(BL) Taming the Field Guide

Chapter 185: Loved from afar

Rhys had to sneak into the bed when he got back to the apartment. Kellen had tried to stay up to talk to him, but eventually he had to go to sleep.

When Rhys slid in beside him, stirring him from slumber, Kellen gave a weak protest. Rhys chuckled, pressing a kiss against the back of his neck as he slid his arm around Kellen’s chest, thrusting his knee in between Kellen’s thighs.

"Go back to sleep, sugar." Rhys whispered, and Kellen let out a soft exhale and did as he was told.

~

Kellen didn’t think that he would have as busy of a day that he did. He knew that he had a couple of things to do in relation to getting the Guiding Division set up with at least one leader, and with the changes that the Guides themselves wanted, but he didn’t realise that would take up his whole day.

Of course, he had to meet up with Casper first. It was a respect thing, and Kellen would not be the one who disrespected Casper that way.

So, he let the guards watching Casper know that Kellen wanted to meet up with him in regards to the Guiding Division. Kellen didn’t want to spring this on him suddenly, he wanted Casper to be prepared for whatever conversation Kellen was going to have with him.

Casper already knew that Kellen was including him in the changes, having mentioned the changes that his Dad and Kellen were planning the last time he was around Casper. Now Kellen just didn’t want him to think that he had gone back on what he’d said there.

With that being said, Kellen didn’t think that Casper would protest against this change. It was a very reasonable proposal from the Field Guides, but it wasn’t even from the Field Guides truly. It was from people who were loyal to the Saturn Guild, who wanted it to be better than it already was.

Kellen didn’t think that Casper would have any protests about that.

So, it was after Kellen had breakfast with Rhys that they both headed off, Kellen branching off on the first elevator down to go speak with Casper. Kellen brought his tablet, thinking that it would be easier to show Casper the tentative plan that he had come up with after his conversation with Brent the previous night.

Was he supposed to be resting? Yes. Had he rested? Also yes. He considered going over files and making plans like this resting. He’d been reclining on the couch, had a cup of tea and several pillows around him.

He had been resting.

Casper was ready for him when Kellen knocked on the door. Unlike how Kellen had hoped, he had looked ready for the world to end. Kellen didn’t have to imagine what Casper thought was going to happen, it had been in his eyes.

He had thought that Kellen had asked the guard to prepare him because Kellen was going to fire him. Kellen openly scoffed at his ridiculousness and told Casper as much. Instead, he forced Casper to sit with him at the island in the kitchen and went through the plans that Kellen had come with.

He also made it clear to Casper that he was sick, he had fucked up, but Kellen and Rhys wouldn’t give up on him. No matter what. Kellen watched Casper’s expression as he told him these words and found that Casper didn’t fully believe him. That was okay. Kellen had had difficult clients before, hell, Kellen’s first year on the front lines had been difficult. He wasn’t about to let one man’s stubbornness get in the way.

He’d already convinced people like Casper before to believe in him, now he just had to do it again. Granted, it was a different context, but Kellen was fine with that. It might be harder to get Casper to believe that Kellen wasn’t going to abandon him, nor anyone else in the Saturn Guild, but that didn’t mean that Kellen would give up. He’d just behave as if everything was normal outside of the fact that Casper couldn’t go downstairs to the Guiding Division and instead was going to therapy sessions and check ups with the healers.

Kellen’s behaviour seemed to work, even if Casper was uncomfortable and kept glancing at Kellen, expecting him to suddenly change behaviour. Kellen didn’t, even made tea like everything was normal, and spoke to Casper like the expert and leader that he was.

This time he got Casper’s opinion on who he had selected, and got his opinion on who should be raised to step up into the leadership positions internally. Casper agreed with Kellen and his Dad’s selection to replace him temporarily, and he also agreed that keeping them in place as like a lieutenant or more like a head of a department after he came back was a good idea as well.

Casper saying that out loud himself seemed to be a strange experience for him, but Kellen could tell it didn’t make him upset. That was a good sign.

After he had finalised the list with Casper, Kellen told him that this was it. If he had any other issues, now was the time to say. Kellen was going to go to his Dad, give him this list, say that Casper had approved it, and then Kellen and his Dad were going to draft up the email that they were going to send out while also calling in everyone on the list and offering them the position, as well as the pay raise.

Casper paused, thought about it a minute, and then he said that he trusted the list that they had made. Kellen knew that his words were a little different, as if he was referring to the list that Kellen and his Dad had made, not the list that Kellen, Casper and his Dad made.

Kellen didn’t argue with him, not when the meeting had gone well in his opinion, and he had a list of people that he could bring to his Dad, the other Lieutenants, and Rhys. So, he thanked Casper, picked up his tablet, and headed down to the Guiding Division.

Kellen messaged his Dad, making sure he was actually in the Guiding Division instead of with the rescued Guides. His Dad let him know that he was busy with the rescued Guides at the moment, but would be free in half an hour.

That gave Kellen some time to get started on the email that he would need to send out to all of the Guides. That is, if those that they would need to speak to today accepted what Kellen offered. Kellen then remembered that he had to make sure the updated contracts were correct, which meant reaching out to Pamela to have her go over what he wanted to be included in the contract.

Kellen realised that without Brent around, there were small things that he hadn’t considered, since this wasn’t his usual job. It was also made more difficult because he only had one hand to work with, but Kellen grit his teeth and got to work.

Thankfully, Casper’s assistant was a good help and after Kellen spoke to him about what he was planning to do, he was able to reach out to Pamela and get a few drafts of the contract made before his Dad showed up at the Guiding Division.

Kellen also managed to get most of the email ready before his Dad arrived, and he didn’t even notice that his Dad was an hour late instead of the half an hour that he said.

After his Dad showed up, it was a chaotic time of Kellen speaking to people on the phone, making sure that the contracts were up to the standard that Kellen and his Dad wanted, signed and confirmed by Pamela, and then printed all before the rushed meetings with those that they had selected were scheduled.

Kellen would have almost forgotten to eat if Rhys hadn’t been able to read his mind and send down food for him and his Dad. Kellen could have kissed the man if he had come down with the meal, but he smartly avoided the Guiding Division at the moment.

Fed, still busy, Kellen moved into the afternoon where the meetings started. It didn’t feel like they were supposed to be anything big, but the Guides had all spoken to each other. They knew what was going on, especially after the Field Guides had spoken to Kellen the previous day.

That meant that Kellen had to answer a series of questions that if he hadn’t spoken to Casper earlier, he wouldn’t have been able to answer. It also meant that the meetings went long, it felt more like a negotiation than a promotion, and even Kellen’s Dad was sweating by the time they got the first contract signed.

Kellen had hoped that it would be easier after the first one, but the Guides all made Kellen and his Dad work for it. They wanted it to be clear that they liked Casper and wanted him back in charge once he was fit. Kellen wondered if Casper knew that his people were this concerned about him, and Kellen kicked himself a bit for not reminding Casper of this when he spoke to him earlier.

By the time dinner rolled around, Kellen and his Dad had the finalised copies, and sent them off to Pamela, and the schedule for tomorrow had been hammered out, along with another set of interviews scheduled for the next phase of the Guiding Division. Kellen had drank so much tea that he felt like he was floating, but that didn’t give him the caffeine push that it should have.

Kellen was bone tired, as was his Dad.

Both men collapsed over the edge of the couches in Casper’s office, slumped over like lifeless dolls. Neither said a thing, the room outside of the office was quiet after they had sent off the assistant. The last meeting was done, they had finished what they had set out to do, and Kellen felt like he had run a whole damn gate on his own.

"I am not built for this kind of leadership." Kellen muttered. HIs Dad chuckled.

"Temporary. Like a substitute. Just long enough for them to love me, just short enough for them to not get to know me well enough." His Dad said. Kellen smirked. He was glad that they were of the same mind.

"I don’t know how Casper does it. I only have a small group and that’s enough. Hell, having Brent was enough for years." Kellen muttered. His Dad laughed.

"Brent is enough for most people to manage. He’s the equivalent of several people. Gods, grant me strength to get through the next few days." His Dad whispered quietly and Kellen grunted in agreement. They remained quiet for a moment, the silence between them warm, built on years of trust.

"Do you think Mom and Rhys are waiting for us?" Kellen asked. His Dad shrugged.

"They’re busy people too. The funeral is soon, and with your vision everyone is worried about the security of the event." His Dad replied. Kellen slid his gaze to his Dad.

"There is no way I can convince you not to go?" Kellen asked. His Dad’s soft, kind smile was the exact response that Kellen expected. It was the reason why Kellen hadn’t asked for them not to attend in the first place.

A child knows their parents best, sometimes.

"Of course. How silly of me." Kellen muttered. "This is why I haven’t asked until now." Kellen said.

"What a smart child I have." His Dad said with open affection, his eyes glowing Guide blue. "Now, let’s grab some shakes to refuel and lock up. We’ll see each other soon enough tomorrow." He said and with a groan, both men got up and began to wrap up.