•Brian•

Malcolm Grayson walks down the stairs, dressed in a black suit and trousers. He walks towards the dining table where his cook, Evelyn, is setting the table. Upon hearing his footsteps, Evelyn pauses her work, raises her head and sends him a smile. “Good morning, Mr. Grayson,” she greets politely.

“Evelyn, good morning. How are you?” Malcolm asks just as politely, drawing out a chair to sit.

“Fine. Where are Alex and Alexa?” she asked.

“Sleeping. I decided to let them stay at home today. Brian and I will be conducting the interview here today,” Malcolm says to Evelyn and she nods before disappearing into the kitchen.

Malcolm begins to eat his food slowly. He begins to think of the fact that this is one of the few times he eats breakfast at home. In fact, he can count on his fingers, the number of days he eats breakfast at home. Usually, by now, he will be on his way to work but he needs to get a nanny for his kids.

It’s being nine months that his children’s nanny, Ariel, left and it has been difficult finding a replacement. Even before he could get Ariel as a nanny, it was a struggle. His children absolutely hated all the nannies he tried to employ. They threw tantrums, cried and sulked whenever a nanny came to look after them.

How Nicholas found Ariel was and still remains a miracle to him. She was a young woman of about twenty years and the children loved her at first sight. Maybe her age had something to do with it, but when he saw how his children loved her, he knew it would be hard for him to let her go when the time came. So, a year later, when she expressed her desire to go and stay with one of her elder siblings abroad, he was unhappy. He couldn’t begin to imagine the stress he would go through in order to find a new nanny. It was even harder for the kids because three months after she left, they were still moping around, sulking and crying the same way they did after their mother left.

Nine months after Ariel left, Nicholas still has not been able to find a suitable nanny. Not many young ladies want to be a nanny and his children balk whenever he brings in an elderly woman to look after them. So, for the past nine months, Nicholas has been saddled with the responsibility of talking care of two six-year old kids. Couple with the fact that he has to look after the family business, everyday is a fucking stress.

Five minutes into stuffing his face with food, someone opens the front door and bangs it close very loudly. Malcolm swiftly turns his head and sees Brian walking across the living room to the dining table where he was seated. “Hey man!” he calls out as he moves closer to him.

Malcolm glares at him. “You seriously had to bang the door like that?” he questions withirritation

“Sorry, man,” Brian replies without any form of remorse. He sits across Malcolm and opens the plate of food in front of him. “Did Evelyn save me a plate?”

“No, that’s for either Alex or Alexa,” Malcolm says.

“Too bad,” he replies, picking up the cutlery on table and digging into the food. He chews loudly, swallows and downs a cup of water in one gulp. “Where are they by the way? The kids,” he adds

“Sleeping. Alexander pleaded to skip school today again,” Malcolm sighs and rubs his face tiredly. “I need to find someone to look after them, seriously.”

“Yes,” Brian agrees. “And you can’t be picky about them again. This situation is weighing you down.”

“But they are my kids. I have to be picky when it comes to taking care of them. I can’t employ just anyone to take care of them. I have to be sure of who I am employing.”

Brian shrugs. “Well, let’s just hope we are lucky today,” he says and Malcolm sighs again. Brian pushes his chair backward with a screech and stands. “I need to use the toilet,” he says and disappears to a corner where the visitors’ toilet is adjourned to the living room.

Brian is Malcolm’s childhood friend. They’ve been friends since the first grade up till now. He is an architect; a well known architect. He is married with two kids and his wife is expecting another baby. Brian has to be the most funny, lively and interesting person he knows. Plus, he has been with Malcolm during the toughest periods of his life – when his father died, when his wife, Yvette started cheating on me, when she decided to divorce him. His wife, Stacey, is just as amazing as he is. Beautiful, kind-hearted, caring, homely and everything Malcolm could only wish Yvette was.

The sound of Brian’s footsteps interrupts Malcolm’s thoughts. “Stacey sends her greetings by the way,” he says, slipping into his seat.

He smiles. “How is she?”

“Heavy. Temperamental. A crying mess.” He sighs. “Honestly, you think at the third kid, I would have gotten used to it but no. Stresses me out every time. Fucking pregnancy hormones!”

“Dude, chill out,” Malcolm replies, amused.

“Seriously, I love Stacey, but her pregnancy hormones can be overbearing,” he states.

“Tell me about it,” Malcolm mutters, his mind drifting back to the time Yvette was his wife and was pregnant with him s children. He was twenty four then, just starting life as the new C.E.O of his father’s company. To be honest, he had not actually wanted to get married to Yvette at that time. Yeah, yeah, she was his girlfriend and he loved her but they only got married because she was pregnant with his kids. He would have married her anyway, but not at that time.

He starts to remember all the times she sent him out at night to get whatever she was craving for and when he got back, she would immediately declare that she had lost appetite. The days she…..

“Dude, dude,” Brian’s voice drags him back to reality. “Dude, you are drifting off again!”

He rubs his face with his palm and sighs dejectedly. “Sorry, man,” he apologizes.

“Malcolm, I know you don’t like hearing this but I’m your best friend and I have to tell you the truth. Dude, you’ve got to move on. Yvette is gone and she is never coming back.”

“I’ve moved on,” Malcolm says to him.

“Liar!” Brian exclaims. “I know you still have her pictures in your room,” he states.

“What? How do you know that?!”

He raises a brow at him. “Dude?”

“Okay, fine! You are right. I haven’t moved on. I still keep her pictures with me. I still love her. I still think of her all the time. And guess what? If she comes back to me today, I’ll accept her with open arms,” Malcolm says, all in one breath, panting slowly.

“Oh no,” Brian groans. “Come on. Malcolm, don’t say that. You really need to move on. She’s never coming back. And you need to see her for who she really is – a selfish bitch and a cheating bastard!”

He sighs wearily. “Please, Brian, let’s not talk about it,” he says. “We have an interview to prepare for.” He pushes his chair backwards and slowly rises to his feet. “Let’s go to my study to review the applications.”

Brian stands. “One of these days, Malcolm, you will have to talk about this.”

Malcolm shakes his head. “Today is not that day.”