GREIGE
It's not just a name or a color, but a symbol of hope and what the future holds.
-Y.N.A.-
Everything will come to you at the perfect time.
Gray used to hear those words when he was younger. Many people told him that things happen at the right time and for the right reasons.
Admittedly, he never really cared about those words. He's a mage. His life used to be a constant adventure with no certainty of the future. He used to live with the sole purpose of avenging the death of his family, but as he trekked along the path of life, his objective and perspective slowly changed.
His goals shifted from revenge to continue living, from getting stronger to defeat his enemies to be strong enough to protect those that he loves. His quests were no longer about getting back what life had taken away from him but for a brighter future that he was aiming to gain.
As Gray looked around him, he could not help the wistful smile on his lips as he thought about what he went through from the moment his parents died up to the battles he had in his life and what the future holds for him.
When his eyes landed on the certain blue-haired woman walking around the kitchen with her bulging belly, Gray's smile turned into a chuckle when he saw her reaching for something from the cupboard.
Ah, there goes his future.
His wife and their unborn child.
Who would have thought that he, Gray Fullbuster, would one day marry and have a child of his own?
He could vaguely remember a memory from his past, it was of his old man, his mom, and him in the kitchen happily bantering with each other as they started a new day as a family. That was a part of his past that he could never get back, but now, in just a few more weeks he's having his own complete family.
Soon a little boy with his hair and Juvia's eyes would be joining their home, and he could not help but feel an overflowing emotion flooding his being.
Gray's eyes followed Juvia's movement. From busying himself with the fruits he was washing in the sink, he dried his hands and walked up to Juvia. "Hey," he greeted her as he wrapped his arms around her waist from the back. His hands rested on her round belly. His smile widened when he felt the magical energy coming from within her. It was similar to his and Juvia's, but it felt different. It was their child's, and it was getting stronger each day that passed. "What are you looking for?" he asked as he looked inside the cupboard only to see that it was full of food he had been trying to stop her from eating. His smile turned into a frown. "Juvia, didn't we already talk about your sugar intakes?"
Juvia turned around in his arms and looked up at him with cute puppy eyes. "Gray-sama," she said timidly. "Just a little bit of chocolate, please."
Gray wrinkled his nose as he shook his head. "Nope," he said while pinching her cheeks gently. "The old hag told you, you should watch what you eat if you don't want complications when you give birth."
Juvia pouted, her eyes starting to water, but Gray ignored the waterworks. It's not that he's deliberately trying to make her cry but he's more concerned with her health. Previously, they visited the old healer, Porlyusica, to check Juvia's health and the baby's growth. The old woman told them that they got nothing to worry about, but they must make sure that Juvia was eating properly and getting regular maternal exercise for the sake of safe delivery.
Sure, she's a badass water mage, but it didn't change the fact that she's a pregnant woman and pregnant women must take precautions not only for herself but also for the baby. And as her husband and a soon-to-be-father of their child, Gray was doing his best to monitor her pregnancy diet and daily activities. He even stopped doing missions for the time being just to make sure he could take care of her because Juvia happened to be a very stubborn pregnant woman.
Of course, Juvia was always sensible, and she usually does what's best for their child but there were just times that her hormones would get the best of her and her cravings would be too strong turning her into a complete grumpy person when she didn't get what she wanted. That was the reason why Gray seriously avoided buying stuff that he knew would be bad for her and it's a wonder why their cupboards were filled with chocolates and sweet snacks. He was sure he didn't buy those and the only time he wasn't around the house was the other day when he had to go to the guild for something important and a certain red-eyed dragon slayer came to visit.
"Did Gajeel bring those?" he asked when realization dawned on him. Juvia's tears dried quickly as she tried to avoid his gaze. "Juvia."
"Gray-sama, don't be mad!" she said and he could not help but frown at her when she stomped her feet like a five-year-old who didn't get her promised treats. "Gajeel-kun didn't want to give me those but I told him that his godson wanted sweets."
"So, you blackmailed him?" He could just imagine the big man helplessly doing what his pregnant best friend wanted just because he became such a softy when it came to pregnant women and kids since he became a father.
With a pout on her face, Juvia pushed him away and marched towards the fridge. Gray had to run after her when he saw her getting a pitcher of cold water. He had to stop when she looked back glaring at him. "Don't try to stop me from drinking this," she scowled. "I swear your son is going to be an ice mage! He seemed to always want something cold!"
That's it. Gray could not contain his laughter anymore and Juvia just glared at him even more. Damn, how could he stop her when she started blaming their baby for her actions. "Fine," he said flicking her nose. "Just a sip but that's all. I have your breakfast ready, and I already prepared your maternal milk. I promise after you give birth, we will have all the things you like and I won't stop you from doing whatever you like as long as it won't harm you, okay?"
"Promise?"
Gray chuckled heartily and gave her a quick peck on the lips. "I promise. Now let's eat then we will go out for your morning walk, okay?" he said as if coaxing a child to finish her veggies.
Juvia's face contorted and she can't help the whine coming out of her lips. "Gray-samaaaa! I don't like to walk!"
"But you have to."
"But my tummy's too heavy!" she looked so aggrieved and Gray had to bite the inside of his cheek so he won't burst out laughing. The last time he did that, Juvia almost drown him in a water sphere out of annoyance.
"That's why you should not eat any more sweets so you won't gain more unnecessary weight. It's all for you so you would be more comfortable."
"Are you calling me fat now?" she glowered.
"I didn't say that."
"But that's what you m—"
"If that's what you think, then be it," he chuckled. "But you are the most beautiful and the sexiest fat woman I've ever seen. You have no idea how much I want to ravish you, but then again, for your comfort and our baby, I'm restraining myself."
"You!"
Gray just smirked and guided her to the dining table before putting the healthy breakfast he prepared in front of her. He made sure she was comfortable before he pulled his chair closer to hers and started eating his food.
He could not help his smile when his grumpy wife started eating grudgingly. From time to time she would glare at him, and he would only smile. "How was it?" he asked when she was halfway done with her food. Juvia hummed and continued eating as she tried to ignore him. He just chuckled again and just let her be.
He specifically studied how to make that nutritious food to make sure she got something healthy to eat. Though it was not as delicious as her cooking he knew it tasted good because he painstakingly learned the best way to cook them. He went through the pain of Mirajane's gushing over his so-called "doting husband" traits and his other friends' teasing.
They were almost done with their meal when Juvia suddenly gasped and clutched her stomach. Gray panicked for a moment but he calmed down when he saw that although she was clutching her belly, Juvia was all good. "You okay?" He worriedly asked.
Juvia nodded and this time she was no longer making a long face. There was a faint smile on her lips as she took his hand and put it on the side of her belly. Gray had to smile when he felt slight movements. "Greige just gave me such a strong kick."
Gray's hand froze when he heard the name that she said. "Greige?"
He's sure he never told Juvia about their Edolas counterpart, and he never mentioned anything about the boy he met over there. So how come she knew about that name?
There was a solemn smile on Juvia's face when she looked at him. There was warmth in her eyes. "I'm sorry, Gray-sama. I know that we never had the chance to talk about what we are going to name our child, but you were always talking about him being a boy and I can see that you're certain we're going to have a son and that name just came to me. I was intending to tell you about it, but it always slipped my mind."
"Why Greige?"
He really wanted to know.
Sure, he planned to tell her to name their son Greige because it seemed to be the perfect name, but now that it came from her, he wanted to know why.
The blunette's smile widened before she answered while looking directly into his eyes. "Because to me, he is just like the color of the skies after a storm. The color I saw the first time my rain stopped just before I saw what sunshine looked like for the first time. It was the color that you showed me, Gray-sama. A color that looked like a promise of the future ahead of me. Our son is the manifestation of the future I was praying for."
Gray cupped Juvia's face as he smiled back at her. So that was it. "It's a beautiful name," he said. He leaned over to kiss away the tears that she unconsciously shed. "Greige. I like it. It's perfect."
Greige Fullbuster.
Their son.
The additional color that they need to paint their happy future.
And I just officially finished all the prompts for this year's Gruvia Week. Took a while but I hope you all enjoyed it because I definitely had fun diving deep into my most favorite ship!
I might not write for the next coming weeks because it would be another busy month at work but I'll try to update Midnight Memories and When I Was Your Man as soon as possible.
As of now, I'm working on a Gruvia drawing so I'll just finish that first.
( ‿ )
