Juvia stepped up to the flame mage and angrily poked him in the chest.

"You. Need. To. Calm. Down." She jabbed him again with every word she spoke. Natsu glared at her harshly.

"Why should I? It was the ice prick's fault in the first place!" he growled, casting a glance at the said ice mage who was currently unconscious. Juvia made an annoyed noise, drawing Natsu's attention back to her.

"Gray-sama didn't do anything! Natsu started the fight!" She turned abruptly on her heel and charged toward the fallen raven-haired boy. Natsu sighed, knowing that Juvia didn't know the reason Natsu had up and punched Gray out of the blue like that. His cheeks flushed a light pink as he remembered his and Gray's 'little chat' the day before that nobody in the guild knew about. He turned away sharply and ran off out of the guild. Lucy called for him to come back, but Natsu ignored her.

Flashback!

"Hey, stripper! When are you gonna tell Lucy how you feel about her?" Natsu suddenly asked. Gray's face turned red and he quickly clapped a hand over Natsu's mouth.

"We'll talk over there," he hissed, jerking his head in the direction of a dark corner in the guild. The pinkette raised an eyebrow, not-so-subtly kicking Gray in the shin to remind him that he couldn't breathe. Gray quickly removed his hand from the fire mage's mouth, not wanting to end up burned. The two boys settled themselves in the seats farthest away from the rest of the guild.

"So, are you going to confess?" Natsu asked, oblivious to the fact that Gray's face could rival Erza's hair. "You said you would today. And what about Juvia? Did you think of what she would say?"

"Would you shut up for a second and let me answer?" Gray whisper-shouted. Natsu blinked, half-surprised by Gray's outburst, but nodded. Gray let out a breath he hadn't realized he was holding and started talking.

"I'm going to confess to her. And I did think of what Juvia will say. But, I don't give a shit what Juvia thinks. She's just an annoying stalker that's way too obsessed with me. Why the sudden interest, anyways?" Gray raised an eyebrow, eyes demanding an answer. Natsu's face turned a shade of pink as he leaned back in the chair.

"No reason, just thinking of how the guild will flood again when Juvia realizes that you don't love her," he said calmly, noting the way Gray paled at the mention of Juvia flooding the guild. Natsu chuckled, his simple mind not grasping the thought that Gray was going to crush the bluenette's heart. He stood up and started walking away.

"I guess this is bye for today. I'm going to go take a nap." And with that, the pink-haired Dragon Slayer left Gray alone with his thoughts.

Flashback End!

Natsu hadn't realized it the day before, but he was actually worried for the water mage. He didn't want to see her get rejected. So, when he realized it would be Gray's fault if Juvia cried, he decided to punch Gray in advance. It wasn't his fault that Gray was a cold-hearted bastard. He just wanted to protect his nakama from any heartbreak. Suddenly making a decision, he whipped around and raced back to the guild.

"Gray-sama! Juvia was so worried about you!" Juvia sobbed, clinging to Gray like a vice. Gray tried and failed to get his arm free.

"Look, Juvia, I know you like me and all, but I don't like you!" he grunted. Juvia's grip weakened slightly as she looked up at Gray with a confused expression. Gray let out a breath, not wanting to say it in the blue-haired girl's face.

"Okay, I'll say it straight. I like Lucy, not you. So please let go of me."