This drabblet was born when I saw that page in chapter 77 of the manga. It's the part when Lucy escapes her bonds and goes looking for the guys, only to find Gray's "body". What can I say? I'm a glutton for angsty things! :D I don't even ship GrayxLucy…

Disclaimer: Purely for fun. I own nothing.

Cold

"Natsu! Gray!" Lucy yells as she runs through the semi-demolished casino. Please be alright…

Ah. She shakes her head. Of course they're alright. They are Natsu and Gray. She's seen what they can do first hand. They'd survive out of sheer stubbornness, if anything; live to fight another day.

But she also just saw Erza being taken away and that woman is the most stubborn of them all.

Lucy feels her hands tremble as she pulls aside debris.

The minutes pass without any sign of familiar spiky hair, dark or light, and the stellar spirit mage begins to feel panic set in.

"Hey, you can't leave me here alone! What am I supposed to do…?" Immediately, she feels stupid for yelling out loud. Get yourself together, girl. She increases her pace.

It's when she maneuvers her way past a tipped shelf when she catches sight of something that leaves her breathless and gasping. She sees the flowery pattern of that ridiculous shirt he's wearing before she sees the red.

"Gray!"

Oh, no. Not him, please.

She's kneeling beside his unmoving form and she doesn't know how she got there. Feels her mouth form words.

"This can't be! Hey, wake up! Wake up, now!"

He's still. Too still. He's bleeding. She doesn't know what to do.

Her hands flutter nervously over him, hyperaware of the bloody freaking pole protruding from his chest. But this isn't happening, he'll open his eyes in a second and everything will be okay, please just open your eyes.

She takes his face between her hands – he's cold, he's so cold– and resists the urge to shake him. How many times before had she envisioned holding him like this, caressing his smooth, porcelain skin? She had been drawn to him the moment she saw him that first day at the guild. Him, with his sharp, angular face, fine cheekbones, and unruly dark hair. His eyes gleamed with intelligence, a gaze that pierced right through you.

His eyes are closed now. All she can see is the red staining his pale skin. It's trickling down his face, painting a fascinating pattern on his chest. It's not real. It can't be.

He's a constant, always there standing beside his friends. Always ready to defend the things that are important to him, whatever the cost. Always ready to bring down an icy hell upon the enemies that dare harm what's precious. Always…

He dances a masterful dance, elegant and deadly, wielding his crystalline weapons. The first time she sees his magic, she could only stand transfixed by the beautiful destruction he wrought.

Of course, she quickly discovers the weird quirks that no one at Fairy Tail is exempt from and she laughs along with everyone as the boys scream insults and destroy yet another table.

But her gaze never fails to follow his every move whenever they're in the same room and sometimes he would look back and she has to remind herself to breath. In those stolen moments, she sees another side of him and she can't help but wonder what is it like to actually know him and she considered what ifs.

Maybe that's why it feels like she's the one with a hole in her chest and her breaths are coming fast and shallow. She looks down at his broken body – but it's not a body, not yet, it won't ever be just a body – and she sees could-have-beens, should-have-beens and she wants to scream.

Please, Gray. Please just wake up. You can't do this. Not to us. To me. I can't…

The first crack appears with a resounding crack that shatters her world and she really does scream. Loudly.

Am I the only one who wishes Gray would get more page time? Despite his absolutely ridiculous stripping habit, and really think his character has lots of potential. Too bad the author has pretty much already defined him as the hero's sidekick, occasional comedy relief and that-guy-that sometimes-has-useful-insights. Know what I mean? It's frustrating.

And he is very good-looking, isn't he? ^A^ Well, when he's not busy making those really stupid wtf expressions, of course.