Fast Life (17 page)

“Some stuff with a job.”

“A job?” he asked in disbelief.

“Yeah, you heard me.”

“Where at?”

“I dunno yet. I'm just gonna go pick up some applications from some places. Probably some boutiques or somethin'.”

“Want me to come with you?”

“Naw, I wanna do it myself.”

“A'ight, then, do ya thang, baby.”

“Hey, we're about to be out. We have an apartment to look at, at four,” Quentin said.

“Bye, Kyra, and good luck with those jobs,” Angel called.

“I oughta get goin', too,” Justin added.

“Okay. Call me later.”

“Okay, boo.”

They locked lips for a moment and Kyra started to leave, stopping when she remembered her friend's message from last night. “Oh, and Tasha said hi, especially to you, Mike.”

“What?”

“Bye!”

“Wait, how are you going to do me like that? What did she say? Kyra!” Michael called out to her as she strolled down the street, smiling and chuckling to herself. The playboy of the island was head over heels for her best friend thousands of miles away.

 

Kyra reached Providenciales and roamed the streets to find all the opportunities available. There were a lot of restaurants and stores around, as well as hotels.

As she made her way through the streets, she spotted a store called Butterfly that she had gone to while Natasha had been visiting. She decided to stop in. It seemed to be the perfect place to begin her job search.

Kyra strolled into the boutique and approached the front counter, speaking as professionally as she could. “Hi, are you hiring right now?”

“Let me call the manager for you.” The young clerk picked up a phone from behind the counter. Within minutes, the store manager arrived from the back room.

“Hello, how may I help you?” the manager greeted her with a mouth full of straight white teeth.

“Hi, I was wondering if you happened to be hiring right now?”

“Actually, yes, we do have a few positions available right now. Would you like an application?”

“Yeah…I mean, yes, please.”

“Here you go. Make sure you bring this back tomorrow as early as you can. The faster the better. The positions are being filled fast.” She handed over a two-page form from behind the counter.

“Thank you.”

“Have a good day.”

 

“Where have you been?” Kyra had made her way back home to find her mother in the living room eating a bowl of chicken and rice.

“I had to take care of somethin'.”

“What's that?” She nodded toward the form under Kyra's arm.

“Nothin'. Just somethin' for school.” Kyra did her best to lie and hide the paper, but it was too late.

“Here, let me see.” Rolling her eyes and taking a deep breath, Kyra surrendered the form to her mother's outstretched hand.

“A job application?” her mother cried, keeping her eyes locked on the paper.

“Go ahead, you can laugh if you want. I know you wanna.”

“No, no. This is…great. I'm just shocked. I didn't know you were thinking about getting a job!”

“Maybe that's because you're never home.”

“Jobs can be very demanding you know. Especially mine. You try managing the money for one of the biggest, busiest resorts around.”

“Whateva.”

“But anyways, you're seventeen now and a junior in high school. I don't see why this wouldn't be as good a time as any for you to get some work.”

“Yeah, I guess.”

“You are going to hand it back in though, right? There's no use getting an application if you're not going to follow through with it.”

“Actually, I'm taking it back as early as I can tomorrow. The lady said that the jobs are goin' really fast.”

“Yeah, on the islands people are constantly coming in and out. Look at us.”

“What?” Kyra demanded under her mother's stare.

“Nothing. I'm just so proud of you.”

“For what? I didn't do anythin'.”

“Actually, you did. Do you remember when I told you I wanted you to come here so that you could grow? And you said you wouldn't and that you could do it in Chicago?”

“Yeah, I remember that.”

“So you don't think you have? If we were still in Chicago, you wouldn't even
think
about
thinking
about a job. Plus, now you bring home decent grades and you may have a chance at college.”

“I already told you—”

“I know,” her mother interrupted, “but just think about it, okay? Let me know if you need any help filling out the application. I'll be in my room.”

“Wait. Where'd you get that from?” Kyra noticed a ruby ring on her mother's hand that she had never seen before.

“Oh, it's nothing. I bought it the other day on Provo. Cute, isn't it?” She lit up as she looked at the ring before finally leaving for her bedroom.

The following day after school, Kyra was nervous as she walked into the Butterfly Boutique. “Hi, I'm here to return this application.” She turned on her charm as she handed over the completed form to the manager.

“Oh, yeah, I remember you. Here, come with me.”

“Huh?”

“I need to interview you. You do want the job, don't you?” the manager asked as she raised an eyebrow in Kyra's direction.

“Yes…but…” She was unsure as she looked down at her plain school uniform.

“Don't worry about it. You're fine. Now come on, I don't have all day to waste with you.” She marched off looking over the form.

Kyra was a little taken aback by the manager's sudden change in attitude from the day before, but she followed her to a back office. As she set her bag down at the side of a chair and took a seat, she wondered just what she had gotten herself into.

“Kyra, where do you see yourself in five years?” The manager, Regina, suddenly threw the question at her as she scanned Kyra's personal information.

“In college.” She was thinking on her feet, saying whatever she thought would sound best for the job. She couldn't believe what she had just said. Her mother probably would have jumped for joy if she had been there. But a stuffy little room in a dormitory with curfews and rules, stadium-style classrooms with old professors, and too-long lectures weren't what Kyra had in mind for the rest of her life.

“What college are you considering?”

“Something in the…uh…Chicago area.”

“I see here you haven't had any work experience?”

“No, I haven't.”

“Not even community service?”

“No. I've never been in trouble with the law.”

“You can chose to do community service, you know,” Regina said, letting out a hearty laugh.

Kyra didn't understand what was so funny. The only time people did community service where she came from was when a judge ordered them to.
Who would even want to do it out of choice?
she thought.

“You make me laugh. I like that.”

“Thank you,” Kyra replied, more confused than before.

“From what I see here, things seem to be in order, and you seem well suited for the job, except for the fact that you haven't had any experience. Would you say that you are responsible?”

“Yes.”

“I think that as long as you apply that, then you will be fine.

I won't give you the job right now, but I'll tell you what I will do. I'll try you out and see how you work for a few days. If I feel like it will work out, then I'll hire you part-time, but if I don't, then you know the deal. How is tomorrow? Saturday from two to seven?”

“That's fine. Thank you.”

“Oh, and make sure you come in in something better than that next time. I'm sure a pretty girl like you has better things in her closet than a uniform.”

Kyra walked out of the office with a smile on her face.
I'll show her
.

She returned home to share the news with her mother, who seemed to be happier than she was. She mentioned something about wishing they could go going to dinner as a celebration of her success, but Kyra really only caught the part where she said she wouldn't be back until tomorrow because something “came up” at the office and she needed to go there right away.

She dialed Justin's number as she watched her mother load her overnight bag into her car and drive off down the road.

“Hello?”

“Justin?”

“Hey, baby, what's up? You hand in the application?”

“Yeah, she interviewed me, too.”

“Did you get it?”

“Kinda.”

“Kinda?”

“I'll tell you about it when you get here.”

“Another one of those nights, huh?” he asked, referring to her mother's constant absences from home lately.

“Yup. It's another one of those nights,” she sighed.

“Okay. I'll be over there in a little while.”

“Bye. And hurry, you know I hate bein' here alone.”

Justin hung up the phone and looked over at his brother, who was sitting next to him playing a Playstation 3 basketball game.

“I need you to cover for me.”

“Damn, again?”

“Yeah, her mom left again, and I don't want her there alone as much as she doesn't want to be there alone,” he said, finding clothes to wear for that night. His usual overnight bag would've been ready if he hadn't put it to use only a few nights ago.

“I feel you.” Justin threw on a white T-shirt and some dark indigo jeans, grabbed his bag and hurried his way down the side of the mansion from his bedroom window. He decided not to take his car but to walk to Kyra's house. It would be easier and less noticeable. It was a long walk, and it seemed he made it almost every weekend, but to him it was always worth it.

It took about an hour and a half for him to reach her home from the gated community he lived in. He walked up the dark, empty driveway to find her sitting on her porch in a peach-colored teddy, awaiting his arrival.

He didn't say a word as he walked up to her and greeted her with a kiss. He picked her up as she wrapped her legs around his waist and he carried her inside.

Justin tenderly carried Kyra to her bedroom and laid her on her crisp, cool sheets as they kissed and tugged at each other's clothing until they both were bare. Their sweating, panting, moaning and screaming went on for hours as they made love.

 

As Kyra stood in the shower, Justin washed her back. He watched, captivated with the way the water and soapsuds flowed over her body.

“Tell me about that job, baby.”

“I gotta work tomorrow.”

“So you got it, then?”

“No,” she said. “She's tryin' me out to see how I work out or whateva.”

“You got it.” He made his statement as though it were a solid fact.

“Yeah,” she plainly affirmed.

“So how long you gotta work tomorrow?”

“From two to seven.”

“You want to do something when you get off? We could go to dinner or something,” he asked as he massaged her back and pecked her shoulder blade.

“Nah, not really. I don't really feel like goin' out anywhere.”

“You want me to come back over tomorrow and just chill here?”

“Yeah. I doubt
she
will be here.”

“I understand how it is when you parents are never around. Mine are always working, too. It'll be a'ight, though.”

“I really dunno why it bothers me. When she's here, all we do is argue anyways.”

“She's still your mom, though. Everybody wants their parents around
sometime
.”

“You know, yesterday she had on this ring. She can't afford it. I know she can't. I mean, I know what that stuff looks like and how much it costs. It was real, too. It had to have gone for at least a couple grand, and I'm just guessin'! Who knows how much it
really
cost.”

“Maybe she's seeing someone. Does she have a boyfriend?”

“Like who!” she snapped, whipping around toward him.

“Whoa, chill, chill. I don't know who, I'm just saying that maybe it was a present or something?”

“She's still married to my dad, Justin. She still has his name,” she insisted.