Forbidden Freedoms

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"Hey stop skiving in the back and get on with serving the customers! You get paid to wait tables not socialise" bellowed Adam the duty manager. Adam was one of those guys who took his job role seriously, probably too seriously seeing as for most being a waiter at a pizza parlour was not their main ambition in life. Infact it was staffed by mainly students who just wanted enough money to pay for their next night out and maybe a takeaway on the way home.
"You get worse with your work ethic every week mate" proclaimed Adam in his usual patronising manner. His words of empty authority were directed at the always shabby looking waiter named Billy. Billy had worked there for nearly 5 years and didn't seem to have any plans on doing much else with his existence. "Yeah yeah I'm on top of things fella. Stop stressing no ones waiting for anything" proclaimed Billy gesturing to the customers who were all sat with drinks heads buried in menus studying their options. Its not that Billy was unambitious or even incapable of being more then a waiter and subordinate to jobsworths such as Adam its that he seemed to be filling a role that was given to him.
After the doors closed and the monotonous clean up began Billy turned off the music that the crew dubbed 'mental torture' . The kind of music places play that sound familiar but are so generic that you can't seem to pinpoint when one song ends and another begins, it all melts into a long never ending drum of vanilla white noise. "Whose putting some proper tunes on?" Pleaded Billy who loved to sing along with his cohorts while sorting the mess that customers left. "Its my turn tonight babes" exclaimed Charlotte while hooking her phone up to the system and proceeding to play her favourite pop anthems. Charlotte or Charlie to her friends was one of those people who was always smiling and whose bubbly nature was infectious to those around her. Her smile made Billy smile and while he tried to hide it his attraction to her was obvious for all to see. Charlie was a single mum who had made the choice to drop out of Uni to make enough to cover costs for her and young daughter. The child's dad wasn't around and was referred to as 'the magician' due to his ability to disappear for large periods of time. Fortunately her choice in music was a bit better then her choice in men and the duet of her and Billy made clean up seem alot more tolerable. They had both started working there at about the same time maybe a couple of months apart and were used to eachothers quirks and humour. Adam being the kind of guy he was leaned around the half closed office door and yelled " will you two keep it down in there! I'm trying to count. This isn't the xfactor!". Billy rolled his eyes and whispered to Charlie "This is why I nicknamed him Asshole Adam".
Charlie giggled whilst leaning on Billy "so when you gonna take me for a drink?" She said. "I will... one day soon" replied Billy. His voice was shaky and his confidence seemed to have deserted him. Adam comes out of the office rattling his keys in his hand as if to symbolise their power. "If your waiting in him to treat you like a lady then your gonna be an old spinster before then. He never goes out and is in bed by 11.... thats why I nicknamed him Boring Billy" whispers Adam in a sarcastic tone loud enough for people to hear. Adam liked to embarrass his workers as it gave him a great sense of unearned superiority. Billy was seen by many as abit of hermit. He rarely joined them for after work drinks and wasn't even on social media. He told people he didn't conform to things like Facebook and it just brings more drama then its worth. Even Charlie had tried to persuade him to start an account but he said he couldn't as it just wasn't for him. A missed opportunity for him to talk to Charlie with out cock blockers like Adam intruding. The clean up was done and Adam ushered them all out the door. "Are you sure you won't come for a drink Billy?" asked Charlie hopefully. "I'm sorry I really can't, I've got a few things I need to do" sighed Billy. Adam stepped in "I'd gladly buy you a drink if you'd like". Billy knew Adams intentions where more about his urges then respecting Charlie but couldn't challenge him. "Have a good time and be safe yeah" muttered Billy defeated as he walked away in the direction of home leaving yet another opportunity with Charlie behind.
As Billy walked home through the cold winter evening hands in his pockets and steamy breath infront of him he heard screams of help. He looked down the road and saw smoke billowing from a house. A women stood out front holding a small toddler and screaming "I cant find my Oliver! Can anyone see Oliver?!" The neighbours had gathered outside with blankets. "Where's Oliver?! Please God tell me he got out?!" The women had to be restrained by the people who had gathered outside or else she would have returned to the home which by this time was black with smoke. "My son Oliver hasnt come out! Let me go! Let me go!" She wailed and pleaded. All the people who assembled just seemed to stand there, no one stepped forward to at least try and gain access to find the missing child. Billy stood staring at the house and then without even knowing why he began to run towards the smoke filled door. People were busy with the lady to even attempt to stop him. It hurt to breath and his eyes stung like nothing he had felt before. "Oliver!" Shouted Billy as loudly as his body would let him. He ran up the stairs assuming the boy would be in a bedroom up there somewhere. He checked one room, then another, barely able to see and unable to hear anything over the forceful coughing the smoke made his body do . Out of the corner of his blurry vision he saw a boy laying on the floor of the bathroom. The boy had lay low with a wet tshirt over his face. The clever boy had done all he could remember from what he was taught at school. Billy picked him up unable to talk as each breath burnt more and more with each passing moment. He headed for the door. He heard sirens but couldn't see them. He was lost and couldn't remember the way out with out his vision. So just continued to take baby steps towards the stairs and hope it was the right way. By some miracle he found himself feet any from freedom and managed to get both himself and the boy out. He was greeted by firemen who were seconds away from entering the building. Billy collapsed and struggled to catch his breath. He tried his best to force out "is the boy ok?". "Hes breathing but only just". Billy closed his eyes and fell backwards. "We need help over here!"