Chapter 2: Back Through the Door
Jax's sneakers squelched with every step. The rain had not let up, but he barely felt it anymore. His jaw throbbed, ribs ached from the punches, and his lip tasted like copper, but none of that mattered right now.
Forty-seven minutes.
The timer in the corner of his vision—because yeah, the glowing blue interface was still there, floating just above his phone screen like some augmented reality glitch—was counting down. Forty-six minutes, fifty-eight seconds.
He wiped rain from his eyes and stared at Club Vibe's side entrance. The same metal door the bouncers had shoved him through twenty minutes ago. Music leaked out in muffled waves. Laughter too. They were still partying like nothing had happened.
Like he had not just been erased from Sofia's life in front of fifty strangers.
Jax flexed his fingers. They hurt, but he could move them. Good enough.
He reached for the handle. Locked. Of course.
A small red light blinked above the door. Camera. They would see him coming.
He stepped back, looked around. The alley beside the club was narrow, lined with overflowing dumpsters and a chain-link fence topped with razor wire. Not climbing that. Not tonight.
The front entrance then.
He walked around the block, head down against the wind. A couple of clubbers under an umbrella gave him a wide berth, whispering. He ignored them. His hoodie was soaked black, hair plastered to his forehead, blood probably still smeared on his chin. He looked like trouble. Good. Let them think that.
The main entrance had a short line—maybe ten people under a glowing purple awning. Two bouncers out front, same black polos, earpieces, arms crossed like they were carved from concrete.
Jax slowed. The timer ticked: forty-three minutes.
He could turn around. Walk home. Tell his mom the date went bad, crash on the couch, pretend none of this happened. The system could be a hallucination. Concussion. Bad weed from last week.
But then he remembered Sofia's face. The way she said "you're holding me back" like it was a fact, not an opinion. The way Marcus laughed. The way the whole VIP section pulled out phones to record his exit.
Nah.
He was done being the punchline.
Jax straightened up, rolled his shoulders even though it hurt, and walked straight to the front of the line.
A girl in a sparkly dress spun around. "Yo, the line starts back there."
He did not look at her. Kept his eyes on the bigger bouncer, the one who had kicked his gift bag earlier.
The bouncer noticed him immediately. Eyes narrowed. "You again? Told you to stay gone."
Jax stopped a few feet away. Rain dripped from his hood. "I need back in."
The bouncer laughed, short and mean. "Nah, fam. You're banned. Go home."
The second bouncer stepped forward, hand already on his radio.
Jax felt something shift inside his chest. Not anger exactly. Something colder. Sharper.
He glanced at his phone.
The interface was still there, pulsing softly.
[Charm +10 active from mission acceptance]
[Temporary effect: Increased social influence, persuasion, intimidation resistance. Duration: Until mission complete or failure.]
He did not know what +10 meant in numbers, but he felt it. Like someone had turned up the volume on his own presence. The rain seemed quieter. The line noise faded a little.
He looked the bouncer dead in the eye.
"I'm not asking," Jax said. His voice came out low, steady. Not loud. Just certain. "I'm telling you. Let me in."
The bouncer blinked. For a split second his tough-guy mask slipped. Confusion. Then he shook it off.
"Boy, you got five seconds to walk away before—"
Jax cut him off. "You don't want to do that."
He did not raise his voice. Did not step closer. Just held the stare.
The bouncer's hand hovered over the radio. Then slowly lowered.
The second bouncer frowned. "Yo, what you doing?"
The first one swallowed. Looked at Jax again. Really looked. Like he was seeing something new.
After a long beat, he jerked his head toward the door.
"Fine. Go. But if anything pops off, it's on you."
Jax nodded once. Walked past them.
The girl in the sparkly dress gaped. The line murmured.
He did not care.
Inside, the club hit him like a wall of heat and bass. Strobe lights sliced the air. Bodies moved on the dance floor. He pushed through, ignoring the elbows and dirty looks.
Up the stairs to VIP.
The same velvet rope. The same two security guys from earlier.
They saw him coming.
One of them stepped in front. "Hell no. You're out."
Jax stopped. Looked past him.
There she was. Sofia. Still next to Marcus. Laughing at something he said. Her hand on his thigh.
The timer: thirty-nine minutes.
Jax met the security guy's eyes.
"I'm not here for trouble," he said. Calm. "I just need to talk to her. One minute. Then I'm gone."
The guard snorted. "You already got bounced once. You think—"
Charm +10.
Jax leaned in slightly. "You really want to drag me out again? In front of all these people? Phones out? Videos going viral? 'Club Vibe security beats up broke kid twice in one night.' That's bad for business."
The guard hesitated.
Jax kept going. "Or you let me through, I say my piece, I leave quiet. No drama. Your call."
The second guard shifted. Looked at the first.
After a tense second, the first guard sighed. Unclipped the rope.
"One minute. I'm watching."
Jax nodded. Stepped into VIP.
Heads turned. Whispers spread fast.
Sofia saw him first. Her eyes went wide. She sat up straight.
Marcus followed her gaze. His smirk faded into something harder.
Jax walked straight to their table.
The music thumped on.
He stopped right in front of them.
Sofia opened her mouth. "Jax, what the hell—"
He cut her off with a small, cold smile.
"Hey, baby," he said. "Happy birthday."
Then he reached into his soaked pocket, pulled out his cracked phone, and turned the screen toward them.
The neon blue interface glowed bright enough for both of them to see.
Mission 1: In Progress
Reclaim your dignity.
Time remaining: 38 minutes.
Marcus frowned. "What is that? Some app?"
Jax looked at him. Really looked.
"Not an app," he said quietly.
He turned back to Sofia.
"You called me a nobody," he said. "Said I was holding you back."
She shifted uncomfortably. "Jax, this isn't—"
"You were right about one thing," he continued. "I was a nobody."
He tapped the screen once.
A soft chime rang in his head—only he could hear it.
[Charm effect amplified. Target persuasion window open.]
Jax leaned forward just enough.
"But tonight?" he said. "Tonight everything changes."
He looked between them both.
"And you two? You're about to find out what happens when the nobody decides he's done playing small."
The table went quiet.
Marcus laughed, but it sounded forced. "You on something, bro?"
Jax ignored him. Looked straight at Sofia.
"Enjoy the rest of your night," he said. "Because this is the last time you get to laugh at me."
He turned to walk away.
Marcus stood up fast. "Yo, you don't just walk in here and talk shit—"
Jax stopped. Looked back over his shoulder.
The interface pulsed once.
[New sub-mission detected: Humiliate Marcus Voss publicly.]
[Bonus Reward: +200 Neon Points + Instant $10,000 if completed within mission timer.]
Jax smiled for real this time.
Small. Dangerous.
He met Marcus's glare.
"Try me," Jax said.
The whole VIP section was watching now.
Phones were out.
The timer ticked.
Thirty-seven minutes.
And Jax felt something new growing inside him.
Power.
Real power.
He took one step toward Marcus.