Chapter 10 Encountering a College Friend While Buying a Limo
The next morning, after chowing down on the breakfast Wendy had whipped up, William headed out. He wanted to buy a car. He couldn't afford it before, but now that he had money, he was aiming for a luxury car, at least more expensive than a BMW.
'What's the big deal about a BMW? I'm getting a Ferrari,' William thought. He wanted to buy a car ten times more expensive than Daniel's, just to outshine him.
With money in his pocket, he needed a flashy ride to flaunt his newfound wealth. Plus, there was a class reunion tomorrow, and rolling up in a limo would earn him some serious respect. Thinking about this, William called a cab and made a beeline for Azure, a store that specialized in limos.
But today, William was dressed super casual, in cheap clothes and shoes from a street market, making him look like he was broke. Luckily, no security guard kicked him out this time, but none of the salespeople bothered to help him either. They just ignored him.
William noticed a bunch of salespeople just standing around, but they acted like he was invisible, probably because he didn't look like he could afford a limo. "Hey, I want to buy a car, the most expensive one you've got," William said, clearly annoyed.
"It costs over six million dollars. Can you even afford that?" Finally, a young guy in a sharp suit walked over, but his tone was dripping with sarcasm.
"Watch your mouth, or I'll file a complaint. Get me a real salesperson," William shot back coldly. Hearing the word "complaint," the guy looked a bit scared and quickly backed off.
The other salespeople didn't want to deal with William either. He looked poor but had a bad attitude, and if he complained, they'd get fined.
One salesperson whispered, "What do we do? How about letting Ella handle it? She's in the restroom and doesn't know about this guy."
Another salesperson nodded. "Yeah, good idea."
"Alright, it's settled." After the senior salespeople finished their little chat, Ella Powell came out of the restroom.
"Ella, there's a new customer checking out cars. You haven't hit your sales target this month, so we decided to give him to you. Go show him the cars. Good luck!" The salespeople pretended to be nice and handed William over to her.
"Really? That's awesome, thanks!" Ella seemed innocent and didn't catch on that they were setting her up. She straightened her clothes, flashed a smile, and strolled over to William. "Hey there! Checking out cars? See anything you like?"
William was eyeing a white Ferrari when he heard the friendly voice and turned around. He saw a stunning young woman in a black professional skirt, adding a touch of allure. But there was something familiar about her, like he'd seen her before.
While he was trying to place her, Ella recognized him first. Though it had been years, she hesitated and asked, "Are you William?"
"Yeah, and you're Ella, right?" William remembered her as soon as she said his name. She was the vice president of the literature club back in college. William had joined because of his interest in literature and had gotten pretty close to Ella. They had a good relationship throughout college.
"Yes, what a small world!" Ella beamed. During college, William was her confidant, and they often talked about literature and even their future plans.
"Are you working as a salesperson here? Weren't you a magazine editor?" William recalled that after graduation, she had landed a job as a magazine editor and was thrilled because it matched her major and interests. But now, three years later, she was selling cars, which surprised him.
"Don't even get me started. These days, everyone's into social media. Magazines aren't as popular as they used to be. To make ends meet, I had to switch to sales." Ella sighed, having had to adapt to the harsh realities of life.
"Yeah, social media is where it's at now." William felt a pang of nostalgia. Times were changing so fast, it was easy to get left behind.
"What about you? Did you become a producer?" Ella remembered William's college dream of becoming a famous producer and ridding the market of poorly made films, focusing only on high-quality productions.
"I got a reality check, just like you." William smiled bitterly. He had worked his tail off at his company and even became a program production supervisor, but all his efforts over three years went down the drain because he ticked off the manager.
"It's okay, keep pushing. As long as you're alive, there's hope. By the way, are you here to buy a car?" Ella tried to comfort him and then asked curiously.
"I want to buy a Ferrari. What's the price tag on the most expensive one you have?" William asked without thinking.
Ella was taken aback, her mouth slightly open. She hadn't expected that after three years, William would be rolling in dough.