Chapter 12: Tying a tie

The next day was typical to the PA. He woke up and ate a bowl of cereal around 11 in the morning, practically still asleep. He reviewed his emails for work, responding to the ones that corporations have sent relating to the donation party.

It is now 5 p.m. Several more minutes and Nicolas was going to be at the door. Seven sat on the couch, going through his phone. For a moment, he was peaceful, but once he heard the doorbell chime, he jumped.

He walked to the door, shoving his phone into the pocket of his grey sweatpants. Opening the door, he started to feel his arms quiver. The assistant smiled to himself, seeing Emilee standing in front of him. His body eased up, and he realized how tense he was with the idea of his boss coming over to his apartment. He didn't know why either; it wasn't like it was the CEO's first time at the apartment.

"Hello!" the light voice sang, "I was going to go see if you were wanting to hang out yesterday when we met at Wrap n' Go, but I saw you walking into this apartment before I had the chance to stop you."

Seven narrowed his eyes at her, "So- you're stalking me?"

The blonde girl shook her head, frowning, "What? I'm not! I was going to head back to the fast-food place, but I saw you already leaving! I wanted to know if you'd like to go out to eat again."

The assistant let out a soft sigh, turning away from the door and walking back to the couch, "My supervisor is coming here any minute, so I can't really-"

"Aw, I won't bother," she responded. Emilee walked in, her blonde hair bouncing on her shoulders, "Wow, this is a nice apartment."

Seven rolled his eyes, hearing the door shut behind him, "Do you think so?" he asked, trying to sound enthusiastic.

She hopped on the couch that was near the kitchen, crossing her legs, wrinkling her skinny blue jeans," I mean, as I look around, I don't see one wrapper laying around."

The brown-haired male snickered, sitting on the sofa that was against the wall, "I don't work well around trash."

She rested on the couch, putting her hands behind her head, as she stared at the ceiling, "OCD?"

"Nope. I just don't work well in a dirty environment," he corrected, staring at her. He was a bit surprised at how easy she made herself at home as if she hadn't just met him yesterday morning.

She examined the room, still lying on her back, "You must have a lot of money with a TV like that. How old are you? 20? You seem to be doing well on your own."

"You ask a lot of questions, huh?" Serene sighed, "I'm 21. Not rich, just saved a lot as a kid."

"I'm 20. I guess that one year apart does come as a benefit," she frowned, turning to her side, her arm hanging off the sofa, "I have an 'ok' apartment, but it's really dirty. I get lazy, so I don't do a lot of chores."

"Gross. I can't imagine how it looks." the assistant joked.

"Shut up, Seven." she murmured, almost whining.

The freckled-face assistant smiled gently to himself, "Thank you for sticking with the name."

And it was nice. It was a genuine thanks. It was the first time he decided to be referred to as a different name since he moved away from home. Hearing his suggestion being acknowledged was comforting.

She gave me a thumbs-up, "You did tell me to call you that. Serene did seem like a name a guy wouldn't fancy. Though everyone's different, so there's no shame in going by your real name."

"Yeah. My mom expected a girl." He grimaced. The thought of it disheartened him.

"I never met my mom," she spoke casually.

"No?"

She sat up, shaking her head, eyeing Seven, " She gave me to a foster family when I was a baby. I mean, I do have pictures of her, but I don't quite have a memory of her."

"How about your dad?"

She shrugged, "The same thing. I mean, I'm not alone or anything. I live with my older brother in the apartment, but he's on a college trip right now."

Serene scoffed, "Why do you live with your brother?"

She went silent for a bit, frowning as she slouched against the couch. Her emerald green eyes gazed down at her thumbs that tangled together, "I need him since I'm careless with the illness that I have."

The assistant raised an eyebrow, his smile fading, "Illness?"

"I have lupus," she replied before looking up at Serene who looked sad, "I mean, it's no big deal-"

"How is that not a big deal? Lupus is an autoimmune disease, is it not? Doesn't that mean that the body's immune system attacks healthy tissue? I'm sorry, but that's something to be concerned about-"

"And that's why I have my brother!" she chuckled lightly, trying to ease the tension.

Seven noticed how quick she was to shift the mood. He realized now that Emilee was not someone who could hold a conversation regarding her illness. It was just an assumption, though. Seven has met enough people to recognize when their smile hides genuine fear.

Understanding, he inhaled strongly and changed the topic for her.

"I never knew my dad or mom. I lived with my aunt." Serene started.

"Your aunt was the one that gave you the girl name?" she questioned, a smile plastered on her face. The doorbell rang while Seven was about to answer. He stood, turning his attention away from Emiliee, "She told me that my mom demanded it no matter what." He walked towards the door, listening to Emiliee's laugh. She gazed at her friend, seeing him unlock the door.

Mr. Anderson stood, wearing a black sweatshirt with jeans that matched. His hair was different. He didn't have any gel in it, nor was it fixed. It looked natural and lazy. Seven's eyes widen, seeing his boss in his casual look. His heart pounded, wanting to just touch him. The assistant wanted to caress the CEO's cheekbones and trace his finger down to his neck. It was like remembering what happened in the bathroom triggered something inside of him.

Nicolas' arms were crossed as they both shared eye contact, "Ochoa, can I come in?"

"Yes, sorry," he apologized, voice cracking. He stepped to the side, letting Nick enter the apartment. Emilee hopped off the couch, walking in front of Anderson to greet him.

However, he neglected her presence and turned around to stare at Serene, "Surely, you remembered I was coming. Correct?"

Seven closed the door softly, staring at his boss, "Yes, sir."

Nicolas' blue eyes gazed down at his assistant, raising his right hand, showing him a navy blue tie, "Try it on."

"Sorry?" he muttered.

"Try it on. You have a t-shirt on. It'll be fine. I need to make sure you know how to tie a tie."

Serene gazed at Emilee who stood behind Nicolas. She raised an eyebrow, a smile on her face while she stared at the two. Seven felt a bit awkward since Emilee was quite literally standing behind Nicholas, waiting for the CEO to turn around and acknowledge her. However, Mr. Anderson seemed to catch up with the shorter male standing in front of him.

Seven gulped, "I don't know how, sir."

Nicolas rolled his eyes as if annoyed, shaking his head, "That's why I'm here. Let me show you."

Nicolas' hand rose to Seren's left shoulder, pulling him a bit closer to the CEO. Two feet apart now, Seven stood still. Nicolas extended the tie, wrapping it around assistants' neck. Nicolas kept his stare on Serene, the corner of his lips curving into a smile. Nicolas' blue eyes shined under the ceiling light beneath them, like a blue sapphire gemstone, it reflected different shades of blue.

Avoid eye contact.

Avoid eye contact.

"You start with the wide end on your left," he addressed, showing Serene as he glanced at Nicolas' hands," and the narrow one on your right."

The PA nodded, showing the boss that he acknowledged his directions. As he moved his hands, Seven noticed they followed his descriptions, "You cross the wide end over the narrow end. Then pass the wide end through the middle, going under the narrow end. Then after you pulled the wide end under, bring it to the left and bring it up again through the neck loop. Got it?"

Serene wasn't even paying attention. His eyes stared hopelessly into the blue eyes that shined underneath the light. His legs weakened, wanting to collapse in the middle of the lecture. It was as if the stare of his boss was shooting arrows at Seven. Not in a painful way, but in a way that makes Serene want to dodge a cupid arrow.

"The next step is necessary. If you do this wrong, you might just end up looking like the clown at the donation party."

Seven scoffed at the comment. Nicolas' eyes squinted at the shorter male."Stop smiling. This is serious." he said bluntly, almost as if what he was about to do was life or death.

Serene pulled his lips together, hiding his smile.

Before Nicolas spoke again, his eyes darted at Serene again and smirked, the corner of his lips curving up as if he was being mischievous. The CEO glanced up at the lighting and grasped the two ends of the tie, "Stand over here." he demanded as he pulled Serene by the tie, directing him to the bottom of the light, "What? Why?"

"It's vital." he bluntly responded.

At this point, Seven didn't know if he should be taking this lecture seriously or not. To Serene, it felt like Nicolas was just wasting time trying to mock his assistant.

"Are you toying with me right now, Mr. Anderson? I hardly think lighting is going to be a huge factor when tying a- "

"Tying a tie is easy. But tying a tie the right way is difficult. You can either tell me now that you can figure it out on your own, or you could keep your mouth shut and listen to my directions."

Serene cleared his throat softly, hearing the strict response from his boss. The assistant wasn't worried much about the tie either way. He could always look up videos on how to tie a tie. Though, he didn't want to make Nicolas bitter, so Serene allowed him to just continue his lecture again.

Nicolas leaned in a bit, getting closer to the assistant, fixing the tie from the back of Serene's neck. His warm breathing was felt by Serene's neck, making the assistant tense. As the CEO backed away, Ochoa gulped roughly. He stared at his boss' light pink colored lips that moved slowly.

The assistant wanted to lean in. He wanted to feel Nicolas' body against his. He wanted-

"Lift your head."

The PA did as he was told, but his mind went wild. Nicolas stared at him, ignoring the fact that he was inches away from kissing his assistant, "Assistant Ochoa, I will like for you to focus and not take this as a joke. Lift it higher." he demanded.

Serene didn't know what was going on in his boss's head. But he knew for sure that his mind was running with troubling thoughts that kept him from actually listening to the directions the man in front of him was mouthing.

"Y-yes sir," Serene mumbled, his chin being gently lifted by Nicolas' finger.

Nicolas gripped the two ends of the tie that laid on Serene's chest and pulled it towards him, making the PA closer to Nicolas. Seven was now able to smell the cologne on the CEO's sweater. His eyes widened, stepping forward a bit, trying to balance himself out. The warmth of Nicolas' breathing was on his neck again, "I do not want my assistant to come to my father's party dressed as an animal," he murmured in Serene's ear.

The assistant softly scoffed nervously at the comment.

As Nicolas turned his head slightly towards Serene, Mr. Anderson realized how close the two were. His eyes widened, making the PA cheeks blush. The two associates shared eye contact for a while, seeing the red color on each other.

Serene felt vulnerable, weak.

Nicolas, however, felt something he had never felt before. His heart dropped, staring at Serene's soft, pink lips for a little longer than intended. And Ochoa noticed. His eyes widening, seeing that Nicolas' lips parted a little, leaning a bit closer.

Seven's heart raced, unable to breathe. It was like something got caught in his throat, and couldn't understand what was going to happen. He was lightheaded as his legs trembled.

In a way, to Serene, this was something he felt was bound to happen considering what Nicolas did at the bathroom moment. This is what the PA had been thinking about for a while, but even then, he didn't feel right.

Serene has never been with someone, and this was usually because of his anti-social personality. He has always avoided friendships and relationships because he was fully aware that having that type of connection required commitment.

Thankfully, Emilee cleared her throat before Nicolas could get any closer. The CEO backed away, turning around to face Emilee who grinned. Her cheeks were red, as she was aware of the whole situation, "Hello~" she sang calmly.

Nicolas cleared his throat, looking down at her, "Hello. Apologies for not greeting you earlier. I'm Nicolas Anderson. CEO of the GamerCave company."

She nodded happily, shaking his hand, "Emilee Peterson. A friend of Seven."

Mr. Anderson squinted, "Seven?"

"Serene Ochoa as you might call him. However, he doesn't like Serene so I call him Seven."

"I think It's more appropriate to call him by his last name in my position."

Emilee nodded, showing him that she understood.

"I'll be off then." Nicolas spoke, turning around to face Serene who stood in distress, "I'll pick you up tomorrow?"

Emilee raised her hands, "No no. I'll drop him off."

"Drop him off?"

She nodded, "He can just tell me where the party is located. It won't be any trouble."

"Uhm... I suppose." he responded, "Wear the tie tomorrow, Ochoa." he continued as he started walking out the door. Emilee followed him, making sure he left.

The assistant still stood in distraught. As if stuck on his feet. He didn't even say goodbye to his boss, but instead was imagining how close Nicolas was to kiss him on the lips. It was like time had stopped and everything around him was muted. Though the sound of the door shutting brought him back to reality and he suddenly was able to breathe again.

"Was that your boss?" Emilee asked, walking slowly back to her friend.

Seven gazed at her, his cheeks still red, "Yeah, why?"

She grinned as her eyebrows rose, "He nearly kissed you!"

"Please don't bring it up... I have no idea what just happened," he sighed, walking back to the couch, feeling his legs slowly gain feeling again, "Also, YOU are going to take me to the party?"

She nodded and nudged Serene's elbow, "Don't want your boyfriend to see you all dressed up when he can just be stunned once you walk in the party!"

"Not... my boyfriend, Emilee," he said, dropping himself on the couch, staring at the ceiling, throwing his arm over his eyes.

She clapped her hands, excited," Aw! No, but you two would be a cute couple." she grinned, "And very dynamic. I mean I don't know how your work life is, and I hardly know you two, but that entire thing that I just witnessed was straight from a romantic novel!"

She stroked her chin slowly while staring into mid-air, "There's a word for aggressive sex. What is it?"

Seven ignored her, his face still burning at the thought.

"What's the word, Seven?"

"If I tell you, can you agree to let me go on the ride with Anderson?"

"No!"

The PA sat up, glaring at the blonde-haired girl who stood behind the sofa, "Emilee, I'm not letting you drive me around with your illness!"

"What's the word? Aggressive sex." she ignored as if in deep philosophical thought.

"Kinky," Serene gave up, falling back onto the couch, annoyed of her already. He took off the tie and folded it above him.

Emilee paced, "Yes! Kinky! You two would be a kinky relationship."

The PA choked at the sudden comment, sitting up from the sofa again, squinting his eyes at Em. Before he could say anything, she interrupted him, "What time is he going to pick you up tomorrow?"

"I need to ask him," Serene answered, now looking away from her, placing the folded tie on the coffee table.

"Perhaps I can help you out with your outfit!"

"Em, this isn't a date. It's work."

"A date! Please do text me when to come over! Where's your phone?"

"Emilee, please be more mature about the situation!"