Chapter 19: Fulfilling
Aiden hung up his work attire, a thin smile on his lips.
Arms folded gently across his chest, he simply stared at it for a while, a glint of pride in his eyes.
Given how far he’d come since his first day on the job, it was only natural he was looking on with such pride.
Then there was the other reason for his current demeanor.
-
[Quest completed!]
⸢Exclusive Quests
› It’s The Hautest!!!
└ Serve a total of 1250 customers before the end of the month – [2 LP Awarded!]
-
Considering he’d barely managed attending to twenty-four customers on the very first day on the job, it was still very surreal to him that he’d become so proficient at it towards the end that sixty to seventy customers a day felt like another day.
"We’re gonna miss you, man." Cody soon walked over and offered a fist bump.
"For sure." Jermaine did the same as he came to a stop beside him.
Raising both of his arms, his curled fists bumping sideways with theirs, Aiden remarked;
"As will I."
For a moment, the trio said nothing, a sense of shared brotherhood lingering between them despite the limited time they’d know each other for.
Then Aiden broke the silence a brief while after.
"Well, then. I’d best be on my way." he smiled and said, to which they all shared a curt nod and headed out.
Running into Mrs. Bao in the corridor, the middle-aged lady smiled a warm smile as Aiden equally bid her farewell.
Just as he was about to exit the establishment after saying his goodbyes to everyone else a couple minutes after, David called out to him;
"Kid,"
"Here. Have this," the manager extended a $100 Haute Cuisine voucher to him.
"Redeemable at any time, any day, and any branch in the US. No expiry date, of course." he added.
Genuinely stunned by the gesture, especially since it was what some of their highest-paying regulars often got at the start of every month, Aiden received the coupon as the man continued;
"Honestly, you’re one of the best part-timers this branch of Haute Cuisine has ever had,"
"Your fellow co-workers, the regulars and a lot of customers really liked you too." David pocketed one of his hands while gesturing with the other;
"But considering we don’t allow tipping services given how high our menu prices already are in comparison to other restaurants, there was no way you would’ve gotten rewarded for your extra efforts."
"So, on behalf of everyone here at this branch of Haute Cuisine, thank you very much for your services." the man said, genuine respect in his tone.
"Oh and of course we’ll forward the rest of your earnings so you can be rest assured." he smiled and turned to take his leave to which Aiden promptly remarked, an appreciative smile on his lips.
"Thank you, David."
"Don’t mention it, kid. Enjoy your summer vacation... or at least what’s left of it anyway." the man waved him goodbye as he vanished around the corridor.
Feeling rather high-spirited, Aiden neatly pocketed the voucher and gently pushed open the back door, the hot afternoon sun welcoming him.
Yet, asides the light squint and a palm he raised to shade the rays from spilling into his eyes, Aiden’s olive-green irises remained tinged with warmth, as did his smile.
A few minutes later, he arrived at the construction site, his father and his colleagues currently on their self-proclaimed lunch et smoke break as they discussed a couple mundane things.
Seeing them all with plastic cups in their hands, a familiar sloshing liquid in a half-filled transparent five-liter gallon they’d placed aside, Aiden nodded in pride at his father’s gesture to his colleagues.
Afterall, ever since they’d been aware he was quitting drinking and smoking, and that he and his son had brewed some homemade, non-alcoholic brandy, they’d been rather curious to try it out.
And when most of them eventually had, they had liked it so much they’d requested for more... one Aiden had his father genuinely had no qualms catering to.
Walking over to greet them though, Aiden couldn’t help but ponder to himself;
’We could really make something worthwhile out of it...’
’A non-alcoholic brandy company, perhaps?’ he thoughtfully rubbed his chin.
’We could also try making some non-alcoholic beers too, to boot...’ he curiously tilted his head.
’That’d be nice...’ he smiled to himself, his vision for the business nothing more than an idea at the moment.
Afterall, that was the kind of business one got into after they had enough resources to test the waters without feeling sour if it didn’t work out.
Resources he still needed to work his ass of for to reach before he could even consider taking a step towards it.
Still, Aiden slotted it to the back of his mind. He’d circle back to it eventually.
"Oh hey, Champ!" Richard soon greeted upon noticing his son’s arrival.
In sync, his fellow colleagues followed up, each of them greeting the young chap. Aiden, in kind, reciprocated their greetings in a warm and respectful manner.
"So, how was your last day on the job?" Richard curiously asked as he and his son made their way over to his makeshift office.
"Fulfilling," Aiden admitted.
"Very fulfilling."
...
...
...
Aiden sat by his laptop, staring at the total funds on the dashboard on his gig-site.
Given he’d managed to round up a total of six commissions this week in addition to the previous twenty-four, all of which he’d done for $45 per commission, he currently had a total of $1,350 he had yet to withdraw.
Casually withdrawing the funds though and ensuring that the transaction had gone through, he then closed the laptop’s lid gently, a light smile on his visage.
Climbing into his bed, he promptly dozed off a couple minutes after, his entire being craving for some well-earned rest.
The very next day, he woke up feeling very refreshed as he stretched out his arms, his system updating in sync.
Yet, despite being a lazy Saturday, he quickly got off to completing his regimen, his muscles having already adapted to it.
Upon rounding up the 10km run forty minutes later, the life system updated as usual. Only this time, it brought a rather pleasing notification with it.
-
[Quest completed!]
[Stats updated!]
-
Though Aiden was itching to check it, he instead held off, opting to knock out all of his quests for the day before he pulled up the interface to assess the changes.
Yet, no sooner had he taken a bathe whilst freshening up a couple minutes after, his phone pinged with two distinct notification tunes.
Picking up the device, Aiden’s expression was yet again one of immense pride as he stared at his bank accounts.
-
[Bank Alert]
Incoming Transfer: +$840.00 USD
Sender: Haute Cuisine Restaurant
Reference: Bi-weekly Staff Payroll
Status: Completed
Previous Balance: $3422.00 USD
Updated Balance: $4262.00 USD
-
[Wallet Notification]
You’ve received $1350.00 USD from XXXX.
Previous Balance: $1040.00 USD
Current Balance: $2390.00 USD
Thank you for using SwiftPay.
-
Given he’d began working on Fridays for the past month, Aiden’s work hours per week had shot up from 28 hours to 35 hours.
To that effect, it then made perfect sense that his biweekly wage had increased from $672 to $840.
However, since he’d only being paid the first half two weeks ago, and still hadn’t withdrawn his funds from the gig site, he hadn’t met the $5,000 quota to complete his quest.
Now though,
-
[Ding!]
[Quest completed!]
⸢Time-limited Quests
› Hot diggity dog!
└ Make $5000 before the end of the summer break – [1 LP Awarded!]
-
He had finally completed the quest!
Feeling a genuine sense of achievement, Aiden casually dismissed the interface, a light hum escaping his lips as he made his way down the stairs to make the morning meal.
Spotting his father as he slid down the polished, wooden railing, Richard remarked in amusement;
"Mornin’, Champ. What’s got you in such great spirits?"
"I just got paid, that’s what!" Aiden wiggled his head as he did a little dance into the kitchen.
That earned a genuine laugh from his Pops who simply pulled out a jar of coffee as Aiden retrieved the ingredients from the freezer, a pep in his step as he began preparing their breakfast.
Half an hour later, he and his old man were done eating, and once again, his system updated.
Yet, it wasn’t until he’d knocked out his last quest for the day--his reading session--that he finally pulled up the system.
-
[Aiden North] – Life Points – [6.64]
⸢Stats
› Mind — D+
› Strength — E- » E
› Stamina — E
› Agility — F » F+
› Charm — C+
⸢Skills
› {Type Designing - A}, {Digital Illustration - I}, {Drawing - I}, {Cooking - I}, {Brewing - I}.
⸢Shop
› Browse Catalogue.
⸢Daily Quests
› {Expand}
⸢Exclusive Quests
› Pending Update.
⸢Time-limited Quests
› {Expand}
-
⸢FAQ⸥
-
’Definitely an effect of my new regimen...’ Aiden nodded to himself as he peeped his updated stats.
Still, he was more interested in the Life Points he had accumulated thus far.
Asides from the combined total of 3 LPs he’d gotten for completing his exclusive and time-limited quests, Aiden also hadn’t touched his daily LPs for the past thirty days and three weeks.
Considering he gained a total of 0.05 LP for the past fifty-one days in total, it had rounded up his gains to 2.55 LPs.
All that, in addition to his previous 1.09 LPs, was what made a combined total of 6.64 LPs.
In any case, staring at said Life Points, Aiden couldn’t help but rub his palms together in genuine excitement.
Given how much he’d been hoarding them, it was high time he got around to using them.
Still, Aiden chose to be smart about what he wanted.
Afterall, he still had to keep in mind that he might need his LPs for an emergency. Hence, he knew better than to dump them all into his stats or get a useless skill he might ultimately never end up utilizing.
Mulling over it for a bit, Aiden soon settled on the stats he wanted to upgrade;
-
[Aiden North] – Life Points – [1.64]
⸢Stats
› Mind — D+ » C
› Strength — E
› Stamina — E » D-
› Agility — F+
› Charm — C+ » B-
-
With summer vacation ending tomorrow and school resuming the day after, Aiden was more than assured of his decision to upgrade those stats in particular, especially his Mind attribute.
As for the Charm attribute...
Well, who could blame him really. Aiden was still a teenager. It made perfect sense that he’d want to prioritize his looks.
Which was why, it didn’t take him long to find himself before his mirror.
’Oh wow...’ his pupils dilated in pleasant surprise.
Reflected in the mirror was a face clear of pimples and blemishes, its pores small, clear, and uncluttered.
And though Aiden had to admit that was largely in thanks to the healthier meals he’d been consuming and his good sleep schedule, he couldn’t deny the obvious changes.
His eyes were notably brighter, his jaw a bit more defined, his face leaner, his nose just a tad bit more angular and his cheekbones, slightly higher than he remembered them to be.
His face looked much the same, yes... but all of his features seemed to have undergone a subtle uplift that cumulated in an overall elevation of his face card.
Obviously glad to see it, Aiden’s olive-green irises soon landed on his long, shoulder length, coal-black locks.
Typically, he tended to keep it because... well... spending roughly $35 to not just cut, but also maintain the style he wanted every six to eight weeks left a bitter taste in his mouth.
Also, he hadn’t wanted to bother his Pops. The man already had enough on his plate as is.
However, now that he had his own funds....
Aiden ran a hand through it, and pressed the locks against his nape for a few seconds, his olive-green irises staring back at him.
Then, coming to a decision a few seconds later, he muttered to himself;
"Alright, haircut it is."
