Natsu screams at himself in his mind 'Why the hell did I fucking do that?! Now he'll know for sure!' As he continues to eat like nothing had happen. Like he hadn't just defended Gray's innocence.'What was I thinking?' He pauses for a moment, noticing that he's been staring at Gray while he eats, and Gray has been staring back.
"What're you staring at Icicle?" He grumbles with a full mouth, seeming to be a bit embarrassed for once. Gray just kept staring, not even acknowledging that Natsu had spoken at all. Natsu swallows,and waves his hand in front of Gray's face. Gray grabs his hand and puts it gently on the table. Natsu raises his eyebrows in surprise. Gray hasn't ever touched him without starting a fight immediately afterwards. 'What the hell? He's not gonna fight me again?'
"Natsu, what was that?" He says quietly, almost like he doesn't want to know. Natsu feels the chill of Gray's touch lingering on his skin, and the heat of his own fiery blood rushing to his face.
"What was what? Me telling a rude girl to go away? It was nothing, but you still owe me one Frosty." He quickly says, going back to his food so he can hide his red face in it. Gray sweat drops, his mind going to extremes as he thinks of what that 'one' he owes Natsu could become. 'I hope it's not going to be torch duty... being lit on fire to save Natsu's magic energy once is way more than enough for a lifetime.' Then he allows himself to think, just this once, about what he wants it to be. He lets his imagination wander. 'Maybe he'll ask for a kiss... he'll stroke my face with his fiery hot hands and say that that's the one thing he wants that he couldn't get from someone else or by force. Our lips will finally meet after all these years of rivalry and he'll confess that he's always loved me, too...' Gray jerks his mind out of this fantasy and stands, knocking his chair backwards. Natsu stares up at him, looking confused, probably as to why he was standing up before he even got his food.
"I'm gonna get my dinner to go, I'll wait for you at the north end of town at sunset. If you're not there by dark I'm leaving without you." He walks up to the waitress from earlier and mumbles something to her, leaning closer than necessary. Natsu bursts into flames, lighting the table on fire in the process. There's a moment of chaos, with everyone in the restaurant staring and yelling to put it out. Before anyone can yell more than once, Gray raises his hands and says "Ice make geyser." And ice crystals shower over the flames and soak the wood and surroundings enough to ensure they don't catch fire again for a while. He gives the ball of fire a quick, knowing glance, and strolls out of the restaurant with a rainbow snow cone in his hand and a smirk on his face.
Gray finishes his snow cone and starts walking around the small town, trying to figure out if he knew what actually happened or if it was another fantasy. He looks down at his hands, remembering the hot hand he held for a few seconds just minutes earlier, and he knows it was real. The look on Natsu's face just before he burst into flames was one of pure jealousy, it practically radiated from his expression when Gray leaned in to whisper to the waitress. 'When he finds out what I said to her,' he thought in a bit of a panic, 'He'd destroy everything in sight with his rage... Maybe I should warn her.' He considers going back to the restaurant, but decides to let Natsu cool down and eat more before he attempts to go back. 'Don't want to cause another scene withing an hour of the last. We might not be welcome back if he destroys their best restaurant.' He walks around the outskirts of the town, wondering what Natsu's eating and how things are going back at the guild.
Back at the Guild hall...
Happy's crying on one of the tables behind Carla, holding a fish bigger than his body.
"Please take my fish Carla, I caught it fresh for you this morning!" He wails and Carla turns around looking annoyed but surprised.
"...Why are you here Tomcat? Shouldn't you be with Natsu, making sure he and Gray don't kill each other?" Happy freezes. Natsu left without him. He's alone... with Gray. His thoughts speed through his mind as he races to get to the doors, still carrying the huge fish. 'What if he confessed and Gray hurt him? He could be alone and not have anyone to drag him off the train home...'He weaves between people walking through the guild, trying to avoid slamming into someone. 'Or worse! What if he confessed and Gray did too?! I don't even wanna think about what they'd do with all of this alone time after so much being around the guild and our team.'
Wham! Happy slams into Master Makarov, who had shifted into his giant form to stop him.
"Leave them be, child. They can handle themselves now, there's no need to worry." he says in a stern, calming voice, just before he knocks the blue exceed out cold.
Natsu can't eat anymore. Not after he saw Gray lean in and whisper in the overly flirty waitress's ear. 'What did he say?' He can't take it, rushing out of his seat to find the waitress again in the now-busy restaurant. He remembers what Gray said, he has to pay, and drops a few hundred jewel on the table before he starts his search. 'And he thinks I never listen to him...' he smirks a bit, then starts off again to look. Turning every blonde waitress around with a polite tap on the shoulder would have been a good idea, but unfortunately this is Natsu. He decides the best and quickest way to find her is to stand on the table in the middle of the restaurant and yell out for her.
"Hey! I'm looking for the little Blondie who hit on my friend, where is she?" He doesn't notice the owner standing at the next table over, and is promptly grabbed by the ear and yanked out, flames and all. Gray watches him getting thrown out from a block away, holding in his laughter that he's sure the dragon slayer would hear. 'On second thought, maybe it would be fun to tease him a bit. I'll let Maya in on it just before he gets there, to make sure there are no hard feelings afterwards.' And he strolls casually towards their meeting place, a plan already formed in his mind.