Disclaimer – I do not own Fairy Tail

*Rated M for Mature

Summary: It's the day before Spring Break, and Natsu can't wait for some fun in the sun! But his dreams come crashing down when a school project not only winds up making him stay at the home of his worst enemy, but also his biggest crush-Gray Fullbuster! Modern/AU/High School

Chapter 19 – Tuesday (Warnings: Mentions of Abuse; Slight Sexual References)

"Natsu? Would you please stop pacing? You're making me dizzy," grumbled an unhappy Gray. It was currently after school—and they were at home—waiting for Natsu's aunt and sister to arrive.

"Then don't watch me," the pinkette quipped in response, continuing his rapid routine of fluttering back and forth in front of Gray like some drunken butterfly.

Gray sighed, his patience wearing thin. "You're not doing anyone any favors by stressing yourself out. You don't even have a reason to be stressed yet."

"No reason to be stressed? No reason to be stressed? I haven't seen my aunt since the day Wendy left with her! I tried to stay in contact, but my aunt refused to let me! She wouldn't…she wants nothing to do with me," Natsu said in defeat.

Noticing that the pinkette had finally stopped pacing, Gray took the opportunity to pull his Pinky into his arms in a means to calm him. "If you think she wants nothing to do with you, why is she coming here?"

"Wendy. She would do just about anything for her. Well, there's that and if, at any time, Wendy wants to meet with me, she can, and my aunt can't do anything about it."

"What do you mean?"

"My aunt tried to place a restraining order on me and my uncle. But she only succeeded partly. The court said that my uncle and I had no right to seek Wendy out, but if she wanted to, she could. But it would be her choice and her choice alone."

Now Gray was just a bit confused. "Then why hasn't Wendy tried to keep in touch with you more often?"

Natsu just gave him a pained smile. "Do you really think my aunt would ever tell her that she could see me any time she wished? Get real."

Gray was about to respond but was soon interrupted by the doorbell ringing.

"They're here," gasped Natsu, gripping Gray's shirt tightly.

"I'll get it!" Lyon called as he raced toward the door. He opened it excitedly. He was anxious to see what Wendy would be like. "Hi!"

"Hey!" Wendy said cheerfully.

"Um…where's your aunt?" asked Lyon when he noticed that she was all alone.

Wendy's cheerful demeanor started to wane. "She refused to come. I'm here by myself."

"Oh," said Lyon, quite saddened by the fact that Natsu's aunt didn't even want to see him. "How long are you staying for?"

"I need to talk to Natsu about that first. I kind of made my aunt angry, and she doesn't want anything to do with me anymore. Where's Natsu?"

"He's inside. Where are your bags?"

"I don't have anything. My aunt wouldn't let me take anything with me, so it's just…me. Can we stop talking now? I really just want to see Natsu."

"Okay. Sure. Follow me."

Lyon was silent as he led Wendy to the living room, where it seemed Gray and Natsu had been waiting impatiently. As soon as Wendy saw her brother, however, she bolted and threw herself into his arms, crying.

"Oh, Natsu! It's so good to see you!" Wendy cried.

"It's good to see you, too," Natsu managed to choke out. It felt good being with his sister again. "Where's Auntie?"

Natsu felt Wendy stiffen in his arms, and when she pulled away, looking down at the floor, he grew concerned.

"Where's Auntie, Wendy?"

"She's not here. I came here by myself."

"And without luggage, I see," Gray commented.

Wendy nodded her head briefly before breaking out into tears again. "After we talked on the phone, I got into a fight with her. She didn't want to come and didn't want me to go. We argued for a bit, and when I mentioned that I'd found the documents saying that I had the right to see you whenever I wished, she went ballistic."

"Did she hurt you?"

"Not physically," Wendy cut in. "She just…I used everything I had just to get a ticket to come down here. She wouldn't let me take anything with me. She doesn't want me anymore, Natsu. And she gave me this to give to you."

Wendy reached into her jacket and pulled out a few folded pieces of paper. They looked like legal documents of some kind. When Natsu took them, she said, "She's giving up custody over me. Since you're eighteen now, she's giving custody to you."

"What?" Natsu gasped, stunned by the news. "Not wanting me is one thing, but you? Why would she ever kick you out?"

"She always thought you'd be like Uncle Acnologia. And if I spent time with you, she thought I'd be like him, too. Since I chose to come see you, she saw it as me throwing my life away. And I'm not even going to say some of the other things she said. But all you have to do is sign the papers, and I get to stay with you."

Gray was appalled by their aunt's behavior. No one deserved to be treated that way. Natsu and Wendy were two very precious people who had been agonizingly deprived of the love and affection they deserved.

He, Lyon, and Ultear had lived a life deprived of the same care from their father. They were lucky to have a mother who cared for them so deeply. Everyone deserved growing up with loving parents, a safe and secure home, and the happiness that came with it. They all deserved that.

"Sign the papers, Natsu," Gray stated firmly when the pinkette made no reaction to do so.

It was then that Wendy seemed to realize whose company she was actually in. "You must be Gray! I didn't see you there! I'm really sorry for making a scene!"

"You didn't make a scene," Gray assured her. "You'll live here with us."

Now it was Wendy's turn to be confused. "Huh?"

Gray's eyes narrowed at Natsu. "You didn't tell her?"

"Didn't tell me what? Natsu, what's going on? You're living here? Wait, is that why you said to come here in the first place?"

"I'm sorry, Wendy. I wanted to tell you everything over the phone, but I was just too anxious about what our aunt would say."

"Then tell me now."

"A little more than two weeks ago, Gray and I were paired off for a school project. I had to stay here and…he found out that Uncle Acnologia had been hurting me, so he asked me to stay. He took care of me and we already kind of liked each other. One thing led to another and we're dating now," Natsu explained quickly.

When Wendy didn't react, he felt his heart sink. Was his sister disgusted by his sexual preference?

But when Wendy threw her arms around him and squealed for joy, the pinkette nearly had a heart attack. "Oh! I'm so happy for the two of you! You look so adorable together!"

Then Gray found himself with an armful of Wendy. "Thank you for taking care of my brother! Thank you for letting him stay here! And do you mean it? Do I really get to live with you guys?"

"Of course. I wouldn't want my Pinky all sad because his sister couldn't stay. There's a room already prepared for you. Let Lyon show you around, and then we'll have dinner, all right?"

"Okay," replied Wendy, giving everyone a final hug before she ran off with Lyon.

"Thank you, Gray. Thank you so much. I don't know what I'd do without you," stammered Natsu, who was on the verge of tears. "You don't know how much this means to me."

"Natsu, when will you understand that I love you more than anything? And I'm pretty sure that I'll soon love Wendy as if she were my own little sister. You mean the world to me."

"Me too," Natsu chuckled, his tears subsiding. "But I still don't understand why my aunt would give her up and for me of all people."

"Don't start blaming yourself for what's happened," started Gray. "It's not your fault, and it's not Wendy's fault. You two shouldn't blame yourselves for the family you had the misfortune of having. The past is now the past. And I hope you plan on having me in your future, because I know for a fact that I plan to be in yours."

Natsu threw his arms around Gray's neck, kissing him passionately for a minute or two before breaking away for air.

"I love you, Gray. Thank you so much for your support."

"You're welcome," Gray replied, smiling. "Since the service is tomorrow, we won't be going to school. It will give us time to enroll Wendy—how old is she anyway?"

"She's twelve."

"We'll enroll her, and she can start school next week. That will give her time to settle in."

"Okay. But we also need to do some shopping for her. Wendy basically came here the same way I did, minus the injuries."

"Yes," Gray replied thoughtfully. "And we'll take care of that, too. But I am not taking her shopping. I've heard too many horror stories about women and shopping."

Natsu couldn't help but laugh at that. "Then I'll call Lucy, and the two of them can go shopping together. I'm sure they'll have fun."

"Loads," Gray responded ruefully. "I have a feeling those are going to become inseparable."

"Wouldn't that be a good thing?" Natsu asked mysteriously.

Gray raised an eyebrow at him. "Lucy and Wendy being inseparable is a good thing?"

"If they're hanging out together a lot, it means we can be together a lot," Natsu hinted, hoping Gray would catch his drift.

Gray stifled a groan. "Please tell me your sister likes sleepovers," he asked hurriedly.

"She does," replied Natsu, sauntering away from him. "But you're not getting any until…oh, I'd say in about a week and a half."

A week and a half? What was happening in a week and a half? "Why that long?" Gray whined pathetically. It was a weird sound coming from him.

Natsu rounded on him, waving his casted wrist at him. "Because that's when I get this stupid thing off. I am not going to let my first time be ruined by this stupid cast. I want everything to be perfect when I give myself to you," he answered heatedly.

Gray gulped at Natsu's livid expression. His Pinky was very adamant about waiting until—

"First time?" Gray sputtered. "You've never—"

Natsu clamped a hand over his mouth. "Will you keep it down?" he hissed. "Do you want the whole world to know?"

Gray shook his head.

"I've never been with anyone that intimately before," said Natsu, removing his hand from Gray's mouth. "I've been trying to save myself for someone special…someone I love. What about you?"

Gray's vibrant blush was all the answer he needed. Who knew that the King of Perverts would be so embarrassed? And this was the guy who created Strip Phonics?

"You're a virgin, aren't you?" Natsu teased. "Just like me." The pinkette started trailing his hand up Gray's torso suggestively.

"I think I hear your sister calling," stammered Gray, nearly running over Natsu as he tried to get away.

The pinkette just stood back and laughed as he watched Gray make a break for it. Whether it was to actually find Lyon and Wendy or take a cold shower, he didn't know. What he did know was that things were looking up. And when he mulled over that thought again, he burst out laughing.

Something on Gray's person was probably looking up, too. And Natsu would be damned if he'd let this opportunity to tease him down.

He raced after Gray, determined to find him, and tease him just a bit. Hey, Gray couldn't always be the one to have fun.

And come on! How often did someone get to make the Ice Prince blush like a virgin? Natsu wouldn't pass that up for anything!

Perhaps things would get better after all.

End Chapter