Lauren looked surprised by what I said and didn't know how to respond.
"Well, my shift ends in 30 minutes, so you'll have to wait," she said, looking at me.
"I don't mind waiting," I replied. I grabbed a bunch of snacks and chocolates. "I'll be in the car."
After paying, I walked out and sat in the car, listening to music while eating.
I ended up waiting 90 minutes before someone finally came to relieve Lauren. I was irritated, but she looked like she was used to it. The replacement looked to be in their early 20s.
Lauren walked over to the car and tried to open the backseat door, but it was locked. I told her to sit in the passenger seat instead.
"This is a nice car," she said, looking around.
"It's my mom's," I replied as I started driving.
"Your family must be rich, Felix." She glanced at me. I didn't bother correcting her.
"You're pretty calm for someone who just got into a car with a stranger," I said, keeping my eyes on the road.
"It's a defense mechanism," she replied, staring out the window.
I told her she could help herself to the snacks.
We drove to the middle school to pick up Riley. Lauren got out without questioning how I knew where her daughter went.
I opened the backseat door for Riley. Lauren stayed in the passenger seat.
Riley looked confused at first but relaxed when she saw her mother.
"Hi, Riley. I'm Felix," I said while driving.
"Nice to meet you, Mister Felix," she replied. She looked about twelve.
"Don't call me 'Mister.' Just Felix. Or… should I tell you a secret?"
"What secret?" she asked, curious.
"You'll find out soon," I said, handing her some chocolate.
I drove to the mall and headed straight for the computer department.
Lauren held Riley's hand as they followed me inside.
"You can ask me anything," I said, pushing a cart.
"I have a lot of questions. First,what are you doing here?" she asked, glancing around.
"Buying components. I'm building something," I replied.
I ended up buying nearly half the store, not large items, but smaller components like RAM, storage, processors, graphics cards, and more. Lauren looked stunned.
"It seems like you don't believe me when I say I'm building something," I said as we reached the counter.
"I didn't say anything," she replied.
"It's in your eyes," I said. "Look,I'm building phones."
I handed her one of the spare phones I had with me. I was carrying five unused prototypes.
"What am I supposed to do with this? It's not turning on," she said, pressing the power button repeatedly.
"Hold your finger on the power button for five seconds, then say your full name."
People nearby started watching. I had been recording since I entered the store, I planned to use this as an ad later.
"Okay… one, two, three, four, five… Lauren Blaine."
The phone powered on. The interface was already customized.
She checked her contacts and photos, and froze. Everything was already there.
The people around us stared in shock.
"And it's theft-proof," I added.
She looked at me, waiting for an explanation.
"If someone steals it… something happens."
She handed the phone to someone in the store and told them to walk away. Nothing happened.
People started looking at me like I was bluffing.
"I said if someone steals it. Not if you give it to them," I clarified.
Then someone suddenly snatched the phone and ran.
About 20 meters away...
It exploded in their hand.
Everyone froze.
I walked over to check on them. They were fine, no serious burns. They must have dropped it instantly.
"So the phone explodes if someone steals it," Lauren said, staring at me. "People will go broke buying your phones."
"Oh, no. These aren't for sale," I replied. "And that's not theft-proof, it's offense-proof."
I looked around.
"Alright. Can someone steal my phone and not run?"
People hesitated, but eventually someone stepped forward, reached into my pocket, took the phone… and walked out.
Everyone watched him.
I didn't.
Once he was about 20 meters away, the phone triggered the loudest alarm in the mall.
"CANCEL IT!" I shouted, turning toward the sound. The alarm immediately stopped.
Everyone froze, then started asking when I'd be releasing the phones. I told them early next year, 1998.
I paid for my components and left the store. I bought Riley a couple of toys, and we headed out of the mall.
While loading everything into the trunk, I noticed a poster of Tom Cruise. What caught my attention wasn't him, it was the words Stark Industries printed beside him.
That's when it hit me.
Tony Stark.
"Oh no," I muttered under my breath as I got into the car.
"What is it?" Lauren asked, fastening her seatbelt.
"Nothing. I'm about to talk to myself," I said.
Lauren and Riley exchanged confused looks.
"SPACE, check Victor von Doom."
«Yes, sir.»
SPACE used the car radio to respond.
FULL NAME: Dr. Victor Werner von Doom
BORN: April 10, 1956 (Latveria)
LOCATION: Unknown
STATUS: Unknown
Doom looks like RDJ, but he's 6'2".
Why didn't I look into this sooner?
"Search for the Fantastic Four."
«Yes, sir.»
NAME: Fantastic Four
MEMBERS: Mr. Fantastic, Invisible Girl, Human Torch, The Thing
LOCATION: Baxter Building, New York
STATUS: Unknown
REASON: Swallowed by a vortex at the Baxter Building while Reed Richards attempted to replicate the Tesseract's energy.
"Wait, how do they even have the Tesseract?"
«They don't, sir. The Tesseract was taken by the Skrulls and Nick Fury.»
"Then how do they know about it?"
«I believe it's because the Human Torch fought alongside Carol Danvers in 1995, sir.»
"Explain."
«During that time, the Human Torch briefly held the Tesseract before being attacked by a Kree. He dropped it, which allowed the alien cat to consume it.»
"I get that part. But how did Reed Richards try to replicate something he's never seen?"
«I believe Johnny Storm described it to him. Reed Richards deduced it was the same energy source used in Dr. Wendy Lawson's ship. His attempt to replicate it resulted in a vortex that consumed them.»
"Yeah… I don't even want to know how he managed to create a vortex by accident."
Lauren and Riley sat in silence, clearly shaken as SPACE spoke through the radio, displaying images through the smart glasses as it explained everything.
I kept driving.
Toward home.