Endless Loophole

5:00 A.M.

A loud bang startled me out of my sleep. I checked my watch, “5 O ‘ Clock already?” I stared up to the ceiling for a while before my crew banged on my door once again. “Come on Todd, we need to before the students get to school.” I pulled my body out of bed slowly sinking the soles of my feet into the cold tile floor. With my sore right hand, I pulled the handle of the flimsy closet door open, almost ripping the joints out of the wall. Then while struggling to get my uniform on, I hobbled out the door onto the gravel pathway. This custodial building needs to get redone. It looks like it’s stuck in the 50’s. Once I shut the door behind me, the crew leader started to give out orders. “Alright, today we need to mow the fields, tidy up the middle school building, and look around for any leftover trash across campus.” “Has it already been a week since we last mowed the fields? Well I hope I don’t get stuck with this job for the second week in a row” I thought. “Ok now, the following people will tidy up the middle school building, Carl, Mark, Sandra, Fred, and Tom. These next people will be collecting any leftover trash they see across campus, Sal, Mike, Bob, and Tim. The rest you are with me on the fields.” “Great, I’m mowing the fields, again.” I stomped back into my room, grabbed my keys and the grass wacker. I loaded them in my golf cart and sped up the upper field. As the run rose, I trimmed the grass using my whacker. Once I was done, the sun was constantly shining above me making my back sweater heavier. "Great, now my eyes are super red and puffy. Oh no, my nose is also running as well! Oh come on think. Oh yeah, I’ll just just tilt my head back" I said to myself. With one last effort I called out, “Hello, can someone help me I need a tissue! Hello?” With no other choice, I kept my head up and blindly maneuvered myself back to the cart to grab a tissue. “Oh finally a tissue!” I blew my nose , I saw the students rushing in. I quickly hacked off the ends of the field and  drove bacK to the custodial building. As I got back inside I saw everyone huddling in front of the only AC in the building slobbering all over each other. “Yeah, I’ll pass.” I started to make my way down the hallway and into my room. I sat springy all sweaty and sticky. Although I know that I would regret it later, I let my intrusive thoughts take over and soon the bed called out

to me causing me to sink into the thin, white checkerboard sheets on my worn out mattress.

12:00 PM

"Come on, let's go !" walked back off my bed and saw that it was already noon.

“I hope the students didn’t make a big mess in the cafeteria. At least it is air conditioned.”

I got into my golf cart but then remembered that I didn't have keys. I rushed back into my room only to see that it wasn’t in there either. Then it hit me, “it must’ve fallen out of my pocket as I slept.” I ran back into my room once again to find that my keys were actually hidden under my pillow. 20 minutes late, I drove to the cafeteria probably 10 miles above the speed limit. Once I got in I saved my crew leader waiting for me. “I’m sorry I’m late, it’s just that I lost my keys and couldn’t find them.” “You think I haven’t heard that before. Now don’t just stand there and finish up whatever work there is left for you.” I immediately grabbed a mop and started to mop the floors. Then once the last kids finished eating, I folded the large tables in half to clear up some space in the cafeteria for any after school activities that would be going on in here later. Once I was getting ready to leave, my crew leader stopped me, reminding me that I needed to change out the light bulbs in the cafeteria. Without another word, I dragged my feet to the golf cart to grab the spare bulbs. After receiving quite a few burns on the palm of my hand, I finished redoing the lights and was able to drive back to my unit. As I walked back into the building, I eagerly opened the door to the fridge only to find that someone else had already eaten the sandwich that had my name on it. “Great, I guess I’m starving until dinner.”

6:00 P.M.

“Let’s go, it’s 6 P.M.” This time I got outside on time. “Tonight, all we need is for someone to go out and close the gates. Any volunteers? Alright, then I’ll just have to pick out that hat.” “Please don’t be me,” I pleaded. “Tonight is . . . Todd.” I stopped in my tracks. Exasperated, I marched into my golf cart, drove across the gravel path, along the edge of the field, and to the front entrance gate. Just as I finished locking up the gates, a bright light started to blink at me. I squinted and looked back. I saw a dark figure in a black Mercedes yelling at me. I looked closer and asked, “Aren’t you a student, what are you doing here so late?” “I had a soccer game and needed to stay after school, so now let me out, I have other things to do.” Without hesitation I reopened the gates. Watching as he drove off in an exhausted and defeated state made me wonder, “Where is he going now? I wonder what it looks like off campus if only I could leave for a day.” I sighed. Then I heard another voice in the background, it was my crew leader. “Hurry up and stop standing there, lights out at five.” “I rushed to my golf cart and started to drive back waiting mindlessly for the next day to arrive.”