Lex was sat on his untidy bed, tracing the crinkles on his forehead with one hand, a letter in the other hand stamped with a velvet wax seal, his thumb caressed the paper solemnly.
He let out a defeated sigh, "Grandpa... Why'd you have to go too."
Dragging his thumb across the top of the letter he ripped the envelope open, unveiling a lengthy, hand-written note in superb handwriting headed - I'm Sorry, Lex. With a note at the bottom.
P.S. "Bloody machine kept beeping at me. Threw the blasted fucker out the window as a last act of rebellion. Then I remembered I've got to write a letter for ya."
A smirk crept onto the corner of his mouth after reading the note, "An old fogie to the end... couldn't even figure out how the printer worked, I showed him a thousand times. Was probably just out of ink..."
He shook the smile off and continued reading.
"I hope this finds you well, wee Lex. I wanted to get the last word in without you nagging my ear off, so here it is, my last letter just for you boy - feel honoured."
"You're 20 now, aye? Proper age, an age where you should be living your prime, but you've probably come to the conclusion about this world, and that it's a pile of shit. I know I'm usually positive, but it's reality son. Life's dealt us a rough hand, you more so than me."
"I'm writing this to tell you one thing, well a few things, but mainly one! First being... I'm sorry, Lex. I'm sorry your parents died in that accident, that you're forced to continue on without us, that I couldn't give you the life I'd hoped for you."
"It isn't your fault, son."
Lex' face went numb, the edges of his lips trembled as his hands held the paper.
"Lex. This is important so pay attention. I'm entrusting something I received too late in life to you, someone who I know can make it work. You've got brains. If not for all that blubber on your body you'd be surrounded by women. Hopefully that issue should be solved soon, you can't let the line end here."
"I'm giving you my old retail store, the only real piece of land this family has. You might be asking, 'Grandpa why do we have a retail store?' and truthfully son I have not a clue. Don't know where it came from but we found the papers years and years ago, the deed is ours with 100% certainty."
"But listen, this is some prime real estate. Yeah... it might be a bit untidy. Haven't went in there in over a decade, however, a bit of spit and sawdust and you'll have it up and running in no time! And startup costs? Don't worry about it... you'll see when you get there this isn't no ordinary shop, just don't get too carried away and remember where you come from."
"Anyway son, I love you, and will always be watching down from above. This is a goodbye from me."
- Grandpa.
Enclosed was a slip with an address, the deed, and the keys for the store.
Playing with the keys in his hand, Lex stares himself down.
What he saw was a failed man. Tall no doubt, over six foot tall, a stocky build, would be a powerhouse on the rugby field, but the fat all around him, the acne, the bags under the eyes, It told a story of someone who could've been everything.
"A retail store eh?" He gripped tightly around this keys in his hand and threw it against the mirror. "That's all I've got left?!"
Realising what he's done, he sighs, kicking shards of mirror out the way as he slovenly makes his way to pick up the keys.
"I don't have time for this. I'll check this place out after university." He says out loud, throwing some random clothes, slinging his bag round his shoulder and slamming the door on the way out.
He could sit here, emotionally numb and frustrated. Or he could move another step forward.
Lex knew which one of the two he'd prefer.
Listening to the better part of his brain, Lex left his dingy, dim lit apartment, and he was graced with the beauty of this world, council grey residential blocks for as far as the eye can see. He walked up to his car, a beater, with spare plating and tire.
Tugging twice, the car lets him into the driver's seat. He takes a few swigs of a left open energy drink can from yesterday and with a few goes of the ignition, he was on the road.
The commute was almost an hour of pure hell. Living in the centre of a city, he has the pleasure of ridiculous traffic, knob head drivers, and traffic lights at every turn - always red of course.
After struggling to find a space to park at the university, he pulls the hand break and exits the vehicle. Looking at his place of learning and breathing in the air, walking toward his lecture building.
University was a massive let down to Lex. He had heard it would be all about parties, going out, hooking up and stuff. So far all he'd done is study to barely pass his assessments. And this was the end of his second year.
His day at university isn't anything special either, never is. Clock into the lecture, sit through 2 hours of unprompted rambles, go to a seminar, lunch, repeat till dinner. Oh, this was all alone as well.
"I've failed to make a single friend in the 2 years I've been here. Seriously Lex..." He lamented, sat in his car, digging a wooden spork into a pasta box he got from the cafeteria.
He was coming up with an after uni plan, "Guess it's home, put on a game, and order takeout? Yeah... that'll cheer me up." He says, vacantly staring out the windscreen, tapping his fingers on the wheel...
He felt... off, today.
It's natural to feel off, or sad when grieving.
But that wasn't quite it.
His plan not resonating as strongly with him today.
He glances over at the keys on the passenger seat.
"My own store huh..."
"Suppose we can check it out before going home." He mutters as he boots up the engine of his beater, a little bit of anticipation welling up inside his chest.
*** Outside the Store ***
He immediately regretted coming here. "Fuck..." He groaned.
'This isn't a store, it's a rundown, overgrown building that maybe, I don't know, 200 years ago could have been a store? How the hell am I supposed to refurbish this with no money? Spit and sawdust my ass...'
Lex's thoughts weren't unfounded, what was in front off him was a complete mess. Vines, wood, smashed windows with nothing but boards nailed into the frame, a literal gods damned tree had grown through the corner of the building.
He had no money, just barely enough for gas and necessities, he was already in debt due to the student loans and tuition. There were no resources available to him to restore this shop.
But...
'Grandpa did say not to worry about that. I'm sure it'll all be explained once I enter the store.' Lex thought, resolving himself to walk toward the door.
Keys in hand he tried to unlock the door, half expecting the door to fall off as he opened the door as it creaked. To his surprise however, the wooden door opened with ease.
What he saw inside was even more of a mess than the outside, there was no trash like you'd think, like cans, bottles, cardboard etc. But instead there were multiple broken display cabinets, the glass smashed and the glass bottles inside also broken. It was a hazard to not wear safety shoes in here.
There were several shelving units flipped onto the floor, tangled in roots and vines, he could imagine it was where the store put out produce, in the far right corner there was the checkout, no computer or anything. Not even a till, it spoke bounds how ancient this building was.
Nevertheless Lex pulled out his phone flashlight and continued into the building stepping over the glass shards and wooden obstructions. He explored the building. It was surprisingly spacious, plenty of room if it was cleared up. Making his way through the back door he was met with the warehouse that was probably the most intact area out of the building, scarily intact.
There were no overgrown roots or vines, no tree in sight, no glass covering the floor. The floor was stone, as were the walls, a contrast to the rest of the wooden structure.
The warehouse was large, with proper wooden shelves that were only a slightly damaged, with the occasional shelf collapsing. There were no lights around, but there were gas lanterns attached to the walls of the store, unlit.
The strangest part is that in the warehouse he found what he didn't out the front, food containers opened, cans of beer and bottles of spirits lay empty in a corner, as if someone had shoveled it over there like a trash can.
'T-there isn't someone else in here is there? Nah surely not, even the homeless would know this place is a hazard.' He reasoned with himself, but still going forward with a bit more caution.
That was all there was to the warehouse, it was empty, with shelves almost intact, there was only one other thing that bothered him.
To his left, was a fully metal locked door. Not scrappy but in pristine condition, like it was maintained regularly.
Lex had been wondering what the second key on the chain was, and he thinks he's found the answer.
*Click*
As he unlocked the door it made a crisp sound, and to his shock, a voice surrounded him.
[ Dimensional control room door unlocked... Last date unlocked 7 years 4 months 22 days ago... Security protocol activated... Confirming identity... Identity unknown... Require more data... ]
[ Extracting blood sample...]
A mechanical arm probed out of the door grabbing and holding Lex's hand abruptly in place as it nicks his finger with a pin, drawing a trickle of blood. "Get off- ow. Fuck that hurt..." He complained as he tried to free himself from the door to no avail.
The metal arm withdrew itself.
[ Analysing blood... Relation to owner identified... Identification as Grandson of Leo Peckham - Lex Peckham. Confirmed death of Leo Peckham through Lex Peckham's memory... Confirmed... Inheritance protocol starting... Inheritance protocol complete. ]
[ Welcome, Owner Lex Peckham, to the Otherworld Retail Department. Please enter. ]