Sam worked in tech support at Domini Enterprises, a large company in California with branches all over the west coast. They specialized in living buildings, LEED certified architecture and the like, but also dabbled in almost everything—cellular technology, electric motors, sustainable food practices, graphic design... Most importantly, Nicholas and Michael Domini had inherited the business from their father, and their brother, Gabriel, worked in the design department. He didn't do a whole lot, but being the middle child of the owner basically ensured his continued employment.
Sam knew two things:
1) Nicholas Domini—or as literally everyone called him: Lucifer—might have been the most unassumingly terrifying human being on the face of the planet.
2) Gabriel Domini was super annoying.
It was July. Sam sat in his cramped cubicle in front of his computer. His job, generally, was to help people out when they forgot how to use the printer or accidentally downloaded a virus when they misused Google. This particular day, in the nasty heat of the Los Angeles summer, his phone rang. And the caller ID nearly gave Sam a heart-attack: Domini, G.
"Why... am I...?" Sam shook his head and answered the phone and almost before he could get out a professional, "Hello?" Gabriel cut him off.
"Tech support? Yeah, I kinda dropped my laptop and I'd love it if you could come fix it. Seeya in a few." And then he hung up.
Sam groaned. Rich people and their egocentrism never failed to drive him wild. Especially this particular rich person. He straightened his stupid blue-green polo shirt. At least it wasn't yellow or something. He grabbed his little box of stuff—just in case—and headed to the elevator.
Gabriel's office was on the fifteenth floor.
Sam knocked lightly before swinging the door open, and said, "Hey. I'm Sam, with tech support."
Gabriel glanced over his shoulder and grinned. "Hey!" He snatched something off of his desk—all twisted metal and glass. Sam realized it was a MacBook. It looked like it had been run over several times by a truck.
"Mr. Domini, I can't..." He gestured lamely at the destroyed laptop. "I can't fix that. You need a new computer." The thing was literally bent in half and the screen held more cracks than glass. "How far did you drop it?"
"Out the window."
"Out the—" Sam lifted his hands to his face, rubbing his fingers along his eyes. "That's... fifteen stories." He raised his eyebrows. Glanced down at Gabriel with the most incredulous expression he could muster and planted his hands on his hips. "You dropped your computer from the fifteenth floor and you expect me to be able to fix it?"
Gabriel shrugged, with a thoughtful yet totally annoying smile. "Not really."
"Why'd you call me here?" Sam crossed his arms.
Gabriel shrugged again. "I was bored and I wanted a second opinion or something. You sounded nicer over the phone."
Sam shook his head. "Yeah, well..." He gave a short wave of his hand, exasperated. "Just... Buy a new computer. I'm going back to my job, Mr. Domini."
"No, call me Gabriel. You're Sam, right?"
Sam turned around and left.
Gabriel began to bug him over the slightest things.
Charlie got a call for support the next week, stood up, and leaned into Sam's cubicle. "Mr. Gabriel Domini is asking for you, Sam. He says he dropped his phone in the toilet." The week after that, Gabriel managed to secure Sam's individual number, and said he needed Sam's help to install new ink in his printer. The next week he couldn't figure out how to connect to the internet with his new smartphone. The week after that it was a busted Bluetooth.
And so on. For at least two months.
Until Sam finally snapped and asked, "Why me?!" Standing in Gabriel's office with the sun streaming through the tall windows, glaring at the smooth wood of Gabriel's desk and the too-shiny white buttons on his suit jacket. "Why are you bothering me?"
Gabriel immediately grinned. "'Cause you're funny when you're annoyed, and I like your sass." He leaned his cheek on one fisted hand, with his elbow pressed against the desktop. He managed to remain assertive even while looking up at Sam from where he sat. Exuded an energy of being completely obnoxious.
Sam frowned and rolled his eyes. "I'm not funny."
"I think you are." Gabriel beamed up at him. "Even when you don't mean to be."
Sam tried to frown more deeply.
"Do you want to be friends, Sam?"
Sam blinked. "What?" He stared down at Gabriel.
"Friends." Gabriel leaned back in his chair, kicking his polished leather shoes up on the edge of his desk. "You know, people who speak on occasion and enjoy one another's company. Tell each other bad jokes and drink together on Valentine's Day." He smirked.
Sam shifted where he stood. He bit his thumbnail. "Fine." He pointed at Gabriel with raised eyebrows. "But I'm not gonna just be your personal tech slave, okay? Normal support calls. If you want to hang out you can call me outside of work. Deal?"
"Deal." Gabriel winked at him.
Sam rolled his eyes.