~He'd somehow slipped up and let on that he actually sort of cared for her... And in his mind, that meant he was inevitably doomed.~

Day 5 – Dancing

He couldn't believe he had actually let it slip. He was such an idiot.

Gray bit the inside of his cheek, trying to distract himself. He brushed his fingers across the spines of the books on the shelf, his eyes blurry and unfocused on the titles as he tried to pick one out. No one in Fairy Tail ever went to the Magnolia library aside from Levy, and maybe Gajeel if he accompanied her.

Gray knew he needed to be alone, or at least away, from everyone long enough for things to die down. If Levy or Gajeel showed up that was fine. Levy was kind enough to leave him be if he asked and Gajeel couldn't give less of a damn about anything so he'd leave him alone too.

He just needed to camp out long enough for it either to blow over, or long enough to know that Erza wouldn't tell.

What had he done? He'd let it slip that perhaps… maybe… there were some, ugh feelings for Juvia deep down in his heart that he'd tried to seal off from everything. He'd been talking with Erza about everyday things one minute, more focused on reading the new Sorcerer's Weekly issue, and then the next without even truly realizing it, she'd asked him something about Juvia and he'd said, "Mm, I think maybe I'm starting to come around to her. I guess I like having her with me, anyway."

The minute the words had come out of his mouth he regretted them, both his and Erza's eyes bugging to the size of saucers as they stared at each other, both apparently wondering if he'd literally just said what they thought he'd said.

Of course, it wasn't a confession or anything. He didn't say, "Oh yes, Juvia, the love of my life" or "I-I think I maybe… have feelings for her" or anything too awfully serious. However, in Gray-speak, that'd been the equivalent to professing that he did indeed, perhaps… like her. As more than a partner and friend.

He never had said anything remotely nice about her before, nor had he really about anyone else, so no one had suspected it. But now? Oh god the cat was out of the bag.

Yes, he'd been having little inklings that he might actually like Juvia lately. And yes he was absolutely horrified and yet invigorated by them. He'd sort of vowed to himself that he'd never actually fall in love with her. With all the love she showered him with and all the creepy stalking she did after they'd first met, he'd sworn that he'd never go anywhere near her, nor fall in love.

Of course, that first part was shattered when she joined the guild and he was basically forced to be around her. She followed him like a shadow and so really, he had no choice. But hey, at least he could stick to his other vow and not develop any reciprocated feelings. Unfortunately, apparently that vow had been slowly cracking since the day they met and honestly, he hated himself for it.

He would've hated himself for having feelings for anyone, really, but her especially. He didn't go for the clingy type. He didn't go for the girl who wanted him so badly that everything she did and said seemed to revolve around him. He just didn't go for that type.

At least, he thought he didn't.

He groaned, looking a shelf higher and again tracing his finger along the books. He'd thought at first maybe Erza wouldn't make a big deal of it, or maybe she'd not think too much of it. After all, he hadn't said anything that insinuated he liked her in a more… love-filled kind of way. But then again, he'd known Erza for a long, long time, and she knew his ticks and ultimately, what he'd meant by those words.

Because he wasn't one to show or speak his feelings, and so even saying he enjoyed someone's company really meant something. Plus, by the look on her face something told him Erza had known exactly what he'd meant by it.

That finally after years he was coming around to the thought of him and Juvia, and deep down he was beginning to recognize that he indeed had some feelings for her.

He'd panicked back at the guild, jumping up from his stool and shooting Erza a look that he hoped would say, "Don't you dare tell a soul" but he had a feeling he had just looked a little scared and embarrassed. Afterwards, he promptly flew from the guild and went to the only place he knew no one would bother him: the library.

He had no idea what was going on at the guild now. Erza could've decided to keep it to herself, which seemed honestly pretty likely; she was considerate of others. In which case his panic was pointless. He figured that maybe one day he'd tell Juvia how he felt, but that'd be a day way in the future and a day when he'd finally one hundred percent figured out for himself that these little thuds of his heart were actually for her in a more romantic way. Love was foreign to him, and confusing, and scary, and so he wanted to make sure that he knew exactly what he was feeling and that it was most definitely real before he said anything to her. And even then, he'd probably try to play it cool.

But now… if Erza hadn't kept it to herself, it could be spread all the way through the guild. He dreaded the teasing and giggles he'd get whenever they poked fun at him. After all, Gray had never had a "crush" before and it was easy to tell that his guildmates had been absolutely dying for the day when he did have one, and they could finally make cutesy remarks and snicker at him when he looked embarrassed.

But it wasn't that that he was dreading the most. It was Juvia.

He really wasn't ready for her to know. And he meant really not ready. She'd flip out, she'd overreact, she'd probably attach herself to him in a hug and refuse to let go for the next two weeks. She'd start making dinner reservations and ask whose apartment they were going to move into. She'd jump right in head-first while he was still only dipping in his toe. She'd had months and months to dream and plan about what it would be like when he finally confessed and they were "going out" but he hadn't ever thought about it. Not until now. Even when he started having those stupid feelings he hadn't thought about it.

He took a deep breath. Erza probably wouldn't tell. He trusted her and she was more mature than most so he'd be fine.

His heart sank. But what if someone overheard? That was probably the most probable outcome and it hadn't even crossed his mind until now.

He groaned, massaging his temple with one hand while keeping the other still firmly pressing against the books on the shelf.

He guessed it was out of his hands now and he'd just have to hope for the best. Worst came to worst he could always just deny it. No one would probably question it if he said he hadn't been serious; after all, it definitely didn't seem very probable that the same Gray Fullbuster who tried to get away from Juvia every time he could, suddenly had feelings for her.

Maybe he'd stay overnight in the library just in case. All of the excitement of it would probably die down after a while if he didn't show up… If Erza didn't tell anyone and no one overheard, they'd probably just think he'd gone out on a request. If they had heard, something else exciting was bound to come up sooner or later and their minds would be taken off of the fact that their very own ice mage had finally opened up his heart to someone.

He squinched his eyes shut. He still wasn't even entirely sure if he'd opened up his heart or not. It was all just so confusing. Why had he let that slip? Now he was forced to really think about how much he cared for Juvia, too. Dammit. 'Stupid, stupid, Gray', he thought to himself.

He pinched the bridge of his nose and forced himself to take in a deep breath. No, he wasn't forced to think about those things… The fact was: he wasn't ready for it. And the only thing that'd force him to confront his feelings for Juvia –that was if he even had them- was if someone had found out about what he'd said.

The library was quiet and isolated… he could stay here forever if he was forced to. Hell, maybe he'd try and find a nice place he could set up camp and call his new home. Maybe they wouldn't find him here… and he could be a master at hide-and-seek if he needed to be. Yeah, that sounded like a good alternative. Maybe he wouldn't even go back to the guild. He'd wait until he was positive everyone had forgotten. Either that, or he'd wait until Erza tore up the entire town to find him. Even so he thought he probably had a solid month. A month sounded good.

He was running at full speed away from his feelings. That was what Gray Fullbuster did best, after all.

He shook his head and grabbed three books next to one another on the shelf he'd started on, not caring what the titles were. If he were going to stay in the library for an entire month he'd probably end up reading most of the books, anyway. It didn't really matter where he started.

However, whatever calmness he'd forced over himself after pushing down his own feelings was suddenly broken as two large, blue eyes showed up in the space the books had been, staring at him from the next aisle over.

"Holy shit!" he cursed to himself, nearly jumping out of his skin. Maybe Juvia had come a long way since joining Fairy Tail, but she still had that 'creepy rain woman' vibe every once in a while. Especially when friggin' looming on the other side of a bookshelf and popping up just when he decided on a few novels.

Wait a second… if those eyes belonged to Juvia –which they most certainly did- it meant Juvia was there… in the next aisle… He'd already been found, and found by the person who was quite possibly the one he least wanted to find him.

She continued to stare at him through the hole in the shelf, unmoving. He felt the hair at the back of his neck stand on end and his palms become sweaty. Why was she here? Had she followed him? It wasn't out of the question; she followed him nearly everywhere. So of course when he wanted to be alone she would show up. She had the worst timing and could never understand when he wanted some time to himself. Boundaries were not in her dictionary.

Good lord she hadn't moved even an inch… was she alright? He didn't want to talk to her. Not now, especially.

He was positive he looked like a deer in the headlights, frozen to the spot, staring back at her. Avoiding her was out of the question now, though. If he knew Juvia as well as he thought he did, there wasn't a chance in hell he could escape without her at least following him.

Well, maybe he was overthinking it and this was just one of her normal stalking trips. Maybe Erza hadn't spilled the beans and maybe no one had overheard. Maybe she was just tailing him, like usual.

He cleared his throat and in a rather shaky voice said, "What are you doing here, Juvia?"

She blinked, staying still as a statue. "Juvia saw Gray-sama leave the guild. She followed him here."

"That still doesn't answer my question," he frowned.

She blinked at him again. "Why did Gray-sama leave so quickly after speaking with Erza about Juvia?"

Shit. She had heard. That was it. He'd have to move. He'd have to move and change his name and dye his hair and pretend he couldn't do magic. He'd have to find another town, another job, another life. He guessed he could still probably be happy… He'd have a wife, two kids, a steady income. It was the life all non-magic-users dreamed of.

When he didn't answer her, her eyes disappeared from sight and he heard her footsteps rounding the corner of the bookshelf. No, he wasn't going to let her near him. She was most definitely going to opt for that two-week-long hug he'd thought of earlier. He flew around the bookshelf just in time to slip out of sight as she showed up on the side of the shelf he'd been on.

He listened to the sound of her footsteps stop when she rounded the corner and didn't see him. "Juvia is worried…" she said slowly.

He heaved a sigh. "You don't need to be worried about me, Juvia. Just go home."

"Juvia will not go home until she gets answers," she said firmly. And then her footsteps picked back up, going back the way she'd come. He knew she was going to come back around the bookshelf and once again he panicked, sprinting to the opposite side and slipping around to the end of the bookshelf. It was just barely wide enough to hide his body from her view but he knew it was enough.

She huffed in irritation. "Juvia is very confused. She saw no reason for Gray-sama to have run from Erza during that conversation and so she is worried something is wrong."

She saw no reason for him to have fled? Oh… maybe she didn't hear the conversation correctly? Or his response in its entirety? Or, he guessed, more likely maybe she didn't read as much into what he'd said as he did and Erza would. After all, she may have familiarized herself with every fact about him, but truthfully she didn't know him as well as everyone else at the guild, whom he'd been around since he was a small child. Maybe she wouldn't have read any more into what he'd said than any stranger would've. Maybe she thought he was just saying that yes, he was getting used to her and as a friend, he didn't mind having her around.

Which of course was a gigantic compliment in her book, but not something that meant he had any sort of romantic feelings for her.

He felt himself relax slightly. That was one bullet dodged, he guessed. However, unbeknownst to himself he'd shot another one when he'd dodged her and run around to the other side of the bookshelf. He could've played off running from the guild with some lame excuse and she would've bought it. However, running, quite literally, from her… she wasn't going to let it go until he answered her straight.

He peered over his shoulder and around the side of the bookshelf to see she'd positioned herself on the other side, peering around it toward him just as he was at her. He cursed in his head as her eyes went wide upon finally spotting him.

"Juvia just wants to talk." Yes, and that was exactly what he didn't want to do.

He turned around placing one hand on either side of the bookshelf and steadying himself to watch her. They must've looked insane, standing on either side of the shelf, nearly twenty feet apart, peering around one side to talk to one another. He had no idea what any bystander would've thought was going on, but he was positive they would've thought he and Juvia to be insane.

Her head disappeared in a flash then and he quickly looked around the other side of the shelf, ready to flee if she came in his direction. She stopped, however, when she saw his head on the other side. She looked frustrated. "Why did Gray-sama leave like that?"

Her head popped out of sight again and he whipped his own to look on the other side, making sure he had clear view of her at all times.

"I don't want to talk about it, Juvia," he ground out.

She lunged to the other side and he mimicked her, her lips pursing. "Does Juvia have a new love rival?"

"What?" Gray coughed, once again leaning to look around the other side as she moved to do so. "Who?"

"Erza," Juvia answered shortly. "Juvia respects Erza, but if she's her new love rival she is ready for the challenge." Determination burned in her eyes and she switched sides again. He followed her movements and she again was stopped in her tracks. She knew that if she went toward him head-on, he'd simply flee around the other side. She was trying to catch him with her back to her and he was dipped if he'd let it happen.

And thus, they began the dance, her trying to catch him off guard so she could come talk to him close and face-to-face, and him trying his best to hedge her off and stay as far away as possible.

"Why on Earthland would you think Erza would be your love rival?"

They switched sides.

"Because you left when you said nice things about Juvia!" They switched sides again. "Was Gray-sama worried she'd get jealous?"

Gray stifled a snort. "No! That's not it at all!" They looked around the other side.

"Then what was it? Why did Gray-sama leave so quickly?"

Switch. "It was nothing."

"Yes it was. Gray-sama would've never had that… panicked look on his face if it were nothing." They switched again.

"Drop it, Juvia."

"No, Juvia will not 'drop it' this time! She never gets a straight answer so this time she's putting down her foot." She stamped her foot once as if to accentuate her point. She lunged toward the other side and he caught her eyes once again.

"Oh please, you never drop anything when I ask you to!"

"Yes, Juvia does! When is the last time Gray-sama actually answered one of her questions?"

They looked around the other side. He stuttered aimlessly for a moment to himself, trying to think of a time and coming up empty. The fact was, no, he didn't ever answer her in a straightforward manner… "That's beside the point," he growled. "I'm telling you there's nothing to worry about."

She frowned and they both jumped to the other side. "Did Gray-sama suddenly become sick?"

Great, now she was back to guessing why he'd left. "No." They switched sides again.

"Did he remember something he needed to do?"

"No." They swiveled to the other side and the dance continued with nearly every answer he gave.

"Did Erza say something to Gray-sama that Juvia didn't hear?"

"No."

"Did Gray-sama just really want to come read a book?"

"No."

"Did Gray-sama get mad with Erza for some reason?"

"No."

"Was it because of what Gray-sama said about Juvia?"

"…"

"Did he misspeak?"

"…Er… not really."

"Did he not want to say what he said?"

"…"

"Did he regret saying what he said?"

"Yes."

The instant the word left his lips he regretted it. She looked happy at first that she'd received a more straightforward answer, but then her face fell as she realized what it meant. To her, he'd regretted saying he enjoyed her company as a friend, and he regretted saying he was getting used to being around her. He could easily tell she'd gotten something akin to a punch in the chest at his comment and without really thinking he ended their dance, pushing off of the shelf and walking toward her.

She was looking at the ground and it didn't take a rocket scientist to figure out she didn't want him to see the tears in her eyes. "Oh…" she said quietly. "So Gray-sama left in a hurry because he said something untrue… and he regretted it. He didn't want Erza to think he was serious…"

He steeled his jaw. "… I said I didn't misspeak."

It was clear that that comment wasn't much comfort to her. She shook her head. "Juvia is sorry for following Gray-sama here. She was only worried about his well-being, but… he's fine. So she can leave now."

She made a move to leave and he took a step in front of her. "I said I didn't misspeak… therefore…" Dear lord was he really saying this? "Therefore what I said wasn't untrue."

She raised her gaze a bit, looking more at his shoulder now and he could see the gears turning in her head. "I-It wasn't untrue?" she echoed, more speaking to herself. "B-But Gray-sama regretted it…"

With a shaking hand he hooked one finger under her chin, bringing her gaze up to his. He immediately withdrew his hand once their eyes were locked. He didn't have the confidence to keep his hand there, nor did he exactly want her reading too much into what he was saying. After all, she didn't think he'd meant any of what he'd said in a romantic manner, and he wanted it to stay that way. At least for now…

"I regretted it in that I didn't exactly…" He wasn't sure how to word it. "I didn't exactly want anyone to… hear it?"

She blinked up at him, confused. Her eyes were still rather wet with tears which made them look even more like clear, blue water than they did normally. "Juvia doesn't understand…"

He frowned, looking up from her gaze to find the words. He couldn't handle staring at her for that long.

And on a rather impulsive whim he decided that for once, yes, he'd go out of his comfort zone and be one hundred percent candid with her. He'd give her that straightforward answer she seemed to desire so much. "You know how they all are… Our guild members, that is. How they tease Natsu and Lucy for being partners, how they won't leave anything alone, how they already poke and prod at me and ask me when I'll start to… reciprocate your feelings." She took in a tiny breath at this and he quickly continued on. "Just think how annoying they'd all be if they knew I didn't dislike having you around anymore, eh? How they'd be if they thought we were actually… friends… or whatever?"

He hoped that was enough. That that was all she thought he thought they were: friends, and she wouldn't be insulted by it.

He braved a glance back down at her and by the look of jubilation in her eyes he knew that for once in his life he'd actually somehow been able to say the right thing. She clasped her hands together, swelling with joy. "So Gray-sama did mean what he said about Juvia?"

His lip twitched and he looked away again. "…Yeah, I guess."

She squealed a very quiet squeal to herself and he watched as she stopped herself suddenly, taking a deep breath to calm herself down and putting on a more composed expression. "So in other words, Gray-sama left because he was afraid of the teasing it would bring if the other members of Fairy Tail had heard?"

"Yes," he nodded.

She nodded back, looking determined. "Alright, then. Juvia will make sure Erza won't tell, or even better, if she thinks it was a slip of the tongue. No one must know this except for Juvia and Gray-sama." Another little squeal left her lips. "A secret only Juvia and Gray-sama knows! So romantic!" She swooned for a second before looking back up to him. "Juvia will do her best for Gray-sama!" And without another word she'd marched out the front door of the library, back into the streets of Magnolia.

Gray stared after her, frozen to the spot. He was unsure if it would be good or bad if Juvia succeeded and they were indeed the only ones who knew that he… That he'd come around to her. Even if she didn't entirely know what he meant.

Eh… it meant at least he'd be able to not spend a month in the library, he guessed. It also meant he could show his face in the guild. It also meant she would probably be even more clingy… But of all the things that could've gone wrong, it definitely wasn't the worst.

Oh my gosh I sort of forgot that I was still in the middle of writing these for Gruvia Week... Gruvia Week of 2015. ORZ
But hey, better late than never, right? *awkward laugh*

This one was kinda weird. I didn't want to take the prompt literally, I wanted to do something a little more obscure, so this odd thing was born. Hopefully it was cute though. XD

I'll try to hurry and finish the last two days soon! Or at least before the next Gruvia Week lol.

~Foxtail-chan