Can I Have Some Money?

One of the customers said in annoyance, "What the hell are you doing, kid? Can't you just take a seat? This is a goddamn gaming store, not some amusement park. Sit your asses out or leave if you aren't going to use the computer!"

"Who are you to talk to me? It's my right to do this; what are you babbling about?" Jerome retorted.

When he saw that Jerome had no intention of backing down, he pressed a button on his desk, and Gerard arrived shortly after.

"What's the matter?" Gerard was surprised by this function; he didn't know it existed, but since his computer indicated this seat meant there was some problem here, at least that's what he understood.

"Who are you?" The customer obviously didn't recognize Gerard. He was a regular here, and this is the first time he has seen Gerard; even earlier, when he arrived, there was no such man working in this place.

"I'm Gerard; I was hired by Bandit a while ago, and that's the same time I started working here. You can hope to see me from now on; so what's supposed to be the problem here? The owner has some business to do, so I am the one in charge here," Gerard asked, but seeing Jerome on the side meant the brat had done something.

He obviously didn't know that Jerome had been walking around the shop, and after leaving Jerome alone, he just spent his time listening to music.

"Is that so? Since the owner is not here, I'll let you handle this. This boy right here has been messing around; he has seen all the nooks and crannies of this place. Ask anyone in this store, this guy has been bothering us for as long as he arrived. He doesn't even want to apologize and sit this one out; instead, he insists on arguing it out with me." The customer explained.

"What are you doing?" Gerard understood the situation, but he still needed to consider the other side, well, just to have order. He wouldn't do so otherwise considering Jerome's spoiled attitude.

"What am I doing? Aren't I just taking a look? What's the problem with that?" Jerome remarked.

"What you're doing is fine, but keep it to the point where you're not bothering others; even if you're a spoiled brat, you should act your age," Gerard said.

"What do you mean, spoiled brat? I didn't do anything and just watched; what do you mean I'm a disturbance?" Jerome accused.

"Sit on your place or leave; that's the rule," Gerard has had enough, and it appears that Jerome is beyond reason. Actions speak louder than words.

"Uh, wait and see; I'll get you later," Jerome grunted and hastily went back to his seat.

Gerard didn't take note of Jerome's threat; he shrugged it off and went back to his seat. He sighed and went back to listening to songs.

After an hour, the woman who had a meeting with Bandit came downstairs, with Bandit following soon after.

They had a small talk.

"Thanks for giving me time for today. Even though we didn't reach an agreement, I hope we can still do business some other time, and may our relationship still be positive." The woman reached out her hand, and Bandit accepted.

"Jerome! We're leaving now!" she called.

Jerome rushed towards the woman, clearly not wanting to be in the shop any longer. This was evident due to his eyes; they were fixated on Gerard, but the latter didn't notice it, though this was not hidden from the eyes of the woman, who gave a curious look, and Bandit, who gave a slight smile.

The man in question has been listening to music for an hour. Sure, there were two more people who came, and three people left, but it was still a pretty easy job—nothing that he can't do easily.

"Let's go," Jerome said to the woman as he walked towards the door, still glaring angrily at Gerard.

"We'll see ourselves out." The woman waved goodbye.

After a few minutes, when the duo was nowhere in sight, Bandit spoke.

"What happened?"

"Why is the little dude mad? Did you do something indecent?" Bandit chuckled.

"What do you mean indecent? Didn't you see the clothing and the accessories he had? Plus his attitude, that's a 100% spoiled rich kid," Gerard grumbled.

"He went on to disturb your dear customers; how dare I let such a scumbag off without me letting off my steam. I won't be able to face you if your customers start running away," Gerard explained.

"You're overthinking things; my customers won't leave that easily; I've got a firm grip on them," Bandit laughed.

After that, Bandit went upstairs, and Gerard resumed his work, though he didn't get much done because no more customers arrived.

Lunchtime.

Gerard yawned—not too much work, but he felt so tired and sleepy. He wanted to take a nap already, but his stomach's influence was much greater. He was hungry; it was evident from the rumbling of his stomach.

"Uh! I'm so hungry, I forgot that I haven't had breakfast yet." Gerard was so excited about the salary that he forgot that when he woke up he already went outside to find some cash.

At this time, Bandit returned back down to the lobby.

"Go take a lunch; I'll be keeping watch in exchange."

"What about you?"

"I already ate earlier when I went back upstairs. Take your time."

"Um, can I ask you something?" Gerard questioned hesitantly.

"Sure, what is it?" Bandit was curious.

"Can I have some money? I'm totally broke right now, and I didn't even eat breakfast earlier; as soon as I woke up, I immediately went outside and searched for a place where I can earn cash," Gerard pleaded.

"Is that all?" Bandit laughed, earning a questioning look from Gerard.

"The truth is, I was planning to give you a holiday bonus since you started the same day as you were hired and also because you are working so enthusiastically," Bandit revealed.

What? Enthusiastically? Me? Really? Gerard was full of doubt. He sat in his chair for an hour, listening to music; he barely worked because only two customers arrived for him to accommodate. The only time he stood up was when he greeted the two from Smith Co. and also when he reprimanded Jerome.

By no means was he enthusiastic about it; he was more on the relaxed side and didn't give a s**t about it. Though he wouldn't say this out loud, he only kept it to himself.

"Really?"

"Of course, do I sound like I'm joking? But is it me, or am I just feeling that you're mocking me in your head?" Bandit joked.

This caused Gerard to perspire. "Mocking you? No, how would I dare?" He was having a mental breakdown. Is Bandit's power similar to his? Does he have a system? Can he read minds? Does he know I have a system? Oh s**t!

Bandit didn't know what was going on in Gerard's brain; instead, he replied, "I'm just playing with you here."

Bandit gave Gerard an envelope, which the latter accepted.

He opened the envelope and discovered money amounting to a thousand dollars. This made Gerard nearly cry; he couldn't believe his new boss would treat him as such. He vowed not to disappoint him and to help Bandit if he became successful with his system.

"Thanks, boss!" Gerard was delighted.

"What boss? Just call me Bandit; we're the only people working here; there's no need for such formalities. It does not go with my style at all." Gerard responded.

"Ok…thanks, Bandit!" Gerard replied, then proceeded to hug Bandit. Gerard might have some pride, but if it's a sign of respect and thankfulness, we would even kneel and kowtow a hundred times for them.

"You're overreacting; you're really supposed to get this if you had come here much earlier than today. Treat this as a sign of appreciation. Now, since you're hungry and all, go."

"Thanks again!" Gerard exclaimed as he went outside.

Ah! the scent of fresh air. Gerard can't wait to spend his cash.

"I'll use 500 dollars to eat today and use the rest for stock trading."

You can't make money if you don't have a large amount of money. Who said that? Gerard was full of confidence. Does he have a target now? Of course he does. Gerard's scheme is about to be played.

Firstly, though, he needs to eat. ASAP.

He went on to search for a suitable restaurant, which he found after five minutes. The name of the restaurant was Bel's Cuisine. He went inside, not wasting another second.

As he opened the door, the bell rang, and he was greeted by the aroma of various foods, the essence of deliciousness, umami, filling his nostrils. How come he didn't know that this kind of restaurant existed, though he's not surprised since he doesn't really know anything about the city?

All you have to do is choose a food and eat it.