LOGINThe building looked older up close.The paint had faded unevenly and the sign above the entrance had missing letters, leaving behind faint outlines where they used to be. What was supposed to show Havenridge property management was “Harid proper agement”The glass door was clean, recently wiped, but the metal frame around it had small chips that hadn’t been fixed.Adam paused for a moment before stepping inside.‘With an office so welcoming, I wonder how they can manage someone else's building.’From the outside, it didn’t look like much and to be honest it actually wasn't much.But from the documents he had reviewed, the firm managed six residential properties across the city. None of them were high-end, but they were all in areas that were slowly improving. The problem wasn’t location.It was management.Delayed maintenance. Poor tenant handling. Misused funds. Declining occupancy rates.The firm was a structure sitting on top of stable assets. The only reason the big companies hadn
The days turned to weeks and everything seemed to become normal.It had been two weeks since the restaurant date with Olivia when Adam had gone to return her phone and had a conflict with the minions of the Lacoste family.The conflict had yet to expand to something more, but Adam had a feeling that he was being surveilled. He knew it was the calm before the storm.A lot of things had happened during the period.For one, he had officially moved to his new place. His former landlord, Roberts, had his eyes bulging out of his sockets when Adam along with a fairly reputable moving company had shown to move his belongings.Secondly, Adam's relationship with Olivia had grown more in the two weeks than it had ever done since he had met her. He already planned to officially ask her out at the start of the new year.The third was that Adam had grown to understand how the system worked. It didn't just reward any and all arrogance; instead only arrogance from being underestimated or arrogance th
By the time Adam reached the seventh floor, his steps were steady again. The hallway was quieter here. It had fewer doors, but rather than seeming larger, the rooms felt more compressed, the spacing tighter, as though the upper floors traded width for height. He stopped in front of Olivia’s apartment — room 704. For a brief second, he considered leaving. Then he knocked. A few moments later, the door opened. Olivia stood there, dressed simply, her hair loosely tied back. She blinked once, clearly not expecting him to be early. “Adam?” He held up her phone in one hand. “I came to return this.” Her gaze shifted from the phone… to the rose. Then back to his face. A faint smile formed. Adam glanced at the time—some minutes to nine—then back at her. “Are you busy?” Olivia hesitated. “I have work in about an hour.” “Then we have time,” Adam said simply. “Let’s grab something quick.” She studied him for a moment, like she was trying to decide whether this version of him was
It didn't take long for Adam to get to Olivia's apartment. A seven floored rugged looking building. It was better than his former lodging by far but the building was an average looking place in general. The off-white paint made it seem older than it probably was and the lack of large floor to ceiling windows gave it an ancient air compared to the modern look of the surrounding buildings on the street. “I don't know why I expected somewhere flashier.” The nervousness of going into Olivia's apartment clashed with the lingering arrogance from the clothing store. [ HOST: Adam Wilson ] Balance: $701,400 Arrogance Level: E (88%) Influence Tier: E (Negligible) Risk Level: LOW ____ Active Mission: None ____ Locked Abilities: • Presence Amplification (Unlock at Rank C) • Psychological Pressure (Unlock at Rank B) Looking at his status screen, Adam could barely keep his composure. It had not been up to 48 hours when he had an empty bank account and could barely afford food. Now,
It was a chilly Saturday morning so there were not much people out on the street. Most were either sleeping in from the stressful weekdays or passed out from partying on a Friday night.A tall wiry built youth, with a slightly unkempt dark hair, just walked into a clothing store.The store had just opened up for the day so while there were not much people in it, every customer seemed to be someone worth something.Of course the only exception was the youth, who looked like he had been picked from a homeless shelter with his faded jeans and old shirt.Adam had received a call in the early morning by Olivia to bring her phone which she had forgotten at his place. So he had gotten dressed and prepared just to realize his available clothes weren't up to par.That led to the current situation where he had to stop by a store to change his style.An attendant walked up to him to ask if he needed assistance but he refused her. Since he himself wasn't even certain of what he wanted, he decide
Olivia's POVThe night air was a bit chilly and slightly biting to the skin but Olivia stood at the entrance of her place of residence, a seven-floor building. She lived on the top floor because it was the cheapest and therefore it was also unfortunately the smallest.Taking in a deep breath, Olivia entered into the building.It had taken a strong force of will to not crash out in the premium cab after Adam had escorted her to it. And that was the issue.She understood his earlier reasons for pushing her away. While she could have actually done something major to help him, it would mean admitting her loss to her parents and doing it as Olivia Dunham.So, she had tried helping in the way Olivia, just Olivia, could do. She gave him large discounts anytime she saw him, trying to make him take it for free didn't work and seemed insulting.She had timed her working hours across her three jobs to always meet him. Once in a while, she gave him anonymous gifts.She had even given up a high jo







