PRIDE » Zarry ✅

6: Willing to Compromise

The craziest thing about life is that it has a funny way of making people do things they just really don't want to do. And no matter how rich or poor someone is, they all still do things they don't want to do just to get through the day.

I'd been so wrapped up in Zayn and what we did together that by the time another Monday came around, I had completely forgotten about my conversation with Eric. In fact, it never even crossed my mind again after I went to bed that night. So when I was in Zayn's office learning how to read the monthly report and recieved a phone call from my father, I didn't think anything of it.

"Hello?" I said.

"Hey son. Are you working?"

"I am. I'm in Zayn's office learning how to read the monthly reports."

"That's good. But can you step away for a moment? I want to see you in my office. There's someone you should meet."

"Sure. I'll be there in a minute."

When I hung up the phone, I saw Zayn looking at me with confusion.

"Sorry. My father wants to see me in his office right away."

"Go on. I'm not going anywhere."

"I'll be back."

I left my things there with Zayn and walked down to my father's office.

When I got to the door, a young woman was sitting outside his office on her phone.

"Someone's in there."

"Yeah, I know. My father called me in."

"Oh." She said with surprise.

I knocked as I opened the door and went inside. My father was there with a man.

"There you are, son."

"Here I am."

"Do you remember Kenan Brown?"

The man turned to me and stuck out his hand. I shook it.

"Kenan who owns the Big K Grocery stores?"

"That's me." He said proudly.

"Yeah." I said. "I went to high school with your daughter. Kallie, I think."

He and my father looked at each other and shared a look.

"That's right. You remember her."

"Of course. She was pretty smart."

"Then that definitely sounds like my daughter."

"Kallie's still in the city, you know." My father said.

I looked at him. "That's... nice."

"Of course it is." He chuckled out and Kenan chuckled too.

"I think we better go ahead and tell him why I'm here, Des."

"Yes, of course. Kenan and I happened to run into each other a four months back. And we were talking about our businesses and where they currently stand. At some point, we're going to be too old to run them. Or even if not too old, we might just want to retire and hand them down to our children early."

"Okay..."

"Well, you already know I'm handing mine down to you but Kenan wants to hand his down to his daughter."

"Kallie."

"Right."

"But..." Kenan said sadly. "Kallie has no interest in running a chain of stores. She just never took to it despite the fact that it put food in her mouth and paid for her education through all stages of her life."