Chapter 76 - Strange Questions

The Wilde household was extremely lively. Tina and Sue worked extremely hard to pull off the surprise feast while Claire was pulling all the strings they had for Wilmer's last-minute request. Today was a Friday so the children had the weekend to celebrate their non-intern lives.

The children came back with good news and so did the grown-ups. Dinner was a lively event with everybody's favourites. Scarlet gave thanks to the chef and helpers for putting together such a wonderful party on short notice. The young writer only wished that Jenna and Mrs Wilde could be here too and it would have been perfect. She missed the two ladies a little and wanted to tell them all that has happened lately in person.

Wilmer was in high-spirits and engaged in fatherly chatter with Alex who could stop gushing about her acceptance into the prestigious Art & Sculpture Club. The CEO was very proud of her and so was everyone else. It was probably the first time Alex actually accomplished something all through her own efforts. True, there was support in the form of materials and lessons but Alex managed to qualify for the club without any string-pulling. It was decided by the teachers fairly. Danny even mentioned that Alex wasn't on the waiting list for acceptance, she was selected as one of the top ten choices even if there were really only fifteen students selected for the club.

Claire prepared a frame for the pastel art that Alex drew. The family was simply so proud of the Wilde Princess' accomplishments and Alex got to choose where she would like to hang her work. Wilmer was slightly dejected when Alex decided to have it framed up in her bedroom. It was obvious to anyone that he was hoping to have the drawing framed in his home office. Tina and Sue didn't hide their amus.e.m.e.nt and Claire's eyes twinkled even though she kept her neutral expression.

"Don't worry, Daddy! When I become a really great artist, I will give you a painting worth millions so that you can hang it in your office."

Wilmer was ready to cry. Just how long does his daughter intend to make him wait? Million-dollar works are usually sold posthumously. He was a patient man but not patient enough for that day to come.

Scarlet and Jasper were perfectly content for Alex to take the spotlight at dinner. The young entrepreneur was already making plans to make the delinquents work for him. Scarlet was just happy that she managed to witness some amazing things happen with the delinquents. Now that she was full of inspiration, the aspiring just wanted to pen down everything in her head and have Debbie read through it. It was extremely exciting to think about publishing her first book. If possible, she wanted to see the paperback version of it by the end of the year.

It was in the middle of Alex and Jasper's banter that Wilmer decided to make his announcement.

"I'm very happy to see that all three of you are fitting in well with the new school. I guess since everyone has decided on a club activity, it should be about time to begin your internship with the company. Claire will be preparing your work attire and I want all three of you to change into them on Tuesday and Friday afternoons before you leave school. A driver will pick you up from school and drop you by the nearest bus stop to the company. There will be a short walking distance of about ten minutes where you will be reporting to work. If there is anything alarming, you should look for my secretary - Carol. I also expect all of you to carry yourself with workplace professionalism at all times. I will be the CEO of the Wilde Group before I am your father during working hours so if you see me, please greet me as such. Some green-eyed monsters will talk behind your backs but don't pay them any heed. Riding on coattails is the privilege for my children so use this as a stepping stone to stand above the crowd. Any questions?"

Scarlet blinked. "What are the working hours as an intern?"

Wilmer wanted to laugh. Such a serious question about work when Scarlet should really be worrying about other things. 

"Carol will brief all of you more next Tuesday but if you have to know, You'll work from three in the afternoon to six in the evening. I will not be returning home with you but Claire will be there to escort you back."

Jasper raised his hand and Wilmer nodded at him.

"Do we report directly to Carol?"

The CEO shook his head. "For the first few weeks, you will all be assigned to the admin department to give a hand to the busy ladies. They're very simple tasks like photocopying, filing and sorting through papers. Carol will let you know who you should be reporting to but if you have any matters that you think should be told directly to me instead like potential mistreatment of an employee or things you don't think you should be doing, you can look for Carol for clarification."

Alex nodded and asked if she needed to inform anyone of her toilet breaks with the most serious expression on her face that made the CEO crack up.

"No, but if you want to let Scarlet or Jasper know, feel free."

"Daddy, does this mean I cannot ask Scarlet to accompany me to the toilet if I want  to be professional?"

Wilmer didn't know how to answer her. Was it unprofessional to have someone accompany you to the toilet? Luckily for him, Claire stepped in to answer.

"A professional conduct means carrying yourself with respect and being impartial with judgements for the situation. It also means carrying out your duties to the best of your abilities and not overstepping your boundaries for personal gains. Going to the toilet with someone accompanying you does not fall under any of the requirements so you can choose to do so or not do so."

Alex considered it carefully and Wilmer wondered how this was more important than knowing what they were going to do. Why weren't any of the children concerned about the task they were going to be assigned? Likewise, none of the grown-ups in the room could understand how the three geniuses were thinking.

For Scarlet, she was more concerned about the time. If she was made to work for long, the young writer was considering sneaking her phone or laptop to work so that she could work on the homework Debbie would give her or her secret journal. As a writer, time was something she never had enough. Any pocket of time she could afford was precious.

Jasper wasn't too concerned about what he had to do. He was more worried about who he could trust in the company. For an organisation as large of the Wilde Group, surely there are people who would want to make use of them. Coattail-riding brats were not just the target for bullying but also for sharks who wanted to benefit more from insider information. Jasper wanted to know who he was able to seek help from and tip-off should there be an emergency. If Wilmer told them to report to Carol, Jasper would only trust only Carol to be the messenger.

On the other hand, Alex was only concerned about getting lost in a huge building. The artist wasn't very good with directions and without anyone to accompany her, the blonde thought that she might never see her family again. Thankfully, asking Scarlet to accompany her to toilets wasn't considered unprofessional so Alex decided that she would have her sister hobble over with her to the toilet in crutches until the manager said no.

While none of the children was particularly concerned about next Tuesday, the father couldn't help but worry. He'd spoken to his wife on the phone for about an hour on his way back. They were concerned about some of the management preying on the innocent children who might divulge certain information that they could use to blackmail the Wilde's. The couple didn't think that any of their enemies had enough courage to go for a direct threat but blackmail and bribes were not beneath them.

Wilmer frowned throughout the rest of dinner as he watched the kids interact amongst themselves. Maybe he should reconsider the internship idea. it still wasn't too late after all.