Gray knocked hard onto his hotel room door. Inside, a half-dressed Natsu jumped in shock. He was trying on one of the many outfits he had laid out onto the floor. This outfit in particular required that Natsu tie strings all the way up his sleeves. So, he was on the floor, dutifully crossing every string into an intricate pattern.

Gray knocked again. Natsu walked up to the door and opened it just a crack. He peeked his head into the crack. "Hi, Gray."

"Hi," he smiled. "Can I come in?"

"Yeah, sure." Natsu opened the door the rest of the way and Gray followed him into the room. He saw clothes scattered on the floor, along with the intricate shirt laying on the bed.

"Is that what you're going to wear?" Gray asked, pointing at it.

"I'm not sure," Natsu sighed. "I like these pants, but I don't know if they go with that shirt."

Gray looked at the pants Natsu was wearing. They were nice, he supposed. They were black and acid-washed, high-waisted, with three extra buttons following the trail of his abs. They were tight around his waist, but loosened significantly the further down they went, completely obscuring the shape of his legs. A few, strong, intentional wrinkles crossed from hip to hip. A long cloth belt fell down his front.

Gray then inspected the shirt. It was a white, oversized sweater. A faded red symbol took up most of the front. The symbol was not the most interesting thing about the shirt, though. Black strings decorated the sleeves, laced from the wrist hem to the shoulder. They were crossed like shoelaces, and Gray saw where Natsu hadn't finished lacing them. It was an interesting shirt, for sure. Gray couldn't see himself wearing it, but it was still cute.

"I like it," he said. That was not enough to convince Natsu.

"Ugh! I just don't know." Natsu sat on the bed, next to the offending shirt. "I want to wear color, but I don't look good in color. I also really want a bold statement, which is why I chose this shirt."

Gray did not see what the problem was. "Yeah, it's a statement. So… what's wrong?"

"I don't know!" he cried. "I just wanna look good and—"

"How about you finish lacing it before deciding against it? We have all the time in the world. See how it looks."

"Okay…" he relented, picking up the shirt once more. His hands worked deftly, bringing the ends of each string over each other and into small holes in the fabric.

Gray watched him for a moment. He watched Natsu's hands, in particular. The four long bones in his palm moved in and out of visibility, sometimes sticking out prominently, and other times looking as if they weren't there at all. His veins moved similarly, though Gray was always able to see a hint of them. His nails were short, having little to no white at the tip, and a seemingly permanent dirt to the creases and folds. Gray's hands were similar in that respect. No matter how often he washed his hands, the folds on his knuckles always looked swollen and dirty. He assumed the state of his hands was due to throwing one too many punches in his life. Not to mention the fact that he had broken his fingers a few times. He knew Natsu had also broken his fingers before. Gray briefly wondered how the girls in Fairy Tail managed to keep their hands so smooth and clean. He knew they used special products, but he had no clue what they were. Erza never used products like that, and Lucy's system was so complex that Gray wouldn't even know where to start if he wanted to learn about it.

The coloring of Natsu's skin was interesting, too. The brief flashes of Natsu's palm showed it to be fair, pink, creased, and plump. The opposite side of his hand, the dorsal side, was tan, smooth, and skinny. There was a long, but faint, line separating the tan from the fair pink. Despite the dorsal side being tanner than his palm, Natsu's skin continued to deepen the further up the forearm it went.

"Are you just gonna stare?" Natsu asked, not looking up from his work.

"I'm just looking at your hands."

Natsu snorted, "Why?"

"I'm not sure," Gray paused. "They look a lot like mine."

Natsu stopped for a moment to compare his and Gray's hands. "I guess so. Two men, same age, same job."

"Yeah."

They trailed into silence again. Natsu continued to lace the sleeve, and Gray continued to watch him. The string moved further up the sleeve. Natsu's pace quickened as he found a rhythm to the movements, rarely making a mistake or backtracking. Every cross and loop moved like water, and Gray soon found it more fascinating to watch the lacing rather than his hands.

Natsu finished relatively quickly. He tied the remainder of the string and tucked it all in. He stretched the sleeve a little, allowing the string to settle itself properly. Gray leaned back, allowing Natsu to pick up the shirt, smooth it, then put it on. Natsu spun, obviously asking for Gray's opinion.

"I like it," he said. Again, this did not satisfy Natsu. He entered the bathroom to inspect himself in the mirror.

He yelled from the bathroom, "I just don't know."

Gray entered the bathroom as well to save themselves from having to shout. "What don't you know?"

"If it looks good."

"I like it," Gray repeated with a shrug. Gray particularly liked how the shirt laid over his pants. The shirt's hem did not appear to be perfectly straight. Due to this, Natsu's belt buckle was visible, but the rest of his waistband wasn't. The sleeves were also somewhat long, covering a portion of his hands.

As Gray watched Natsu continue to deliberate with himself, he realized that he couldn't just think about what he liked, he had to say it. He laughed to himself, amused by Natsu's antics.

"I like how the shirt falls here," Gray began, pointing at his belt in the mirror, "I like seeing the belt buckle and nothing else. I also like how the sleeves are a little too long. I think the faded red on the shirt matches the faded black on the jeans."

Natsu stopped looking at his reflection and looked into Gray's face. He smiled a little, then laughed. "Thank you, Gray. Sorry, I know it's a little silly."

"It is quite silly."

Natsu leaned his face into Gray's, but didn't kiss him. Their breaths mingled with each other's.

"You're still naked," Natsu whispered.

"I'm not naked, I'm wearing boxers," Gray responded, just as quiet.

Natsu laughed breathily. "Y'know, I don't think we've kissed yet today."

"I think you're right about that," he hummed. Gray closed the distance between them. He pressed his lips onto Natsu's but didn't move them. Natsu waited patiently, expecting something to happen. Nothing did, so Natsu took matters into his own hands. He turned until they were facing each other head-on, and tilted his head until Gray's lips slotted into his own. He placed his hands on Gray's hips, just above the waistband of his underwear, and began to kiss him. Gray happily reciprocated.

They stood, entangled, in the bathroom. The kisses never turned more than slow and romantic. Their heads moved slowly: pressing forward for a moment, relaxing, then pressing forward again.

Natsu allowed himself to sink fully into the kiss, into Gray's body. It had been a long time since he had felt this way. So happy with a person, so willing to enjoy being with them. Lisanna was a short and overall depressing introduction to romance. This, with Gray, was not the same. He was older, more confident, more capable. Having previous experience made this relationship feel less rocky. He wasn't breaking new ground, he was just enjoying himself. He had craved that emotional freedom in his previous romances. Now, he had that opportunity. Now, he had a hot boyfriend that he liked. Natsu wanted this.

It helped that Gray had been extremely understanding. Despite the comparable freedom, Natsu still had his hesitations. At every moment, Gray responded amazingly. He was patient, sweet, and gentle. Natsu's hesitations, at first, made him feel ashamed. He wished he could do the things that he couldn't. He wanted to do everything expected of a boyfriend. Gray could've easily exploited this shame. He didn't. Natsu felt ashamed at first, but, after Gray's reaction, he felt loved. Gray did not exploit his shame, he didn't push Natsu, he reacted with pure patience and care. Spending time with Gray reduced his shame and warmed his heart. He loved how Gray made him feel. This difficult, rare feeling of romance was cultivating within him.

Natsu pushed the kiss slightly deeper. Gray's hands slid up Natsu's back and rested below his shoulder blades. They squeezed each other tightly for a few seconds before letting go.

"Thank you," Natsu mumbled.

"For what?"

Natsu did not want to reveal the truth this soon. He rested his head over Gray's heart. "I just meant the kiss was nice."

"Oh, got it."

"So," Natsu began, tracing shapes in Gray's skin, "where did you want to go?"

"I don't know. I'm good with anything."

Natsu grunted softly. "I am, too."

"No, you're not," Gray chuckled. "You just opposed partying, like, 30 minutes ago."

"Oh," Natsu paused as he realized that Gray was right. "Well, shit."

Gray laughed. Natsu felt his chest move.

"Listen," Gray started, "lemme get dressed, and while I'm doing that, you think about what you wanna do today."

Natsu nodded and they both left the bathroom.

Natsu sat on the bed and made himself comfortable. He watched quietly as Gray rummaged through his clothes. In this position, where Gray couldn't see him, Natsu could stare as much as he wanted. Gray bent down, and the skin on his back stretched to fit the pose. His back muscles came into definition. Natsu kicked his legs back and forth off the side of the bed like a kid.

Natsu wanted to be a little daring. "You're so cute, Gray," Natsu chuckled.

Gray looked at Natsu in his peripherals. "Yeah?"

"Yeah."

Gray resumed rummaging. Without looking, he stuck out his left hand to show off a shirt. It was a mustard yellow t-shirt. "How's this?"

"I like it."

Gray finally turned to fully face Natsu. He looked surprised. "Really?"

"Yeah!"

"It's not… too basic?"

"Basic isn't always bad… just wear a necklace over it."

"I usually do." Gray stood up and tossed the shirt on. He pulled his necklace above the cloth. "Alright, I'm re—"

"Pants, Gray."

He looked down, somehow shocked. "Ah, right!"

Natsu giggled, "Black jeans, I think."

Gray complied, pulling them out of the pile in his suitcase. He pulled the jeans on and belted them. Natsu watched Gray's fingers closely. He looped the belt around himself. Natsu was slightly transfixed as Gray closed the buckle. Gray fixed his shirt. "Now I'm ready."

"You look good…" Natsu paused, being even more daring, "babe."

Gray blushed. He chuckled, then covered half of his face with his hand. "Thank you… babe."

Natsu nervously rubbed his thighs. He flopped back onto the mattress. "Well, uh, I think I wanna hear some live music."

Gray sat down next to him. Natsu felt his weight depressing the mattress. Gray's cold thighs soaked up some of Natsu's warmth. Natsu squirmed a little. Gray asked, "Okay. What kind of music?"

"Any."

"Hm…" Gray thought, "I'm sure there's some music playing somewhere… a stage or restaurant or something."

"Is there any way to find out about local events?"

"A newspaper, probably. Or we could ask the hotel staff again."

"Mm…" Natsu hummed. "Yeah, that sounds good."

"You ready?"

"Hm?"

"Ready to go, I mean."

"Uh, give me a minute." Natsu rolled a little in the sheets. "I'm comfy."

Gray bent down and pecked Natsu's eyebrow. "I can do it, cutie."

"M-hm." Natsu blushed again but acknowledged his offer.

Gray got up, put on his shoes, and left the room. Natsu remained in place until he heard the door click solidly shut. He bolted upright.

'What the hell is wrong with me?' he thought. Natsu could have—rather, he should have joined Gray. He had been too daring, too quickly. Kissing him like that, feeling the romance, having Gray dress in front of him, then using what could only be called a 'term of endearment". Natsu curled into himself, on his side. Ugh! If only this was simpler. It was silly, simultaneously being grateful for Gray's patient romance, and also wanting to rush forward. He didn't get himself.

Natsu remained on his side. He closed his eyes and tried to slow his heart.

Natsu both heard and smelled Gray returning. He briefly thought about getting up, but he didn't.

Gray loudly slid the hotel key into the door. It swung open.

Gray spoke while walking. "So, Natsu, I talked to the staff, they said there was a restaurant that always had live music, I'm thinking we could—" Gray paused as he finally noticed Natsu. "What are you doing?"

"Uh…"

"Are you… okay?"

"Yes?"

"Then why are you—" Gray gestured in Natsu's direction,"—curled up like that?"

"Felt like it."

"Uh-huh," Gray said sarcastically, obviously not believing him. He sat on the edge of the bed and waited for Natsu to be honest.

Natsu peeked his head up, "...I just got excited."

"Is this another one of those 'I'm turned on but don't understand it' situations?"

"I'm not turned on!"

"I just mean, y'know, in that ballpark. Like… flustered."

"Flustered is another good word."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah."

"So… what'd you wanna do about that?"

Natsu huffed, "Man, I don't know. I don't get my own feelings sometimes."

"That's normal."

"Not for me!" Natsu stuck up his fingers to count as he spoke, "Happy, sleepy, hungry, angry. That's it—at least, it was."

"I don't believe that's all of the emotions you've ever had."

"Not all of them, I guess, but the common ones. This is new!"

Gray leaned down and pulled Natsu upright. Natsu's arms remained tight to his stomach. "Natsu, that's not necessarily bad," Gray said reassuringly.

"I know…"

"So?"

Natsu didn't answer. Gray relaxed his shoulders. He reached forward and grabbed Natsu's hands, trying to pull them away from his body. Natsu didn't budge. Gray relented.

"Let's go," Natsu said. "Let's go to the restaurant. Let's see the music."

"You sure?"

"Yes," he insisted. "I want to."

"You won't get… overjoyed?"

Natsu rolled his eyes at the word. "No, I won't."

"Okay, then." Gray stood. "Let's go!"

Natsu grunted. "Yep, let's go."