"STOP THE CAR!"
The taxi driver was startled and immediately pressed the breaks. SCREECH*
The taxi soon screeched to a halt. The startled taxi driver looked left and right and realized that the customer just scared him for nothing. He immediately flew into a rage, "You crazy motherfucker! Are you trying to give me a heart attack?! If you want me to stop the car just say it calmly and I would stop it wherever you want goddammit! Jesus, I thought I was about to hit someone..."
Eli felt a bit guilty for that, he really did overreact there. He fished out a $50 bill, and gave it to the Taxi driver, "Sorry man, I saw a friend of mine outside walking in the rain and panicked. This is compensation for that, can you stop the car near that girl over there?" He then pointed to the girl with the backpack outside, who seemed startled by the car screech just now.
The taxi driver's anger vanished by over half at the unexpected windfall and drove the car next to the girl. Eli, who sat in the back seat, opened the door, and asked the staring girl, "Need a ride!?"
Half an hour ago, the girl left her house in secret and hailed a taxi to take her to a nearby cheap hotel, only to later realize that the entire hotel was booked. After going to 3 different hotels that were also fully booked, It then clicked to her, that it was new years eve today, and most hotels were already fully booked. Distraught, she exited the final hotel and walked for a good 10 minutes in the rain aimlessly, not caring about her health, until suddenly she heard a loud screeching noise from the road, and saw a taxi driving to her. And then, a handsome face that you would normally see on famous male models or stars, offered her a ride on that taxi. To say that she was not suspicious of all this, would be a lie.
The girl's first instinct was to run away and yell to call the cops. Who knew if this was a kidnapper or rapist. But then, she reasoned that a kidnapper would probably not come after her in the middle of a stormy night like this, in the middle of New Year's Eve no less, and won't ask her if she wants a ride, but will downright drag her inside and drive away. This guy was probably a good samaritan or something returning from a party, taking pity on her. Either that, or he was trying his luck on an easy lay.
She already removed her sim card from her phone, which was paid for by her bastard of a father, and only had a credit card with $1.3k of savings in it. She usually relied on her dad for allowance, but now that she was running away from home, she had to save every penny. Now that this guy offered her a ride, she suddenly remembered a certain joke called 'God will save me'. Perhaps, this man was the so-called 'help' from 'God'.
A big storm approaches. The weatherman urges everyone to get out of town. The priest says, "I won't worry, God will save me".
The morning of the storm, the police go through the neighborhood with a sound truck telling everyone to evacuate. The priest says "I won't worry, God will save me".
The storm drains back up and there is an inch of water standing in the street. A fire truck comes by to pick up the priest. He tells them "Don't worry, God will save me."
The water rises another foot. A National Guard truck comes by to rescue the priest. He tells them "Don't worry, God will save me."
The water rises some more. The priest is forced up to his roof. A boat comes by to rescue the priest. He tells them "Don't worry, God will save me."
The water rises higher. The priest is forced up to the very top of his roof. A helicopter comes to rescue the priest. He shouts up at them "Don't worry, God will save me."
The water rises above his house, and the priest drowns.
When he gets up to heaven he says to God "I've been your faithful servant ever since I was born! Why didn't you save me?"
God replies "First I sent you a fire truck, then the national guard, then a boat, and then a helicopter. What more do you want from me!!??"
She gritted her teeth and decided to take a risk. She yelled, the rain muffling her voice a bit, "Can you drive me to a hotel!? Any hotel will do!"
Eli was relieved to hear her reply, which meant she at the very least trusted him enough to get a ride to a hotel. He immediately said, "Okay, put your bag in the truck and get in! I was also going to my own hotel right now!" He had to yell since the heavy rain was muffling his voice.
The girl nodded and put her wet waterproof traveling bag in the truck, and the taxi driver took out a waterproof cover for her to sit on, so she won't make his seats wet. They then drove off in silence, the girl vigilant of where they were going at all times. Eli wanted to open a conversation with her, but was too distracted by a change in his status.
[Time Stipend lvl 1, Time saved: -81 minutes]
His ability, Time Stipend, got greyed out. Moreover, he not only lost the 9 minutes he saved up, but it also got overdraft, at -81 minutes. He guessed, that somehow, the ability triggered itself automatically, and activated a function that he should not have access to currently, granting him a vision of the future. Or possible future at least. But Eli himself thought that this was actually quite reasonable. This ability might have just saved him from certain death! In fact, even if it got over-drafted to 1000 minutes, he would still think it was fair, let alone just a small price of 90 minutes for that!
However, this possibly means that for the next month, he won't be able to use his Time Stipend, and had to rely solely on his own abilities. This put a dent in both his plans and in his personal safety. From now on, he had to be extra careful in whatever he does. Even if he was slowly reaching the level of a peak human, like some sort of batman, and even if he had an invisibility device, he could still die! He still didn't forget how he died from that bomb only a few days ago!
5 minutes later, they arrived at the hotel. Eli paid the Taxi driver for the ride, and both he and the girl got off the car. The girl took out her bag from the truck, and they both hurried up inside the hotel, to avoid the rain. When they got inside, for the first time, the girl removed her hoody, revealing her entire head.
She was a mix of Hispanic and Caucasian, having white skin, and a few Hispanic features here and there, but she was undoubtedly one of the prettiest girls Eli has ever seen personally, and could even get scouted as a model just for her face. Her hair was brown and slightly wavy, reaching all the way to her chest area. She wore no makeup, and her skin was healthy and clean, although slightly pale, probably from the cold. She had no earrings or piercings on, and her fingernails were short, trimmed, and clean. Her eyes were brownish but hid complex thoughts and emotions. Overall, she was comparable to Vivian in terms of looks. But, compared to Vivian, who gave out a provocative and seductive look, like some sort of temptress, this girl was the pure opposite, giving off a clean and uncorrupted vibe, something rarely seen in a girl in NY, who is not a child.
The girl looked at Eli and awkwardly said, "Thank you..."
Eli smiled and said, "It's fine, don't mention it. By the way, I'm Eli, what is your name?"
The girl hesitated for a moment, before saying, lowering her gaze, "Isabella..."
"Isabella, That's a good name! Haha... Let's get you a room, you must be tired." Eli then marched to the counter.
Isabella followed him to the counter. She didn't notice it before, but now that she looked around, she realized that this hotel was the most expensive in the entire Bronx area! It cost $260 a night, almost 3 times her original budget of $90 per night. She gritted her teeth and resigned to her fate. This was going to hurt her savings. A lot.
Eli then asked the receptionist, "Hey, do you have a free room for the young miss over there?" He gestured with his chin at Isabella.
The male receptionist quickly checked his terminal, and then said apologetically, "Sorry sir, everything is booked. From our records, you actually booked the second last free room. Today is new years eve, and almost every hotel is booked from all the tourists coming over." The receptionist looked at the girl behind Eli, and after hesitating a bit, suggested, "This might be rude of me sir, but how about you... Share the room with her just for tonight? It won't change the price of the room. And if you want breakfast and everything else to be added, it would only cost $12."
Eli raised an eyebrow, he honestly did not think this one through, but the suggestion was... Acceptable? While as a guy, he had no problem in sharing his room with a beautiful girl he barely knew, it would be a whole different matter to the girl in question. Especially since she was obviously not looking for a one night stand tonight. He then looked at Isabella, who looked like she was having an internal struggle.
Isabella had an intense internal struggle. The offer is both economical and convenient. It was also a 3-star hotel and was much better and safer than a cheap motel. However, if she accepts this, it would mean that she would need to share a room with a guy she just met a few minutes ago like some... Some whore picked up from the streets! What's worse, is that even though she got a brown belt in BJJ 1 month ago, she was just a 1.65 m tall 18-year-old girl, and this Eli guy was about 1.8 m tall and had very well defined muscles, she did not doubt that if she entered his room and he grappled her, she would be at his full mercy!
While she was still internally struggling, Eli suddenly suggested, "It's fine, how about I let you have the room for tonight, and I will go sleep at a friend of mine?" He was lying. He honestly just planned to spend the night in the lobby, reading on his tablet. Since he already paid, they won't drive him away. Also, he did not plan on letting this girl out of his sight. Besides, ever since he got Vitality, sleep was less needed than normal, and he never got truly tired. He only slept for leisure, rather than need. But he did not try the limit yet, but he assumed that he would be able to pull off an all-nighter.
Isabella, who was struggling, finally relaxed, but she also felt guilty, she felt like she was a burden. However, after another short internal struggle, she relented, and said, "Thank you, Eli... I will pay you back for this, I promise!"
"No problem! But I would like to at least pick up my tablet from the room before I leave, alright?"
Isabella nodded, and they both went up to the room. Eli went inside the room and took the tablet that was still charging out of the charger, and exited the room. Before he left, he said with a warm smile, "Good night Isabella, See you tomorrow."
Isabella hesitated for a moment, before saying, "Good night Eli... See you tomorrow..." And then she slowly closed the door.
After Isabella closed the door, she locked it, and then looked at the inside of the room. It was a really good hotel, and really had everything needed. At the same time, she felt even more guilty. She was basically free-loading on the expense of a total stranger, who just helped her out of kindness!
As she determined that she should properly thank him tomorrow, she took off her clothes, revealing a perfect and athletic body. She had a bit of muscle showing on her body, covered in a healthy small layer of fat, her years of training in BJJ and swimming paying off. She had C-cup breasts and a round bottom. No blemish could be seen on her smooth skin. she took her flip flops out of her bag, put them on, and entered the shower.
Meanwhile, Eli went back downstairs to the corridor and sat down on one of the waiting chairs. He opened his tablet and continued reading from it. After an hour of reading, the male receptionist from before couldn't take it anymore and asked out of sheer curiosity, "Sir, sorry for being rude, but aren't you going to leave to sleep at your friend's place?"
When Eli heard that, he laughed self-depreciatingly, and replied, "I don't really have friends that I am close enough to sleep at their house right now. Also, everyone is sleeping at their family's place, or already asleep. I am not going to bother them."
The receptionist looked deeply at Eli, before saying, "Sir, if I may be blunt, I don't know why you are so nice to a girl you just met, be it either to court her or just you being a good Samaritan, you have my sincere respect!"
Eli just chuckled and continued reading until sunrise the next day. When Eli checked his ability, it now showed...
[Time Stipend lvl 1, Time saved: -78 minutes]
Eli sighed in relief, at least he knew now for sure, that his ability will return in another 26 days. He then continued reading until 8, when he saw Isabella exiting the elevator.
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Yes. Now it is fine. Votes: 77 80.2%
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Yes, but still wont hurt for more dialogue. Votes: 19 19.8%
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No. I think that it still wasnt enough. Votes: 0 0.0%
the comments looked empty and I dont really have anything that I find bad so here you go
""No no, author, I want you to write down every little detail and conversation, including you could do 3 chapters just summarizing what he read during the night!""
Honestly I don't understand these guys who ask to prolong stuffing conversation. In a story, only dialogues that lead to something that prepare the scene need to be read. If each and every small random conversation is added it would take 5 ~ 10 chapters for each day in the story, depending on how many people he talked to."
Actually, the last chapter really did bother me. It really was way too much of a script there. I am just trying to gouge out what readers really want.
I understand, it's a delicate balance, if you add a lot of conversation it gets out of focus and exaggerated, if you put in too little conversation it gets confusing and the story becomes very busy.
@bignt let's be honest, it's a healthy mix you'll want.
@bignt sometimes a script like chapter with only small amounts of dialogue is needed just like how sometimes chapters in other storys can be taken up mostly by dialogue for one or 2 chapters. As long as its not every chapter ya fine.