Work

After several months of prodding from his parents he got his act together long enough to apply to 7 different colleges and universities and was accepted into 3. Se'tak ultimately settled on Kenyatta University-though he was still undecided on what his focus would be—and 4 months into his first year things were going well. He was only a 20 minute flitter ride from Babu and Bibi's, he was getting decent grades in his classes and he was out on the town most every other night and all weekend hanging out with his large group of friends.

In short, college was one big party with a little bit of studying in-between…and he LOVED it!

He should've known it wouldn't last.


Kenyatta University Dorms, 2283.331, 1518 hours. Se'tak was heading down the hall to his dorm room when he met his roommate, Ken, going in the opposite direction. They got along alright but weren't exactly close which was why he was surprised when Ken said, "Your dad called looking for you. Twice."

He frowned. That was weird; Mama and Sa-mekh always called him together and always on a Wednesday night. Sa-mekh never called him alone unless something was up and he certainly never called twice in one day—there was no logic in it.

So that meant something was really up.

"Thanks." Palming in their room code Se'tak let himself inside and tossed his bag on the un-made bed. Glancing over to the other side of the room he took in the gleaming floor, freshly-made bed and organized bookshelf. Ken was a bigger neat freak than T'Alora (something he hadn't though possible 'til he came to University and saw it with his own eyes) and Se'tak knew that he, well, wasn't (and that was putting it mildly). He was too busy to do little more than keep his clutter contained to his side of the room, a source of never-ending tension between the two of them.

But the room could wait 'til later; he needed to call Sa-mekh back now

Dialing the address his sa-mekh answered after the third ring. "Se'tak."

"Hey Sa-mekh, what's up? Everything ok?"

He knew something was up when his sa-mekh's eyebrow didn't creep up at the informal greeting. "No, sa-fu, everything is not 'ok'." Se'tak gulped hard. Crap, this is bad. How'd he find out about that astrophysics grade? It was just one test and I know I can make it up… "I have been reviewing the family accounts—" That was it? Really? "-and in the last 4.2 months you have spent more credits than your sister—"

"Hey, that's not fair! You know T practically lived like a hermit at school! Comparing us isn't the same!"

Sa-mekh clamped his mouth shut but his eyebrow went up. "Are you finished?" Se'tak was so angry all he could do was frown and nod. "As I was saying before I was interrupted, in the last 4.2 months you have spent more credits than your sister did in the first 17.1 months of her collegiate academic career."

Oh. The blood rushed to his cheeks in embarrassment; he shouldn't have spoken out so hastily. This time he waited patiently for Sa-mekh to explain and he wasn't left waiting long.

"Your mother and I agreed to support you as we did T'Alora, however, your spending is wildly out of control. With many of the charges being frivolous in nature we have decided to withhold funds for all but your most immediate needs such as textbooks and clothing." Here Sa-mekh paused and consulted a list in his hand. "We will no longer pay for concert tickets to see—" he momentarily puzzled over his PADD—" 'Florg' or for weekend trips to locations such as Cairo."

Well damn. This was certainly going to put a damper on things. He and his buddies were already planning their next trip and there was this girl in his history class he'd been working up the nerve to ask out. How could he do those things if he didn't have any credits? "But Sa-mekh…"

"No, Se'tak; there is no room for argument here. Until you have proven yourself to be more responsible with your funds your mother and I will not support you other than your tuition and basic necessities."

He mulled this over for a minute, trying to think of a logical way to get back into his parent's good graces, when he realized they weren't his only relatives. Sa-mekh-al might be willing to loan him some funds for an 'educational' trip and Babu and Bibi would certainly help him out. Sure, it'd only be a temporary solution but by then maybe he could…

His train of thought was derailed again by his sa-mekh. "And sa-fu, do not think to contact your grandparents for credits; we have already informed them of the situation and instructed them not to, as your mother put it, 'donate money to the cause'. If you are in need of funds then I suggest you find employment."

This was the last straw. "Seriously!? You're just going to cut me off without any warning and tell me to go get a job? Like that's so easy! I have classes and stuff to go to, you know, or do you not want me to pass!?"

The other eyebrow rose up to join the first and Se'tak nearly snarled. Sometimes he really hated how calm and composed his sa-mekh was. "I do not anticipate that it will be easy to procure employment, although I do agree that it will take up a significant portion of your time. Perhaps this will also teach you to manage your time better as well as your credits."

Before he said something he'd really regret Se'tak ended the call. Leave it to Sa-mekh to hurl him out into the deep end of the pool without first teaching him how to swim. Well I'll show him, he thought. Within the hour Se'tak had drawn up a resume (thin as it was) and was checking the classifieds for jobs.


Kenya, Africa, 2283.345, 1742 hours. He was miserable—no, not just miserable, he was absolutely, positively, fucking miserable. No one wanted to hire him. He was either too young or too unqualified. There'd been one offer as an office jockey but it was full time and it just didn't work out; and to add insult to injury most of his friends had abandoned him too. Now that Se'tak only had 15 credits left to his name he found out who his real friends were-all 2 of them.

This sucked.

He'd been out on a walk for the last hour trying to clear his head and was heading back to school when he looked up as another peal of thunder crashed. He figured it was from all the dry heat and thought nothing more of it and so continued on his way; he made it another block and a half before the skies really opened up. He could've walked back to his dorm and gotten soaked but he decided to take shelter in a little hole-in-the-wall restaurant instead.

Ducking in through the low door Se'tak took a good look around. He'd passed by Albasi's Diner a few times but never went in. It was dark and outdated and looked like the type of place where old men came and spent their days drinking tea and complaining about everything from their children and grandchildren to the weather. He wasn't disappointed either, when his eyes adjusted to the low light, to see 3 such men sitting at a table in the back corner watching him like a hawk. No matter, he'd move on once the rain cleared out. He tried to shake some of the water out of his wavy hair; he really needed a haircut, he was beginning to look like a shaggy dog.

A large, burly-looking man who appeared to be about 50 or 60 years old was also watching him closely. He'd been standing behind the counter wiping it down when Se'tak came in and now the man finally addressed him. "Nothing is for free you know."

"I'm sorry?"

The man behind the counter gestured outside at the rain. "This is not a waiting room; you can't stay here for free."

"Oh." Se'tak looked outside at the sheets of rain then back at the menu affixed to several boards over the man's head, all the while weighing his options. The decision was made for him when he saw they had maandazi* on the menu. He walked up to the counter and took a seat on the old worn stool. "A cup of tea and some maandazi please." If this was to be his last meal outside the cafeteria he might as well enjoy it.

The server nodded and set about getting his order. When he disappeared into the kitchen Se'tak took the opportunity to glance back over his shoulder at the other customers and was satisfied to see he was no longer a subject of interest. He sat in silence, his wet clothes dripping on the floor, and listened to the creak of the overhead fan as he pondered his next move.

Just then a loud crash of glass and deep yelling and cursing drew all eyes on the kitchen door. Suddenly the burly man burst back out, half-shoving, half-dragging a much scrawnier man along by the neck. "YOU BUTTERFINGERS! GET OUT!"

"But Albasi…"

"NO BUTS! This is the last straw! You're more trouble than you're worth! Practically a whole week's worth of dishes ruined! I can't keep paying for this anymore!" With that Albasi pushed the much smaller man out the door with such force that he stumbled backward onto his backside in the middle of the rain soaked street. "AND DON'T EVER COME BACK!" He immediately strode back into the kitchen and Se'tak soon heard a broom being swept over the floor.

Se'tak felt awkward watching the whole scene unfold and he didn't know whether to stay or go. On the one hand he didn't feel like sticking around to see if there was an encore performance, but on the other hand it was raining even harder than before and running back to the dorm wasn't that appealing either. The thought of the maandazi won out and he decided to wait.

It was almost 20 minutes before Albasi returned with his order in hand. "Sorry about that," he said as he slid the plate over, "This is on the house."

"Thanks." Se'tak tucked into his food; the tea was lukewarm but the maandazi was better than even his Bibi's.

"So you finally got rid of that good-for-nothing, huh?" the squat man in the back corner asked.

"Jimiyu, you just saw him do it with your own two eyes!" his thin comrade replied.

"I know, I know, but I want to make sure it takes this time!"

"Do you need help with the clean up?" the third man—and by all appearances the oldest of the trio-asked.

Albasi's smile was tight. "No thank you, Thabiti; it's all taken care of."

"So what are you going to do for a dishwasher now?"

Se'tak slowly set down his mug when he heard that and began eavesdropping in earnest. At this point he'd take any job. Albasi seemed to consider the point a moment. "What about one of your grandsons, Njau? You think they'd be int—…"

"NO!"

All 4 heads swiveled in his direction and Se'tak felt his confidence wane. He really didn't want to get tossed on his ass out into the street like the last guy. "No?" Albasi asked, his bald head shining as he stood directly under the light fixture.

"I mean, uh, I'm kind of looking for a job…"

The owner continued to stare him down and Se'tak gulped. For the first time in a long time he suddenly felt very small. "What's your name?"

"Se'tak."

"Se'tak?" Jimiyu repeated. "What kind of name is that?"

He ignored the question. "But my friends call me 'Tak."

"Ok." Albasi moved back behind the counter. "You a University student?"

"Yes."

"And do you have any experience bussing tables and washing dishes?"

"A little bit. I never worked in a restaurant or anything but I did it at home for my family."

Albasi nodded. "Think you'd have trouble running dishes out to tables on occasion?"

"No sir."

"What's your schedule like?"

Se'tak was beginning to feel more at ease as he pulled his PADD out of his school bag. Together they reviewed his class schedule to see what they could work out. When Albasi was satisfied he put the PADD away. Se'tak was pretty certain he had the job when the other man did something unexpected—Albasi took his empty teacup and knocked it off the counter. With lightning quick reflexes Se'tak caught the cup and placed it back in it's saucer.

Albasi smiled . "Good. You're hired."

"I am?" He couldn't believe his good luck. "Great! When do I start?"

His boss flung the rag up on his shoulder and jerked his thumb toward the kitchen. "Right now."


* maandazi—a deep fried Kenyan sweet similar to a donut

A/N: I did all my research on-line, so if you see any glaring errors please PM me. Thanks and I hope you liked the update!