how to become a wildfire

complication

com· pli· ca· tion | \ ˌkäm-plə-ˈkā-shən
noun
: a difficult factor or issue often appearing unexpectedly and changing existing plans, methods, or attitudes

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x
april

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"Gray! New table for you in section three!"

Gray sighs, rubbing his face and nodding at Jeremy. It's busy today – even though the lunch rush is almost over, the restaurant is still packed, and Gray's both exhausted and hungover. He wipes at the sweat running down the back of his neck before washing his hands and heading out into the front of the restaurant.

"Good afternoon, welcome to..."

Gray trails off as he realizes that the person sitting in his section is Natsu.

Shit.

There's an awkward silence as they stare at each other, and then Gray's eyes flick across the table to a vaguely familiar blond man in a police uniform.

Gray's stomach immediately drops and he's sure he's going to throw up.

"Gray, right?" The man smiles at him, and Gray realizes with relief that it's just Natsu's friend from the bachelor party last night. He rearranges his face into something neutral while he desperately tries to remember the man's name. Stan? Stiles? Sting.

"Y-yeah," Gray says after a second. He can feel Natsu staring at him, and Gray's suddenly incredibly conscious of the faint red mark across his cheek. "Sorry, I, uh—there was a mistake, I..."

Gray's vision blurs and for a terrifying moment he thinks he might pass out. He catches himself on the table, refusing to meet Natsu's gaze, then turns around and all but runs back into the kitchen. His heart is pounding, and he leans back against the wall near the staff room, taking deep breaths.

"What are you—Gray? Are you okay?"

A gentle hand lands on Gray's arm and he's about to shrug it off when he realizes that it's just Lucy.

"Sorry," he says, leaning back against the wall and taking a deep breath. "I just—I..." His hands won't stop shaking and he clenches them into fists, digging his nails into his palms to try and focus. "Can you take my new table?"

Lucy looks out across the restaurant, then back to Gray. "The cop and the guy with the pink hair?" she asks, and he nods, crossing his arms over his chest. Lucy sighs. "Are you in trouble?"

Gray sighs, forcing himself to look up at Lucy and give her a wry smile. "It's silly," he says, trying to keep his voice even. "He's my ex – the guy with the pink hair – we haven't talked in a while and it's just..."

"Gotcha." Lucy squeezes Gray's hand and gives him a grin. "Want me to spit in his drink?"

Gray manages a laugh as he shakes his head. "I appreciate it," he says, "but he's not actually a bad guy. I just don't think I can handle him right now. He's... a lot."

"Uhuh." Lucy rolls her eyes. "You've met my ex, I know a thing or two about 'a lot.' I've got this." Then she squeezes Gray's arm and heads out to the front of the restaurant.

-----

Gray manages to avoid Natsu's questioning gaze for the rest of the lunch rush, and when he and Sting finally leave, Gray breathes a sigh of relief.

"Honestly, I think you downgraded," Lucy says, appearing behind Gray in the break room and sitting down on the couch. "He's cute." She holds out a piece of paper to Gray and he groans, grabbing it before slumping down on one of the chairs.