Locking In With My Life System

Chapter 40: Cocky

Seated by his desk, the monitor’s screen reflected in his olive-green irises, a mischievous smile was currently plastered on Aiden’s visage.

Moving his mouse across the mousepad from time to time, quiet clicks filled up the ambience of his room as the design on the screen looked more and more professional with every passing minute.

Adding some finishing touches here and there a few minutes later, Aiden then took the liberty of plastering their school’s logo onto the upper corner for good measure.

Once he was done, he leaned back into his chair with his palms clasped behind his head as he took in his magnificent handiwork.

Naturally, his smile progressively got more and more impish... only for him to realize he was having way too much fun, hence prompting an amused sigh to escape his lips.

Aiden had to admit. Casper was truly a mischievous mastermind. How his buddy had even conceived such elaborate pranks eluded him.

But what probably had him most impressed was how he managed to make it all in good faith, and not of the problematic sort.

It was also why, despite his natural inclination to be an ’Helicopter Mummy’ like the gang had so thoughtfully referred to him as, he was on-board with all the hijinks.

’The kids are gonna love this, but the staffs are probably gonna hate it.’ Aiden chuckled to himself as he stared at the flyer on the screen.

Then, leaning forwards, he pulled up the messenger app on his laptop and forwarded it to their group.

-

Aiden: [Scavenger hunt.jpg]

Casper: Hehehe boi!!

Clyde: Buddy, you’ve outdone yourself.

Larry: Spirit Week, here we come!

Benjamin: This time, we’re definitely getting detention.

Theo: Guys... let’s talk about this... please? (ᵕ ꩜ ꩜)

Aiden: Nope.

Casper: Nay.

Clyde: Never.

Larry: Not a chance.

Benjamin: Not in a million years.

Theo: (ᵕ ꩜ ꩜)

-

Though Aiden felt a tad bit sorry for the innocent Theo, he was just going to have to get used to their shenanigans.

Besides, if push came to shove, all five knew they’d rally together to keep him off the hook.

That said, as Aiden leaned back into the chair, his mind couldn’t help but drift back to the idea he’d had a couple hours ago.

Though Theo’s core idea was bound to be pretty addictive when they finally got around to making the full product, he couldn’t help but feel like the game itself needed an X-factor.

Something to make it stand out amidst the crowd.

Afterall, in an industry that was already oversaturated with an idea like theirs, they had to have something extra... meatier even... lest the core gameplay loop became stale and boring pretty fast.

In fact, bar none the only thing that was probably going to give them an edge right now--and what Aiden believed would at least give the game they were developing some level of baseline success--was the fact that he was steadily building a centric audience.

An audience that was not only bound to cross the fifty to hundred thousand follower mark in the coming months, but of whom majority would be interested in said game once he got around to marketing it.

And though it could also be argued that building a complete game without any shitty microtransactions was bound to also play a good hand in its overall success, Aiden knew better than to simply bank on goodwill.

Simply put, Aiden wanted the game to have some variety to it... the addictive kind of variety.

It was also why he had opted to take matters into his own hands without informing his buddies just yet.

To that effect, he pulled up his system, his probes mentally navigating over to the shop.

Soon, he found the skill he was after in the {Advanced} section of the shop.

-

› {Programming} – [10 LP].

└ Claim using 10 LPs?

-

Aiden visibly recoiled upon seeing the LPs he’d require to acquire the skill.

Though he’d expected the skill to be expensive, especially since he was in the {Advanced} section of the shop, he hadn’t expected it to be that expensive.

’Max LPs. Wow...’ Aiden inwardly remarked in a baffled tone as he dismissed the panel and pulled up the same skill in another section of the shop.

Given how high the required LP to get the skill in the {Advanced} section was, he didn’t even bother to check the {Intermediate} section.

Instead, he went straight to {Novice} section.

-

› {Programming} – [3 LP].

└ Claim using 3 LPs?

-

This time, Aiden wasn’t even surprised.

Still, he had at least hoped that he’d be able to get the skill now and upgrade it down the line.

Unfortunately, his current 1.43 LPs was quite pitiful.

Yet again, Aiden couldn’t help but be reminded of how grindy his system was.

Though he wasn’t certain of the future skills he might need, he had naturally come to the conclusion that they would only get more expensive as he progressed towards his goals.

And though he just happened to have the perfect quest to help him acquire the required Life Points to obtain the {Programming} skill, Aiden refused to be complacent.

Swiftly, he navigated over to ViewTube and began scouring the website for lessons and guides for an in-depth knowledge of what the Nimbus Engine was and how to use it.

Instead of biding his time and being completely dependent on his system to acquire the skills, he could also put in the effort to get to know what they were working with.

Given his increased rate of assimilation, it was even more fitting that he had come to that decision.

More than that though, Aiden was hoping that he could manage to acquire the skill on his own, then upgrade it with his LPs.

That, he believed, would be a more cost-effective approach to utilizing all the resources he currently had.

*

The days went by rather swiftly.

Through it all, Aiden’s schedule was utterly packed.

His normal schedule comprising of knocking out his daily quests, attending school, making time to hang out with his Pops and helping out with the chores at home was one thing.

Him juggling his bustling side-hustles, alongside keeping their little indie team organized and on track to have the game completed by March next year was another.

Added to that was the volunteer work he’d signed up for, all in an effort to have a robust portfolio and engage in more extra-curricular activities that would not only bolster his GPA, but also his college applications.

From helping around with the Student Council to decide and vet some decisions regarding certain events during Spirit Week and Homecoming, to moving props around at the behest of the art and crafts club, or outright been roped into another lettering commission by Megan, every single day was packed.

Fridays tended to offer a bit of a breather for him, especially since he had no AP classes. But even then, Aiden had dedicated the little free time he had during that day, alongside a good chunk of his weekends to learning about the Nimbus Engine, programming in general and a whole lot of game designing.

That said, the last week of August soon came around and there was an almost palpable sense of excitement in the air at Silverlake High for very obvious reasons.

Still yet to gain the skills he wanted, Aiden was currently strolling down the halls to reach the school gym.

Today was the day he’d been appointed to have his year book photo taken.

Unfortunately for him, his schedule had been so swamped, he’d completely forgotten that he would also have to drop a year book quote in the record after his picture was taken.

’I’ll figure something out, I guess.’ he ruffled his hair a bit, a resigned expression on his expression as he turned around a corner.

Just as he did, he ran into Lizzie whom was currently carrying a box of decorations.

"Aiden. Hi!" she beamed at him, her smile dazzling.

"Hey, Lizzie. What’s up?" Aiden reciprocated with a thin smile, his tone completely laid-back.

"Nothing much," she proceeded to walk next to him as he made his way down the hall, a cheery zing to her tone;

"Just, we haven’t talked much in recent memory. Figured we should maybe catch up--?"

The lady wasn’t even done saying those words when a rather attractive sophomore ran up to Aiden with her friends.

Slowly, her dainty hands unfurled a rolled cardboard with a lettering design that read ’Kissing Booth’, a small blush coloring her rosy cheeks as she asked;

"Aiden! Aiden! What, do you think of this?!"

Giving it a brief look-over, Aiden curiously remarked, a slightly amused smile on his lips;

"Ladies. How did that get approved?"

"Beats us!" the young girls cheerfully replied, all of them giggling in sync.

Shaking his head slightly, Aiden then pointed out with a finger, his tone thoughtful;

"I’d make Kissing just a touch larger, and leave a bit more space before Booth,"

"That way, the eye can easily catch the main word first before naturally dropping to the second. Makes it easier to spot from a distance too." he explained, a light smile touching his lips.

"Thank you!" the attractive sophomore beamed, she and her girls chiming the very same words as they left as few seconds after.

Waving them goodbye, Aiden then turned to face Lizzie, his tone apologetic;

"Sorry about that, Liz. You were saying?"

Lizzie had been equal parts surprised yet ticked off by the entire exchange between Aiden and the girls. Her feelings towards it however, were mild enough that she managed to keep her expression playful as she teased;

"Wow. At this rate, you just might become Silverlake’s High most eligible bachelor."

"Yeah, right." Aiden rolled his eyes in dismissal, a light scoff of amusement escaping his lips as they arrived before the doors to the gym.

Lizzie was about to give a witty follow-up when Megan stepped out the doors, her caramel-hair falling backwards as she blocked Aiden’s path and looked up at him with her red-rimmed glasses.

"Hoco Parade Décor by 5:30. Don’t be late." she casually informed him.

"Admit it, Meg. You hate me, don’t you?" Aiden amusedly asked, his hands in his pockets as he stared down at the lady whom was clutching her clipboard to her chest like her life depended on it.

"If memory serves me right--which it does--I clearly remember warning you to cut back on the volunteering several times," Megan titled her head, an equally amused smile on her lips.

"Besides, you can’t complain if I find your resourcefulness and expertise indispensable." she arched an affiliative brow to which she then asked, her tone genuinely concerned;

"How’s the wrist?"

"Hurts a bit, but I’ll manage." Aiden flexed said wrist without reading too much into it.

"You should get a cold compress and rest it for a while." the lady gently pulled at his hand, her eyes studying it for a bit.

"You’re gonna need it if you want to keep up with the Armageddon of tests next week." she patted it softly and casually let go a moment after.

Then she acknowledged Lizzie with a brief greeting and continued on her merry way.

Just before rounding the corner though, she paused for a bit and offered a little wave over her shoulder with a reminder;

"Five-thirty, Aiden. Don’t be late."

At this point, the blonde-haired lady had gotten more worried than she was annoyed.

Given she’d believed she was the only actual female friend Aiden had prior to his senior year debut, she felt a strong need to monopolize that relationship for her own selfish reasons.

However, how was she to do that if the youth in question was already having moments with other ladies she wasn’t even aware of.

And as if things couldn’t get any worse, Clarissa popped out the doors barely a couple seconds after Megan had left.

Upon seeing Aiden, she immediately dropped what felt like a bomb to Lizzie, her tone a tad bit hopeful;

"Please tell me you have a navy tux, Aiden? It’s the only way you can match with me for Hoco Parade!"

"I don’t, actually," Aiden replied, to which he then said before Clarissa’s expression drooped;

"But my Pops does. I’ll try to tailor his to mine over the weekend. Fingers crossed that it looks form fitting, though."

In response, Clarissa let out a girlish squeal of excitement, hugged him and then said;

"Thank you! You’re the best!"

Much like Megan, the queen bee went about her merry way, a pep in her step as she bounced through the scanty hallways.

Clearly, she had ignored Lizzie... not that the lady could even be bothered to react to that as she blurted out a moment after in frustration, her mouth moving faster than her brain;

"She’s your date to homecoming?! I thought you said you weren’t going to homecoming with anyone?!"

"I’m not. I’m just helping her out for the parade." Aiden didn’t even bother to react to her outburst, especially since he was busy mulling over what his year book quote should be.

Instead, he casually waved the lady goodbye as he slipped through the doors of the gym;

"I’ll see you later, Liz."

For a while, the lady in question remained in shock, unsure of how to react to what she had just heard, or worse still, how she had just reacted.

At the same time, a wave of embarrassment washed over her, especially since she had no idea how Aiden would perceive her from now given her outburst.

Unfortunately... or maybe fortunately for her, Aiden couldn’t even be bothered to keep her in his thoughts.

Having taken the yearbook photo, his pen currently twirling between in his fingers, he stared at the record book he was to write his year book quote in.

Then, after a short while, he settled on something rather... cocky.

Smiling to himself upon penning the words though, Aiden then made his way out.

As for the words themselves...

Eagle me ten years from now. It’s gonna blow your mind.