Perfection

Chapter 2

Author's Note:  Thanks to Gina for the plot bunny and Sabina for her help and inspiration.

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The next morning Brian walked into Kinnetik just after dawn. No one else was there, which was why he had arrived so early. He had decided that he would make up a board announcing his acquiring of the Liberty Air account. It would be his way of sharing the good news with the rest of his hardworking crew.

When he was finished making the board, he set it up in the main entryway of Kinnetik and stood back to survey the work he had done. With a slight smile of approval at his rapid handiwork, he headed for the break room to start a pot of coffee. It was a long time since he had made a board for an ad. It had been kind of fun, and good to know that he still had the knack of how to construct one.

Brian walked into his office with his newly made cup of coffee. He sat down and flipped his feet up onto his desk. He leaned back in his chair savoring his coffee and letting his mind wander.

He hadn't gotten much sleep last night. He had been mulling over the possible direction of the whole Liberty Air campaign. He knew they liked the basic premise of what he wanted to do with the campaign or they wouldn't have hired him. But he had bigger ideas and he had spent a lot of time thinking about them last night.

The rest of the time he had spent thinking about Justin Taylor. There was something about Justin Taylor that really appealed to him. He had enjoyed talking to the young man. It had almost been a real celebration, having Justin take part in it with him. He had been so lonely lately. He shook himself. He refused to go there. It was territory best left unexplored. He thought about Justin again. The man was fine looking, there were no two ways about it. But he thought of Justin as more of a friend than anything else. He was glad he had taken the chance to speak to him. Maybe he would go back to the bar tonight and see if Mr. Justin Taylor might also show up again.

Brian's staff began arriving and they all stuck their heads into his office to congratulate him on his latest coup. He made sure to tell each of them to get to work and not fuck up any of his accounts. They were good workers, but he didn't want them to get too cocky or too friendly.

The day went by with meetings and discussions of the new Liberty Air account and the finalizing of some other projects. As usual, Cynthia was a fount of wisdom and a level head amongst the myriad of ideas. By the afternoon they had a good framework of what they were going to do.

Brian's equanimity had gradually eroded as the day went on. He found it hard to be pleasant, civil even, with those that didn't give a hundred and ten percent to what they were doing. He knew his reputation as a bitch had gotten worse over the last few months, but that was too fucking bad. He owned the company. He could do whatever he wanted.

About four o'clock Brian noticed Ted walking past his office and bellowed, "Theodore, get your ass in here!"

"Yes, Boss," Ted said hustling through the door into Brian's office. "What can I do for you?"

"You can do nothing for me," Brian stated with an arch of the eyebrow.

Ted shuffled his feet and looked at the floor. Brian was getting harder and harder to deal with. "Sorry."

"Sorry's bullshit!"

"Well, um, why did you call me in here?"

"To see how fast you could get your aging bones through the door."

"Is … is that supposed to be funny?" Ted asked with a frown.

"Do you find it funny?"

"Um … no."

"Then it's not funny."

"So, why did you call?" Ted asked hoping to get an answer and get the hell out of Dodge.

"I was just reading through the quarterly profit statement that you left on my desk. Kinnetik seems to be doing adequately."

"It's doing fucking fantastic, and now with this Liberty Air account, we're looking good," Ted ventured.

Brian smirked. "Therefore, since you're here and we seem to concur about how well Kinnetik is doing, I'm thinking of making a new investment."

"Really?" Ted asked. "What kind of an investment?"

"I don't know."

"Let me get this straight. You want to invest some money, but you have no idea what you want to invest it in."

"Precisely."

"And…?" Ted held out his hands wondering what he was supposed to say … or do. All he wanted to do was get out of Brian's office.

"What would you suggest?" Brian asked, leaning back in his big office chair.

"Blue chip stocks?"

"Too boring."

"Bearer bonds?"

"I don't think so," Brian snorted. He knew Ted was trying to be funny. "You just want me to get mugged when I carry them around with me."

Ted frowned. He wasn't sure if he was supposed to laugh at that or not. He decided he better not. "Real estate?" he asked to move things along.

"I'm not in the market for a fucking house," Brian said with a glare.

"I didn't mean a house," Ted backtracked. "A business?"

"I don't need another fucking business. You have until tomorrow at noon to find something of which I will approve."

"But…"

"Yes?" Brian glared.

"I'm sure I can find something," Ted said hastily.

"Let's just say that would be in your own best interest."

"Yes, sir."

"Oh, and Ted."

"Yes?" Ted said as he headed for the safety of the outer office. He was almost at the door and he wanted to escape.

"It better be a fucking good investment, or I'll have to kill you."

"Um…"

"No, fucking ums."

"I'll make it good," Ted blurted out and then pushed the door open and all but ran out of the office.

"What's after you?" Cynthia asked as he emerged from the lion's den.

"His royal pain in the ass has a new assignment for me," Ted griped.

"And what's that?" Cynthia asked with a faint smile.

"I have to find a new investment for his highness by tomorrow at noon."

"What kind of investment?"

"How the fuck should I know? Something he'll like."

"That gives you some very definite parameters," Cynthia chuckled.

"Yeah, right," Ted groused. "You can laugh until he calls you into the inner sanctum. He just gets harder and harder to deal with."

"I know," Cynthia said wiping the smile off her face. "I hate to think what he'll be like in another month."

"How long has it been since he left?"

"Three months."

"It really knocked Brian for the proverbial fucking loop."

Cynthia nodded. "I wish there was something we could do."

"Besides absorb his caustic barbs and continual threats to either dismember or murder us."

Cynthia laughed. "He only threatens to fire me."

"Lucky you!"

"I'm not sure how lucky that makes me. He knows he can never get along without me, so I think I'm safe."

"Wish I could say the same."

"Don't worry, Ted. It's almost the weekend."

"Yeah, if his highness lets me live that long."

Cynthia chuckled to herself as Ted bustled away to start looking up potential investments. The smile soon faded as she thought about what had happened to her boss over the last few months. It was no wonder he had turned into an even bigger asshole than he had always been, or at least than most people thought he was.

Cynthia knew the real story or part of it. She walked back to her desk and sat down with a new cup of coffee. She remembered the day Ted had told her what was going on. Nothing had been the same since.

Brian had been in the middle of a pitch when he buckled over in pain. He had tried to drink a glass of water and shrug it off, but he looked positively gray. He was holding onto the edge of the table for dear life. Finally Brian had excused himself and told Ted and her to take over. Ted had been so nervous, and had almost screwed up the account. But with her help, they had saved the day and signed the client.

Ted had immediately headed for Brian's office to tell him the good news. He found Brian wearing his overcoat and lying in a fetal position on the couch. After some strategic cajoling, Brian had finally agreed to go to the loft and get some rest. Ted had put him in a taxi, and Kinnetik did not see Brian for two days.

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Brian sat in his office. He wondered why he had been so hard on Ted, but then he was hard on everybody these days. Most of the time he seethed with rage. That was, when he wasn't feeling fucking sorry for himself. He swiped a hand across his face hoping to erase the morbid thoughts that plagued him these days.

Brian gathered up some papers and tossed them in his open briefcase. He looked around the office deciding if there was anything else that he wanted to take home with him. Not seeing anything that needed to be worked on, he snapped the briefcase closed and picked it up. Carrying it, he walked out of Kinnetik and over to his car.

He knew where he was going as soon as he climbed behind the wheel. A few minutes later he was walking into Flanagan's. He looked around hopefully, knowing exactly what or rather who he was looking for. Unfortunately he wasn't there. He sat down at the bar anyway and ordered a Heineken.

He sipped at the beer for quite a while. His eyes sought the door of the bar whenever he heard it open. He ordered another beer and then another, all the while waiting expectantly. However, as he polished off his sixth beer, he began to think that he wasn't going to see his prize tonight.

Finally with a feeling of abandonment, which he told himself was completely irrational, he paid his bill and headed back to his car. He sat in the Corvette for well over twenty minutes looking up and down the street to see if he could spot what he was looking for.

By the time midnight rolled around, he decided his quest was useless. Finally he started his car and pulled out of the parking lot at the bar. For some reason the Corvette headed in the opposite direction to his home. It seemed to be heading for the campus of PIFA. Brian scanned the streets as he drove there looking for the familiar face. He even drove into the campus and did a cursory drive around hoping to see a blond head. However, it was not to be on this evening.

At last, Brian gave up his quest and headed for his loft. Maybe tomorrow night would bring greater rewards. For now he would go home to his empty loft and talk to his fucking TV set or find some internet porn. He would have to find Justin Taylor another time.