The Short Story Episode one

(Let me first say, this is not a happy story. Be forewarned if you read through all the episodes.)

I sigh deeply. The view is beautiful, the sunset over the city from the forty-third floor is a sight I shouldn’t forget anytime soon, especially since I shall be seeing it more often now. I sip on my cold sparkling white grape juice and turn to my partner. “Cheers.”
“Cheers indeed.” Harold says back. “Why couldn’t you get some real drinks though?”
I shake my head, “A drink is a drink. It doesn’t matter. What matters is the occasion for the drink. Who would have thought that we really would have gotten as far as we have. Look at us now, Kings among men.”
Harold snorted “Kings drinking fake alcoholic drinks.”
“I never told you that you couldn’t go buy your own drink.”
Harold laughs, “I think I might do that later, I need a stiff one to celebrate this merger. I am still not sure how you pulled off merging your company with a larger company and still managing to haggle it so you would own a majority of the company and remain in undisputed control.”
I smirk a little “Well what can you say, so long as the other guys get what they want, I can have what I want. Seeing as how the other people only wanted money, it was easy to satisfy them. They knew how valuable the company was and they would do anything to get it, even giving up their control over their companies.”
“Weren’t they worried about you double crossing them and kicking them out of the company completely?”
“Of course they were worried. ‘Were’ is the key word though. They looked at all my records and they know that I am an honest man and that I wouldn’t dare to do renege on my deal. Like it used to be said of gentlemen of old times, my word is my bond.”
“I know that better than anyone. But do they trust me?”
“I trust you and that was enough for them.”
Harold sighed. “Kings among men indeed. I guess it is wise not to get drunk, my work desk will still be waiting for me in the morning.”
I lift my glass and nod. “Now you see my reasoning.”
“So what are your plans now? What are you going to do with the company now that you have all these added resources?”
I look at him and smile, “I will tell all in the board meeting tomorrow.”
“Aww no sneak peaks?”
“Nope… Sorry Harold.”
“Fine then, have it your way.” Harold said. We drink.
“It is going to take months to sort out all the logistics of the merger.” I state plainly.
Harold nods. “How did Vanessa take the news?”
“She’s happy for me but she also knows that this means I will be home a little less for the next several weeks. She isn’t too happy about that. I don’t blame her. She has a right to be upset about that. I feel a little guilty myself for not being able to be home for our kids. How anyone balances their life these days is a mystery to me.”
Harold looked at me a moment and shook his head, “I know a lot of my buddies who balance their life with alcohol.”
I chuckle a little. Harold laughs along with me.
Harold really doesn’t understand me; none of my coworkers really understands me. I don’t mean to be patronizing. It is hard though. It is hard being around people who haven’t a clue why you say the things you say, and do the things you do. It is the epitome of loneliness.
We don’t say much more till it is time to leave; we just sit and watch the sun sink below the skyline. We watch the great life-giving globe be devoured by the jagged lower jaw of the city landscape. Harold says goodbye and leaves. Shortly thereafter, I grab my stuff and begin to make my way to the elevator. As I walk to my car, a woman approaches me.
“Are you Mr. McCasy?” She says in a calm voice. I take another look at her. She is dressed like the “new age hippies,” those organic loving, environmentalists. She stares at me very sternly, in a way that makes me uncomfortable.
“I am, how may I help you? You aren’t by chance some environmentalist come to lobby me because I now own a very large company.”
“I am a respecter of nature but I am not here to discuss any environmental impact your company may have. I am here to make a proposition. I wanted to see if you would invest in something that really does have the potential to change the world for the better.”
I open my car door and toss my stuff in the back seat. Nevertheless, I don’t look away from her. She spoke in such a serious tone, it was clear that she believed in what she was about to propose. I try to keep a casual tone, “What would that be?”
She reaches into her bag and withdraws a tattered looking homemade book. She opens it and begins to speak quickly. “I’ve been doing research for quite some time and I’ve discovered the sources of most of the world’s greatest problems of these days. Those sources are stress, fear, and hatred. Stress and fear can be counteracted and hatred can be counseled. Nature has provided us with formulas to get rid of pain and stress, even anxiety and fear. These formulas are completely safe and natural and have no negative side effects. The problem is that so few people want to believe in these solutions.”
As she spoke, she showed pictures of soldiers in wars, and hungry kids, and pictures from the inside of a courtroom. For half a second I almost expected her to ask me to donate 28 cents a day to feed a hungry kid in Africa. Then she flipped to a page with a picture of a bottle that had Stress Relief Oil, written on it.
“Consequently, there are only a few of us willing to invest any time into spreading the news about this cure for world problems.”
I put my hand up signaling her to be quiet for a moment then I ask, “Are you trying to tell me that some oil is going to fix the world?”
She sighs, “You don’t believe me.” It isn’t a question. She was able to read my expression. “If only you knew, if only you would try it out you would see.” She flips the page again, to what looked like the page of some oil catalogue. “There are essential oils for everything, stress relief, anxiety suppressant, headaches, backaches, sex aides, there is even one to help you fulfill your calling in life.”
A little red flag goes up in my mind. I can understand if you are using this to fix some physical ailment. However, claiming to have some thing that alters your mind that has no ill side effects. To me that sounds like a drug not to be considered lightly. I look around and she reads that expression too, she closes her book and stuffs it in her bag. “I can see that you just think I am crazy and you won’t believe what I say, Have a nice night Mr. McCasey.” And with that she turned and quickly left...