The Royal Contract

If he was being truthful, there were some points in his day when he wished to quit. But then again, he changed his mind, finding the challenge refreshing. Nobody had dared him to work this hard before. Now, he felt some form of pride for his mini accomplishments.

He was the son of a high-ranking official. Therefore, people tended to give him special treatment, thinking he would follow in his father’s footsteps. In truth, he never liked politics, but unfortunately, it was what everybody expected he would do in the future.

“Are you done?” Alona walked to his desk, carrying another set of assignments he had to work on after he finished his present tasks.

Her eyes darted at his desk, focusing on his outgoing tray. Instead of smiling, she shook her head disapprovingly, looking unsatisfied with his current pace.

“I will be if you stop putting things on my desk and barking orders.” Zach reasoned against his boss’s assistant, smiling and shaking his head since he knew it would not work on her.

She was like a force inside the office. Nobody would challenge her since everybody knew she was almost always right. He was working at full speed, but he could still do better.

.....

He learned that Alex had placed his training program under her hands for the rest of this week. So, if he had to impress someone, it would be her. He had to prove to her that he could do whatever she placed on his desk.

“You need to work harder and faster if you don’t want this piling up on your desk.” Alona patted the new folders on his desk to prove her point.

She recognized the effort the new intern exerted to impress their big boss. But she also realized that just like most rich brats she knew, he was a man who did not follow orders easily. They gave the commands, not the other way around.

Therefore, it must be a new experience for Zach to do menial jobs like encoding a file on the computer, photocopying documents, and proofreading them, among other things.

It might not be much work, but she believed it would give Zach an idea of how to appreciate all the employees working under him if he knew how they had worked hard to serve the people on the top.

“I am trying.” He admitted. It was not like he had operated a xerox copy machine before or grabbed coffee for someone else while rushing to finish a deadline. “But it is not easy.” He ran his fingers through his hair, slightly feeling frustrated. But he was not giving up just yet.

He liked that Alona challenged him to do better, pushing him to do things he never thought he would do. Maybe if he kept up with this routine, he would catch up and succeed eventually with the other tasks given to him.

Besides, he believed this was what he needed. A wake-up call that made him realize how he was wasting his life. Maybe someday venture on his own and not just follow his father’s footsteps.

Yes, he grew up believing he would become a politician too. But what if it was not what he wanted? What if he could be something else? More?

“Don’t worry. I can see that.” Alona smiled at him approvingly. “And he is also taking note of that.” Referring to their big boss. It was like Alona could read his thoughts. “I guess you are not that bad.”

She honestly thought it would be hard to deal with this young lad. The first time he reported to this office, she believed he would not fit in with them with his attitude.

She waited for him to quit right then when Alex assigned him to the mail room. She was glad he did not because somehow she could see her boss in this young kid. Maybe he just needed direction, someone to guide him.

“Are you psychic or something?” Zach could not help but kid around, wanting the tension in his body to ease up. He was starting to feel the fatigue on his back from sitting too long at his desk.

“You and your jokes.” Alona threw the stress ball on his desk at him, but he effortlessly caught it in his hands. “Now go back to work.” She commanded as she walked away.

But he knew she was only teasing him as well. Somehow, he was beginning to like her as his supervisor. He was learning much from her, especially about working hard and simple life lessons.

Nevertheless, he wondered when he would have the chance to work closely with his real boss. He wanted to learn from the man everybody was singing praises of because of his accomplishments.

“Yes, Mam.” He even saluted to indicate that he was under her command.

Then, he planned to work his butt off throughout the day, hoping to make a dent in the stack of papers on his desk before he left for the day.

“You better stop calling me Mam because I am not yet that old,” Alona warned him before she disappeared behind the CEO’s office.

The day continued with him, slaving the rest of his day until Alona told him it was time to go home. He wished to work a few more hours, but Alona insisted it was late. Even the big boss had gone home early.

“You can always finish that tomorrow. Anyway, you are already slightly impressing me.” Alona kindly told him as she walked away, carrying her bag and leaving him to clean up his desk.

He looked at the empty office with most of the lights already turned off. He grabbed his things and walked away from his desk. But he wondered how the other intern who worked on the other side of this floor was doing.

Was she still working, or had she gone home?

He wished to see her earlier, but what Alona said stopped him. She might be right. He had no business messing with her. First of all, what did he want from her?

Yes, he was so pissed with her the other day that he intended to get even with her. But recently, he realized his faults and somehow understood he could not blame it all on her.

He had acted impulsively, making a big deal of something so small.

Still, what was his intention? Why was he still seeking her out? Did he wish to apologize to her?

“Excuse me!” Zach found a janitor cleaning the floor on his way to the elevator. “Who else is working in there?” He asked, noticing that the lights were still on in some offices.

Suddenly, his mind went back to her. Maybe it was time to clear the air between them. After all, soon enough, they would be working together. It was possible.

“That would be Ms. Josey, the COO, Sir.” The middle-aged man in uniform informed him as he stopped wiping the floor to look at him.

“What about the new intern? Did you notice her?” He could not help but ask, wondering if she was still working overtime.

“Oh! Did you mean Ms. Ria?” The man asked him as if he knew her very well. When he nodded his head, the man resumed. “She just left. Maybe a few minutes ago.”

“But Ms. Brenda is also still there, working overtime.” The man informed him.

“Thanks.” He told the man as he ran toward the elevator, pushing the button, willing it to open up. He thought he might still catch up with her in the lobby before she left.

When the door opened, he quickly stepped inside, pushing it to the ground floor. Then, he found himself tapping his foot on the floor, willing the elevator to speed up.

Fortunately, the lift did not have many stopovers since the building was almost empty. Zach quickly ran to the lobby, hoping to catch a glimpse of her. But so far, there were no signs of her. He must have missed her.

He was about to turn around to walk toward the parking lot when he heard his cell phone ring. He eventually answered it, but his eyes were still searching the premises. “Yes!” He said to the receiver, not bothering to look at the caller.

“Zach, where are you, man?” A familiar voice of his friend buzzed in his ears. “You are supposed to join us tonight. Have you forgotten it is my birthday?” The man said in an accusatory tone.

“I am sorry, I am just running late. But, of course, I have not forgotten.” But he had because he was busy. But he did not have to say that to his friend. “I will be there in a few minutes, Ryan.” He informed him, looking at his watch. It was not that late.

His friend was being overly dramatic. Ryan believed that the world should revolve around him. But he was his friend, so he tolerated him. But lately, he wondered if they still shared the same views.