**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters depicted here from Fairy Tail**

Whitewater Ridge

"JUVIA!"

She could hear him scream her name over the rushing wind but he sounded so far away. Why was he so far away? What was happening? He sounded so desperate and scared.

"Gray…" she spoke but the wind rushing around her made her unable to even hear the sound of her own voice. Before she could think anything else or even comprehend what was going on her body hit the water.

So cold…

That was the first thought that came to her mind as her body became aware again of her surroundings. The winter water was freezing and felt as if icy fingers were slowly wrapping around her. Yet she wasn't as scared as she should have been, something about the way the freezing current wrapped around her as if an embrace eased her worries. Everything will be alright the very molecules of the sea seemed to speak from inside her this is where you belong.

It was so quiet under the surface of the sea. So peaceful. Slowly she opened her eyes and the world around her was blue. The rays of the sun shined through like ribbons twirling lazily around her. It was so beautiful. So much so that she easily pushed away the feeling of tightness that was building up in her chest as salty water stung her lips and started to fill her lungs.

When she opened her mouth only little bubbles of air came out and the world around her became slowly darker. Gray… her heart cried out as her invisible tears mixed with the waters of the sea My Beloved...Juvia is so sorry…

15 Minutes Earlier

Gray put his hands together stretching them above his head as he took in a deep breath of the cold winter air. He smiled as he looked up at the sky from the steps of one of the lecture halls of Magnolia University in Fiore. He had just finished his last final of the semester and now had a nice long two weeks of winter break to look forward to before school started up again. And Gray couldn't wait.

"Awe yeah!" Natsu yelled coming out behind him. He jumped down onto the step next to Gray putting his hands on his hips triumphantly, his bright pink hair blowing around in the chilly breeze. "End of the semester! I'm all fired up now!" he grinned; like a crazy fool in Grays opinion.

"Careful Natsu," he smirked "You're looking like an idiot in front of your princess again."

Looking over the man's cheeks flushed till their color matched the hue of his hair as he saw his long term crush, Lucy Heartfilia, walking down the sidewalk below with her friend Levy McGarden. Both girls giggled as they looked up at him.

"Hey Natsu! Hey Gray!" Lucy called with her typical bright smile.

"Hey." Gray replied with a nod as Natsu recovered from his initial embarrassment jumping up and sliding down the railing to the girls. Gray just shook his head sticking his hands into his pockets as he walked down the steps to join his friends. He was about to ask the girls how their finals had gone when all four of them had their attention pulled elsewhere by the loud sound of someone being slapped.

They all looked over to see another one of their friends, Juvia Lockser, standing by the railing that overlooked the ocean and the white waters of the rocky bed below. She was a new addition to their group, and though not a bad person sometimes she was more of a pain in Grays' ass than the flame brain pinky he was now standing next to. But despite her annoying clinginess and constant declarations of love to the dark haired man she was still a friend and his expression turned icy cold whenever he saw her upset by anything.

Standing in front of her with his thick black winter coat lined with grey fur stood Laxus Dreyar, a senior, his eyes full of lightning as he glared down at the determined looking bluenette he was towing over.

"What the hell do you…" he clenched his fist, the anger from being humiliated in front of all these people sparking across him like electricity. Juvia's determination faltered slightly as she took a step back from him grabbing onto the railing behind her. But her confidence returned quickly as her blue eyes peered straight up into the large blonde's with the intensity of the stormy sea.

"Laxus cannot come here and demand Juvia to go back to him." she said putting her hands on her hips. "Juvia does not like Laxus anymore. Juvia does not want to date Laxus ever again!"

Gray frowned taking a few steps forward through the crowd towards the scene, his friends following closely behind. Juvia had had a boyfriend? Not just any boyfriend but she had dated Laxus, the popular football star practically everyone on campus knew? To be honest Gray had never really thought about it before. When he first met Juvia in a History class last year - the middle of their freshman semester - for her it had apparently been lover at first sight. She sat next to him every day after that and always would run over and talk to him whenever she saw him on campus. She was a really nice girl but her infatuation was always annoying as hell. Considering this he never would have imagined she had had a boyfriend before, especially someone so high profile and as much of an ass when she was such a sweet girl.

Laxus smirked and took a step towards her once again closing the gap between them. "Come on Juv." he petitioned in a smooth voice, though Juvia clearly wasn't buying it. "You know you'll never find someone else like me. Just because we ended on a little bit of a rough patch doesn't mean we can't work things out my little river fairy." he smirked, using his old pet name for her that used to make her stomach fill with butterflies now just made her want to cry and hit him at the same time.

"No Laxus." Juvia snapped "Juvia doesn't want to. Juvia only came here to see her Gray and ask him how his finals were."

Laxus glared at the mention of another man's name and took another step forward intending to grab her around the waist and Juvia rose her hand to slap him once again. But this time Laxus caught her wrist hard and pain shot through her like lightning.

"How dare you…" he growled.

Gray and his friends moved quickly through the crowd to try and get to her.

"Juvia is not afraid of you!" she declared. Laxus was furious but before he could react he was distracted by Gray yelling as he approached.

"Hey scumbag!"

As soon as Laxus turned around he was greeted with a fist in his face causing him to stumble back a few steps and release Juvia's wrist. Putting a hand to his nose he looked back at Gray with a deathly glare. "Who the hell do you think you are?"

Gray ignored him as he had already moved to Juvia's side to make sure she was alright. "Gray…" she said surprised as Gray put his hands on each of her trembling shoulders. She blinked up at him in a daze for a moment before blushing embarrassed by what he had seen. "J-Juiva can explain this." she stammered.

She never got the chance as a second later Laxus, grabbed the back of Grays jacket and pulled him away from her. Laxus tried to punch Gray but the younger man ducked before shoving the senior back and stepping in front of Juvia protectively. Juvia grasped onto the back of Gray's jacket the fear seeping through her as she saw the look on Laxus' face. She was sure that if he had the power he would strike them down with lightning. Thankfully he did not.

"I'm going to smash your face into the ground punk!" Laxus threatened rolling his shoulders and cracking his knuckles.

"Just stay back Juvia." Gray ordered.

"But Gray…" she tried to protest but he simply reached one hand behind him placing it on her stomach and gently pushed her back until she released the back of his jacket.

"Just stay back okay Juvia."

"Oh yeah! A fight!" Natsu said as he went to jump in and help Gray but he was held back by Lucy and Levi.

"Natsu no." Lucy pleaded holding his arm.

An even bigger crowd was starting to gather as Laxus threw a punch. Gray dodged turning slightly to try and swing his elbow into his opponent's stomach. But Laxus saw it coming and this time instead of his elbow connecting, it was Laxus' elbow that slammed into Gray's face sending him flying back next to Juvia hitting the railing with a hollow thud.

"Gray! My darling!" Juvia gasped kneeling next to him, tears coming to her eyes as she noticed the blood trickling down the corner of his mouth. "Oh this is all Juvia's fault…"

But Gray simply pushed her back as Laxus came over to them grabbing Gray's shirt and this time landing his punch right in Gray's jaw. He pulled his arm back to do it again but was stopped when Juvia jumped on his back to get him away from her beloved. Laxus stood up grabbing her arms and tried to pull her off. Lucy, Levy and Natsu all ran over to Gray to make sure he was okay.

"If you wanted to tumble Juv, all you had to do was ask." he smirked grabbing her wrists hard again.

Juvia whimpered with the pain but kept her grip strong. She wouldn't allow him to harm her Gray. "What…? No! No!" Juvia blushed both embarrassed and angry at what her ex was suggesting. "Juvia will never do that. Juvia loves her beloved Gray and will never betray her love!" her declaration only further pissed off the blonde. Gripping tighter he yanked her arms apart and threw her off his back.

What happened next all happened so fast, yet for Gray the scene played out before him in painful slow motion. Juvia stumbled trying to regain her footing after being thrown off Laxus' back. Only a split second later Natsu had tackled Lauxs and the two of them feel to the ground punching the daylights out of each other.

When his focus turned back to Juvia his heart nearly stopped. Her backpack, that had been sitting on the ground next to where she had been waiting, caused her to trip. His legs couldn't move fast enough, he couldn't breath as he watched her fall back against the old wood railing causing it to break and send her tumbling over the edge.

"JUVIA!" he cried reaching out in a vain trying to grab onto something, anything. But she just keep falling until her body splashed into the water between two large grey rocks.

Without a second thought he yanked off his jacket taking a few steps back to get a running start to dive in.

"Gray no!" Lucy cried out at the same time that Levy screamed, "Stop Gray!". Both girls ran over grabbing an arm each to stop him from diving to his death.

"Please you'll die those rocks are dangerous!" Levy tried to plead with him as both girls struggled to keep ahold of him while he fought to get away.

"Juvia!" he yelled again fighting with all his might, making it harder for the girls to hold onto him. "She didn't hit the rocks! LET ME GO! JUVIA!" his brain was racing, he couldn't think of anything else other than he saw her body missing the rocks and that he had to get to her, had to save her.

With one last push he broke free and ran diving off the edge before he could be stopped again. As his body broke the water, barely missing a large jagged rock, he didn't even register the cold. The adrenaline was pumping and all he could think about was finding Juvia before it was too late.

When he couldn't find her on his first dive he was forced to come up for air. The cold air burned his lungs and almost as much as depriving them of oxygen. But he didn't have time to think about this and he took one long deep breath before diving in once again.

He swam down and down, the water getting so dark he felt panicked. He had to find her; he was running out of time. He was almost about to come up for air a third time when something caught his attention, something light blue floating in his peripheral vision the same color as Juvia's hair.

Turning quickly he finally saw her. The current slowly dragging her away from the rocky bed towards the open sea. Another rush of adrenaline kicked in and he swam as fast as he could towards her. The time seemed like an eternity, his lungs burned for air and he could feel himself getting dizzy from lack of oxygen. But he was so close. So close…

When he finally reached her he wrapped his arms around her waist tightly and began to furiously kick desperate to break the surface before he passed out. Dread began to sink in as he felt his body start to slow down and his vision began to dim. No. He fought the urge to give up. I can't give up I have to save her.

Finally he broke the surface and gasped for air.

He had to tread water there for much longer than he wanted, but he wouldn't be able to swim another inch until he caught his breath a bit more. As soon as he was able he started to move, swimming best he could while fighting to keep an unconscious Juvia above the water. The beach was only about a hundred yards to the south.

For Gray it felt like a thousand miles.

Every breath he took stung as the cold air hit his lungs. All he could think was one more stroke, just one more stroke.

As soon as his feet hit touched the sand he picked Juvia up one arm under her knees and the other around her back as he fought against the current till the water level was low enough to lay her down without the water covering her.

Dropping to his knees he leaned over to see if she was still breathing. She wasn't. Gray wasted no time in starting CPR. His mind was racing as he started compressions. "No no no…" he muttered to himself breathing hard and he pushed down over and over again. "Breath Juvia Damnit! I'm not losing you, not here, not now, not ever!" he stopped his compressions leaning down breathing twice into her mouth. There he said it….he couldn't lose her. Gray needed her, he needed Juvia. "Don't leave me please."

He felt so desperate as he continued his compressions again. His mind was filled with so many memories, all the little things he always overlooked about her. She was always there..

"Hi! Juvia would like to introduce herself!"

Gray jumped slightly startled by the sudden happy introduction. He looked up to see a smiling beautiful young woman with curled blue hair and dark blue eyes. He blinked surprised as she sat down next to him. "Uh hello."

She continued to smile as she started to pull out her book and a new notebook with a blue design of rain droplets on the front. He thought that was the strangest introduction he had ever gotten, not to mention her being such a forward girl. But she did have a very pretty smile.

Compression. Compression.

"My sweet Gray!"

He moaned putting his hand over his face not even having to turn around to see who it was.

"Who's that?" Natsu asked looking around Gray in the direction where Juvia was heading towards them.

He sighed. "My new stalker…"

Lucy giggled putting a hand on Natsu's shoulder to see the girl. "Well she is really cute."

"That's not the point Lucy." he grumbled as Juvia reached them. She slowed slightly as she came to Gray's side blushing a little as she realized Gray was not alone. "Hey Juvia." he said with a sigh.

"Hello." she said shyly nodding to each person there. "Juvia just wanted to bring Gray some some cupcakes she made for him." she held out the plate and Gray took it with a raised brow.

"Uh tha.." he couldn't even finish before she cut him off blushing horribly.

"Juvia has to go now!" then she ran off. He stared after her in disbelief. She was such a strange girl…

"Hey, these cupcakes are pretty good." Natsu said and Gray turned around to see Natsu taking a second cupcake to shove in his mouth.

"Hey!" he took it back kicking him in the leg. "Those are mine you stupid flame breath."

Compression. Compression. Compression.

"Hey Gray!" Lucy called through the crowd of people at the party where he had been waiting for them to show up. "Look who we brought!"

When Gray saw Juvia standing next to Lucy he wanted to moan but found himself very distracted. He had never seen her as an unattractive girl but he didn't really ever take time to notice how beautiful she really was. Tonight she was wearing a dark blue dress with thin straps that showed off her shoulders and beautiful fair skin. It hung loose but still accentuated her figure and came down just below her knees.

She smiled brightly, though still seeming shy around so many people. "Juvia is very happy to see Gray here."

Compression. Compression. Compression.

"Thank You." Juvia whispered and Gray finally turned around. She stood there still red as a tomato wearing his shirt. Their group at been at the beach with her when some guy got too grabby and broke a strap on Juvia's bikini top. Thankfully she covered it in time while also giving the pig a hefty right hook in the nose. Which Gray had been very impressed by. Natsu and Gray then proceeded to beat the daylights out of him and afterwards Gray had offered her his shirt to wear.

"No problem." he said with a shrug "sorry all we had was my stinky old shirt I had been wearing all day while we've been running around."

"It's just fine." she said and Gray swore she was blushing even deeper. "Juvia doesn't think Gray's shirt smells bad. Juvia thinks...Juvia thinks Gray smells very nice."

He shook his head and smiled slightly putting his arm around her shoulders. "You're funny girl Juvia. I'm glad you're okay."

Compression. Compression. Tears began to sting his cheeks.

He almost hadn't gone to class today because he was sure he would blow up at anyone who tried to talk to him. And of course today of all days was the day he had History with Juvia, the one day he couldn't avoid her at all. It was the anniversary of his mother's death and was always the worst day of the year for him. He just couldn't handle her today.

"Good morning Darling." she said cheerfully as sat down next to him. He tensed but didn't answer hoping maybe she would stop talking. He should have known better. She frowned. "Gray? Are you alright?"

"Yeah I'm just tired." he snapped back, "Would you leave me alone already."

Juvia just blinked surprised but said nothing more. She was very quiet for the next thirty minutes and he started to get frustrated. Knowing how sensitive she was he was worried she was going to cry and he could not handle a crying woman today. But, unexpectedly, she reached over putting her hand over his that had been gripping onto his thigh tightly. He hadn't even realized he had been doing it. But as soon as she did that he felt himself relax. Normally he would be frustrated or annoyed with her forwardness, but there was something about the way she touched him this time and he knew this wasn't about her crush or wanting to be close to him. She simply knew he was hurting and wanted to comfort him. She continued to look forward diligently taking notes as she held his hand the only other thing she said to him was that she would make a copy of the notes from class for him, since she noticed he wasn't writing any. He accepted the comfort. And for a first time in a long time he allowed that little gesture to be that support on a day he usually kept to himself. In a small way it was letting her into a deeper part of himself he hadn't let others in before.

Compression.

"I never told you…" he leaned down breathing into her mouth twice again. "I never said how much I need that...I never said thank you.." the exhaustion and anguish over took him and he collapsed slowly wrapping his arms around her and bringing her into his lap as tears continued to roll down his cheeks. "Don't let me loose you after I just found out I need you…"

He felt her jolt beneath him.

His heart skipped a beat as he sat up looking down at her while she started coughing out water in his arms. "Juvia." he whispered so relieved as he sat her up so she could expel the water from her lungs easier. He could hear voices yelling their names in the distance but his focus was completely on her.

As soon as she was done coughing he wrapped his arms around her tightly burying his face in her neck. Tiredly Juvia lifted up her hand and put it gently on the side of Gray's face. "It's okay." she whispered weakly, "Juvia isn't leaving her Gray."

He pulled back to look down at her. His eyes filled with new tears threatening to fall and she just smiled. That same beautiful smile she always gave him. Everything about Juvia was so blue, everything except for that smile which was like a ray of sun and it's beams warmed him to his very core.

Right there and then he leaned down and pressed their lips together. It wasn't long but it was powerful and behind it was filled with all the unspoken promises Gray was determined to keep to her from this moment on. He would never again take her for granted again. He didn't care what anyone else said or what struggles they may face together they would figure it out, because together with Juvia was the only way he could survive.

When he pulled back he leaned his forehead against hers for a second before he heard Natsu and Lucy calling their names and he was brought back to the reality of their situation. Taking a deep breath he adjusted her back into his arms before standing up and starting to carry her towards the group of people running their direction. Juvia lay her head against Gray's chest and closed her eyes content.

"Oh my gosh! Are you two okay!?" Lucy asked running over to them. But as she reached out to touch Juvia, Gray pulled back.

"Don't touch her." he warned. His voice more protective than he needed with Lucy but after almost losing Juvia he didn't care. Lucy just blinked a little surprised as she and Natsu watched Gray carry Juvia through the crowd only allowing someone else to take her when he reached the paramedics that had been heading their way.

Lucy smiled as she watched the two of them while they were given blankets and checked for concussions. She was so happy that both of them were okay and it warmed her heart to see them finally together. She looked back as she sense someone come up behind her to see Natsu grinning as he watched the same thing. He looked down at her and they shared a smile knowing they both understood what a special moment this was. Gently Natsu reached down and took Lucy's hand intertwining their fingers. She blushed a little but leaned back against him as she continued to watch Gray and Juvia as the paramedics got them into the ambulance.

True love really does conquer all. She thought and smiled even brighter. And it's beautiful.

A/N: Thanks for reading. This story was inspired by reading some of the work of BonneyQ (If you are looking for more Gruvia FanFiction you should defiantly look her up because her work is beautiful.)

*Originally posted 6-30-2017