Me: *is writing and being retarded like normal*

Me: *realizes this is chapter 20*

Me: ...

Me: ...

Me: ...HOLY SHIT!

Lol hey guys I'm so sorry this took super long to publish, ive been ninja-writing my Freed x Laxus fic (Soulmate) and it's kept me very extremely busy. I figured it was time to post this so hah. Time for some more Gratsu, the original OTP.

I regret to inform you that this will be the last chapter of this fic. I'm going to keep writing Gratsu ship fics but they're gonna be seperate since I feel as though I've exhausted the plot on this one. Plus, I am trying to dial back to doing several fics that are one chapter each, rather than my usual multi-chap fics. Thanks for all the love and support!

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Gray POV

"Aiiiiii!" Natsu squealed, as I abruptly picked him up and threw him in the water.

His high-pitched scream went up in a cloud of bubbles as he fell into the blue liquid, making a huge splash, water erupting around him as he disappeared beneath the surface.

"Gray!" Erza scolded, from where she was comfortably seated on a lawn chair, beneath an umbrella. "We came to the pool to relax, not harass each other even more than we already do! Settle your ass down!"

"Sorry, Sister, but he's my boyfriend and I have every right in the world to chuck him in any large body of water when he's being an ass." I shot back, planting my fists on my hips as Natsu burst out of the pool, spluttering angrily.

"Gray! I'll get you for this! You are so dead!" he shouted as he pulled himself onto the white tile surrounding the water, soaking wet.

"That's what you get for calling me a useless ice princess wannabe!" I shouted at him, grinning from ear to ear. "Now, accept your fate with dignity and I might refrain from throwing you in again."

"Not if I throw you in first!" Natsu scrambled to his feet, dripping water everywhere, and tried to spring at me but ended up tripping over his own puddles of water gathering at his feet and falling into the pool again, all on his own. He came up a lot faster, but this time he stayed in the water, saying, "Why don't you just join me and we'll see how long it takes an ice princess to drown, eh?"

"Tempting, but no thanks. I'm not a huge fan of water." I rolled my eyes and sat down on the ground beside Erza. She reached down and rumpled my hair lovingly.

"If you don't like water, what are you doing at the pool, dumbass?" she asked.

"I came because he wanted to go and I can't tell Natsu no. Especially when he gives me that super disappointed look that dogs get when you don't give them some of your bacon." I replied, honestly. "Besides, it makes me happy to see him so happy. It also makes me happy to fling him into the pool and laugh at him."

"Heh, that's something we can agree on. Oh hey, I had a question. Jellal asked me out the other night, I was wondering if I should accept and let him take me to dinner tomorrow." Erza took her sunglasses off with a sigh.

"Do you reciprocate his feelings for you?" I twisted to look up at the redhead, whom was currently clad in a rather skimpy black bikini. "If not, tell him to fuck off."

"He is kinda cute, I must admit. Plus, I've always had a slight crush on him. If you tell him I said that, I will end you." She added the last part with a warning growl, and I nodded my understanding. "So I think maybe I'll give him a chance. Just wanted to make sure you're okay with me having a boyfriend. You are my little brother after all, and if you have issues with him being around me, I have issues with it too."

"Jellal seems like a decent enough guy. Nobody on this universe deserves a woman like you, but I'm okay with letting you give him a shot." I shrugged.

"Natsu said the same thing earlier, almost word for word. You guys are so sweet." Erza smiled warmly and shifted to a more comfortable position.

I glanced at Natsu, whom was currently swimming in circles around a very annoyed Gajeel whilst taunting the iron dragon slayer, trying to provoke him and start a fight. Natsu loved just starting random fights with people, it made him happy. It also made him feel better about himself if and when he triumphed. I was rather proud of him and how strong he was, but sometimes his competitive streak could be a bit... overwhelming.

"Gray! Tell this blazing idiot of yours to go harass someone else for a chance, eh!" Gajeel shouted at me, seeming extremely exasperated.

"Sorry, I have little to no control over him and how he acts." I shrugged apologetically.

Natsu smirked. "It's the other way around, Gajeel. Gray's more my pet than I am his. However, I'm sure if Gray asked nicely enough, I would join him over there and stop bothering you over here."

Gajeel gave me a pleading look and I nodded slightly, understanding the obvious message. "Hey, Nat? Can you come over here please, I want to cuddle." I called out, giving the pinkette what I hoped to be a sad, pitiful expression.

Natsu glanced at me and smiled. "Oh, alright. I gusss that means I ain't allowed to make fun of people like him anymore." He swam over to the edge of the pool nearest me and pulled himself out with the elegance and grace of a mermaid. I sucked in a breath as I realized he looked so fucking hot without a shirt.

"Suddenly I'm reconsidering my cuddling offer, you're soaked." I remarked.

"Hah, nice try, you're not getting out of this that easily." Natsu grabbed my hand and dragged me into the pool. Fortunately my shirt was already missing so I didn't get my clothes wet, but the water was fucking cold. I immediately made a little cry of protest when I realized how cold it was and tried to scramble back to land, but Natsu slipped his warm, strong arms around me and held me close, pecking my forehead. "There. Now we can cuddle all we want."

I sighed and eventually gave in, leaning my forehead against his. "You're annoying, but I love you."

"And you're boring, but I love you too." he grinned playfully before suddenly giving me a shove, causing me to fall underwater with a little yell of surprise that cut off abruptly.

I quickly resurfaced, coughing and spluttering. "What was that for, idiot!" I snapped, dripping water everywhere.

"That was for daring to breathe the same air as me. And for being alive on the same planet as me. How dare you." Natsu blinked at me before looking at his nails with fake modesty. "You should've seen that coming anyway, bastard."

I tackled him and pounded his face into the water for daring to insult me like that. Erza got mad when Natsu let out perhaps the most girly shriek I've ever heard and jumped in the pool to kill us both. Next thing I knew, Natsu and I were locked in an intense, heated splash-fight with the redhead, whom was clearly trying to drown us.

We had to end our little fight when Natsu actually almost drowned because Erza splashed him too much and he ended up inhaling some water. We got out of the pool, and I had to hold the pinkette while he coughed up water and complained that Erza was trying to kill him. He was lying on his stomach across my lap.

"You're such a baby." I remarked, rubbing his back.

He let out an explosive sneeze and glared at me furiously. "She almost killed me!"

"Can't say I blame her, you're annoying as hell." I snickered and continued to knead his back with my fingers. "Is there any more water in your respiratory system or are you good?"

"Speak English." he grumbled, burying his face in my thigh with an exasperated sigh.

"Are your lungs full of water or are you gonna survive?" I rolled my eyes.

"Oh. I think I'm fine. There might be a little bit still sloshing around in there but I dunno." Natsu replied.

"Tch. Dumbass." I kissed the top of his head lovingly.

"You're one to talk. Last night you told me that nine plus ten equals twenty one!" Natsu shot back, tracing his fingers along the inside of my thigh.

"I was making a reference to a vine! You should know that! Now shut up or else I'm gonna throw you in the pool. I'm not gonna let you sit in my lap anymore if that's how you're gonna be." I warned.

"Aww, don't threaten me with that. I love sitting in your lap." he whined, rubbing his head against my stomach like the weirdo he was.

"Then behave yourself." I smirked, running my fingers through his soft pink hair. "Even when you're all soaked, your head is like a ball of fluff."

"I'm gonna get Erza back for this by throwing something heavy at her face." Natsu told me, rolling over onto his back so he could look me in the eye. He had a lazy smile on his face. I leaned down and kissed his nose.

"I don't think she'll take very kindly to that." I said, cupping his face between both hands and squishing his cheeks.

"Hey. Don't do that." he swatted my hands away before clearing his throat and saying, "She'll be too dead to care, don't worry. What should I throw at her face? A fire extinguisher just to be ironic or perhaps that iron pillar over there?"

"Neither. Because I love Sister Erza, I don't want her to die." I laughed, smoothing my thumb across the underside of his chin. "Just throw a beach ball at her or something. You have good aim, it'll hit her face. And she won't die."

"Dude... That's a good idea!" Natsu's whole adorable face lit up and he sprang to his feet.

I watched, trying my hardest not to laugh, as he grabbed the nearest inflated ball and flung it right at Erza after calling her name to get her attention. It hit her square in the face, hard. Natsu started laughing hysterically, his loud, shrill voice ringing out across the area. But he stopped abruptly when Erza let out a yell of absolute outrage and attacked him with the deadly speed and accuracy of a lioness, grabbing a pool noodle and beating him relentlessly with it.

"Aiiiii!" he squawked, struggling to fend off her brutal attacks. "Gray! Help meeee!"

I was laughing too hard to respond. I doubled over, practically cackling over the hilarity of the situation. Erza furiously assaulting Natsu with a pool noodle was by far the most amazing, hilarious thing I have ever seen in my life.

When the pinkette finally managed to escape the outraged redhead, he was gasping for breath, and crawled back to me on hands and knees. He wasn't hurt, just really exhausted. He collapsed in my lap with a heavy sigh, muttering something about how he'll never mess with Erza again.

I chuckled and rubbed his head, fingers slipping through soft pink locks. He groaned softly, leaning into my touch.

"Feels good." he mumbled, turning his head and trailing kisses across my stomach.

"Yeah?" I smiled warmly and smoothed down his hair. "You're too cute, honestly. I'm so lucky." I told him.

"Nah. You're the sweetest, most charming, most absolutely gorgeous person I've ever met. I think I'm the lucky one here. I don't deserve you." he grinned and pushed up against me, kissing up my midsection to my chest, than up my throat to my lips.

I kissed him back eagerly, sliding my hand free of his hair to cup his face, right at his jaw, fingers resting on his warm cheek. His arms snaked around me, one around my waist, the other around my neck, hand clutching the back of my head. He was still perched in my lap, and took advantage of the intimate position to pull me closer, deepening the kiss.

"Damn!" Erza's familiar voice called. "Get a room, you two!"

Natsu briefly unlocked our lips to give her a death look before kissing me hard, just to spite her, this time slipping his tongue into my mouth. I immediately went along with it, recognizing the opportunity to annoy the hell out of Erza.

"Oh god, now I'm being serious, get a fucking room." Erza grumbled as she turned and walked off.

I smiled and hugged Natsu close, leaning my forehead against his shoulder. He stroked my hair and kissed the top of my head, eliciting a soft sigh of contentment.

"I love you." he said, as he caressed me with the softest, most gentle touch.

"I love you too, so much." I replied, nosing at his warm skin. "Mmf. You smell good."

He chuckled and ran his fingers through my hair again. "You smell like freshly fallen snow in a peppermint forest." he told me, fingers dancing across my scalp in slow patterns. "Plus, you're absolutely adorable. I could just hold you forever, until the end of time."

"Please do. That way, I won't have to go to work tomorrow." I joked.

We laughed and stayed like that for the longest time, holding each other as close as possible, touching in so many places my skin glowed with warmth. This quiet, gentle intimacy felt so right, so absolutely perfect, that I knew Natsu was meant for me. He was my twin flame, my soul mate, my best friend, my will to live, my everything. If I have him, I have everything. But without him, I am nothing.

"Gray, I wanna ask you something before we go home." Natsu said, once we had both stood up, before we could start walking away.

"Hurry up, you two!" Erza yelled at us from across the pool.

"Hang on a second, Sis!" I shouted back. "What's up, baby?" I returned my gaze to Natsu's perfect face.

He grinned and pulled something from the pocket of his shorts before taking my hand and getting down on one knee. It took me a moment to register what was happening.

Wait, why is he going down on one knee? Oh god. OH GOD OH GOD OH GOD!

My eyes widened so much I feared they'd explode, and I clapped a hand over my mouth, shocked out of my wits. I knew exactly what was going on. But I couldn't believe this was happening. My heart was racing and I almost couldn't breathe.

"Gray... I love you so much. I know for a fact that you're the only one for me, and I won't have any other. You're my other half, I can't live without you." Natsu said, slowly, allowing his every word to sink in. "You're perfect, the most beautiful person I've ever met. And I want you to be mine, now and forever. So... I know this is a bit random and unexpected, but... Will you marry me?"

I stared at him for a moment, unable to comprehend what was happening. Then I slowly nodded. "Y-Yes. Yes, of course." I whispered.

Gray Fullbuster-Dragneel. That sounds absolutely perfect. I thought, as Natsu rose to his feet and slipped a ring on my finger. It was silver, with a snowflake-shaped sapphire in the center.

"It's a snowflake." I remarked, absolutely dumbfounded.

"Of course it is. It had to be, since you're my Snowflake." Natsu laughed as he slipped an arm around my waist, pulling me in for a kiss.

I kissed him back without hesitation. My mind was still numb from shock. I was... Engaged? Natsu was my fiancé now, not my boyfriend. It was such a vast concept, so difficult to wrap my head around. I was vaguely aware of Erza and Gajeel applauding and cheering wildly in the background, but I ignored them. Right now, all my focus was on my beautiful, perfect Natsu. The warm pressure of his lips on mine felt so surreal I was sure I was dreaming.

"Natsu..." I mumbled, against his lips.

He pulled away just enough to let me speak. "Yes, angel?"

"I love you so fucking much, thank you for giving me a reason to be alive." I said, resting my forehead against his.

"I should be telling you the same thing, my love. You're so precious to me. I just knew I had to make you mine forever, because I want to spend the rest of my life with you. I won't have it any other way." Natsu replied, kissing my nose and tightening his grip on me, surrounding me with his overwhelming heat.

I still couldn't believe it. I was engaged. To Natsu. My ten-year-old self would be screaming "HELL NO". I slowly ran my hands down his chest, taking in every aspect of him, trying to make sure he was real and I wasn't dreaming. The solid, sharply defined feel of his muscles was all too familiar, and it reminded me that this was real, I wasn't dreaming.

"I can't believe it..." I whispered, as I examined the gorgeous ring on my finger. It looked so good, contrasting wonderfully with my pale skin.

"Me neither actually, I was so damn nervous. I thought you were gonna say no." Natsu laughed, brushing my hair out of my face so he could pepper my skin with kisses. "It was a very unrealistic fear to have. I know you love me with every ounce of heart and soul you possess, I guess I was just afraid of what might happen if you didn't and this whole thing was... a stupid dream."

"I'm having a very hard time convincing myself that this isn't a stupid dream." I admitted. "I never thought I'd be on the receiving end of a proposal. And I swear I was absolutely mortified when you got down on one knee and I realized what you were doing."

"I can't say I blame you, being proposed to is scary." the pinkette nodded his understanding. "But oh god, I'm so glad you're mine. Really and truly mine. It's not some temporary relationship that can be cut off at any time anymore. Now we're together for the rest of our lives. And I love that. This is exactly what I wanted... And so much more."

"You should've asked sooner, it's almost like I've been waiting my entire life for this." I nodded.

Natsu was mine. And I was his. This eternity thing went both ways. I was beyond ecstatic when I realized that.

Perhaps the rest of my life was gonna be okay after all. Because now, I had something permanent, something true, something wonderful to hold onto.

The end...

So yeah... Unfortunately this is the last chapter of this fic but that doesn't mean I'm gonna stop writing Gray x Natsu. Thank you guys sooo much for making it to the end of this fic! It is the longest one with the most words I have ever posted, and I am so very proud of this story. Thank you to all my wonderful readers (special shoutout to Nina-Chan202 and Lorelei, thank both of you for the absolutely wonderful reviews you've always left on my fics, you both are so absolutely precious and you helped me keep writing even when I didn't feel up to it anymore. I hope y'all continue to read my works, it would mean a lot to me. I love you both!). My readers are the most precious part of my writing, so again, a thousand times thank you. And thank you to Natsu and Gray, for letting me ship them and letting me put them through this crazy adventure I designed for them.

I love you guys so very much! See you in the next fic!

-UltimatexAdmin