Chapter 36: Chapter 36: Bills

Chapter 36: Bills

Once a Hero of Ultimate Fate, always a Hero of Ultimate Fate.

I got bills; I need to pay. So, I will work at the Happy Meal Grocery, every day. Oh, God…

What am I talking about? Well, there is this ancient grocery shop, that has only heroes and demon lords as managers. Some would say, even as owners. I don't know how I landed a job in here, but, as I said before, I do have bills…

Anyway, my name is Joe, and this is: Happy Meal Grocery. We have everything. If you are a senior citizen, or a single mother, or just a homeless person looking for a bite to eat, then we have games for you.

The tradition began long ago. No one even remembers the name of the dark lord who gave the Happy Meal Grocery its name. But I am grateful to him. For, the managers of Happy Meal believe in paying every first date of the month, and in bonus systems!

Now, I have to stop monologuing because there is this customer before the counter. Ah, Marius… Mm.

"Welcome! Would this be all?" I ask the vision before me, who simply looks into my eyes.

"Joe, do you think we went to the same high school?" Marius asks. His baritone, a pleasant balm to my ears. I swear, if he were born, a merman, he would have made one hell of a siren.

"No, sir. I mean, I am out of town," I look behind the elegant, and tall, man. There is nobody waiting behind him. Fingers crossed I can get his number.

"So, what are you? A Hero of Ultimate Fate, or a demon lord?" He asks, and I shake my head with a smile.

"Nothing, sir. I am just a regular Joe," I joke, and Marius chuckles.

"You are no regular. You have a sense of humor," he tells me, and then picks a pack of gum from the shelf on the counter. Then, he writes down a number on the pure white packaging, and hands it over to me. With a wink, he presses his card to the machine, and before I can so much as blink, he is gone.

I cradle the pack of gums to me, and stare at the number. The numbers are flowery. Especially the 2s. Like swans. I do a little victory jig, and then take out my phone, to write down the number in it.

"Joe, the shop closes in another hour. Clean up, and you can go home early," my boss says from down the dairy aisle.

"Thank you, Mr. Connors," I yell at him, and then begin the pre-lock clean up. I sweep the floors, make sure that no item is out of place, and then lock the store.

All the way home, I can't help the bounce to my steps. Marius thinks I have a sense of humor! Unlike Shannon… wait, who is Shannon? I pause mid-step, and then hear a car pull close to me.

"Hey, there, stranger. Need a lift?" I look inside the car, to a face that looks familiar, but I can't place it. The woman is pretty enough, I suppose, but she looks bored out of her mind.

"No, ma'am. I live just a couple of blocks away," I tell her, and then salute her. She nods, and drives off. I can't stop the feeling, that she was disappointed about something.

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I forget all about what made me pause, and then continue to walk towards the edge of the village. So, I lied? Big deal! For all I knew, there could be men in the back, ready to hold me down, while the woman drove us to an organ harvester.

Anyway, I make it home without any more stops. My cat, Reginald, comes to me, and rubs itself to my legs. In some of my dreams, there is another Reginald, but he is a squirrel. Like that sir knight from the legends. Every time I think about him, I feel tightness in my chest. As if I have lost something precious.

I pick up Reggie, and then walk inside my house. It is just one story, but it is home. Besides, I have a big basement, with everything I need, to store food.

When I go to my room, I undress, and then take my bathing robe. I might have been waiting for someone to give me their number, but that doesn't mean that I will break away from my routine.

After I am washed and dressed in pajamas, I go outside the house, and check the mailbox. Bills, scam letter for penis enlargement, Bills, an invitation for a blanket exposition in the village hall…

Sigh, just how many bills do I receive every month? I mean, one tree might die in this very moment, so I can get my bills. I take them home, and spent the next two hours going through my safe, and then getting the necessary money out, so I can pay my bills.

There is this thing about me that nobody knows. I mean, maybe my boss knows, seeing as he hired me. I have a cheat ability. Like the ones the Heroes of Ultimate Fate have. It is called Wish Granter.

Basically, what I do to pay the bills, is to show a toy made out of gold to Reggie, and he wishes for two more. I let him play with the new toys for a while, and then take them to the blacksmith to melt, and turn into bullion. And that is how I make ends meet.

Now, that my chores for the evening are done with, I can go ahead, and call Marius. I bet he is not asleep yet.

Ah, Marius. I feel like I know him from before I moved to this sleepy village. But I simply can't put my finger as to from where. I bet that, for him, I would even reveal my cheat ability.

I can whisk him away; I know I can. He actually thinks I am funny, unlike Shannon. Hm, just who was Shannon? Anyway, time to call the merman…

Wait, what?

 When spirits are killed, they leave something behind. The love between Joe and Marius, at least on Joe's side, has always burned bright like a signal flare. So, Joe, who should have no cheat ability, or even memories of either Shannon or Marius, slowly begins to dream of another life. And his two great loves.

 

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