Disclaimer:
I do not own anything but my own storylines.
song "Kiss the Girl" by Ashley Tisdale from The Little Mermaid
Summer Love: Gruvia
Kiss the Girl
"Has anyone seen Juvia?" Gray asked. It suddenly dawned on him that the blue-haired girl who was always clinging onto him was no where near him today. It felt very strange.
"Why?" Natsu said with a smug smile on his face. "You miss your girlfriend already?"
"Can't bare to have her not always clinging onto you?" Gajeel piped in.
Gray scoffed, putting a bored look on his face, "That's not it. I'm just curious. Whatever."
"Denial~," Natsu and Gajeel said in a sing-song voice. "Gray and Juvia, sitting in a tree, K-I-S-S-"
"SHUT UP!" Gray landed a hard punch in each of their faces. He pointed accusingly at Natsu, "You're the one who insisted we go over Lucy's house 'cause you always have to be with her." Then at Gajeel, "And you only came along 'cause you know Levy would be here. Now who misses their girlfriends now?"
Natsu pounced up and pointed back, "You knew Juvia would be here as well so that's why you came!"
Gajeel said, "Then the second she's not by your side you panic."
"I asked one question! That doesn't mean anything!"
"She's got you bad, Stripper!"
"Just admit it, Ice Princess!"
Lucy spotted the boys all set in their stances so she took action, punching them well in the heads. "THERE WILL BE NO FIGHTING IN MY HOUSE!"
"Yes, Lucy," they obeyed, scared that she can sometimes be another Erza, who (luckily for them) wasn't here at the moment.
Lucy exasperatedly sigh, shaking her head, "Why did I agree to this?"
"Because you can't help but love us," Levy winked.
"I guess that's true," Lucy admitted, settling down next to Levy, "It's always more fun with you guys."
"Especially when you got me!" Natsu popped up next to her and slacked his arm around Lucy's shoulders. Lucy scowled and hit him in the chest for scaring her, but didn't shake off his arm, even settling into it.
Lucy, Levy, Juvia, Natsu, Gajeel, and Gray were all over Lucy's house to spend the day. It was summer vacation and they had nothing to do. And whenever that happens, Lucy's house is always the spot to go. She lived in a big house and a huge basement that served as their hangout. There were plenty of stuff to do, games, eat, drink, just hang out.
But with these guys, they can turn anything simple to crazy.
"Hey, Gray," Lucy called. "Juvia left a while ago saying she needed to take a little walk."
Gray frowned, "Huh. Why didn't I notice?"
Levy deadpanned, "'Cause you were too busy trying to defeat Natsu and Gajeel at a stupid game."
"Hey, it ain't a stupid game. Anyway, did she tell you where she was going?"
Lucy shrugged, "She said just a walk around." One side of her mouth curled up into a smirk, "Why? You worried?"
Gray snorted, "Hmph, of course not. What is there to worry about?"
Levy pointed out, "I heard Lyon was in the area."
"Say what?!" Gray reacted instantly to the name and stood up abruptly.
The girls giggled and the boys snickered, making Gray pout and dropped himself back into the couch cushion. "Like I care," he grumbled.
"Suuure~" the others rolled their tongue, teasing him.
The doors to their hangout suddenly opened and their missing friend entered. "Hey, guys!" Juvia said. "Sorry I left like that. Just wanted to get out for a bit." She looked around and saw they setting really weird.
There were multiple clusters of seats and couches spread out in the basement. That was because whenever Lucy has friends over, the boys would do their own thing while the girls did theirs in separate places. Then the biggest cluster was in the middle for when they all came together.
Gray was in one while the others were all grouped together in another to the side, all with smug looks on their faces pointed at Gray who was pouting and muttering under his breath about something stupid. "Uh, did I miss anything?"
Lucy shrugged, the smirk never leaving her face. "Eh, nothing much." Natsu beside her was trying to hold in a laugh, which she helped by elbowing him in the gut. "So where'd you go, Juvia?"
"Oh, just around town, getting some fresh air." Juvia walked around to sit across from Gray. "I like walking around this time of day in the summer."
"Why'd you get up and leave like that?" Gray asked. "I could've gone with you."
"Yeah, 'cause you can't stand not being with her," Natsu whispered to his group, causing another eruption of giggles but they stayed quiet to watch Gray and Juvia's conversation.
"Sorry, Gray," Juvia said apologetically. "I just...wanted to be alone for a while. Get some space, you know?"
Gray thought it was weird how she wanted to be alone. "Yeah, I guess."
"He was worried about you, Ju," Gajeel called out. "You should've seen the ice princess when he found out why you weren't clinging to him like usual."
Natsu put on a panicked look and imitated Gray, "Oh no! Where is my Juvia? I have lost my precious Juvia! I must find her, and protect her!"
"Shut it, fire prick!" Gray chucked his empty soda can at Natsu's head who dodged mockingly.
Juvia blushed, "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make you worry."
Gray's expression became more gentler, like it always did when he was talking to her. "It's alright. I wasn't too concerned," he turned away, his cheeks starting to warm up. "I knew you could protect yourself."
It was the girl's turn to tease Gray some more. Levy pointed out, "You should've seen him when I mentioned that Lyon was in the area. His reaction, though." Her index finger and thumb made an O while her other fingers flared out into a "perfect" hand sign.
"He was like this." Lucy abruptly got up from her seat like Gray had before and imitated his shock expression. "Say what?! That Lyon better not do anything to my precious Juvia!"
"Lucy!" Gray growled, chucking a pillow at her. Lucy didn't even try to dodge because Natsu was there to catch it and chuck it back at him. Levy also noticed this and put a mental note to use this later.
Juvia pouted at all the teasing and decided to mention, "I came back because I saw Lyon."
"Say what?!" And Gray did it again. "Did he say anything to you? Did he do anything to you? Did he?!"
Juvia giggled at how he reacted so protectively. "Nothing bad happened, Gray."
Gray heard the snickering again in the background and pretended to look like he didn't care much, flopping back onto the couch. "Whatever." But he asked anyway, "But something did happen." It was more like a statement.
Juvia shrugged, "He acted like usual when he saw me. 'Oh Juvia, my love, how it makes me so happy to see you again!'" She mimicked Lyon which made Gray chuckle. "I was like, 'Hi Lyon! Bye, Lyon!' and just ran the heck out of there."
Gray showed her a thumbs up, "Heh-heh, that's my girl!"
Whenever his cousin, Lyon, was around, he would always swoon around Juvia and it bothered Gray to see another guy be clingy to Juvia when she was always clingy with him. So Gray taught her to reject a guy hard and make it clear that she's not interested. The girl can be too nice sometimes.
The two continued to chat, completely forgetting that their other friends were around. They were suddenly reminded of their presences when a guitar played.
Juvia immediately recognized the song from the intro.
Natsu and Gajeel were playing their guitars while Lucy sang with Levy as back up, who also had her phone out.
Gray and Juvia tried to ignore them but then Lucy started singing the words.
There, you see her,
Sitting there across the way.
Gray met Juvia's eyes but then they both looked away, staring off in silence.
She don't got a lot to say,
But there's something about her.
She don't say a word,
But she won't say a word until you,
Kiss the girl.
"I am so gonna kill them all later," Gray muttered, burying his face into his hand. He clenched his fists to show Juvia he was serious. Juvia couldn't help but let out a giggle.
They cut to the chorus. The guitars strummed harder and Lucy sang louder, Levy doing backup vocals.
Sha, la, la, la, la, la,
My oh my!
Looks like the boy's too shy,
Ain't gonna kiss the girl.
Sha, la, la, la, la, la,
Ain't that sad, it's such a shame, too bad,
You're gonna miss the girl.
Go on and kiss the girl.
Levy emphasized the point and whispered the line again, "Kiss the girl."
Gray couldn't stand it anymore. These guys were embarrassing sometimes...most of the time.
"You wanna get outta here?"
"I could use another walk."
The two stood up together and headed towards the door.
Gajeel and Natsu hissed out encouragements respectively.
"Don't chicken out."
"Make your move."
With his back still turned against them, he gave them all the finger before exiting with Juvia.
Levy squealed, holding her phone. "EEEEP! This is priceless footage!"
"Perfect blackmail too," Gajeel said.
"Should we follow them? Natsu asked.
Lucy shook her head, "Nah. We've done enough, giving them a push in the right direction. Let's give them their space."
…
…
"Let's go." One look and they all came to a consensus, scrambling out the door.
"Seriously though. Imma give them a good torture the next time I see them," Gray stated as he and Juvia walked around town.
Juvia giggled, "I think I'll join you. They're seriously embarrassing sometimes."
"More like, all the time."
Juvia noticed the direction they were unknowingly going towards. "Hey, Gray, let's go to the beach."
"Huh?"
"It's almost sunset."
Gray nodded, knowing how much Juvia liked going to the beach when it was sunset. "Alright."
When they arrived, they took off their shoes and walked along the shoreline. Juvia breathed in deeply and spread her arms, twirling around. "I love the salty air. It's so refreshing."
Gray smiled at her, "You always did like the water." She was even dubbed "rain-woman" by Gajeel.
The sun was almost setting, casting it's colorful light on them. Gray now noticed Juvia in a different light. The way she walked along, skipping a little sometimes. Her wavy blue hair dancing in the wind.
She was wearing a white flowy tank top that showed her stomach a bit and lavender a high-low skirt. A gold forehead headband fit around her head adoringly. Her beachy outfit fit the setting. He himself was in a white collared shirt and cargo shorts.
She looks beautiful, the thought wandered into his head. But then she always is. Gray blinked and tried to shake the sudden thought away.
"You okay, Gray?" Juvia asked beside him.
Gray rubbed the back of his head, grinning, "Uh, yeah, I'm fine." Juvia didn't say anything more and continued to look at the approaching sunset.
Gray could see the faraway look in her eyes, something different from the usual cheerful look. "Hey, Juvia, why did you really go out alone before?"
"I just needed some fresh air...and some time alone."
"That's not like you to be alone. You hate being alone." Gray stood in front of her, making her stop. "You okay today, Juvia?" He noticed the first thing he saw earlier today that she didn't quite look as cheerful and jumpy as she usually was. She didn't jump and start clinging to him the second she saw him. He didn't think much of it until now.
"Of course I am."
"You seem a little...off today."
Juvia looked deep into his eyes and then away, silent. Gray could see a hint of sadness in her eyes. He put his hand under her chin and turned her head. "Hey, you can tell me." Now he was really worried. Juvia never hid anything from him. And usually he could read her easily like an open book. But not today.
Juvia let out a sigh and fully turned her body towards the sea. "Today's the anniversary of my parents' deaths ten years ago." She then turned her head towards him, showing a small smile. "Today's also the anniversary of when I met you and the others five years ago."
She looked longingly at the ocean again. "I always use this day to be alone and think. Think of how and why the worst and best things in my life happened on the same day...My mom always told me that things happen randomly and you can never know. It's weird. But there's always a reason why they happen when they do. That's what I think about. It's a day for me to be sad and happy. It's confusing. That's why I usually keep to myself on this day."
Gray never saw Juvia like this, so pensive in mood. It was so different. He hugged her from behind, with her back snuggled into him.
"It's okay, Gray," Juvia said, thinking that he thought she was sad. "I'm not sad."
"Maybe I just want to hold you," he responded.
Juvia turned around to lay her head against his chest, her hands on his shoulders. "I'm sorry. It's not even a bad thing, so I didn't want others to worry about me. I didn't want to drag you into my useless thinking."
"Hey, it's not useless," Gray said, now stroking her hair. "Whatever someone thinks about is important to them so it's not useless. I'm not one to judge."
They stood like that for a while, relaxing in each other's arms. The sun was just on the horizon now. "Hey, the sun's about to set," Gray said. "I've got the perfect place to watch it."
Breaking their embrace, Gray took Juvia's hand and led her further down the shoreline. A rocky part of the beach was soon visible. Gray led Juvia over some boulders laying out into the water to a large ledge that hung out towards the horizon. The whole time, their interlocked hands never left each other.
At the top, Juvia closed her eyes and breathed in deeply, taking in the view and the gentle sea breeze, with the crashing waves beneath them.
"This is beautiful," Juvia breathed.
"I knew you'd like it," Gray smiled.
"How did you find it?"
"I was just walking around myself and found it. Didn't tell anybody 'cause I wanted you to see it first."
Juvia blushed at how thoughtful he was. "Thank you." She laid her head on his shoulder with his arms around her, watching the sunset in a comfortable silence.
Just as the entire sun was about to go down, Gray turned Juvia around to place him, holding her hands.
"Gray?"
"I think I know why."
"What?"
"Even though you had a bad past, your life is still full of potential and happiness. And you meeting me and the others was a sign of that."
Juvia smiled, understanding, "And I'm happy I did."
"And now two more happy things are going to happen. Today." Gray smiled with a hint of slyness to it.
Juvia cocked her head cutely, "What?"
Gray leaned in further, making Juvia blush at how close their faces were. "Today's the day I do this," he said huskily. Kiss the girl.
He listened to the voice and kissed the girl in front of him. The girl that he had always loved but never admitted it.
Gray broke off after a while, leaving the blue-haired girl breathless but smiling. "And today's the day I say this: I love you, Juvia."
Juvia gasped. She was always in love with Gray and openly showed it too, being clingy and all that. But she never saw the day when he actually confessed too.
Tears of joy brimmed up to her eyes. "I love you too, Gray."
He chuckled, pulling her into a hug. "Yeah. I know."
...
A soft muffled sound rustled behind thick bushes, at least a dozen yards away from the rock ledge where the two lovers were embracing each other, enjoying their sunset.
"That…" Lucy sniffed, "was beautiful."
Levy was doing the same thing, hugging on to Lucy. "I know. They're so lucky."
The four had been watching from the bush a good distance away to watch the scene. Luckily for them Natsu and Gajeel had really good hearing so they were able to know every word.
The boys all had smug smiles on their faces, nodding their heads in approval of their friend's move. "Ha, never thought the stripper had the guts," Natsu smirked.
"I got all that on video," Gajeel proudly waved his phone.
The girls wiped their happy tears away. "Alright, let's really go now," Lucy said. "We should leave them be now that we know how it happened."
Levy tried to keep in an excited squeal, "Ah, I'm so happy for them."
...
The sun has now set completely, but the sky was still colored beautifully of purples, oranges, and pinks. The new couple hadn't let go of each other just yet.
Juvia sighed, "You felt it, didn't you?"
Gray deadpanned, "The feeling behind me the whole time."
"And you heard it?"
"They were never good at being quiet."
"Mm, especially Natsu and Gajeel."
"Especially." Gray looked at Juvia with another mischievous grin, "Payback time?"
Juvia offered a sly look of her own. "Oh yeah."
(A/N)- Whatcha think? Good? I have more summer love themes for the other couples if you guys want. Just review! Thanks! :)
