$250,000,000 — Day 17

3pm came in two point five six seconds.

I wasn’t excited to meet Z at the library. I felt like a turncoat actually. A liar and a cheat and a potential thief, too. Sneaking secret meetings behind the back of my partners. But I had a family. With my sisters squished into my tiny bed the night before, the fantasy of endless wealth bulldozed my morality and guilt until all I could think of was money.

No more sleeping head to foot with my siblings back home. No more mom pretending to be okay crashing on the couch so her children could all have beds. No more hammers and nails and push mowers. If I accepted Z’s offer, I’d be setting up my entire family for generations. Depending on the amount quoted, there would be no need for homeschooling ever again.

As wonderful as my mother was at it, she deserved a life. And because of us, she did not have one. Guilt drove me to Weidner Library early with a few minutes to spare.

“Ready?” asked Eleanor. “Of course, you’re ready.”

Rosa added. “We’ll be right here waiting. And remember, rich people are literally just people. They squat over public toilets just like the rest of us.”

I nodded and went in.

The open study room smelled like old wood and books. Little green lamps glowed on the edges of each rectangular table making the space look clerical, but the mahogany gave it a level of old-world charm only found in the Ivy’s. I glanced around to find that every table was occupied with studying students. Then, in the back left, a hand raised slowly into the air. I nodded and went toward a thirty-something blonde man with a balding halo on the back of his head, red rimmed glasses, and a grey-green sweater vest. I walked to the man I assumed was Z.

“Hi,” I said to a guy not Mark Zuckerberg.

“Hi,” he replied amused and showing his straight smile. “Thanks for meeting me. Please sit.”

I did and waited. He glared at me with fascination. Also, he only blinked a handful of times and that made me instantly uncomfortable. I felt on-display.

“Which company do you work for?” I asked attempting to push aside my anxieties and steady my voice.

“Comtel,” he said smirking. “Do you know it?”

“Yes,” I replied simply but my heart began to race. Of course, I knew Comtel. Everyone did.

“Well then, as you’ll know, messaging is our bread and butter, but we’re perfectly primed to venture into the dating space. The Apps available now are all dinosaurs. Unoriginal, predictable, and dangerous. Your concept is unique we’d like to onboard it.”

He paused.

“How much?” I asked unlike myself.

He smiled in response. “Straight to the point, I like that. But it is bad business for me to quote first. What would you charge for it?”

My mind raced. This was a strategy of confidence. And I was new to this. Infinate numbers flew around in my head. $10,000 would buy a state-of-the-art tractor for the farm. $90,000 would pay off the homestead. $200,000 would buy the quadplex down the street my mom always dreamed of. $22,000 would cover the all-inclusive Animal Kingdom Lodge week for all of us. While an additional $7,000 would take care of that ice climbing, salmon fishing trip to Alaska. I tried to shake the thoughts, but they continued intruding and I couldn’t focus on what would be a fair number.

“Everything alright?” he asked. “Would you like me to consult with another member of your team?”

I felt my eyes narrow at him. “Two-hundred-and-fifty million dollars.”

I said the number out of sheer anger. I was sick of being underestimated, and you know what, I was worth a quarter of a billion dollars. Though no one would buy a three-day-old application for such a price, I was confident enough to say it out loud and maintain eye contact. I reached for my bag, steadying myself to exit the meeting when…

“Done,” he said. “We’d like you to stay at the helm. You representing this creates lore. And that’s all business is nowadays – an inspiring story sells. You’ll have to ditch the rest of the team though. We’ll pay them, if needed. Do you need Comtel to take the lead on making them go away? Friendship is a high risk in the big leagues. I have a team to give them send-offs they’ll never turn down. Think about that and say the word. But now, we’ll need to draw up a contract. My attorney will reach out to you tomorrow morning. Do you have of-counsel?”

I shook my head.

“We can recommend someone,” he stood. “Looking forward to working with you. Oh, and I hope this isn’t too forward to say but I saw your interview yesterday afternoon. Your partner is a green-eyed monster,” he stopped talking but I could tell he wasn’t quite finished. “But I sense you already know that. Wise to take the lead in that initial interview. He would have done it in a second if you hadn’t.”

He reached out to shake my hand and left.

I sat there stunned. After getting over the shock of the surreal conversation I’d just had, I realized most of the students in my periphery were gawking at me. Some were even pointing, and one had a phone out recording me as if I were a celebrity. I pulled my bag up my shoulder and prepared to leave.

Eleanor and Rosa, true to their word, hadn’t left the same spot. “Two-hundred-and-fifty million,” I told them.

“What!” Rosa yelled.

“Shhh,” I said. “People recognize me. If this gets out…”

“Right,” she replied. “Did you take the offer?”

“I would be crazy not to, right?”

Eleanor nodded and then tilted her head as if mulling it over. “If they’re willing to offer that, you may have a more valuable commodity than you realize. That’s an astronomical amount of money. Did he come up with it?”

“I did,” I said. “Almost thinking he’d walk away due to its ridiculousness. But he didn’t blink.”

“Sophia,” Eleanor said, grabbing my shoulders and peering into my eyes. “Do you need to walk?”

I smiled, feeling tears well up in my eye. Whenever I stressed, I walked. If something difficult or sad or scary came up on the farm, I’d get lost on hours long walks, and with so many children at home, I didn’t think anyone even noticed. But I was wrong. They were paying attention to me.

“I need to walk, yes,” I said. “Can I borrow your scarf?”

She gave it over and I wrapped my neck and the bottom of my face in her blue leopard like we were in a snowstorm.

“Let’s walk it out then,” Rosa said pulling my bag from my shoulders so she could carry it.

And so, we did.