Page 13 of Hot Set

“How many jobs have you been fired from?” I asked.

I tried to imagine Seth working at some every-day, throwaway job. I imagined him working retail or as a barista at some Starbuck’s, and the only thing I could imagine was unmitigated disaster.

“Six,” Seth said, as if it didn’t matter in the slightest, “Although I’ve also made a habit of quitting in a needlessly dramatic fashion. As you do.”

“I’ve never quit any job like that,” I replied.

“You should have,” Seth said. “Life’s more fun that way.”

“Maybe,” I replied, “But I just—I don’t know. When I quit, I always just put in my two weeks’ notice and then head out.”

“You must’ve thought about it,” Seth said. “About just…grabbing a megaphone and announcing you were leaving to the whole store, right?”

“No,” I replied.

“How boring,” Seth said. “How do you live with yourself?”

I shrugged.

Seth tilted his head back and hummed loudly. “You must have an ‘Alex’, deep inside you, who wants to go on some adventure and break all the rules.”

“That Alex doesn’t exist,” I said.

“Are you sure?” Seth asked.

“Positive,” I replied.

Seth loudly clicked his tongue against the roof of his mouth. “Well, you’re going to have to change that,” Seth said, sounding as if an authority.

He sounded so sure about it. It was as if he’d traveled to the future and seen a proverbial future me, who was infinitely more adventurous.

“I doubt that’s going to happen.”

“Oh, it will,” Seth said, leaning forward and grinning mischievously. “Don’t worry. You don’t have to do it on your own. I’ll help you.”

“Will you!” I asked, chuckling.

“Sure,” Seth said. “We’ll start small. Ever rode a motorcycle? I could teach you.”

I shook my head. “That’s never going to happen. It took me long enough to learn to drive a car. I had to take my driver’s license test three times before I passed.”

“What about just taking a ride?” he asked. “It’s fun. I have a spare helmet.”

“Now?”

“Sure,” Seth replied.

“You are supposed to be going to talk to Brandon,” I pointed out.

Seth heaved a long, dramatic sigh. “You’re definitely going to be a passion project,” he said, nodding sagely. “What about going for a ride some other time?”

“Maybe,” I said, “But not now.”

Seth slid out of his seat and grabbed a last, final bite of fried rice. “You’re no fun.”

I arched an eyebrow.

“But you have potential,” Seth said slyly.

---