The Stuff of Dreams

Spotted Road Blocks

The next day, Po was doing the inventory when annoyance came to the back. "Panda!" 

"Yes, snow leopard," Po mumbled under his breath. 

"I need you to close the shop tonight," Boqin said. 

"What? I can't."

"Why not?" 

"I have a nightly class after work," Po said. Boqin rose an eyebrow. 

"You go to night classes?"

Po's eyes narrowed. "I do have a degree... sir."

"And how is that going for you?" Boqin grinned. The panda's jaw clenched. Anger boiled in him as pictures of his hands around the snow leopard's neck like a black noose filled his brain. There were no cameras in the back, and the employees would support him. Monkey would even cover for him. But then Po thought of his sister's scorn and the lonely prison cells. So murder was out of the question, unfortunately. "Anyway, your poor teacher won't miss you. Trust me. You're closing for the night. That's final."  

"Yes sir," Po sighed as Boqin left. "Come on, Po. Think of something." He didn't have any of his classmates' phone numbers or Tai-Lung's contact. Could he make it to class in time? He tapped his head until he finally got something. 

It would be close, but after talking with his co-workers, they all agreed to help. "Wow, really? Why?" He asked. 

"Po, we all know how much this class means to you. We'll try our best to help where we can, okay? You worry about getting everything finished," Monkey smiled. 

"Thank you guys," Po said, "I promise, I'll try my best to help too."

"So what are we waiting for?" Said a pigeon co-worker, "Let's get going." The workers got to their jobs. Po did inventory, stocking, and even cleaning. He would even take up odd jobs when the others were on break. The store workers buzzed around in their beehive, even though there wasn't much to be 'busy' about. The cashiers counted up the change as they helped the customers. They usually had to count up the change at the end of the day, but knowing the exact number near closing would speed things along

Po took a breather by the back with Monkey. "Wow, I've never seen everyone work this hard," Po said. 

"Come on, Po. For you? It's much better than working for Boqin," Monkey grumbled as he took a sip of water. Po chuckled, looking into his own plastic water bottle. 

"Hey, do you know why he needed to leave early?" 

"He said something about a date." Suddenly, the simian heard a crunching noise. He looked at the panda. Po glared at the crushed water bottle in his hand. It was the first time Monkey ever saw him gritting his teeth. "Po?"

"That little..." Po's face screwed up. 

"Po? What's wrong?" The panda remembered where he was. He gave a large sigh. 

"Darn it. I think he's going on a date with that tiger woman."

"Oh, the one that wasn't interested in him? Why would she agree to go on a date with him?"

"Because she works for his dad," Po grumbled. 

"Ah," Monkey glanced at his friend. Po's shoulders sagged but he still murdered Boqin several times with his eyes. The simian rested a hand on Po's shoulder. "Po, I don't want you to start hating Boqin. You're better than that."

"And what if I don't want to be better, huh?" Po nearly shouted. Monkey retracted his hand. The panda sighed, "I'm sorry, Monkey. I just..."

"You like her? Why don't you just go and talk to her?"

"She doesn't strike me as the type to go out with grocery workers," Po replied. 

"And yet she's on a date with Boqin," Monkey said. 

"Yeah." Po looked at his bottle, crushed and crumbled like his heart. "I wonder how he managed that." 

Monkey shrugged, "Like my mom said, 'sometimes stupidity is confused for confidence'." Po couldn't agree more.

Soon the time came. Everyone was ready. As the last customer exited the store, every worker hustled to finish everything on time. Po didn't dare look at the clock. Finally, the last cashier put their stuff away, the last palate was placed, and everyone clocked out with Po being the last one. He locked the store and rushed to his car. "Come on, come on." Suddenly the car cranked to life. Po did his best to obey the speed limit, but he couldn't really hurry. Every car seemed to clog the street. He thought that Feng Shui would have better traffic, but it was still traffic. Po's heart banged against his ribs harder and harder until he finally got to the community center. The panda parked, ran in, and flew into the classroom. "I'm here!" 

"Too late," Tai-Lung sighed as he stacked his stuff to leave. Only he and Crane remained in the classroom. "You missed the class, Mr. Po."

Po's heart dropped to the floor. "But I-" One cold look from the corner of Tai-Lung's eye stopped him dead in his tracks. Po couldn't come up with an excuse. He knew Tai-Lung long enough, which was really just five days, to know that he didn't tolerate excuses. The panda hung his head. "I'm sorry." The slightest edge of Tai-Lung's half-lidded eyes rose. 

"You have no excuse?"

"I have an explanation," Po said, "But no excuse. I... I should have found some way to contact you or the others to explain what happened at work." 

"What happened at work?" Crane asked. 

Po sighed, "It doesn't matter." The tall bird looked at Mr. Tai-Lung with a sympathetic face. The snow leopard held his emotionless gaze. His black vest, pressed and open, never moved an inch. Then a sigh broke out from Tai-Lung's lips as he sat down in his chair and motioned Po to sit as well. 

"Well, Mr. Po, you've just exploited one of the stereotypes of felines," Tai-Lung said. 

"Which is?" Po asked. 

"Curiosity is in our nature." The snow leopard said, pointing to him. "Remember that for you tiger dream." Po nodded, quickly writing it in his journal. Crane sat down in the front by them. "Now, what's the story for your tardiness?"

Po told him all about Boqin and having to close the store. Crane spoke up first. "And you can't complain to someone above you?" 

"He's the son of the company founder. If Boqin's like this, I can't imagine what his dad is like," Po grumbled. 

"You might be surprised," Tai-Lung said, stroking his chin. He paused for a moment. "I think you should start looking for a new job, Po."

"I know, but-"

"No buts," Tai-Lung said sternly. "You and this Boqin will butt heads again, and you'll need something else." He leaned forward in his chair. "I would also record some of his abuses. Either on camera or on audio."

"Why?"

"You might need it. You're going to be fired, Po. It's only a matter of when." 

"Why are you so sure about that, Mr. Tai-Lung?" Crane asked. 

"Two reasons. One, you two obviously don't see eye to eye, not that anyone would with someone like that. Two, it seems like his ego is getting worse. Pride happens before a fall, and most people will find a scapegoat."

"Why me?" Po asked.

"Because you're the most popular." Po cocked his head. "You managed to get every employee to work harder, faster, and better because your class was in jeopardy. Considering that you're not paying for this class, you really don't have anything to lose." Tai-Lung showed a small smirk, "But I'm flattered that you keep my class in such high regard." 

"Of course, Mr. Tai-Lung," Po said in a hushed manner. 

"My point is that you're a better manager than he is. That will threaten him," Tai-Lung continued.  The snow leopard looked at his watch reading 8:00 pm. He stood up and packed his briefcase. "Po," he spoke gravely as Po and Crane stood up, "Make sure that he doesn't provoke you. No matter what he does. Don't waste your power on scum." 

"I... I'll try," Po sighed. 

To be Continued...