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The slow scuffle of their footsteps was all that could be heard as the five friends and their exceeds approached the entrance to Magnolia, the colourful sign like a beacon of light they were following.
Gray’s heartbeat sped up as they crossed under and into the town, the familiar salty-air from the sea reminded him so fondly of Juvia that it was making him even more impatient to see her again and more importantly show her he could be the one to protect her from absolutely everything that came their way.
“Man, I’m excited for some of Mirajane’s home cooking,” Natsu said, his stomach almost rumbling as he spoke.
They were all tired from the travelling and in-general exhausted from the entire experience being over now. It felt strange to relax and be free from the 100 Year Quest, but exciting for whatever could come next.
“Hmmm, yeah,” Lucy dreamily agreed, a soft smile on her face at the thought. “I can’t wait to finally be able to tell everyone what we’ve been doing too.”
“Me too, we have quite the tale to tell,” Erza agreed, she was walking slightly ahead of Natsu and Lucy with her arm gently around Wendy’s shoulders.
Gray stayed silent behind the group, his gaze laser focused on the guildhall, he couldn’t tell if he was more nervous or more excited to see Juvia in the next few minutes. How would he greet her? What was he going to say to her in front of everyone?
He kept thinking back to his conversation with Juvina.
I’m going to become a man who can protect her and go get Juvia no matter what.
He had done the first part, and he knew he wanted to do the second part. He just wasn't sure of the best way to go about it.
“What about you, Gray?” Erza’s voice came from the front of the group. “What are you most excited for? You’ve been very silent back there.”
“I just can’t wait to see Juvia.” He said plainly, looking toward the sea glittering in the sunlight beside the town.
He didn’t bother listening to his teammates' reactions, he didn’t really care what people thought about his feelings anymore. Besides, he didn’t hide the fact he called Juvia on his communication lacrima at every opportunity he could. Natsu and Wendy could hear it most of the time, and Lucy and Erza told him to tell her a ‘Hello’ from them almost every time they reached a new City or spot to sleep.
They knew how much Juvia meant to him, and he appreciated they never made fun of him for it once. It made it much easier for him to process in his head.
As they approached the entrance to the guildhall it felt like his heart had jumped into his throat. She was right through that door waiting for him to come home.
Natsu seemed just as antsy to get back as he sped up his walk, almost running towards the large red doors, the girls following suit too. Naturally, Gray also sped up his walk as his nerves didn’t seem to settle the closer he got.
His thoughts were going a million miles an hour, yet felt like he could think of nothing at all. They just had to get through the door and she’d be right there.
Natsu, in his usual fashion, slammed the door wide open and yelled “WE’RE HOME!” at the top of lungs, erupting a massive yell of celebration from those in the guildhall with drinks being cheersed and fists raised.
Through the chaos of the celebrations, Gray's eyes scanned through the guildhall desperately searching for any sign of the color blue in hopes to find Juvia.
And there she was.
Smiling brightly at the bar standing beside the stool Cana was sitting on and waving her hands in the air.
He didn’t know what took over him at that moment but his movements seemed to happen all on their own as instinct took over. He threw his travel bag off his shoulder and let it thud to the ground and ran in her direction as fast as he could.
“Juvia,” he said, out of pure relief from simply seeing her again and lifted her off her feet as soon as he was close enough to reach.
“Welcom home, darling,” she said affectionately and placed her arms around his shoulders as he still held her off the ground and had his head buried in her neck, his nose squishing against the skin.
He hummed and moved one arm to place a hand on the back of her head while keeping the other firmly around her waist as he lowered her back onto the floor.
All the noise in his head had stopped and his entire focus was on keeping Juvia close to him and how soft her body was against his. He smiled as he heard her laughing and grabbing on to his shoulders, keeping him just as close and he was keeping her.
There were faint whispers about his sudden affection, but he chose to ignore them. They’d get used to it anyway.
Juvia pulled back a little, just enough so he could see her face, she was smiling brightly up at him with small tears lining her eyes.
“You’re really here,” she whispered and placed a hand on his cheek.
“And I’m never leaving your side again,” he said affectionately, squeezing her tight and making her face go bright red.
“Wh-what?” she steamed, staring at him wide-eyed and blushing.
“Come on, lover boy,” Cana yelled from where the rest of the guild had gathered, with pints lined up for him and the rest of his team. “You’ll have all night with her, we wanna know what happened on the quest.”
Gray blanched at her words, his heart racing at the thought, but he didn’t disagree considering the two had been roommates for years now. He grabbed Juvia’s hand and led her to the table. Ready to join his team in recounting the 100 Years Quest and their success.
︵‿︵‿୨♡ That Night ♡୧‿︵‿︵
The tiredness of being free from the quest had hit the team, Wendy and Carla had already gone back to Fairy Hills to sleep for the night. Erza had been fondly chatting with Jellal in a corner for about an hour, another long awaited reunion.
Lucy had passed out on Natsu’s shoulder who was excitedly talking to Gajeel and Levy, and Happy napped on the table in between them. The celebrations had died down but Natsu seemed to have gained a new lease of energy since entering the guildhall.
“You must be tired,” Juvia suddenly spoke from beside him, startling him out of his thoughts.
“Yeah,” he huffed, his arm was rested behind her on the bench they shared. Every so often her back or hair would graze his skin and make him shiver. “We got a first-class carriage home and a bed each to sleep in, but I don’t know something about being no longer tied to this crazy quest is just…”
“It must be a relief to not be travelling all the time now,” she said kindly, scooting closer and resting against him. “Plus, I know you like having your own space.”
He hummed in agreement and nodded his head.
“True, but it wasn’t always that bad. Sharing with Wendy and Carla is always easy, but Natsu and Lucy can be a nightmare with all the yelling,” he explained and side-eyed where they were still sitting before looking back at Juvia. “I’m pretty sure he kissed her before the last fight we had.”
“What?” she whispered. “Are you serious? Did you see?”
“A saw a little and then gave them some privacy,” Gray scratched his cheek and chuckled.
“Finally,” Juvia beamed. “We’ve been teasing Lucy for years about Natsu and she kept on telling us he’s not the relationship type.”
“She’s not wrong, he’s definitely not a relationship guy. He’s just… a Lucy guy.”
“That’s a sweet way to put it,” she nodded and leaned her elbow on the table in front of them to look at Gray. “The same way I’m a Gray girl.”
He huffed out another laugh and moved his arm from the bench so it rested on her thigh closest to him.
“You got that right,” he yawned and slouched a bit into his seat.
“Hmmm,” she smiled fondly. “Well, I was going to head home now. It’s getting late.”
“I’ll walk you back,” he said without missing a beat and standing up to stretch.
Juvia giggled as she stood and walked a little before making sure he was following her.
“You should have told me you were on your way, I would’ve been able to buy more groceries for you,” she said kindly, and clasped her hands behind her back as she walked. “I even kept your room the way you liked it for when you came back.”
“You didn’t have to do that,” he said softly, he couldn’t keep his eyes off her as they walked.
He couldn’t keep his hands to himself either, the whole day his guildmates had something to say about their physical closeness but neither of them chose to comment much on it.
They chatted about everything and nothing while they walked, Gray commenting on different parts of the town he had missed and Juvia filling him in on random gossip that had happened since he left.
As they entered the small house they rented together, Gray realised he still had to actually tell her how he felt. He had a feeling she knew, it’s not like he tried to hide how excited he was to see her or how much he had missed her all day. But, she still deserved an answer.
He watched as Juvia confidently walked through the entry way and into their living room, unsurprising as she had been here from long before he left. Gray suddenly felt like a stranger in his own home, she had hung up pictures of them together on the wall in his absence and rearranged the furniture slightly since he had last been home.
He walked after her into the room and when she turned around he was directly in front of her looking intently down into her eyes.
“Are you alright, dear?”
“I’m in love with you,” he stated and her eyebrows raised in surprise as she took in his words. “And I want to spend the rest of my life protecting you from harm and making sure you're always happy.”
It seemed like a lifetime had passed before Juvia had finally unfroze from her shock, she sucked in her bottom lip and looked down at his chest.
“Oh,” Juvia looked just like she had when he told her he was leaving for the 100 Year Quest. Completely at a loss. “Well, you know I love you too.”
“I do,” he said earnestly and took one of her hands softly in his, cradling it with so much care. “I cherish that everyday and I’ve hated being away from you for all these months, but now I’m finally a man worthy of you and I hope you accept me as I am.”
“You really didn’t need to do all that to impress me,” she blushed and smiled shyly at him. “You’re the love of my life and I’ve known that from the moment we met.”
“You deserved the best version of me, Juvia. I would do anything for you,” he whispered and stepped closer.
Her eyes flitted down to his lips and back to his eyes as she took in a deep breath.
Taking that as a sign, he leaned down and softly pressed their lips together. It felt like every cell in his body had taken flight, and he grabbed her closer as she melted into his kiss. Their lips slotted perfectly together, over and over again, and Gray never wanted this moment to end.
Naturally, one of his hands raised softly cradled her head and kept their mouths together for a moment longer before she slowly pulled away, looking at him in complete awe.
“You always touch my head,” she said, clearly dazed as she stared at him.
“I do,” he simply agreed and moved his other hand so both of them cradled her cheeks, his thumbs rubbing the skin with affection. “I feel like you're closer to me when I hold your head.”
Juvia hummed and a soft smile crossed her face before kissing him again, deeper this time, and all Gray could think about was how excited he was to finally begin living his future with her.