Gratsu Week 2019
Prompt: Voice

Small Sacrifices

Disclaimer: All Fairy Tail Characters Belong to Hiro Mashima

Natsu heard muffled yelling coming from inside of the apartment he shared with his boyfriend Gray. Stopping for a moment, he put his ear to the door before fumbling through his pockets for his keys. It didn't sound like Gray was fighting with anyone, but Natsu recognized the tone, his boyfriend was definitely frustrated about something.

"How the hell am I supposed to know the user's intent?" Gray was yelling, "I don't even know my intent."

"I'm home." Natsu closed the door behind him, greeted by the sight of his boyfriend sitting at his desk clad only in his boxers and staring daggers at his Chromebook. Natsu dropped his keys on the kitchen counter and walked over.

"What's going on?" Natsu asked before leaning over to kiss his boyfriend, making sure not to let any other part of his body come into contact with Gray.

Natsu worked in construction, and his clothes were covered in the usual mix of dust, dirt and whatever else he picked up during the day. He didn't want to get Gray dirty, it would only annoy him anyway, and he looked riled up enough already.

"It's just some test I'm taking, nothing to worry about," Natsu paused at this information, he'd thought Gray was on vacation this week. They'd made plans to go out to dinner for once.

"I thought you were on break," Natsu peered at the tablet's screen, only to be greeted by some sort of navigation interface. He was puzzled, Gray was studying to be a child psychologist, what class could he possibly be taking that required this?

Gray peered at him guiltily before closing his expression off once again. "I am, this is something else."

Natsu arched an eyebrow, waiting for an explanation but none was forthcoming. He was tired after a long day at work so he decided to let Gray have his little mystery and kissed him one last time before heading to their bathroom to wash off the grime from his body and change into some clothes that would hopefully make Gray forget whatever was bothering him. He began to sing off-key with a grin, knowing it drove Gray nuts.

He paused in his singing when he heard another voice competing in volume. It was Gray, once again screaming at his tablet. What in the world was he doing? Natsu was getting very curious. He turned the hot water off and walked into their bedroom, wearing a towel around his waist.

He quickly found some clothes and put them on and when he heard Gray screaming about something called an umlaut decided maybe a walk on the beach might be warranted too. Gray clearly needed to relax.

Natsu stood behind his boyfriend watching the contents of his screen once again. His eyes narrowed when he realized that Gray was taking some sort of employment test. What was the idiot thinking?

Gray already worked twenty hours a week at his University on top of the hours spent studying and writing papers. They barely got to spend any time together as it was!

"Gray, we have a dinner reservation, remember?" Natsu tried to keep the irritation out of his voice, but the guilty expression on his boyfriend's face as he turned towards him let him know he'd forgotten.

"I know love, just give me thirty more minutes, okay?" Gray pleaded before muttering under his breath, "Maybe we should just stay home."

Natsu was confused by those words, they rarely went out as it was. He moved away from Gray so as not to make it seem like he was pressuring him to hurry up, but he continued to watch his boyfriend struggle with the exam, looking through what looked to be a lengthy manual before settling on an answer. The poor guy looked absolutely miserable.

But true to his word thirty minutes later, Gray closed his computer and rushed to their bedroom to get dressed. He came out wearing Natsu's favorite, a dark blue button-down shirt that matched his eyes along with a pair of gray ripped jeans that hugged his every curve. After grabbing his wallet and keys, he sauntered over to Natsu and gave him a long, deep soulful kiss.

"Hey!" Gray greeted, smiling at Natsu's dazed expression, "Sorry about earlier."

Natsu could only nod, staring at him with undeniable longing. He shook his head slowly, and as the daze left his eyes, it was replaced by a smile that quite nearly took Gray's breath away. "Wow!"

Gray caressed Natsu's cheek gently, chuckling at his boyfriend's reaction before grabbing his hand and leading him out of their apartment.

"Where to?"

"I got us a reservation at that sushi restaurant you wanted to try out, you know, the one by the beach," Natsu grinned happily, proud of himself for having remembered. But instead of looking excited, Gray only looked worried.

"That place is so expensive," Gray mumbled.

"I know, but you work so hard, and I wanted to treat you a little during your break," Natsu hugged Gray from behind, wrapping his arms around the other's middle while resting his chin on the broad shoulders he loved.

"Can we go another time?" Gray had turned around to face him, and Natsu was having a hard time reading his expression.

When Gray saw Natsu's disappointment, he amended, "We could still go to the beach though, that'll be romantic, and maybe we can get some fast food on the way back."

"Fast food? But Gray, I wanted this to be special," Natsu complained, it hadn't been easy to get that reservation. He'd actually had to bribe someone for the first time in his life.

"Wasn't it you who said we didn't need to go anywhere to have something be special, all we needed was each other?" Gray reminded him.

"I said that when we were sixteen and had exactly zero money between us," Natsu retorted and all of a sudden things started falling into place in his head like a jigsaw puzzle. He gave up on his fancy plans, already knowing it would be a disaster if he pushed.

"Fine, we'll do what you suggested, but only if you promise to tell me what's going on."

Gray nodded in agreement, and they walked hand in hand towards the beach, which was only a few blocks from their small apartment. They remained silent, but once they arrived, they quickly took off their socks and shoes, letting the cool sand massage their feet as they walked towards the water. When they felt the first rush of waves cover their feet, they rolled up their pants and played as they always did, laughing along with the children around them who were doing the same.

After a few minutes of this, they found a secluded spot to sit and talk while waiting for the coming sunset. Gray sat on the chilly sand, legs crossed Indian style with Natsu leaning against him. He hugged Natsu's overly warm body to his chest and rested his head atop his lover's pink locks, enjoying the peacefulness of the beach around them.

Gray inhaled the salty air, letting the sounds of the waves crashing into the sand, the gulls squawking in protest and the families playing happily wash over him, and for the first time that day felt himself begin to relax.

He kissed Natsu's head and smiled contentedly. It was nice to be able to spend time together like this. It sometimes astounded him how much he loved this man, even after so many years together. Just being like this was enough to make him happy, and he felt his worries slowly melt away.

But of course, the peace couldn't last forever, and Gray sighed when he heard Natsu ask the question he'd been dreading.

"What's wrong?" Natsu broke the silence, his tone concerned, "Why are you looking for another job?"

Gray tensed up again, readying himself for the argument that was sure to follow. "Tuition went up again, and the cost of the textbooks I need for next semester is higher too."

"Is that all?" Natsu scoffed, turning around to glance at Gray, a reassuring smile at the ready, "I'll just take a few more shifts, Laxus is always asking for people to come in and work overtime."

"NO!" Gray snapped, startling Natsu with the intensity of his response.

"It's not fair for you to shoulder all of this, you work hard enough as it is, Natsu," Gray disputed hotly, "Your job is dangerous. If you're tired, you can easily get hurt!"

Natsu sighed, sad to be back to this old argument, "Why won't you ever let my voice reach you? I've told you, I don't mind! If it helps you reach your dream, I will do it gladly."

"Natsu," Gray groaned in frustration.

Natsu sat up and faced Gray, "I'm serious. Look, I'm not smart like you, I never had big goals to be anything like a doctor or a teacher. But I'm good with my hands, and I make a difference in my own way. I help build houses and make playgrounds. Sometimes, I fix things that are broken." Natsu smiled proudly, and Gray's heart skipped a beat at the brightness of it. "I help make our town nicer for others to enjoy."

Natsu cupped Gray's face as he continued, "But you, Gray, you're smart, and I love what you want to do with your life. I want to help you get there, please let me."

"You are smart, and a really hard worker," Gray protested, "You've made a life for both of us since we graduated high school. Everything we have is because of you, and I feel like a fucking mooch."

Natsu frowned, "Snowflake, you work even harder than I do. Between your course load and your work/study, you barely have any time for yourself. And that's your job right now, taking on another one is just going to make it worse. How much does it pay anyway?"

"Not much, " Gray admitted, "It pays by task, but I can do it from home, and I can help out."

"If I take extra shifts, I can make a lot more because it'll count as overtime, " Natsu pointed out, "It'll only be for a little while. Besides," Natsu added with a snort, "You looked absolutely miserable."

"It did kind of suck, " Gray agreed with a smile before sighing, "But I still feel guilty about everything you do for me. I can't repay it."

"I'm not looking for repayment dumbass, although if you were looking to do something for me, I could come up with a few ideas," Natsu smirked, waggling his eyebrows suggestively as he moved his body to where he was laying down on the sand with his head on Gray's lap.

Gray laughed and slapped Natsu's shoulders playfully, "Pervert."

"Mhmm, " Natsu accepted the accusation without complaint, moaning happily as he felt Gray's fingers in his hair, "In a couple of years, you'll be a doctor, and we'll be married, and we'll laugh at the small sacrifices we had to make along the way. We just have to hold on for a bit longer. That future is just around the corner."

"M-married?!" Gray stuttered, "You've thought about us getting married?"

"Haven't you?" Natsu studied him curiously, smirking at the blush on Gray's cheeks before closing his eyes as the fingers threading through his hair made him drowsy. "The guys at work already call you my wife, even your brother."

Natsu didn't bother opening his eyes, the sharp tug on his hair was enough to let him know Gray's reaction, but he couldn't help teasing him further. "You'll look beautiful all swollen up with my kid."

"What?! I can't get pregnant, I'm a guy!"

"Oh yeah, then I guess it'll have to be me, I don't mind, I like switching."

"Moron, you're a guy too!"

"Well," Natsu grinned, "I guess we'll just have to adopt the rugrats then. That's probably for the best anyway, it would've been hard to be pregnant all the time when I tag along while you cure kids all over the world."

"Natsu, that's not even remotely how my job would work," Gray facepalmed and then with growing alarm he asked, "Wait a minute! How many kids do you plan on us having?"

"Oh, tons! We'll grab them from the orphanages where you'll work," Natsu giggled, not being able to help himself.

"Oh my god, just shut up!" Gray's exasperation turned into laughter as he thought about Natsu's words.

Yep, he loved this ridiculous man, and he let himself get carried away in the fantasy, envisioning a life with Natsu, chasing after little kids while pursuing their dreams. To his surprise, Gray found he loved the idea of it. The two of them married and starting a family together. He lowered his head, claiming Natsu's lips, smiling at the contented noises coming from the man beneath him.

"Come on, let's go," Gray urged Natsu off his lap.

"Where are we going?' Natsu asked, confused by Gray's sudden desire to leave the beach before the sun had even had a chance to set.

"Home," Gray winked before pulling a surprised Natsu to his feet. "Those kids aren't going to make themselves."

A/N I originally started this story in April, when I was the one taking that damn test. I'd never been so stressed out and writing this fic was going to be my reward for getting through it. It was initially going to be called What the Hell is an Umlaut?

I passed the test and started working only to realize I truly hated it. Thankfully my husband was okay with me quitting. I never got around to finishing it, and I'm glad that I found a prompt that fit where I wanted to go with it because I really like the way it came out. I hope you like it too!