It was Christmas Eve in the Fairy Tail guild, and everyone was cheering. Lucy and Happy had just announced that they were going to have Secret Santa, which, to Gray's surprise, everyone was excited about. Happy was passing out the cards with the names of who to buy for, while Lucy had just finished the announcement. Just then Happy flew up to him, handing him a card.
"Here you go!" Happy said cheerfully.
"Thanks." Gray replied.
"Aye!"
Gray opened his card, relieved to read...
You will be buying a Secret Santa gift for
Erza Scarlet
Merry Christmas!
Gray already knew what to get Erza. Strawberry cake! He thought to himself. But.. that isn't much of a present.. oh, maybe I'll bake it!
"So who did you get?" Gray's thoughts were broken by Natsu, a shy grin on his face.
"I-I can't tell you.. that's the point of 'Secret' Santa," he replied, trying to hide what sounded like affection.
"Oh.. okay then.." Natsu said, avoiding Gray's dark blue eyes before walking away, zipping his jacket.
Every time Gray spoke to Natsu, he couldn't think straight, as if he didn't have a mind at all. Damn, why can't I just act normal around him? He asked take his mind off of things, he decided to go bake Erza's cake.
Natsu watched as Gray left the guild hall, thinking to himself, Why couldn't I look into his eyes? I've felt weird around him lately. But not a bad weird.. He sighed. "If only I knew what to get him..." he mumbled to himself. Maybe I'll spy on him... Natsu walked over to Happy and told him to stay with Lucy tonight before hurrying out of the guild after Gray, keeping a good distance between them. When Gray arrived at his house, Natsu hid behind a tree until he saw Gray changing through his open window. When Gray left his room, Natsu snuck around to his living room window to see what was going on. Gray was in the kitchen, rummaging through his cabinets, finally bringing out a bag of... sugar? Natsu looked at the other things Gray had laid out on his counter. Flour, butter, eggs, ..strawberries? Those are all used in a cake.. "Gray can bake?!" Natsu yelled, immediately slapping his hands over his mouth.
Gray turned to see a Pink-haired Dragon Slayer staring into his window. "That's the last time I leave the curtains open.." he mumbled. He walked up to the window, but for some reason he wasn't mad. "May I help you?"
Natsu didn't know what to say. "I-I.."
"Well, since you're here you might as well help me," Gray said, trying to hide the glow in his eyes.
Natsu couldn't believe it. Gray wasn't angry. "O-Okay.." He walked around to Gray's front door, admiring the icy wreath before walking in. He'd forgotten to ask what he was helping Gray with.
Gray was waiting for him when he walked in. "You wanna decorate my tree for me?" he gestured with his head to a tall, white tree with blue and purple ornaments in boxes sitting next to it.
"I guess..." Natsu trailed off, scratching his head.
"You've never decorated a tree, have you?" Gray said, looking at him with a confused expression.
"N-No.."
"It's no big deal, why don't I just show you?"
"No thanks.. it shouldn't be that hard, should it?"
"Hmm.. It really isn't."
"Okay, I'll be done in no time!" Natsu said, a smile appearing on his face.
"Just don't burn it," Gray joked.
Natsu's smile got bigger as he walked over to the tree, opening the first few boxes of ornaments.
Gray smiled, watching Natsu for a few moments before going to start baking.
Gray had his head down on the counter, exhausted. He'd baked the cake and iced it, which took a surprising amount of energy from him. He had icing above his lip, and he was covered in strawberry juice. At least he was wearing a shirt. "You almost done with the tree yet?" he asked Natsu, not bothering to look over.
"I've been done for a while, I've just been.. looking at it. It looks like something's missing.." Natsu responded, sighing.
Gray walked over to look at the tree. For his first time, he did really good, he thought to himself. "I know what's missing," Gray said, a smile appearing in his face.
"What?"
"You'll see." Gray went upstairs to the hall closet and came back with another box. "Open it."
Natsu opened the box carefully, his eyes sparkling when he saw what was in it. A golden star topper with glitter all over it. "It's so pretty."
"T-Thanks.. I want you to put it on, though." Gray yawned, his eyes closing slightly.
Natsu noticed how tired he was,, a small grin forming on his face. "Why don't you go lie down?"
"Okay, just don't touch the cake." Gray stumbled up the stairs, collapsing at the top.
Natsu put down the tree topper and rushed up to check on Gray. He was passed out. Does baking really take that much energy? Natsu picked up the Ice Mage bridal style and carried him to his bedroom. Natsu laid him down, covering him up. He's so cute when he sleeps, Natsu thought, staring at him. Then he noticed the icing on Gray's face. Unconsciously, he knelt down, one hand on the bed for support, and sucked on Gray's upper lip. Suddenly Natsu froze, his eyes wide. What am I doing? I mean, not that I want to quit, but.. what if he wakes up? He'll know I like him. What if he doesn't like me back? Natsu quickly pulled away, wiping his saliva off of his chin. That icing was good... He thought to himself, walking out the door and down the stairs. Then he remembered the tree topper. Natsu had to stand on his toes to put it up. When he finished, his eyes were sparkling. "Don't Christmas tree's need lights?" Natsu mumbled to himself.
"Yea, but I choose not to use them," Natsu jumped at the sound of Gray's voice.
"How long have you been standing behind me?"
"A few seconds. Do you know why my mouth is wet..?" Gray asked, raising an eyebrow.
Natsu panicked. "You were drooling," he said quickly.
"If you say so.." Gray didn't quite buy the story, but played along. "You can go if you want to.."
"Okay.. see ya, I guess.." Natsu said, realizing he hadn't even thought about what to get Gray. He glanced at Gray before walking towards the door.
Gray was staring at his newly decorated tree when Natsu left.. "It's perfect.." he thought aloud. "Almost as perfect as Natsu."
"What am I going to do?" Natsu asked himself. "I don't know what he'll want!" he let out a long sigh."It has to be good for Gray. He's special to me. But.. what's special to him?" Stressed, Natsu went to see if anyone was at the guild. When he arrived, Mira and Lucy were there, talking together at the bar. "Hey guys," Natsu walked up to them, sighing again.
"Something wrong?" Lucy asked him, placing a hand on his shoulder.
"Maybe," he sat down next to Lucy, shaking her hand off.
"Well, what is it?" Mira urged.
"I.. I don't know what to get Gray! I mean, he's just.. so perfect, he'd want something perfect, right? I mean, what would he consider perfect..?"
Lucy and Mira exchanged glances. Finally, Lucy spoke. "I'd better tell you something.. Gray.. he likes you."
"He does?" Natsu asked with disbelief.
"Well, yea, he told us." Mira said, chuckling. "I think he'll like anything you get him, as long as it's from you."
"I.. I don't think I believe you.. for all I know you're making it up!" Natsu cried.
Lucy placed her hand on his shoulder, looking him in the eyes. "We're not making anything up, he really likes you."
Natsu thought for a moment. "I think I know what to get him. Thanks, guys!" He rushed out the door to get Gray's gift.
"I wonder what it could be.." Lucy asked herself, grinning.
With Erza's cake done, Gray had to find a nice box to put it in. He rummaged through his upstairs hall closet until he found a cute Christmas box, perfectly sized for the round cake. He carefully placed the cake in the box, making sure not to scrape any icing off. He closed the top on the box and wrote Erza on the front. Finally, I'm finished, he thought to himself. Gray's upper lip felt stiff. It's.. warm, he thought, poking it. His eyes widened when he realized what had happened. "There's no way.." he trailed off, plopping down on his couch. "Natsu..kissed me.." But why was he here in the first place? He was spying on me.. what for? He decided to let the thought go. It's probably nothing. Gray decided to go for a walk in the park, so he grabbed a sweater and headed out the door.
It was snowing outside, which made Gray feel comfortable. He held his hand out to catch some snowflakes. When they landed on his hand, they didn't melt, which wasn't a surprise to him. There was a thin layer of snow on the ground, crunching under his shoes. He sat down on the bench, wiping the snow off of part of it. He watched the snow fall, thinking about tomorrow, when he would celebrate Christmas with Lucy, Erza, Mira, then his thoughts flickered to Natsu. He felt most excited to see him. But why? We're always fighting. Well, we did get along today.. His thoughts were broken when a clump of snow landed on his head. He slung it off, the corners of his lips curving slightly upward.
"Hey, Gray!" he jumped and saw Lucy and Mira walking up to the bench, sitting next to him.
"Hey guys," he responded, smiling.
Mira chuckled, exchanging a glance with Lucy.
"What's going on..?" Gray asked warily.
"Oh, nothing, Mira's just excited about tomorrow," Lucy responded smoothly, followed by a smile.
Gray sighed.
"Something troubling you?" Mira asked him, chuckling again.
"Well, it's about Natsu.." Gray trailed off, his face flushing light pink.
Lucy and Mira couldn't help but giggle. "What about him?"
"Well.. he was at my house today.." he began, noticing the girls' giggles growing louder. "And he decorated my tree.."
"Go on."
"He'd decorated the tree while I was baking, and I passed out when the cake was done. Next thing I know I wake up in bed, and my upper lip is.. wet," Gray sighed again.
Mira's eyes were practically popping out of her head while Lucy sat there, a huge grin on her face. She didn't have to say anything for Gray to know what she was thinking.
"Remind me why I'm telling you guys about my problems?"
"Well, I find it interesting," Mira spoke with humor in her voice.
"We um.. we kinda told Natsu you liked him." Lucy hesitated.
"You WHAT?!" Gray forgot how to breathe. His face went bright red, and he nearly fainted.
"Gray, you okay?" Mira sounded concerned, casting a glance at Lucy.
"Just give me a moment to think about this.." So what, he knows I like him,why is this such a big deal? He was going to find out tomorrow anyways, when I'd planned to tell him. Gray took a deep breath. "Okay, I'm calm now. I was going to tell him tomorrow anyways.." Gray sighed, leaning against the bench. "I'd better go, it's getting late." He'd just noticed the sky was a blue-gray color. Stretching, he stood up. "Bye."
"Bye.." Mira said, almost confused.
"See ya tomorrow!" Lucy tried to sound cheery.
Gray walked off quickly. He wanted to get home before he ran into anyone else. He was walking so fast that he tripped on a rock, cursing under his breath. He hit the ground with a thump. "Ow.." he looked up, dazed. He'd hit his head, and his vision was blurry.
"Gray!" he heard a familiar voice calling his name, and before he knew it, Natsu was crouching next to him. "Are you okay?!" he sounded worried.
"N-No.." Gray choked out
Natsu picked Gray up and started walking towards Gray's house.
Gray had his eyes closed while Natsu was carrying him. When he opened them, they were in front of his house. He rolled out of Natsu's arms, landing on his feet awkwardly.
"You could have asked me to put you down.." Natsu complained.
"Maybe next time, I always fall." Gray said, smiling. He dug the keys out of his pocket and unlocked his door, holding it for Natsu.
Natsu walked in quickly, a smile appearing on his face as he passed Gray.
"It's not as late as I thought," Gray tried to start a conversation.
Natsu smiled, unsure of what to say.
"So..." Gray walked to the couch, pulling Natsu with him. He plopped down, letting go of Natsu.
But Natsu didn't sit down. He was looking at something that Gray didn't see.
"What is it?" He asked, standing up. But he saw what Natsu was looking at. "Mistletoe," he breathed, staring at Natsu. "I-I didn-" He was cut off by Natsu's lips pressing onto his lightly. Gray gasped in shock, kissing back awkwardly.
Natsu pulled away, blushing. "I-I'd better g-go.." Natsu stuttered, running to the door.
"Natsu, wait!" But Natsu had already left. Gray stared at the door for a long moment, his mind whirling. Without thinking, he pushed himself up the stairs to get some sleep. He'd just realized he was blushing and a huge grin had spread across his face. "I wonder who put that mistletoe there.." he voiced his thoughts aloud. "It would have to be Mira and Lucy, they're the only two who know.. besides Natsu himself.. but would he really..?" Gray sighed. "I'll find out tomorrow," his sentence ended up as a yawn, and he fell onto his bed, not bothering to cover himself up. Should I go to sleep this early? He looked at his clock. I guess 9:30 is a reasonable time. He closed his eyes and started thinking about Natsu. He fell asleep almost instantly, a smile still on his face.
Natsu was sitting on his bed, a blush on his face. I can't believe I just did that.. He smiled, pulling on his sleepwear and wiggling under his covers and turning off his lamp. He couldn't sleep knowing Christmas was tomorrow, so he lay there thinking about how much fun it would be. His eyes closed, and he realized how tired he was. Unconsciousness washed over him within a few minutes, leaving Gray on his mind.
Natsu woke early the next morning with one thing on his mind. Gray. He rushed unto his clothes and headed out the door, grabbing Gray's gift on the way out. He stopped as soon as he'd gotten outside. It's not snowing. It's not even cold. He hurried to the guild, only to find that it was practically empty, besides Mira and Lucy, and Happy, waiting for him at the bar.
"Merry Christmas!" They all yelled.
"Hey, Merry Christmas!" he greeted them cheerfully.
"It's not cold outside, isn't that weird?" Lucy asked him.
"Kinda, but it's not my fault!" he responded jokingly. "Hey, can you tell Gray I'll be at my place, and to come over when he can?"
"Aye!" Happy said cheerfully.
"Thanks!" he rushed out of the guild, leaving the two girls confused.
Natsu took the alleys to avoid running into Gray, and hurried home.
Gray was almost at the guild, hoping Erza wasn't there yet. I wonder why it's so warm today.. Erza's box was in his hands, carefully held to avoid dropping it. He arrived at the guild, and only a few people were there. Lucy, Mira, and Happy. He walked up to Lucy, avoiding her eyes.
"Hey." he said, sitting down at the bar next to her.
"Merry Christmas! Are you still mad at us for telling..?" She asked him slowly.
"No, I'm fine. Merry Christmas."
"I see you got something for-" Lucy was cut off.
"For me?" They both turned to see Erza leaning over Gray's shoulder, staring at the box.
"Y-Yea, Merry Christmas," he said, handing her the box.
Erza opened the box carefully, as if she knew what was inside. "Oh, Gray, I love it!" She set the box down and picked Gray up, squeezing the air out of him.
"C-Can't... b-breathe!" Gray gasped, his face smashed against her armor.
"Sorry!" Erza dropped him awkwardly.
"Well I'm.. glad you like it."
"Did you make it yourself? You know how much I love your cakes!
"Yea, I did." Gray shuffled back a few steps, his face flushing red.
"Thank you, Gray!"
"Um.. Gray?" Happy flew up to him with a perverted look on his face.
"Yea Happy?"
"Natsu wanted you to meet him at his house, but he didn't say why." Happy smiled a wide grin, as if he knew what Natsu wanted.
"Okay." Behind him, he head Lucy chuckle. He immediately turned for the door.
"Thanks again!" Erza called behind him, her voice muffled by the cake she was eating.
Gray hurried along the street to Natsu's house, thinking about what happened the night before. He was there before he knew it, wondering how he'd gotten there so fast. His hand tapped on the door, and Natsu opened it swiftly.
"Hi." He said awkwardly.
"Hey, come in." Natsu sounded eager.
Gray walked in, making himself comfortable on the couch.
Natsu plopped down beside him, blushing as his arm touched Gray's. "Let me start by saying Merry Christmas.."
"Well, Merry Christmas." Gray smiled, his eyes gleaming.
"And I wanted to.. give you something." He handed Gray an envelope, his blush growing bigger.
"I..I've never been good at opening presents.." Gray said, looking away.
"Would it help if I didn't watch?"
"Maybe."
Natsu turned his head, somewhat relieved to not be watching. He heard Gray gasp as he saw what was inside the envelope. He turned back around to see Gray's face lit bright red.
"These must have been expensive, Natsu! You shouldn't have."
He smiled. "It was nothing.. So who do you plan to take with you?"
Gray set two beach passes onto the coffee table and thought for a moment. "Isn't that obvious?"
"Juvia? Boy, she'll be happy.."
"No, silly, I'm taking you." Gray kissed the teen's cheek, looking away afterward. "I mean, you wanna go, right?"
"Of course!" Natsu gave the Raven-haired boy a quick peck on the lips and grabbed his hand. "W-Will you.. be my..."
"Boyfriend?" Gray finished the sentence for him.
Natsu nodded, looking down.
"I thought you'd never ask." Gray squeezed Natsu in a tight hug, and he nearly cried with joy. I never thought he'd like me back..
"Come on, let's go to the guild, I'm sure they're all wondering what happened to us." Natsu dragged Gray out the door and headed off towards the guild.
"It's snowing again," Gray smiled, wrapping his arms around Natsu's waist and burying his head in the crook of the Dragon Slayer's neck.
Natsu smiled and looked at the teen, thinking to himself. He's so cute.. But doesn't the cold bother him?
"That didn't take long." Gray spoke as they walked up to the guild. "Do you think they'll approve of us?" his voice sounded worried.
"Of course, all they talk about is how cute we look when we're fighting, or how we unconsciously stare at one another.." Natsu pushed the door open and walked up to sit by Juvia, who was staring at Gray -still holding onto Natsu- in shock.
"G-Gray-Sama.." her voice was merely a whisper.
"What?"
"Gray-Sama is with..." Juvia fainted, and Mira rushed over to help her up.
"AWW!" the rest of the guild said, either crying or about to cry, even Gajeel was teary, which everyone found shocking.
Lisanna walked up to Natsu and handed him a present.
"Merry Christmas.. I didn't know what else to get you.." Lisanna smiled at him, though she didn't meet his gaze.
Natsu opened the box and smiled, pulling her to sit down next to him. "You know I like anything you'd get me, right?"
"Well, yeah, but.."
Natsu put on a ball-cap with a dragon on it and smiled. "I think it's cute! Thanks, Lisanna."
"You're welcome!" She patted his head and walked off, joining Mira at the bar.
"I think it's cute, too." Gray pinched Natsu's cheek playfully. "But.. I think it would look cuter backwards.." Gray grabbed the hat and put it on the Pink-haired boy's head facing the wrong way, chuckling at the sight.
"I'll keep it like this for a while." Natsu smiled again, kissing Gray's cheek.
Out of the corner of his eye, Gray saw Lucy staring at him, a huge grin on her face. She walked up to them, holding something behind her back.
"Hey, Luce." Natsu greeted her. "What's that you're holding?
Lucy had her weird grin on her face, and Gray knew something embarrassing was coming.
"Mistletoe!" She held it above Gray and Natsu, swinging it around. "Now you gotta kiss!"
Both boys were blushing, aware that the whole guild was watching them. They looked away from one another, though they were both smiling.
"So you're the one who put that in my house.." Gray turned to look up at Lucy.
"Yeah, and it worked, didn't it?"
"Stalker," Gray mumbled.
"Come on, kiss, you guys!" Lucy urged.
"Gee, what wimps." Erza walked up and pushed the two boys close to one another, both of their faces flushed red.
Gray brushed his lips against Natsu's, causing the whole guild to cheer. It turned into a quick make-out session, Natsu pulling away when he realized they were being watched.
"Aww, you guys are so cute together!" Lucy watched the couple with huge eyes. Then she leaned in and whispered something to Natsu before walking away.
"Uh.. come on, Gray, let's go to one of the guild's bedrooms.." Natsu dragged the teen to one of the doors and pulled him in, continuing their kissing as soon as the door was shut.
"They lllllike each other!" Happy purred, floating around the guild hall with a smile on his face.
Sorry the ending's kinda lame.. May or may not be working on a sequel... hope ya liked it! Please leave a review on what you thought!