Gray sat in his car outside Juvia's apartment, the papers his teacher gave him were on the passenger's seat and Gray knew he had a decision to make. He was going to spend a week at his parents' summer home with his girlfriend and some of their friends would join them in a few days but even so, he needed to make a decision.

He had spent an hour on the phone with his parents and they had voiced their approval, but he needed to talk to Juvia before he truly decided anything.

Sighing, Gray texted her so she could open the door for him and when he received a text back, he got out of his car and walked towards the building, realizing she had buzzed him in.

Before knocking on her door, Gray took a deep breath, knowing it would be a difficult conversation. He finally did and waited, knowing she'd be there just in a few seconds to open the door.

"Gray-sama!" Juvia beamed in happiness when she saw him and Gray couldn't help it but to smile at her. She pulled him for a kiss and Gray reciprocated it, pushing her inside and closing the door by kicking it, not interested in stopping kissing his girlfriend. They hadn't seen each other for two days and he missed her. "Juvia is almost done packing." She said when they came up for air.

"Good." He cleared his throat but didn't loosen his arms from around her and she was more interested on kissing his jaw than finish packing. "Hm... Juvia?" She looked up. "Come sit down for a minute." Gray took her hand and pulled her towards her couch. "I need to talk to you."

"That doesn't sound good." Juvia frowned but let herself get pulled and sat on the couch, Gray following her. She was clearly worried when she asked. "Is something wrong?"

He sighed and took a moment to have the courage to speak. "You know what happened between Daphne and me last year." She seemed confused with why he brought the subject up, but nodded. "You didn't see me, then. I was... Well, Natsu once defined me as a 'little bitch'. Okay, not just once." Gray snorted and Juvia couldn't help it but to roll her eyes at how odd their friendship was. "I was moody, angry and determined to go away for a while." He told her. "I saw an ad for an exchange program for six months and I thought 'Hey, six months away sounds good right now'. But the ad was old and when I went to sign up, they said I could drop my name but it would take a year to open again. I figured I would still be feeling miserable." He cleared his throat and he could feel his cheeks get hotter. "I never thought I would find you."

Juvia smiled and kissed his cheek. "Juvia is glad we found each other."

"Me too." The corners of Gray's lips curled up a little. "But the thing is, Juvia... In two months a new semester starts and since I gave them my name last year, they saw I have the grades for it and they asked me to go to have a talk and... They said if I'm interested, I would be able to study a semester abroad. In Alvarez."

Gray watched her expression and sat the moment Juvia realized the implications of his words.

"In Alvarez." She breathed.

"Yeah." He nodded. "The University I would attend is a reference around the world when it comes to architecture, one of the best. They said they could get me a student visa in a month or so but I have to give an answer in a few days at least." Juvia blinked and Gray saw she was still confused. "My parents said they are okay with it if I want to go but I want your opinion."

"Oh." It was the only thing Juvia said for a few moments. "A semester, you say?"

"Yes." Gray nodded.

"That's... six months." She said, dumbly.

"It is." Gray gave her a few seconds to think. "I would have to leave at least two weeks before classes."

Juvia seemed to think about it for a few moments. "If you are talking to Juvia about this, it seems you are leaning towards going."

She had a point. "I want your opinion."

The blunette looked away from him and Gray was apprehensive with how long she took to speak. "I... I don't want you to go." She whispered. "But it doesn't mean you shouldn't."

Gray was confused. "What?"

She sighed and looked at his boyfriend. "Juvia feels selfish; she doesn't want to stay away from you for six months. I would rather have you here, every day, with me." Juvia took his hand. "But you said so yourself, it's one of the best universities in the world in your field and it will look great on your record to have gone there even for just a semester."

"But you don't want me to go." He pointed out.

"Oh, no, far from it." She shook her head. "Being away is going to be really, really hard."

"Juvia..." Gray sighed.

"But you have to go. You can't lose an opportunity like that and if for some reason you do not go because of something Juvia said, you might regret it and Juvia would never forgive herself." Juvia told him. "If it were me, it would be hard to be away for six months, but it would be an opportunity Juvia couldn't refuse. And neither can you."

He wanted to make sure. "You are telling me to go."

"Juvia is telling you to go." The blunette sighed and she tensed. "If you go... what about us?"

"Huh?" Gray frowned in confusion.

"Us." She clarified. "It is six months away."

"What about-?" Gray finally understood her meaning and he panicked a little, putting a hand on her cheek. "Oh. Oh, no, no, no. No. Juvia, I have zero intention of breaking up."

She bit her lower lip. "We have been together for four months; we will be apart longer than we've been dating."

"Fuck that." He told her and pulled her for a kiss. "Six months will fly by."

"Juvia highly doubts that." She gave him a peck on the lips. "Two months until you leave, then?"

He winced. "I would have to leave earlier than that to get to know the town, the university, to get an apartment..."

"Oh."

Sensing her disappointment, Gray sighed. "I know this is not ideal for us, but..."

Juvia nodded. "You have to go, yes." She cupped his face with her hands. "I'm sorry to tell you but Juvia will call you every day." She pulled him for a quick kiss. "And she will probably be very needy in those calls."

"Yeah, I know." Gray snorted softly and rolled his eyes playfully. "I wouldn't expect anything less."

"I'm going to miss you." Juvia whispered, smiling sadly.

"I will too." He told her. "But I'm not gone now. We have a week at the beach and then at least three more before I even have to leave. Let's leave getting emotional about it when it's time for me to leave. Let's enjoy the time we have."

Juvia sighed. "Alright." She kissed him. "I will go finish packing. You should call your parents and tell them what you decided."

"Yeah." He nodded and watched as Juvia got up from the couch and went to her bedroom while Gray sighed in relief.

That had gone better than he thought it would be. Juvia had been understanding, thankfully, he would have hated to see her cry. It was something he had been thinking about the past two days and the more he thought about it, more he thought it was a good idea.

Gray grabbed his cellphone and dialed his father, who answered in just a few rings. "Hey, dad. I... I think am going to Alvarez, after all."

#

Juvia's eyes widened when she got inside Gray's family beach house. The place was beautiful with its high windows and glass doors, simple but beautiful furniture in blue tones and when she stepped out to the balcony, she noticed how close to the sea they were. The water was so blue and beautiful, the sand pure white and with the sun setting, Juvia could appreciate the sight in a very unique way. "Okay, how rich are you?" She asked her boyfriend.

"I am not rich." Gray said and Juvia looked at him in disbelief. "My parents are."

Juvia scoffed. "That is what rich people say." She walked around the balcony, noting there wasn't another house close by. "Juvia would think this side of the beach would be packed with summer homes, since it looks so beautiful." She pointed out. "Instead, the only one Juvia can see is very far away over there, no houses on the other side."

"Oh." Gray stepped behind her, slipping his arms around her. "My grandmother bought this I don't know, seventy years ago? It was even before she knew my grandfather and the beach wasn't well known, then, so she got a pretty good deal. Dad sold some of the land to start his business twenty-five years ago with like, triple what my grandmother bought the whole land for, but not all of it. When he started to make more money, built this house. He could've sold the rest but he wanted privacy and he said he had three kids who would want to build their own houses here, so he kept it." Gray told her. "Lyon, Ultear and I flipped coins and thankfully, if I ever want to build anything here, I get to build it on over there." He pointed to the left of the house where the beach took a turn and it was quite far away from where they were. "They get to build it next to this one and get mom and dad as guests all the time."

Juvia looked over her shoulder. "Oh my god, what even is your family." She said. "When Silver-sama said your family was of business men and women Juvia didn't believe it but now..."

Gray laughed. "Yeah, I know. It's weird."

"You could have become a snob because of money." Juvia turned around in his arms and put her own arms around his shoulders. "Trust me, Juvia has met many. Instead, here you are, dating the poor orphan waitress scholarship girl." She teased him.

He rolled his eyes. "Like I told you, it's not my money and my dad always gave me what I needed, sometimes what I wanted, but he never spoiled me. I think the jerks you met were spoiled asses."

"True." Juvia giggled.

"Besides, my dad is just well-off compared to Lucy's father. He is freaking loaded. You should see his house." Gray told her. "My dad's is like a cottage next to the Heartfilia's mansion. Lucy's not spoiled either."

"Thankfully, otherwise she would have missed even meeting her boyfriend." Juvia chuckled – Natsu was also struggling like her when it came to money. "And you would have been deprived of your best friend."

"You know, sometimes you talk about Natsu and me as if we are some kind of best-friend soulmates or something." Gray told her. "I can barely stand the guy."

"Sure." Juvia laughed and Gray frowned. "You two are the cutest male best friends Juvia has ever seen. You get all insulting to one another, fight but when it comes down to it, you are almost brothers."

"We... are not." For some reason Gray felt insulted. Or embarrassed, he didn't know which, exactly.

Juvia was clearly amused. "Juvia bets you have already told him about your semester away on Alvarez."

"No..." Gray was about to tell her she was wrong when he remembered the day he found out he couldn't go to the exchange program and told Natsu he put his name for next year's. "...t now." He emended the word. "I told him when I put my name on the list, nothing ever since."

She smirked. "You were going to tell him first when he gets here in two days, weren't you?"

Gray narrowed his eyes. "You know what, let me show you the rest of the house. You are getting really annoying with that 'I know it all' look." He grabbed her hand and led her inside, mumbling. "You clearly don't need money to be annoying." Juvia laughed at his words but let the subject drop.

#

When he got home, Gray would make sure to give his father a hug for having the most amazing idea in the world to have the house built in such a quiet place. People barely walked by the beach since it was so far away and when they did, it was easy to spot them from afar.

The house being so private had made Gray and Juvia enjoy themselves quite a lot during the two days they had the place for themselves.

Their second day there, Gray had started to kiss Juvia on the balcony and when things grew hotter, instead of pulling him inside the house, Juvia had led him to the lounge chair she had been sunbathing on earlier that day and holy crap. Gray didn't know he had wanted to have sex outside so badly until after they had done it.

If Gray had a bucket list, he would have to cross that out of it.

Juvia had blushed hard when they were gathering their clothes, which was incredibly funny for Gray: she was the one who had condoms alongside with her tanning products in the necessaire she carried around everywhere she went, yet, she blushed to have had sex outside even when there was no one else for miles.

Juvia's necessaire proved to be very useful for them. It seemed they wanted to christen every room whenever they were in the house. They had gone to the town, walked on the beach and swam on the sea but the moment they were back at the house, they couldn't get enough of each other.

She told him it was the fact Gray would be going away soon and they wanted to make the best of their time and Gray shrugged with a 'maybe'. In his mind, he thought they were just two hormonal young adults with a very empty house and no neighbors to bother.

Sadly, their days alone came to an end when their friends arrive, making a ruckus as usual. Cana, Erza and Levy were the first ones to arrive, followed by Natsu and Lucy. After Gajeel arrived everyone got settled into their rooms, they went straight to the beach.

Gray pulled Natsu aside and told him about his plan to study in Alvarez for a semester and after a series of questions from his friend to guarantee it wasn't a hasty decision, the pink haired man finally nodded his approval. Gray looked around the beach and saw his girlfriend next to Gajeel, but looking at him with a knowing smile.

"Aw, man." Gray groaned and Natsu frowned. "Shit."

"What?"

"I just proved Juvia right." He complained. "She'll never let me forget about this."

Natsu snorted. "Oh yes. I don't know what you did, but be prepared to be reminded of it every time she needs to prove a point about how she's right."

"I know." Gray sighed in defeat. "Damn it, why do I keep giving her ammo against me?"

"If you figure this one out, share with the rest of mankind." The pink haired man laughed and slapped his friend on the back before he jogged to meet his girlfriend, who was playing volley with the other girls.

Gray walked to where Juvia was standing on her own, Gajeel had gone swimming, and she looked too full of herself. "Don't even say it."

"Juvia wasn't going to." The blunette shrugged, but giggled and Gray couldn't help it but to smile a little as well.

#

"I can't believe tomorrow we return to civilization." Cana complained after taking a sip of her beer. They were outside, seated around a fire and just enjoying the night, exchanging stories and laughing. "I don't know why you don't live here all the time, Gray. This is great."

Gray chuckled. "I don't think I could. I would get crazy with the silence and so would you, after a while."

"I just would have to bring someone to entertain me, like you brought Juvia and stayed on your own for two days before we got here." Cana smirked.

Gray narrowed his eyes at the brunette when he felt Juvia hide her face on his arm, embarrassed. Even he felt his cheeks get warmer, but he wouldn't back away from Cana. He couldn't give the witch power over him, otherwise she'd never give it up.

"Speaking of that, you should probably change the sheets on your bed, Cana. We entertained each other too much we didn't change all of them."

Cana looked disgusted while Natsu laughed out loud and the girls tried to hide their giggles; Juvia whispered a horrified 'Gray-sama!'. "Fuck, Gray, I have been sleeping on that bed for the past four days, you ass."

His smirk was evil. "Good luck sleeping on it tonight."

"I was kind of bummed you were going to take a semester away, but now I am glad I won't see your stupid face for six months." Cana showed him her tongue. "Can you go tomorrow?"

"God, please do." Natsu groaned. "I could use a vacation from your ugly-ass face as soon as possible."

He rolled his eyes good heartedly, knowing they were just joking and that they would miss him as much as he would miss them. "I will be happy to spend six months away from you. Maybe I'll extend that to a year."

"Good." Cana nodded.

"Amen." Natsu raised his arms and looked up to the sky.

Juvia put a hand on his jaw, making him look down to her, her blue eyes serious "Don't you dare."

Gray smirked. "Just six months, I promise." She nodded and gave him a peck on the lips.

"Hey, hey, hey!" Cana said and the couple looked her way. "Enough with the kissing, the touching, the eye sex. Laxus has been away for a stupid month for his stupid intern program and I am thirsty."

"So that's why you are being a pain in the ass more than usual." Gray said and Natsu laughed.

"Says the guy who was just sunshine and rainbows while he spent eight months in a dry-spell, huh?" Cana told him, sarcastically. "Up until Juvia appeared and took one for the team, you were being unbearable, Gray. All moody and annoying. Why do you think we all wanted you two to hook up?"

"Juvia is glad to have taken one for the team." The blunette said and Gray looked down to her, betrayal in his eyes while she just giggled and Gray almost laughed, but kept a straight face.

"I can't believe this. Even you are against me?" Gray asked. "I say this semester abroad came right on time."

"You will miss us, Gray." Lucy said, head resting on her boyfriend's shoulder.

"Just admit it." Erza chuckled.

"Never." He snorted and frowned when he saw Gajeel and Levy come from inside the house with red cheeks and hand them the beers they had gone inside to get. Gray looked down to Juvia, who had noticed it as well and she gave him a look, saying she would ask Gajeel about it later. "Well, here's to your very needed six-month vacation from me." Gray raised his beer and the other did the same, while smiling.

"Hallelujah." Natsu cheered and Gray rolled his eyes.

They were joking around, but Gray would truly miss them. He had told Juvia six months would fly by, but he wasn't so certain. It would be a challenge, that was for sure, especially to stay away from Juvia, but he could do it.

Juvia kissed his cheek and whispered. "Don't worry, we can do it. Like Juvia told you, you will get lots of needy phone calls from her."

Gray chuckled but didn't tell her how he would be just as needy to get those calls.

#

AN: Yes, this is my way of making Gray spend six months away from Juvia. HAHA but without him being a jerk and completely leaving her behind. And don't worry, we'll see more about Juvia handling his semester away next chapter.