Slap the Chairman’s Son Chapter 2

The next morning, for the first time in months, I wasn’t in the lab at 5 AM.

Bob, my loyal supervisor, was always there with me at 5 AM sharp. I would start coding, and he would promptly fall asleep at the next workstation.

Today, he wasn't getting his nap.

He was panicking. My phone buzzed with a string of calls from him, all of which I ignored. It wasn’t until 10 AM, after I’d secured a fake doctor's note from an urgent care clinic, that I finally picked up.

“Joey! Where are you? Why aren't you in the lab? I've been calling you all morning, why didn't you answer?”

His usual calm demeanor was gone, replaced by a sharp, frantic edge.

I let out a fake cough. “I’m sick. Just got back from the doctor. Didn’t want to worry you, so I didn't pick up. He said I've been running myself ragged and have a bad flu. Told me to rest for a week.”

“But what about the AI championship? Chairman Thorne said he expects the winner to come from our university this year. Are you really going to let him down?”

“It’s fine. I’m sick, but we still have Jack, right? I already gave my doctor's note to the professor. She approved my withdrawal from the competition. I really don’t feel well. I’m going back to bed.”

I hung up before he could argue.

Back in my apartment, I collapsed onto my bed and went over the plan. If I don't compete, none of the rest can happen. I'm just one person against a powerful family. This life, all I want is to live quietly and peacefully with Nina.

Just as I was drifting off, my phone rang again. This time, it was Nina.

“Joey, oh god, something’s wrong. I’m sick. I might need a kidney transplant. I need a lot of money!”

I shot up in bed. “What? What happened?”

Nina told me she had suddenly fainted and her classmates had rushed her to the hospital. The diagnosis was uremia. Kidney failure.

My mind went blank. In my past life, Nina was perfectly healthy, right up until the day I died. She was never sick.

Was this fate’s twisted joke? Was I destined to be separated from the one person I loved, no matter what?