BAM!

I jumped and whirled around to find Gray hunched over a moving box he dropped on the floor. For a moment he didn't move, but when he did, he looked at me with worried eyes and started apologizing a million times before I even had a chance to register the first one. I smiled sympathetically at him and walked over to help him move the box from where he dropped it and on to the kitchen counter.

"Again, I'm really sorry, Lucy," Gray said for the billionth time.

I chuckled. "It's okay, Gray." I pointed to the label on the box. "It's just towels and rags. Nothing to worry about."

With his hands on his hips he let out breath of air and tried to regain his "tough guy" composure. I chuckled again. Gray Fullbuster: self-proclaimed bad boy, self-proclaimed lady's man, and also my best friend. This guy has had my back since we were kids and I couldn't imagine there being anyone else taking his place. Not to mention, we naturally always saw each other because every weekend our dads would get together to go hunting, while our mothers would often get together for tea, so being only children, Gray and I would find ways to entertain each other. Except on the odd occasion that Gray's adoptive brother, Lyon, wanted to join us, which wasn't often, because he preferred to do things alone.

I finished emptying my last box of dishes and putting them away before I decided to call it a night on the unpacking. I looked around my kitchen for something I could whip up for dinner, but I soon realized that I hadn't had the chance to go shopping before I moved into my new apartment. I sighed in defeat because I was too exhausted to think about cooking after all the moving and unpacking I had done today, so I dropped into my comfy armchair.

"What's up, Lucy?" Gray asked, sitting on the ottoman across from me.

"No food," I breathed out.

Gray laughed. "So let's order in."

I felt kind of stupid for not thinking of that sooner. But at the same time, I couldn't entirely blame myself because we had been all day. I lazily looked around the living room for my phone, when Gray seemed to take the hint and pulled his out of his back pocket. I watched as he looked through it for a minute before he pressed a button and put the device to his ear. As soon as the other end picked up Gray stood up and moved out of ear shot. What was he up to?

While Gray was busy on the phone, I pushed myself off the chair to clean up the empty boxes and moving plastic. Well, given how tired I was, my idea of "cleaning" was collecting everything and shoving it all in to one corner until tomorrow. It was then that it seemed like there were more boxes lying around than what I unpacked today.

When I was done moving everything Gray came back in the living room to tell me that he ordered sushi for dinner. The thought of having sushi for dinner made my stomach growl loudly - almost loud enough for Gray to hear across the room. If I wasn't so tired, I probably would've turned red from embarrassment. However, I was super happy to hear that my favorite food was coming shortly! I hugged Gray tightly and asked him how much it came to.

"It's my treat," he said.

I stepped back to look at him. "Um, no. You've been helping me move and unpack boxes and furniture all day," I protested. "Paying for dinner is the least I can do to say thank you."

Gray gave me his signature side smile. "How about this: you can buy me an extravagant dinner for my birthday?"

That's when it hit me: Gray's birthday was less than a month away! I'm so glad he reminded me. I'll need to figure out a present for him, since it'll just be the two of us as our parents will be too busy with work and travelling.

"Deal," I said.

Gray and I went through multiple trays of food and a few glasses of wine while we sat and talked and joked around. It was a nice way to wind down after a long day. Once we were finished for the night, he helped me clean everything up before we said our goodbyes and he headed home. I checked the time and it said it was one o'clock in the morning. I let out a long a sigh as I had to be up in five hours for work. After finding my phone on the couch, I slowly made my way to my room where I plugged it in and dropped onto my bed like a bag of bricks.

I must have fallen asleep instantly last night because the next thing I knew, my alarm was going off and I opened my eyes to an apartment full of sunlight. While it was nice to wake up to, it wasn't so much when my eyes still needed time to adjust.

I turned off my alarm and climbed out of bed, where I found a decent work outfit in a box beside my bed. I dug through the box a little more to find my toothbrush and toothpaste before I stepped in the shower. The warm water was such a welcoming sensation that I almost forgot that I still had to get dressed. I got dressed in my black pencil skirt, light blue button-up, and my favorite black pumps. I quickly blow-dried my hair before I grabbed my phone and purse, ready to walk out the door.

As I locked my apartment door my phone rang and I searched through my bag to find it. When I finally did, I read the caller ID: it was Gray.

"Hello?" I answered.

"Hey you," he answered back, "you need a ride?"

"Sure."

When I got downstairs, Gray was parked at the curb in front of my building. He waved at me and I said a 'good morning' as I slipped in his passenger seat. Once I was buckled up, we set off for work. I was really excited because it was my first day at Magnolia Publishing House because not only was I an aspiring writer myself, but I'd be working alongside Gray. To me, this experience is like starting off your first day at a new school with someone you know really well; you feel less lonely. Although, I had to give most of the credit to Gray since he submitted my resume and put in a good word with the editor. I'm not entirely sure what he said to the guy, but it was enough to bring me in for an interview and hire me on the spot. I chalked it down to them being desperate for employees - not that it looked like they needed them.

Gray parked in his assigned spot in the underground garage. I followed him out of the car and into the elevator going up to my new workspace. The elevator doors open and we stepped into a hallway brightly lit by floor-to-ceiling windows, which gave an amazing view of Magnolia. I stopped to admire the view because it gave me a whole new perspective on the town I call home.

"Yo, Lucy!"

I turned my head to see Gray standing my an open set of double doors. He waved me to follow him and I quickly caught up as best as I could without falling over. Through the doors was a massive area filled with desks and cubicles that were almost all completely occupied. I looked around at everyone working so hard on their computers and paperwork, it was inspiring me to really try and prove myself to be a great employee here.

"Lucy Heartfilia," I heard a voice from across the room.

"Good morning, Ms. Scarlett," I said cheerfully.

Erza Scarlett, the Chief Editor of Magnolia Publishing House, and the one everyone in this room answers to. She was a beautiful woman with a full figure from her breasts to her butt. Her hair was a beautiful shade of scarlet red and hung down past her backside. It made me wonder if Scarlett was her real name or a nickname due to her hair.

Ms. Scarlett walked over to me and offered me her hand with a pleasant smile. Her grip was firm for a woman of her looks but she walked with real grace and poise that I almost felt jealous standing next to her.

"Are you ready to get started?" she asked.

I nodded. "Yes ma'am."

"Good." I watched her wave at someone behind me. I turned around to watch a tall guy with orange hair and glasses walk around from his desk and approach us. "Loke, this is Lucy."

Loke smiled shyly.

"You're going to be training her for the next week," Ms. Scarlett continued. "Please make sure you teach her anything there is to know about her position." She turned to me. "If you have any questions, don't hesitate to ask me."

And with that, she left us.

After a moment or two of silence, Loke finally spoke.

"So," he started, "let's show you around."