Natsu hovers by the door of Christina's make-shift infirmary. He's already been through an emotional roller-coaster, and he's not sure he can handle another loop. Hibiki said she's in here, alive and well. The rest of the team is already inside, but Natsu's been making excuses for over an hour, insisting on staying below and helping the town clean up as much as possible.

After his future self got the promise he wanted, he and Lyon managed to warp the time device itself into another time, leaving the technology out of their reach for a few hundred years. That entire section of the mine collapsed and they all had to make a mad dash for the exit. The townspeople are more than a little pissed off that their major find is now gone, but he figures only bad things could have come from it being found now anyway. Just another job without a payday.

Well… not really.

"You gonna be okay, man?" Gray asks, walking up with a slight limp, bandaged from head to toe.

"Sure," Natsu shrugs. "I have to be. Right?"

"Man, don't do this to yourself," Gray sighs, gripping Natsu's shoulder. "Don't live with your head all the way up there. He may be from the future, but there's no way he knows everything. Especially not if he's you." Gray laughs. "She's here. She's alive. And by the way… she's like, glowing or something."

Huh?

"Yeah, totally not kidding," Gray says. "You've gotta come see it."

Natsu can feel a pull towards her, almost like static in the air, but he's still resisting it.

"This morning," Gray says, "you would have done anything, and I mean apparently any-freakin'-thing, to have just a little more time with her. You gonna throw that away now that you've got it?"

"No," Natsu says. "You're right. I'm just… stalling I guess. Do they know when she'll wake up?"

"Hibiki's got no clue man," Gray shrugs. "Although he swears you're the one who changed her clothes."

"What?"

Natsu finally pushes his way into the room and feels his breath catch at the sight of Gina lying on the huge bed. Gray wasn't kidding. She's not just glowing a little bit. She practically looks like a celestial spirit. Erza, Lucy, Levy, and Wendy are all crowded around on the bed, talking to her and touching her hands and hair - trying to wake her up. She's dressed in a Blue Pegasus spaghetti-strap sundress.

"Is she okay?"Natsu finally finds his voice to ask.

"I can't tell," Wendy sighs. "She looks amazing but she's not waking up."

The women all back up to give him room and he sits gently on the bed beside Gina.

"Hey baby," he whispers. "Are you all fixed up now?"

Her curls are now a shiny jet black and her skin is back to its healthy porcelain tone. Her lips are a deeper red than they've ever been, but more than anything he wants to see her violet eyes. Feeling impatient, he leans over her but she still doesn't stir.

"Gina?" he calls to her again.

He takes her hand and an arc of magic shoots straight from their hands through his entire body like lightning. The current knocks him clear off the bed and into a surprised heap on the floor.

What the hell?

"Are you alright?" Wendy squeaks in alarm as everyone else laughs.

"Yikes!" Natsu shouts, trying to shake the sting out of his arm.

"Look!" Levy shouts. "She's waking up!"

Everyone crowds around as the glow dims until its completely reabsorbed into Gina's skin.

"Gina?" She hears Natsu call her name, his voice a little fuzzy at first. "Can you open your eyes?"

She blinks against the light behind his head and realizes that she's looking into many, many happy Fairy Tail faces. Lucy squeals with glee and turns to throw herself at Gray. Levy turns a smile into Gajeel's chest. She's surrounded by Wendy and little exceeds, but Natsu is who captures her attention.

You did it. She feels overwhelmed by the wonder of it. You saved me. But… do you know that?

"Where am I?" Gina asks.

"Hibiki brought you back here to Christina," Carla explains. "We've been waiting for you to wake up. Natsu from the future claimed he healed your illness. Is that true?"

So, he didn't tell them?

"Is he still here?" she asks.

"No," Natsu says, with a frown she doesn't understand. "He had to go back, but he said you'd be fine now. Was he… was he lying?"

"No," she assures him. "No. I… I think it will be okay now."

"This calls for a celebration!" Erza declares. "I'm going down to the galley to whip up a strawberry cake. Come on, everyone!"

Everyone but Natsu follows her out. He just sits there, looking down at her. She can't quite tell if he's happy or sad.

"You have every right to be mad at me," Gina sighs, reaching out to touch his arm. Needing to feel him.

"I am," he says, looking away. "I'm… holy dragons, I'm exhausted."

He looks a little gray and she realizes that he must be coming down from the magic-enhancing potion he was given.

"Oh my gosh," she says, backing up, "Come lie down. I can't believe you're still sitting up. Did you guys run into any trouble?"

"That is… such a long story," he swallows hard.

"It's okay," she says. "You don't have to tell me now. Just lie down."

He hesitates. "Are you… is that still okay? I mean, I don't want to…"

"Oh please," she sighs, tugging him down with very little effort. "It's the best seat in the house. Or ship…" Well, for me it is.

Natsu lies down and she watches the strength leech from him, but he battles to stay awake. "Gina, why did you run with Gajeel?"

"I didn't want you to suffer through seeing me die," she answers honestly.

"It would have hurt just as much," he whispers. "Maybe more."

"I'm sorry," she says, rolling over to cuddle against him.

He stiffens for a moment, and she wonders if she's damaged their relationship too much with her pain. Then she remembers the Sire mark he'll carry one day - carry of his own free will - and it gives her courage. He was fighting for their future together. Not apart. After a moment, he relaxes and wraps himself around her tightly, burying his face in her hair.

She catches sight of Hibiki standing in the corner with a somber expression, watching them. As soon as he realizes he's been seen, he turns and leaves.

How odd…

"Gina…" Natsu says, pulling back to look at her through sleepy eyes, "Before you left, you… I mean… Did you just do that to… uh, to put me to sleep?"

It takes her a moment to realize he's talking about when she kissed him, and another moment to realizes she can do so again without risking his life. With her body attuned to his now, it will never draw enough from him to jeopardize his own safety.

"No, Natsu," she says with a smile. "I actually didn't think about putting you to sleep until I panicked."

"Really?" his huge, sleepy grin and blush warm her heart. "I wouldn't mind… going to sleep now."

"Oh really?" she asks.

Gina leans forward and captures his lips with her own, feeling his familiar love wash over her. She rolls over to thread her fingers into his hair and he deepens the kiss with a groan. She lets herself get lost beneath the pleasure until she feels his hands begin to tremble and she pulls back to see tears on his cheeks.

"I'm so sorry, Natsu," she says, feeling regret tighten her throat.

"I'll be fine," he says, swiping a hand beneath his eye. "I'm just... really tired."

She presses her lips against his gently one more time, and then she touches his temple to put him to sleep. Then she dries his tears and pulls up the blankets to snuggle both of them beneath. A sound catches her ear, and she sees Gajeel standing there when she turns. He's covered in bandages, and she can only hope that's not all from Natsu.

"What do you plan to do now, Spitfire?" Gajeel asks.

"I'm not sure," she admits. "But I don't want to run anymore."

"Good," he nods, turning to stare out of one of the huge bay windows. "What about him?"

"I love him," she says, watching Gajeel jump in surprise, "but I've put him through a lot. He's exhausted, and he needs to recover his strength. I also… need time to heal. My body is fine but I think you know the rest of me is still a bit of a mess. For now… I'd just like to sleep until we get home. Then we can decide what we want to do."

"I'll keep everyone away until we land," he nods. "Just… don't waste this chance, yeah?"

"I won't," she smiles, snuggling into Natsu's side to go back to sleep.

I'm going home.

Author's Note:

Hi everyone! I hope you enjoyed Choosing You. As you might have guessed, this is the first book in a 2-part story. I hope to begin posting the sequel, Trusting You, sometime in August. Thank you to all of you who favorited and followed, left me comments, and gave me warm fuzzies. This story went all kinds of places I didn't expect but I loved being on the roller coaster with you. If you enjoyed this one, please spread the words to friends so that the sequel can be enjoyed by as many people as possible as it's coming out.

- KittenCobra