Juvia had been trying her best.
After that quiet, heavy moment on the couch with Laxus, she'd pulled back. Just a little. Nothing obvious. She still trained with him. Still had tea with him. Still walked with him through Magnolia's quietest corners.
But there was a question now—one that sat between her ribs like a stone in still water.
What was she feeling?
Laxus was...comforting. Safe. Warm, in his own electric way.
But Gray—Gray had been the center of her world for so long. Even if she had accepted his rejection, even if she no longer chased after him like she used to… some part of her still ached for what could've been.
So, she tried to quiet her thoughts.
Until Team Natsu came back.
The guild doors flew open with that usual dramaticbang, and in came Natsu, Lucy, Erza, Happy, and—of course—Gray.
"Fairy Tail's finest is back, baby!" Natsu shouted, throwing his arms up while Happy hovered above his head with a smug little grin.
The guild roared in greeting.
Juvia looked up from her spot at the bar, smiling before she even realized it.
Gray caught her eye immediately, and his expression softened. He walked over casually, tossing his bag over his shoulder.
"Hey," he said, sliding into the seat next to her.
"H-Hi, Gray-sama," she replied, heart beating a little faster.
He took a drink of water, then leaned forward slightly. "On the way back, we passed this small village near the northern ridge. Their water supply froze over—turns out, the whole region's out of balance. Too much moisture in the air, not enough flow. Sounded like a job for an ice mage... and a water mage."
Juvia blinked. "Are... are you asking Juvia to go on a mission with you?"
He shrugged, a little awkwardly. "Well, yeah. Thought you might be the best fit. And I haven't partnered with you in a while."
Her cheeks flushed.
She felt a flutter in her chest that she hadn't felt in so long—something giddy, hopeful, almost like her old self, but then she calmed herself.Remember Juvia, he has rejected you. You are only his friend, will always be his friend only. "Yes, sure," she said, smiling.
And just behind them, Laxus had been watching.
He stood a few feet away, mid-conversation with Cana, until the exchange caught his eye. The way Juvia looked at Gray. The way her voice softened.
The way she saidyes.
It hit him before he could brace for it—a sharp, low current of something ugly and unfamiliar.
Jealousy.
He didn'twantto feel it. He hadn't even been trying to define whatever this thing was between him and Juvia. But the thought of her looking at Gray likethat—after all the mornings they shared, the laughter, the comfort—it stirred something in him that made his jaw tense.
He turned away, but then Juvia called him and smiled gently. "It's been a while since Juvia and Gray did a mission together."
"Yeah," Laxus said, jaw a little tighter than usual.
She noticed.
"Is something wrong?"
He shook his head. "No. Just... surprised."
She tilted her head. "You don't think it's a good idea?"
Laxus didn't look at her. "You two have history. Makes sense."
The words sat between them like static.
Juvia studied him, her smile fading slightly. "Laxus... are you jealous?"
His eyes flicked to hers—sharper now, defensive. "Why would I be?"
She shrugged, teasing softly. "Juvia doesn't know. Maybe because you're used to having her all to yourself lately?"
His brow twitched. "Don't flatter yourself."
But the heat in his voice didn't match the words. And Juvia saw it—the crackle just beneath the surface.
She stepped closer, eyes calm. "Juvia's aware that Juvia cannot be more than his friend. He has made it clear."
He gave a small scoff. "Still jumped at the chance to run off with him."
"He's my friend," she said simply. "Just like you."
That word—friend—landed harder than it should have.
Laxus crossed his arms tighter. "Whatever. Do what you want."
Juvia sighed softly. "Iamdoing what I want. And lately, that's been training with you. Talking with you. Sitting in quiet with you." She paused. "One mission with Gray doesn't change that."
Laxus glanced at her, expression unreadable.
"You're important to me too," she said quietly.
He looked away, chewing the inside of his cheek.
"…Just watch your back out there."
She smiled, knowing that was his way of sayingcome back safe.
"I always do."
As she walked off to prepare, Laxus stood still, thunderclouds quietly swirling in his chest.
He wasn't used to this feeling.
Not desire. Not love.
But something more complicated.
Something likebelonging—and the fear of losing it.
He didn't know what Juvia was to him yet. Not really.
But he knew one thing.
She wasn'tjustsomeone else's past anymore.
And he wasn't ready to let her become someone else's future either.
The northern village was quiet—blanketed in frost, the trees coated in ice that shimmered like glass. Juvia's magic pulsed gently beneath her skin as she worked alongside Gray, melting and guiding the flow of frozen water through narrow irrigation paths.
They made a good team. They always had.
Their magic harmonized. Their timing was effortless. They moved together like they'd never stopped.
And yet…
It didn't feel the same.
Juvia noticed it during breaks—when Gray used to flirt absently, he now sat in silence. When he smiled at her, there was something weighty behind it. Regret, maybe. Or longing.
It was during one of those quiet breaks, sitting beside a crackling fire in the village inn, that he finally spoke.
"So…," Gray said, leaning back on his hands, "I heard a rumor at the guild."
Juvia turned her head. "Hmm?"
"That you and Laxus are... dating."
Her heart gave a strange, panicked flutter. "What?! No—no, that's not—Juvia and Laxus are just... friends."
Gray raised an eyebrow. "Friends who eat together every day? Train together? Walk around Magnolia like a couple on holiday?"
Juvia's cheeks flushed pink. "That's not… it's not like that."
Gray stared into the fire, jaw tightening slightly. "It's just... I've been thinking about you. A lot. During our last mission, I kept catching myself wondering what you were doing. If you were okay. If you still thought about me."
Juvia's breath caught.
"Gray…"
He turned to her, expression sincere—vulnerable, even. "I messed up. I took your feelings for granted, always thinking you'd be there. But now… I'm not so sure. And that scares me more than I thought it would."
He leaned in just a bit, voice lower now. "I regret rejecting you, Juvia. I regret not seeing it sooner. So... if there's still space in your heart for me… would you give me a chance?"
She didn't answer right away.
Her fingers twisted in the hem of her coat, heart thudding in her ears.
Once upon a time, she would've leapt at this moment. Thrown her arms around him. Cried from joy.
But now…
Now, there wasLaxus.
Laxus, who drank tea with her after missions. Who listened without judgment. Who trained beside her, not because he wanted something, but because he liked being near her. Who noticed when she wasn't okay. Who looked at her like shemattered—even when she didn't feel like she did.
"I… need time," she whispered.
Gray blinked. "Time?"
Juvia looked down at her hands. "Juvia will always care for you, Gray-sama, but Juvia misses Laxus."
Gray looked away, a faint, wistful smile tugging at his lips. "I understand. Take your time."
Laxus sat in his usual corner at the guild, arms crossed, staring at absolutely nothing.
The guild was loud—Cana laughing at something Macao said, Natsu and Elfman arm-wrestling, Lucy trying to break up a food fight.
But Laxus was silent.
He hadn't realized how much of his daily rhythm had shifted around Juvia—until she was gone. Meals felt lonelier. Training less interesting. Even walking home felt quieter, like the air had lost something warm and sweet.
He missed her.
More than he thought he would.
"Still brooding?" came Mira's voice as she dropped into the seat next to him, a knowing smirk on her face.
"Not brooding," he muttered.
"Missing someone?"
He didn't answer.
But Mira just smiled. "She'll be back soon, you know."
"Tch," he muttered. "Stupid water woman."
But he couldn't deny it.
He missed her so much.
That night, as Juvia lay in the inn's soft bed, Juvia stared at the ceiling.
The mission had gone well. Gray had been kind, thoughtful, the partner she'd once dreamed of, and that he asked her to give him a chance. Words that Juvia had always been waiting for.
But she's not sure if he's what she wanted anymore.
She missed Laxus.
The way he listened without judgment. The way he protected her without making her feel fragile. The way his silence said more than most people's words ever could.
With a soft sigh, she whispered into the night:
"Laxus… I wish you were here.
The road back to Magnolia was long, winding through forests speckled with sunlight and the songs of distant birds. Juvia and Gray walked side by side, the air between them more comfortable than it had been in years.
They weren't what they used to be—no longer love-sick and distant—but something warm still lingered in their rhythm. When a root snagged under Juvia's boot, Gray caught her elbow with practiced ease.
"Careful," he said, his hand lingering a moment too long.
"Ah—thank you, Gray-sama," she replied, cheeks pink.
He glanced at her, a soft grin playing on his lips. "You always get clumsy when you're spacing out."
"Juvia does not—!" she started, but then paused.
Because her heartdidbeat a little faster just then.
But she then realized one thing… It wasn't because she was falling back in love… but because the way Gray looked at her had changed. The protectiveness in his tone, the way he stood a little closer—it wasn't the indifference she'd learned to live with. It felt like maybe, just maybe, hesawher now.
And it flustered her.
She laughed awkwardly, brushing a strand of hair behind her ear. "Juvia appreciates you looking out for her."
Magnolia came into view just past the next hill.
And standing near the outskirts of town, arms crossed like a storm cloud with biceps, was Laxus.
He hadn't meant to be there.
In fact, he'd spent the entire morning convincing himself hedidn'tcare when she got back.
But here he was.
Just… out for a walk.
Near the road she happened to be returning on.
Totally a coincidence.
Then he saw them.
Juvia and Gray, walking side by side. Gray leaning in a little too close. Juvia laughing a little too softly.
And Gray's hand on her back.
Laxus's jaw ticked.
He crossed his arms tighter, eyes narrowed under his brow.
But when Juvia spotted him, her face lit up like sunlight after rain.
"Laxus!"
She jogged the last few steps toward him, Gray trailing behind.
"You came to meet us?" she asked, panting lightly from the short run.
"Tch," he grunted, turning his face slightly away. "Didn't have anything better to do."
But Gray didn't miss the flare of Laxus's eye when he saw how close he'd been standing to Juvia.
The air was suddenly… tight.
Juvia, sweetly oblivious, smiled between them. "The mission went perfectly. Gray-sama and Juvia worked very well together!"
But Laxus didn't answer immediately. "Oh, great," that's all he said before he walked away, leaving Juvia confused.
His chest tightened.
He didn't like this feeling. He didn'twantto feel this way.
But damn it all…
He did.
It had been three days since Juvia and Gray returned from the mission.
Three days since Laxus stopped sitting with her at the bar.
Three days since he made any effort to talk to her unless it was about guild duties.
And Juvia wasnot okay with it.
At first, she told herself he was just busy. Then she thought maybe he needed space. But when she caught him training alone instead of sparring with her—like they'd been doing almost daily before—she knew something was wrong.
And if there was one thing Juvia Lockser wasn't afraid of anymore… it was confrontation.
#
That afternoon, she caught him in the training yard behind the guild. Shirt off, sweat slicked across his shoulders, thunder crackling faintly at his fingertips as he slammed lightning into a training dummy.
He didn't look at her when she approached.
Didn't even acknowledge her presence.
"Laxus."
Nothing.
She stepped closer, voice firmer. "Laxus."
He grunted, wiped his brow with the back of his hand, and finally muttered, "What?"
Juvia folded her arms. "Have Juvia done something to upset you?"
Laxus didn't answer.
She waited, letting the silence stretch.
"…No."
"Then why are you avoiding Juvia?"
"I'm not."
"You are," she said softly, hurt flickering behind her eyes. "You barely speak to Juvia. You won't train with her. You won't even look at her."
He sighed, turning his back to her, fists clenched.
"Maybe I'm just not in the mood to babysit someone who's torn between two guys."
Her breath caught.
"What?" she whispered.
Laxus kept his gaze forward. "You and Gray. You're getting close again. That's your business. I'm not gonna get in the middle of it."
Juvia stepped closer, voice rising slightly. "So you're angry because I went on a mission with Gray-sama?"
"No," he growled.
"Then what is it?!"
He turned then—fast, lightning flashing in his eyes for a split second. Not in anger, but in emotion he didn't know how todealwith.
"It's nothing, alright? I just don't wanna be the guy you run to whenhe'snot looking. That's not me."
Juvia flinched, as if his words physically hit her.
"I…" she began, her voice trembling, "Juvia never saw you like that."
He looked away again, jaw clenched hard enough to crack stone.
"Laxus," she said more gently, stepping into his space. "You're not my backup plan. You never were."
His silence was deafening.
Juvia's heart thudded painfully in her chest. She could feel him putting up walls again—walls she thought he'd started to take down just for her.
"Why won't you just tell me the truth?" she asked, eyes shining. "Why are you pushing me away?"
Laxus didn't meet her gaze.
"Because I don't want to care this much," he said lowly, almost too soft to hear. "And I don't know what to do with it."
Juvia blinked, stunned silent.
He exhaled roughly, turning away. "Go hang out with Gray. He knows what he wants."
"But you do too," she said quietly. "You're just scared of saying it."
That made his shoulders tense—but he didn't deny it.
Juvia waited for him to look back at her. For a word. A glance.Something.
But when he didn't, she finally stepped back, hurt cutting through her like a blade.
"…Fine."
And she walked away.
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