Title: Fifth Time's The Charm (3/5: Overheard Conversations)
Author: Noble Voyager
Rating/Warnings: T
Characters: Gray Fullbuster, Lucy Heartfilia, Mirajane Strauss
Setting: Sometime after Episode 50
Summary: They say, "two time's the charm". But who says you can't have it five times?
Disclaimer: This story is based on the anime/manga created and owned by Hiro Mashima. I do not own Fairy Tail. No copyright infringement is intended.
Notes: I would like to apologize if any of the characters are kind of OOC... or completely OOC. I hope you don't mind. That's all. The next chapter will be updated shortly. Thank you for your patience.
Lucy sat alone in a corner, completely frustrated and embarrassed. With her head down on a table, she pondered over what had just happened once again. She did not mind those noisy little murmurs saying things like, What's wrong with Lucy? She's been acting really strange lately. She couldn't care less. Because of this weird and awkward day, she doesn't even want anyone to go near her. But little did she know that there was an interesting conversation going on between most of her guild mates. This was quite a shocker.
"Hey, I just realized that Gray is in love with someone," one of the mages close to Lucy's table said, "although he has been quiet about it and doesn't want to tell who she is."
"Well, you know the kind of person Gray is. He's not very open about his feelings or whatsoever."
"I wonder about that. He told me that ever since he met her, he's been crazy about her... whoever she is."
That last reply of her guild mate just caught her attention, making her eyes grow wider than ever. "Could it be that they're talking about me?" Lucy could feel herself shivering as she thought about that. Gray has been showing a few subtle hints lately but those were only observations. What more if he could just saw how he feels straight? That way, she wouldn't even feel butterflies in her stomachs in the first place.
Lucy stood up and got away from that conversation as abruptly as possible. Those are just plain nonsense and rumors. As she walks to the counter, she noticed the ice mage sitting there alone, talking to Mirajane. She doesn't want to embarrass herself once again, so she lumbered her way to the table where Levy is. But before she could even get there, another conversation has caught Lucy's ears. So, she hid herself somewhere near the counter and eagerly listened.
"Gosh, I knew I should've just kept quiet!" the black-haired ice mage said with an irritated look on his face.
"What's wrong, Gray?" Mirajane asked as she smiled to the frowning guild mate of hers.
Gray gave out a heavy sigh and said, "It's just that... most of our fellow guild members are spreading rumors about me being in love with someone."
"Is that true?" Mirajane raised an eyebrow. There was a hint of curiosity in those deep blue eyes of hers.
"Well... yeah... sort of... kind of... well... uhhh..." Gray stammered as his face turned a bright red color, "All right. Fine! Yes. It's just that ever since I got to know her whenever we are taking missions, I just noticed that there was something special about her. I couldn't bring myself up to tell what I truly feel. She's kind of like... avoiding me lately."
"Well, if she is someone close to you then you can say what you truly feel. I hope she'll understand."
"I don't know. If I tell her that, then I might just ruin our friendship. I don't want that to happen."
"Who is this person you are in love with, anyway, if you don't mind me asking..."
"She's a very good friend of mine. If I tell you, you just might et shocked," Gray gave out a slight smirk.
"Well, okay then. I say, if she is hard to approach then it's all right if you don't tell her... for now. You can always say what you feel about that person to someone else you can trust. That way, you can open up to that person more."
Gray couldn't help but feel a slight pang of relief inside. It has always been the power of Mirajane's advices that helps her guild mates whenever they have a problem. He stood up and thanked Mirajane for her kindness towards the whole Fairy Tail family.
Lucy, on the other hand, could not help but blush. This was the third time now. Who is this person Gray is crazy in love with? She quietly made her way to the exit, hoping that no one noticed her. As she walked back to her home, she pondered over what she just heard. She is already flooded with curiosity. Her reaction this time was not as exaggerated as before. Instead, she felt calm and at the same time, she could feel her heart beating rapidly. Oh, the irony...
As she finally took a few steps closer to her home, the feeling she had inside her is different compared to the previous ones. She couldn't stop thinking about how honest and open Gray is about his feelings, at least to some people. Who could this person be?
As she entered her apartment, she looked around, hoping that none of her teammates sneaked in to her room. Fortunately, there was no sign of them. She felt calm and relieved. As time passed by, she let these overheard conversations consume her... or even let it get the best of her.