"That would be correct," I replied, extending my hand. "Jack Somnus."
Doyle eyed my hand briefly before extending his own.
We shook hands firmly.
"Doyle Johnson," he said coldly.
"He is my brother." Sam interjected.
I didn't break eye contact with Doyle. "It's great to et soone from Sam's family," I said.
Doyle stared down for a few seconds.
"Hmm... I appreciate the sentint," he finally said, "But let give you a little advice, Jack..." his voice was dripping with coldness. "Stay away from Sam. He will be better off without your ddling in his business."
'Two-faced motherfucker,' I thought.
"Well… that's yet to be seen," I replied, my tone steady.
The silence between us prevailed...
"Jack, why don't you leave us to talk?" Sam took the reins, calming the situation.
I glanced over at Doyle for the last ti. "It was a pleasure eting you, Sir. Johnson," I said with a little nod and then I left them, making my way downstairs.
There were a bunch of students huddled together at the exit because it was raining buckets outside.
I did go outside, but I waited by the wall of the faculty, under the underhang, where the rain couldn't reach.
Standing there, I watched the downpour.
A little over five minutes later, I saw Sam making his way out the exit door, tapping the floor with his white cane and holding a pack of cigarettes in his other hand.
By coincidence, he walked up to within two ters of .
He tucked his cane under his arm and, staring straight ahead, lifted the top off the cigarette pack.
He pulled out a long, slim cigarette, put it to his mouth, and then took out a lighter from his pocket.
"Since when were you smoking, Sam?" I asked.
He jumped in surprise, and the cigarette flew out of his mouth onto the ground. It rolled a little further until it hit the spot where the dry and wet concrete t.
"Fuck!" Sam yelled and then turned in my direction. "Jack, what are you doing here? I thought you left..."
"How was I supposed to leave in this weather?"
Sam quickly hid the cigarettes in his jacket.
"Don't hide it... Share one with ." I said.
He froze for a mont.
"Co on, don't be stingy. Hand one over."
He reluctantly pulled out a cigarette and handed it to .
"Give the lighter; I'll light one up for you," I told him.
He handed the lighter and put a cigarette in his mouth. I lit his cigarette first, then mine.
We stood there, two n smoking and watching the rain fall.
Well, at least I was watching the rain fall...
'Good tis...' I thought.
After a mont, I decided to co out and say what was on my mind. "I'm sorry for being blunt, Sam. But your brother is a douchebag."
Sam took out his cigarette and slowly turned his head to , then erupted in laughter.
"What's so funny?" I asked.
"Nothing..." he said, shaking his head.
"What did you talk with your brother about?" I asked.
Sam took a drag from his cigarette before replying. "He says that by granting you so much control in the company, I am poluting our family's blood and deminishing the hard work our family went through to get to where we are now."
"He is right," I said.
"What?" Sam looked taken aback.
"Your brother is right, but it's a rather close-minded train of thought. Sacrifices need to be made to continue growing. For instance, down the line, you might find it beneficial to rge your company with another, especially if the terms are favorable to you and less so for the other party. Clearly, you would achieve significant growth.
But you would also pollute the company and lose so control over it."
Sam shook his head. "That is not what my father believes in. "Make more money and acquire more companies."—those are the rules. He never cooperates with anyone."
'This was the one thing stopping their family from becoming a true behemoth.' I thought.
"Sam..." I let out a puff of smoke. "Tell . Who is in charge of the branch in Orlando, you or your father?"
"," he replied.
"Then make your own decisions. Your father gave it to you because he believed in you, not Doyle or anyone else in your family."
"Hmm..." He gave it so thought.
"And one more thing..." I said as I stubbed out my cigarette on the ground. "You should seriously consider hiring more bodyguards."
...
Later that day, I was taking a nap in my dorm room when my phone rang.
It was Alice Griffin.
We chatted for a while about her day, and I shared a few things about mine.
I wasn't naive. I knew exactly what this relationship was shaping up to be.
That's why it was ti for to speak to her about it directly, without beating around the bush.
And that intention was further aggravated by her next question.
"Jack... is there any chance we could et up sooner than a few months from now?"
"Alice, I need to tell you sothing, and it might not be what you want to hear."
"What is it?" A hint of concern edged her voice.
"I'm not really the type of guy you should look for if you want a committed relationship. I won't be able to give you what you might expect from ."
"What exactly are you saying? That you're not looking for a girlfriend?" she asked.
"That's a separate issue. The thing is, I'm a very carefree and loose person; at least that's how I see my life right now. I'm not looking for anything serious at the mont."
"So, you're saying you're a playboy?"
"No, I wouldn't put it like that... I'm not out there actively pursuing anyone."
"Oh, so you're kind of saying that won just fall into your lap, so you don't have to put in any effort?" I could hear so frustration in Alice's tone. "Alright... I get it. This definitely changes things."
"I didn't want to lead you on, Alice."
I heard Alice take a deep breath. "I still want to et you."
"Yes?" I asked, surprised.
Alice's voice softened. "Yeah. I an, you don't have a girlfriend, do you? And at least you're honest. Maybe I can still change your mind."
"Well... I have no problem eting with you."
"Great! So, when can we get together?"
"How about the beginning of December?"
"That sounds perfect."
After we talked for a while longer, I hung up the phone, walked up to my computer, and opened my brokerage account.
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[Axon Enterprise ($AXON)] [$3.84]
[% Gain: 0.3%]
------------
The stock that I would begin trading at the beginning of 2003 was currently sitting at $3.84, and that price probably wouldn't change for a while.
I also wanted to check the stock that Immortal Investnts should start accumulating in December.
------------
[Cal-Maine Inc. ($CALM)] [$1.96]
[% Gain: 0.0%]
------------
Not a single change could be seen on the price chart for several months now. The volu was also very insignificant.
However, with healthy profits and all the hype surrounding eggs, the company should start naturally rising by 2003.
When I get the money from the Super Bawl bet, I will find a way to transfer even more money to Immortal Investnt.
At that point, the company should be in full swing.
Should I create more shell companies?
Maybe in the future I could make an entire network all over the world...
After closing the brokerage account and making myself a coffee, I did what I always do: I visited my beloved market watch website to keep tabs on the market.
I took a sip and scanned the top headlines.
"PFFF!" I spat the coffee, splattering it all over my monitor.
"What in the FUCKING FUCK!"
I scrambled to grab a cloth, trying to clean up the ss while my mind was trying to comprehend what I had just read.
Finally, I sat down and took a deep breath, refocusing on the screen.
The top headline read: "US and China are to sign a Comprehensive Trade Partnership."
I clicked on the article.
"The countries are to boost trade volus by reducing tariffs on a wide range of goods, including electronics, textiles, and agricultural products."
"The countries are planning joint ventures in the technology and energy sectors and partnerships in infrastructure developnt."
"The analysts predict that Chinese yuan could start appreciating against the U.S. dollar as the agreent fosters increased trade and investnt between the two countries."
Why in the world would the US do this?
This makes no sense.
We already signed the Bilateral Trade Agreent with China in 1999... it was more than enough.
How does this benefit the United States in any way?
Even after the Bilateral Trade Agreent, there were many businesses all over US that were complaining about Chinese companies taking over their market.
Especially the financial, telecomunication and distribution markets were hit the hardest.
Due to that agreent, Chinese stocks were allowed to be listed on US stock markets.
It was because of this agreent that NetEase could be listed on Nasdaq, allowing to make bank on it.
But this agreent... I was starting to get scared.
I tapped my keyboard, quickly searching for Chinese stocks in the trade sector.
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[SINA Corporation ($SINA)] [$9.96]
[% Gain: 32.1%]
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Inc. ($SOHU)] [$2.96]
[% Gain: 21.9%]
------------
Things might not go the way I rembered they would.
The changes brought about by the CTP could be massive...
...
...
4 months later...
March 14th, 2003.
It was a Friday night.
I was in my room, lying on my bed, with a naked woman lying alongside .
I stared at the white ceiling, my mind busy plotting sothing big.
The woman stirred beside , throwing her arms around , burying her face in my shoulder and her leg over mine.
Her hair fell onto my face—a soft curtain of purple hair.
Yes, purple hair.
The woman lying beside was Hana's sister, Luna Park.
But how did this even happen?
It all started a week ago.
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