All characters are 18 or over. This story contains some bi-sexual content. If you're put off by MMF content, you might want to give this one a miss.
*****
At nineteen, I had stubbornly thrown aside my parents' dreams for me of a university education and a place in the family business in favour of making my way in the world on my own terms.
If I'm honest, things weren't going very well.
I had secured a low-paying job bussing tables and washing dishes at a high-end restaurant in the city's business district. I was on my feet from late-afternoon to midnights in a fast-paced working environment. The work was hot and dirty and I had to put up with attitude from chefs and servers alike.
The job kept me in a small two-bedroom, roach-infested apartment for which I needed a roommate to make ends meet. Madison and I were reluctant roommates at best; she had been looking to share the apartment with another female, but of all the respondents to her ad for a roommate, I was the only one who could produce my share of first and last month's rent in full on demand. A month after we moved in together, we had shared a little too much to drink, and we slept together. In the weeks since then, things had gotten weird between us and we each tended to keep to our own rooms while the other used the kitchen or watched the television alone in the living room.
As I rolled my trolley from table to table and cleared the dirty dishes and cutlery into bus pans, my thoughts were on how to break my lease and get into a new place of my own. I was willing to settle for a small one bedroom or even a half-decent bachelor apartment. It was proving difficult to save a deposit for a new place when whatever money didn't go into rent and utilities, seemed destined for groceries.
That's where my mind was at when the gentleman approached me.
To my nineteen-year-old thinking, the fellow was practically old, but in fact he was probably just forty-five or fifty, and more than fit enough for either age. He introduced himself as Darius Kingfisher, presenting his name on a business card. I checked him out furtively as I received the card. Having already gleaned his age, I observed the man was white, under six feet tall and handsome with brown, wavy hair. His face and voice reminded me of a young James Caan.
"How can I help you, Mr. Kingfisher," I asked politely in my best customer service voice, fully expecting some complaint about his meal.
"I have a very personal question to ask you, purely from a business perspective. Do you mind?"
I was on the company clock and the restaurant mission statement stressed customer satisfaction. I nodded, giving him permission to ask his question.
"Are you bi-sexual, son?"
I was taken aback by just how personal the question turned out to be. However, I didn't hesitate to answer because I had no hang-ups on the matter. I had been out since my school days and, though there were always trolls and gay-bashers, I was usually well-accepted and able to look after myself when I was not. However, in my experience, it usually wasn't a good sign when someone asked the question so directly; the question could be a challenge to a fight. I didn't get that vibe from this man though.
"Yes, sir, I am bi-sexual. May I ask why that matters?"
"Matters? Young man, when you can do something that not everyone else can, that's never to be taken lightly. It's like a gift, a talent that should be used productively."
That was reassuring. The restaurant greeter had turned an eye on me, perhaps with the intention of prompting me to resume my regular duties and stop chit-chatting with the clientele. I noticed her, but I was now somewhat intrigued with Mr. Kingfisher, who also noticed the greeter's eye.
"I don't want to get you in trouble at your work...."
I supplied my name. "Evan."
"Evan. Thank you, and it's nice to meet you." He extended a hand to be shaken. I had been handling dirty dishes, so I was reluctant to take his hand. He was not to be put off. He reached in and seized my hand in a tight grip, giving it three good shakes before letting go abruptly.
"As I said, I don't want your bosses breathing down your neck because I'm slowing you down. Keep my card and if you're intrigued with a possible new career opportunity, call me. My cell is on from eight a.m. to eleven o'clock at night; call any time during those hours, but don't wait too long."
Mr. Kingfisher smiled and said good night, before turning on his heel and walking out of the restaurant with the rest of his party. I pocketed the card and resumed my duties.
The rest of the night was shit. The greeter stayed on my ass every time I was out to clear the tables. In the back, the chef was having a tantrum at his cooks and his anger spilled over into the dish-pit, where I was washing dinnerware, glassware and cutlery as fast as I could. He shattered a rack of glasses I had just run through the washer and blamed me for putting it in his way.
My own temper was running high after listening to him berate my friends in the kitchen staff, so when he called me a stupid cunt, I punched him in the throat.
It was a foolish thing to do. I might have killed him, hitting him like that. Fortunately, he was alright and clambered to his feet with the help of a couple of his cooks. He was crimson, gasping and sputtering at me as I took off my apron and hung it on the front of the dishwasher. I knew what he wanted to say so I told him to save it; I was resigning. I turned and left and there was an end to it. The police never called on me and I heard from a co-worker at the restaurant that the chef was satisfied with telling the story his way. They didn't even stiff me on my pay, though I didn't get my share of the tips from that night.
So, there I was with a small, final paycheque that would not cover my full share of rent this coming month, no job and a roommate looking for any excuse to ship me out and one of her lady friends in. There was a recession on, and jobs were hard to come by, even in the service industry. Besides, thanks to my temper, I'd be applying for new jobs without a reference from a first-class restaurant I'd worked at for nearly a year; with my experience at nineteen, that was like having a blank resume. After our exchange, I could just imagine the chef's endorsement to my potential new employer anyway.
So, Darius Kingfisher's card in my pocket was like a gift from Heaven.
I waited a couple of days to call, choosing ten o'clock in the morning as the time to make contact. As his phone rang, I read the details on his card. There was a familiar corporate logo for a Fortune 500 company. The card gave Mr. Kingfisher's name and described him as Vice President -- Corporate Relations. I wasn't surprised when the executive didn't answer the phone; I imagined Mr. Kingfisher in meetings and interviews all day. I left a voicemail, hoping he would remember me as Evan, whom he had met a few nights before at the restaurant.