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Fight Me, Bite Me	By : Rhov Category: +. to F > Fairy Tail Views: 39446 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 3
Disclaimer: Fairy Tail is the property of Hiro Mashima. I make no money, I just do this for my own pleasure.

Chapter List
- 13
- 14
- 15
A/N: This starts a major arc I had planned for this story. Maybe not much kinkiness at first, but I hope you enjoy the plot.
Chapter 14
In Sickness And…
Gray woke up to a different smell. It was not like he always noticed smells the way Natsu did, but he at least knew this was not the smell of his own house. There was also heat beside him. He opened his eyes and saw Natsu curled up on his side, asleep on top of Gray's arm, looking so adorable, almost childlike … and drooling.
Gray yanked his arm out from under the pink head and grimaced at the hot saliva that dripped over his skin. That woke Natsu up with a sleepy grumble of "Huh?"
"You drooled on my arm, bastard," Gray snapped.
"Mmm … sowwy," Natsu muttered, still half asleep.
Gray wiped the arm with a sheet. Then he looked down at the sleeping Dragon Slayer. He stroked his fingers through the cerise strands and smiled down at his wild lover.
"Hey, Natsu?" He got only a sleepy grunt in reply. "I want to tell the guild. I don't want to hide it anymore. It's not fair to our friends."
"Not 'til Happy's home," came another somnolent sigh.
"I guess so," Gray realized. If they came out while Happy was away, the poor Exceed would feel bad that he had missed such an important announcement. Then Gray saw a strange crimson and maroon mark on Natsu's shoulder near the neck. He touched it, and Natsu jolted with a hiss of pain.
"What is it?" the Dragon Slayer moaned.
"It's teeth marks, I think. Probably that's where I bit you last night. I didn't realize I did it that hard."
Natsu sat up this time and rubbed his neck right over where it ached. "Did it break skin?"
"No, just deeply bruised. Sorry, I didn't realize—"
"It's fine to break skin." His head suddenly flopped back onto the pillow. "Do it with your teeth. It marks us as a mating couple. Already tasted your blood," he said, slowly falling asleep again. "Then … you taste mine. Teeth … marking us … my mmmmate … coup- … -ple…" Quickly, he was asleep again.
Gray smiled plaintively. "Your mate, huh?"
Did Natsu mean more than what they already were? They were dating secretly for now. Being a marked mating couple … did that mean…?
"Natsu, I'm home."
Natsu bolted up in bed. Gray's eyes went wide, and they stared at each other in a moment of guilty panic. They were in bed together … and naked. Gray suddenly scrambled out of the bed, flinging sheets aside, and raced across the room.
"Gray, it's okay. We can tell him…"
Gray grabbed a clear box that held the penis-shaped chastity device. "Do you want Happy to see this?"
Natsu went pale. Although in a box, the plastic cage looked immensely kinky with its anatomical shape. Gray yanked only his pants on and grabbed his shirt, boxers, socks, and shoes.
"We'll tell everyone together," he said, and Gray gave Natsu a quick kiss on the lips before jumping out the bedroom window.
Natsu was still in a daze as he watched Gray fleeing away from the house. Just then, the bedroom door opened and Happy walked in.
"Oh, you're in here," the little blue Exceed said. "Are you just now waking up?"
"Uh … yeah … mission yesterday. I didn't get back until after midnight."
"It must have been a hard mission. You have a huge bruise on your shoulder."
Natsu reached up to the bite mark with a jolt of panic. "This? Uh … I got this later. So hey, you gotta tell me all about New Extalia and your mission."
Happy was more than eager to tell him all the details. Natsu dressed as he listened. He wrapped the scarf around to hide the love bite. He discovered that Gray had cleaned and folded his clothes that were soiled last night. How sweet of him!
Soon—very soon, he hoped—he and Gray would announce their relationship to everyone.
Gray was in a great mood. More than great. He felt like dancing, singing, turning cartwheels, and jumping up and down while clapping his hands like a child. The past week had been amazing. It hardly mattered that Happy came home so suddenly. The chastity belt experiment was phenomenal, and Natsu seemed to be getting over his issues way faster than Gray could hope for. As they went through a life living together, they were discovering the little secrets between the two that made a relationship easier to handle.
Best of all, earlier that week Natsu had hinted about taking a mission, just the two of them, that just so happened to involve a stay in a fancy resort hotel. Nothing was finalized, it was just something they talked about one evening over dinner, but Gray really wanted a vacation for just the two of them, some faraway place where they could act like a couple without constantly worrying about getting caught.
He wanted to tell the guild soon. Gray knew the risks. He had left bruises on Natsu, and the Dragon Slayer had marked him plenty of times. He still had bruises from the bites Natsu gave him days ago—those had been some nasty bruises—and Natsu had those teeth marks on his shoulder now. Coming out to their friends meant that if anyone noticed the bruises and bites, they would know what Natsu and Gray did.
It meant getting discovered as a man who liked kinky stuff. However, that was a risk Gray was willing to take if it meant he and Natsu could date openly and hold hands in the guild hall.
He chuckled to himself as he wondered how people would react. Probably everyone would be shocked. Half the guild would drop their jaws to the floor. Erza just might faint. Lucy would squeal and want details. Juvia would need to be hauled down to the harbor, so she would not flood the place in tears. He wanted to see their reactions.
Erza sat down beside him at the bar and immediately struck up a casual conversation. "I heard you went on an emergency call up north. I didn't think you'd be back so soon."
"It wasn't that challenging, and I rushed back," he admitted.
"Rushed? Why?"
Gray smiled happily to himself. "There was a certain person I wanted to get back to quickly."
"Another girlfriend?" she asked, but Gray did not answer. "I don't normally see you smile like that over just another girl. She must be special."
"Very special," Gray whispered, wanting so badly to tell Erza outright.
"I see. Is it serious? How long have you been dating?"
"We've been together for over a month."
"That long? I didn't know. Have you brought her in here?"
He chuckled as he realized he had brought his date many times. However, he replied, "When was the last time I brought a girlfriend into the guild?"
"Never," she realized. "Loke was the only one who did things like that. Well, I would like to meet her."
He laughed again as he wondered how the redhead would react when he told her the truth.
"But Gray, I'm a little concerned. I mean, you pick up girls for one-night-stands a lot."
"I haven't done that in a long time," he snapped.
"That's good, but … well, there's no delicate way for me to ask this. You're clean, right?"
He looked over in confusion. "Clean? I showered last night."
"Don't play dumb, Gray. When was the last time you were tested?"
"Gajeel challenged me four days ago."
"Gray! I mean for sexually transmitted diseases. You have gotten tested for that, right?"
He stared at her blankly. "Huh?"
She rubbed a pulsing vein out of her forehead. "Are you telling me that with how much you sleep around, you have never been tested?"
Slowly, Gray felt a chill creeping up his limbs. She had a point. He used to have sex with just about anyone who gave in after a few drinks. He had never gone to check if sleeping around did anything to his health.
"I would know," he reasoned hesitantly. "I mean, I'd have … warts or something."
"It doesn't work that way all the time." Erza sighed as she realized Gray really was clueless about something this important. "If you care for this girl, you better get tested. For her sake, I hope you've been using a condom every time. Seriously, go see a doctor. There's a clinic on Guava Street. If money is a problem, I'll even pay for it. I want you to be healthy, and I sure hope you are, because if you're sick, you're probably going to lose that girl when you tell her you probably gave her some virus."
"Lose…" Icy dread struck through Gray. "That wouldn't happen," he cried out.
Erza just stared at him, feeling a bit sorry for the guy. By that look of terror and disbelief, she could see that, whoever this mystery girlfriend was, Gray really had fallen for her. "Go right now, Gray. I'm serious. Before you sleep with that girl again … what's her name, anyway? I hate calling her that girl. Natsu is the same; he never did tell me his girlfriend's name, and now I don't want to ask because it might upset him. I was curious who would date a guy like him."
Instead of answering—and maybe to get out of saying anything—Gray bolted off his seat and ran out the door. He went for a walk around town, thinking about what Erza said.
It was stupid. If he had caught some sexually transmitted disease, he would know. He had been with Natsu for over a month, and he had never gotten sick. He would know!
Wouldn't he?
Something kept nagging his heart. He found his feet taking him to Guava Street and the medical clinic there. It was a family planning clinic, the sort of place desperate couples went to as a last resort for unwanted pregnancies, or people looking for cheap birth control … or people who needed to be tested after a wild night. He stared at the respectable brick building, but he dreaded stepping inside.
There was a reason he had never bothered to get tested. It was humiliating. He would have to walk in there, ask to get that sort of test, probably have some doctor examine his genitals, and if anyone in there recognized him … hell, half of Fiore probably recognized him now, thanks to the Grand Magic Games. People would talk. Rumors would spread. Someone from Sorcerer Weekly might write an article about 'The stripper wizard who slept around now has to get STD tests.'
Even worse: what if something came back positive? The fear of knowing the truth was what really made him hesitate now.
If he knew the truth, he would have to tell Natsu. It was the ethical thing to do. However, if he had something, and Natsu had it too now, wouldn't it be natural for Natsu to dump him as a boyfriend?
Ignorance is bliss, as they say.
However, the more he put it off, the worse it would be. If Natsu got sick on his own, only to find out it was Gray who made him sick because he never got tested, that would be far worse than getting tested now and dealing with the results together.
"It'll be fine," he told himself. "I'm totally not sick."
He walked inside, and the bustling of Magnolia vanished, leaving a void of silence only slightly filled in by soft classical music playing from somewhere. The entryway was sterile but pleasant, with waxy wood floors and potted plants. A nurse sitting behind a desk looked up.
"Welcome," she said in a far-too-cheery voice.
Gray came forward, glancing around nervously. Luckily, there was only one other person in the waiting room, a fatherly-looking man reading the latest Sorcerer Weekly. Gray saw Natsu on the cover, as if ready to set the whole magazine on fire, with a bold title: ALL FIRED UP FOR SUMMER. When the hell did that flame-brain run off and do modeling?
"H-Hi," Gray said, dropping his voice and hoping no one recognized him from the magazine. "Do you guys do … you know … testing?" He sincerely hoped the pitch of his voice and look in his eyes were enough.
Apparently, this young nurse had seen other people come in asking the same thing, and her cheery voice also dropped to something more calming. "Yes, sir. We have that sort of testing."
He gulped hard and glanced back to the other patient, but the man was absorbed in the article he was reading, probably waiting for his wife to finish with her appointment.
"Would you like to have that done?" the nurse asked, keeping her voice confidential.
"Y-yeah. What does it involve?"
"A doctor will do a physical examination, take a swabbing, and draw some blood. He may recommend other tests if he deems it prudent."
"Okay." He felt a little better with that. "How soon can I know?"
"We have a lab here, so results are usually within the day. We can do it right now and let you know by this evening."
"O-okay."
"Fill out this form please, sir. It's a basic patient form: contact information, general health, et cetera."
Gray took the clipboard, sat in a chair, and began to fill in the information. While he wrote, another person came in, someone with an appointment. She checked in with the nurse, who had to go inform the doctor, and she sat down to wait. Again, Gray was terrified someone might recognize him and wonder why he was in a normal clinic when wizards had their own healers.
He turned in the filled clipboard and waited nervously. Erza's words had him in chills. What if his days of sleeping around really had taken their toll? What about Natsu? If he had some virus that others could catch, would he have to give up being a wizard?
What if it was fatal?
"Gray Fullbuster," a nurse called out.
He leaped at that name, and finally the man with the magazine looked up. Gray cursed, wishing he had put a fake name on the paperwork.
"Come on back, sir."
"Ah, yes. Thanks." He hurried forward just to get out of that waiting room. He saw out of the corner of his eye, the man looked down at the magazine, and then up to Gray. Shit! His picture must have made it into the magazine again.
The nurse took him to a small room and told him to wait for the doctor. It was a long, anxiety-filled wait. Finally, an older gentleman in a white lab coat entered and introduced himself. He explained the tests, what they would be looking for, and assured Gray that testing was a standard procedure, nothing to feel ashamed about. Still, Gray blushed as he dropped his pants and allowed the doctor to examine his genital area. Thankful, little touching was involved. Then the doctor took a swab and inserted it into the urethra. That was uncomfortable, but how the doctor did it was not painful.
"I'll get this to the lab. You may get dressed. The nurse will be in for the blood test."
For once, Gray was happy to yank his clothes back on. He felt humiliated, but he kept telling himself, this was what he really should do, for Natsu's sake.
The cute young nurse returned with a metal tray of supplies. "This is just a standard blood drawing. Stick your arm out, sir. I'll wrap this rubber band around your upper arm, you'll feel a little prick, and we'll take a couple vials."
Gray sat with his arm held out. He had blood tests before, but never for anything so potentially life-altering. He was tense and sweating when the needle stabbed into his skin. He cried out in shock, "Ow!"
"Sorry about that. Try to relax. It'll go in easier if you relax your muscles."
Gray flinched inside. How many times had he said those same words to Natsu while piercing him with his penis? Would he ever be able to say those words again, or feel inside that heat? If he had caught something…
"Alrighty! All done." She removed the needle and put on a bandage. Gray flexed his elbow while putting pressure on the needle hole to stop the bleeding faster and minimize bruising. "Come back around … let's say, quarter 'til five. We should have the results back from the lab."
"Thank you. Should I do anything?"
"No, just come back on time. We close at five o'clock."
"Okay. Um … I'll see you then."
Her sunny smile was back. "Have a good day, sir."
Gray turned away. If this had happened a month ago, he might have flirted up this gorgeous, young nurse. Now, he felt unworthy to even look in her eyes. The last thing he felt like doing was smiling.
It was evening, and Gray had avoided the guild. He also didn't go home, fearing that if he did, Natsu would come over and find him. He was not ready to face the Dragon Slayer yet.
He now sat in a room with medical posters on the wall for patients to look at, an assortment of instruments, and the raised, hard bed with waxy paper to cut down on germs. As he sat there, thinking about the worst, he wondered if this flimsy paper was really enough to protect people from the diseases living in a human body.
Those dark thoughts were interrupted by the doctor opening the door. He was staring down at a chart and only briefly glanced up to make sure this was the right patient.
"Gray Fullbuster?"
He jolted. "Y-yes?"
The doctor shut the door behind him, and to Gray it sounded like the thud of a prison gate. "We got your results back. I … have some bad news."
Gray felt his heart plummet. "Oh God," he whispered, ready to panic, unable to inhale. His entire world that Natsu had slowly heated up with his warm smile suddenly frosted over.
"The lab came back with two positives."
"Two?" Gray shouted, but he quickly covered his mouth before he screamed anything else, such as the string of profanity racing through his head.
"It's all right, sir. They're both curable."
Gray let out a deep sigh. Curable! That word had never sounded so wonderful.
"The first, you maybe have heard of: gonorrhea."
"Oh shit," Gray groaned. It was like some nightmare.
"This other is called trichomoniasis, or just trich. It's common, and a single dose of antibiotics is all you need. Curing the gonorrhea will be a little more challenging, but there are medications. In men, both conditions can be present without symptoms, which is probably why you never realized you had it. I have to ask," the doctor added solemnly. "Have you had any partners since whenever you think you may have contracted this?"
Contracted? "I … I don't even know when I did."
"Have you had any unprotected sex lately?"
Gray thought back to the time before Natsu. "I used to get drunk, pick up ladies. That was a while back, though," he insisted.
"You could have caught it months ago, or with trich, even up to two years ago."
"I know at least once, the lady—" His eyes went wide. "Oh shit, that lady."
It was a lady he picked up at a bar shortly before hooking up with Natsu: gorgeous beyond dreams, wild and flirty, just the way he liked them. He had taken her home, and she was too eager to ride him, refusing to let him get up even to get the condom. Gray had been too drunk to care at the time. He only worried in the morning haze of a hangover that maybe she could have gotten pregnant. She had assured him she was on birth control. Then she kissed him goodbye and left the house. He never saw her again. He had been relieved to hear she was on birth control, and foolishly he assumed that meant she was safe.
How wrong he was!
"You may want to warn her."
Gray jolted at the doctor's advice, but he sank down at he realized something awful. "I didn't even get her name."
"I see." The doctor showed complete professional comportment to that confession. "Ethically, you should warn anyone you have had as a sexual partner since then."
"Partner?" Pink hair and a smiling face came to mind. "Natsu…"
The keen doctor saw the look in Gray's horrified eyes. "Are you currently in a relationship?"
"Y-yeah. A … well … a boyfriend." He worried if this doctor would sneer, but he was a true professional.
"Have you two had sex?"
Gray blushed at such bluntness. "Yeah, but every time I … um … came inside … I was wearing a condom. Yesterday, I … I penetrated him without protection, but I didn't come inside. Would that be okay?" he asked in worry.
"Unfortunately, with infections like gonorrhea, it's not a hundred percent that even a condom will be enough. You can catch it without ejaculating, since any fluid, even preseminal, vaginal or mucus membranes around the anus, can contain the bacteria. It can also be present on the skin, which is why even a condom is not a hundred percent safe. Male condoms don't cover all the skin. It can spread to your hands, and from there it can infect your own genitals, or your mouth, or even your eyes. Oral gonorrhea is common and often goes without diagnosis, brushed off as being merely a sore throat. Have you two had oral sex?"
That cold plummet hit Gray's chest again. "Oh God," he breathed in horror.
He saw memories of Natsu on his knees, those eyes looking up at him, that hot mouth around him. He shivered as that sweet memory was now tainted with the idea that he had done that with his diseased penis. Natsu had given him such a loving, erotic blowjob, the first time Natsu had ever sucked a man off, and Gray shot his infected cum into that beloved throat.
Gray reached up to his mouth, ready to vomit.
"It's okay, sir," the doctor said calmly.
"No!" Gray shouted in a panic, swallowing hard to keep his stomach down. "If he gets sick…"
"It'll be fine. Calm down and breathe."
Gray snapped at him. "He's my responsibility."
Sternly, the doctor replied back, "And you will be responsible for getting him in here for testing. We can cure you both with antibiotics."
Curable! That word was a lifeline. This was curable. Still…
"God, I was so stupid," Gray shouted. "I should have gotten tested. That one time … hell, every time! I'm not even sure how many people I slept with after her. Three, maybe four … and all of them are probably sick. All because of me. Because I was too damn proud to show my face in a place like this and get the stupid test. Goddammit, what an idiot!"
The doctor sat next to Gray and put a fatherly arm around him. "The fact that you came in here shows that you're not an idiot. Stubborn, maybe, but you obviously love your partner."
Gray looked up in shock. That L-word again! However, this time he could not deny it, not with how scared he felt for Natsu's safety.
"Bring him in here tomorrow."
"Sooner than that!" Gray snapped.
"I'm sorry, sir, but the lab has closed for the night. Besides, results take half a day. Bring him in tomorrow morning. We open at eight. We can have results for him by the afternoon. I'll make sure we have the medication available, as well. In the meantime, do not have sexual intercourse of any kind—oral, anal, or vaginal—until you have completed the medications and tests return clear."
No sex! It was a slap in the face, appropriate punishment for potentially putting Natsu and others at risk with his promiscuity.
"Okay," Gray said, swallowing hard as he shivered with dread. "Oh God, how do I even tell him this?"
The doctor squeezed his shoulders again. "In my experience, being bluntly honest about bad news is best. He may be sad, shocked, even angry, but skirting around the issue doesn't lessen the blow. In the end, this is about you taking responsibility for your own actions, including making sure you both are safe and healthy. If he loves you at all, then after the shock has worn off, he'll respect you for being honest. Right now, he and any other partners you've had need to get tested."
With a lurch of his stomach, he realized that meant Cana too. He would have to get her somewhere private and warn her. He had to take back control, and that meant doing the ethical thing. He needed to man up to his mistake and warn people. Maybe it was that lady, maybe he had caught it earlier, he had no clue, so it was best to be safe, even if it meant admitting he had a sexually transmitted disease to every person who ever shared his bed.
"Right," he said firmly, realizing he had to be mature about this. "Thank you."
"I can recommend a psychologist to help you and your partner through this, if you'd like."
"No," he muttered. "It's fine, just … just a shock." He still felt numbed by the news. "At least it can be cured, right? At least it wasn't … something…" Something fatal. Something that would kill him, and slowly kill Natsu as well. "I couldn't have lived with myself if I made him sick like that." Tears threatened to come to his eyes as he realized that, for how bad it seemed, it could have been a whole lot worse.
Right now, he needed to get out of that office and collapse into Natsu's arms.
That night, he took Natsu out on a date. It was a twist for them, with Gray picking the restaurant and offering to pay. Natsu looked so happy to go out again, but he realized Gray's smiles were all forced. He smelled fear, and for a while he dreaded this was one of those break up dates Lucy cried about, when a boyfriend took her out to somewhere really nice almost as an apology before dropping the bomb that he wanted to break up.
Instead, the bomb Gray dropped was far worse. At least he waited until they finished eating, although he could barely stomach the food. As he confessed everything, his eyes stayed down at a speck of sauce on his plate.
Natsu dropped his fork, and it clattered against the nearly-empty platter. Gray's eyes stayed downcast, unable to look at Natsu at all.
"You … have what?"
"Gonorrhea and trich," he whispered, hoping no one else in the restaurant could hear him over the low din of conversations and chewing food. "I know it's a shock, but—"
"Did you cheat on me?"
"What…? No!" Gray cried out softly.
"How did you get this?"
"It was from before you."
Natsu stared incredulously. "Before?" he bellowed. "After how long we've been together, you're just now finding this out?" Gray realized that a nice restaurant was a bad idea. Luckily, the setting did not go unnoticed to Natsu. He dropped his voice as he growled. "Gray…"
"I'm sorry, Natsu. It was damn stupid of me. I'm really sorry."
"It was stupid!" His voice cracked, and he slammed his mouth shut before he screamed again. His fists drew up to suppress the anger, and Natsu's face contorted as he tried to stay calm. "So, do I have this too?"
"I don't know," Gray said honestly. "You could. You'll need to go in and get tested."
Natsu bolted to his feet, and Gray saw how tightly his hands were clenched. The Dragon Slayer was glaring furiously down at him, and something in the side of his jaw was twitching. Gray knew that if they were in any other location, Natsu would have punched him. He was honestly shocked that the Dragon Slayer had the courtesy to hold himself back.
Instead, he seethed, "I need to get out of here."
"Natsu!"
"Pay the bill. I'll wait for you outside." Then he turned and stormed away.
Gray flagged a waiter and paid with ten thousand Jewels, way more than the meal cost, but he did not want to wait for the check. He handed over the money and raced out after Natsu, running past the other diners. He half expected to step outside of the restaurant and right into a flaming fist. Instead, in the amber glow of a streetlight, Gray saw that stern silhouette, white scarf fluttering in a cold breeze, arms folded … no, arms hugging himself. Puffs of hot air smoked in the cold night as he heard the unsteady breathing of someone struggling not to cry. Gray felt like crawling away, but he did not want to leave Natsu alone at a time like this. He took off his coat and draped it around those trembling shoulders.
"How about we walk to the docks?"
Natsu nodded silently and followed beside him, clutching at the white jacket. They did not speak, lost in their own turmoil of thoughts, until they reached the harbor. They walked out onto a pier, and Natsu sat down, letting his legs hang over the edge, staring down into the inky water below. Cautiously, still expecting to get punched, Gray sat beside him. For another minute, neither said anything. Gray was not even sure what more he could say. Sorry was not enough.
"Gray," Natsu finally whispered. "It wasn't me who gave it to you, was it?"
"I told you, it was probably from before."
"But you don't know." Natsu leaned over, resting his face in his hands as he stared at the black waves. "After that time back then, what that man did to me, I always felt … tainted. Filthy."
"Natsu! Really, it wasn't you. You were a kid. If you had caught anything from that time, you'd've had complications years ago. Besides, I'm sure Makarov had you tested. It's standard in cases like that. It wasn't you. I was the idiot who kept picking up drunk women. I should have gotten tested a long time ago, but … I never thought … I mean, I figured if I had something, I'd know. There would be sores or a fever or something. I didn't realize you could have something, even have it for months, and not have any symptoms. I … didn't know. I didn't think to get tested, not until Erza asked if I had. It just never crossed my mind. Which, in hind sight, was stupid of me." He heard Natsu snuffling, and a teardrop fell into the water below, rippling the calm harbor. "Natsu," he sighed, hugging around his shoulders. "I'm so sorry."
"Imagining you with other people is hard enough," he said with a sniffle. "Knowing one of them made you sick makes me so … so angry. Like I wanna go out and punch someone. They … they made you sick."
"Natsu, I'm gonna be fine," he said with more assurance than he had felt all day. "It's curable." He hoped that word acted as a lifeline to Natsu, just as it had when the doctor told him the bad news. "This isn't your fault, and it's not your mistake to fix. It was my mistake for sleeping around and having unprotected sex. It's a mistake for which I'm going to take responsibility. Tomorrow morning, I'm gonna come fetch you. You'll see the same doctor I did. He's really nice. Okay?"
Natsu used his scarf to wipe his eyes. "Yeah, okay. But you…"
"I'm just a bit sick. I'll take medication, and I'll get better. Then it'll be okay. It'll … it'll be okay." Gray felt tears on his own face now as he looked at the dropped head staring into the harbor. "Natsu, please don't tell me you're going to break up with me just because of this."
Natsu looked up in shock. "What?"
"I can be cured. I can!" he insisted loudly in desperation. "He said so. The doctor … he said … it's curable. Curable!"
"Gray?" Natsu reached up and wiped the pouring tears. "What…?"
"I'm scared!" He wrapped his arms around Natsu, grasping him in a crushing hold. After holding it in all evening, from the moment the doctor said I have some bad news, Gray finally broke down into shuddering tears. "I'm … scared," he whispered, sobbing into the white scarf. "I don't want to lose you. I messed up. I seriously fucked up, and I'm sorry. I can't even tell you how much I hate myself, how scared I've been all day, how furious I am for being such an asshole in the past. If it had been worse … if it was fatal … I'd deserve something like that, but not you."
"Don't talk like that."
"I don't want you to be sick," he sobbed. "I c-can't handle that. I hate that I put you in this sort of danger. What sort of dominant am I if I don't make sure I'm safe for my partner? To hell with dominant. What sort of human am I?"
"Gray," Natsu said with a warm tone, rubbing the cold, shivering back. He took the white coat off and wrapped it back around Gray's arms. He tugged the collar up around Gray's neck, smiling into the tear-stained face. "I'm not going to leave you just because of this."
"But I was a total slut, and now I'm sick. I'm … disgusting."
"No! Gray, look at me. You're not disgusting. You were just a typical horny man, and you didn't know. You didn't realize how easy it is to get sick. You've been loyal to me, right?" he asked, looking slightly worried
"I … y-yes. No one else. I'm exclusive. When I find someone worth keeping, I don't cheat. I would never cheat on you."
"Then it's fine. That was in the past, and you're a different person. Both of us are different people compared to before we began dating. We've both gotten better. Now we have each other. Come on. Let me just hold you tonight. I think you need that."
Gray snuffled up his tears. "Y-yeah," he admitted.
"Come over to my place."
"What about Happy?"
"It's fine. He'll find out one day anyway. We'll just be cuddling." Natsu stood up and stretched his hand down to Gray. "Come on."
Gray felt a smile returning to his face. He grabbed Natsu's hot fingers and hoisted himself up. Natsu did not let go of Gray's hand as they walked through Magnolia. He kept squeezing Gray's icy palm, and Gray felt a little warmth return to his heart.
Together, they walked through the moonlight to Natsu's house. When they entered, Happy was eating his own dinner—fish, of course. The blue Exceed looked up with a bright grin.
"Oh, hey Natsu." Then he saw the darker shadow behind him. "What's Gray doing here?"
"Gray's feeling a bit sick," Natsu explained. He tugged the ice wizard to come over the threshold, so he could shut the door and keep the cold air from coming in. "He'll be staying here tonight."
"Oh." Happy pouted and he gazed over at Gray. He could not remember a time when Natsu took care of anyone when they were sick, so this charity toward his rival was confusing. "It's not contagious, is it?"
Gray flinched at that, and Natsu wondered how to explain it. "You won't catch it, don't worry. It's gonna be fine." He grinned back to the ice wizard, who was glaring silently into the fireplace. "Gray," he whispered, patting his cold arm. "It's gonna be fine."
"Right," he said with a raspy tightness to his throat.
Natsu rubbed the tension in that stiff arm with a worried frown. Gray had been silent the whole walk here, and it was obvious he was lost in thought, so Natsu offered, "How about I make you some tea?"
Gray tried to force himself out of his brewing anger and self-loathing. "Y-yeah, that'd be good."
"All right. Just sit down."
Happy watched with mild surprise at seeing the two rivals not at one another's throats for once. "Are you hungry, Gray?"
"Ah, no. I ate."
"I didn't fix you a fish, Natsu."
"I ate too," the Dragon Slayer assured Happy as he got a pot of water boiling.
"Did you two eat together?"
"Yup!"
That was even more shocking to Happy, but he supposed they might have eaten with a group of people, or at the guild. "Should I set up a futon for Gray?"
"No, he's sick. He'll be in my bed."
"A futon for you, then? You burned the hammock."
"Nah, I'll be with Gray."
Happy looked surprised. "Are you going to sleep with him?"
"Well, someone's gotta look after the popsicle."
"I guess so, but…" Happy's eyes widened a little as he began to realize something. Then he smiled and chuckled to himself. "Aye, sir."
Natsu made the tea while Gray continued to sit and stare at the fireplace.
"Hey, Natsu," he whispered.
"The tea's not done yet. Almost."
"It's fine. I just … I want to say … thank you. I mean, I'm a mess right now."
"Yeah, I can tell."
"Thank you for not … for…"
Natsu brought the teacup over, still stirring in sugar, and sat beside the ice wizard. "Gray, I told you, I'm not gonna abandon you just because of this. I'll take care of you."
Gray sniffled up his tears, and finally a smile came to his face. "Thank you," he whispered. "And I'm sorry."
"Stop apologizing and have some tea." He handed the cup over, and Gray blew on it before sipping. "Happy, we're going to retire early. Gray needs rest."
"Is he really sick? Should I get a doctor? I can fly into town and get one if he's really bad."
"We're going to see a doctor tomorrow morning." Natsu glanced over to Gray. "Right? Tomorrow?"
Gray snapped out of his daze. "Y-yeah, tomorrow morning. They open at eight o'clock."
"Then we'll be there right at eight." Natsu grinned back to his blue friend. "Don't worry, Happy. He's just a little sick."
"I can get some juice or something."
"Yeah, sounds good. We've been out of orange juice for weeks."
"Aye! I'll go shopping tomorrow while you guys see the doctor."
"That works. Goodnight, Happy."
"Goodnight, Natsu. I hope you feel better, Gray."
"Y-yeah … thanks."
Natsu pulled Gray around the shoulder to help him to the bedroom, but Happy tugged on Natsu's trouser leg just before he left. Natsu nodded to Gray to go on ahead. They waited until Gray walked in the bedroom alone, and then Happy whispered, "Is Gray pregnant?"
Natsu's eyes widened. "What?"
"Did you get him pregnant? I peeked through the window this morning and saw you two were sleeping together. Is that why he's here? Is that why you're the one taking responsibility? I can keep it a secret if he is, but eventually his tummy will get big and everyone will know."
"No!" he shouted in a whisper voice. "Guys don't get pregnant, and…" Natsu thought to himself, 'And if anything, I'd be the pregnant one.' "He's caught a sickness, that's all."
"Are you sure? You can tell me if you're gonna be a daddy. I'd tell you if I got Carla pregnant, although she won't even accept my fish yet, but if someday one thing leads to another, and she's expecting an egg, I would tell you."
Natsu smiled awkwardly. "Uh … thanks, buddy. I'd tell you too." Still, Natsu felt bad that he hadn't told Happy about him and Gray. "Once Gray's feeling better, I wanna tell you about that person I was dating."
"Did you get her pregnant?"
"No! No one is pregnant. Look, I need to sleep if I'm going to take Gray to the doctor tomorrow."
"I'll be quiet. Does he need medicine?"
"The doctor will prescribe something. Thanks, though. Hey, Happy, would you be upset if Gray stayed here for a while?"
"Is he moving in?"
"Not like that. Just while he's sick."
"That's fine. Are you two good friends now?"
Natsu smiled to himself and glanced over to the bedroom door. "Yeah, we're still rivals, but we're good friends."
"Are you falling in love? Your face is weird, like how Lucy looks when she sees a cute boy."
Natsu felt himself blushing. "M-maybe."
Happy just smiled broadly. "You look a lot happier talking about Gray than when you'd talk about your girlfriend. I hope he doesn't break your heart, or I'll scratch his leg."
Natsu laughed and patted his friend on the head. "If he does anything like that, we'll both scratch him and beat him up, okay?"
"Aye, sir."
Natsu left to the bedroom and shut the door behind him. Gray was still sipping tea and staring at the bed. Natsu got dressed in pajamas, but he saw Gray just stripped naked. After all, that was how he slept in his own house.
"You can use my toothbrush," Natsu assured.
"No," Gray muttered. "This thing can be oral."
"Then I'll brush my teeth first, you brush yours next, and we'll toss the toothbrush. I could probably use a new one, anyway."
With some lackluster bickering, they got their teeth brushed and were ready for bed. Gray sat on the mattress, testing it out carefully. He knew Natsu also slept in a hammock with Happy, but he had this bed for when he wanted to sleep alone. He wondered briefly how many times Natsu must have slipped away into this bedroom to "sleep alone" while actually jerking off. However, then he remembered Natsu saying he had never been able to masturbate to completion. Did he just touch himself into arousal and hover there? That sounded hot.
Those thoughts, as erotic as they were, did nothing for Gray's libido. He was too stuck in the dark pit of despair, where haunting words whispered to him: bad news, two positives, gonorrhea, trich…
Natsu turned off the light, but he saw the ice wizard sitting up, staring out at the stars. Pouting with worry, Natsu walked over to the bed.
"Hey, put the tea down and scoot your butt over. I said I'd snuggle you, and I'm gonna!"
Gray moved a little, but he still did not lie down. Natsu draped his arms around the naked shoulders and clung to Gray's back like some sort of monkey.
"Kainushi?" he whispered into Gray's ear. Instead of the response he wanted, that word caused a faint convulsion through Gray's body. "Hey, you're shivering. Are you crying?"
Gray gave up trying to hide it. He sniffed hard and wiped his nose. In a weak and trembling whisper, he managed to say, "I just … I can't believe…" He let out a miserable sigh. "I feel like an idiot. I feel … like an absolute goddamn idiot."
"I told you, it's gonna be okay. You said it's curable. It's not like you have something that will kill you…"
With all the emotions he had bottled throughout that day, Gray shouted, "Yeah, but I could have. I … I could have had it. Then you'd have it. That keeps running through my head." His fingers reached up into his hair and yanked at his scalp. "I got off lucky. If I had contracted some incurable virus, gave it to you, and you died … Natsu, I can't … I couldn't live with that."
"It didn't happen, Gray. We don't even know if I'm sick. I could be perfectly okay. I mean, we haven't really … you know … done too much. Not like that. I mean, we've done the kinky stuff, but as for actual sex, we haven't done it that many times. Plus you were always careful."
"Not every time."
"Almost every. Even when I didn't think we needed a condom, you used one."
"It takes only once, Natsu."
The Dragon Slayer frowned and hugged Gray, shaking him out of his melancholia. "It's gonna be okay. Lemme hold you."
Natsu pulled Gray down to the pillow, and the ice wizard did not have the will or vitality to resist. Gray was utterly defeated by his own inner turmoil.
"We're gonna get through this," Natsu whispered, hugging Gray as he spooned around the ice wizard. "We'll do this together. You took care of me when I had that kidney infection. Now it's my turn to take care of you."
Gray sighed and let his pride melt in those arms. For once, he would let Natsu be the one to keep everything under control. "Thank you, Natsu."
"Not a problem. Now sleep. I'll still be here in the morning."
Gray finally closed his eyes, and that swirl of haunting words was now replaced with a promise. I'll still be here.
End of Chapter 14
A/N: A high school friend of mine once learned that a boy she had slept with was HIV-positive. She had another boyfriend by the time she heard the news. She stubbornly refused to get tested, saying "I would rather not know and live carefree than know for sure and be morally obligated not to have sex anymore. Plus I'd have to tell all my past partners, and that's too humiliating." I felt that was cowardly, extremely foolish, unloving toward her partner, and spiteful against the entire human race. We argued (I can be very persuasive when I'm pissed as hell) until finally she broke down and went to the doctor. She had other STDs, but not HIV. A couple weeks of medication was all she needed, rather than a lifetime of feeling uncertain and guilty that she might be spreading the virus to other people. Never feel ashamed to get tested!
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