Chapter 1 Chapter One

• I never thought betrayal had a sound-until I heard her laugh. My heart beat fast, hoping I heard wrong.
• You know that kind of laugh you hear that made your heart skip for joy knowing fully well she was yours.
• Yes, exactly that kind of laughter but it wasn't it for me.
• It wasn't just a giggle. It was a full-blown, head-thrown-back, soul-cutting laugh. The kind of laugh that used to be mine. The kind she used to give me when I said something stupid, or when we'd lie under the stars and talk about our future.
• Now she was laughing like that in someone else's arms.
• In his arms.
• I stood there, frozen in the corridor outside the music room, the door slightly ajar. I hadn't meant to snoop. I came with roses. Stupid, right? She liked lilies, but I couldn't afford them, so I settled for cheap roses from the street vendor. I just wanted to surprise her.
• All my life, I had always prioritise just one person. She ment the world to me and I would even go to the end of the earth to get her what she desires. I would risk even my life to give it to her even if it meant me going broke or getting kicked to the earth.
• That was the kind of love I had for her but everything was going to nut right before me. I had hoped I was hearing it wrong. That I maybe be wrong.
• But the surprise was on me.
• "God, you're so much better than him," she whispered. I could hear every word.
• He chuckled. "He's a nobody. You were wasting your time."
• She didn't defend me. Not once.
• Didn't even hesitate.
• "You think he suspects anything?" the guy asked.
• "He's too dumb to notice. Honestly, he should thank me. I was doing charity work dating him. I wish he even caught us in the act. It is high time I let him know we are not compatible.”
• They both laughed again.
• My fingers loosened, and the roses dropped to the floor with a soft thud.
• That was when the door creaked open wider, betraying my presence. I wanted to go into the room with fury and knock the teeth out from his mouth but then I know I would only be doing him a favour and I would end up being the scale goat.
• And she saw me.
• Her smile didn't falter. Not for a second. My face went pale.
• How could she?
• She behaved like I didn't mean a single thing. Like It didn't matter if I had caught her cheating which I did.
• "Oh," she said, stepping away from him like she was bored. "Guess the charity case showed up."
• I opened my mouth. Nothing came out. My throat burned, my chest felt tight, and my world spun like I was falling off a cliff with no end.
• He looked at me like I was a stain on his designer shoes. "You can leave, man. She's done with you."
• "Tell me it's not true," I croaked. "Tell me this isn't real."
• She laughed again-God, that laugh. " You were convenient, Pointus. You walked me to class. Helped with my homework. But you've got nothing. No money, no future, no status. Why would I waste my youth on someone like you?”
• I don't remember how I got out of that room. I think my body moved on its own. I was outside before I realized I had tears running down my cheeks. I wiped them away quickly. Men aren't supposed to cry. That's what my father always said, before he left.
• He was this type of man that would instill in me want it meant to be a man but today I was not.
• I was another cry baby who was pained for seeing the girl he spent all his life worshipping.
• But I cried anyway.
• I wandered aimlessly, numb, past students laughing, past couples holding hands. My legs led me to the bridge near the river. The one everyone warned people about at night.
• I stood at the edge, looking down into the dark current.
• Would they miss me?
• Would she miss me?
• Probably not.
• I took one step forward.
• That's when it happened.
• A flash of light.
• I stumbled back, shielding my eyes. I thought I was hallucinating. Maybe this was what dying felt like.
• Then I saw it-floating right in front of me. A glowing, translucent screen with strange letters that morphed into words I could understand.
• [SYSTEM ACTIVATION DETECTED]
• [User: Pointus Gray]
• [Emotional collapse registered. Survival probability: 4%. Intervention approved.]
• [Welcome to the Fortune System. Your first task has been issued.]
• I blinked. "What the hell..."
• The screen shifted.
• [Task One: Spend $1,000,000 in 72 hours.]
• [System Rules: ]
• [You must spend it all. ]
• [You cannot reveal the source of the money. ]
• [ The money will self-destruct if not used in time. ]
• [Completion unlocks greater power. ]
• Timer Begins: Now.
• A digital countdown started ticking in red.
• 71:59:59
• "Is this a joke?" I whispered.
• But then a phone vibrated in my pocket. Not mine-it was new, sleek, and unfamiliar. I pulled it out. On the screen was an app I didn't install, already open.
• It displayed a digital bank account.
• Balance: $1,000,000.00
• My heart skipped.
• I looked around-no cameras, no prank show crew, no laughing students. Just me and the night.
• The screen still floated, glowing softly in the darkness.
• Was this real?
• I didn't know what to believe anymore.
• My girlfriend of two years had just destroyed me, turned me into a joke for everyone to laugh at. I had nothing. No family, no friends, no future. I was invisible.
• But now... I had a million dollars.
• And maybe, just maybe, a chance to become something more.
• I looked back at the water.
• And back at the new phone that got into my pocket in an unexplainable way. My breath etched in my throat.
• "Is this real?" I said with my eyes almost popping out of their sockets..