Chapter 16: The Expansion Plan
Three weeks into dating Melissa and the shop has a problem.
It's too small.
Wednesday nights have become legendary. Twenty, sometimes twenty-five people crammed into 800 square feet. The tournament last week had to turn people away because there wasn't physical space for more participants. The storage room overflows with inventory I can't display because there's nowhere to put it.
"This is a good problem," Leonard says, helping me restock shelves that are packed too tight. "But it's still a problem."
"I know." I'm eyeing the wall between my shop and the empty unit next door. The landlord mentioned it's been vacant for months. Plumbing business went under. "What do you know about knocking down walls?"
"Structurally? Not my area. Why?"
"The unit next door is empty. If I could combine them..."
"You'd double your space." He straightens, interested. "Are you seriously considering expansion?"
"Maybe?"
The tingle hits immediately. Strong, affirming. Images flash: the expanded space, filled with people. More shelves. Gaming area. Proper event space. The shop becoming something bigger than just retail.
This is the right move.
"I think I'm seriously considering it."
Sheldon arrives for Wednesday pickup, immediately sensing the discussion. "You're planning expansion. I recommend a comprehensive structural analysis before any load-bearing wall removal. The building's age suggests potential complications."
"How did you—we literally just started talking about this."
"The pattern of your gaze, Leonard's posture suggesting problem-solving engagement, the logical next step given current space constraints. Elementary deduction."
By the time Howard and Raj arrive, the whole gang is involved in expansion planning. Howard's sketching rough layouts on receipt paper. Raj is calculating costs. Sheldon's found the building plans online somehow—I don't ask how—and is identifying which walls are load-bearing.
"The question is money," Leonard says. "Expansion isn't cheap. Lease, construction, additional inventory. You looking at what, thirty thousand minimum?"
Everyone turns to me, waiting.
This is the moment. The moment where I either admit I have money or deflect.
"I can afford it," I hear myself say.
"How?" Howard asks bluntly. "No offense, but comic shops aren't exactly gold mines. You've been open what, four months?"
"Five months. And I've had some good investments."
"The imaginary money?" Raj looks concerned. "Stuart, that Bitcoin is still worth almost nothing. And you can't have made enough from Apple stock yet to fund a thirty-thousand-dollar expansion."
Except I have. Bitcoin's at eight cents per coin now. My 30,000 coins are worth $2,400—sixty percent return in three months. Apple's up 42% since I bought. My $5,000 investment is now worth $7,100. Combined with shop profits...
"I've been saving," I say, which is true. "And the shop's doing well. Better than expected. Plus the landlord might give me a deal on the lease if I commit to two years."
Sheldon's watching me with that analytical intensity. "Your revenue projections support expansion investment?"
"They do."
"Show me the spreadsheet."
"Sheldon—"
"If you're making a major financial decision, proper analysis is essential. I want to verify your calculations."
Of course he does. Because Sheldon cares, even if he expresses it through demanding financial documentation.
"Fine. But later. Right now I need to talk to the landlord."
Mr. Chen, the landlord, is surprisingly easy to negotiate with. Probably because he's been eating vacancy costs on the empty unit for six months.
"You want both spaces? I give you good deal. Eighteen hundred for both, two-year lease."
"That's up from twelve hundred."
"That's two spaces. You get double room, I get reliable tenant. Win-win."
He's not wrong. And with my investment gains plus shop revenue, I can swing eighteen hundred monthly. Especially with the projected income increase from expanded inventory and event space.
"What about construction? Knocking out the wall?"
"You do it yourself, I give you one month free rent for trouble. You hire contractor, that's on you."
"I'll do it myself."
His eyebrows raise. "You know construction?"
"I have friends who know construction." Well, I have friends who are scientists. Close enough.
We shake on it. I sign paperwork that feels weighty and permanent. The wall comes down starting next week.
When I tell the gang that evening, their reactions are mixed.
"You're doing your own construction?" Leonard looks skeptical. "Have you ever knocked down a wall?"
"How hard can it be?"
"Very hard," Sheldon answers. "However, I've researched demolition procedures. With proper planning and safety protocols, it's achievable."
"We'll help," Howard volunteers. "I mean, how often do you get to legally demolish things?"
"I appreciate—wait, did you just volunteer the whole group?"
"That's what friends do," Raj says. "We help with crazy expansion plans that involve knocking down walls."
The warmth spreads through my chest again. These people—these weird, brilliant, loyal people—are showing up for me. Again.
"Thanks, guys. Really."
"Don't thank us yet," Leonard warns. "Wait until you see Howard's demolition technique."
"I'm very good with tools!"
"You hit your thumb with a hammer during my furniture assembly."
"That was different. The hammer was defective."
"Hammers don't have defects. They're literally just weighted metal on a stick."
Their bickering fades into background noise as I look around my shop—soon to be double-sized shop. Four months ago I was terrified this place would fail. That I'd lose everything on a bad decision.
Now I'm expanding. Deliberately. Confidently.
Because the powers told me it's the right move, yes. But also because I've built something real here. The tournaments, the Wednesday nights, the regular customers who have become friends.
I'm not expanding out of greed or desperation. I'm expanding because the space I've created has outgrown its physical boundaries.
That feels significant. Like I'm not just playing with supernatural advantages anymore. I'm actually building something that matters.
Melissa texts: Heard about the expansion! That's amazing! Want to celebrate with dinner?
Absolutely. Saturday?
It's a date.
I look at my phone, at my shop, at my friends arguing about hammer defects. Five months ago I died choking on steak. Now I'm expanding my business, dating someone wonderful, surrounded by people who care.
The powers gave me opportunity. But I'm the one building the life.
Note:
Please give good reviews and power stones itrings more people and more people means more chapters?
My Patreon is all about exploring 'What If' timelines, and you can get instant access to chapters far ahead of the public release.
Choose your journey:
Timeline Viewer ($6): Get 10 chapters of early access + 5 new chapters weekly.
Timeline Explorer ($9): Jump 15-20 chapters ahead of everyone.
Timeline Keeper ($15): Get Instant Access to chapters the moment I finish writing them. No more waiting.
Read the raw, unfiltered story as it unfolds. Your support makes this possible!
👉 Find it all at patreon.com/Whatif0