Chapter 1 - Jaxon
“I bet you half of everything I own that you could not go completely off-grid for 6 months, no credit cards, no luxury or anything, to see if someone could love you for you.” These were the words of my cousin Carlos. Little did I know this would change the course of the rest of my life. I thought about this for a while until I said “Deal.”
I went to bed and woke up the next morning to hear my cousin yelling at one of the maids, who was rushing about trying to fix a mistake she had made. He kept yelling until tears were brimming in the maid's eyes.
“That's enough Carlos. Camilla, go take care of yourself, take your time.” Once she left I turned back to Carlos and said “Do you always have to be so mean to the staff? They're only human, you know?”
Then I started picking up the glass from the champagne flute she shattered. Carlos gave a shrug, unbothered, swirling the drink in his hand like nothing had happened. “Rules are rules, cousin,” he said, leaning back in the leather armchair. “If they can’t handle the pressure here, how do you think they’d survive in the real world?”
I frowned, carefully setting the jagged shards into a silver tray before one of the butlers could rush in. The early morning sunlight poured through the floor-to-ceiling windows, making everything sparkle—everything except my mood.
“Maybe the real world would be better off without this kind of pressure,” I muttered. He smirked. “You’ll find out soon enough. Six months is a long time to play poor. No driver. No penthouse. No wardrobe worth more than a small country’s GDP. Just you… and whatever coins you can scrape together.”
I leaned against the marble counter, watching him like he was a shark circling prey. He loved to poke at me, to get a reaction, but something about the challenge clung to me.
The idea of being invisible—no money, no name—was strangely… tempting. Carlos raised his glass in a mock toast. “Better enjoy your last day in paradise, Jaxon. Tomorrow, the real game begins.” “Oh, did I forget to mention?” Carlos says with a grin. “I’ve got your little ‘starter pack’ ready. You’re leaving tomorrow.”
About an hour later, the staff serve him his usual breakfast which consists of a stack of pancakes, a side of bacon and a black coffee in a “world’s okayest CEO” mug. Right then Carlos made a remark on how true that statement was. And I couldn’t wait for tomorrow. To see the real world without all this glitter and this frill. Without my money I’ll finally be normal.
