"You have received 5 dollars from XXBordermanXX!"
"Your content sucks, man. Get a better job instead of streaming!"
Danny saw the notification and the message but he didn't stop what he was doing and continued to stream and didn't care what his viewer had just said. After a few minutes later, he stopped his livestream after saying goodbye to his nonexistent audience.
"At least I managed to get 5 dollars despite the disappointing message."
Opening his bank account, he transferred the 5 dollars straight to his account which only has a few dollars left.
"Looks like even Mukbang is not working either. Damn, I just wasted a hundred dollars just for a 5 dollar donation. This one doesn't work either."
Grabbing his notepad, he flipped a few pages from it before crossing out the "mukbang" from the list.
"I am running out of ideas. And none of these ideas are a hit sensation at all..." Danny sighed as he threw away the notepad to his side.
Danny Thorne is a 25-year-old dropout who works as a construction worker on a nearby construction site not too far from his apartment. It was not the best work but he earns money enough to sustain himself and to also pay the necessary bills.
So you are asking... Why stream videos if he has a job?
The reason is simple...he needed a lot of money in a short time span.
It wasn't for the sake of becoming popular, it wasn't even something that he wanted to gain fame for. And he isn't doing this to earn money and buy something for luxury. For Danny, luxury is out of his league right now as there is something more important use of money than buying anything luxurious that would only end up useless.
His phone rings, making him sit up straight from his position earlier. He checked the screen, and the caller was from the hospital. His eyebrow furrowed but he slowly swiped the screen to answer the caller.
"Hello?" Danny is reluctant to answer his phone. He had a bad feeling about this.
"This is the hospital where Mrs. Thornes is currently confined. Is this the number of Danny Thornes?"
"Yes, this is his son, Danny. Is there any problem?"
"Yes. We regret to inform you that your mother's condition has taken for the worse. She is still hanging on with the help of our medical team and the medicine we gave her, but without undergoing the operation, she will soon die."
Danny grits his teeth but he holds back and continues to listen.
"Is there no other way? I still don't have enough money to pay for that operation. Just anything besides operation..." Danny asked, still clinging to hope.
"Unfortunately, there's no other option. Sure, we can prolong her life but we will also prolong her suffering and her body will not be able to handle that kind of stress. Sooner or later, she will break down and no amount of prolonging process will save her."
Danny's stepmother has been in the hospital for 2 years already due to liver failure and is being treated there. According to the doctor, it seems that her liver failure is a hereditary type considering that she doesn't drink alcohol nor does she have any autoimmune disease that would cause her to have liver failure. She is also not someone who drinks so many medicines that would also affect her liver. The only thing that made sense is that it was hereditary as her family has a history of liver failure.
Her stepmom did not suffer the disease until one day, she started experiencing various symptoms and her body gradually became weak which resulted in them going to the hospital and finding out her disease. Her stepmom never had a husband nor children on her own due to her own choices, becoming an old maid(Spinster) as a result. However, she adopted Danny when she was still young and for Danny who never knew his parents, his stepmom is his real mom and only family.
Her stepmom had sacrificed so much to raise him so now that she is in trouble, he didn't think twice about doing his hardest to save her. He will do anything just to save her.
As much as Danny wanted to carry out the operation unless he had money to fork over to the hospital, the doctors wouldn't carry out the operation immediately. Even if he asks for help from any government agencies for help, the process will be long and complicated, and there is even a huge chance those people will not be able to help at all. So even if it is a painful decision, and even if it will prolong the suffering of her mother, if it means being able to delay the inevitable, he will do whatever it takes.
"How long can my mother's body endure? Until she can get the operation? Even just an estimated time, I don't want to give up on her just yet."
"It won't be long, Mr. Thornes. Around 3 months the maximum, maybe 2 months even if more complications arise."
"Alright...please help my mom... I will make sure to have the money needed for her operation until then."
The discussion continued for a bit until the call ended. Danny is not feeling good and yet there is nothing he can do at all. Earning the amount of money needed to perform the operation is something he will not be able to earn in a short time.
Yes, the main reason he needed money as soon as possible is because he needed it to save his stepmom...and so, after hearing that streaming can rake in quite a lot of money in a short period, he decided to try it...only for realization to kick in, realizing that earning money in a short period of time is something that only streamers with a huge following can earn. Not by someone like him who is just a typical nobody.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGHHHHH! F*CK!"
In frustration with his current situation, he can't help but throw something into the wall to vent his frustration.
CRACK!
However, his frustration immediately dissipated when he immediately realized what he had just thrown into the wall.
"Wait...no, no, no...Aaaaahhh..." his frustration turned into despair after he realized what he had just thrown. It was none other than his phone. He went to see if the phone was still alive but it seemed that was not the case now.
The screen was broken beyond recognition doing any screen interaction will not be possible with it. The battery and the exoskeleton of the phone scattered as well, destroying the phone completely. His sim card is still fine but he doesn't have any extra phone he can use to call or receive call from the hospital.
"Agh, goddammit!"
...
...
...
Because he broke the phone beyond repair, he was forced to replace his phone by buying a new one. But because phones are quite expensive especially brand new phones, he decided to check on the shops that specialize in selling cheap second-hand phones. But it seems that he has underestimated the prices of second-hand phones.
"What the hell? The same brand as the broken phone I had just now cost that much! I thought these second-hand phones were cheaper than the brand new ones?!" Danny couldn't help but exclaim as he saw the prices placed on the display.
The lady who was currently smiling at him as he asked for prices immediately changed her expression and angrily snarled at him.
"If you are just here to complain about our prices, then you better get lost instead! If you can't afford our phones then don't bother buying! You are just ruining our day if you are not even buying anything!"
Before he can even say anything in his defense, he is kicked out of the store, stopping him from buying anything. He got the strong urge to curse at the lady for he is just stating the truth but he decided to not bother. He does not want to cause any more trouble and he can just head to other stalls for another try.
But just like the first store, the other stores also have expensive second-hand phones. Even the worst smartphone in the selection is way beyond his current budget. It would have been great if there were some flip phones or just those regular old phones he could buy if not for the fact that he also needed his phone for his livestreaming.
In the end, after checking all around the stalls, he ended up not buying a single phone due to how expensive they were. He lamented the results of his search and for how brash he was which ended him up in this current situation he was in.
"Hello, young man. You seemed to be in distress," an old man started speaking to Danny which caused the latter to get startled.
"What the f*ck?! Damn, you scared me, old man! You suddenly talked without warning!" Danny clutched his chest as he sighed in relief. He had so many things in his mind that he didn't realize the presence of the old man beside him until he started talking.
"Ohoho...I apologize, young man, but I can't help but notice you checking those stores one by one and checking so I came to check on you seeing you seemed in big distress."
"Well, I am not in distress, but I do have some problems. Anyways, why are you asking? Do you need some help or something?"
"Oh, no, no. You got the wrong idea. In reality, I do have some offer that you might be willing to accept."
Danny's eyebrows furrowed at the words of this old man. He had suspicions about this old man and he is not like what he was thinking. He might be in need of big money as soon as possible but he didn't want to join the dark side and do something nefarious and illegal just for the sake of earning money. Her stepmom would rather wish to die if he decided to go to that path instead and he didn't want that to happen. And besides, he was brought up by her stepmom the right way. Even if he is in need of money, he will not be swayed to do something bad.
"Old man, if you are offering me a job related to anything illegal like drugs and the likes it, then buzz off already as I am not interested in those offers."
"Young man, you seemed to have quite an imagination! But I don't blame you since we are speaking in a secluded street after all, far from the eyes of the law, however, I don't intend to recruit you to do some illegal job or to even sell you something illegal either. I am just offering to sell this phone of mine to you."
Hearing the words of the old man, Danny's head turned to his hands which the old man held a phone that he was offering. Not only was it the latest smartphone that he had heard of, but it still looked new and seemed to have been just bought recently. He heard that this current smartphone is quite expensive and will cost quite a lot if bought straight from the store.
"Wait a minute, old man. Although I am looking for phones that are second-hand, I have a limited budget and can only pay enough for a cheap old smartphone. This phone you are holding is something even I can't afford even if it is a second-hand version!"
The old man chuckled. "Relax, young man. I am not even stating my price just yet, why are you so uptight already? Don't worry, you will be able to afford this and you will not regret it. Perhaps, this phone can even help you with your current problems at the moment!
"Are you sure? I only have 200 bucks with me."
"200? Then you are in luck as I am offering you this phone for 100 bucks."
Danny eyes went wide when he heard his offer. 100 bucks for the latest phone? That is quite the steal! But he can't help but be suspicious.
"Hey, old man. I know you are sounding generous right now but this feels suspicious. This phone is the latest one and yet you are just selling me this for a hundred bucks? Perhaps this phone is faulty already and you plan to run away the moment you sold me this thing."
"Not in the slightest, no. Would you like to test it? I am quite sure you would be convinced once you get to inspect the phone yourself."
The old man then handed the phone to Danny and since he agreed, he took the phone and checked the phone's functions. And to his surprise, the phone is functioning correctly and it is still looking good. No bad defects nor any bad troubles with it that would end him costing more money for repairs. It is a flawless phone through and through.
"Well, convinced?"
"I...I guess so. But isn't it too cheap? You can even sell this for a higher price to other people instead of me!"
"Hoho, don't worry about it. So...are you going to buy it?"
"Does it still have its accessories? Chargers, earbuds and the likes?" Danny asked.
"Yes. I will give it to you if you buy this phone."
As much as he thinks it is suspicious, he doesn't find any kind of flaws to it nor any suspicious behavior that would make the phone troublesome. He would be a fool if he decided not to bite on the offer.
"Alright, you convinced me Old Man. I will be buying this."
The old man grinned. "Pleasure doing business with you!"
The two shook hands and the transaction is processed. After Danny handed him the 100 dollars, the old man also gave him the additional accessories of the phone which is just the charger, and the free earbuds which is to his surprise, a wireless one.
"Now that it is complete, it is time for me to bid you farewell."
The old man turned around and walked away from him, whistling as he got farther from him.
Danny couldn't help but shake his head as he took a final glance at the old man. "He is quite a weirdo..."
With his primary goal completed, Danny walked away from the dark street. "Ah, since I still have a hundred bucks here with me, perhaps I should buy some groceries as well."
Walking away, Danny didn't realize that the old man he was speaking earlier turn his head one last time to the departing young man and grinned as his eyes flash red.
"I am quite sure you won't regret this, young man. Not only will this help you get your problem solved, but this will also change your life to the fullest."
With a satisfying laugh, he continues walking as black shadow tendrils appear underneath his feet, slowly fusing with him as he slowly disappears and blends into the dark.