America 1982-Chapter 234 - 80: Time to Start Work_2

"So, Pam becomes an air conditioning repairman after graduation, and you go to some town in Rhode Island to find a job as a garbage dump manager, right?" Tommy said with exaggerated sarcasm upon hearing their responses.

"That’s true for Pam, but not for me. Don’t jump to conclusions about me, Tommy. You know me, no one can dictate the life of Dennis Herbs." Dennis looked at Tommy with dissatisfaction and even took a couple of steps closer as he spoke, but then he nodded in dejection:

"Because I fucking doubt even for a job as simple as garbage dump manager, I could compete with my classmates."

Tommy patted Dennis on the shoulder and comforted him, "Good, have some more fun, enjoy yourself. It doesn’t matter whether you get your associate’s degree or not. Just think of it as a long vacation for yourself. I might need you guys to do me a favor during this time.

"No problem, is it that car?" Dennis asked, pointing to a red Lincoln sedan that appeared in the distance.

Tommy glanced at it: "Yes, that’s your ride."

"We’ll go enjoy ourselves first. You take your time with classes; I’ll arrange dates with a few more girls."

After dropping that line, Dennis and Pam excitedly got into the luxury car. Jason’s driver closed the doors for them and waved at Tommy before driving the two away.

"To prevent them from becoming air conditioning repairmen and garbage dump managers, I have to get them to help me out. I just can’t stand to see my friends in a tough spot," Tommy muttered to himself as he watched the luxury car drive away. "Speaking of which, there’s also Tony. I can’t believe I didn’t think of this before. Dennis and Pam always provide me with unexpected inspiration."

Thinking this, he walked back to the phone booth and dialed a number: "Tony, it’s Tommy. Something just occurred to me. Would you be interested in driving something a bit larger than a Corvette C4 or a Warwick fishing boat?"

"What are you trying to say, Tommy? Are you hoping I’ll become a truck driver to help you with deliveries or something? Just tell me straight up. If you need me, just ask. I won’t turn you down, brother," Tony said, surprised by the sudden call.

Tommy laughed heartily: "I mean, perhaps you’d like to helm a cruiser or a frigate?"

"I’m not fucking joining the military. Didn’t you see the Soviet Union’s military exercise broadcast on TV in ’82? I heard the President and everyone in the military nearly pissed their pants. During that Soviet exercise, the sales of adult diapers in the United State America hit an all-time high," Tony replied with a chuckle.

Gazing at the distant palm trees, Tommy muttered softly, "No, of course, I’m not persuading you to join. I’m saying, maybe I have a way to send you to the United States Naval Academy. I need someone from my own circle for my business, and it just hit me when I thought about selling off those two jackasses Dennis and Pam, that you came to mind."

"Are you kidding me? Tommy, think about how hard you worked to go to college. We all saw that. College isn’t easy, I..." Tony even started to question whether Tommy was high, spouting nonsense over the phone.

He had witnessed Tommy’s struggle to get into college, the frantic studying, and finding ways to earn money and handle all sorts of procedures. Now, Tommy was talking about sending him to college as if it were as easy as going to a bar for a drink.

Tommy exhaled, "Tony, you have to understand, when a person has money, sending a relative to college is a trivial matter. I can easily arrange your admission letter without an exam. Rich people going to college and poor people going to college are two different concepts. Let me put it this way, if I were still poor Tommy, I couldn’t help you get an A in your subjects, but now I have money. Even if you get D’s in all your subjects, I can get you into the college I want you to attend."

"How about you tell me what business you want me to help you with first? Going to the Naval Academy to sell your software or books?" Tony was confused. He couldn’t even understand why his younger brother suddenly thought of sending him to college.

His current job fixing cars wasn’t bad, netting around two hundred and twenty dollars a week, and he got to see many modified cars. As long as he continued to improve his repair experience through various modified vehicles, Tony even thought he could open his own repair shop or modification business before turning thirty.

Tommy could understand his brother’s confusion, so he said, "No, why don’t you bring Ashley to California for a while? We can talk more about it then. If you’re not interested, just treat it as a vacation, but don’t bring Bessie. Let her focus on her studies."

"You just need to tell me if you need me right now," Tony hesitated before asking.

Tommy also paused for two seconds before affirming, "I need your help, brother."

"Alright, little brother, wait for me. I’m going to check on plane tickets right now. That’s it," Tony said over the phone before hanging up promptly.

"That’s the advantage of having an Italian brother." Tommy put down the phone, looking at the bright sunshine, and smoothly quoted a verse from the Bible:

"Except ye bring your brother with you, ye shall not see my face."

Studying the Bible had been part of his preparation to pretend to be a God-fearing student to blend into college. At that time, he even considered infiltrating the Catholic Church’s theology department. But now, even though the Bible was no help for a computer science major, it at least made clear to him that the methods of spreading doctrine and doing business could be perfectly combined.