Chapter 5: Celebration.

December 29, 30XX

A golden glow glossed over the window. Riding in the hover bus, Titus was retiring for the day parallel to the receding sun after a day's work. 

He was lost in thought as he couldn't help but wonder what an event had happened to him. It had actually already been two months since he traversed here. Such a thing was really ridiculous!

Normally, he would still walk towards home right after work and only ride the bus when going to work, but today was different. 

... 

Last night. 

"*Knocking* Titus, lad, are you there?" 

"I'm here Uncle. How may I help you?" 

"Hehe, you see, tomorrow is Lee's birthday. I'm tight on time so I can't buy the ingredients for the celebration. Can you do it in my stead?" 

Titus was stunned about the abrupt news. Lee's birthday... "Alright, I go home early anyways." 

"Good, good... Here's the money. I'm going back now. It would be suspicious if Lee saw us together the night before his birthday. It would ruin the surprise. Hahaha." 

Life wasn't  so frugal anymore. Uncle got a decent job with a salary only slightly lower than his previous one. The 40 years of work experience did him good.

And Lee who was very thrifty on money before, would now ride a hover bus regularly with the addition of Titus. Titus now had a friend and brother, which was Lee. It turned out that he really was too lonely in the past. The comfort he felt when Lee called him brother when they first met, was him feeling love. Love from a friend. Love from a family. During the course of these two months, he had developed a filial relationship with the Brown family. He was basically a part of it now. The rent thing was abolished and they functioned as one. He was treated like family and was part of the family. 

Originally, Titus started as a laborer, a transport personnel for a restaurant, where he carried boxes and crates of ingredients. But when the deputy of the labor crew retired due to old age, Titus was nominated by him to replace the position. The former deputy saw that he would make a good choice. He was very keen and should he dare say, passionate in his work, despite Titus being only a laborer. No other laborer had this quality in working other than Titus. Of course, he had to thank Titus' appreciation in finding work, which was basically his lifeline in surviving both in the past and the current. He was passionate because of this. 

Unfortunately though, he still had a long way to go. Apart from Lee and Uncle Brown he wasn't  really friendly towards other people. Yes, he 'responds' to his colleagues at work to maintain a good relationship and not develop sour feelings, but he wasn't exactly socializing with them and thus weren't  really friends. He may be a good leader as the deputy but that didn't mean he was sociable outside of work. He would go home right after work so his social circle was too limited for him to develop into a butterfly. [1]

... 

Titus also bought a gift for Lee while buying the ingredients. It was nothing fancy but it was meaningful. He bought him a phone. [2] The value of the phone itself was only a step of upgrade from Lee's current phone, but the meaning behind it was deep. It was because of a 'phone' that Lee thought he was from the slums. Thinking back, it was really funny, especially the hesitant but curious look on Lee's face at that time. 

When he arrived at the doorstep of their home, Uncle Brown also just got back from work. The two nodded at each other and entered. The two began preparing immediately. Lee would usually be the earliest one to be home, but today Uncle Brown made him run an errand to the bank and withdraw some money.

By the time Lee arrived home, preparation was finished. And the clueless Lee was surprised by the bountiful dinner! Yes, it was his birthday, but normally it wouldn't be this 'grand.' I guess Titus really helped them a lot in lightening the expenses. 

"Lee, happy 17th birthday! Here's a little gift from your brother." 

Titus handed over his present after dinner and warmly wished Lee a happy birthday! 

When Lee opened it, he saw that it was a phone thus he was surprised but remembering Titus' current work position which had almost similar pay to his dad's current work, albeit slightly lower, he couldn't help but tease. 

"Brother is really extravagant now! Hahaha, brother how about increasing my allow-"

*Smack* Uncle Brown hit Lee in the head. "You mischievous brat, hurry and thank your brother! You're asking for allowance instead of being grateful!" 

"*Hiss* I was kidding. I was kidding... Why are you so serious dad?! Even brother knows I'm only joking. But I wouldn't mind if you're giving me some. Hehehehe."

"*Sigh* This brat."

"Hahahaha, alright, I'll increase it a little bit. Not like I have something else to spend it on anyways." 

"Really?!" Lee exclaimed excitedly.

"Just consider this as a bonus birthday gift." 

"Titus, don't spoil this child. Alas, you two brothers are just thicker than blood [3]. You should keep some for yourself. Treat yourself sometimes. Buy new clothes or whatnot." 

"Don't worry Uncle, I always save some for myself. By the way Uncle, it's gonna be New Year three days from now. Since I've saved up quite a bit because of my big Christmas bonus, how about we go out of town and relax for a bit?"

"Hmmm... That's a good idea but where to?" 

"Isn't there a mountain resort just right outside the city? How about we go there? It's not too far and I've heard that it's a good place. It's also affordable. It is peaceful and quiet, perfect for rest." 

"Okay, we will do as you say. But remember to not horde all the expenses yourself and leave some for us. Even if you have the bonus, a three person vacation is still a sum. You should put some into your savings account. 

Most importantly, save some for your future family!"

"Don't worry Uncle, I've already put that into mind. And so, since Uncle agreed, Gold Mountain Resort it is then!" 

Proofread by: @lynn

Author's Note:

[1] As in social butterfly

[2] Yes it's a phone which is still costly but the fancy here is referring to luxuriousness and/or uniqueness

[3] Derived from the Chinese saying,"Blood is thicker than water."