iBusiness

The cool morning air felt like ice against Alister’s skin. He sped walked up the sidewalk and turned into iMagine. Opening the door, the first thing he saw was what looked like a government official.
“Stop right there sir!” The official said. Alister stopped dead where he was. He saw Alf, calmly sitting at his desk. Gina ran up to Alister.
“It’s okay, he works here too.” She said in a voice that sounded almost tired. Alister looked at her.
“What the hell is going on?” He asked under his breath. Gina pulled him aside.
“We have a new project.” She said. She grabbed his arm and led him into the kitchen, passed more officials, O and Luke typing away, into the hallway that led to Alister’s office, and into Alister’s office.

Luke glanced at Gina and Alister as they passed, then at his phone, and then back at the screen. Two officials stood behind him, watching him closely. O could hardly concentrate. She looked like she was going to be sick. Luke noticed. He placed his hand on hers, which was just lying there on the counter. She blushed. Luke smiled, but it faded when he looked at his phone again. O noticed his expression change.
“What’s wrong?” she asked. Luke sighed.
“Nothing.” He said. Another official walked in.
“Hazlee?” The official asked. Luke got out of his chair, grabbing his phone as he did so.
“This way.” He said.

Alister walked around his desk. He started to unpack his backpack. Gina closed the door behind him. She turned and stared at him for a moment. Alister noticed.
“What?” He asked without looking up. Gina sighed.
“I tried calling you last night.” She said. “You didn’t answer.” Alister took a seat in his chair.
“I was tired.” He said. “Fell asleep with my clothes on and everything.” Gina just stood there. She moved her brown hair out of her face.
“You weren’t drinking were you?” She asked. Alister clicked his mouse.
“One drink and suddenly I’m an alcoholic.” He said. Gina took a seat in one of his chairs.
“Not at all, but again, your father had his first drink at your age.” She said without thinking. Alister glared at her.
“What are you saying?” He said in a serious tone. Gina said nothing. She looked away from his glare. The door suddenly opened.

Luke walked across the room.
“Hey.” He said in a dull tone. Alister’s glare faded. An official walked in. He wore a plain, black work suit with a white shirt. His black, plain sunglasses made Alister cringe. If he had seen this man on the street, the man would have disappeared into the crowd without Alister’s second thought, but seeing this man in this setting made him stand out. The man had a plain expression.
“Hazlee?” He said in a plain toned voice. Alister frowned.
“What?” He said in a disgusted tone without thinking. The official’s expression showed nothing.
“I am Smith.” Smith said. Alister nodded. Smith’s head turned towards Gina and Luke. Gina got the hint.
“We’ll just go.” She said. She grabbed Luke’s arm and pulled out of the room.
“Ouch! You’re hurting me.” Luke said sarcastically. Alister smiled at that.

Alf switched his PSP off. He tossed it into the drawer and pulled out a DSI. Switching that on, he continued playing his games. He glanced up. Two officials guarded the front door. Another stood at the entrance t the kitchen. Alf shrugged. O walked out into the lobby.
“Ms. Ocks, we would like you to remain indoors while we are present.” An official said to her. She nodded and turned back towards the kitchen. Alf watched her silently. He had never seen her so worried. Looking at the ground, she walked back into the hallway leading to the kitchen.

Smith took a seat across from Alister. Alister just watched the man, his eyes showing his disdain. Smith looked at him.
“As you might have guessed, we need an app made.” Smith said. Alister blinked.
“What kind?” Alister asked. Smith moved ever so slight, and pulled out a tan folder.
“What I’m about to show you is classified.” Smith said. Alister noticed he spoke while hardly moving his lips. Smith opened the folder. Alister quickly glanced at its contents. “All you need to know,” Smith said, closing the folder instantly. “is that we’re in need of an app that can decode anything. We’d leave this to the agents in Washington, but we’re short on time, so you’ll have to do.” Smith said. Alister said nothing for a moment. He suddenly got up.
“Comeback this afternoon. It should be done by then.” He said. Smith didn’t budge.
“I want it in the next hour.” He said. Alister furrowed his brow. Smith noticed. “Like I said, we’re short on time.” He said. He left Alister’s office without another word.

O walked into the kitchen, but seeing the officials there freaked her out. She swerved as she walked, and head for Gina’s office. Without knocking, she opened the door and walk right in, closing the door behind her. Gina looked up from the papers she was looking over.
“Can I help you?” She asked, taking her reading glasses off. Though she was a bit young for reading glasses, doctors had told her she needed them. O took a seat in one of her office chairs.
“Hi.” She said, giving a weak smile. Gina looked around.
“Hi. What is it?” She asked. O just sat there.
“Just wanted to see what you were doing.” She said. Gina stared at her.
“Working, like you should be doing.” Gina said. O nodded.
“Right.” She said. She laughed weakly. Gina continued to stare. O looked at her shoes. Gina sat up straight.
“This wouldn’t have anything to do with your parents would it?” Gina asked. O looked at her. The look on Gina’s face revealed she already knew.
“Yeah.” O said. Gina nodded.
“You want to hide out in here for awhile?” Gina asked. O nodded.

Luke walked into Alister’s office. Alister looked from his laptop screen to Luke. He noticed Luke’s worried expression.
“What’s up dude?” He asked. Luke said nothing for a moment. “What’s up?” Alister asked again. Luke looked at him.
“Do you remember Carol?” He asked Alister. Alister nodded.
“The girl you decided to take out to dinner instead of partying all night with me three days ago?” Alister said. Luke nodded.
“Yeah, her.” He said. Alister just sat there. He expected Luke to say something else, like why he was bringing this up.
“And we’re talking about this because…” Alister started. Luke caught on.
“…Because she hasn’t called me back yet.” Luke said. Alister nodded.
“Just give her some time.” Alister said. For some reason, he found this conversation very annoying. He felt like Luke was interrupting him from what he should be doing. Luke nodded.
“Right. Time…” He said. He continued to talk under his breath. Alister stared at him.
“Are you going to be okay?” He asked. Luke shot him a look.
“I’m fine.” He said in a tone that suited him. He got up and left. Alister shook his head.
“Okay then.” He said.

O leaned back in her chair. Her feet were propped up o Gina’s desk. O was wearing flip flops, so as she settled into Gina’s office, she kicked them off. Gina stared at O’s bare feet. She tried to concentrate on her work. It was difficult with all of O’s constant typing. Gina poked O’s baby toe with the pencil she was holding. O’s giggled.
“What did you do that for?” She asked while laughing. Gina didn’t crack a smile.
“Can you, uh, move your feet?” She asked. O peeked over her feet to look at Gina. She had a serious look on her face. O made a weak smile and slid her feet off of the desk.

Alf stared intensely at his DSI. Just one more level and he’d won the game. Suddenly, his phone vibrated. It spooked him, and he ended up dying. Alf snatched his phone and saw the text message from Alister.
“Cause a distraction.” Alf read off of the screen. He looked around. The two officials still stood where they had all morning, guarding the front door. Alf thought it over for a second. He scratched his short brown hair. “What was that noise?” He asked the two officials. They looked at him. Alf made a worried face. “Oh my gosh, I think someone is trying to break in through the kitchen!” Alf lied. The officials looked at each other and ran towards the kitchen. Alf texted Alister back.

Alister’s phone vibrated. Luke looked at him.
“The little dude did it?” He asked.
“The little dude did it.” Alister responded. Luke got out of his chair.
“I’ll be back.” He said. Alister rolled his eyes.
“Of course you will, today is a work day.” He joked. Luke smiled and ran out of the office. He watched as the two officials ran into the kitchen. He crept behind them and walked quickly down the hallway, into the lobby. He gave the thumbs up to Alf, who was looking back at his game and didn’t see it. Luke walked up to the front door and walk through them. Outside, he was met by Smith.
“Luke. If you were hungry, you should have said something.” He said. His words were sarcastic, but his tone was emotionless. Luke smiled.
“I did, nobody listened.” He said sarcastically. Smith’s expression didn’t change.
“I guess you’re not that hungry then.” Smith said. An official grabbed Luke’s arm and yanked him back inside. Smith looked around. No one what outside to see this.

Alf watched as Luke was dragged in from outside. He used the DSI to hide his face, and his laughter. Luke shot him a look from across the room. Smith walked in and saw Alf smirking.
“Shouldn’t you be in school?” Smith asked Alf. Alf swallowed.
“Um, I’m homeschooled.” He said. He raised his math book up to show to Smith. Smith’s expression still didn’t change. He walked away without another word.

Alister walked by the officials as they searched for nothing in the kitchen. He saw Luke in the corner of his eye being escorted back into the kitchen by Smith. Smith shot him a look as he walked. Alister walked down the hall and into Gina’s office. He was surprised by the presence of O.
“Hey Alister.” O said. She waved at him. Gina shot Alister a look of desperation.
“Hey O.” Alister said. “What’s up Gina?” He asked. Gina thought over her answer.
“I can’t get this window off of my screen.” She said. “It’s bothering me.” Alister at first thought she was crazy, then glanced at O.
“Okay.” He started. “Have you tried clicking the ‘X’ in the corner? You know, forcing it off?” He asked. Gina shook her head.
“I don’t want to be mean to the little box.” Gina said. “I just want it to go away.” Alister sighed.
“Fine, I’ll go.” O said. Alister and Gina looked at her in surprise. O shrugged. “Luke taught me your computer language.” She said. Alister smiled. O gathered her things and left.

Alf switched his DSI off. He tossed it into his desk drawer, and began rummaging around for another system to play. He grabbed his iPod Touch, which was given to him by Alister, started to play that. As he stuck the ear buds into his ears, an official walk passed him, towards the door. Alf sat up straight.
“Hey.” He said to the official. The official ignored him and kept walking. Alf just sat there, watching the official leave passed the two guarding the door. He shook his head. “Jerk.” He muttered. He looked back at his game. He lost a life.

Alister sat in the chair O just got up from. Gina looked at him, not sure what he was going to talk about. Alister sighed.
“You know Carol, right?” Alister asked. Gina sighed softly. She was a bit disappointed.
“The girl Luke blackmailed into going out on a date with him?” She asked. Alister shot her a look. Gina smiled. “Sorry.” She said. “I couldn’t resist.” Alister grabbed something off her desk and started tossing it up.
“I don’t trust Smith.” He said. Gina gave him a look.
“What do you mean?” She asked. Alister shrugged.
“I don’t know, but something about him and these officials doesn’t see right.” Alister responded. Gina thought it over. She didn’t see anything wrong with what was going on.
“Alister, you’re being silly. You just don’t like being told what to do.” She said. Alister nodded slowly.
“Indeed. That is true.” He said.

O nearly had a heartattack as she stepped back into the kitchen. With the officials swarming around like bees, the only reason she took a seat next to Luke was because he was there. He looked at her, and then looked back at his laptop screen. She booted her laptop up and got to work on the app. It was taking them longer than they expected. O looked at look. She hoped he’d look back at her the same way she looked at him, but he continued to watch his screen. O sighed. Luke looked at her.
“What’s wrong?” He asked. O liked the sound of his voice.
“Nothing.” She said. She smiled. Luke smiled at her and continued to type. He glanced at his phone. O’s smile faded.
“Why won’t she call me?” Luke said to no one. O shrugged.
“Don’t worry. The day isn’t over yet.” She said. The words tasted horrible as she said them. She was hoping Carol wouldn’t call at all. Smith walked into the room, and noticed Luke’s phone out. Suddenly, Carol called. Smith grabbed the phone before Luke could.
“No phones.” Smith said plainly. Luke shot out of his seat.
“Give me phone back!” He nearly shouted. O just stared, not sure what was going to happen. Luke walked around her and stood face-to-face with Smith. Smith did nothing.
“Get back to work.” He said in the most average tone. Luke tried to snatch the phone. Smith grabbed his wrist and began to twist it. He shoved Luke against the counter. “Get back to work.” He repeated again, his voice showing no sign of strain as he struggled to hold Luke where he was. O got out of her seat.
“Get your hands off of him, you’ll break his wrist.” She said. Her tone scared no one. An official behind her spoke up.
“Do you want to join your daddy in prison?” He asked. O looked at the floor. Luke just stared at her.
“Then sit down, and get back to work.” Smith said. He released Luke. “You’ll get this when you’re done.” Smith said. He walked away. The officials watched as Luke walked back to his seat. O sat back down, but didn’t say or doing anything. Luke looked at her. He didn’t know what to say. The room was silent besides Luke’s typing.

Alister started to leave. Gina watched him as he did so.
“Alister, when are we going to talk about you and this drinking thing? Gina asked. Alister stopped where he was. He let out a sigh and sat back down.
“There is nothing to talk about.” Alister said. “It was one drink.” He said. Gina just looked at him.
“Is this going somewhere?” She asked. “Will I hear that your beat up your kid and killed your wife?” she asked. Alister glared at her. She looked away from him. “Sorry. I admit that wasn’t needed.” She said. Alister’s glare faded.
“I understand why you’re worried, but that won’t be me Gina” Alister said. “I won’t be like him.” He said. Gina nodded. They both just looked at each other. Alister wanted to say something, but he didn’t. He stood and left. Gina continued to watch the door even after he left.

Alister walked through the kitchen and into his office, where he saw Smith sitting at his desk. Alister smiled.
“Smith.” He said with a tone that was too happy. Smith did nothing.
“How is my application going?” He asked. Alister nodded and pointed a finger at Smith.
“You know, I thought you might ask that.” Alister said. He took a seat and ran his fingers through his black hair. Smith watched him. “Well, we were working on it. You know, O and Luke have been working real hard on that.” Alister said. “But we were stuck on a few things, like what exactly it was you wanted us to decode.” He said sarcastically. Smith narrowed his eyes. Alister’s smiled grew wider. “So, we decided to call The Encryption Offices of Washington, you know, that business you claimed to work for when you flashed that folder. Didn’t think I saw that did you?” Alister said. Smith stood up. Alister stood as well. Alister office phone rang. He walked over and answered it. “Okay, thank you Alf.” Alister said. Smith walked out if the office. Alister shrugged and followed.

Alf stood in the middle of the lobby with Gina, O, Luke, and all of the other officials. Police officers were everywhere.
“What the hell is this?” Smith asked. Gina turned to him.
“Apparently, EOW has no record of you working for them, Alan Sears.” Gina said. Alister walked up next to Gina.
“So, we called the police, and told them we’re being held hostage by a criminal with government information who came to us so we could decode it for him.” Alister said. Smith looked angry. Everyone stared at him. There was a smirk on Luke’s face. Smith panicked.
“Damn it.” He said.

They all stood outside, the cold air stabbing their faces. Gina looked at Alister, and then walked to her car. Minutes later, she left. O began to walk home. She turned and waved to Luke, Alf, and Alister. She disappeared into the snowy weather. Alf hopped on his bike and left without a word. Luke looked at Alister and rolled his eyes. They started to walk towards Luke’s car.
“Did you ever hear from Carol?” Alister asked. Luke nodded.
“She called.” Luke said. “But she didn’t leave a message. I’m going to go to her house later.” Alister nodded.
“Tell me how it goes.” Alister said.

“I’m fine Dad.” Gina said into the phone. She switched the stove off. The pot in front of her boiled.
“I just want to be sure.” Mr. Byrnes said. “I’m worried about you being, being there by yourself.” Gina rolled her eyes.
“I can take care of myself.” She said. She poured some of the soup she made into a bowl. There was silence.
“Have you heard from Maxy?” Her father asked. Gina sighed as she took a seat at the table.
“No. Who has?” She asked.
“Right.” Her father said. Gina hung up the phone. She started to eat her dinner.

O walked up the sidewalk to her house. Her mother sat outside on the porch. O slowed as she approached her home.
“What’s up?” She asked her mother. Her mother said nothing. O walked up the porch and passed her. Her mother turned towards her.
“Your father called.” Her mother said. O stopped.
“Okay.” She said. She walked into her house. She wished he’d stop calling here. She walked upstairs and into her bedroom. She tossed her backpack onto her bed and sat near her pillow. She looked at a picture of her and Luke on her nightstand. She didn’t see his car next door. He must not be home yet.