by Jerry Cole
“How about a little positivity?” Roman tried, although he didn’t actually believe that would make a difference at this point. Rather than sitting with his head in his hands, his body was slumped down as far as it would go and the expression on his face mirrored that of James’.
“Fuck your positivity,” James grumbled. He was staring right down at the table now; it was as if his entire world was crumbling right before his eyes. In a way, it sort of was.
“Oh, don’t be like that.” Sally, their producer and production assistant, skipped into the room, carrying two coffees. She placed one in front of both James and Roman, smiling the whole while, trying to use her positive energy to turn the room. “Look how far the two of you have already come – remember six months ago when you were turned down by every single studio in Australia? Huh?”
“Thanks for reminding us,” James groaned.
“I’m just saying,” she clicked her tongue. “When that happened you two slunk back here and looked pretty much the same as you do right now. But then a week later and you were dancing on the ceiling.”
“That was six months ago,” Roman sighed. “This is now.”
“The difference being?” Sally crossed her arms and raised a challenging eyebrow. Although she was younger than both Roman and James, she had a motherly vibe about her which usually gave her control of the room... but not today.
“Oh, will you fuck off,” James snapped. “I’m not in the mood.”
Sally’s face dropped. Her chin wobbled. She looked as if she were about to burst into tears... but held them back for long enough to turn on her heel and hurry from the small office. Only once she was gone did the tears come, and Roman only knew this because he could hear them.
“James...” Roman sighed and indicated out the door and in the direction of the now blubbering Sally.
James groaned and slowly pushed himself to his feet. He looked tired; there were heavy bags under his eyes and his usual well-kept stubble was now an outright beard. “I’ll go apologize,” he mumbled.
Roman took a sip of his coffee and sucked through his teeth. “Get some sugar while you’re out there, yeah?”
James stuck his finger up behind his back as he exited the room. Roman didn’t take it personally. Why would he? This was a pretty standard response, and as it currently stood, things were far too dire to worry about something as trivial as a middle finger aimed in his direction. Fuck, Roman would have taken a boot up the ass if he thought it might change things.
Even Sally, bawling her eyes out in the other room was of little consequence. She’d been with the two men for several years now and had worked on each of their films. Like Roman, she had started at the bottom and worked her way up the ladder. And like Roman, she took this business very seriously. Really, her tears were just a way of her expressing her anger, much like James’ middle finger.
It was the movie that Roman and James were making that was the problem... or the one they were supposed to be making. Right now, they were three weeks away from what was supposed to be the start of production, but were still someway short of pulling together all the funding that they knew they’d need if they were to make this movie the way they wanted. It was a problem that had been plaguing them for the past month and one they were no closer to finding an answer to.
It was a fucking shame too as this was going to be the movie that finally put Roman on the map. Where the last two films he’d made had been purposely small-scale films, this one was written to be bigger, grander and thus have a wider audience appeal. If he could just get the money together, he knew it would be big.
And so, he and James had settled into a sort of daily funk. They would arrive at their office every morning at seven on the dot and spend the entire day pouring over the films budget in an effort to either cut costs, or find a way to limit spending so they could transfer funds into other scenes and shoots. They’d been doing this for three weeks and had made little to no real progress.
In short, the production of the film had stalled and short of tripping over a pile of cash in the vicinity of one million dollars, it was going to stay that way.
When James wandered back into the office, he was in a significantly worse mood. Always the self-stylized “macho man” he never had been very good at dealing with emotions, or emotional people. Roman had no doubt he’d somehow made things worse with Sally.
“I don’t even want to know,” Roman said the second he spotted the look on James’ face. “Just... stay away from her for the rest of the day, yeah?”
“Or week,” James exhaled as he sat down. “If you don’t hear from me though, assume she’s murdered me with an axe. Chopped me into little pieces and fed it to her fucking cats.”
Roman didn’t answer. Instead, he pushed his chair out, stood up and left the office. But not to go and speak to Sally. He knew that James and Sally had an interesting relationship, and they’d be fine again in a few hours. Instead, he went for a walk to clear his head. He didn’t know what good it would do, if any, but he had to get out.
Sydney had changed a lot since Roman had lived here. As he walked the streets, he took in the scenery like he was a tourist walking it for the first time. The first thing he noticed was how much cleaner everything was; when he was young there used to be a sort of grime that hung in the air and clung to the buildings and cars. It was possible that this was just his imagination, seeing as he was a moody teen back then. But somehow, he didn’t think so.
Honestly, the only good memory that Roman had of Sydney was that single day when he was seventeen and first met Bryce. It was crazy to think of how long ago that was, and how much that one day had changed his life...
Not in the mood to think about Bryce, Roman gave his head a shake and stopped in at a nearby news-stand to pick up a paper. But then, as if fate were mocking him, he spied a copy of Forbes magazine sitting on the counter, and he just about fell over from the shock at what he saw.
It was Bryce Taylor, or rather a photo of Bryce Taylor taking up about two-thirds of the front cover of the magazine. He was wearing one of his fancy business suits, was standing with his arms crossed and smirking at the camera like he’d won something, looking cocky, arrogant and as always, very good. But that wasn’t half as interesting as the heading beneath the photo: The Next Big Thing.
Roman blinked as he read the heading again. Then, despite himself, he flipped the magazine over, found the article on Bryce and began to read.
“You read it, you buy it,” the man behind the news stand snapped. He was a short, chubby man with a receding hairline and terrible pit stains. He reached his hand out as if to take the magazine back.
“Yeah, yeah,” Roman snapped. He quickly pulled out some cash so as to fend off the greedy clerk. And then, he continued to read.
The article wasn’t so much on Bryce, but his business ventures. Apparently, he’d been in charge of the firm he was working at for three years now and had taken it from a decent little business to an empire. Even more impressive was that he had recently sold it for a lot of money... like a lot of money. Roman’s eyes bulged when he read the amount.
“Fuck me...” Roman mouthed as he read the amount that Bryce was projected to earn. “Fuck... me...”
“Lucky prick, right?” The guy behind the newsstand chuckled and shook his head.
“Yeah... lucky.” Roman scanned the article again, double checking that he had read it right. He had.
And now Roman found himself in a very unintentional and awkward situation. He needed a very large amount of money to finish his film. Without it, there was just no way he could do it. And believe him when he said he had tried. And now, through what seemed like fate, he’d found a way to possibly secure the money. It wasn’t guaranteed of course... but he was pretty certain that if he asked Bryce, maybe even begged, he’d get it.
Roman was stuck in his own head as he wandered slowly back to the office, the magazine now rolled up in his hand. When James saw him, he immediately asked, “
What’s with you?”
“Nothing...” Roman muttered as he took his seat. “Nothing...”
“Well, you’re lying. But I don’t give a fuck.” James sighed and went back to the budget.
Roman said nothing. He’d already decided that he wasn’t going to tell James. Not yet anyway. Fuck, he wasn’t even sure if he was going to call Bryce... although to be fair, as he stared at the phone on his desk, and then looked back to the magazine, he was pretty sure he would. Really, at this point, what did he have to lose?
***
James had been adamant that he also come to lunch, but Roman had denied him the chance. Yes, the film was both of theirs, and yes James had just as big a stake in this lunch as Roman did. But that wasn’t really the point. Roman was pretty sure that Bryce would end up giving him the money if he asked. It was everything that happened around that which concerned him.
Roman had decided to call Bryce and ask to meet for lunch. It was the day after he had seen Bryce’s profile in Forbes magazine and after much debate, internal monologuing, and even a pros and cons list, Roman finally bit the bullet and put the call in.
It had been a short phone call too, with little room for pleasantries or small talk. Roman had so much to say but didn’t want to do so over the phone. So, he kept it purposefully quick and to the point, hoping as well that this might signal to Bryce in advance that he wasn’t calling for a more... personal reason.
“Bryce,” he had said in as serious and no-nonsense tone that he could muster. “It’s Roman Nowak. How are you?” He had wanted it to come across as all business. There was no flirting or hinting that this call was to be anything but friendly.
There had then been a pause on the other end of the line, as if Bryce either didn’t believe it, or was simply struck speechless. “Roman Nowak,” Bryce eventually managed. Roman could just about see the cheeky smirk through the phone line. “To what does Bryce Taylor owe the pleasure?”
Roman kept the call short and sweet... but not too sweet. That would have defeated the purpose. Instead, he simply told Bryce that he had moved back into town, saw Bryce's profile in Forbes magazine, and thought he’d reach out and see if he wanted to grab lunch. As friends.
“Now that you finally have some free time,” Roman had then joked. “You are your own boss, so I figured you can give yourself the hour.”
“You’re lucky actually. Tomorrow is the first day I’ve had off in five years,” Bryce had quipped back. “Otherwise, I might have had to turn you down.”
“My timing always was impeccable.”
There was a little flirting, in their tone if nothing else. That was almost unavoidable. But all in all, it had been a very professional conversation. Lunch was agreed to and Roman hung up the phone feeling like maybe he had actually done the right thing in calling. Surely, he had?
The choice of venue was a pub near Roman’s office called The Rose; a slightly higher-class pub than what most of Sydney had to offer, without it being too fancy. It had a nice outdoor eating area, a decent menu and friendly staff. But there was nothing romantic or sexual about it, which was the point.
When Roman took his seat at the back of the venue, nestled away between an overgrown fern and a stained yellow statue of a cherub playing the violin, he continued to tell himself that he had made the right decision. It had been five years after all. Surely, Bryce had moved on? And even if he hadn’t, maybe Roman had? Maybe Roman would see him and decide he had outgrown the once ‘best sex of his life’ in a big way. Maybe the two could just be friends?
And then Roman saw Bryce for the first time.
Bryce was still handsome as fuck; tall, a square-shaped face and a big smile, a cockiness in the way he walked that suggested he was in on a secret that no-one else knew. But that wasn’t what stuck out to Roman the most.
Bryce was wearing shorts... and sandals... and a button-down shirt that was untucked and only buttoned about half-way up his chest. His brown hair was also unkept and a little wild, and he was even sporting a little bit of stubble for perhaps the first time ever. Bryce Taylor looked relaxed and unwound in a way that Roman had never seen before, or even knew was possible on a man like Bryce.
“Roman!” Bryce’s smile was big and genuine. He held his arms wide, indicating for Roman to jump up and hug him. He did just that, relishing just a little in the warm embrace of the man he’d once had very deep feelings for. “Look at you.”
“Me?” Roman clicked his tongue as he sat back down, opposite from Bryce. “Look at you – you are aware that your shirt isn’t tucked in, right? Like, that was on purpose?”
“I’m just glad that the movie business hasn’t completely drained you of your sense of humor,” Bryce chuckled as he settled himself in. He really was more relaxed than Roman had ever seen him. “And that you’re not too much of a big shot to catch up with an old friend.”
“An unemployed friend,” Roman shot back with a wink. “I suppose that means that lunch is on me. And if you need me to pay for your parking, you only need to ask.”
“Too kind,” Bryce laughed and shook his head. “I had to sell all my suits just to cover rent.”
“Oh no,” Roman gasped as if it were a real complaint. “However will you survive – but at least that explains why you look like such a hobo.”
Bryce threw his head back and roared his laughter. “Don’t worry about me. I have about ten thousand suits, so once I manage to get rid of them all I should have enough to cover me for the next hundred years or so.”
“Thank the Lord for that.”
It had taken all of five seconds for the two to fall back into their old rhythm. There was no awkwardness over the fact they hadn’t spoken in five years, and there was nothing to suggest that the way they had left it might create tension. All it was now was two old friends engaging in a much needed catch-up.
And that’s exactly what they did. For the next hour, Roman and Bryce acted like this was any old lunch. They weren’t ex-lovers, and they certainly weren’t testing those waters. Rather, they used the time to unpack what each had been through across the past five years and what had led them to this moment.
Bryce went first, but only because Roman pressed. He learned that the past five years had been nothing but work, work, work for Bryce. It was seven-day weeks, and twelve-hour days for as long as Bryce could remember. Even when he was promoted to the head of his office, the workload didn’t stop. “If anything, it got worse,” Bryce sighed and then laughed. “Jokes, on me, right?”
But there was a happy ending to Bryce’s story, and that was early retirement. The deal to buy his company from him had finally gone through and now Bryce was a free man... with a lot of money behind him. He didn’t know what he was going to do yet, but knew it was something. As Bryce so emphatically said, “I can’t not work. That’d be like a fish claiming it was going to grow legs and start walking on land.”
It was this moment that Roman chose to jump in and start telling his story. He explained how his first film had received positive reviews but hadn’t been given the exposure that might have seen it actually turn a profit. His second film was a similar circumstance; well received but with a limited release --
“Oh! I saw it on the telly last week,” Bryce butted in excitedly. “Would you believe me if I said I watched the whole thing from start to finish?”
“No,” Roman laughed. “I wouldn’t.”
“Well... all right, I didn’t,” Bryce held his hands up in defense. “But only because I missed the first ten minutes or so. But I watched the rest, I promise.”
“And...?” Roman raised an eyebrow at Bryce, challenging him.
“I loved it.” He sounded and looked sincere. “To be honest, I can’t wait for the next one.”
It was now or never and like a lion hidden away in the reeds, waiting for his prey to rear its head, Roman chose this time to strike... albeit with a little more caution than a bloodthirsty lion.
“That’s kind of what I wanted to talk
to you about...” The food had long since gone, and the two were well and truly into their drinks. But Roman pushed his glass to the side, as if clearing the way.
“Oh?”
“The reason I moved back to Sydney – I didn’t tell you the exact reason why, did I?”
“You skipped over it.” Bryce wore a curious, yet delighted smile. It was as if he knew where this was going but was excited for the journey.
“Me and James – he's my business partner. We decided that Sydney was where the action is – for making films, obviously.” A nervous laugh and a sip of water. Roman could feel himself speaking faster and tried to will himself to slow down. “Anyway, we moved here because it’s more in the center of the film industry. And it is! Like, up until recently everything was going really smoothly. We have a script, we have a crew, we have just about everything...”
“But...” Bryce was beaming now. Surely, he knew where this was going? The way he was smiling, that twinkle in his eye. He had to know.
“Funding,” Roman said flatly. “We’ve hit a wall – and it’s not like we have no funding. Seriously, we have about ninety percent of it. But it’s just not... we can make the movie with what we have. But we’d have to cut scenes, and equipment and James doesn’t want to even think that – fuck, I don’t want to either. We’re trying to make the best movie we can, but right now we’re being smacked over the head with a budget we can’t reach.”
“And here’s the real reason you called.” Bryce nodded his head knowingly, and even rolled his eyes. “And I thought it was because you wanted to see me.”
“What? No! I mean, yes! I mean, that’s not—”
“I’m kidding. Roman, it’s fine. I was joking.” Bryce leaned across the table and rested his hand on Roman’s to calm him down. It worked... and then some. “I know you. And I know that you’re not like that.”
“I’m not! Seriously, I’m—but my back was against the wall—still is. I have a whole crew to think of too, and then I saw you in that magazine and thought that... I realized you might be looking to go down a different... I know you hate having nothing to do.” He tried for a chuckle.