The Woes of a Melodramatic Restocker

      I am a restocker. Restocking remains to be by far the most noble and respectable profession in the wide world of Neopia. Restockers engage in a constant battle. We battle the shopkeepers, we battle the market, and, in those late nights spent waiting for the perfect stock, we battle fatigue. Sometimes, I walk away victorious. With bountiful profits in my pockets and exciting memories in my mind, I waltz unscathed away from The Magic Shop. But nearly as often as I best the shopkeeper, they happen to best me. Thus is the life of the melodramatic restocker.

      The Elusive Draik Morphing Potion

      The rumors have always been prevalent. Even in my humble beginnings as a seeker-of-fortune in the world of Neopia, the murmurs have always been afoot. Varying from a quiet whisper to a deafening crescendo of nervous mumbling, the community has always vested in restocking a profound interest in the possibility of a Draik Morphing Potion. I never believed the rumors; there was no way that a single restock could return such a monstrous profit of over six million neopoints. I never believed the rumors until the fateful day that my path crossed the path of the Elusive Draik Morphing Potion.

      It had been a long night. I had seen potions come and go, and garnered for myself quite the collection of unique potions. I had considered retiring to bed for the night, but the nagging voice in the back of my head beckoned me back to the computer. The magnificent Kau shopkeeper, Kauvara, called me back to the shop with the glowing promise of more restocks. Then it was time to wait, and wait I did! There was nothing to be seen in the shop for nearly an entire hour. The Restock and Chat Board was growing restless. The complaints flew through the chat, filling page after page with the qualms of the most social of the restocking community. There were moans, groans, and various anger emojis. But just as we restockers began to lose hope in the very system with which we earned our fortune, something amazing happened.

      It was beautiful. In a single refresh, the dreams of hundreds of restockers from all over the world were realized. In a single refresh, Kauvara’s Magic Shop yielded us a true beauty. A magnificent Ghost Draik Morphing Potion called to us restockers. For some, the potion offered redemption for a night of failure. For others, it represented the first step on the road away from Neopian poverty. For the rest of us, it was just another score on a long list of restocking victories over a wildly successful Neopets career. But for all who witnessed, it was beautiful. The only problem? I wasn’t actually there. I had been following the angry calls for a restock by the Restock and Chat board. With excitement in my heart and humor on my mind, I was watching and refreshing on the chat page, infatuated with the angry reactions of the biggest players on Neopets. I was so interested in the chat, in fact, that I didn’t even notice when there was a two minute stagnation in replies. Continuing to refresh, the next replies sang an entirely different tune on the famous board. Set upon a myriad of exclamation points, sad emojis and happy ones, restockers from all around gathered and remarked about what had just happened. With horror, I stared at the screen and read, “OMG I MISSED THE DRAIK MORPHING POTION”.

          I had missed it. I shook in a unique brand of restocking rage. I had waited my whole career to encounter the elusive Draik Morphing Potion. And now, I had allowed it to slip through my fingers as a result of my careless interest in the Neopets Boards. Still, I was encouraged by the stories of those on the boards of nights in which there had been several good restocks in a row. If only had I known how right, but also how dreadfully wrong, my supposition was, I would have went to bed right then. But I couldn’t have. More importantly, I didn’t. And so, with a slight hopefulness in my eyes, I recovered and went back to refreshing.

      It felt like years before the next restock. This time, I chose to forsake my friends at RS and Chat in exchange for assurance that I wouldn’t make the same mistake I made last time. I was determined to at least see this next restock. And so, with this determination weighing heavily in my mind (and in my index finger), I continued to wait. Eventually, my dreams were realized; the pizza rolls were done cooking. I went to go grab them from the oven and came back as quick as possible, refreshing as soon as I sat down. With horror, I gasped as the unthinkable had happened; I dropped my pizza rolls. Whatever. I picked them up and continued to restock.

      Nearly an hour later, my restock-induced sense of boredom subsided for a brief moment of excitement. As the page slowly loaded, I spotted my Moby Dick, my treasure trove, at the bottom right of the page. The Grey Draik Morphing Potion, with its beautiful tail beckoning to my clicker, gazed up at me longingly. I quickly sprang into action. I clicked, and hit enter with my thumb in a desperate bid to save some time. A solitary tear rolled down my cheek as I looked up and attempted to process what I had already known. You see, we professional restockers hold a sixth sense for the stock. We feel it in our souls when we know that we have the perfect refresh. And in this fateful hour, luck was not on my side. So, as my page slowly creeped into full vision, I had known before I even saw the glorious Draik Potion that it was over.

      Fearing that I couldn’t take another heartbreak, I contemplated logging off. Two magnificent Draiks had flown just under me in one night. Their beautiful wings flapped back and forth tauntingly in my mind, mocking my losses. But the intrinsic will of a restocker, the same will that propels us fans of the magic shop to stay up until it becomes a waste of time to sleep, pushed me onward into the brave new world of restocking once again. I told myself that this was the last time, and that if there was no success within the hour, it would be the end of today’s restocking escapades.

      It was ten minutes in. I was fighting with all of my will against the growing sense of doom. I could feel it, creeping into the very essence of my soul, the idea that there would not be another restock. This precious hour might well be wasted on a non-stock. But I brushed the thoughts off, pushing myself to feel optimistic about the future. I broke the monotony with fantasies concerning shelves filled to the brim with potions. I entertained myself by imagining hundreds of competitors scrambling to pick up the Red Kau Morphing Potion at the top of the stock, while I took my time claiming the million dollar potion carefully hidden at the bottom line.

      It was thirty minutes in. I could feel my eyes getting heavy. I considered taking a brief nap and picking it up again in the morning. “No!” I told myself, “this last stock will be the stock of a lifetime”. If only I knew how right, and dreadfully wrong, I truly was.

      It was fifty-seven minutes in. I remember it like it was yesterday, mostly because it was yesterday. I was getting ready to call it quits. My mouse was hovering over the ‘X’ button on my browser, and my eyes were anticipating with excitement the sleep that they so desperately needed. But, when giving it one final refresh, I saw it. More importantly, I felt it. It was the perfect refresh, and I saw, miraculously, the third Draik Morphing Potion of the night! I clicked and hit enter at an amazing speed. I made it, I had finally made it to the haggling page! I quickly entered the quickest haggle I could on the glimmering Red Draik Morphing Potion. I slammed the mouse button atop the tiny Xeetwok in the box, and I hoped.

      My eyes were closed in anticipation, and I slowly opened them. The shopkeeper said, “YOU DON’T HAVE THAT KIND OF MONEY. GET OUT OF MY SHOP!!!”

      Darn. I shouldn’t have bought those Nerkmids.

      The End.