A day off

"So… You are not going?" Recently, my mother has been way too busy with her work… which I find worrisome.

She shook her head. "No, I am not. I want to make sure that these kids get new clothes." 

*Sigh* She is way too kind for her own good. And if this goes on… it will affect her health. I wanted to take her out for a family dinner… but she rejected it.

"You know… I can say the same thing about you. You always overwork… and compared to you, I am barely doing anything." 

That was because I was building my own corporation and I can slow down now. The business will go on just fine. So my current focus is shifting to gaining power… Both physical and political.

"*Sigh* Back then, I had to do that. But now I don't. So, please take a break for one day?" She instantly shook her head which made me sigh again.

"At least promise me that you won't push yourself and that you will take a break once this is over." 

She smiled and nodded. 

At least, I don't want her health to be affected...

…

…

[[Howard Stark]]

I screwed up. I should have never said that to her. Now even after all these months… we barely talk. 

"At least, we are still in touch thanks to Marcel?" 

"What is because of me?" I jumped from my chair. "W-Who."

Turning around I find Marcel standing in front of the doorway with his hands inside the pockets.

How did he get here? 

"You need to increase your security, bud." He walked inside the room. "By the way, what's with the sad look? You are not the type of guy to make that kind of face under normal circumstances."

"You already know about it." My reply came out instantly.

He sat down and looked at me curiously. "I do… but you never told me about it. There is a difference between hearing from the source itself compared to hearing it from others."

True. That would have been the case for anyone else… but for him-

"You do not require anyone telling you." I shook my head. "You know? I find your information gathering ability quite terrifying… How do you do that?"

I honestly want to know.

"*Chuckle* That's a secret, my friend. But if you want to become even more successful in your business… improve your information gathering skill." He said with a grin. "That's just a tip from a friend." 

This guy never gives a straight-forward answer. "Maybe you are right. But I would rather stick to my projects." Gathering information about others is not my thing.

He's 'mostly' the same as ever… but I noticed one thing about him. "You look different."

He raised an eyebrow. "Different? Well, maybe it's because of my hairstyle. I tried a new one today."

"*Sigh* I am talking about how you talk and behave… earlier you used to be quite reserved but now you sound a lot more… free."

He sounded like he was enjoying himself… which was quite rare for him. 

"Maybe I am." He shrugged. "Anyways. I will be here for some time. So if you need help… you can inform me."

He stood up. "And… I just came to give you this." He pushed a box towards me. "Figure it out yourself. Now I need to go."

[Few minutes later]

The content of the box surprised me. "A… Cell Phone?"

…

…

[[Marcellus]]

"How long are you here for?" Joel asked.

"I will stay here for a while… But I have a few meetings to attend during my 'break'. How's the deal with the Europeans going?" 

Joel's in charge of dealing with the European branches… and he is doing quite well.

"It's going as we expected. They did ask for a higher share but I was able to bring them down to our discussed amount.

"That's good. Anyways after this… You can take a break. Most of the European deals will go on through our sub-branches... but through the main branch, this will be the last deal for a while." Joel nods at that.

"And take some rest. You are overworking." He scoffs.

"Like you are not."

*Chuckle*

…

…

[[Margaret Peggy Carter]]

"So you are here… to talk?" He nods his head at my question.

"Surprising! The eternally busy Marcellus Hanley has a day off!" He spits out his coffee before bursting out into laughter.

"Yes, even I do have free days." He chuckles. "And how are you?"

"I am fine…" Too much work, but I am fine. "Just got a lot on my shoulders right now."

"Want me to help you?" He asked. 

"Huh?" Help me with what? 

"Don't worry, I learned a few tricks when I was in China. And massages are one of the best things about China." 

Oh, he was talking about massaging. I did hear that China has various styles and techniques related to massaging. "You sure that it won't be troublesome for you?" 

"Nah, I learned that from a famous Chinese doctor. I am not allowed to teach it to others… but there is definitely no restriction on using it on them." 

Understandable… Since no one would teach such skills for free.

"Alright then."

…

…

[[Marcellus]]

"You. Will. Not. Tell. Anyone. About. It!!!" Peggy warned me. But I was having a blast. I couldn't hold my laughter looking at Peggy, who was wearing baggy pants.

Why was she wearing baggy pants? It's because I underestimated how 'powerful' this massage was.

"You will not tell anyone! You hear! Do not tell anyone about what just happened between us." 

"Wow wow wow! That's extremely misleading. Instead of you peeing yourself because of the massage… they will think we did something… you know… indecent." 

Her face turned red. Was I intentionally embarrassing her?

Maybe.

 [Later.]

We talked for a while. She seems to have been adjusting herself after the Howard event. Although she isn't fully back to being good friends with him… They are still friends.

I should probably get going. It is getting dark after all. I wonder when I will get some free time to enjoy after this.

"Promise me that you won't tell anyone about today." She said, which made me sigh.

Shaking my head, I answered. "Don't worry, I have no intention of embarrassing a beautiful lady like you in public." Her face turned to a deeper shade of red. 

It took her a while, but she changed the topic.

"Weren't you supposed to go bowling with your friend?" Yeah, both Joel and I did make the plan… But...

"I have time… So… If you want, I can give you another massage."

*THUD*

She shuts the door on my face.

___________________________________________________

[A/N: Time or Space?.... Space!

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