To Be Lucky

Natsu stood impatiently by the bathroom door, listening to the sounds of his girlfriend vomiting into the toilet. He wanted to be in there with her, rubbing her back or doing something to comfort her, but she wouldn't let him. She'd been throwing up at random intervals for the past week and a half, and he was starting to get a little worried. She'd told him it was just a virus that's been going around, most likely the stomach flu, but still. And what was with her not letting him in when she was throwing up? Is she embarrassed to be seen like that by him? If that was the case, it was a pretty stupid thing to be embarrassed about. He's her best friend, her boyfriend of three months, and she was embarrassed about him seeing her puking? He shook his head. He loved Lucy, he really did – seriously, you have no idea how much he loves her – but sometimes she was… such a weirdo.

After a couple of minutes, he heard the toilet flush and the faucet started running. A moment later, he heard the familiar sound of the door unlocking before she stepped out, her blonde hair tied back into a messy bun and her face puffy and exhausted. "You okay?" he asked, placing a warm hand on her shoulder.

"Yeah," she answered, sleepily nodding her head. She swayed and fell back against Natsu's chest with a soft oof. Natsu chuckled once.

"You sure? You look awful."

"Thank you, Natsu. That's just the thing every girl wants to hear from their boyfriend." The Dragon Slayer laughed and he led her to her bed.

"Sorry. But seriously. Your face looks a little, well… pale."

"I'm fine. I just need some rest. And some food, if only I could keep it down." She carefully lowered herself onto her back on the mattress, reveling in the softness of her sheets. Natsu sighed and sat on the edge of the bed, brushing strands of hair from her eyes.

"Do you… want me to stay?" he asked slowly, silently hoping she would say yes. But he would leave if that was her preference, even though he really didn't want to leave her alone in such a condition. His shoulders slumped when she shook her head.

"No, it's alright, go back to the guild and fight with Gray or something…" Natsu's eyes widened. She'd really just given him permission to instigate a fight? "I don't want to be a bore to you."

He snorted. "You could never be boring to me, Luce."

She smiled. "Besides, I think I'm just going to go to sleep anyway. Just go. Go have fun." She laughed at his suddenly sad face, his lip sticking out in a pout.

"But it won't be any fun without you there." Lucy shook her head and waved him off, sounding a defeated sigh from the boy as he stood. "Fine. I'll say hi to everyone for you." He lowered himself down to kiss her forehead before he turned to leave. "See you later, Luce."

"Bye." As soon as she heard the front door shut, Lucy threw the blanket off and huffed. She wasn't sick, she knew. But she didn't want him to know that. The reason? She had a feeling there was a certain process going on inside her. And the thought terrified her. She and Natsu had been dating for only three months, and they've only done the nasty twice! She couldn't be! She wasn't ready to be a mother! And… and she could only imagine how Natsu would react if she told him. She had a feeling that he was anything but ready to be a parent. She really didn't want to tell him. But if she is, in fact, pregnant, than the baby is undoubtedly his. He has a right to know that she's carrying his child.

That is, if she's even pregnant in the first place.

There was a knock on her door. Startled, Lucy immediately pulled the blanket back over her. "Who is it?" she asked, trying to sound sick.

"It's Levy!" came a feminine voice from the other side of her bedroom door. "Can I come in Lu-chan?" Oh, thank Mavis. Lucy sighed in relief. Levy was aware of the situation, and had been asked to stop by so they could… figure out for sure if Lucy was going to be a mother. Lucy scuttled out of her bed and stumbled up to her door and opened it, revealing the petite solid script wizard with a large book and a plastic bag in her hands. She grinned at the blonde's distraught form. Her hair messily held back and sticking to her sweaty face, her clothes a raggedy tank-top and some old basketball shorts. "Geez, Lu-chan. You look… awful."

Lucy's face dropped. "That's exactly what Natsu said not ten minutes ago," she stated, deadpan. Levy giggled.

"Are you sure you're not just sick?" she asked as she stepped inside, Lucy closing the door behind her.

"I know I'm not sick. It's just like I'm standing outside in one hundred degree weather all the time! I'm hot all the time! And pretending to be sick while Natsu's here, lying down in bed all day with a thick blanket over me makes me sweat buckets." Levy laughed as she plopped down onto her best friend's bed. "Anyway, did you bring the stuff?"

"Yes, I did," Levy confirmed between giggles. "I borrowed this book on pregnancy from the library, I bought a test, and I even brought some ice cream." The bluenette turned onto her stomach as the blonde went into the kitchen to get some spoons, and she began to flip through the book, searching for the early signs of pregnancy. While she continued her search, Lucy sat down on the floor beside her bed and dug into the plastic bag. There were two small cartons of ice cream, one was mint and the other was chocolate.

"Which one is yours, Levy-chan?" asked the novelist.

"It doesn't matter," she replied, not even looking up from the book. "I like both of them, so whichever one you don't want, I'll have." Lucy handed her the chocolate one. Which was odd. Normally, she would've chosen the chocolate – it was her favorite flavor. And yet, she decided on the mint. "Ah!" Levy exclaimed when she found the page she was looking for. "'Early Signs,'" she read aloud, quickly skimming through the chapter introduction as she opened her carton. "Alright, let's see… 'In the early stages of pregnancy, you may experience…' nausea?" Lucy nodded her head and swallowed her ice cream.

"Yes."

"Breast tenderness?" Levy said, a silly tone attached to her voice. Lucy laughed and lifted her wrist to touch her right breast. She hissed and flinched away.

"Yeah. Really tender."

"Food cravings?" Lucy shook her head as she took another bite of her mint ice cream, but froze as the spoon went into her mouth. She slowly withdrew it as realization hit her.

"Yes…" Levy clicked her tongue as she took a mouth full of chocolate.

"I don't know, Lu-chan. I can answer 'yes' to most of these, too."

"I'm eating mint ice cream, Levy-chan…" she said slowly, looking over her shoulder at her best girl friend. "I don't like mint…" She swallowed the sweet treat, and her face contorted into a grimace, like she smelled something bad.

"What's wrong, Lu-chan?" Lucy shook her head.

"Mm," she hummed distastefully. "No offense, Levy-chan, but your perfume is making me sick." Levy lifted an eyebrow.

"I'm not wearing perfume, Lu-chan…" They held each other's gaze before the small girl slowly turned her head back to the book. The last of the symptoms was, "Heightened sense of smell…" The girls exchanged uneasy glances. Abruptly, Lucy closed her carton of ice cream and stood up with the plastic bag, pulling out the test.

"I'll be right back, Levy-chan," she said hurriedly as she ran for the bathroom. Levy carefully lifted herself to her knees and closed the book, suddenly not liking the taste of her ice cream. She closed hers as well and took both cartons into the kitchen, placing them in the freezer. When she came back, she sat cross-legged on the bed and watched the bathroom door with nervous, hazel eyes. It probably only took about five minutes, but it seemed like an hour until Lucy reemerged from the restroom, holding a white stick in her hand.

"What does it say?" Levy asked in a quiet voice.

"I don't know," Lucy answered just as softly. "It hasn't shown up yet." She set it upside down on the nightstand and sat beside the bookworm. "Levy-chan… what if it's positive? What am I going to do? I'm twenty-one! I'm not ready to be a mother! Not only that, but Natsu and I have been dating for only three months!"

"Lu-chan, calm down," the bluenette said comfortingly, placing a dainty hand on her friend's shoulder. "It's going to be alright."

"How… how am I going to tell Natsu?" There was a pause, and the room was deathly quiet.

"I… I think the best way to tell him, is to… just tell him. Does that make sense?" Lucy nodded. Levy squeezed her hand with a gentle smile. "But I don't think you have anything to worry about with him. I mean, knowing Natsu, he'd most likely be overjoyed." Lucy laughed a little and nodded her head again. Levy nodded toward the plastic stick. The celestial wizard turned to it, and shakily reached out a hand to grab it. She held it between her and Levy, and a reassuring squeeze of her hand was all she needed to turn it over and look at the result.

There was a little pink plus sign.

Three days later…

Lucy looked at her reflection in the mirror in her bathroom. Today was when she would tell him. She'd put it off for three days. She had to tell him now, or she would never be able to. And she couldn't hide this from him forever. He had a right to know. It was his child, after all. She took a long breath to ease her frantic nerves and reached for the door knob. When she walked into the bedroom, she saw him on her bed – where she last left him – with his scarf lazily wrapped around his eyes. He smiled. "Hey, Luce," he said without even looking at her.

"Hi, N-Natsu," she said back as she approached him, cursing herself for stuttering. Even though his eyes were covered, she could tell he lifted an eyebrow.

"What's wrong, Luce? You sound nervous."

"Nothing's wrong," she answered a little too quickly as she sat beside him, resting her head on his shoulder. He could tell something was bothering her, but decided it best to leave it be. Maybe she wasn't nervous. Maybe she was still a little sick. "Natsu?" she said suddenly.

"Hm?" he hummed sleepily, tilting his head so it rested on hers.

"I, uh… I have something i-important to tell you." Natsu lifted a hand to his face and pulled his scarf down, revealing those stunning obsidian eyes as they looked down at her.

"Alright…" he said slowly, although it sounded more like a question. "What's up?" Lucy looked away from those piercing eyes and bit her lip. Her heart was pounding hard against her chest, and she was sure he could hear it. She began to fidget with her hands, which didn't go unnoticed. He sat up a little, propping his weight up on his elbows. "Lucy?"

"Um…" She trailed off to swallow the massive lump in her throat. "I… I'm not quite sure… how to tell you this…" Natsu furrowed his brow for a brief moment before grinning.

"You know you can tell me anything, Luce. There's nothing to be embarrassed about." The girl laughed weakly.

"It's not really… embarrassing, it's just…" She trailed off again, causing his grin to falter before slowly falling from his lips completely, morphing into a frown.

"Luce, you're making me nervous," he said uneasily, a weak smile pulling at his lips.

"I know," she said softly as she sat up, looking away from him. Now he was really nervous. What could possibly have Lucy so worked up, so fidgety? Still positioned on his elbows, he stared at the back of her head, hoping that whatever she had to say was just her being her, and didn't have any specific meaning behind it.

"Lucy, whatever it is you have to tell me, would you just te—"

"I'm pregnant." She said it softly, so soft that he barely heard her say it, but just didn't make out the words.

"What, Luce? I didn't hear you…" The blonde swallowed harshly, trying to keep that lump down.

"I'm pregnant," she said again, louder this time. Natsu's heart and breathing stopped. Did… did she just say… that she's pregnant? Surely she must be joking. He was about to praise her for startling him so thoroughly, but she hesitantly turned toward him, and he didn't see any fragment of a joke anywhere on her face. She was serious. But even though he knew she wasn't kidding, he couldn't stop himself from asking.

"You… you're kidding," he said quietly, barely above a whisper. She shook her head.

"No… No, I'm not, Natsu. I'm pregnant." There was a long, painful silence between them, and their gaze never wavered from each other. Lucy couldn't read the expression on his face. He seemed so calm, so blank. But she could tell his heart was anything but calm. She could see the artery in his neck pulse against his skin, and she saw his Adam's apple bob as he gulped. It seemed like forever until he spoke.

"I…" he choked out. He swallowed again and tried to keep his voice from cracking. "I… I'm gonna be a dad?" After a silent moment, Lucy nodded.

"Yes, Na—" She never got to finish his name. With surprising speed, he'd grabbed her neck and pulled her into the sweetest kiss he'd ever given her. Needless to say, she was caught completely by surprise. Even more so when he pulled away with a bright grin on his face.

"That's what you didn't know how to tell me?" he asked, lifting an eyebrow.

"You're… you're not mad?" she asked slowly. Natsu guffawed.

"Mad? Why in Edolas would I be mad? I just learned that I'm gonna have a baby with the woman I love. What is there to be mad about?" Lucy gawked, staring at him with wide eyes.

"The w-woman you… love?" she repeated quietly. The Salamander rolled his eyes.

"Duh! Of course I'm in love with you! Why wouldn't I be? Luce, you're the funniest, loudest, nicest, strongest, most beautiful girl I've ever met." Lucy smiled, touched by his words. "Not to mention the weirdest." Her smile fell.

"Baka!" she exclaimed, slapping his arm. "You ruined the moment!"

"Yeah, yeah," he dismissed with a grin, leaning in for another kiss.

Three months later…

Why is it so busy? Natsu thought to himself as he pushed through the crowd that flooded the streets of Magnolia. He'd lived in this town for quite some time now, but he didn't remember ever seeing the streets so crowded. He was growing a little frustrated. He'd been out on a mission with Gray and Erza for just a little under a month, and the people were making him take longer to get to Lucy.

Lucy… He'd missed her so much. He hated going on missions without her, but considering her condition, her not coming along wasn't much of an option. He was excited to see how much her belly had grown in his absence. Just thinking about seeing her with a large belly was making him grin like a fool. If only he could just make all these people disappear so he could sprint in the direction of her apartment – well, I guess it was his now, too.

Finally! There it is! He pushed himself up to the door and opened it, taking a deep, steadying breath. Man, he was glad to be out of that mob. After a moment, from down the hall, he heard the voice of an angel. His angel. "Natsu? Is that you?"

"Yeah," he answered breathlessly. "Yeah, it's me." He walked into their bedroom and saw her on the bed, her back against the headboard. She smiled.

"Natsu… I missed you," she said fondly.

"I missed you too."

She waved him over. "Well, get over here and kiss me." The Dragon Slayer chuckled as he approached her and did as he was told. He leaned down and gave her a gentle peck on the lips. The kiss would have lasted longer if she hadn't pulled away with a grimace, a small groan slipping passed her lips.

"What's wrong?" he asked, concerned.

Lucy giggled and shook her head. "I'm fine, you goof. The baby's just kicking." The fire wizard froze.

"It's… kicking?" he repeated slowly.

The blonde smiled warmly. "Yeah." Natsu carefully sat down on the edge of the bed, his eyes never leaving her belly. She certainly got bigger while he was away. And now the baby… his baby… was kicking? He inhaled a shaky breath before looking up to meet those beautiful brown eyes with his own. He knew this was stupid, but he couldn't keep himself from doing it. He was new to all of this, and he was extremely hesitant.

"Can I…?" he asked, nodding to her belly. Lucy laughed.

"Of course you can, baby," she said, reaching for his hand. "You're its father." She lightly pressed his palm to her tummy, watching as his face lit up instantly. She smiled briefly before hissing though her teeth. Natsu instantly retracted his hand.

"Does it hurt?" he asked worriedly. Lucy laughed again. He'd been worrying about every little thing since the beginning of her pregnancy, and it amused her. She loved seeing him like this. It was showing that he cares.

"It's just kicking really hard."

"B-because of me?" She hummed and nodded her head. Natsu released a breath he didn't know he was holding and leaned forward to kiss her forehead. When he pulled away, his brow was furrowed in confusion.

Lucy's eyebrow was raised. "Why're you looking at me like that?" The Salamander lifted a hand and touched the back of his fingers to her forehead. Despite his abnormal body temperature, he could still tell that her skin was hotter than normal as well.

"Luce, you're burning up," he stated anxiously.

Lucy giggled. "What would you expect? There's a little fire Dragon Slayer growing inside of me." He felt his heart constrict. He was elated at the thought of him having a child, but hearing those words come from her lips made him happier than what words could describe. In fact, hearing her say that made him fall all the more in love with her. He laughed weakly and leaned his forehead against hers, draping a gentle hand over her swollen tummy. His smile broadened when he felt the child, his child, kick against his palm.

"Luce?" he murmured.

"Hm?"

"Marry me."

Six months later…

The night was quiet, peaceful. The air outside was blowing against the window in a gentle breeze. Three figures were asleep, enjoying the pleasant silence. Happy was asleep in one of Lucy's drawers, Natsu was on their bed on his side with his back to his fiancée, and Lucy was on her back. Everything with her pregnancy was going perfectly, without a hitch. Their baby was healthy, and her due date was nearing. In fact, it should be any moment now. It was two in the morning when Lucy went into labor. She was instantly wide awake as she shot up to a slouched sitting position, hissing through her teeth. "Natsu," she gasped, slapping the mattress between them to get his attention. When he didn't respond, she placed a hand on his shoulder and shook him. "Baby, wake up." Natsu moaned and looked over his shoulder at her.

"Mm? What is it?" he asked, his voice slurred. Lucy cried out in agony, her hand fisting in his shirt.

"Natsu, the baby's coming," she said quickly through clenched teeth. He was immediately alert at her words, leaping off the bed. He stumbled and bumped into Lucy's dresser, waking Happy. He whined and looked up at the couple as Natsu helped Lucy off the bed.

"What's going on?" he asked sleepily.

"Happy, go get Lucy's jacket!" Natsu ordered, pointing to the living room.

"Why?"

"Happy…" said Lucy, looking at him through stressed eyes. She managed to pull off a weak smile. "It's time." Happy gasped excitedly like a kid on Christmas morning and immediately took off to grab her jacket. Lucy groaned and slammed a hand onto her fiancée's shoulder, squeezing it until her knuckles went white.

This isn't right. Natsu thought furiously to himself as he paced in the hall. Wendy and Porlyusica had told him to stay outside during the delivery. The reason? He had no fucking clue. His beloved fiancée was in that room, giving birth to his child, and he was out in the hall? No! He should be in there with her, holding her hand! This was wrong on so many levels. His highly sensitive ears could pick up the sounds of her screaming, and it was driving him crazy. He wanted to be in there, he needed to be in there. Happy was perched on a chair beside the door, watching him as he stalked back and forth. He'd given up trying to calm him down.

It seemed like an eternity until the door to that room finally opened, and Wendy stepped out. She opened her mouth to speak, but Porlyusica brushed passed her and beat her to the punch. "I am done for the night," she said strictly. Without saying anything else, she left, her footsteps gradually fading as she walked down the hall. Natsu turned to the smaller Dragon Slayer.

"Is she okay?" he asked, anxiety prominent in his eyes. Wendy smiled.

"She's fine, Natsu-san," she said softly. She was visibly holding back a large smile, trying to keep it subdued as a grin. Her eyes sparkled as she looked up at him, gesturing to the room behind her. "Would you like to meet your daughter?" Natsu felt his heart clench. Daughter? He had a daughter? Oh, somebody pinch him! Actually, don't do a damn thing! He nodded slowly, his mind still trying to fully register the fact that he now had a daughter. Wendy giggled and opened the door, stepping aside to let him in. He carefully stepped inside, his eyes trailing across the room until they landed on the last bed on the right.

There sat Lucy with a thick white blanket over her legs. She was smiling fondly at something in her arms, and it didn't take a rocket scientist to figure out what that something was. The floor creaked beneath his feet as he approached her, catching her attention. She looked up at him and her smile grew considerably. "Natsu…" she said softly. "Come here." The Dragon Slayer had to remind himself how to breathe as he did as told and stepped up to her bedside, his eyes never wavering from the small, sleeping child in her arms. Lucy looked down at the baby, and back up at her fiancée. "Wanna hold her?" she asked sweetly. A small smile curled onto Natsu's lips as he nodded his head. He leaned forward and carefully took the small child into his arms, holding her against his chest.

He'd never seen such a small child. And he never imagined that a newborn baby could be so… beautiful. She was the most beautiful thing he'd ever seen – save Lucy, of course. He couldn't stop the goofy grin from spreading across his face as he stared down at his daughter's sleeping face. Her skin was lightly tanned, and she had the finest pink hair among her head. He lifted a hand to her face and grazed his fingers against her cheek, reveling in the softness of her skin. He quickly took notice with a smirk that his hand was massive compared to her, his palm alone being bigger than her head. He released a breathy laugh. Such a tiny little thing.

The child stirred in his arms, making that cute noise that only a newborn can make, and slowly opened her eyes. They were a dark, chocolate-y brown, just like her mother's. She blinked at him innocently, making his heart melt. "She's gorgeous…" he whispered. Lucy laughed lightly and nodded her head.

"She is," she agreed, looking up at his face. She'd only seen that far-off look in his onyx eyes a couple of times, and it was something she loved to see. He was wearing that adorable half smile, showing off one of his sharp fangs. She sighed. "You know," she began, pushing herself up into a more comfortable position. Natsu glanced down at her, but found it incredibly hard to tear his attention away from his daughter for more than a couple of seconds. "We still have to name her." That sentence, however, caught his full attention. He looked down at the blonde-haired beauty.

"What… did you have in mind?" he asked curiously. Lucy tilted her head, pursing her lips in thought. After a silent couple of seconds, she smiled and turned back to him.

"I like Nashi." Natsu thought about that for a moment. He grinned and looked back at his daughter, who was taking a look around the room with those big, expressive eyes that eerily mirrored her mother's. He held out his index finger to her. She looked down at it with interest, gurgled cutely, and then wrapped her whole hand around it, causing his heart to constrict for the zillionth time that day.

"Nashi…" he murmured with the gentlest smile Lucy had ever seen on his face. "I love it."

"It's settled then," said Lucy. "Her name is Nashi." His gentle grin formed into a brilliant smile that showed off his bright white teeth, his fangs glinting.

"Hi, Nashi," he said to his daughter. Nashi grinned a toothless grin and squeezed her father's finger in her delicate hand. Natsu leaned down and placed a kiss on her smooth forehead. The child gurgled happily, which caused both of her parents to laugh. The father looked down at the mother, and he suddenly felt like the happiest man alive.

How in the world did he get so lucky?

Author's Note: Ne, mina!

WHOO! I have no idea what's with me and all of these mushy oneshots lately, but I LOVE IT! This was originally supposed to end right after she told him that she was pregnant, but then I decided I just couldn't end it there.

Well, I hope you guys liked it just as much as I do! Let me know in a review! Review are loved and greatly appreciated!