Shattered Dreams: The System Rises

I stood there like an i***t, watching the woman I loved laugh at me. Three years. Three whole years of my life gone, and for what? So she could humiliate me in front of some fat middle-aged guy? "Olivia, please!" I begged, reaching for her hand. "I gave you everything!" She pulled away and slapped my hand so hard it stung. The sting wasn't the worst part though. The worst part was seeing that cruel smile on her face. "Don't touch me, Willy! You're nothing! You have no money, no future, and no family. You're just a poor college dropout who works part-time jobs. Why would I stay with someone like you when I can be with Joseph? He's rich, he's powerful, and most importantly, he's not a loser like you!" Joseph Moore stepped forward, this fat guy with a golden watch that probably cost more than my entire apartment. He grabbed Olivia's waist and pulled her close. "Kid, she's my woman now. And you just touched her. That'll cost you twenty thousand dollars. Pay up, or I'll make sure you regret ever being born." I felt something break inside me. All the pain, all the hurt, all the betrayal came rushing out at once. I looked at Joseph, then at Olivia, and I couldn't hold back anymore. "You want to hurt me? Go ahead! I'm an orphan! I have nothing to lose! My parents died when I was young, and nobody in this world cares if I live or die! So do your worst, you bastard!" Joseph smiled like a wolf. Then he slapped me. Not once, but twice. My face burned, but nothing compared to the pain in my chest. "Listen here, you pathetic fool. Every time I see you from now on, I'll beat you again. And you'll just have to take it because that's all you're good for." Olivia leaned close to my ear, and her voice was poison. "I only used you because you were handsome and you made money for me. You were nothing but a tool, Willy. A stepping stone I used to climb higher. Now that I don't need you anymore, stay away from me. Don't ever come looking for me again!" They walked away together, and I stood alone on that street corner feeling like I'd been hit by a truck. Three years of saving money. Three years of working extra hours. Three years of giving her everything I had, and it all meant nothing. The sky above Los Angeles was turning dark and angry. I could feel the storm coming, feel the wind picking up. The pressure in the air matched the pressure building in my chest. I couldn't help myself. I started cursing them, my voice getting louder and louder. "You cheaters! You both deserve to suffer! You'll never have a good life! You'll pay for what you did to me!" People around me started pointing and walking faster. They probably thought I was crazy. Maybe I was. Who cares? The wind got stronger and stronger, pushing me around like I was nothing. My eyes watered, and my head started to spin. Then I heard something. A voice. Not from anyone around me, but from inside my head. "Ding! System initializing!" I stopped walking. Was I hearing things? Was this real? "Ding! System successfully bound to host!" My heart started racing. This couldn't be real. This was like something from those games I used to play in my free time. But it felt real. It felt more real than anything had ever felt before. I felt a surge of energy running through my body. It was warm and powerful, like electricity flowing through my veins. My tired, broken heart started beating faster. "Yes! Yes! Yes!" I shouted at the sky. "This is it! This is my chance! Finally, the universe is giving me something!" "Ding! Detected that host's bank account balance is only twenty-three dollars. Detected that host was just severely humiliated by a cheater and a scumbag. First mission triggered! Complete your revenge mission. Proceed immediately to the Fendi store in Los Angeles' Universal Shopping Center and spend three hundred thousand dollars!" I froze. Three hundred thousand dollars? Did the system seriously just ask me to spend that much money? I had twenty-three dollars to my name. My entire monthly paycheck from my part-time job was less than three hundred thousand dollars. This had to be a trick or a test. But then the system spoke again. "Ding! Three hundred thousand dollars has been deposited into your Los Angeles bank account ending in 5186! Mission accepted: Complete your revenge!" I pulled out my phone with shaking hands and checked my bank account. The screen showed a number that made my eyes go wide. Three hundred thousand and zero cents. It was real. It was actually real. The rain started to fall. Not a light drizzle, but a heavy downpour that came out of nowhere. Within seconds, I was soaking wet, but I didn't care. I started running toward the Universal Shopping Center, imagining the look on Olivia's face when she saw me walking into that expensive store and buying the most expensive thing in there. The rain pounded down on me, but I kept running. Three hundred meters. That was nothing. I could do this. I would do this. When I reached the shopping center entrance, a security guard looked at me like I was a thief about to rob the place. I was dripping wet, looking like a complete mess, but I didn't care anymore. "I'm here to shop," I told him, pushing past him into the warm, dry lobby. The security guard looked confused, probably wondering why a wet, broke-looking guy like me was coming to the most expensive shopping center in Los Angeles. But he didn't stop me. Inside the mall, everything was shiny and clean and perfect. Stores I could never afford to enter lined the hallways. But now I could afford any of them. The feeling was incredible. I followed the signs until I found what I was looking for: the Fendi store. That's when I saw her. Olivia was standing inside the store with Joseph, looking at handbags that cost more than my monthly rent. She was laughing at something he said, that same beautiful laugh that used to make my heart happy. Now it just made me angry. I walked straight toward her, and when she looked up and saw me, her face went pale. "Willy?" she whispered. "What are you doing here? And why are you soaking wet like some kind of beggar?" I smiled. A real smile. Not the fake smile I'd given her for three years, but a cold, confident smile. "I'm here to shop," I said calmly. "And Olivia, I have news for you. You wanted Fendi? You wanted designer clothes? Well, today is your lucky day." "What are you talking about?" she asked, confused. I walked up to the counter where the most expensive handbag in the store was displayed. It was a bag that probably cost more than Joseph's car. The salesperson looked at me like I didn't belong there, but I pulled out my phone and showed her my bank balance. "I want everything in this store," I said. "Put it all on my card." What happens when Olivia realizes I'm no longer the poor loser she threw away?