"Bring the left side down just a little. Barely even an inch," Harry says from across the event hall he and a dozen other people have been running around inside of all afternoon. "Er- That's too much. Now, raise it just a centimeter or two. That's it. That's better," he nods in approval as a member of the event planning staff adjusts the light fixture Harry keeps his gaze on the entire time it's being moved. He moves even further back than he had been standing when the woman at the top of the ladder stops fiddling with the adjustable chain holding the fixture and quirks an eyebrow at Harry.
"Well? Is it even?" she asks.
Harry doesn't immediately answer, moving forward again until he's almost standing under the giant rectangular chandelier he personally chose to add some dimension to this stuffy old space and bring life to this reception. It goes perfectly with the smaller lights strung in amongst the sheer fabric draped across the old wooden beams. The combination gives the illusion of stars peeking through the clouds, and then right in the center of it all is Harry's chandelier sparkling like bits of the sun broken off and forged into a thousand crystal teardrops to illuminate even the darkest corners of the room. It's perfect.
"It's perfect!" he smiles, backing up to observe the effects of his design choices from a new angle when he runs into something tall blocking his path. Or rather someone.
It's just Thomas Harry realizes upon turning around to find the owner of Black-Tie Events & Designs frowning up from the tablet in his hands to raise an eyebrow at the chandelier behind Harry's head.
"What the hell is that and why is it hanging in the middle of my event space?"
That wasn't exactly the reaction Harry was expecting from his boss, or from his boyfriend of eight months for that matter. He was hoping for some sort of good job/ pat on the back combination at the very least, however, Harry tries not to take too much offense. After all, it's not personal. This is business.
"That is the light fixture Julie and I just spent the last twenty-five minutes hanging and leveling," Harry answers kindly, shooting a wink up the ladder at the only employee of Black-Tie Harry knows to be as much of a perfectionist as himself. "And, it's in the middle of your beautiful event space because there's a wedding reception happening here in about four and a half hours and your clients' guests would probably like to see once they arrive."
Harry grins after his little quip, his face falling when Thomas doesn't even acknowledge his attempt at lightening the mood and the stress level in the room.
"Take it down," Thomas says with his attention already focused on his tablet again. "The clients agreed to the small, round fixture."
"Well, yes, and that one is lovely, however, I spoke with them just last week and we decided on this one instead because-"
"And who asked you to do that, Haz?"
There's an edge of sharpness in Thomas' voice that makes his annoyance obvious in more than just his face. Harry can tell he's not happy about the switch up, so he treads lightly as he makes his case.
"This one isn't that much more expensive and it looks so much better. It's unique and it really opens up this space. That's why I chose it, babe."
"It stands out too much from our original subtle plan, it's a lot more hassle than the smaller one, and it's more difficult to hang."
"But it's already hung," Harry argues. "What difference does it make?"
"It makes all the difference in the fucking world because you hung it behind my back! Just like you bought those plane tickets to New York behind my back two weeks ago," Thomas spits making everyone in the room freeze for a millisecond before realizing the noise is just another argument brewing. "This is my company which means I make all the final decisions. You chose not to consult me again, so take it down."
