Nalu One shots

Hostage

Hostage

Lucy slammed her eyes shut in aggravation as she listened to her father ramble over the phone. She tried to cut in three times to tell him her opinion, but he always raised his voice so he could talk over her. After the last attempt, she gave up, letting him talk until his heart's content.

"The experience you gain today will help you when you get to where I am. Knowing the ins and outs of the business will-"

Lucy stopped listening, holding her phone away from her ear far enough so she couldn't hear exactly what he was saying, but close enough that she could jump in when he stopped talking.

Her father was hellbent on her staying on as a teller at the bank. It all started when she said she was thinking of taking off a few days a week to focus on writing. Apparently, her father thought that meant she was quitting, so he started ranting about the benefits of working up the line, gaining this experience, and blah blah blah.

Lucy had heard his speech a million times. He told it to her so much she could recite it back to him, but of course he would only call her a smart aleck and tell her she needed to learn some manners.

His speech was wasted though. Lucy had no intentions of staying with the bank, at least not for the rest of her life. She wanted to be an author, to write mysteries and adventures. When she told her father that, he laughed at the idea.

"You need a real job," he would say. "Who's going to take over the business when I retire?"

Lucy didn't know, but she did know it wasn't going to be her. She had plans for her life, and they didn't involve counting money all day. She needed excitement!

Lucy stole a peek at her clock, frowning when she saw the time. Risking death by boredom, she put her phone against her ear to talk to her father.

"-and another thing. Did you know-"

"Hey! You'll have to tell me some other time. I'm going to be late for work."

"Well that's not very responsible of you. How will it look having you show up late?"

"I'm guessing not good," she said, proud of herself for keeping her voice calm despite her growing aggravation. Before he could monopolize the conversation again, she asked, "Can you just think about what I said. I would only need two more days off a week. That shouldn't cause any problems. Plus, I can afford to take that time off."

"I'm not concerned about money!" her father yelled, causing her eyes to narrow. "I'm concerned about your lack of responsibility. You are a Heartfilia. You have to-"

"Sorry! Gotta go!" Lucy cut him off before hanging up her phone, sighing when she saw her screen turn black. She pressed a hand to her forehead, cooling herself off. She always got worked up talking to her father. He was as hard-headed as they come.

With a long sigh, Lucy composed herself before heading out the door. She had work soon. Even if she hated her job and disliked her father for making her work there -he threatened to pull her college fund if she quit her job, she still didn't want to make a bad impression there. Like her father said, she was still a Heartfilia.

Lucy raised a brow when she walked through the front doors. She kept her mouth shut as she walked to the back, putting her purse in her locker before punching in for her shift. When she went to get her money for the day, she saw her favorite co-worker, Levy.

The shorter, blue haired woman noticed her frown immediately. "What's wrong?"

Lucy sighed, running a hand through her long blonde hair. She should have put it up today, but she ran out of time. It was supposed to be warm later on. "Nothing, just another fight with my father."