〘Date: 2/8 - Friday〙
〘Time: 9:00 AM〙
〘Location: Texas, San Antonio - Trinity Valley Dormitory〙
The next day arrived, and I woke up in a relatively good mood, the events of yesterday's date still playing clearly in my head. It was as if I couldn't get Paris out of my head, the connection we built yesterday drawing me into her even further.
After freshening up and getting myself ready for the day ahead, I sat on my bed and grabbed my phone from the nightstand, turning on the screen and noticed I had a few notifications from the date last night and system updates. I tapped on Phroa's window, waking her up her sleep.
Phroa let out a soft sound, the sleeping icon above her head popping as I tapped her window again. She groggily woke up, sitting up on her bed and rubbed her eyes and looked at me. A sleepy smile played on her face as she got out of bed, switching the room she was in into a morning aesthetic while still in her pajama costume.
〔Phroa: Good morning, Master..~ You're in a good mood...〕
"How can I not be? I had a successful date last night with Paris, plus we have five thousand in the vault to spend. I was looking at the notifications and saw we had an update to the system?" I questioned, looking at Phroa in hopes of getting an answer.
Phroa gasped excitedly, her attire switching to her normal angelic costume. She materialized next to me, excitedly taking my phone and began running through the settings. "She actually sent the update! Mistress White is the best!~"
I rose an eyebrow at Phroa, wondering what she was talking about and gently held her to bring her down onto my lap. "What are you talking about? What's this new update?"
"It's one of the best updates for the both of us! Starting with the main update that pertains to mainly you. Charlotte added the ability to Pick Up women via Phone Flings!" Phroa answered, looking up at me with excitement.
"Phone Flings? I don't remember my dad ever doing Phone Flings. How does this even work?" I asked, watching Phroa tap on the phone icon upon the bottom left of the option bar.
"Phone Flings are like quick ways to talk to women without having to worry about meeting them face to face, and your entire interaction with them is through the screen until you two decide to meet up. That's the barebones explanation," Phroa said, looking at the list of potential dates on the screen.
"The way it works is using the service of this phone, it can connect with other phones to connect with women within a certain radius. You'll have to upgrade the service strength through Charlotte, but later on that," Phroa added, leaning back against me and looked up at me with a bubbly grin.
I chuckled softly at her, gently rubbing her hair and gave in to my own curiosity. "Alright, what's the second update you're excited for?"
"Jobs!" Phroa said excitedly, letting out a soft giggle then looked back at my screen. "This part is mainly for the both of us. There are certain jobs I can complete for money, but the jobs I can take depends on your traits."
After hearing the second part of the update, I was a bit more intrigued, the idea of Phroa doing jobs in the background for Credi was both idealistic and helpful for us both. Immediately, I was onboard with the idea, just as excited as she was to earn more Credi.
"So, what's the first job you can do?" I asked, expecting to hear a job fit for an agency.
"Uhm...a uh...fast food worker," Phroa said, just quiet enough for me to almost hear what she said.
"A what?" I asked, in slight disbelief at the first job Phroa had available.
Phroa giggled embarrassingly, rubbing the back of her head as she glanced up at me. "Hey, at least this pays well! 20 Credi every five seconds for three hours is a total steal for fast food, plus once the job is complete, you'll earn Talent EXP, so yeah this is a cheat code galore!"
"And there's no restrictions to this? What's really stopping us from spending the entire day working, am I right?" I said half jokingly, letting out a light chuckle at my own joke.
"Realistically, nothing. If you wanted to, you could just lay in bed and let me work for 24 hours and we'll be set for an entire month and some change!" Phroa answered, her pupils shimmering gold at the through of the amount of Credi we could have in one day.
"Doing the math, 345,600 Credi would definitely get us through more than a month, but I'm not that greedy to work you to the bone. For now, let's focus on finding another date for my initiation," I said, standing up from my bed and grabbed my bag.
"Right!" Phroa nodded, disappearing back into my phone and gave me two peace signs.
I chuckled softly at her, making my way to the door and waited for Matt to finish up with getting ready. Once he was ready, the two of us left our dorm to head onto the campus and meet up with Jaiden.
〘Date: 2/8 - Friday〙
〘Time: 9:30 AM〙
〘Location: Texas, San Antonio - Trinity Valley University〙
Matt and I walked into courtyard, our presences immediately capturing the eyes of a few people within the courtyard. A few students looked at me, whispering amongst themselves as they watched me and Matt walk by.
Matt and I noticed the whispers, glancing at each other with confusion on what everyone was gossiping about. We continued forward, making our way to our table with Jaiden, his fangirls noticing us and giggling softly at me before hurrying off.
"Yo, man. What's with all this gossip? Everyone's eyeing down our boy here, and to top it off, your fangirls actually acknowledged Ryder," Matt said, taking his seat at the table and set his things down.
"Apparently from what my fangirls said, Ryder here had a very successful date with Paris yesterday. Someone said that one of Tony's friends spotted them together cuddled up at the Bookstore," Jaiden explained, looking over at me with a proud smile on his lips.
"What?! And you didn't say a word to me when you got back!?" Matt asked in complete shock, darting his eyes at me with awe and undeniable pride.
I chuckled softly at Matt, shrugging my shoulders lightly. "When I got back, you were already lights out."
"Oh yeah..." Matt chuckled softly, shaking his head at himself. He looked at me again, reaching over to pat my shoulder. "Good shit though either way, my guy! The fact you won Paris over in one day is insane to me."
"Good shit, indeed..." A sour tone said beside us, grabbing our attention immediately.
Immediately, I recognized it was Tony standing at our table, his jealousy and anger palpable due to his burning glare directly at me. I closed my eyes, scoffing softly at Tony.
"You shouldn't be jealous of me winning Paris's heart. After all, you two are broken up aren't you?" I said, glancing over at Tony, seeing his anger boiling to the surface.
"Funny guy we have here. Going on a date with my ex then scoffing in my face about it. You think she'll really stick around for a measly failure like you? Someone who has zero goals in life other than business?" Tony scowled, his fists balled up at his side as he stared at me.
"Tony, cool it man. You can't be mad at Ryder. You and Paris broke up and she's free to date whomever she pleases," Jaiden said, speaking up for me to get Tony off my back.
Tony glanced over at Jaiden, scoffing at him lightly. "Stay out of this, Jaiden. I have no problems with you, so keep it that way."
I let out a soft exhale, hoping I wouldn't attract too much attention around myself, but with Tony around I knew trouble would come to me. "Look, you being mad doesn't change the outcome of what happened yesterday. So go ahead, punch me or whatever and ruin your own career over a girl."
Tony growled lowly at me, his veins slowly growing on his arms as he clenched his fist harder until his knuckles turned white. "Wise guy, huh? You really think you're funny huh..? You think you're so tough now?!" Tony yelled, grabbing me and raising me out of my seat.
I stared at Tony with a straight face, my gaze unwavering and unmoving. "Go ahead...strike me. I know you want to. The moment you do strike me, my brothers will be on you like hounds. Not only will you lose your career, but you will lose everything as well."
"So go ahead, hit me like the punk I know you are. Show everyone the failure I am. At the end of the day, I still went on a date with Paris," I said in a low tone, my golden eyes faintly glowing with dominance.
"C'mon bro, he's not even worth it..." Danny said, placing his hand on Tony's shoulder.
Tony grit his teeth, his disdain for me only increasing from here. He let me go with a shove, placing his hands in his pockets. "You're lucky I have a lot to lose unlike someone like you. Don't let me catch you in my sights, or else I will beat your ass down."
"Yeah, whatever bro. Get yo ass on somewhere, buster," Matt said, raising his voice at Tony and watched as he walked off.
〔Charisma/Talent EXP +70〕
I sighed softly, straightening my clothes and sat back down in my seat. "Yeesh, who knew going on one date would lead to so much drama? Is this what my dad had to go through during his time..?"
〔Phroa: Yep!〕
Jaiden chuckled softly at me, reaching over to pat my back. "Hey, you dealt with the situation the best way you could in my opinion. I'd say just give it a few days and all of this would be just another talk of the campus."
"Jaiden's right, plus if anything comes up at all, we both know he'll be the first to know because of his entourage," Matt said, teasing Jaiden about his fangirls and glanced over at him.
Jaiden chuckled at Matt's tease, shaking his head and picked up his phone to check his messages. "Yeah, whatever you say bro."
I smiled at the two, glancing around the courtyard to see who I could talk to next. As I searched around, my eyes landed on a familiar figure sitting alone at a table, my next target already set.
〔Phroa: Ooh~ It's Allie and it seems you already have her number! Let me just register her into my systems like so...〕
〔Allie's Analysis〕
Name: Allie Lloyd
Age: 19
Birthday: July 5th
Status: Crush
Bond: 80%
Occupation: T.V. University Student, C-List Actress
Preferred Gift(s): Your Gifts
Preferred Trait: Empathy
Hobby: Scriptwriting
Favorite Hangout: Windcrest Park
I looked at the information Phroa registered into her systems, a smile forming on my face as I read through it. '80% seems reasonable since I did become distant over the years, but everything else checks out...'
"Yo, Ry. You coming to our game tonight? It's a home game and it would be nice if you popped out for the Trinity! We are going against our rivals, Oceanview," Matt said, looking at me with a mix of hope and expectancy to be at the game.
I broke out of my trance, glancing at Matt then gave him a smile. "Of course, bro. You know I wouldn't miss a game for the world, plus it's against Oceanview? We have to bring in yet another win for the university."
"Hell yeah, you already know!" Matt laughed, reaching over the table to dap me up. "Oceanview is about to see why I'm the Number One Quarterback!"
Jaiden smiled at Matt, enjoying seeing his confidence shine brightly. "Once I'm done with my studio session, I'll be sure to stop by the game as well. Can't miss that game winning touchdown."
"And my boy Jay is pulling up too? Aye, I'm heading to the weight room right now!" Matt said, unable to contain his energy and stood up to rush toward the gym area of the campus.
Jaiden shook his head, laughing lightly at Matt's enthusiasm. "I guess it has been a while since we both have been to his game. His excitement is understandable."
I nodded, watching as Matt ran down the courtyard, chuckling as a group of people parted to avoid the charging athlete. "Yeah, it's nice seeing him get this excited.."
Jaiden noticed my attention occasionally drifting over to Allie, who was still sitting alone. A knowing smile formed on his face, giving me one last pat on the back. "Go talk to her. I'm gonna go get some missing assignments done."
I looked up at Jaiden, smiling at him and gave him a fist bump. "Alright, man. I'll catch you later."
Jaiden nodded, grabbing his things and began walking off toward the main building, leaving me alone to my own devices. I glanced over at Allie once again, deciding to make my move and go over to her to talk to her.
As I made my way toward Allie, my phone began buzzing, Phroa needing my attention immediately. I looked at my phone, wondering what Phroa wanted and rose an eyebrow at her.
〔Phroa: Master, halt! Allie doesn't seem to be in the best mood right now.〕
I stopped walking, glancing at Allie and noticing her leaning against the table with her hand running through her hair, her eyes glued to her phone with a frustrated expression. I decided to use my Heart Scanner ability for the first time, focusing my gaze on Allie, a faint light blue energy highlighting her body.
〔Allie's Mood: Annoyed〕
〔Bond with Allie: 80%〕
〔Affection Meter: 80%〕
〔Vitals: Healthy〕
'Seems like something's bothering her,' I thought, looking down at my screen to look at Phroa.
〔Phroa: Wait for the perfect moment. We want to cheer her up somehow. Hmm...〕
I looked up from my phone, glancing at Allie once again, noticing her set her phone down with a huff. After a moment of brainstorming, a plan to cheer Allie up hatched in my mind. 'I think I know a way...'
Phora looked at me with curiosity, noticing me making my way toward Allie's table. She decided to sit back and watch, wondering what my game plan was.
As I neared closer to Allie's table, my plan began to slip from my mind as I didn't actually have a plan. Suddenly, by the grace of a miracle, a bird began fluttering by, chirping a happy tune, but I knew how Allie was when she was annoyed, a dark princess waiting to be awakened within.
Allie glanced at the bird, her infernal gaze causing the bird to shrill and fly the other way quickly. Her stare at the birds sent chills down my own spine, her fiery wrath beginning to surface.
I decided to take this moment to slide my way to her table, hoping the simple joke that seemed to take a miracle to set up would work. 'Dad, if this line doesn't work, I will personally never go back to the islands...'
I smoothly sat next to Allie, watching at the lone bird watched us from another table. I glanced at Allie, noticing her distant, annoyed gaze. "Fuck these birds, am I right?"
Allie, hearing my awkward joke, tried to keep her distant gaze, but the sheer awkward delivery of my joke caused her to lower her head, her shoulders shaking as she attempted to hide her laughter. Soon, she began breaking down into a fit of giggles and soft laughter.
'I honestly can't believe that worked...' I thought to myself, completely dumbfounded that my father's old joke worked in today's generation.
〔Phroa: The Power of the Legendary Level 1 Luck Stat!〕
〔Charisma/Luck EXP +100〕
〔Achievement Unlocked: Get Lucky 1 Time!〕
〔Reward: Lucky Penny〕
'Okay, System...Calm down. No need to rub it in my face,' I sighed softly, lowering my head as I knew I was the butt of my own joke.
〔Allie's Mood: Calm〕
Allie rose her head, looking over at me with a smile, fixing her hair and hummed softly. "You really said that, huh?~ Of all the ways to cheer me up..."
"I mean, it worked didn't it? I know your humor," I said, gently wrapping my arm around her shoulder and pulling her closer to me.
Allie smiled warmly as I wrapped my arm around her, her heart warming simply from my touch. She leaned into my touch, resting her head upon my arm. "I would hope you do..~"
I let out a soft chuckle, gently grabbing her phone from the table to see what had her so annoyed. Allie watched as I put in her passcode, the screen changing to go to her messages. I noticed it was a message from my mom, notifying Allie that she was declined the role in a new movie my mom was staring in.
"So this is what had you annoyed... And those greedy douchebags sent my mom to pull the trigger," I said softly, looking down at Allie and seeing the disappointment and defeat in her eyes.
"They declined me...but that punk Tony managed to at least get an extra role in the movie. And you know how big that is for someone like him to be an extra in a movie starring your mom," Allie sighed softly, closing her eyes to prevent herself from looking at her phone screen.
"She taught me everything she knows about the entertainment industry and the acting business, so I knew the risks...but it doesn't make the blow any less painful," Allie continued, placing her hand on my hand for comfort.
I stared at Allie, understanding why she would take this loss so horribly. If anyone knew her main goal, it would be me, and learning that Tony was a step ahead of her seemed to only cause that pain to hit harder. Allie spent most of her life practicing to be in a movie with my mom, only for the industry to push her away without second thought.
"Do you want to take your mind off it? I don't mind skipping classes if you don't," I said, offering her to go out with me to take her mind elsewhere.
Allie opened her eyes, looking up at me with a small grin. "Hmm...if my ears don't deceive me, it sounds like...you're asking me out..."
I returned her smile, holding her chin and raising her head slightly. "It's been a while since we've been out together..."
"Since high school," Allie added, her voice softening as her eyes locked onto mine.
I nodded, the memories of our last date playing fresh in my mind as if it happened yesterday. "How about it..? Me and you...just us out on a da—"
"Yes, do you even have to ask..? Yes, Ryder," Allie answered immediately, leaving no room for interpretation or doubt.
I let out a soft laugh, grabbing my bag and began to get up from my seat. "Alright, let's head out~"
Allie nodded excitedly, grabbing her belongings and stood up from her seat as well. Once we collected everything, the two of us began to make our way toward the dorms, planning out what all we wanted to do during the date.
〔Initiation: Art of Love - Rekindling〕
〔New Main Objective: Go on a date with Allie.〕
〔Task: Raise Empathy and Lust to Level 2.〕
〔Reward: Credi +5000, Art of Love EXP +500〕