Old Friends Bar.
With Janice walking them through the details and Adam chiming in, Matthew and Lily started to get a better grip on the whole home-buying thing.
Finally, Janice added, "It's the same deal if you ever wanna rent the place out later. Don't rent to certain folks—you might not get your rent, even if they sweet-talk you up front. Plus, you never know who else might end up crashing there!"
Adam glanced at Janice when she said that.
Having crossed over from 2020, he couldn't help but nod internally. Sure, her words were a bit too blanket-statement-y. But honestly, the odds were high enough that most regular folks wouldn't dare take the risk.
"Ever wonder why more and more rich people are moving out to the suburbs?" Adam pointed out. "Meanwhile, the poorest folks end up clustering in the city centers. Is it really 'cause the city's got better vibes or is more livable? Nah.
It's 'cause cities keep setting up more soup kitchens and food banks. Homeless folks naturally flock to those spots—wake up, grab a bite, live the 'good life.' But when the homeless population spikes and poorer folks start gathering in droves, the rich get uneasy.
They don't say much—don't need to. They just act. On one hand, they quietly jack up the cost of living in certain areas to levels most can't afford, keeping people out. A lot of buildings have unwritten rules—no selling or renting to certain groups or anyone they don't approve of.
On the other hand, the rich—who've got endless options—just up and move to the suburbs, building their own fancy little towns. It creates this weird phenomenon called 'urban hollowing.'
The city centers, which should be the heart of everything, just decay more and more. Meanwhile, these suburban rich enclaves form a new outer ring that becomes the real core of the metro area. Give it enough time, and boom—you've got another Detroit on your hands. Pretty interesting, right?"
"…"
Matthew and the others just stared, dumbfounded.
Interesting?
More like straight-up suffocating cyberpunk dystopia! 😳
They kept chatting for a while longer before Adam and Janice headed out.
Adam wanted to swing by the hospital ER to see if he could save a few more lives. Janice, meanwhile, was still kind of an outsider to the group.
"Janice, I'm counting on you to help Matthew and Lily with their house hunt," Adam said outside the bar before they parted ways.
"Don't worry, I'll make sure they find a place they're happy with!" Janice patted her chest confidently.
"Cool, thanks then." Adam handed her a business card with a smile. "If anything comes up, just call this number."
"Got it, got it!" Janice's eyes lit up—she'd gotten exactly what she wanted. She couldn't help but let out her signature laugh. "Hehehe…"
"See ya!" Adam bolted before that infectious cackle could rope him in any longer. 😅
---
The Next Day
New York.
The action movie expo kicked off as planned, and Ted showed up to track down whoever was using his name and dragging his rep through the mud.
"Good Lord, there's this many people?!" Ted gawked at the packed crowd, disbelief written all over his face.
"Of course!" Barney, who'd naturally tagged along for an event like this, scanned the scene with a grin. "This is New York, man! Who doesn't love a good, steamy romance flick?"
"Yeah…" Ted awkwardly waved at someone in the distance, chuckling self-deprecatingly. "Guess I just found out the deputy manager from our HR department is into this stuff too…"
Emmm.
Running into someone you know at a place like this? That's a whole new level of awkward you can't quite put into words.
But it did clear up one thing for Ted. Now he knew why that guy at work always gave him those greasy, weird smiles.
At first, Ted didn't get it. Then he figured the guy was smirking 'cause he'd seen some spicy movies.
But now? Oh, he got it on a whole deeper level.
Heck, if he spotted that greasy coworker popping up in one of these flicks someday, he wouldn't even blink.
All 'cause of passion, right?
Doing it for the love of the game.
Maybe even a little friendly cameo action.
Totally reasonable! 😎
"Let's find this guy already!" Ted snapped out of his waving, dropping the polite-but-awkward smile and losing it a bit.
If they didn't wrap this up quick, who knew what other familiar faces he'd bump into?
"Over there!" Barney, after a quick scan, zeroed in on their target like a hawk.
The two of them marched over.
"Barney Stinson!" Barney said with a playful smirk, eyeing the guy who felt both unfamiliar and oddly familiar at the same time. "Big fan. That flick, Welcome Aboard the Silver Bullet Express? Absolute genius."
"Heh, thanks! Where do you guys want the signatures?" The action movie newbie seemed friendly, ready to sign whatever they handed him.
"No rush. Let me introduce myself first—I'm Ted Mosby~" Ted said, staring the guy down pointedly.
"Where do I sign?" The newbie didn't quite catch on at first.
"I said, I'm Ted Mosby~" Ted repeated, gritting his teeth for emphasis.
"Ohhh! It's you!" The newbie finally got it, but instead of looking embarrassed at being caught red-handed, he just beamed.
"Why the heck are you using my name?!" Ted demanded, finally losing his cool.
"To pay tribute to you, of course!" The newbie said cheerfully. "Don't you remember helping out a little kid on the school playground back in middle school? A bunch of bigger kids were ganging up on him, trying to snatch his lollipop."
"That kid… was you?" Ted blinked, taken aback. Seeing how genuinely happy the guy seemed, he figured there might be more to the story. His anger fizzled out a bit.
"Yup, that was me!" The newbie nodded eagerly. "You stepped in and saved the day. Sure, the lollipop ended up falling and breaking on the ground, but I pieced it back together and kept it as a keepsake. Heck, I even got it tattooed on me—you guys probably noticed, right?"
As he spoke, he started tugging at his pants.
"Whoa, whoa, we get it!" Ted cut him off, a little touched at first—until the pants-dropping move killed the vibe real quick. 😅
"See, I told you that lollipop tattoo meant something…" Barney pointed at the newbie with a sly grin. "Nice~"
Barney was eating this up. Another epic tale to add to his playbook for the ladies!
Ted, standing off to the side, felt his face twist in horror—especially when he caught Barney's muttered comment. Realizing he was tangled up in this story too? Yeah, he was not okay.
"So this is how you pay tribute to me?" Ted asked, half-laughing, half-crying.
"Exactly!" The newbie grinned wide. "I'll never forget how you stormed in, yelling at those bullies to 'let go of that kid!' You were so badass!
You were my superhero!
I couldn't think of any better way to repay you than to make sure everyone hears the goddesses in their eyes shouting your name loud and proud!
Make every guy out there jealous of Ted Mosby!
It's the least I could do for you!"
"Ted Mosby!"
"Ted Mosby!"
"Ted Mosby!"
Barney raised his hands dramatically, mimicking the breathy tone of a classic action movie starlet, hyping it up with a teasing shout.
"See?!" The newbie pointed at Barney, thrilled someone got it. "That's exactly what I'm talking about! That's my tribute!"
Ted: "…"
---
(End of Chapter)