As Tyler walked down the street, the house he was heading to slowly came into view.
He smiled when he saw the faint outline of the house from the distance. He remembered when he used to visit the house during his younger days, in his previous life.
It was almost considered his second home, as its owner was a close friend of his mother. More than close actually.
As for what Tyler is going to do there?... Well, he's going to ask for money.
A better way to phrase it would be that he's going to beg for money. But he won't actually be begging for it, as it would be more like a loan.
He's not going to ask for much. Just $100 will be enough.
He already has a plan in mind for the money, as he will divide it into equal halves. Half—$50—will be used to get grocery, and the remaining $50 will be used for something very important.
According to his memory, two days from now, someone would win big from a lottery ticket.
Tyler saw this when he was coming Bach from school. He remembered, seeing the trucker smiling with a broken tooth, happily telling everyone that cared to listen, how he bought the Gold Rush lottery ticket for just $50, and won $50,000.
He said that it was the luckiest day of his life.
Then, Tyler had inwardly called the man a fool for broadcasting his winnings instead of keeping it to himself.
But who would've thought that it was the same man that he insulted that would actually become his lifesaver?
"The irony of life. It never gets old," he smiled wryly.
Still, that doesn't mean that Tyler won't be going ahead as planned. Life is all about grabbing opportunities, and he wasn't going to lose this over mere sentiment.
As for whether the owner of the house would actually be willing to loan him the money? Tyler wasn't worried about that one bit.
He was going to make an offer that the person will never be able to refuse.
And what is that offer? Well, he will be selling his mom out.
Not literally but he's going to help that person convince his mom to actually give him a chance.
And who is this person? Mr David, a widower and someone who likes his mom. And in his past life, he started wooing his mother a few years after his dad died.
Tyler remembered that David and his mom did get together in his past life, albeit very late. As barely a month after they got together, his mother fell ill with that sickness.
He remembered David always coming to the hospital everyday and staying with his mother for hours.
He saw the pain and anger in David's eyes the day their mom died—how her hand went cold in his, and how he broke down completely as she was lowered into the ground.
Tyler sighed heavily, forcing down the memories that were trying to surface.
"Not in this life. I will make sure that mom gets to experience love again and for as long as she wants."
....
A couple of minutes later, he finally arrived at the door of the house and he knocked. He waited for a few seconds and the door opened, revealing a middle aged man, dressed in casuals, sporting a smile on his face.
This middle aged man was naturally David, his mom's admirer.
And seeing him again after so many years, Tyler saw just how nice of a person he looks from just a glance.
He remembered that in the future decent guys like him became walking red flags.
Younger girls and girls his age had been told—usually by some bitter friend—that "nice" meant weak, and "stable" meant boring.
The irony? That advice came from people whose lives were anything but happy.
There was particular name given to those type of friends—
Tyler's thought was suddenly interrupted by David.
"Tyler... Come on in,"David said, when he saw Tyler standing there, looking like he zoned off.
"Hello, Mr David. Thanks," Tyler nodded, as he stepped into house.
They made their way to the living area. David took his seat on a couch and Tyler also did the same.
"So, how are you, your mom and Devin?" David asked curiously.
"They are fine," Tyler nodded, with a small smile on his face.
David nodded happily but he couldn't help but feel uncomfortable with the strange, unreadable expression on Tyler's face.
He had always known Tyler to be a kid who wore his expression on his face. This was why he found the neutral expression on his face to be very strange, and it made him feel like there was something bothering him.
"So, why did you come to see me?..." He asked.
"Please, I need you to loan me $100," Tyler said politely.
"Loan you? $100?" David asked, trying to confirm that he heard right.
He felt that something was bothering but he didn't expect that it was something like this.
As if on cue, Tyler nodded in confirmation to his questions.
"What do you need the money for?" He couldn't help but ask.
He thought of something, and he immediately got a bad feeling. He looked at Tyler and he shook his head inwardly.
'There's no way that Tyler is doing drugs.'
"David, I really need for something important. Though I can't tell you what it is right now but I will tell about it later," Tyler said politely.
David looked at him intently, wanting to see through him but it was impossible with how neutral his face was.
"And why should I listen to you? Why should I loan you the money if you're not going to tell me what it is?" He asked, with a frown.
Hearing this, Tyler smiled inwardly, as he knew that it was his cue to lay his offer on the table.
"If you loan me the money, I will put in lots of good words for you with my mom," he said, with a small smile.
"Wait a minute... Are you trying to sell your mom for $100?" David asked, frowning deeply.
"I will never do that. I'm only promising to put in some good words for you with my mom. And I will also repay you the money and with interest even," Tyler replied.
"Or don't you want to get together with my mom?" He asked, with a knowing smile.
"I... Ummm... Sigh..." David had no idea on how to respond to that, and he could only sigh.
"Fine... But you will have to promise me that it's not something illegal. You're like a son to me and I won't be happy if you're to get into any sort of trouble. So, promise me that you won't get yourself into trouble," David said, and Tyler nodded.
"I promise."
It felt weird to Tyler, making a promise as a adult to another adult, while in a child's body. But he knew that it couldn't be helped.
If he had the money, coming to loan money from David would had never crossed his mind.
Hearing Tyler's promise, David sighed internally and took out five $20 bill and gave it to Tyler.
Tyler reached out to receive the money, but David pulled his hand back. He raised his head and he saw David looking at him intently.
"Don't break my trust," David said, with a very solemn expression, and Tyler nodded, with an equally solemn expression on his face.
"Thank you," Tyler said, as he received the money.
"Tell your mom I said hi, okay?" David said, and Tyler nodded.
He immediately stood up and took his leave. It was time to buy that lottery ticket.