An Act of Death [William T. Spears x Reader]

02 First Day

"Good afternoon, beautiful."

Tap, tap, scribble...

"Hey, are you ignoring me?"

Scribble, scribble, stamp...

"Oi! ______!"

“Huh?” Her head snapped up to see Ronald Knox leaning in the doorway of her office. She'd thought she heard his voice, but assumed he was chatting with someone else. "Oh, good morning, Ronald."

"Call me Senpai!" He flashed a grin. "I've always wanted a subordinate!"

She laughed. "Not a chance. We're about the same age."

"Really now? How old are you?" He asked, entering the space. It was tiny and void of any decor, a visual representation of her beginner's status.

‘Shit.’ She flinched, realizing she should avoid the topic. Even though they felt the same age to her, Ronald had a few hundred years over her. ______ gave in. “Alright, you’re a little older, but I’m not calling you that.”

“I’ll cut you some slack since it’s your first day in the office.” He said. “I don’t know how they do it in the American branch, but here we respect our more experienced co-workers!”

"Right..." She trailed off, gathering the pile of papers she had been working on. She needed to hurry before he started asking questions about where she supposedly came from. “I’ve got to get these to William’s office.”

“‘William’? Are we already on a first name basis with the boss?” Ronald teased.

The implication in his tone went over her head. “Yeah.”

He sighed, a little disappointed in the lack of a reaction. He stepped out of the way, letting her walk ahead of him. “I'll tag along. I need to see him about something anyway.”

Moments later they walked into the aforementioned’s office. The difference between it and her own workspace was unbelievable. The walls were lined with orderly bookshelves and file cabinets, windows overlooking the lively courtyard below. In the back center of the room was a beautiful mahogany desk, papers neatly stacked around a gleaming name plate: William T. Spears; Supervisor.

She set the stack of papers on his desk, Ronald walking around to collapse in the armchair behind it and kicking his polished white shoes up over the corner of the desk. She frowned. “What are you doing?”

“It’s his own fault. No way I’m sitting on that.” He said, pointing to the folding metal chair across from him. How like William to strategize a way to keep others from lingering around in his office for too long.

“He won’t appreciate you helping yourself to his office."

“Six months since I last saw you and that’s all you have to say?” Ronald pouted. “You were way more timid before recruitment...”

______ might’ve rolled her eyes. “Come on, you know I missed you.”

These words were genuine. Seeing him with that childish pout reminded her of her late brother, who was always trying to make her laugh back then. While it had been a miserable life, her reality confined to a single, desolate room as a human, her brother had constantly put his life on hold to make her feel less alone. If only she’d known back then how short that existence would be.

Ronald brought her back to the present. “Senpai. Say ‘I missed you Senpai.’”

She couldn’t help but smile at his persistence. “Like I sai--”