Zhu Bajie looked up and saw his older brother, Sun Wu Kong, staring at him.
“What are you doing here?” Bajie asked. “You don’t have the address to my office!”
“It’s not difficult to find you, you know. Anyway, it’s tuan yuan fan and we’ve been waiting for you.”
“B—but—” Bajie gestured to the mountain of work. “You’re not supposed to be here! I didn’t give you permission–”
“What happened to the Bajie I knew? All work and all play? This isn’t you.”
“Hmph! The magazine isn’t going to print itself, you know.”
“You’re an immortal but you’re slaving away—”
“I already told you that I don’t want go to your reunion dinner at the Mountains of Flower and Fruit. Who wants to be humiliated every single year?”
“Yeah—wait—”
“Da ge, you know how much I don’t like it when one of your subjects pulls on my ears or when they accidentally-on-purpose spill hot soup on me. Do they think it’s funny? Do you think it’s funny?”
Wu Kong wanted to say, “Um, yeah,” but he sensed that that wasn’t the right response.
“Come on. We do this every year.”
“Not this year. This year, I have invited my intern, Ruyi, to have a reunion dinner with me. I make my own family.”
“But Shifu and Wu Jing—”
“Will be fine.”
There was a knock on the door and Ruyi popped her head in.
“Everything OK?” she asked, before staring at Wu Kong.
“Holy shit! Is that—”
“Hi, I’m Wu Kong, the—”
“Handsome Monkey King, Great Sage Equal to Heaven, who can conjure up a somersault cloud and travel 18 000 li!” she rattled off the words of the legend that everyone knew so well.
Wu Kong blushed.
“I guess I’m the one and only!”
“And since Ruyi is here, we’re going home to have our own reunion dinner,” Bajie said. “Goodbye.” He grabbed his bagpack and stormed off with her.
Wu Kong trailed after them as they descended the stairs of the shophouse that was their office.
“Are you sure there isn’t anyth—” Wu Kong stared, but was cut off by Bajie. Soon, they were outside the shophouse, waiting for a cab.
“No.” A cab pulled up and both Bajie and Ruyi got in. Ruyi waved, but couldn’t help but see Wu Kong’s forlorn face retreat into the distance. Bajie was so grumpy that he didn’t say anything throughout the whole cab ride, even though it was his year, the year of the pig. Ruyi tried to point out the decorations that lined the roads but Bajie said nothing.
Eventually, they arrived at his apartment. The silence almost killed Ruyi as they ascended the lift and they opened the door. Finally, they both got the steamboat ready and Bajie switched on the television. As soon as he saw that it was another special about the Monkey King, he changed the channel.
“I can see that that’ bothering you,” she said.
“For once, I want a peaceful reunion dinner with no bullying,” he said. “I’m done.”
“And not to mention being overshadowed by the Monkey King,” Ruyi added. Bajie glared at her.
“What? I’m just saying that it’s pretty obvious. I get it. He’s the star of the show and—“
“And I’m just the glutton,” he sulked. “The fat, lascivious glutton who will still be portrayed in this way for a long, long, time.”
“At least you tried to change,” Ruyi said, scooping out a prawn from the steamboat.
“Yeah but I hate it. I hate that we have to do things his way, every freakin’ year. I hate that I get bullied by his monkeys and I hate that our Shifu does nothing but sing praises during the dinner. I’m done.”
Ruyi sat in silence, peeling her prawn. Then she stopped.
“You know, you don’t have to be the Monkey King. You’re you. And that’s pretty cool. You’re awesome in your own way.”
“Thanks,” Bajie said, giving her a small smile. “You’re pretty cool too.”
“I know,” Ruyi grinned, “that’s why you have me around.”
Bajie rolled his eyes.
“Yeah, yeah, sure.”
“Without me, you wouldn’t get things done and you know it.”
Bajie snorted. They continued watching the show on the television and talked about everything else. It was the kind of reunion dinner that Bajie wanted—peaceful and drama free. For once, he was rid of his older brother.