Longboard (Desk Surfing Series Book 1) (8 page)

              I wasn't really sweating anymore.  I was barely damp.  I had been off the dance floor for about two minutes and I didn't really feel like I was dancing for long.  My skin was cool but my muscles were still warm.  The cold air couldn't hide the fact that I had a workout.  Twerking, jerking and working it was all I needed to stay a size four.  I didn't deal with the gym, didn't like the recurring expense.  I didn't like giving up my cash to a business.  I myself am a business.  All the cash I got paid per salaried hour was my daily turnover.  But I wasn't done with work.  I saw a lot of guys from different groups drinking beers because beers were cheap.  Domestic beers were really cheap.  I didn't waste my time with them.  I looked for the guys in their shirts, rolled up sleeves and a cocktail, not a daiquiri.  Daiquiris were for professional drag queens who came to clubs for ideas by watching women's styles.  I didn't waste time on that bluff.  They weren't interested in what I was selling.  Guys drinking straight whiskey were usually at a high point in life, unless they drank to excess.  But they were on the fence about how much they wanted to spend. 

             
Red Bull
was the tell-tale.  Guys with drinks were using it as liquid courage.  But
Red Bull
was for those who knew what they wanted.  They were usually company higher-ups.  They watched the girls dancing on stage to get their juices flowing.  They didn't want whiskey-dick so they didn't mess with whiskey or any other alcohol.  They liked
Red Bull
for the caffeine and the kick.  It worked like a performance enhancing drug.  Performance was a 100-dollar word at
Osmi
.  A lot of guys were there for hook ups.  I told myself I could make a few contacts.  One because I was in marketing and two because if I didn't get the office manager job, I might just start looking at options at another firm.  You did that by making contacts.  

              I was never into the concept of desk surfing, so don't judge there's a story.  I just did the normal:  went to college; stacked up student loans; stopped by career services; picked up the handouts; posted resumes on
Monster
and
CareerBuilder
; sent out somewhere between 500 and 600 resumes.  That got me nowhere.  Jessie invited me to a social thing at her parents’ bungalow, which is practically a mansion.  And I started meeting people.  Jessie was like this is my girl Dawn, she's so smart.  And I started making contacts.  What do you think makes a better impression?  A piece of paper with a list of accomplishments or a young co-ed fresh outta college, who is smart enough not to drink red wine because that stains your smile.  I found my smile got me more job offers than my resume ever did.  It's the system.  I was always in the library during college trying to work hard.  Wasn't gaga over boys unless I really found a dude who rocked my boat.  I thought being one of the last ones to leave the library meant I was going the extra mile.  It doesn't matter if you go the extra mile if no one knows it.  You gotta make an appearance, get some face time.  And that's when the idea of desk surfing became more relevant, as I tried to move my way through the working world.  A lot of girls I knew dated whatever.  Like I said, there are a lot of hot bods on the Island.  So many wave-stoker types with like 7% body fat were around.  But they were just bros, up to nothing more than being beach bums.  Some were trying to make a pro team but lacked the talent or work ethic.  They just worked in the hotels, bumming tips from tourists.  Others were trying to open some kind of surf shop but that only went so far.  There wasn't much branding going on in a shop.  If you were a mainstay, you were good.  But if you were an upstart, you had to have a lot of wave-cred to become an instant classic.  Kelly Slater could.  Hobgood could.  But your average wave-rider couldn't.  So I just woke up one day and had the idea that if I'm gonna be hooking up with dudes anyway, might as well aim high.

              I saw a thing on
Youtube
about a Russian girl who was living in London and only dated high-profile officials and dudes in high circles.  She was dating such high-profile dudes that she was prosecuted as a Russian spy.  But she wasn't a Russian spy. The girl just aimed high.  And she was diversified.  That's what I was doing.  Aiming high and staying diversified.  Longboard got a free-be but he would have to comp me for the next one.  It was the same business model as drug-dealers used.  And people who operated outside the law were usually the savviest businessmen because law enforcement was their competition.  They had to be creative as hell.  I wanted to let Longboard see me mingling with guys from other companies, for his own sake and mine.  I met a guy named Alex who was in the promotions business.  We had a lot to talk about because we were both in marketing.  But his deal was more about new product promotion.  He promoted things that never really existed before, like surf boards made from some new material that made them cut water better.  Marketing for an insurance and investment firm was more about explaining our philosophy and approach to managing our float and why that was a proven strategy, nothing new. 

              Alex was tall with dark hair.  He actually looked more Eurasian that native Hawaiian.  He kind of had the Keanu Reeves thing going.  But Keanu was more handsome.  Alex was pretty.  He had like no fat on his body but he wasn't built.  He was just toned.  And he had no cheek swell.  His face was very bony.  He had that
Calvin Klein
model look but he might have been too talk to model for
Calvin Klein
.  Alex said he wasn't from the Island, not even from the state.  He was from San Francisco Bay Area.  The thing about Asian-Americans, we flock to where Asians are prosperous or plentiful to gain success.  Look at Maggie Q, Daniel Wu, Leehom Wong, Michael Wong and all the others.  They were all Asian-Americans who went to Hong Kong to start modelling and acting.  Because in the US, if you wanted to be a model or actress, you had to wait till they felt like casting an Asian.  In Hong-Kong, they were casting Asians, you had to wait till they felt like casting a white girl.  Apparently, Alex moved to Hawaii because it had a large Asian population.  The Bay Area did as well but you were seen as an Asian.  In Hawaii if you were Asian, that's just the way things were.  It was nice to talk to Alex and get that perspective on being an Asian-American from someone who wasn't local.  He was a smart guy, went to Caltech for business.  But I was sure his looks and charm got him a bit further than his Caltech degree.  It was odd talking to him.  The conversation was great but he had to lean down to talk in my ear.  Otherwise, the music would have drowned out our conversation.  I could somehow feel Longboard's eye plowing into me.   Interestingly enough, it was a similar feeling to when I was on his desk.  I could feel a lot of emotion.  I had a few business cards in my wallet purse.  I went back to the
Key Way
area to get my wallet purse from the sofa. 

              I saw Longboard in the middle of the way.  Almost dead middle.  He had his tie on still.  It fit squarely in the middle of his wide shoulders.  As I approached the table, the impression hit me like the cold air when I stopped dancing.  Longboard's frame was so large, it looked welded together--constructed not developed.  He must've had Samoan blood.  It was the first time I thought about his parentage.  He wasn't so tall, maybe 5'11" or 6'0", maybe.  But seated, he looked mythical in proportion.  His size looked unnatural.  It was the first time I noticed how stocky he was.  I guess because I had spent so much time over the last few days thinking about him, maybe justifying him.  It was no surprise his shoulders weren't the only part of his body that was outsized.  He had the look of a high-roller.  His shirt was seamless.  I could see it because I had seen it.  I knew Italian when I saw it.  And he was drinking
Red Bull
.  He came to play.  It didn't matter to me how it played out, as long as it played out.

              "Hank, have you seen a red wallet purse?"

              "No I haven't," said Hank.  He went into action.  He stood up and did that whistle thing with his lips.

              "Has anyone seen a red wallet purse?" he asked the crowd.  Stacey, the girl from accounting pulled it from behind her.  And stood up to hand it to me.  I mouthed
thank you
to her because I didn't want to try to shout over the music.  She held up an OK.  I turned back to Hank.

              "Thanks boss."  Hank nodded.  I walked back in the direction of Alex.  I got the feeling that Alex was a nice guy by the fact that he waited for me in the exact spot where I left him.  Either that or the fact that he was interested.  I gave Alex my card and he said he didn't have one but I told him to call my cell so I'd have his number, which he did. 

              "We'll be in touch.  Now go climb your company ladder."

              "You too," said Alex, "But be careful climbing in those heels."  I smiled.  I went back to the
Key Way
table and didn't want to avoid Longboard.  That would've been just childish.  He had seen that I wasn't waiting on him to talk to me.  I was perfectly comfortable talking to other dudes, even from other companies.  One of the green lasers passed over his chest.  It felt to me like a metaphor.  Maybe he was green with envy.  I wouldn’t fawn over the man.  He was a smart man.  He was a successful man.  But he was just a man.  There were plenty of fish in the sea.  That was the
Ocean Thinking
that came with growing up on the island.  It lead you to think outward.  That's how I got into the idea of desk surfing in the first place.  I just walked over to him. 

              "Hey Hank, have you been to this club before?"   My body was at a 45-degree angle.  My boobs weren't real but they were real nice.  He knew. The-45 degree angle was the best view to show them off.  My left nipple pointed directly between his eyes.  My dress wasn't see-through but he couldn't help but notice where my nipple was.  I made it technical before it became sexual.  Any red-blooded male would feel his balls run hot with a perfectly sculpted 34C boob twelve inches from his face.  But my nipple was where his eyes were trying to focus.  His eye couldn't focus without moving his head back.  My nipple was too close for his eyes to lock on.  As he moved his head back, he was reminded that he did want a clearer picture.  He moved his entire body back in his chair as I stood still.  I was right where I needed to be.  He wasn't.  He didn't just reposition himself to look at my rack.  He wanted a look at my entire form.  He decided to stand up.

              "I usually get by at clubs," said Longboard, "I used to club a lot when I was younger."

              "Here in Honolulu?"

              "Yeah," said Longboard, "And other places."

              "Like where?"

              "I went to London a lot and sometimes Milan," said Longboard.

              "And your parents were OK with that?" 

              "Well my dad wasn't always in the picture," said Longboard, "He was a busy businessman, but he financed me with private schools and what's supposed to be a great education.  I went to boarding school in New Jersey before I got kicked out and had to come back to Hawaii.  I actually worked for my dad for a little bit before I left for college.  I didn't actually graduate high school I actually got my GED."

              "Where did you go to college?"

              "Penn," said Longboard, "That's when I would leave to Europe to go party.  My dad gave me an allowance, so I just went."

              "Nice.  And Henry is that a family name because you always go by Hank so it seems..."

              "Well," said Longboard, "The
Pittsburgh Steelers
are a family tradition.  So when Dad got a boy, he did what he had to do.  He named me after
Steelers
' coach, Chuck Noll."

              "Then why didn't you end up with the name Chuck?"

              "Because Dad didn't like the name Chuck," said Longboard.

              "So where's Henry come from?"

              "Chuck Henry Noll," said Longboard.

              "Ah."

              "Dad, wasn't that creative," said Longboard

              "You have sisters?  You said
when Dad got a boy
."

              "Two on top, one on bottom," said Longboard.

              "You're one of four." 

              "The only boy," said Longboard.

              "Then you're used to playin' with girls."

              "Maybe, maybe not," said Longboard.

              "With that shirt and that tie, you look like maybe so."

              "Only one way to find out," said Longboard, taking a sip of his
Red Bull
.

              "Really?"

              "Seriously," said Longboard.

              "I'll follow your lead."

              "Did you come alone?" asked Longboard.

              "Yep."

              "Then say your goodbyes now," said Longboard.  It felt like an order because I wasn't really that keen to leave just yet.  I could have hung out for another forty-five minutes because I didn't club regularly anymore. But I was playing the cards I was dealt.