Night
The evening had a palpable air of excitement over it, having been building up over the last couple of hours. Erik Stone and his small team had been flown into London a few weeks prior to advice on the divestment of the natural gas subsidiary of a larger, local energy supplier. They had been working tirelessly to not only set up an evaluation that made all included parties feel happy, but to also establish a network of buyers. The natural gas company, operating in the North Sea, just off the Scottish coast, was a sticky investment that few wanted to touch.
In the end, they had managed to find an American buyer with ambitions to enter the European market. Erik had personally spent a few nights and early mornings on transatlantic video calls, negotiating terms. Now, with the sale having gone through a couple of days earlier and all the paperwork officially filed away, him and his team were enjoying a well-deserved celebration.
The restaurant they were at was the new it-place in the ever-changing eco-system of the London nightlife, where they had gotten a table through some contacts at their local head office. The style of the place was a kind of futuristic, vaguely Asian aesthetic, with non-defined oriental décor and electronic music covering every edge and surface with a layer of bass. The ambiance was busy, loud, and electric.
Around the table sat two other men, and three women, all wearing the same suits and power skirts they had worn to work that day. They had come straight from the office after dotting the last I's, having shared a few bottles of champagne already in the car ride over. Erik was the only one still wearing his necktie, a broader, silk tie in a deep navy with streaks of deep, golden yellow across it.
He had a satisfied smile across his lips as he was sat back in his chair at the head of the table, listening to one of the younger associates entertain two of the girls with some war story from business school. This had been an important assignment, with a very respectable and now lucrative client, and Erik had brought some of his best co-workers. As managing, senior associate he had been leading the project. However, his team was indispensable.
The younger man with the loud mouth was one of his favorite financial analysts. He was hard to shut up when he got going but he brough a sort of energy to financials that Erik as well their clients appreciated. The two girls with him at the end of the table worked in the same department, doing finance and risk assessment respectively. The third woman was a little bit older, a senior associate with much experience in the energy sector, especially in strategic ESG transitions.
She had brought some incredibly valuable insights throughout the whole process, and her and Erik had spent a few late nights discussing the ethics of the energy market, and who they would feel comfortable selling the company to. She had been his right-hand person in developing the final say on the strategic direction of the whole project. The man next to her had a similar experience working in the energy sector, but from the other side of the aisle. He had years of work for natural gas and oil companies under his belt and had transitioned into consultancy just a few years ago.
He was an associate, barreling his way up towards a senior level. There had been one or two heated discussions between the two, and Erik would have been worried about their group dynamics if it wasn't for the open secret that whenever they got off work, they fucked like rabbits. Now, they were sitting next to each other after the third bottle of wine had been cleared off the table, completely locked into a hushed conversation.
Erik grinned and then did like the rest of the table, looked away and pretended not to notice the way the lovers were looking at each other. There was a palpable notion in the air that if the table wasn't covered in empty plates, glasses, and bottles, they would have their way right then and there. Erik instead looked over at the three younger team members as they were only starting their night. He hadn't picked up on anything between any of them yet, at least not as far as office gossip went.
However, as the younger man spoke loudly to not be drowned out by the constant of the music, he could see the hand of one of the women slip under the table. A second later, the woman sitting closer to their male colleague darted her head back towards the first girl and gasped a flushed smirk, before quickly biting down on her lip and looking back at the man.
Erik smirked, his team deserved a night out after the hard work they had done, however he himself did not intend to stay for dessert. Getting up from the table, he buttoned his suit jacket and placed his napkin folded up over his now empty plate of whatever Asian fusion taste sensations they had had last. To her credit, his right-hand woman looked up from the sweet nothings her lover was undeniably whispering in her ear and tore her eyes from his lap to Erik.
"You heading out already boss? We're just getting started."
Erik smiled warmly at her and gave a subtle nod. He knew that the night was only beginning for his colleagues. There was a car waiting to pick them up and a table booked at a nightclub close by. He even knew there had been a phone number circulating for a local supplier of party favors. That being said, as a manager he did not officially condone any kind of recreational drug use, but what he didn't know or see couldn't hurt anyone.
"I've got another appointment, you kids have fun though."
He gave her a wink and a smile before turning to the rest of the table, waving over the loud music. His team all perked up as they saw that he was leaving, making sure to give their proper good-byes. Some words of encouragement and congratulations later, followed by the obligatory 'couldn't have done it without you' speech, Erik Stone was making his way through the restaurant to the coat check. On his way, he caught the maître d and put his card down for the table, together with a cash tip.
He knew that he would wake up to a hefty restaurant bill, but the bonus he was geared to receive from the sale was sure to make that a non-issue. He collected his coat and stepped out into the late summer evening. It was beginning to turn towards fall and there was a hint of a crisp in the air, still the day had been warm enough and Erik chose to keep his coat folded over his forearm as he walked up the street. He appreciated the moment of silence, with only the urban buzz of the city around him as company.
He felt like he had spent the last two weeks in a constant state of alert, constant state of control. He felt a deep set need to unload, to unleash that wound up ball of wires in his guts. Like one of those mechanical toys, he felt as if his crank had been turned, and turned, and turned, and now all that locked up energy needed somewhere to go.
Walking down the block, Erik passed other restaurants, bars, and night clubs. It was a Friday evening in downtown London and there was a sea of people flowing as if by some force of nature between the different watering holes. It would be so easy to just join the stream, go anonymous and become just another body in a crowd. However, that was not going to scratch this itch, Erik needed something more feral, something primal.
Making his way out of the area, Erik was finally able to hail a unoccupied cab. He ducked down as he got in, tossing the petty coat on the seat next to him. He gave the driver the name of his hotel and as the wheels ground into motion and the car took off, Erik sunk down into the soft leather of the seat and exhaled a deep, relaxed sigh. Out of sight of anyone else, he finally felt like he could breathe properly again.
