Okay, before you kill me let me just say "Happy New Year"! A bit late, I know. I'm sorry. For the late update, the late greeting, and the short chapter. It's been a whirlwind of an adventure for the past few months (around half a year?) as I entered into adulthood. It's not an easy feat and although I've finished writing this chapter months back, I didn't have the time to proofread it and edit some parts. Also, I'm volunteering for research work now and it demands a lot of my resources. I hope you guys understand.

Anyway, this chapter is short because it's not really part of the actual plot. I wrote it because I needed to show what both of them were feeling at the start of their relationship... before we go to the meat of the plot. DUN! DUN! DUUUUUUN!

-CHAPTER TEN-
A person in a relationship will encounter insecurity at some point.

Gray has been feeling the hair on the back of his neck stand up for a while now. The moment he sat on that sofa, he could feel his stomach churn, his arms and legs grow goosebumps, the temperature around him drop. If he was in a horror movie, he would suspect the presence of a malevolent entity; but he wasn't. He was alone, in the Heartfilia living room, waiting for Lucy to change. He had promised to teach her how to ride a bicycle, which happened to be the 92nd number on her list. In itself, the feat was not too scary. In fact, of all the things in Lucy's list, it was probably the safest and easiest one. To explain the terrible feeling he has, Gray needed only to give a sideways glance at the doorway. There, on the hall that lead to the kitchen, stood the ominous presence of Virgo, the maid. She seemed to be upset about something; although it wasn't very obvious, the way she always had a stone-faced look with her. Gray turned his gaze away with much difficulty to admire the interior design of the living room and hopefully distract himself from the intensity of Virgo's glare.

The room was spacious, about two or three times the size of his entire apartment. The walls were pristine and painted in white. To his right was the wide ceiling-to-floor window covered by a thin, moss green weaved piece over white silk curtains. The curtains were parted in the middle and tied to opposite ends of the wall to show the view outside. It was still early in the afternoon so he could see the vast landscape outside, the unmoving city below them-and through the reflection he could see Virgo still looking at him with murderous intent.

Okay, okay, admire the living room. The living room!

Gray distracted himself with the potted plants by the window. They weren't ones he had seen before, but they looked like miniature palm trees growing out from dark brown vases carved with tribal designs he also has never seen before. They looked expensive, maybe even antique. He wondered for a split second how much they were worth when he accidentally glanced at the reflection again-she's still staring-and decided it was better for his health to turn his gaze.

He looked straight ahead, giving a passing glance at the identical sofa in front of him. He looked up at the space where three huge portraits of the members of the Heartfilia family hung. The two portraits on either side were of a man and a woman, both middle aged and both blonde. He has never met them, but judging from how they had features that reminded him of Lucy, he guessed they are-were?-Lucy's parents. His guess must be right, as the portrait in the middle was a family portrait of both parents standing side by side, the woman's hands on Lucy's shoulders. Lucy might have been three or four at the time that picture was taken. He smiled unintentionally at the thought of Lucy as a toddler. Was she just as mischievous as she is now?

Gray leaned forward, elbows resting on his knees and looked at the huge coffee table in front of him. There was a clear vase in the middle, where a single lilac settled contentedly. The bright purple color of its petals was a stark contrast from the white walls and the black sofa and coffee table. Judging from the brown color slowly appearing at the edges of the petals and leaves, he would say that the flower was about three days old.

Still thriving, huh, he thought to himself and reached out to the purple beauty.

Just as he was about to touch it, Virgo's voice echoed in the empty room, slicing through the silence like a hot knife through butter.

She said, "Master Fullbuster." The emphasis on the title seemed sarcastic.

Gray flinched and took his hand back, head snapping to Virgo's direction. She was walking towards him now in a calm and cool fashion holding a tray of tea and some cake.

"Oh, I-" Deja vu hit him hard on the gut. He felt she wanted to get a point across, a point he could guess what, and so he summoned enough courage to say, "Alright. Speak up. You look like you've got a lot to say."

Virgo placed the contents of the tray in front of Gray and sighed as she stood up. "Previously, I reckoned you had ulterior motives for befriending the princess. I was proven wrong and for that I am truly sorry," she started. Gray felt there was more to it than just that so he let her continue. "However that matter is different from this matter..."

Her voice trailed off into silence. Gray urged her to continue before it took too long. "Go on..."

"You profess to have romantic feelings for the princess but I am afraid I am not convinced."

Gray didn't reply.

"Maybe this is some form of affection you mistake for love because of the time you have spent together."

They glared at each other intensely, Virgo on the upper hand and pushing Gray back by mere intimidation. A lump grew on Gray's throat making it hard to swallow.

"Do you love her?"

Gray didn't think he needed to answer that. He remained silent.

When she felt she had been waiting long enough for his reply but had gotten none, Virgo gave a bow and retreated to the kitchen. But not without saying, "My warning is the same as before: do not lead her on."

She turned her back with a 'swish' and disappeared behind the doorway.

Gray realized he had stopped breathing and then gasped when he was feeling faint. There was truly something weird about that girl-maid, robot, whatever! Probably reading too much drama or something. He breathed two deep breaths before he could take his eyes off the space Virgo previously occupied. For some reason he would be gripped with fear every time Virgo talked to him. She was small but the nurse wondered abruptly whether or not it was a ruse to hide her arsenal of skills on murder and torture. He pondered on this, dreading what would become of him should it be true, but was quickly called out by another presence that made her grand entrance. Lucy came running down the stairs, glee evident from every step she took as she descended. She was in a powder blue blouse and khaki knee-length shorts. She smiled at Gray so bright it hurts and walked toward him.

He relaxed a bit and returned the beam.

"Sorry if I took long. Hopefully you weren't too bored," she said, smiling.

He smiled back, and stood up, "Not really."

"I heard Virgo, I think. Did you two talk?"

Not knowing exactly how he would relay what had happened, and also doubting that it was a good idea to tell Lucy in the first place, Gray only shrugged his shoulders. He put his two hands on Lucy's back and pushed her affectionately out the door.

"So did you two talk?" she asked again.

"Not really..." he repeated.

Three hours into teaching Lucy how to balance on a bicycle, everything was not going well. Maybe it was because she was fragile to begin with or because she really had poor coordination and motor skills; maybe it was the fact that every time Gray leaned in closer, she would instinctively move away or freeze up; maybe it was a combination of both, plus the fact that Lucy had been preoccupied in her thoughts about what Virgo had said.

It bothered her to the extreme. 'Do not lead her on,' was what Virgo said. And although she was sorry she eavesdropped on the conversation that was not her business to begin with, she was a bit glad she'd heard it if only to get an objective view on exactly what the 'thing' was between her and Gray. After all, he never once told her he liked her. He said 'Go out with me', non-verbatim, but never 'I like you.' So did he like her or didn't he? It had to be made clear. Although she didn't want to doubt Gray-it was already past that point, however-her own insecurities and fears made her think that maybe, just maybe, Virgo had a point. Maybe Gray was just leading her on, albeit unconsciously. It wouldn't surprise Lucy in the least as she was the one who practically blitzed Gray with her confession. He probably didn't have enough time to think things through or reconsider. Maybe the nurse part of him was so moved with pity for the dying girl that he wanted to make what remained of her days special. Maybe he was just passing time.

But there was a little part in Lucy's failing heart that hoped and prayed that Gray's feelings were genuine. That the way his dark eyes would soften every time he flashed a smile at her meant he was looking at her with renewed tenderness; that every accidental brush of his fingers on Lucy's skin meant that he cared; that every word, no matter how awkwardly or incoherently spoken meant that he really did like her.

Lucy sighed as she pressed hard on the brakes and found the ground with her foot to stop. She had been going in slanting lines all afternoon with little progress. Gray was hardly able to let go of her for more than a second because she kept on straying from the imaginary straight course they had set. Her heart and mind were in no better condition, running around in circles chasing the nonexistent answer to her own questions. She was troubled.

Beside her, Gray sighed. "Man, you're really not getting the hang of this, are you?" There was a small smile at the corner of his lips as he stared ahead. He looked like he was having fun... or at least, Lucy hoped he was. "I've never seen anyone this bad at riding a bicycle. Even the kids at the orphanage would have at least progressed by now."

"Sorry..." she said. And she truly was sorry.

"Don't worry about it," he assured. "Maybe you're just tired. Do you want to go back?"

She shook her head. "I wanna try one more time."

"Alright."

Truthfully, Lucy was already on her last legs as she straightened up again and put her right foot on the pedal. With her heart condition and her frail nature, riding a bike-or, rather, learning how to do so-was the closest thing she got to a work out. And as most work outs would probably do to anybody, she was worn out, feeling her leg muscles tremble just thinking about going one more time. But Gray put his right arm around her and held onto the handle next to where she grasped. When he was confident that she had a steady grip, his hold went to the seat, ghosting over Lucy's waist. His left hand gripped the left handle. The blonde sighed and mentally reprimanded herself for being so shallow. She wondered if Gray had an inkling that the only reason she hasn't given up on the darned impossible feat was because she could at least get some sort of skinship. He put his face right next to hers as he helped her straighten up the bike. Lucy could feel her heart race (again) when she felt him breathe out. She pressed her lips into a thin line to prevent the girly whimper of giddiness that threatened to escape.

"So, do I need to repeat myself on how you do this?"

Lucy shook her head, refraining from looking at him for fear that said whimper would try to escape again.

"A'right... here we go-" Gray started to push and Lucy pedaled as he did. The blonde could feel his grip trying to steer Lucy in a straight line.

She pushed her legs hard and looked straight. Gray told her earlier that she should keep her eyes far in front of her to help her balance. He didn't explain how but she believed him-although every single time she got tempted to look on the ground and she ended up a wobbly mess. Gray was still beside her, running to catch up to the speed of the bicycle, both hands on the seat now. Maybe it was because of all those trials, Lucy was actually going straight for once!

"Alright, Lucy!" he cheered. Even the blonde could hear the hints of pride in his voice; after all, this was the farthest she got all afternoon. "Just keep doing what you're doing!"

Lucy nodded, eyes on the road. This time for sure, she inwardly said. She pedaled harder again. The view on both her sides melted into multi-colored streaks as she zoomed past them. The wind blew in her face and she felt like she could just go on. Lucy was flying!

"Just keep going, now!" yelled Gray. He sounded far away somehow and Lucy had to look back at him to see. He was running after her, a few meters back. Has he been there all this time? So that meant she was riding by herself all along!

Lucy was about to shout some happy claim to Gray when he beat her to it and he ordered, "KEEP YOUR EYES ON THE ROAD!"

Remembering, Lucy looked ahead of her again. The wheels were possessed by some spirit that didn't know how to walk. To make matters worse, Lucy felt the ground incline just a tiny bit. Her angels must have been bored and decided to pull a prank on her. She was on the hillside, steadily gaining speed as she was going down. She tried to control the darned thing but she lost her balance and she could feel herself teetering toward one side or the other, threatening to fall off. Suddenly, the handles started to wobble and she almost lost her footing on the pedal-only to get it back again but this made her wobble even more.

Ohnoohnoohnoohnoohno, she yelled in her head, throat suddenly drying in the middle of it all. Everything felt like it was going on in slow motion and she was just looking at herself from somewhere far away, waiting for an accident to happen. Her heartbeat quickly paced and it beat so loud that it felt her eardrums started to beat in chorus with it. Was she going to die not from heart failure but from a bike accident after all?

Whatddoidowhaddoidowhaddoido? Lucy wished her brain had not gone blank on her now of all times.

"PRESS THE DAMNED BRAKES!"

Gray's voice was clear and loud and desperate. The gears in her mind started to turn. Remembering only then that her bike had working brakes, Lucy pulled on them hard and abruptly. Like the well-maintained machine it is, the bicycle forcefully stopped the wheels and it came to a halt. It came so suddenly that even after it already stopped, Lucy continued to lurch forward, finally losing her footing on the pedal and was about to be thrown forward had it not been for a force from behind that stopped her.

For about two seconds, all Lucy could do was stare in front of her, eyes as wide as saucers, and her mouth hanging ajar while her mind processed what had happened-or what had not happened-at a snail's pace. She could have died. And it was not because of her heart condition. That would have been quite the plot twist.

The sound of a long and heavy sigh of relief beside her brought Lucy out of her musings. She could suddenly feel a strong arm around her waist. Another hand right next to hers was holding on to the left handle of the bike. The blonde looked and saw Gray, pale but looking quite relieved, probably thinking about how close a call that had been, as Lucy was.

Their eyes met and they broke into a nervous laugh.

"That was..." Gray started after a long pause, "...a bit too close."

Agreed, Lucy would have said. But then she noticed that Gray had stripped his shirt off. This brought a light blush on her cheeks. "Uh... Gray...? Your um... your shirt."

"Huh?" Gray looked down. "Oh, snap!" He looked and found that his shirt had been lying on the ground a few meters behind them. He let go of the bike, letting it fall to the ground before retrieving the article, dusting it, and putting it back on.

"Sorry about that," he said and stooped down to grab the forgotten bike.

"Do you do that often?" came Lucy's question. "You also did this when we were shopping at the town around when we first met."

"Uh..." Gray was taking his sweet time getting the bike up again. Even when he had it up, he refused to look Lucy in the eye. "Yeah, that..."

"Is it... some sort of exhibitionism thing?" Lucy asked innocently. She knew the word from her classmates while she overheard them discussing a novel once. She hasn't taken much interest in researching about it, though. And depending on Gray's answer, she might consider doing so.

"It's..." Gray took one look at her innocent curious expression and he resigned. "It's a... condition I have," he said as if he was having a hard time finding the most appropriate word.

"A condition?" she echoed.

Seeing as Lucy was asking for an elaboration, Gray sighed. "I have this... this sort of tick. I tend to take my clothes off when I get... really excited or nervous-and no, I won't tell you how it started," he said when Lucy seemed to want to ask why.

She pouted. "So... you're saying you got nervous back there?"

"Well, yeah," he said. "I mean, you did almost fall on your face. It would have been a terrible accident."

"Does that mean..." Lucy started tentatively, "...you really do like me?"

First, Gray's eyebrows shot up in surprise at Lucy's peculiar question. Then, they furrowed to a knot in the middle.

Lucy pouted and looked away. "I might... or might not... have overheard you and Virgo talk a while ago."

"So you heard."

Lucy nodded. "N-Not intentionally, though, I swear! I was just... I happened to hear."

"So that's what was up!" Gray exclaimed as if realizing something. "You've been awfully muted this afternoon."

"Well, you... I didn't hear you respond to Virgo. You didn't even say anything back at her so I was thinking..." Lucy tried to hide her embarrassed face from Gray, "...maybe you really didn't like me as Virgo guessed?"

She heard Gray sigh and the blonde looked at him.

"I guess I was at fault, too, though," he said. "But in my defense I just want to say that that girl Virgo is not normal. She starts talking with those formal words of hers and I just freeze up." Gray waved his hands in the air for added emphasis. "I'm not used to formality and stuff."

"So... you really do like me?" Lucy asked.

The raven-haired young man knotted his eyebrows again before flicking Lucy on the forehead. "You idiot, you think I'd do everything I've done for you for just anybody?"

"Well, I... I guess not-"

"I like you." Gray said it slowly, like he was talking to a three-year-old who had trouble understanding what those words meant. He looked intensely at Lucy, to make sure she understood that every word was not empty but were as meaningful as meaningful could get.

Mesmerized, Lucy could only stare into those endless black orbs for a while. All her internal debate from a while ago had been settled by just three words.

In reply, Lucy said to him, "Gray... don't freak out but... I think... I'm about... to get... an attack now..."

Needless to say that was when Gray decided he would refrain from saying those words or anything similar to Lucy again.

WEIRDO BLABBS: Well, that's that. I hope the next chapters will be longer so I can cover more. Less than ten chapters remaining in this story. DUN DUN DUUUUNNNNNN!

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