A/N: Oh my God, this story. I can't stop writing for it. Anyway, here's chapter eight, so enjoy, guys! (Sorry if this chapter was pretty boring, but I wanted to set everything up nicely for Natsu's recovery. Also, I'll try to make the next chapter longer.)

Chapter Eight

Natsu woke feeling like he'd been run over by a car. He tried to move and let out a groan as a dull ache spread through his limbs. His brain felt fuzzy, and his skin was clammy and hot under the blanket that covered him. He tore open his eyes and blinked to get used to the light streaming through the windows.

At first he didn't recognize the room he was in. He'd only been there once, after all. And when he did recognize it, he couldn't decide how he'd gotten there, or why his body ached so much. Had something happened to him? Natsu held a hand to his head and slowly sat up, feeling slightly dizzy as he looked around at the empty room.

"C'mon, Gray, I've eaten now I have to get back to work." Natsu perked his ears up at the sound of Wendy's voice.

"But Wen, Natsu'll be fine by himself for a little longer." That voice; Gray. Natsu frowned, holding his head between his hands and squeezing his eyes closed. Why can't I remember anything after we left on that mission...

When Wendy walked in, she almost dropped the basket she was carrying. "Oh, my God! Natsu!"

Gray shoved past her, and when their eyes met, Natsu felt his heart skip a beat. He shook it off to give Gray a smirk and a feeble wave. "Hey."

Gray was at his side in an instant, smacking him on the back of the head. "Next time, you run too, got that, stupid?"

Natsu frowned. "What? Run?"

Giving him a strange look, Gray sat down in the chair beside his bed. "You don't remember?"

Confused now, Natsu shook his head. "No. Remember what? And how did I end up here, anyway? What happened?"

Wendy held up her hands, setting her basket on the empty bed beside Natsu's. "Calm down. Your brain must be suppressing the memories. You'll remember eventually, but just relax for now. Here, why don't you eat something?" She rummaged around in the basket to produce an apple and a small bottle of water, which she handed to Natsu. He immediately bit into the apple, relishing the crisp sweetness of it, which he hadn't tasted in a long time. He mumbled a thanks as he quickly made work of the fruit, tossing the core in the nearby garbage before he tore open the water and gulped it down.

"Um, you should probably slow down," Wendy warned. "You've been out for several days, and your stomach isn't used to—" Natsu's stomach wrenched suddenly, and he turned and threw up all over the floor. "—food," Wendy finished lamely, sighing. Gray, who had yanked his legs up to avoid his shoes being barfed on, wrinkled his nose. "Eww, Natsu, gross."

"Shut up," Natsu said, holding a hand over his mouth. He rested his other on his stomach and groaned in misery. "I haven't felt like this since the last time I was on a boat..."

Gray clapped him on the shoulder, making him groan again. "It's alright, buddy. You know what'd make you feel better?"

"What?" Natsu asked, willing to try anything to get rid of the churning snakes in his stomach.

"A nice hearty meal."

"I hate you."

Gray sighed down at Natsu, shaking his head. As soon as Wendy had started cleaning up his puke, he'd conked out, snoring loudly. Gray had covered him with a blanket and helped Wendy wipe the floors clean after she was finished cleaning up the throw up, and he'd sprayed some Febreze around to mask the stench.

Wendy raised an eyebrow incredulously. Gray raised a counter eyebrow. "What? We might as well use it now. It's practically useless."

"Nothing. I guess my infirmary will just smell like"—she glanced at the bottle—"fresh twist cranberry for the rest of the day."

"You're welcome," Gray said with a grin, tossing her the can before heading towards the door. "I'll be back in a while. I need to clean my guns."

Wendy shook her head with an amused smile on her face. "I don't think I'll ever get used to people saying that like it's normal."

Gray set his last gun on the bed and wiped his hands on the cloth he had been using to oil them before tossing it on the bed and going to wash his hands in the bathroom. He wiped his face with a damp cloth and made his way over to the window, peering through the glass and down to the streets, past the gate.

It was four days after they'd rescued Natsu, and Gray's leg had started to feel slightly better, although he'd noticed his breathing was a bit faster than normal, but he figured that was just the excitement of seeing Natsu awake. He still couldn't believe that he'd recovered so quickly. Wendy had said a few days, but it was still surprising after everything he'd been through.

Gray stretched his arms above his head and walked back over to his bed. He reset the clips in all his guns and put them away before making his ways back downstairs, towards the infirmary. When he got there, Natsu was awake again, reading. Gray did a double-take, seeing as how not once in the four days Natsu was staying with him had he ever picked up a book.

"Oh, hey," Natsu said once he spotted him lurking at the doorway. He let his book fall to his lap and gave Gray a small smile that made his heart thump painfully in his chest. He returned the smile and walked over to sit in the chair beside Natsu's bed, resting his cheek in the palm of his hand. "I see you're feeling better, then?"

Natsu nodded. "Yep. Although I still feel like I got thrown under a bus."

Gray grimaced. "Yeah..." He didn't know what else to say without becoming angry; at himself or at Natsu's kidnappers, it didn't really matter which. But now that he was in front of Natsu, staring into those wide olive eyes, the words from before flooded his brain. I like Natsu. His face reddened. No, no, no, stop thinking about that, stop thinking about that.

"Hey," Natsu asked, brows furrowed. "You okay? Your face is all red."

Of course, that only made his face redder. "I'm— I'm fine. Totally fine." Natsu gave him a weird look but only shrugged and picked up his book to start reading again.

After a minute Gray had composed himself, and asked, "Hey, what're you reading?"

Natsu bookmarked his page with a finger to check the title on the spine. "Pride and Prejudice."

Gray raised an eyebrow, surprised. "Really? You're reading Pride and Prejudice?"

"Yes," Natsu said, clearly annoyed. "Now be quiet, Ice Princess."

Gray bristled at the nickname and sat back in his chair, crossing his arms. "Fine." There were a few more seconds of tense silence before Gray grew bored again. "So..."

"Gray," Natsu said, closing his book and giving him a look, "if you wanted my attention that badly, you could've just asked."

"I— You— What—" Gray spluttered, blushing wildly. Natsu chuckled in amusement as he stood and stormed towards the door. "Bye!" he called cheerfully, making Gray's brow twitch in irritation as he stormed down the hallway and up the stairs. "Stupid son of a— Who does he think he is?!"

Gray slammed his door and sat down hard on his couch, frowning angrily at the floor. His breathing was erratic again and he flopped down on his back and stared up at the ceiling, attempting to slow his racing heart. What is that idiot doing to me?

As soon as Gray left, Natsu tried to go back to reading, but all he could think about was raven hair and navy blue eyes. He sighed and bookmarked his page before setting the book on the vacated chair. He lay back on the pillows and looked up at the ceiling. Why was Gray all he could think about? He felt like he was a twelve-year-old girl pining after her crush, but he knew that Gray probably didn't share any of the feelings he was currently having.

Maybe I should just confess and get it over with, he pondered, rolling onto his side to look out the window. I guess it's better than not knowing. And who knows, maybe he feels the same way. After a second Natsu snorted and flipped onto his back. Who am I kidding? He's a total ice block. If I don't confess, and he does feel the same way as me, he'll never make the first move.

Sighing, he closed his eyes and drifted off into a deep sleep.