Charlie and Kevin
‘Charlie, you didn’t show up at the Board Meeting’, Kevin said softly but firmly.
‘I know’, Charlie said impatiently. ‘I forgot all about it! I was watching HER!’
Charlie, a very tall handsome athletic young man, took all the space in Kevin’s tiny elevator-size office. Kevin feared that with some impatient rapturous gesture, excited Charlie would knock down and break one of Kevin's crystal awards that crowded on the only shelf on the wall.
Kevin closed his eyes and went on in a firm but soothing tone. ‘You forgot about the board meeting YOU called, the Board meeting YOU were supposed to lead and...’
‘Oh common, Kevin, don’t preach. I’ve had enough today! I spoke with the owner of the toy store, the old lady. And she wouldn’t give me anything on the girl in the window. I was offering her $10,000! $10,000 for a girl’s telephone number, for God’s sake! And the old bitch just kicked me out of the apartment! She literary pushed me out!’
‘Charlie, your father was at the meeting!’ Kevin interrupted him.
‘Oh, f... it!’ Charlie collapsed in the chair, and it creaked.
Kevin breathed out and went on calmly. ‘I delivered the presentation. On your behalf. It went well. Only... your father wants to have a talk with you. He is concerned about your work.... or I would rather say about the fact that you totally ignore your work’.
‘Oh, no!’ Charlie moaned. He covered his eyes with his hand and pressing his heels against the floor pushed the chair back. The impact shook the plaster drywall that separated Kevin's dark cell from the light spacy office. The awards on the shelves made a little jingled jump and Kevin winced. A screw popped out from the chair and rattled on the floor.
‘I told him that you prepared the data, the strategy, and the presentation and I only delivered it’, Kevin said.
‘Thank you, old boy! Such luck that I have you! You’re my brother!' Charlie jumped up - hi head miraculously missing the shelve with the awards.
'Everybody always wants something from me! Do this and that, don’t do that... And have they ever asked what I want? The problem is that no one has ever been concerned with MY needs and wishes!’ he exclaimed.
‘The problem is’, Kevin cut him short ‘that everyone has always been TOO concerned with your needs and wishes, and now you don't give an f! You think it’s unnecessary to attend the meeting you called.
‘Common, bro... You know I don’t have time for this shit now! I’m a heartbroken man!’
‘Don’t tell me you really fell for that human barbie doll in the toy shop window! I hate this nonsense'.
‘She’s the most gorgeous girl on the planet Earth! Don’t you see that she is perfect!’
‘How can you know that she is perfect? By looking at her through the window? You never spoke with her! Maybe she is a damn fool’.
‘I don’t care! She looks perfect which means she is perfect!’ Charlie said.
Kevin smirked. He could have torn that claim to pieces. But he never argued with Charlie, a huge capricious, and insanely cute toddler brother. Patience and affection, gentle leading and protection – those were the ways wise Kevin dealt with Charlie.
‘Ok. But still, you need to talk to your father first. I can not do this for you!’
‘I know’, Charlie sighed. ‘But you must go and watch her while I'm busy with this shit! Watch the back door of the shop. And when she goes out, you just follow her!’
‘Stalking the barbie girl? No way!’
‘Kevin! You’re my only hope!’, Charlie roared.
‘I don’t want to stalk people, especially women!’ said reasonable Kevin. ‘Have you tried everything else? Like leaving flowers and presents for her at the cash in the shop?’
‘Yes, of course, I have! What do you think I was doing last week?’
‘Instead of preparing your report...’ grumbled Kevin.
‘F. the report! You did it for me and it went well you said, so let’s forget about it for good!’
‘You might want to read it before facing your father...’ suggested Kevin.
‘Absolutely', Charlie went on with enthusiasm. ‘I tried everything. I left presents and flowers for her, the jewelry, but on the following day the cashier gave them back to me unopened!’
‘She is an ironed-willed woman, I guess’, said Kevin. ‘Even if she was married with 5 kids and not interested in an affair with a rich and handsome young man, she might have at least opened the parcels, just to have a look at them...’
‘Married with 5 kids! Ha! Garbage! She has a 50-centimetre waistline!’ exclaimed Kevin.
‘Even if she is not interested in men in general, she still might have opened the parcels...’ Kevin went on meditatively. ‘What an inhuman lack of curiosity! Looks like she is really just a piece of plastic'. Kevin smiled.
‘Kevin, I don’t care about all that rubbish. Just GET HER OUT OF THAT WINDOW, will you? The rest is on me!’
Kevin sight. Sure, he would have to get that living doll out of that window for Charlie. Just like he had prepared the presentation, and wrote the report, and led that board meeting, just like he had always done things for Charlie...
There was one particularly cute thing in Chraly that greatly amused Kevin - Charlie’s absolute faith in his charms. Just like a toddler believes he is a universal favorite, Charlie never doubted his ability to attract females. The funniest thing about it was - 98 times out of 100 he was right.
‘Ok, I’ll wait for her at the back door, but I won’t stalk her, I will try to talk to her...’
‘Do whatever you want, but bring me her phone number!’ said Charlie. ‘Now I’m going to my father...’ He sighed, turned round, and left the office.
‘Read the report!’ Kevin shouted at his back.
