"Sir. Ned. It's a pleasure to see you again."
"The pleasure is mine, Mr. Rey. Surely I'd hoped you'd drop the honorifics, yet I find a part of me glad you didn't address me by my new title."
"I apologize, Chairman..."
"Please do not say it." Ned held his hand out. "I listen to it all the time in my office, and I'm not about to have to give it an ear on a fine day such as this. Have a seat."
"Thank you." Rey sat down confidently. He'd expected this meeting between him and Ned; however, it had been rather delayed. The last he'd seen of Ari was more than a month ago, and attempts to contact him had been futile once again. Still, there was no doubt who the subject of discussion would be. 'What's the point of pretending? I might as well hit the nail on the head.'
"It was strange to me when you asked to see me, Chairman. Kindly accept my need to address you respectfully."
"Go on."
"Your secretary also refused to disclose the nature of our meeting, only sharing this deserted location," Rey concluded, his eyes wandering around the place and judging from his comprehension of how he was received; Ned owned this luxurious restaurant too.
"Quite impatient, aren't we?" Ned chuckled, an act that bothered Rey. From the moment he'd gotten here, Rey found it hard to read Ned's body language.
"I must admit what happened between you and my fiancé does leave a bitter taste in my mouth."
"Your fiancé? Aren't you married?"
"That sharp tongue of yours does get on my nerves. A few seconds of silence before responding would make you a great negotiator, Mr. Rey."
'There we have it. He is definitely pissed.' "I didn't mean to..."
"Save your apologies for Ari, or at least until we are done with the purpose of calling you here. You see, you've put me in quite an ordeal that has given me sleepless nights for the past month. Although, I must say I'm proud to bag a man such as Ari. Even so, I must remind you that what's mine is mine."
"I'm not gay."
"Bisexual or whatever you consider yourself is of no importance to me. I called you here to request that you reject my Ari when your paths cross in future. As it seems, he is unable to turn you down."
"How do you hope for me to begin doing that? He is the one who keeps throwing himself at me."
Ned could feel his chest tightening at the remark, but only smiled. Hiding his pain he went on, "Perhaps you are right. Having worked with Ari for many years, I fell in love with his meticulous reputation. Not once did he give in to anyone's advances. Well, all that changed when you showed up."
Leaning forward, Ned rested both his elbows on his knees, took a deep breath then looked away. "Your words do hurt my pride. Regardless, I've been nothing but accommodating to your presence because Ari cares for you. All I'm asking you to do is to get along with me. They say that when the cat is away, the mice will play. Stop stringing him along. You have nothing to offer him but a confused state of mind and unnecessary trauma."
"Are you threatening me?"
"Not at all, but I have information that can make you beg for my mercy. I'm aware of your numerous debts from one loan shark to another, and the horror story behind your druggie girlfriend."
"You bastard..."
"Watch your tongue. Remember the five seconds rule. I have the power to charge you for treason just by those two words. I'm a conglomerate aristocrat so, kindly be careful what you say to me from now on."
"You have no power over me."
"I have the power to take all your debts away among other things. You come from a starved middle-class background and have done alot of mischief trying to hide your sister's deeds and in the process, became an accomplice not just in laundering money but a witness to unlawful, unlicensed polysubstance use. If I were today to send wind of your many skeletons to the authorities, I'm convinced you will take the bullet for your sister and knowing her past, she will drag you with her and the memory of your girlfriend along with it." Leaning back on his chair, Ned maintained his nonchalant nature as he added on. "I'm not a corrupt person, neither I'm I violent, yet I find myself harbouring insidious thoughts. This is not me, and I wish to rectify that if you only cooperate."
Rey let out a low laugh, his eyes drifting to the floor. "My starved middle-class background as you've described it put me in fear my whole life until I grew numb to it." Looking back at Ned, Rey raised his chin and spoke with conviction. "I may not understand why a man would love another, but I do comprehend the desiring part of it. Yes, I kissed him first; perhaps I never would have if I hadn't been drunk that day, but I enjoyed every part of Ari and became greedy. What was I supposed to do? You are a man too. Judging from your success, it is unconvincing that you wouldn't want to keep something you want so much, even if it belonged to someone else. Therefore, the difference in our backgrounds do not matter. It all comes down to two men going for what they desire."
Ned smiled. "I see that our conversation during that business trip together stuck on. For such an inexperienced individual, you admirably scared my lover's neck and intimate parts of him to send me a message."
"I'm not going to reject Manager Ari. He decides whether he wants to be with you or me."
"And what kind of future could you possibly give him? Would you have his life compromised like your girlfriend because of your mistakes?"
"If I were such an easy person to threaten, I wouldn't have gotten to where I am today," Rey said, then stood up. "Forgive me for my forwardness, but I have no intention of stooping to the level proposing to Manager Ari. That's you. As for me, I just want sex and nothing more. Both of us are equally aware of Manager Ari's weaknesses, feeble and lonely despite being surrounded by those who care for him. When he cried from mistreatment by his family, I wanted to comfort him, and I did, but none of my efforts worked. The only way he calmed down was after I'd ravished him."
Ned laughed out loud, a touch of sarcasm accompanying his hurt pride. "It was foolhardy to think we'd agree. If I were in your shoes, I wouldn't give up Ari either. Please, take back your seat and tell me more about your past. I'd rather not look deeper into it myself."
To Ned's surprise, Rey complied. "What would you like to know, Chairman?"
"Your girlfriend. How did she succumb to her death?"
"Well, I can't possibly recall every brush with death she and my sister had. It was only a matter of time before her lifestyle took her life away."
"No wonder your face is always tout. You must have tried to rescue her, yet you only managed to save your sister. Gambling is quite an addiction and is on the rise these days. Taking numerous debts without purpose is foolhardy."
"My sister has regained her life back."
"I don't doubt that. Yet, both she and your lover left you with a humongous debt. With your current salaries combined, you'll have to pay for it for the rest of your life. A church mouse would laugh at you."
"I-I...." Rey hesitated, then looked away. Ned's remark had struck a nerve, and he clenched his jaw. "Chairman, what do you want with Manager Ari? A life story or a love story?"
"Have you suddenly turned into a psychotherapist?"
"The thing is, I wanted a love story when I should have focused on a life story with a partner. Yes, I made the mistake of being naive, pining after her, trying to protect someone who never wanted to be saved and disregarding my own life. Perhaps that is why these days, I propritise my needs more while self-improving myself. If I want something, I go for it without caring what other people think, even if it may hurt them.
Your threatening me only hastens my need to look for Manager Ari further. For his sake, keep him hidden. If you don't, I will find him, and when I do, I will ruin him."