4 - At the Restaurant

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As scheduled, they arrived before the designated time they gave Sebastian. The siblings wanted to take pictures to memorialize their achievements. Navio is the first multinational company they have signed up to use SST's security system. Also, Clara wanted to get drinks and relax before Sebastian, which she labeled sarcastically as 'The President' could come and ruin their time together. Because of their busy schedule and the need to launch the product on time, the siblings didn’t have time to see each other, aside from work-related matters. 

This was the first time they had to relax and enjoy being with each other. It just felt like the more money they were taking in, the more responsibilities got piled on them. Work had always left them exhausted.

Outside on the rooftop deck of the ‘V’, was an area where people gathered while they waited to get seated. There was a bar to get people started on their drinks and lounge seats to accommodate groups. The siblings chose a spot to take their selfies and started fooling around. This was a special occasion for them, and since they had no pictures to look back on when they were younger, the siblings took every opportunity to document every happy moment they experienced. 

Max’s eyes were roaming the scene, trying to find his new target. Why not have fun in San Diego while he was there? He had plans to get laid tonight, and he would not let his siblings stop him from doing that. Clara was talking, but he was not paying attention because he was trying to catch a woman’s eye from across the deck.

He got the tail end of her statement, '... I’m not here to please him. I never dress to impress, I dress to make myself feel powerful…'

'What happened? Who are we trying to impress?' Max asked, since he was unsuccessful with the woman he was eyeing. 'Are we talking about Mr. Colfer? He seems like a nice person, good looking in terms of CEO Standards where most of them are pudgy and bald,' he chuckled. 

'If I were you, I’d grab this one, or the next CEO might be like Mr. Wong, and you won’t be able to back out,' he laughed out loud, amused at his jokes.

'By the way, the clock is ticking, Clara, you know, you’re getting older every day, and your looks are declining. I can see a couple of wrinkles around your eye.' Max teased.

'Unless you want to end up as a cougar, you should start thinking about your future.' he smiled mischievously. 

'Shut up! Never call me a cougar again. I’m too young for that. Though younger men seem to get attracted to me, lately,' she jokes and slaps Max on the arm.

'Don’t mind him, Clara. I think you look very lovely. This idiot here is just teasing you.' Jeremy nodded to Max.

'Eeeyy… I’m not an idiot. I call myself a matchmaker.' Max replied as he shaped his hands into a heart. 'I love you, sis,' Clara shook her head as she laughed at his antics.

'If you don’t want ‘The President’s’ attention or advances, let me know. I can punch him in the face for you,' Jeremy smiled as if he was eager to execute his plan. Being the youngest, he didn’t exhibit the bratty, spoiled, 'I can get anything I want' behavior, instead, he was very loyal and protective of his siblings. He would do everything in his power to keep them together. A powerful CEO like Sebastian is not stealing Clara away with his sweet words, only to end up playing with her feelings. If he had a say in it, Jeremy would never let his sister date someone so good-looking.

'Aww… you’re always so sweet. That’s why you’re my favorite,’ Clara replies as she squishes Jeremy’s face between her hands and kisses him on both sides of his cheeks.

'Why is he your favorite? I do much more than he does. It’s hard to charm the people to buy our stuff. All he does is sit inside his mad laboratory all day. He’s probably not working in there if you ask me. He just plays video games.' Jeremy punches him in the arm. 'You’re an asshole, as always.' Max laughs as he tried to get away from him.

'Stop it, you two. You guys are such kids. I kind of miss it,' she looks at them with such longing in her eyes. 'I’m glad both of you are here with me today. This installation wouldn’t have been the same without you.' She hugged them both, one on each side of her arm, and leaned her head on their shoulders. 

'Remember those times we did this stuff by ourselves? Now we have people working for us. Who would have thought we would make it this far? This still seems like a dream.' She thought about how sweaty and grimy they looked when they were younger, taking forever to install security systems in areas that haven’t been cleaned in years. Those were the days.

'For the record, I love you both equally. I feel so lucky to have you in my life,' Clara says as she kisses both their cheeks and wipes off the lipstick that rubbed off on them. 

'Just a little more patience, and we will see the fruits of our labor. I think this calls for a celebratory drink,' she says, looking around for the location of the bar when her brown eyes collided with Sebastian’s green ones.

Max bites his knuckles to prevent himself from blurting out what he thought. ‘Hah! These two do not notice that they’ve been staring at each other for a while now. It looks like there’s something here after all. This is not one-sided.’

He places his camera phone in Sebastian’s hand to break the ice. 'Just press the button in the middle. Oh, what am I saying?’ he taps his forehead with his palm. 'You know what to do. Just press it.'

Sebastian looks longingly at Clara and takes a few steps back, so he could take a wider picture that included the view behind them.

'Okay, smile! 1… 2… 3…' He took as many pictures as he could, from different angles and locations on the outdoor deck. The siblings were giggling and laughing, by the time he took the last of the pictures, making the mood lighter.

'We’re going to get drinks,' Max declares as he pulls Jeremy with him. 'C’mon, leave those two alone for a while. Let them talk.'

'Clara will get pissed when she sees that both of us abandoned her,' Jeremy protests as they wait for their drinks.

'Relax, she’s in good hands. Sebastian won’t bite. I think he likes her, and I think she feels the same, right?'

Jeremy shrugged. 'I don’t know about him, man. She hasn’t dated in a while. Is she ready for a long-distance affair if they continue with this? She’s not built for something so complicated.'

'Yeah, but he’s loaded, man. Maybe Mr. Colfer is what she needs.'

'Exactly, he’s loaded, and he can get anyone here in San Diego. Why chase Clara?'

Max shrugs, 'Beats me. Man, what happened to you? You used to be so much fun. Remember when we dated multiple girls in high school?'

'That wasn’t me.'

'You suddenly turned into an old man. Look at you worrying about Clara’s dating life. Dude, you’ve become a recluse since you went to college.'

Max looks at his brother and wonders what really happened. ‘Jeremy has always been secretive about his personal life. But something must have happened to make him this serious. I barely know him anymore. Maybe we should hang out more. I need to get this guy drunk to make him talk.’

And just before he could prod Jeremy further, their drinks came.