Job hunting sucked.
There were a lot of things that Aaron hated. He hated low speed limits; he hated hangovers. He hated studying, boredom, ugly cars, people who were smarter than him, and beer. But, above all else, he hated job hunting. He could not stand it, and he’d only been doing it for a week.
Applications were exhausting. So many questions, so few of them actually relevant. And he hadn’t gotten even one answer out of the six jobs he’d applied for. Not only was it discouraging, it was demeaning, and Aaron was done with it.
Or, he would be done with it, if he wasn’t so afraid of letting down his parents. So he kept at it, kept browsing the classified ads, kept searching the web, kept looking for ‘help wanted’ signs. He was going to keep at it until he got a job, because he wanted to make his parents happy.
That didn’t mean he couldn’t complain about it, though.
“This is the stupidest thing ever!” he exclaimed, throwing an application with all his might, only for it to drift gently to the floor. “That was so unsatisfying.” He glowered furiously at the paper. To his chagrin, it did not react. “When you throw something, it is supposed to hurtle to the ground and break!” he snarled.
Lucas said nothing, and just watched him with raised eyebrows.
“What?” Aaron demanded, turning his glare on Lucas.
“Nothing,” Lucas answered quickly, looking alarmed.
Aaron grumbled incoherently and snagged the paper from the floor, slammed it back to his desk, and dropped abruptly back to his chair. He picked up his pen and kept filling it out, planning to deny that last outburst if asked about it.
This was getting so frustrating. Not to mention boring. Getting a job was something everyone did at one point or another. Shouldn’t it be simple?
He sighed and signed his name on the back of the latest application, then reached for the next one. He wondered how many paper cuts it would take for him to bleed to death.
“This isn’t going to be another one of those things that requires an intervention, is it?” Lucas asked, wincing. “I really hate having to drag you out of your house for your own health.”
Aaron didn’t even grace that with an answer.
“Please tell me you aren’t going to work yourself to death before you even get a job,” Lucas groaned.
Once again, Aaron stayed silent.
“I think you might put more stress on me than ten people combined. Please don’t try to make it eleven.”
Aaron sneered. “If I was going to try anything of that sort it would be on a much larger scale. Try thirty people.”
Lucas’s brow furrowed. “I don’t know if that’s a good thing or a bad thing.”
“Just assume it’s bad,” Aaron advised.
“That is standard operating procedure with you. Kind of wish it wasn’t.”
“Me too. Can I use you as a reference?”
Lucas scoffed. “You really want prospective employers to call me? The guy who had to haul your ass to bed when you were too drunk to walk?”
Aaron stiffened. “You were the one who gave me the booze. If you mention that episode to anybody, your body will never be found.”
“You know, it doesn’t even surprise me that you’ve resorted to blackmail. Not one bit. That is exactly the sort of thing you’d do.”
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I'm Going Slightly Mad
Humor'I'm Going Slightly Mad' follows Aaron Magro, a college student trying to adjust as life throws obstacle after obstacle at him. Balancing his studies, a job, and friends begins to wear on him, and as he finds himself resenting every unneeded turn of...
