Dragon in Shining Armour (COMPLETE)

Chapter 34

A few days had passed, and even though Natsu and I had kept in contact, somehow I still felt lonely. I had just gotten out of the shower and was making lunch when I heard a knock on the door echo throughout my apartment. With raised eyebrows, I cracked the door to see a certain pinkette standing with a grin on his face. I opened my door wider and let him in, eyeing the white box in his hand.

"Luce! I'm really excited to give this to you, and I couldn't wait any longer." He laughed sheepishly, shoving the box into my hands.

"Natsu, you didn't have to get me anything." I stared at him as I reluctantly took the box.

"I wanted to! Open it!" He grinned at me moving us to the couch, where I sat down and took the lid off of the box. Behind a layer of white paper, a beautiful pink and gold embellished fabric shimmered. I pulled it out and sat in awe of the beautiful yukata I held in my hands. My eyes traced the golden flowers on the collar and sleeves, and I recollected the fabric I saw at Grandeeny's shop.

"It's beautiful." I whispered, running my fingers over the soft material. "But what is this for?" I turned and locked eyes with Natsu, who in turn gave me a lopsided grin.

"For the summer festival next weekend; I really wanted to go with you." A light blush dusted his cheeks as he thumbed the hem of his shirt nervously.

"You know you could've just asked." I deadpanned with a smile tugging at my lips. He flushed in embarrassment and opened his mouth for me to cut him off. "I'd love to go with you, Natsu. It sounds like fun." I gave him a reassuring grin before carefully placing the yukata aside and pulled him into a hug. He nuzzled into the crook of my neck and wrapped his arms around my waist.

"I love you Lucy." He said, muffled by my shoulder.

"And I love you too, Natsu." I smiled, feeling my heart skip at the words coming out of my mouth. He pulled away and cupped my cheek with his hand, placing a gentle kiss on my lips. I felt sparks ignite as I wrapped my arms around his neck, deepening our embrace. I felt his hands move away from my face and travel to rest on my hips. His fingertips slipped underneath the hem of my shirt as he gripped my bare hips, a low growl escaping his lips. I bit his lip and tugged on his hair, moving our bodies closer together. He pulled away with a smirk.

"Not yet." He whispered as he nibbled on my earlobe. I frowned and let out a frustrated huff.

"You're so mean." I pouted, crossing my arms. This made him chuckle.

"Do you want me to be mean? Cause I can be mean." A devilish look flashed in his eyes as he grabbed my arms and pushed me down on the couch. He held my wrists above my head with one hand, using his free hand to trace my lips with his thumb. I tried muttering something out in protest, but it seems my mouth and brain were on vacation, and I turned to putty underneath his sultry stare. He leaned down and I closed my eyes, half expecting a kiss. "Not yet, Luce" He whispered against my neck as I felt the pressure of his body lift off of me. I saw him grin as he walked to my kitchen to open up the fridge.

I crossed my arms and huffed, lifting myself off the couch to follow him. A smirk danced on my lips as I silently made my way behind him snaking my arms around him; dangerously close to the waistline of his jeans. I felt his body tense under my touch as I trailed kisses up his back, standing on my toes to kiss his bare neck. I heard him shudder and his grip on the door handle visibly got tighter. I giggled as I slipped away to grab a granola bar from the cupboard. Turning on the TV, I retired to the couch; Natsu following close behind.

"I have a few errands I have to run later. Do you wanna come with me?" I said casually, glancing his way, only to be met with piercing emerald eyes. He tilted his head and parted his lips as to say something, but then paused.

"Of course, I'll go with you Luce." He gave me his normal toothy grin, and leaned forward to give me a chaste peck on the lips. I smiled and cuddled up to him, watching the remainder of the movie in a comfortable silence.

"I'm going to go change really quick, ok? I'll be back in a minute." I smiled at him as I got up from the couch. He nodded, returning my smile, and I made my way to my bedroom, shutting the door part way. I grabbed a pair of cut off jean shorts and a black crop top and put half of my hair up into pigtail buns. I threw on my white converse and grabbed my backpack style purse and walked out to meet a patiently waiting Natsu.

"Ready?" He said eyeing me up and down. I nodded and grabbed his hand, locking the door behind us. I received a few curious glances from the Joe, the cashier who I bought my wine from, when we walked into the supermarket hand in hand. I grinned and gave him a small wave as we proceeded down the aisles, following the list I had written out. After an hour, we had a cart full of the necessities like toilet paper, milk, and ingredients for the next weeks' worth of dinner. On top of said necessities, junk food and snacks were piled high from everything Natsu had thrown into the cart, deeming them necessities as well. I chewed my lip as we passed the alcohol isle, shelves full of hundreds of different kinds of booze. I eyed the spot where my go to wine had been restocked and made a quick detour to grab a bottle, before moving to the checkout lane.

"Finally got you a boyfriend, Lucy? He better treat you right." Joe said with a grin, eyeing Natsu who was looking hungrily at the candy in front of him. I grinned at him as he finished scanning the last few things in my cart.

"He will, Joe, don't worry. He's been my best friend through everything." I said reassuringly, fishing my wallet out of my backpack to pay.

"And only one bottle of wine this time? I can tell you're feeling better." He smirked, earning a glare from me, silencing him. He gave me my total and I paid, Natsu loading all the bags back into the cart. He gave me my change and my receipt and I waved to him as we walked out of the store and back to Natsu's car. He loaded all the groceries into his trunk and once we were alone in the front seats, he broke the silence.

"Lucy how much did you drink when you went MIA?" He said, turning to me. I sighed and looked out the window, avoiding his gaze. He reiterated his question when I felt his hand on mine.

"I drank enough." I sighed, still not meeting his gaze.

"That's not a good answer, Luce." He said, rubbing his thumb over my knuckles. I turned to look at him with guilty eyes.

"I was lonely, by myself with all my terrible thoughts. So I drank to keep them... distant." I said with a shaky voice. "I bought this bottle to share with you over dinner though; not for the same reasons I drank before. Don't worry, Natsu." I gave him the most reassuring smile I could muster. He must have been pleased enough with my answer, because he dropped the topic and kissed me on my forehead. He started his car and we drove back to my apartment in a comfortable silence, his hand never leaving mine.

Ahhhh its been like a week since I updated last, gomen! Life has been really busy per usual and I never get enough time to devote to just sitting down and writing, so I have like one paragraph of ch 35 done lol oops. Aaa summer festival chapter will be so full of fluff <3 book will be coming to a close soon (as soon as I can figure out how to wrap it up at least) Let me know how you're liking the story so far in the comments! Follow, vote, and add to your library so you dont miss any updates! See you in the next chapter!~

As always, Fairy Tail and all of it's characters belong to Hiro Mashima!~