The rejection

Chapter 2

Four days ago, in this very room, Uncle Ben knelt before Mr. Charles, Ethan's father, asking to borrow money for an investment that Ethan was unaware of.

Now, in this same room, he finds himself kneeling before Uncle Ben, desperate for him not to send him away.

The day transitions from morning to night and back to morning.

Ethan's knees are bruised from constant kneeling.

Uncle Ben enters the room, yawning, and is surprised to see Ethan still there. "You're still here?" he asks.

"Please, Uncle, I'll do anything," Ethan pleads, his voice strained.

"I have no intention of saving you, so stop wasting your time," Uncle Ben dismisses. At this moment, Ethan knows that begging is futile.

(Mr.Desmond's house).

Ethan knocks on the door, waiting impatiently for it to open. He's holding two suitcases. He knocks again, but no one answers.

He's certain they're inside because he can hear their voices. Finally, Ariana opens the door.

He calls out to her, but she ignores him and walks away, leaving the door ajar. He steps inside, finding the family seated and waiting for him.

This is his only option; they assured him he would always be welcome.

He bows to greet them. Mr. Desmond starts, "What are you doing here?". Ethan looks up, taken aback.

"I heard you're penniless now, and your uncle cast you out like a bastard," Mrs. Desmond interrupts.

Ethan is stunned by their abrupt change in attitude. Just two days ago, they were laughing together in this very room.

"I... I," he stammers.

"Listen, we want nothing to do with a loser like you. Please leave," Mr. Desmond declares.

Ethan turns to Ariana. "Babe... what's happening, I—" he trails off, at a loss for words.

"Just so you know, I don't love you. I don't want to end up like you, you are now a nobody. Marrying you would be like willingly sinking into a deep pit of mud," Ariana shouts.

"But we love each other! I proposed to you, we planned to get married," Ethan insists.

"That was back then, when you actually meant something. Now, you're nothing," Nick interrupts, causing Ethan to sink deeper into despair.

"Ariana..."

Mr. Desmond interjects, "Leave my daughter alone and never set foot in this house again, or else I will have you arrested for who-knows-what."

Ethan stares in disbelief. He turns to leave but stops.

They have left him with no choice. He faces them again.

"The... the ring," he manages to utter, hoping it might change the situation.

They all burst into laughter.

Ariana stands up.

"I didn't realise you were such a pathetic loser."

"I need it, please," Ethan pleads.

Ariana gets up, disappears into the house, and returns with the ring. She stretches it out toward him.

He takes it, but then notices something isn't right. The ring doesn't sparkle; it isn't the one he had given her. It's fake.

Laughter erupts again.

"Did you really think I'd carry that around? Oh no, I sold it the second day you gave it to me," she declares. He tries to speak, but no words come out.

***

As the day's curtain draws to a close, darkness envelops him like an ancient dragon.

Nowhere to turn, his clothes in tatters, he heads to his best friend Max's house.

Now isn't the time for pride. He and Max argued not long ago and haven't spoken since, but a mere disagreement didn't turn them into enemies.

He stands before the door, his breath quickening before he knocks. No one answers. Giggles can be heard from within.

He knocks again, and when there's no response, he tries the door. It creaks open, and he cautiously enters the room.

No one is in the living room; the voices are coming from the adjacent bedroom. He wishes he's mistaken about the voices as he slowly approaches the bedroom door. Their conversation reaches his ears.

"You can't believe that loser. He actually asked for the ring."

"Oh, let me tell you, he was just coasting on his parents' wealth."

"It's a shame our plan didn't work out. If we had gone through with the wedding and then filed for divorce, think of the money we'd have made."

Ethan's spirit shatters as he absorbs their words. His body moves instinctively, his legs carrying him forward. He pushes the door open, catching them off guard.

"What the hell are you doing here?" Max demands.

He feels numb, at a loss for words as Ariana adjusts her bra.

"Get out of my house now!" Max shouts at him.

"How could you two do this to me?" His voice trembles.

"Must we have a reason for it? You better leave while we're still being nice," Ariana retorts.

Ethan takes a step back, his anger boiling within him, but who is he truly angry at? With nowhere to go, nowhere to sleep, he steps out of the room in frustration.

Now, standing on the edge of the 12th-story skyscraper, Ethan peers down at the ground below, ready to end it all.

Tears stream down his face. He believes that death is better than being a walking corpse.

He closes his eyes, the cool night air rustling his curly hair. Silently, he counts down from three.

"One, two, three."

"System activated," a robotic voice interrupts him.

"Host founded".

Opening his eyes, he scans his surroundings, trying to identify the source of the voice.

"Name: Ethan Wilson. Gender: Male. Welcome to the justice system," the voice continues, seemingly coming from nowhere.

A screen materialises in front of him. showing some features.

{system shifted according to host desires}

Note 1: money in the dashboard is $50,000.00.

"I must be hallucinating now that I'm about to die," he mutters to himself.

{You are given the chance to become rich again, seek revenge, and in return, bring justice and righteousness to the world by completing unlimited missions for a year}.

"Missions? Are they even offering real money?" he questions, though he feels foolish conversing with this cryptic entity.

Note 2: Yes, but first, you must complete a mission to move to another. for each mission a random reward will be given.

"Oh, a scam!" Ethan scoffs.

{I'm not asking for your money, I am giving you.}.

Ethan's interest is piqued. "How can I receive the money?"

{Do you wish to have the funds transferred to you}.

"Yes, all of it." he mumbles.

"15%, 35%, 55%, 100%. Transfer complete. Perform the missions and become a trillionaire."

His phone beeps, and he checks it.

Notification: Your account that ends with XXXX497 has been credited with $50,000.00. Transaction ID: ABC456."

He pops out his eyes.

Note 3:By your transaction just now, you have sign in into the system.

Note 4: Refusal and failure to complete a mission will result in depletion of money, or many unrewarded missions.

Note 5: At some point of completion, a special skill will be added.

mission 1:Help the old woman with her need.

“It's real!” he exclaims as his voice echoes to the city, and when he looks down, he sees an old woman. He quickly gets down from the building and meets up with the woman.

“Where are you going, if I can ask?” he inquires, following her.

The old woman ignores him and keeps walking, then reaches a pendant shop and stares at one of a glistening pendant.

“you are here again, I told you, you can't afford that, get away from my shop, you stinky soul”. He pushes her away.

Ethan rushes in and gets her up.

“You shouldn't do that to an old woman, I will buy the pendant,” he says.

The store owner scans him up and down.

“What kind of bad luck I am today, look at you, you can't even buy yourself clothes, you want to buy a pendant worth $2000 dollars” he scoffs.

He brings out his ATM card and stretches it to him.

The store owner collects it, “you better be sure”.

And that time, it sinks into Ethan's brain that he hasn't even been sure if the money is real.