Chapter 8 First Purchase

Ben couldn't help but smile as he watched Peter laugh with his friend Ned as they talked about the most recent episode of Family Guy.

He couldn't help but think about how the young boy had entered their lives that fateful night. It was meant to be a night like any other for the young couple but they were soon proven wrong as his brother showed up unannounced with his wife and child.

They seemed nervous and in a hurry, as they quickly left Peter behind. He had tried to stop them to get answers but Richard being the stubborn brother that refused to go into detail about anything and merely told him to take care of Peter.

Ben still regretted not trying harder to stop his brother that night and wished he could have spent more time with Richard. How could he have known that he would never see his brother again?

All he can do now is keep his promise and take care of Peter.

Knock knock knock

"Ben, can you check who's at the door?" Shouted May from the kitchen as she added the final touches to their meal.

Raising from his seat he quickly made his way to their home's entrance and was surprised to see a boy he didn't recognize. He looked to be around Peter's age and was quite similar in appearance as well with a skinny figure.

"How can I help you?" Ben asked wanting to get straight to the point

…

"How can I help you"

The man at the door was quite tall and well unlike any Ben I had seen before in movies. His frame was straight and to be honest, even a bit built as he gave off the vibe of a military man.

I even hesitated for a moment wondering if this was really Uncle Ben.

Could Aunt May be having an affair? I thought but quickly discarded the Idea.

"Nice to meet you sir I'm Kol Dagon Peters friend at school"

Ben looked a bit surprised at hearing this but brushed it aside.

"Really? Should have said so sooner come on in"

Ben led the way as I followed behind examining their home. It was a small apartment but it somehow felt larger than what it truly was.

There were family photos all along the walls sharing various points of Peter's life. However, the main thing I noticed was how warm it felt here not in the physical sense but emotionally It made you feel comfortable.

Reaching the dining room I saw the table decorated with vibrant dishes that smelled quite good. Peter and Ned were also there and seemed happy that I arrived on time.

Peter ran up to me first as he showed me to my seat where I was soon greeted by the third member of Peter's family, Aunt May. Who looked exactly like her counterpart in the MCU and was just as beautiful as I remembered.

I couldn't help but look at Uncle Ben and think, you lucky dog.

He seemed to notice my gaze and even had the gal to smile broadly as if saying 'Yea I got her'.

"Hi nice to meet you, you must be Peter's new friend at school." Aunt May said in a cheery tone as she placed down the last dish.

"Yeah, that would be me. I'm Kol Dagon. It's nice to meet you, Peter's Aunt." I spoke in a respectful tone

"Haha no need to call me Peter's aunt you can just call me May and that big loaf over there Is Ben you can address him the same way."

"Alright thank you for the hospitality May and Ben"

With greetings out of the way, we gave grace and quickly got into our meals which didn't last long as the room was more filled with the sounds of talking rather than eating.

During this, I was able to learn more about this version of Ben and it seemed my instincts were right with Ben having served in the Military for a period of his life. However, now he works with a group that mentors those who have PTSD.

Aunt May also spoke a bit about her life. She works in the hospital's reception and even manages a nonprofit organization.

They asked me a bit about myself as well which soon brought them into a tough position when they learned that I was an orphan and had been living alone for a while now.

Both immediately offered to help in any way but I quickly refused their offers. However, I was greatly thankful for the thought. They both were truly good people.

"Well, Kol I understand you don't want help. I was young once too. However, just know that if you ever need anything just let us know. It's okay to ask for help sometimes."

"Hn, if I ever do I will"

Ben simply gave me a nod back appreciating that I accepted his advice and didn't reject it this time.

"So Kol what do you want to do after High School?" Aunt May asked with a bit of curiosity.

Her question was also pretty valid considering this was our last year in school.

I took a moment to think about it and even wondered if I should avoid this question because I didn't doubt she would be surprised by my reply. Hell, she reminds me of Gwen and I'm pretty sure she will harass me if she doesn't like the answer.

In the end, I decided the truth was best, lies almost always come back to bite you in the back.

"I plan on building a tech company"

The room froze still for a moment as everyone contemplated my ambition. Peter and Ned looked back and forth with one another as if saying 'Did you know this' 'Nah he never told me either'.

May and Ben on the other hand looked a bit nervous on how to proceed. As experienced adults, they knew life was tough, and young entrepreneurs usually don't last long.

Yet they also didn't want to shoot me down right away as sometimes shooting someone's dreams down is worse than failure.

Ben decided to step in at this point and looked ready to give me his sagely advice despite barely meeting me today.

"Kol are you sure about this? You must know the road ahead will be harsh."

"Yeah and your grades are all F's" Peter said out loud

Peters's outburst seemed to push May and Ben's perspective of it not being a good idea a bit further.

"Yea, I'm sure and you're right Peter my grades aren't the best but grades are not everything."

"Hmm, you're right that grades aren't everything… but for you to bring up a tech company specifically you must already have something in mind."

"That's right," I said as I thought back to my purchase a while ago.

…

[Host, do you confirm your first purchase?]

[Yes/No]

"Yes"

[Purchase Confirmed Unlocking Halo Programming knowledge]

Images soon began flashing in my mind like an endless river. It felt quite similar to the experience I had with unlocking this body's memories but at the same time so much more.

Instead, it was more specific on various coding languages and their uses. As well as numerous programming techniques and software that were ahead of this world's time.

Even one of the Firewalls I learned at this moment could be sold for hundreds of millions and I received multiple versions with various points of strengths and weaknesses.

However, even with this I soon realized that this also had limitations. The computers of today simply couldn't handle all the programs I knew, maybe one that belonged to corporations like Stark would work.

Except those weren't exactly available to the public but still this was more than enough to set myself up with a comfortable future.