[Mar's POV]
Later that evening, when Mar got home from work, Alex was already waiting for him.
"Welcome home, dad!" he said. Mar laughed.
"Hello, Alex. To what do I owe your warm welcome?"
"Well, honestly? There's something I'd like to talk about," he said, obviously feeling guilty.
"Hmm," Mar said. "Does this have anything to do with the letter in the mail today, that our request to expand has been accepted?"
Alex ducked his head even further.
"Yeah, it does," he said, but then fell silent. Was he doubting?
"Spill it boy!" Mar said as he shrugged of his coat, put it on the hanger and went inside. Alex skittered after him.
"It's, … Uhm. It's about the influence my powers have on electrical devices," he said.
"You mean the blowing fuses, exploding computers and energy surges?" Mar asked. Alex was so cute when he was nervous.
"Yes, those," he said, clearly annoyed by the fact. "I keep forgetting that they might blow up, mainly because I used to be able to use them just fine. I'd like to do something about that, but the problem is that I can't without anyone noticing. To prevent electronic devices from blowing up when I touch them, I'd have to enhance them so much that they'd be nearly perfect. Difficult calculations would happen instantly and they would use nearly no electricity anymore."
Alex explained nervously as he paced through the kitchen while Mar placed some of the food Alex had prepared earlier in the microwave.
"Why is he so nervous?" Mar wondered in thought as he leaned against the kitchen counter to watch Alex pace from side to side.
"Keep going," Mar said, curious to what this had to do with the request to expand.
"Well, if I just used magic to make all electrical devices compatible to me, people might start noticing that something is up," Alex explained. "So I was thinking that, to make the transition a little more subtle, it would be a good idea for a big company, to start producing nearly perfect electronic devices."
Ah, there it was. The reason why Alex was nervous.
"To think the day would come that my own son would present me a business proposal," Mar laughed. "I'm guessing the request to expand is meant for a new factory then?"
Alex nodded.
"I'm not asking Bright inc. to invest in a whole new factory or a way to create the devices," Alex said as he hurriedly waved his hands. "I'll use my magic to create the necessary machinery."
"It would have been fine even if you weren't," Mar said with what he hoped was a reassuring smile. "Where were you planning on placing this factory?"
"Next to the headquarters," Alex said more relaxed already.
"But that's forest area! You got permission to build a new factory in a forest area?!" Mar asked incredulously. "You used your powers to get that permit, didn't you?"
Alex flushed bright red.
"Was it that obvious?" he muttered quietly. Mar nodded.
"Obvious and unnecessary," Mar said. "Bright inc. has a few dormant factories already in its possession. All we have to do is remodel the inside."
"Really?!" Alex asked. "Well, I guess we don't need the permit anymore then."
And as Alex waved his hand, Mar felt the urge to ask "What permit?" Should he be scared by how powerful the boy was becoming? It made him wonder how many things Alex had changed without telling him.
"Ok, now tell me what you need. I'll try my best to provided it," Mar said as the microwave pinged, took his food and went to sit at the table to eat. Alex joined him.
"Well, we'll need a lot of raw materials like metal, lead, glass, plastic and other rubber-like polymers. So I was thinking a place where we can recycle old and broken devices would be good," Alex was chattering away happily while Mar was eating. "Then we'll need a place where the products will be actually created and a place to sell them."
Mar nodded.
"Which devices are you planning on making?" Mar asked as he put another spoon full of food inside his mouth.
"Everything," Alex said seriously. Mar blinked in surprise. "Cables, switches, lightbulbs, phones, computers, refrigerators, ovens, … let's just say I was thinking of reinventing everything in relation to electricity."
Now Mar's mouth dropped open.
"Everything?!" he asked incredulously. "But why would anyone buy that instead of their trusted labels? Aren't you running ahead of yourself?"
"Because we'll have an awesome publicity stunt," Alex said with a big grin. Mar held his breath in suspense. "We're going to gift the school a complete overhaul in relation to electricity."
Mar nearly got a heart attack.
"That's all nice on paper, but do you have any idea what a gift like that will cost?!" he interjected.
Alex grinned again.
"Absolutely nothing," he said proudly. "Because I'll be the one redoing the school. You just have to put up the charade."
"Wow," Mar thought. No wonder the boy had been nervous to tell him his plan. If he hadn't known he was capable of pulling it off, Mar would have already declared him crazy. But since Alex had the means to do it, it really was a great plan that would yield thousands of dollars. And had he included recycling in the deal? Which meant it was eco-friendly too. Mar was rendered speechless.
"Oh, dad, that reminds me," Alex said. "Can I see your phone for a second?"
"Hmm? Oh, sure," Mar said as he fished his phone from his pocket and handed it to Alex. "What are you going to do with it?"
But Alex didn't answer. He studied the device without lighting up the screen as if there was something he didn't understand.
"What's wrong?" Mar asked.
"Nothing, really," he said. "I just noticed that all of the devices in our home are, … uhm, Alex-proof, so to speak. But I can't remember influencing them."
The boy's words set off a little alarm bell in Mar's head.
"You mean our house was already Alex-proof without your optimisation?" he asked.
"I- I'm not sure," Alex said. "I can imagine that the devices I used daily would evolve with me, but your phone? You were rarely ever home, let alone that I ever touched the thing."
"Are you sure it is Alex-proof then? Maybe it's just a peculiarly sturdy device? It's battery doesn't last that long though. Barely a day."
"Really?" Alex asked, his brow wrinkling in confusion. "I thought that I'd recognised my own energy wavelength in it, but maybe I'm mistaken? I wouldn't do half work like that."
"Exactly," Mar thought to himself and made a mental note to scan his phone for clues later.
"All done," Alex chimed happily when he returned Mar's phone. "So, where do you want the factories to be?"
Mar nearly choked on his food.
"You want to do that right now?!" he asked incredulously. "No, Alex. Just no. There are no factories that are build in the blink of an eye. You need to give me time to prepare at least!"
"But dad?!" Alex complained. "It's only a snap of the fingers worth of work!"
"Tomorrow," Mar said sternly. "Today I whip your ass at that first person shooter I've been wanting to play for months now."
"Haha! In your dreams," Alex laughed. As Mar put his dirty plate into the dishwasher. "I'll launch the console."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Not two weeks later, the new Bright inc. factories were up and running, the school had been completely upgraded, giving it an energy consumption of nearly nothing.
The school's principals had been so kind as to bring the good news to the attention of the press, and ever since, Bright inc. devices had been rolling over the counter like sweet pies. Its reputation as the green entrepreneur had been established like never before and profits were sky high.