Chapter 8 : Meeting the EX
Nolan looked up from the menu. His eyes met Lila's.
For a second, the restaurant felt quieter. The laughter from other tables seemed to fade. It was just him and her, staring across the room like two strangers who used to know each other.
Nolan didn't react. His face stayed blank.
Then he remembered.
'Appraiser'.
His new skill. Something inside him wanted to use it on her. Wanted to see just how much she hated him now. Wanted to put a number to the pain she had caused.
He focused on Lila.
A small transparent window appeared in his vision.
[Name: Lila Voss]
[Favorability: 30]
Nolan blinked.
Thirty?
He read it again. Still thirty.
How? His thoughts raced. She cheated on me. She humiliated me last night in front of everyone. And her favorability is still thirty? That's not hate. That's not even dislike.
His chest tightened.
Does the system have a glitch? Or did she never hate me at all? Was I just... convenient to throw away?
He didn't know which answer hurt more.
He decided to check her friends. Maybe that would tell him something.
He looked at the girl standing next to Lila—
[Name: Jessica Hensor]
[Favorability: -12]
He moved to the next one.
[Name: Amy Jackson]
[Favorability: -8]
Another.
[Name: Chloe Tentis]
[Favorability: -5]
All negative. That made sense. They were Lila's friends. They probably thought he was worthless. The numbers matched their sneers and whispers.
Then his eyes landed on the last girl.
She was quiet. The one who always wore glasses and never spoke much in class. She stood at the edge of the group, not laughing, just staring at her phone like she wished she was somewhere else.
Nolan focused on her.
[Name: Yuna Hale]
[Favorability: 80]
His breath caught.
Eighty?
He stared at the number. Then at her. Then back at the number.
How? Why?
His heart started beating faster.
Does she... like me? Me? An orphan with nothing? Since when? How long has this been happening right in front of me?
He kept staring in their direction, completely lost in thought. His mind spun with questions he couldn't answer.
Lila noticed.
She saw him looking and immediately assumed the worst. 'He's still staring at me,' she thought. 'He came here because he knew I'd be here. He can't let go. Pathetic.'
Her irritation spiked. Mixed with it was something else—satisfaction. Power. She loved knowing he still wanted her.
She walked over to Nolan's table and sat down across from him without asking.
The movement snapped Nolan out of his thoughts.
"There's something I need to say," Lila said, her voice flat and cold. "We're done. Officially. I can't be with a broke guy like you. I want a better life. A better future. Not whatever this is." She paused, letting the words sink in. "So don't come near me again. Got it?"
Nolan just stared at her.
Inside, something burned. Not sadness. Not heartbreak. Rage. Pure, hot rage.
'You cheated on me,' he thought. 'You made me feel like I was nothing. And now you sit here like you're doing me a favor by leaving?'
He wanted to slap the shit out of her. He wanted to scream. He wanted to throw every word back in her face.
But he didn't.
Instead, he raised his hand and calmly called the waiter.
The waiter came over. "Yes, sir?"
Nolan picked up the menu without looking at Lila. His voice was steady. "I'll have the grilled lobster, the Wagyu steak, the truffle pasta, the seafood platter, and the chocolate lava cake for dessert."
The waiter nodded and wrote it down.
Lila's face twisted. "What are you doing, Nolan? Don't act like you can afford this."
Nolan ignored her.
She turned to the waiter, her voice rising. "Listen, he can't pay for this. He's just pretending in front of me. He doesn't have money."
The waiter paused. He looked at Nolan, unsure.
Nolan finally spoke. His voice was calm, almost bored. "I don't even know who she is. Please just bring my order."
The waiter hesitated for a second, then nodded and walked away.
[Favorability with Lila has decreased by 15. ]
[Current Favorability: 15.]
'So it went down. That means there's no system fault,' he thought, a faint satisfaction washing over him.
Lila's face went red. Not embarrassment—anger. She stood up quickly and walked back to her friends.
Nolan didn't watch her go. But he heard them.
"Don't worry, Lila," Jessica whispered loudly. "He's just trying to act tough so you'll go back to him. It's so obvious."
Amy nodded. "Yeah, he's probably been saving for months just for this one meal. Desperate."
Chloe giggled. "Imagine spending everything you have just to impress a girl who dumped you. Pathetic."
Nolan almost laughed.
If only they knew.
But his eyes drifted back to their table. Not at Lila. At Yuna.
He used the skill again.
Yuna. Favorability: 83.
"It went up again?" he muttered to himself.
He watched her closely. She looked uncomfortable sitting with that group. She wasn't laughing. She wasn't even looking at anyone. Just staring at her lap, her shoulders tense.
'She doesn't belong with them,' he realized. She's only there because... why? Because they're the popular group? Because she has no one else?
Then, suddenly, she looked up.
Their eyes met.
She flinched. Her face turned pink. She looked down immediately, her hands gripping her phone tighter.
[Favorability with Yuna has increased by 2. ]
[Current Favorability: 85.]
Nolan's mind went blank.
'What the heck—how?'
His heart pounded.
'Is she crazy? Does she actually... like me? Like that?'
He didn't understand. He was nobody. An orphan. A broke college student.
Girls like Yuna—quiet, pretty, innocent—they didn't look at guys like him.
But the number didn't lie.
Before he could think more, the waiter arrived with the food.
Dish after dish covered the table. Lobster. Steak. Pasta. Seafood. It all looked incredible. The smell alone made his mouth water.
Nolan ate slowly, enjoying every bite. For the first time in days, he felt good. Really good.
He could feel Lila's eyes on him from across the room, burning with curiosity and anger. But he didn't look at her once.
He did glance at Yuna a few times. She never looked up again.
When the meal ended, the waiter came with the bill.
Total: $500
Nolan reached for the payment scanner. He was about to press his finger when a system window flashed in front of him.
[Side Quest Activated: Show Who You Are]
[Special Payment Option Unlocked!]
[Pay 10× the bill amount to receive 2× your total spending amount.]
[Accept?]
Nolan froze.
'Wait. What?'
He did the math instantly.
The bill was $500.
Pay 10x meant $5,000. And receive 2x of total spending meant $10,000 back.
So if he paid $5,000 now, he would get $10,000 later.
That was $5,000 profit and free food.
'Is this real?'
The waiter saw Nolan stop moving. His hand hovered near the scanner. Seconds passed.
The waiter's heart dropped. 'Oh no. She was right. He can't pay.'
He shifted nervously. "Umm... Sir?"
Nolan blinked. He came back to reality.
He pressed Accept.
Then he typed another zero on the payment screen. Five hundred became five thousand. He pulled out the black card and swiped it.
The machine beeped. Payment successful.
The waiter breathed a sigh of relief. Then he looked at the receipt and choked.
"Sir?" he said, confused. "The bill is five hundred dollars. You paid five thousand."
Nolan shrugged. A small smile tugged at his lips. "Yeah, I know. Keep the rest as a tip."
The waiter's eyes went wide. He bowed deeply.
"Thank you, sir! Thank you so much!" His voice carried through the restaurant.
People turned to look.
At Lila's table, the girls were confused. "Why is that waiter acting so weird?" Chloe asked.
A man from another table answered loudly. "The kid just tipped him four and a half thousand dollars."
Everyone stared at Nolan.
Someone at Lila's table muttered, "Wow. He's really trying hard to get Lila back."
Nolan heard it. He almost laughed again. They still don't get it.
He stood up and walked toward the exit.
At the door, he paused.
He glanced back at the girls' table. Not at Lila. At Yuna.
She wasn't looking at him. But the number above her head had changed.
Yuna. Favorability: 84.
Eighty-four? It dropped by one?
Nolan frowned.
'What the heck did I do? Did she not like the tip? Did she think I was showing off?'
He shook his head, confused, and walked out into the night.
Inside, Lila sat in silence.
'How?' her thoughts raced. 'The Nolan I know can't spend money like that. He wouldn't. He couldn't.'
Her stomach twisted. 'Did I make a mistake?'
Outside, Nolan checked his system.
[Spend money at a Crown Bistro Restaurant tonight completed ]
[Reward: +2 Agility]
[Agility: 6]
[Side Quest Completed.]
[Reward received: $10,000 added to balance.]
[Balance: $15,000.]
He stared at the Agility *6* , 'So, I can participate in athletics now.' he thought with a smile on his face.
Then he stared at the number.
Fifteen thousand dollars. So, It actually gave me.
Across the street, a motorcycle showroom glowed under white lights. Rows of polished bikes stood behind the glass like metal predators waiting to be unleashed.
He let out a quiet laugh. 'I don't even own a bicycle.'
Then a thought crept into his mind.
'Wait....Can I actually spend this money without system quest or consent?'
The system never said he couldn't.
But it never said he could either.
What if the money were restricted to missions?
What if spending it triggered a penalty?
What if the system stopped rewarding him?
The cool night wind brushed past him as cars rushed along the street.
He looked at the showroom again.
His heart started beating faster.
Risk or safety.
Slowly, a grin spread across his face.
"Guess there's only one way to find out."
He stepped toward the showroom.