Grell looked in the mirror and frowned. He was feeling very down today. After his run-in with Sebastian, he was feeling worse and worse about himself. He had no chance at catching William's eye in the office, and was miles above his league with Sebastian. It was all starting to sink in. They didn't like him.
Grell sighed and looked at his wardrobe. It was full of flamboyant clothing in hues of red and pink. He pushed past the sea of crimson and to the dark back. He never wore these clothes, they were dull and 'regulation'. Grell pulled his regulation suit out of the back of the wardrobe and pulled it on. Complete with black tie, flat shoes and a black ribbon tying his long blood-red locks back he was ready to go. He picked up his Death Scythe and finished paper-work and exited his house.
Grell walked into the field office and into his little office. He looked around and sighed. He now looked out of place. Dark suit in a red room seemed like a shadow on a lung, sombre and ominous. Grell looked at his desk, piled with papers and set to work. Once all this was completed he walked into William's office, put them on the desk and left. He'd got in early, even earlier than William.
William T Spears, a stoic and cold reaper, entered his office to find it piled with papers. He sighed, pulling out a pen in preparation to do Grell's papers for him. He got a shock when he saw that all the paperwork was finished and perfect. He stood up and walked to Grell's office. He opened the door to see a note on the desk saying 'Reaping'.
Grell finished his Reaping and was walking back through London when he passed a familiar figure.
"Grell Sutcliff. You seem different somehow." Sebastian turned to face the red Reaper.
"Leave me alone, Demon." Grell snarled his shark-like teeth at the butler and carried on walking. Sebastian stood shocked at what had just happened. Grell hadn't jumped on him or proclaimed undying love or a want of children. Grell wasn't wearing bright red or grinning mentally all the time. Something was wrong, but it wasn't his problem.
Grell got back to his office and filled in the paperwork for the souls he had just Reaped. He walked to William's office and knocked on the door. He waited for a reply and then entered.
"Sutcliff! I didn't think it would be you. I thought you would be gone longer and then just burst in as soon as you got back. How can I help?" William pushed his glasses up his nose with his scythe and sat back in his chair slightly.
"I've brought you the forms for the souls from tonight's Reap." Grell stood formally in front of his boss and placed the finished forms on the desk. William looked at him with shock in his eyes.
"Grell, what's wrong with you?" William rose from his chair and walked over to the red Reaper. "You're not your normal self."
"I have had a realisation that me being the same as every other Reaper makes no difference. If I'm different, no-one notices, so I might as well not try." Grell straightened his tie and looked back to his boss.
"Everyone notices that you are different. Your flash of red across the office brightens the place up. Your flamboyant nature makes people smile. You shouldn't change who you are to try and impress someone, or change because that person isn't impressed. You should be who you are and if that person isn't impressed by you, it's their loss." William rested back on his desk and his yellow-green eyes sparkled.
"The person who impresses me isn't impressed by me. He walks by me and normally just has something to complain about." Grell's voice was calm but upset. He wasn't his usual happy-go-lucky self.
"That Demon means nothing. He is nothing. You don't deserve him." William took a deep breath. He always tensed when the Demon was mentioned.
"I don't really care what Sebby thinks. The one who impresses me is my own kind. He's higher up the Reaper ladder than I and is currently worried about me. I have work to do William, I must be going." With that, Grell left the office and went back to his own office.
William just watched him leave, staring after him. William was clever, so he knew what Grell had just said. He impressed Grell. William had no idea what he had done to impress Grell, but he felt he needed to talk to the Reaper. Grell did impress him.
William walked to Grell's office and knocked on the door. He entered once Grell replied and found Grell sat at his desk filling out a report. William couldn't remember the last time Grell had submitted a report.
"Grell. I need to talk to you about something." William sat in the chair opposite Grell and took a deep breath.
"I don't know what I have done to impress you, but you impress me too. I'm impressed by how you can be so happy every day. You have the guts to be yourself, with colour and personality. There isn't enough of that around here. I don't think you need to change. I like the red, flamboyant man that I know and have come to care for." William was blushing slightly.
"Will! I didn't know you cared! I didn't know anyone cared." Tears were welling in Grell's eyes.
"Go home and change Grell, then check in at my office when you get back. You're well ahead of your work for once and you have two hours until your next Reaping." William stood to leave and Grell was on him before he could blink. William was pulled into a hug before he was prepared but he relaxed, knowing that Grell was going back to being the Grell he knew. His Grell.
Once Grell got home, he pulled off his dull suit and pulled out the ribbon in his hair. He shook it out and jumped in the shower. He washed his hair thoroughly and swiftly washed his body. Grell then jumped out of the shower and into a towel. He walked out of the bathroom and to his wardrobe, opening it to study the sea of red.
Grell pulled out dark trousers and a white shirt. He then pulled a red and white striped ribbon off the shelf in his wardrobe and his heeled boots out of the bottom. Once he had pulled on his clothes Grell brushed his hair and pulled on his signature red jacket.
Grell set off back to the office with a renewed spring in his step. His usual grin was pasted easily on his face and a slight giggle on his lips. As he entered the building heads turned to him and people smiled. As Grell walked across the floor to William's office he was stopped by Ronald Knox, a young, blonde, energetic Reaper.
"Nice to see you looking yourself again, Grell." Said Ronald, smiling at him. Grell smiled back and then breezed to William's door. Grell knocked then walked in, not waiting for a reply.
"Back to yourself I see." Said William, not looking up from his work. "Good." William looked up from his work, a rare smile playing on his lips. He rose from his seat and walked over to Grell, his stride long and fluid. William stopped in front of Grell and Grell giggled. William then walked to the door and closed it quietly. Grell heard the door lock and a shiver ran down his spine.
Grell felt movement behind him but before he had time to turn around, he felt a body press against his own. Grell felt a hand move his hair and lips press to his neck.
"I love this you, you know that right?" Whispered William, lips still pressed to Grell's neck. Grell nodded and rolled his head to the side, opening his neck to William. William moved closer to kiss the red-heads neck in soft, fleeting caresses.
"W-William!" Gasped Grell as William bit his neck. He was struggling to believe this was happening, but loved the sensation. William's hands wandered up to Grell's shoulders and pushed the coat to the floor. Grell was instantly happy he hadn't worn his usual waistcoat over his shirt. Grell felt his shirt opening but didn't want to look. The hands working at his shirt were quick and skilled, and soon his shirt joined his jacket on the floor, along with the ribbon tie.
Grell turned to his boss and wrapped his arms around William's neck. Grell smiled a genuine smile at William and William nearly melted. He had never seen that smile, and it warmed him to his soul. All the years he'd known Grell he'd never seen a genuinely warm smile, only his cheeky flirty grin.
"Well, Mr Spears. I have to work in half an hour, so what will you have me do until then?" For some reason Grell actually felt weird flirting with the man in his arms.
William leant down to the slightly shorter Reaper and gently pressed his lips to the red-head's. Grell melted as William's lips met his and he rose slightly to deepen the kiss. William wound his arms around Grell's waist and pulled him closer to him.
"We shall have to make the time worth it." William said, once he pulled away. Grell's hands made quick work of William's jacket, waistcoat, tie and shirt. They quickly joined Grell's clothes of the floor and the two were back to kissing again. Grell placed his hands on William's lower back and pulled him as close as possible and William wrapped his hands in Grell's hair, preventing his from going anywhere.
There was a knock on the door and the two Reapers pulled away with a growl. Grell glared at the door.
"I'm busy!" Snapped William, hoping the person would go away.
"Sorry William. I was looking for Grell. We're supposed to be off Reaping in ten minutes and I can't find him. He's not in his office and last I saw he was heading in this direction." Said the voice outside the door.
"Ronald. I forgot I was supposed to be meeting him early to go Reaping together." Whispered Grell. He leant his head on William's shoulder and sighed, then pulled away and pulled on his shirt. He quickly tied his ribbon tie and pulled on his jacket.
"Have you looked in the break room? That's usually where he goes to slack off." William's voice was still stern but his hands were busy running through Grell's hair, trying to smooth it out.
"I will. Thank you William." Ronald said. Footsteps leading away from the door were heard and Grell let out the breath he didn't realise he was holding.
"Come to mine later. My last death is at quarter past eleven, so I'll be home at half past. Here's my key, just make yourself comfortable until I get there." Grell said, passing William a key. Grell quickly kissed his boss and left the office.
"Ronald, there you are. I've been looking all over for you." Said Grell, once he got past his office.
"So have I, we must have just kept missing each other. Shall we go?" Ronald walked in the direction of his office. "I just need to get my Scythe."
"I'll meet you in the lobby, I need to get mine too." Grell walked into his office and glanced in the mirror. He instantly knew why Ronald had been looking at him weird. Even with the smoothing from William, his hair was a mess and a bruise was forming on his neck. He'd get William back for it later, now he had to neaten up and get to the lobby. He had work to do.