One Man Band System

A week later, on the weekend, "Whoa," Eric, Emma, Chloe, Monica, Heidi, and Laura gasped as they stood in front of Eric’s grandfather’s building. In just a single week, the place had transformed into a shoebox-style venue capable of holding 1,000 to 2,000 people. The second floor served as a music store, merchandise shop, karaoke space, and restaurant.

Right in the middle stood a boxy tower housing a recording studio, a CGI suite for music videos, dressing rooms, band rehearsal spaces, and a gym-like studio for choreography practice. Further up were the main office headquarters, and the top floor served as Eric’s personal living quarters.

Looking at the marvel before her, Chloe turned to Eric, who appeared just as stunned as she was, even if he hid it better.

"Did you... use our company to remodel your grandfather’s building into this?" Chloe asked, brimming with curiosity.

"Of course not," Eric replied, keeping his eyes fixed on the building.

"Are you serious? Why does it feel so much like our signature design, then?" Chloe pressed.

"No... I didn’t use our company," Eric answered, holding his ground.

"How many crews did you even hire to pull off a massive overhaul like this in just a week?" Chloe asked again.

"Uh... I... lost count," Eric answered.

"Give it a rest, Chloe. Why are you cross-examining him?" Emma said, looking over at Chloe.

"This... makes no sense. Even if I pulled out all my workers, there’s no way a building designed like our company’s blueprint could be finished in a week. It wouldn’t even be possible in a month," Chloe argued logically.

"Drop it already. I get that you want to know the technical stuff, but the fact is the building’s completely transformed, and we’re all standing right in front of it," Priya chimed in, turning toward Chloe.

"True. Magic as it looks, the building is right here in front of us and totally real," Monica added.

"Instead of standing around out here, how about we head inside?" Heidi suggested.

"Now... that’s a way more productive suggestion than talking nonsense," Laura added.

"So you’re saying I’m talking nonsense?" Chloe asked, annoyed.

"No, you’re just obsessing over details, and right now those details don’t matter," Laura replied.

"Whoa,"

Eric and the six girls turned around, startled to find Mike, Jade, Ruby, and Tania standing behind them, staring in awe at Eric’s new building.

"Oh... you guys made it?" Eric greeted the four of them.

"Yeah... Seriously, bro, you gave this place a total overhaul in such a short time? Last time I was here, it looked nothing like this, and there wasn’t even a single sign of renovation starting," Mike said, dumbfounded.

"Pretty much... Anyway, let’s not dwell on it," Eric said.

Eric then looked over at Jade, Ruby, and Tania, who were giving him looks that clearly communicated, "Explain yourself, what did you do, and how did this happen? Why does everything feel like a miracle?" even though they didn’t utter a word. Eric then glanced past them and spotted Martin sitting inside a car, his face equally stunned as he took in the sight of Eric’s building. But before Eric could call out to him,

"Oh right, I forgot, Ms. Katie said she wanted to come by too. How about we wait a bit for her before heading inside?" Mike said.

"Huh... really?" Eric asked, caught off guard since he hadn’t made any plans with Katie.

"What?" the six girls asked, already closing in to surround Eric as they glared at Mike.

"Whoa... sorry. The thing is, I told her Anthony was coming over too, along with his girlfriend, Sarah. So she wanted to tag along, probably because Anthony might do a survey while he’s here. Plus, Sarah is the CEO’s daughter, you know what I mean," Mike said, throwing both his hands up in surrender.

"Oh... if that’s the case, then it’s no problem," Eric said. He then turned to look at the six girls. "You guys go on inside first and take pictures of everything, okay?" Eric said with a smile.

The six girls stared at Eric with expressions that practically screamed, "So you’re trying to get rid of us for that vixen?" Even though they didn’t say a word, their lips were twitching.

"Sigh." Eric let out a heavy breath, knowing exactly what those glares meant.

"It’s not like that. I just want to welcome them officially. I already told you guys about Trinity Entertainment, right? This is purely business," Eric explained.

"Oh... got it," the six girls replied, starting to calm down.

"Just take Ruby and Tania with you, please," Eric said.

"Alright then. Let’s go, Ruby, Tania," Emma replied, turning to look at the two of them.

"Yeah, let’s go," Tania replied, her eyes still glued to Eric’s building.

"Okay... let’s go," Ruby replied.

They all walked inside through the venue’s main entrance. Mike then turned to look at Jade, who was also still fixated on the building.

"You should head inside first too, babe. I have some business to take care of with Eric," Mike said.

"Yeah... Mike is right, Jade," Eric added.

"Oh... okay, I’ll go in," Jade replied.

Jade then stepped inside. Once she disappeared behind the doors, Mike glanced over at Martin’s car and gave Eric a signal. Eric nodded, and the two of them walked over to Martin’s car. Seeing them approach, Martin got out of the car to greet them.

"I’m sorry, I only came here to drop off Ruby. She already explained that she wants to join you, so I just wanted to see her off," Martin said.

Hearing this, Eric smiled. He turned to glance at Mike, who gave a quick nod before stepping a short distance away to give them privacy.

"I know, Dad," Eric replied softly to Martin.

Hearing Eric call him Dad again, Martin snapped his head up to look at him. His face was a picture of utter disbelief, but it was clear he was thrilled and deeply moved, tears welling up in his eyes.

"You... you’ve forgiven me?" Martin asked, full of hope.

"Hmm... I’ll be honest with you. I’ve forgiven you, Dad, but I’m sorry to say that doesn’t mean we can go back to how things used to be... I hope you understand," Eric answered.

The hope in Martin’s eyes vanished instantly, yet he managed a smile as he looked at his son. Every gesture signaled how desperately he wanted to hug his boy, but he held himself back and nodded at Eric.

"I understand. But thank you for being honest with me. Hopefully, in the future, we can talk like a father and son again," Martin said.

"You know I’m not your biological son, right?" Eric clarified firmly.

"Yeah... I know. Actually, I’ve known for a long time because your biological father talked to me. That’s why... the way I treated you changed... And for that, I’m sorry, I am truly sorry. I abandoned you back then. Honestly, if you never wanted to speak to me again or call me Dad ever again, I would completely understand," Martin admitted candidly, his voice raspy with emotion.

The two fell silent once more. Eric kept staring at his father, processing his own emotions, while Martin remained quiet, the regret plain as day across his face. After a few moments, Martin broke the silence.

"But why did you go back to calling me Dad?" Martin asked.

"I spent the past week thinking... Even if you aren’t my biological father, when I opened my eyes after I was born, the very first person I saw was you. I can’t deny that until I turned eight, before everything went wrong, you truly loved me... So that played a big part in my decision... Plus, I talked a lot with Ruby this past week," Eric explained.

"I see. Thank you. I feel a huge weight off my chest now, and I can go back home with peace of mind," Martin replied with a smile.

"Wait, you’re leaving already?" Eric asked, surprised.

"Yeah. Like I said earlier, I only came here to drop off Ruby... But I’m grateful I got to see you, see your new building, and watch you become a man I could never hope to be," Martin answered proudly.

"Thank you, Dad," Eric replied, smiling.

"Alright, I’ll be heading off. I need to get back to our hometown to wrap everything up," Martin said, extending his hand.

"Okay. Please drive safely," Eric replied, shaking Martin’s hand.

Just then, they turned and saw a car arrive. Anthony and Sarah stepped out from the back, and Mike immediately went over to greet them.

"I’ll take off now. I don’t want to get in the way of your business. I’ll be looking forward to your future work," Martin said with a smile.

"Alright, Dad," Eric replied, smiling back.

Martin got back into his car, rolled down his window, and waved to Eric. He then sped off into the distance. Eric kept his eyes on his father’s car until its taillights disappeared around the turn, after which he turned around and walked over to Mike, Anthony, and his girlfriend, Sarah.