Xavier was reviewing the project framework Amira had sent when the idea landed.

VIP.

He sat up slightly.

The concert was Sarah’s event. Her stage, her crowd, her territory. Showing up and blending into the general crowd was the wrong move . He’d just be another face she scanned over and forgot. But VIP seating at a campus Arts event meant front and centre. Visible. Impossible to ignore without trying to be noticed.

Subtle but effective, he thought. That’s the balance.

He pulled up the concert event page on his phone. There it was at the bottom VIP table packages available, $200 for two seats, front section, includes drinks and reserved table.

$200 spent. $400 returned. And a front row seat to Sarah Torres noticing me for the first time properly sounds like a fair trade honestly.

He paid immediately.

[ REBATE SYSTEM ]

Transaction Detected: $200 — VIP Concert Package

Base Multiplier (Tier 1): 2x

Total Return: $400

Credited in: 00:10:00

Cap Used: $200 of $10,000

[ Net Balance: $93,640.00 → $94,040.00 ]

He opened WhatsApp.

Xavier: sending you something. wear something worth the seat.

He wired her $300 before she could respond.

Amira: ??? xavier what is this and you don’t have to be so rude..

Xavier: dress money.I got us VIP tickets so I wanted us to look the part.

Amira: you bought VIP seats for a campus concert?.

Xavier: correct

Amira: for what reason

Xavier: does it matter

A long pause.

Amira: what colour

Xavier thought about it. Something that works without screaming for attention.

Xavier: burgundy. or dark green. nothing loud.

Amira: ...okay

Xavier: be ready by 10. I’ll come get you.

He put the phone down.

Now I need to sort out what I’m wearing.

He spent an hour putting together the outfit. A Black fitted trousers, a dark grey shirt, open one button at the collar, sleeves rolled to the forearm with dark leather shoes. A simple watch he’d picked up during one of his city days he got for 2000$ . It was nothing flashy, just present on the wrist.

He stood in front of the mirror and looked at himself.

In his previous life Xavier would have worn whatever was cleanest and called it dressed up. He straightened the collar. Different standards now.

He checked the time. 9:38 PM.

He opened the Uber app and selected the premium class without hesitating. A black sedan confirmed in under a minute costing only 24$.

Small things matter, he thought, pocketing his phone. Showing up in a regular cab to a VIP section is a contradiction.

The car arrived at exactly 9:43. He walked out, nodded at the driver, and settled into the back seat.

9:45 PM. Rolling.

[ REBATE SYSTEM ]

Transaction Detected: $24 — Premium Uber

Base Multiplier (Tier 1): 2x

Total Return: $48

Credited in: 00:10:00

Cap Used: $224 of $10,000

[ Net Balance: $93,816.00 → $93,840.00 ]

The Uber pulled up outside Amira’s hostel at 10:02 PM.

She was already waiting at the entrance of her hostel gate just standing there ready glancing at her phone.

Xavier stepped out and saw her properly for the first time outside of a classroom setting.

Whoa.

He kept his expression neutral but his brain took a full second to catch up.

She’d gone with burgundy — a clean midi dress that fit correctly without announcing itself. Hair down and longer than he’d expected, falling past her shoulders.

Contacts instead of the glasses, which made her eyes sharper somehow. Small earrings. Nothing excessive.

Didn’t know you were this beautiful, he thought. Genuinely thought you were just a class nerd. Your school wear has been doing you serious injustice.

She was light skinned with medium sized boobs, middle height maybe an inch shorter than him and carrying herself with the same quiet composure she brought to everything. Nothing performed. Nothing trying too hard.

She looked at him with the controlled expression she wore when she was also noticing something but had zero intention of being the first to say it.

"You’re on time," she said.

"Yh wouldn’t want to keep my princess waiting," Xavier replied.

"Funny although most people say 10 and mean 10:30 you’re quite the gentleman ."

"I’m not most people and thanks." He looked at her once, not lingering, just acknowledging. "You look good."

Amira held his gaze for a half second. "I know," she said, and moved toward the car.

Xavier held the door open, girls and egos two indisputable factors.

She got in without making it a thing and Xavier followed suit.

_ _ _ _

The Arts faculty outdoor amphitheatre was already alive when they arrived. String lights hung between poles across the open air venue, the stage lit warm and gold at the far end. Students were filling in from every direction, general admission standing at the back, seated areas in the middle, and at the very front a small cordoned section of round tables with reserved signs.

That was theirs.

The moment they walked through the VIP entrance Xavier felt the shift. Not everyone noticed but enough did. The reserved section had maybe eight tables total and most of them were occupied by older students or faculty connected people.

Xavier was the only first year in the section visibly, and with Amira beside him in burgundy they looked exactly like what he needed them to look like.

Like someone worth paying attention to.

He pulled out Amira’s chair without thinking about it.

She sat down and looked up at him with the expression of someone recalibrating again.

"You do that naturally," she said.

"Do what."

"The chair thing."

"Just Sit down Amira, beautiful girls don’t ask too many questions."

She sat. But she was looking at him differently and he knew it.

They ordered drinks from the table service,

The VIP package covered drinks - a small detail but a welcome one. Xavier settled into his seat and looked out at the venue filling up around them.

This time there was no transaction, no notification. Just two glasses arriving at the table with just asking.

Amira picked hers up and looked around the amphitheatre with quiet curiosity. "This is actually nice, I think we should do this alot."

"Campus does some things right, enjoyment once in a while isn’t bad," Xavier said. For a fact in his previous life he didn’t have the privilege to attend parties and shit when he had stacks of bills to pay.

Visit and read more novel to help us update chapter quickly. Thank you so much!

Report chapter

Use arrow keys (or A / D) to PREV/NEXT chapter