Ai-Chan: I'm baaaack! *falls face first*

Grell: Oh gawd! Is it dead? What is it!

Ai-Chan: Smhffefiunvrs! Shut up!

Grell: Oh! Ai-Chan, you scared me there. You look awful. Take a nap.

Two weeks after the incident with Jacques, every shinigami under William's supervision was working twice as diligently. It was safe to say everyone had newfound respect, albeit a bit of fear, for William. Even Ronald, the self-proclaimed ladies' man, has been working non-stop in his cubicle. Soul collection was up 50%, and finished paperwork was up 25% since the incident.

Unfortunately for Grell, this also meant two weeks of working in William's own private office. His own office was right down the hall! William felt the need to have him under constant surveillance, as if he'd been the cause of the incident. Sure, he may have failed to call for help in escorting his unwanted guest off the premises, but what was he to do? He hadn't seen the man in ages, and suddenly poof; there he is making himself at home in Grell's office.

Grell sighed for the umpteenth time that day. William's overprotectiveness was started to become smothering. He signed the last paper in his stack for the day. Stretching, he walked over to the coffee machine to pour himself the tenth cup of coffee that day. Sitting in the black leather couch, he thought back to when he was with Jacques.

Jacques was sitting under a magnolia tree on the far end of the school grounds. It was the usual place Grell would find him during lunch hour. Today was no different. Grell approached Jacques tentatively, as if afraid of disturbing the older male.

"Jaques."

"Yes, Grell?"

"Umm….I…umm," Grell stuttered. He didn't know how to ask Jacques if he could go to his best friend's birthday party that weekend. He didn't even know if Jacques was in the mood to even allow him to go.

"Grell, spit it out. You know I don't like it when you can't tell me what you're thinking right away. I'm a busy guy; don't waste my time."

"I was wondering if you would give me permission to go to my best friend's birthday party this weekend. We haven't seen each other since school started and she wanted to catch up."

At the mention of another person so much as being close to the red head, Jacques stood up, angered for being asked something so outrageous.

"No," Jacques stated with finality. Grell looked heart broken, "How do I know you won't actually be going off to see some other guy behind my back? You could be telling the truth about going to your best friend's party, but I have no guarantee you won't end up with someone at the end of the night."

"I…I promise I wouldn't even think of cheating, let alone letting anyone else touch me. My friend was only planning to invite a few of our mutual friends."

"I FORBID you from going to that party this weekend, Grell! Understood?"

Grell replied with a dejected "yes." He slowly walked to his next class, trying to come up with a believable excuse for not being able to go to his best friend's birthday party.

"Grell? Grell?"

"Huh," Grell looked up from his now cold cup of coffee. William had come back into the office while he was lost in his thoughts.

"I said, it's time to leave."

"Oh," Grell stood up, placing the forgotten cup of coffee in the small sink by the coffee maker. William must have sensed he was conflicted, but didn't bring it up. He knew when and when not to pry into Grell's inner thoughts. He'd been around the red head long enough to catch the tiniest changes in his expressions.

Since the incident, Grell had not only been moved into William's office, but his apartment as well. Grell hadn't complained about the new living arranges as much as he had about the office. To be honest, Grell had been looking forward to being able to share an apartment with William. Of course, he wasn't going to voice out his wish for fear of William rejecting the idea, and him, completely.

Grell had been quiet the entire way home, which was only broken by a good night before the red head went straight to bed. This left William confused. He would have to pry to get what was bothering Grell out in the open.

Ai-Chan: Sorry it was so late, I had some issues with technology and all that jazz, but at least it's up.

R&R please and thank you. I'm still looking for someone to do cover art. If you're interested,just send me a PM.