Three months later
I had come home for the 90th day in a row feeling pathetic. A guy can only have so many crappy jobs before he starts to get a complex. You know the kind that says, hey if you can't make it as a busboy then you should develop a deep love of comic books, then move into the basement of your mom's house, cover the walls with pictures of half naked animated chicks because they're the only ones that'll talk to you. Which is also a little sad because well, they're pictures. But I was gonna try to hold off on that. At least for ten more days.
A few days after I returned to Lima I went to see Coach Beiste. We had a good talk and she told me that I had so much potential. That all I had to do was find what I was good at and do it better than anybody else. Then she said something about being better than greased pig on Sunday. I didn't know about that last part but the other stuff helped.
I left McKinley feeling like a new man. Until I realized I had no idea what I wanted to do. I drove around for a while realizing that even after nine years, the place hadn't changed. I pulled into The Lima Bean parking lot. At the time, I thought it was fate that they had a help wanted sign in the window. I went in, grabbed it and they gave me a brief interview then they gave me a polo shirt, visor and an apron and I started right then. A month later I got fired for breaking the espresso thing. I told them I should just stick to decaf or non-decaf.
So I was without a job again, but my mom told me that Breadstix was hiring. She said it wasn't much but it was something and I should take anything while there was a job to get. So I did. I got the uniform and again started that day. It didn't end well. Just, if you're gonna work in food service, don't be clumsy. People don't like it when you dump their food all over them. So needless to say, I got fired from there too.
Once again unemployed, Mr. Schue called me to tell me that McKinley was looking for janitors. I needed the money so I went over to the school. I talked to Principal Figgins and he gave a uniform and I started right there on the spot. He said 'Finn Hudson it would be an honor to have you mop our floors.' And then I guess being funny he said, 'Just as long as it's not in your underpants.' I blushed like a loser, and left his office.
The janitor's closet at McKinley is small and creepy. I mean as a kid when you sneak in there to make out you don't notice. But as an adult, you notice all the shit that should have creeped you out. Like the weird smell of old sex and ammonia. Or how the dust mop heads looked like furry creatures or how the mop buckets had so much dust on the wheels it looked like it was wearing socks. Anyway, it was going fine...well until that fateful day. I was cleaning out the Cheerios office and I may or may not have tipped the mop bucket and short circuited the fax machine, printer, Gatorade machine and computers in there. Either way, Coach Sylvester and Coach Roz pulled me down to Figgins' office.
Coach Roz said, 'I can not believe that you would hire this tall clumsy damn white boy to clean up around here.'
And Coach Sylvester said, 'It will take more than the stench of Finn's failure to clean the halls of McKinley and before I witness anymore damage to my, Coach Roz coughed, our Cheerios, I will eat her bronze damn Olympic medal.' So needless to say, I was once again fired. So, there I was. Back in my high school bedroom in the same place I was when I showed up three months ago. Unemployed, sad and alone.
I laid around the house for another month. Shut in seemed like the right course for my life. This way no one could witness my embarrassment. One day when I was watching some show on TV about how to skin a fish my mom and Burt came in and stood in front of the screen.
"Honey, we love you." mom said. "But you can't stay here anymore."
"What?" I asked shocked.
"It's time to go buddy." Burt said. "You been moping around here for four months now."
"We know how you feel but Burt and I have our own lives, sweetie." she said with a gentle smile.
"Listen Finn, we're not kicking you out because we don't love you." he said, adjusting his cap.
"That's right. We're kicking you out because we know you can stand on your own two feet."
"Uh..." I said. It was all I could get out. I had a little bit of money but I had no idea if it was enough to get a place. "When do I have to be gone?"
"Two weeks." Burt said. "Your mom and I are going back to Washington."
"Oh. Ok." I said getting out of the chair. "I'll start looking now." I said as I made for the exit.
"Finn, wait." mom said grabbing my arm. "Here. Take this." I looked down in my hand and it was a wad of money.
"What?"
"It's $2,000." she said. "It's not much but it should help."
"Thanks, Mom." I said hugging her tightly. "I'll be out as soon as I can." I smiled at them both and went up to my room. I pulled out my laptop and starting searching for places.
Five days later
With my bags and some other stuff from my room loaded on the back of my truck, I drove toward my new place. I pulled up in front of Lima Heights Towers. It was noisy and kind of dirty but it was also $85 a month so...whatever. I lugged my shit up stairs. I hated this apartment. It came furnished but I swear there was blood on the couch and a pee stain on the mattress but I figured if I covered the couch with a blanket and put two of those fitted sheets things on the bed then I'd be safe.
I put the little bit of things I had away and sat on the opposite end of the couch...away from the blood stain. I tried to make myself relax. I mean, I had to right? This is where I lived now so being uncomfortable was pointless; because mom and Burt weren't gonna let me come back. So, I was stuck.
"Hello?" I answered my cell phone.
"Hey sweetie." my mom said on the other end.
"Hi mom. What's up?"
"Burt and I are on our way over." she said. "We have some things for you."
"Oh. Thanks." I said. "I'll be waiting downstairs."
"See ya soon." she said ending the call. I took a deep breath and headed downstairs. When I got outside, my parents were pulling up.
"Hey son." Burt said as he jumped out of the truck. I waved as I walked toward them.
"What is all this?" I asked as I took a peek into the bed of the truck.
"A TV, bed sets, pots and pans, stuff for your bathroom." she said opening the tailgate. We all grabbed some stuff and carried it upstairs to my apartment. "Oh Finn." my mom said when I opened the door.
"Where do you want the TV?" Burt asked trying to distract my mom from the disaster of my apartment.
"Right here." I said. Burt opened the box and began setting up my TV. My mom and I set up my kitchen, even though box macaroni and cheese was my best dish. She helped me set up my bathroom and after a few hours, we were done.
"Are you gonna be alright, honey?" Mom asked me.
"Yeah, mom." I said hugging her. She hugged me back. Burt hugged me and I returned his hug.
"Alright, we'll see you in a few months." Burt said. I nodded and saw them out. "Finn?"
"Yeah?" I said.
"Meet me at the shop tomorrow at 6:30."
"In the morning?"
"Yes. Don't be late." he said as he and mom headed down the stairs. I made some Kraft mac&cheese, watched some TV then went to bed. What else was there to do?
I woke up the next day at 4:30am. That shouldn't even be a real time but I got up, took a cold shower because the landlord said I could only use the hot water at night. I ate the rest of the mac and cheese, grabbed my keys and headed off toward the shop. When I got there, Burt was waiting.
"Morning." he said smiling brightly.
"Yeah." I mumbled.
"Let's go." he said with a chuckle. I followed him inside the dark shop and to the office. "Sit down Finn."
"What's this about?"
"You."
"Uh, ok." I said nervously.
"You need a job." Burt said. "That two grand your mom gave you isn't going to last forever."
"I know but I've been trying to budget and you know..."
"Listen, don't worry about it alright. You've got a job."
"Where?"
"Here, at the shop." he answered.
"Doing what?"
"I don't know. The manager will be here in about thirty minutes. Just go ahead to the locker room. I'll leave a note for the manager." he said. I nodded and headed off to the grungy locker room that smelled like a porta-potty and motor oil. I found the janky cubby that held my overalls. I slipped into them and returned to the office.