Wish Consequence

The house where Barlon and his sister lived was rented, paid for by his older brother who worked in a restaurant day and night.

His sister worked as a supermarket attendant during the afternoon and their mother was a maid who cleaned houses of rich people in the city center.

Barlon was currently unemployed, he had worked in a logistics company, but the company went bankrupt and the employees were laid off including him.

While he was thinking about how to spend this money, he didn't notice that someone had left earlier.

"Karmin!" As soon as Barlon shouted his sister's name, he realized that he had been looking at the ground too much and forgot to look around, he tried again to talk about what had happened for the wish to become real: "You won't believe this…"

His voice disappeared when he left the room and went to the kitchen. Karmin was absent, but there was a note stuck on the refrigerator: "At work until 5 in the afternoon I'll be back. DO NOT spend on any crazy idea that comes to your head! Love you!"

He read and was a little teary-eyed, his sister even having become "rich", she never threw away her stable job for money that could disappear, after all who guarantees that the bank won't take it? Barlon never believed in the state to protect him.

Four in the afternoon. An eternity. Barlon walked around the tiny kitchen imagining what he could spend with a million reais… A new house? No, they could travel! He always dreamed of visiting the Amazon rainforest, or even Japan. Maybe a car or new clothes? He could finally quit that dead-end job at the supermarket…

A knock echoed at the door. With his heart jumping, Barlon opened it. Two men in elegant and tidy suits appeared, with illegible expressions. The taller one extended an immaculate card: "Mr. Barlon Sena? We are from the Central Bank. We would like to discuss your recent unexpected earnings."

That scared Barlon a bit, who looked at them as they smiled back "This may seem sudden," began the shorter one, "but given the… unusual nature of your finances, we would like to offer you personalized guidance."

Barlon didn't even have time to interrupt them, as he was a bit shy and in a few minutes they talked to him about investments, diversification, tax implications - a whirlwind of terms that Barlon barely understood. But under their trained smiles, he felt something more. A sharpness, almost predatory. Were these men really advisors or were they eyeing a slice of his fortune?

As they left, promising new consultations, Barlon let himself fall on the worn-out sofa. The excitement had disappeared, replaced by a tingling discomfort. He remembered the jellyfish's warning: "Be precise in your desires…"

Did he wish for wealth or, unknowingly, asked for trouble? The fisherman's cap was on the table, without the jellyfish manifesting itself again. But the world around him suddenly seemed much less simple.

The days that followed were a whirlwind. Karmin, although initially exultant, quickly reflected Barlon's growing anxiety.

Even rich where they could buy a house and live without having to work, they felt without knowing much what to do, after all even not having financial education classes in their schools, they knew that if they spent the money without investing, it was certain that they would lose everything.

The only ones who knew they had become millionaires were only the two of them. His sister looked on websites and apps that showed what to do with so much money without losing it and putting their family in a much worse situation.

They lived in a slum, it was a safe place if you didn't go the wrong way. However, if anyone else knew they had become rich, it wouldn't be surprising if they were kidnapped or even robbed, and became poor again in seconds.

That's why the two siblings started planning how to leave without attracting anyone's attention, Karmin was afraid that the Bank would give information about them. The bank had confidentiality contracts that did not allow this, but they both did not want to risk and wait to see the result, the faster they left there, the better it would be.

Every knock on the door made them jump - well-intentioned neighbors who heard his sister scream came to see if they were okay, distant relatives who suddenly remembered old ties and came to see if they had improved their lives, even a strange woman who claimed to be a long-lost sister of their mother…

Barlon was a little more innocent than his sister, he had so much money that he almost bet on a dubious investment scheme that promised to double his money within weeks, he wanted to invest a small amount, but his sister managed to stop him in time. After all, if this were true, wouldn't everyone be rich?

That night still, huddled on the couch watching a tacky soap opera to relax, he saw a report about a lottery winner found dead in a forest, death attributed to "Sudden disappearance".

"See Karmin?" Barlon hissed, pointing to the screen. "That's exactly what I'm afraid of!"

Karmin sighed. "Barlon, they won't kill you without even knowing that you're rich, you have to think about how we're going to convince mom and our older brother to leave here…" she stopped, her eyes turning to the fisherman's cap still resting on the table.

Her brother had told her about what had happened, she didn't believe much, but decided to pretend that her brother was right. They were rich anyway, so the less they worry about futile things, the better they focus on their main goal.

That night, while lying in bed, unable to sleep, Barlon's gaze fell on the cap, he felt better sleeping with the cap next to him. Its faint glow seemed mocking in the darkness. Was it the source of his newly acquired fortune or the catalyst for his potential downfall? Impulsively, he grabbed it.

"Jellyfish," he whispered, almost desperate. "Are you there?"

Silence. He waited, his heart pounding. Then, a nearly faint flash came from inside the cap.

"I'm here, young bearer," the voice echoed faintly in his mind. "But my power is exhausted. It will take some time for me to recover."

Barlon gave in. "But I need help," he pleaded. "This money… it's not going to cause my death, is it?"

The jellyfish seemed to think. "Maybe," its voice whispered, "your wish has implications and results, everything you ask for generates a consequence for you."

Barlon was scared, he had never felt so much fear in his life, he made a simple wish without thinking much about the problems it could generate.

"Don't worry bearer, if you want protection then do like your Grandfather and join the Bloom special forces."

Upon hearing that, Barlon Sena felt something in his heart as if he had found a solution to his problems.

"What are these Bloom special forces jellyfish?"

But his cap went dark again, without answering him. He waited a few more minutes for an answer, but seeing that the cap might have run out, he decided to just sleep and wait for the next day to ask him about it.