Friday flew by too fast, and the weekend was not any different. On the last working day of the week, Isaac and Laurence visited one of the malls under the ND Corporation. He was informed the shopping center had been established the previous year, and they went to the place to survey their operation.

On Saturday and Sunday, Laurence could not find anything interesting to do, so he ended up holed up in his room most of the time. While he badly wanted to resume investigating his situation and the other people who might have been connected to it, he felt like his brain had received a lot of major overloads from the past few weeks; all he wanted to do on his days off was declutter his mind by lazing around, watching movies, and catching up with the current events in Perlientas.

The busy days continued the following week as Marian carried on training him in preparation for the woman's maternity leave, starting in March. Laurence had a hard time understanding everything at first, but he eventually got the hang of it once he realized that the administrative duties were not that complicated. Mr. Frias had mentioned before that Florence was a fast learner, and if there was something he had in common with his current body's original owner, it was that Laurence, too, was quick on the uptake despite his bad habit of often getting distracted.

It also helped ease Laurence's concern when the pregnant secretary assured him he would not be left alone on the job. The HR had agreed to pull out someone from Research and Development in the meantime to take over the more complex assistant work while Marian was on leave for three months. And most likely, Odessa would be assigned to it.

Walking to the lobby, Laurence and Odessa discussed the temporary changes in their tasks for the next few months. Employees were already lining up in front of the biometric attendance machine, waiting for their turn to time out, when the duo arrived at the area.

Laurence and Odessa took their place at the end of the line. The male colleague ahead of them glanced over his shoulder, then beamed.

"Oh, hey, Odessa, Florence, do you have plans after this? We're going to Alyssa's today to have some drinks. Would you like to join us?" he said, his loud voice causing the pair of a man and a woman in front of him to turn their heads at them as well.

Recognition sank in as Laurence examined the trio's faces. Jonas, the one who'd acknowledged them, together with the other two, Yna and Melvin. They were from the supply department. Similar to Marian and Odessa, they were three of the few people in the main office who had never viewed Rence in a condemnatory way, three of the few people who'd always prioritized their formal responsibilities over engaging in stupid rumors.

"Alyssa who? Do we have a new hire?" Odessa gave Jonas a blank stare.

The two men from the supply office let out good-natured chuckles.

"No, you silly. We're talking about Alyssa's Diner and KTV," Yna said with a giggle.

Odessa paused. She frowned before her eyes lit up. "Oh. Oh, yes, Alyssa. Sure, I'd love to! It's been long since the last time I went out with some colleagues! Is it okay if I go with you?" Her curly hair danced as she whipped her head in Laurence's direction. "Ah, are you going too, Rence? We're going, right?"

"Me? Are you sure about it?" With a sheepish grin, Laurence pointed a finger at himself.

"Why not? The more, the merrier," answered Jonas, which earned a nod of approval from his two friends.

Laurence had no chance to say anything else when another voice joined the conversation.

"Have some plans tonight?" Mr. Frias stood next to them in line, checking out his silver watch before lifting his gaze. "Are you going for a drink?"

Laurence pursed his lips, discerning how the older man's demeanor had mellowed compared to the last time they spoke. He was starting to think Florence had been right when he wrote in his journal that Mr. Frias didn't appreciate him at all.

The small movement behind the senior administrative officer caused Laurence to angle his upper body to the side, peering past the older man, only to find another person at the end of the line. His mouth quirked as he discovered it was Warren, shooting daggers at them.

"Would you like to come with us, sir?" Jonas asked Mr. Frias, oblivious to the venomous energy emitting from the back.

Laurence imagined a dark aura coming out of Warren's whole being, as though he was an evil spirit from a classic horror movie. A snigger fled from his lips, gaining different reactions from his colleagues.

The three supply officers and Odessa gaped. Mr. Frias observed him, his face solemn, while Warren intensified his glare.

Clearing his throat, Laurence smothered an amused grin. "I'm sorry. I just remembered a funny video my sister showed me last night. Please, don't mind me."

A bitter and not-so-quiet remark, calling him 'freak', floated in the air, and Laurence knew only one person in the group who was bitchy enough to do that.

As if the interruption had not happened, Mr. Frias addressed Jonas. "That would be nice, but I'm afraid I can't keep up with you, young people, anymore."

"Age is just a number, sir. You're only fifty, and you don't even look like one. There's no rule saying you can no longer have fun when you reach middle age."

"Fifty-five. Thank you for the considerate words, but I'm really having a hard time staying up late these days." With his chin, Mr. Frias gestured at the subordinate behind him. "You may be interested to come with them, Warren. You're all in the same generation, after all."

"No, thank you, sir." Warren's mouth contorted into a tight smile before he threw another grimace at his coworkers. "I have something more important to do."

"Oh." Mr. Frias trailed off as the queue moved forward.

The beeps of the biometric attendance machine grew more audible as they drew nearer to it. There were only two more employees before Yna's turn.

"Then why don't you invite our young CEO with you?" Mr. Frias suggested out of the blue.

And only then did the group of employees notice that their big boss had joined them in waiting.

Isaac didn't say a word, but anyone who had ever attended a business meeting with him would know that his silent scrutiny was often a prompt for others to speak and report to him.

"We're going to have some drinks, sir. If you'd like to join us..." Jonas said. "Though we know you're busy, so really... never mind us."

Seeing that his colleagues were not moving an inch, Laurence quietly told Mr. Frias to feel free to use the biometric first.

The senior employee lifted a brow but took Laurence's offer anyway and went ahead of Yna. Mr. Frias registered his thumbprint, bid goodbye to others, and strode out of the lobby.

Warren took a step toward the biometric DTR machine, giving the impression that he was about to follow Mr. Frias. He halted when Isaac spoke at last.

"Where's the place?"

"Pardon?" Jonas asked, his eyes opening out a little.

Straight-faced, Isaac inspected his phone as though the response was on the screen. "Where are you going for a drink?"

A hush slipped by, not staying for too long as Yna replied, tentative, "Alyssa's, sir. We're also going for the KTV."

"I'll be there. Maybe just a few minutes late, so you can go first," the young boss said with a tone of finality and slid his phone into his pocket.

Odessa, along with the three supply officers, goggled. Even Warren failed to hide his comical reaction as his jaw dropped.

Laurence thought the young boss's eyes had flicked to him, but there was no chance to confirm since Isaac was already advancing toward the biometric attendance. The instant the machine emitted a short, high-pitched beep, the CEO departed, leaving silent chaos in his wake.

Once Isaac was out of their sight, the remaining employees traded incredulous looks. Odessa and Jonas simultaneously asked what had happened.

"Then, I'll go too," Warren declared.

The mood calmed for a moment, settling like bubbles in a shaken can of beer, just before it burst open and fizzed over.

"We thought you had something more important to do?" Melvin, who had been quiet the whole time, asked.

"I only want to make sure none of you are going to do something stupid in front of the CEO." Warren sneered at his colleagues and then aimed his contempt at Laurence. "And that no leech will get close to him."

Uncaring about the others' implied refusal for him to join, Warren clocked out and stalked off.