"Hey, Teo!"

            Ηis eyes widened at the sound of his voice. His surprise was so great that Teo pushed the chair back and looked at the man who had his arms wrapped around Carla's waist, pulling her closer and marking his territory. 

"What's the matter, mate? Has the cat caught your tongue?" he grinned.

 That wasn't funny, no. That must have been the worst joke in the whole wide world. 

 "Relax, it's not like we are in the office," James added and took a seat next to Carla.

           "So, I take it you two know each other?" She asked with dim excitement that could only cause Teo extreme irritation.

           "Teo works at my company - my uncle's, to be exact. I remember you telling me about your ex-husband being a video game designer, but who would have known, right? I never expected him to be our one and only Theodore."

           Lies, disgusting lies, and Teo wanted to stand up and expose him in front of everybody, including Carla, and the rest of the patrons. Of course, James knew Carla was his wife, without a doubt! 

Teo had this picture on his desk, next to his monitor, a beautiful memory of the day they moved into the house as newlyweds. It was a constant occurrence of James barging inside the office, disturbing him during work time, and shamelessly snooping around. 

 And, how many times had he asked him about his wife and their everyday life? Far too many to even count.

 But, it was clear to Teo that James was enjoying the havoc he had stirred up. After all, James would find pleasure in watching Teo getting eaten up by desperation. There was not much he could do. He had to calm down, and give him no further pleasure.

           "Oh my. And you were so worried about having nothing to talk about!” Carla laughed like a schoolgirl and leaned on his shoulder.

  "Is this true, mate? You were worried?" James grinned, giving a soft peck on her forehead.

  "Yeah, because my main concern was what I would possibly discuss with the bastard who stole my wife." 

There was no going back. 

That moment, he had heard his patience crashing like glass. The break-up and the sudden visit of his parents were just a couple of cracks, but James being the reason behind the divorce, was what shattered everything. 

           "Teo!" Carla shouted, shocked by his breakdown.

           "Of all the people, you act surprised, really?” He scoffed and shook his head in pure frustration, “I can't believe I thought it would be a good idea to sit here," he looked at Carla, "with you." Teo spoke softly and stood up. " It's not possible for me to be that kind of a guy. Have fun."

           "TEO!" Carla yelled out his name, expecting him to listen to her.

           He didn't turn back, not even for one single minute. Teo just walked towards the exit.

      "Now, now. Wait a minute," no response, "Theo, I said" James grabbed him by the arm, pulling him aside. A move was all that Teo needed to move away. Then, he straightened his clothes, putting on the coldest and harshest look he could.

      "What exactly do you want?"

      "Show some respect, will you?"

      "Piss off!"

      "You really don’t want to act like this, mate."

      "Well, since you said I should relax because we are not in the office, I will do and say whatever I want, and to end this ridiculous discussion, I am not your mate."

  Teo's green eyes – now a darker shade due to the burning anger – were shot at the other. He was finally unafraid of the consequences.

           James, though, didn't answer back. The man in the suit, stood right there, with his devilish smile. 

"Ok, as you wish, Teo, but I should let you know this: if you don't come back to the table, have lunch with us and behave like a civilized human being,” he leaned closer. Teo felt like a small animal that was about to be a delicious pray for this carnivorous one. "I will, personally, make sure that your game – the one that you are getting paid to create in time - is never completed, and of course, that you will never get your hands on a project of your own." 

  James moved aside. His grin was larger, one that belonged to a victor.

           Teo took a deep breath. As much as he thought that the ideal solution would be to follow his guts, get carried away by his urge to punch his arrogant face, and smash his head on the ground, he was well aware that no good would come out of it. It wasn’t a video game. Saving the progress, punching him just to get some steam off, and then loading back again was impossible. No, this was his favorite kind of reality – the merciless one and the unforgiving. And, ending up behind bars for assault and being unemployed was out of the question. What remained to do in the end was to comply.

           He turned his head, and his eyes fell on Carla. The girl looked restless and kind of worried. 

           "Alright," he admitted defeat.

           "Wonderful" James gave him a gentle pat on the shoulder and walked away, returning to the table. Carla greeted him with a warm look and an even warmer kiss. There was no one else around for her, nothing mattered but their relationship. Theodore had to realize that at some point and accept it.

           "Teo?"

           "Nick!" a weight lifted from his chest as he glanced at the young boy, yet if it was possible, an even worse one turned his stomach into a tight knot.

           "I'm sorry, for being late." He paused. 

Teo stared at him. Nick was all soaked wet. 

"Bloody weather. It's getting messy out there! I lost two buses, and I had to run all the way from campus to this place, while my umbrella got ruined by the wind. I'm telling you, I'll be bloody lucky if I don't catch a cold!" the boy laughed between his short breathing but quickly stopped when he noticed Teo looking at something else. 

  "Oh, that is bad.” Nick recognized Carla, and he could tell that the guy next to her, caressing her hair, was her new boyfriend. “Do you want us to leave? I know a good restaurant. It is just a few blocks away from here." 

However, there was no time left for chit-chat. Carla had spotted Nick and jumped up from her seat to greet him in excitement. "Too late..."

Yes, too late.

EXTRA (ﾉ◕ヮ◕)ﾉ*:･ﾟ✧

Let's learn a bit about our boy James, yes?