Flying Burger

by Jared Martin

  That night, Nikita had a dream. She was in the school library and doing her science project. There were several science concepts which she could not understand. Chen Wei happened to come along and sat down beside her. He explained the concepts to her. She still could not understand the fundamentals and was stuck in her project. She was totally frustrated. At this point in time, Chen Wei began to sing ‘Twinkle Twinkle Little Stars’ to cheer her up. Everybody in the library looked up from their books and stared at him. He held up his hands and two polar bear hand-puppets were staring at Nikita in the face. Chen Wei moved his fingers as he sang along and the little bear paws moved up and down obediently. He opened his eyes wide and looked at her. Looking at his funny expression, Nikita laughed out loud in her dream. Seeing her laugh happily, Chen Wei winked at her!

  BURGER123 arrived home on the next day, and docked at the space station above Earth’s atmosphere. Our space crew finally went home and had a good rest. On the following day, it was back to school for the kids. Inside the school canteen, many parents were gathered together with their children. Many of them were eating their breakfast. Mrs. Andersen was having a conversation with Samuel's mother as they happened to meet each other by chance.

  "You know, there was this time when we encountered a devil in our star-ship," Mrs. Andersen said excitedly.

  "Oh dear! How frightening. What happened?" Samuel's mum asked.

  "Samuel went on to frighten Antonio. He pounced on the other boy from behind. That's what happened."

  "That naughty fellow! Always up to mischief. He's also like that at home. Disturbing his younger brother Nicholas all the time."

  "Later, Samuel was haunted by the spirit. Fortunately, we managed to get rid of the evil spirit," Mrs. Andersen related.

  "Oh, I see. Samuel! Come here," Samuel's mum yelled. Samuel came running along and stood next to his mother. The next thing he knew, his mother pulled his ear.

  "Owwwl.." Samuel tilted his head as his ear was pulled. At this time,

  the school bell rang signalling the start of the morning assembly. His mother let go of her hand. Samuel was saved by the bell.

  "No more gameboy for you!" His mother called after him as Samuel rushed off to the assembly hall.

  "Oh shucks!"

  Inside the Metametica Space Academy, all the students were seated on blue chairs for the morning assembly in the hall. All the teaching staff were seated on stage. The principal addressed the assembly. He praised all the students for their hard work in this semester and encouraged them to persevere. He then went on to announce that Chen Wei had won the Annual Spaceship Design Competition organised by the Inter-Stellar Council. As a reward, he would receive monetary incentives and an offer to pursue a fully-sponsored course in Spaceship Propulsion Engine Design. He called Chen Wei to go on stage to receive the award. Every student applauded.

  “Now, it is also my great pleasure to announce that the following students have travelled into deep space and returned home safely. They are, Chen Wei, Nikita, Melissa, Samuel and Antonio. They even saved a robot from drowning. Please come on stage. Bravo!” The Principal said. Another round of applause followed. All our space travellers walked smartly onto the stage. Antonio even did a catwalk when he walked on stage, drawing a round of laughter. A few screams were heard.

  “The little darling!” Seeing Antonio doing catwalk, Mrs. Andersen could not help suppressing a smile. When robot Beebo came on stage, there was a commotion. Every student wanted to have a good look at it. Many were curious about it. Some even tried to touch it. Chen Wei stood smartly with the rest of his team-mates and robot Beebo for the photographer to snap their photographs. They became instant idols. The principal announced further that the academy would be closed for a week in celebration of Chen Wei’s remarkable achievement. A thunderous applause followed. Several screams were heard. Next, Mrs. Andersen walked to the front of the stage. She took the microphone in her hand.

  “I am sure many of you are hungry. Breakfast is ready in the canteen. So, hurry along,” Mrs. Andersen announced.

  Inside the school canteen, many students were helping themselves to the wide variety of food on the table. It was truly international buffet style. Many of these students were eating and talking at the same time. A small crowd gathered around our space travellers asking endless questions. Chen Wei was surrounded by Evon, Grace and her friends. Evon was doing all she could to get Chen Wei's attention, including asking for his autograph. At this moment, Thomas came up to them and informed Chen Wei that Mrs. Andersen wanted to see him in her office. Chen Wei left the canteen and proceeded to Mrs. Andersen's office.

  “Chen Wei, you have done the academy proud by winning such a prestigious award. Others may not be aware, but I know how difficult it is to put together all the systems and engines in a star-ship and make it run the way you wanted it to. I am very proud of you."

  "Thanks," Chen Wei did not know what to say, but he felt good.

  "The principal wants you to write a ten-thousand word account on our space travel. Do you have any problem?” Mrs. Andersen asked.

  “Oh my god!” Chen Wei exclaimed.

  She chuckled.

  “Don’t worry, I suggest you approach Nikita for help. She’s a nice girl and I’m sure she will be happy to help you. Melissa will be away for this coming vacation. Samuel and Antonio are too young to be of much help,” Mrs. Andersen said.

  “All right,” he grinned sheepishly.

  “I want the report in a week’s time. Now run along, young man,” Mrs. Andersen said and patted Chen Wei gently on his shoulder. Chen Wei turned around and walked towards the door and left Mrs. Andersen's office. Looking at her student's departing form, Mrs. Andersen thought to herself, “what a fine young man.”

  When Chen Wei reached home that evening, his mum hugged him just as he stepped into the front door.

  "Mrs. Andersen called just now. I'm so proud of you," his mother said.

  "Mum! I'm a big boy already," Chen Wei was shy.

  "Nonsense. You're always my little bambino," his mum chided him.

  The next morning, the Butler knocked on Chen Wei's door. He came to call his young master to go downstairs for breakfast. There was no response. After knocking on the door several times, there was still no answer. He turned the door knob. The door was not locked. He pushed open the door and went in. He saw Chen Wei hugging his baby polar bear and sleeping soundly. "How adorable," the Butler could not help suppressing a smile.

  "Young master, time to wake up," the Butler called.

  No answer.

  He went closer to Chen Wei to check on him. He found that Chen Wei was having a fever. He rushed downstairs to inform Mrs. Chen immediately. Later, when the doctor arrived and performed some medical examinations, he advised Mrs. Chen to send her son to hospital.

  "This is no ordinary fever. Better send him to hospital," the doctor said. Mrs. Chen called her husband to inform him of Chen Wei's condition. She was at the hospital registration counter when she made her call. She was writing on a form and talking into her cell phone at the same time.

  "Honey, you better come back fast. Our little darling is sick with dengue fever," Mrs. Chen was very worried.

  "But, I'm in the middle of negotiating a multi-billion dollar deal, my dear," Mr. Chen spoke at the other end of the line. He was slightly annoyed.

  "Aren't you coming back to take a look at your son? Honey, our little bambino misses you," Mrs. Chen raised her voice.

  "Oh, all right."

  "When is your earliest return flight?"

  "Let me see...this evening."

  At one of the big hospitals, Mr. Chen and his wife were waiting patiently outside their son's ward. A while later, a mechanical android walked out of the ward, accompanied by a nurse. This android represented the 'brain' of a top medical doctor in this hospital. The human doctor sat in his office while his android did all the menial tasks of checking on his patients.

  "Follow my instructions on patient care. You c
an get the drugs from the pharmacy now," the android told the nurse in an expressionless voice.

  "All right."

  "I am Mr. Chen and this is my wife. How's my son doing?" Mr. Chen asked the android.

  "Hi. I'm doctor Menon, the medical director. We have conducted medical tests on the patient. I'm afraid your son is suffering from dengue fever. Not to worry, I have ordered the medicines for this illness. Your son should recover pretty soon."

  "Thank you. Could we see our son now?" Mr. Chen asked.

  "Yes, but he is sleeping now."

  "It's all right. We just want to look at him."

  Inside Chen Wei's ward, Mr. Chen and his wife stood beside their son's bed looking at him.

  "Honey, we spend so little time with our little bambino. We are away on business trips most of the time. I feel sorry for him," Mrs. Chen voiced her unhappiness.

  "This cannot be helped."

  "When I hugged him yesterday, he said he's already a big bambino."

  "He's a chip off the old block. He has done well in his studies and I'm proud of him," Mr. Chen gave his stamp of approval for his son.

  "My little bambino is the best in the world!" Mrs. Chen also gave her stamp of approval for her son.

  "This foreign Gutsy Media Network is doing all it can to snatch our deal. I have to fly back to Austria to seal this business contract with the Austrian National Media Corporation. It's important."

  "I heard that this Gutsy Media Network is a big, international corporation and they can offer very competitive rates. Honey, will there be a problem?" His wife was concerned.

  "Don't worry. We are already at the final stage of negotiations, short of inking the paper."

  "When do you need to fly off?" His wife asked.

  "I will be taking the first flight tomorrow morning. Why?"

  "So I can pack some clothes for you, my dear," his wife said.

  "Forget the packing! Come to papa," he stretched out both arms and wanted to hug his wife.

  "Oh! You're incorrigible," his wife chided him.

  Mr. Chen chuckled loudly.

  An hour passed by quickly before Mr. Chen felt hungry after his long flight, his wife went outside to buy some snacks for him. When Mrs. Chen returned with a packet each of fried kway teow and roti prata, her husband was drooling when he saw the food. "You know honey, I've been dying to eat these while I was overseas. They never had these kind of food, wonder why..." Mr. Chen was already busy eating to finish his sentence. His wife munched on a kaya toast and sipped orange juice. Looking at her husband eating ravenously, Mrs. Chen cautioned, "take it easy, don't choke." After this meal, Mr. Chen and his wife spent some quiet moments together.

  The Chen couple was interrupted by a nurse walking into the bedroom. "Time for injection," said the nurse. She pushed in a small cart with all the required medical stuff. As she stood near the bedside, she held up a big syringe with needle and peered at it. Several drops of liquid gushed out of the needle tip as she pushed the syringe a little bit. When Mrs. Chen saw the horrific needle, she was shocked and worried.

  "Excuse me, could you use a smaller needle?" Mrs. Chen asked the nurse, who was about to carry out the injection.

  "Don't worry madam, I'll be gentle, he won't feel a thing," replied the nurse.

  As time was getting late, Mrs. Chen agreed to return home to rest after much persuasion from her husband. "My poor darling, sleep tight," Mrs. Chen said and kissed her son's forehead. Looking at Chen Wei sleeping soundly, Mrs. Chen left her son's bedroom after a prolonged hesitation.

  It was past midnight.

  Inside the hospital bedroom, Mr. Chen kept touching his son's forehead at regular intervals to feel his temperature. He kept vigil by his son's bedside, at the same time communicating with his business associates using his laptop computer. A nurse knocked on the door and came in to check on Chen Wei. She took a portable medical sensor attached to the wall and held it over Chen Wei's chest. She pressed a button on the sensor and waited for a minute before she took the readings.

  "How's my son?" Mr. Chen asked the nurse anxiously.

  "He is doing fine. The temperature has dropped, but we have to keep him under observation for a few more days," she replied softly.

  "Could I get you a cup of coffee or something?" the nurse volunteered.

  "No. Thank you."

  "If you need anything, just press the buzzer by the bedside," she told him and left the room. She was quite touched by this fatherly man who sat quietly by his son and yet busily working.

  One hour later, Mr. Chen stroked his son's head several times. "Mmmm..., my big bambino," Chen Wei overheard his father mumbling. He was awakened by his blanket being pulled up to his neck. Mr. Chen showed fatherly love on very rare occasions. Chen Wei kept his eyes closed for he was happy that the 'Rock' was finally here. The nickname, 'Rock', was given to his father secretly for this was the impression Chen Wei had of his father eversince he was a young boy. Mr. Chen was a strict, no-nonsense family man, who had devoted much of his time into running his family business. His family business empire was the world-renowned Electra Media Corporation, reputed for its wholesome media content, crystal-clear videos, true-to-life sound and reliable high-speed transmission. Late into the night, Chen Wei woke up partially and glancing through sleepy eyes, he saw his father reclining on the couch next to him. His father was sound asleep. He felt contented and closed his eyes again.

  The next day, Chen Wei felt very much better. He was surprised to find his dad gone. His mum sat close by. She felt her son's forehead for a brief moment before she was satisfied that the fever was gone. She had brought a basket of rosy apples for Chen Wei, his favourite fruit. She looked at her son lovingly.

  "Oh mom!" Chen Wei protested and blushed slightly.

  "Let me take a good look at you. I will be leaving soon to join your father when you are better."

  "Where's dad?" he asked.

  "Your father has an important business to attend to. He's very proud of you," Mrs. Chen told her son.

  "He has bought a gift for you. He left it in your room. Your father and I love you very much, my dear," she continued.

  Chen Wei smiled, the dimple on his left cheek evident.

  Mrs. Chen took an apple from her basket and a knife. She started peeling the apple. She handed the apple to her son when she had finished peeling. Chen Wei ate happily.

  "Does the apple taste good?" she asked.

  Chen Wei nodded his head and grinned sheepishly at his mum.

  "My big bambino," Mrs. Chen said affectionately.

  "Mum, I want water," Chen Wei said in between chewing.

  "All right, the 'Green Dolphin' brand?" Mrs. Chen gave her son a questioning look.

  Chen Wei grinned widely and nodded his head.

  "Or do you prefer the 'Spring Dew' brand, I heard this one is better?"

  "I'll have the 'Green Dolphin', thanks mum."

  Looking at her son's smiling, sunshine face, Mrs. Chen thought to herself, "don't tell me it's only a green dolphin, even if it's a blue whale, I'll take the trawler out to the ocean and catch one for you." Her maternal love was in full-swing. Mrs. Chen left the room to get this particular brand of water for her darling son.

  After staying in hospital for one week, Chen Wei was well enough to be discharged. Back in his own bedroom, he found the present which his father gave him. It was a big rectangular box! This box was wrapped with smooth silver paper and tied with a yellow ribbon. Chen Wei was excited as this was the second present, apart from the polar bears, which his father gave him. He opened the present quickly. He took out a watch and gazed at it for a while, studying it carefully, as if he was a police inspector looking for a murder clue. He was looking at a limited edition sports chronometer, designed and crafted by master watch-maker, Teckron! The metallic silver watch chain held a rugged-looking chronometer, with night-vision capability. It was a shock-resistant, rank V 300 metre water-resistant watch, designed for the active sportsmen in mind. Coupled
with a 4G virtual phone feature, this Teckron model was the dream of every youngster! Chen Wei wore it at once and only took if off on rare occasions.

  A set of twelve wrist-bands was attached inside on the left-side of the box. There were two rows of six wrist-bands, in colours of black, blue, green, yellow, red and white. These wrist-bands came as accessories for the watch. Chen Wei saw that the colours of the wrist-bands on the top row were the same as that for the bottom row. He felt several of these bands with his fingers and found that the top row consisted of bands made with cotton, while the bottom row had bands made with leather! Together with this present, his father wrote him a note. Reading his father's firm handwriting, Chen Wei turned as red as a beetroot and felt as if he was floating on cloud nine! Mr. Chen wrote,

  "For my big bambino,

  Love,

  daddy"

  Back at home, in the privacy of her bedroom, Nikita was reading a book quietly. The song, ‘Scarborough Fair’, was playing softly in the background. This singer had a heavenly voice. When she sang, "...Will he be a true love of mine?", the same question flashed through Nikita's mind many times. Her thoughts were interrupted when she received a text message on her laptop computer. Nikita was beside herself with joy when Chen Wei invited her to his mansion tomorrow to help write the report on their recent space excursion. He gave her directions on how to get to his residence. Nikita accepted his invitation. When Nikita stood outside the main-gate of Octavia Mansion, she pressed the bell by the side of the gate. A security guard walked towards her. After verifying her identity, he opened the gate and let her in.

  Inside Octavia Mansion, Chen Wei was resting on the sofa in the living room watching the news. Nikita arrived. She smiled at him and he got up to welcome her. She put down the basket of fruits on the coffee table which she had brought. Both sat down on the sofa. The Butler served ginseng chicken broth. He made it a point to give Nikita an extra large helping.

  “Thank you,” Nikita said.