The other night there was a huge monsoon. As I sat, watching the rain and lightning and jumping occasionally at the loud cracks of thunder, I thought to myself, "What if Juvia was ironically afraid of thunderstorm?" And then this happened. It's a Gajeel and Juvia comfort/friendship story, with implied GaLe and one-sided GrUvia. Lots o' good sappy Gajeel in here, so enjoy!
Outside, the rain poured down. The lightning flashed and the thunder echoed through the pitch-black night.
Inside Juvia Lockser huddled in the corner of her bathroom at Fairy Hills, her blanket over her head as she shivered with fear.
It was ironic, wasn't it? At least Juvia had always thought it so: the water mage, the rain woman no less, who was afraid of thunderstorms.
Another crack of thunder rang out. Juvia squeaked, huddling further into her corner. She hadn't been in a thunderstorm this awful before and she was beginning to believe she would die of fear before the night ended. Tears began to roll in rivulets down her cheeks, her bottom lip quivering. She could see the headlines in the newspaper now: "Fairy Tail Mage Brought Down by Measly Storm".
A resounding knock came at her apartment door, jarring her from her thoughts. Juvia screamed.
"Juvia? Are you there? Are you alright?!"
It was Gajeel, the only person who knew of her irrational fear. Now that Juvia thought about it, it had been her and Gajeel's first real meeting when he had found out – she had just recently joined Phantom Lord. She remembered having just come back from one of her first missions to find the town covered in ominous clouds threatening to spill over with rain any minute. She had tried to get back to her apartment before the oncoming storm. She had not succeeded.
Gajeel had been walking home when found her, eyes squeezed tightly shut and hands clapped down over ears, hiding in an alley. The rain had been heavy, not unlike the feeling in her legs keeping her from moving from her hiding spot. He had carried her to his apartment and kept her safely there until the storm had passed. Their friendship had only grown from there.
"Juvia! Please, let me in."
"C-come in," Juvia called out meekly, her voice cracking as more tears came to her eyes. "It's o-open."
She heard the sound of the door opening softly followed by heavy footsteps. From the crack in her bathroom door she could see Gajeel looking around hurriedly. When he didn't see anyone in the main room his attention turned to the only place left. The bathroom door opened and Gajeel rushed in. As he was about to ask her how she was doing, more thunder cracked and a bolt of lightning so bright it rivaled Laxus' powers lit up the bathroom. And then the lights went out.
Gajeel quickly ran out of the bathroom, rummaging through cabinets and closets until he found some candles and matches. He brought them into the bathroom, lighting and placing them all around the small space. Then he sat down next to Juvia and pulled her in close to his side. She buried her face in his shoulder. Together they sat, the hammering rain and Juvia's soft whimpers the only sounds.
"I'm sorry I wasn't here sooner," Gajeel said finally.
"I-it's alright. Juvia is fine." She yelped at another loud explosion.
Gajeel rolled his eyes, but put his other arm around her. She repositioned herself so her head was in his lap and he began to run his hand soothingly through her blue locks. "Like hell you're alright. I know you, Juvia. You were probably about to piss yourself before I got here."
Juvia's hands flew to her face. "If Gajeel-kun thinks he's making Juvia feel better, he is not."
Gajeel sighed again. "Just trying to lighten the mood."
"Juvia knows. She thanks Gajeel-kun for coming."
The pair fell into another comfortable silence. Gajeel continued to run his hand through her hair. Juvia shivered and he pulled the blanket up around her shoulders, tucking her in like a child. He looked down at her tear stained cheeks and her red-rimmed eyes. At the moment, she really did look like a child. This was not Juvia Lockser, the S Class Fairy Tail wizard, the previous water element of the Phantom Lord Element 4, one of the strongest mages he had ever known. Right now she was Juvia Lockser, the frightened young woman who just needed someone to hold and comfort her, who just needed a friend to be there with her to weather the storm.
Gajeel was thankful she trusted him enough to be that person.
He began to hum, a soft melody that his mother had sung to him as a child. It had always made him feel better, now he hoped it would help Juvia as well. He felt her breathing evening out as he lulled her to sleep. Her hands finally released the sheets from their death grips and her body relaxed, all tension flowing away like the rain. Her face looked peaceful and it suddenly hit him just how beautiful Juvia was. His heart might have belonged to Levy, but he could still appreciate beauty when he saw it. He thought about how lucky Gray would be if he would just give her a chance. He chuckled softly; that boy didn't know what he was missing.
Eventually the storm started to sound like it was passing, but then a new wave of rain arrived and brought along with it more deafening thunder and brilliant lightning. Juvia's eyes flew open as she bolted upright. Her eyes darted around as she struggled to remember where she was. Gajeel pulled her back to his chest, letting his steady heartbeat soothe her. She turned around to meet his gaze and tears sprung to her eyes.
"You're still here?" she asked incredulously.
He leaned forward, placing his forehead against hers. "Juvia, I will always be here for you. You know that, right?"
Juvia nodded, her hands clutching at the fabric of his shirt. "Yes, Juvia knows." She paused. "Does Gajeel-kun know Juvia will always be there for him too?"
He simply hugged her tighter.
Gajeel felt the front of his shirt soaking through with her tears, but at that moment he couldn't have cared less. He wrapped his arms around her and let her cry. And cry she did.
When her eyes could cry no more, and she began to fall back to sleep in his arms, he picked her up and carried her to her bed. He pulled the sheets back and lay her gently down before pulling them back up and tucking her in once more. He placed a kiss on her forehead and turned to move to her couch, where he had planned to watch over her for the rest of the night. Before he could get anywhere, a small hand tugging at the hem of his shirt, keeping him moving forward, stopped him.
"Please don't go."
Gajeel looked back to see Juvia's wide blue eyes, sparkling with unshed tears, pleading with him to stay. She cringed as another significantly smaller but still earsplitting crack of thunder echoed in the small apartment. He couldn't say no to her.
Juvia scooted over making room for him to crawl in next to her. He pulled the covers over both of them. She curled into him as he wrapped his arms around her. He began rubbing soothing circles into her back, the rain outside dropping to a mere pitter-patter against the windowpanes. Softly he whispered, "Tomorrow, I'll be here when you wake up. You know what else will be? Blue skies. You like blue skies."
"Yes, Juvia does. They remind her of Gray-sama."
Gajeel scoffed. "I still don't know what you see in stripper." Juvia giggled. Gajeel smiled into her hair, glad that she was finally calming down.
"Could you hum that song again?" she asked.
So Gajeel hummed and Juvia fell asleep and Gajeel fell asleep. And the next morning they woke up, Juvia still wrapped in his arms and Gajeel immediately complaining about how he was hungry. They ate a breakfast of pancakes and bolts, and Juvia commented on how the blue sky reminded her of her beloved Gray as Gajeel tried to keep said breakfast down. Eventually they went their own ways.
But neither of them would forget their promises to always be there for each other. Sometime in the future they would need each other again, and they would both be ready. Whatever the future held in store for them, together they could weather any storm.
So? What did you think? Not too sappy I hope? Let me know in a review, I would really appreciate it!