[Chapter 22: Reunion with Allen]
Early in the morning, sunlight streamed into John's room. On the white bed, under white sheets and a white silk comforter, John was still sound asleep. As the sunlight gradually touched the bed, he furrowed his brow a few times and then opened his eyes.
Even in March, the weather in Los Angeles was quite pleasant -- around the mid-70s Fahrenheit. The temperature hardly fluctuated throughout the year, never too hot or cold, making it an ideal place to live.
Glancing at the bright weather outside the window, he groggily pushed off the covers, got out of bed naked as usual, and headed to the bathroom. John had this habit of sleeping without clothes -- a leftover from his past life that stuck with him this time around.
After freshening up, he stood before the mirror, studying his reflection. Maybe it was the advantage of heritage or his rebirth and magic -- his youthful yet handsome face with no sunken dark circles, a strong, straight nose, dark hair, and striking blue eyes.
His chest was starting to show some muscle definition, a faint sprinkle of chest hair was growing, and downstairs, he was well-developed -- actually larger than average, which pleased him greatly.
In his previous life, he didn't have much of chest hair. Back then, he'd always heard men with chest hair were considered more attractive.
"John, don't be so impatient. With a gem like the South African diamond next door, your chance will come soon enough." John chuckled as he looked at his reflection, then caught himself and laughed softly.
Looking at the black strap and titanium watch on his wrist, John felt a fresh surge of excitement. This watch was a gift from Jerry Yang after his funding round and cashout. David gave one to Zach, and the two watches were both Patek Philippe men's watches.
His was the latest model from early this year -- the Patek Philippe first titanium Ref. 5004. He had no idea how much Jerry must've paid to get it.
This Swiss company, hailing from the watchmaking capital, was famous for its fully handcrafted watches. With nearly 200 years of history by now, they'd only produced about 600,000 pieces -- wristwatches, clocks, pocket watches, and so on.
When Jerry Yang handed him this watch, John was genuinely shocked. It was priceless -- something money alone couldn't buy. Rumor had it that only 12 of this model were made each year, which was hard to imagine.
John figured if this watch went on auction before his rebirth, it would fetch at least a million dollars, maybe more.
Zach's watch was a 1993 model. David said the 1995 edition was practically impossible to find now. They only managed to secure one between them, and it had to go to John.
Zach accepted the gift without hesitation, happy to have the 1993 version, which made John shake his head in mild disbelief.
...
Returning to his room, John dressed and noticed it was already past 10 a.m. He felt like he'd just woken up naturally for the first time in a while.
Thinking back to last night's late chat with the South African diamond until the early morning, his heart raced a bit.
Well, cut him some slack. In his previous life, John was just an ordinary guy. Getting close to a goddess like that was enough to get anyone's pulse going. He guessed Charlize must've gone off to work by now.
Just then, he heard the front door of the apartment complex open -- Zach must be coming over. Zach knew John liked to sleep late, so he usually showed up late in the mornings.
---
Sure enough, Zach knocked on the door and came in. Seeing John was already up, Zach headed to the kitchen to prepare breakfast, while John settled on the balcony to meditate.
Meditating twice daily was a must for John. Zach was used to it by now. According to John, it was like practicing martial arts.
An hour later, John finished his first meditation session of the day, thinking that the magical energy in the environment was low. Stuck at the peak apprentice level, he wasn't sure when he'd break through to the next stage.
Luckily, his magical meditation didn't have the legendary internal energy restrictions -- like certain hours at night being ideal. He could train anytime during the day. His two hours of daily meditation were enough; more wouldn't help.
He ate the breakfast Zach had made -- well, technically lunch by now -- tidied up, and began another uneventful day.
---
For the next week, John was in a good mood. He stayed home during the day, entertaining himself -- either meditating to practice magic or lazily watching TV and surfing the internet. At night, he chatted with the South African diamond across the balcony.
It felt oddly reminiscent of his past life as a homebody. Occasionally, he'd go to the supermarket to pick up essentials. Mostly, though, John felt too young for many things and was just too lazy to go out.
One evening, after dinner with Zach, who was cleaning up, the doorbell rang unexpectedly.
John extended his psychic senses to check outside -- he was quite familiar with it now, almost like using his own eyes. When he saw who was at the door, he froze for a moment.
Why was he here? He wondered as he got up to open the door.
---
"Hey, didn't expect to see you, Mr. Francis. What brings you here?" John furrowed his brow as he looked at Allen Francis, who sported a big gold chain, tattoos, and a head full of cornrow braids.
Glancing around, it seemed Allen had come alone.
"Hey John, aren't we friends? I'm just here to check on a friend. No need to look, I promise I'm alone."
John was speechless at Allen's boldness but gestured for him to come in. After all, he couldn't exactly turn him away at the door.
"John, who's that?"
"Zach, this is your good friend Allen Francis," Allen said happily upon seeing Zach come out of the kitchen, giving him a big bear hug.
Well, after Allen's overly familiar greeting, John and Zach exchanged a glance, both silently cringing.
...
"Alright Allen, to be honest, I really didn't expect, or want, you to stop by. You know, we're on completely different wavelengths. We just want to stay out of trouble -- as regular guys."
"Relax, man. Things are mostly settled here now. I'm calling the shots down south. I just wanted to check in on my lifesaver. I won't cause any trouble -- I promise," Allen said seriously.
Hearing Allen's confident assurance, John and Zach were strangely of one mind -- if anyone could guarantee that, he definitely couldn't. John had nearly been taken out, after all.
Allen then plopped down on the sofa and started rambling about recent turf battles down south. Of course, how much was true is anyone's guess.
From what Allen said, it seemed the Southside slums of Los Angeles were pretty much controlled by the Black Vipers gang now. The last time a group from New York showed up, they got run out.
...
The three of them settled into casual conversation. Surprising everyone, the leader of Black Vipers turned out to be quite the chatterbox.
John and Zach just sat back and listened, as Allen dominated the conversation.
From these brief interactions, Allen seemed like a decent guy -- not exactly a saint, but someone who repaid debts, at least. Of course, a career criminal can't be called a good guy.
Looking ahead, John planned for his wealth to skyrocket soon, which would likely bring all kinds of problems. After all, money changes everything.
Having a local heavy-hitter like Allen in the neighborhood would offer some protection.
Watching Allen talk non-stop, John began to hatch a plan of his own.
Allen, deep in his monologue, had no idea he was walking straight into John's scheme.
*****
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