voltage ; stranger things

one ; on and off again

"HAVE you tried turning it on and off again?"

"Of course! What kind of idiot do you think I am? I'm telling you, there's something wrong with the bulbs!"

Colleen physically restrains herself from rolling her eyes until only the whites under her pupils show. "Okay," she says as calmly as she can. She gives the lady with the awful perm a smile that doesn't quite reach her eyes. "Let me take it into the back and see what I can do."

As she heaves the box-shaped television into her arms, the customer asks with an impatient frown, "Well, how long is that going to take?"

Colleen purses her lips, then smiles again. The customer is always right. "Not too long," she says. "Just enough time for you to go back to the hair salon."

She doesn't stop to watch the woman's expression before she turns and carries the television into the back room. Though, she wouldn't really call it a back room; it's more of a walk-in closet with boxes full of spare parts and radios and TV antennas. Radio Shack really needs to upgrade, especially now that they've relocated to the all-new Starcourt Mall. And while they're at it, maybe they could get the employees new uniforms; bright orange is not her color.

Colleen sets the TV set down on the table with a loud thud. She glances over her shoulder to make sure the door leading to the front is closed, then turns back and presses her hand to the screen. Her eyes, for a brief moment, flicker a pale white and a tiny drop of blood begins to leak from her nostril. Despite it being not plugged in, the television clicks to life and begins blaring a workout show with a woman encouraging the watchers to keep going, you're almost there!

Her perm is almost as bad as the customer's out front.

Pulling her hand away and allowing the TV to shut off, Colleen reaches into her jeans pocket and pulls out a tissue. Several more fall out with it onto the floor, all dotted with blood. She wipes her nose on the fresh one, then bends down to pick up the rest when the door swings open.

"Hey, the... Oh my god, are you okay?" Tony Martinson, her coworker, at once stoops to help Colleen pick up the tissues. "Are you bleeding? Should I call the services office and have them come get you?"

Colleen giggles and shakes her head, taking the tissues from his hands and shoving them into her pocket. "I'm okay, Tony," she says with a smile. "I'm just pretty prone to bloody noses."

Tony adjusts his glasses as he says, "I get that. When I was a kid, my mom always used to say I was a magnet for accidents." He grins at her. "I guess she'd still say that now."

"I'd have to agree," she says as she leans against the table. "You did drop that Mr. Harrington's computer yesterday, and I somehow don't think he was as forgiving as your mom would be."

He rushes forward when she goes to lift the television and insists he carry it instead. He says as he heaves the set into his arms, "I think you'd like her. The two of you have a lot in common. You know, like, making fun of me at my lowest moments."

"I've known you for - what is it, four months now? - so I'm legally permitted to do exactly that."

At the front, their customer impatiently clicks her manicured nails on the counter and pops her gum like she's a teenager and isn't really a fifty-something mother most likely living through her children. "About time," she says.

Tony sets the television back on the countertop as Colleen pats the top. "Good as new and ready to go," she says. "And, uh, I think you were right, it was the bulbs."

The woman ignores her comment as she pulls out her checkbook. "How much is it?"

Colleen grins cheekily. "Forty bucks."

Forking over the money, the lady takes her TV up once again and hurumphs at the pair before shuffling away towards the exits.

"Wow," says Tony. He leans forward and braces himself on the countertop. "She was lovely."

Colleen shrugs her shoulder and tugs at the too-tight collar of her uniform. "We've had worse. Remember the Hargroves and their burned-out microwave?"

They've just begun to snicker amongst themselves when two more people approach the counter, though these customers are more than welcome; Jonathan Byers and Nancy Wheeler.

"Hey, gorgeous," says Jonathan. He leans over the countertop to place a quick kiss on his girlfriend's lips. "How's work?"

To the side, Tony frowns, though covers it up by scratching his chin awkwardly and turning away to fiddle with the radios on display.

"Good." Colleen smiles and places her head in her hands as she looks between them. "Hawkins Post still hell?"

Nancy rolls her eyes and waves a dismissive hand before taking a sip of her coffee. "Like you wouldn't believe," she says. "But we actually think we might have a story. A real one, and hopefully Tom will reconsider his treating us like we're his servants. We're gonna present it to them today."

Colleen hums. "Well, I hope he does." She glances behind the pair, then quirks an eyebrow at her boyfriend. "I'm gonna have to ask you to move, Byers. You're holding up the line."

With a smirk, Jonathan presses one last peck to her cheek, then hurries off with Nancy at his side. She can't help but feel piteous for them. They applied at the Hawkins Post to be reporters, and instead they're errand runners.

"Hello," says their next customer, a man with dark, thinning hair and glasses that make his eyes look like that of a bug's. "I'm having problems with my radio. Would you mind taking a look?"

Tony smiles and accepts the radio, then carries it into the back.

"Give me one moment," says Colleen. "I have to make sure he knows where everything is. He's a little accident prone."

In the back, Colleen hops onto the table beside the radio and crosses her ankles. "I noticed you didn't look to happy when Jonathan and Nancy came," she says in a lower tone than usual. "Do you not like them?"

Tony squints at the inside of the radio and begins to twist a screw. He says, "Never really got to know them. But... I don't dislike them, I guess."

"Then what is it?"

He shrugs his shoulders and glances up to meet her eyes. "I don't know," he says defensively. "They just..." He shakes his head and goes back to the radio. "They seem off to me, is all."

Colleen makes a face at him. "Off?" She frowns and hops off the table. "They seemed fine to me. They're just stressed is all. Their work is really hard for them." She leaves him and pushes the door open. "I'm gonna go entertain Mr. Nice Guy out here."

Tony glances after her, then scoffs quietly and continues to work on the radio. "Stressed my ass."