AN: Gah! I feel so bad for making you wait so long for such a crappy chappie :O I had a lot more planned for this chapter but i got distracted and then panicked about how long it had been since i last posted something so i cut it down :/
Bonus Chapter 3-
He had said he loved her but damn, Juvia was finding it nearly impossible to get the man to say it again.
Well, it has only been a week since he said it, she consoled herself, and Juvia has been distracted by matchmaking plans for a couple of days, but still…
She had tried really hard to get another confession out of Gray. What else could she do? She had baked him little heart shaped cookies with their names iced on, she had given him a Juvia plushie and she had declared her love for him countless times.
Nothing. Seemed. To. Work.
Currently she was sitting on the couch in his apartment, wracking her brain for her next idea. The ice mage hadn't been rejecting her offerings like he used to, he seemed to be reluctantly accepting them and that was good, but it was still not like she hoped for, not like in her daydreams…
Despair washed over her and she smacked her forehead hard as she realised she had completely reverted to her old ways.
"Juvia is probably just annoying Gray-sama!" she wailed, collapsing back into the cushions, "Juvia going about this all the wrong way!"
Her insides twisted painfully. She felt that at this rate, Gray would break up with her any day now and she couldn't help but torture herself with the various scenarios. She curled into a ball and hugged herself as the horrible scenes played in her mind and brought tears to her blue eyes.
Suddenly a clock chimed, prompting her to use her blurry gaze to find the source on the wall opposite. It was six-thirty.
"Gray-sama should be back with our dinner by now…" she murmured sadly, "Maybe he's taking his time in order to stay away from Juvia…"
She sniffled as she sat slowly up. Becoming vertical somehow renewed her; she jumped to her feet as determination flowed through her.
"Juvia will stop being annoying to Gray-sama!" she declared, "She will get him to confess his love again!"
She began pacing around the small living room, tapping her chin with her finger in thought as her brow creased.
"But how?" she muttered.
She didn't want to be too pushy again but she couldn't help but feel that a confession was what she needed from Gray; she would just have to find the right way to go about getting one. Maybe she could get him hot and bothered and then refuse to go near him until he said what she wanted?
She pulled a face, she could never be so cruel and would it even be a true confession if she got it that way?
Sighing, she plonked back onto the couch. Maybe…she could dress up nice and be extra kind to him?
Juvia slumped a moment later, imagining the heartbreak of him not noticing the difference. She resumed her pacing, making a loop of the little area. Maybe…She could just ask him?
She almost immediately shook her head, remembering how, over the past week, when she had told him that she loved him, he had simply responded with a small smile and an 'I know.'
She groaned and sat on the couch again.
Maybe… she would just have to wait…maybe it would happen if she didn't force it. She moved up and over to a small, clear space on the floor between two shelves and sat down before reaching up to the rectangular box of tissues on one and grabbing it. She placed the box just in front on her and pulled out a soft square, twisting it up nervously between her hands.
"What should Juvia do?" she whispered repeatedly, "What should Juvia do?"
She hated the thought that she was pushing Gray away, he was the one who gave her the sun, he was the reason she joined Fairy Tail, without him, she never would have found such a great family.
The tissue had crumbled in her hands due to her constant twisting, so she mindlessly grabbed another and continued her despairing thoughts.
"Has Juvia ruined everything?"
She continued to reach for the tissues.
Gray was striding casually along one of the quiet streets of Magnolia, a small bag of hot food dangling from his fingers. As a nearby clock sounded, he realised he was running a little late, it was already six-thirty. He hoped Juvia wasn't panicking and hyping herself up with weird ideas about him being kidnapped or anything. Despite that, he didn't increase his pace at all.
A strange heaviness had settled inside his chest over the past few days and he reluctantly accepted it as being worry. It niggled inside him and he resented it.
During the week, he had spent a fair bit of time with Juvia and she had been acting really weird…well weirder than usual and he was a little saddened by that. He had thought she had changed but it seemed she hadn't.
Nah, what am I even thinking? She's just overcompensating or something, he reasoned, I should just tell her to settle back down, then I'm sure we'll be fine…
Still, he felt the burden not only of her behaviour but of his almost constant worry that he had spoken too soon when he had told her he loved her.
Truth be told, he didn't know what to think or feel.
He heaved a loud sigh and turned into the next street, his eyes finding a familiar sign.
Huh, I'm on Dandelion Ave, am I?
The bar/restaurant up ahead called out to him and he wondered if maybe a quick drink would help him muddle through his thoughts. Shrugging to himself, he decided it was probably a good idea.
Soon enough, he was inside the building and heading straight for the bar where he had spent a few hours at just over a week ago. He slid onto one of the barstools, ignoring the odd looks he was getting from everyone as he placed his bag of food on the top of the shiny bar.
"You're kidding me," a mildly familiar voice muttered in disbelief.
Gray peered up and then nodded to the bald bartender who had spoken and asked,
"Hey man, can I get a drink?"
The bartender just blinked owlishly at him for a moment and then seemed to compose himself.
"Sure thing," he said, then he added rather wryly, "And what does 'The Gray' want tonight?"
The ice mage furrowed his eyebrows, "What?"
The bartender waved his hand, "Never mind, what can I get you?"
Gray shrugged, "Surprise me."
Turning away and grabbing a glass, the bartender questioned, "So…how's your lady?"
"Lady?" frowned Gray, "Oh, you mean Juvia?"
The bartender snorted in answer, "Of course."
"Well…" Gray said hesitantly, trying to fight the strange urge to talk to the man, "She's fine I suppose."
The bartender turned back to him and planted a tall glass of clear liquid in front of Gray as he said, "Did you confess to her yet?"
The ice mage hated the blush that crept up his neck and coloured his cheeks.
"Maybe…" he mumbled.
"Good," responded the bartender firmly, "And are you together now then? A couple?"
"Yeah," grumbled Gray, "How is any of this your business?"
The bartender laughed derisively, "Oh, you made it my business last week or don't you remember?"
"Pffsh, course I remember," Gray lied.
"Uh huh," the bartender replied, giving him a look.
Gray reached for the drink he had been given and took a sip, then he glared at the bald man.
"This is just water," he growled.
The bartender shrugged, "You said to surprise you, so…surprise."
"I don't like you," Gray said seriously.
"I don't care," the bartender retorted honestly, "I only care about why you're here."
"Oh yeah?" challenged Gray.
The bartender plucked up a clean cloth from beneath the bar and began wiping the top as he nodded.
"Yeah," he remarked slowly, "Why are you here when you clearly have a dinner-for-two pack in that little bag of yours?"
Gray sighed and rested his forehead against the bar, mumbling, "I don't know."
"Get'cha head off my bar," ordered the bartender protectively.
Gray simply lifted up his head slightly so he was resting his chin on the counter; he looked forlornly at the bald man.
"Talk to me then," the bartender sighed.
"You asked for it," Gray said, taking a deep breath as he felt the dam inside him burst, "So I told Juvia that I love her but I'm not sure if I actually mean it and I don't want to hurt her and I don't know what to do and I just need someone to tell me what I'm doing, okay?"
The bartender raised an eyebrow and tried to sort through that rush of information.
"Well," he said slowly, "Why would you tell her you loved her if you weren't sure?"
"I don't know," moaned Gray, "I was desperate at the time. But I've never been in love before, what if this isn't it?"
"It is," answered the bartender simply, "Now drink your water and go tell her again."
Gray blew out a stream of air, "Have you ever been in love?"
"Yes," sighed the bartender, averting his eyes and staring at the spot on the bar he was scrubbing, "And it didn't go so well for me."
"Is it because you're bald?"
The bartender rolled his eyes, "So remind me, why does Juvia love you?"
"Because I'm me," grinned the ice mage.
"And why do you love her?" asked the bartender quickly.
"Because she's her."
"So you do love her," the bartender stated triumphantly, smirking just a bit.
Gray blinked, "Uh…"
"Let's see," the bartender began ticking things off with his fingers, "You don't want to hurt her, you think about her all the time, you want to make her happy and you can't stand the idea of other people flirting with her or disrespecting her…am I right?"
Gray sat up and moodily folded his arms.
"I'll take that as a yes," the bartender said dryly, "So I'll ask you again, why are you here?"
"Fine," grumbled Gray, trying to cover up his relief and thankfulness by getting to his feet and grabbing the bag of food, "I get it, I'm going already."
He took a few steps away from the bar, turning his back on the bartender and giving him a little wave, "Thanks for the talk, see ya next week, baldy!"
"Hey, do me a favour before you leave would you?"
Gray narrowed his eyes at the man over his shoulder, "What is it?"
"Put some clothes on."
The ice mage looked down at himself sharply, "Shit! When did that happen!?"
To be continued...
AN: Oh and hey, i put up the first chapter of my jerza fic the other day :D Im half way through writing chapter two :D Ooh and if you're on tumblr, i have a couple of blogs :D the links are on my profile ;)