Chapter Three

“ Well, well, well, if it isn't Dante Davids? How are you doing pal?” He asked, a smirk on his face, one that I felt the urgent need to slap off.

I just stood there, staring in disbelief, refusing to believe my own eyes.

“ Why don't you guess how I'm doing?” I said, overcome by the need to shove him off.

“ You definitely do not look bad”, he said and I inhaled and exhaled sharply just to calm down, “ I thought it was you when I saw the name on the job application but I didn't want to believe it, but here you are Dante”, there was a glint in his eyes.

“ In status quo”, I said, my head throbbing, my heart pounding so loudly that I feared that he could hear it.

“ Don't mind me, you actually look great. Like, I'm totally mesmerized”, he said and I couldn't help but wonder why he of all people should be mesmerized by the person I was. I guess I didn't turn out as bad as he had hoped.

“ You still look the same, like the corky hot asshole you were”, I said and immediately wondered where ‘ hot’ had come from.

Dante, get it together…..

“ Whoa, whoa, whoa, don't tell me you're still mad at me for the things we did as kids back then?”

“ The things we did? Really? We? Or the things you did?” My voice was rising with each word, about to crack into something more emotional.

“ Look, it's all in the past now, okay, we've grown out of it”, he said with a shrug. A fucking shrug!

“ Sure, at least seeing you in a suit confirms that”, I said and he smiled, revealing his white set of teeth.

I took a proper look at him, examining his body with precision. He had gotten taller, way taller, with full hair, muscled body, high cheekbones, and even his Adams apple was a sight to behold. And there was his emerald green eyes, those eyes that pierced my dreams, those eyes that were bright, sunny, morning dreams, but had turned into a nightmare overnight.

He still looked good, so good enough that if he wasn't Hakim, I would've started planning on how to get his dick up my ass, and I hated that he looked good. It wasn't how it was meant to be, at least according to movies. The bully usually grows into a bitter, potbellied family man working as a highschool coach, not a hot, sexy looking lawyer. Why is the real world so unfair?

“ Never mind what I just said Mr Mali. I'm just here to do my job, no need to bring up any incident from the past”, I said, taking a swift look at his fingers. There was no wedding ring, and I just couldn't tell why I felt so relieved by that.

“ Come on Dante, no need to be so formal. We were friends from highschool, we can be on first name basis”, he said and I just couldn't believe what I heard.

We were friends from highschool? Really? Was that what he thought? Like, was that how he recalled it? Friends? The constant beating and slapping? And let's not even forget about my precious flying tooth.

He tried to touch my shoulder and I took a step back, feeling grateful that I did. If I hadn't, I would've slapped his hand off my shoulder.

“ Excuse me, let me make something very clear. We were never friends, we are not friends, and we will never be friends, so please get that into your thick skull and behave properly”, I said and a downcast look came up on his face. Don't worry, it didn't last for more than a second before his usual smug face came back.

“ Is that how it's gonna be?” He asked, grinning like it was all amusing to him, and as he put his hands into his pockets, making his jacket to give way and make his shirt more visible, I imagined what wonders were hidden right behind those clothes.

Get it together Dante, you should be dreaming of punching him, not undressing him.

Well, I guess I will have to undress him to make the punches more effective.

“ Yes”, I said firmly, calming myself down and reassuring myself that I wasn't scared of him anymore.

“ Very well then, I wouldn't want to keep you any longer. My secretary will show you to your office and prep you on what you need to do. Welcome aboard”, he said and rang his secretary as he moved to his armchair.

Glinda walked in, and for the first time since I first saw her, I noticed her feminine features; long blonde hair, a pointed nose, a flat tummy, and she walked as if she was on a runway show, slow and steady, gliding like a gazelle.

“ Come along”, she said. As I walked behind her, I also couldn't help but notice her perfectly shaped ass, carved out so well that it seemed unreal, so unreal that if a cup of coffee was placed on it, it would stand without a single drop of coffee spilling. She was beautiful, and she knew that she was, and so she carried herself with that much grace that was required of girls like her.

I wondered if Hakim had gripped that ass and tucked that blonde hair behind as he kissed her, and just wondering about it made me sick. She was his type, and I wouldn't be surprised if he would be so unprofessional to have sex with her.

We walked into another large office, not as large as Hakim's but still large, and it exceeded my expectations of what I had hoped for an office, and I began to wonder how I was going to stock up the table with files of different cases, just like I had seen in L.A law.

The rest of the day went smoothly, and kind of uselessly because nothing in particular was achieved. Glinda just showed me every one and everywhere, and I enjoyed the food from the firm's cafeteria; meatloaf and lasagna.

“ Holy molly”, Sasha exclaimed as I narrated my ordeal for the day, “ you are fucking kidding me”.

“ Even I was lost of words”, I said, gulping down the glass of milk I had.

“ Wait, wait, this could actually mean something”.

“ Mean what? That karma is such a bitch?”

“ No, it might be fate”.

“ Oh come on Sasha, stop with your superstitions and whatnot”.

“ I'm serious. Maybe fate brought you guys back together”.

“ Well, damn that stupid fate for making him my employer. I should've been the employer, so that I could look him in the face one day and tell him ‘ hey, you're fired’, that will feel so good”.

Sasha laughed uncontrollably at my gesture, “ but then, according to what you said, he wants to patch things up. He might be sorry for what he did back then”, she was still trying to buy me into her idea of fate.

“ And you think I would believe him even if he were to get on his knees? Look, even this musician said it……um…. what's his name again”, I tapped my head, trying to remember his name, “ yes, Alec Benjamin, he said it, the devil doesn't bargain. He will never change because devils never change”, I said and Sasha laughed again.

A vampire series was ongoing on the television but I felt restless, and I knew it was because of Hakim. I had to get him out of my mind, and I had to be fast about it. I got my phone and logged into my dating app and searched for people willing to meet up immediately, but there was none. I had no other choice. I logged into my contacts and typed the letter B and remembered his name; Basil, the guy from the day before, and I dialed his number.

“ Hey, you wanna meet up?” I asked, sounding so brisk.

“ Hi, I would love to”, he said and I got my car keys, ready to go.