Chapter 130: Chapter 94: A Bonus for Selling Blood 8 Times a Month

"This is to show his devotion to his dream—"

"That’s just simping," Travis cut Li Wei off, speaking loudly. "If I had that much money, I’d just buy the house across from Daisy’s, get a megaphone, stand on the balcony every morning, and yell at her, ’Hey! Daisy! Come out and play!’ Why bother with all those complicated parties?"

"Let’s try another book." Li Wei quickly tossed *Gatsby* aside. "George Orwell’s *Animal Farm*. You’ve read that one, right?"

"Yeah, the beginner’s guide to farm management," Travis nodded.

"...No, it’s a political allegory," Li Wei corrected him. "What I want to ask is, how do you interpret the line, ’All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others’?"

"That’s so real, Li Wei," Travis said. "It’s basically describing the football team."

Li Wei paused. "What?"

"Look, ’all animals are equal’ is just like Coach Miller telling us at the start of the season that everyone has a chance to be a starter. It’s all bullshit," Travis analyzed. "Then the ’pigs’ start taking over. In the book, it’s some guy named Napoleon, but in real life, it’s the Quarterback."

Li Wei and Craig, the two Quarterbacks, glanced at each other. In the end, they resisted the urge to drag Travis outside and beat him up.

"Like, the Quarterbacks can be late for practice and it’s no big deal," Travis said, lost in his own world. "But if a running back like me is one minute late, I have to run 10 laps."

"Brilliant!" Li Wei slammed the book shut. "You’re discharged—I mean, I have something to do, so I’m leaving. Craig, you can teach him."

"Hey!" Craig protested. "Jasmine’s waiting for me..."

But Li Wei had already grabbed his bag and walked out of the library.

Michael, sitting a few tables away, watched Li Wei get up and leave. He hesitated for a moment but didn’t go after him.

He pulled out his phone and looked at it. On the screen was a Christmas promotion for a private drug rehab center:

[New Hope Rehabilitation Center: The best Christmas gift for your family—a sober loved one. Holiday Special: 14-day inpatient detox program, limited-time flash sale price of just 5999 USD (room and board included), originally 9999 USD. The initial assessment fee is waived for the first 50 applicants.]

Michael stared at the number. The money he’d saved was still 1000 USD short of that amount.

When Li Wei had stood up just now, the thought had indeed crossed Michael’s mind. He was sure Li Wei would lend him the money if he just asked.

But then he had second thoughts. His family had already received round after round of rent reductions on Li Wei’s account—Don Quixote had said it was a one-month reduction, but he never raised the price on them afterward. If he asked Li Wei for money again, he might no longer be a friend in Li Wei’s eyes, but a debtor, a beggar.

He glanced in the direction Li Wei had gone, pulled the hood of his sweatshirt over his head, hiding half his face, and shouldered his badly worn backpack. Then, he walked in the opposite direction from the library.

「Half an hour later, at a private plasma collection center in Queens called CSL.」

The air was thick with the mixed smell of disinfectant, cheap coffee, and stale bodies. The waiting area was filled with all sorts of people: homeless men, single mothers working part-time jobs, and drunks who still hadn’t sobered up.

Michael pushed the door open. The receptionist was a middle-aged Latin American woman who looked like she was long past tired of life. She didn’t even look up. "New or returning member?"

"Returning." Michael pulled a card with a barcode from his pocket and handed it over. "I saw you sent a text. There’s a Christmas bonus for completing the eighth donation this month."

"That’s right. If you pass the screening today, with the Christmas bonus, you’ll get 150 US Dollars for this one." The receptionist skillfully scanned the card and handed him a tablet. "Go over there and fill out the questionnaire. You know the rules, don’t lie. If your blood protein level isn’t high enough, or if we find out you have a tattoo or piercing that’s less than a year old, you’ll have made a wasted trip."

Michael took the tablet, found a corner, and sat down. With practiced ease, he checked off the answers to the questions: *Have you ever injected drugs? Have you had sexual contact with another male? Have you recently gotten a tattoo? Have you engaged in high-risk sexual behavior...*

During the physical, the nurse told him his blood protein level was only 6.5, and they wouldn’t draw blood if it was below 6.0. Michael managed to brush it off by saying he hadn’t had much of an appetite lately.

"Go lie down on bed 44."

Michael lay down on the uncomfortable recliner, staring at the ghastly white fluorescent light above him.

’Is the spotlight on Li Wei after he gets famous as dazzling as this?’ he wondered.

A technician came in, rubbing his eye sockets with his fingers as he walked. With Christmas approaching, more and more people were coming in to sell blood, and they were getting busier.

"This might feel a little cold," he said mechanically. "Just bear with it."

Michael could feel the warm blood flowing out of his body. It passed through a machine that separated the plasma, and then the remaining red blood cells, mixed with an anticoagulant and saline solution, returned to his body with a bone-chilling coldness.

He watched the plastic bag gradually fill with a pale yellow liquid. It contained his plasma, his life force.

Now, it had become a commodity worth 150 USD. A few more times, some part-time work, maybe borrow a few hundred from a gang, and he might just be able to get Kevin into that rehab center.

’At least Kevin should be able to get a decent meal in there,’ Michael thought, feeling a little dizzy. He closed his eyes. ’As long as he can kick his addiction...’

An unknown amount of time passed before the machine let out a BEEP BEEP.

"Alright, press here." The technician pulled out the needle and wrapped a bandage around his elbow a couple of times. "Sit and rest for 15 minutes before you go. There’s free juice by the door. Don’t pass out on our doorstep; we’re not liable."

Michael climbed out of the chair, his feet feeling like they were walking on cotton. He went to the counter, and the receptionist loaded the amount onto his prepaid debit card.

"150 US Dollars, deposited."

Clutching the thin card, Michael walked out of the collection center. He walked slowly, all the way from Queens back to the South Bronx.

As evening fell, most of the shops in the South Bronx were already shuttered, as if the neighborhood had crossed over into another world.

Michael normally wouldn’t head home this late, but today he wanted to save a little on bus fare. That, combined with his dazed state, meant he’d accidentally walked almost all the way home.

His hearing seemed to be playing strange tricks on him—sounds were either too far away or too close. A series of deliberately muffled footsteps followed behind him.

"Hey, buddy." A hard, tube-shaped object was suddenly pressed against his back. "Give me the bag. I just saw you come out of the blood bank. Hand over the card!"

"No..." Michael gasped. "Get lost!"

"You wanna die? Huh?" The robber, tormented by his own addiction, was losing patience. "I told you—"

BANG!

A gunshot rang out, but it wasn’t Michael who was hit.

The robber froze mid-motion, his eyes widening in shock. He fell to the ground, stiff as a tombstone, as dark red, viscous blood gushed freely from his mouth. 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝔀𝓮𝒃𝙣𝓸𝒗𝒆𝒍.𝙘𝒐𝒎

A small, thin figure stepped out from the shadows, a smoking pistol in his hand.

"Kevin!" Michael yelled. "You killed someone?"

"Don’t be an idiot," Kevin said, walking over and crouching down to search the robber. "If I hadn’t killed him, you’d be dead."

Suddenly, he let out a strange yelp, prying a rusty revolver from the robber’s hand. He swung the cylinder open and saw there were still two bullets inside.

He tucked the gun away with satisfaction and looked at the still-shaken Michael.

"What’s wrong?" he said with a grin. "How does it feel to be saved by the little brother you look down on?"