by Eliza Taye
A few men were already gathered outside the Grady house, retrieving gardening tools, and getting to work. Unsure of where to begin, he walked over to the wheelbarrow with the tools and peered inside.
“Are you Garrett Gibbons?” inquired a tall, husky man around 35-years-old.
Garrett faced him. The man was dressed similar to the man who’d taken him from the ceremony yesterday. “Yes, I’m Garrett Gibbons.”
“Good, you have been recorded as present for work today. At the end of the job, you’ll hand in your tools and receive your payment for a completed job. If your work is deemed as sub-quality, you’ll only be paid half-wages, do you understand?”
Half-wages? They had to be crazy, he thought. Instead, he simply hung his head and nodded. “Yes, I understand.”
“Good, now get to work.” The man made a note on his clipboard and walked off to check the next man in.
Garrett returned to the wheelbarrow and peered inside once again. There was an assortment of tools that he had no idea what to do with. He hadn’t done gardening a day in his life. His mother was the one who liked to keep a small garden in the backyard. She’d been extremely picky about it and wouldn’t let him or his father touch it. Not that he would have asked to anyway.
“Are you going to take all day or what?” complained a man behind him.
“Oh, no, sorry.” Garrett chose a tool at random and followed the other men to the side yard.
Examining the tool he held in his hands, it resembled a big set of funky scissors. Unsure what to do with it, he started looking at the guys around him and watching what they were doing. To his horror, he realized none of them had shears like he did.
Afraid to be caught doing nothing and have his pay docked, Garrett moved towards the nearest bush and started cutting around the edges, trying to maintain its shape. Although, he moved slowly afraid of destroying the bush altogether. If he killed the bush, he knew he could kiss his full wages goodbye.
“First day on the job?” observed someone to his left.
Garrett glanced over to who had spoken. A guy his age with straight black hair that reached to the tip of his cinnamon brown eyes looked at him with kindness. “Yeah, it kinda is.”
“It’d say more than kinda.” The guy grabbed the shears from Garrett and started expertly trimming the bush. “You have to work around it like this, shaping the bush without cutting too much off. You want to work fast, but careful. Make sure you don’t work too closely to someone else, because these things are sharp enough to cut off a finger.”
Garrett gulped at his statement. The tool was definitely not something to play with. He watched as the guy quickly finished the bush and then straightened with the same smile on his face. “Thank you, I appreciate you showing me how to do it.”
“No problem. They always throw us into these jobs like we already know how to do everything. Those pompous Decideds, huh?”
“Yeah,” Garrett agreed, not wanting to alienate himself from this new ally by disagreeing.
“What’s your name?”
“Garrett. Yours?”
“I’m Lance. Lance Beanstrom.” Lance gestured to himself as he spoke. “Stick with me today and I’ll help show you the ropes. You don’t want to have your pay docked because you did a botched job.”
“Yeah, I really don’t,” agreed Garrett, taking the shears back from Lance and starting on the next bush.
“I’ll be trimming those hedges over there, so just ask if you need help. The enforcers only stick around long enough to take attendance and then they’re gone until it’s time for us to end work.”
“Thanks, Lance.”
“No problem!” With a swat at the thanks, Lance jogged off to the hedges.
Garrett set back to work on the bushes, trying to remember how Lance had done it. Using the bush Lance had worked on as an example, Garrett shaped the next four bushes in the same shape.
Stepping back, proud of himself, Garrett admired his work. When he turned to see where Lance had gone, he gawked when he realized Lance had completed the eight rows of hedges in the time it’d taken Garrett to do the four bushes.
Losing pride in the work he’d accomplished as he realized he’d been way too slow, Garrett moved around the house to the next row of bushes and challenged himself to move faster down the row. He needed every single trecin if he was to be able to buy food and supplies for his apartment.
Eventually, he found himself lost in his work of trimming the bushes when a voice broke his concentration. “Hey, you, kid, I need some help.”
Garrett turned around, looking to see if the person was talking to him or someone else.
“No, I’m talking to you.”
Garrett fixed his gaze at the back door to the Grady house where Mrs. Grady was pointing at him. Sheepishly, he walked over to the back porch. He wasn’t sure if he was supposed to break work to help someone do something else, but he also wondered if Mrs. Grady would complain to the enforcers if he didn’t. “What do you need help with?”
“I need help moving a piece of furniture. My hairpin fell behind the dresser and I need that specific one because it perfectly complements my outfit. I have an important meeting in an hour and my husband is gone at the moment. Could you please help me move it?” Mrs. Grady’s steadfast azure eyes stared at him, awaiting an answer.
“Um, I…I guess I can.” Garrett still didn’t know quite what to do.
“Well, come in and hurry up. Take your shoes off and leave them on the porch.”
Garrett did as he was told and followed Mrs. Grady through her immaculate home, feeling completely out of place. He was sure he stunk after sweating at work and not taking a shower that morning. While he shuffled behind her, she made a call on her interwave, pointing to the dresser she needed moved once they got into the large bedroom.
The dresser was heavy, but not too much trouble for Garrett to move. After moving it out several feet, he picked up the fallen elaborately decorated hairpin and handed it to Mrs. Grady.
With a nod, he was about to leave when she held her hand over the mic of the interwave and said, “Wait…for your trouble.”
Garrett held out his hand as Mrs. Grady placed ten trecins inside his palm.
“Thank you,” she stated, then returned to the interwave call before he could voice his own thanks.
As he retraced his steps to the back porch, Garrett looked at the ten trecins in his hand like they were solid gold. He never knew being given ten trecins could mean so much.
Outside, after descending the steps from the porch, Lance grabbed Garrett’s arm and yanked him around the hedges he’d just trimmed. “Garrett, what were you doing inside the house?”
“Mrs. Grady asked for my help moving a piece of furniture, so I went inside to help her.” Garrett opened his palm. “She even tipped me for it.”
Lance stared down at the trecins and then looked back at Garrett. “I’d hide that if I were you, you don’t want the enforcers seeing it. Also, we are never ever to go inside the house if we’re doing outside work. What would you have done if Mrs. Grady accused you of stealing something from their home or worse?”
Garrett opened his mouth to retort, then realized he had no good response to the question. Mrs. Grady could easily accuse him of stealing. After all, she hadn’t escorted him out of the house. He had several opportunities to steal something if he’d been thinking that way.
His silence prompted Lance to respond, “I thought so. Garrett, you have to keep your head down and focus on getting the job done. We have two hours left; I suggest you do that.”
Garrett followed Lance’s advice and kept working hard until the end of the job. All the gardeners lined up in front of the enforcer to be paid, Garrett at the end of the line. His arms ached, his back hurt, and he couldn’t believe it was still only 10 in the morning.
“Mrs. Grady said you also did a fine job so you’ll be paid the full amount of 25 trecins.” The enforcer reached into the bag of coins and took out the m
oney, handing it to Garrett with his gloved hand. “You’ll find your next assignment has been sent to your interwave.”
Wearily, Garrett pulled his interwave out of his pocket to see his next job detailed in a message:
Daily Job Assignment:
Trash Collection
484 Montigue Avenue
Wage: 3t/hr
Start Time: 11am
Expected Duration of Job: 5 hours
Garrett hung his head in defeat as he realized his long day just got longer.
Chapter 23
The light of day greeted Opal as she awoke in her new room. For a few seconds, she couldn’t remember where she was, but then everything became clear. Declaration Day was over and she’d begun living her Life Plan. The path she’d been planning for herself had finally become a reality.
Sliding out of bed and slipping on her house shoes, Opal walked to the bathroom and appraised herself in the mirror. She had officially become an adult now. She was a Declarer. Her future and fate would be of her own choosing. With a smile, she started getting ready for the day. Since it was the first day for several students, she would have orientation and then be able to choose her classes for the semester. She wondered how many other Declarers would be in her degree field.
After getting ready for the day, Opal left her room to find the hallways empty except for the occasional student. Checking the time, she saw it was only 6am. Smiling, she realized college would be a lot like the way it was at home, mostly silent and scarce of people in the mornings.
Down the hall, a bulletin board filled to the brim with flyers caught Opal’s attention. She strolled over and examined it, reading for anything interesting. Several clubs were advertising for new members. A volunteer organization was looking for students to join them on the weekends. A notice from the dormitory management explained that the entire place would have their fire alarms tested on Fourth Moon.
Finally, she found one applicable to her: Declarer Class Orientation. It stipulated that all Declarer students were to meet in Trenton Hall at 9am for college orientation. Orientation would consist of a basic rundown of academy rules, a tour of the campus, and then at the end, students would be allowed to sign-up for classes.
Although they offered a tour of the campus, Opal figured she had plenty of time before 9am. First, she’d walk around the dormitory grounds and then head out to explore the buildings surrounding it.
On the dormitory ground floor, Opal discovered a large cafeteria with excellent smells of food wafting toward her nose. Attracted to the tantalizing aroma, she followed it and found a few other students scattered amongst the various tables enjoying their breakfast. As Opal walked to the front of the cafeteria where the food was being served, she admired the variety.
“Hello, choose whatever you’d like to eat and you can pay for it at the end of the line,” explained a chipper old woman with silver hair streaked with white. Her kind smile created endless lines of wrinkles upon her warm face.
“Thank you,” replied Opal, taking a closer look at the assortment of food before her.
Choosing several items that looked appealing to her, an apple, nuts, yogurt, and some juice to drink along with a slice of soven, Opal paid for the food and then found a place to sit alone.
As she chewed her food, Opal thought of the classes she knew she’d want to enroll in. Introduction to Law being the one she’d be most excited to take and then maybe a class on public speaking. It wouldn’t hurt to get a head start on getting used to speaking in front of a lot of people.
“Hey, are you new here? I’m Chloë.” A girl plopped her tray down beside Opal’s and sat down.
“Hi, yes, I am new here. My name is Opal.”
“Nice to meet you, Opal. What’s your major?”
“Public Law…or at least it will be once I sign up for everything today.” Opal gave Chloë a meek smile. “What about you?”
“Ah, so you’re a Declarer. I’m in International Law. Just made it through my Declarer year, now I can be referred to as a regular old Decided.” Chloë smoothed back a strand of her tawny hair that had come loose from her tight ponytail.
“How do you like it here?” wondered Opal.
“Oh, this place is great! I love going to academy here. I’ve learned so much. The faculty is really nice and I have to say we have one of the best dormitories. They’ve wrapped everything a student can need into one building. We have our own cafeteria, a boutique clothing and essentials store around the corner, and even our own gym.”
“Woah, that’s amazing.”
“I know, isn’t it?” Chloë took a swig of milk. “Most students would kill to be in this dormitory. The waitlist is insane. You’re lucky you were assigned here.”
“Yeah, I guess so.”
“Are you the only person from your Choosing Class going to this academy?”
A pang twisted Opal’s heart as she realized she hadn’t thought of Garrett yet this morning. How could she have been such a terrible friend? “No, I’m not the only one from my Choosing Class going to this academy, but I am the only one in the School of Law.”
“Ah, makes sense. Not everyone would want to be a lawyer. Lots of studying and hard work.”
Opal nodded. “Yes, that’s very true.”
“So you’ll have orientation later this morning, I presume.” Chloë put the last of her breakfast into her mouth after speaking.
“Yes, they’re going to give us a tour of the campus and then allow us to sign-up for classes.” Opal poured the nuts into her yogurt. “Do you remember how long the tour is?”
Chloë thought for a bit. “Not too long, maybe about four hours. This is a pretty large campus compared to the other two collegiate academies in the city. But you’ll want to make sure you sign up for classes as soon as you can. The lower level law classes fill up quickly. You don’t want to end up taking extra classes one or two semesters just to finish on time.”
“Thanks, I’ll remember that.”
Chloë piled her empty containers together on her tray and stood. “Well, nice meeting you, Opal. I’m sure I’ll see you around. Have a good rest of your day.”
“Yeah, you too.” Opal waved to Chloë in farewell, then resumed eating her food.
After finishing eating and throwing away her empty containers into the recycling bin, Opal left the dormitory and strolled down the pathway. The school was starting to wake up. Students jogged down the pathways, some sat outside on the lawn getting an early study session in, and others walked around on their interwaves and sciorbs.
Opal inhaled the fresh air, still feeling like she was in a dream. It felt so surreal to her to be living her Life Plan. She’d been dreaming of going to school here for so long and now she’d finally made it.
“Hey, watch out!” cautioned someone behind her.
Spinning around, Opal leaped out of the way just in time as a guy riding a bike zoomed past her. “Sorry,” she called out to his fleeting form.
Feeling bad for not paying attention, Opal scooted to the edge of the pathway to ensure she wouldn’t get in someone’s way again. As she continued walking, she examined the various buildings on campus. Most were from three to eight stories tall. They varied from wide to narrow, but none of them appeared to encompass as much space as her dormitory did. There were lecture halls, cafés, restaurants, grocery stores, and bookstores all scattered around. Based on the plaques in front of the lecture halls, Opal realized her dormitory must have been reserved for law, politics, and civil studies students as all the lecture halls nearby were related to one of those degrees.
Opal paused as she checked the time on her interwave, it was 8:20 am. She considered it’d be a good idea to start heading toward Trenton Hall for orientation. Taking her sciorb from her pocket, she pulled up the campus map and discovered that Trenton Hall wasn’t far from her dormitory. Turning around, she headed back in that direction for orientation.
Garrett wiped the sweat from his brow with the back of his hand. Hauling
the large barrels of trash from the side of the street into the back of the garbage collection transporter was hard work. After already bending over and working hard all morning on gardening, it was doubly difficult to do the garbage job too.
Glancing around at the men he worked with, he observed that they also appeared tired, but not nearly as tired as he was. Unlike at his last job, no one like Lance had reached out to him. Not that it mattered much, collecting garbage was easy—all you had to do was pick it up and throw it in the back of the transporter. At least it was easy in concept. In actual physical labor, it was hard work.
“Hurry up, kid. We need to get to the next site,” scolded the oldest man of the group, his gray hair mixing with the remnants of black hair. His piercing green eyes bore into Garrett with disgust.
“I’m hurrying. This is the last one.” Garrett forced himself to exert an extra burst of energy to throw the trash into the back of the transporter and then returned the barrel to street side. With the last one done, he climbed onto the railings on the side of the transporter for the collectors to hold onto for a ride to the next location.
The rest of the afternoon passed as such. By the time Garrett had completed the full five hours, his arms and legs felt like noodles. He held his breath as the enforcer distributed their wages, hoping another job wouldn’t pop up onto his interwave. He’d already worked a ten-hour day—more than he’d ever worked in his entire life. If he saw one more five-hour job pop up, he knew he’d lose it.
To his relief, the enforcer paid him and nothing popped onto his screen. Releasing his tightly clenched shoulders and sighing in relief, Garrett began walking towards the nearest transport station. As he walked, he counted the trecins he’d earned that day. For the first job, he’d received 25 trecins plus the 10 trecins Mrs. Grady had given him. This last job earned him 15 trecins, so in all, he had 50 trecins. Not bad for a full day’s work, he thought to himself.
When he reached the station, he saw how far it’d be back to the entrance to the Undecided sector. Doing a few calculations in his head, he reasoned it’d cost him at least twenty trecins to take the transporter to the end of the line. That would be almost half of his day’s wages. So much for getting a decent amount of money for a day.