The next day when Nick went to college everyone was talking about the contest.
"Have you seen the commercial about this contest where you can win one million dollars?"
"Starring in Mr. Heart's next movie, that's crazy!"
"What won't I give away to win this contest!"
Nick silently walked through them, minding his own business, as usual.
Before entering the class, he met Professor Swanson.
"Good to see you back, Nick," he said smiling.
"Thanks, Professor Swanson," Nick smiled back.
After the class, Tony came up to him and said, "Hey buddy, are you up for winning 'A million dollars'!"
"Stop it, Tony, I am tired of this."
Tony had the tendency to bother Nick in every way possible. Nick found him annoying, but at the same time, he was among the very few unpretentious people. Naturally, the majority of the classmates did not like him for his straightforward mannerism.
"Why, you should participate, I mean who will ever match your level of popularity?" Tony said and laughed.
"Shut up, Tony."
Tony Giordano was eight years old when he first met Nick. He was getting bullied by other kids when Nick came to rescue him heroically. After that, they both used to get bullied by the same group of kids, together. That's how they got close to each other. And that friendship was still unfazed.
"So, you did register, huh?" Tony said.
"I have not," Nick blatantly lied.
"Of course you have. It's written all over your face."
"Really? What do you see there?" asked Nick mockingly.
"A bunch load of regret and a little bit of hope. It's almost impossible for you to lie to me and get away with it, Nicholas Fowler."
Nick couldn't help but smile. "Should I be worried then? You sound like we are in a relationship."
Tony hopped on Nick's table and said, "Only in your wildest dreams, Nick. Anyway, I have registered for it too."
That was news to Nick. He never thought Tony would ever be interested in something like this, given how he never cared about being popular at all.
"You? Really?" Nick was amazed.
"Yeah, don't you think I would look great alongside Mr. Heart. What do I lack? The looks, the charm, the talent for acting - I have it all!"
"Yeah, not to mention your craze among the girls."
Both Nick and Tony laughed about it. Although they were being sarcastic, Tony was pretty good looking, which Nick could not deny.
"No, seriously," said Nick, "Why are you interested in this contest?"
"Of course I have no fantasy to work with that ugly bastard named Mr. Heart. I just want that one million dollar. It's all for the sake of Lia. With that much money, she will be able to live a better life."
Lia, Tony's sister had a severe form of hearing and speech impairment from an early age. Tony had told him in the past that Lia's condition could be cured with surgical procedures, but those surgeries were only performed in the big hospitals present in the central part of the city and cost a tremendous sum of money. His family lived on the outskirts of the city, just like Nick, and could not even dream of affording the cost for such surgical procedures.
Tony patted Nick's back and said, "We have similar motives, you can say."
"But does that make us rivals now?"
"I guess so." Tony smiled at him. "I will beat you at this popularity contest and win the one million dollars."
"I bet you will," Nick winked.
Then they laughed together. Both Nick and Tony knew in their hearts that it would be a miracle if they could even pass the first elimination round in this contest. But dreamers have to dream about big things. The dreams are not bounded by the constraints of reality.
That day after college, Nick went straight home and skipped the hospital for the day. He was tired of seeing his mom being sick, stuck in a hospital ward. He had numerous assignments piled up as well as he missed a lot of classes. But he had zero motivation and energy to bother about those. All he wanted was to take a long, refreshing nap, and if possible, he would like for all of his problems to disappear while he slept peacefully.
My dad went missing so easily, but why can't the same happen to my troubles!
He spent his evening cleaning up the living room which was a huge mess as if he was living inside a trash can. While cleaning, he encountered the electric bill again, which he carefully kept aside and whispered to it, "Not today, pal. Maybe tomorrow. I promise I will get back to you as soon as I can."
When he was finally finished and switched on the tv, he received a text message. He opened his phone and found the message to be from an unknown sender. The text read: Got new stuff. Interested?
Nick knew the identity of the sender very well. So he typed 'Not today. Sometimes later', but cleared the text and rewrote 'Sure. Time and place?' and sent the message.
'The usual', came an instant reply.
'Great. See you soon.' Nick wrote back.
Nick tossed the phone aside and stared at the ceiling while leaning back on the couch, which was his favorite hobby. His life was as shitty as it could be, so he deserved a little 'reward' from time to time, just to keep himself motivated and not give up on his miserable life.
There was a small place near where Nick lived called 'Ghost town'. During the time Megacity was being built, this place was used as a temporary settlement by the workers. It is easy to imagine just how many workers they needed for the whole construction and the so-called town actually housed most of them. The few Engineers involved in the project lived in a different place though. When the city was finished making, a few workers stayed back in that place as they had already settled down there and were adamant to relocate to a new place. Being so far from the central area, the Government had almost no interest in making developments in that region, which enraged the local residents. Also, Megacity was a planned city and was made open to outsiders only when it was completely finished with construction. Once the city opened, there was barely any place left for new constructions to take place and even if there were new constructions happening at a few places, it needed only a few people to finish the job. Naturally, a huge portion of the workers became jobless. They weren't given any special allowance either, and with their skillset limited to labor work, they were not cut out for the sophisticated jobs as well. With the huge influx of people to the city, almost all the good positions were filled by the new residents soon and the workers had very little scope left for them. Even for minor jobs in both governmentally or privately-run places, people with much more qualification than the workers got hired. Amidst all these difficulties, a good part of them successfully transformed their lifestyles and got better jobs in the city, but the majority of them were left in that backward town, where even basic facilities were out of the question. So these people over time had to resort to illegal acts to feed themselves. Soon, the place became one of the largest hubs of illegal means. Away from the light, under the shadow, this place was crawling with drug dealers, hired murderers, prostitutes and the market of shady deals flourished unnoticed. No one lived there anymore, as the business prospered rapidly in the first few years and they could afford at least a cheap apartment on the outskirts of the city, but the place still remained as a business center for these shady dealers and over time obtained the name 'Ghost town'.
This is where Nick was headed to. As he approached the territory of the Ghost town, his face hidden beneath a mask and body covered in a hoodie, he saw his 'business partner' waiting for him.
"Hey Cynthia," he waved at her.
Cynthia was not her real name. No one was allowed to know her real name actually.
"Hi Jackass. You are 7 minutes late!" replied Cynthia.
"Calm down, I know that already."
"Then move your legs. You are not my only client, you should remember that."
"So, are any of your other clients coming tonight?"
"That's none of your business. I am a busy person, and I hate to be delayed by others."
"Okay, I am sorry. You wanted my apology, you got one. Happy?"
"Delighted," Cynthia smirked.
As they moved deeper into the place, he felt more vulnerable and scared, even though it wasn't his first visit to Ghost town.
A woman suddenly appeared from the darkness and grabbed his hand.
"Hey sweetie, you look troubled. Do you want me to cheer you up?"
There was an appeal in her eyes that made Nick speechless for a moment.
"Sorry, he's with me," said Cynthia and snatched him away.
As they walked beyond her earshot, Cynthia said, "You need to protect yourself Jackass, I cannot be both your drug dealer and the bodyguard."
"Sorry, I just got distracted for a moment, and...."
"Next time you get distracted, you will end up with a mark of lipstick on your dick and your wallet robbed. Jackass!"
They stopped near a wall, which used to be part of a house before, but now was the sole survivor among its brethren. There were graffitis painted all over it. They ranged from beautiful patterns to 'Fuck you'.
Cynthia went into her jacket pocket and produced a rolled joint.
"Here, this one contains a bit more than the last time."
"Sweet!" exclaimed Nick and held it between his fingers. "You have a lighter."
"Bring your own lighter from the next time, Jackass." She produced a lighter from the same jacket pocket and held it in front of his mouth. "Here."
"You complain way too much for a business partner," murmured Nick.
Nick took a succession of deep puffs until the joint lit up. Then he released a cloud of smoke and leaned against the wall.
Cynthia produced another joint and lit it for herself.
They smoked in silence till Nick asked, "How much do I owe you then?"
"20.3, including the last two times."
Nick reached inside his pocket and struggled to get the cash out as the marijuana had started to take its effect on him. "Let me.... wait, here."
"Not now."
"What do you mean?"
"I mean, you should pay me later, not now."
"You sure?"
Cynthia released the last bit of smoke stored inside her lungs and said, "I am a drug dealer, not a monster. I know the shit you are going through. You can pay me once things settle down at your end."
"Thanks," Nick mumbled.
After a long pause, he said, "I love your hair. Green and violet - it's so pretty!"
"No need to butter me up, Jackass."
"No, it's true. I love them. Hey, can I kiss you?"
"Kissing costs extra."
Nick laughed lightly. "Just one. I promise."
"Listen buddy, just because I am going easy on you with your fees doesn't mean you can go lovey-dovey with me. You are my client, not a lover. Don't forget that. I am here for important business, not on a date!"
"I understand, geez! Calm down."
As the night progressed, the place was becoming more lively. When the day ends, Ghost town wakes up. It was a moonless night. The town always remained beneath the darkness, but in the shadows lurked 'monsters' of Megacity. Even the most elitist of people exposed their true nature here.
"I am participating in the online popularity contest. The one hosted by Mr. Heart, you know," announced Nick.
"Wohoo, look who's trying to get popular!"
"It's crazy, I know."
Cynthia stared at his face for a while and said, "Great. Take off your sweatshirt. I will give you a little something."
"Whoa, what's going on?"
"I am not going to hurt you or anything. Just remove your hoodie."
"I thought kissing and stuff costs extra!"
"I will just sketch on your bare chest, you pervert!"
"And you think I will allow that?"
"Sure, you will. This is a gift from me wishing you good luck. How could you refuse that?"
Nick slowly removed his sweatshirt and stood with his upper part of the body exposed to the coldness of the night.
Cynthia switched on the flashlight of her phone and handed it to Nick and told him to hold it for her while she doodled on his body. She produced four different colored markers and looked at his body the way an artist looks at a canvas.
"Let's see, hmmm...."
"This is coming after you gave me that whole speech about me not being more than a client to you and whatnot!"
"Shut up and stay still!"
After five minutes, which felt like an hour to Nick, Cynthia was finished with her art. Then she marveled at her own work for a while before declaring, "I am done. You can put on your cloth now."
"What did you draw?" Nick asked
"You will find that out once you go home, Jackass. Now bye, I have other important business stuff to do."
Then Cynthia disappeared into the darkness.
After returning to his apartment, he removed his clothes and stood in front of the mirror. There was a huge dragon sketched in blue, red, green, and black, spanning across his chest and abdomen. It was quite beautiful. Nick couldn't believe that in such a short time and in that little light, Cynthia was able to draw such a beautiful piece. Yes, he was a bit annoyed with her in the beginning, but looking at the doodle right now, he felt amazed. He couldn't help but click a picture of it. He marveled at Cynthia's masterpiece for a while before going to sleep.
The next day, he woke up with his phone flooded with messages. He rubbed his eyes and opened his phone. The first message that he saw was from the contest organizers.
"Dear participant, you have registered for the contest successfully.
As part of the preliminary evaluation process, we asked you to upload a picture of yourself you consider to be the best. Your photo has now been successfully posted on your wall on our website and will be visible to millions of viewers for voting. Thank you for taking part in this contest. We wish you all the best!"
This message was sent 6 hours ago.
"What photo? I didn't upload any photo!" Nick thought. "Wait, last night did I - "
Panic surged through his mind as he hurriedly opened the contest website. There he found the picture he clicked last night, his upper body exposed in it, with a colorful dragon sketched over his naked body.