I arrived at work early in the morning. I had a renewed energy about me. I had settled into a nice new apartment, I had a job I liked, and I had a great girl who worked in the same mall with me. I felt like I was on top of the world.
"You see the sales results for this week yet?" Marc asked.
"No, not yet. How are we looking?" I responded.
"'We'? I like that."
"What?"
"No, that's good. You really seem concerned about the overall store performance, and not just your own," he said. "Too many people are only out for themselves and forget we're a team. In the last few weeks, you really demonstrated your passion towards the team. Last week you dominated the sales once again, but everyone else's sales have also improved since you've been here. We are up twelve percent from this time last year and I can't help but think you're an integral part of that."
"Wow, thank you, I'm flattered."
"Let me ask you something, Trevor. What do you want to do with your life?"
"I'm not too sure yet, I'm still trying to figure that out. I enjoy sales so maybe I will open up my own store someday when I get enough experience."
"How would you like the opportunity to get that experience?" he said with a big smile.
"I would like that very much, what do you have in mind?"
"We have a manager trainee program here and I would like to offer you the position to be our manager trainee."
"Are you being serious?" I asked.
"Yes, I'm confident you have what it takes to be a successful manager. When I first met you, your leadership skills hit me like a brick wall. You had such an undeniable confidence in yourself and it is quite inspiring. Not to mention you can back it up too. You're not cocky about it either, you're very humble."
"Thank you."
"So what do you say, would you like to be our new manager trainee?"
"Yes, of course," I said enthusiastically.
"Great, that's what I wanted to hear. So as you may know, with any promotion, there are some benefits. You will get a raise from $8.50 an hour to $12.00 per hour. The commission scale also increases so you can earn a lot more on top of that. You will be in charge of the daily operations of the store. So if any employees have any problems, they will go to you first. You will be in charge of the scheduling, hiring, training and of course you still have to sell."
"Okay, that sounds great."
"Here's your STAMP manual." Marc handed me a thick white binder.
"Study this. There are progress reports in there that you have to complete and get me to sign. Once you complete the course, you can be a real manager."
"Thanks again, I really appreciate it."
"Congratulations, you deserve it," Marc said with a proud smile as he shook my hand.
"There's one other thing," he said.
"Okay, what's that?"
"I want you to give a talk at our next staff meeting this Thursday. It will be a good way to introduce your new position to the rest of the team and give them a chance to learn about some of the things that make you so successful here."
"Sure no problem, what would you like me to talk about?"
"Sales," he said plain and simple.
"Okay, sure, no problem."
***
After my shift, I went over to Ashley's house. "Hey," I said, as I greeted her with a kiss.
"What's up?" she asked.
"Oh nothing much," I said coyly. It was obvious I was hiding something because I was trying to conceal the huge grin on my face.
"What's under your arm?" she asked.
"What this? Oh this is nothing. It's just my STAMP manual."
She grabbed the binder and read the title. "Store Trainee Advanced Management Program. Oh my god, are you training to become a manager?" she said with more enthusiasm than I expected.
"Yeah, I was promoted today."
"Congratulations, Trevor. I'm really proud of you."
"Thanks."
"We should celebrate."
"Okay, what do you have in mind?"
***
The entire place was outfitted in ancient Greek décor. In the front of the restaurant was a large statue of what resembled the face of Parmenides on Zeus's body. I couldn't figure out if this was an insult to Zeus's face or Parmenides' body. I figured it was probably both.
The atmosphere was buzzing, as usual. The place was always busy. It was not so much that the food was good, but the portions were huge, and it was also really cheap. After an hour of waiting, we were just happy to get a table.
"I feel like I'm on my way, you know? I'm happy Darrell is out of my life and things are finally looking up again."
"Darrell sounds like a real loser, I'm glad I didn't have to meet him."
"I'm glad you didn't have to meet him as well. He might have sucked you into his vortex and ruined your life too."
"It's interesting how you told me how you were thriving without him, then you meet up with him and almost instantly you lose everything, and as soon as you get rid of him, you thrive again - you have a new job, a promotion, more money... and me!"
"Yeah, some people are just like that, you know? Everything they touch just turns to rubble. Unfortunately for me, I had to find out the hard way."
"Yes, but it also says a lot about your character and what kind of person you are when you are unhindered."
"Yeah, he was like a cancer to me, like kryptonite to Clark Kent."
"But now you're cured."
***
We paid for our bill and discussed what to do next. The night was still young - the sun was about to set and the skies were clear.
"Let's go down to the beach and watch the sunset," she suggested.
We walked slowly west down Davie Street, holding hands and taking in the warm summer air.
"Hey!" a recognizable voice shouted out from across the street. I turned around and sure enough, it was Darrell. He was with his good-for-nothing sister, Carla, and they were eager to approach us. "Where's my money?"
"What are you talking about?" I said. We were now standing face to face. I let go of Ashley's hand in case Darrell tried to fight me. He was a bit of a loose cannon - a dimwitted thug with a quick temper - always a dangerous combination.
"What do you mean 'what am I talking about?'" he responded, showing no attempt to conceal his ignorance.
"Look, Darrell, I don't owe you any money, okay."
"No, you 'look'. The way I see it..." he paused, as he took a moment to look around trying to act like some Mafia Don. The whole spectacle would be somewhat amusing if it wasn't for the fact that he looked like he was about to punch my lights out. I was not afraid of him, but I definitely wanted to avoid a conflict, especially tonight.
"I had to pay my dad four grand and now you owe me half of that."
"First of all, I don't owe you or your dad a thing. If anything, you guys owe me. I invested over three thousand dollars of my own money into the business and then earned another couple thousand dollars, and I didn't see a dime in return. Not to mention all the time and energy I spent as well. Plus you still have the truck and all the equipment. So if you think I owe you anything, take it out of that and we'll call it even."
I grabbed Ashley's hand again and we walked across the street. I said what I needed to say and I was not really interested in hearing whatever he had to say.
"Get 'im, Darrell," Carla chimed in for the first time, demonstrating she could be just as ignorant as her brother. "He's basically telling you to go to hell. You just gonna let him do that to you, Darrell?" she said, fueling her brother. He eventually took the bait. I turned around and saw Darrell and Carla slog across the street like the trolls they were. He didn't look like he wanted to chat anymore.
Darrell positioned himself in front of us to cut us off. Ashley and I stopped in our tracks. I let go of her hand once again and expected the worst. The night was officially ruined. He turned his hat backwards and looked up and down the street to make sure there were not any witnesses for what he was about to do. I read his body language clearly.
"I don't want to fight you, Darrell," I said passively.
Darrell did not say a thing. He was done using words. His Neanderthal instincts took over and he decided to make his move. Without provocation, he suddenly lunged forward with a powerful right fist. I telegraphed the punch before he even decided to throw it and easily ducked under it. I took a step back and Darrell charged toward me with another attack. I tried to duck again, but the second punch grazed my back. I sprang up and delivered a devastating blow of my own. My fist landed squarely on his nose, breaking it instantly. My adrenaline was now pumping at full throttle.
Darrell had a slight size advantage over me, but I was much faster. He threw another sluggish punch with bad intentions. In one fluid motion, I crouched down to avoid his punch, swiveled my torso, and launched a swift, but fierce, body blow underneath his right rib cage with enough force to deflate his lungs. I immediately followed it up with a crushing punch that landed flushly on his chin with the intent to knock him out. The combo staggered him a bit, just enough for him to reevaluate the situation.
I heard the faint yapping of his sister in the background, but I couldn't really make out what she was saying. In that moment, nothing else existed except me and Darrell. This was our moment, a chance to settle our differences and frustrations with each other - a final showdown.
He was getting the worst of the exchange so far, but he wasn't ready to give up just yet. With his face bloodied and bruised, he continued to pursue me, this time with more caution. I didn't have a mark on me, so my confidence was at an all-time high. My hands were up to protect my face, fists clenched.
Darrell was breathing heavily as he staggered toward me. I blasted him with a straight right jab to the face. His head snapped back. I faked the same punch again and his hands instinctively went up to protect his face. I quickly rotated my hips and whipped my leg against the side of his knee. He hobbled in pain a bit, but did his best not to show it.
In a moment of desperation, Darrell lurched forward and grabbed a hold of me. He pushed me backwards, forcing me up against a cement retaining wall. I pushed back, but I was outmuscled. He held onto my shirt and distributed a few dirty punches to my midsection. I raised my elbow up in the air and came down in a twelve to six motion, connecting directly on his collarbone. He winced in pain, probably a good indication his collarbone was now fractured. This allowed me to break free from his clench.
One of his hands was still fastened securely around a fistful of my shirt. As I spun around to get loose, he tore a large hole across the back of my shirt. I looked down to remind myself which shirt I was wearing. Much to my dismay, it was one of my favourites. This further enraged me. I started to swing wildly on him to defend my beloved shirt's honour. I connected with a few of them, but then I backed away. We both took a small breather to regain our composures.
I gave him a slight head fake and he put his hands in front of his face to block. I slammed my leg against his left knee for the second time. He had no answer for the barrage of devastating leg kicks I was bestowing upon him. I looked down and swiveled my hips again. This time it was a fake. With my eyes securely locked onto his left knee, I delivered a crushing head kick that nobody saw coming. My shin caught him cleanly on the temple, bringing an end to the lethargic mass of human waste. He collapsed instantly onto the pavement.
"You had enough, Darrell?" I yelled at him. "Come on, get up!"
"Screw off, Trevor!" Carla demanded, as she shoved me away from her brother. I thought about just walking away, but somehow that wouldn't be satisfying enough. I wanted to add a little insult to injury. I had just given Darrell a beating of a lifetime and it felt really good.
"It's over, man," he said mercifully with one hand in the air, the other holding his bloody nose.
"I don't owe you or your dad a thing, you understand me? If you ever come near me again, I swear I will kill you. You can curse me out, hate my guts, blame me, and fight me, but it won't solve your problems. You're a mess, bro. You need help. You're a terrible friend and a terrible person. I hope you know that. I'm so glad you're out of my life. You will never amount to anything if you continue to treat people the way you do. I hope for your sake that one day you will get your act together. Until then, leave me alone."
After my victory speech I grabbed Ashley's hand, crossed the street again, and proceeded down toward the beach. Hopefully, we could salvage what was left of the night.