What the hack, Paul

Paul Crisp wiped out the latest sketch of the building. Tired of all his trials and devastated about the errors. The client had asked for a modern building, a house that would set a higher standard amongst the clients’ friends. Paul had met the client at a small party of one of his freelancer friends. The interior designer Joe Mansing had a housewarming party for a client of his. It had been busy, already at the parking. Far too few spots for all the impressive cars. Most from the city, looking at their plates. Too worried that the bad weather would ruin their fresh hair cut or cause a wet spot on their designer clothes. Paul loathed the guests, but he needed them.

Gupta Tinseng had been one of the invitees. Paul could still bring the scene in his mind and all that was said.

Talking to a tall woman in a magnificent red dress, Gupta had left her with a glass in one hand and the other raising a finger. Paul had recognized him when entering the central room. The raised finger could have meant, give me a minute, but easily something else such as, this one is for me.

Gupta came up to Paul as several persons moved out of the way, knowing who was coming at them.

The music was loud, the air full of energy that each and everyone seem to radiate.

‘Mister Crisp, if I’m right?’ Gupta mentioned.

‘Quite right, you are mister Tinseng. I’d not expected that you knew my name, so you got me.’ Paul said.

‘I’ve been following your works lately, as Joe had mentioned you a couple of years ago.’

‘Oh, how thoughtful of him. What made him do that?’

‘Back then, I was looking for an architect to design a new house for me. Joe mentioned two names and of you, I’d never heard before. I had been in contact earlier with the other person, so went for her.’

‘You mean she did a design for you?’ Paul said.

‘Exactly. She was good in her design, her drawings were great. They started building the house, but the drawing didn’t hold up. One disaster followed upon the other. It was as if the devil was playing with the house.’

‘What do you mean by that?’

‘Without going into details, it just didn’t work out.’

‘Well, that is certainly not a lot of details. I see you already had a drink. Want another one?’ Paul said.

‘No, wait. They will come around. I have a proposal for you. Unless you are in a hurry and want to get a drink first and miss me in the end.’

Gupta pushed his lips together and brought his head in an angle.

Paul didn’t know what to make of it. Being in front of Gupta made him quizzically.

‘I’ll wait. Is it an idea to move out of the way and on to the balcony to have less noise?’

Gupta nodded and pointed his hand forward and slightly bowed his head in the direction that he wanted Paul to go.

‘Unusual to be welcomed like this. So why did you want to talk to me while you turned me down back then?’ Paul said.

‘Come on, you are not stupid. You know why I ask you to talk to me?’

Paul grew bashful. He knew well who he was talking to. Gupta wanted something from him. That could only be one thing. A design. 

‘You are right. What do you have in mind?’ Paul started off again.

‘Simply put, I want to have a complex house.’ Gupta said. A smile appeared on his face as he thought there was something funny in that sentence.

‘The house must be complex, but the build must be easy. So, what I’m looking for is a house that has no 90 degrees corners. Remember, when I say no, I mean no 90 degrees corners.’ Gupta said.

‘So a round house, an oval would do?’ Paul interjected.

‘Is that complex for you? No, too simple. It must be hard to see how the internal and also the external lines are put together. One may not see where a wall starts and where it ends. No, a circle is not the way I want it to be. Come up with something better than that.’

‘How much time do you give me for that?’ Paul said.

‘There is not much left. I want to have the first drafts in a week.’ Gupta said.

‘A week? Can’t do that. I’ve other things at hand at this moment.’

‘They will have to wait. You understand who is in front of you, I take it?’

Paul lifted his hand to scratch his chin.

‘I have no doubt about who you are. A week is only a short time. Too short for your requirement.’ Paul said.

‘So, you are not my man? You cannot make that? You will disappoint Joe when I tell him what you just told me.’

‘Oh, I’m not too worried about that. It is much more that I want to make something that still has my quality. I don’t want to decrease that. A week, you say. That will cost something.’

Paul left the last words lingering in the air.

Gupta looked at him, shook his head. Then he threw his head up and started to laugh.

A smile appeared on Paul’s face.

‘What is so funny about that?’ He tried.

‘Cost is never a problem when you work for me. I’ll pay what it takes.’

‘Then you have the first drawing in seven days.’ Paul said.

That was six days ago. Now he had hardly anything that worked. Paul knew he had to come up with something special.

His sketch only revealed three ovals that crossed each other in the middle.

Paul bended his head backwards. His eyes were open and looking at the ceiling as if to ask for special forces out of space. Remaining in that position, he thought about several alternatives which is ditched as soon as they drifted into his mind.

Finaly he moved his head down again. His eyes grew wide when he looked at the screen that should show the ovals, as he had put them there.

Now more lines had appeared. The new lines were red, as if to make it clear they were to be recognized as new. He looked at them and moved his head from the middle to the left and then to the right side of the screen. He knew all he saw was two dimensional, but he could see the depth in place. A brilliant mind had drawn complex drop shaped figures that formed a drawing that was hard to understand.

Paul shook his head as if to free himself from a dream. The drawing remained the same.

He looked up again as if he wanted to go back to where he left of earlier. His arms crossed and hands tight to his body.

Slowly he closed his eyes, to open them quickly while bending his head back to the sketch.

Now blue lines had been included. Those lines made it all the more clearly what was added and how a second layer made the total building more clear.

The house was coming to live. In front of him was that piece of drawing that he knew one could only draw once in a lifetime. He saved the drawing. Shook his head and stood up.

From a distance, he looked at the screen again. The blueprint showed an elegant yet complex house.

The cursor moved. It was positioned in the middle of the screen.

‘What the fuck is going on here?’ Paul exclaimed.

A letter formed. A second one next to it. Paul grew stiff, as he was not touching the keyboard. The words ‘Your computer is hacked’ were formed.

Quickly, Paul went back to the computer.

The next thing, his screen was black.