empancipated

"Go mow the lawn."

Something seething. A frustration. A directive to do a task not worth doing. A feeling a being used. Children do chores for their parents.

"If you're going to live under my roof, you're going to need to pull your weight."

A conditional with a forgone conclusion. Is there another option than living under this roof? The roof doesn't matter. The lawn doesn't matter. The neighborhood doesn't matter. This man is an obstacle.

A heavy mower. Gasoline. A rip cord that is too tight. Shoes stained from the week before. A seething loop. A plan.

--

He places an application on the counter. A clerk in a black shirt finds a manager in a red shirt. The manager looks over the paper, then motions toward an empty table. "Have a seat."

"Why do you want this job?"
'Money.'
"Do you have any experience?"
'No.'
"Do you have a reliable method of transportation?"
'Bike.'
"Would your friends describe you as a hard worker?"
What friends. 'Yes.'
"It says here you're 16?"
The minimum legal working age. 'Yes.'
"When, if hired, could you start?"
'Now.'
The manager looks up at a vacant face and calls a bluff. She stands, reaches behind the counter and pulls out a bucket. She sets it in front of him. "Alright. Let me see you clean the tables."
He reaches into the bucket, pulls out the cloth, wrings it out, and wipes down every empty table. Small, edgeless fast food tables bolted to the floor. Avoiding the two occupied by customers, it takes him 10 minutes and two trips back to the bucket.
"Good enough for me. You're still in school right? Can you do 4pm - 10pm weekdays and 10am - 6pm on weekends when we need you?"
'Yes.'
"Great. See you tomorrow then." The manager gets up.
'So this doesn't count as a shift?'
She pauses. Chuckles to herself. "You that desperate for money? How about this? It's... 12pm now. I don't have a training manager on staff right now, so just follow Harvey around and do what he tells you. If it goes well I'll retro your start day in the system and today will be your official first day."
She motions for him to follow and leads him to a back office. She pulls a hat in a plastic bag from a cubby and hands it to him.
"You gotta wear this all the time you're working. You can take it off during breaks. You'll learn more about the dress code tomorrow."
He opens the bag, puts on the hat and throws the plastic in the bin under the desk.
"Hey Harvey" she calls out the door.
A man appears in the doorway, one earbud in, one out, wipes his hands on his pants.
- "What's up?"
"This is the new guy..." She looks down at the application. "Art. Show him around will ya? Give him stuff to do, work your regular shift."
- "I'm a training manager now? They get paid more right?"
"For a day. And you only get paid more if you have the different title. Tell ya what. If this goes well I'll let you take the training manager training for the promotion and the raise."
- "Sweet. Come on new guy."
Art stands up and follows Harvey to the sink.
- "Dishes. Spray 'em with the hose. If the sink gets clogged, throw it in the trash..."
---