Sparks

Chapter 4

         The gymnasium rung with voices. Odd how loud things quickly became when everyone was trying their best to whisper. I picked at one of the holes in my jacket as I waited. No one was quite sure what this presentation was about, but there were as many rumors abound as there were profanities graffitied in the bathroom. The most credible sources seemed to say that some important guest was visiting today, but their exact identity was unknown. I poked at a few of the holes on my left side again before looking around again.
         The gym was simple in construction, just two bleachers stands against either wall, allowing a view of the center floor. The school colors, dark blue and silver, decorated the walls with banners commemorating various athletic teams. The center area was kept clear, the bright wooden flooring gleaming with fresh polish. Whoever the guest was, Damora didn’t want them to think poorly of the campus. No one was really paying attention to me. Two weeks was usually enough time to go from “interesting-new-guy” to “socially-unacceptable-new-guy”. Actually, more accurate would be “guy-with-the-hella-hot-sister”. I’d tried doing as my mother asked and spreading word around, but conversations with guys generally turned towards my sister eventually. And the women just ignored me. So I suppose I wouldn’t be having that discussion with my mother about that bonus.
         After a few moments, the lights dimmed, and Ms. Damora walked out into the center. She beamed out at the crowd as she went into her introductions. Even from here, it seemed she genuinely cared about the school and the students here. Was she just good at covering up distaste? Or maybe she just really didn’t like me. That sounded more plausible. After some more comments that I honestly don’t remember, she finally got to the point, “And it is my distinct pleasure to welcome our esteemed guest, Mr. Vincent Maghold!” There was not so much an outbreak of applause as there was a sudden burst of frantic voices as an older man accepted the microphone from Damora. He wasn’t very impressive. Or any sort of impressive. But he was distinct enough for me to recognize him from that night at the docks. I nervously fingered the holes in my jacket again. I should really stop that before it becomes a habit.
         I felt a shiver run down my spine as he raised his eyes to the crowd. I hadn’t been able to see them that night, but even from here I could see that they were eyes devoid of life. The were two spheres of obsidian floating in a pool of white, with not a hint of light reflected in them. I shrunk inside my jacket as I tried to appear like every other face in the crowd.
         Maghold cleared his throat, and began speaking. His voice was just as unassuming and boring as his face. As far as speakers went, he wasn’t a very good one. But when you’re the one who leads the regional department of one of the world’s largest corporations, I guess no one really cares. “Greetings students. I am Vincent Maghold, a representative of Vision Corporation,” he began. “I head the Seattle-based department, which specializes in the research and development in advancing life sciences, such as biology and physiology. While I’m sure you’re aware of the multitude of Vision’s achievements and products, we hope that here, in Seattle, we will discover the next generation of breakthroughs that help push the human species forward.” I frowned a bit at that. Was he referring to artificially accelerating evolution? I’m pretty sure that breaks quite a few ethics rules in most parts of the world.
         Maghold’s face curled up into a smile, “And I’m excited to announce, that you all will be made a part of this grand dream. Due to the close proximity of this school to our facilities, we at Vision have elected to start offering opportunities for students here to partake in research that will help the entire human race. Not many people are afforded this opportunity, let alone at your age. I do hope you all take advantage of this unique opportunity.” Now that’s interesting. Vision Corporation was one of the largest establishments on the face of the planet. They had some connection to about every facet of modern living- transportation, medicine, energy… basically if it touched the life of any first-world citizen, chances are it had a Vision logo on it. But that much presence leads to quite a bit of influence. Rumors abounded of a few governments that were at the mercy of Vision Corporation’s whims, and even outside of legal activities the name carried some weight. You’d never hear it from them though. According to their public image, their reputation was as pristine as the iconic company white.
         Whatever their dealings, Maghold seemed pretty intent on recruiting the next generation of employees from this school. Which was odd, even by Vision standards. And this was a for corporation I’d seen moving coffins at night in a shipyard. “After leaving these doors you will find a special Vision Corporation… job fair, of sorts. Be sure to examine all the booths to find the right place for you in our company.” His smile was forced, it was obvious. The warmth of his words never reached his eyes. But no one seemed to notice, as the gym was already abuzz with the news of employment. And with that, Maghold stepped down. Damora attempted to initiate an orderly dismissal, but the crowd had already gathered around the doors and was beginning to file out.

         “No, she’s not working counter today. You’ll be dealing with me.” I forced back a sneer as I repeated these words to the fifth guy that day. He stared at me to see if I was sincere, and seeing I was, left without ordering anything. “Rude,” I muttered under my breath before plastering a smile on my face for the next customer.
Apparently Tanya’s comment on adding to our job description had inspired my mother to give us a more well-rounded skillset. Now, once a week, my sister and I swapped stations. She went behind the doors to learn that there were other appliances in a kitchen besides the microwave, and I had to deal with swaths of men coming by and asking if my sister was in.
         I snuck a look at my wrist before realizing I still didn’t have a watch, and switched over to the clock on the wall. It had only been about an hour since I’d returned from that fair thingie that Vision had hosted. True to Maghold’s request, I had “examined” every booth there, but I hadn’t found anything appealing. That, and being near that logo was still making me uncomfortable. I just couldn’t figure anything out about that night at the docks…
         I was rubbing my wrist and wondering why I kept expecting to see a watch there when a polite cough reminded me of where I was. “Terribly sorry, got lost in thought. How can I help you to…” I trailed off as my gaze met the sparkling blue eyes of Sarah Tristan. “Um,” I managed to finish.
         A small smile crept across her face as she watched my reaction. “Is everything alright… mmn.” The smile was replaced by a frown. “Lenny, right?”
         “Um,” I responded helpfully. Yep, that was me, smooth as greased ice.
         The absurdity of that metaphor actually snapped me back into focus. “Oh, no, everything’s fine. Just fine. And, it’s Leonidas actually. Well, Leo really. I prefer Leo.” I gave her a beaming smile before shifting over to the register. “How can I help you today?”
         She chuckled to herself before continuing. “Okay Leo.”
         As I was ringing up her order I asked, “So, I don’t think I’ve seen you here before. Just happened to walk in off the street?”
         Sarah’s gaze drifted down to her right as she said, “No, actually. I’d heard that you were trying to spread word about this place, and I thought I’d check it out. I didn’t actually know you worked here.”
         “Oh, yeah. My mother owns this place, and it’s basically family-run.”
         “Oh, that’s cool.” Her eyes looked over to where I was writing her order down. “It’s spelled with an ‘e’.”
         I looked up at her. “I’m sorry?”
         She blushed a little, as if embarrassed at interrupting me. “My name. It’s spelled ‘S-E-R’, not “S-A-R’.”
         “Oh, sorry about that.” I corrected the spelling before tearing off the ticket and handing it to her. “Here, just bring this up when we call your name,” I said. I smiled encouragingly at her. “And I like the spelling. Very unique. And that’s coming from a guy named Leonidas.”
         She laughed a little at that. “Yes, I’m sure I’ll remember that for next time.” She fiddled with the ticket in her hand a little. Fortunately she was the last one in line, or I wouldn’t be able to draw the conversation out like this. “So, um. When do… when is your break?”
         My heart skipped a little at that. Whoa boy, calm down. “Well, I mean,” I looked down at my wrist again, then mentally kicked myself for doing so. Why was that such a problem? “You see,” I managed to piece a thought together quick enough. “It just so happens that my break starts right about now.” I gave her another wide smile.
         She actually seemed to perk up at this, “Really?”
         Before I could respond, Tanya poked her head through the doors. “No, it doesn’t. Hi ma’am, I’ll have your order ready soon. Little Leo here needs to keep working.” I could swear she was doing a damned terrible job of covering her smirk.
         Serah’s face assumed that same embarrassed look again. “Oh, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to,” The color rose in her cheeks to a sharper degree. “I’m sorry,” she managed to stammer out. She turned to face me to say, “Well, maybe next time Leo. Enjoy your shift.” Coming from someone else, that would have sounded sarcastic, but she seemed pretty sincere. I watched her as she scurried over to a seat by the window.
         I turned and fixed Tanya with a hopefully scathing look. She wasn’t even trying to hide her amusement anymore, and was practically shaking with contained laughter. She waved her finger at me and mouthed the word “focus” before retreating back into the kitchen. I scowled at where she had been, turn to scowl down at the counter, then turned my scowl at my wrist just to let it know that it hadn’t escaped my frustrated wrath. With that, I sighed, looked wistfully at Serah, who was staring out the window at the clouds, and resigned myself to the next customer walking through the door.