten one. Don't let someone else quell your passion, because it's one of your best qualities."
Cana just stared at him, confused by his emotional speech. He grinned at her again and put his hands in his pockets, "All I know is I love my life, and I think you loved yours too. Life is like wine to us and we drink it fully. It's not the way most people live, but that definitely doesn't make it a bad thing." He shrugged, "I want to work here Cana, and I know you can't tell me that any of the guys who came here earlier are better at this kind of job than me, so give me a call when you're ready for that contest. Or, if you are still feeling chicken, just tell Mira I'm the one for the job. You know my number," He gave her another wink and sauntered out the door.
Cana just sat there quietly for a while, chewing on the back of her pen while she pondered his words. She started to wonder how she had let Laxus's accusatory speech a while back affect her as much as it had. That man couldn't even figure out his own life. It seemed so strange that Bacchus, of all people, could know her so well. Here she thought all they had between them was something shallow, but he had been really paying attention all this time.
After a few minutes, Mira came up from the back and sat down across from her, "Whatcha thinking?"
Cana shook herself out of her daze and looked at Mira, "I think we're gonna have to give Bacchus the job, but I'm going to have to drink him under the table first. He insulted my honor."
Mira clapped her hands, "Wonderful! Give him a call, let's do that tonight!" She covered her face with her hands, barely able to contain her glee. "Everything is just coming together so well Cana!"
Cana grabbed her friend's hands, and pulled them down so Mira could see the big smile on her own face, "You know, it really is."
Natsu took his hammer and gently tapped his cat's paw underneath the floor molding. "Don't jack up the baseboards Salamander!" came a rough yell from behind him.
Natsu turned his head to regard Gajeel with a look of disdain. "What kind of amateur do you take me for!" he yelled, returning to tap the hand tool a little bit more roughly while quickly maneuvering along the wall. "Do you want these carpets out or not? I'm not helping if you micromanage me!"
"I know, I know! I'm just worried these floors are gonna be shit!" Gajeel ran his hands through his massive mane and paced in the hall. After a month of drawn out paperwork, Gajeel and Levy closed on their house. Gajeel had already stripped all the crap wallpaper down and asked for help removing the carpet. Natsu could tell he had been too nervous to handle the job by himself. Which seemed odd, Gajeel always seemed so sure of himself. Natsu chuckled, this pending fatherhood was stripping Gajeel of all his bravado.
"I wouldn't worry, the wood they used on the walls is top notch. The builders wouldn't put crap floors next to top quality baseboards, that would look like crap. Worse comes to worse, we'll have to do some sanding and strip some glue." The last piece of floor mold was free, Natsu pulled it out and handed it over to Gajeel who set it with the other pieces in the hall way. Natsu grinned, "Moment of truth man, you ready?"
Gajeel nodded and went over to the corner of the room. Getting on his hands and knees he gently tugged on the carpet, pulling it up with the padding, and freeing it from the tack strip. After getting half of the room's worth of carpet pulled back, Gajeel had to stop and stare. Whoever laid the carpet had done a fantastic job, the floors were dingy and would need a good refinishing to shine again, but they were in amazing shape. So far no glue or random nails.
Natsu came up next to him and took a massive bite of the apple he now had in his hand. "Are you crying?" Natsu teased with his mouth full, a mischievous look in his eyes.
"Shut up, it's just sweat," Gajeel said wiping his face, "you spit any of that apple on my floor, I'm bashing your face in!"
Natsu swallowed and grinned, "You are crying? Are you sure you aren't pregnant too?"
Gajeel crossed his arms, "There is such a thing as sympathetic pregnancy you know. There's nothing wrong with getting a little emotional every now and then."
"So a baby huh?" Natsu bit into the apple again, the loud crunch echoing through the house. "I don't know why, but I never really saw you as the dad type."
"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" Gajeel asked, returning to tearing up the teal blue carpet.
"You know, you're kinda the opposite of warm and cuddly," Natsu ate the last bit of apple, leaving only the stem. Tossing it in one of the cans they had for garbage, he walked over to start loosening the tack strips.
"I'll have you know I'm very good with kids," Gajeel frowned.
"Wendy isn't really a kid Gajeel," Natsu grinned widely.
"No shit Salamander," Gajeel huffed. "I've spent time with other kids before."
Natsu's tone softened, "Really though, congrats."
Gajeel messed with one of the piercings under his lip. "I have to admit, I'm a little bit anxious, it's all just happening so fast ya know?"
Natsu pulled one of the tack strips up and tossed it aside. "Are you worried about living together?"
"Nah, definitely not that. I'm basically living at her place full time right now anyway, Lily's even at her house full-time now."
"Yea, that's how it is with Lucy," Natsu said, turning his attention to the next tack strip.
"She still have her other apartment?" Gajeel asked, tossing the tack strips in the can and moving everything off the carpet in the hallway.
"Yea," Natsu answered.
"You gonna ask her to just move in with you ya think?" Gajeel got on his knees and started taking up the floor mold in the hallway.
Natsu stopped for a moment and sat back on his knees, "You know, I hadn't thought of it."
Gajeel laughed, "Yea, I don't know if I'm exactly the best example or anything, since Levy and I seem to be moving our relationship at hyper-speed. But if we hadn't of gotten pregnant, officially moving in together would have probably been our next step."
"Yea, I'll have to think about that," said Natsu, tossing more tack strip to the center of the room. He stood and went to roll more of the carpet up, revealing more of the oak floor. "You going to ask Levy to marry you soon?"
"I don't know," said Gajeel, with a frown on his face. "It's just that I want her to know I want to marry her because I want to marry her, ya know? Not just cause we got pregnant. I haven't really figured out how to get that across."
Natsu chuckled, "Yea, that's a tough one."
"I figure for now, I'll get this house all ready for us and be there for her while she carrying the kid," Gajeel sighed. "Hopefully sometime soon I'll get an idea on how to tell her."
"Just don't do it with a song," Natsu teased.
Gajeel grunted, "Shut up Salamander."
Lucy heard the bell of the front door ring, alerting her that another customer had come in. She wiped her hands on her apron and went to the front to find a familiar orange head looking at the decorated shortbreads in the display case. It felt so good to look at him and not feel any pain and longing anymore, Natsu had just been so good for her heart.
She leaned forward on the counter next to the register, "What can I get for you Loke?"
He turned and gave her a handsome grin, "Well I came by to tell you something, but you know those flower cookies are really quite lovely. Do you mind packing a dozen of them up for me?"
Lucy was so surprised that he hadn't tried to lay on the charm, that she almost missed his request. "Yes, of course!" She reached under the counter and got a small box, then walked around to the case and began packing them using wax paper. Since it was for him, she was careful to pick the nicest ones.
When she was finished, she looked up and noticed he was studying her. "You look good Lucy," he observed.
She couldn't help but give a slight eye roll, and here he was doing so well. Then he surprised her again by holding up his hands and actually looking embarrassed. "No, I'm really not trying to hit on you, I swear. It's just you look happier. Last time I was here you just seemed so tired and stressed, now you're like a ray of sunshine."
She smiled, but said nothing. Lucy carried the box back behind the counter and weighed it on the scale, then entered the amount into the register. "Was that everything?"
"Lucy, since last time I saw you, I really have made some changes. I was hoping that maybe we could start over, you know, and be friends again? We've just known each other so long, you are like family to me, and I miss you. I swear it's not a line, I'm seeing someone now, it's actually going quite well." Loke looked embarrassed, he smiled and rubbed the back of his head. "I guess I'm finally starting to learn to appreciate the one I'm with. You deserved so much better than I was able to give you when we were younger and I'm sorry for that."
Lucy looked at him for a few seconds, unsure of how to respond. It was almost refreshing to finally see this side of him again. She couldn't remember the last time she saw him where he wasn't trying to get back into her bed. "I don't know Loke." She hit the button on the register to give him his total.
"Well at least for now, I just wanted to give you a warning," Loke said, handing over a credit card. "Someone brought in a platter of your cookies for a work luncheon and your father was impressed by it. He looked at the card and saw your name. He was shocked. He's probably going to come by any day now."
Lucy finished running his card through the machine and handed it back. She couldn't help but frown. It had been months since she had any contact with her dad. Lucy didn't want him here, she didn't want him tainting the new life she had now. What would I think he think about her bakery? What would he think about Natsu? The image of his disappointed face kept flashing through her mind.
Loke looked distressed, "O dear, I've taken away your sunshine. Really Lucy, I didn't want to upset you, I just knew you wouldn't like him to surprise you. I thought I little warning would be a good thing."
Lucy gave him a tight lipped smiled, "No, it's good you told me. At least this way I can make sure I have this place looking like I would want him to see it. I'll make sure it's looking it's best! Thank you Loke."
He smiled and took the box from the counter. "Well, I should get going. Are you sure you're okay?"
"Yes, I'm fine. It was good to see you Loke," Lucy said, happy it was the truth.
Loke's smile grew and he gave her a little wave, "It was good to see you too." As he went to leave out the front door, Natsu came in. Lucy was already back to frowning, her distress over the impending reunion with her father on the front of her mind. So much so, that she missed Natsu's entrance, not noticing him until he was right in front of her.
"Wasn't that your ex? Did he upset you?" Natsu growled, not doing a very good job of hiding his irritation.
Lucy was slightly taken aback by his incensed tone, "No, I'm fine. He was just being friendly, he bought some cookies."
"You don't look fine, are you sure you are?" Natsu's face softened and he grabbed her hand, rubbing his thumb gently along her knuckles.
Lucy sighed. This was not very good timing for Natsu to come in. It wasn't that she didn't want to discuss what she was upset about, it was that she didn't want to talk about it right now. She needed to organize her thoughts about her father before talking about it with Natsu. He was just going to get upset about it and rant about how her father was a bad dad. That wasn't what she needed or wanted right now. She forced herself to smile, "Really, I'm okay. I'm just a little tired, that's all."
Natsu studied her face and frowned, "Okay, if you say so." Lucy could tell from his face that meant he would drop it for now, but she wasn't off the hook.
She tried changing the subject, "I have those lunches you wanted for you and Gajeel all put together. How is the house coming along?"
Lucy was relieved when Natsu's face lit up, "It's great! They got a really good place. I have to admit I'm a little jealous of all the trim, there's some beautiful wood in that house. A couple more weekends and we'll have everything ready for the baby at least. The kitchen is kinda a mess though, good thing they don't cook very much. It's gonna take a long time for me to be able to get new cabinets together."
Natsu's phone buzzed in his pocket and he pulled it out and frowned, "Damn, I can't stay. I need to get back." He gave Lucy a tender kiss and smiled, "I love you."
Lucy gave him a genuine smile back and handed him the bag that contained his lunch, "I love you too."
When Natsu got home that evening, it was obvious that whatever had been bothering Lucy around lunch was still bothering her now. She was fixing food in the kitchen and her movements seemed sharp and jerky. He kissed her on the cheek and she gave him a tight lipped smile, all her answers to his questions were short and didn't encourage further conversation. It was kinda pissing him off.
After a quiet dinner she had plopped down on the couch with a book, making it clear she wasn't in the mood for company. Frustrated, he stomped off to the garage and threw all his attention into a side table he was working on for a client. When he returned a couple hours later, the lights were out and Lucy was in bed. What the hell was going on his her?
He pondered it while he brushed his teeth. It had to be something to do with Loke. He definitely noticed the look of disapproval when he had run into that suit on the way into the bakery. Had Loke said something about him? Had he overreacted about Loke being there? Was Lucy waiting for an apology for something? He spat in the sink and rinsed his mouth, then ran his hand down his face. He hated this.
Natsu climbed into his side of the bed and turned to face her. He could tell from the rigidity of her body that she was still awake, even if her eyes had been closed when he had walked in the room. Natsu sighed deeply and stared at the ceiling, confused about what to do next. Did she just expect to go to sleep like this? Well he sure as hell couldn't.
He turned back towards her, "Luce, are you mad at me for something?"
She breathed in sharply and quickly turned to face him, her face twisted in concern. "No! Why would you think I was mad at you?"
Natsu laughed incredulously, "Are you kidding? You've been standoffish all night! Every time I try to talk to you you're short and you've got a permanent frown on your face!"
Lucy sighed deeply, "Oh, Natsu I'm so sorry. I didn't realize I was being like that, I just am a little bit worried, that's all."
Natsu pushed some hair behind her ear, "Why are you worried? You've gotta talk to me Luce, I can't read your mind."
"It's just . . .it's just that Loke said my father knows where the bakery is now and he's planning a visit," Lucy frowned.
"You didn't tell him where your bakery was? What's wrong with him coming to visit?" Natsu really didn't get Lucy's relationship with her father. It confused him to no end that they could be so distant when it was obvious that Lucy loved her father very much. It made him want to punch her dad in the face.
Lucy seemed to struggle for a moment to find words, then she said, "No, I really didn't his disapproval you know? It's my space, it's something I love, and for him to not like it, that would just be so hard. I've gotten so used to him hating everything I like and I couldn't take it anymore. So he hasn't seen the bakery, he hasn't seen my apartment . . ."
"He hasn't seen me," Natsu added. Lucy nodded sadly. "You know, you can't hide what we have from him forever."
"I know," Lucy shut her eyes tight, as if she was trying to hold in tears. Her pain was breaking his heart. Natsu pulled her close to him and rubbed her back gently. He could feel when she gave in and let loose of the sorrow, her sobs making her body quake. "I'm so sorry Natsu, I shouldn't hide you from him," she hiccuped.
Natsu kissed her head, "I get it, I don't like it, but I get it. But just think how much of a weight would be off your shoulders when you told him? Who cares if he likes it? And who knows, maybe he won't think it's all that bad. You've got a really great place there and you make really good food that makes everybody happy. And you know I can handle it if he doesn't like me. I'm not going anywhere, he'll just have to get used to me."
Lucy lifted her head and kissed him, "I love you so much! I'm so lucky to have you."
Natsu almost felt almost dizzy with happiness from her sentiment. "I love you too Lucy," he said with a big grin. He rolled them over so that he was over top of her, taking in the sight of her smiling through her tears. Natsu wiped her cheek and sighed, "God, you're beautiful." Lucy's smile grew, lighting up her whole face. He lowered his head and kissed her reverently, thinking she wasn't the lucky one, he was.