When fish rots, it starts at the head.
Nate knew the saying, and he also knew that he was currently the rotten fish head at Vorche headquarters. But he could not make himself stop. His bad mood after the encounter with Melanie was spilling over into his work. He was breathing down the necks of his employees. Demanding perfection and being absolutely ruthless when his standards were not met.
"Tell me, what is your level of education?" He stared at the young man before him. The kid literally sweating buckets the longer Nate's eyes were trained on him.
"I have a Master's degree in Business, sir," The kid looked like he was about to pass out.
Nate tapped at the document on his desk" A master's degree and you call this fantasy script a project report,"
"Redo this whole thing and have it on my desk by the end of the day," The shaken young man rushed forward, taking the offending item before all but running out of Nate's office. That had been the way things were at the office for days, and each time he sent an employee running he could feel Ron's disapproving green eyes on him. Looking up, he found Ron giving him a look-just as he had expected. He glared at his PA, but Ron, ever unflappable just stared back.
Going back to his work Nate began replying to his email, trying to clear his inbox. The more mails he read, the angrier he became. Did these people know that he was their boss? He had literally hired them so that he could delegate tasks to them. But every single one of them wanted him to hold their hand through every single decision. Who did they think he was, their nanny?! He was busy typing a scathing reply when Ron walked in.
"Boss, you have meeting with the board members in ten minutes," Of course, of course. The one day when he did not want to deal with their nonsense and he had to sit in a room full of them.
"How long is it going to be?" He asked, already standing and grabbing his coat.
"Thirty minutes," That was not so bad. Nate could be civil for thirty minutes, he could handle it.
Nate could not handle it. Twenty minutes in and he could feel his normally iron clad hold on his temper weakening.
Old man Viktor was blabbering"…what you're uncle was doing when he put someone like you in charge, instead of…"
"Shut up," It took a moment for everyone, including Nate himself to realize that he was the one who had spoken.
"How dare you-"
"How dare I what? Lead the company that all of you threw at me when you thought it was a sinking ship,"
"How dare I ta-"The room was suddenly plunged in darkness, and then Ron's voice rang out.
"There seems to be an electrical fault in the room, unfortunately the meeting will have to end here today," Grumbling, the board members filed out leaving Nate behind. When the last one left, Nate heard the door close and then the whole room was bathed in light, with Ron standing by the light switch looking smug.
"Perhaps it is best that you finish the rest of the day's work at home,"
The ride back home, was not relaxing in the least. How could it be when Ron, seating at the back with him was going on and on about the things that still needed Nate's attention.
"Perhaps you should schedule a date with Miss Melanie, spending time with her always seems to lighten your mood," Looking out the window so that he did not have to see Ron's face, Nate finally voiced the thing that he had not told anyone in his circle.
"My partnership with Melanie is over, she prefers the company of another man over me," There was a clutter, Ron's laptop falling off his lap, but Nate kept his eyes firmly focused on the outside world. Outside, a he spotted a woman buying food from a vendor. She looked familiar, but the car moved on before he could get a closer look, so he let it go.
Several minutes passed, he heard Ron open the partition and whisper something to the driver, but he could not be bothered to listen. Which was why he was taken by surprise when he got out of the car and found himself in front of a familiar old building, Ron coming to stand beside him. Walking in, he instantly felt calmer.
"Nate, long time no see," Greeted Pedro, the gym owner was originally from Brazil . A broad shouldered man, with dreadlocks going down to his waist. He packed a mean punch, but he was also one of the most genuine people Nate knew. He let himself be drawn into a hug, struggling to hide his amusement when Ron was treated to the same. Pedro also happened to be someone who could unsettle Ron.
"Here to work out some steam boys, good,"
What followed was three hours of the most intense work out Nate had had in a while. He started out with a simple warm up, and once that was done Ron volunteered to be his sparring partner. It wasn't until they traded blows that Nate realized just how tightly wound he had been. He had Ron on the floor in a matter of seconds. From then on it had been an open challenge, anyone who felt like fighting him stepping into the ring.
By the time he threw his last punch, the world around him didn't seem so dark. And he was not as bothered by the little things as he had previously. Finally feeling tired, he stepped out of the ring. Ron, pale skin now a deep red, was waiting for him with a bottle of water and towel.
Sitting on one of the benches and watching others go at it, Ron broke the silence.
"What are you going to do?The installation of the next CEO is in October, The plan was to get married in September so that you met all the requirements, and didn't have to worry anymore," Nate shrugged, bringing his bottle to his lips and taking a big gulp.
Chuck actually coming back to the country and wanting the post was a long shot. Still, it would have been a weight off Nate's back to be married and properly appointed. But in the end, it didn't matter that the possibility of Chuck coming back was one in a million. The board would be sure to make his life a living hell, especially after his earlier display.
"Maybe, they will just forget the whole meeting happened," Nate said hopefully, ignoring Ron's disbelieving snort.
At this rate, he would need a miracle to save himself from the trouble ahead, a miracle like someone agreeing to marry him. On the other side of the city, Rose stopped watering her plants and looked around , how strange, it almost felt as though someone was focusing all their attention on her.