After the school ceremony, Jung entered his classroom and slumped in his seat, before giving a loud, suffering sigh.

Yesterday was another one of those days, Jung mused. After a hard stint in the gym, there was an emergency in the clinic, and he had to be there. Then he needed to bring a desk table back home to fix it, only to realize that it was unrepairable. So he built the client a new table from scratch. Luckily, he has enough dry wood in the barn to build one. The work in the desk table took him almost the entire night. Like he said, one of those days.

He noticed Oh Sang-ki, the wheelchair boy, looking at him with amusement, and they bumped fists. Jung also noticed Kwang in front of him, staring blankly and having deep thoughts. The big oaf probably haven’t even noticed him.

The first thing that came to Jung's mind was that Kwang suddenly received the system and is now checking his status screen. But Jung rejected that idea seconds later.

Unable to set aside his curiosity, Jung smacked the back of his best friend's head. "Oww!" Kwang protested, glaring at Jung. "What the hell was that for?"

"I don't know," Jung said honestly, ignoring Sang-ki’s giggles. "It seems like the right thing to do at the time. What were you thinking about?"

"Hmmm," Kwang responded.

"Do I need to hit you again?"

"I just had a weird dream."

"Dream about what?"

"Well, I was out hunting with my family," Kwang said, starting his dream story.

"You? Hunting?" Sang-ki said in a skeptical voice.

"Yeah, I have the hat and the hunting jacket and the shotgun, and everything. Then suddenly, a deer just jumped out of the bushes and stared at me."

Jung glared at him. "You killed Bambi?"

Kwang frowned while he looked at his friend. "No. That is the weird part," Kwang said.

"Bambi attacked you?"

"No."

"Bambi escaped?"

"No."

"Bambie gave you the finger, then escaped?"

"Do you want me to finish the story or not?"

Jung sighed as he pulled the workbook from his bag and started getting ready for their first class. "Well, finish the story then, idiot."

"Well, I fully intended to kill Bambi, I mean the deer, damn it,” Kwang glared at Jung while Sang-ki giggled again, “but then it turned out that I was holding the gun backwards."

"How the fuck-?"

"Then I shoot! and my whole lower face spins around a couple of times until my mouth is at the back of my head, like Duffy duck."

Sang-ki stared at him incredulously.

Jung made an exaggerated sigh with his hand on his chest. "I'm glad Bambi escaped," Jung commented.

Kwang blinked his beady eyes at him. "That's all you get from that macabre story I just told you?!" Kwang roared.

"What do you want me to say?"

"Tell me why I would dream something stupid like that?! and what it means!"

Jung just sighed as he hung his kerokerropi bag to the back of his chair. "Well, that's what you get for hunting deer during wabbit season."

"Duck season!"

"Wabbit season!"

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"DUCK SEASSOOON!"

"What the hell are you two idiots yelling about so early in the morning?" Eun Mei said right in front of them.

Jung Hee immediately stood up, an unexpected but pleasant surprise blooming over his face. “Eun Mei! How can I help you this fine morning? I can do any of your assignments and-"

“Shut it, Kim,” she said, glaring at Kwang instead. “My business is with this fat ass.”

Kwang harrumphed as he crossed his arms over his broad chest. ‘Well, I have nothing else to say to you, Missy. So get lost.”

“You knew I had that bike reserved, and I am going to get it by the end of the month! And then you swooped in and grabbed it just like that! ”

“You have nothing more than a vague promise while I already have the money ready,” Kwang said, leaning over. “I talked to the bike seller, and he agreed with me. I paid him in full, and the bike is mine. End of story.”

“I found the bike first! "Eun Mei screamed, and Jung and the rest of the half-full class still inside the room flinched from her outburst. “And you stole it from me! ”

“Boohoo! "Kwang shut back. “That is not how transactions work! Just because you found it first doesn’t make you the owner. You still have to pay for it. I did! ”

“I was already paying for it! I have two down payments for the bike and a third one this week. Three more after that, and I’ve covered the entire cost. Imagine my surprise when the owner gave me back my money and said, The bike is no longer available.”

Sang-ki followed the argument like an avid tennis enthusiast.

Jung, meanwhile, paled upon hearing that. He was the ass that accompanied Kwang and then negotiated with the bike seller to convince him to sell to Kwang instead. Kwang was just so excited when he told his friends that his father finally gave him the money to buy the bike, and Jung and the rest congratulated the big guy. Later, he came back with a sad look on his face and explained that somebody else had already reserved the bike that he wanted.

The big guy’s forlorn face moved Jung so much that he decided to help his friend. Besides, it is a good exercise for his “negotiate” skill. He succeeded, and Kwang bought his prized bike. He promised to let his friends borrow it this weekend, and Jung and the others are excited for him.

And then he found out just now that the person who reserved the damn bike originally was Eun Mei. The gods must hate me, Jung Hee thought bitterly as the two continued to snark at each other.

The moment there was a small lull in the argument, Jung smoothly stepped between the two combatants and raised his arms to show the girl he was not a threat. ”I am so sorry these series of unfortunate events happened to you, Eun Mei. But I heard from the seller that by next week, there will be more shipments of new products.”

“He already told me that! "Eun Mei said. “You know what else he said? He cannot guarantee that the same model will become available in the next shipment. Where does that leave me?! ”

Jung didn’t bother asking if she was willing to get another model. To Jung, he didn’t understand the importance of the bike models. A bike is a bike. But apparently, it is important. When Jung asked Kwang to just get another model, his friend almost bit his head off. Eun Mei has the same aura around her, and he would probably get a kick right in the balls if he ever suggested that to her as well.

The two continued to bicker, and Jung helplessly tried to mediate, but to no avail. Oh Sang-ki, the wheelchair boy, stared in fascination as his head turned from Kwang to Eun Mei, as if he were watching an intense tennis match. “I’m glad I don’t need a bike,” he muttered to himself with amusement as he followed the argument. He wished he has pop-corns.

Then Jung’s peripheral vision noticed someone walking in the corridor, and he smoothly extricated himself from the two and approached the innocent boy. "Hey, Choi Garam! How are you today? ” That stop the argument as both Eun Mei and Kwang looked at Jung approached Garam, the son of the bike businessman in town.

The new boy was startled by Jung’s sudden appearance but recovered easily enough. He was assigned to throw away the trash, and that was what he was doing when Jung approached him. “Oh, hey there, Jung Hee. Do you need something? ”

“I heard your dad is bringing a new shipment of bikes! "Jung said with a smile. “I guess business is booming.”

“Hahahaha! I hope so; my family could use that money.”

“Do you remember the XPX-11 model? The black one with stripes? "Jung asked.

“Yeah, that’s one of my favorites.”

“Can you ask your dad to make sure one or two of that exact model come in the next shipment? ”

The new boy simply grimaced. “My dad can probably do that, but I gotta say that this is not a simple favor, man. This is a lot of hassle. Not only for my dad, but for a lot of people.”

Jung nodded in understanding. He turned to Eun Mei, who was now watching him with interest across the room. Jung sighed. He thought about it, then mustered what resources he had, and then opened his mouth to-

Would you like to use your skills to negotiate? Y/N?

Jung’s eyes targeted Cho Garam and automatically choose Y. A new screen shows a red bar moving slowly to the right while the word "Negotiating..." continues to blink slowly. Jung again experienced the weird sensation that everything around him was sort of going fast forward in a blurred background.

He watched the red bar finally reach 100 percent, and then he and the rest of the world lurched back to reality.

Garam raised his hand pleasantly for a handshake. “So we agree then,” he said, and Jung took his hand and closed the deal. “Nice doing business with you.”

Negotiation successful!

Cho Garam agreed to convince his father to guarantee the delivery of at least two of the same model XPX-11 with the same color here in Guanzu town, and he reserved one especially for the girl Song Eun Mei.

In return, Kim Jung Hee promised to pay 48,000 PKW (or $48) for the expedited delivery of the product, to do Cho Garam’s main projects for science, history, and math for this school quarter, an entire sack of potatoes freshly harvested from Jung’s garden, and two refurbished electrical appliances of Garam’s choice in the junk shop.

Also, Jung agreed to pay for EunMei’s balance of 612,000 PKW ($610) for the remaining payment of the said bike model. Any agreement with Eun Mei will be optional after that.

Everything he did came back to Jung's consciousness, and despite his promised discount due to his skill, he knew the young man received a better bargain from him. Mostly because he sensed Jung's desperation, but also because the young man was a good businessman in his own right and knew exactly how much to milk Jung for. Despite this, Jung gained a grudging respect for the youngster, knowing that if he were in his place, he would do the same thing. Nonetheless, Eun Mei's remaining debt for the bike purchase nearly wiped away his entire year's savings.

Both Kwang and Eun Mei were surprised when they learned about what happened.

“I don’t need nor do I want your money, Jung Hee,” Eun Mei said coldly. “I can pay for my own bike.”

“I don’t question that,” Jung said soothingly. “But the bike owner’s policy remains. He can try and reserve the bike for you, but if someone who is ready to pay the entire amount happens to be there,” he said, gesturing to his smug friend. “Then he will have no choice but to sell the bike to him. It’s the law.”

Jung could see the conflict in the girl’s face, and he pushed harder. “By paying for it now, the bike is now yours, and you can have it immediately. If you are really adamant on not getting my money, then you can pay me back with no interest.”

A myriad of emotions crossed Eun Mei’s face. From shock and surprise to suspicion and fear, For a moment, no one speaks. Jung Hee can practically see the gears in Eun Mei’s brain working over time.

“Fine,” Eun Mei said. “From now on, I’ll give you my monthly payment. But not a cent more! I’ll probably complete the payment in 3–4 more months. Would that be okay? ”

“That’ll be great! "Jung said enthusiastically. “Of course, instead of a sky-high interest rate, you just need to add the payment of letting me escort you back home every day.”

Eun Mei turned around. “No,” was all she said as she walked away.

Jung immediately followed her. “How about just three times a week then, eh? No? Eun Mei? Okaay, fine! Just once a week, then! ”

Kwang and Sang-ki both shook their heads as Jung followed the girl. To their eyes, Jung look like a puppy, pleading to be carried. Sang-ki chuckled, then turned his gaze back to the big guy. Somehow, his glasses twinkled in Kwang’s view.

"Now then," Sang-ki said, with a gleeful smile in his nerdy face. "I will tell you exactly what your dream meant."