Chapter 5: Opening Day

For the first time in a long time, Ethan slept like a rock. No tossing and turning, no staring at the ceiling thinking about broken cabinets, cleaning supplies, or missing parts. Just deep, dreamless rest. When his alarm blared the next morning, he bolted upright, heart pounding—not from grogginess, but excitement.

Today was the day. He practically jumped out of bed, yanking on his hoodie and jeans, barely taking time to grab a granola bar before dashing out the door. The streets were still waking up, morning light casting a warm glow over the city. The air had that crisp, early-day freshness, mixed with the scent of brewing coffee from the café on the corner.

But Ethan barely noticed. His mind was racing with everything he had to do. Today, Level Up Arcade would be open to the public for the first time in years.

Rushing to the Arcade he made it to the arcade in record time, fumbling with the keys as he practically threw himself inside. The second he stepped through the doors, a wave of pride hit him.

The place looked alive.

The screens blinked and scrolled through their attract modes, pixelated characters and high scores shimmering in the dim morning light. The air smelled clean, fresh, instead of like stale soda and dust. The machines stood waiting, just begging for players.

But there were still final touches to take care of before he unlocked the doors.

He had deliberately left the prize counter mostly empty—no tickets, no major rewards yet. He hadn't even installed ticket dispensers in the machines.

No point running a full prize system without players first. Right now, the goal was exposure—getting people through the doors, letting them experience the games, the atmosphere. Once he had regulars, then he could start rolling out the prize system, tournaments, and other features.

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Before getting to work, Ethan pulled up his Business Basics skill in the system menu.

Now that the arcade was fully operational, it was time to see what marketing options were available.

A new section had unlocked:

[Marketing]

Basic Promotions: Advertise on local social media and business directories.Community Engagement: Word-of-mouth bonuses for happy customers.Event Planning (Locked until Level 3): Set up arcade tournaments and special events.

Ethan tapped on Basic Promotions first.

A new screen appeared, giving him the ability to create a digital listing for Level Up Arcade on various platforms.

Local maps and business directories? ✅Social media page setup? ✅A basic promo post announcing the grand reopening? ✅

He set it all up in minutes. The system handled the automation, optimizing the posts and pushing them out to people in the area.

A few moments later, a notification appeared.

[New Customers Reached: 35 people viewed your arcade listing!]

Ethan grinned. This was working.

Or so he thought.

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After finishing his last-minute prep, Ethan flipped the "OPEN" sign on, his heart racing with anticipation.

Then, he waited.

And waited.

Minutes stretched into an hour. Then two.

The arcade was silent, the hum of the machines the only sound in the empty space. He paced behind the counter, drumming his fingers anxiously. The excitement that had filled him that morning started to dull, replaced by a small nagging doubt.

Had he miscalculated?

Just because people had seen the post didn't mean they were going to drop everything and rush over.

He sighed, rubbing his face. It was still early. Maybe people would come later in the day.

Still, he hated just standing around.

So, while he waited, he double-checked the machines, wiped down the glass on the prize counter, and made sure everything was in top shape.

Then, after about three hours, the first real response happened.

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Miles away, in a quiet breakroom of an office building, a group of thirty-something adults were taking their usual morning coffee break.

James Whitaker, a software engineer with a thick beard and thick-rimmed glasses, lazily scrolled through his phone while sipping his coffee.

That's when he saw it.

A social media post.

A familiar name caught his eye.

"Level Up Arcade – Grand Reopening Today!"

His fingers hovered over the post as a flood of nostalgia hit him.

Level Up Arcade?

He hadn't been there since he was a kid.

It had been the spot for him and his friends back in the day—spending afternoons dumping quarters into Street Fighter II, Time Crisis, and The Simpsons Arcade.

His heart beat a little faster as he clicked on the post, reading through the details.

Then, without thinking, he copied the link and dropped it into his old high school friend group chat.

James: Holy crap, guys. Level Up Arcade is open again.

A moment later, three dots appeared, then another response popped up.

Trevor: No way. That place closed years ago.

Amanda: I thought it got turned into a storage space or something.

James: Nope. Someone's running it again. I just saw the post.

He attached a screenshot of the arcade's social media page.

Another pause.

Then—

Trevor: Dude, we gotta go.

Amanda: Okay but do they still have DDR?

James: I dunno, but I'm about to find out.

There was a beat of silence, and then—

Trevor: Lunch break meetup?

Amanda: I'm in.

James: Hell yes.

[The First Customers Arrive]

Back at the arcade, Ethan was halfway through triple-checking the joysticks on a Tekken machine when the bell above the entrance finally chimed.

He spun around.

Three adults had stepped inside, looking around like they had just stepped into a time machine.

One of them, a bearded guy in a hoodie, let out a low whistle. "Damn. It actually looks the same."

The woman with him—Amanda—laughed. "Not exactly. It's… cleaner."

Trevor, the third in the group, stepped forward and turned to Ethan. "Are you the new owner?"

Ethan nodded, suddenly feeling a little nervous. "Yeah. Just reopened today."

James shook his head, smiling. "Man, I used to come here all the time when I was a kid. It's crazy seeing it back up and running."

Trevor glanced around, eyes locking onto a familiar machine. "Yo, they still got Mortal Kombat II?"

"Fully restored." Ethan grinned.

Trevor cracked his knuckles. "You're going down, James."

James laughed. "We'll see about that."

Amanda, meanwhile, had found the Dance Dance Revolution machine in the corner. She clapped her hands. "Oh hell yes. I am so playing this."

As they dug into their pockets for change, Ethan finally let out the breath he'd been holding.

The arcade had its first players.

And soon, word would spread.