"So Doc, Val is fine, right?" Jason asked.
The doctor was about to answer, but Val interrupted.
"Eh, boss, could you give me a ride home? We're going the same direction, right?"
Jason looked at Val suspiciously and then back at the doctor, but seeing Val so cheerful, he looked like he worried for nothing.
"Sure, Val, come, I'll drive you home."
After less than half an hour's drive.
The car stopped at the three-story old building at the end of the street.
"You rent here, Val? That's pretty far from the office," said Jason, getting out of the car.
Val hobbled out of the car.
"It's not that far, actually. It's only about half an hour by MRT to the office. No big deal."
Jason glanced up at the building. It was one of the buildings the city was going to renovate soon. How did he know? He'd been invited to a bidding meeting with his grandfather last month, and his grandfather won the auction for the whole block and building, planning to tear it down and build a shopping center and sports club.
"Hmm, quite an old building."
Val nodded.
"Yeah, but the rent is cheap. Helps me save money," although limping, he started to walk towards the building, then stopped when he saw someone standing at the entrance, seemingly waiting for him. Ilyana was there, rushing towards Val with a worried expression.
"Val! Anwar said you were injured! What happened?" said the girl, looking worried.
Jason just smiled, seeing that Val already had someone to take care of him – Ilyana, who had a major crush on Val.
"I'm fine, Il, don't worry. It's just a minor sprain." Ilyana helped Val into the building. Before going inside, Val waved goodbye to Jason.
"Thanks, Boss, see you on Monday."
"Sure"
…
A bright Monday morning. In one of the city's busiest parks, even on a weekday, a few blocks from the Diamond Building, the marketing team – Val, Anwar, and Alex – were handing out brochures and samples.
"Hello, how are you? Here's a free sample from our company. Please try it," Val said with a bright, wide smile on his flawless, handsome face. Some girls stopped just to see his smile up close.
Val's radiant smile was a great draw; nobody could resist it. They quickly ran out of samples and brochures, finishing early.
Alex put an arm around Val as he packed up their things. The sun was high, and they'd skipped lunch; it was almost two, now.
"What should we eat? I'm starving!" Alex said.
Anwar finished packing their blue box of supplies.
"Let's get pizza. Sounds good," he suggested.
"Pizza in this heat? Are you crazy?!" Alex exclaimed, while Val chuckled at his seniors.
"What's the problem with that? Pizza tastes good hot or cold. What does the weather have to do with that?" Anwar retorted.
"It just seems weird," Alex mumbled.
Their loud bickering was interrupted by a car horn.
"Beep beep!"
A black luxury car pulled up, and Jason leaned out the window.
"Hey, guys, are you done? It's almost noon," he asked.
Val grabbed the box and approached. Anwar and Alex followed; it was unusual for their boss to come down to the park.
"Wow, boss, what's the occasion?" Alex teases the boss; he surely knows the reason.
Anwar nudged Alex, thinking he was being too chatty. Jason glanced at Val.
"Let's go, Val. We have that bakery survey today, remember?" Jason said.
Alex and Anwar exchanged glances. They knew instantly their boss wasn't out on the street for them.
"Whoa, I thought what was up, picking up Val!" Alex exclaimed, followed by Anwar's excited fake surprise.
Val chuckled at their reactions. They were a fun bunch. He stepped forward, but something landed on his blue box – blood.
"Pluk"
Val stopped. Another nosebleed. Jason and the others looked at him seriously.
"Val, your nose is bleeding," Anwar said, handing him a piece of tissue.
"Oh, thanks, War, heh, another nosebleed."
Alex took the box from Val.
"Here, let me carry that."
Jason got out of his car, checking on Val.
"Hey kiddo, look at you, this is definitely because you've been standing around too long and haven't had lunch. Let's grab some food. You two want to join? Please take everything back to the office later," Jason said, pulling Val towards his car.
"Yes, boss!" Alex and Anwar replied in unison.
…...
Jason and Val were in Jason's car, while Anwar and Alex took the company car back to the office parking lot. Jason glanced at Val, grabbed another handkerchief from the back seat, and offered it to him. Val was stunned as Jason gently wiped the blood that was again flowing from his nose.
"Look here, this kid"
"Boss," Val could hear Jason sigh heavily right in front of his face. He took the tissue from his boss's hand, looked at the red blood on the white sheet.
"Look at all this blood. You need to stop eating junk food. You're getting so thin," Jason grumbled.
Val looked at the blood-soaked tissue in his hand. This happened often, and lately he'd been getting tired easily. Was he vitamin-deficient? Jason smirked at Val's stunned expression, then reached over and fastened his seatbelt.
Val was startled; Jason's face was so close. His boss stared into his eyes for a long moment, seeming to lean closer. Looks like Jason almost kissed him if not for the car horn that startled him.
"Beep beep!"
Jason stammered. He fastened his seatbelt.
"Uh, ahem, then, what do you want to eat?"
Soon, the vehicle smoothly pulled away from the curb, merging back into the heavy city traffic.
"Vroom!"