Page 61 of Mr. Perfect
Be courageous in love, my friend.
Friday objectives at the office were always relatively simple: get the work done and go home. How Felix chose to spend his weekends was his business and often depended on his mood.
Once upon a time, aka before Jude’s reappearance, Felix would hang out at clubs and flirt with cute guys. Sometimes, he took them home; other times, he didn’t. More often than not, Felix worked on various projects like gardening or editing podcast episodes. Too much downtime was a bad thing for him. It allowed his mind to wander, which always led to trouble.
On this particular Friday, all he wanted to do was decompress on his patio next to his serene pond with a cold drink—alcohol was welcomed but not necessary. Felix didn’t want to think, and he sure as hell didn’t want to unpack the overstuffed suitcase of emotions taking up too much real estate in his brain.
Who was he kidding? He really wanted to drive to Jude’s house, swim in his pool, eat his food, and get tangled up in his sheets. He wasn’t done overthinking their situation yet, so he’d have to settle for a quiet night at his house.
It felt like the universe was out to derail him, first with Todd delivering his Fusion to him around three o’clock and collecting the keys to the Lincoln. The asshole had then insisted on a detailed inspection of the SUV, of course, to make sure Felix hadn’t caused any damages. Felix hadn’t trusted Todd not to scratch the paint or damage the leather seats if he turned his back for a few seconds, so he’d supervised the inspection while the sun baked him like a biscuit. Todd hadn’t just walked around with a clipboard checking off boxes like at the car rental places. That would’ve been asking for too much. The annoying fucker had to get his digs in wherever he could. Felix had persevered, collected his copy of the clean inspection, and returned to his office where a Diet Coke and three Advil tablets waited for him.
Unfortunately, an email from Jimmy had been waiting for him too. Felix scanned the email, looking for the deadline for his feedback, and noticed he had until the middle of next week. Felix had every intention of putting it off until Monday, especially when his article submission deadline was only hours away.
Turning in his assignments at the last minute was a horrible practice, and one Felix had avoided for the most part. It was just lazy. Sometimes stories broke late, and he couldn’t prevent last-minute submissions. That had been his only exception until recently. His head was everyplace it shouldn’t have been, and his focus had turned to shit. So, Felix had started cramming errant thoughts and random worries into the suitcase to focus on the task at hand.
By five, he’d finished the last edits on his piece on upcoming changes to the FBI’s Uniform Crime Reporting Program and sent it off. That was the good news. The bad news was that the Advil and caffeine hadn’t put a dent in his headache. Felix had skipped lunch and his afternoon snack, then stood out in the heat for nearly an hour while Todd acted like an asshole. The latches on his bulging suitcase were groaning under the strain, and Felix felt like his brain was about to explode.
He’d had enough for the day. Hell, he’d had enough bullshit lately to last him a lifetime. Felix started to power down his computer and call it quits when he saw Jimmy’s email.
You can read it next week. There’s still time.
He recalled his conversation with Marla the previous day, which made his heart throb harder than his brain.
“Damn it.”
Felix clicked on the attachment and began to read. It wouldn’t hurt to do a cursory scan and see what he was dealing with. If it needed too much work, he’d save it for next week. That was a fair bargain.
Felix groaned out loud when he saw that Jimmy’s piece was about antiquing. He was prepared to be bored out of his mind, but what he found was something entirely different. Jimmy’s shy, meek personality disappeared when sitting behind a keyboard. The author of the article was witty, snarky, and endearing as he intertwined stories of antiquing with his grandmother around historical facts about Savannah. It was as much a story about love for one’s family and pride for their city as it was a how-to guide on finding the best pieces for the lowest price.
Felix was thoroughly charmed by the time he finished reading it, which was such a rare occurrence that he reread the story. This time slower so he could make a few minor suggestions in the margins. The article was nearly flawless as it was.
He saved the altered document and attached it to an email to Jimmy. He debated what to say for a few minutes, then went with his instinct.
Jimmy,
If this is an accurate representation of your skill, you don’t need a writing mentor. You do need someone to give you a swift kick in the ass. I have a feeling you’ve been mollycoddled your entire life. The result is a combination of low self-esteem and timidity which does not serve your talents well.
If you really want my help, be in my office on Monday morning at nine to begin your boot camp. Check your insecurities at the damn door. Shoulders back. Chin up. Look like you believe in your ability. By the time I’m through with you, there will be no need to pretend.
Consider yourself warned.
Felix.
He hit send, powered everything down, and turned off his light. The lights were off in the newsroom because everyone had already gone home. His footsteps echoed off the tile floor as loudly as Marla’s advice bounced through his head.
Be courageous in love.
The flimsy latches on his abused suitcase broke, suffocating Felix beneath too many thoughts, memories, and yearnings. Before he could talk himself out of it, Felix called Jude.
“Have dinner with me,” he said when Jude answered.
“I’d love to. Where do you want to go?”
“I was thinking pizza. I know a great parlor,” Felix replied.
Jude chuckled. The low, rumbling sound did wicked things to Felix’s insides. “Do you want to meet in public because you think I won’t make a scene when you tell me to take a hike?”
“Nope. It’s because I have a ton of questions I want answered. We both know what will happen if we go to either of our homes.”