[Hyde POV]
At Amy's one bedroom apartment. She has a couch and a tv in the living room, but that was it.
I brought her a lamp since Barbara told me she didn't have one.
We sat on the couch and watched 'I Dream of Jeannie' rerun on the tv together, with me sitting in
the middle for some reason.
"We need something to snack on." Barbara grumbled. Amy smiled bitterly and said, "Sorry. I don't
have anything in the fridge except some water."
"You had it rough kid." I muttered. Amy suddenly took out a cigarette and lit it up.
Barbara raised an eyebrow and said, "When did you start to smoke?"
"Just now." Amy replied, and coughed madly as she inhaled the smoke.
"Give me that." I took the cigarette from her and smoked it myself. "Let's go out and find you some
stuff."
Barbara smiled and said, "Wait. Steven? You're buying for my friend? Are you making a move on her too?"
"Obviously." I joked. "I'm sure some potato chips will make her unable to keep her shirt on."
Amy burst laughing and added, "Yes. Add some soda to that, I will carry his child too."
"See." I played along.
Barbara said vaguely, "It's fine if you want to. Her ex-boyfriend hits on me all the time."
"What? Barb!" Amy was taken aback.
"Why are you so surprised? He literally cheats on you with your sister." Barbara said flatly.
We drove my Nova instead of her 1962 Renault 8– a tofu car, since it was so ugly.
We made it to Piggy Wiggly 20 minutes before it closed. The workers stared at us as we rushed to
get the stuff.
"Go get some bread, canned tuna, lettuce, ketchup, mustard, peanut butter and jelly." I told Amy.
"Barb, you're with me. We're getting the snacks."
Barbara and Amy giggled with excitement. I took some potato chips, pretzels, popcorn, crackers,
cheese, frozen vegetables and milk. Barbara got some soda, milk, and orange juice.
The cashier scanned the items, and the two girls were quite embarrassed since they filled up the
entire trolley.
I even bought Amy a cookbook she wanted, a pan, a pot, and some utensils too. Her mother just gave her the bare minimum to survive in the apartment.
I guessed it was to let her be uncomfortable so she would want to move back home.
The cashier totaled everything, "40 bucks." Amy gasped, "That's expensive."
"That's cheap." I muttered at the same time. "Here, take 5 bucks for tips since you have to close
late because of us."
The cashier immediately smiled instead of frowning at us. "Let me bag that up for you!" He offered.
"Amy, you want an ashtray too?" Barbara teased.
"Shut up. Smoking's not for me." Amy gave up after only one cigarette.
We went back to her place, but I didn't stay since I have a curfew. I brought Barbara with me and
drove her back to her place.
Barbara kissed me and said, "You're really a nice man, helping out Amy like that."
I smiled slightly and said, "You know what? I really am."
"You're so nice, you didn't even call your own girlfriend for 10 days."
I dropped my head in frustration. "Are you going to keep bringing it up?"
"Honestly. Yes." She teased. We made out a bit in front of her house and only stopped as her dad
turned on the porch light.
"That's my cue. I have to go now." She hurriedly left the car and got inside the house.
…
I went back to the basement. Eric was eating a pretzel and watching TV. He saw me and greeted me cheerfully. "Hey, it's Mr. Entrepreneur. What did you bring home for me?"
I threw him a potato chip, which he caught with a smile. "Nice. Although some soda will make this
better–"
I threw him a grape soda can too. He laughed and said, "Did you make up with your new girl?"
"A little." I replied vaguely. "What are you watching?" I sat on my usual spot.
"Your tv show. TransAm versus Celica. You know the paper even covered it?" Eric was excited.
"Yeah, I don't care." I replied with a yawn.
"They are asking what's next for Rev It Up. I have an idea. You should enter the Celica to the
races. Like, actual race."
"Oh, that's good. But the race isn't until May. Same as the Mustang race."
I already thought about it before. Eric sighed and said, "That's too long. That's two months from
now."
"I have another plan." I told him.
He leaned facing me and asked excitedly, "What plan? Do share it with me."
"Well, Amy–"
"Your girlfriend's best friend?" Eric interjected, and couldn't hold back his enthusiasm.
"Yup. She has a 62' Renault. It looks pretty bad. Then, I realized something. A lot of teen's first
cars are pretty bad."
"That's true." Eric agreed with me.
"So, I'm going to do a lottery. I'll pick 5 cars, and they can get the whole package from my shop.
Body work, engine work, interior detailing, and paint. All for free."
"That's… stupid." Eric was slightly taken aback. "How do you make any money?"
"From the admission." I told him. "I'll sell t-shirts or merchandise. 5 bucks will allow the buyers
to get one ticket. Then, after I sell like 300 of them, I'll finally do the cars."
"Five times three hundred is fifteen hundred." Eric mumbled to himself. "I don't think you can do
five cars with just fifteen hundred, right?"
"That's true." I nodded slightly. "But Point Place Channel 7 wants me to sign a deal with them for
10 episodes. So I'll use the money to cover up the cost."
Eric was astonished, the pretzel dropped from his mouth. "You got a tv deal?" He asked with a shaky voice.
"Don't tell anyone. Not your girlfriend, and definitely not Jackie." I said adamantly.
When Bruce sent out the 45 minute specials to a few tv channels, I got some money from syndication and ads revenue.
It wasn't like in the future where I could get hundreds of thousands of dollars. I got 30,000
dollars from the syndication deals so far.
Bruce's lawyer handled everything, and he didn't even take any cut for himself.
Since the man was almost a billionaire, he didn't really care about the money, only the fame.
WPPV– The Point Place TV channel, wanted me to stop posting the videos in the public access network
and instead use their crew to film and air it at their tv channel.
I rejected them completely since I didn't want anyone else handling the camera.
They relented and gave me the deal since my TransAm versus Celica special was watched 4.5 million times, that included the reruns and new channel syndication.
Bruce's lawyer went to Ohio, Minnesota, Michigan, Iowa, South and North Dakota, Illinois, Indiana
and Nebraska to promote the 45 minute special. I didn't know how much I could get from all of the
ads revenue from the race.
But even with the 30,000 dollars, the money was already enough for me to get started on the next
project.
Right now, I have 50,000 dollars in my account. It would be a long path till I return to my wealth
level in 2025 where I got over 150 million dollars.
Eric was excited after hearing about my tv deal and asked, "Can I help? And get some salary?"
"Well, I do need another cameraman." I said casually. "I'm on it." Eric agreed instantly.
…
The next day at school, Eric spread the rumors about the contest as per my instruction.
It was my last day of having a break from school.
'My final part of the plan. I didn't have to do anything more for a year once I did this.'
I didn't go to the cafe.
I didn't go to the autoshop. I went to an office. The place was small, but it was located in the town center. The rent was 300 per month.
A narrow office space near downtown Point Place, with a glass front and clean signage.
[Mr Jekyll Marketing Agency & Flyer Design. Photocopy service also provided]
There was a faint smell of coffee in the air. A small coffee maker sat on a side table for the
employees, next to stacked paper cups and sugar packets. Also, a water dispenser next to the potted plant.
The place has a waiting area, a pickup area, and a button maker.
"Sir Hyde." The office lady, a 20 year old red-head with curly hair and freckles on her face smiled
at me and rushed to greet me at the door.
She looked kinda like the lady from Stranger Things, the one who was in a coma– Max. Her name was Maxine.
"Is Randy in?" I asked.
It wasn't the Randy from the bank, it wasn't the Randy in that 70s Show season 8, it was another
Randy, which made me think there were so many Randy in the town.
So far, I have met 20 people whose names were Randy.
This Randy has an average build, wore a suit, and has a mustache on his face. He also has sideburn
and feathered hair.
"Boss." Randy greeted me with a handshake. "We have three orders for flyers. You did check it out,
right?"
"I'm done with the design." I told him and took out three prototypes. "Go and meet the business
owner. If they said okay, we can print it out today."
"Alright. I'll be done before ten." He said quickly and rushed away in his Datsun 280Z. Yes, that
was the car I sold. That's how I came to know him.
I entered the 'backroom' of the office with Maxine and asked, "Have you familiarized yourself with
the photocopier?"
"Yes. It's pretty simple." Maxine replied. "Good. Copy this for me."
It was a test for her. I also wanted to print some flyers for the school.
Maxine used the Brother's office photocopier to print the training notes I made for the autoshop.
My appraisal gave me a lot of details about the cars I've scanned so I printed them out at times
for my workers to refer to.
Maxine printed out the notes and collated it. I entered the 'backroom' inside the backroom where a
large machine was.
I used the industrial 2016 Konica machine printer privately. It was really big, and fast too. The
glossy flyers paper was inside, and I inserted the USB drive into the digital screen.
I got it for 7000 dollars, and the Brother's printer for 2000 dollars. So I spent only 1800 dollars
in 1977 money for the machines.
I charged 30 cents per color flier, and 5 cents per black and white copy. I wanted to keep it
competitive since other shops charged 35 cent to 50 cent per color prints.
Mine was of a higher quality in everything therefore I attracted a lot of attention from the big
business.
I already got an order for 10,500 flyers and printed everything using the machine instead of sending it to a printing store online.
The bank where Victoria worked before ordered 30,000 copies to send out in the Kenosha and Green Bay area and they needed it today. So I printed it out too.
The cost of one flyer printed was 0.02 cent for the glossy paper, and 0.02 cent for the ink.
My cost was $1620. The clients paid, $12150 just for the papers, and that didn't include the design
services.
In total, I made 10,530 dollars, just by printing flyers in one week. That's how I could afford the
employees here and rent a new place.
The design work earned me another 500 dollars. I also worked with some models, so there's a cost
for that too, paid by the clients, not me.
In one week, the office gained me $11,030. We have 3 contracts now, and the word of mouth was
spreading like wildfire.
Even the photocopier earned me about 500 dollars per week since the print quality was really good.
Maxine worked for 3.5 dollars per hour, which was pretty high for an office lady, and Randy has a
college degree, so he took away 4.5 dollars per hour. They worked for 8 hours a day, Monday to
Friday.
That took away only 320 dollars from my weekly profit. I'm even planning to hire a delivery guy here to make stuff easier.
The bell rang as someone entered the office. I was quite shocked when I saw who it was.
"Brooke?"
"Steven?"
She was astonished when she saw me there. She wore a long skirt and red blouse today. Her hair was
tied up into a bun, like a sexy librarian.
"Are you stalking me now?" I teased as I placed the flyers down.
Brooke saw the flyers and realized, "Oh. You're here to get your flyers. That makes sense."
I raised an eyebrow, feeling like she didn't hear me.
"Boss, do you know each other?" Maxine suddenly came out from the backroom with the training
guides.
"Boss?" Brooke was shocked.
Maxine nodded and said casually, "Yeah Brooke. He's the boss here. You know him?"
"Um… Steven. How many businesses are you running?" Brooke asked with disbelief.
I laughed and said, "I don't even know."
Brooke came here to pick up the button pins for the library. Maxine gave her a box and said, "It's
50 dollars."
"It's cheaper than the other place." Brooke said, even though she was talking with Max, her eyes
glanced at me a few times.
I leaned on the desk beside her while I sipped on a coffee lazily. "What's with the button?" I
asked her.
"It's to bring people into the library." Brooke replied. "Your boss asked you to do it?"
"No. I'm using my own money," Brooke said, holding up one of the buttons.
It was small and round, with a cheerful little tree made of books in the center. Around the top
rim, the words curved in a friendly font: 'Point Place Public Library.' Along the bottom, in matching letters, it read: 'Please Come and Visit Us.'
"Doesn't this scream out, desperation?" I teased as I pointed at the lower text.
Brooke blushed and got a bit angry. Maxine laughed and said, "It does look desperate."
"Do you have any other ideas?" Brooke snapped, embarrassed.
"Come and See the Wonders." I replied easily.
"That's… is better, damn it." She cursed slightly, but smiling. I laughed and said, "Max. Don't
charge Brooke for this."
"What?" Brooke widened her eyes in shock. Maxine just smiled and whistled knowingly.
Brooke blushed and said, "Shut up."
"By the way, you girls know each other?" I asked casually.
"We're in the same class." Maxine replied.
"Steven. You don't have to give it to me for free." Brooke said to me, even though she was slightly
smiling.
"It's fine. And also Brooke. A word of advice. If your boss didn't ask for you to do it, don't waste
your own money to do your marketing." I sipped on the coffee casually.
Brooke's face tightened and her eyes flashed anger, "What, I can't even get kids to go to the
library with my own initiative? I thought you're different, but you're just like my boss."
"So I assume he has rejected your idea before?" I asked her as she was angrily picking up the box
and put 50 bucks on the table, showing that she was rejecting my kindness.
"Yes! He never wants to do any of my ideas. I'm smart, I'm the school's Valedoctarion. But all he
can see is a pretty face on a nice body." She complained.
"That's quite shameless to talk about your own beauty like that." I said with a half smile and
teased, "I mean, you're not wrong, but still."
She blushed, slightly taken aback by the compliment. "I don't want to hear that from you."
"Alright. But you're going to want to hear this from someone who knows corporate culture, even
though it's a public institution sector."
She paused for a bit.
I nodded slowly. "Right. Then here's the thing. Corporate structure is not a suggestion. Even if
you think it's cute or helpful. If it goes wrong, or if people see it as unnecessary, that's on you."
"But it's my own money." She argued.
"That makes it worse." I exclaimed.
I put the cup down and said, "The system doesn't reward good intentions. It rewards control over
resources. Your boss rejected the idea before? That wasn't personal. He's playing the same game I'm describing. You ignoring it just sets you up for trouble.
Brooke's face tightened. "It's a public library, Steven. It's supposed to be about the community!"
"Community still has funding, oversight, and approvals," I said evenly. "Where do you think your
salaries are coming from? The place has a budget, and your boss controls it.
I walked closer to her and looked into her eyes. "Doing this without permission, even with the best
intentions, can look reckless. Not brave. Not clever. Just risky.. You might think you're showing initiative, but in practice, you're just taking all the risk."
She was flabbergasted, "So… you're saying I'm being naive?"
"No," I said calmly. "You did good. Taking initiative like that."
"Huh?"
The abrupt change made her confused.
I explained, "It showed you really care about your job and the community. That's very admirable."
My voice turned serious, "But if your boss felt slighted, or undermined since you didn't follow his
order, he might punish you, or fire you. Worse, he'll expect you to do it again, and he didn't have
to pay anything for it. Ever. You'll be taken advantage of by his shrewdness."
Brooke's eyes shook, she finally understood what I was talking about.
"I don't know what kind of boss he is. Maybe he's actually nice and will take your initiative
kindly. But if I were you, I'm not going to take the risk."
Her face softened, "Um. I get what you're saying. But… I also want to do this."
"So, let me help." I said with a charming smile. "I'll donate these to the library under my name.
You keep your initiative without taking the hit."
Brooke blinked, caught off guard. "You… you'd do that?"
I smirked, "Yeah. Just tell him I'm your friend and I surprised you with it since you've been
complaining so much."
"Oh…" Brooke exclaimed flatly. " I'll say that. But if he loves it–"
"You can take credit. I don't really care about that."
Brooke finally smiled again. "Okay. Then, I guess. Thanks?"
"You're welcome." I yawned and checked my watch. "You're leaving now?" Maxine asked me.
"Yeah, I need to go to the autoshop."
"Hey Steven." Brooke called me after thinking for a while. "Should we go grab lunch together?"
"What?" I widened my eyes slightly in surprise.
Maxine teased, "Brooke. That's so bold."
"I-I'm not asking you out. Just some lunch to say thank you for the buttons. I'll buy." She paused, her face anxious as she waited for an answer.
"I don't really have any lunch plan. I'm planning to eat some instant noodles in the autoshop. But
since you're buying. Okay, let's go to lunch."
Brooke beamed up slightly. "Pick me up at the library at 12?" "I actually don't know where the
public library is, but I'll be there." I replied playfully.