Michael sat in the bustling, ever busy office of Hudson Investments, going through something on his computer as he sat in his booth sipping his coffee during his lunch break.
He was living the life of a basic stock broker, sitting in his stall each day, waiting for a job from potential clients.
"Sigh, I never have anything to do, look what getting that degree got me , a crappy life stacked with debt with no friends, family, and as usual horrible bosses," he said in a tired voice.
His life wasn't the perfect spectacle that most people would imagine as though he was an office worker and worked for *Hudson investments*, a financial giant at the time, he was experiencing a financial crisis.
He was in debt, a lot of debt and had no active income that he would make use of to clear his bills.
The stock market's unpredictable dance had kept everyone on their toes and actively expecting its next fluctuations, and even in these moments of constant anxiety, the air was charged with anticipation.
Michael was one of the people waiting for this fluctuation, looking for the slightest opportunity to invest in the next big thing.
He was especially expectant as he hadn't had a customer in a long while.
His phone buzzed, and he noticed an unfamiliar number flashing on the screen.
'It could be a new client' he thought, beaming with excitement at the prospect that he could finally get some income.
However, he was surprised when he picked up and was greeted by a mysterious voice.
"Hello Mr Michael, who I am and what I want doesn't matter. I merely have a proposition, I can promise you a large amount of income and in exchange, I want to invest in the stock market. I can't go into too much detail as of now, but I can assure you a large profit if you trust me." the voice said.
As the voice finished speaking, Michael's brows furrowed, 'this is probably another one of those scam calls, we've been having a lot of those recently, I should just hang up but I'll play along for now.' He thought, feigning his disappointment.
"Wait a minute, I have a lot of questions that I need to ask first, who the heck are you and how did you get my number -and how do you even know my name?" Michael snapped back.
'That should've scared him to some extent, maybe he'll just give up and hang up right now' Michael thought.
"My identity is irrelevant, just consider me a friend. I have offered you a proposition and I have evidence to back up my claims, it's up to you to decide for yourself " said the voice.
'I guess this one's a tough nut to crack, this might take a while.' Michael thought.
After conversing for a few more moments the voice still chose to remain anonymous and Michael just couldn't seem to get any information on who this anonymous caller was.
"What exactly do you want and what evidence are you talking about?" Michael asked, his frustrations starting to pile up.
"I possess some deep interest in the stock market and would like to invest in it, and I would like you to help me with it," said the voice.
"Yeah well, it doesn't work like that, these things have procedures and they take time, go through the normal process and don't try anything funny like this again or else I will call the police on you, I'm hanging up," said Michael.
Before he could hang up the voice spoke swiftly, "If you listen to me you can invest right now Michael, I can predict exactly what stocks would rise and fall, their dates and best times to invest in them" said the voice.
Michael laughed, "you're not the first one with a get rich quick scheme, what makes you different?".
"As of this time tomorrow, Ainos (AIMD) will have the highest return in 2002 by a US stock, and it will be returning by 9,399.9%.
You have my word" said the voice.
Michael, seasoned in his profession, dismissed the claims as nonsense, explaining the regulated procedures involved in stock trading. The anonymous caller a.k.a the voice seemed unfazed and promised to call back the same time the next day.
As Michael ended the call, a colleague, Jake, approached, curiosity etched on his face. "Who was that?" he asked.
"Some guy claiming to predict stock movements," Michael chuckled, dismissing it as a probable scam.
However, the next day, reality struck Michael like a bolt of lightning. The stock predictions, dismissed as absurd, had all come true.
His disbelief transformed into stunned silence as he stared at the numbers on his screen.
His phone rang and not to his surprise, the mysterious caller called back for another round.
This time, Michael hesitated less. "How did you get that information?" he demanded, his skepticism now replaced by curiosity and genuine shock.
The anonymous caller, beaming with confidence, replied, "I have my methods and as promised I'll make you rich if you're willing to trust me and I could still give some more predictions if you're still skeptical."
The discussion continued and was directed towards a potential partnership, the caller proposing promises of substantial wealth.
Michael was aware of his own financial struggles,and the significant debt that loomed over him clouded his thoughts, desperation swaying his judgment. "Alright," he said, "let's do this."
"Good, now here's how this is going to go." The voice began to explain the conditions of their transactions, concluding with how earnings would be split and what would be required of Michael."
****
As the call ended, I smirked, removing the phone from my ear. The sinister smile crept across my face, a silent acknowledgment of the power that came with knowing the future.
'Well that was easier than I expected, my knowledge of the past is really starting to pay off. Thankfully I had a good memory' I thought to myself.
Staring at the name on the screen, I muttered to myself, "It would be nice to do business with you... old friend."