"I don't know about this Cana," Gray said as he watched his childhood friend sip beer through a silly straw. "I'm having second thought..."
"You mean your date with Juvia?" Cana asked.
"Yeah," Gray replied staring downward. "I'm afraid it might not go so well."
"What are you talking about? She uses water and you use ice! It's almost like you were made for each other," Cana said with a smile, attempting to lighten the mood a little.
"I don't know. I can't stop thinking about the what-ifs" Gray replied putting a slight emphasis on 'what-ifs.' "I mean what if I realize I don't really like her back or something bad happens? I don't want to hurt her."
"To me it sounds like you really do like her and you're afraid things won't work out between you," Cana said as she signalled for Mirajane to refill her beer which was still half full.
"Maybe you're right," Gray said as he looked over to the table where Juvia was sitting with Lisanna and Levy. "I don't know why but for some reason I'm nervous."
"The way I see it there are two possibilities," Cana said in a more assuring tone. "Either the date goes well and the two of you live happily ever after, or it can go horribly wrong but she will still be obsessed with you as if nothing happened." Cana paused to take a sip of her beer. "Either way, you have nothing to lose."
"You're right, thanks Cana." Gray said smiling as he stood up. "Now if you will excuse me, I have a date tonight."
As Gray walked away from the table Mirajane approached it. By now Cana had finished her beer.
"Hey Cana, I've been meaning to ask you something for a while, but didn't want to interrupt your conversation with Gray," Mirajane said as she refilled Cana's beer. "Why exactly are you drinking from a silly straw?"
"Well, I was on my way back from a job and I came across this bar. The owner said he had never seen anyone drink as much as I do so he challenged me to a drinking contest. He said if I won, I could drink there for free anytime I want," Cana answered while staring at the straw.
"I'm guessing you drink there a lot now?" Mirajane asked.
"No, my drinking habits caused them to go bankrupt in only one week," Cana replied
"Oh my!" Mirajane gasped, unsure why she was surprised by this.
"Anyway back to the straw," Cana continued. "After he lost the drinking contest, the owner was so drunk he asked me to marry him. This straw was what he proposed with so I kept it as a trophy."
On the walk back home, Gray noticed that he suddenly couldn't stop thinking of Juvia.
'Now that I think about it, Juvia is madly in love with me and it's not like I hate her or anything. At least I know she would never leave me. In fact she's always been there for me; she would do anything for me. Maybe being with her wouldn't be so bad.'
