Chapter 397: Awards of Employees (1)

The performance continued and whatever was happening on the stage could barely be called a dance anymore.

The employees and Joel attempted a body roll, but only their necks and legs could move.

"HOOO!"

Joel pointed dramatically toward the audience before sliding sideways.

The venue completely lost control of their reactions.

"HAHAHAHAHAHA!"

"What are we even watching?"

"What is this?"

"Hahahahaha!"

The laughter and comments of everyone echoed throughout the place. Before they could watch more, the music already hit a dramatic beat and the entire group simultaneously attempted to do a sexy pose.

"..." Gray lowered his head after the performance ended. His shoulders couldn’t stop shaking as he laughed hard. He tried to surpress it, but it only made it worse.

"I can’t breathe..." Beside him, Mara had also completely given up maintaining a face. She was shamelessly leaning against the table while laughing out loud.

"You’re the one who planned this." Gray looked at her.

Mara just smiled before laughing once again. "It’s so worth it."

Gray looked toward the stage again. Joel and the others were standing there proudly despite the fact that half the venue was still recovering from laughter.

Some employees were wiping tears from their eyes while others were bent over their tables. Even several executives were smiling and shaking their heads.

The performance had somehow become an overwhelming success even if the dance weren’t that much a success.

As the applause continued, the host finally managed to compose himself enough to walk back onto the stage. Though judging from his expression, he looked like he was still trying not to laugh.

"Let’s give them another round of applause, everyone!"

The venue immediately responded.

"Wooo!"

"Good Job!"

"You guys were something"

The performers proudly bowed at it, with some even having the confidence to blew a kiss toward the audience. That only made everyone laugh again.

The host shook his head before turning toward Gray.

"Actually..." A mischievous smile slowly appeared on his face. "May we hear Mr. Gray’s reaction to that performance?"

The spotlight immediately landed on Gray again.

"Wooo!"

"Boss!"

"Boss!"

"Boss!"

"I heard that the employees prepared this performance for two whole weeks." The host muttered again that made everyone look at each other. They were thinking if they actually heard that right.

When Gray heard that, he froze.

"..." Slowly, he turned to the stage and looked at Joel and the other performers.

The microphone was quickly delivered to him and he accepted it. The venue quieted down in anticipation as they waited for his reaction.

Gray stared at the performers for several long seconds then he appeared to be looking confused.

"Wait..."

The audience immediately started laughing.

"Wait a second." Gray pointed toward the stage.

"You mean to tell me..." He paused for a moment before shaking his head slightly. "This was prepared for two weeks?"

The entire venue laughed at that.

"HAHAHAHAHAHA!"

"Boss!"

"You have no mercy!"

Joel immediately pointed back. "Boss, we worked hard for this!"

"Really!" Gray asked in disbelief.

The crowd and even the host laughed at that. Gray chuckled with them, but after a few more seconds, he looked around at all the employees who were still smiling and laughing.

"ButJokes aside..." he said. "Thank you."

The performers blinked at it. Then, they smiled until their lips could reach their ears.

"Honestly, that was probably one of the funniest things I’ve seen all year and I know you guys volunteered your own time for it."

"So thank you for putting yourselves out there and making everyone laugh tonight."

For a moment, the employees on stage looked unexpectedly touched for Joel to just ruin the moment.

"Boss!" Gray laughed before handling back the microphone to the staff beside him..

And just like that, the celebration continued with laughter filling every corner of the hall.

After the employees left the stage amidst cheers and endless teasing, the host stepped forward once more.

"Let’s give our brave performers one more round of applause!"

The crowd happily clapped and cheered on it once again. Fortunately, the next performance brought the atmosphere into a more relaxed direction.

The lights softened slightly as a local band took the stage. Unlike the previous performance, this one was actually a real performance.

The guitarist played a smooth opening melody while the vocalist greeted the crowd warmly. Soon, a familiar and relaxing song filled the venue.

The employees settled into their seats as the music flowed throughout the hall. Some quietly sang along to it while others simply enjoyed the atmosphere while eating snacks and chatting with their coworkers.

The suppliers and guests also looked much more relaxed now.

’This is nice,’ Gray leaned back in his chair and listened.

After weeks of paperwork, planning, meetings, and preparations, seeing everyone genuinely enjoying themselves made all the effort worth it. Even Mara looked more relaxed now as she listened to the music.

"Not bad," Gray commented.

"See?" Mara smirked. "I told you everything would work out."

Gray nodded and chuckled. The band performed several songs before eventually receiving a loud round of applause from everyone.

As they exited the stage, the host immediately returned.

"Let’s hear it one more time for our performers!"

The audience cheered once again.

"Now then," the host continued with a grin.

"Before we move on to the bigger awards later tonight, let’s start with something fun."

The employees immediately became interested at it.

"Awards?"

"What awards?"

"There are awards?"

The giant screen behind the hose lit up as people’s curiousity was said out loud.

[EMPLOYEE RECOGNITION AWARDS]

The screen showed those words in big and bold letters, earning claps from the crowd.

"These awards were prepared by management to recognize some of the wonderful personalities that make Grocery what it is."

The host looked at his cue cards before glancing at everyone, "Let’s begin with our first award."

The screen changed and it displayed the words, [Best Dressed Award]

The nominees appeared on the screen and the people were surprised to see familiar names on it. A few moments later, the winner was announced.

"Congratulations, Mr. Joyce from the stockroom department!"

The employee covered her face in embarrassment while everyone at her table cheered.