The Program

6

— Medicine Time —

Alright.

Medicine time.

I go into the closet and pull out the small briefcase. I pop it open and inside is quite a few syringes, filled with my medicine.

A few packages of gloves are to the right, as well as extra serum and alcohol wipes.

I grab a syringe from the case. I push it slightly into the skin on my wrist, injecting the medicine. I feel as it rushes through my veins.

Power.

I discard the empty syringe back into the case, close it, and place it back in hiding.

I close the closet doors and turn the bedroom lights off. I crawl into bed, tucking myself under the bedding. I set an alarm on my phone for 6:00.

Hopefully Simmons doesn't pull something with that girl.

I close my eyes, resting them from a long day of work. Sooner or later, I'm asleep.

—

I'm awoken by an irritating beeping noise. I shut off the alarm on my phone. As robotic as I may seem, I still hate getting up. It's the worst thing anyone can experience in a day.

I slowly raise myself up and climb out of bed. I open the closet doors and stare at my clothing.

"Gotta dress to impress," I say, yawning as I do so.

I yank off a short sleeved, pink, collared shirt, and some khaki pants. Lucky for me, the shirt frames my body and muscles quite well, and the pants make my butt look good. I got to have a little fun while I'm out here.

Well, if I can. I think back to The Program woman who was here last night. I check outside through the window. Nothing there.

I glance at my watch. 6:07.

I walk out of my bedroom and down the hallway. I hear some noise downstairs, but I continue to the bathroom. Good, it's unoccupied.

I brush my teeth and wash my face at the sink. I put on deodorant and then fix my hair. Got to impress people.

I smile and giggle a bit at myself in the mirror.

I use the restroom then walk out, passing Jay, who's wearing a hoodie and shorts.

"Hey, Jay," I say, boldly. "I'm sorry for anything that I've done to invade your space, it's just—."

"Look dude," he says, calm and collected. "I get it. You don't have a place to stay, so you came here and got lucky with us taking you in. I'm sorry for the things I've said and done to you, I really am."

"Thank you for the apology. I appreciate it, and if you wanna know, you weren't the first door I knocked on. Other families just didn't want me. So, shake on it?"

"Sure," he says, reaching out his hand.

I go to shake it, but he does something odd. It just turns into a mess.

"Woah, dude," he says, raising one eyebrow. "Please tell me you know how to dap someone up."

I raise my eyebrows, confused. Come on. Seriously, how many modern terms did I come here not knowing.

I just shake my head.

"Oh, then let me show you."

"Uh, ok," I say, getting kind of nervous.

"So first, you just kind of clap each others hands like this," he says, moving his and my arm.

"You come together and then fold your fingers in. If the other person comes in for a bro hug, you follow their lead. Like this."