Crimson Reflections | Ferard

III

A/N: I wanted to wait before posting this chapter in case I ended up changing something in the plot later, but I've been feeling pretty miserable tonight so I decided I would cheer myself up and post something.
...

Frank wasn't dumb and he wasn't a stranger to working laboriously long hours. Before, and sometimes in between jobs, he had to make ends meet and work various pointless jobs, this one by far was the most fruitless and most frustrating.

Fucking retail work.

He knew he shouldn't complain. He was lucky Ray could get him a job in the first place and that fast. Besides, it was a job. It paid the bills and kept him and his family from being out on the streets, and most importantly, it was legal. Frank's forgotten what the word legal even meant.

"Frank, Mark needs you in the back."

Frank nodded without looking up, he took off his gloves before going to the back storage. Sure enough, Mark was there, stacking some light looking boxes over each other. He gestured for Frank to the others in the back without saying anything, and Frank went on and started working on them.

His phone buzzed in his pocket before he could bend down to pick up the first box.

'Coming tonight?'

It was Ray. Frank should've known, the dude's been inviting him over to his bar for days now, but Frank still couldn't find time. He always went home exhausted these days, mostly crashing at his mom's after checking on her and Mia. He was thinking about moving there for a while, his apartment rent was getting too much anyway, but he knew he was neglecting his friend these days. Maybe he should go out for a couple of hours.

'Sure'

He texted back and decided he deserved a night out after all.

...

The bar was crowded that night.

Ray was working behind the bar when Frank spotted him, snapping at customers and handing out drinks distractingly, which was odd for two reasons: Ray didn't work at his bar at that hour, he usually supervised and let his staff take care of everything, and secondly, Ray was the nicest person Frank has ever known in his entire life, he never even raised his voice at annoying customers. Now he was snapping at ones who did nothing?

Frank was standing there, watching for a second. He was trying to determine if coming there that night was worth it with how crowded the place was and Ray's obvious bad mood, when Ray raised his eyes and met Frank's. He smiled tensely and waved Frank over.

"Hey, man." Frank greeted as he claimed a barstool a girl just left, "busy night, ha?"

Ray didn't answer and he looked at Frank for a moment too long, like he was evaluating something. It was all it took for Frank to recognize that it wasn't just a bad mood that Ray was in. Ray was panicking about something.

"What is it?" Frank asked quickly, trying to look cool, even as his hands gripped the edge of the bar a little too tightly.

Ray took a breath, and when he spoke next his voice sounded so remorseful Frank's heart leapt to his throat, "I tried to tell them you quit, but they wouldn't believe me. I'm so sorry, Frank. I really tried. I'm so sorry."

Frank frowned and his mind jumped to the worst conclusions possible. Cops? Someone looking revenge? They must be someone who didn't know where he lived, maybe that is why Ray asked him to come tonight.

"Who?" Frank's voice sounded foreignly steady even for his own ears.

Ray was about to answer when a hand landed on his shoulder and he closed his eyes. Frank followed the hand to the face of some huge guy smirking. It took him a moment to remember where he's seen him before; he was one of the guys sitting with Way the night Frank talked to him. Frank could already feel the panic in the back of his throat.