Hi everyone! First of all, thank you guys for the reviews, I can't even tell you how much it helps me writing, it truly keeps me on going. (thanks to rxsegxlden for your review, it almost made me squeal, I wish I could've replied to you immediately with a private message, but yeah I was kind of tired of only seeing the playboy side of Sting in things because he is also kind of a nice idiot, like Natsu, anyway, thank you very much! (oh and also don't worry there will be a lot of drama with gray)) Second of all, I'm sorry, I'm a few days late but I've been a little busy lately, I'll try to write the next one in a week as promised! I'm not too sure about this chapter, I'm proud of the ending but the rest feels a little rushed, I didn't have enough time to write it but I knew that if I didn't write it now I wouldn't do it

Anyway, I'm still really glad I'm posting it because I couldn't wait to show you guys the end of this chapter! Enjoy!

"When you told me about vacations, that wasn't exactly what I had in mind."

There was no answer, Sting staring at the hotel ahead of them with a contend smile adorning his lips. Rogue sighed again, shaking his head. His friend was lucky they hadn't been in the same train because of Yukino's incapability to be right on time, otherwise he'd probably have thrown him out the window when he had learned that instead of joining the coastline, they were heading towards a pretty big town only two hours away from Crocus. The town had been built near some hills, and the hotel they were now facing was right at the foot of them, which already meant their stay here was going to be expensive.

"We just came back from our mission, I can't believe you dragged us into this," Yukino groaned next to him as she readjusted the strap of her luggage on her shoulder with a wince.

Rogue barely accorded her a glance as he took the luggage from her, and kept glaring at his friend, who finally turned to look at them with an innocent look on his face. "I thought you two wanted me to take some time off," he argumented, making the brunet grit his teeth. Sometimes he really needed a reminder of why he was friend with Sting. He liked to think it was because, younger, and even now, the blond had no chance of surviving on his own, and Rogue had taken pity on him. It wasn't because he liked him or anything. Only pity.

"We did, but a little heads up would've been nice," Yukino groaned, exchanging a tired glance with the brunet before her eyes fell onto Juvia, standing silently next to Sting. "I can't believe you dragged our poor Juvia into this too,"

"Actually-" the water mage winced before being cut off.

"Actually she's the one who chose the mission," Sting smiled proudly, unashamedly glad not to be the only one to blame for once.

The two turned to give the poor woman the exact same disappointed look, and the bluenette grinned sheepishly at them, feeling like a child under the two's parental glare. With another sigh, Rogue grabbed his luggage and walked towards the entrance, still carrying his friend's bag on his shoulder. As he walked past Sting, he told him it'd better at least be an important mission. "Depends on your definition of "important"," the blond shrugged as he followed him in. "We're supposed to watch over an auction during a big reception, the reward's more than generous."

Rogue grumbled back that he did not care about the reward but his friend didn't seem to listen, or at least to care, and walked up to the front desk, presenting himself for the reservation. The woman behind the desk quickly checked his name on her files before handing him four keys and indicating him the third floor, right corridor. He thanked her and led the way with a still fuming Rogue, Yukino and Juvia walking together a little behind. The bluenette was looking down at the ground as she walked, feeling kind of guilty for dragging the two others into this. She had also chosen a mission she knew wasn't going to be that easy, curious to see how they would all work together as a team. If she had known, she would've refused Sting's offer.

"Juvia's sorry," she told her friend as they reached their floor. "She didn't know Sting would trick you into coming with us."

The white-haired woman whipped her head towards her, her eyes slightly widened in surprise. She hadn't expected her to feel bad about this, otherwise she would've never scolded Sting for this. "Oh no, don't apologize!" she exclaimed as she put her hands in front of her in embarrasment. "Rogue and I are just a little tired, but we're always up for a mission."

She was doing her best to reassure her, and Juvia offered her a small smile, glad to have found someone so kind during such a strange period of her life. A comfortable silence settled between them as they walked across the corridor, finally reaching their room. Sting threw them their keys, and Yukino beamed at the bluenette when she saw that her room was right next to hers. Sting was in front of Yukino's and Rogue right across Juvia's. They were all about to get into their room, Yukino having gotten her luggage back from Rogue with a thankful smile, when Sting exclaimed that he had almost forgotten about something, startling them.

"Be downstairs in your bathing suits in five minutes," he grinned at them as he opened his door. "Just because we're here for work doesn't mean we can't have a little taste of vacations."

"Sting, it's almost ten p.m.-" the door closed and Rogue was left shaking his head, mentally damning his friend. "Well, I guess missing one or two hours of sleep won't hurt us," he sighed before entering his room. Yukino exchanged an amused glance with Juvia before they both went into their rooms, and the bluenette only made one step into the room before freezing by the doorway, staring at her bedroom with her mouth agape. She knew the place was expensive but she hadn't expected that.

The room was big, even bigger than the one she had in Sabertooth, and the king sized bed only occupied half of the space there. The walls were white with gold trims, and the room was bright thanks to the few wall lights meticulously placed in it. There weren't too many furnitures, not to clutter the place, and with a small victorian desk in a corner, a thin wardrobe across from it, and the kind sized bed made of light wood in the middle, the room looked well organized. Even the smaller bathroom linked to her bedroom looked splendid from what she could see standing in the doorway. With a contend smile on her lips, Juvia dropped her luggage on her bed and started undressing herself, until she realized she hadn't packed herself a bathing suit. Yukino and Rogue had, since they apparently thought they were going on vacations, and Sting too since he was the one to organize all of this, but Juvia had no idea of what he was preparing, so she obviously hadn't taken a swimsuit with her for a mission.

Biting her lower lip in worry, she quickly opened her bag, her eyes instantly landing on a dark bathing suit she knew she hadn't put here. It was on top of all her others stuff and had obviously been shoved in the bag last minute. Shaking her head, Juvia silently thanked Sting as she took the clothe out of her luggage. She held it out in front of her to take a proper look at it, and was surprised to see that it was a pretty yet simple and especially, modest, bathing suit. It was a black one piece bathing suit with golden edges. It was thin and probably revealed a little bit too much of her sides, but Juvia was thankful he hadn't borrowed a small bikini from Yukino. Or at least, the bluenette guessed he had borrowed it from her.

Throwing her cloak and dress onto her bed, Juvia quickly slipped the bathing suit on, glad to see it almost fitted her perfectly. It was just a little too small on the waist since Yukino was slightly thinner than her, but it was alright and she was sure it wasn't even noticeable. Juvia then rummaged through her luggage to find her hairbrush and made a quick stop in the bathroom to tidy her blue strands slightly dishevelled by the hours of travel. As she carefully combed her hair, she heard a knock on her door and didn't look away from her reflection as she told the person to get in. The water mage heard the door opening and walked out of the bathroom to see who it was, still brushing her hair.

Sting was looking around, but then he noticed her by the bathroom's doorstep, and a smirk crept up on his face as he gave her an appreciative look. Juvia frowned at him as she felt a blush spread across her cheeks, and told him not to look at her like that with a scowl. The blond lifted his hands in front of him innocently before he took a few steps towards her bed, walking past her. "Oh, come on, it's not like nothing ever happened between us," he snorted as he let himself flop down unceremoniously onto her bed.

"It was a one time thing," Juvia protested, crossing her arms against her chest, partly to show her discontentment and partly in an attempt to hide herself.

"We've technically never established that," Sting argued as he laid on her bed with his arms behind his head, staring at the ceiling.

"Juvia thought Sting didn't do relationships."

The blond sat up a little, leaning onto his elbows, and looked at her with an eyebrow arched. "And I've also never established that," he deadpanned with an unreadable look.

The bluenette squirmed a little under his stare, suddenly more uncomfortable because of the topic of the discussion than her bathing suit. She shied away, looking at the victorian desk across the room instead of him. "Juvia and Sting are friends. Nothing more," she then added, her voice a little too quiet to be convincing. She wasn't even looking at him but somehow, she knew he was smirking. She could even picture the cocky smirk adorning his lips. She heard the ruffling of the sheets on her bed as he got up, but refused to meet his eyes.

"If you want my opinion, Juve," he headed towards the door and slowed down as he walked past her, leaning to purr in her ear, "I don't think we'll ever be able to just be friends. Not after that night."

The door closed behind him, and Juvia was left blushing on her own, looking down at the ground with slightly widened eyes. She brought her hands up to her cheeks, before completely hiding her face in her palms, stiffling a frustrated scream. She wasn't used to this, and she hated it. Oh, who was she even kidding, she loved the attention, but she definitely couldn't handle it. Juvia was usually the one to like someone, and here she felt like she was the center of attention. She just didn't understand why he paid her so much attention. He always treated her like she was special, like she mattered a lot more than she actually did, and yet they had only slept together. And, sure, for Juvia, it should've been a pretty big deal, but she couldn't even remember it. It was different for Sting, she knew he already had had a few one night stands, it wasn't new to him. He had no reason to treat her that way. It was as if he knew something she didn't, as if they had already known each other before and he was the only one to remember it.

Letting a sigh escape her lips, Juvia ran her hand through her hair, unconsciously dishevelling the hair she had just combed, and walked out of her room, joining the others downstairs. As expected, she was the last one there, but the others didn't seem to mind and simply smiled at her before following Sting outside. Rogue tried to ask him where he was taking them but that one didn't even acknowledge his question as he led them behind the hotel and through a tall wooden fence. He then opened the door and motioned to them to enter first, letting them discover a wide onsen, almost boiling hot and completely empty.

"Alright, I hate you a little less now," Rogue admited sternly, as Yukino next to him beamed and dashed towards the onsen, immediately jumping in it.

Juvia laughed at the white-haired woman's joy, and quickly joined her when that one turned around to wave at her. As the bluenette slowly entered the water, the temperature was uncomfortably hot, but she eventually got used to it and was able to completely immerse herself in it. She went to stand next to Yukino, and leaned against the edge of the onsen with a satisfied sigh as she closed her eyes. The others quickly formed a circle and all started talking about the mission as Juvia kept her eyes closed, enjoying the warm sensation envelopping her entire body.

"So we just have to play the bodyguards at an auction?"

"Not really, it's more complicated. A few galas has already been disrupted by a known thief in the region, he keeps stealing the most expensives items and escaping by creating a distraction with an explosion. We have to go undercover and stop him."

"It seems easy."

"Yeah, but think about the pressure. If we fail, a whole mansion will explode."

"Buzzkiller."

There was a splashing sound and Juvia felt some water landing on her face. She cracked an eye open and saw Sting acting once again like a child and splashing Rogue. That one at first tried to be the mature one, ignoring his friend, until a little wave was sent his way. He let an annoyed grunt escape his lips before lunging at the blond, forcefully pushing his head underwater. Juvia put her hand in front of her mouth in an attempt to stifle a laugh as Yukino bursted in laughter next to her.

"Shouldn't we stop them?" Juvia giggled behind her hand.

"I mean, if they die, then that means we can keep the reward to ourselves instead of sharing it between us four," Yukino snorted, watching the other two try to drown each other without a single hint of worry in her eyes.

"Maybe Juvia can do even better," the bluenette turned to face the other woman, "and keep the reward to herself."

She saw the blood drain from Yukino's face as realization dawned onto the poor girl, and before she could even try to run away, Juvia raised a hand and used her powers to make a giant wave crash into her. "You can't-" Yukino shouted before being completely immersed by the water. The water being too hot to be clear, the woman completely disappeared from Juvia's vision, and, before the bluenette could even try and look for her, she felt a hand wrap around her ankle, abruptly pulling her underwater. She was pulled down with so much strenght her hips hit the ground, and she saw Yukino next to her, with her cheeks puffed as she held her breath. She still had a hand wrapped tightly around Juvia's ankle and refused to let her go, grinning at her mischievously as she went to grab her arm, pulling her even farther underwater. Juvia kicked her foot, trying to shake her hand off, but the woman wouldn't let go, and, not even thinking about turning her body into water to escape, the bluenette started jokingly fighting her friend. After a few seconds, she felt two arms grab her shoulders and pull her up, as Yukino was at the same time taken away by another pair of hands.

They were both pulled up and Juvia was finally able to take a deep, relieved inhalation as she resurfaced, her cheeks completely flushed as she panted heavily. "I could expect that from Rogue and I," Juvia looked up, meeting Sting's falselydisappointed eyes as he looked down at her, holding her with his arms wrapped around her waist, "but coming from you and Yukino, that is very disappointing."

Rogue agreed with him, saying that this kind of behavior was inacceptable, and Juvia glanced at him, not even reacting at the way Sting was holding her. The brunet was also holding Yukino, whose pout was quite frankly adorable. She quickly started mocking her friend's voice, who arched an eyebrow as he told her that she was acting even more childish than Sting. Yukino gasped dramatically at that, and Sting got offended, unconsciously letting Juvia go as he joined in the argument. The bluenette watched them silently, amused by their behaviors. She had always loved onsens, it brought the worst in people. She had not spent a single night in a onsen without two of her friends arguing like children. She could even remember Erza trying, and succeeding, to drown Natsu and Grey at the same time.

Her smile faded at the memory of her old friends, and all sounds seemed to quieten down around her as she went deep into her thoughts. She had spent so many good moments with them, they had been part of almost half of her life now, and yet, Juvia had almost forgotten about them in the span of a single week. Her thoughts got darker and darker until she felt her eyes water, and, incapable of staying near the others when her mood didn't match theirs, she ended up excusing herself and quietly leaving. The others were too caught up in their argument to notice that something was wrong, and told her good night before going back to their bickering. Only Sting's eyes lingered a little longer than necessary on her retreating form, his eyebrows knitted in concern, but Yukino's remark about him being less clever than a five years old quickly pulled him back in.

The silence almost became unbearable as Juvia walked back into the hotel and up the stairs. Tears slowly started rolling down her cheeks, and she didn't even bother to wipe them, as she didn't bother to lock her room as she got in, quickly changing into her night gown before unceremoniously flopping down on her bed. She missed them so much. The water mage had been so careless lately, acting as if nothing mattered and everything was alright, as if her stay in Sabertooth was great and pleasant, but now realization was dawning on her. She didn't belong there, her place was in Fairy Tail, among her friends. She had nothing to do here. And the worst was that Juvia was forced to realize that if she had grown used to this life so quickly, then her friends must have grown used to her absence just as fast. They were forgetting about her just like she was forgetting about them, it was only fair. She deserved it. Gray was going to learn to live without her. He might even have been happy to see that she wasn't there anymore, following him everywhere and bothering him every two seconds. She had felt like he was slowly growing fond of her these last months, but now that she was gone, everything was back to square one.

Juvia took her pillow into her arms and hugged it tightly, hiding her face into it as she weeped. She could hear the rain pouring outside, and it only broke her heart a little more. She missed her family. She missed them and she couldn't even call them. They thought she was in an important mission for three weeks, she had lied to them. She deserved everything that was happening to her, she deserved to be forgotten, and she wasn't worth of Gray's attention. He had never given it to her anyway. The guilt was twisting her stomach, and Juvia squeezed her eyes shut, trying to stiffle the cries that were crawling up her throat. She was obsessed by the thought of Gray forgetting her, and couldn't take her mind off of it. The tears kept flowing freely down her cheeks, soaking her pillow, but the bluenette kept her eyes shut, letting her sobs carry her into sleep.

There was blood everywhere. Petals covered in red were scattered around her, and her throat kept itching, every breath she took leading to another cough. There was blood splattering on her white covers and petals crawling out of her mouth, sticking to her lips and covering her clothes. Her cries became more desperate and her loud sobs were stiffled by the petals in her throat, making her feel like she was about to choke. The sound of her own gagging repulsed her as she kept coughing more and more petals, her cries getting more hysterical by the minutes. She leaned forward and squeezed her eyes shut as she felt another itch in her throat, grabbing her covers in her fists and feeling her stomach twist at the sensation of wetness under her fingers, knowing her blanket was soaked in blood. There was another handful of petals in her, she could feel it. She tried to take a deep breath but, once again, choked on the white petals and, this time, as she gagged, she accidentaly swallowed them and had to keep herself from throwing up at the sensation of flowers going down her throat. Stiffling a scream, Juvia threw herself down and buried her face into her covers, losing all sanity as she sobbed into her red sheets. She sniffed and all she could smell was her own blood and the distant scent of flowers. There was nothing but blood and a constant ringing in her ears and she couldn't stop crying and choking on her own sobs.

Then all of sudden there was a pair of arms around her.

"Juvia, look at me," some words, really distant, something bringing her up. "Juvia, come on, please."

She opened her eyes and it was as if she had just come to the surface again, shooting up in her bed as she took in a deep inhalation. There was someone right beside her, she could feel it, but Juvia couldn't focus on anything, kicking the covers away from her. The blood was still there, she could smell it, she recognized the faint scent of flowers, everything was still there.

"Look at me."

There was an itch in her throat and her eyes watered before the cough could even escape her lips. In an instant, the bluenette was back to being a mess, pressing her forearm to her mouth to stiffle a sob she couldn't fight off. She felt a hand wrapping around her wrist and taking her arm off her face, and immediately tried to yank her wrist off the grip. The person wouldn't let go and Juvia turned away from the silhouette to hide herself, accidentaly letting another cry escape her lips.

"Please, Juvia."

She squeezed her eyes shut and hastily shook her head as she kept kicking the covers off her body, the slightest touch of tissue against her legs sending repulsed shivers down her spine. "The petals," she cried, her words slightly slurred as if she was still expecting them to crawl up her throat. "They're-" her voice became a shriek and she clamped her mouth shut. There was a beat of silence, only disrupted by her choked sobs, before she heard a sigh beside her. The grip left her wrist and she felt two arms gently sliding underneath her back and knees. Next thing she knew, Juvia felt herself being lifted up and everything in her head seemed to become clear as she got away from the scent of flowers and blood. The hurricane going on inside of the bluenette's head quietened down and her shaking limbs suddenly felt heavy. She let her head rest against Sting's chest as he cradled her in his arms, and, for a second, the water mage wondered how she could have thought even for a second that it was anyone but him by her side.

She heard doors opening and closing but didn't bother to open her eyes, letting the rocking of his steps clear her head. Her mind was still in disarray but Juvia was starting to get a grip on reality again, focusing as much as she could on what was happening right now. She then felt the arms carefully lower her on something soft. She found herself on another mattress, but knew it wasn't hers. The scent, the chillness, the covers, everything was different and she found herself instantly relaxing at the feel of fresh sheets under her, letting herself sink into the bed. The bluenette then felt a dip next to her and finally opened her eyes again, her blurry vision barely letting her discern Sting's silhouette in the dark. Slowly, her vision cleared and after a few seconds she could properly meet the blond's eyes as he looked down at her with an unreadable expression, his slightly knitted eyebrows hinting some concern. The glow of the moon barely illuminated the room, and yet she could still see him as clear as daylight.

"Juvia's sorry," she muttered under her breath after a few minutes of silence, her voice hoarse.

"You had a nightmare."

His voice was calm and he almost sounded exasperated, bothered by the fact that she felt the need to apologize. His quiet words left no room for an argument, putting an end to the conversation. It wasn't her fault and would never be. Juvia looked down and didn't say anything else, quiet as she tried to blink away the tears that kept gathering on her eyelashes. She felt the covers get drawn up over her shaking figure and, without even looking up, grabbed Sting's wrist before he took it back and weakly tugged on his arm to bring him closer. She wasn't even thinking anymore, all she knew was that she couldn't go through what had just happened alone again. She was scared, she was lost, and she needed someone.

Juvia was more than grateful when the blond didn't ask any question and silently climbed into bed, slipping under the covers next to her. He then only took one look at her shivering body before he lifted his arm, inviting her in for an embrace. Juvia gladly obliged and shifted closer to slip under it before resting her head against his chest, enjoying the safety of his strong arm around her.

"There were petals everywhere."

She didn't look up, but he could still see her tired, teary eyes, with a hint of hopelessness glinting in the pit of her dark irises. He didn't say anything and gently brushed away the tear slowly rolling down her cheek, knowing she didn't need to discuss what had just happened but only needed to talk. A heavy silence settled between them, before she parted her lips again, needing to get off her chest the few words that had been on her mind for years.

"He never loved me," she whispered in a hoarse voice.

Sting looked down at her, his face unreadable. Her words were quiet, steady. There was no desperation in her voice, no cry for help. She wasn't asking him to comfort her, because she knew she was well past that. She was tired, and already knew nothing could heal the aching she felt in her heart. At that moment, they both knew there was nothing he could tell her that'd make her feel better. Nothing would stop the rain pouring outside.

"It doesn't matter, love," he whispered in her hair as he pressed a gentle kiss on top of her head.

Juvia looked up at him. Her eyes bored into his, and for a moment, there was nothing. Her mind was blank, there was no butterfly in her stomach or redness on her cheeks, but the sound of the rain had become faint, and the ache in her stomach felt distant. She wasn't completely there anymore. As long as she kept her focus on him, there was nothing else. There was nothing but the warmth he provided her, his arms around her waist and the gentle touch of his thumb drawing circles on her stomach.

She unconsciously leaned forward to give him a chaste, gentle kiss, before laying back down on his chest, listening to his soft heartbeat. It was quick, and light as a feather. It was not supposed to be spoken about, or to be remembered, it was just supposed to be there, to be their moment and to make them feel for at least a second like things weren't as bad as they were. He didn't say anything about it, and she did her best not to think about her old life anymore. They were just here, nothing more, nothing less. They weren't as calm as they seemed, but did their best to ignore the chaos going on in their head and just breathed. For a moment, it worked, and, just for a second, Juvia almost felt like she belonged there.

For a second, Sting's words finally made sense.

Gray didn't love her.

It had stopped raining outside.

And nothing mattered.

hanahaki disease: (n.) comes from two japanese words, hana which means flowers and hakimasu which means throwing up. it's a fictitious disease in which the victim who suffers from unrequited love coughs up flower petals. in the worst cases the victim's lungs fill with flowers and roots grow in the respiratory system, leading to them choking on blood and petals before dying.