Work Text:
Lucy had never thought there would be a day when she would willingly let Natsu sleep in bed with her. That didn’t stop him from trying, though. So many mornings she had found herself with their limbs tangled together in the sheets, where they hadn’t been the night before, and each and every time she’d demand for him to get out and not try that with her again.
He didn’t get it. Natsu didn’t see the problem with sharing a bed with her. They were friends; that’s what friends do, but Lucy didn’t share that sentiment.
Natsu was a guy. It was indecent for her to share a bed with a man out of wedlock, and it was made all the more embarrassing when she just happened to have a teensy tiny little crush on that man. She couldn’t sleep knowing he was laying there next to him, feeling his body heat emanating from him. The feeling should have brought comfort, made her feel safe, knowing that no one could hurt her while she had her Natsu with her, but it did no such thing.
She was always so nervous. She was plagued with the fear that, in sharing a bed with him, she might find herself compelled to snuggle up to his chest, with her nose buried into the crook of his neck and her hand resting on his bare chest. It would be so humiliating to wake up with him like that. He’d figure out her feelings right away and not reciprocate, and it would ruin their friendship.
Though she supposed she didn’t have to worry about that now.
"Luucccyyyyyy," Natsu drawled from across the room, pulling her attention away from her manuscript on the desk. "Come to bed. ‘M tired."
"You don’t have to wait for me, you know," Lucy hummed, letting her pen scratch against the paper as she spoke. "You can go to sleep without me. I don’t mind."
"Don’t wanna," he replied. "I wanna cuddle before we go to sleep."
Cuddles… Yeah. Those sounded nice.
Placing her pen back down, Lucy looked over at him, having made himself comfortable on her bed, leaving her spot empty for her to crawl under the sheets with him, as had become routine.
She could see his face light up as he heard the click of her desk lamp shutting off and saw her stand from her chair and saunter over to join him in bed. He eagerly pulled back the sheets for her, and Lucy wasted no time in cozying up to his chest, relishing in the feeling of his hands slipping around her torso and pulling her closer.
She tilted her head back to look up at him, and in turn, he nuzzled his nose against hers, eliciting a sweet giggle from her lips. Natsu responded in turn by placing a soft kiss against them, feeling Lucy’s smile against his own. She loved moments like this, the ones that were made just for her, where her rowdy, rambunctious Natsu became soft and gentle, only for her.
Her hands found purchase on his scalp, her fingers running through his tresses, enjoying the way his soft locks felt against her skin and the deep rumble of enjoyment in his chest it elicited. His eyelids began to sink in enjoyment, and she couldn’t contain the wide smile that crossed her face.
"What’s with that face?" He asked, his eyes fluttering back open to be met with her little grin as she looked up at him.
"Nothing," Lucy murmured. "You just look really cute right now."
Even in the low light, she could make out the flush forming on his cheeks, and she had to purse her lips to hold back the laugh and the evident smile of her growing ego.
She, Lucy Heartfilia, had made the big bad Natsu Dragneel blush.
All because she thought he was cute.
"Yeah, well, you’re pretty cute too," he mumbled, averting his gaze in an attempt to hide his embarrassment at her comment, but Lucy wasn’t going to let him get away that easy.
"And you’re handsome too," she purred, dragging her nails softly across his scalp in time with her words for emphasis.
It seemed her plan worked a charm as he tried to bury his face in her hair to hide the rapidly increasing heat in his cheeks.
"Luuccyyyy," he whined, not quite knowing how to react to her sudden stream of compliments.
"What? Why are you being so bashful?" She teased, bringing one hand down to poke him lightly in the chest for emphasis.
"It’s ‘cause I like you," he murmured.
She simply chortled at his choice of words.
They were well past like at this stage.
That, of course, didn’t stop the blush from forming on her own cheeks as she heard him speak the words out loud.
"I like you too," she spoke, her words little more than a whisper, saved for his ears only.
"Yeah?"
"Of course I do."
"You’re blushing now too," he pointed out once he finally mustered up the courage to face her once more.
"You were blushing first," Lucy retorted.
"Yeah, but you’re blushing harder."
"I am not!"
Natsu didn’t reply. Instead, he rolled over onto his back, pulling Lucy with him, making her shriek out in surprise, to which he cackled in response. She tried to wiggle her way out of his grasp, but his hold on her was much too tight to escape, and the harder she tried, the stronger his grip got and the more he laughed at her.
"You are such a pain!" She whined, finally giving in to his hold and letting herself relax in his chest, nuzzling into the space between his shoulder and neck.
"Yeah, but you like me, don’tcha?"
She couldn’t really argue with that; after all, liking him was how she ended up sharing a bed with him anyway.
Maybe waking up in tangled limbs with him was okay, provided they could fall asleep that way too.
With his grip on her loosened, Lucy slipped off of his chest and onto the mattress beside him, keeping one arm thrown over his chest and a leg intertwined with one of his own. Her head rested on his chest, where she heard the calming thump, thump, thump of his heart.
The one that belonged to her.
As her eyes fluttered shut, one thought permeated her brain as she felt herself drift off in his arms.
She would sleep good tonight.