"…Really? For someone considered broke, you sure do have a lot of video games," Diana said, her eyes scanning the box packed with DVDs. She moved to the next one, which held a PS4, an Xbox One, and a Switch, all carefully stored.
"I spent a few days living on just water to afford most of this… I think it was worth it." Alex said with a small smile, lifting the boxes out of the SUV.
He carried them into the modest house Diana called home. It wasn't fancy, but enough to show Diana's character. She clearly wasn't the type who enjoyed showing off her wealth to the world.
It was a two-story house with three bedrooms and two bathrooms. Diana only used one of the bedrooms, so in a way, she welcomed the idea of having a roommate. The place usually felt too empty.
Alex didn't bring much with him. He had a total of seven boxes—one filled with his video games, another with his consoles, and one packed with clothes, shoes, and miscellaneous items. Along with those, he brought a TV, carefully wrapped and secured for the trip.
As for his bed and other furniture, Alex planned to sell them off. Diana offered to handle that for him—each room in her house already had a bed, so there was no need to bring his own. In truth, he didn't need much. The few things he did bring were easily replaceable, especially with his next paycheck on the way.
"All that… for this?" Diana gave him a strange look as she helped carry the boxes inside.
"One who's never played a game shouldn't judge," Alex replied with a grin. "So, how about we try one?"
Diana rolled her eyes, but nodded. She wanted to see what all the fuss was about.
Alex's smile widened as he rushed off to finish unpacking. He took the room on the ground floor—after all, he was a guest. He'd only leave once it was safe to do so… which, judging by everything, wouldn't be long until he was free to leave.
He didn't bother unpacking everything. Instead, he quickly sorted through his consoles and games, matching them up and setting aside what he needed. Once that was done, he headed straight to Diana, who was already waiting.
"Go ahead, pick a game you want to try," Alex said, stepping aside as Diana adjusted her glasses and began browsing through the dozens of titles he'd brought.
"Grand Theft Auto V? Red Dead Redemption 2? The Legend of Zelda? God of War? Marvel's Spider-Man?"
The sheer number of choices left her hesitating, unsure of where to start. But after a moment of quiet consideration, she finally picked Marvel's Spider-Man.
In Alex's past life, both Marvel and DC were nothing more than comic books. But in this new life, DC was real—and Marvel remained fiction. Still, people in this world tried to capture the essence of heroism through storytelling, using Marvel as a lens to help others understand the struggles of heroes.
Marvel Comics gained popularity around World War II, after a soldier reportedly witnessed superhuman activity. Believing there were real heroes among them, he shared his story—and from that, the idea of the X-Men was born. The X-Men paved the way for Captain America, and before long, Marvel Comics had become a global phenomenon.
"Why Spider-Man?" Alex asked as he connected the PS4 to her TV.
"I always wanted to read comics—to understand how people viewed heroism," Diana said with a small smile. "Since this game lets me be a hero, maybe I'll get a sense of what it's like to be Wonder Woman."
"Well, I think Spider-Man might sum things up," Alex said with a smile.
Diana raised a brow at that, puzzled, but her curiosity was quickly redirected as the PS4 interface came to life on the screen.
Alex moved to sit beside her, picking up one of the controllers and gently placing it in her hands. He guided her fingers into position, showing her how to grip it comfortably, then pointed out the basic controls.
"For the first time, it's tough remembering where each button is," Alex said. "But trust me—you'll learn fast, especially when things get intense."
Diana gave a thoughtful nod, then selected Marvel's Spider-Man from the menu and launched the game.
She went on to create a new profile and jumped into the game, with Alex beside her, offering support and cheering her on when she struggled. At first, she didn't find the gameplay all that engaging—but after defeating Kingpin, something shifted.
Spider-Man had won. He brought down a major threat, removed a dangerous figure from the streets… but in doing so, created a vacuum.
Diana hadn't expected a game to explore something so layered. Now, she found herself wondering—who would rise to fill that void? And how would Spider-Man handle it? She wanted to know more.
Alex secretly cheered, watching as Diana grew more invested in the game. Her focus never wavered, and he couldn't help but smile. He ordered some takeout and stayed close, offering the occasional tip whenever she seemed stuck or unsure of what to do next.
While the story and structure felt almost identical to the Marvel's Spider-Man from his past life, this version went far beyond what he remembered. The open world was larger, filled with more side missions, random events, and meaningful interactions. Even multiplayer had been added—something his original world's version never offered.
"Hera give me patiences, why are the A.I. so smart!" Diana shouted, tempted to throw the controller at the TV after being defeated by a group of random enemies that had suddenly appeared.
"Don't be so down," Alex said, glancing at the clock and noticing it was already nighttime. "Just upgrade your gear a bit—and maybe your skills while you're at it."
"Well, I'm heading to sleep. You can try out the other games if you want—just remember: Xbox games go with the Xbox, PS4 games with the PS4, and Switch games stay on the Switch," Alex said as he stretched.
Diana waved him off without looking up, fully locked in. So, Alex left her to it and went to bed.
Later that night, he woke up to use the bathroom. As he passed through the living room, he paused, Diana was fast asleep on the sofa, controller still in hand.
His eyebrow lifted slightly when he saw the screen. She had paused the game at the scene where Spider-Man's aunt was about to die.
'That's fast,' Alex thought, surprised by how quickly she'd progressed through the game. Without saying anything, he grabbed a blanket and gently placed it over her. Then, he turned off the PS4 and TV, quietly stepping away to use the bathroom before heading back to bed.
He woke up early. As Diana's personal assistant, he took it upon himself to make sure her day started as smoothly as possible. Anything to earn that raise.
He left briefly to pick up a few ingredients from the store, then returned and started preparing breakfast. While cooking, he ground fresh coffee beans and added one of his secret ingredients into the mix.
Yes, he knew how to cook. He'd had no choice. Takeout was too expensive, and the small amount of money the government gave him—money he still didn't fully understand the reason for—was barely enough to get by. So, he taught himself to cook, stretching every dollar he had.
And with his limits long gone, learning came easy. He picked up techniques fast, mastering dishes most chefs would struggle with. Truthfully, if Diana hadn't accepted him, his backup plan was to try landing a job as a personal chef for some wealthy client.
He needed money, and he'd heard personal chefs could make over $60,000 a year. That was more than enough to survive, and better than most jobs out there.
"I didn't know you could cook," Diana said, awakened by the rich aroma drifting through the house. For a brief moment, she thought one of her half-siblings had shown up—the smell was that divine.
"Yes, I'm self-taught," Alex replied casually. "What time did you end up going to sleep?"
Diana gave a sheepish smile. "Well… I wanted to finish the game as soon as I could. But when I reached the part where Peter had to make that impossible choice, I had to stop and take a break. I think I fell asleep around 3 AM."
Alex glanced at the clock, it was currently 8. So, she'd only gotten five hours of sleep.
"That's not good. With all the meetings you've got today, I don't think you can afford to be half-asleep," Alex said with a frown, already regretting letting her stay up playing games when she had work in the morning. "I won't be with you either—I'm scheduled to go with Wonder Woman today."
"It's okay," Diana replied, brushing it off with a small wave of her hand. "I'm one of those people who can function perfectly fine with just a few hours of sleep."
Alex raised an eyebrow at that.
"You have Short Sleeper Syndrome?" Alex asked, tilting his head slightly. Diana gave him a confused look. In her eyes, he had just strung random words together.
"It's also known as SSS," Alex explained. "People with it only need six—or sometimes fewer—hours of sleep a day. Last I heard, there was someone who functioned perfectly on just three hours. Pretty impressive."
Diana nodded slowly, in understanding.
"I guess that makes sense," Diana said with a shrug. "Growing up, I never really needed the full eight hours of sleep. Though, I could get eight when I wanted to."
Alex nodded, clearly impressed. "That sounds useful. All the games and anime I could get through if I only needed four hours of sleep…"
He let out a sigh of envy. Diana rolled her eyes in response.
"By the way, you don't have to cook for me," Diana said as she turned to head off and get ready for the day. "You haven't even clocked in yet."
"I'm your personal assistant," Alex replied cheerfully. "Just because I haven't clocked in doesn't mean it's not my job."
"I'm not giving you a raise anytime soon—at least not for the next six months," Diana said with a blank look, clearly not impressive with Alex act..
Alex's eyes widened in disbelief, and for a brief moment, the image of a cat with its tail stepped on flashed through Diana's mind.
"Why do you even need all that money, anyway?" she asked, speechless with his reaction.
Alex awkwardly scratched the back of his head, unsure how to answer.
"Well, it's not that I need the money," Alex said casually, plating the food he had prepared. "It's more that I want enough to be able to sit back and relax. My goal is ten million dollars. Once I reach that, I'll retire."
"I'd invest half of it—fifty percent—into something steady. The rest should be more than enough to let me live comfortably for the rest of my life."
He set the plate down, then continued without pause.
"If I ever decide to have kids, that's easily over four hundred grand, and that's being modest. If I want to spoil the kid, the cost goes even higher. Then there's travel—vacations and all that—that's probably around three hundred thousand. Could be less, but you never really know, so I'll assume the full amount."
Diana blinked, listening as Alex listed it all out with zero hesitation.
"Then there's impulse spending," he added. "All those little five-dollar purchases? They add up fast. I see myself spending at least a hundred grand on stuff like that. Maybe more."
By the end of it, Diana was speechless. Alex, meanwhile, looked thoughtful—like five million might barely cover everything.
So, that's why he wanted to start investing—while also earning as much as he could along the way. With his current salary, it would take him around nine years to reach his ten-million-dollar goal.
But Alex had already decided he'd work for Diana until he was thirty. Since he was currently seventeen, that gave him thirteen solid years of employment. More than enough time to hit his target—even without rushing.
And that wasn't counting the potential raises he could earn along the way.
"Well, I expect the best from you over the next thirteen years," Diana said, heading toward the bathroom, shaking her head along the way.
She honestly didn't know what to make of Alex. The idea that someone had mapped out their entire future just to eventually do nothing… it left her at a loss for words.
"Don't worry, boss. I've got it all planned out," Alex said cheerfully. And strangely enough, Diana didn't doubt that. Not one bit.