"I found the instructions!" said the menace, pulling a paper booklet out of a box and handing it off to one of the residents working. "Install it over there, okay?"
"Yes, sir." The supernatural answered before passing the information on to the rest of the group. They were in the final stages of repairs to the building, and were now installing heating and cooling systems to the upstairs area of this particular building. It had only been a few weeks, and the building was looking to be in decent shape, now having electricity, running water, and walls and floors that weren't infected with rot.
Once Alois had completed that smaller task, he stood up from his crouching position next to the boxes and quickly made his way to the ground floor of the building. He traveled down the stairs quickly and smiled as he saw more boxes being carried in. Box cutters were passed around as the tape was cut away from cardboard, freeing more parts for more things. In this case, it was furniture. Desks, chairs, and parts for cubicles were unpacked and workers started assembling them according to the floor plan. The place was starting to look like a decent establishment!
Alois made his way over to a certain redhead who was in the middle of orchestrating the arrangement of the main floor as well as dictating which pieces belonged in which other areas as well. There were meeting rooms, as well as private offices. There was a break room, now, and appliances were installed. The man appeared to be in his element, causing the blonde to smile wider.
"Tunstell~!" he called, prompting the other demon's attention for a moment.
"Yes?"
"How are things going? I'm really liking the looks of things at the moment." Alois said.
"We've got the majority of basic nessecities in." the Phantomhive answered. "Once we have the office set up, we will need to get the computer situation sorted out. How are things upstairs?"
"Good. They're still getting the heating and air-conditioning in, but things are looking good." Answered his beau. "After that, we'll start doing up there what we're doing down here."
"Perfect. What about the staffing situation?" Ciel questioned. "Have you gotten any word about that?"
"Lots of people are signing up to be interviewed." Grinned the Macken.
"How many is 'lots'?"
"Lots." Alois emphasized while nodding. His partner couldn't help but smile at his response, looking down to his clipboard in an attempt to hide his expression.
"Good." Ciel replied. "That will make things easier."
"I told you. People are excited." The blonde said, looking out at the floor with a small smile, causing a little bit of heat to gather in the watchdog's cheeks. "It's nice."
That was no fair. Alois couldn't be cute while Ciel wasn't allowed to at least tell him about it. It simply wasn't fair at all! Still, the Phantomhive persevered, continuing on with updates in status.
"We're still having difficulties with the Design Department at HQ." he informed, coughing into his fist. "They're still struggling for the graphics for the window and the sign. They say that they 'aren't sure what to write'."
"Why? Isn't 'Town Welfare Center' or something fine?"
"I have no idea…" Ciel answered. "I never understood those artistic types… Still, it's good that they at least want it to look nice. Choosing words carefully is very important."
"Don't cities usually have places kinda like this, though?" asked Alois, turning to the other once more. "Why not use their signs as reference?"
"Maybe it's because we're combining several departments…" the Phantomhive theorized. "Usually, these things are separate."
"That could be it…" replied his beau, pulling out his cellphone and pulling up Google. Fiddling around with it, he pulled up several logos to be used as reference. "They all follow a set formula, though… Wait, hold on…"
"What?"
"They usually have the name of the town or city in front of them."
"So?"
"This isn't London. This place is separate. Does it have a name other than 'Special Zone'?" the blonde asked.
"Well, no…" Ciel stated. "It doesn't. It never has, as far as I know…"
"That's not right…" Alois declared, placing his phone back in his pocket. "This place needs a name. Like, a name, name. That'll get these folks really excited up about the project."
"And what do you propose we call it?" the watchdog asked.
"I don't really have the right. I don't live here, after all. That should be left up to them."
"We should run it by Sister Dorothy and Baldassare at the next meeting." Suggested Ciel. "For now, let's focus on the task at hand."
"Fiiiiinnneee…" answered the menace in a whiney tone. "I wanted to annoy you, though."
"You can annoy me later." The Phantomhive stated with a roll of his exposed eye. Looking forward, however, the man watched as a group walked up to the Macken in order to hit him with a slew of questions.
"Mister Lion! How many more things do we need to do?" one asked.
"Just a few more, down here. Upstairs still has some ways to go." He said.
"We're almost done installing the heating system. What do we need to do after that?"
"Clear space for furniture." Alois answered. "Then start hauling things in."
"We haven't painted the meeting room, though. What colour should we paint it?"
"What colours do you have?"
"Red, green, and blue."
To this, the menace paused to think for a moment, rubbing his chin. His eyes then traveled over to the Phantomhive, causing a coy grin to appear on his face. He then averted his attention back to the others.
"I prefer blue." The Lion stated innocently, causing the watchdog's face to turn a light shade of pink. "It's a relaxing colour, don't you think? Move the furniture into that room last—or whenever you get done painting it."
"Yes, sir!" said one of the supernaturals before they all wandered off to carry out instructions. With that the Macken turned to wink at his secret beau before changing course in order to walk away.
"I'm going to check on things outside." The blonde informed. "Be right back~!" All Ciel could do was watch after him.
That wasn't fair. It wasn't fair at all. Ciel couldn't even act pleased at the gesture and instead had to keep a more neutral façade. As his love walked away, the corners of his mouth turned upwards ever so slightly. Keeping his feelings to himself, he found, was painful, but the sight of the menace taking charge of things outside dulled that. From Alois' posturing and the determined look in his eyes, to the curving of his lips around each order, Ciel enjoyed the view immensely. He didn't catch himself staring until his sixth sense picked up on the fact that he, himself, was being stared at as well.
"What is it?" he asked, turning to the elf who merely wanted to ask a question while clearing his throat. He found himself embarrassed underneath Tegwen's goofy grin, fully aware of the fact that he had been caught. Quickly, he tried to play it off, straightening his posture and stripping himself of his smile, but the girl was not fooled.
"You fancy the Lion, don't you, Tunstell?" she asked, her grin never wavering.
"Don't be ridiculous." Ciel immediately protested. "He's my boss—and not only that, he's a man."
"So? You act like it's impossible for a man to fancy another man." Tegwen said. "It's not a big deal, y'know."
"Did you have a question, or not?" The Phantomhive asked, frowning.
"Right, right… I just wanted to know if you know where I could find a spare screwdriver." Answered the elf. "No need to get defensive."
"I'm not defensive." The man insisted. Defensively. "Go ask someone by the supply truck, of go borrow one from someone."
"Alright. Fine." Tegwen replied with a shrug. "Thanks for the help. But seriously, though…"
"Get to work." Ciel ordered, causing the girl to trot away while laughing.
His eyebrows furrowed together, worrying about being discovered. While that particular girl didn't seem to notice anything suspicious, she did notice his affections for the Macken. A small grumble escaped him while he tried to figure out how to hide it better. The Phantomhive had become so accustomed to being casual with the menace that he now did things without a single thought. The whole point of this was to be close to Alois during the day, but that wouldn't work if the Phantomhive accidentally soils his reputation.
The man's attention turned back to the task at hand, but his mind was clouded with worry. How much longer could he keep this up? How much longer would he have to stay the Lion's secret?
