Suddenly, I Am Rich

The days that followed were quite... predictable.

Gray began appearing at Alistair’s office more often than he usually does. Sometimes he would go there with a reason, sometimes without one.

Most of the time, he would say that he was there to help Alistair with his plans.

Fortunately, Alistair didn’t find any faults with that. He was even happy that he was there.

Gray was sure then that Alistair had actually trusted him a lot now. He even does some work in his office now, allowing him to access some files. Though it was not the files that he wanted to see.

With it, he had also gotten more familiar with Alistair’s secretary.

”Mayor Alistair will be in a private meeting for the next hour, Sir Gray. The Mayor said that you can go first now if you want,” the secretary muttered after rushing from outside. He sounded apologetic as he adjusted the folders in his arms.

Gray glanced at him and raised his brow. ”Is it another long one?”

”Looks like it.” The man nodded with a tired smile.

”Oh well,” Gray shrugged his shoulder, ”Have you eaten yet?”

The secretary shook his head. ”Ah... no. But it’s fine. I have to wait for my boss first. I can eat later.”

Gray raised his brow higher and checked the time on his watch. ”Come on, man. Lunch is just one hour. We can manage that.”

”I—I really shouldn’t,” the secretary said quickly. He even waved his hand quickly, ”If Mayor Alistair finds out—”

”Don’t worry, he won’t,” Gray replied calmly. ”And if he does, I’ll take responsibility for it.”

The man looked torn as he looked at Gray.

”Also, you’ve been working nonstop since morning. You deserve a proper meal.” Gray added.

A moment of silence ensued between the two of them. The secretary looked as if he was weighing the two choices. Then, after a moment, he let out a sigh.

”...Alright, Sir,” he said, almost sheepishly. ”But just this once.”

Gray smiled. ”That’s all I’m asking.”

- - -

In the end, they went to a restaurant that was just close enough. The man was uneasy the whole time they were out, so they decided to just stay close in case Alistair called for him.

During their lunch, the secretary looked stiff at first as if he didn’t know what to do. He also kept glancing at his phone as if expecting it to ring any second.

Gray noticed it, but he said nothing. After all, he didn’t know the work connection of the two. It was only after the food arrived that the man seemed to calm down.

”This place is quite nice, Sir,” the secretary said, looking around.

”Yeah. I thought you’d like it,” Gray replied as he picked up his utensils. ”They said the food is quite good too.”

”Yes, Sir.” The man nodded. ”Thank you. For this.”

”Oh, right,” Gray put his utensils down and tilted his head to the side, ”I don’t think I ever caught your name.”

The secretary blinked, then chuckled softly. ”Oh, right, Sir.” He scratched the back of his head awkwardly. ”I’m Steven.”

”Steven,” Gray repeated and nodded slowly, ”You must have been working under Alistair for so long, haven’t you?”

”Seven years,” Steven answered after a moment. ”Almost eight already, I think.”

”Oh damn,” Gray raised his brows slightly. ”That’s a long time.”

Steven smiled faintly. ”Yeah, it is. I started not long after he first took office.

”Ohh...” Gray nodded, ”Were you two close?”

That will put an awkward smile on Steven’s face. The truth was, they weren’t really close then until now.

”Close?” he repeated awkwardly. He shook his head after a brief pause. It was embarrassing to admit it, ”Not really, Sir.”

”Oh... really?”

”Yeah. I’ve always just been... an employee,” Steven continued. ”I do what I’m told, and I make sure everything runs smoothly for the Mayor.” He gave a small and almost self-deprecating chuckle. ”I don’t think he’s ever seen me as anything more than that, Sir.”

Gray hummed quietly and waited for Steven to continue.

”At first, I thought that was normal,” Steven went on and sighed. ”I told myself that this was just how things worked. He’s the mayor, after all. He’s a busy person... But sometimes... I also just wanted to be treated like a person. Not just someone who fixes things when they go wrong.”

There was a brief silence between them.

Steven let out a slow breath. The truth was, whenever Alistair is mad or in a bad mood, he would always receive it. Sometimes it’s just badly scolding, cursing, or sometimes a little beating. It got to the point where he was scared whenever the man was in a bad mood.

Surprisingly, these past couple of weeks, it lessened. He became more tolerable, but still scary. It must be because he was in a good mood with all the support he was getting.

Gray raised his brows slightly.

Something about Steven’s expression felt... off. The man had become quiet again. It looked like there was something he wanted to say but didn’t dare to.

Gray studied him for a moment, then spoke gently.

”Is something wrong, Steven?”

Steven stiffened.

”Huh?” He looked up too quickly, then shook his head almost at once. ”N-No, Sir. Nothing’s wrong.” He forced a small smile and lowered his gaze again. ”It’s really nothing.”

”Alright,” Gray simply nodded and went back to his food, though his attention never fully left Steven.

A few seconds passed before Steven spoke again.

”But... I am thankful to you, Sir.”

”Huh? Thankful?” he repeated, clearly confused. His brows tied together. ”For what?”

Before Steven could answer, his phone lit up on the table.

The color drained from Steven’s face almost instantly.

”I-I’m sorry, Sir,” he said in a rush as he snatched the phone. He straightened in his seat and answered it immediately. ”Y-Yes, Mayor?”

The silence only lasted less than a second before Alistair’s voice exploded through the phone.

”WHAT THE FUCK, STEVEN. WHERE ARE YOU! ARE OU BEING AN IDIOT RIGHT NOW?”