There had always been something dark about Gray. Of course, she knew. She knew about Ur, and, even about Ultear, from the bits she had heard while the ice mage slept. She knew that his parents were murdered in front of his eyes by Deliora, the only thing that could stop Gray and make him tremble. To be honest, it made her sad. Gray was always bottling up his feelings, for others. Even when he was sick, he would simply hold it in until he suddenly collapsed on a mission that Team Natsu went on. He lived recklessly - TOO recklessly. He said he was changed, he said that he was fine, he said that he was just tired when he was just sad.
It hurt Erza more than anything. To see Gray cry. He was always so strong in front of others - that she forgot how fragile he was. How fragile EVERYONE was.
But the best thing was when she saw Gray happy. Not his usual smirk. When he had a nice, wide, goofy smile on his face, and as hard as he tried to wipe it off, he couldn't. When he forgot about his problems, and would laugh until he couldn't breath. When she made him laugh because of something funny she said. When he unleashed his inner dork. When he crafted ice roses for her, telling her that that was Ur's magic - how she would destroy people with beauty. Or, when his eyes would mist over when he was telling a story. When he would hug her and tell her how much she meant to him.
Of course, he stripped. Of course, he cursed. Of course, he spilled her strawberry cake, of course, he fought with Natsu ALL THE TIME, of course, he hurt Mirajane's feelings by accident all the time. But, she loved him. She loved him. She loved HIM. When she said that to him one day, he told her that it was because he looked like Jellal. It was true, he did. She had been too taken aback for words.
But it wasn't true. She loved him because that moment at the river, he was HER'S. And, every time after that, whenever they were by THAT river, THEIR river, she could feel herself falling in love every time, all over again.
Because loving Gray makes you not fall in love once, you fall in love infinite times, for as many reasons as there were stars in the sky. And, every time you fell in love, she felt another weight get lifted off her chest. Because, when she saw Gray, she could see her thoughts mirrored in his mind.
There had always been something dark about Gray. But, that was okay. Because, without darkness, the light in Gray as well would forever disappear.
Thanks to all that read and reviewed! I love you all, and hoped you enjoyed it. This is also a special thanks to Absolute-ZERO999: you have givven me such amazing feedback every time, consistently, and I thank you with all my heart! Thanks for reading! Sorry it was sappy!
