Hearts of the Lonely (Reader x Mountain Ghoul)

12- Work

The sun beat down on you as you picked weeds out of the mulch. Normally you would be very glad to have sunshine, but it was unusually hot for spring. Luckily, you wore a light short sleeve t-shirt and shorts. You had recently been allowed to work on a flowerbed by yourself, and you wanted to make it look perfect.

The faint scent of lilac bushes was carried to you by a light breeze. You wiped sweat from your brow and got up to drink some water. You smiled as your hand touched the sticker on it. When Terzo learned about your job, he gave you a sticker of a rose for your water bottle.

As you set the water bottle down, one of the older gardeners walked toward you. Mr. Renault was the first person who trained you, and he treated you like his own child. His pace quickened, and you went towards him.

"Mr. Renault, what's wrong?"

"Papa Nihil and Sister Imperator are coming through the gardens. Don't panic, they are just going for a stroll. Just be respectful," he told you.

"Where are they now?" You asked, looking over his shoulder.

"By the big koi pond."

"Thank you," you responded. Mr. Renault hurried back to his flowerbed and started to work.

You knelt down and continued to pull weeds. There was a particularly big thistle, so you had to get the shovel and dig it up. As you placed it in the bucket, voices came from behind you.

"There can never be enough flowers."

"The daisies are beautiful, Seestor."

You turned and saw Papa Nihil and Sister Imperator on the path a few feet behind you. You quickly lowered your head out of respect.

"Y/N, could I have some daisies?" Sister Imperator asked.

"Of course." You got the gardening pruners and cut the best daisies. You got up and gave them to Sister Imperator who added them to the already large bouquet in her arms. She gave you a small nod and Papa Nihil smiled; they continued on the path to the next part of the garden.

You went back to work until you noticed clicking on the stone path. You didn't notice, as some gardeners had noisy shoes. The clicking got louder as the person got nearer, and you could hear them humming, too. The clicking and the humming stopped, so you assumed they had passed. Pretending to stretch, you got up and turned around to see who went by.

A ghoul in a black outfit was directly behind you, looking at the progress you made on the flowerbed. You jumped.

"Sorry! I'm told I scare people all the time."

"No, it's fine," you caught your breath as you talked to him. He held an oxygen tank in his arms.

"I'm Alpha. You are doing an amazing job, by the way." His eyes twinkled as he spoke. Like all ghouls, he wore a mask. Alpha's outfit had the ghoul elemental symbols embroidered on it, and the fire one was bolded.

"You're a fire ghoul, right?"

"Yep. At least when Terzo was leader. Now I work for Nihil and Sister as oxygen tank transport for walks and such. I'm very important."

You laughed. "Better than Terzo at least. Copia tells me he has a pile of paperwork on his desk to complete when all he does is flirt."

"With you?"

"No; Sister Ash."

"Oh," he said playfully. "But why not you? You have better looks and have the wits to match his."

"Don't say that," you looked at the ground.

"It's true. I wouldn't mind having you with me all the time," Alpha smirked. His tail began to sway.

"I have found that all fire ghouls are the same."

"How so, my sweet?"

"You are all ninety-nine percent flirtatious and one percent braincell."

Alpha laughed. "I should probably get going. Don't want the old man out of breath."

You said bye and he gave you a wink as he walked away. As the clicking of his shoes faded, you got back to work pulling weeds.

. . .

The next day, you worked with Mr. Renault. His back had been bothering him, and he needed assistance. As you carried a bucket to be put away in one of the sheds, someone shut the door behind you.

"Mr. Renault? Can you get the door?" You called as you pounded on the door with your fist. The handle was prone to sticking shut, and people often had trouble opening the shed. "Hello? Please help, the door is stuck."

You tried the handle once more, but it didn't budge. At the last resort, you shoved your shoulder into the door. Right when you were going to hit the wood, the door opened.

"It seems that you fell for me."

You landed on the ground, and got some dirt in your hair. A familiar ghoul helped you up.

"Alpha, did you shut the door on me?"

"Not gonna deny it."

"Bitch," you told him as you shook your hair.

"Gotta have some fun in life!"

"Go back and help the old man."

"It's my day off." He gestured to his t-shirt, jeans, and sneakers. "I only take care of myself today."

"Oh is that so."

"Yes, and you could help me if you wish," Alpha purred. He smirked as his tail grazed your legs.

"No thanks," you told him as you walked away.

"Pretty please, my darling?" He followed you as you went back to find Mr. Renault.

"Alpha, leave me alone or I will tell Terzo about you."

"Oh, he already knows. He says, 'Alpha, you horny bastard, don't go to humans with your issues.'" He mimicked Terzo's voice.

"Heed his advice."

"All right, just know I will wait for you." Alpha told you as he walked away.

"You are disgusting!"

"Love you too, my sweet!"

. . .

Alpha walked on, and eventually reached a more private section of the gardens. He saw Mountain rushing through mulching. He missed most of the area, and it looked sloppy.

"Mountain, what's up? You okay?"

"Can't talk now, I gotta get this done." Mountain didn't look up as he worked.

"You got a hot date or somethin'?"

Oh you have no clue.

"No, I promised I would meet with Earth to practice some stuff."

"Okay, just slow down. What you've done so far looks like crap."

"Shut the hell up. You want to do this?"

"Whoa, I'm sorry."

"No, I'm sorry. I should not have lashed out."

"I'll leave you to work, then."