iBusiness

“Where have you been?” Gina asked Alister as he walked into iMagine. He was supposed to be here four hours ago. It was now noon. Alister removed his sunglasses.
“Chill Gee.” He said. He laughed. Gina said nothing. She stared at him angrily. He cleared his throat. “Relax. Nothing happens until I get here anyway.” He said in a non-joking tone. He and Gina walked across the “lobby” (which was really a small room with a desk in front of the kitchen in Gina’s condo), and into the kitchen, where O and Luke and were, typing away at their laptops.
“Morning Alister.” O said. Luke raised a hand with bagel in it.
“’Sup dude?” He said. Alister could hear the food in his mouth. “Where have you been all morning?” Luke asked. Alister shrugged.
“Sleeping.” He said. Gina shook her head.
“I’m not going to nag you Alister, just get to work.” She said. Gina walked away, passing Alf as she did so. “Any new messages for me?” She asked her assistant. Alf paused the game on his PSP.
“Nope.” He said. He continued playing. Gina sighed and left. Alister started walking down the hall to his office. Luke got up and followed.
“It’s was that party last night, wasn’t it?” He asked Alister. Alister turned around.
“No, not at all.” He said. Luke just looked at him Alister smiled. “It may have had something to do with the party.” He said. Luke laughed and shook his head.
“You’re getting old.” He said. Alister shook his head.
“Nonsense.” He said.

A woman walked through the front door of iMagine. She looked around the dark lobby until her eyes fell on Alf. He looked at her like she was crazy. She cleared her throat and walked with her nose in the air. She stopped at Alf’s desk.
“Is this iMagine?” She asked in a voice that screamed pompousness. Alf stared at her before answering.
“Indeed it is.” He said, using a line Alister constantly used. She gave a small smile.
“Good. I need to speak to someone higher up than you.” She said. Alf frowned. “Is there an adult present?” She asked. Alf nodded silently.
“One moment please.” He said. For a few seconds, Alf did nothing. He wanted to make the lady wait. “Mr. Hazlee!” Alf said. Alister and Luke looked at the door in Alister’s office.
“Can’t that little dude call bat woman?” Luke asked. Alister got up from his chair.
“Gina’s not that bad.” Alister said. He left the room. Luke sat in the chair on the opposite side of Alister’s desk.
“Not that bad? You’re obviously not looking at her face.” He said.

Alister walked into the lobby and saw a woman at Alf’s desk. Alister sensed he wouldn’t like this lady. She turned towards him and looked him over. She walked over to him.
“I asked to speak to an adult.” She said. Alister put on a fake smile.
“And here I am. How can I help you?” He asked. She sighed.
“You make iPod applications here don’t you?” She asked. Alister nodded.
“Last time I checked.” He said. She took a piece of paper out of her bag. She handed it to Alister.
“I want you to make an app so I can converse with the other woman in my neighborhood, and keep abreast of the latest gossip.” She said. Alister looked from the woman to the piece of paper. It was pretty much a list of things she wanted the app to do. Alister smiled, trying not to laugh.
“Okay.” He said. “I’ll get our programmers right on it. When we’re done, we’ll put a link on our website so your friends can get the app, and we’ll send you your cut.” He said. The lady nodded.
“Good. I expect it by this afternoon.” She said as she left. Alsiter looked at Alf.
“Call Gina next time.” He said. Alf nodded.
“Yes sir.” He said.
“And stop calling me sir.” Alister said, walking away.
“Yes sir.” Alf said.

Luke scratched his messy brown hair. Adjusting his glasses, he looked closer at the laptop screen.
“Mark posted all sorts of picture from last night’s party.” He said. O sipped her Tazo Passion tea.
“Am I in any of them?” She asked. Luke scanned over then.
“Not that I can see.” He said. He clicked away. “Dude, Alister isn’t going to like this picture.” He said laughing. O looked back at her screen sadly. She hated the feeling that no one cared.
“I didn’t see you there.” She said, hiding her sadness. Luke scratched his nose.
“I wasn’t there.” He said. “I had a previous engagement.” He said. O nodded. That meant a date. She sipped her tea again. Luke looked at her.
“Can I have some?” He asked. “It smells good.” O blushed. Luke reached over and grabbed her glass cup. He took a sip and swallowed. “You’re not afraid of germs, are you?” He asked smiling. O said, she just continued to blush.
“Let me make you a cup.” She said.

“I almost told that lady to hit the bricks.” Alister said. Gina looked at the list while listening to Alister rant, as he always did when there was work to be done. “I forgot when we started making personal apps.” He said. He grabbed a blass ball on her desk and started throwing it up and down. She reached her hand out and grabbed it in midair without looking up from the list.
“How do you think we pay the bills Alister?” She said, still looking the list over. “iMagine is still a hit and all, but we make apps for people who don’t want to, and in returned, we get their money.” She said. She placed the list on her desk. “Are you afraid you can’t make it?” She asked. Alister gave her a sarcastic smile.
“That’s not the problem, and you know that.” He said. “Did it ever occur to you that I’m busy?” Alister ask. Gina rolled her eyes.
“Yes, it did, and then I remembered you just got here at noon, and we have no other apps in the line-up.” She said. “Just sit at your desk, and get this app done. Luke and Karen will have it done by tomorrow morning.” She said. Alister sighed.
“That lady wanted it done by this afternoon.” He said. Gina stared at him.
“What?” She asked. Alister nodded. Gina looked like she was having a mini heart-attack. “Then why the hell are you still sitting here!?” She cried. Alister shot out of the chair and left, taking the list with him.

O and Luke sat in the chairs across from Alister’s desk as he paced around the room.
“I have been giving it some thought.” Alsiter said, rubbing his chin. “Can’t this lady just text her friends?” He asked. Luke shrugged, sipping a cup of tea.
“Maybe she doesn’t want her husband to check her phone and see all the secrets she’s been conversing about.” O said. Alister stared at Luke.
“What are you drinking?” He asked. Luke took another sip.
“Passion tea.” He said. Alister raised an eyebrow.
“I think she’s a sponsor actually.” O said. Alister sat at his desk.
“I didn’t know that.” He said. “Anyways, let’s get this thing done. Just make a simple messaging app.” He said. Luke nodded and left, keeping his tea tightly in his hand. O continued to sit there.
“You were at the party last night, right Alister?” She asked Alisters. He watched his screen.
“Yep.” He said. “At least, I think it was. My memory of last night is a bit…hazy.” He said. O wasn’t sure how to respond to that. She moved the hair out of her face.
“Anyways, you saw me pose for a few pictures, didn’t you?” She asked. Alister looked at her.
“Yeah, I do remember that. Didn’t you bring that camera?” He asked. O nodded.
“Yeah, I know. That’s why I don’t understand why I wasn’t in any of Mark’s photos.” She said. Alister shrugged.
“Maybe he didn’t like any of them.” He said. He regretted saying it as soon as it left his mouth. O frowned. Alister sighed. “That’s…not what I meant.” He said. O nodded again. She said nothing. Alister directed all of his attention on her. “Mark is an ass, and you know that. He’s far too judgmental, and you shouldn’t be bothered by his stupidity.” Alister said. O nodded again. There was only one thing Gina and Alister agreed on when they hired the staff of iMagine, and that was to hire Karen Ocks (or O, her nickname). They both knew of her past and believed with the help of Luke, they could set her on the right track, but people like Mark it hard for her to move on from what happened. Alister got out of his chair sat next to O. He put his arm around her.
“Mmm.” O moaned. She let out a sigh. She wished Luke was the one holding her.

Luke walked into the kitchen and sat at the counter where his laptop sat, still on. Gina walked in suddenly.
“No. No. No. No. No!” Luke said sarcastically. Gina shot him a look as she walked up to the counter.
“What’s wrong? Tacky clothing stores are rejecting your credit card?” She said laughing. Luke nodded.
“Got that right. They keep saying you own too much of their stuff. Have you been using my card again?” Luke asked. Gina rolled her eyes.
“Look bright dimwit. That lady will be here any minute.” Gina said. Luke swallowed the last if his tea.
“The dermatologist? Didn’t she try to treat your horrible facial disease last week?” Luke asked. Gina glared at him.
“One of these days, I’m going to-”
“Hello dear.” The lady from earlier said as she walked into the kitchen. She placed her purse onto the counter. “Where’s my application?” She asked. Gina looked at Luke. Luke cleared his throat.
“Down the hall.” He said simply. The lady scared him. Gina and the lady walked down the hall towards Alister’s office. O left as they reached the door.
“Is Alister in there?” Gina asked. O nodded and walked away. Gina and the lady walked in. “Alister, this is Jane Casey. She’s the woman who was here earlier, and she’s one of our sponsors.” Gina said. Alister stood from his chair and shook Mrs. Casey’s hand.
“Hello.” He said. Mrs. Casey sat in a chair. Gina stood next to Alisters. “Your app is done; Ms. Ocks is getting it onto a compact disc now.” Alister said. “But I have to ask, why can’t you just use a phone to text your friends?” Alister asked. Mrs. Casey looked off.
“That’s none of your concern.” She said. Alister smiled. Gina looked from Mrs. Casey to Alister.
“Alister, just give the woman her application.” She said through gritted teeth. Alister nodded.
“It’s coming, it’s coming.” He said. “Mrs. Casey, come on. Unless you don’t want someone to see what you’ve been texting, I don’t see why you need this app. And because I am its creator, I can withhold it until I see a reason to hand it over.” Alister said, taking a seat in his office chair. Gina stared at Alister. Why was he doing this? Gina knew from childhood experience that Alister had a strange need to solve or fix things, but it was annoying when the things he tried to solve weren’t any of his business. Mrs. Casey said nothing. Alister continued. “If you’re doing something illegal, then I’ll have to report to the authorities.” Alister said. Mrs. Casey cracked.
“Fine!” She said. “I’m…I’m having multiple affairs.” She said. Alister nodded with a smile. Gina’s jaw dropped. Mrs. Casey sighed. “I don’t want my husband to know, or the wife of the man I’m with. We can just use the app I asked for to send messages when our spouses are out, and he can come over.” She said. Gina sat on the arm of Alister’s chair.
“Then why didn’t buy an app that can do that? There’s Yahoo! Messenger, that’s a good one.” She said. Mrs. Casey shrugged.
“My husband is already suspicious of me. All he’d have to do is check my purchase history and see what I’ve bought and he’d be hip to the jive in no time.” She said. Alister smiled. He’d rarely heard anyone use the word ‘jive’. He pressed a button on his office phone.
“Ms. Ocks, bring me that app please.” He said. Gina and Mrs. Casey looked at Alister. He noticed the looks on their faces. “What?” He asked. “I’m not against love.” He said smiling. Gina smiled too.
“Thank you.” Mrs. Casey said.

O handed the disc to Mrs. Casey and Alister led them both to the lobby. Gina glanced at the page up on Alisters’s laptop. On Mark’s facebook page was a picture of Alister from last night’s party. He appeared drunk. Gina clenched her teeth.
“Alister.” She said. She left his office and followed O, Mrs. Casey, and Alister into the lobby. Mrs. Casey waved goodbye and left through the front door. O walked back to the kitchen. Alister turned to Gina.
“Another satisfied customer.” Alister said. Gina glared at him.
“Can I speak to you in Alister?” She asked him. Alf looked at the both of them. “In Private?” She added. Alister looked at Alf. They walked from the lobby to Gina’s office. She closed the door behind them. “I saw your picture on facebook.” She said. Alister sat in one of Gina’s office chairs, which was black and quite square-shaped.
“I didn’t see yours.” He said, trying to skate away from where she was going with this. Gina shrugged.
“I don’t party, you know that.” She said. “But from what I saw, you were partying hard. Dancing, laughing, and even drinking.” She said. Alister frowned and said nothing. Gina shook her head. “Alister.” She said in a soft voice that only Alister had ever heard. Alister swallowed.
“It was just last night, Gina.” He said in a serious voice that only Gina had ever heard. Gina nodded. They sat in silence for a few minutes. Gina spoke first.
“Alister, you know your father-” Alister got up and left immediately. Gina hung her head. She didn’t really need to bring up Alister’s father. She closed the window to the internet on her laptop, and the picture of a drunken Alister disappeared from her screen.

Gina placed a key into the keyhole of the front door. Locking iMagine for the day, she walked to the edge of the street and stood next to Alister, Luke, O, and Alf. Alf walk off first, hopping on his bike and leaving without saying a thing to anyone else. Luke watched him as he left. O walk off into the road, waving goodbye to everyone as she left into the darkness of the night. Luke walk towards his car, climbed into the driver seat, and started it. He waited for Alister. Gina turned to Alister.
“Alister, I didn’t mean to-”
“See you tomorrow Gina.” Alister said. He walked to Luke’s car, and in moments, they left. Gina sighed. She walked to her car. In Luke’s car, he and Alister pulled up to Alister’s house.
“Later dude.” He said. Alister shook his hand and got out of the car. Luke watched as Alister walked home, to a house on a hill. He hated how lonely Alister’s house looked. Like nobody lived in it but him. Luke drove away. Minutes later, he pulled up to Mark’s house. He stepped out of the car. Mark was standing outside with his dog.
“Luke?” He asked in surprise. Luke gave a weak smile.
“Hey Mark.” He said. He looked at Mark’s dog, then back at Mark.
“What’s up?” Mark asked. Luke took a deep breath.
“Karen, she was at the party last night right?” He asked. Mark nodded slowly. He knew where this was head.
“This is about the pictures.” He said. His dog sat down on the grass. Mark laughed. “I don’t put criminals on my facebook page.” He said. Luke nodded. He didn’t like it when jerks called O a criminal.
“You know she didn’t anything wrong.” Luke said in a serious tone. Makr shrugged.
“The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree, excluding you of course.” Mark said laughing. Luke grabbed Mark’s shirt.
“Shut the hell up.” Luke said. Mark look into his eyes.
“Get your hands off of me.” Mark said. Luke loosened his grip. Mark pushed his hands off and walked back to his house. Luke sighed. He back away and slowly went back to his car.

Alister sat on his couch in the family room. The silence in his house deafening. He closed his eyes. He could hear his mother. “Stop it! Stop it, you’re hurting him!” Alister rubbed his eyes. He grabbed a beer bottle on the table in front of him. Opening it, he took a long sip. He could still hear her. Screaming. Begging. “Get up!” He heard his father say. “Get up! Get up!” He took another sip, trying to drown him out. “Time to get up.” A softer voice said. Alister’s eyes shot open. Sunlight nearly blinded him. He looked at his watch.
“Noon.” Alister said.