After playing around in the water for a while, the girls finally got tired. They strolled over to the sandy stretch of beach and stretched out on their towels to sunbathe.
Even as they chatted among themselves, their eyes kept drifting toward Jason, curiosity written all over their faces.
A few of the guys were still full of energy, but once they noticed the girls crowding around Jason, they suddenly lost interest in playing and made their way over to the beach too.
"Hey," a brunette in a straw hat spoke up, "what department are you in? You look familiar, but I can't place it."
It was Lily Westbrook who had asked. Beside her, Holly Larson tilted her head, studying Jason with a spark of recognition. She'd had the same feeling earlier, but hadn't bothered to ask.
"My name's Jason Carter," he said casually. "I'm in the Automation Engineering program. Maybe we've crossed paths somewhere before."
For a moment, the group went quiet. His name tugged at some half-forgotten memory.
Then, one of the guys—Tyler Williams—snapped his fingers and blurted out, "Wait… Jason Carter? The guy who chased Emily Harper from the Info Management department for three years?"
As soon as the words left his mouth, Tyler realized he'd stepped right into a social landmine.
Sure, seeing Jason on a jet ski earlier with his arms around Holly's waist had irritated him, but Jason hadn't actually done anything to him. On top of that, Jason had let them ride his $30,000 jet ski for free. Throwing shade now felt… petty.
But it was too late—the others had already pieced it together.
So this was the Jason Carter they'd heard about. No wonder his face had felt vaguely familiar.
It was hard to reconcile the stories with the man in front of them. The "desperate, broke, love-struck loser" from campus gossip was a far cry from the tall, confident guy in designer shades sitting on the beach like he owned the place.
Holly Larson — Favorability fusion: -25 → 10.
Jason smirked inwardly. The merge was complete. His "old" reputation had dragged her impression down, but overall he'd still gained 35 favorability points since meeting her. That was more than with Emily Harper, Lily Westbrook, or even Meagan Price.
Guess starting from rock bottom has its perks, he thought.
Seeing the doubt on their faces, Jason didn't flinch. "Yeah," he said, leaning back on his elbows, "that 'Jason Carter' you've heard about? That's me."
No matter how ugly the past was, it was still his past. Running from it would only make him look weaker. Owning it was better.
The group was caught off guard. They'd expected him to dodge the topic, make excuses, maybe even spin the story in his favor. Especially since he'd just built himself up as some kind of campus hero.
Instead, he admitted it without hesitation.
Lily raised an eyebrow. "Huh… you're nothing like the rumors. So, you still chasing Emily?"
As for how Jason had gone from "broke loser" to "guy who casually drops the keys to a $30k jet ski," no one dared to ask.
"Nah," Jason said, shaking his head. "That's all ancient history. I'm here to clear my head, not dwell on the past. Wanted to try out a jet ski, but I didn't know anyone here. Then I remembered Holly posted on the school forum about being good at it, so I figured I'd ask for some tips."
He didn't whine about his past heartbreak, didn't badmouth Emily, and didn't puff himself up with fake bravado. He simply stated it as if it were nothing more than a passing summer breeze.
The explanation also made his approach to Holly seem casual—born out of genuine interest in learning, not some ulterior romantic motive.
A flicker of respect crossed Holly's face. Holly Larson — Favorability +5.
Lily chuckled. "Well, letting go is the smart move. Three years with no results? Yeah, that's your sign to move on. You're good-looking, Jason. And now that you're clearly doing well for yourself… I don't think you'll have any trouble finding someone new."
Jason just smiled.
The other women chimed in with praise one after another.Part of it was genuine, sure — Jason really was impressive — but part of it was also because they'd just ridden his jet ski for free. Hard to badmouth someone when you've literally been enjoying their toys.
After watching Jason openly admit who he was, instead of cooling down, the women seemed even more enthusiastic. Tyler and Jordan exchanged confused looks.
Is this what they call sincerity?Or is it just that sincerity from a rich guy hits different?
Jason cut off the topic before it could spiral."Alright, enough of that. We're here to have fun — any recommendations for cool stuff to do?"
Holly Larson tilted her head, thinking. "I was gonna suggest we rent a sailboat, but the prices here are insane — two, three grand an hour, and there's a waitlist a mile long. Too many rich folks driving up the prices."
Jason's eyes lit up. "Sailing, huh? Sounds great. I saw the rental guys earlier — they seemed pretty chill. Maybe I can get us priority."
Without waiting for a response, he started walking toward the marina.
Everyone had the same sudden sense of déjà vu.
Emily Weaver's eyes widened. "Wait — the boats are all booked solid. There's no way they'll bump us ahead. Unless…" She lowered her voice. "Don't tell me he's thinking about buying one."
Holly blinked. "There's a dealer right here on the pier — even imports. But a sailboat's nothing like a jet ski. Unless you're talking about one of those tiny one-person ones, you're still looking at hundreds of thousands, easy."
"And he just learned how to run a jet ski," Emily added. "Buying a full-sized sailboat to mess around with makes no sense at all."
"It didn't make sense when he dropped over thirty grand on a jet ski earlier either," Holly shot back.
It was ridiculous… but because Jason had already pulled off something outrageous once today, they couldn't help worrying he'd do it again.
They followed him to the shop — just in time to hear the salesman explaining:
"This Hanse 458 was pre-ordered by another client. The deposit's paid, it's been shipped in from Germany, fully set up and tested… but the buyer backed out last minute.
It's basically brand new. I can show you all the paperwork."
"If you want it, I'll do two million even — and I can apply the other buyer's deposit to cover part of the import tax. You'll only need to pay the remaining 30% in tariffs."
Jason nodded. "Looks good. Let me check the paperwork, and if it's all clear, I'll take it."
The group froze.
He's actually going to do it.
And not for a few hundred thousand — this was two million dollars. Even with the tax break, the import fees were still going to run him another six hundred thousand. That's 2.6 million… to buy a luxury sailboat on the spot.
Normal people go to the marina and rent a sailboat.Maybe — maybe — they buy a small one if they really love it.
Jason? He was about to walk out with a 47-foot German-built Hanse, 14.4 meters long, 4.38 meters wide — a yacht-level sailboat.
"Jason, come on," Holly said, almost pleading. "We were just tossing around ideas. You don't have to buy one of the most expensive boats here just for a little fun."
Jason shrugged. "It's not just for fun. I'll use it plenty in the future. And honestly, it's better to own than to rent — I've read about this model before. You normally have to wait months to get one."
Once the paperwork checked out, he didn't hesitate. He paid for the boat like he was picking up a soda from a vending machine.
Holly, Emily, Zach, Lucas, and the rest could only stare in stunned silence.
Do rich people really spend money like this?