Saturday, August 28, 2017 11:52 am
Hotel Associa
….
Sylas sighed as he waited for the elevator to open. He had absolutely no interest in whatever business lunch his father was dragging him into. He had a thousand other tasks he needed to take care of, which all required more of his attention than this schmoozing session. Ira tapped him on the shoulder when the elevator doors finally parted and all four Uris stepped into an ostentatious hallway. Sylas rolled his eyes at the overt power move. So predictable of Arlo Hato to flaunt his wealth in such a way. His phone vibrated loudly in his pocket and his father sent him a pointed glare. Ignoring the dirty look, he took his phone out to see yet another missed text message from his assistant. He frowned, what could she possibly want at a time like this? He slipped his phone back into his pocket. He would get back to his assistant later…
The doors to where their meeting was to take place opened and immediately he regretted entering the room. Since his first day working at the family business, his father had given him only one rule. Don't shit where you eat. Fraternizing with employees was terrible enough and something he'd never had any interest in. Fucking your business partner- even potential ones- was out of the question. Yet, there she stood. His shame blasted in broad daylight. Amia...Hato. How could he have made such a mistake? Mistake…that was an apt way to describe what happened last night. Sylas heard his mother audibly gasp at his right. What she was surprised by he wasn't quite sure. Since when did his mother associate with Hatos?
The moment he entered the room, their eyes locked and he watched as all of the color drained from her face. He looked away from her and tried to focus on the hollow pleasantries being exchanged. Even though seeing her was an unexpected development, he would not allow it to impede whatever business his father was trying to conduct. Not even a ridiculously bashful, doe-eyed mistake would get in the way of that.
"Please be seated. The meal will be served shortly." Arlo directed and the Uris took the seats provided for them.
Felix pulled out a chair to his left for Maria to sit in before taking his place in front of Arlo. Ira sat on Felix's other side, leaving the last available seat open directly in front of Amia. She looked like a deer caught at a headlight at his approach and he would have found the expression amusing if it were occurring in any other context but this one. When they were finally seated, two servers emerged with carts ladened with various drink choices. If only one of those choices were a stiff glass of whiskey. Given the circumstances, he was forced to settle for water.
"Your daughters have grown to be very beautiful, Arlo." Maria smiled warmly at both Hato women as she sipped her tea. "I can see Hikari in both of them."
"You are too kind." Arlo replied stiffly while his daughters both nodded respectfully in Maria's direction.
"You are much too humble." Maria said and placed her teacup back into its saucer.
"So about this 'proposition'." Felix interjected calmly, not one for small talk.
Arlo cleared his throat and eight servers approached and placed black leather binders before everyone. Sylas cracked open his binder and slowly rifled through its contents. The room was silent as the occupants consumed the information. Sylas glanced up from his papers to see Arlo and Felix sitting rigidly, neither one breaking eye contact. Sylas rolled his eyes at the pissing contest between the two men.
"Father," Ira spoke up as he closed his binder. "this is a proposal for-"
"A merger, yes," Felix replied. Sylas closed his binder and leaned back into his chair. So that was what this meeting was all about. "I have yet to be convinced of its necessity."
Arlo was unfazed by Felix's blunt verbal jab. Instead, he clapped his hands twice and motioned to a screen that was being lowered from the ceiling. All of the lights when out in the room as the projector whirred to life. Sylas glanced over at Amia who seemed to have made it her mission to ignore that he was even in the room. Arlo stood and pointed a laser at a rather extensive graph on the screen.
"As you can see from this graph, our biggest competitor Ty Co's stocks in weapons, real estate, and aviation are up. They are making more and more aggressive moves to please their shareholders. It has gotten to the point that there are rumors that they plan to start swallowing up some of our smaller competitors." Arlo explained.
Felix interlocked his fingers in thought as he leaned back in his chair.
"I have had this same intelligence presented." Felix said. "What does it have to do with us?"
Arlo smirked and moved the screen to the following graphic. This particular one was quite familiar as Sylas had just gotten it in an email this morning. He clenched his fists under the table. The beginnings of Arlo's plan were taking shape and wouldn't bode well for their company.
"Uri stocks have been on the decline for a while now. The private sector is much more volatile lately and my sources tell me there has been internal strife among your ranks. It is rumored that there are stock buybacks on the horizon to consolidate your losses…a frowned-upon practice. I am proposing a way to avert such a crisis."
"Are you are trying to blackmail us into joining you?" Felix growled and stood up from his seat, his temper flaring up. Maria placed a hand on his forearm in an effort to calm him. "You've invited me here to insult me in front of my family."
"Felix, just listen to what he has to say first before jumping to conclusions." She said softly but the Uri patriarch would not listen to her calm logic.
"We will not sit here and listen to a damn thing this man has to say."
"I mean no offense to be taken." Arlo said calmly, unfazed by the escalation of tension. "I only speak the truth. We have guaranteed government contracts to bolster your stocks and you have the expansive network for us to expand further as a company and fulfill any future government bids and private demand. This would blunt Ty Co's aims out of the market and strengthen our own profits. This is something that would benefit both of us."
"My company is more than capable of withstanding direct competition with Ty Co. If you are worried about them snatching up your precious contracts then that is a personal problem. It is not something I wish to involve my company in."
"Then you are signing yourself and everyone else up for ruin. Ty Co is already in negotiations with Sydel Inc. It will be a huge merge. Sydel is your direct competition- a company you underestimated instead of acquiring when you had the chance. Of course if you just do nothing this time as you did the last, you will be swallowed by them."
"What are you talking about?" Felix growled.
"Your shareholders are playing games behind your back and under the government's nose."
Arlo changed the screen once more. Felix's face turned ashen as he analyzed the stock ticker's constant change on the screen. Twenty-five percent of their shares were rapidly changing hands with associates known to have direct ties with the Sydel. Sylas leaned back in his chair, blood boiling, as he watched their stock get traded for mere pennies of what it was worth due to the manipulation.
"This manipulation is happening with our stocks as well. They are trying to weaken us just enough so that they will be able to drive down the value and buy up enough shares to have a say in our operations. If we were to merge, what they are currently doing will be useless as we buy back our unsold stocks, restructure, and go public again on the market. Otherwise, we will both keep losing shareholders whose stocks will then be fair game. "
"For all of your calculations and maneuvers you are forgetting one thing in this plan of yours." Felix said, finally tearing his eyes away from the screen to look at Arlo.
"Oh?" Arlo asked.
"The reason all of this has to be happening in the first place."
The two men stared each other down, the tension in the room mounting with each passing second. Arlo clapped his hands and the lights turned back on. He then turned back to his audience and motioned towards the door.
"Please, give us a moment."
…..
Saturday, August 28, 2017 12:34pm
Hotel Associa
…..
"Well, that was intense." The younger Hato girl sighed as they made their exit from the room. Sylas couldn't help but agree with the sentiment.
"Aviva!" Amia reprimanded softly but the girl just shrugged and headed for the elevator.
"Whatever. I'm going to get some fresh air."
"I will escort you." The male Hato whose name he couldn't remember said and Aviva balked at his statement.
"I'm seventeen years old. I don't need a babysitter!"
"Clearly you do." he said, placing a hand on her head and pushing her forward. "I hope you don't think that your absence went unnoticed by virtue of your own ability, do you? Amia, keep a lookout. Text me when our presence is needed again."
"I need a make a few phone calls." Ira mumbled as he patted Sylas' shoulder, phone already in his other hand, scrolling through his extensive contacts list. "Send me a message when they reopen the room."
Sylas scowled as his so-called brother swiftly slid into the elevator with the two Hatos, leaving him to fend for himself. Amia stood in front of the elevator with a forced smile as she waved goodbye to her cousin and sister. Her back immediately tensed when the doors shut and she didn't turn around to face him. Inwardly, his mood worsened. Sylas leaned against the wall opposite the elevators and closed his eyes. He had other things to think about that didn't involve the mistake in front of him. Out of sight out of mind right? Unfortunately, his mind kept replaying the events of the night before. Behind his eyelids, he watched her writhe underneath him, plump pink lips moaning his name repeatedly. He opened his eyes and frowned- out of sight out of mind certainly wasn't going to work.
"So you are a Hato." He mused aloud as he pushed off the wall and walked up behind her. She tensed at his encroachment into her personal space.
"And you are a Uri." She replied. "More specifically you are the one who has been blowing off my emails."
"The proposition was poor and the KPI's unreasonable."
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Amia whipped around to face him with a scary look in her eye. She poked him hard in the middle of his chest.
"Your marketing team was the one that sent out the inquiry in the first place." She hissed and Sylas couldn't help but feel a fire flare up in him at the frustration on her face. He wanted to see just how far he could push this woman.
"I have the final say on all bids." He growled, taking a step forward and causing her to step back. "My word supersedes all others."
"The bid was more than generous. You had no grounds with to reject it." She responded harshly but gasped when her back hit the cold marble wall behind her.
Briefly, she reminded him of a kitten that had found itself in an outmatched alley fight. The sight pushed him further into her personal space until their chests were pressed together. Soft notes of the vanilla conditioner she must have used this morning wafted to his nose and he had to fight not to be overtaken by it. Mentally he slapped himself to reality. Was he really so desperate to make the same mistake twice? And with her of all people? Whatever delusion had befallen him for the last few seconds had not affected Amia as she continued to look him dead in the eye.
"At the very least you should have responded the first time."
"Hn. Did I hurt your Hato pride? You lot are used to getting your way." He teased.
"It's called common courtesy, something you appear to lack."
"So the kitten bites back."
He resisted the urge to laugh when her face turned bright red and her mouth opened and closed like a fish. Sensing that if he pushed her much farther she might spontaneously combust, he backed away. It was fortunate that he had when a moment later, the door to their meeting room reopened and his mother poked her head out. She looked at the rather unnerved expression on Amia's face before turning to look at him suspiciously. Sylas merely shrugged his shoulders to convey his innocence which he was sure his mother didn't believe.
….
Saturday, August 28, 2017
Hotel Associa- Front Lobby
…..
Aviva was many things. Irresponsible. Lazy. Stubborn. Or at least that’s what Ezra said she was. It’s not like he was wrong but hearing him nag at her for the umpteenth time got old really fast. Especially when she was hungry. Starving really. She hadn’t had anything to eat in over twenty-four hours. So what was a girl to do when she had a mother hen buzzing in one ear, and hunger cues begging in the other? Lose the dead weight of course.
It wasn’t hard to lose Ezra amongst the bustling crowds of tourists and businesspeople bustling around the lobby. All it took was him bending down to retie his shoe and in less than a second she had disappeared. It wasn’t like he could call out to her either. He was too much of a stick in the mud to look panicked and cause a scene. The only problem she had now was trying to find a vending machine.
‘If I was a vending machine where would I be?’ she thought as a sign indicating where the ice machine would be beckoned.
She followed the arrows down a side hall, the noise of the lobby becoming increasingly distant. It took two more turns for her to find the ice machine and when she did she was rewarded with her hypothesis being correct. Only…she wasn’t alone in her desperation for food. A black suit jacket abandoned in a heap and lying in from of the vending machine was Ira Uri. His arm was inside the front slot of the machine, face twisted in concentration. A bag of chips was stuck just at the bottom rung- so close to freedom. Her stomach growled. She didn’t have time for this!
“You know there are better ways to get that unstuck right?” she said, crossing her arms.
Ira looked up from his position on the ground, mildly surprised to see her. She watched as he rose to his feet and dusted imaginary dirt off of himself. He then gestured to the machine with a smug look on his face.
“Be my guest Ms. Hato.”
Aviva rolled her eyes at the thinly veiled skepticism in his words. She then pulled out a dollar and chose a snack of her own, gummy candy. Unfortunately, it too got stuck…on the last rung…so close to freedom. Out of the corner of her eye, she notice Ira’s smirk turn into a smile. An ‘I told you so smile.’ Those were the kind she hated the most.
Unwilling to back down she put in another dollar but this time the machine wouldn’t accept it. Again and again she tried to insert the bill but it kept getting rejected. It wasn’t long before she was on the floor just like Ira, wiggling her arm into the front slot to no avail. Speaking of Ira, she glared at the strange man. The least he could do was make himself useful!
“Shake the machine” she said and Ira frowned at the request.
“There are cameras.”
“So?”
“I could break the glass.”
Aviva sat up and huffed. He didn’t look strong enough to do that much damage. He was tall but unimpressive. She’d seen way tougher-looking men as of late.
“I doubt it.”
“And what do I do when security comes?”
“Run.”
Ira blinked once. Then twice. Her statement seemed to break his brain for a moment. Only a moment before a deep laugh erupted from his throat. Her stomach growled.
“You are a funny one aren’t you?” He chuckled before offering a hand to help her up.
Aviva eyed the outstretched hand incredulously. Funny. That was a new one but she didn’t see how what she said was funny. She had been dead serious.
“Come on. Let’s get some real food. My treat.”
Aviva immediately grabbed his hand and popped to her feet at the prospect. Free food and a legitimate excuse to escape her family for a few hours? What could be better?!
…..
Saturday, August 28, 2017 3:55pm
1045 Wilmington Way: Ellie & Iris Residence
…..
"Wooooooow." Ellie whistled.
Amia nodded as best as she could with her forehead pressed against the cool granite countertop. As soon as her father and Felix Uri had reached some semblance of a stalemate, she raced over to Iris's house, eager to no longer breathe the same air as Felix's second son. How had she let her guard down for the likes of him? The sound of glasses being placed on the stone countertop perked her up slightly. She turned from her forehead to her cheek and sent Iris a weak smile as the blonde set a healthy portion of red wine in front of her.
"Thank you." Amia said softly and peeled her face off the countertop to take a small sip.
Ellie reached out from across the counter and ruffled her bangs playfully.
"Well, at least now we know why you didn't answer any of our calls or text messages last night." The brunette teased.
Amia blushed as she tried to fix the hair that Ellie had mused. She hadn't told Iris and Ellie everything, just enough for them to get the gist of her internal dilemma. They didn't press or pry when she showed up on their doorstep with a dark cloud of shame hanging over her head. They merely cracked open a much-needed bottle of wine in the middle of the day and declared that it was five o'clock somewhere.
After a bottle had been polished off, Amia recounted the previous night's events, leaving out the tense occurrence of the business luncheon. She was careful to not identify the man she had been with though. That arrogant, incorrigible, prick of a man! She quickly gulped the red liquid down and slammed her glass on the counter when she had finished.
"Careful Ami! We just got these!" Ellie chuckled as she took the glass from Amia and carefully filled it back up. "You don't want us to go back to drinking out of mugs do you?"
"Sorry." She mumbled.
"Don't worry about it. Anyway, Ellie and I have plenty of embarrassing stories. You've heard them all. It doesn't sound like this was that bad of an encounter." Iris mused thoughtfully. "The summer heat, the cool breeze, the vivacious aura of life. All of that mixing together is enough to make anyone fall in love for a night!"
Amia and Ellie looked at their daydreaming friend skeptically before sharing a knowing look. Iris was always a hopeless romantic and looked for the positives in everything. It was a wonder that she managed to still retain that optimism with a stubborn realist for a roommate. Amia shrugged her shoulders and took another sip of wine. She supposed such idealism was required of someone who spent all day in the company of flora.
"Love had nothing to do with it Iris." Ellie chided and the blonde frowned.
"You are such a buzz kill." Iris pouted but grinned when Ellie sent her a playful salute.
"Anyway, I'm just glad you're getting back out there."
"I don't want to be out there. Last night was should have never happened and definitely will not be repeated." Amia frowned as she swirled her wine glass pensively.
"Well, it's not like you will ever see him again. No harm, no foul." Ellie was comforted when the doorbell rang.
Amia perked up as Iris ran across the living room of her tiny apartment to answer it. The front door swung open and suddenly the room was filled with high-pitched squeals and giggles. That could only be due to the presence of their long but not lost friend. Sara had finally returned to the city. Amia smiled as Sara and Iris hugged each other and hurled insults. Amia wasn't particularly close to Sara, preferring to spend more time in the less high-strung aura of Ellie. Still, the pink-haired woman always livened the mood and rounded out their small group. When the two boisterous women finally calmed down, Sara skipped over to where the other occupants were. She first gave Ellie a hug before going around the counter and gripping the petite Hato tightly.
"Awwwwwww I missed everyone so much!" Sara squealed as she finally let Amia go. "You suck for standing us up last night!"
Amia blushed and smiled.
"Sorry!"
"Yeah yeah! Guess what!" Sara announced dramatically as she pulled a bottle of white wine out of her bag. "We can celebrate tonight too! I just got a phone call from my boss! We are staying in New York for much longer than anticipated!"
"What?!" Iris shrieked and Sara nodded her head furiously.
"No lie! I'm going apartment hunting tomorrow!"
Amia smiled as she watched Iris and Sara do a happy jig around the kitchen but she knew it didn't quite meet her eyes. Her embarrassment and frustration from the day's events just wouldn't allow her to share in her friends' joy. Ellie seemed to pick up on this and patted Amia's hand gently.
"You worry too much Ami. Just take the experience for what it was and leave it at that."
Amia nodded and sent Ellie a small, reassuring smile. The brunette retracted her hand and rested her head on it. There was a mischievous glint in her eyes as she raised her glass to her lips.
"Was it at least good?" Ellie asked bluntly and Amia felt her face turn bright red.
'Oh god yes!' Amia reflexively thought as she avoided looking at Ellie's suggestive eyebrow wiggles and focused on the women dancing around the kitchen.
It was not just good. No. It had been the best sex she'd ever had. Not that she had that much experience under her belt to compare it to but it was true nonetheless. The physical, animalistic intimacy had been incredible but the person...well, that was lacking. If only he didn't throw her off kilter by his very existence. If only he wasn't so full of himself. If only she didn't feel like she was drowning when he looked at her with those calculating obsidian eyes. If only he wasn't a Uri. Amia squeezed her eyes closed and laid her burning face back to its previous position on the countertop. She groaned. Ellie chuckled and patted the top of her head sympathetically.
"I'll take that as a yes."
...
Monday, August 30, 2017, 6:00 am
Hato Enterprises
...
Spending time with her friends always had a way of recharging her battery and keeping the 'Monday scaries' at bay. Amia smiled as she walked through the automatic doors of their headquarters and went straight for the elevators. The sky was clear, there had been no traffic on the way to work, and oddly enough she had actually gone to sleep easily for the first time in forever. When she woke up she couldn't explain it but she was in an abnormally good mood for a Monday morning. Even Aviva had taken notice as she scowled from across the table over her cereal. Grey eyes narrowed and her curly brown hair barely slicked back into an acceptable hair tie.
Amia giggled as she remembered her sister's sour look as Ezra made sure to escort the youngest Hato to school. Mondays were the bane of Aviva's existence and with her recent unexplained escapades, it was best that someone at least ensured she walked through the school's front doors. Shaking her head in amusement, Amia repressed the up button. The elevator was running rather slow this morning. No matter, she was early like she always was. It wouldn't hurt to spare a few moments of her day waiting. She should still be able to accomplish her usual morning routine. Emails over coffee that she intended to drink but never did. Meeting with her father. More emails. Blending in with the crowd during lunch in her floor's kitchen. More emails. The usual…
Behind her, an unfamiliar man and woman dressed in dark suits and armed with stacks of manilla folders walked up. Amia glanced at the pair conversing in hushed tones, she had never seen them here before. A few more people began to join the queue and Amia breathed a sigh of relief when the elevator finally arrived. The doors opened and a pile of people poured out.
'What in the world?' she thought. 'There are way too many people here this early.'
Had her father sold some of the office space in the building? Real Estate was lucrative in the city, but her father had prided himself on owning and operating this little slice of the world. A mini fiefdom where he ruled was not something he would parcel out. She scurried into the elevator and was quickly smashed into the back as everyone milling about behind her also crammed in. When it seemed like the elevator couldn't hold another person, yet another body squeezed its way in. Irritation crept into the back of her mind but she pushed it away. There had to be a good, reasonable explanation for this early influx. Besides, she shouldn't let something like this ruin her morning.
When the elevator finally reached her floor it wasn't as packed but there were still a fair amount of people she had to push past. Upon exiting the elevator, she tugged on her blazer a bit and headed purposefully down the hall to her corner office. Her end of the hallway was relatively untouched by people milling about; the silence in the corner allowed her to breathe a sigh of relief. This was her oasis. Here she was in power. She was in control and she had a lot of work to do. Today was going to be a good day. She turned the doorknob and opened the door to reveal an office in utter chaos.
Her filing cabinets had been emptied, papers and files stacked in various piles on the floor. Her desk drawers had been emptied of their contents, and office supplies were spread haphazardly over the desk. Unfamiliar furnishings were pushed against the walls and in the center of the chaos was a certain raven-haired demon, calmly sipping a cup of coffee and analyzing a stack of her files. Amia felt her purse slip from her grasp as she stared in horror at the destruction. The devil himself turned his dark gaze towards her and frowned.
"Do you always show up to work so late?"