Unauthorized Communication

Chapter 2: Drew

"Drew!" someone yelled. "Where are you? You're late!"

I sighed, trudging towards the door. I had been up for over an hour but I did not want to go downstairs where "Cruella De Vil" waited. I looked at my clock and huffed. It was 8:00. I was not late; I was right on time. I frowned as the clocked changed to 8:01. Okay, now I was late but was one minute really "late"? To me, no, but to her thirty seconds was late. I walked out of my room as Ms. Palenksi rounded the corner, continuing to call my name.

"Drew!" she yelled, right in my face.

I cringed and rubbed my ear. One day I was going to go deaf and it would be all her fault.

Ms. Palenksi looked down, finally noticing that I was right in front of her. She huffed.

"There you are. Where have you been?" she exclaimed, not waiting for me to answer. "Nevermind that. You have twenty-eight minutes to..."

I tuned out after that. It was the same chores every day; she just felt the need to say them differently each time. It wasn't a whole lot of work. All I had to do was wash the dishes, sweep the floor, dust the shelves, wash the clothes, take out the trash, restock the shelves, organize the stock, feed the fish.... Okay, so maybe it was a lot of work, but I had been doing this same routine for so long that it didn't feel like it. Though, I still didn't understand why Ms. Palenksi, herself, couldn't do at least some of the chores while I was at school.

"...and put out food for the bloodfin fish," Ms. Palenksi finally finished (see what I mean about the wording of the chores?). "Got that Drew?"

I stared at the wall. Of course I "got" it. I also got it yesterday, and the day before that, and the day before that, and every other day she had chosen to explain my chores in detail. Ms. Palenksi slapped my arm (not hard but enough to get my attention).

"Drew!" she yelled again.

I cringed and looked at Ms. Palenksi, her ugly face scrunched into an angry expression. It almost made me laugh but I refrained, knowing that she would probably scream at me again. I slowly nodded which made Ms. Palenksi even more mad (if that was even possible).

"Answer me when I ask you a question. Don't just nod your head," she huffed and stormed away.

"Yes, Cruella De Vil," I muttered under my breath.

I headed downstairs in a wake of misery. As I began my daily rounds, I started to think. I tend to over exaggerate a lot. Ms. Palenksi wasn't all that bad. I mean, she paid fairly well, gave me food and a place to sleep...but she could be really annoying sometimes. Glancing at the clock, I inwardly groaned. Twenty more minutes until I was able to get out of this place.

Fifteen minutes later, I walked up to the fish tank where Gazini was awaiting his food. A pretty creative name, if I do say so myself- an African Zulu name meaning "blood", obviously because of the "bloodfins." I poured in the fish food and rested my chin on the counter, watching Gazini. Him and I were a lot alike- well, aside from our species being different, obviously. We both roamed around in our little worlds; on good days, feeling like we were free, but on bad days, realizing how watched and trapped we truly were. Sometimes I wished I could be just a little more like Gazini. At least he didn't have an evil social worker always hovering about him. I sighed and continued to watch the store fish.

Suddenly the old clock in the store chimed once, alerting me that now was the time to escape. Without another word I raced towards the door, grabbing my backpack. The other workers could deal with the stocks. I grinned as I rounded the corner of the store where my bike leaned against the alley wall. I hopped on it and began pedaling, hoping that Ms. Palenksi wouldn't catch me. As if the whole world was just against me today, the door of Madam Palenksi's Novelties opened and Ms. Palenksi stepped out. On today of all days, I thought. She scowled at me.