The next morning I came in early, same as always, to go over the previous day's receipts.

A little past eleven, a commotion broke out at the restaurant's entrance.

I looked up.

Austin came marching in with the whole class trailing behind him.

He had on a designer suit, his hair slicked back and shining, and he was swinging a set of BMW keys in one hand.

And on his arm was my ex-girlfriend, Eudora Fox.

Eudora and I had gotten together back in high school, and through all four years of college we'd been solid.

But after graduation, everything changed.

Instead of taking a job, I'd chosen to start my own business.

Back then I ran myself ragged every single day, worn down to nothing, and life was miserable.

Just as the restaurant was finally getting off the ground, I was about to share the good news with Eudora.

That was when she suddenly told me she wanted to break up.

I asked her why.

She said:

"When we were students, I stayed with you because you had good grades. I figured you'd amount to something after graduation and give me a good life."

"But it's been over half a year since we graduated, and you spend every day scrambling around for nothing. You haven't gotten anywhere."

"What I need is a man with real ability, a man who's going somewhere. Not a loser like you who works himself to the bone and has nothing to show for it."

Now, watching Eudora cling to Austin's arm with that cozy little smile, it clicked all at once.

No wonder that all these years, every time Austin floated the idea of a class reunion, Eudora was the first to jump on it.

She'd cast Austin as that man with ability, the one who was going somewhere, and she wanted to ride him up.

The moment the group walked in, every head swung toward me where I sat in the lounge area.

"Denys, you've got some nerve. The second you heard Austin was picking up the tab, you couldn't wait to get here first. Been drooling over this meal for a while, huh?"

"It's disgusting. Same thing every time. Beats everyone else to the restaurant, wolfs it all down, then bolts the second he's done, not even a thank-you. Textbook freeloader."

"It's only because Austin's generous that he gets invited year after year. If it were me, I'd have blocked him ages ago."

They came right up to me, piling on one after another, tearing me down without mercy.

Like I was some pathetic little parasite who couldn't survive without leeching off Austin.

Even Eudora, up on her heels, looked down her nose at me.

"Denys, all these years later, and look at you, still the same broke, sorry mess. Not an ounce of progress."

"Thank God I dumped you when I did. Chained to a penniless nobody like you, I'd never have four dishes on my table in this life."

With that she lifted her hand, flashing the sparkling diamond ring on her finger, showing it off to me.

"See this? Austin and I are engaged. He gave me this ring."

"Look at him. Young, successful, doesn't blink at spending. Every single year he treats the whole class to a place this upscale."

"And you? You're destined to be a freeloading dog your whole life. No matter how hard you try, you'll never measure up to one of Austin's fingers."

I looked at the ring on Eudora's hand, and I couldn't help but smile.

Just yesterday, I'd had someone dig carefully into Austin's background.

And once they did, I found his situation was far messier than I'd ever imagined.

Oh, Eudora, Eudora.

I found myself starting to look forward to it. To the look on your face once you find out exactly what kind of man this fiancé is, the one you schemed so hard to marry.

Eudora saw me smiling and saying nothing, and her brow shot down at once.

"What are you smiling at?"

"Realizing you'll never afford a diamond ring like this in your whole life, and you'll never land a woman like me, so there's nothing left to do but grin about it?"

"Denys, take my advice. Face reality, and stop lusting after things that were never yours."

I shrugged and said it straight.

"Relax. I don't want anything to do with you."

A flash of displeasure crossed Eudora's face.

But the next second she straightened her back, laid a hand over her belly, and lifted her chin.

"Good. Keep it that way."

"Let me tell you something. I'm already carrying Austin's baby, and we're getting married next month. I'm the one woman you're destined never to have."

The words set the classmates off. Faces lit up with delight, and the congratulations came pouring in.

"God, Eudora, you're so lucky. You actually get to marry a man like Austin and have his kid."

"Right? Half the girls in our class had a secret crush on Austin, and you quietly went and locked him down."

"I'm so jealous. Austin drops a hundred grand on a single dinner. Marry him and you're a genuine rich man's wife."

Eudora soaked up the flattery and envy, and pride was written all over her face.

"What can I say. Maybe it was just meant to be."

"Ever since that first class reunion, I couldn't stop thinking about Austin."

The way I saw it, it wasn't Austin she couldn't stop thinking about.

It was his fake money and his fake generosity.

For the sake of what we once had, I couldn't help giving Eudora a warning.

"Marriage isn't a game, and having a child even less so. Eudora, my advice is to open your eyes and find out how things really stand before you decide. Don't end up regretting it."

At that, Eudora's face darkened, and she glared at me.

"Denys, what's that supposed to mean?"

"So it bothers you that I'm with Austin, but do you really have to stir up trouble like this?"

"You just can't stand to see me do well, can you?"

The classmates jumped in right behind her.

"Exactly. Austin drops a hundred grand every year just to treat everyone to dinner. A man that generous, that capable. Why would Eudora ever regret it?"

"I think you're just jealous. Jealous that she landed a man as impressive as Austin, jealous that you're a bigger loser than him, so you smear other people on purpose."

"So gross. Can't make anything of yourself, so you can't stand anyone else being happy. That's a nasty heart you've got."

"Austin's treated you to dinner every year, and instead of being grateful you stand here trying to poison things. What an ungrateful snake. No upbringing whatsoever."

Watching everyone tear me down and lift him up, Austin wore a thick, satisfied smirk.

Clearly, he was loving the feeling of having one up on me.

He watched coldly for a good while before stepping in with fake concern, playing the bigger man.

"All right, all right, everyone calm down. Denys is probably just confused for the moment, blinded by his jealousy."

"Let's not let a little thing like this ruin the mood. Come on inside. Good drinks and good food are waiting for us."

"I promise everyone eats well and drinks their fill today."

It looked like he was covering for me, but really he was cementing the idea that I was jealous, and showing off his own generosity.

With that, Austin turned to the restaurant's greeter and asked.

"Where's your biggest private room? We booked it ahead of time."

The greeter courteously led the whole group to the Grandview Restaurant's largest and finest VIP room.

I trailed along at the very back of the crowd.

On the way there, Austin didn't forget to check with the greeter.

"I already spoke with your boss and told him to prepare the drinks and dishes at your top tier. Is it all set up?"

The greeter nodded and smiled.

"It's all set."

At that, Eudora's eyes lit up and she gripped Austin's arm tighter.

"Austin, you even know the owner of the Grandview?"

Austin's smile came out a little strained.

"Yeah."

The other classmates rushed to fawn.

"Austin's connections really do reach everywhere. He even knows the owner of the Grandview."

"Right? That man's practically a god, way up above the rest of us."

"Incredible, just incredible. Now I'm even more excited for today's food. Top tier at the Grandview. There'll be plenty of priceless showstopper dishes."

With everyone waiting eagerly, they arrived at the largest VIP room.

Austin couldn't wait to push the door open, calling out to everyone smugly.

"This is the top-tier spread I booked specially for all of you. Dig in, don't hold back!"

The words had barely left his mouth when Austin froze in place, staring at the table in the room with shock all over his face.

There were no fine drinks, no fine dishes on that table. Just rows and rows of cheap instant noodles.

The classmates filing in behind him took one look and were dumbstruck.

"Am I seeing this right? Where's the premium liquor? Where are the showstopper dishes?"

"Yeah, weren't we supposed to get the Grandview's top-tier food and premium liquor today? Why is there nothing on the table but instant noodles?"

Eudora stared at Austin, disbelief on her face too.

"Austin, what's going on here?"

Just as everyone stood there confused, the restaurant manager walked in calmly with a bill in hand.

She fixed her eyes on Austin and spoke in a steady voice.

"Mr. James, over the past eight years you've held eight class reunions at our restaurant, and you never paid for a single one. You now owe us a total of nine hundred and eighty thousand dollars. How will you be settling it?"