Part 3 - ???

PREMISE Maybe the girl that they are fighting over - it’s not her choice. Although they were all in school together their paths started to diverge and their ideas started to misalign. Despite this they still stayed firm friends. The captain was a free spirit and he wanted to travel and not settle down. He planned on adventure and interstellar travel whereas the ceo was more pragmatic and wanted to follow in his fathers footsteps and inherit the family business. He had a wealthy upbringing and good strong ties whereas the captain was from working class; intelligent, diligent and got in to college/ school on a scholarship. They both talk of being in love with a girl but the ceo says that his way of life would suit her better. [ 22:20 ] SCENE Between classes they were talking with text books strewn about the lawn in front of them. The ceos books were neat and well kept, with coloured tabs poking out, while the captain’s were tatty and weather worn; the cracked spines scrawled with the names of previous owners. They sat on a small hill outside the school. The captain was lying on his back staring at the clouds, sleepily chewing on a pen. The ceo was hunched over some heavy text book, furiously scribbling notes. [ 22:22 ] “You’d have to admit, she carries herself very well,” the captain said dreamily. “What…who?” the ceo asked distractedly barely glancing from his notes. “Amber.” “Amber who?” “Amber Gates.” “Amber from Art & NFT History?” the ceo asked. His writing slowed a small bit at her name and he stole a quick sideways glance at his friend. “Yes. She’s got a fine gait. Good commanding shoulders. And there’s a twinkle in her eye, have you noticed?” “I have not. I been focusing on history in history class, call me old fashioned.” “Aha, maybe she reserves the twinkle just for me!” the captain said with a laugh. “Oh please, you’ve never spoken to her!” his friend scoffed. “I have to! I once borrowed a pen off her. It was love at first sight.” The ceo tutted under his breath. “Is that the pen that you are now currently chewing on like a cow?” “Ah no. I think I lost that one almost immediately. Haha! It was a bloody nice pen too…” [ 22:23 ] “Hmmm,” the ceo snorted. “And what’s that supposed to mean?” the captain said as he turned to his friend. “Oh, nothing. It would never last.” “What do you mean?” “You pick up adventures like I pick up books” he said. “You’d get bored of her after a while. You go searching the horizon for some new exploit instead. You’d feel shackled by a traditional marriage. I mean you can’t even keep track of a pen…” “That’s not true!” retorted the captain with mock offence. “And anyway, who said anything about tradition marriage? She would be my queen, we would conquer the universe together, freeing slaves and helping the downtrodden!”

He leapt up from his idleness and struck a heroic pose, swishing his pen in the air like a sword. “Hmmmm…” the ceo was not taken with this idea.

“You don’t agree?”

“It’s not about whether I agree or not. It’s more complicated than that.”

“Aha! You want her for yourself do you?” the captain roared with laughter. “You coy rascal! I’ve seen the way you look at her!”

The ceos face redden at this.

“It’s not that at all! If you ever paid attention in class you would notice she’s well spoken, well dressed, well read, she sits straight and upright…” “So it is her posture you fancy as well, eh?” the captain cut in with a sneer. “No, I mean these are all signs,” he sighed. “What I’m trying to say is who fancies her probably doesn’t matter. Their name will however.”

“What do you mean?”

“She is a result of good upbringing.” “Like yourself?” “Yes.”

“Actually, your parents and her parents know each other, don’t they?” “They’ve had business together in the past, yes.” “Ho-ho! I’d love to have some business with her someday!” the captain claimed dramatically. [ 22:23 ]

“Don’t be crass, she’s of different stock,” the ceo retorted. “You’re not from a rich family. You don’t understand how much of your life is planned and plotted. You have to be predictable. It’s like being a piece on a chess board. You might think you have control and freedom to go anywhere, but where you start and where you can actually go are predetermined. There’s a set amount of moves that you are expected to make within the confides of the board. Otherwise you fall off, or get taken out of the game.”

“Ah, I do feel very sorry for you wealthy people sometimes. You poor bastards,” the captain spoke with some jeer in his voice, but not without affection.

“If I hadn’t got that scholarship in here myself, I’d probably be campaigning on the streets for ya, collecting alms and starting shelters for you poor rich lads.” His friend smiled at this. Above them a drone whizzed through the air. “So what you are saying, is that I must work extra hard to deserve her!” realised the captain after some time. “It is decided so.” He sat down and ripped open one of his old books with great enthusiasm. “I want my queen to admire me, and if it’s knowledge she admires, than I will do my best to attain it! If it’s is wealth, than I will do my best to find it. I can mould myself into something she’ll love.” “Very well,” the ceo replied. (edited) [ 22:23 ] … [ 22:24 ] A bell rang in the distance and some students near by started to gather their things with worry, rushing towards the school. Another set of students remained where they were, laughing as they passed a cigarette between themselves. “What about you, friend?” the captain asked after some thought. “What do you mean?” “How will you win her heart? Are you going to show her all your leather bound books on business or amaze her with your stunning collection of maps?”

“Who? Amber?” the ceo scoffed. “You’re assuming I have even noticed her.” “Well, you haven’t written anything down for at least ten minutes, which is highly unusual; you always sit behind her in class so you can gaze at her; and you sweat profusely in her company. So, I’d say, yes. You’ve noticed her.” The ceo rolled his eyes. “I am not going to change my plan at all. What I want and what I will do are two different things. What I will do is keep my head down, study at every available opportunity, graduate and probably take over my fathers spore business on Pluto when I am ready.” “That’s a solid plan,” the captain replied. He scratched his chin. He was just staring to grow a beard. “So that is what you will do, but what do you want?” “Honestly?” the ceo took a deep breath and raised his glasses to rub the bridge of his nose. He thought of his friend with both admiration and envy. The captain seemed to think life was a playground where you could try any trivial ride that pleased you, and just get off if it did not suit. But true freedom was a freedom from disappointment and responsibility and consequences, and the ceo did not have that privilege.

It did not matter what he wanted; for his family only wanted what mattered from him - to continue to uphold their vows and views. He was a vessel for their way of life. (edited) [ 22:25 ] “What I really want,” he said finally, turning to his friend “is just to finish this assignment. We have Latin class soon, followed then by ‘Economics: The Fall of Fiat’ and you’re not copying my notes this time.” “Sure thing boss. Whatever you say,” the captain shrugged with a cordial smile. “Latin, huh? Who knew that would make a come back.” Ultimately it was not their decision and they knew this in their hearts. Her hand would go to a family and not the one individual who could profess their love more. The ceo was good stock, financially sound; predictable and with ancestors that could traced back to lofty lords with large lands. The captain was clever and witty, astute and outspoken; he possessed all the traits that made wealthy people nervous.

The ceo eventually married her on a grey day surrounded by expensive flowers, jewels and by a family more concerned with her second name than her happiness. The pirate could hear the bells toll from the church as he boarded a rickety ship called “The Diamond Beard” to seek adventure and leave his past behind him. Both were a bit bitter for having no choice. (edited) 3 10 September 2021