The taxi driver turned to look at me.
"Hey kid, are you sure that this is where you wanna be dropped off?"
The taxi stalled in the middle of a quiet, seaside neighborhood, a salty breeze flowing through the open window of the peeling yellow taxi.
I handed the man driving the taxi a roll of cash, and he clammed up immediately.
"Yes, thank you."
I stepped out of the old taxi that had clearly seen better days, received my luggage from its trunk, and looked up at the house I would be living in temporarily.
It was big, a hulking mass of wood and paint, illuminated by the moon. The taxi man drove off, eager to get away from this strange piece of architecture that stuck out like a sore thumb among its fellow seaside houses. I took a step back and stared at my new home. It looked like someone decided to take an old Victorian house and a seaside cottage and fuse them together.
The result was a tall, 2 storied house painted a peeling light blue, complete with quaint, round windows and a wrap-around porch featuring a wicker table and chairs.Not exactly the best design choice.
I trudged up to the iron gate surrounding the house, and pushed open the elaborately designed metal doors.
There didn't seem to be much of a front yard, only a couple of patches of grass here and there.
I stepped onto the faded wood porch and rang the probably broken doorbell.
I waited for a minute. There was someone living here already, right? When I signed up for the job, I was told that I should expect a roommate.
Usually, they assign jobs so we get partners of the same gender, so my roommate is most likely going to be a guy. Well, he or she probably didn't get here yet. Oh well, I guess I would have to wait a little longer to see who they were...
I reached into my jacket's front pocket and pulled out the house key I was given upon receiving the job. Before I could put the key in the lock, I heard hurried footfalls, and a muffled voice that yelled something that sounded like "coming!"
I jumped out of the way as the door flew open, revealing a beast of a guy with a mess of auburn hair, a lopsided smile, and a disheveled t-shirt and jeans. He took my hand in his and shook it, hard.
"Hey, I'm Brian Williams." He smiled again, and released my hand.
I awkwardly nodded back to him and tried to edge my way into the house. The guy took a step back, and let me in.
"So, who are you? What's your name, I mean?" He asked me once I had made it into the house. I turned to glance at him.
"My name is Levi Bareings." I started to walk down the foyer, my sneakers squeaking against the polished wood floor.
"Are you fresh from Apple?" I stiffened. I could feel the guy staring at my back.
I turned and glared at him.
"No, I'm not new to this type of work, if that's what you mean."
I've worked for many employers before this, too many to count. I was actually pretty lucky to get this job, really.
"Then why are you still wearing the standard jacket? It seems a bit strange that an experienced agent would still wear the same outfit given to him during training, doesn't it?"
I consciously tugged on the sleeves on my gray jacket, a size too big.
"It was a gift from a friend. He isn't taking jobs anymore."
He glanced awkwardly at the ground.
"Oh. Sorry." We awkwardly stood there for a couple of minutes, and then I turned and started to tug my small suitcase up the old wooden stairway."Hey!"
I looked down at the guy from halfway up the stairs.
"I'm excited to work with you, Levi."
Brian stared at me from the first floor of the house. I turned, and continued walking to my room, eager to plug in and regain some of my energy.
YOU ARE READING
iGuard
Science FictionHi, my name is Levi Bareings. This digital journal my friends and I have kept contains the story of a group of people struggling to become human. If that doesn't interest you, fine, wonderful, go read some other story. The only thing that separates...