THE RICH GUY IN DISGUISE

THE BIRTHDAY PARTY

The shop manager wanted to invite Donald for tea and perhaps even hoped to get invited to Donald’s house in return. If lucky, she would be able to meet Mr Jeff and have a nice chat with him. She believed that would benefit her business career a lot. But Donald wisely changed the topic.

On the other hand, feeling rather confused, Rodney and Sandra decided to leave. There was no point staying now that Donald seemed to know the manager of the shop. What if they were both acting to fool others?

Besides, Rodney didn’t want Sandra to go back to the expensive handbag. He had had enough for today, so without hesitating, he dragged Sandra toward the entrance.

"Are you leaving so soon? What about the handbag?" The saleswoman called from behind.

"We'll be back some other time," Rodney replied reluctantly, dragging Sandra harder with a firm hand toward the entrance before the saleswoman could say one more word..

Rodney was a regular customer at the luxury shop, so the saleswoman believed him and bid them goodbye. "Alright, then. I'll be looking forward to your next visit."

At the meantime, Donald also decided to leave. He still had to prepare for his birthday tomorrow. And coming to his birthday, since the manager had met his father before, and had just coincidentally help him out of trouble, he decided to do something in return to show his gratitude.

"I'll be celebrating my 20th birthday tomorrow, and I’d be glad if you can come," Donald said as he handed over a birthday invitation card to her.

The birthday invitation card was originally meant for Sandra, but … she didn’t seem to deserve it, so …

"I'll be there, unfailingly" the woman promised, as Donald left the shop.

*********

The next day, Donald’s birthday was held in one of the most expensive halls in the city. The whole place was glittering with lights; the hall used to entertain guests was big, spacious, and beautiful.

The creme de la creme in society were present. It appeared like the birthday party was only meant for the rich.

Any average person who walked into the venue felt intimidated as most of the people who attended the party wore very expensive outfits.

A few of Donald's colleagues at the hotel and friends from collegewere present, and they all flocked around him.

Most of them were surprised at how Donald could afford such a grand birthday party, as they initially thought that the party would be a very small one since Donald was known to do low-status jobs.

But now, it proved them wrong.

Although confused and suspicious, Donald's friends and colleagues chatted happily and enjoyed themselves.

Most of them looked at him in awe not believing what they saw. Amongst Donald's crowd of friends, there were two of them who couldn't believe what they were seeing anymore, so they began to gossip.

"I can't believe Donald is from a rich home. You know what I heard some of them say this is a birthday party for the only heir of the Jeff Clan" one of them said.

"Same with me. He's known to be poor. Sincerely, I'm amazed. Could he be this rich, the heir of the Jeff Clan? How come? By the way, is he even a Jeff and still gets involved in poor men's jobs?" The other one asked.

"Why don't we ask him? It's possible that one of his rich friends could be a Jeff and organized this party for him as a gift. Maybe he is also surprised and knows nothing about it beforehand," The first one suggested.

"Sure. You're making some sense. Let us go on and ask him," the other one agreed.

Donald, however, was talking to a pretty young lady at the time.

Amelia was Donald's friend and classmate at the University. She never joined his other classmates to mock him, for which he was grateful.

Amelia was from a poor home, but Donald liked her because she was calm and loving. And most importantly, she had always been kind-hearted to give anyone in need a helping hand.

While both of them were still interacting, Donald heard his name being called.

It was his father’s senior butler.. "I'll be introducing to us the celebrant of the day, Donald Jeff, the son of Albert Jeff.

Let us clap our hands together, as he comes over to the podium," The senior butler said, as the attendees clapped for Donald as he walked forward.

"Thank you, everyone, for coming," Donald said before the butler continued with the opening speech.

"He has a wealth of experience and has been trained in several fields.

He has worked hard over the past few years and has proved to hold great potential. He has given himself to consistent learning over the years, and this has made him vast in almost every area..

 I'd like to announce, on the behalf of my master, that from today, Donald Jeff, my young master, will be taking over the Jeff’s family consortiums: Duluth Associates. Welcome the newest CEO in this great city - Donald Jeff! And a very happy birthday to you, my young master."

At the last statement, everyone in the hall began to clap very loudly, while Donald bowed to acknowledge them.

Just after bowing, Donald raised his head to address the audience when he saw Rodney at the far right corner of the hall.

"What is he doing here? Who invited him?" Donald asked himself.

Rodney, in the meantime, looked very surprised and blue. It was obvious that he was shocked at what he was seeing. He had just listened to the speech about Donald and was astonished.

"Impossible. This must be a joke!" Rodney couldn’t believe his eyes. He must be trapped in a nightmare!

He wasn’t invited but he came with a friend anyway so that he could meet the heir of the Jeff Clan and his future superior. After all, he now worked for the Duluth Associates. And if everything went well, he could make friends with the heir so that they could be business partners in the future. That would benefit him greatly. His father would surely be proud of him. But what now?!!!

When it seemed like he couldn't bear it any longer, Rodney rushed out of the hall to make a call.