It was the last day of the team-building program, and Sun had instructed everyone to make individual action plans. Each individual would write a private letter to themselves, answering questions such as: "Today, what contributions am I most proud of?"; "What do I regret doing/saying, or not doing/saying?"; "In the future, I'd like to be more..."; "I'd like to stop… and start…" And so on and so forth. They would then seal the letter and drop it off in their mailboxes at home one month from now.
Raine enthusiastically joined in, writing her own answers all while sneaking glances at Tyrone's direction not too far away from them. She took the activity seriously, and she enjoyed many games during the rest of the program. It was very rare for her to interact with others, after all. It was practically a once-in-a-blue-moon experience for her.
As she made her letter, she couldn't help but keep on smiling, recalling Tyrone's cheekiness last night about the blue moon and whatnot. She had pondered about it all night and had decided to make Tyrone her right-hand man just as he suggested. In a sense, she simply followed her heart's desire in that crucial decision she just made.
At his own table, Tyrone met her gaze and smiled. The image of her kissing him immediately materialized in her head. Raine thought that her heart would explode at any minute. It was already bad enough that she almost kissed the host earlier for interrupting her daydreams.
After a few last-minute activities, the group had a good dinner in the dining hall. Before everyone returned to their respective rooms to rest, however, the group had one final session. Xander, as the head, gave out a short speech. He encouraged his subordinates, hoping that everyone had enjoyed their trip. He then continued, remarking that at the same time, they should have learned a lot of things that they could take home with them. Lessons that everyone could use back at the workplace and achievable goals that would reinforce critical findings from the program.
"Thank you so much, Dr. Xander Yang, for that wonderful speech. I must say, this group is indeed lucky because we were instructed to prepare a small party in the function room. So we encourage everyone to join us! We will have various drinks available, and everyone is allowed to get wasted. Isn't that right, Dr. Yang?" Sun announced with a smile as he shifted his gaze to Xander.
Xander smiled and nodded, adding in jest, "Just make sure there's no violence afterwards, alright?"
The group cheered. Some excitedly went into the function room, while others returned to their rooms to change into cuter, more 'selfie appropriate' outfits.
Raine, of course, remained in the function hall and enjoyed the cocktail drinks.
"Looks like you're planning to get wasted tonight," Rui commented.
"Oh, our Mr. Meddler. Are you here to get drunk too?" Raine asked, partly slurring her words..
Rui shook his head. She sounded drunk already. "I think that's enough," he scolded as soon as he saw Raine take on more shots.
However, Raine ignored him. She saw that Tyrone around, and she was curious on what he would do if she got drunk around other men.
"Don't kill the fun, Mr. Meddler. Xander even cheered us on to get wasted, so let me be," Raine swayed slightly as she spoke. "If you're too concerned, just stay by my side and get me back in my room later in one piece. How about that?"
Rui frustratingly sighed, but then his eyes lit up at a thought. Raine could already tell what was going inside the man's head.
"Tell me. Why are you trying to get close to Xander? I'm sure you have some sort of hidden agenda other than just flirting with my friend," Rui straightforwardly asked.
Raine rolled her eyes. She couldn't believe that Rui thought that she was one of those lightweights who would spill the beans on a drunken stupor. He was a psychologist, so it was natural for him to feel that somehow, alcohol stifled reasoning skills and contemplating long-term repercussions. As a result, people were more likely to tell the truth while intoxicated, offering up brutally honest and unfiltered opinions.
Too bad for him. She wasn't drunk enough to satisfy his curiosity. She stared at Rui's eyes. With her most seductive smile, she teased, "Tell me, Mr, Meddler, do you perhaps prefer that I flirt with you more?" Rui's face reddened, and Raine chuckled as she commented, "You do look quite adorable whenever you're blushing."
She then drank some more, and Rui could do nothing but stay with her to make sure that he could safely bring her back into her room. After some time, Raine stood up with a drunken smile on her face, swaying on her feet before eventually falling.
Rui moved fast to catch her, but another man was faster than him.
"Doctor Dee, I'll take her to her room. She called me today and asked me to come tonight and drive her back to Capital City," Tyrone said, trying his best to sound casual while keeping his calm.
"And who are you?" Rui asked with lifted eyebrows. The man looked familiar.
"I'm Tyrone Lopez, Doctor Yao's secretary," Tyrone introduced himself.
"Oh, yeah, I've heard about you…" the doctor unconsciously uttered. He did hear about him since gossip mongers talked about the guy lately. He was the handsome guy the female nurses referred to who, unfortunately for them, preferred men as opposed to women.
"I'm sorry?" Tyrone scoffed, almost sounding offended.
"Ah, it's nothing. However, I'm not sure I can just allow you to take her away that easily," Rui hesitatingly muttered.
Raine knew what was going on around her, so she raised her head with a grin and pinched Tyrone's cheeks with both her hands. With a drunken voice, she mumbled, "Oh, my reliable secretary is here. As expected, you're the best. Always there to save me! Let's go and take me out of here before this Mr. Meddler takes advantage of me."
"What?! Take advantage?!" Rui burst out in disbelief, only for Raine to crazily laugh at him.
At the commotion, Tyrone took the opportunity and said with a smile, "I'll be taking her now, Doctor Dee. See you at work."
Without waiting for Doctor Dee's response, Tyrone quickly hefted Raine into his arms and walked with long strides out of the function hall.
"Ah, how come you didn't let Rui bring me back into my room? It would've been fun to tease Mr. Meddler," Raine murmured into Tyrone's chest, burying her face into his embrace.
"Didn't I make myself clear? You can tease and play with me all you want instead of doing it to any other man!" Tyrone grunted in his darkest expression.