Hygge
The pitter-patter of the rain on the windowpane served as a soft contrast to the crackle coming from the fireplace. It wasn't as if Gray was feeling cold – it was more verging in being uncomfortably hot than his usual taste – but there was something very comforting in the fact that there was a fireplace nearby, heating some water to be used later. Natsu had gone outside, to go get Happy who had been staying with Wendy while they'd been in their last mission.
For a moment, Gray had offered to go too but… someone had to prepare the food. And he wasn't about to let Natsu step into his kitchen. Natsu had a tendency to blow things up so the only action he could perform – besides eating, of course – was to light the fire.
Natsu whine that Gray was too mean but Gray knew Natsu. The fire mage was a bottomless pit and it was as if his eyes lay on food, it was to be consumed.
They'd had a few arguments – heated, awful things – before coming to an agreement. Gray didn't really mind setting some of the food aside to have his always starving boyfriend try it out. Even if said boyfriend could be a pain in the ass.
Voices came from beyond the door, they had arrived. And right on time, because the food was almost ready.
"We're back!" Natsu said joyously from the entryway. "And it's snowing." Gray got to them right on time to see Natsu shaking himself like a dog. Letting snow fall everywhere. Happy seemed to be doing the same, though in a more poised kind of way.
"I can see that…" Gray commented ironically. "Just in time to," he started saying and saw Natsu perk and look up, hopefully, "clean the mess you did. Just look at my entryway!"
Natsu pouted.
"Your entryway, your kitchen. What do I have?" he mumbled over the pronounced pout.
"The mop." Was the simple answer. Gray had to work hard to maintain his serious face. But Natsu could be so ridiculous that he just wanted to laugh.
The fire mage walked to the small cupboard and removed the mop and bucket.
Happy didn't contain himself and started to laugh.
"Welcome back, Happy." Gray said, before looking pointedly at Natsu as he returned to the kitchen. "See if he does his part. Or you two won't have a dinner."
"No!" Natsu instantly reacted. "You're kidding me."
Gray paused and grinned broadly.
"Of course I am, you silly. Now you two take care of cleaning the hall and getting ready. Food is almost ready."
Cheers followed his announcement.
"And today we eat in the living room." He said as he had already stepped inside the kitchen. But Natsu had heard him clearly as the extended cheers showed.
Well, he better hurry.
Lunch had gone amazingly well, as usual, and now the trio was sitting in the cozy sofa right in front of the fireplace. There were blankets and pillows thrown haphazardly around the two mages who were cuddling together in the middle of it all. Happy sleeping on Natsu's lap, snoring a bit.
The difference of preferred temperature seemed to become suspended; Gray felt more comfortable in a not so warm environment while Natsu was the contrary but it seemed as if in these small moments a balanced was reached.
There were trays in the chairs that they'd brought to serve as side tables and the coffee table was filled with plates, some empty and licked clean and some with some bits of food still there. A pitcher was less than half-full with the dark red liquid, sitting on the corner and the cups they'd used were in front of each other.
The grey light coming through the window turned pink after being filtered by the red curtain. The orange glow that came from the fireplace lit everything, filling the space with a soft glow that was also full of shadows.
It was close, it was intimate. Conductive to secrets being shared.
Natsu petted Happy and exhaled. The cat moved slightly and stammered something before curling back up.
Snow was still falling outside and it looked as if the world had gone away.
The fireplace crackled happily and Natsu smiled. It was a comforting sound, as well as scent.
Natsu looked to the side to check if Gray was also asleep but no, the ice mage was looking on, seemingly mesmerized, into the flame.
That was a bit unexpected.
As much as they'd argued before about who was the best and their silly rivalry and whatnot, Natsu did know that Gray didn't have the best relationship with his element, fire. That didn't mean that Gray was afraid of fire, their fights were good proof of that, but Natsu knew that there was that something, that almost terror, deep inside Gray.
He was a strong mage so he could control that pretty tightly but, Natsu had seen it.
And yet, now Gray didn't seem to be reacting like that.
Could it be that he was so full of the food – or maybe the mulled wine – that he was in a sort of altered state?
But Gray smiled, as if he'd sensed he was being watched.
"What?" he said in a low tone, glancing at Natsu and arching an eyebrow. His messy hair didn't help him look stern.
"I was just wondering." Natsu said, looking down at Happy as he petted his head.
"About?" was the too patient question.
"Your face was weird as you were looking at the fire. I wondered what you might be thinking about."
"Weird?" Gray scrunched up his brows.
"Yeah." Natsu said with a shrug.
"Well, I don't know about that strangeness. I was just thinking how that fire reminds me of you." Gray let out a huff. "But then I looked at the food and was certain about you being there." He poked his tongue out.
Natsu snorted.
"You're so dumb, ice brain."
"Better than you, flame breath."
They started laughing and cuddled closer.
Natsu thought that besides dumb, Gray could be really cute sometimes.