Jason helped Val to his feet, keeping a firm hold as they walked along the park path toward their apartment building.
"Boss, how did you know I was here?" asked Val.
"Guessing. You said you wanted to sit here and watch the sunset. You have the time off now, so I figured you might be here," said Jason.
Val chuckled.
"You're amazing, Boss. By the way, how was your day?"
Jason nodded.
"Uh, so far so good, pretty smooth and busy, of course."
Jason put his arm around Val's waist. Notice how weak and pale Val looked now. He offered his hand to help him.
"Let me carry you," he said.
Val brushed Jason's hand away from his waist; his boss was just teasing him.
"No need, Boss. I'm fine."
No, he doesn't; his knee is getting too weak to carry on.
"Come on, hop on my back. You're so skinny now, you're probably as light as a feather."
"Boss, you're teasing me again!" Val exclaimed, annoyed.
Jason laughed.
"I'm serious. Look at you, your legs still hurt, right? Just get on my back."
"Boss..."
The sun dipped below the horizon, the sky slowly losing its light. Val reluctantly climbed onto his boss's back. He had to admit it, his head was getting heavier than he thought, he might collapse if he pushed himself to walk now, what a lame.
They walked away from the setting sun, the streetlights flicking on one by one as they passed.
"This weekend, Big Boss is having a company dinner, and everyone has to go, without exception. He prepares the dinner from a five-star restaurant, so it'll be good. That old man is so stubborn; nobody can refuse him. But I could guarantee, the food is not so bad," said Jason. With Val behind his back, the man looked so radiant, his face beaming like a street lamp, so bright.
Val tightened his grip on his boss's neck. Luckily, there were no other pedestrians around; it was a weekday evening, and everyone was heading home. The sidewalk, lined with city-planted shrubs, felt like it belonged to them alone.
"What's the occasion, Boss? This dinner?" Val asked.
Jason pursed his lips.
"Umm, I'm not sure about that. Maybe it's because we got the tender for the annual City sports event. At least our part is done; the production team will be scrambling because of the huge number of orders."
Val nodded.
"Oh."
Jason looked at Val behind him.
"Um, are you hungry? We can grab something before we head upstairs."
Val thought for a moment.
"Um, I want that mochi we had yesterday again. It was so good. I'm craving for it."
Jason smiled.
"Hey, the dine's pretty far. I don't know if they do delivery. Should we just go there?"
Val shook his head.
"No, Boss. Let's just eat at home. Iyan brought leftovers from his restaurant yesterday; we can use them. It looks good."
Jason pursed his lips.
"Iyan shouldn't call it leftovers; it's fresh and hasn't been processed at all."
Val chuckled.
"That's what he means, Boss. Iyan just talks casually."
Jason smiled, looking at Val's face right next to his head. The kid was exhausted, his chin resting on Jason's shoulder. Jason could hear his heavy breath blow to his ear, still hot.
"Does your head still hurt?" he asked.
Val nodded.
"Yeah, it hurts a lot. I feel nauseous too."
"Should we go back to the hospital for a check-up?"
Val shook his head quickly.
"No need, Boss. It's just a fever, nothing serious. I'll be good after sleep."
Jason tightened his lips. Val's condition makes him restless.
"You need to take better care of yourself, Val, look at how thin you are, even eating irregularly. I made an appointment with the doctor in the central hospital for a medical check-up, to see what happened to you," said Jason.
Val flinched. He'd already had a check-up, and it wasn't good news. It was his matter; his boss didn't need to know much about it.
"No need, Boss, I'm fine. It's probably just the weather,"
"What weather? I see bruises all over you, Val. That doesn't look good. Let's get you checked out, okay? I know a good doctor at Central Hospital. I'll call him."
"No need, Boss, really."
.....
The weekend, Office dinner gathering.
Ria and Ros, one of the cooperate's secretaries, helped distribute drinks. The office dinner was held in the large multi-purpose room on the sixth floor, one level above the marketing office and below the director's floor. That floor is usually used for product launches and exhibitions.
It's about a hundred staff, including the boss, managers, and directors, who attended the event, which the big boss organized to treat his staff to delicious food specially ordered from the best restaurants around the building. So, the food was guaranteed to be delicious and filling.
Val approached. He and his boss sat at a round table where the big boss was. It felt strange and awkward, Val thought. But it wasn't just him; Anwar and Alex were also there, as their team had played a big role in the large sports event order. Most of the hard work was their team's.
Ria handed Val a glass of a cold drink.
"Here you go."
Val pursed his lips. Why was his, was different from everyone else's? He compared his brownish drink to the peach-colored drinks Ros was giving to other staff.
"Ria, why does mine have a different color? Is it a different flavor?" Val asked innocently.
Ria pointed at Val's glass.
"It's herbal tea, good for your health. The Big Boss specifically bought it to be shared. Drink it, it's good. And, this one for your Boss there," said Ria, pointing to Jason.
Val saw the next glass Ros handed to him.
"But why is this one different?" asked Val.
Ria and Ros exchanged glances; they couldn't help laughing at Val's confused expression.
"Hey, kid, that's for the other staff, and it has alcohol. The Big Boss said interns and minors can't drink alcohol. So you'll just have herbal tea. Go complain to them by yourself," Ria said, gesturing behind Val. Jason approached.
"Val, here, let me get that. Your hand's still hurting. Why did you grab two glasses?" Jason took the glasses from Val's bandaged hand. He frowned at Val's sulky face at him.
"What's with the face?" he asked. But getting a cold shoulder from the kid.
They both walked back to their table.
"Boss, are interns like me and the others unimportant? Why can't we drink the same drinks as you guys?" Val said, walking ahead of his boss. Jason frowned, puzzled by Val's sudden anger. He glanced back at Ria and Ross to ask them what was going on. The two girls just shrugged, clueless.
Jason caught up with Val, took the glasses from him, and put them on the table. He even pulled out a chair for Val to sit down.
"What do you mean? Who's unimportant? What are you talking about? I don't understand any of it."
Val didn't look at Jason. He looked annoyed and raised his glass to drink.
"Hey, this brat..." Jason couldn't help but get ignored.
The dinner party was lively and friendly. Some staff, like Anwar and Alex, joined in with karaoke and a quiz. The company was giving out door prizes to the winners. Val even had to participate because there was a game that required three people – him, Anwar, and Alex. The whole room cheered when they successfully got the balloons into the basket.
"Wow, Val, great job!" Ria and the others exclaimed.
There were three teams, each with three people, tasked with carrying a balloon without touching it from their head to their stomach. The balloon started at the head and went down to Val's stomach, but they managed to get the balloon to the finish line. Everyone laughed until their stomachs hurt. "Hahahaha!" Except for Jason, who was watching from the sidelines, noticing how happy Val was when they reached the finish line.
"Yeah!"
As the first-place winners of the group game, they each received prizes ranging from electronics to furniture. Val chose a cute little round table, perfect for his new room.
After having fun from the afternoon until almost midnight, all the staff went home with satisfied smiles on their faces. Not everyone won the games, but they all received a pretty good amount of shopping vouchers each.
Everyone gradually dispersed, heading back home to rest.