Title: Resolution
Date: January 7, 2018
A gift to grayserigala for the graylusecretsibling on tumblr!
Pairing: Gray Fulbuster x Lucy Heartfilia
Word Count: 1140
Summary: Modern AU. Implied military character. Gray Fullbuster does not have much to his life at the very moment, at least not until he meets who he needs to see.
AN: I'm sorry this is a bit late, I have been busy lately due to event managements and other personal concerns. I have been told someone liked Gray centric angst though and I love it as well, this is light on the angst though and is more of a reminiscing type story that had a few kinks that needed to be worked out for the past few days. I do hope that you enjoy this and had a wonderful New Year.
Gray strolled through the city on New Year's Eve, Christmas lights still hung over shop doors, kids running about in the early hours of the night, the sky still bright in purple hues. He stood alone, walked the streets with his hands in his jacket pockets, his ebony black hair ruffling with the soft breeze, cold as it flew by him. It had no affect though, the cold never bothered him, at least not the weather, not when water froze and snow formed. It was warm and a blessing compared to the coldness of his heart, the emptiness he felt over and over again.
Gray Fullbuster was a man of few things, someone who needed saving just as much as he saved others, someone who became sick and tired of being alone. Alone with his thoughts, with the memories of his past, the mentor he lost, the friends he let go, the love of his life that he could no longer chase after. Not with the way he is now, how can he love her blonde hair, chocolate brown eyes, her precious smile and comforting atmosphere if he couldn't even love himself?
He let the war take control of his self, let it take him piece by piece with all he saw, with all the tragedies he allowed. No riffle was strong enough to protect the men beside him, no strategy smart enough to guide them, no shelter sturdy enough to care for them. No months he had no home and, yet, was home not what he was fighting for. Home was hammered into Gray's mind each day, a treasure worth keeping in each soldiers' heart, worth putting your life on the end.
The lives that some were unable to continue, that some did not have the chance to wake up the next day, some did not get to come home. They lost their loving families, their pets, their friends, their everything. Everything that held in his hands as he watched weak smiles slip off of his comrades lips, their eyes losing the gleam that Gray had grown accustomed to, everything about Grays comrades were gone, replaced with undying grief.
Gray Fullbuster still stood, however, his combat boots switched for a pair of worn out sneakers, the stars on his shoulders replaced by the star that hung on the city's tallest tree. The wild terrain of foreign land was no more compared to where his feet stood on the familiar pavement of his home town. The lights that flickered had no significance for they were only low, dwindling, in need of energy. The war he fought was over but a battle still lingered in the depths of Grays mind. He had scars, both that could heal and ones well hidden under his skin, buried deep into his heart. Gray has seen many things… He has also been blind to so much
He missed the birth of something new, Gray's body hollow as he remembered the last letter he received before being discharged from the army. He hadn't believed he deserved that blessing than and he still doesn't now but there was no turning back. Even with a choice, Gray did not want to turn back, did not wish to run away when something beautiful would be before him soon.
Grays steps were slow, deliberate in the way he marched through the main streets of Magnolia, his head held high for he willed himself to keep a level head. His lips were set in thin lines, quivering the same way as his palms shook, balled into fist, pressing against his lower abdomen in the fabric of his clothing. Grays breathing would stutter, his chest rising and falling in unchoreographed beats. His anxiousness was obvious, his brows furrowed, ear drums ringing, the butterflies in his heart fluttering.
Soon his eyes would lay upon the steps of a stage placed in the center of town square, where the choirs would sing, where the fireworks could be best seen. In a matter of hours the area would be packed inch by inch, citizens squeezing around each other as they wished for a "Happy New Year", as they chitter chatter about resolutions and reunite with those they haven't seen in ages.
Such images did not settle Gray's unease, if anything, his symptoms had become far worst, his heartbeat racing as his eyes surveyed the square. They roamed from body to body in search of the one who called to see him, in search of a love he was unsure to see. Yet his breath was taken away like it has always done when Gray laid sight on Lucy Heartfilia's long flowing blonde hair. Her back was turned to him, thick leggings covering her lags as she kneeled over a carriage, pink like every item she ever owned.
Pink like the identification of a female child.
November 21st
Dear Gray,
I hope this letter reaches you well and I hope you have not fallen ill. If so, I would not know what to do, not if you were to have past. I have something important to tell and perhaps I should have said this sooner but how could I when I knew you were already drafted? Gray… I know that we have not been more than friends before and I understand if you were to say that our last night together was a mistake. This, however, I can no longer hold in. The secret I have for you is far too difficult to hide. Gray…
A child that was lifted from the comforts of their carriage, one with short patches of dark hair, their eyes still closed as if they were just awoken, wishing to fall asleep again. Gray could see how careful Lucy was as she cradle the small being in her arms, the child no older than only a few weeks. He could hardly see her from this distance but there was no denying just how beautiful the child was, how significant she already felt to Grays heart when he had yet to even meet her.
You will be a father soon. I am due any minute now and I would love if you were to join us in becoming a family. Please, come home safe. I miss you. I miss the special bond we have and I want our child to be able to meet her father, at least once.
Love, Lucy Heartfilia
Tears gathered in Grays eyes, his hands removing themselves from his pockets, his feet not waiting another moment before they ran off to his future. This would be the last time Gray would chase Lucy, the last time he worried about his past. Today, as of December 31st, Gray Fullbuster will only look forward for his resolution would be to keep the girls before him near to his heart forever.