AN: Well so much for good intentions. I'm sorry this chapter is so late, December has been crazy. Between work, family, and the holidays I really haven't had a lot of free time, and the free time I did have was used for sleeping. See I've kinda been keeping a bit of a secret... I'm actually 3 months pregnant! So while it's wonderful and exciting and great, it's also come with morning sickness, and exhaustion, and doctors appointments, ultrasounds and blood tests. So I took last month off to just try and survive the craziness.

But that being said I and the baby are well and healthy, and I'm finally getting back into the routine of things. I'm not going to promise any more update times cause that's clearly not working out for me, but just know that I'm NOT abandoning this fic, and it will definitely be done well before the baby shows up.

Anyways, enough of me blabbering about life. Thank you so much to everyone who reviewed and who have patiently been waiting for this chapter to come out. Have I mentioned how blessed I am and how awesome all of you are? Not lately. So just know that you're all appreciated!

Chapter 26: New Year's Eve

"So, how do I look?" Juvia twirled in front of the mirror, causing the silver dress she was wearing billowed out around her, before falling back into place. The dress was one of Ultear's, from back when she was still in high school, but it fit Juvia surprisingly well. It was a bit long, and a little tight around the bust, but nothing too noticeable.

"Looking good," Lyon said, giving her a thumbs up.

Ultear nodded. "Fits you way better than it ever fit me."

Juvia blushed. "Thanks." She took one more look in the full length mirror. "You sure it's not too simple."

Lyon rolled his eyes. The dress had a high neck line, and didn't reveal much top-wise, but the thigh high slits more than made up for it. "Nah, it's elegant, which means he can't accuse you of cheating, but those slits…. Ten out of ten. He'd have to be blind not to notice you tonight."

Juvia smiled at him from over her shoulder. "Thanks."

"Here, let me do something with your hair," Ultear offered and she hopped off the bed.

"Ugh, please! I can never do much with it myself. My arms go numb every time I try."

"I know. Most annoying thing-"

Lyon flopped back onto his bed, and drowned them out. He was happy to help Juvia get ready but some aspects of girl talk were completely lost on him. His phone buzzed, and he grabbed it and tilted it towards him so he could check the notification.

Mered: Here

Lyon shot up from the bed, as the doorbell rung. "He's here! How do I look?"

Ultear stopped braiding Juvia's hair and both gave him an appraising look.

Juvia pursed her lips. "I don't know…." Lyon's heart dropped, and she broke out into a grin. "Kidding! You look great, now go answer the door."

Lyon glared at her and poked her as he slipped through his bedroom door. "Lose the braid, it looks better down!" he called back up to them.

He strode down the stairs, and froze near the bottom as he caught sight of Mered. He was dressed in a pair of jeans and had a bulky holiday sweater on. He completely clashed and the sweater looked itchy on top of being hideous. Also hot, and not in the good way. "What the hell are you wearing?"

Mered glanced over his shoulder as he handed his coat to Ur. His eyes trailed over Lyon as he asked, taking in Lyon's tailored dress pants and designer dress shirt, and he narrowed his eyes at Lyon. "What's wrong with what I'm wearing?"

Ur fixed him with a reproachful glare.

"Uh, nothing..." Lyon swallowed hard, and realized that might not have been the most tactful approach. "I just thought we were gonna dance tonight."

"Yeah, so?"

"So? So you can't dance in that."

"Why not?" Mered looked utterly perplexed and more than a little put out. "I've danced in these before."

"Cause you'll overheat for one thing."

"And I don't match for another?" Mered fixed Lyon with a challenging look, daring him to deny it.

Lyon shrugged. "You don't, but I could live with it if I knew you'd at least be comfortable.."

"Suuure." Mered rolled his eyes and folded his arms across his chest. "You're a terrible liar. And it's not like I can do anything about it now, so you're just gonna have to live with me as is."

"There's plenty we can do about it. I have a whole closet upstairs full of clothes," Lyon said as he clomped down the last two steps.

Mered wrinkled his nose, and looked Lyon over once more. "Not a chance."

"Why not?" Lyon whined, and pouted dramatically. "I thought you liked the way I looked."

"I do," Mered said, and picked at his sweater. "But on you, not me. You're clothes are like, skin tight."

Understanding dawned on Lyon and he bit his lip. He could definitely understand Mered being self conscious in form fitting clothes. He thought about it for a moment then shrugged. "Maybe Gray has something you could borrow then."

"Wow, you're really desperate, aren't you?"

Lyon glanced at Mered sheepishly. "Look, I love you, and you're amazing no matter what, but that sweater is a crime, and you need to change out of it.

Mered froze and stared up at Lyon wide eyed, and Ur fumbled with the coat hanger in her hand.

Lyon stared back at them both, confusion mapped across his face. Understanding hit him full force as he replayed what he'd just said. His heart hammered, and his mind hit panic mode, it was way too early to be dropping I love you's and here he was, dropping them out there like it was nothing.

Not being able to do anything to take it back, Lyon tilted his head back and forced himself to laugh. "Sorry, too soon for that I guess." He turned on his heel and started up the stairs.

"Did you mean it?" Mered asked, barely above a whisper.

Lyon halted. His heart was in his throat as he turned and smiled. "What? The I love you, or that you needed to change?" Mered stared up at him and scowled, and Lyon's heart dropped. He gripped the banister and took a deep breath. "Cause I meant both."

"Oh," Mered stared at him and shifted awkwardly, before shooting Lyon a soft smile. "Well, cool."

"Yeah?" Lyon's heartbeat slowed and his lips curled into a bright smile. That was a way better reaction than he expected.

Mered's cheeks flushed pink. "Yeah."

Lyon let out the breath he'd been holding and his grin widened. He held out his hand for Mered to take. "Come on, let's find you something else to wear."

"Fine. But promise me, nothing super tight."

"I don't think anything of mine would end up being tight on you anyways." Lyon told him as they climbed the stairs.

"I'm not so sure about that," Mered mumbled.

Lyon laughed. Tonight was gonna be a good night, and a great way to usher in the new year.

Standing on the doorstep of Cana's house, it was suddenly clear to Juvia why Lyon didn't think too much about the size of his house. The house was huge, easily the size of a small mansion, and looked like it belonged on the cover of a Christmas magazine. Juvia couldn't stop staring.

Gray jabbed the door bell and jingle bells sounded off, in bell form. The door swung open, before it got through the first refrain, and a young scrawny teen greeted them with a smile. "Hey guys! Come on in, and give me your coats."

"Hey Romeo," Gray said, and handed over his jacket. "How'd she get you on coat check for the night. I thought you'd be out partying."

"No way, I'm getting a hundred bucks for the night, and Natsu's here," Romeo exclaimed as he helped Juvia and Ultear out of their jackets and then took Lyon and Mered's as well.

"Haha, shoulda known she'd make it worth your while."

"Of course I did, I'm not a cheap skate," Cana hollered as she bustled towards them with a tray of shots. Lucy was right behind her with a tray of appetizers. Natsu trailed after them and kept trying to sneak a bit, only to have Lucy swat his hand away.

Cana greeted each of them with a quick one armed hug. As she pulled back from Juvia, Cana gave her a once over. "Damn girl, you're looking hot." She elbowed Gray and grinned. "Guess I'll be needing to find a new backup for tonight."

Gray stiffened and shot a glare at her. He tried to be discreet, but Juvia saw the way he shook his head.

For her part, Cana looked sheepish, which was never a look Cana had when she teased Gray.

"What are you talking about? What back up."

Both Gray and Cana froze, and glanced back and forth between themselves and Juvia. "Nothing." Gray said, and wrapped his arm around her waist. "How about we head downstairs."

Juvia frowned. She wasn't dumb, she knew something was up between the two of them. "I thought we weren't playing mind games?"

"It's nothing, really," Gray said through clenched teeth.

"Yeah, they have a deal that if Gray doesn't have a partner for the night they share a New Year's kiss, but you're here so it doesn't matter," Natsu said, flashing Juvia a grin as he snuck a jalapeño popper off the tray and stuffed it in his mouth before Lucy could stop him.

Juvia froze, as her mind worked to process what Natsu had said, as she glanced up at Gray then over at Cana.

Guilt mapped across both their faces, and Gray's hand fell from her back to take her by the hand. "We should talk-"

Juvia wrenched her hand free, and her chest tightened as she thought about their conversation three nights ago. She'd figured when he insisted he wasn't going to kiss her again, he'd at least have the decency not to kiss anyone else either. She could feel the hurt and betrayal rising.

A small voice in the back of her mind told her it probably didn't mean anything. She forced herself to take a deep breath, and fought back against the tears. It didn't matter if it was platonic or not, she still felt like her heart had been shattered.

Silence stretched between everyone and even Natsu seemed to pick up on the sudden shift, his brows furrowed in confusion. "Did I miss something?"

Juvia shook her head, and her voice came out strained. "Nope. Nothing." She snatched a shot glass off Cana's tray and downed the shot, and didn't bother to chase it. She turned to Lyon and Mered as she set the glass back down on the tray. "Shall we dance?"

Mered seemed uncertain what to do, but Lyon nodded and grabbed her hand, and then Mered's. He hauled them towards the door where you could hear music blasting from. "Yeah, let's dance."

"Juvia," Gray called after her.

Juvia refused to look back, and kept walking. She knew he'd asked her to stop playing mind games, but that was supposed to go both ways. He should have warned her, but instead he ignored her feelings all over again.

Behind her she could hear him curse, and Cana and Lucy asking what was going on.

She hurried after Lyon down the stairs and into the pitch black basement. She needed a distraction and fast.

The basement had been made into a mini club. Techno music blared through various speakers throughout the room, and all the lights were off, except for dimmed lights over the bar. In their place several multi-coloured disco lights lit the room.

The stairway was clear, but the center of the floor was packed with at least 25 people dancing, several others were chilling out on couches and chairs. Juvia surged into the crowd without hesitation and Lyon and Mered followed.

She danced between them for a few songs before slipping away; she wasn't there to be a third wheel. She was about to head to the bar for another shot when a cute blonde guy waved at her. She waved back and waited as he made his way through the crowd, but she only recognized Sting once he was up close.

"Hey gorgeous!" He shouted over the music. "Your boyfriend looks a little distracted, need a new dance partner?"

Juvia frowned in confusion, and Sting nodded towards Lyon and Mered, who'd gotten a whole lot closer since she left. She blushed when she remembered that Sting had been told she and Lyon were dating.

"He's actually not-"

"Hey no judgement here," Sting said, cutting her off and holding up his hand. "I don't need the details, just looking to dance."

Juvia hesitated and glanced back to the bar. She was hurting but the last thing she felt like doing was complicating things further. The crowd around the bar parted and she caught sight of Gray sitting opposite Cana and her heart twisted. So much for the bar.

She glanced back to Sting. He was pretty cute. If nothing else he would be a good distraction. "Sure."

He broke out into an infectious grin and grabbed her by the hand, drawing her away from the bar and further into the crowd. Juvia followed without a second thought and let herself get lost in the music, the lights and the night.

The distraction only worked for a little while. As fun as Sting and his friends were, they were strangers, and a tight knit group too. After an hour of inside jokes and several flirtatious offers Juvia decided it was time to face reality and find her own friends.

It wasn't hard, even in the crowd they stood out. They'd commandeered one of the couches as a resting place from dancing, and had somehow managed to cram seven of them on it. Juvia perched herself on the arm rest, next to Gajeel, who had Levy in his lap.

"Hey Juvia! You're just in time," Levy sang, and handed her a shot glass.

Juvia took the glass from her and glanced at Gajeel. "In time for what?"

"Another shot." Gajeel deadpanned. "No one knows what for."

"Sure we do!" Lucy shouted. "It's for..." She trailed off and looked around for a moment before her eyes locked on Juvia. "It's to Juvia!"

"To Juvia!" The other's cheered, all downing their shots.

Gajeel sent her a look, clearly communicating that this was his point, as the two of them downed their shots.

"Hey, can we talk?"

Juvia stiffened at the sound of Gray's voice. She forced herself to turn and face him, but was at a loss for what to say. She still felt hurt and a dozen biting remarks rested on her tongue, ready to be fired back at him. The only thing stopping her was the look of pain that flickered across his face. He was trying to reach out and fix things, and all she wanted to do was tear him apart and make him hurt too.

She clenched her fists and swallowed her bitterness. This was what Gray was talking about, the anger and lashing out that he wanted her to work on. She took a deep breath and tried to keep her voice neutral. "I don't know if that's the best idea right now."

"Tch, c'mon. We need to talk about this." Gray straightened and his shoulders tightened as he frowned down at her.

"Gray," she warned. Her resolve was faltering and she could feel her temper rising at the change in his posture.

Gray reached for her only to have Gajeel grab his arm.

They locked eyes and Gajeel shifted Levy off of him. "You wanna talk, let's talk." Gajeel didn't wait for a response, he released Gray and was up off the couch and stalking towards the bar.

Gray hesitated to follow, and glanced at Juvia one more time.

Juvia turned her head, afraid to face him and even more worried what she might say if she did. She didn't want to ruin the night with another meaningless fight or another hysterical meltdown. She held her breath and waited until she felt his eyes slide off of her, and heard his sigh of resignation. Slowly she turned to watch him trudge towards the bar, and tried not to worry about what Gajeel would say or do.

A hand covered hers and she turned to find Levy staring up at her. "You okay?"

Juvia bit her lip. "Sorta?" Her eyes darted to Gray's back yet again. "Kinda wishing I could shut off the drama in my brain, and have a good time like a normal person."

Levy peeled with laughter. "I can't tell you how many times I've felt that way, just never was able to put it quite into words." She flashed a smile at Juvia. "Gajeel used to drive me nuts. I swear, before we started dating, most nights ended with me wanting to hit him."

"Sounds like Gajeel," Juvia said between giggles. "He's always been better at pissing people off than befriending them."

"Yeah, but we got better at not fighting over time. It's about learning to listen and making sure you get it. Half the time we fought it was because one or both of us were misunderstanding each other." She patted Juvia's hand. "Just takes practice."

Juvia nodded, and stole another glance in Gray's direction. She wanted to believe they'd get better at this, that all they needed was practice and time, but time didn't seem to be something she was going to get with him. She sighed and sunk back into the couch, trying to ignore the painful tug of her heart.

Juvia hated how conflicted she felt. Gray had been keeping his distance since his talk with Gajeel, and while she knew it was for the best, she felt like the opportunity to fix things was dwindling as they drew closer to midnight.

It was an impossible feeling to shake, and it hung over her like an oppressive cloud, even out on the dance floor. She did her best to lose herself in the music and being surrounded by friends, but no matter how hard she tried, her eyes always seemed to find him in the crowd.

The last song faded and a quick soft beat picked up from the speakers. She glanced around to find everyone seemed to have paired up. A soft female voice broke out over the beat, beautiful and sorrowful all at once.

"I keep reaching

but you're not reaching back

you're not reaching back"

All around her people were dancing but Juvia couldn't move. She stood in the middle of the floor listening to the lyrics as she yet again caught sight of Gray by the bar. Cana stood opposite him and her hand rested on his arm.

"Trying to get in, find you through the cracks

find you through the cracks"

She whirled away from the scene and caught sight of Sting. She was about to stride towards him, only to watch as he wrapped his arm around Minerva's waist, and beside him Rogue danced with Yukino.

"Guess I'm trying to say (Guess I'm trying to say)

It hurts to feel this small (It hurts to feel this small)

A million miles away,

Next to me, next to me you are."

As she turned again she realized that all around her were nothing but couples. Her eyes burned and her throat constricted as she forced herself to move off the dance floor.

"Well if you're sitting right here,

then why are we worlds apart

why are we worlds apart?"

She headed towards the couch only to find Loke sprawled across it, with a blond on top of him. His hand had hiked the hem of her dress dangerously high, and they were lip locked.

Juvia rushed past them, face flushed and heart racing as she headed for the stairs. She needed air.

"If you're so near,

Why do you feel this far?

Why are we worlds apart?"

She clambered up the stairs and back onto the main floor, shutting the door behind her. She leaned back against it and glupped down air. The faint echo of the song leaked through the door and she pushed off it and headed towards the back of the house.

She caught sight of a clock on the wall and sighed. Thirty minutes to midnight. When she reached the back door, there was a small pile of coats draped over a railing and she grabbed one and put it on. It smelt of smoke, but it was warm enough.

She slid open the back door and stepped outside, letting the cold air rush over her. She closed her eyes and breathed it in, and wondered if she might be able to see fireworks once new years hit.

As the last song petered off and another song took it's place Lyon took the opportunity to take a break. He nudged Mered and signaled towards the bar and motioned getting a drink. Mered nodded eagerly. They'd been dancing for the better part of the night, it was definitely time for a rest.

They weren't the only ones with the idea. Gajeel and Levy were already at the bar, and Natsu and Lucy arrived a few moments after Lyon and Mered did. Jellal and Erza were still on the floor and Lyon shook his head and wondered exactly where they found the stamina to keep going like that.

Cana grinned at all of them. "Finally! Pleasant company." Gray glowered at her and huffed, but Cana ignored him. "What can I mix you."

"Zambucha!" Nastu cheered. "Light it up!"

"Long island iced tea for me please," Lucy said.

"Beer," Gajeel said.

"Umm, sex on the beach for me." A bright blush coated Levy's cheeks as she said it, and Gajeel went bright red.

"Water for me," Lyon said. He was parched, and probably dehydrated.

Cana made a face. "Seriously? That's boring."

"I've been dancing all night, I need to hydrate before I do any more drinking," Lyon said.

"Fine, but you're doing a shot too," Cana said.

"Rum and coke for me," Mered said.

Lyon glanced around then, and then back out on the dance floor, and frowned. "Hey, has anyone seen Juvia?" She'd been out dancing with them for a while, but Lyon hadn't been paying all that much attention to her. Guilt pricked at his gut.

"Nope," Natsu said.

"Can't say I have," Lucy replied.

"Me either," Levy added.

Gajeel frowned as he scanned the crowd and then the room.

Gray folded his arms over his chest, and glared out at the dance floor. "She's probably with dancing with Sting."

"And who's fault is that," Cana countered, shooting him an exasperated look.

"Natsu's," Gray shot back.

"What'd I do?" Natsu asked, frowning at him.

Lucy rolled her eyes. "The whole New Year's kiss thing."

"Oh yeah. Right." Natsu had the decency to look a bit sheepish.

"She's not with Sting," Mered said, his eyes were locked on the far side of the dance floor.

"Or Rogue," Gajeel added.

"To be fair, you're the idiot that told her you weren't going to kiss her for New Years," Cana said, and fixed Gray with a pointed look.

Gray groaned and slammed his head against the bar top. "I told you, I forgot about the stupid New Years Eve kiss. I just meant at home, or when we were alone."

"Dude, how'd you forget about New Year's Eve?" Mered asked, then turned to Lyon. "And why aren't you all over his ass about this? Seems like the kind of thing you'd bitch at him for."

Lyon shrugged. "I kinda respect where he's coming from."

Everyone turned to stare at him wide-eyed.

"What?" He frowned at them. "I want Juvia to be happy, but Gray's been through a lot of shit, and I can respect him not wanting to rush into things."

"Thanks," Gray said, standing a little straighter. He seemed a bit lighter, and Lyon swore he could see the briefest hint of a smile.

"No problem."

"Very touching. I still can't spot Juvia," Gajeel said. He was craning his neck by this point trying to catch a glimpse of her.

Lyon let out a long breath and looked over at the couch they'd been hanging out on. The second he saw Loke he slammed his eyes shut. "Definitely not on the couch."

"You su- What the fuck!" Cana glared daggers in Loke's direction and slammed the mixer down on the bar top. "There's fucking beds upstairs!" She glared at Loke for a moment longer before turning to the group. "Sorry, I gotta go deal with this," she hissed, before storming off, no doubt to give Loke shit and break up the make out session.

"She's probably gone to the bathroom," Lucy suggested.

"Nah," Mered said, "Door's open."

"Maybe it was occupied and she went upstairs?" Levy suggested.

"Maybe," Lyon said. He glanced at the stairs and then at the clock. It was twenty minutes to midnight and his gut told him that Juvia wasn't in the bathroom.

"I'm gonna head up and see if I can find her," Gray offered.

"Nah." Lyon caught Gray by the shoulder to stop him. "I'll check on her. She might still be in a mood."

Gray's face scrunched up and he looked like he wanted to protest but one glance at Gajeel and his shoulders sagged in defeat. He leaned back against the bar, arms folded over his chest. "Fine."

Lyon gave Mered a quick peck on the cheek. "I'll be right back."

"You better be! Otherwise I'll kiss Gray at midnight." Mered teased.

Lyon scowled at him, but the appalled look on Gray's face was enough to ease any real concerns he might have. He'd still give Mered hell for it later.

Lyon sighed and headed for the stairs, hoping that Juvia hadn't wandered too far.

Juvia took a long, shaky breath and tried to wipe the tears off her face. It was way too cold to be standing out here crying for very long, but she did feel a bit better for it. Taking another deep breath she closed her eyes and force herself to straighten.

It was time to go back in and face the music.

She was about to turn and head back in movement by the far fence caught her attention. Juvia turned in time to catch a dark figure leap over the fence and land with a loud crunch on the snowy ground.

Heart racing, Juvia approached the edge of the porch to get a better look at the intruder. She stopped dead in her tracks as he stood up and dusted himself off. She glared at him, and stomped to the back stairs. "What the hell are you doing here?"

Bacchus froze in his tracks, looking more than a little terrified until his eyes locked onto her. His entire body relaxed at the sight of her and he scoffed. "Going to a party, now how about you move out of the way and let me through?"

"How about no." Juvia planted herself at the top of the stairs in a wide stance, fully prepared to keep Bacchus out by force. "Pretty sure if you were invited you'd use the front door like everyone else."

"Pretty sure it's not your house, and you can mind your own business," Bacchus said as he climbed the stairs. He stopped on the step beneath her and glared up at her. "Move, bitch."

"Fuck you."

Bacchus grinned and let his eyes trail over her body. "Gladly. Told you you're boyfriend was a fag."

Juvia panicked. She caught his shirt in her fist and got up in his face. Her other hand was raised, ready to knock him out. "What the fuck are you talking about?"

Bacchus laughed. "I'm talking about the fact that I saw Lyon running around with the local fag at some coffee shop earlier this week and they were looking awfully couple like." He leered at her. "Seems like you've been replaced, unless he's sneaking around behind your back."

Juvia shoved him and Bacchus stumbled down steps, barely catching his footing, as he clung to the railing. She sneered down at him, but inside her heart was racing.

This asshole saw Lyon and Mered together. She was glad he didn't harass them on the street, but he clearly wasn't gonna let it go tonight, which meant there was no way in hell Juvia was letting him sneak into the house.

"Seems like I struck a nerve." Bacchus grinned wickedly.

"You wish." Juvia pulled herself up to her full height so she could look down on him. "I knew he was gay. I'd still date him over you any day."

Bacchus scoffed. "I doubt that feeling's mutual. He'd much rather prance around with the little pink haired fag."

Juvia fisted her hand, and was ready to charge down the stairs and deck him when the back door slammed shut behind her.

Lyon's voice rang out in the silence. "What the fuck did you just call my boyfriend?"

Lyon strode across the porch, rage pumping through his veins. For the first time in his life he was more pissed off than afraid.

"I said he's a fag," Bacchus spat, his eyes narrowed as he caught sight of Lyon. "A giant fag, who's too dumb to know the only place he belongs is in a closet."

Before Lyon could think about it his fist connected with Bacchus' face, sending him sprawling down the steps and into a snowbank at the bottom.

Lyon stood at the top of the stairs, panting, and shook his hand out. He'd forgotten how much hitting someone hurt.

Bacchus whirled back up, fists ready, but he stopped short of the stairs, and stared past Lyon's shoulder.

Lyon could feel Juvia standing right behind him, no doubt ready to beat the ever-living shit out of Bacchus. Lyon almost felt sorry for him, as he watch Bacchus' face darken, as he wiped his mouth.

"Wow, guess you finally grew a pair." Bacchus sneered. "Probably all that build up frustration from not being able to fuck your little prude."

Lyon tensed and eyed him suspiciously. "How'd you know that?"

Bacchus stiffened and his grin fell as his skin went ashen. He tried to shrug it off. "Good guess."

Lyon eyed Bacchus as he thought about what Mered had told him about his ex. Something churned in his stomach as he put two and two together and came up with a conclusion he wish he'd never realized. His lip curled in disgust. "You're the asshole he fucking dated last year aren't you."

"The fuck are you talking about!" Bacchus glowered back at him, but Lyon could see the fear behind his eyes as he took a step backwards. "Like I'd date some fucking loser fag boy."

"Bullshit." Juvia glared down her nose at him, and spat in his direction.

Lyon shook his head. All this time… "You're messed up, you know that? I almost feel sorry for you, you must really hate yourself."

Bacchus lunged at him and grabbed his collar, but Lyon only braced himself as Bacchus shook him. "You don't know what the fuck you're talking about."

Lyon shoved Bacchus off him, and stared at him blankly. "Sure I don't." He turned then and headed back up the stairs, leaving Bacchus standing in the snow behind him.

It wasn't the first time he'd walked away from Bacchus, but it was the first time he walked away feeling superior. Feeling proud and strong and unafraid.

Most importantly, he felt free.

Juvia followed Lyon back into the house, and shut and locked the door behind her. She doubted Bacchus still wanted to sneak in, but she thought it was better safe than sorry. She glanced at Lyon, and smiled when she caught him rubbing his knuckles. "You doing okay there slugger?"

"Huh?" He glanced back at her then smirk. "Yeah, I'll live. Forgot how much that shit hurts though."

Juvia nodded and took his sore hand in hers and pressed lightly between his knuckles, as she looked over the rest of his hand. "Well, doesn't seem broken."

"That's a relief."

"You were pretty awesome out there," Juvia said, meeting his gaze.

Lyon blushed and scratched the back of his head with his free hand. "Uh, thanks. Not sure where the hell that came from to be honest. Finally picked something up from you I guess."

Juvia shook her head. "That was all you, and how strongly you feel about Mered."

"Yeah, well, no one should talk about him that way. He doesn't deserve it."

Juvia smiled. "No he doesn't."

Juvia slipped off the jacket she borrowed and dropped it back onto the pile, and bit her lip. She turned to Lyon. "So, what were you doing up here anyways? It's like, ten minutes to midnight now."

"Looking for you actually." Lyon said, a small furrow appearing on his brow. "You disappeared and we were all getting worried."

Juvia blushed, and tried not to feel guilty. "Sorry, didn't mean to worry you all, I just needed some air."

Lyon nodded and his hand wrapped around her waist. "You doing okay?"

"Uh, yeah. I mean I had a different idea about how the night would go, but I'm okay. It was just weird, you know, being surrounded by couples and being single. I mean, I thought…." Juvia let the thought trail off. Lyon knew what she thought, and she wasn't quiet ready to admit defeat with Gray. She knew she'd have to face it, but after Thursday, she'd thought she at least stood a chance of changing his mind about the kiss. It was her own damn fault for not listening to him.

"I'm sorry he's being such an asshole," Lyon said pulling her into a hug.

Juvia shook her head. "But he isn't actually being an asshole."

Lyon sighed. "No, not really, but as your best friend I'm kinda obligated to say things like that from time to time."

Juvia laughed at that, and hugged Lyon tighter. He was an awesome friend, and she loved him to pieces for it, and she was tired of him having to come and deal with her pity parties. She was getting rather tired of them herself. "Come on. Let's go ring in the new year! You have a wonderful new boyfriend that you ought to be kissing."

"We don't have to go back."

"Don't be stupid." Juvia turned and smiled at him. A real, genuine smile. "We're not missing New Years so I can throw myself a pity party about your brother not wanting to kiss me. That's just dumb."

Lyon held up his hands in defeat. "Well, so long as you're the one saying it."

"I am." Juvia nodded.

"Well then, let's get this party started!"

Juvia was greeted with a chorus of cheers, and infectious smiles once she returned to the bar, and she felt silly for disappearing on them. But she did get to regale everyone with the story of Lyon's encounter with Bacchus. She left out the details of him being Mered's ex, but embellished the rest of it to make up for the loss.

She tried not to be too disappointed that Gray was behind the bar pouring drinks beside Cana, but it still stung. She was past the point of blind anger, but was terrified she was too late for reconciliation, at least, for the night.

Her heart still dropped when Cana hopped up on the bar and yelled out, "One more minute!"

There was this sudden scramble as people hunted for their partners, and others snuggled up together and smiled at each other. It tugged at her heart and Juvia slipped away from the bar, to the far side of their group. She put as much distance between her and Gray as possible.

Beside her Lyon leaned over to Mered and whispered something in his ear.

Then the countdown began.

"Ten"

"Nine"

"Eight"

"Seven."

"Six"

"Five."

"Four"

"Three"

"Two"

"One!"

"Happy New Year!"

A champagne bottle popped behind her and several people blew on noise makers and cheered. And then people were kissing. Before Juvia had a chance to think about it, Lyon and Mered flanked her and each of them planted a kiss on her cheek.

Juvia blinked at them in surprise then smiled. She knew they didn't have to do that, but they did anyways. She pulled them both into a group hug. "Thank you!"

"Of course, we weren't about to let you be the odd one out," Lyon said.

"Sides, Lyon said you're good luck, and I could use some," Mered added.

Lyon rolled his eyes and Juvia giggled. She slipped out between them and gave Lyon a gentle shove towards Mered. "I'm gonna go get a drink."

Lyon nodded to her before turning, and planting a firm kiss on Mered's lips.

Juvia smiled at them then headed for the bar, a small spring in her step. She came to a screeching halt when she saw Gray standing there, looking lonely. She scanned the crowd and found Cana laughing with a gorgeous white haired woman Juvia didn't know.

Taking a deep breath Juvia approached the bar.

Gray was tense as she approached, but he forced a smile when she finally stood in front of him. "Hey. What can I get you?"

"Vodka Cran." Juvia bit her lower lip and glanced back to Cana. "She stuck you on bar duty?"

"Nah, I volunteered," Gray said, smiling in Cana's direction.

Juvia frowned. "But why, I thought-"

"I know what you thought." Gray slid her drink over to her, and fixed her with a firm look. "I thought we talked about this, you talking to me instead of getting angry."

Juvia glanced down at the bar top, and ran her fingers fingers over the wood. Shame and frustration warred for dominance. "We did, but we also talked about you being honest, and telling me things." She looked up at Gray, meeting his gaze. "Why didn't you tell me about Cana?"

Gray sighed and carded a hand through his hair. "Because there wasn't anything to tell."

Juvia let her face fall in disappointment, and her shoulders tensed as she grabbed her drink.

"Wait! Don't!"

"Don't what?"

"Don't go." Gray held her gaze and held up his hands. "I get why you feel that there is, but honestly I hadn't even thought about the whole New Year's Eve kiss thing until Cana brought it up. And she's just happy to not have to give me a pity kiss again this year."

Juvia huffed and folded her arms, but she leaned back against the bar, giving Gray a chance to explain himself.

"Really, I wasn't thinking. At least, not about tonight." Gray muttered the last part and Juvia barely heard him over the crowd.

Juvia averted her gaze and tried to mull everything over in her mind. She kept getting stuck on the fact that she wanted to spend the night with Gray, and so far it hadn't worked out that way. She wanted to let go, but it seemed like she was stuck in disappointment mode.

"Okay you're relieved, get your ass out from behind my bar," Cana exclaimed shooing and shoving Gray out as she stepped back into place. Her gorgeous white haired friend followed her, giggling and eyeing Gray and Juvia like they were a juicy piece of meat.

Gray rolled his eyes at the girl. "Don't even start Mira."

Mira beamed at him, and batted her eyelashes. "I have no idea what you're talking about Gray."

"Sure you don't." He wrapped an arm around Juvia's shoulder and grabbed her drink for her, before guiding her away from the bar.

Juvia's heart fluttered against her will at the touch, and she craned her neck to look back at the bar. Cana and Mira were whispering conspiratorially as they mixed drinks. Juvia turned her attention back to Gray and frowned at him. "Where are we going?"

"Out of sight of those two. Mira is the biggest gossip ever and both of them like to meddle way too much in my love life. We've got enough problems without the peanut gallery." He stopped by a small love seat in the corner of and collapsed down into it.

Juvia hesitated for a moment before sitting down beside him. She thought about keeping her distance but there's no way she'd be able to hear him over the music that had started back up again if she did. She did make sure to leave enough space between them that they weren't touching. After a moment of Gray doing nothing but leaving his head buried in his hands, Juvia cleared her throat. "So…."

Gray heaved a sigh and ran his hands down into his face and let his arms fall to his lap. He finally turned to look at her. "You should know there's only one person here I wanted to kiss tonight."

Juvia looked around the room, pretending to search for someone. "Really? I can see plenty of people you might want to kiss tonight, and only one single girl you wouldn't want to kiss."

"You know I want to kiss you." Gray said.

"I also know you said you weren't going to. Not even once." Juvia pointed out.

Gray winced. "I get it. You were talking about tonight, and I was a clueless idiot. Which is why I wish you'd just come out and said what you meant instead of beating around the bush."

"I thought it was obvious. Who forgets about New Years?"

Gray carded a hand through his hair. "Me, apparently. Are you really gonna be pissed off with me all night?

Juvia shifted uncomfortable and fidgeted with the hem of her slit. "I don't want to be, it's just-" Juvia stopped and slammed her eyes closed. She didn't want to make Gray feel guilty, or manipulate him, but she also didn't know how to tell him that she was disappointed and felt rejected, without doing that. Her hands balled into fists out of frustration.

Gray shifted and his knee brushed against hers.

Juvia's eyes fluttered open as his hand cupped her cheek, and her heart thundered in her chest at the touch. "Gray?"

He leaned in towards her and pressed his thumb to her lips to silence her. "If all you were asking for was a New Year's kiss, then I'm an asshole for turning you down."

"But-"

"Juvia." Gray locked eyes with her and licked his lower lip, stealing the breath from her. "I really want to kiss you right now."

"I thought that was a bad idea." She managed to get the words out despite the fact that it killed her to do so.

Gray hummed. "Still is. Very bad idea, I just don't care." He leaned forward.

Juvia planted a hand on his chest, stopping him a hairs breath away from kissing her. Every fibre of her being screamed in protested and she had to take a breath to steady herself.

Gray pulled back and frowned at her.

"What's changed?" Juvia demanded.

Gray cocked his head to the side and rose his eyebrow in question.

Juvia sighed and felt her heart drop. Maybe he was drunk or feeling lonely, maybe it was the dress…. "I don't want to do this if you're going to end up regretting it tomorrow." She moved to stand but Gray caught her wrist.

"I felt jealous when I saw you dancing with Sting."

Juvia sat back down and turned to Gray. "So you're just jealous?"

Gray cringed and fisted his hands in frustration. "No." He took a deep breath and relaxed, it was another breath before he looked at her. "I felt jealous at first, and then I realized I had no right to be jealous. I was the one who wanted us to be friends. And tonight I know you're coming home with me, so I know nothing's gonna happen, but once you go back to school…." Gray swallowed and looked a little pale. "I realized that if I'm not willing to give you a reason to wait, then you're probably not going to. And if you do, it's gonna be for the wrong reasons."

Gray shifted towards her and took both her hands in his. "I want more from you, I just need to get through spring semester, before I can properly commit to anything. Even then I want to take this slow. But I don't want to loose you because I was too afraid to try."

Juvia sat staring at Gray for a long time, her mind running in circles and she absorbed what Gray was saying. He wanted her to wait for him. He wanted her. He wanted a relationship, eventually….. "So you want to kiss me?"

"Yes," Gray replied, sounding breathless and relieved.

"Okay."

Gray smiled at Juvia and she smiled back.

Her heart fluttered wildly against her chest and he leaned in again and his hand cupped her cheek. She closed her eyes as their lips brushed against each other.

It was a soft touch, tentative and lingering, then his hand moved to the back of her neck and he kissed her properly. Full and hard and demanding. It took her breath away and made her head spin and she kissed him back as she clung to the front of his shirt and lost herself in the moment.

When they parted her lips felt bruised and his cheeks were flushed. Their chests heaved as the gulped down air.

"That was-" Gray took another deep breath and stared at her wide eyed.

"Satisfying?" Juvia supplied.

Gray broke into a grin. "Yeah. Sorta." He closed the distance between them again in another kiss, though this one was warmer. More tender, and less desperate. He pulled away again, still grinning. "Also kinda addicting."

"Is that a problem?"

"A little," Gray admitted, biting his lower lip. "Makes me want to go find an empty room."

"I wouldn't complain," Juvia said, eyeing Gray to see how he reacted. She would settle for a semi private corner at this point, but the look of concern that flashed in his eyes was enough to settle her down. Instead, she took him by the hand, and pulled him up with her as she stood. "But, I'd be equally happy just spending the night dancing."

Gray smiled. "I can do dancing."

And so they danced.

Anon Review Responses:

Guest: Aww, I'm sorry I had you in tears, but I'm glad you felt connected to Juvia. I have definitely tried to flesh out every character, and make them feel like real people. I think it's important that readers can related to the people they're reading about. :)

Quietharmonies: It's really been overdue for Gray and Juvia to have a talk, and of course it was explosive since they've both been bottling things and not really letting the other person know what they're thinking. And it's so true, all too often we get caught up in ourselves that we forget the other person's got their own perspective, and it's not even intentional most of the time, but we all do it, so it was nice to get to call Juvia out on that and talk more about Gray's own past and how he feels about things. Honestly Gray is one of my favs in this because he's super complex and I don't get to spell out how he feels. There's no Gray POV so I've had to find a way to continuously peel back the layers and reveal things about him and it's a lot of fun as a writer to get to do that.
And yes! Boundary talks are so important. :D
Lyon and Mered are my babies, and I love them and they are adorkable, and super great together. It is definitely terrifying coming out to people, no matter how you think they'll react because you really just never know. I'm glad your friends were good about you coming out, and good for you for taking that step and telling them. It's super huge and you should be proud of yourself. :) And yeah, I know one of the big things LGBTQ youths face is feeling like they're "behind" others in regards to romantic relationships because sometimes it's really hard to find someone, so I desperately wanted to touch on that with Mered, and also normalize that it's okay to not be ready and offer a supportive response because just like Gray wasn't ready emotionally to be in a relationship, Mered not being ready physically is something that needs to be respected too. And trust me, Lyon is not going to be an ass about that. ;)
And OMG thank you so much! It is a lot of work but I'd never be happy with this fic if it wasn't grounded in reality. I know a lot of people read fic to escape, but I feel like it's also a place to talk about things, and IKYSS is just one of those fics. There's a lot of real life experience, fears, and issues that have gone into it and I'd be failing myself and others like me if I didn't take the time to do that justice.

Guest: Aww! Thank you so much! I'm glad you thought so and I hope this one lived up to the last!