Seven Days
Chapter 6- Wednesday
Something one should know about Gray Fullbuster- he was very ticklish.
Therefore, it only made sense that when something small, cold, and wet poked the exposed sole of his foot, he squealed, spazzed out and fell off the bed. His eyes were still shut tight from sleep, but since his body was tangled up in blankets, he couldn't brace himself for the fall. Accompanied with the tumbling blankets and pillows, he heard frightened yowls and maniacal laughter.
Finally, the world came to a stop. His face was smushed against the dusty wooden floor, his body slowly following. One foot was still perched on the side of the bed, somehow holding up his body, but whatever had disturbed him from his sleep wasn't poking around anymore. Something warmed leapt off the small of his back and scurried away. He could still hear laughter that sounded suspiciously like a certain pink haired idiot. He pushed his upper body up off the ground and leaned back against the bed, wiping his eyes.
He opened his eyes in time to see something small and furry scuttle behind Natsu, who was doubled over laughing. Somewhere in the kitchen, Lucy called out Natsu's name.
"Hang on, Luce! Happy just scared the living shit out of Gray!" Natsu answered, wheezing.
Gray looked confusedly at Natsu, his brain still foggy.
"... Happy?"
Natsu, too busy laughing so hard that he sounded like a retarded seal to properly answer Gray's question, simply pointed at the doorway. There, peeking out from the half opened door was a... cat?
Though full grown, the cat was tiny, probably the runt of the litter. It had bluish-gray fur, a white underbelly and tail tip, and wide blue eyes. Lucy walked up to the door, causing the kitty to hop away, only to hide behind her legs, curiously peeking at Gray.
Lucy gave Natsu a long look before turning to Gray.
"I'm making pancakes, how many do you want?" She asked, ignoring Natsu, who was now leaning on her.
"Four, but, you let him have a cat?"
She smiled, a mischievous glint in her chocolate eyes. "He promised me that when we got back home, I could finally get a dog."
Gray stared at the couple blankly, wondering why nobody bothered to inform him that the apartment was soon to become a zoo. He faced Natsu, who was now slowly sliding onto the floor.
"Dude, it wasn't that funny."
Natsu simply shook his head, his roaring laughter slowed to a violent giggle.
"Well, put a shirt on, cause we're going into town later with Levy and the others," Lucy ordered, before walking out of the doorway, closely followed by Natsu and the cat.
The trip to town had been interesting, to say the least.
It had involved a determined hunt for cat food, an intense fifteen minute argument between Natsu and Lucy about the purchasing of a green bandana (eventually Natsu won, and bought the "badass" bandana for Happy), a little man with bright orange hair that seemed to follow the group everywhere (he kept saying something about parfum, whatever that is), an hour long stop at a book store, another intense hunt for saltwater taffy (surprisingly, they came up empty handed), and last but not least, an almost-food-fight at a local seafood restaurant.
Now Gray was sprawled out on the couch, his eyelids heavy. Gajeel, Levy, Lucy, and Natsu were all somewhere in the room; in all honesty, Gray didn't really care where exactly they were standing or what they were doing. Juvia had gone to her cabin to take a shower a long time ago, but Gray knew better than harassing a girl while she's taking a shower (unlike a certain pink haired idiot). His head was swimming with thoughts, mostly about a certain bluenette. She had seemed kind of distant today, but there was one thing that Gajeel had said to him that stood out in particular. It had happened when they were walking along the boardwalk, heading for the car.
Lucy and Levy were up ahead, chatting relentlessly, and Natsu strided alongside Lucy, his hand surrounding hers. Gajeel trailed behind Levy, and way behind the group, Gray ambled beside Juvia. He glanced down at her, only to notice that she was stumbling along, her eyes half closed.
"You tired?" He asked, smiling softly.
She nodded, her cerulean hair bouncing each time she moved her head. Then she looked up at him, her foggy navy blue eyes meeting his ash-colored ones.
"Can you carry me to the car?" She pleaded. He looked at her for a long moment, dumbfounded.
"Uhh… Sure?"
He knelt down, and she laced her soft arms around his neck. His hands wrapped around her smooth legs, and he picked her up piggyback-style, making sure she was latched onto him comfortably before he started moving. Her body was pressed up against his, and he fought to stay calm.
But then she leaned up to his ear, and in her sweet voice, murmured a thanks. Her warm breath tickled his ear, and his heart went into overdrive, and she leaned her head on his shoulder, her soft cheek brushing his and her eyes drifting shut, and it took all of his self control not to kiss her right then and there.
It was at that moment that Gajeel chose to glance over his shoulder. Gray could feel his sharp gaze washing over them, and now his heart was hammering for a completely different reason.
"...Do you want me to put her down?" He asked tentatively, afraid of both waking Juvia and the overprotective man ahead of him that was probably plotting his death at that very moment.
But to his surprise, Gajeel smiled. "Nah, I'm alright with it. Impressed, even."
Gray gave him a confused look. "Impressed?"
Gajeel chuckled, sliding his hands into his pockets.
"Yeah, I'm impressed. After all, you're the first one she's opened up to in years." With that said, Gajeel turned around to catch up to Levy, leaving Gray to ponder over that comment.
Juvia had seemed awfully quiet that car ride. Then again, she had been squashed in the backseat with Gray, Natsu, and Lucy. Still, it wasn't like her to be that withdrawn…
"After all, you're the first one she's opened up to in years."
Was he hinting at what it sounded like he was hinting at?
Tiny paws on his stomach brought him back to reality, and he opened an eye to see Happy climbing on. The cat put all four paws on Gray's body before plopping down on his chest, his tiny black nose bumping into Gray's chin and his new bandanna tickling his neck. Happy blinked, his blue eyes wide, before letting out a soft meow.
"Dude… Your breath smells like fish…" Gray mumbled, covering his nose with a free hand. Happy simply nuzzled Gray's chin again before moving over to Gray's legs, allowing him to sit up.
"Hey, he's up!" A voice exclaimed, and Gray turned just in time to see Natsu stampede to the couch. "We're gonna play Pictionary, so go ask Juvia if she wants to join. And give me my cat," he ordered, scooping up Happy with one arm. Gray opened his mouth, ready for a retort, before deciding that it was a lost cause. He pushed himself up off the couch and out the door.
Outside, a heavy storm was raging. It was so foggy that he couldn't see five feet in front of him, so he stumbled blindly through the rain to Juvia's dark cabin. He swung the door open easily, his cold, wet clothes clinging to his body, and crept inside. The cabin appeared to be abandoned, the lights shut off and various things tossed about (Gajeel wasn't exactly the neatest person). He called her name, staggering into rooms and flipping light switches, but it was no use.
She was gone.
Gray stumbled out the door, his heart throbbing in his chest. Normally, he wouldn't worry about a disappearance like this, but she hadn't been herself earlier. That freaked him out.
The rain had calmed from a tropical storm to a simple downpour now, but it was still too foggy to see anything. He couldn't call her name; that would make the others worried. Besides, she was probably off in her own little world and wouldn't hear him.
Where are you?
He scanned the dark, stormy beach, looking for a silhouette, or footprints, or anything. Off in the distance he could see a bright light beam swaying across the ocean like the scrawny trees in the weak breeze, and somewhere in the back of his mind he remembered that there was supposedly a lighthouse in the area.
Maybe you're over there?
Another light, much smaller and motionless, caught his attention. It appeared to be floating on the ocean, but after racking his brain wondering why there was a light floating on the ocean, he realized it was on the dock.
What if...?
He bolted over to the dock, the fog growing denser with each step he took. It was so dense, in fact, that he didn't even know he was on the dock until he felt his bare feet smack the shaky wooden planks. His only thought was to find her, to protect her. As he got closer to the light, which turned out to be an electric lantern, he slowly began to make out a familiar silhouette.
"Juvia!" He called, heaving a sigh of relief.
She tossed her head over her shoulder, but didn't move from her seated position at the end of the dock. Her fingers tightly gripped the edge of the dock, and her feet dangled above the ocean, her toes making small ripples in the choppy ocean.
He finally came to a stop beside her. She kept her gaze on him, her eyes dark. Her long-sleeved purple shirt and black capris were thoroughly soaked.
"What are you doing out here? It's pouring!" He exclaimed, ruffling his hair.
"I could ask you the same question," she murmured, and then turned to face the water.
"Hey," he said softly, squatting down beside her, "what's wrong?"
She gave him a half smile. "What are you talking about? I'm brighter than this lantern!" She exclaimed, holding up the lantern with a weak cheer.
"No, you're not."
"Yes, I am."
"Juvia-"
"I'm fiiiiine."
He plopped down beside her, which caused the entire dock to tremble.
"I am not leaving this spot until you tell me what's wrong."
Well, that shut her up.
She looked back into the murky depths of the water. For a long moment, the pair simply sat in silence. Gray's eyes were glued to her, to the millions of thoughts rushing through her dark eyes, the rain-soaked cerulean curls that tumbled around her smooth face, the soft rise and fall of her chest with each breath she took. The rain kept pouring all around them, but neither of them seemed to notice.
You're the first one she's opened up to in years...
"Juvia…"
She looked up at him, and he could practically see the gears in her head turning. Finally, she heaved a sigh of submission and looked away from him, at the dark depths of the churning ocean.
"I guess… Just imagine a ship lost at sea right now. The world is dark and merciless, and the ocean is flinging the ship here and there and everywhere, and the rain won't stop coming down. The sailors are alone, lost, and terrified, left to simply wait out the storm that is trying to kill them. Now imagine that ship is me."
He stared at her for a few seconds, wondering how a girl that seemed so at peace with the world could possibly have such dark thoughts. His mind worked rapidly, desperately trying to find a way to help her. His eyes drifted to a familiar light scanning the sea.
He draped his arm around her shoulders and pulled her close to him, and pointed at the lighthouse that was glowing brilliantly despite the terrible fog.
"Well, see that lighthouse over there? It's there to help the sailors, to guide them home. It shines bright when their world is dark, to let them know that they aren't alone in this fight. It's always there for them, just like how I'll always be there for you." He lowered his arm as she turned to face him, her eyes wide as his words sunk in.
He would never forget what she did next.
Before he knew what was happening, her trembling arms were latched around his neck, her breath was tickling his ear, and her smooth cheek was brushing against his (for the second time that day). Her body was pressing up against him, engulfing him. He finally came to his senses and wrapped his arms around her, surrounding her.
"Thank you… Sometimes it just hits me out of nowhere and I don't know why…" She murmured, her soft lips brushing his skin with each word she said. He pulled her closer to his tingling body.
"When it does, I'll be here to make it go away."
He could feel her smiling into his neck, which caused the butterflies in his stomach to go insane. She mumbled something he didn't quite catch, but before he could question her about it, she had pushed herself up and was standing in front of him. She held one hand out to him, the other hand tightly clutching the lantern.
"Are you coming? Our Pictionary teams won't be even unless you join us," she declared, her bright smile outshining the foggy storm.
He blinked and took her hand, allowing her to pull him up. She began walking, and her hand almost slipped out of his, but he stopped her at the last minute. He squeezed it tightly, intertwining his fingers with hers, desperately trying to convey all of his unspoken emotions to her. She froze for a moment, and then kept walking with him at her side.
He didn't let go until they reached the porch.