Page 45 of Searching for Nova

That’s a lot more than the $9 an hour I make at the diner, and if it’s near my school, I could walk there, at least on weekdays.

“You also get free skating,” Rod says. “You skate?”

“No. I don’t have skates.”

“If you want a pair, I got some old ones that are too worn out to rent. They’re free. Just find your size. I got a box of them in the back. I’ll show you when you’re here.”

“When do I start?”

“Lenny said you could start tomorrow. Does that work?”

“Yeah, but it has to be in the afternoon. I work in the morning.”

“Let’s say one o’clock. I’ll train you and show you around, and then you can get to work. Wear something that can get dirty. You’ll be cleaning.”

“Okay, see you tomorrow.”

Maybe this won’t be so bad. Rod seems nicer than Lenny, who’s just another version of Ted, always yelling at me and telling me what I’m doing wrong.

“Nova!” Ted yells.

“What?” I yell back.

“Get out here!”

I go out to the living room and stand by his chair. “What?”

“I need to eat. And get me a beer.”

Going to the kitchen, I open the fridge and take out a beer, noticing we’re out of food.

“We don’t have anything but canned stuff,” I say, setting his beer on the tray.

“Then give me that, and then go to the store. You got paid, right?”

“Yeah, but some of it has to go for new shoes.” I hold up my foot. “These are breaking through the toe.”

“How much is that gonna cost?”

“I don’t know. Forty?”

“Forty dollars?” he says, like it’s a million. “Since when do sneakers cost $40?”

“Most of them are more than that. I need new jeans too, but I’ll wait on those if you let me get the sneakers.”

I hate that I have to ask him to use my own money, but he keeps track of my paychecks and what I buy. He’ll spend $40 on beer and cigarettes and think nothing of it, but then acts like it’s crazy to spend $40 for sneakers.

“Fine,” he says with a huff. “Get the damn sneakers, but no more than $40, and that includes tax.”

I return to the kitchen to make his lunch, taking a can of soup from the cupboard.

“You talk to Rod?” Ted asks.

“Yeah, I start tomorrow at one. I’ll probably just take a change of clothes and go there from the diner.”

“What about my lunch?”

“I’ll leave something in the fridge.”

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