A sly man

The next morning when Jackson opened his eyes the first thing his sight rested on was a key, his old phone, and a credit card on the night stand.

With a faint smile on his lips, he got out of bed and headed for the shower. After he returned to the bedroom, he got dressed, put the key, phone, and card into his coat pocket before he left the house.

Since Steven arrived at the office at six o'clock, he had not left from behind his desk, nor did he change his sitting position since he had been consumed by work all morning.

By eleven o'clock a knock on his office door finally cause Steven to raised his head. Then he dropped his pen, leaned back in his seat, and said, "Come in."

When the door opened, he expected Julie to walked in. However, when he saw Jackson, his eyes grew dull for a moment.

"Is that disappointment I see on your face?" Jackson teased as he sat down, then he crossed his leg above the other.

"Good morning to you too. Why are you here? I thought you would want to sleep in and do something fun later since... Well, you know what I mean." Steven mumbled before picking up his pen and focusing on the document in front of him.

"You thought wrong. Anyways to answer your question, I am here to hand in my resignation letter, and also thank you for saving my phone."

"No problem. Wait, what! You are leaving me too!"

"Don't act dramatic."

The pen fell from Steven's hand as he stared at Jackson in dismay. Then he rested back in his seat and study his friend's face for a while before asking, "Why are you quitting your job? I know that your project with Chris has been quite successful, and you don't need a salary from me. But I still need you here, pal."

"No you don't, and we both know that. You and I built this company from dust, and even though I spent one year in a coma, you still ran this place like a pro. So with that said, I am ready to let you stand on your two feet, and it's time for you to let me go."

A smirk crossed Jackson's face as he watched Steven confusingly stared at him. Then he tapped his hand on the desk, stood from the chair, and said, "I got a meeting with Chris, so see you around."

"I guess I now have a vacancy in the company." Steven downheartedly said while picking up his pen again.

"What about the fellow that was filling in for me while I was in a coma?"

"I fired him this morning. Now that you are awake, I thought... It doesn't matter now. He wasn't that good at your job anyway."

"You gotta let me go, dude."

"I know. That's why I am accepting this resignation letter."

For a second, Jackson smiled at Steven. Then he walked to the door before stopping and turning around to stared at his friend.

"How about you, Chris, and I meet up at the bar later for few shots, okay?" Jackson asked with a carefree spirit

"You are not drinking two days after leaving the hospital. Have you forgotten what put you there in the first place?" Steven lashed out as he tossed his pen on the desk and gazed at Jackson in anger.

"I know. That's why I am not going to drink then drive. I will hire a driver today, so don't worry your pretty head."

As Steven watched Jackson walked out of the office, he sighs in frustration and mumbled, "What is going on?"

At twelve p.m, Chris and Jackson sat across from each other at "Delight Cafe," and Chris had been waiting for Jackson to say something, but since he arrived, Jackson was focusing more on his sandwich than him.

"What did you say to Miya?" Chris finally asked after watching Jackson eat for almost five minutes.

"I lied as you wanted me to, and now I got to turn a haunted house into a million-dollar mansion within a week," Jackson said before taking another bite of his sandwich.

"What does that even mean."

"I bought the abandoned building next to her house. Now we are neighbors."

Chris been over and rested his face into his hand before gently rubbing his eyes with his fingers. Then he let out a sigh of frustration and asked, "So what's the plan?"

"There's none. Oh, this evening, at eight, you, Steven, and I are supposed to meet up at the bar." Jackson casually said.

"Are you serious, dude?"

"Yes. So don't be late."

Against their better judgment, Chris and Steven were at the bar at eight, and they met Jackson on his first drink.

"Sorry fellows, I started early." Jackson slyly said.

"You must be kidding me." Steven lashed out as he reached for the glass.

However, Jackson grabbed his hand and pulled it away from his drink. Then he stared at the elderly man sitting on the stood beside him, and said, "Ahah, don't touch my glass. Oh and say hi to Ben. He's my new driver."

It took a few minutes for Chris and Steven to losing up, but by the time the shorthand on the clock struck nine, they were all drinking and laughing like three drunk men which they were.

"Is this stool taking?"

After setting his glass down, Steven turned around to see who was speaking, and when his eyes settled on a dashing guy, a smile surfaced on his lip as he patted the stool and shouted, "You can sit beside me, buddy."

"Do you know him?" Jackson asked, paying more attention to his drink than the fellow face.

"Don't you remember Alvin from our university? I think both of you did the same major and minor back then."

Once he had empty his glass, Jackson gazed to the right, smirked, and said, "Yeah, I remember this guy. He always seemed to have his way with the ladies. Bartender, give him a glass. It's on me."

"Thanks, bro." Alvin mumbled as his drink got place in front of him.

"So, what have you been up to lately, dude?"

"I am in search of a job. I recently change state and came back home. So right now are am hoping to land a job with a good salary."

"Won't you call this fate, Steven?"

It got silent between both men as Jackson stared at Steven while he focused his sight on his glass as he nervously twirled it around in his hand.

"Why would you say that?" Alvin asked in confusion.

"Well, I quit my job this morning, and now there's a vacant spot in the company. I mean since he is as good as me, doesn't it make him a potential employee for the job, right Steven?" Jackson slyly said.

Suddenly, Steven banged his glass on the counter and aggressively shouted, "No, it doesn't because he's not you! It was fine to give your position out because you were in a coma. But now, it doesn't feel right!"

The bartender gazed at the four of them with a smile as he wiped in the glass. Then he chuckled and mumbled beneath his breath, "I miss these two."

"You said that you were letting me go." Jackson calmly said with not a hint of anger in his tone.

"Well, I lied." Steven coldly replied before swallowing his entire drink.

"Ben, let's go. I think I had enough drink for the night."

"Wait, we can go together. Joe will drop us home."

"Staying at your place was a one-night thing. I am heading to a hotel which is good because I really don't want to see your face right now!"

After putting the payment for his drink on the counter, Jackson stood to leave without staring at Steven.

"So you just gonna leave! Fine, go! You know what! I don't need you! And to prove it, Alvin, you are hired. you can start work first thing tomorrow morning." Steven shouted as he watched Jackson walked away.

"Thanks, man. I know I'm not that skillful as Jackson, but I will do my best." Alvin cheerfully said before taking a sip of his drink.

A smirk surfaced on Chris's lip as he stared at Steven's miserable face and thought, "You fell right into his trap. Well play, Jackson. Well played. Who knew you could be this sly. How many more tricks do you have up your sleeve?"