Chapter 188 - Meeting Walter Strickland Again

(cont'd)

Tayaw, seeing Juliana's dirty look gets anxious but the anxiety disappears immediately as his next favor is not as serious as his previous one.

"Are you free next month? From  say... 25th to the 26th?" Tayaw asks.

"Well. I can clear my schedule if it's worth skipping work." Juliana says, not wanting to promise anything while making herself seemingly available.

"Ah… never mind then." Tayaw drops what he is about to ask. He thinks that three days after all, is too much for a busy person like Juliana. 

Tayaw dropping the matter, while making Juliana relieved, also made her intensely curious.

"Just curious. What was the favor?" She asks. Tayaw grins, glad to explain.

"My friends back in Teungeb are busy. My parents don't want to go too. I also don't know anyone else that can accompany me. I mean, sure, Geoff, that guy who played your grandpa can come, but he's gonna bring his girlfriend. I also don't think it's proper to ask the actresses in my movie to be my partner. I'm gonna be alone." Tayaw rambles.

"What are you on now?" Juliana asks.

Despite catching each word that Tayaw said, the lack of context confuses her.

"The awards night at Sorrento. I don't have someone to go with. I mean, I can go alone, but the plus one is gonna be a waste. It's once a year experience too." Tayaw finally provides some context, making Juliana understand Tayaw's situation more.

"So… You're asking me?" Juliana asks, hiding how flattered she is feeling.

"Yeah. Are you comfortable on the red carpet?" 

~~~~~~~~~

The Next Day, Saturday, 8 AM - Queens, New York – Pink Apron Headquarters

"Oh. Hey there Rahul. You missed Tayaw by a f*ckin hour." Phil smirks at Rahul who just barged inside his office.

"F*ck. I can't believe you didn't call me. I had to find from the cafeteria lady. Really man?" Rahul complains before sitting down on the nearest chair he can find.

"Hey. I was gonna but he seemed to be in a rush. Also, imagine being waken up at 5 in the morning." Phil just shrugs his shoulders. 

"So, what did you guys talk about?" Rahul asks.

"Nothing much really. The growth of the company and his accounts." Phil says.

"Ah. The guy refused to withdraw a part of his dividends again, right?" Rahul asks in worry.

"Right…" Phil answers.

Before Rahul can sigh in relief, "BUT, He asked if he can buy more shares." Phil says, making Rahul hold his breath.

"This… F*ck." Rahul breathes out in a helpless chuckle.

"Did he really ask you?" Rahul asks.

"Yeah." Phil simply relays Tayaw's intention.

"Alright, thanks to the dividends he never withdrew, we avoided taking loans and fundraising." Rahul starts, making Phil happy.

"But you know, I'm a co-owner too and it's hard to calculate just how much me and the other two shareowners are willing to give him." Rahul continues.

"Well, if he decides to withdraw now, you know what would happen, right?" Phil says, half-threatening.

"This is why you should have called me. F*ck. Why does he want more share anyway? He's already a majority owner." Rahul shakes his head.

"Majority owner or not, the calculations of his pay-outs are with me, available for you to look at any time. The auditing for the first quarter is on-going too, so you folks decide after it's done. Or, maybe wh-"

"Alright. Stop, stop. I get it." Rahul groans, interrupting Phil.

"So. I heard he received some movie nominations again. Did he want to use our meal kits again for promotion like he did last year?" Rahul asks, optimistic of the idea.

"Yeah. But his film is set in the 1930s, so there's no product integration this time." Phil says, deflating Rahul's optimism.

"Last time, our subscribers almost doubled, right? How much do you think we benefit this time?" Rahul asks.

"I don't know, really. Tayaw said he just put Pink Apron logo before the start of the film, and on the end credits. That's it." Phil explains.

"So it's easy to miss?" Rahul is disappointed.

"Hey, I was bummed too. But his film is about the Coniglio Family." Phil says.

"Wait. The mob?" Rahul says in surprise and a tinge of fear.

"What are you so afraid of? They're 100% legit now. Our building is owned by the Coniglio." Phil says.

"What?!" Rahul does a double take.

"What? You didn't know? You leased this place without knowing? This entire block is theirs." Phil this time is surprised at Rahul.

"I didn't. When we were starting, this is the only place we can afford, it's a bargain too." Rahul says.

"Heh. Well, the Coniglio are not shady. Don't worry." Phil is amused at the situation.

"Alright. Tell Tayaw that we'll take on the costs of the printing of his movie poster in our pamphlets." Rahul says.

"A bribe?" Phil is surprised at Rahul's action.

"A sign of good faith. I hope he goes easy on us with the sh*t we owe him." 

~~~~~~~~

1 PM - Page Road, Nashville 

*Vroom* *Crrr.*

Tayaw parks in front of the gates of a huge beautiful all-American inspired, metal fenced property. From the fancy metal gate, an access road, around 25m in length, leads to a huge mansion. The surroundings of the mansion are carpeted by a beautiful huge lawn of bright green Bermuda grass.

"Phew…" Tayaw whistles at the entire front view of Walter's huge mansion.

*BZZZ* A moment later, the mansion's gate opens for Tayaw to enter with his car. 

"Isaac! Hah! Good to see you kid!" Walter warmly welcomes Tayaw as soon he gets out of his car.

"Walter. Long time!" Tayaw greets Walter.

"So… that's what you look like when not in public." Walter notes Tayaw's plain St. Louis Cardinals hoodie and jeans outfit.

"Yeah. I like the comfort in these clothes." Tayaw says.

"Well, come on in! It's not every day that my favorite singer visits my home. Ingrid! Please put our guest's bags away, please." Walter escorts Tayaw in while ordering one of the housekeepers.

"Beautiful house. But the slave-owner vibe of the house really intimidates me. Haha." Tayaw jests as he looks around the beautiful interior.

"Oh… Well, Sh*t... I think I need to move now." Walter takes the joke seriously however.

"Whoah. Hey. It was a joke. A joke. Somethin tells me that you've been here for years if not decades." Tayaw feels bad now.

"Hey. I can't unsee it now. Maybe it's the architecture that somehow makes my buddies racist when they're here." Walter says.

It is Tayaw's turn this time to be caught off-guard and his smile freezes.

"HAH! HAHA! I got you back! Heh." Walter loudly chortles.

"Good lord. I thought you were serious." Tayaw sighs in relief and also feeling his heart warm at Walter who is jollier compared to the Walter he met in 2011.

"Heh. I admit, some of the folks my age and… shade, are a bit racist. But here in Nashville, people are open-minded." Walter says escorting Tayaw to the pool-side outdoor dining table under a huge gazebo.

It is not only the dining furniture that is under the gazebo but also a vintage-looking acoustic guitar on a stand. Near the guitar is also an iPad on a stand. Tayaw notes that Walter must have been practicing guitar based on the stool positioned behind the guitar and the iPad. 

"Have you had lunch yet?" Walter asks as they take a seat.

"Psh… Of course not." Tayaw scoffs.

"I mean, come on. 'I won't agree to a meeting, or ever see you ever again if you don't come over for lunch and hang out.' Really? I would have accepted anyway." Tayaw says, parroting Walter's words over the phone a few hours ago.

"Heh. I've just been rather disappointed that you haven't released music in over a year, and I can't reach out to you for a drink either... oh. They'll serve us lunch in a minute. " Walter says.

"So, what have you been up to, kid?" Walter asks, genuinely interested.

"I was occupied making 'September Ninth' as soon as I went home, and you were one of the people who saw it first. After that, I was inspired to make three more." Tayaw says.

"Hmm. I don't know if people would consider you a singer or a filmmaker." Walter chuckles.

"Can't be both?" Tayaw asks, rhetorically.

"Alright. Both. Plus being an author too." Walter wrinkles his chin to out of minor amazement.

"Though, I have to admit. I miss playing to an audience. It's been a while." Tayaw says.

"Well? Why don't you stay in Nashville for a while? A waste of your trip just to visit me." Walter says, hiding his anticipation of seeing Tayaw play live again.

"Maybe I will after I've done with my business in New York and LA. I found it quite a shame that I missed that invitation from Grand Country Opera." Tayaw says.

"Hm. So I've heard." Walter smiles.

"How about you? I've heard from Donald last year that you've picked up the guitar again." Tayaw says pointing at the acoustic guitar a few steps away from their table.

"Yes. I can't play as well as I used to but it's enough for me to play in some of the bars around here." Walter brags.

This surprises Tayaw.

"Well? Can you show me?" Tayaw asks.

"*aherm*" Walter clears his throat, hesitating to play in front of one of the best guitarists he has ever seen. Thankfully for him, his helpers in the house saves him.

"Why don't we have lunch first?" Walter says, noting his people approaching their table to set it up for lunch. 

A minute later, they now have warm plates in front of them, ready to be conquered.

"Pork, chicken, shrimp, corn, tomatoes, spices, onions, garlic…" Tayaw studies the assorted ingredients of the dish.

"Hmm… Ingrid, right? Was this grilled, wrapped in a foil?" Tayaw asks the lady who brought them the food.

"Yes. How'd you know?" Ingrid is surprised, and so is Walter.

"I love cooking…" Tayaw simply says, not explaining any further.

"Heh. Just another thing you're probably good at." Walter chuckles.

"Well? What are you waiting for? Dig in." Walter tells Tayaw.

Tayaw however, is hesitant.

"No 'saying grace'? Or something?" Tayaw asks, aware of some of Americans' practices.

"Hm? You're a Christian?" Walter asks, surprised at Tayaw's concern.

"No?" Tayaw answers. .

"Heh. Then never mind." Walter chuckles as he digs in.

Tayaw also shrugs, following Walter's actions.

"Delicious…" Tayaw nods as the oily assortment of flavors assaults his taste buds. The two continue to chat about what else each of them was up to for the rest of the lunch. 

-

"Thanks. That was a great meal." Tayaw says.

Him and Walter are done and are now heading to Walter's study.

"So. Before we play around, let's get the purpose of your visit out of the way." Walter lets Tayaw speak his mind.

"Okay... It's about my upcoming film. I was wondering if I could enlist your help in promoting it." Tayaw says, carefully choosing his words.

"Pff. I forgot that you're a business man too. Here we are." Walter says, and him and Tayaw settle themselves at the study's comfortable chairs.

"GO on." Walter says.

"So, last time I was here in America, I drove around Tennessee, Georgia, and New York. I've seen many of your delivery trucks and the billboards. If you let me use those, I can give you some shares of the profits my film will make." Tayaw says.

"Huh… I thought I escaped business folks after I've retired, and here you are pitching." Walter shakes his head.

"Hey, at least I'm not looking for investment." Tayaw says and he takes out his portable home theater equipment.

"True…" Walter says while watching in interest at Tayaw setting up.

During lunch, Tayaw asked for Walter a blank wall and comfortable chairs. Seeing the projector light up, Walter realizes that he is about to watch Tayaw's latest film.

~~~~~~two hours later~~~~~~

"I knew you can outdo yourself kid, but this…" Walter snuffs out his cigar while the credits of 'Gold, Blood, and the Deer – Part 1' rolls.

"How was it?" Tayaw asks.

"Incredible. That's all I can say." Walter says.

While Tayaw expected it, he is still relieved as Walter is a representative of another demographic; white, in his 70s, and Christian.

"And, I finally saw a glimpse of one of the men I've always felt grateful to." Walter says.

"Wait, you know who this film's about?" Tayaw asks, surprised.

"Yes. The first and only time I met Gonzalo Coniglio was when he offered me a deal to have my beer in his casinos and bars. Those huge orders were the lifeblood of my business when I was just starting. After that, it was impossible to have a meeting with him. His stories however, are legendary." Walter explains. 

"Anyways. Why do you have to ask for my help in marketing? It's not like The Coniglio can't do the promotion themselves." Walter asks.

"Ah. Well. Don Sylvio, Gonzalo's son?"

"Yeah?"

"We reached an agreement that he will promote my film in De Bacco branches. But, the film is quite violent. People might be hesitant to see it. And celebrities I know might be hesitant to promote it. So, every bit of marketing is useful." Tayaw explains.

"Very well. I'll call my son and see what we can arrange." Walter nods.

"That's good. Oh. By the way. Remember that highway robbery scene? When they were stealing stuff?" Tayaw asks.

"Yeah?" Walter asks, not knowing where the question is going.

"Take a look at this." Tayaw fiddles with his laptop and the scene re-plays in the screen.