AN: Continuation of my Effulgence piece (Read Chapter 6: Day 6: Efflulgence) Sorry for the inconsistencies? Idk but I just wrote this and I haven't edited this carefully. Maybe tomorrow I'll edit again when my eyes feels not so fuzzy anymore.

Day 7: Future

Despite his childish behavior and dense attitude, Natsu Dragneel always wanted to have a family of his own. According to him, he'd like to be married and have three kids with the person he loves. For the house, he'll have to renovate his existing home with Happy so that it'll have enough room for his future family. He'll go to a lot of missions so that he could save and provide for his family's needs. Of course, he'll provide not only materialistic needs but also the love and care that he'll be more than willing to give to his beloved family. Lastly, he had always hoped that his future family would be able to live in a bright and peaceful world.

As a matter-of-fact, his ambitions were becoming more detailed especially when Lucy came crashing to his life.

He tried not to freak out when he realized that he was seeing Lucy as his future wife in his dreams. There was one time that he almost burned his house due to embarrassment because he imagined his three kids with blonde and pink hair. There was also one time that he subconsciously expanded his house and if it weren't for Happy's curiosity, he'd never snap out of his trance. But then he continued expanding anyway because he thought that it would be nice to have some change in his house (even if he frequently stays at Lucy's apartment).

He finally came in terms with his feelings after they came back from Tenrou. Of course, who would be so stupid to waste another chance to be with someone you most care about? And he was pretty sure that he could not imagine his future wife as someone else than Lucy. It should be Lucy.

After realizing his feelings, he felt so stupid for dragging it for so long. Life is short so he should keep her close! But he also knew that Lucy wanted to explore more about magic so he can't just ask her to marry right away. He wasn't even that sure if she'd agree—and supposing that she would agree, he'd let her do what she wanted to do first as an individual. He could wait for marriage but he won't be letting go of her.

But alas, this hellish nightmare had forced him to confess his feelings in an unromantic way. Seriously, in a battlefield and Lucy only has one hand left? Why did this event have to happen in such an unromantic place? He thought that this wasn't what Lucy wanted if they're going to confess to one another but beggars can't be choosers.

'I love you.'

'I love you, too.'

He was happy. He was supposed to be happy. But why is it that the tears were unstoppable? Was it tears of joy or tears of regret? He did not know anymore. He was angry at the fact that there's a high chance that his plans for the future would not ever come. That he could never let Lucy see his newly renovated house which was done for her; that he could never see Lucy in her wedding dress in their own wedding; that he could never see what his kids with Lucy look like—

That he could never kiss his Lucy again after this battle.

After running away from the authorities for their little 'drama' at the middle of the street, Natsu and Lucy went into an outdoor café. The café was at the heart of the city yet it was green and lush with ornamental plants. It had a calming effect on people who wanted relaxation and peace badly. They sat on the corner of the café near the koi pond. Natsu pulled a chair and gestured Lucy to sit. Lucy smiled as she gladly took his offer.

"When did you become such a gentleman?" Lucy grinned as she watched Natsu sit down across from her.

"Hey, you're my girlfriend so I'm obliged to do that." He turned away while resting his chin on the joint of his wrist with a small blush on his face.

"Who told you that I was your girlfriend?"

"Wha—" Natsu was left dumbfounded until the blonde in front of him laughed and waved her hand away.

"Kidding. The look on your face was hilarious though."

Natsu pouted and Lucy found it cute.

"Actually, you're right."

"Hmm?" Lucy tilted her head in confusion.

"You're not my girlfriend… in this time."

Lucy snorted at his statement. She leaned closer as she tucked some strands of her blonde hair into her ear. "Seriously, Natsu?"

Natsu puffed his cheeks at the blonde's response.

"And here I thought I'd finally have a boyfriend…" Lucy frowned. "I waited for centuries, you know?"

Natsu's gaze softened as he leaned towards the blond and brushed his thumb into her cheeks. "Sorry for the long wait." He cupped her face and she leaned to his touch in reply.

Finally content with their current situation, Natsu removed his hand from her cheek and moved it to her right hand. The right hand that was lost when they battled the damn dragon that killed them in their past life. He gripped it firmly and smiled.

"Good thing it's back."

"Yeah." Lucy shuddered at the memory. Even after passing through a lot of incarnations, she could still remember the pain of losing her right arm.

"Even though our guild marks are gone." Their lips were tightly closed as they remembered what happened to their nakama. It wasn't a good memory but at least they still carry everyone's will by remembering them.

"I've always wondered…" Lucy's gaze moved from the table to Natsu and back to the table. "Why are our memories still intact?"

"No idea."

"Maybe the gods took pity on the two lovers who were bravely fighting despite chaos and despair." She closed her eyes and waited for Natsu to tease her for her cheesy answer.

"But you know, I'm glad that I still have my memories when I was a mage with me."

Lucy smiled. Until today, she wasn't sure if the memories of her past life were true or not. But after meeting with Natsu, the one who changed her life, everything just made sense. And she was glad that she's not the only one in this world who was reincarnated a lot of times searching for her beloved. Most of the time, their incarnations do not meet in the same era. For example, if Lucy died in a certain era, Natsu will be born after she died. They never met again after they fought the dragon. It has been going on for centuries and they have witnessed how the world has changed. Fiore was long gone and the locations where they were reincarnated vary so it lessens the probability of them meeting.

And now, here they are. Casually talking in a nice café and savoring each second that they are together.

"I'm glad, too."

Natsu suddenly remembered his plans when he was Natsu Dragneel of Fairy Tail.

"You know Lucy, I expanded my house in Fiore back then."

"Really?"

"Yeah."

"Why?"

"For you."

Lucy blushed.

"Why for me?"

Natsu glanced at the pond and talked. "Since I was a young boy, I have always dreams of creating a family of my own in the future. I was an orphan and I never found Igneel again so I was hoping to have a family that I will give my heart and soul to. And since that fateful day in Hargeon—" Natsu looked at Lucy.

"Since that fateful day in Hargeon, the images of the future that I craved for has you in it." He chuckled in embarrassment. "The faceless wife that I imagined over and over became you. Heck I almost burned my house because I was not able to control my feelings. Why? Because I caught myself imagining what our babies would look like."

"Oh my God, you sounded like Mira!" Lucy pointed a finger at the blushing Natsu. They both laughed.

"So the reason why I expanded the house was because…uhh actually I wasn't fully conscious back then. I snapped back to reality when Happy asked what I was doing." He grinned shyly while rubbing the back of his neck.

Lucy was speechless. His instincts were shouting his love for her and she did not even notice. Well, not that she went to his house that often because it was them who come over her apartment frequently.

"Shit happened so we weren't able to use the house." Natsu frowned.

"But Natsu, that's just a house."

Natsu furrowed his brows in confusion. Did she not feel anything when he told her that he wanted to have a family with her? And the expansion of the house did not affect her at all? "Wha—"

"A house could be built again. But us meeting again is a one in a million chance. We already died a lot of times, Natsu. And after the battle with the dragon, I never got to even glance at you in my succeeding lives. So I'm just happy that finally, I get to see and feel you." She gripped his hand while smiling at him.

At that moment he felt stupid. He finally admitted that he's stupid. Was he finally agreeing with the stupid ice prick's insult? Anyway, was that stupid house more important than her? Not a chance. With hooded eyes, he stood up and went towards Lucy's side. Lucy was confused as to why Natsu left his chair because obviously they need to catch up more. But her eyes went as wide as dinner plates when he kneeled beside her. He took her hand and looked directly at her eyes.

"I don't care anymore so I'll skip a lot of things. I've waited long enough."

"Nat…su?"

"Lucy."

"H-hey isn't this… uhm kinda embarrassing?" Lucy noticed that the other people present at the café have focused all of their attention on them. She shifted uncomfortably in her seat.

Natsu ignored her question and started to ask the one question that he has been meaning to ask for a very long time.

"Will you marry me?"

Squeals could be heard all over the café while Lucy blushed very hard. She felt her stomach doing some flip flops and her heart rammed violently against her chest. 'He did skip a lot of things!'

Lucy was not aware that she was already crying until Natsu pointed it out for her. "Lucy, why are you crying? You don't want to marry me?" She shook her head and reached for her salmon-haired idiot.

"Baka, of course I will!" They both grinned as they kissed passionately in each other's arms. The whole café cheered while the two continued to ignore their surroundings. It turns out that the kiss in the battlefield was not their last kiss afterall. 'Suck it, fate.'

Finally, Natsu will have the future that he wanted since his first incarnation as a fire dragon slayer. It doesn't matter if they do not have magic anymore or if the Fairy Tail guild's gone but as long as they're together, things would be more fun.

As for their nakama, they knew that they're just somewhere living out their new lives. Natsu and Lucy were not sure if their guildmates' memories were still intact but it doesn't matter anymore. They were sure that if they ever meet again, they'll become family again. It'll be awesome though if ever they met everyone once more, memories or no memories at all. But the two thought it will be a lot cooler if everyone in Fairy Tail would still have their memories from back then. If Natsu and Lucy's memories were retained, it'll be possible for the other guild members, too so they should never cross out that possibility.

"Sorry about the ring. I'll give it to you soon."

"Who proposes at the first meeting? And without the ring!"

"And who agrees to marry a stranger?"

"Geez, you cunning dragon."

"And you love this cunning dragon."

"…Fine."

Natsu showed off his toothy grin as he intertwined his fingers with Lucy's and lead her out of the café.

AN2: Last of the NaLu week prompts! Thanks for reading! :)