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 Posted: Tue Apr 17, 2012 5:43 pm
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Jeremy was ever so tempted to lean over the desk and punch Phil square in the nose. But he didn't need any more personal business problems than he already had. One was more than enough. And what was worse was that he had hoped to resolve this issue and put it behind them, but Phil just had to go and ruin everything. It just put them back another whole step.
His ears perked a bit when Phil asked if he had been good in bed. Why does that even concern you, idiot?? He thought. But he didn't say this aloud because he was interested to hear how the other would respond, though he didn't look up at either of them.
He was a bit disappointed in the response, but he supposed it could have been worse. That's no fun.
And as if Phil had read his mind: "Aww! You're no fun!" He whined, watching as the other stood up.
"Can I be excused?"
"Please," he insisted, allowing the other to exit. He finally looked up at his friend with a glare. "Was that absolutely neccessary?" He demanded.
"Oh, come on! Think of it as poetic justice!"
His eyes narrowed at him. "Now I see why you failed English in Freshman year."
"I knew I smelt love in the air!" He teased.
"Ugh! Get out and keep quiet! How are we equals in this business??"
Phil pouted at him. "You're so uptight at work, Jerry~"
"Don't. Call me that."
Phil simply smiled and chuckled before standing up. "Alright, alright, I'll give you a break," he chuckled, and left the room.
Later, at his lunch break, he decided not to go to the break room, to avoid running into Phil right now. So he ended up grabbing something to eat at the cafe downstairs and relaxed there. Not many people from his work liked to come down here much, because they considered it to be a little 'sketchy' what with it's secluded atmosphere. But Jeremy liked that he could usually be alone down here. He didn't mind it at all.
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Posted: Tue Apr 17, 2012 6:06 pm
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As soon as the words had escaped Jeremy's lips Dante ran for it, not wanting to linger and get caught up in any more of the conversation he had unleashed upon them. Maybe he should have just answered? No, he reassured himself, answering would have only made the situation worst... and what exactly would he have said? 'He was ok... likes to bite.' Or better yet, 'He sucked.' ...because at this moment in time there was no way Dante was going to tell the truth. He had enjoyed last night, and even if he had been sore this morning it had been worth it.... yet now, all that was tainted by this mess.
Back at his desk he planted his head upon it swiftly followed by his hands, how had it come to this? He was so full of self loathing that he didn't notice anyone approach until they spoke.
"He is rather tough isn't he." Looking up he noticed it was Barbara again, though this time she was joined with the guy who had taken off his tie.
Dante shrugged his shoulders and smiled; "I guess." He didn't really want to commit to any solid answer in fear that it would somehow get back to Jeremy... no Mr Wilkinson, he chastised himself. "Don't worry about me, I'm just a touch tired." He smiled, doing his best to reassure the pair.
Barbara spoke again; "He seems to hate you though... I've never seen him be this tough on someone before. Don't get me wrong, he's tough... just not usually to this extent." Oh that just made Dante feel so much better. He chuckled softly before replying; "I'm just lucky I guess."
The man spoke next, offering his hand to Dante while he introduced himself. "Don't let him get to you. If you ever want to rant there are plenty of willing ears available."
Again Dante felt uncomfortable but tried to smile away the situation, all the while wishing the pair would just leave him to die in misery alone for a while. "Thanks. I will keep that in mind. I better get back to work before drew more attention to myself." He used work as an excuse to get rid of them, and sure enough they scattered. Opening his email he looked at the latest marketing proposals and frowned... something just didn't seem to be adding up in the data. Making a note of everything he found out of place he decided that he would wait until after lunch to attempt to face Mr Wilkinson with his findings.
Finally lunch arrived, originally he had followed the others down, but after watching them all herd into a canteen Dante found that he really couldn't face them all. That was the reason he found himself wandering to the cafe he had spotted on the way in the building that morning. Placing his order he sat at a table and waited, his pad with the figures before him as he scribbled and calculated..... the bell above the cafe door clanged and Dante automatically looked up... instantly regretting that he had! What was wrong with him today? Was he suddenly just a walking Jeremy magnet? Or maybe he had a giant target on his back? Trying to act as if he hadn't even seen Jeremy he went back to crunching the figures again... but no matter how many times he ran them they simply didn't work out.
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Posted: Tue Apr 17, 2012 8:20 pm
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Jeremy received his food and drinking, nodding a thank you with a smile at the cute barista boy working there. He decided not to flirt with him right now, simply because he was still technically on the clock, and honestly, he had had enough excitement for the day.
When he turned around to find a table, of course, who should he find already sitting at one but Dante. What, was this kid stalking him now or something? Then again, Dante had technically gotten here first...but he had been coming here for years! Was there no place for peace of mind anymore now that this kid was working here?
And now he just found himself in an awkward position, standing there trying to decide on what to do. He could leave, but he was really in the mood to sit in here. He could simply avoid sitting near him, which would be relatively normal...but might it be a little awkward still if he did that? Well, at this point there really was no avoiding the awkwardness, was there? What's more was that Dante was sitting in his favorite spot. He had had quite enough coincidences for today.
He was about to simply sit at another table when he noticed that the other seemed to be struggling with something. Despite his meanness around the office, he was also known to have a weakness for helping people when it came to work. If someone was having difficulty with something, it wasted everyone's time, after all. Dammit...
He walked over and sat across from Dante as he took a bite of his food. "Having trouble with something there, newbie?" He said simply as he crossed on leg over the other.
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Posted: Tue Apr 17, 2012 10:33 pm
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Dante was only half concentrating on the sums in front of him, taking a bite he watched Jeremy from his peripheral view; though from the outside world it really did seem as if he was just staring at his pad. 'He's coming this way? A break simply can not be caught.' He thought as he looked up and smiled politely at Mr Wilkinson. "Em... I wouldn't say struggling. Yet the new proposal figures seem to be flawed. No matter how I crunch them we end up losing 1 pence every unit sold. And...." He turned the figures around so the other could see; "The offer from AoS appears out by a factor of ten. It has been steadily rising each year by 0.9-1.5% but this year has decreased by 75%?" He sighed, opening the file so Dante could see the print out. "I looked but couldn't find the quote statement, though if you assume the figure is wrong and increase it accordingly everything works out." There, now he had shared his findings and wouldn't have to awkwardly make his way to the guys office. In all honesty Dante believed it was likely just a typing error, common place when you were tired.... and considering how many cases they had on right now it wouldn't surprise him that the odd one was off. Of course, if they presented these figures they would never get the funding they needed. Still, this was why they had people like him checking this kind of thing.
He took a bite of his meal and a sip of his drink, just watching Jeremy for a moment..... he really was in trouble, any way you looked at it, the guy was still handsome even in the light of day... and even if he you considered that he was a complete arse at work. He looked down at his plate for a moment; refusing to look at him again for a breath or two. Calmer he finally looked up, his face all business as usual though inside he just wanted some space. He looked around, it was pretty much abandoned here and Dante couldn't stop the words that flowed over his lips; "I'm sorry about earlier." He visibly cringed, "I didn't mean to explode like that." He hated to sound weak at this point, but Dante hated this awkwardness even more... especially since he was responsible for a portion of it. At this point he just hoped that Jeremy didn't act like a complete b*****d again. When he was all business it was really hard to tell what he was thinking; like Dante, he had been far easier to read last night....
....for a moment he stared at his meal, moving it around with his fork before realising what he was doing and taking another bite. His gaze shifted and he ended up looking out of the window as the world passed by. It was amazing how everyone was so consumed in their own little worlds, completely oblivious to those looking in.
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Posted: Tue Apr 17, 2012 11:00 pm
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Jeremy listened to what the other was saying, but he figured out the issue pretty quickly, since this wasn't the first time he had had this problem with the employee who typed these up. "Mind if I take a look at your calculator?" He took it and pushed a few buttons to change the function. "This should do it, but I'll double check," he said, looking at the papers and quickly typing in all the numbers. "Yep. Lately Richard has had a tendency to use a different calculator function with these. " he explained. "This is the third time it's happened, so he probably needs a new calculator," he said simply, handing Dante back the calculator but keeping the printouts. "I'll tell him to redo the numbers and have him fax it to you before he leaves today." He set the papers down beside him and resumed eating.
At least he had maintained a business persona even in this casual setting. He ate his food at a normal pace. He had too much pride to run away at this point. He wanted to remain as nonchalant about all of this as possible.
Plus, Jeremy still considered this to be his spot, so he wasn't going to give it up simply because one man was sitting here. He enjoyed the silence while he lasted. It was nice to get away from the constant sounds of the copy machine and printer.
"I'm sorry about earlier. I didn't mean to explode like that."
Jeremy looked back at the other from his food and shrugged. "It's fine. Phil's an idiot," he said simply. He was pretty much done with his food at this point, so he stood up, picking up the documents and his mess. "Plus he enjoys messing with guys like you. He's been that way since college," he told him as he walked forward. He tossed his garbage in the nearby trash and looked over his shoulder again at Dante. "So you probably haven't heard the last of him," he chuckled with a sincere smile, partially due to just imagining how eager Phil probably was at this point. "Good luck," he waved over his shoulder, and walked out the door.
It was much easier for Jeremy to be nicer to people when he wasn't at work. He had learned pretty early on that if you went easy on people in a work setting, they had a tendency to take advantage of that kindness, or not take you seriously. So at least he managed to at least be a little nice to Dante today, even if it was brief.
Still, it was a bit complicated with Dante, since he still had that other side he had seen of him in his head, and a part of him was tempted to do it again. But he knew such a thing wouldn't--and couldn't-- happen. But god dammit, he still found the guy attractive even when he was completely sober...!
He just hoped sexual tension wouldn't rise too much in the future.
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Posted: Tue Apr 17, 2012 11:44 pm
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He blushed as the solution was found so quickly... great, now he felt like a fool. He tapped the numbers in again just to make sure, but sure enough they were right. Maybe he had just been placing his stress from the last day onto them or something? Why else would he had made such a big deal of everything. With a sigh he tucked his pen in his pocket and put his pad down next to him again.
Lunch passed quickly, and the silence wasn't completely uncomfortable. Even Jeremy's response to his apology surprised him, though he didn't like one particular phrase. "Plus he enjoys messing with guys like you." Guys like him? What exactly did he mean by that? Dante didn't ask, his question lying unspoken between them, and as soon as Jeremy was gone he found himself leaning on his hand while he looked out of the window again. Things could have... no, should have... gone better than this. So much for a new start!
Finishing up he disposed of his leftovers and headed back up the office. The rest of the afternoon moved by in a blur. People came and went, several stopping to discuss something or other before moving on to the next cubicle. The fax machine and printer seemed to be constantly running next to him... yet despite how busy he was he was rather enjoying it. There was no time to think about anything else when your brain was occupied with other things. Dante worked later than he had expected, but considering everything he was trying to catch up on, including the new protocols and methods, things had preoccupied most of his day... but now, he was finally done.
Cleaning up his desk he opened his briefcase and put his file back inside; completely ignore the face that looked up at him from the glass frame. He refused to give it more than a passing thought, he didn't want to go backwards.... and there was no point longing for something you could never have, at least not the way it had been. He closed his eyes for a moment, his hands in tight fists as he forced composure.... he just had to get home, at least that was what he told himself, there he could break down all he wanted. Putting on his coat he made to leave when Barbara came towards him, looking far more nervous than she had earlier. "Hello." He said smiling, even as he predicted what was about to happen.
"Hey Dante. Do you.. eh... I mean... do you want to come grab a coffee with me?" She didn't give him time to respond before adding; "Or we could go to the bar with the others? They always go for an hour or so after work. Especially when we have something to celebrate." Her blush increased as she said her next words; "And someone as cute as you joining our ranks is defiantly something to celebrate... wouldn't you agree?"
He blinked, not quite having expected half of that, but shaking his head he declined as nicely as possible. "I'm sorry Barbara. Not today. I just want to go home and sleep." In his own bed; he thought to himself, not wanting to remember more about the night before. "Thank you though." He said with a small bow before grabbing his bag. In the moment he took to turn around and grab the thing Barbara had stormed off. He cringed a little, a sadness flooding his face as he felt guilty for obviously hurting her feelings.
He made to move when Phil approached. He visible cringed again as the guy started speaking; this was starting to become a habit, and far outside of how he normally held himself at work. "Oh... You shot down Barbie. Didn't take her long I see." He leaned on his desk.
Trying to end this quickly he bowed a farewell, "Good evening. I am sure I will see you tomorrow."
"Hey... you're not done seeing me now." Those words! Dante snapped to attention, his eyes trained on the guy as he looked at him with a look of utter bewilderment... so Jeremy had discussed last night with the guy after all? Or was the word choice just completely random? "What is it? I have something on my face or something?" Phil said, seeming oblivious to Dante's real reason for reacting in such a way. Forcing himself to calm down, he waited for the guy to say more, not sure he even had the capability of speech left at this point. "So, are you waiting for him?"
An offended look crossed Dante's features; "And I would do that because...?" There was no way in hell Dante wanted to punish himself more, and if the guy was hinting at a repeat performance... well, that wasn't likely to happen either.
"He likes you, you know. Must have some mad skills to have impressed him this much."
"Not interested." He said with a sigh, even as his blush increased... what did he mean by 'mad skills'? Here or.... well, you know?
"Not at all?" He watched the guy raise an eyebrow. "Shame, I think you make a cute couple."
Deciding not to reply to that he simply looked at Phil for a moment, "Please...." He was about to ask him to 'drop it' when Phil said something that made him want to shake from head to foot.
"I know what happened at your last job. I found you curious after your little outburst so I did some digging with a contact at your old company. Seems you have a habit of catching your bosses attention." Dante gulped, looking away from the guy and wanting this all to go away. "Just so you know... he's not like that, Jeremy I mean. Ok, so he acts like a complete baboon when at work, but deep down he is a nice guy."
Unable to say anything else Dante took a step away from the guy repeating his earlier statement, though this time it held far less fire and determination. "Not interested." Who was Phil's contact? How had this got out? Seriously... could he never leave that world behind? "Night." He added, not wanting to appear rude as he left without looking back.
He turned down several corridors that were now empty, and unable to hold it back any longer he pressed his back against the wall and stood there in utter shock while tears tumbled from his eyes. Was it time to find a new job already?
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Posted: Wed Apr 18, 2012 12:31 am
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Jeremy took the files back to Richard and instructed him on what to do, letting him borrow his calculator for the time being until they replaced his.
He had been diligently working, and went to three more meetings that day, so he didn't end up seeing much of the office that day, which was both refreshing and exhausting. Meetings were long and often boring if he didn't have something special to do himself. He preferred to present, but most of his current projects were still in the early stages of development. So it would be a good while before he got to present very often. He had a couple presentations coming up...but they seemed so far away, and Jeremy was already ready for them.
Despite his boredom, he managed to pay attention to all of the meetings, and put his two cents in. The most entertaining one was the second one, though, since Phil had been the one presenting, and he always presented with humor and pizzazz.
Jeremy dragged his feet back to his desk at the end of the day and slumped into his chair. Phil showed up moments later. "Long day?" He chuckled.
"If I fall asleep in this chair, will you wake me up?" He muttered, his head tilted up towards the ceiling with his eyes closed.
"I might draw on your face first, but sure!"
Jeremy opened his eyes again and made a face at Phil. "Hey, do you wanna get dinner tonight? I'm starved and I don't feel like going home to cook."
Phil gasped dramatically. "Are you coming onto me, sir? And here I thought your interest lied in that Andrews fellow! Oh, how naive I've been!"
Jeremy rolled his eyes. "Don't even joke about that," he warned. "You in or what?"
"No bar tonight?"
"Is that another joke?" He asked, raising a brow as he straightened up his desk.
Phil chuckled at him. It was now that he noticed Barbara heading over to Dante. "Well I'll let you finish up here and meet you in the lobby, okay?" He told him, taking his leave to have that conversation with Dante.
Jeremy finished tidying up his space and ended up putting together some binders as well, which only took him a few minutes, but it was long enough for Phil and Dante to have their little exchange and Dante to leave without Jeremy seeing him.
He arrived in the lobby as the elevator doors were closing on Dante. "Ready?" He asked Phil.
Phil stared at the elevator for another moment before answering. "Yep! Let's go!" He pushed the button for the elevator. "Sorry, I really tried to get Dante to go out with you tonight, but he just--"
Jeremy nonchalantly but roughly punched the other in the shoulder. "OW!" Phil half yelled and half laughed, already knowing exactly why that happened.
"No one asked you to do that." He turned to look him in the eye. "Seriously. Don't make the situation worse than it already is."
Phil pouted, rubbing his arm a bit. It was a good thing he could take a punch. "But I'm making it better. You two would be so cute together!"
Jeremy simply rolled his eyes at this and waited for the doors to open, not wanting to fuel this little fire any further. He was sure that Phil would just get more persistent if he showed his disapproval too much. It was a game Phil played.
They went out for a nice and simple dinner at a nearby diner, and Jeremy quickly found it easier to be more laid back and of course nicer and more flirtatious. He ended up flirting with their waiter-- more for fun than actual interest.
"Jeez, you're so different when we're not at work."
"Business up front, party in the back," Jeremy chuckled.
"Isn't that referring to a mullet?" Phil smiled, raising a brow.
"Whatever. Works here too," he grinned with a shrug.
"Well now that we're out of work, maybe you can be a little more honest with me..." He smiled. "You like Andrews, don't you?"
"Even if I did, you'd be the last one I'd tell."
"Liar! Just admit it!" He chuckled.
Jeremy looked at the check and laid down his card to pay for both of their bills. "My treat. Congratulations on nailing that presentation."
"Seriously?? Sweet!" Phil smiled brightly, putting his wallet back in his pocket.
"Now drop it," Jeremy added.
Phil pouted once again. "Fine...for now...but only because you paid!"
"Fine. Just as long as you don't do your whole match maker charade again."
"I'm not promising that," he smirked as they left.
Jeremy ended up going to sleep at a decent time that night, and woke up early the next morning. He ended up going into work early to get a head start on some things.
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Posted: Wed Apr 18, 2012 1:11 am
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Dante had only needed a moment of solitude to get himself under wraps, and before he broke down completely he took the quickest route home; not stopping to pick up a pastry as he quite often did.
The tube was hot and smelly, and the small space made Dante all the more desperate to get home... why did everyone have to finish work around the same time? He suddenly felt exhausted, and it was hard simply trying to keep his eyes open... at least until someone started speaking to him.
"Rough day?" Dante smiled over at the guy, having no idea who he was but wanting to be professional just incase he had happened to work at the same company or was a client or something. "You could say that. Glad it is over." He sighed softly, not really holding any inspiration for continuing the conversation.
That didn't seem to deter the man, and as he spoke Dante couldn't help but notice that he was being scrutinised like fresh meat by the other.... not again! There was no way he was even contemplating going there right now. "I know the perfect way to relax. How about you come back to my place and I treat you right? What was it with him? It seemed that both woman and men had no qualms about hitting on him today. Did he reek of desperation or something?
As politely as he could muster in his tired state he shook his head; "I somehow don't think my boyfriend would appreciate me straying. Thanks anyway." A lie, but he hoped it was the quickest to deter the guy, especially since the tube slowed to his stop. Standing he made his way to the exit, only once on the platform did he notice the stranger had got off too. Putting it down to coincidence he acted as if nothing was out of the ordinary as he made his way home... at least until a strong hand grabbed his upper arm and spun him round. "I won't be dismissed so easily. I will have you, with or without your permission."
Dante glared at the guy, struggling with all his strength to get away, but that seemed to just make the guy's grip tighten. "Look." He hissed, "Take the hint. I am not interested. Go find another ******** buddy." He was really getting sick and tired of this....
...everything happened so fast, but the next thing Dante knew he was on the ground, his eyes throbbing as if it had just been punched, and sure enough he watched as another strike was landed on his chest. He coughed as the wind was forced from his lungs, spluttering as he tried to move away from the next blow. Thankfully some other guys had seen the scene unfold and were currently dragging his attacker off him. "You ok?" A very concerned looking woman asked. He nodded, unable to catch enough breath to speak.
The next thing he remembered was the hospital. Several stitches for a cut above his eye, and a bandage around his chest to support his broken ribs... but finally he was free. Calling a cab he somehow managed to stumble into his apartment building, fumble with his keys and let himself into the only place that he had left to call his own. Walking to the fridge he grabbed some leftovers, heated them up and walked to his bedroom. Slumping down on the bed he turned on his TV and ate as much as he could manage. Not long after he fell asleep.
------------------------
The alarm sang. Causing Dante to jump and send the bowl his leftovers had been in half way across the room. He couldn't believe he had just feel asleep so quickly. He walked to the bathroom, the shower doing wonders for his mood and waking him up.... of course that was until he looked in the mirror. CRAP! He had a black eye... but not just any old thing, it was clearly a hand print, the fingers reaching towards his forehead. s**t! He prodded the thing, wincing before leaning on the sink. What should he do? He couldn't go to work like this... everyone would assume the wrong thing, not that the truth was any better. Nor could he take the day off since it would appear as if he was avoiding Jeremy... and Phil. Rumours would spread like wildfire.... somehow Dante couldn't believe he had only been doing his job for a day! A day and he would already have to quit...... great. He tried to position his hair so that it covered the worst of the mark, but that seemed to fail.
His ribs hadn't fared much better, an obvious bruise covering his midsection. Ignoring them as best as he could he got ready for work, today sporting a plain tie and shirt, since he didn't want a repeat performance of yesterday.
A while later he made it to work, slinking as carefully and quietly as he could to his cubicle. Thankfully the office seemed pretty dead, maybe there were a few remote presentations or something today? Slumping in his chair he took out his folder and starting working. Taking the time to read the final protocol file he had neglected the day before. He had been so preoccupied in not being seen that he hadn't even noticed that Jeremy was busy working in his office.
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Posted: Wed Apr 18, 2012 11:00 am
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Alex had managed to get quite a bit of work done that morning. It was much easier to do when he didn't have Phil and other coworkers pestering him for something. He might have to get into the habit of doing this more often.
He hadn't even noticed when Dante walked in, since he was so absorbed in how their competition was doing and why they were doing so well or poor. Phil was the first one to stop by his office that day.
"Morning, sunshine!"
His outburst interrupted his train of thought. "Morning," he mumbled, giving him a slightly dismissive wave. Phil simply smiled and then headed over to his other favorite employee.
"Good morn--" he caught a glimpse of the other's black eye. "Holy crap, what happened to your face?? You get in a bar fight or something? Gasp! Did you get mugged??"
Jeremy heard the commotion outside and saw Phil once again pestering Dante. Great. He rolled his eyes and stood up from his desk walking over to Phil. "How many times do I have to tell you to--" he noticed something wrong with Dante's face in the corner of his eye and looked over. He put a hand on his hip, wondering if he had saw that right. "Oy. Look at me," Jeremy told him sternly. When he got a good look at the other's face, he winced a little.
"Aren't you glad I brought you over here?"
Jeremy glared at Phil only for a moment before turning his attention back to the other. "You. Come into my office. And you," he looked at Phil. "Stay out of it."
"Aw, c'mon! This concerns me too! He's supposed to be at the meeting I'm running in a few days!"
Jeremy pursed his lips together, trying to think of a comeback, but he couldn't deny that on a business level, Phil was easily a part of this. He sighed in defeat. "Fine. But think twice, speak once, got it?" He lead the two of them into his office before closing the door. "Mind explaining to me what happened to your face?" Jeremy asked, sitting at his desk.
Honestly, it was only the second day, and this guy already came in with a black eye? This did not seem promising. He had done well on the first day and all, but he didn't need any trouble makers.
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Posted: Wed Apr 18, 2012 11:35 am
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Dante tried to look away from Phil as he approached, doing his best to keep a casual smile upon his face, while trying to make it appear as if he was too busy to hold a real conversation. "Good morning." He replied automatically before wincing a little at the onslaught of questions that followed... the situation went from bad to worst quickly as Jeremy's attention was also directed his way... great just great.... why couldn't a black hole appear and swallow him whole? He could really use with the good luck right about now.
Sighing in defeat he looked over at Jeremy when commanded, even brushed back his fringe so that the other could see the full extent of the mark. Yet, despite that he still tried to cover it up again with his hair before standing and following the pair to the office. Part of him wondered if he should just pitch a tent in the corner of it or something considering how much time he seemed to have spent in here so far. Another part of him wondered if he should run while he still had a chance.
The door closed, and suddenly Dante felt as if his skin was two sizes too small again, this room was just too damn small to contain the unspoken emotions that seemed to churn from the pair. He fidgeted uncomfortable waiting for the questions to begin. He hadn't even thought as far ahead as the meeting in the few days, his main concern had been getting over today.
When the attention of both his bosses was on him he couldn't help but look away, he even went to rub the back of his neck -a reaction of habit, and one that he regretted instantly- he winced, his other arm coming up to hold his chest and his tender broken ribs. Well, that reaction made his decision for him he guessed, no way he could try and claim it was nothing when it was clear he was injured. Sighing he finally looked over at Jeremy, though it was with a tone of nervousness. "My face was struck by a guy unable to take no for an answer." Realising that made him sound like a slut, especially since Jeremy was well aware he had slept with him a mere day earlier. "He followed me off the tube.... a police report has been filed, I could get a copy of it and the hospital report if you insist."
Thinking on his feet he tore his attention away from Jeremy, not really wanting to see whatever emotion flickered across the guys face -would it be pity? Anger? Hatred? Whatever... Dante didn't want to know! Now looking at Phil he offered a sad smile before saying; "There are four days before the presentation. I usually heal quickly...." Ok, so this wasn't the first time he had been hit. "...if it's not gone I will get my neighbour to apply some cover make up or something." Again, something he had done in the past. Though it had only happened twice before each incident was etched into his memory forever. "Or I will sit it out. Your call."
Not sure what he could do or say now he found his eyes wandering away from them both and to the floor, a hand still on his rib cage.... he really needed to take it easy.
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Posted: Wed Apr 18, 2012 1:25 pm
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Jeremy sighed when he heard the story. He wasn't sure what to think at this point. Had Dante been shamelessly flirting with everyone? Seriously, what was so irresistible about this guy that he got hit on wherever he went? Sure, he was attractive and all, but this was ridiculous.
Though, thinking about it, this was just the pot calling the kettle black, since he had hit on him and succeeded with sleeping with him just a couple days ago.
Phil stared at Dante with a look of pity and sympathy before looking back at Jeremy with an insistent look.
"A police report has been filed, I could get a copy of it and the hospital report if you insist."
"That won't be necessary."
Jeremy stared back at Phil calmly after Dante finished talking. Jeremy and Phil seemed to be having a conversation with their eyes. Jeremy knew exactly what Phil wanted him to do, and that was to escort Dante home for a while. But he refused, at least in his head... However, they both knew about Jeremy's weakness for helping people. Jeremy used the tube as well, but they probably lived on the opposite sides of the town. He simply shook his head at Phil.
Phil slouched over more with an even more insistent and pleading look. "Come on!" he mouthed so the other wouldn't notice as he nodded his head towards him.
Jeremy looked over at Dante when prompted and instantly regretted it. Mr. Andrews couldn't even look them in the eye. He looked helpless and defeated to say the least. How could Jeremy resist helping the guy?
Jeremy cleared his throat before saying: "What stop do you get off at?" He waited for Dante to answer, and of course he got off only two stops before his own. Are you kidding me?? Seriously, how had they not seen each other before, what with them always running into each other like this now?
Phil smiled when he heard Dante's answer, and looked back at Jeremy.
Jeremy didn't say anything at first. He could hardly believe his ears. "Mr. Andrews, could you leave for a moment? Mr. Gracie here and I need to discuss this matter in private."
He waited for the other to leave before looking back at Phil and simply saying "No."
"Oh, come on! Why not??"
"I'm pretty sure he and I see enough of each other already," he said sternly. "Honestly, do you not understand the term One Night Stand? You generally avoid ever seeing those people again in your life, and the fact that he works here now is a curse in itself." He paused, sighing, doubting he was going to win this. "Why don't you escort him home?"
"You both live in a completely different direction than me."
"You have a car!"
"Do you know how much gas is these days?"
Strike one. "Well then he can take the bus."
"As if that's any safer."
Strike two. "A taxi, then!" He suggested, pacing the room a bit as he thought of more ways.
"Two taxi drivers were reported to have raped their passengers just a couple weeks ago. Besides, you'd do the same for anyone else in the company if the circumstances were similar."
Strike three, and he was out. He sighed in defeat. "FINE."
Phil smiled brightly and went to bring Dante back in, closing the door once more. He practically hopped into his seat, excited for the other to hear the news. Jeremy simply glared at him for a moment before clearing his throat once more.
"Both Mr. Gracie--"
"Phil," he corrected.
Jeremy clenched his jaw before taking a deep breath. "Phil and I think it would be best if you didn't attend any meetings until your face is healed. Makeup won't be needed. We don't want to take the risk of someone noticing. We'll hand the meeting over to someone else, so you can just work behind the scenes for now."
"Aaaaaaannnnnd?" Phil smiled.
He was tempted to strangle Phil right now. "And," he paused. I can't even believe I'm saying this. "It would appear that you get off the tube just a couple of stops before me. Considering that we get off at the same time, and you seem to have dealt with things like this before...I can escort you on the tube until you get off."
"And by can, he means he will." Phil decided to invoke his authority now.
"However, if that arrangement makes you feel uncomfortable..." he trailed off, waiting for the other's response.
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Posted: Wed Apr 18, 2012 1:56 pm
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Dante felt like a yoyo, or maybe a spinning top was a better description? After all wasn't his life just going round and round in circles? ...and what next? The spinning top eventually had to stop right?
Answering every question without really thinking about them, before finally being asked to leave. Standing outside of the little glass office he felt awkward and overly self-conscious; very much like he had been summoned to the principles office due to bad behaviour. Several colleagues spotted him, offering looks of sympathy before scurrying off... yep, now he felt like the black plaque. The spinning top of doom. Maybe he should start a bowling group or something.
He jumped a little as Phil opened the door to summon him again, he had been so lost in his own thoughts that he hadn't been expecting it.
Dante watched the conversation unfold, and he may have actually smiled at Phil's funny quirks if wasn't still cringing inside. His eyes widened slightly at the offer... well that was the last thing he had expected, what he had expected was 'you're fired' or something else colourful and to that effect... he shook his head without really thinking about anything, taking a step backwards.... what was he trying to run from? He wasn't sure but his hands fisted as he tried to figure out what to do. "I don't need a baby sitter." He finally found himself saying; "It was a one off. He was probably drunk or something.... I - I don't know.... wasn't paying attention to him." His gaze lowered again. Maybe Jeremy had been right yesterday when he challenged Dante on having poor eye contact. Maybe he simply hadn't noticed before.
Bowing, his manners taking over again, "Thank you for your kind offer." Rising again he sighed, "But I don't think this is going to work...." He couldn't bring himself to look at either Jeremy or Phil. His last comment had actually been directed at the job itself... it was just too weird seeing Jeremy day after day. Something that should have been nothing more than a pleasant memory had become the main complication of his life..... but what could Dante do? He needed this job! He had applied for so many jobs before finally getting lucky with this one. His fists tightened, his knuckles appearing white.
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Posted: Wed Apr 18, 2012 2:48 pm
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Dante didn't say another word simply nodded his thanks and left. All the while his mind churned the conversation over and over in his head... if only he had enough courage to call Jeremy out on some of the points. 'It's obvious that my presence alone seems to make you uncomfortable.' Like it was only the case for him? Although Dante supposed he really didn't know Jeremy enough to say for sure that his presence here had any effect on him. From what he could still remember of their brief conversation the guy was fond of his one night stands, it was likely he ran into them accidently from time to time if the number was that high... granted even a player like Jeremy couldn't have predicted that Dante would be his underling the next day.
Sitting at his desk he took a moment to just breath. Would it have changed his mind had he known who Jeremy had been? A huge part of him roared 'yes'... how could he had wanted to willing create this situation? Yet a small part surprised him by siding with 'no'.... all in all their time together had been interesting, and Dante had actually enjoyed playing a part out of his normal comfort zone..... even so... this.... how was he suppose to cope with it? Was it possible he was simply hurting so much because of everything that had happened? The last forty-eight hours had probably been the most action packed of his entire life... and he was pretty sure they had shaved at least seven years off his life expectancy.
Grunting a little he turned to his computer and started to work.
The rest of the day went by much the same, several brave colleagues stopped to ask him how he got the black eye, a few even seemed to think that Jeremy had caused it despite Dante's attempts to diffuse and reject that idea. The office seemed alive with chatter... or maybe he was just sensitive to it since it was about him. All in all it didn't turn out to be too bad a day. Taking more of a back seated role, as they had told him in the meeting, Dante had swapped his slide preps for general errands.... and his finger was actually starting to get a pressure sore from pressing the photocopy button so often.
The end of the day rolled to a stop, and it was only then that Dante realised that he hadn't managed to figure out an answer for his bosses. What was he going to do? Transfer departments? There had been a reason why Dante had requested this department... was that now null and void given the situation before him? He was so confused. He buried his head in his hands in an effort make his thoughts more coherent.
Before he even fully registered what he was doing, his body shuffled awkwardly to a standing position before his feet made their way to Jeremy's office. He knocked, having to wait only a moment for a reply, before being able to opening the door and slip inside.
Standing in front of Jeremy, Dante held his head high as he asked; "What would you rather I did? Is it not just as awkward for you having me here as a constant reminder of what we did?" He was being serious, but it had taken ever ounce of courage he possessed to actually say those words aloud.
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Posted: Wed Apr 18, 2012 3:14 pm
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Jeremy was annoyed today. He had heard some of the rumors spreading about him being the one to give Dante a black eye. As if he had a reason to lay a finger on the guy at this point! So he ended up calling a quick meeting for everyone, lecturing them on wasting time with rumors when they all knew they had more important matters to discuss. He also made sure to clarify that a stranger on the subway had inflicted damage onto Mr. Andrews, and warned everyone who also used it to be careful when doing so.
Some of the females of the department whispered amongst themselves about how worried they were about going home now, and ended up forming groups to go home with, which relieved Jeremy a bit.
So not only did he have to diffuse that ridiculous rumor situation, but he hadn't had sex or really relieved his sexual desires since Dante. He usually only slept with someone once a week, or once every couple weeks, but stress at work was getting to him, and what better way to relieve that stress than with sex?
At the very least, Phil didn't bother him as much today.
He was in the middle of typing up a proposal when he heard a knock on the door and told them that they could come in, expecting it to be Phil. He was surprised, however, to find that it was none other than Dante, standing in front of his desk with a look of determination and seriousness.
He looked at him, waiting for him to say something--perhaps his decision. But instead he got a question.
"What would you rather I did? Is it not just as awkward for you having me here as a constant reminder of what we did?"
Jeremy raised a brow at him, surprised that the other even had the balls to ask him that. He sighed, relaxing back in his seat. "I only feel awkward sometimes because you seem to get awkward whenever I come near. You hesitate more around me, and clearly despise me for one reason or another--probably because I'm hard on you. But nonetheless, you treat even casual meetings as something more than that--like you need to be cautious. I can usually ignore awkwardness among employees, but it's hard to ignore the sense of avoidance. " He looked out his window and saw the mail guy coming around, dropping off everyone's letters and such. "I didn't want to bring this up, but since you probably don't believe me, I'll use examples." He nodded towards him so Dante would look. "You see that man there? Phil slept with him in the mail room. They maintain the usual mail-businessman routine even now," he told him before continuing. "And Louis down the hall? I had sex with him in this very office when I was first starting out. Even Phil and I fooled around in college," he informed casually before continuing to type. "I think it's very possible for us to maintain a fairly normal relationship as long as we're both honest and accepting of the situation, and leave it at that. In other words, it's ultimately your call. I will manage either way, and I'm sure you can do the same."
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