Hi, I'm Cherry. This is a GrayZa story, maybe NaLu? I'm not very sure. Anyways, I assume it'll be pretty long. Hopefully. Fluffy scenes will probably be later. I hope that I can update at least once a week since exams are over.
OOO
''Alright, we'll head out to the party first then," Natsu, Gray, Gajeel and Laxus waved the four girls goodbye.
"Whew, thank God! Finally some peace and quiet girl time!" Lucy sighed in relief as she slammed the door close.
"Well, aren't you excited for the party tonight? Fairy Tail's celebrating our 450th anniversary! And we get to go with our crushes!" Levy gushed. Then she giggled. "Except for Erza, though."
They laughed as Erza glared at them. She hadn't wanted to go in the first place, but Lucy and the others had dragged her along and insisted. Despite her strong objections, she still gave in when Mira started crying. It was a trick, of course.
"Well, it's one o' clock, the party starts at eight, so we have seven hours to get ready. That's more than enough time to shop and get everything done. Let's go!" Mira cheered and the girls barrelled out of Lucy's apartment and towards the famous shopping mall for wizards, Magic City.
"Wow, this is amazing!" Levy exclaimed.
"Yeah! The walls are apparently unbreakable, so no one can destroy them! Useful, especially when Fairy Tail mages come over," Lucy explained with a chuckle.
"Let's not dilly-dally, shall we? Less talking, more shopping," Erza commanded.
Lucy and Levy sweatdropped. Since when was she interested in shopping?Mira simply smiled. "There's a Heart Kreuz outlet, that's why."
"Ohhh."
"COME ON!"
"Alright, we're coming!"
OOO
"This dress looks awesome!" Lucy gushed, holding out a shimmery red sequined gown that exposed much of her cleavage and the dress was slanted up, showing off her left leg.
"It suits you, Lucy! You should totally get it for tonight!" Mira exclaimed.
"She's right, Lu!" Levy smiled.
"Alright, I'll get this one then!" Lucy beamed.
Mira found a silver chiffon dress that complemented her hair and Levy stuck with an orange silk dress. The only one left was Erza.
"Erza, aren't you going to buy anything?" Lucy asked, concerned.
"No, I've already picked something from my wardrobe,"Erza replied.
"Alright then. Now we should quickly get back and get ready. We only have three hours left!" Lucy said as they walked to her apartment.
OOO
"Mira, help me with my makeup, please!" Levy called. The silver haired girl hurried over and started picking out makeup accessories.
"Could you pass me that lip gloss, Erza?" Lucy requested.
"Sure," Erza reached over and passed the jar of lip gloss to her friend.
"By the way, why aren't you getting ready? Don't you need to do your makeup?" Lucy asked as she applied lip gloss.
Erza shrugged. "I don't use makeup. Plus I can Requip on my dress later, so it's fine."
"What? You've never used makeup before?" Lucy screamed.
"Erza doesn't like it. She feels it makes her look ugly," Mira chuckled as Erza glared at her.
"Aw, come on Erza, I'm sure you don't look ugly!" Levy consoled Erza as Mira did her hair.
"Yeah! How about you try a bit of makeup?" Lucy suggested, holding up some yellow eyeshadow.
"No, but thank you for the offer," Erza declined. "It's already six, I'll go take a bath and we can go."
"Didn't you just take a shower two hours ago?" Lucy exclaimed.
"Yes, but I hoped to freshen up before the party." Without waiting for an answer, she entered the bathroom.
"Is that a habit of hers?"
"Kind of," Mira smiled. "She does it when she needs to calm down her nerves and release her tenseness."
"She's nervous?" Levy asked. "Why?"
"Probably because she's never went to a party before," Mira finished up Levy's hair and proceeded to do Lucy's.
"WHAT?" they shouted. "She's NEVER been to a party before?"
A sad gaze flittered across Mira's face. "Yes. She'd always turn down the invitation despite all of us telling her to join us."
"That's horrible! I wonder why?" Lucy thought aloud.
"Wonder what?" Erza stepped out of the shower, drying her hair with the towel.
"Nothing!" Lucy quickly dismissed it, hoping that she wouldn't probe anymore. Fortunately for her, Erza dropped it and checked if everyone was ready. She nodded, then requipped into her dress.
When the light faded, they were gaping at her. Erza was wearing a sky blue shoulderless tulle evening gown, and her hands were covered by white silk gloves. Her scarlet hair was tied up in a french braid.
"What's wrong?" Erza looked uncomfortable.
"Nothing... It's just we never saw you in anything other than your regular outfits before," Lucy explained.
Erza managed a weak smile before they headed for the guild. Along the way, people stopped and stared at them, particularly Erza as she didn't usually wear fancy getups. "This is so annoying," Erza said, exasperated.
OOO
"We're here!" Lucy opened the doors to the guild.
"Oh, I see many people are already here!" Mira beamed.
Meanwhile, the guild had stopped and stared. More of the boys did, actually.
"Is that really Erza?"
"She's so hot!"
"Shut it!"
"Who knew?"
"Oh God," Erza sighed as she turned to look at Lucy, who shrugged.
"As expected of a guild full of perverts," Lucy whispered.
"Aw, come on Lucy, they're not that bad."
"Right, totally not," Lucy sighed, rolling her eyes.
"Where are the boys?" Levy asked, looling around.
"I don't know. Don't tell me they're late again," Mira laughed.
Erza glared, cracking her knuckles. "I'm going to murder them."
"Erza, it's a party! Lighten up, will ya?" Lucy placed her hand on her shoulder.
Flinching at the contact, Erza pulled her hand off. "Sorry, it's just I'm not used to...y'know..."
"Yeah, I get it, it's fine," Lucy dismissed it with a smile.
Suddenly, the door slammed open. "We're...here!" Natsu puffed as he gasped for air.
"It's all your fault for making us late! The girls are going to murder us!" Gray glared at him.
"No, they won't! They're nice and understanding, right?" Natsu wheezed .
"We might be, but Erza's absolutely furious," Lucy called from where they were standing.
The boys all had the same thought.Crap.
"Meh, it's fine, I'll let them off just this once," Erza shifted into view as Lucy was blocking her before. Picking up a glass of wine, she took a sip of it.
The boys were speechless, gaping at her. Not only because she let them off, but also of her appearance.
"One hell of a hot girl, man," Gajeel leaned over to Laxus and whispered.
"Watch it, she may be sexy, but she's a total virgin, no nothing girl," Laxus hissed.
Natsu looped his arm around Gray's shoulders and whistled. "You lucky arse, how about we switch places?"
Overhearing their conversations, Lucy, Levy and Mira strode over and glared at their respective dates.
"What did you say?" Lucy glared at Natsu, his face paling.
"Nothing! Nothing at all!" he scrambled to say and grabbed Lucy's hand. "Let's go!" He dragged Lucy to the farthest food table.
Gajeel and Laxus followed his lead and quickly pulled a ticked off Levy and Mira off to a corner, leaving Gray standing alone and feeling awkward.
What a bunch of idiots, Erza swirled her cup around, deep in thoughtI wonder where Jellal is. She sighed and finished her wine. She observed the dancing couples while sitting at a table at the side, her head propped up in her hands. Natsu and Lucy really are a good match, aren't they? She smiled to herself, then looked up when she saw Gray approaching. "Hello, Gray."
"Hey, Erza," he greeted her and slid into the seat beside her.
"Aren't you going to find Juvia?" Erza asked in a dull voice before completely downing the wine.
"What's with everyone? They immediately assume that I'm always with her! I mean, she's a nice girl, but I don't feel anything for her. I love-" he cut himself off. "Never mind."
Erza poured more wine into her glass and downed it again.
"You need to watch your alcohol, Erza," Gray reminded her, noticing her intake.
"I know." She drank another full glass.
Gray stopped her the next time she tried to pour more. "Erza. Look at me."
She looked up, her honey brown eyes unfocused. It was clear she was already drunk. "Fuck..." Gray swore under his breath.
"It's rare that you swear," Erza gave him a lopsided smile, her words slurred.
Gray's felt his heartbeat quicken and he stared into her mesmerising brown eyes. Strange thoughts suddenly invaded his mind, about what he could do to Erza while she was drunk. WHAT'S WRONG WITH ME? Gray shouted mentally as blood rushed up to his head. I can't take advantage of her while she's drunk! I'm supposed to help her! Snapping out of it, he quickly alerted Lucy that he was taking Erza home.
"You better not try anything funny, Gray, or she'll murder you in the morning," she warned him.
Do it, Natsu mouthed at him, grinning and sending him a thumbs up. It's totally worth it.
Gray bit his lips and cursed Natsu internally. Scooping the dazed Erza up, he trudged out of the guild, trying not to look down. God, for someone who lives on a diet of strawberry cakes, she's actually pretty light, Gray thought as he headed towards Fairy Hills. On the way there, he realised something. Oh shit. The girls are all at the party. He stopped and considered his options. Either he could bring her back to the infirmary at the guild, which he thought was too noisy, or he could bring her to his house. He decided on the former option. Crap, let's hope she won't overreact tomorrow morning. Switching directions, he headed towards his house.
OOO
"Ahh, where are you taking me?" Erza purred softly as she looked at Gray.
Startled, Gray glanced down and shouted, "How long have you been awake?!!"
"Hmm, I was never asleep, eheheh," Erza slurred, smirking. She snuggled closer to him, her hands on his bare chest. His face was red. Lucky for him, it was nighttime.
Gray sighed. "You're really drunk. You shouldn't have drank all that alcohol, you know."
"I'm perfectly fine, see?" she giggled as she tried to swat Gray but instead swiped the air.
Totally not fine. Gray heaved a sigh of relief when he reached his house. With effort, he unlocked the door and brought Erza into the guest room.
Erza stared at him with a strange look on her face as he placed her on the bed. "Gray?"
"Hmm?" he looked up and immediately regretted it as he noticed Erza was staring hungrily at him. "Erza, what are you-" He was cut off as the red haired girl pulled him towards her and pressed her soft and luscious lips against his, while running one hand through his thick hair. He was stunned for a few moments before composing himself and he reluctantly broke off the kiss, grabbing her wrists roughly.
"Erza, we can't do that! You aren't yourself, you should go to bed," Gray said sternly.
She suddenly pulled her hands from him and backed away slowly from him, her eyes flickering with uncertainty and...fear? "If you didn't want me, you should just have said so."
Gray noticed deep red nail marks around her wrists where he had grabbed her and he felt his heart shatter as tears pooled up in her eyes. Fuck. She was scared. Of him. Her body trembled furiously. He hurriedly moved towards Erza, and Erza backed into a wall.
"Stay away from me, you...you..." Erza curled into a ball in the corner of the room, her brown eyes full of tears.
Gray felt his resolve breaking when he looked at her fragile state. She was crumbling into pieces, all because of him. He crouched down to face her. She stiffened as he pulled her into a warm hug. "I'm so sorry, Erza." He inhaled her sweet unique strawberry scent and brushed her hair softly. She whimpered as he nibbled at her earlobe. Knowing that he had been forgiven, he carefully picked her up.
Carressing her cheek gently, he placed her on the bed. "Erza, you need to understand, we're just best friends, we can't have that type of intimacy."
Gray looked down towards the floor. "Even though you don't know that I love you more than a best friend. I've loved you since we were children, Erza, but you always had Jellal, so I never said anything. Even now, I doubt you have any feelings for me."
She remained silent the entire time, her eyes closed.
"You know, I'm even sure that you won't remember any of this in the morning, due to the alcohol," Gray confessed. To his shock, Erza pulled him towards her and kissed him passionately.
Pulling away from her again, he groaned. "I forgot you were still drunk. How many bottles of alcohol did you drink? God!"
Upon hearing that, she made a strangled noise.
"Erza?" Gray looked at her, concerned.
"I'm not drunk."
"Nope, you're definitely still drunk, don't lie to me, Erza."
"I'm not."
"Erza."
"Gray!" Swords materialized around Gray and slammed into the wooden floor. "I'm not drunk!" Her voice had a clear ring to it and her eyes pierced into Gray's.
He stiffened as he noticed it. "How long?" he said in a deathly quiet tone.
Erza flinched at his tone and she shrunk away. "Since we entered the house."
Gray didn't even bother looking at her before he stepped over the ring of swords and slammed the door closed.
Erza felt tears pool in her eyes and she collapsed on the bed, her blood red hair spread out around her like a pool of scarlet blood. She curled up into a tight ball and cried herself to sleep.
OOO
She was awake the entire fucking time. Gray took a deep breath in his room. Which meant she was LYING to my face earlier. He couldn't deny that he wasn't mad at her, he was. For the very first time, Gray Fullbuster was DONE with that girl. She was making his life tough. He got onto bed and tried to block out the sobs coming from the room next door. Each one was a sharp dagger to his heart. Despite it, he bit down on his bottom lip hard to stop himself. She deserved it.
OOO
After an hour of tossing and turning due to her, Gray reluctantly got out of bed and entered the guest room quietly. Noticing that the room was now deathly silent, he assumed that Erza had sensed him in the room. Sliding under the covers, he wrapped his arms around her small waist and drew her towards him. "Are you satisfied now?" Erza turned around, her bloodshot eyes catching his attention. He had never seen her cry so much. "I'm sure you're very proud of yourself, having the privilege to break my heart." She broke down again, pushing him away.
"Erza, listen to me."
"Sure, because you pretended to be my best friend and love me and then you go and shatter my heart to pieces when you know every little thing about me and my fucking life!" Erza screamed, clutching her head.
Gray was stunned. It was as if Laxus's strongest Dragon Slayer Secret Art had hit him.
"Oh, yes, and later in the morning you're going to the guild and tell everyone that you managed to get me the kiss you and you'll feel so fucking proud! They treat it like I'm a bloody trophy to be won! Have they ever thought that I have feelings?" Her screams resonated through the room.
Gray stayed quiet, knowing that Erza was in a terrible state.
"I'm a human, Gray. A fucking human. Like you, me and everyone on the Earth. I have my own thoughts and feelings," Erza said quietly.
Gray hugged her tightly, while she drew long and deep breaths.
"Don't touch me. Just, don't." Erza pulled him away. "You're just going to use me as a trophy and break me, like Jellal. I'm so blind. So, fucking blind. Or maybe it's just this fucking life of mine." She let out a bitter laugh. "I want to die." Her body shook. "You see now, why I wear armor? Even though it hardly protects me, it's the only thing protecting me from things like this! I let people into my heart, and they always break it. Why should I bother?" Erza started crying again, tears streaming down her face. "I should just die and not be a burden to Fairy Tail."
"If those are your wishes, I'll respect them." Gray slid out of the bed. "But I want to tell you something- I love you so much, Erza. Ever since we were kids." He walked out of the room, hands in his pockets. I doubt you'll believe me after this, but it's the truth.
OOO
Just to clear the waters, when Erza was a slave she had to wear those band thingies around her wrists, so it would have reminded her of those memories.