A goon stayed behind and didn't immediately follow Boss Falco after he left.
He squatted and made sure Nick understood the boss's words properly, asking him to repeat the boss's words word for word and reminding Nick to never forget them, all the while slapping him.
Nick took everything and complied and even remained kneeling until after Boss Falco and his goons left the apartment.
Nick sighed and stood up, then glanced at the bedside table. "My goodness. That was a close one."
The day before he had attempted suicide, he withdrew all his savings from the past three years—a total of $15,000, so when investigated, it would look like he took all his cash and disappeared because he owed some money. That way, the authorities would eventually give up on the case over time, treating it as a case of a man who burned all the bridges and left to have a fresh start where no one could find him.
Despite the burden of his substantial debt, Nick had managed to accumulate that amount through his daytime job as an airport porter, earning $16.06 per hour with a monthly salary of about $3,212, with rest days on Saturdays and Sundays. Additionally, he accepted video editing commissions online.
His expenses, including rent, utility bills, phone bills, groceries, transportation, tax, debt-installment payments, and miscellaneous, reached slightly over $5,000 per month (with the debt installment taking a chunk of the money).
But, as a former business student, he knew working a day job wouldn't help him escape the debt and this inborn financial sickness, so he wanted to invest in other ventures.
Nick made sure to save $500 in a high-yield savings account, starting with a $10,000 initial deposit with 5% APY before sorting out his bills and then postponing those he couldn't meet up with for the next month. Hence, the reason his financial situation seemed to become direr and direr as time passed.
Despite the weight of his debt and monthly expenses holding him back, his plan progressed properly. In his thirtieth month of saving in the course of the past three years, he had saved approximately $27,000 with interest.
Nick felt optimistic about his progress and hard work. He planned to save for one more year and then start something more tangible.
However, that same thirtieth month, he was laid off from his job as an airport porter.
That was eight months ago, and things had spiraled down from there. Nick took some money from his savings to meet with his expenses but postponed the debt payment.
Just when Nick felt his luck was running out, Mr. Singh made him a cashier in Jack's QuickStop and put him on the 8-hour night shift from Monday to Saturday, earning him around $2,426 monthly with an hourly wage of $12.64.
In the subsequent months, he had learned how to clown and took on side jobs from Desmond, but he struggled more than ever as he sometimes went weeks without acquiring a gig.
All in all, Nick delayed the debt payment for seven entire months, including January, which was ending today. Meanwhile, Boss Falco had begun pressuring him on the fourth month of the delay and gradually resorted to harsher means to get his point across.
Nick lightly tapped his right pocket with his phone inside and thought back to what just transpired.
"I guess I owe Mike one now," he said, then went to close the apartment door.
Out of the $15,000 Nick had withdrawn, only $10,000 remained due to the fake life stunt he pulled yesterday. He had paid Desmond $1,000 for the entourage, made a gift basket for his mother using $500, and kept the remaining $3,500 at the bottom of the basket.
Nick, feeling excruciating pain and aches in multiple areas of his body, locked the door and began removing his shirt while heading for the bathroom.
Stopping in front of the mirror, he stood and observed his body.
There was a cut on his lip, and his teeth were bloodied. There was also a bruise on his left shoulder from when Boss Falco stomped on him, the pain mostly radiating from the bone within.
His lower abdominal area also ached, specifically from the abdominal walls. The edge of his waist and parts of his leg too.
Nick administered first aid to himself, cleaned the cut on his lip, and boiled some water to press down the hurt areas of his body.
Then, he prepared himself for his night shift, as it was almost time. He took a shower, put on a long-sleeve t-shirt, loose blue jeans, and black-brown sandals, then topped his outfit off with an old leather wristwatch.
After, Nick limped out of the studio apartment and took the local commute and subway to Jack's QuickStop, located on Lincoln Avenue, The Victorias.
This time, he wasn't so late, so Mr. Singh didn't yell at him too much. When asked about his cut by Mr. Singh, Nick told him he fell in the bathroom.
Standing behind the counter of the convenience store, Nick remained placid, his mind swimming in a whirlwind of confusion and fear.
'There's no bloody way I can raise $20,000 in the next three days,' he told himself with a sigh. 'And there's nothing I can invest $5,000 in that'll yield that much with low risk in such a short time. Dammit, I'm screwed.'
Nick looked down at his phone.
On the subway here, he read more about the rules and regulations of Top Idol and other information.
He had wondered why his Daily Task(s) counter displayed "2/4" when he had only performed one task, but it was further explained that it was because the maximum v-points an irregular could earn each day was only 4. Hence, when balancing the fraction of the Daily Task(s) counter, it'll become "1/2" in the end.
Nick just understood it as the app trying to display two pieces of information at once.
He palmed his face and swiped down, muttering, "None of that even matters. In three days, all I'll have is 12 v-points, and the marketplace doesn't even convert v-points to cash."
Boss Falco didn't really give him a way out here.
Amidst Nick's internal turmoil, time seemed to slip away, and the world outside the store bustled with its usual activities as the night fell.
The customers tonight were even less than the night before. Things were becoming direr for the convenience store.
Nick had overheard some things a week or two ago, and he found out Mr. Singh was putting the store up for sale. This made him realize it wouldn't be long before the store was bought, and he truly became jobless again. This also fueled his reason for the suicide attempt.
Sometime after the clock's shorthand was inched closer to midnight, the doorbell rang out. Four young individuals had entered the store, two males and two females.
Leading the group was a slim, pale figure about six feet tall with a long, pointy-nosed face and scattered black-blue dyed hair. He wore a leather jacket, a ripped white vest underneath, skinny leather trousers, and a pair of polished black leather boots.
With his left hand tucked in his pocket and his right arm draped over the shoulder of one of the girls, there was a cheeky grin on his lips as the group chatted and laughed.
He strolled confidently to the beer section, grabbed a pack of canned beer and a few packs of cigarettes, and came to the counter with them.
Nick narrowed his eyes and politely asked, "Please, can I see your ID?"
The young customer frowned.
"What?"
…
[Rule #2: Information about Top Idol and its components is strictly confidential and must not be shared with non-pointers. Violation shall warrant a warning.]