(Chapter 2)

Panic

I had finished my latest job, moving so the actor could walk to the scene, when Avery walked over. I looked away in shame, and he patted my head.

"What's the matter Kyle?"

I glared at him and swatted his hand away.

"I told you not to call me that."

He raised a brow and shrugged.

"Right. Gray. I thought you'd be used to this by now."

I wiped my mouth, and kept my eyes down, refusing to make eye contact while saying nothing.

"Whatever. We only have one more tonight. Then you can go home."

He walked away, as another actor walked up to my chair. My heart completely dropped when I saw who it was. The unforgettable red eyes burned right through me, and my blood ran cold.

The Luxray stared down at me, and raised a brow, and Avery walked back. I suddenly remembered where I remembered him from.

"This is Damien. He's usually my delivery guy but he needs some extra work so he'll be taking part in our little "shows" here, he'll be working with you before...from... be here everyday to..."

Avery's words started to fade into obscurity, as the realization that my future could potentially come to a screeching halt.

Who knows what could happen if he tells someone? Getting kicked out of school is a definite possibility. Will this go on a record? I'll never be able to leave, I'll be stuck here, doing this for the rest of my life.

The thought of the rest of my life being spent in this hellhole, or maybe even worse almost brought tears to my eyes. I had to steel my nerves. I could cry when I was home. I was snapped out of my thoughts, literally, when the aforementioned Luxray snapped a few times.

"You okay down there? I'd like to get this over with, so we can both go home."

I nodded slowly, my nerves thrown completely out of whack. I closed my eyes, and tried to retreat to my safe space as I got to work.

(Later)

When I arrived home, I jumped right in the shower. Typically I go straight to bed and shower in the morning before school, but this was different. I was panicking.

Does he know my name? Did he even recognize me? Probably since I bumped into him and spilled coffee on his jacket. Shit, he could be pissed about that. Fuck fuck fuck!

I took a deep breath and finished my shower. The hot water helped relax my nerves a little, and I was calm enough to tell myself to sleep.

Maybe I'm just overreacting. I should be fine tomorrow morning, and I can think about what to do.

(The Next Morning)

I wasn't fine at all. I had woken up and fallen back asleep 4 times, and my alarm actually scared me, making me extremely anxious all morning. There was a long line at the coffee shop, so I didn't bother getting any, which put me in a sour mood.

Alyssa could clearly tell, and didn't bother dragging me into a conversation with her friends like she usually does. They all just greeted me and left, but before they did, I heard May whisper to Trey that I appeared "unhinged". I ignored it, but still went to the bathroom to put some water on my face anyway. I didn't want to draw any attention to myself, or cause any trouble.

That day, during class, I kept stealing glances at him. I couldn't help it, despite telling myself to ignore him and move on. But I was looking for hints, hints of him recognizing me, hints of resentment or malice towards me.

I didn't fail to notice Alyssa's occasional worried look, and at one point between classes she asked if I was okay. I told her I was fine, and mentioned I didn't get much sleep. She seemed to only half believe me, but I guess the bags under my eyes from actually losing sleep seemed to make a case. She told me to try to get more sleep tonight, and left it alone.

By the end of the day, I'd only seen him in one other class. Only this time he sat across the room, and was so focused on his work that I decided to do the same and let it go for the time being. I had almost written it off completely, until I was about to leave campus for the day.

I was making my way to my usual route home when someone grabbed my arm, and pulled me aside. I had assumed it was Alyssa or Garrison, but to my surprise it was the Luxray. He pulled me into a nearby alley, then surveyed the area to make sure no one was around or saw. He then sighed and glared down at me.

"What do you want?"

I turned my head to the side, and feigned confusion.

"Huh?"

His brow furrowed, and he put a paw on the wall behind me.

"You've been staring all day. It's weird. It's creepy. What do you want?"

I put my hands up in defense, realizing I might've made a mistake.

Shit. Maybe he doesn't recognize me.

"Well, I thought you were someone else. I'm sorry."

He growled a little.

"You're the Umbreon from last night. The same one that spilled that coffee on me yesterday morning."

My blood ran cold again, and I started to panic once more.

"I'll ask you one last time. What do you want?"

I gulped, and closed my eyes.

"I wanted to see if you'd tell anyone."

He stood, silent for a bit, before backing away and giving me a look of mild confusion.

"What-?"

I took that as a chance to recollect myself, and dusted off my clothes.

"I wasn't sure if you would tell anyone my secret after I spilled that coffee on you. I was panicking when I saw you at work, and let my nerves get the best of me. I guess, sorry, I wasn't trying to be creepy. I didn't know what to do, this school is all I have."

I looked up at him, and he was giving a mildly disappointed look, followed by a raised brow, as if I offended him a little.

"Really? You thought you'd have your reputation ruined over spilled coffee?"

My ears lowered at how ridiculous that sounded, and I blushed a little.

"W-well, I said I was panicking! I usually keep my personal life a secret, and my future felt secure as long as no one knew. But you kinda broke that immersion, and I had a panic attack. I don't know what I'd do if I got kicked out and ran out of options."

He sighed, and backed away.

"Alright. Stop. I get it. But stop staring. People are going to get the wrong idea. Also, I wouldn't take my chances with the school here. It's likely I'd be outed myself if I tried anything, and even if I was mad at you, that wouldn't be worth it. Relax."

I let out a huge sigh of relief and felt my worries fade away. I completely relaxed and sat down against the wall, and put my paws over my face, letting myself calm down.

Okay. This is good. He won't tell anyone. I'll let this be a reminder to be more careful in the future. I have to make sure no one else that works there goes here. Alyssa can't know that we work together yet either. But now I have to start doing more to make sure this doesn't happen again. And maybe I can ask Avery to pay me more so I can save up more at a ti-

"Are you okay? You've been on the floor for a few minutes now. I didn't want to leave you like that but I have to go."

I looked up in confusion, having forgotten he was even there.

"Huh? Sorry I...um..yeah I'll get up now."

I stood up and dusted off my jacket and pants.

"Name?"

I raised a brow and looked at him.

"I'm sorry?"

"Your name. We're going to be working together. I might as well know your name."

I looked away, rubbing the back of my head, feeling slightly awkward.

"Well uh...most people I uh... "work with" don't talk to me so um..."

He crossed his arms and raised a brow.

"And? I'll need to address you somehow in the future regardless. I'll go first. I know you know but, it's Damien."

He extended a paw, and I hesitantly took it, hoping I wouldn't get into trouble somehow with a certain Houndoom.

"It's Gray. Yeah. Gray."

We shook paws, and he gave me that questioning look once more.

"Gray? Really? Most people give their real names when introducing themselves."

I chuckled sheepishly and let his paw go.

"It's what most people call me anyways, so in a way, it is my real name."

He shrugged, and turned around.

"Whatever. I have to go, it's getting late."

He started to walk away, and raised a paw to gesture a goodbye. I didn't bother saying anything, cause I wasn't sure if we'd even speak again. I was just happy that my secret was safe. Could I trust him not to tell anyone? I don't know. But I decided to keep my distance anyway. I didn't want anyone else to get hurt because of me.

I started to walk home, not realizing that that little interaction would change the course of my future.