4 Convincing Michael

APRIL 1997,  MIDDLE SCHOOL YEARS

"Ben? Ben to Earth? Yo! Wake up, bro!"

"Aw, what?" Ben was woken up from being dazed by his best friend, who slapped his arm in annoyance.

"Why are you always spacing out?"

"Not sure, probably inherited from OG Ben?"

"The f*ck, what's OG Ben?"

"Nothing, don't mind me. What are you saying anyway?"

"Geez~. I said what happen to you're date with Patricia!"

"Oh.. that..." Ben numbly nodded his head and then shook it. "What can I say? She was way too perfect for me."

"How perfect?" Kenny asked, leaning forward with doubt on his face.

"That... well, we watched a movie around four, then afterward, we spent some time at the nearby cafe, had a great conversation, and, and, the way she talked was just so sweet. She also listened to me and laughed at my jokes... Damn~ Have I already mentioned how perfect she was?"

" ... What happen next?"

"That's it..."

"Wait, what? You didn't ask her to visit a motel to f*ck or whatever?"

"I did... But she said that she was only free until seven."

"..."

"..."

"Damn~."

"Yeah~." Ben sighed in nostalgia, making Keny look at him strangely.

"... Holy Sh*t Ben! what's with that expression? Don't tell me you fall in love with her already?!"

"..."

"No way! How could you fall for her? Quit dreaming, bro. She's way out of your league. It's impossible for her to like you!" Keny Doyle said with a serious face, as if snapping Ben back to reality... For a moment, Ben had an urge to punch him.

"Are you really my best friend?" He asks with a twitch on his lips, looking at Keny with an annoyed expression.

He wasn't in love with Patricia or anything; it was just his hormones making him feel dreamy about her. Also, he was aware that she was out of his league, and the only reason he was able to ask her out was the movie Titanic itself.

The influence of the movie at this time was phenomenal; the romance between the hero and heroine sparked excitement among the female populace. Ruth was beautiful as a goddess, and Jack (Leonardo DiCaprio), he's too handsome—Even Patricia couldn't take her eyes off him, and he swears he caught her little fingers sneakily rubbing on her crotch.

***

ADDAMS RESIDENCE, LIVING ROOM

"Dad, why don't you buy internet stocks right now? It's very hot, and many financial institutions are saying that their value will increase over the next decade!" Ben said to his dad as the two of them sat on the couch, watching the "Good Morning America" news program on TV.

The program broadcast a news report about the crazy increase in the tock price of 'Amazon' as soon as it went public. Starting at $18 at its opening and closing at the price of $25, an increase of almost 40%, which is simply phenomenal in this era.

"Oh, you know something about stocks, son?" His father raised his eyebrow, obviously both surprised and amazed at his son's words..

In his impression, Ben was a smart kid. His knack for effortlessly passing all subjects, coupled with consistently securing a position among the top 10 in GPA in their class, proved his excellence.

However, like most kids at his age, Ben was an incredibly lazy. Instead of using his head for studies, he preferred playing games and watching TV—which something they are not against, after all grades are not are not everything in life.

"A little bit Dad. I read some financial books in the school library, so I had some idea about what it is," Ben shrugged, answering with half truth and half lie.

It is true that he had read books about finance and various business-related books during the past month.. and one thing that he discovers is that he was able to memorize and understand most of them.

It was a surprising discovery, honestly, but again, recalling his meta knowledge about the cannon, it seems that Ben indeed had a photographic memory... The fact that he was able to create 'files' about women that he had slept with was already a big sign.

(P.S: Tell me if I'm wrong—files, or whatever it was, according to Ben, a kind of mental record, allowing him to memorize women's biology, weak spots, sensitive parts of various body parts of women, preferences, kinks, etc., which then allowed him to create an exclusive modified technique that could make them experience the best sex of their lives.)

In the cannon, he had also memorize his thesis reports during college arc effortlessly, to the point that even Dawn was envious of him... All pointed out that Ben's memorization skills were on another level.

Honestly, he always finds it strange that OG Ben only used such a cheat-like ability in bed. But after crossing into his body, he kind of understood why.

Ben's strong memory made him kind of retard..  And as seen in the story, he's kind of dumb, and thinks with his d*ck most of the time, ending up messing everything badly... Which is not entirely his fault most of the time.

His strong memory, while granting him many advantages, also made it hard for him to control his emotions and lust. This weakness led him to succumb to seduction, ending up cheating with his girlfriends multiple times.

It also made him remember the exact picture, sensation, and emotions he had felt with various women.. which is also why he always felt broke after each breakup with his girlfriends (especially Dawn).

At one point, he even wanted to settle down (with DJ, Amber, etc.) because he got traumatized by the pain his memories brought him.

...

"Unfortunately, son, what you read in books is not everything. The stock market is a vast field on its own. Not everyone can be Jordan Belford." Michael looked at his son with a smile on his face (as if an elder were telling a kid how unrealistic his idea was) as he explained.

"It's Jordan Belfort, Dad, not Belford; also, he's a stock broker, not a stock trader."

"Oh, you know him? Stock broker-trader what?'

"I read some articles about him, about how he, from being a small stock broker, was able to create hundreds of millions worth of brokerage firms. Also, stock brokers were the ones who contacted people to buy stocks and earn commissions for every transaction. Stock traders are the ones who buy stocks and earn short-term gains from stock price fluctuations."

"... I don't understand a single damn thing about that, son. But as I said, no, stocks are risky; many of my friends have been scammed by the brokers you're talking about... Study hard, son; one day you'll understand me." His dad, with a smile on his face, explained patiently as if it were something of great use in the future.

"..."

***

AN: MC is trying to convince his dad to buy stocks, but that's not going to happen. He was just a kid after all; how can an adult listen to children's words?

(EDITED-2X)