Holy crap. I don't know if you'll believe me, but I rewrote this chapter FOUR. TIMES.
Omg. 4 times. I can't. My life = what is planning?
* = Explained in footnote
Cana looked into my eyes searchingly, and I hoped she couldn't detect the blush of embarrassment that was probably still coloring my cheeks. For a moment I feared she might push the topic of what had happened to my dignity further, but she sighed and did as she was told without protest. Not, of course, before cheekily winking at me and saying, "I'll see what I can do for you!"
"So … how'd it go?" I asked with excessive nonchalance. Even I was making myself cringe at how obvious I sounded.
"Whatever do you mean?" Cana said, blinking her doe eyes at me.
"You know, was Freed happy with the notes and all when you went up and delivered them to him? No problems whatsoever?"
"Mmm," Cana hummed noncommittally.
"Goddamnit, what were they doing in there, Cana?!" I yelled, my curiosity turning me into some kind of psychedelic case. "Were they talking about how Freed's stupid assistant went full retard and totally disrespected his client? Did he say he was going to fire me? Were they holding hands? Kissing? What were they talking about? What? What?"
Cana's shoulders shook with laughter as she slapped my back like she and I were sharing the same joke. Which we obviously weren't.
"Calm down, Lucy. You're acting like some kind of jealous girlfriend. Though Freed did break out the champagne, the good stuff. Must be a really important client, this Gray Fullbuster. He runs a huge-ass refrigeration company from what I heard."
I groaned and slid down in my seat until I was slumped on the ground in a pathetic heap.
For an hour, I was spared of having to face Gray. But that was like saying a condemned man would be spared of the gallows for an hour; it was inevitably going to happen. Gray Fullbuster was going to have to come down from Freed's office sooner or later. As I suspected, after 1 hour, the elevator dinged on the dot, and Gray stepped out…
Without his jacket?
Upon closer inspection, he was also missing the navy tie he'd walked in with, and his shirt was opened down to the third button.
"Freed got to him fast," said Cana, sounding impressed.
Strangely enough, Gray wasn't heading towards the glass doors through which he had entered. No, he was heading straight for me – us. I felt my chest tighten, whether from embarrassment or terror, I wasn't sure. Before I knew it, he was standing before us and for some annoying reason, I felt a blush rise up to my cheeks. Gray probably noticed because his face lost its serious expression as he leaned in with a rueful look in his eyes and a small smile on his lips. "I hope you're not still thinking about what happened earlier because, well, I do believe we were both at fault for that awkwardness," he said.
"Of course not. I just wanted to apologize for that incident. I'm usually not so… unprofessional. It's just that with you, for some reason I…" I found you unbelievably attractive and so I freaked out like a schoolgirl and pep-talked myself into becoming an asshole for the sake of "professionalism"?
Ugh, even I wanted to facepalm at how bad that sounded.
"What happened to your clothes?" Cana asked suddenly, point-blank. Cana!
Gray was waiting for me to finish my sentence, but now glanced downwards and his face suddenly exploded into a million shades red. Clearing his throat awkwardly, he quickly buttoned up his shirt so that the carved curves of his collarbones were hidden away again.
"Sorry," he muttered, "bad habit."
"Not the worst one to have," I said, to which he didn't respond, giving me a quizzical look instead.
"Anyway, what can we do for you?" Cana asked. As if she had flicked some sort of switch, the teasing and smiles instantly left his face and he was all business and composure once again.
"Appointment with Freed. Same time next week," he said shortly.
After a few clicks and keystrokes, I said, "You're all set."
As he turned to leave, the humor briefly returned to his eyes and he called out, "Good day, Cana. Lucy."
The reception area was quiet for a few moments as I tried to figure out what about that encounter had been so strange. Just as it dawned on me, Cana beat me to it.
"Why'd he make that appointment in person?" she said. "You think his secretary's out of town?"
"Maybe it was just more convenient," I mused. Cana shot me a seriously? look.
"Lucy, men like him don't pay a person 35k a year so they can make appointments in person. He probably wanted our names. Your name."
I rolled my eyes. "Of course, Cana. Of course."
As the day drew to a close, Cana left 15 minutes before I did because it was my day to neaten up the office. I'd just hefted my purse over my shoulder when the desk phone began to ring. The little orange light flashed by the words "Freed Justine" so I knew I should probably take the call if I wanted to keep my job.
"Yes sir, how may I help you?"
"Ah, Lucy, just the person I was looking for. Would you mind terribly coming up to my office? It's rather urgent, although I'd hate to bother you if you were already planning on leaving."
I knew the twisted mind games he was playing at. I'd seen no less than 5 other receptionists get fired on the spot after hearing those exact same words.
"Of course, sir. I'll be right up."
I tapped my foot nervously as I watched the elevator numbers climb higher and higher. When I finally reached his office floor, I took one deep breath to keep my composure, and walked out of the elevator and into his office.
He was sitting stiffly on the edge of his cushy leather seat, fingers steepled over the dark, cherry wood of his desk. It was void of any personal touch. No picture frames. No spent coffee cup. Nothing. Only papers and manila envelopes in neat little stacks.
"Lucy, I'd really like to get out of here as much as you would, so I'll make this brief," he started as soon as I'd crossed the threshold of his office door, not bothering to invite me to sit down. "The very basic nature of it is that I'll be hosting a business party this weekend in the company's ballroom, and I need you to help Mira oversee it. You're admittedly lacking seniority, but I'm looking for something fresh so I'll trust your opinion. Keep it classy, but not too modern. Traditional values and all that."
"So, like, a gala?"
"And that is the intuition that has made you the 2-time winner of the Most Valuable Employee Award. We see eye to eye, you and I."
"Of course, sir."
Quite abruptly, he turned his head back down to the documents on his desk. I took that as my cue to leave. I pondered this gala the entire way home on the subway. I would need to get in touch with Mirajane, my slightly kooky supervisor. She was like a really young grandmother, with her long white hair and 24/7 smiles and happiness. Except for "that one time", the file of which I had permanently deleted from my memory so that I could sleep at night.
Finally, I arrived home to my apartment, where I cursed loudly at the stuck door knob and ended up kicking the door in. I stepped inside, and walked straight into a wall. So it wasn't a wall technically, it was my roommate Laxus, but you'd be kidding yourself if you thought they were very different. Silent, unmoving, expressionless. Silent.
"H-hey Laxus," I said with an awkward laugh, "Why were you standing right behind the door like that? Someone could hurt themselves if-"
"You're home late," he cut in, arms crossed across his broad chest.
"Yeah, I, uh, had a little meeting with my boss about a party for work this weekend."
"Freed."
"Yes."
"Hmm."
"…What?"
"Nothin'."
We stood there having this excruciatingly awkward conversation right in the doorway. After a pause that was way too long for comfort, he finally moved aside and I was granted access. Even though this is my apartment too!
I flung off my heels, threw my purse onto the countertop, and changed into something more comfortable. But just as I was putting on an apron to start on dinner, Laxus, who had been quietly watching me from the breakfast counter, said, "I already made dinner 'cause you were home late."
"Huh?" Laxus hardly ever cooked.
"It's in the fridge." And sure enough, it was. A carefully arranged plate of grilled salmon and pasta. I felt my face beaming as I popped the fruits of Laxus' efforts into the microwave. Our relationship was finally warming up!
"Great!" I said, "So once I heat up your plate, we can actually-"
"I already ate." And with that, he left the room. I couldn't decide whether I wanted to strangle him or appreciate the kind gesture.
Rooming with Laxus is like cutting your own hair: it's scary, it requires effort, it doesn't always look the best, and yet you continue on with the hope that it will look better the next day. Maybe it was because he was an electrician, but he didn't talk much and tended to cut off a lot of what I was saying with the few words he did say. But Laxus never did anything overtly obnoxious so everything worked out okay in the end.
I took a bite of the pasta. It was unexpectedly flavorful and savory. Even more unexpected was the fact that he had deboned the fish for me. Laxus is just full of surprises, isn't he?
"A little more to the left. Wait! Now a hair to the right – No! Too far! Right… there… Perfect!"
The two moving men dropped the gigantic ice sculpture with a sigh.
Great. Now it was too far to the left again, but I'd been bothering these moving men for 20 minutes, so I accepted defeat. I had been stressing about the gala every single waking minute since Freed had assigned it to me, but as a result, now that it was actually here, everything was running smoothly and all I was really doing at this point was putting on finishing touches and shamelessly micromanaging.
If you haven't already realized, everything about Justine Enterprise has to be bigger and better. Not 2 receptionists, but 20. Not 10 tables, but 50. So when I say this supposedly casual business party was like no other business party you've ever seen, it's no joke. The sconces and chandeliers, the warmly lit the room, the air sweetened with the scent of honeysuckle and orchid bouquets, the sound of a small chamber orchestra tucked away into a corner. The circular tables were covered in burgundy velvet and even the silverware wasn't silverware, but plated a classy gold.
The irony of it all was that I, who had arranged most of this, was dressed like a poor man with my rosy pink dress and its modest cut. The dress had gained an "It's good" from Laxus, but standing in this shimmering room had me feeling small.
"Lucy! My little busy bee. How are the decorations going?" It was Mirajane. For someone I had called a grandmother, she looked like one sexy grandmother. Her dress was merely a darker shade of pink than mine, and yet the daring cut and sequins made it look so much classier on her. I was envious.
"Just putting on the finishing touches," I said.
"No doubt. You're such a hard worker, Lucy," she said with a sunny smile. "Tell you what, now that your job is basically complete, I just want you to go around and socialize with anyone who looks lonely, okay? Not a frown in the room!"
"Not a frown in the room!" I didn't realize when Mirajane said this that I would be the one with the hardest time trying not to frown. The entire time I spent socializing, I felt patronized, like people didn't consider me fit to be part of their company simply because I was a receptionist. I mean, I knew my salary wasn't even a quarter of what they made, but there was still a reason why Freed had invited me to be here and organize this event.
To top it all off, I was currently having a Kill Me Now moment. The man I had approached was actually talking to me without being arrogant, but he was obviously drunk and kept flinging his arm over my shoulder like we actually knew each other. And then he'd scratch his head, causing dandruff to snow on both his shoulders and mine, and it'd occasionally get into his flute of white wine, which he'd drink anyway because he was too drunk to notice… I wanted to throw up and cry at the same time.
God must have been watching over me because just then I felt someone tap my shoulder.
"Lucy, could I have a word with you?"
I think it happened. I think I actually cried from relief. I turned to the drunk latched to my shoulder. "Sorry, I have to go. Nice talking to you though," I said hurriedly, and all but shoved him off of me.
I turned to my savior and sighed, "Thank you. You have no idea what you just pulled me out of."
"It's my pleasure," said Gray with a laugh.
"Gray?!"
"Shh," he said, pressing a cool hand to my lips.
"Sorry. I just wasn't expecting to see you here," I said in more normal tones. "Rescuing me aside, what is it that you wanted to tell me?"
"Nothing, really. You just looked like you were in a pinch, so I dipped in to save you. I'm surprised you remember me."
"As am I."
"Well, you do have an unforgettable face."
Was Gray flirting with me? It was kind of hard to tell from the context because this event was basically a business party on crack. Where exactly did the "business" end and the "party" begin?
"How are you enjoying the party?" I asked.
"It's great. I especially love the classy atmosphere that all of the décor creates. The decorations are phenomenal. Think you could get me in touch with the person who did it?"
"You're – well, you're looking at her."
"Really? You're not kidding? You did all of this?" You don't have to sound so surprised. But I didn't care anymore after he grinned and said, "You're amazing. I'm thoroughly impressed."
"So why are you here?" I changed the subject before things got too personal. Similarly to what happened before, it was like I'd flipped a switch and his expression became one of seriousness.
"You might as well know now anyway, since you won't be working under Justine Enterprise for very much longer. Instead, you'll be working under Justine & Fullbuster."
"What do you mean?"
"Your boss and I have decided to merge my refrigeration company with his archeological company."
"A vertical merger?"*
"You're quick for a receptionist. Yes, a vertical merger – why are you making that face?"
I hadn't realized it, but my brow was furrowed in thought. The information that I was about to tell him… should I? It wasn't some dirty company secret, but I wasn't sure if Freed had already told Gray.
"Freed's told you where he's excavating, right?" I checked to make sure.
"…Yes," he said after a pause.
"I just thought it was strange because there's not much profit to be made from this merger. The only time refrigeration is really needed is when specimens are brought back from digs in colder places, and Freed's guys are currently excavating venues in Chile and Egypt – hotter climates, essentially."
"So why would he need an entire refrigeration company?" Gray voiced the obvious question.
"Maybe he's planning ahead for his next excavation site. Or maybe-" I stopped myself.
"What?"
I shouldn't. But he was looking at me so imploringly I couldn't help it.
"Maybe he'll chop up your company into pieces," I laughed feebly to mask the gravity of what I was saying, "and then put the parts he doesn't need on the auction block and sell to the highest bidder."
Gray's eyes widened considerably, and he suddenly looked very pale. In a heartbeat, he had his arms around me and was crushing me to him. Stunned, the only things I could register were how nice his cool cheek felt against my neck and the faint scent of sweet cedar that came from his nearness.
"Thank you, Lucy. Truly. You're a tactical genius. I- I need to find Freed," he whispered excitedly, and just like that, he released me and vanished into the crowd.
I couldn't hear anything over the sound of blood roaring in my ears and my heart pounding in my chest. For some reason I couldn't force myself to move.
What just happened?! We were talking business, and all of a sudden he hugs me out of nowhere! Agh, and why did it have to feel so nice? More importantly, why is he going to find Freed? Shit, did I say too much? Shit shit shit shit. Nice going, Lucy. You just can't be professional around that guy for the life of you.
Slapping myself a couple of times on the cheeks, I decided I needed to step outside for some fresh air. When I did, I couldn't help but gaze in wonder at the sky. The moon was so high and bright it cast shadows, and the chilly air was a pleasant reprieve from the party inside.
It was then that I saw him, a lone figure amidst the empty street. His clothing reminded me of those singers I sometimes saw performing on the VMAs, with its recurring theme of black, gold, and white. He was leaning against the concrete pole on the corner of the street, smoking a cigarette and looking up at the stars. Even though the pedestrian crossing sign was lit, he made no sign of moving, apparently lost in thought. With the muted sounds of music and laughter drifting out from behind me, he looked so… lonely.
I felt a twinge in my heart. He was dressed kind of casually to be one of Freed's business partners, but it was my job after all to be socializing with lonely people, right? That was actually terrible reasoning, but my emotions were getting in the way. I didn't want anyone looking at the stars with such sad eyes. Besides, I was curious about his hair, which was the same rosy pink color as my dress. I took a few hesitant steps in his direction.
"Lucy! There you are. I was looking all over the place for you." It was Gray. Aside from the tight smile on his lips, there was no other sign of his previous panic. "While I was gone, I was walking around the room and I have to say it again, you really did a great job with the setup of this party. It's amazing."
I turned to him and smiled as modestly as I could.
"So I was thinking: do you think you could do my greenhouse as well? It could use a touch of the class that you brought to the party tonight."
I didn't even have to think about it before answering. "Definitely."
* Vertical merger: "A vertical merger is a merger between two companies that operate at separate stages of the production process for a specific finished product." –
This is probably best explained through an example: French fries. A fast food chain that joins together with a potato company can produce cheaper French fries. Why? Because the fast food chain probably gets a special, cheap price on the potatoes and the potato company is probably guaranteed that their potatoes are going to be bought (guaranteed to make money, basically.) Everybody wins, and the finished product, the French fries, is cheaper which is always a plus.
In this case, Justine Enterprise is the fast food chain, and Gray's refrigeration company is the potato company. Freed gets refrigeration services at a good deal, and Gray is guaranteed business. Everybody wins (theoretically, anyway.) Yeah, the business aspect is kind of heavy in this chapter, but I hope you were ready for it when you read the title! If you still don't get it, that's okay! All you need to know is that Gray is probably royally screwed if he goes through with this deal with Freed.
Thank you for the favs, follows, and reviews everyone! They mean a lot to me.
This chapter was extra-long, I know Let me know if you guys would prefer that I break up future chapters into smaller chapters, or if one long super-chapter is fine.
ImageDragons: Thanks for reviewing! My obsession with grammar is kind of becoming a problem haha. As for whether this fic is GrayLu or NaLu, I can't say for certain myself, but I hope you stick around to find out ^^