the Fior Flu (a draft of something I’m working on)
“Look kid, your resume isn’t impressive, but no one else is applying, so you’ve got the job. You’ll have your first on camera interview tomorrow. Obviously you’ll be reporting on the Fior Flu Epidemic, so be ready. I’d advise you to pick up either the inhaler or those damn pills so you don’t get infected. Since they’re practically handing them out these days, I’ll leave you responsible for picking them up. And be sure to take the stuff, if you get infected, you’re fired and that’s just how it goes. We’ve got another poor mom story set up for tomorrow, but after that you’re in charge of finding the people. If you find good ones we keep you. If someone better comes along, you’re fired. And we both know you don’t want to go back eating ramon in the dorms, so you better take advantage of this opportunity I’m giving you.”
The next day Tyler Ross, dressed in a Gucci suit that cost more than his student loans, stood awkwardly in a mansion by the beach. He looked out at the water, the beach was filled with people. Whole families, flying kites and building sand castles. There were tents set up and it was getting a little crowded, but for the most part there was enough space for everyone. Inside the house, there was a lot of open space, he sat on one couch, facing the woman he’d be interviewing and the distance between them was the entire length of his studio apartment.
“Hi, this is Tyler Ross, your new Fior Flu reporter from channel 6. Channel 6 is helping you, help yourself: avoid infection. I’ve got Brenda Joplin here, aeronautical engineer and divorced mother of three. Hi Brenda, please share with our viewers what you shared with me earlier.”
“Hi, two weeks ago, I came home from work and there they were, right where you were sitting, just laughing. I know everyone advises us to not come in contact with the infected, but they were my babies, I had to try to do something, I couldn’t just stand back and do nothing.”
“What did you do?”
“Well, my two daughters, they had mascara running down their cheeks, from the laughter. They were always quick to cry. So I helped them to the bathroom and washed their faces, but still they couldn’t stop laughing.”
“And your son?”
“He was the same, I just washed his face because it looked like he’d been crying, but I swear, it was just from the laughter phase. I’d never seen him cry before, but now…” She reaches for a tissue and quickly dabs her eye before the tear could form. “Now, I’ve seen it happen three times. And even worse, he’s quit all of his former interests. He used to love football, even when I invited the team over and those brave enough to venture into our infected home couldn’t get through to him.”
“Where are your children now?”
“My son is at the library today. I bought him so many books and he used to spend time studying for the SATs, he really wanted to go to USC for business, he even had a football scholarship lined up, he wouldn’t have been the star, but at least he would be going to the school his father and I went to, but now he spends all day at the library reading poetry. I just don’t get it. I tried disciplining him, but we all know there’s no reasoning with the infected and I’m trying to come to terms with that.”
“And your girls?”
“Oh…” She destroys another tear with a Kleenex, and the crying is aborted in an instant. “They’ve left me. Their own mother. They’ve run off without telling me where they’re going. Well, they did mention their grandfather on their father’s side, but they hadn’t been back to Kentucky since they were still learning how to swim. Their father and I spent our whole lives working to afford this house and this lifestyle and now they’ve just abandoned everything we worked for. Everything.”
“But what’s next for you, Brenda?”
“I just keep taking my inhaler when I feel weak or threatened. And every morning I take three of the EgoSavers, I really enjoy the new grape flavor.”
