Fic: Five Times They End Up in the News + One Time They Don’t
Title: Five Times They End Up in the News + One Time They Don’t
Recipient: fairy_tale_echo for TSN Secret Santa
Fandom: The Social Network
Warnings: None
Pairing: Mark/Eduardo
Rating: PG-13
Summary: Post-deposition, sort of crack-fic.
Note: Pinch hitter writer here! This is a bit of a rush job, so thank you so much, distracterisey, for being my awesome emergency beta! >3<
- 1 -
Facebook Friendship Rekindled?
The two famously estranged founders of Facebook - Mark Zuckerberg and Eduardo Saverin - were seen brawling it out during the Charity for Rice Research gala dinner. Guests who were present last night reported that the two had started an icy conversation about the recently released movie The Social Network before matters deteriorated into a shouting match.
- - -
So perhaps they could have picked a better place to duke it out than a charity event. Fucking Bill Gates had been chortling about ‘those children’ at the end of the night, and now Mark is going to be on the guest list of every damn charity he hosts, because apparently, Mark makes good free entertainment.
It was all Eduardo’s fault anyway. Why did he have to talk to that writer, whose book inspired the insipid, totally inaccurate movie?
That was the question Mark had asked, sparking the whole verbal explosion.
“I didn’t know he was going to write a book,” Eduardo protested, hand clenching around his glass. “I don’t like my life paraded in public either.”
Mark lost hold of his tenuous control over his temper and sharp tongue. “Oh please. I’m sure it was such a hardship, being portrayed by Hollywood as the wrongly betrayed, implausibly good-looking best friend.”
It went downhill from there.
There was: “I looked like a stupid, naïve dupe, which hey, I guess isn’t too far from the truth since I thought we were friends.”
And: “I did not have a crush on Sean Fucking Parker. Don’t be disgusting. The man is a genius, but he radiates herpes.”
And: “So what if I didn’t move out to Palo Alto immediately? Have you heard of this amazing invention? It’s called the internet.”
They didn’t notice the group of drunk, probably doped up billionaires making bets on the outcome of the quarrel, or Chris who was developing an ulcer as he tried to stop them.
Somehow, Mark has no idea how, the fight then shifted topics entirely, and it just. Became totally strange.
“It’s not like you couldn’t pick up the phone and call me to apologize. I didn’t change my number.”
“You didn’t talk to me throughout the depositions, and you ignored me when I tried to catch your eye.”
“For fuck’s sake, Mark, I can’t read your mind just because you’re looking at me. What did you want to say?”
“That I was sorry! I’m sorry, okay? Why can’t we be friends again?”
“I don’t know! Wouldn’t that be weird after everything?”
“I don’t care. And you haven’t apologized yet.”
“Fine then, whatever. I’m sorry as well.”
“I accept your apology.”
“Good.”
“This means we’re friends again.”
“Fine.”
“Fine!”
Then they stormed away to separate corners of the room, to Chris’ intense relief.
So. That was it.
Friends again. Maybe. Mark isn’t entirely sure, because surely people didn’t reconcile friendships like that, after years of seething silence and anger, and hours of legally battling it out between teams of lawyers in small, stuffy rooms. But people - Dustin mostly - tell him that he’s socially dysfunctional, so maybe that’s not too far off from how the general masses usually do it. Lawsuits are a familiar American pastime after all.
Right?
But they could have probably avoided doing it in public. Chris hasn’t slept for two days, trying to do damage control from the public falling out and making up.
Mark types a reminder to call Eduardo into his calendar, because they’re friends now, and then he calls Chris on his office phone to send him home for the day.
- - -In this strange and bizarre turn of events, Zuckerberg and Saverin might very well have patched up their once broken friendship. Only time will tell if this reconciliation will stick, but one thing we know for sure is that these two never do anything small, so we’ll be bound to hear about it.
# # # # # # # # # #
- 2 -
Saverin In Talks With Google
Rumor has it that Eduardo Saverin - of Facebook infamy - is negotiating business on behalf of Hiveminds. Saverin provided financial backing to Silicon Valley’s latest group of whiz kids who have put together a game-changing cross-platform tool for online shopping and payments. Now, he is said to be taking a more active role by representing Hiveminds in discussions with Google. Sources say that Saverin is putting together a convincing case for Hiveminds and Google to join forces and change the face of online business.
- - -
“It’s true, yes.”
No. Fucking. Way.
“Google? You’re working for Google?” demands Mark.
Eduardo rolls his eyes, cutting another bite-size piece of his steak. “I’m in talks with Google, not working for them. And it’s entirely confidential, as you should know.”
“I hate Google. I can’t believe you’re trying to sell this to Larry and Sergey. Why didn’t you come to us?” demands Mark, ignoring his meal altogether.
Eduardo puts down his fork and glares at Mark. “Because Google’s plan over the next five years aligns with Hiveminds’, which means that they’ll offer a better deal to work with us. Facebook isn’t planning to expand in this direction yet.”
“I would have offered you a better deal,” says Mark stubbornly.
“No, you wouldn’t have.”
“Okay, no, I wouldn’t have. Their products don’t fit with our long term goals. Yet,” says Mark when Eduardo shoots him a self-satisfactory smile. “But that doesn’t mean it won’t happen in the future. Did it have to be Google? I really hate Google.”
“I know, and yes, it had to be Google,” says Eduardo.
“Larry Page is a douchebag.”
“You know I’m not actually talking to Larry directly about this.”
Mark stares at him suspiciously. “But you do talk to him.”
When he doesn’t get an answer, Mark snaps, “I can’t believe it! You’re friends with Larry. He steered Google into social networking just to compete with us.”
“And you’re friends with Sean Parker,” snaps Eduardo, waving his hand in anger. “I don’t judge who you spend time with.”
“You do,” says Mark in outrage.
“Fine, I do, but I do it quietly,” says Eduardo, like that makes a difference.
Despite the fact that they’re starting to attract attention in the restaurant, Eduardo’s passionate anger sparking up against Mark’s own blunt words is nice in a familiar way. Mark misses their bickering and teasing, misses someone who knows him well enough to push when necessary while dragging him out for dinner so that Mark doesn’t eat microwave omelets as a meal five times in a row.
“Don’t make me regret being friends with you again,” says Eduardo, but his tone lacks real threat, Mark can totally tell.
“Yeah, well, don’t make me regret being friends with you in the first place,” says Mark snidely.
Eduardo grumbles, “Eat your chicken schnitzel, Mark, before you keel over from malnutrition.”
# # # # # # # # # #
- 3 -
Square on Facebook
Most tech experts and gaming fans have been anticipating this game all year. Today, Facebook and Square Enix have released their first collaborative online game, The Four Worlds, three weeks ahead of their original release date. The surprise early release has generated a fair amount of publicity through tech news sites and the blogosphere.
Facebook and Square Enix have been working for the past year to integrate large scale role-playing games with the social network. The Four Worlds is the first game that can be played through the integrated platform, and two hundred thousand users have already signed up to play five hours after its release.
- - -
Mark looks up blearily as the door opens, and Eduardo’s voice floats to him from across the room.
“You’re in the news again.”
“What?” asks Mark, rubbing his tired eyes.
He’s not really that exhausted. It’s been a long week, that’s all. He had done way more hours at work when Facebook was just starting out.
Just outside his office, he can vaguely make out Dustin lurking near the door, which is not a good sign.
“Your new gaming platform.” Eduardo comes over, looking at Mark with a worried frown. “It’s all the fanboys can talk about. And you look really tired.”
“Facebook was in the news. I’m not Facebook. It took dozens of people working together for months to get it launched successfully,” says Mark, a touch more acerbic than he means to be.
It’s something that needles him now, the realization that Eduardo - and the public too - sometimes equates Facebook to Mark. Facebook is more like Mark’s masterpiece, his Iliad. If Facebook had been a movie, then Mark wrote the first version of its script, but he’s the director now. He’s the one who shapes and molds the direction of Facebook, he’s the vision behind it all. But he isn’t Facebook.
Eduardo’s mouth turns down a little. “Okay, Mark. I didn’t mean to imply that.”
Deeming it safe to come in, Dustin enters as well and throws himself onto Mark’s couch. “Did you know that Mark was the one who pushed the launch of our new game to release three weeks ahead of schedule?”
“It was a good strategy,” says Mark, glaring at Dustin the traitor. He’s going to change his title on the Facebook masthead to say just that.
“You made our testers cry. Marketing is subsisting entirely on Red Bull right now,” accuses Dustin, eyes looking a little red too.
Eduardo sighs, leaning a hip against Mark’s desk, just to the right of his computer. “Was all that really worth upstaging the news on Google and Hiveminds’ collaboration?”
“I did it because it was a sound strategy,” snaps Mark. “Not everything is about you.”
Eduardo looks him in the eye, steady and unflinching. “I know.”
Well. Eduardo is wrong. He doesn’t really know, because Mark is lying, just a little. Not everything is about Eduardo, but a lot of things are about Eduardo, and Mark might have been a little bit hung up about the Google and Hiveminds’ collaboration. He wants Eduardo to be impressed, and he wants to upstage Larry Page just a little, because Facebook should always be Eduardo’s first choice, not Google. It’s Mark’s masterpiece so it should always be first.
Mark looks away, glaring at his monitor. “I just hate Google, alright.”
It’s enough of a concession for Eduardo to get what he means. Mark will never admit it, but he feels relieved when Eduardo chuckles at Mark’s words.
“Just let it go,” Dustin complains. “The man calls you ‘a kid’ once, and you hold a grudge forever.”
Chris pops his head in and says, “Oh, hey, everyone’s here. Let’s go for lunch. Give the people here some breathing room for a midday break.”
Mark frowns. “Facebook has flexible working hours. I always encourage the staff to go out for lunch.”
“Yes, but it’ll do the morale around here some good if they actually saw you leave the office for lunch more than once a month,” says Chris.
“They’re all geeks. They probably like eating lunch in front of their computers,” says Mark, knowing he’ll earn another eye-roll from Eduardo for stereotyping.
Dustin makes faces at Chris until he gets a hand off the couch. “Let’s go get sushi. I would kill for good sushi.”
Putting his laptop in standby, Mark snaps the lid shut and shuffles out from behind the desk. Eduardo waits for him, and they leave the office walking side-by-side.
# # # # # # # # # #
- 4 -
Giant Google Party
Google threw a big, all-day early Christmas picnic at Mitchell Park, booking out large swathes of the grassy area for their use. Almost all the top executives of Google were present at this Google picnic, rubbing shoulders with other Google staff and guests from various technology partners. It must have been the most technologically savvy picnic of the year, with a temporary stage set up, a concert-quality outdoor sound system, a projector screen, video conferences with the international branches of Google, and numerous tablets running on the Android operating system for guests to record the event.
There were several items up for auction, with all proceeds going to-”
- - -
Seriously, why is Eduardo doing this to him?
Mark scrolls down with vicious jerks of his finger, glaring at the screen like it’ll change the view with the force of his annoyance. He clicks on the pictures and stabs at the next button over and over again.
Dozens of pictures altogether and Eduardo is in nearly all of them. Alright, he’s in maybe half of them, which is still a lot! Why is Eduardo being a poster boy for Google all of a sudden? And there he is, talking to Larry. Come on, Wardo, why are you even talking to him? He’s boring, and his ideas are derivative. He only started Google Plus to try to shoehorn in on Facebook’s success, after the total failure that was Google Buzz.
That’s just the one photo. In the other three photos, Eduardo is talking avidly with Marissa Mayer, Vice President of Location Whatever Services in Google. Mark has to admit that she is brilliant, being one of the original engineers who worked on Google’s search engine and Gmail. Once upon a time, Mark had possibly offered her a job in Facebook, only to possibly be turned down in a distant, annoyingly polite manner.
And here Eduardo is, consorting with the enemy.
Fucking shit, who was the photographer at this event? Did they have to take such sharp and artistic photos of Eduardo and Marissa, playing with Marissa’s border collie? There is no way that Marissa still looks that hot naturally. She is thirty-six years old, surely she has wrinkles. There has to be Photoshop at work here. And what is with the next photo? Did Eduardo have to lean so close to her? Seriously, she’s a married woman! Have some shame, Wardo!
One of the photos would be cute - if this isn’t a Google event - where Eduardo is scratching the dog’s belly. Marissa is in the background, watching on with a huge smile, probably amused that Eduardo was getting his designer jeans filthy with grass stains just to play with a dog. Eduardo was obviously delighted at the dog’s friendliness, the way it had its tongue lolled out while snuffling at Eduardo in all those pictures with its tail wagging away. What a whore.
What did Eduardo see in these Google events? They were pure PR bullshit, where Google got their execs in one place for a photo op and sound bites about a social event to celebrate the season and proceeds going to charity. Yeah right, as if they weren’t just trying to score brownie points with the public.
If Mark has a Facebook picnic for charity or whatever, would Eduardo turn up too?
Fuck, this is annoying. He pings Dustin.
Mark glares at the screen. Oh yeah, Marissa and Benji? He can fight fire with fire too.
# # # # # # # # # #
- 5 -
The New Facebook Mascot?
The new dog on the block, a fluffy white Puli unexpectedly named Beast, opened an account on Facebook today. It’s no surprise that Beast has gotten so much attention, since his one owner is Facebook’s founder, Mark Zuckerberg.
The first account Beast ‘commented’ on belongs to Eduardo Saverin. Zuckerberg and Saverin have only recently and very publicly reconciled their differences, after years of feuding and lawsuits. This continued sign of friendliness between the two of them can only be a positive sign for their friendship-
- - -
“I can’t believe you bought a dog! Tell me this isn’t about Marissa’s dog.”
“It’s not about Benji.”
Eduardo crosses his arms. “You know his name. You wouldn’t know his name if you haven’t been brooding over Marissa and her dog.”
Mark glares at Eduardo. “What, I can’t buy a pet now without it being a decision completely influenced by Google, is that what you’re saying?”
“That’s not what I’m saying,” denies Eduardo. “But I know you, Mark. And the timing is too close to be a coincidence.”
Mark grits his teeth as he crouches down and snaps his fingers at Beast. His new dog abandons the gnawed-on flip-flop and comes scampering over, all fluffy paws and ridiculous shaggy fringe. Beast tries to lick his face, and Mark curls his fingers through that long fur, pulling a little to make Beast grin and pant happily.
“I was thinking about getting a dog for awhile. I have finally stopped renting, and it’s been a long time since I had a dog,” Mark says shortly, eyes fixed on Beast instead of the person he’s talking to.
It’s half the truth. Okay, maybe one-quarter the truth. The urge to get the dog right now might have been fueled by a childish urge not to be outdone by a smart, blonde bombshell. But when he bought this huge house half a year ago, he had entertained the passing thought that the huge backyard would be perfect for a dog. Eduardo knows that Mark’s family had a dog when he was growing up, Toby passing away from old age when Mark had been in Harvard. So it’s not a new idea, and Mark has always liked dogs. He just hadn’t really gotten around to making his idle thoughts reality.
Until now anyway.
So the timing might not be completely free from Google-related incidents, but it’s not like Mark doesn’t actually want a dog.
Beast grins at him, licking his fingers with enthusiasm.
Yeah. It’s nice to have someone who likes him best. Someone who won’t go to Google organized picnics, at least.
Eduardo sinks to his knees next to Mark, his hand joining Mark’s in scratching Beast behind his ear. Beast is thumping his leg in ecstatic, doggy bliss.
“Alright, Mark. I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have said all that,” says Eduardo, voice quiet and low. “How did you end up picking such a teddy bear of a dog?”
He says it with affection, his stroking hands belying his own fondness for Beast. It’s a clear offer to drop the earlier subject, and Mark is going to take it.
Mark shrugs. “He was a rescue. I was going to get a mutt, but he just looked so sad on the website.”
“Sad, huh? I think you’ve been bought,” teases Eduardo, patting the grinning dog.
“Got to watch out for those con-dogs,” says Mark, deadpan.
Eduardo snickers, sounding all of twenty again. “I can’t believe you just said that.”
They stay like that for a moment, pressed shoulder to shoulder as Beast basks in their attention.
Mark says, “I was just going to take Beast to the park. Want to come with?”
“Yeah, sure,” says Eduardo without hesitation, turning to smile at Mark.
Yeah.
Take that, Google.
# # # # # # # # # #
+ One Time They Aren’t in the News
Mark thinks this friendship thing has worked out pretty well. Sure, they had an unconventional reconciliation, and there had been a few bumps ever since. But overall, it’s been pretty good.
Right this moment, Eduardo is slumped down next to him on the couch, watching the latest Mission Impossible on Mark’s absurdly large, flat screen TV. Every epic explosion in the movie growls out of his expensive home theatre sound system. Mark has closed his laptop in favor of mocking the cheesy plot and bad science. In perfect symphony to his insults, Eduardo replies with snarky comments on people with high expectations for Mission Impossible of all movies. Beast is snoozing at their feet, letting out a huff of annoyance every once in awhile when an explosion wakes him. Mark can see Eduardo dig his bare toes in Beast’s soft, fluffy fur once in awhile. Warm and inviting Beast makes a fantastic rug. Mark should know; He has one foot buried in all that fur too.
So all in all, Mark is feeling rather contented. Neither of them has fucked anything up yet, and things are looking good. Mark doesn’t know a time he has ever felt so at peace and comfortable with their friendship. It’s like now that they have really, royally screwed things up between them in the past, their relationship has become bulletproof. After all, they can’t exactly beat the nightmare that was the last six years, right?
Eduardo nudges him in the side, turning a little to say, “Simon Pegg looks kind of cute, doesn’t he?”
Mark turns around, only faintly registering that their faces are very close together. “You’re totally nuts.”
And then he’s leaning in and kissing Eduardo.
He doesn’t remember a conscious decision to do it. He was thinking about how their friendship is awesome and they can’t fuck up worse than they have in the past, and why is Eduardo so crazy, thinking Simon Pegg out of all the hotties in the movie is hot, what the fuck, and then suddenly Mark is kissing Eduardo. His lips just have to press up against Eduardo’s because Eduardo is so ridiculous. Eduardo’s lips are so soft, a little dry, he can’t help but press closer, angling their mouths into a perfect fit.
But wait, fuck, fuckfuckfuck, did he think he couldn’t fuck up more, what the hell is he doing, because this can totally fuck things up more-
His split second of frozen panic is interrupted by Eduardo groaning and pulling Mark closer by a hand in his hair. Eduardo parts his lips, and Mark is a genius, okay, he’s a fucking genius, so he opens his mouth too, and kisses the hell out of Eduardo.
His genius brain is fuzzy, and he comes back to himself a little, with no idea how much time has passed. Mark is plastered on top of Eduardo, because they have somehow slid down and are now horizontal on the couch. His mouth is tingling, almost a little numb, which feels delicious, the best feeling he has ever had because it’s the result of kissing red and swollen Eduardo lips for long minutes. He sucks in a deep breath and bends down to continue kissing Eduardo, who makes encouraging sounds with his hands roaming over Mark’s lower back and ass. And oh wow, he’s pressed right between Eduardo’s parted thighs. He can feel an answering hardness grinding up against his own, through two layers of jeans. He groans, pulling back a little just so he can suck on that smooth, wet lower lip, make Eduardo thrust up with a moan.
A spot of wetness presses against the back of his neck, and it’s enough to distract him from the pliant Eduardo lying beneath him. Mark turns to see Beast nudging forward with his cold wet nose again. Oh. Beast. Right, he must be curious about what they’re doing.
Eduardo chuckles, “I think we’re traumatizing Beast.”
“Can’t believe I got a cockblocking dog,” grumbles Mark.
He turns to see Eduardo look up at him with a heated gaze. “What are you going to do about it?”
Mark grins. “You want to go upstairs?”
“You’re a genius,” says Eduardo, grinning as well.
Mark reaches down and gives Eduardo’s erection an encouraging squeeze through his jeans, just before he pushes himself up.
“Let’s go,” says Mark, standing up on wobbly legs.
Eduardo scrambles after, eyes a little glazed and hands already reaching out again.
Yeah, Mark is totally a genius.
# # # # # # # # # #
After two rounds of mind-blowing sex and three orgasms altogether, Mark spoons up behind Eduardo and nuzzles his sweaty nape. Eduardo mumbles wordlessly, grabbing Mark’s arm to pull tighter around his own waist. During the last half an hour of sex and in a wave of brain-addled lust, Eduardo had promised eternal attendance to all Facebook events and that he’ll stop talking to Larry, before descending into incoherence altogether.
Mark closes his eyes and grins with satisfaction.
Google can totally suck it.
# # # # # # # # # #
THE END
End notes: Mark’s thoughts are not representative of the author’s. None of the charities or parties mentioned above exists. Hiveminds does not exist. Benji does not exist. Google does exist. So do Larry Page, Sergei Brin and Marissa Mayer. But all interactions, grudges, games, and new products mentioned here are completely made up.
Hiiii, fairy_tale_echo! I tried to fit a few of your preferences into this fic (five things, fix-it, a bit of other cast members - Dustin has always been my go to guy). I wish I could have written something longer and better as a pressie. I hope you enjoyed anyway!
Recipient: fairy_tale_echo for TSN Secret Santa
Fandom: The Social Network
Warnings: None
Pairing: Mark/Eduardo
Rating: PG-13
Summary: Post-deposition, sort of crack-fic.
Note: Pinch hitter writer here! This is a bit of a rush job, so thank you so much, distracterisey, for being my awesome emergency beta! >3<
- 1 -
Facebook Friendship Rekindled?
The two famously estranged founders of Facebook - Mark Zuckerberg and Eduardo Saverin - were seen brawling it out during the Charity for Rice Research gala dinner. Guests who were present last night reported that the two had started an icy conversation about the recently released movie The Social Network before matters deteriorated into a shouting match.
- - -
So perhaps they could have picked a better place to duke it out than a charity event. Fucking Bill Gates had been chortling about ‘those children’ at the end of the night, and now Mark is going to be on the guest list of every damn charity he hosts, because apparently, Mark makes good free entertainment.
It was all Eduardo’s fault anyway. Why did he have to talk to that writer, whose book inspired the insipid, totally inaccurate movie?
That was the question Mark had asked, sparking the whole verbal explosion.
“I didn’t know he was going to write a book,” Eduardo protested, hand clenching around his glass. “I don’t like my life paraded in public either.”
Mark lost hold of his tenuous control over his temper and sharp tongue. “Oh please. I’m sure it was such a hardship, being portrayed by Hollywood as the wrongly betrayed, implausibly good-looking best friend.”
It went downhill from there.
There was: “I looked like a stupid, naïve dupe, which hey, I guess isn’t too far from the truth since I thought we were friends.”
And: “I did not have a crush on Sean Fucking Parker. Don’t be disgusting. The man is a genius, but he radiates herpes.”
And: “So what if I didn’t move out to Palo Alto immediately? Have you heard of this amazing invention? It’s called the internet.”
They didn’t notice the group of drunk, probably doped up billionaires making bets on the outcome of the quarrel, or Chris who was developing an ulcer as he tried to stop them.
Somehow, Mark has no idea how, the fight then shifted topics entirely, and it just. Became totally strange.
“It’s not like you couldn’t pick up the phone and call me to apologize. I didn’t change my number.”
“You didn’t talk to me throughout the depositions, and you ignored me when I tried to catch your eye.”
“For fuck’s sake, Mark, I can’t read your mind just because you’re looking at me. What did you want to say?”
“That I was sorry! I’m sorry, okay? Why can’t we be friends again?”
“I don’t know! Wouldn’t that be weird after everything?”
“I don’t care. And you haven’t apologized yet.”
“Fine then, whatever. I’m sorry as well.”
“I accept your apology.”
“Good.”
“This means we’re friends again.”
“Fine.”
“Fine!”
Then they stormed away to separate corners of the room, to Chris’ intense relief.
So. That was it.
Friends again. Maybe. Mark isn’t entirely sure, because surely people didn’t reconcile friendships like that, after years of seething silence and anger, and hours of legally battling it out between teams of lawyers in small, stuffy rooms. But people - Dustin mostly - tell him that he’s socially dysfunctional, so maybe that’s not too far off from how the general masses usually do it. Lawsuits are a familiar American pastime after all.
Right?
But they could have probably avoided doing it in public. Chris hasn’t slept for two days, trying to do damage control from the public falling out and making up.
Mark types a reminder to call Eduardo into his calendar, because they’re friends now, and then he calls Chris on his office phone to send him home for the day.
- - -In this strange and bizarre turn of events, Zuckerberg and Saverin might very well have patched up their once broken friendship. Only time will tell if this reconciliation will stick, but one thing we know for sure is that these two never do anything small, so we’ll be bound to hear about it.
# # # # # # # # # #
- 2 -
Saverin In Talks With Google
Rumor has it that Eduardo Saverin - of Facebook infamy - is negotiating business on behalf of Hiveminds. Saverin provided financial backing to Silicon Valley’s latest group of whiz kids who have put together a game-changing cross-platform tool for online shopping and payments. Now, he is said to be taking a more active role by representing Hiveminds in discussions with Google. Sources say that Saverin is putting together a convincing case for Hiveminds and Google to join forces and change the face of online business.
- - -
“It’s true, yes.”
No. Fucking. Way.
“Google? You’re working for Google?” demands Mark.
Eduardo rolls his eyes, cutting another bite-size piece of his steak. “I’m in talks with Google, not working for them. And it’s entirely confidential, as you should know.”
“I hate Google. I can’t believe you’re trying to sell this to Larry and Sergey. Why didn’t you come to us?” demands Mark, ignoring his meal altogether.
Eduardo puts down his fork and glares at Mark. “Because Google’s plan over the next five years aligns with Hiveminds’, which means that they’ll offer a better deal to work with us. Facebook isn’t planning to expand in this direction yet.”
“I would have offered you a better deal,” says Mark stubbornly.
“No, you wouldn’t have.”
“Okay, no, I wouldn’t have. Their products don’t fit with our long term goals. Yet,” says Mark when Eduardo shoots him a self-satisfactory smile. “But that doesn’t mean it won’t happen in the future. Did it have to be Google? I really hate Google.”
“I know, and yes, it had to be Google,” says Eduardo.
“Larry Page is a douchebag.”
“You know I’m not actually talking to Larry directly about this.”
Mark stares at him suspiciously. “But you do talk to him.”
When he doesn’t get an answer, Mark snaps, “I can’t believe it! You’re friends with Larry. He steered Google into social networking just to compete with us.”
“And you’re friends with Sean Parker,” snaps Eduardo, waving his hand in anger. “I don’t judge who you spend time with.”
“You do,” says Mark in outrage.
“Fine, I do, but I do it quietly,” says Eduardo, like that makes a difference.
Despite the fact that they’re starting to attract attention in the restaurant, Eduardo’s passionate anger sparking up against Mark’s own blunt words is nice in a familiar way. Mark misses their bickering and teasing, misses someone who knows him well enough to push when necessary while dragging him out for dinner so that Mark doesn’t eat microwave omelets as a meal five times in a row.
“Don’t make me regret being friends with you again,” says Eduardo, but his tone lacks real threat, Mark can totally tell.
“Yeah, well, don’t make me regret being friends with you in the first place,” says Mark snidely.
Eduardo grumbles, “Eat your chicken schnitzel, Mark, before you keel over from malnutrition.”
# # # # # # # # # #
- 3 -
Square on Facebook
Most tech experts and gaming fans have been anticipating this game all year. Today, Facebook and Square Enix have released their first collaborative online game, The Four Worlds, three weeks ahead of their original release date. The surprise early release has generated a fair amount of publicity through tech news sites and the blogosphere.
Facebook and Square Enix have been working for the past year to integrate large scale role-playing games with the social network. The Four Worlds is the first game that can be played through the integrated platform, and two hundred thousand users have already signed up to play five hours after its release.
- - -
Mark looks up blearily as the door opens, and Eduardo’s voice floats to him from across the room.
“You’re in the news again.”
“What?” asks Mark, rubbing his tired eyes.
He’s not really that exhausted. It’s been a long week, that’s all. He had done way more hours at work when Facebook was just starting out.
Just outside his office, he can vaguely make out Dustin lurking near the door, which is not a good sign.
“Your new gaming platform.” Eduardo comes over, looking at Mark with a worried frown. “It’s all the fanboys can talk about. And you look really tired.”
“Facebook was in the news. I’m not Facebook. It took dozens of people working together for months to get it launched successfully,” says Mark, a touch more acerbic than he means to be.
It’s something that needles him now, the realization that Eduardo - and the public too - sometimes equates Facebook to Mark. Facebook is more like Mark’s masterpiece, his Iliad. If Facebook had been a movie, then Mark wrote the first version of its script, but he’s the director now. He’s the one who shapes and molds the direction of Facebook, he’s the vision behind it all. But he isn’t Facebook.
Eduardo’s mouth turns down a little. “Okay, Mark. I didn’t mean to imply that.”
Deeming it safe to come in, Dustin enters as well and throws himself onto Mark’s couch. “Did you know that Mark was the one who pushed the launch of our new game to release three weeks ahead of schedule?”
“It was a good strategy,” says Mark, glaring at Dustin the traitor. He’s going to change his title on the Facebook masthead to say just that.
“You made our testers cry. Marketing is subsisting entirely on Red Bull right now,” accuses Dustin, eyes looking a little red too.
Eduardo sighs, leaning a hip against Mark’s desk, just to the right of his computer. “Was all that really worth upstaging the news on Google and Hiveminds’ collaboration?”
“I did it because it was a sound strategy,” snaps Mark. “Not everything is about you.”
Eduardo looks him in the eye, steady and unflinching. “I know.”
Well. Eduardo is wrong. He doesn’t really know, because Mark is lying, just a little. Not everything is about Eduardo, but a lot of things are about Eduardo, and Mark might have been a little bit hung up about the Google and Hiveminds’ collaboration. He wants Eduardo to be impressed, and he wants to upstage Larry Page just a little, because Facebook should always be Eduardo’s first choice, not Google. It’s Mark’s masterpiece so it should always be first.
Mark looks away, glaring at his monitor. “I just hate Google, alright.”
It’s enough of a concession for Eduardo to get what he means. Mark will never admit it, but he feels relieved when Eduardo chuckles at Mark’s words.
“Just let it go,” Dustin complains. “The man calls you ‘a kid’ once, and you hold a grudge forever.”
Chris pops his head in and says, “Oh, hey, everyone’s here. Let’s go for lunch. Give the people here some breathing room for a midday break.”
Mark frowns. “Facebook has flexible working hours. I always encourage the staff to go out for lunch.”
“Yes, but it’ll do the morale around here some good if they actually saw you leave the office for lunch more than once a month,” says Chris.
“They’re all geeks. They probably like eating lunch in front of their computers,” says Mark, knowing he’ll earn another eye-roll from Eduardo for stereotyping.
Dustin makes faces at Chris until he gets a hand off the couch. “Let’s go get sushi. I would kill for good sushi.”
Putting his laptop in standby, Mark snaps the lid shut and shuffles out from behind the desk. Eduardo waits for him, and they leave the office walking side-by-side.
# # # # # # # # # #
- 4 -
Giant Google Party
Google threw a big, all-day early Christmas picnic at Mitchell Park, booking out large swathes of the grassy area for their use. Almost all the top executives of Google were present at this Google picnic, rubbing shoulders with other Google staff and guests from various technology partners. It must have been the most technologically savvy picnic of the year, with a temporary stage set up, a concert-quality outdoor sound system, a projector screen, video conferences with the international branches of Google, and numerous tablets running on the Android operating system for guests to record the event.
There were several items up for auction, with all proceeds going to-”
- - -
Seriously, why is Eduardo doing this to him?
Mark scrolls down with vicious jerks of his finger, glaring at the screen like it’ll change the view with the force of his annoyance. He clicks on the pictures and stabs at the next button over and over again.
Dozens of pictures altogether and Eduardo is in nearly all of them. Alright, he’s in maybe half of them, which is still a lot! Why is Eduardo being a poster boy for Google all of a sudden? And there he is, talking to Larry. Come on, Wardo, why are you even talking to him? He’s boring, and his ideas are derivative. He only started Google Plus to try to shoehorn in on Facebook’s success, after the total failure that was Google Buzz.
That’s just the one photo. In the other three photos, Eduardo is talking avidly with Marissa Mayer, Vice President of Location Whatever Services in Google. Mark has to admit that she is brilliant, being one of the original engineers who worked on Google’s search engine and Gmail. Once upon a time, Mark had possibly offered her a job in Facebook, only to possibly be turned down in a distant, annoyingly polite manner.
And here Eduardo is, consorting with the enemy.
Fucking shit, who was the photographer at this event? Did they have to take such sharp and artistic photos of Eduardo and Marissa, playing with Marissa’s border collie? There is no way that Marissa still looks that hot naturally. She is thirty-six years old, surely she has wrinkles. There has to be Photoshop at work here. And what is with the next photo? Did Eduardo have to lean so close to her? Seriously, she’s a married woman! Have some shame, Wardo!
One of the photos would be cute - if this isn’t a Google event - where Eduardo is scratching the dog’s belly. Marissa is in the background, watching on with a huge smile, probably amused that Eduardo was getting his designer jeans filthy with grass stains just to play with a dog. Eduardo was obviously delighted at the dog’s friendliness, the way it had its tongue lolled out while snuffling at Eduardo in all those pictures with its tail wagging away. What a whore.
What did Eduardo see in these Google events? They were pure PR bullshit, where Google got their execs in one place for a photo op and sound bites about a social event to celebrate the season and proceeds going to charity. Yeah right, as if they weren’t just trying to score brownie points with the public.
If Mark has a Facebook picnic for charity or whatever, would Eduardo turn up too?
Fuck, this is annoying. He pings Dustin.
Mark glares at the screen. Oh yeah, Marissa and Benji? He can fight fire with fire too.
# # # # # # # # # #
- 5 -
The New Facebook Mascot?
The new dog on the block, a fluffy white Puli unexpectedly named Beast, opened an account on Facebook today. It’s no surprise that Beast has gotten so much attention, since his one owner is Facebook’s founder, Mark Zuckerberg.
The first account Beast ‘commented’ on belongs to Eduardo Saverin. Zuckerberg and Saverin have only recently and very publicly reconciled their differences, after years of feuding and lawsuits. This continued sign of friendliness between the two of them can only be a positive sign for their friendship-
- - -
“I can’t believe you bought a dog! Tell me this isn’t about Marissa’s dog.”
“It’s not about Benji.”
Eduardo crosses his arms. “You know his name. You wouldn’t know his name if you haven’t been brooding over Marissa and her dog.”
Mark glares at Eduardo. “What, I can’t buy a pet now without it being a decision completely influenced by Google, is that what you’re saying?”
“That’s not what I’m saying,” denies Eduardo. “But I know you, Mark. And the timing is too close to be a coincidence.”
Mark grits his teeth as he crouches down and snaps his fingers at Beast. His new dog abandons the gnawed-on flip-flop and comes scampering over, all fluffy paws and ridiculous shaggy fringe. Beast tries to lick his face, and Mark curls his fingers through that long fur, pulling a little to make Beast grin and pant happily.
“I was thinking about getting a dog for awhile. I have finally stopped renting, and it’s been a long time since I had a dog,” Mark says shortly, eyes fixed on Beast instead of the person he’s talking to.
It’s half the truth. Okay, maybe one-quarter the truth. The urge to get the dog right now might have been fueled by a childish urge not to be outdone by a smart, blonde bombshell. But when he bought this huge house half a year ago, he had entertained the passing thought that the huge backyard would be perfect for a dog. Eduardo knows that Mark’s family had a dog when he was growing up, Toby passing away from old age when Mark had been in Harvard. So it’s not a new idea, and Mark has always liked dogs. He just hadn’t really gotten around to making his idle thoughts reality.
Until now anyway.
So the timing might not be completely free from Google-related incidents, but it’s not like Mark doesn’t actually want a dog.
Beast grins at him, licking his fingers with enthusiasm.
Yeah. It’s nice to have someone who likes him best. Someone who won’t go to Google organized picnics, at least.
Eduardo sinks to his knees next to Mark, his hand joining Mark’s in scratching Beast behind his ear. Beast is thumping his leg in ecstatic, doggy bliss.
“Alright, Mark. I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have said all that,” says Eduardo, voice quiet and low. “How did you end up picking such a teddy bear of a dog?”
He says it with affection, his stroking hands belying his own fondness for Beast. It’s a clear offer to drop the earlier subject, and Mark is going to take it.
Mark shrugs. “He was a rescue. I was going to get a mutt, but he just looked so sad on the website.”
“Sad, huh? I think you’ve been bought,” teases Eduardo, patting the grinning dog.
“Got to watch out for those con-dogs,” says Mark, deadpan.
Eduardo snickers, sounding all of twenty again. “I can’t believe you just said that.”
They stay like that for a moment, pressed shoulder to shoulder as Beast basks in their attention.
Mark says, “I was just going to take Beast to the park. Want to come with?”
“Yeah, sure,” says Eduardo without hesitation, turning to smile at Mark.
Yeah.
Take that, Google.
# # # # # # # # # #
+ One Time They Aren’t in the News
Mark thinks this friendship thing has worked out pretty well. Sure, they had an unconventional reconciliation, and there had been a few bumps ever since. But overall, it’s been pretty good.
Right this moment, Eduardo is slumped down next to him on the couch, watching the latest Mission Impossible on Mark’s absurdly large, flat screen TV. Every epic explosion in the movie growls out of his expensive home theatre sound system. Mark has closed his laptop in favor of mocking the cheesy plot and bad science. In perfect symphony to his insults, Eduardo replies with snarky comments on people with high expectations for Mission Impossible of all movies. Beast is snoozing at their feet, letting out a huff of annoyance every once in awhile when an explosion wakes him. Mark can see Eduardo dig his bare toes in Beast’s soft, fluffy fur once in awhile. Warm and inviting Beast makes a fantastic rug. Mark should know; He has one foot buried in all that fur too.
So all in all, Mark is feeling rather contented. Neither of them has fucked anything up yet, and things are looking good. Mark doesn’t know a time he has ever felt so at peace and comfortable with their friendship. It’s like now that they have really, royally screwed things up between them in the past, their relationship has become bulletproof. After all, they can’t exactly beat the nightmare that was the last six years, right?
Eduardo nudges him in the side, turning a little to say, “Simon Pegg looks kind of cute, doesn’t he?”
Mark turns around, only faintly registering that their faces are very close together. “You’re totally nuts.”
And then he’s leaning in and kissing Eduardo.
He doesn’t remember a conscious decision to do it. He was thinking about how their friendship is awesome and they can’t fuck up worse than they have in the past, and why is Eduardo so crazy, thinking Simon Pegg out of all the hotties in the movie is hot, what the fuck, and then suddenly Mark is kissing Eduardo. His lips just have to press up against Eduardo’s because Eduardo is so ridiculous. Eduardo’s lips are so soft, a little dry, he can’t help but press closer, angling their mouths into a perfect fit.
But wait, fuck, fuckfuckfuck, did he think he couldn’t fuck up more, what the hell is he doing, because this can totally fuck things up more-
His split second of frozen panic is interrupted by Eduardo groaning and pulling Mark closer by a hand in his hair. Eduardo parts his lips, and Mark is a genius, okay, he’s a fucking genius, so he opens his mouth too, and kisses the hell out of Eduardo.
His genius brain is fuzzy, and he comes back to himself a little, with no idea how much time has passed. Mark is plastered on top of Eduardo, because they have somehow slid down and are now horizontal on the couch. His mouth is tingling, almost a little numb, which feels delicious, the best feeling he has ever had because it’s the result of kissing red and swollen Eduardo lips for long minutes. He sucks in a deep breath and bends down to continue kissing Eduardo, who makes encouraging sounds with his hands roaming over Mark’s lower back and ass. And oh wow, he’s pressed right between Eduardo’s parted thighs. He can feel an answering hardness grinding up against his own, through two layers of jeans. He groans, pulling back a little just so he can suck on that smooth, wet lower lip, make Eduardo thrust up with a moan.
A spot of wetness presses against the back of his neck, and it’s enough to distract him from the pliant Eduardo lying beneath him. Mark turns to see Beast nudging forward with his cold wet nose again. Oh. Beast. Right, he must be curious about what they’re doing.
Eduardo chuckles, “I think we’re traumatizing Beast.”
“Can’t believe I got a cockblocking dog,” grumbles Mark.
He turns to see Eduardo look up at him with a heated gaze. “What are you going to do about it?”
Mark grins. “You want to go upstairs?”
“You’re a genius,” says Eduardo, grinning as well.
Mark reaches down and gives Eduardo’s erection an encouraging squeeze through his jeans, just before he pushes himself up.
“Let’s go,” says Mark, standing up on wobbly legs.
Eduardo scrambles after, eyes a little glazed and hands already reaching out again.
Yeah, Mark is totally a genius.
# # # # # # # # # #
After two rounds of mind-blowing sex and three orgasms altogether, Mark spoons up behind Eduardo and nuzzles his sweaty nape. Eduardo mumbles wordlessly, grabbing Mark’s arm to pull tighter around his own waist. During the last half an hour of sex and in a wave of brain-addled lust, Eduardo had promised eternal attendance to all Facebook events and that he’ll stop talking to Larry, before descending into incoherence altogether.
Mark closes his eyes and grins with satisfaction.
Google can totally suck it.
# # # # # # # # # #
THE END
End notes: Mark’s thoughts are not representative of the author’s. None of the charities or parties mentioned above exists. Hiveminds does not exist. Benji does not exist. Google does exist. So do Larry Page, Sergei Brin and Marissa Mayer. But all interactions, grudges, games, and new products mentioned here are completely made up.
Hiiii, fairy_tale_echo! I tried to fit a few of your preferences into this fic (five things, fix-it, a bit of other cast members - Dustin has always been my go to guy). I wish I could have written something longer and better as a pressie. I hope you enjoyed anyway!