When good meets really, really, really bad.
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Daniel Harper is down on his luck as he struggles to pay for his sophomore year at NYU. After a failed attempt at selling drugs, he gets offered a deal too good to be true: Date the heir to the Vitt...
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DANIEL HARPER
My eyes darted back and forth to Slyvester and his wife as they both stared at me, waiting for my answer. I mean, surely it can't be that bad to date him. Yeah, these guys are kinda sketchy, which should be a huge red flag in itself. But what other options do I have? I can't quit now! I've worked too hard to get here.
"I'll do it!" I said. The two cheered and raised their red wine glasses and took a celebratory sip.
"Do you want some, Danny Boy?" The wife asked.
"I don't drink..." I responded.
"Hmm. Well, just know that our family is full of drinkers..." Slyvester said.
"How will this work, Mr. Vittori?" I asked. The details so far have been pretty vague. All I was told was to date his son and get my education paid. Does this mean I have a sugar daddy?
"I'll book a reservation to a nice place, where you'll meet my son. Bit of a warning, my son can be arrogant with new people. Which he's working on. But he might not warm up to you right now." He said.
"Actually, yeah. You'll be fine. I'm sure my son will warm up to you." He smiled at me.
"So what do I do with these?" I asked, pulling out the pills from my backpack.
"Marco!" Sylvester yelled. The guy who had brought my folder ran into the room from behind the curtain and walked to me and took the bag from me. He then ran back to behind the curtain. "You won't have to sell anymore... although..." He said.
"Our son is a handful, like we said. So, just hold out for a few months at least. Two should be enough." His wife said.
"I agree to your terms!" I said and shook his hand. He had a firm grip, enough to probably squeeze my hand and all its bones.
"Perfetto! I'll inform my son of this and to expect a date soon! You'll be sent a text of the date and location." He said. He looked down at his plate. "Would you like to stay for lunch?" He asked.
I left the restaurant after an amazing lunch with Slyvester and his wife. I stood under the tree where I was a few weeks ago, where I met the creepy guy. He was there, selling drugs like normal.
"I heard you're going on a date with Vittori's son. Tough luck!" He said, flicking away the ashes of his cigarette. Word gets around quickly.
"As long as it pays the bill, I'm desperate at this point." I replied. I leaned my back on the tree trunk and took in the time to breathe.
"You have no idea what you've just gotten yourself into, Daniel." His voice was laced with warning.
"The Vittoris are just a business, right? That's the vibes they gave off." I said.
