The Mysterious Mr. Black

6

"Ohohoho! Am I seeing what I'm seeing?" a loud voice somewhat got me back to reality. Hector came into our table and inserted himself between Mr. Black and I. He was a little bit tipsy, you can smell the alcohol in his breath.

"It's been ages since I saw you here! Did Madison finally gave you the permission to roam free?" Mr. Black did not respond so Hector turned his attention to me.

"You're drinking buddies with Magnus. Are you besties now?"

I also did not say a word because I didn't know what to say.

"Am I talking to rocks? Helloooo? Anybody?"

"Shut the fuck up Hector." Mr. Black interrupted. Hector smiled broadly and clapped.

"Finally! A talking human being! So tell me how's life?" After Mr. Black kept his silence, he turned to me again.

"We just met yesterday... Sir?" Funny how alcohol can make a person weird.

"Ah yes! The first ever male secretary of Magnus. You said my name sounds like a famous pornstar."

I sink myself lower in embarrassment. Mr. Black is here. He just apprehended me this morning.

"Ahhh. Don't hide yourself. Magnus said that to me first. Right Black?" Hector said in an assuring way. I leaned forward and looked at Mr. Black. He was so angry this morning about my remark and yet he said it first. Well I get that they're friends but you know, it must be somewhat true because he thought about it first.

"You must be a damn good assistant because Mr. Black invited you for a drink. Maybe I should hire you myself?" Mr. Mason commented. To say that I am flattered is an understatement, you can say that my ass is laughing with glee. I never received a single compliment from Mr. Black.

"Send your resume to my company and I'll directly hire you. You know-- ow!" Hector stopped speaking and massaged his left arm. "Now I finally got your attention!" he said to Mr. Black

"Try stealing my employees and I'll bankrupt your company." Mr. Black threatened dryly.

"Why are you always so heartless? You know, my cousin is not like this before he was-"

"Get the hell out of here Hector!" Mr. Black finally raised his voice. It seems like he's now really annoyed.

"Alright. Alright. Fine! Sheesh. You're like a girl on menstruation." Hector left us and joined his friends nearby. Thanks to Mr. Black it became silent again. We drank in solitude until the bottle became empty. Mr. Black left a wad of cash on the table and I knew it's time to leave.

When I tried to stand, the floor seemed to have twisted. I didn't anticipate the drink to have this much effect on me. The sudden dizziness caused me to grab for support and the nearest support that I could grab is Mr. Black. Fuck!

Mr. Black is not as drunk as I am because we did not fell together. It actually feels like I leaned on a wall because of his hard body. He helped me support myself and ordered me to move forward.

Somehow I didn't feel embarrassed about what happened. The alcohol must have reached my brain. Every step I take and my vision starts to swirl. As we went down the lounge, I saw people dancing on the floor. The loud music tempting me. I am not fond of dancing myself but tonight I seem to have lost inhibitions and care of the world.

"Let's dance." I involuntary muttered. Mr. Black looked behind his back to look at me. His forehead crinkled.

"Never mind." I didn't know why I sounded disappointed saying that. I'm not even a dancer.

"No. Let's go." he gestured me to lead the way going to dancefloor which I gladly did. I started to move my body in tune with the music. I don't usually dance so I just imitated the moves of other people on the dancefloor. Every movement I made feels like I am free. Free from everything. Work. Pressure. Bills. The past. Everything. It's just me and the dancefloor. But then I saw Mr. Black staring at me so serious and suddenly I felt self-conscious on what I'm doing.

"Let's just go." I said.

"No. You're having fun." He replied.

"I don't want to be the only one dancing."

And so we went back to the car. I feel warm, and sweaty, and dizzy. I also feel like I'm gonna puke so I closed my eyes before the car could even move forward. This was the first time in years that I felt so drunk.

---

There was a car crash.

A red car badly damaged. A tree cut off.

This is where it all started. A drunk driver being careless about any consequences.

Whispers.

I can hear whispers.

I tried finding the source of the sound and I saw my 17 year old self standing on the grassy field of Carmona Rosa. And as I went closer, I can finally hear what he's saying.

"Murderer."

-----

I opened my eyes once I realized that I'm dreaming again. The pesky dreams are back again. Everytime I drink or my emotions are heightened, the past comes back and haunts me in my dreams.

I am still in the limousine with Mr. Black. I currently don't know where we are right now.

"Bad dreams?" he asked me in a way that I don't know if he's concerned or just would like to confirm if he was right.

"Yeah." I wiped the sweat from my forehead using my sleeve. My clothes are almost wet with sweat.

I opened the window to my side to cool myself down. In a few moments the car stopped in front of a fancy looking apartment building.

"You can sleep here if you want. You look tired and you didn't mentioned to us where you lived."

I'm literally dumbfounded. Mr. Black is offering me to sleep in his apartment. Is this concern or an elaborate plan for something else? I don't really trust him. He is after all my cold-hearted boss.

"Come on. I don't want to hear the word no."

I reluctantly went out of the car because he sounded irritated and impatient. The car finally sped off. I'm not sure if my apartment is nearby so I might as well take his offer to sleep in his apartment. I am awfully tired to make a wise decision right now.

It's not my first time seeing a luxurious looking facilities but every trip with Mr. Black is making me feel poorer and broke.

Apparently Mr. Black lives in the Penthouse. How obviously cliché for a wealthy man like Mr. Black. Everything is a show of power. They always like to be on top.

His apartment is wide and just like him, no personality can be seen. It's very minimalistic, the colors you can see is just black and white.

I found a sofa large enough for me to sleep so I suggested to Mr. Black that I will be sleeping there.

"I have another room there." he objected.

"No sir. It's okay. I'm fine sleeping here." before he could even object to what I said, I laid myself on the couch.

"Fine. It's your decision."

"Good night Mr. Black." I said before closing my eyes. I heard his footsteps getting away. I didn't expect him to reply but then he stopped walking. It must be the alcohol that I drank but before my vision turned dark, I heard a faint voice that said:

"Good night."