Ken opened the door to his dorm room, trying to be as quiet as possible. Since it was already late, he didn't want to wake up his friend if he was asleep.
"Dude, where have you been? Didn't you say you'd be back in the afternoon? I've been worried sick." Steve called out, causing Ken to almost jump in fright.
The room was completely dark, which meant he had to have been waiting all this time.
With a flash of annoyance, Ken flipped the light switch on, only to see Steve with his arms crossed sitting on a desk chair. He looked like a father who was about to have a stern talking to his son who had missed curfew.
"None of your business." Ken scoffed, though he was wearing a small smile.
Steve let out a chuckle, "No but seriously, fill me in. I've been bored this whole time by myself."
Ken didn't answer him right away, taking off his shoes and heading over to his bed. He flopped onto it, letting out a sigh of contentment after being on his feet most of the day.
"We just saw the Yanks and Red Socks play at Yank Stadium." He said casually.
"What!? And you didn't invite me?" Steve exclaimed, his bottom lip quivering slightly. He looked like a child who had found out they missed out on Disneyland.
Ken shrugged, "I only got 2 VIP tickets, I couldn't have invited you even if I tried."
"WHAT!? VIP Tickets? Just how rich are you man?"
"I didn't pay for them. You know how much of a miser I am." He replied dismissively.
"Mmm, that's true. But you've been helping me out with my meals, so I wouldn't exactly call you a miser." Steve scratched his head in thought.
"Wait, so if you didn't buy them? How did you get the VIP tickets?"
"Alex Cole gave them to me."
"…"
Steve's expression changed to one of incredulity, "Sure man. Next you're gonna tell me that Adam Boone offered you a contract for the Yanks." He let out a few scoffs, as if the whole premise was absurd.
Ken couldn't help but grin, "Well, he didn't offer me a contract. But he invited me to closed tryouts, at least until I told him that I was a freshman at College."
Steve frowned, "Alright alright, can you stop kidding around now. I really want to know how you got the tickets. Maybe next time you can get an extra one for me."
"I already told you, Alex Cole gave me the tickets. We met in Central Park when… When Ai and I were walking along." Ken's face turned slightly red thinking about what had happened in Shakespeare Garden.
"And I suppose you met the team too right? After all, if Alex Cole gave you the tickets personally, he would have also offered you this right? Right?" Steve's tone was getting a little sharper as he spoke, clearly not believing Ken's words.
Ken let out a sigh before pulling out his phone. He went to the image gallery of the photo's he'd received from Ai and handed the phone to Steve.
As Steve grabbed the phone, his expression changed almost instantly. He began to furiously swipe through the photos, not believing his eyes.
Until he stopped on one where his eyes widened. His face turned beet red in the next moment before his gaze moved to Ken. Jealousy and something else was evident in his features.
"Maybe I wasn't meant to see this one." He said, handing the phone back to Ken.
Ken frowned and grabbed the photo, only to see a picture of Ai dressed in raunchy lingerie. He quickly locked the screen and shoved the phone in his pocket, feeling his face heat up.
"Ahem… You will not speak a word of this." Ken announced, a hint of both embarrassment and a murderous edge in his tone.
Steve shuddered, but he nodded his head obediently.
"W—Well… I guess you did get the tickets from Alex then." He stated, finally believing his friends words. He couldn't be blamed for not believing them right away, after all, who just randomly meets a professional pitcher in Central Park.
Not only that, why would he approach Ken and give out free VIP tickets to the game? Even inviting him into the bullpen.
"But what I don't understand, is why he gave you tickets?" Steve continued.
"I don't want to talk about it." Ken said plainly.
"Right… Well do you think you can hook me up?" Steve asked, hoping for a miracle.
Ken shook his head, "It was just a one time thing. I'm gonna go grab a shower, it's been a long day." He said, scrunching his nose. The smell of Alex's body odor still lingered on his hoodie.
'I'll need to burn it if that smell doesn't come out.' He mused inwardly, moving to the bathroom.
He prised the door open slowly, checking to make sure that it wasn't in use. He didn't feel like walking in on one of the neighbors like last time, it was far too awkward.
Thankfully there was no one present, so he walked in and swiftly got undressed, hopping into the shower. As the water cascaded down his head, he decided to open up the system, as he usually did during his downtime.
USER MENU:
-STATS
-MISSIONS (1)
-SYSTEM SHOP
-LOTTERY (Locked)
-IMAGE TRAINING
-IDENTIFY
-TRAINING PLAN
-MENTOR
"Hmm? What is this?" Ken muttered with confusion. He hadn't remembered seeing a new mission before now, so why had it appeared so suddenly?
Not wanting to get his hopes up, Ken tentatively opened up the missions window.
#HIDDEN MISSION: Climbing the Social Ladder
*Task 1: Leave a lasting impression in front of the New York Yanks players. [Complete]
*Task 2: Create a social media account. [Pending]
*Task 3: Post a picture from today. [Pending]
REWARDS:
>Increased Fame and recognition.
>Upgrade Charismatic Air skill to Magnetic Charm.
'What the hell kind of mission is this!?'