Charles let out a silent breath, one that he had been holding ever since he stepped in front of the door to the office. His eyes rolled to the back as his hand circled the knob and he pushed the door slightly, the familiar sight falling upon him.
He had entered the office more times than he cared to admit or count but he never knew what to expect whenever he went in. He was not supposed to be the littlest intimidated by his best friend but he knew what he was capable of.
He closed the door behind him and walked closer to the large table in the center of the room. The large glass windows were the first thing he always looked at when he entered the room and it was no different this time.
As usual, the man behind the desk did not bother to look up at who had entered his office. He kept a straight face at the laptop on his desk and did not bother to acknowledge the person in the room. He did not bother because he knew that it was his best friend, only he entered the office without knocking or letting him know through his secretary. Only Charles had the guts.
Charles tapped his shoe on the well-polished wooden floor and waited for the attention he was seeking but he received none. He sighed in frustration and let out a fake cough and smiled when the pair of blue gray eyes were no longer on the screen but on him.
"What do you want?" Benjamin's voice was filled with irritation.
Charles' smile did not falter despite Benjamin's curtness. He was already accustomed to this side of him but that never meant that he never hoped for his friend to be more sensitive. Benjamin had lost his sensitive side when he lost his only support and was forced to join the business at an early age.
The stress never seemed to end. Somehow, Charles was sure that Benjamin constantly punished himself with the work to occupy his mind. He was a workaholic. Charles knew that he could not drag his friend back from the land of the "non-living" but that did not mean that he could not try.
"You my friend are lucky because I have taken my time to visit you today." He exclaimed, pointing at Benjamin.
"You visit me every day." Benjamin replied with raised eyebrows.
"That is why you are a lucky man."
Charles dusted off the imaginary dust on his suit as he took a sit in front of Benjamin and sighed. He made himself comfortable and crossed his legs. Benjamin looked at him, awaiting his next antic.
"I don't understand your secretary at times." He started and Benjamin only looked at him with an amused smile. "She's obviously hot but seems like her brain is burning too. She actually asked me why I wanted to see you." He shook his head and pointed his finger to his chest. "Me! I come here every day and she decided to ask that question today, how daft." He rolled his eyes.
Benjamin knew that Charles' story would turn into another one and later on into a whole story of how his day had begun. Benjamin's eyes and mind was more concentrated on the red file in Charles' hands more than anything. He eyed Charles one more time and knew that if he did not stop him soon, it would become a whole movie that could not pause.
"Charles." He cut him short and Charles let out a sigh. He handed him the file and sat back, deeper into the seat.
Benjamin opened the file once it was placed in his hands and his eyes scanned through the printed papers that were neatly filed. He placed the file on the table once he had checked for what he was looking for. He had gotten what he wanted.
"Anything I need to know?" he looked up at Charles.
"We are going to start the construction as early as eight on Thursday." He informed him, earning a nod from the other male.
"That's the news I have looking forward to for the last two weeks." Benjamin settled back into his seat.
Charles was having an inner battle, his heart was now thumping wildly as he thought of how to break the news to his friend. Charles had stuck around long enough to know that Benjamin and his father were not the best of allies in the same business. Benjamin simply tolerated his father, nothing more than that.
Every time Benjamin received news from his father, it never brought a smile on his face instead it ruined the rest of his day. Charles was never the one to convey messages between Benjamin and his father but he was now the bearer of the news and it did not make him a tad bit happy.
Benjamin saw the thoughtful and worried look on the man across from him and his eyebrows creased. He wondered as to what could make Charles think as much.
"What else?" he asked as Charles looked up at him. He knew that whatever Charles was about to say would not please him and a part of him told him that it was the same thing that he had heard from different men every day for the last month.
"Well....your father says he needs results and not excuses." He breathed it out.
He knew very well what the result was supposed to be. He despised the fact that his father was the one who made it possible that he lost his way. He hated the fact that his own father looked at him like another employee and not the heir. He abhorred the fact that his father was the cause of his demise and constantly threatened him when he needed something to be done. All in all, he disliked his father.
He always looked forward to taking over after his father when he was growing up but he learnt that it was not as easy as it seemed after his mother passed. It was not just about wearing an expensive suit and shoes. It was not just about carrying a briefcase while stepping down the stairs and kissing you kids and wife goodbye. It definitely was not just about sitting behind a large desk and ordering the employees around.
It was not as easy.
He learnt the hard way when he was forced into the business at the age of eighteen. He remembered the tragic death of his mother and how he was still in grieving when his "father" took him into the large office and instructed- no...Commanded him to seat behind the huge wooden desk.
He did not remember the last time he had peaceful sleep or a real good time with friends ever since that day, neither could Charles. He had become a coffee addict and the dark circles under his eyes never disappeared.
"Why does he not ever say these things straight to my face?"
"Um... I would not be able to know that." Charles replied with a thoughtful look on his face. "I mean your father can be quite mysterious....kind of like father like son." He said mulling over his words.
"I'm not anything like my father,"
"I wouldn't be too sure if I were you."
Benjamin glared at Charles, causing him to raise his arms in surrender.
"Just saying." He said as he stood up from his seat. "I'm coming to pick you at seven, not later than that."
"I'm going to be busy." Benjamin replied and eyed his laptop.
Charles shook his head and placed his hands in the front pockets of his trousers. He knew that there was going to be an excuse but he was going to be persuasive. It had been a while since he had spent time with his best friend and that was all that he desired to do.
"We're just going to toast at finally getting that site project." He said with a smile. Benjamin raised his head and looked at Charles.
"There's whiskey right in this office. We can have a toast." He replied and crossed his arms in front of his chest.
Charles rolled his eyes. "Seven it is." He countered and started heading for the door. "Look good." He added.
"I always look good." He replied smugly and Charles only shook his head.
Just as Charles was about to walk out of the office, Benjamin spoke.
"Tell the girl that she can pack her stuff." He said and looked back at his laptop.
