ALEXANDER THE GREAT: The Unlikeliest Boss

2: Struggles of life.

Alex walked out of the house, head lowered and expression terrible. Was Argent planning to frustrate him? Where on Earth did he except an ordinary lot attendant to manufacture such an extravagant amount in such a short period?!

“But if you don't come up with the money, my word stands...”

Those were the last words of Argent before he left the house. His heart began to race, and his palms grew clammy. Get her married to someone else? He couldn't let that happen!

The stakes were truly high, and failure was not an option.

****

As soon as he reached home, Alex headed straight to the bathroom for a shower. He scrubbed himself clean, trying to wash away all the stress and tension from the day. But nothing was going off. After drying himself off, he trudged to his small bedroom, where he found Matt, his best friend already fast asleep.

He sighed, feeling the weight of the day's events bearing down on him. His eyes were still open, and he couldn't stop replaying everything Argent had said about him and the challenge.

He wasn't the type of person who had many friends he could ask for help. He had only himself, his sick mother and Matt.

He closed his eyes, hoping that sleep would come soon and give him some rest from his worries. But it wasn't forthcoming.

So, he decided to sit up and start calculating. He only earned $320 a month, because that's what a lot attendant makes in the automobile company he worked. Also, if he could run some errands at work like he always did, also do some menial jobs after work, maybe he could gather around $50 from that.

In addition, if he could ask Matt to lend his some money and also run around to see how he can help to gather something, maybe it could amount to...

His thoughts were curtly interrupted by the beep of his cell phone. Alex turned sideways to see the secondhand phone that Matt had gotten for him a few years back, retrieving it. He glanced at the already broken screen, barely being able to read the contents through the scratches and lines.

The sender's name, "Wells Fargo bank," caught his attention. He opened the phone and read the unsettling contents.

The loan he had taken from Wells Fargo to pay as deposit for the treatment of his mother's illness was long overdue for its third installment, accumulating a 10% interest. The total amount owed had become $30,500.

He suddenly regretted opening the email. The burden of financial problems were just too much for him. Aside this, he still had to pay up the debt he owed the hospital.

All these things only multiplied his headache, and he wished he could have a peaceful day for once in his life.

***

Alex rubbed his eyes and let out a deep sigh before coming down from his bike and pushing it to the parking lot of SALMAS automobile company.

He strode into the building. It was another day at work. But this time, his mind was clouded with the thought of how to generate $10,000 by the end of the month, and $30,500 before the bank decides to take action.

“Haha!” Suddenly, he heard an echoing laughter behind him that drew his feet to a stop.

“If it's not Alexander The Loser, then who else would it be?!” Wick Norris, a fellow staff sneered, prompting a chorus of guffaws from their colleagues.

Alex gritted his teeth and tried to ignore the insults. He knew that Wick was always quick to find fault with others, and he couldn't let his taunting get the best of him.

He was known in the company for that nickname Wick gave him: 'Alexander The Loser,' which was ironically referring to his namesake, the legendary Alexander the Great of ancient Greece who made so much contrast to his poor status.

Alex took a deep breath and kept walking, determined not to let Wick's words get to him. He knew he would only be wasting time responding to him.

Alex walked over to the shed to collect his supplies for the day: a loop of keys clipped to a roller, a hand mop and bucket, glass cleaner, steel wool, and rags.

He started his rounds, checking the cars lined up in the front rows for customers. He wiped away any dust on the side mirrors and door handles, sprayed the windows with glass cleaner and wiped them down until they shone.

His mind drifted back to his challenges. An idea suddenly popped in his head. Maybe he could ask for a salary raise or advance payment from the dealership manager later in the day.

Suddenly, someone tapped his shoulders. He turned back to see it was the head of the lot department.

"The manager wants to see you," the man said, his tone cryptic, then left immediately.

A frown appeared on Alex's face as he realized that this might be about more than just a routine meeting with the look on the man's face.

Dropping the rag in his hands, he squared his shoulders and he strode to the manager's office, hoping that he could somehow salvage his day. Maybe he could also use this chance to put forth his request.

As he reached the door, he took a deep breath and opened it, bowing his head respectfully.

Inside, Mr. Benardino was seated at his desk, poring over a letter. Alex spoke up, trying to appear confident. "You sent for me, sir?"

Mr. Benardino scoffed and raised his head to look at Alex.

The coldness in his eyes made Alex's heart skip a beat. He watched as Mr. Benardino scanned him from head to toe, then chuckled. "Yes, Mr. Brooke, take this." he handed over a letter to him.

Alex took the letter with shaky hands and started to read it. He barely read the first line before Mr. Benardino interrupted him.

"Mr. Alex, thanks for everything you've done for this company," he said, his voice curt. "But I must say that we no longer need your services."

Alex felt a cold wave of shock wash over him, unable to believe what he was hearing. "What do you mean?" he asked, his voice shaking.

Mr. Benardino just chuckled. "You heard me, Mr. Alex. You're fired!"

"B-but why? What did I do wrong?! Why are you doing this? Huh?!” Tears rested at the corners of Alex's eyes as he gazed at Bernardino with a pitiful face. His world had finally come crashing down around him.

However, Bernardino was not shaken. “I have no explanation to give you. Please use the door, Mr. Alexander The Loser.” He stressed on the 'the loser' his tone rude. "And let me remind you that you should not be seen anywhere around this company or else you will pay severely for it!”

There was nothing left for Alex. Absolutely nothing at all. He walked out of the office absentmindedly, consequently stumbling into a man by mistake.

"S-sorry," Alex apologized but the man pushed him back.

“Are you–? Oh! It's you!” The man exclaimed with raised eyebrows. He looked in his 40's and was dressed in an expensive black suit and tie.

"That worthless guy who dresses and behaves like an almsperson. Like what the hell are you?" He laughed sarcastically.

Alex didn't know who the man was, and why he was speaking like that but he was too heart broken to retaliate.

The man suddenly grabbed Alex by his tie. He stepped on his foot so hard that Alex winced in pain. "Hey, Just forget about her because you have lost already. You still don't get it, do you? You are a loser and will always be!"

Then, the man hit his shoulder and walked away. Alex felt a mix of anger and confusion but didn't have the strength to reply.

As he watched the man walk away, Alex noticed that he appeared to be someone of importance. He rubbed his shoulder and winced in pain, wondering who the man was and what he meant by "her".

He couldn't understand why the man had been so aggressive towards him. He had never seen him before, or at least, he didn't remember seeing him anywhere.

Alex took a deep breath and tried to shake off the encounter. He had more pressing matters to attend to, like finding a new job now in order to get an advance payment before the end of the month.

As he walked down the street, Alex spotted Matt in the restaurant they usually went to have lunch during work.

He went in, exchanged pleasantries with Matt before spilling the entire story about what happened - ten thousand dollars and the sack letter.

Matt let out a surprised sigh. "Ten thousand dollars? And now the worst part is that you've lost your job. Man, what the hell are you going to do within a month? How heartless!" he exclaimed, his annoyance palpable.

"I can't lose her, I just can't Matt," Alex replied, his voice breaking. "I don't even know what to do about it anymore."

"Hey, relax, okay?" Matt said, trying to comfort him. "Right now, the company has special guests."

"Special guests?" Alex asked, sniffing back the tears.

"Yeah, I think they're from the McCall Group. A man in his 40s came to represent them and he is the personal assistant."

"Oh... wait, he was wearing a designer black suit, right?" He frowned.

"Yes, any problem?" Matt asked, curious about the sudden change in Alex's demeanor.

Alex went on to tell him everything about his encounter with a man on his way back from Mr. Benardino's office. "Something is not right," Matt pointed, his voice tense.

Alex furrowed his brows. "I just sensed it too... " he paused to think when suddenly he remembered something.

"Wait a minute...That group you just mentioned now, is owned by Vivian's father!” Alex said with his eyes widened. He hadn't seen this coming at all; no wonder the man had said he had lost her already.

Suddenly, Alex phone rang and he quickly answered it. "How was your day?" the caller asked, and Alex felt his heart skip a beat as the voice sounded familiar.

"Who am I..." Alex asked cautiously.

His heart sank immediately as he realized who it was.

Argent?

Suddenly, Argent began laughing, and Alex couldn't help but feel a sense of unease wash over him.

"I guess your day was just fine," Argent chuckled. "But I'm sure you remember our deal, young man. At least with your salary, you could have raised something...oops, I almost forgot...you lost your job, but just like that?" His laughter increased, mischief evident in his tone.

"You know what, young man," Argent sneered, his voice dripping with malice, "forget all I said about challenging you. The fact is, I can't just sit back and watch Vivian marry a bum, come on. And now that you've lost your job, how are you going to raise the money? So tragic!" He paused, relishing in Alex's misfortune.

Alex was finally realizing that Argent was responsible for the loss of his job.

"Now, watch closely, young man. Watch how I'm going to make you a loser in Vivian's eyes."