THE TALK

"Oh, Mr. Leo. Hi. We meet again.."

Leo's eyes widened a bit but quickly regained his straight face. He closed the door behind him and walked towards the man who was grinning at him, not sure if the man is feeling the same way he is.

"Yes. I didn't expect to see you here." He said calmly, shifting his eyes somewhere else.

Kalen's beaming face turned into a solemn one when he noticed the not interested expression of Leo. He extended his hand to his client hoping he will accept it this time, and to his surprise, the man did. Their eyes were locked with each other, but it was blank and only out of professionalism.

"I believe I didn't introduce myself properly yesterday, Mr. Leo." He said. "Let me do so again. I am Kalen, I'm a graphic designer from Shanghai. It's nice to meet and see you again." He said with a friendly smile and this time, a genuine one. "But, you seem like you're not enthusiastic about seeing me here." He jokingly continued, giving a soft giggle as he breaks his hand with Leo.

Leo didn't bother to answer and instead extended his hand again, signaling Kalen to sit down, without looking at him. He felt annoyed by what the man said, but attempted not to react.

Kalen, noticing Leo being in that mood again and not acknowledging what he said, inhaled deeply and heeded the offer instead. He glanced one more time at Leo who was looking at something else, and so to prevent an unpleasant situation, Kalen decided to shut his mouth and just focus on his tea. Minutes passed and it was quiet and the environment was beginning to settle into an awkward situation when suddenly, a knock on the door came and snapped it.

"Come in," Leo commanded in a cold voice. The door opened slowly, and a man with a wide smile entered.

"Here's your iced americano, boss." He said, making his way to Leo. He puts it on the placemat and some tissue on the side.

"Thank you, Jax." Looked at the glass and stirred the ice round and round. Kalen gazed at him and smiled inwardly. Just like a kid, he thought.

"Would you like something else, Mr. Kalen?" The manager said, startling the man and making him avoid Leo's face immediately.

"Uh, no. I'm good. Thank you." Leo looked at him and he did the same. Jax then left the two alone and he immediately proceeded to their meeting.

"Well, Mr. Leo. Let's get down to business. Your manager called me last night and told me about some specific plans for your café. First let me ask you, why WHITE FANG? I mean, what's the story behind it? It's an unusual name for a coffee shop, to be honest." Kalen expressed, sipping on his tea.

Leo glanced at him, returned it to his drink, then took a gulp. Kalen's question made him remember a lot of things related to that name and so why he chose it, but, the man seemed eager to know and so he proceeded.

"Well Mr. Leo, I named it after my mother's favorite book. This place is dedicated to her. And you? What is your role as a graphic designer?"

"Oh? Your mother must be very proud. Well, I'm an art director, Mr. Leo. I'm in charge of coordinating with production artists and illustrators. Your manager mentioned the signage outside. He said you want to change it? Now tell me, what are the things you have in mind?"

"Hm. I find it a bit sloppy now. I want something that will attract more customers and will make them want to enter the coffee shop."

"Do you have any color pallets in mind or do you want to use the existing color for it?"

"I want to change it. Do you have anything that you can show me?"

"Of course." He grabbed something from his bag and handed it to Leo. "Here you go, Mr. Leo. You can choose here. These are the pallets that you would want to use."

"Hm. Any suggestions, Mr. Kalen..?"

"Yes. How about this one, a black background with white or radiant yellow lettering, or this one, a yellow background with black, dark blue, or red lettering. You choose."

"Yellow. I want that radiant yellow. It's fun and attractive."

We gave a slight smile. He knew very well why he chose the color. He glanced at Leo wondering if he noticed, but, the man was still busy looking at the pallets.

"It is. Good choice. You see, neutral colors easily blend in with the environment. White, black, and various tones of brown and grey. Dark colors like red, and of course yellow can be effective for grabbing customers' attention. As you said, it's fun and attractive."

Leo just hummed, not even looking at Kalen. He kept explaining but Leo is a man of limited words. He just listens and utters a few. At least he knows what he wants, he thought. Kalen immediately asks questions to avoid another awkward silence.

"What about other promotions you want to do?"

"Suggestions, Mr. Kalen.?"

"Well, we can do photography, and print designs."

"Okay. Do that. The manager will discuss other matters."

"Yes, of course. Not a problem."

Leo finished his iced americano and proceeded to ask other questions. Not business-related though, he was just curious about other things this time, related in the past. The other one was busy packing his things when suddenly, a deep voice intruded on him.

"So Mr. Kalen, you're from shanghai?"

"Not originally. I'm from Chongqing and I think you already know that, sir."

Leo sat up straight and stared at Kalen.

"And you're here in Beijing for work, then..?"

"Yes. I will be staying here for a while. My boss transferred me here so you might see me anywhere." He chuckled.

"I see.."

Kalen understood why Leo suddenly started to raise questions about him but pretended not to know.

"Mr. Leo, let's cut to the chase. Why are you asking me these questions all of a sudden? Are you interested in me.?"

His naughty smile irritated Leo, but he needed answers to why he was here. He knows that he was Damon's best friend. The best friend who wasn't there when Damon was struggling, the best friend he didn't even see at the funeral. He wasn't there when Damon needed him overall.

"Don't be full of yourself, Mr. Kalen."

"I know you're wondering why I'm here. As I said, it's for work. I visited Damon yesterday cause it was his anniversary. I'm in town anyway. You don't have to worry about anything, Mr. Leo. It's not like he's gonna come back anyway."

Leo was exasperated by what he heard. His face became very serious and still, then crossed his legs and folded his arms as if ready for interrogation.

"You have a mouth, Mr. Kalen. Good thing you chose this profession."

"And you Mr. Leo have a talent for intruding on other people's personal life. You know, you're not in the position to question me anything. I have a feeling that you don't like me very much since we first met yesterday. I know you have your reasons, but so do I. I'm not a bad person. But, if choose to believe that I am, then so be it. I don't care. I'm not here to be your friend, I'm here because of work. Please do not include my or your personal life in this. It is pure business and I don't intend to go far than that. Please be professional."

Kalen's almond eyes were full of disappointment. They were doing fine earlier, but the other chose to ruin it again by bringing up the past. Leo was shocked to hear those words coming from Kalen. He didn't expect him to be that direct, and so avoided the man's eyes instantly and admitted to himself that maybe, Kalen was right. He judged him right away. But, the damage has been done and he couldn't take his words back.

"If you don't have any more things to say, Mr. Leo, I'll be on my way. Please let your manager send me more details about the project. And, here is my number. Call me if you have questions regarding that. Thank you."

Kalen handed Leo a card and was upset. He quietly got up from his chair and slowly walked away from the man sitting in front of him. Leo was still a bit surprised but he quickly got up and followed the man from behind.

"Why didn't you show up on him.? Why did you leave Damon?" He finally asked.

Kalen stopped midway, eyes dwindled, and looked over to Leo. He then blurted the answer Leo always wanted to know. His jaw dropped and his brows furrowed when he heard the words that came out of the stranger's lips.

"I COULDN'T HANDLE HIM ANYMORE. THAT'S WHY."

Kalen opened the door and hastily walked away leaving Leo alone and confused. He took a deep breath and closed his eyes.

"What are you hiding, Kalen." He mumbled, staring at the door slowly closing away on him.

TO BE CONTINUED.