Pink Slip Prophet

by Donnelly, George

Ian nodded. “You made the schedule. Boss.”

  Larry shot him an angry glare. He stood up and tucked his dress shirt into his loose-fitting pants. He took a deep breath, his gut expanded and he let it out again in one giant blast. “You’ve got all your stuff, right?”

  Ian tilted his eyebrows up. “And?”

  Larry looked straight at him and frowned. “I have to let you go, buddy. Orders from the top.” A nervous smile crossed his face before he suppressed it. He sat back down and put his feet up on the desk.

  Ian stared at him. That’s not right. “I saved a baby this morning. I saved the city from—”

  “You re-routed a train, thus causing mayhem in the city network. You hacked the system—”

  Ian guffawed. “I didn’t hack anything. I just used your access code. Which, by the way, is a little creepy. And not very secure.”

  Larry cleared his throat and looked away. “In any case, you’re fired. Sorry. Couldn’t happen to a nicer guy. Hell, you should be my boss. My boss’s boss! You’re the most competent guy in this organization. But I guess that no longer matters, with the automation and all.”

  “I saved a baby’s life today. How can you fire me for that?” Ian paused and tried to reason it through. I save baby, they fire me. There is no logical connection here.

  “The truth is, they were going to let you go anyway!” Larry stood up and pushed his chair in. “The automation plan—”

  “The union said they would still keep both of us here,” Ian said.

  Larry ignored him. “The automation plan is complete. They only need a skeleton crew at Base. Everything else will be automated.”

  “I’m thirty-nine, Larry. What am I going to do?”

  Larry jerked his neck to the right. “Y’ello.” He said with a suppressed smile and an authoritative but casual tone. He listened. “Right now? It would be my pleasure.” He laughed mischievously and jerked his neck to the left. “Anyway, Ian, that’s it. They’ll dock you for the costs associated with those delays you caused but I talked them out of pressing charges.”

  “Charges? For what?” Ian asked.

  Larry shook his head and headed for the door. He stopped next to Ian. “You’re an old-fashioned kind of guy. Not an order-taker but a man with principles. I like that about you!” He slapped Ian on the back and walked out the door.

  Ian stood in the empty room listening to the screeches of the trains against the rails. Trains, engineering, it’s all I’ve wanted to do for twenty years, ever since Candy got pregnant. “What do I do now?” he whispered to himself.

  ***

  Ian stepped into his apartment and closed the flimsy front door behind him. Drug Control had broken it down so many times now, there was no point in replacing it. It would only be money wasted. And now he didn’t even have the option. They’d need every cent they had to weather this.

  They might even have to move out. Where would they go?

  He plodded in and fell into his ratty but beloved, garishly-checkered couch. A spring coil poked into his thigh and he adjusted himself. “Real News,” he said.

  Candy trotted into the living room in a bright purple leotard, her legs kicking behind her. “Pause,” she said, and took off her deep green augmented reality glasses. “You’re home early, and watching the news?” She scowled at him. “I haven’t seen in you front of the screen in years!” She turned and yelled down the hallway that led to two bathrooms and three bedrooms. “Stacy, come on! Your dad is looking at a screen!” She laughed.

  “Volume up five,” Ian said. No respect at work. At home, they laugh at me. I need to be tougher with these people.

  Stacy bounded into the living room in her underwear. She looked over the top of her AR glasses and giggled. “Daddy! What are you— Hey, I am going to need the TV soon, you know.”

  Ian looked at her, his mouth a thin line. “Could you put some clothes on, young lady? It’s one thing to traipse around half-naked when you’re six, but at your age?”

  “But, Daddy,” Stacy said, “I am—” She pushed her glasses down. “Oops! I’m dressed in Funation!” She rolled her eyes. “I am such a wooly!” She sauntered energetically back to her room and closed the door while babbling to a girlfriend.

  Ian turned back to the news. The President was offering up a soundbite on a group of college kids who, while playing a hacked AR game, threw themselves in front of an Amtrak bullet train. The lone survivor, who lost both legs and an arm, thought they were jumping into a Hollywood jacuzzi.

  It was incomprehensible to him. One world was hard enough to keep straight. He didn’t need two or three. Just one, ordered world with strong families, good jobs and some grandkids down the line.

  Candy cleared her throat. “What are you doing here this early? You know this causes an inconvenience for me.” She crossed her arms. “It’s not fair.”

  Ian laughed and spread his arms out to cover the entire couch. “Me relaxing in my home is a problem for you?” He laughed and shook his head.

  “Larry Kunkle,” the screen said, “is just a common stationmaster at the Philadelphia El. But today, he became a hero.”

  Ian stared at the screen incredulous.

  “Oh, is this what Larry was talking about?” Candy sat down on the edge of the couch and pushed Ian to the opposite side. That spring scraped his leg again.

  A young Asian woman appeared on screen with Ian’s station in the background. Former station.

  “It was right here, just this morning, when a young woman lost her baby on the El, that stationmaster Larry Kunkle came to the rescue. Kunkle acted quickly to reroute the trains and save the newborn baby’s life. And our hero is with us right now.”

  The camera panned and there was Larry Kunkle. Ian’s mouth hung open. Did I dream that I did that? Was I on AR? Drugs? Ian remembered back to the purple blanket, the kicking baby legs, the strung-out mother. I was there. That was me. I ordered the train back. I pulled the baby off of it. And I got fired for it.

  “Look at that, good old Larry. What a guy he is! Stacy! It’s your uncle Larry on TV! He’s a hero!”

  “Larry is not her uncle,” Ian said. No relation at all.

  “You’re just jealous,” Candy said with a dismissive wave.

  On screen, the reporter turned to an unusually bright and smiling Larry. “It was easy,” he said. “It was nothing. Well, it took some doing, I’ll tell you that.”

  “How did you save Baby Daphne, Larry? Tell our viewers what happened,” the reporter said.

  Larry’s face blanked with panic and a sly smile crept onto Ian’s face. The bastard liar hasn’t even prepared a good story.

  Larry’s face flashed serious. “Oh, it was very challenging. I had to find the right train. It was an impossible task, but thankfully the new automated systems made it possible to bring the baby’s train back to the station, relatively quickly, you know, after I, of course, did the hard work, by myself.” He cleared his throat and the big-eyed look of panic returned.

  “Screen off,” Ian said. He stood up and turned left to the square, undersized picture window that dominated their living room. Gray clouds hung over the drab, cement block buildings that sat perpendicular to his. It roiled his stomach. It was a disgusting, dog-eat-dog world where anyone could swipe even the heart right out of your chest if you didn’t keep a close watch.

  ***

  The front door creaked open. “Anybody home?” asked a voice.

  Ian drew a deep breath. He was in his bed, his eyes still shut. A cool breeze came through the window. He felt fresh, rested. He reveled in the smoothness of the sheets. After that day, I needed a good night’s— Ian sat up in bed and checked his watch. 8:53 PM.

  Damnit. Ian threw himself out of bed and headed into the hallway. How did that happen? Unemployed just a few hours and already I’m sleeping during the day. What’s next? Drugs? Funation? And here I am trying to set a good example for Michael.

  “Hey buddy!”
/>   Ian stopped short just outside of the bedroom he nominally shared with Candy and looked up. Unbelievable.

  “Did you see me on the news, buddy?” Larry leered at him with those fake, polar-white teeth. He flipped his lucky silver coin. It tinged, floated up, then landed back in his hand and he shoved it in his pocket. Candy and Stacy stood behind him with expectant smiles.

  Ian stared at him, unable to move. Larry had pulled some questionable moves in the past, but nothing like this. This was unprecedented.

  Candy trotted up beside Larry and ran her arm along his. “Larry,” she said in a sultry voice, “can I get you something?” She tilted her head to one side and smiled up at him.

  Larry turned his head to her without taking his eyes off of Ian. “Champagne. Ian keep any around, by chance?”

  “Ian? Champagne? Old Tightwad himself?” She laughed. “Never!” She turned to Stacy. “Call the store for some champagne. Have them send it ASAP.”

  “You bet, anything for the hero Uncle Larry,” said Stacy. She traipsed off, half-dressed, to the kitchen to place the order.

  Ian ground his teeth. He took a step towards Larry and jammed his index finger into the air in front of the fake’s face. “I didn’t know that you had that much dishonesty in you, Larry. I knew you were dishonest, but to take credit for what I did—”

  Larry whirled around, put his arm around Candy and guided her towards the kitchen. Her robe opened slightly at the chest and he snuck a look.

  Ian followed him into the living room. Jack sat hunched-over on the couch, looking at a mobile screen. Ian looked at Larry. Jack looks so lonely over there. Ian turned, walked over and sat next to Jack.

  “Hey, little man!” Ian whispered to Jack. He put his arm around the boy’s thin frame and pulled him into him. “Why so glum?”

  Jack tapped something on his screen, then turned away from Ian with a jerk of his shoulder. “No, nothing.” He added in a mumble that was barely perceptible over the din of Candy and Larry’s laughing, “…even remembers…”

  Ian smiled. “What’s that game we’re going to play tonight? What’s the name again?”

  Jack whipped around, his face a study in joy. “Star Invaders. I thought you forgot!”

  “Why don’t you get it ready?”

  “So, Ian,” Larry said in a projected voice from the kitchen, “what are your plans now that, you know, you lost your job?”

  Ian closed his eyes, mortified. Here comes the inevitable Candy overreaction.

  “What!” Candy screamed, her voice reverberating off the cement walls.

  Ian saw in his mind’s eye the familiar look of outraged shock on her face: the open mouth, the bulging eyes, the selfish attitude of entitlement.

  “What does he mean, you lost your job?”

  Jack trotted back into the living room, the virtual reality goggles and gaming controllers piled against his chest. A look of worry distorted his face. “Can we still play?” he whispered.

  “Of course,” Ian said with a certainty he didn’t feel. His stomach clenched up. I hate this. And I wish Jack didn’t have to see it. “Let’s play in your room. I’ll be along in a minute.” He stood up and faced Candy across the breakfast bar.

  “You lost,” Candy said with exaggerated facial movements, “your job?” She turned to Larry. “Really?” She stood too close to him and her arm was around his lower back.

  “Larry fired me,” Ian said.

  “Well, I’m sure he had a good reason,” Candy said, still looking at Larry.

  “I saved that baby girl today,” Ian said.

  Candy stared at him open-mouthed.

  “Larry fired me and apparently took the credit himself. Yeah, he’s a great guy, that Uncle Larry.”

  Ian stared at Larry. Larry stared back at him, his eyes narrow slits of hurt, envy and defiance.

  “Larry saved that baby,” Stacy said from Larry’s other side. “It was on the news.”

  Larry laughed. “You know good old Ian and his delusions of grandeur.” He stared straight at Ian. “Just like when we were back in college, Candy, you remember? He thought he could be a robotics scientist.” Larry guffawed. “Ian. A scientist! And then, of course, you got pregnant and he did the right thing. Reality bashed those delusions of grandeur.”

  He turned to Stacy and put his arm around her, his hand resting on the top of her exposed butt cheek. “I like your dad, darling. I hated to have to let him go. But between the damages and the automation—”

  “I just rerouted the train,” Ian said.

  “What are we going to do?” Candy asked.

  “Oh, I can lend you some money until you get on the basic income,” Larry said.

  “Oh, right, I heard about that at school,” Stacy said. “Great idea, Uncle Larry.” She patted his hand and smiled up at him.

  Ian raged. He stood up and faced Larry, eye to eye. “Get your hand off my daughter’s ass. Now.”

  Larry eyes seemed to recede deeper into his head but he didn’t break their eye contact.

  “Daddy, it’s no big deal, it’s just Uncle Larry. He doesn’t—”

  Ian turned to Stacy. “Get to your room! And put some clothes on already. You’re sixteen!”

  Larry pulled Stacy tighter into his side and she giggled.

  “What’s this basic income?” Candy asked Larry in a whisper.

  Jack came around the corner of the hallway and into the living room. He carried the gaming goggles and controllers. “Dad, can we play now?” The look of expectant hurt on the boy’s face crushed Ian’s heart.

  Ian closed his eyes and shook his head. He didn’t want to let the boy down again. The only one with any hope of turning out right. The one who most took after him. But the frustration, the betrayal, the sense of worthlessness overcame him. “I can’t right now. I have to get some air.” Ian stormed out of the apartment over the sounds of Candy and Stacy giggling.

  Chapter 2

  Ian pushed through the door to his apartment and opened the fridge. It was short, with a small freezer on top so he had to bend way down in order to see into it. A cockroach popped out of a half-open Chinese food container. Ian jumped back and slammed the door.

  There are four of them. I work all day. She doesn’t even work. Why? Why can’t one of them keep decent house? If not for me then at least for Jack.

  He thought about Jack and that hurt face of his. I really screwed up.

  Michael came out of his room off the kitchen and stopped short when he saw Ian blocking his only way out.

  “You get a job yet, Dad?” Michael asked. His hands fidgeted below his waist and a nervous smile crossed his face. “Never thought I’d be asking you that question, huh?”

  Ian narrowed his eyes. He studied the boy. Nineteen, his first-born son, and still at home. No job prospects, never excelled at education. Not even a girlfriend. I know he’s doing drugs. What do I do with this kid? “Nothing yet, what—”

  “See, Dad? It’s not that easy to get a job today! You had a good job so you could judge me, but not anymore!” Michael sniffed.

  I should have been home more often. I should have given him more of my time. Is this my fault? No, it can’t be. I did my job. I brought home the money. I worked. I paid for everything. I let Candy take charge of— Maybe that was my mistake. “Nothing worth doing is easy, son.”

  “Fuck you and your psalms, or whatever those are,” Michael said. “I’m going out.” He took a step towards Ian.

  Ian stepped into his path. This was his chance, maybe his last chance, to get Michael onto the right track, to start fixing their relationship. To whip the lazy whiner into shape. “You’re not going out, not until we figure this out.”

  “Forget it, Dad, there’s nothing to figure out. You’re an asshole and I’m a lazy whiner, right? I know that’s what you think of me. You can’t deny it!”

  A door opened behind him and Ian heard undersized, traipsing footsteps headed in his d
irection. “Dad,” Jack yelled, “can we play now?”

  Ian crossed his arms. “Michael, tell me, what do you do around the house? Do you cook? Clean? Do you help pay for groceries? What exactly do you contribute to this household?”

  Michael’s face contorted into an expression of hurt and outrage. “How dare you? I’m your child. I’m your responsibility. You have to take care of me. You…”

  Ian smiled thinly. “You’re not a child anymore, Michael. You’re—”

  “Anyway, I’m getting the basic income now. I guess now that you lost your job you’ll want to mooch some of that off of me, huh? Well it’s only two-thousand a month. And I need that for my car and my gaming career and other basics. So—”

  Great. I produced a parasite. Ian swallowed as he carefully selected his words. Screw it. “You can’t live in my house and be on welfare. It’s that simple. We’re Blakes. We work for a living.”

  Michael’s face visibly relaxed. “I signed up last night. I was the first one in our neighborhood. Starting next week, I’ll get two-thousand dollars per month, every month, for the rest of my life. If you’re smart, you’ll do the same thing.” He pushed past Ian and strode out the door.

  ***

  “I win! You lose!” Jack yelled at his father and then collapsed into giggling. “Why did you do that?”

  Ian shook his head and rolled his eyes. “I… just have my mind somewhere else, I guess.”

  Jack jammed his hand into Ian’s ribs and started scratching around with a smile on his face.

  “I’m really not in the mood for tickling, buddy,” Ian said. I’m about in the mood to jump off a bridge.

  Jack sat back, crestfallen. He was silent for a moment, then spoke up, “Dad, there’s this new game—”

  Ian studied his youngest son’s gorgeous face. Out of all of them, he was the only one who looked like his dad: a pleasantly-rounded face, brown hair, blue eyes. If only I could buy him everything he ever wanted, I would. Over and over again. “I can’t do it, not right now. I just lost my job.”

  Jack looked down. “It’s only three dollars. I mean, if you get a chance.”

  “After I get a new job, okay? It shouldn’t be long.”