“Hey.” I said to the man behind the counter. He had his back turned to me, so I only got a view of his back, which wasn’t that interesting.
“Hm?”
“Uh, I know it’s a bit late and you’re closing up and everything, but I kinda need some wrapping paper….”
He turned around, and I could now see that he had a hat on so I couldn’t see his hair.
“Late-night present wrapping?”
“Yeah…”
“Dont worry, Ive gotta do the same for my girlfriend. She’s picky, but I still love her.”
“Ah, this is for my boyfriend, I had the present picked out and was planning to wrap it before he got home, but then realized that I had ran out of wrapping paper because I had wrapped everyone else’s present first…” I said, bowing my head.
“Now that I think about it, he works here- is Gray Fullbuster anywhere around? Ive gotta make sure to hide this from him!”
The man visibly tensed, but then relaxed again.
“Oh, I’m pretty sure he already left.”.
“Oh, that’s good!” I replied.
He bent behind the counter to pull out the dark blue wrapping paper, and handed it to me.
“Here, his favorite color.”
“…wait, how do you know that’s his favorite color?”
“Well… Uh.. We talk a lot during work?” It was more of a question then an answer.
I frowned at him, then grabbed my wrapping paper and handed him the correct amount of money.
“Thanks.”
“You welcome!”
“Hope you have a good christmas with your girlfriend.”
“Have a good one with your boyfriend,” He replies, and you can see a small smile in his eyes. It makes me frown, but I walk out anyways.
Around ten minutes later, and I have walked back to the apartment me and Gray share. It’s small, but I like it here. We cuddle on the couch alot.
I take the wrapping paper and open it, then get out Gray’s present. I begin wrapping it, and finish around ten minutes later. I put the large box right in front of the tree, so that he can see it. Of course, he knows better than to actually open it, presents are for Christmas Day, not Christmas Eve!
–
GRAY
–
I closed up the store that Erza had just been at, hoping that she hadn’t recognized me. Then again, I had been wearing the jacket that she always makes me bring, so she probably didn’t recognize me.
I had been wearing the jacket because of the present I had gotten Erza. It was small, fluffy, and had been found on the street. I wondered if I would be able to hide it once I got home, but it wouldn’t hurt to give her the gift tonight instead of tomorrow.
Maybe, before I got home, I would go to the pet store(if it wasn’t closed) and get a cat carrier for the little thing.
–
The pet store had been closed, so I ended up just walking home with the little kitten asleep in my arms. I had found him outside of my work this morning, and put him under my coat during work hours, where he had meowed all day. I hoped Erza would like him.
He was a dark shade of gray almost black but not quiet, and when I had found him, there was blue paint on him. Poor guy must have had a rough night. He also had brown eyes, and a white underbelly.
“Meow.”
I looked down, and the cat stared up at me with its abnormally large, brown eyes. Yup, Erza would love this thing.
“Gray!”
I looked at the cat again.
“Wait, can you talk?”
“Gray!” The voice shouted again, but louder this time.
I held the cat out in front of me, smiling because I knew the cat wasn’t talking.
“Your fucking magical, cat, you know that? OPH!”
Someone slapped me upside the head, and I turned around, smiling because I knew exactly who it was.
“Hello, Gray!” Juvia said, smiling. She had dropped the honorifics a while ago, after I started dating Erza and Cana had asked her out. I had told her that we would just be friends, and she had said(her words exactly), “Then Juvia won’t call you Gray-Sama anymore! Juvia will call you Gray!” It was a great day, because after that I didn’t have to look over my shoulder every time I went on a mission to make sure no blue-haired girls would follow me.
“Hey, Juvia. What are you doing out here?”
“Juvia is the Santa this year, oops, Juvia wasn’t supposed to say that!” She giggled. “But, Juvia is getting everyone’s presents! See, they’re in this bag!” She held up a large shopping bag from a store that I didn’t recognize.
“That’s great, Juvia. Do you want me to leave the door to my apartment unlocked, so you can get in easily?”
“No, Juvia is fine with the window!” She answered, and skipped off, bag swinging over her shoulder.
I continued on my way home. Juvia might not be after me anymore, but it was still really awkward around her.
–
“Im home!” I shouted, opening the door. Erza shouted a greeting back at me and walked in. She didn’t see the cat because it was in my inside pocket(I hoped it wasn’t squished by now).
“I’ve got to put my stuff away, but I’ll be back out in a minute, okay?”
“Okay!” She replied. “I have food cooked, so hurry!”
I smiled. Erza is a surprisingly good cook, not that I doubted her, but it’s just surprising seeing how she is not really… domestic.
I hid the small cat under the bed in our room, and put my jacket around it, then went to the bathroom.
–
ERZA
–
I hummed a little while setting out the plates, which must have been unusual because Gray called from the bathroom,
“You okay, Erza?”
“I’m fine, Gray,” I replied.
“Why are you humming, then?” He asked.
“Oh, nothing!” I replied. “Sit down and eat!”
He frowned little, but obeyed.
Afterwards, we go into our bedroom and I read Christmas stories as we lay in our bed.
–
Gray
–
I woke up again around eleven at night. When I looked around, I didn’t see Erza, and sat up quickly.
I spotted her at the window, staring out at the sky.
“What are you looking at, sweetie?” I asked.
“The sky.”
“Why?”
“I’m trying to find a shooting star.” She replied.
I slid up behind her, wrapping my arms around her waist.
“What do you wanna wish for?” I muttered into her ear.
“For you to get some clothes on.” Erza giggled. “Kidding, I’m wishing for Cheesecake!”
Classic Erza… I thought, laughing.
“But please, get some pants on.” She said pushing me back a bit. I laughed and went to grab the pants from besides the bed. She let out a shout.
“I see one!”
“Make a wish…” I muttered as my Girlfriend closed her eyes and muttered something under her breath.
She opened her eyes.
“What did you wish for?” I asked while pulling on my pants.
“I can’t tell you, then it wont come true!”
I smiled, then pulled her back into bed.
“Comon, we gotta get to sleep. It’s going to be a busy day at the guild tomorrow.”
Erza smiled, and cuddled up to me.
–
Erza
–
I woke up at around nine the next day, which wasn’t unusual at all. Gray was already awake, so I scurried downstairs in my pyjamas. Hopefully, he hadn’t opened anything from under the tree.
Downstairs I went, to find Gray in the kitchen, half asleep and trying to make cereal.
“Here,” I said, grabbing the box of breakfast food from his hands and pouring it into a bowl. There was no milk in the fridge, so with a sigh, I opened the freezer and set the jug out to unfreeze.
“No more making breakfast while your half asleep,” I told Gray. He nodded sleepily.
–
Twenty minutes later, we were walking down to the guild. I was carrying a large bag that had the presents for our friends, and Gray had a smaller bag with the presents for us, and from whoever had been chosen as the Secret Santa.
We were not the first people to arrive, a tired-looking Lucy was sitting at a table, mug of coffee in hand, as Natsu and Happy danced around her. They were shouting something like,
“It’s Christmas! It’s Christmas!”
The large tree in the corner of our guild had presents under it, and this is where we put the stuff that was for our friends.
Mirajane was bustling around with something that looked like mistletoe, typical Mira.
Everyone slowly started to stream in. Some looked half-asleep, others(the younger ones) were bouncing around.
Wendy ran right up to me and Gray, grabbing our hands and smiling.
“Are you excited to open presents?” She asked.
Gray nodded, and she dragged him off to the tree, excited to show him the presents she had picked out.
I sat down at the bar, watching all the commotion going on around me. Mira walked by and set a large piece of cheesecake in front of me.
“You ready?” The white-haired demon asked.
I shoved some of the cheesecake into my mouth while nodding. She knew what I was planing.
“Present opening time!” Master shouted.
Natsu stopped attacking Lucy and moved on to the tree, almost diving under it with Happy following.
“NATSU!” I shouted, and proceded to go over and grab him out from under the tree.
–
Gray
–
I watched as Erza was handed present after present, and happily opened all of them. Juvia had given her all the leftover Gray-sama plushies(creepy), Natsu some weird armour(I hope she never wears that), Wendy a sword that looked way too small and light for Erza(but she still bent and hugged Wendy and said that she would use it in the next battle), and Lucy a large package of coffee(that would be very usefull)
Next I was given some things. Natsu and Happy(unwillingly) handed me a messily-wrapped shirt, Lucy a box of homemade sweets, Wendy another box of sweets(after appologizing about a million and one times for getting the same thing as Lucy, and I had to tell her a million times that it was perfectly fine), and Cana and Juvia a belt(which… Was… Still… Weird… ).
It wasnt untill the day was partially over and practicly all the presents were gone from under the tree that I realized Erza hadnt given me anything.
At that moment, someone tapped me on the shoulder, and I turned to see the one and only Erza, standing there, a smile on her face. In her hands was a box, one that I had seen under our Christmas Tree last night.
“I forgot to give this too you,” She said, hading me the present.
I carefully unwrapped it, and found a literal cardboard box. I opened that, and found another, smaller box. Opening that, there was what seemed to be a jewlery box. I glanced up at her for a minute, before looking back down at the box and slowly opening it. My eyes met hers again, but not in confusion this time- this time, it was in surprise.
She nervosly looked away for a second, before meeting my eyes again.
“I-I thought we had been dateing long enough…. And I really do love you… So…” She took the box out of my hands and opened it all the way.
“Will you marry me?”
“Yes.”
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