To the boy she loves, to the girl he adores

Chapter 3

"No, the food is amazing as always."

"Thank you! She is very glad that you like the food."

Gray nods his head in response, his mind is occupied by the thought of denying Juvia's kind offer. How should he say this to her without hurting the bluenette's feelings? He doesn't want to be the reason for Lyon and Juvia to be upset at each other, yet he doesn't know how to say it to make it sound less awkward. Gray sighs, he has never been good at communication, sure he can make some friendly jokes but when it comes to this type of conversation, Gray feels like every wrinkle in his brain will be smoothed out immediately.

"Say Juvia...Uhm...You don't have to make dinner for me tomorrow..."

"Hm? Are you going out tomorrow?"

"No, I'm not..."

"Then you want to eat out tomorrow?" she tilts her head, puzzling at his request.

"T-that's not it, I...well..." he shutters, feeling the sweat begins to roll down his face "Y-you know, Lyon wo-won't like this..."

"Lyon-san?"

What is he talking about? The bluenette is quite confused at his words, does Lyon has anything to do with this?

"W-well, Lyon might be upset about this..." he tries again "Y-you know, you cook for me..."

"Erm...Did Lyon-san say something?"

"Well, he...he told me to s-stay away from his g-girlfriend..."

"Lyon-san's girlfriend? You mean Meredy? Do you need something from her, Gray-sama?"

Gray looks at her, confused. Did she just say Lyon's girlfriend is another person and not her? Then why did that guy tell him to stay away from Juvia? He should have stated in a more detailed way so Gray wouldn't have to be embarrassed for assuming things like this.

"Did Lyon-san say that Juvia is his girlfriend?" she giggles, covering her mouth with one hand "She sure that he means no harm. Lyon-san is a bit protective over Meredy and her, she hopes that Gray-sama doesn't mind."

"N-no, I'm fine. I'm just...worried, that's all."

"Well then, what do you want to eat tomorrow, Gray-sama?"

He's supposed to decline her offer, but Juvia's sweet smile stops him from even have a chance to open his mouth. She seems to be in a good mood and he doesn't want to ruin it, not after she has spent many hours practicing for the final performance.

"K-Katsu sando, please."

The bluenette eagerly nods her head in response before something comes across her mind. Gray said that Lyon told him to stay away from his girlfriend, then they must have met each other somewhere, right? Gray came back home and mistook her as the silver-haired man's partner, which means they met around the time she's in the theatre club. If that's the case then...

"Gray-sama, did you...uhm...where did you meet Lyon-san?"

"I saw him at theatre club's practice this aftern-?!"

He stops midsentence, realizing what Juvia was asking about. He turns to the bluenette, only to see the bright blush appears on her face. She stares at him, blue eyes open wide upon receiving the information from him.

"Uhm...she...she..."

"D-don't worry, I only s-saw part of your p-performance so..."

Gray mentally slaps himself, he only makes the matter worse as Juvia gets all flustered and her whole body shakes violently. Her face is beet red as she tries to hide it behind her soft palms. She has never actively invited Gray to come to see her performance, mainly because she does not have confidence that he will like it. But now...

How should she respond to this? Should she scream in embarrassment or she should quietly retreat to hide in shame? There's an awkward silence between the two as Juvia doesn't know how to react and Gray refrains himself from making things even worse for them.

"I...uh...I have a lot of homework to do today, so-sorry for not able to help you cleaning up."

She nods her head in response, still not know how to say or react to his words. Gray removes himself from the chair and almost runs to the door. As his hand touches the doorknob, he stops for a second. After seeing her great work this afternoon, Gray feels like he should at least compliment her amazing performance.

Juvia seems so different when she performs on stage. Unlike the bashful girl who always blushes whenever she talks, the bluenette shines like the brightest star when she stands in front of her audience and he's very lucky to be able to see this side of her.

"Juvia!"

His call grabs her attention as she timidly hides behind the wall, only pokes her head out to listen to what he says.

"I, I just want you to know that your performance is amazing!"

With that, Gray dashes out the door, leaving the bluenette beet red as a bright smile adorns her face. Her beloved Gray-sama acknowledges her talent, he told her that she's amazing. His words make her heart jumps in excitement as she rushes to her phone to call her best friend and Meredy can't hold back her joy when hearing the news.

Gray runs back to his room and closes the door behind him violently. He slides down the door, hiding his face behind the black bangs. He can't feel his legs anymore, his heart is beating fast and his whole body is heating up. There's a reason why his previous relationships didn't work out, the girls he dated always complain how dry and unromantic he is, despite having a rather handsome face. Gray has never been the type who gives a compliment to anyone, he can give small ones here and there but hardly ever a sincere one. So Gray is experiencing a roller coaster ride of emotions, surprised at himself when he complimented Juvia for her great performance.

"Homework, I need to finish the assignments..."

The raven head pulls out a big folder that contains all the application assignments he gathers throughout since the first year of university. Gray tries his best to focus on the applications, pushing the buttons on the calculator rapidly, and yet, when he reaches the fifth assignment, he lets go of the pencil and lays flat on the desk. He can't muster up his energy to do these math problems, not when his mind is filled with the sight of Juvia plays the violin beautifully on the stage.