hooklinebooks Chapter 85 One Night of Daze
Chapter 85 One Night of Daze
Chapter 85 A Night of Daze
Larry's seemingly mysterious instructions went unnoticed by Zeke.
He guessed that they were probably planning an internal team-building gathering.
Casablanca's rapid expansion brought with it a lot of personnel changes. Every time Zeke went to the company, he would see many new faces: accountants, secretaries, and other administrative staff came and went in an endless stream. The whole building was always filled with a busy and fresh atmosphere.
Larry has just been promoted; his current title is Senior Vice President and Managing Director, making him the de facto head of the record division.
Black executive Cecilia Holmes was promoted to senior vice president and Neil’s special assistant, while Bruce Byrne took over Larry’s previous position as executive vice president.
With a completely new top-level structure, the company's operating pace has become increasingly fast and efficient.
Back at the cliffside cabin, the room was quiet and deserted. Zeke stared blankly at the answering machine for a while.
Holly and her team were on a promotional tour in Europe, with a packed schedule, visiting several places a day. Zeke couldn't actually get in touch with them for a while and could only wait for them to call him.
After Judy moved in, she bought this answering machine, a PhoneMate 6950, which is a big box with a speaker. In the Los Angeles artist and agent circles, this thing has long been commonplace; it can record missed calls onto cassette tapes for playback, like a secretary who never sleeps.
But in Brownsville, where Zeke grew up, this was a joke. Paulie Wario didn't even have a telephone at home, let alone one of these.
Influenced by the Poly Group tycoon, he believes that anything with wires could be eavesdropped on, and anything that can retain sound is a time bomb.
As a result, every time Zeke saw that red recording light come on, his heart would skip a beat. This box could save him missed calls, but it might also save him leverage. He should use this thing less often, and the tapes should be cleaned up regularly.
Around 6 p.m., Zeke changed his clothes and headed out to the company, not in a hurry to contact Holly and the others.
Upon arriving at the Casablanca building, the entire office building's facade was completely dark, showing no signs of its usual bright lights.
Zik muttered to himself: What's going on? Is there a major power outage in Los Angeles too?
The citywide blackout in New York last year, which triggered riots, looting, and vandalism, still makes the news from time to time. The chaotic and disorderly scenes are unforgettable and inevitably make him think.
Filled with doubt, he reached out and pushed open the company door.
The next second, deafening cheers and colorful ribbons flying everywhere rushed towards us.
Surprise!
The blinding flashes of light made Zeke instinctively squint.
Among the crowd, Marco winked and looked at his bewildered expression with a mocking expression.
Qi Ke froze on the spot, stunned for several seconds before suddenly realizing that today seemed to be his birthday.
Most of the company's employees stayed after get off work to prepare this surprise for him.
At the front of the crowd, Neil Bogart stood ramrod straight, holding a bottle of Dom Pérignon champagne.
He unscrewed the wire clip and gently pried it open. With a "bang," the snow-white cork shot straight to the ceiling, the crisp sound officially kicking off the birthday party.
A deafening roar of cheers erupted instantly, followed by a burst of upbeat music.
Neil, like a patriarch, put his arm around Zeke's shoulder: "Happy birthday, kid! The company never forgets the birthday of any member of the family."
A warm feeling of gratitude welled up inside me. In that moment, all the busyness, fatigue, and worries about the lawsuit vanished.
Zeke felt a surge of warmth in his heart and was sincerely grateful for Neil's dedication, Larry's preparations, and everyone's unspoken understanding.
A huge cardboard greeting card was temporarily pasted on one wall, densely covered with everyone's jokes, doodles, and personal signatures. Some people drew tiny musical notes, while others wrote witty blessings.
Cases of Dom Pérignon champagne were neatly arranged, and the long table was filled with food and drinks. Oval trays were decorated with delicate finger sandwiches, mini croissants, and cream puffs, all exquisite and petite.
On the kraft paper backing, a plentiful feast of cooked dishes, including smoked beef, cold turkey breast, pickled vegetables, and rye bread with yellow mustard, is laid out, with a variety of hot and cold options.
In the center of the venue stood a huge cream birthday cake, topped with a candle bearing the number "17". A group of young female employees from the company surrounded the cake, chattering and urging Zeke to make a wish.
One by one, the champagne bottles in the ice buckets were opened, and the fine, dense golden foam sprayed out and splashed everywhere, creating a truly immersive atmosphere.
Someone in the crowd shouted "Speech! Speech!" and urged him to go on stage and give a speech.
Caught up in the commotion, Zeke could only smile and raise his glass, mumbling a vague "Thanks, man—" before he was pushed back into the center of the crowd by laughter and drowned out by the noise.
Several female employees were holding Polaroid cameras, and people were taking photos with Zeke. Since Judy wasn't there, the poses for these photos were all rather suggestive.
"Zek, look at the camera!"
During breaks in taking photos, the girls boldly leaned closer, some even planting a soft kiss on his cheek, eliciting laughter from the crowd.
"Zek, smile! I'm keeping this one!"
The photos clicked and popped out one by one. The crowd gathered around, gently fanning themselves, watching the images gradually take shape on the paper, their laughter filling the air.
Larry grinned mischievously and shoved a glass of golden champagne into Zeke's hand: "How about it? Much better than reading at home, right?"
"Thanks, Larry."
Immediately afterwards, Neil stepped forward and loudly announced the good news.
"Sweet Dreams" has topped the UK Singles Chart, swept across major European charts, and become a sensation throughout the Western music scene. It has also achieved remarkable success in the newly launched North American market. As soon as the words were spoken, the entire audience erupted in thunderous applause and cheers.
Neil then handed Zeke a rare, unpainted test vinyl record. This was an exclusive test disc before mass production of vinyl records; it was extremely rare, almost never circulated publicly, and had extremely high collectible value, a privilege reserved exclusively for the creator.
Everyone raised their glasses in a toast, celebrating together in unison, creating an extremely enthusiastic atmosphere.
After a few rounds of drinks, Qi Ke gradually became intoxicated.
Neil and Peter Cooper led him alone into the quiet CEO's office and played the finalized version of "Midnight Express."
Final version of the soundtrack.
The synthesizer, crafted by Morodel, has a heavy, cold tone with an extremely strong sense of pulse. The low-frequency vibrations almost make the floor tingle slightly, creating a suspenseful and tense atmosphere. The two executives were extremely satisfied with this version, in which Zeik also had a role, and praised it highly.
When Zik walked out of the CEO's office, the party was already filled with a faint scent of secondhand marijuana smoke. The hazy smoke swirled under the warm yellow lights, making people feel drowsy and relaxed.
With the alcohol mingling with secondhand smoke and deafening music, Zik felt like he was floating on clouds, completely letting down his guard and all tension.
Suddenly, an even louder burst of screams and applause erupted in the center of the hall.
Paul Jabara, dressed in a shimmering purple suit, burst onto the makeshift stage like a rocket launcher. As one of the creators and stars of "Last Dance," the theme song for the upcoming film "Friday Night Fever," he was the absolute center of attention.
"Everybody say a prayer, pray for the other ones." He didn't need a microphone at all; his clear and powerful voice was enough to penetrate the noise.
Paul danced wildly through the crowd, every movement exaggerated and theatrical, as if he were on a Broadway stage, not a carpet.
At the climax of his song, he suddenly pointed at Zeke and shouted, "Hey! Zeke! Don't just stand there!"
Before Zeke could react, Paul nimbly squeezed over with two glasses of strong liquor, shoved the glasses into Zeke's hands without a word, and then tilted his head back and took a big gulp, his Adam's apple bobbing violently, not caring at all as the liquor dripped down his chin and onto his collar.
"For DVD! For the gold record!" Paul, drunk, wrapped his arms around Zeke's neck, his breath hot against his ear. "You have to drink with me, kid, I love your music so much!"
Paul Jabara was very popular at the company and was incredibly charismatic. His undisguised enthusiasm had a natural magic that made it impossible for anyone to refuse him.
"Cheers!"
Zik smiled and clinked glasses with him, downing the cold drink amidst the cheers of the crowd.
One drink after another, Paul, like a tireless perpetual motion machine, pulled Zik around in the center of the dance floor, spinning and jumping until the surrounding scenery became blurred spots of light, and Zik completely melted into this ocean of revelry built by music and alcohol.
The parties in Casablanca are more like a playground without adults, unrestrained, relaxed, and indulgent.
Marco leaned close to Zik and teased in a low voice, "Your treatment tonight is being forced to drink and surrounded by people. Enjoy it!"
"I feel a bit drunk... help me to rest for a while."
He led Zeke to a slightly more spacious rest area, where someone had laid out the Twister play mats, currently the most popular party game in the US. This kind of party game has always been an arena for young girls to play and frolic.
Several girls laughed and grabbed the slightly drunk Zeke, refusing to let him go.
"Zick, musicians should definitely try this; it's a good opportunity to test your balance!"
With the alcohol taking effect and his mind becoming hazy, Qi Ke reluctantly stepped onto the game mat. His hands and feet gradually became uncoordinated, and he awkwardly supported himself on the mat, causing the people around him to burst into laughter.
Amidst the chaos and playfulness, one girl did not join in the frenzy of groping and roughhousing.
She stepped forward and gently steadied the swaying Zik, leaning closer and whispering her breath against his ear. She praised his music and physique in a low voice, her fingers inadvertently brushing against his lower abdomen.
Zik couldn't tell if this was a work discussion or flirting; the alcohol made him lose his focus... He simply let himself indulge in the relaxed atmosphere, his consciousness gradually blurring and sinking.