Yours To Control

Chapter 10

The Voss Group conference room was on the fourteenth floor, of course it was.

Juno stepped in with Clara and Pete behind him and immediately regretted it. Floor to ceiling windows, a table that could contain more than twenty people, chairs that probably cost more than his rent. He forced himself to keep walking, pulled out a seat and flipped his laptop open.

You’re fine, you’ve done harder pitches than this, he muttered to himself. He clicked his pen, stopped, clicked it again.

“You’re doing the pen thing,” Clara muttered from his left.

“I’m not doing anything.”

“You’ve clicked it four times now,” Clara replied.

Juno laid the pen flat on the table and left it there before his thumb could betray him again.

The Voss Group marketing team was already seated across them. Three people in suits, eyes on their phones or folders, none bothering to look up. The room had that expensive kind of quietness, the kind where even breathing felt too loud.

Pete leaned forward in a low voice, “this place…”

“I know,” Juno said.

“The chairs alone…”

“I know Pete.”

The door opened and a guy walked in with two people behind him, scanning the room like it was his which, Juno was starting to suspect, he did. He was younger than Juno expected, maybe a year or two, good looking in that effortless way. He had the kind of confidence you don’t have to fake when you’ve never been told no.

“Sorry to keep you waiting,” he said, pulling out a chair across Juno. “I’m William, head of brand partnerships.” His eyes landed on Juno’s side, “you’re the agency team?”

“Yeah,” Juno sat up a little straighter. I'm Juno Ames, the creative director and this is Clara and Pete.

William looked at each of them. When his gaze hit Juno, it lingered a second too long, not in a creepy way.

“Good to meet you all.” He checked his watch, “we’re waiting on one more person, he shouldn’t be long.” He leaned back, “first time working with The Voss Group?”

“It is,” Juno said.

“It’s a good company to add to the portfolio.” William picked up his water and smiled, how long has the agency been running?

Juno answered, William asked another question. The conversation started flowing, the room loosened, Juno’s shoulders dropped a bit as he reached for his water.

That was when the door opened again and everyone stood.

Juno was a bit slow because he was mid reach and by the time he straightened up, the guy was already walking in. He was typing on his phone and not looking up. Moving to the head of the table like he’d been born for this, like he’d never once wondered if he belonged.

He sat down and everyone sat after him.

Juno sat down and looked at the face he hadn’t seen since that restaurant and felt his stomach drop straight through the floor.

Soren put his phone down, opened the folder in front of him and didn’t look up. “Has the delegate from the agency arrived?”

“Yes sir.” The Voss Group team lead sat straighter, the full creative team is present.”

Soren nodded at his folder then his eyes moved across the Voss Group team then to Clara and Pete and landed on Juno.

He didn’t move, Juno didn’t move either.

“Can I get your names,” Soren said in a flat controlled tone.

Clara went first then Pete.

“Juno Ames,” Juno said, I'm the director.”

Soren held his gaze then looked back at his folder. “Mr Ames, walk us through the concepts.”

Juno stared at his laptop screen, took one quiet breath and started talking.

Across the table, William took a very slow sip of water and stared at the ceiling.

The presentation ran for fourty minutes.

Juno talked, Clara and Pete backed him up, the Voss Group team asked questions. It went well, Juno could tell when a pitch was landing and this one was definitely landing.

Soren kept quiet for the first twenty five minutes.

He sat at the head of the table, his pen moving occasionally and his face giving nothing away. The Voss Group team kept glancing at him like they were waiting for permission to say something.

Then he looked up.

“The third concept,” he said, “the colour direction.”

“Yes,” Juno said.

“It’s safe.”

Clara stopped writing, Pete’s pen hovered over his notepad, the team lead shifted in his seat.

“It’s clean,” Juno said, “which is what the brief asked us for.”

Soren looked at him down the length of the table. “The brief asked for something clean, It didn’t ask for something forgettable.”

“The concept tested well,” Juno said.

“For three rounds the response to the colour palette was consistently positive and that isn’t memorable.” Soren set his pen down, Voss Group doesn’t aim for something consistently positive, we aim for something definitive.

“Then the brief should have been definitive,” Juno said before his brain could stop him.

The room went dead silent.

The team lead stared at Soren, one of the marketing guys looked at the table, Pete made a noise that sounded suspiciously like a cough.

William’s water glass stopped halfway to his mouth. He looked at Juno then Soren and back at Juno, his eyebrows raised like oh, you’re brave.

Soren didn’t blink, something shifted behind his eyes. “You’re right,” he said finally, the brief was insufficient.” He turned to the team lead, “revise it, I want a second direction on the third concept. It should have more edge, keep the lines clean and push the colour further.” He glanced back at the concepts then at Juno. “The rest of the work is strong, good work Mr Ames.”

Juno nodded quietly, his mouth was too dry to trust himself.

William set his glass down carefully and stared at the window like it had personally offended him.

The meeting wrapped up ten minutes later. Chairs scraped, people gathered their things and the team cleared out fast the way people do when they sense a storm’s passed but might come back.

William was halfway to the door when Soren spoke.

“Everyone out, I’d like a few minutes with the creative director.”

Clara looked at Juno, he gave her a small nod then she grabbed her bag and followed Pete out. William paused at the door, looked between Juno and Soren then walked out and leaned against the wall outside with his arms crossed and head tipped back.

The room went quiet again.

Juno sat with his laptop open, his notes untouched staring at Soren Voss in his own building. An hour ago he didn’t know Soren was involved now he didn’t know what the hell to do with that.

Soren closed his folder and looked at him,

“Mr Ames.”

“Mr Voss,” Juno said, his voice sounded steadier than he felt.