Chapter 11: Party
All this time, I lied to myself.
I didn't do any of this for my wife, like I said. That was just an excuse. A web of lies to soothe the ache of wasted time.
I did it for myself, and I failed.
I couldn't move the needle within the Johnson family. I had no support.
Even Sam, the family's own blood and my trusted friend, couldn't shift the tides.
But this time, I can be the king of my own castle. I can build a financial empire from scratch. There is no need to lick the asses of the ones high up to seize what I desire—to grasp the reins of power.
Hell, I can swallow the Johnson family whole.
In 2034, their fortune totaled 390 billion dollars. They were said to be the seventh wealthiest comglomerate publicly, but truth be told, they didn't even crack the top ten.
Some of the powers weren't even public. Taking charge of the world from the dark.
For now, I need to wait until I have enough money to start. But I'm determined to build a conglomerate that can compete with those who've been holding on to their wealth for centuries.
Lost in those thoughts, I didn't even realise when I reached the clothing store.
I stepped in, dazzled by its twinkling lights that danced on the wet tiled floor, looking like a hazard waiting to happen. There wasn't even a warning sign.
I quickly grabbed a pair of relaxed-fit jeans with a slightly faded wash and a black t-shirt made of thicker cotton. I also picked out nylon running shorts with retro stripes and a sweatshirt.
With my items in hand, I headed to the counter. The shop assistant wasn't there initially; she was helping another customer but hurried over as soon as she noticed me.
She was a beauty—about 5' 8" (1.73m), with a head of blonde hair falling down over her shoulders and blue eyes. She had a trim waist and big breasts.
As she swiftly came around the counter to assist me, I could just make out the panty lines under her grey jeans.
'She has a cute bottom for a woman in her thirties.' I thought.
I definitely wasn't an ascetic; I would appreciate a good-looking lady if I saw one, but the hormones made it harder to resist.
I needed to remind myself that I was in a kid's body.
The big smile on her face didn't help, as I had a thing for blue eyes and beautiful smiles.
"89.99, Sir," she quickly said as she efficiently scanned my items.
I smiled and handed over the money. She opened the cash drawer to retrieve my change and handed it over to me.
"Have a nice day," I said warmly on the way out.
"You too," she replied with a grateful look.
As I left the shop and started making my way home, my Nokia started ringing and vibrating in my pocket. I quickly pulled it out and answered.
"Yo! Bro! Can you talk? Are you in jail?" Jacob's voice crackled through the phone.
"Chill out. I'm not in jail," I replied.
"You escaped or something?"
"Nothing like that. It was a misunderstanding that I have settled already."
"Dude, the police were in school after you left. They wanted to know what happened. It was kind of cool. We asked if you were going to jail, but the officer wouldn't say," Jacob was very excited.
"Anyway, as soon as they knew what really happened, I went home," I explained.
"You're a celebrity, man. Everyone at school was talking about you," he then swiftly changed the subject. "Hey, dude, speaking of hype, the party at Adrian's crib is in an hour. We gotta go."
I hesitated, "Right... I don't think I want to, though."
"Are you messing with me? It's gonna be totally rad. You gotta be there. Don't tell me you're grounded or some shit."
"No, I'm not grounded."
"Come on, man. Don't leave me hanging. I can't hit it up without you," Jacob pleaded.
"What do you need me for? Don't you party every day? High on weed and hitting on girls?"
" . . . "
Silence.
"Alright, man. I'll be at your place in 20 minutes," I conceded, knowing Jacob was counting on me.
I was not excited about going to a party where most of the people there were underage, but I needed to save him from embarrassing himself.
As I walked, I quickly typed out a message to my dad: "Hey Dad, Just letting you know, I got invited to a party with Jacob. I'll be back before 11. Sorry, can't leave him alone."
After getting to Jacob's house, I quickly changed into my new clothes and left my backpack there. We headed out and a few minutes later we walked over to the house where they were holding the party.
Jacob was visibly stressed out. Poor boy.
I could hear the deafening music from a few streets away.
I'd heard that high school parties in Florida could get crazy, but I was rarely invited to the big ones.
A few kids were milling around on the front lawn, and the doors were wide open.
"Jack!" some random guy I didn't know called out to me before we even got through the door.
I ignored him and walked into a crowd of teens jumping to crunk hip-hop music blaring from the speakers.
It was a wild party, that was for sure.
There were a few guys scattered around, drinking beer on the couch, stairs and in the kitchen.
Some dude was standing on a table, pouring beer into a funnel connected to a tube, filling someone up.
"Yo, what do we do?!" Jacob asked loudly over the music.
"We go and grab ourselves a beer," I replied, motioning towards the kitchen.
We elbowed our way through and got into the kitchen.
There was A LOT of booze. These guys were no strangers to alcohol. 10% of alcohol in the USA was consumed by minors.
I grabbed a beer for myself and tossed one to Jacob.
He looked at it skeptically, "I think it's a bit too early for this."
"Come on, you gotta get into the party spirit," I encouraged him.
"Jack, you're here!" Ashley Cooper, the dark-skinned girl with long blonde hair who had invited us to this party walked up to us.
"Yeah, we helped ourselves to some beer, hope that's cool," I said casually.
"Of course, of course, drink all you want. Adrian is freaking loaded. He's paying for all of this," Ashley said with a grin.
I just noticed, but she was wearing a black dress with lace around the edges that barely reached her upper thigh.
It revealed... well, a lot.
I don't know what this girl was thinking wearing such clothes.
"Oh snap, you're here too, Jacob," Ashley said, checking out my friend, who had his hair slicked back with gel and a mouth full of beer.
He looked at her blankly for a moment, then slowly raised his hand with an awkward wave.
Gifts
-- Gift
received Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone