Cold Love (Gray Fullbuster x female reader)

Chapter 17 - I'm sorry to interrupt

(You're POV, a few hours later)

I sit at the counter in front of Mira while she works. My leg bounces up and down and my knuckles are white from squeezing my hands together so hard. Mira walks over and tries to hand me a popsicle but I shook my head.

"Oh cmon, (Y/N)! You know they will all be alright. They can take care of themselves just fine!" Mira comforts.

"If they aren't back soon that means they must have made it there. They can handle themselves until it comes to a quest they aren't qualified for."

"I understand. And you're right. But they are smart. Well... Gray and Lucy at least. You know they won't let anything happen!" I sigh in response. "Why don't you head home early for the night and get some rest. I'm sure they will be back by morning." She suggests sweetly.

"No!! Uh- No, I want to be here in case he- they come back tonight. I wouldn't be able to sleep much, anyway." I watch as Mira's face shifts slightly and realize I'm saying too much.

"If you say so!" She smiles and turns around to get back to work. He promised he'd be back soon but I'm beginning to believe something isn't right. I can feel in my gut that they aren't on their way back and I'm not sure what to do with myself.

"I'm going for a walk, I'll be back later to see if they are here." I said to Mira before quickly standing and walking out of the guild hall.

I walk into town and enter a small restaurant I've never been in before. I sit down at a booth right near the entrance and pick up a menu from the table, even though I'm not hungry at all.

"Welcome! What could I do for you today?" A waitress asks as she approaches me.

"Um, just a water for now, thank you." And with that she walks away. It isn't very crowded, a family in a booth in the corner, an old couple at one a few away from me, and a group of 3 men sitting at the counter. They are the closest to me so I begin to listen in on their conversation.

"They haven't been around for years! I wonder what made them show up after so long." One man says.

"And closer than you'd think. If more start showing up, Magnolia could be in some trouble." Their conversation intrigues me and I quickly thank the waiter hoping she won't say much else so I can go on listening.

"Man, and that poor town. Innocent people lived there, they didn't deserve that." Immediately my heart falls to my stomach, and my stomach to the floor. I have a gut feeling, just as I did about Gray earlier, that I need to ask them what they are talking about. I stand from my booth and walk directly up to them.

"I'm sorry to interrupt but I over heard your conversation a bit, what is it that you are talking about?"

"No problem at all!" One of the men respond nicely. "A few towns over, in Clover, a dark guild showed up and destroyed the place and then disappeared back into thin air. No one knows who it was or why they did it but evidence shows that it must have been some dark guild, old or new, they aren't sure." I can feel my body buzz as he confirms my suspicions.

"You don't understand how helpful this information is, thank you so much!" I say before I turn and quickly run out of the restaurant.

"Master!!!" I shout out as I run into the guildhall. "Master! Have you heard anything about who attack Clover recently??" I ask in a hushed voice as I approach him.

He sighs before responding, "I've been waiting for you to hear something along the way, my child." I raise my eyebrow.

"What's that supposed to mean?" I question.

"I'm smarter than you may believe, (Y/N). I know everything about my children. Everything." I stare at him in shock. Has he known this whole time? Did he find out somewhere along the way, Did Gray tell him? "Someone has yet to confirm who it was, but it is highly believed that it was a dark guild. They are investigating as much as they can, but there is absolutely no trace of them beyond their destruction. To our knowledge it was completely unprovoked, according to surviving townspeople. I apologize for not having more information, and do what you will with what you know. But I must warn you, whatever you may think you are up against, it will be at least 100 times worse. I will not stop you, but you must understand the risks that come along with your journey."

It takes me a moment to fully comprehend and respond. "Thank you Master. I know this isn't the safest thing I'll ever do but it must be done. I'm not sure yet what I'm going to do, especially with such little information still, but I won't go anywhere without telling you first."

"I appreciate that, but there may be people who would appreciate a bit more than I..." He insinuates. I realize he is talking about Gray, and that he really does know everything about us. I nod my head and walk away.

If I were to begin looking for my parents again, where would I even start? Any lead I've ever gotten has been a completely dead end. Even if I want to go after this dark guild now, there's not a trace of them left to follow. But still, maybe they are missing something. Maybe if I went to Clover and looked for myself I'd find something and could follow the guild.

What I do know is that I can't leave, even I wanted to, until Gray is back. I cannot and will not do that to him again. Our circumstances are much different now. And I think he would let me go. As much as it would kill him to, I think he understands now.

I make my way to my dorm and settle in for the night. As I had told Mira earlier, I don't sleep much, anxious for Grays arrival. I can only hope he is back by the morning, but I have a horrid feeling he ended up in the mix of the S-Class quest and it sends shivers down my spine thinking about it. I wished he had at least let me come with him, he knows well enough that I can hold my own. The only thing I can wish for now is that he makes it back safely.

We all know Gray has made his way to Galuna island with the other 3... I don't see this ending well when he returns, do you?🫣 Thank you guys so much for reading I have so many upcoming plans 🥰