With that, I walked straight to the front door and hung up the sign: "Private Event Today — Closed to the Public."
Then I went back to the kitchen and told the head chef and the rest of the staff:
"Abner's booked the whole place today. Every dish goes exactly as he ordered — lobster, abalone, sea cucumber, fresh crab, Wagyu, luxury seafood stew."
"For drinks, only the top-shelf liquor. Fill every table with it. Don't hold back."
The head chef paused, then lowered his voice.
"Boss, that's a lot of money. Can Abner actually pay for all this?"
I gave a faint smile.
"He asked for it himself."
"We just do as we're told."
Seeing how firm I was, the head chef stopped asking questions and turned to get the prep started.
The kitchen was busy within minutes, the clatter of woks and knives rising and falling.
The rich smell of it filled the whole restaurant.
Abner and his crowd sat in the main dining room, legs crossed, cracking sunflower seeds, talking at the top of their lungs, and every so often somebody would holler:
"Hurry up with the food already, we're starving!"
Before long the heavy dishes came out one after another.
Australian blue lobster, braised abalone with sea cucumber, luxury seafood stew, Wagyu tartare — every plate beautifully arranged, and clearly worth a fortune.
The top-shelf liquor came in by the case, the servers carrying box after box and setting bottles on every table.
Looking at all that expensive food and liquor, Abner's friends could barely believe their eyes.
"My God, he's really serving all this? Abner, you're something else."
"Snap a photo, post it — food like this, most people never taste it their whole lives."
"I hereby declare Abner my god, forever!"
The James relatives piled on the flattery too.
"Heavens, abalone, sea cucumber, top-shelf liquor — I've only ever seen this on TV. Never thought I'd get to taste it myself in this lifetime."
"They always said if you run with Abner you eat and drink like a king. Turns out it's true."
"Little Abner's really made something of himself. Young as he is, this generous, this capable — he's going to go far!"
Abner floated on the praise. He stood up with his glass and declared, grandly:
"Family, friends, eat all you want, drink all you want. If it runs out, order more."
"Everything today is on me. Don't stand on ceremony!"
The moment he finished, another cheer went up.
They all raised their glasses and toasted him.
"Come on, everyone, a toast to the birthday man — may every year be better than the last!"
Bathed in all the toasts and flattery, Abner felt a satisfaction he'd never known before.
He thumped his chest and announced to the room:
"From now on, whenever you want to eat out, come to this restaurant. Just mention my name, Abner James, and put everything on my tab. You won't pay a cent."
At that, every face lit up. They crowded around him, laying it on thick.
"Abner's the boss!"
"From now on we're running with Abner!"
One line after another, until the corners of his mouth were curled up high.
Riding the endless stream of praise, Abner strolled over to the front counter and leaned in, taunting me under his breath.
"Amelia, don't you love money? Aren't you the one who counts every penny?"
"Today I'm going to drain your restaurant dry. I'll show you what happens to anyone who crosses me."
