An Eye for an Eye

Chapter 02: Approach

To make things short: Charlotte was the new maid in the Preston household. She instantly fell in love with Brian, the eldest son. Brian was to follow the Preston tradition and marry a well off woman and have lots of little heirs to do the same, but, as it’s the cliché thing to do, he fell for Charlotte too. Michael and Sandra Preston, a famous neurosurgeon and famous neurosurgeon’s wife, are constantly plotting to break their, should we call it ‘blooming relationship’ apart. And last but most certainly not least we have little Jake, the youngest son, whom fell for Charlotte as well. Shocker, really. They had to search for some sort of ‘drama’, seeing as fake pregnancies, memory loss, random characters going blind and others returning after long periods of (unjustified) absences just weren’t enough.

So, in went Ferguson. Yes, little Jake, the eighteen year old high school senior, son of the famous neurosurgeon Michael Preston and Brian Preston’s brother, madly in love with the maid, Charlotte, and with just the right amount of evilness and cuteness to make him likeable but frustrating, was played by none other than Ferguson Green.

His distaste for soap operas balanced with the joy of playing a younger character so, even though it wasn’t with a smile that he came to work every day, he wasn’t unhappy. Today was a special day, though. His marvelous plan would begin in just a few hours and he couldn’t wait. Not even Dave Brown, who played Michael (his father) and found it totally hilarious that both their last names were colors, with his constant not-so-subtle flirting would manage to tick him off today.

But, on another note, it really pissed him off that Dave could be so openly…whatever he was, bi, gay, while he had to go around pretending to get off on girls.

“Ferguson! You made it!” Dave greeted him with his thousand dollar grin. Ferguson grimaced in return, he had to be nice. He had to swallow up all his words, the nasty ones at least, in front of these people. He was still breaking into the business, he couldn’t make any mistakes.

“Yeah….” Well, without all the nasty words, there really wasn’t much to say, was there?

“Looking as pretty as always, if I do say so myself.”

“Ha…thanks.” No, not really.

If the circumstances were any different, he wouldn’t have been so cold towards him. Dave was…erotic novel’s cover handsome. You know what I mean, square jaw, broad neck and shoulders, angular features, dark eyes and wavy light hair that, though it was jaw length, they combed back for the show, gelling it and making look more like a helmet. Ferguson wasn’t sure why exactly they had chosen him to play his son, as they looked nothing alike. He suspected the producers were thinking ahead, making him the perfect candidate for the result of a careless affair. Rating points guaranteed.

It wasn’t that Ferguson had something against Dave per se, it just bothered him, it wasn’t fair, that’s all.

But tonight….

Ah, he had to stay strong, after tonight, everything would change. Not even Dave, with his openness and patented grin would be able to get on his nerves. If he played his cards right he would be getting laid the way it was meant to be done really soon. Yes, after so long he would be able to play the submissive part. How he had missed it, it was too much to put into words.

“Randal told me to bring you to stage five with me; we have some scenes alone today. Your wardrobe is there, and the make up girl is waiting for you. Not that you need any….”

Randal was the director, he liked to boss actors around as if they were his assistants. Dave said he had a terrible home life and took all his frustrations out at work. Ferguson thought he just had a stick so far up his ass that it was messing with his brain, but of course he had to comply. He was the new guy (Jake used to be at a boarding school overseas and had just recently gotten back) and he couldn’t understand why Dave, with all his years or experience and whatnot would do what Randal said.

“Do you think that, if you end up not being my son, that they might make our innocent love blossom into something more…carnal?” Dave smirked.

Okay, so maybe he just did it to torture him.

“I doubt it.” Ferguson stated as politely as he could and took off to stage five.

He had been working there for about six months now, already used to being rushed around and changed into ten different costumes per day. It was a daily show, meaning that the episode shot today would be aired three to four weeks later, though that didn’t stop them being pissy every time someone screwed up a line and wasted time. As I said before, the director wasn’t exactly the cheeriest man alive. Still, it was Ferguson’s first job on TV and he was always a little edgy, getting annoyed when people laughed when they had to do a scene over and over again because some idiot couldn’t get his words right or when he had to deal with a little kid that wouldn’t stop crying or squirming and they had to stop the shooting. Couldn’t they use plastic dolls? People didn’t care if it was obvious the thing wasn’t alive. They cared about, oh my god, Melissa, the evil fiancée, who was faking her paralysis to get her hands on Brian! Not the lump on someone’s arm and why it looked so stiff.

No, Ferguson was used to plays. Sure the director could snap at you during rehearsals and people could mess up their lines, but once the curtain was up on opening night, no one could correct you anymore, no one existed off stage, everything was happening up there and nowhere else.

In the studio there were people everywhere. And it wasn’t like the lights were so strong that all you could see was black. No, they were all there. The camera crew, the countless assistants, the maintenance guy chewing on his sandwich and watching you (because he couldn’t start hammering away while they were in the middle of a scene, he had to wait until the break). All these people around and he had to focus on the few that were with him on the carpeted side of the floor, or maybe into space if Jake was having an out loud monologue moment, as he often did when planning one of his numerous schemes to win Charlotte over.

Ferguson didn’t have a personal dressing room like Dave; he changed in a sort of ‘communal’ changing room and left his stuff in a locker there. He did have his personal make up girl, though. He wasn’t an extra after all; his name was in the opening credits, for heaven’s sake! So, after changing and having his make up done, giving him an almost too bright orange glow on his face, he joined Randal and the rest of the crew, putting all thoughts of cheating girlfriends and handsome gay guys at the back of his mind.

Though he would be bragging about how right he had been to whoever cared to listen, but later, on his break.

-

Later that afternoon, after a morning filled with screams and giggles and plastic dolls, Ferguson found himself taking a walk around the city. Well, not exactly taking a walk, that just sounds too random. He knew where he was going and he stopped in front of the store with steady footing.

Ferguson wasn’t a children person. Or an old people person…not even a people person most of the time. At least not the people that stuck around. But he particularly cared very little for animals. He could count the times he had been at the zoo in his life with the fingers of one hand and, though he had had a dog growing up, he wasn’t very fond of it either. Nonetheless, he walked into the pet store with confidence and was immediately greeted with hysteric barks.

A dog wouldn’t be good, too big, too troublesome and too loud. He sneered at the puppies as he walked past them. A cat? Too smelly. A bird, maybe. No, he didn’t care much for their tuneless chirping. Frowning, he walked towards the counter where a girl, probably just out of her teens was flipping through a magazine. She looked up when Ferguson reached her and smiled politely.

“Hi, were you looking for something?”

Well, duh, he wanted to say. Why else would he be in the store? To bask in the precious smell of dog crap and disinfectant?

“Yeah…I was looking for a…. Well, I’m not sure what. Something small,” he sighed. He couldn’t believe he was actually this desperate for company. Getting a pet was something families did. Or maybe single, middle aged women, the type that would later marry their cat over the internet. Not him. He was at the peak of his sexual…whatever, he was young, good looking…he wasn’t supposed to be lonely.

The girl cocked her head to the side, frowning a bit but still smiling. She knew this guy from somewhere. “Small? Like a canary? Or a hamster?”

“No…something easy? I’m not at home much,” he lied. “Anything that would survive a day without feeding it.” The girl’s frown deepened, her smile slipping away.

“All animals need to be fed everyday, sir. We have this feeding system, you can program it-”

“Okay, then something that won’t need much cleaning…or being outside. And quiet. And odorless.”

“O…kay. How about a goldfish then?” she suggested. A goldfish? That wasn’t so bad. Quiet, yes. No need to take it for walks or to wash it or look at it. And, if it died, it could easily go down the toilet.

“Perfect,” he said, smiling.

“Come, you can choose one from here.” She circled the counter and led him to the back of the store, where there were a few fish tanks built into the walls. There was a huge range, from giant blue, warm water fishes to little, almost invisible white ones, swimming in groups. The goldfish were the plain ones. There were three kinds on the fish tank she showed him. The traditional orange ones, some orange ones with white spots and the orange andblack spotted with giant, bubbly cheeks ones.

Ferguson leaned in to take a better look while the girl waited on the side, ready with a little fish net and still trying to figure out where she knew him from. Eventually Ferguson decided on one of the ugly, round cheeks ones. He thought those were the ones with the real character.

“That one.” He pointed at it and the girl scooped him out and away from his little tank mates and quickly placed it inside a bag filled with water.

“What else, sir?”

“What else?”

“Do you have a tank at home? You’ll need a filter and the food,” the girl explained.

“I’ll just put it in a bowl. Can’t I feed it…bread? Like in the park?”

“No, no! You need real fish food, flaked food. Frozen is good too. Here, I’ll give you a bottle. You need at least a ten gallon tank, not a bowl. I’ll pack one of those too. You have to keep the water cool, warm water might make him sick. Even kill him, so be careful, please.”

She was not calling the fish “him”. She didn’t even know if it was male or female, it was an “it” not a “him”.

“I’ll pack a filter, too. It’ll keep the water clean but you need to change it every week. The water, not the filter. The water must be clean.”

“It’s a fish.” Ferguson piped in, incredulously. “They live in dirty ponds with contaminated water. What does it matter if the-”

“You need to keep it clean if you want to keep your pet alive!” The girl was outraged. “Now, feed him once a day. Only once a day if you don’t want him to be overfed, that can kill him too.”

“What won’t kill it?” he asked sullenly. This didn’t seem like a good idea anymore, it was too much for such a little thing.

“He’ll live just fine if you listen to me,” she said putting more and more stuff into bags, “Sir.”

Ten minutes later he was leaving the store with full hands. This wasn’t a good idea. And why the hell hadn’t he brought the car?

-

“You better think of a way to fix this, Daniel. Find a way to get the money because I swear…are you listening to me? This isn’t a joke.”

“I know, Vicky. I’m sorry, I’ll find a way, I promise,” Danny sighed into his phone. He was just leaving school when Vicky called to inform him that she hadn’t found the damn check last night. She had to remind him what had happened, though. All he could remember was stumbling up the stairs to their apartment.

“You better. Look, I have to go. See you tonight.” And she hung up. He sighed again as he pocketed the phone and continued walking to the restaurant. Today…wasn’t a good day. For starters, his head was seriously killing him. Earlier that morning he’d had to have a pretty fine affair with the toilet seat, as he stuck his head in it and emptied his stomach down to the last peanut he had eaten the night before. Then, as he got to school, not only had he have to put up with Mae but he had to do it sober and with the worst hangover he had had in a while.

Poor Mae…it wasn’t her fault he was such a bastard. Lying to her and then complaining when all she had done was ask if he was okay.

He felt terrible.

He arrived to work early, as usual. He entered by the back door and rushed to change. The slacks they made him wear were almost exactly like the ones he had on, only black instead of dark green. He put on the white formal shirt and vest, combed his hair, washed his hands, tied his bowtie and he was ready to go.

-

The place was packed as Ferguson entered and he wondered if there would be room for him. No one seemed to be waiting for a seat. The hostess grinned at him knowingly when he approached her. She recognized him, that couldn’t be good.

“Hello, sir. Table for one?”

“Yes,” he replied and just like that, he was seated with a wide menu in his hands. Well, maybe it wasn’t so bad to have people recognize him…but he had to be more careful now. He knew that woman knew who he was, she would probably tell someone.

He cursed under his breath as he realized that if she told this Daniel guy he would be screwed. He hadn’t thought that the guy might know him from the show. If he did, he could easily go to Mae and tell her something like “Hey! Guess who I was serving calamari to tonight?” and that would be the end of it.

With a resolute expression on his face he placed the menu down and hoped for the sake of his ego that this guy didn’t own a television set.

A waitress came over, her face blank even as she looked him in the eye to ask for his order after filling his glass with clear water. Great, she didn’t seem to know who he was.

“I was wondering if Daniel could take my order,” he said and smiled up at her, dimples and all. “He is in tonight, isn’t he?”

“Daniel…Danny? Danny Reina?” Ferguson nodded, a warm tingly feeling setting in his chest. Ah, the anticipation. This was it, it was starting. “I’ll see if he’s available. Excuse me.” And off she went. Ferguson smiled proudly to himself and sipped at his water. In any minute now, Mr. Legs would be walking over in all his sexiness and he would be able to start with the game.

Ha…this could almost make up for having to nail Mae every night. Almost.

Five minutes went by and still, no sign of him. He could see the waitress, though. Going around tables, asking if everything was alright, pouring water. He looked around, he couldn’t see Daniel either. He wasn’t among the waiters standing about, waiting to be called or the one rushing with trays. Maybe he wasn’t a waiter. Maybe he was a cook, or worked at the bar…maybe he was a cleaning person. It’s not like the envelope had clarified anything, it just said the name of the restaurant.

Just when Ferguson uneasiness was turning into annoyance for his stupidity, he saw him. He came out of the kitchen but he was dressed like the rest of them, with a vest and bowtie tight around his neck. He walked with long steps, looking around until he spotted the waitress from before. She pointed towards Ferguson, who sat up (a reflex) and pretended he was looking at something else.

His gaze dropped to the menu, his mind reeling. It would suck if this guy knew him.

Daniel was confused. Who wouldask for him personally? No one he knew came here. No one he knew could afford it. Ah, no, money wasn’t the best thing to think about now. He walked to the table Lillian had pointed to; a young man was sitting there alone. He was looking down so he couldn’t make out his face yet, his light brown hair was short enough to expose his neck, and that was about all he could see. He reached the table and stood by it.

“Hello.” Danny said and Ferguson looked up. Honey colored eyes met dark chocolate ones. A smug grin invaded Ferguson’s face, he couldn’t help it. Daniel was thrown off for a moment. He didn’t know this person, who was he and why was he looking at him like that? Had his father sent him to spy on him? Was this some new way to let him know he was being watched or something?

“Hello.” Ferguson said in return, leaning back on his chair. Daniel looked a lot better up close the he had far away. His soft face was scrunched up in confusion and wariness, but at least he didn’t seem to know who he was. He seemed to shake it off soon enough, though, his face relaxed as he gave a kind smile and asked:

“You wanted me to take your order?”

“Yes. Well, no, actually I’m not staying to eat. I just had to see you.” Okay, confusion was back.

“See me?” Daniel asked.

“Yeah, I found your, um, envelope? A paycheck, I assume? I just thought you might appreciate getting the money back.” Ferguson shrugged, acting careless. Like he would actually take the trouble to go all the way around town to return something to someone he didn’t even know. He looked up again just in time to catch Daniel’s face going from suspicious to surprised to just plain happy.

“You found it?!” he asked, managing to keep his voice down but sounding ecstatic at the same time. “Seriously?!”

“Yeah, you dropped it at the bar last night. No, I mean, I found it there and it had your name on it so I, well, I guessed you dropped it.”

“Thanks so much! I thought it was doomed for good, rent money, you know.” He laughed. Ferguson smiled. He was a bit surprised at how easily Daniel’s smile came to him. He seemed to be open to talking to a stranger. “Um, do you have it with you?”

He was still thinking about his smile when he reached into his pocket and took the white envelope out. He didn’t snap out of it until the damn thing was being put into the other man’s back pocket. Ferguson cursed himself. He wasn’t supposed to give it away that easily! The envelope was his excuse to see Daniel again! He would say that he had left it back at his place and that he could come over. Or they could meet the next day to have a drink and then he would give to him. He wasn’t supposed to hand it over just like that!

His head momentarily clouded over, he stood up.

“Okay, then,” he said. How could he be this lame? Couldn’t he say something? Anything?! How could he be that much of an idiot, sometimes he wondered where exactly his brain was. In his head or maybe a few feet lower. He started to walk away,(what else could he do?), when Daniel spoke up.

“Wait,” he called before he could stop himself. What was he doing? He couldn’t be doing what he thought he was doing. Not with his father out there, not without even knowing who this guy was. But he had taken the trouble to bring his money back to him. He had to pay him back somehow. “I’m…I’m off at eleven tonight, want to have a drink then? My treat, because…to thank you for the…for bringing it over.” This was a very, very bad idea.

The other man turned over, giving him a lazy grin, kind of relieved maybe, before it morphed into a predatory one that is. He had dimples. “Sure.”

This was very, very bad idea.

Thanks for all the reviews and Kasee Lara for editing.

Things will make sense later on…I hope D: