The Broken Ring

[Deskfan45]

LAW HQ

Aaron Welsh froze in his chair as he saw the number on his screen. 60,000 yen. That's how much he would have to pay after his client, Skylar Jones, put her opponent head first through the canvas, ruining the ring. Of course it was him who had to pay. Who else? Skylar herself? The woman responsible? Nope! It had to be Aaron! The brown haired man sighed, burying his face in his hands.

Aaron

Not a day seemed to go by where he wasn't reminded that offering to be Skylar's manager was a mistake. He still remembered what a nightmare it'd been the first time the damn psycho sent someone to the hospital. Aaron balled up his fist, and pounded his desk repeatedly. "God... dammit!"

[CaptainL]

Hiro didn't get to the office all that often. Mostly, he was being pulled around wherever Kirie wanted him to go, either to keep her company, or just because she didn't trust him enough to leave him to his own devices. The LAW offices were a particular point of contention, given the high probability of Hiro bumping into other girls while working there - it wouldn't be the first time this had happened, after all.

But a managerial position came with its own responsibilities. And sooner or later, Hiro would need to find his way to the office space, if just to keep track of work-related expenses. He sighed, leaning over his desk as he entered a few values into a spreadsheet. It wasn't the most exciting job in the world. But then again, perhaps that was a blessing after what he typically dealt with.

But it was just then that Hiro was reminded of how exciting working in LAW could really be. A cry of rage came from the cubicle next to his, jolting him from his stupor. "Gah-!?" Hiro jumped up from his seat, peeking his head out into the hallway to see where the noice was coming from, and seeing a man slamming his fist into the desk. The sight gave him pause, but at the same time, it stoked his curiosity. What could evoke such a response?

"Are you...all right in there?"

Spoiler

[Deskfan45]

Aaron's eyes widened, cheeks reddening in embarrassment. He hadn't thought about his co workers hearing him, but now here his neighbor was, peering into his cubicle. "Eheh..." He chuckled nervously. "Y-yeah, uh, just got some bad news... I'm gonna get some coffee, wanna come?" He offered. Taking a break seemed like a good idea right now.

[CaptainL]

Hiro blinked, looking at the man in the cubicle next to his. It seemed that he had caught Aaron at a time when he hadn't been expecting him, and now that Hiro had walked in on him in the middle of his outburst, he didn't know how to handle the situation. Hiro wasn't that sure himself, either. He didn't know this guy, nor did he have any idea what the context was for his rage. He simply stood in the doorway of the cubicle, staring awkwardly in his direction as he waited for Aaron to open the conversation so that he wouldn't have to. He felt as though he had walked in on something that he shouldn't have - a feeling which he was growing more and more familiar with as of late, but despite it all, he still didn't know what to do when he found himself suddenly over his head.

It was Aaron who broke him out of his silence, as he changed the subject to getting coffee. This, at least, was something Hiro knew how to deal with, and he welcomed any chance to get him out of a deadlock like this. "Oh, coffee?" he said, managing a little smile, but one still colored by his anxieties. Then, he cleared his throat. "Yeah, uh, sure! Sounds fine to me!" He supposed a walk could do him good. He'd get to stretch his legs, and maybe it would take his mind off of what had just happened - as well as all the other chaos that was going on in his life, as per usual.

[Deskfan45]

Aaron smiled weakly, getting up from his seat and heading for the break room. "Uh, sorry if I disturbed you..." He said, walking past the other cubicles. "Hey Aaron, she hit another home run?" "Fuck you." Aaron grumbled at his teasing co worker. This job had taken a lot out of him, and he had a short temper.

"Y'know, by the time my dad was my age, his job was a lot more fun... Filming porn..." The manager sighed, heading into the break room and getting his coffee. His father, whom he was named after, was a man known throughout the industry of hentai wrestling. He was often given credit for playing a role in the popularization of the sport in main stream professional wrestling. Aaron often watched matches from when SWF first started, though he tried to avoid the ones featuring his mother...

[CaptainL]

Hiro followed close behind Aaron, accompanying him to the break room. When he heard the manager's coworker heckling him, he turned his head in that direction with a curious look. "Uh...who is he talking-" Hiro began, but he soon cut himself off when he heard Aaron's coarse response. He was getting the impression that this was something his coworker preferred not to deal with.

As Aaron went to fill his cup, Hiro was close behind, reaching for one of his own. For the most part, he didn't question what he heard. This seemed like typical water cooler talk - that was, until the man mentioned what his father's job was. At that, Hiro's face reddened, and he leaned away out of reflex. "I'm...I'm sorry, did you say-?" Even given the business he was now working in, Hiro never expected to hear anyone so openly discussing porn, and seeming so nonchalant about it at that.

His face only flushed hotter when he realized that the coworker had addressed the man as Aaron. Hiro could have sworn that he knew about an Aaron who had connections in the porn industry, having heard his name come up while following wrestling. But he was equally ashamed that he knew that, even if he had never sought out any of his content personally. His eyes flitted back and forth, averting the direction of his fellow employee. Better to just change the subject, he figured.

"Er, never mind..."

[Deskfan45]

Aaron sipped his coffee, trying to soothe his nerves. How was he gonna pay for that wrestling ring Skylar had thoughtlessly destroyed? Managing for LAW paid well, but not that well. "I'm Aaron Welsh... Junior, specifically..." The man said, taking another sip. "Kid, lemme give you some advice. There are some people who are good as friends, but not co workers..." Soon, Aaron's emotions spilled out, and he found himself on the verge of a long winded rant. "If a woman is an unhinged, violent psychopath who destroys FUCKING WRESTLING RINGS, you're better off just being friends with her..."

[CaptainL]

"...uh..."

Hearing what Aaron had to say, Hiro's mind soon drifted far from the topic of pornography, and the societal acceptability of discussing it. He froze in place, holding the cup of coffee in his hand without so much as lifting it to his lips. All he did was stare ahead at the man across the room from him with widened eyes. Aaron might have been referring to "friends" as a counterpoint to "coworkers", and he might have been referring to his client, but to Hiro, those words cut especially deep. After all, he had his share of unhinged, violent psychopaths who were more than friends - and, although Kirie had never destroyed an entire wrestling ring, she had caused plenty of trouble for him all the same. Whether Aaron had meant it or not, his words could have been aimed directly at Hiro himself - and he didn't know what to think of it.

He decided he wouldn't dwell on that too long. Swirling the coffee in his cup, just to look like he was doing something, Hiro chuckled nervously. "Sounds like, uh...you've got some interesting stories, huh..?" Immediately after he said it, he hoped that Aaron wouldn't find it insensitive.

[Deskfan45]

By saying Aaron must have stories to tell, Hiro likely didn't know the can of worms he was opening. "Yeah, I do..." Aaron grumbled. "Damn near lost my job after the crazy bitch broke most of a woman's bones with a baseball bat. And she makes a pass at me every damn day! God, I regret putting my dick in that!" The manager ranted, looking down at his coffee. "Was pretty tight though..."

The man looked up at Hiro. "Never got your name. How about you? Got any horror stories?"

[CaptainL]

Hiro was sure that Aaron had stories, all right - and he could surmise enough from the context that his curiosity about them was more of the morbid variety than any other. Even then, though, he almost immediately regretted asking for more information. He winced and recoiled, his muscles going tense and his eyelid twitching as he listened to Aaron discuss the sorts of horrors his client had unleashed. "Jesus..." However, what shook him even more was how casually Aaron referred to his dalliances with the girl, a statement that caused Hiro to do a double-take as he glanced back and forth before letting his gaze settle on Aaron. "Wait, wait, did you just say-uh, never mind..."

Hiro reached to straighten his tie, wanting something to distract himself from the subject. After taking a sip from his cup, he welcomed Aaron's offer to discuss something else. "Name's Hiro Yamashida," he explained. "I'm, uh...a manager here..."

He gulped when Aaron went on to ask him if he had any such stories of his own. He had hoped he wouldn't need to get into this - the memories such topics dug up were far from pleasant ones - but he had no way to avoid it now. He sighed, his eyes focusing in on the coffee in his cup as he slowly swirled it.

"Oh, yeah, plenty...I manage a girl who can be, uh, a handful some times. Even back on the indies, she scared a few of her opponents out of the business...I think it was the brandishing scissors part, but the blackmail threats weren't helping things either..." He bit his lip, consciously avoiding any mention that his client was also his girlfriend. That could only get into awkward territory. "I don't really...like to talk about it..."