chapter two
301 Words
The next morning, Claire found Adrian in the Initiative warehouse, checking pallets of cots by flashlight.
“You don’t sleep?” she asked.
“I sleep when the trucks are loaded,” he said without looking up. “You shouldn’t be here. It’s 6 a.m.”
“I don’t sleep when my people are in a gym on cots.” She dropped a clipboard on the metal table. “And you skipped the inspection log again.”
Adrian finally looked at her. “The cots are fire-rated. I checked them myself.”
“That’s not how it works.”
“That’s how it works when kids are sleeping on concrete.”
Claire opened her mouth, then closed it. He was infuriating. And right.
He sighed. “Look, I know you think I’m cutting corners. My grandfather built this place on ‘move fast, ask later.’ I’m trying not to be him.”
“My dad’s a surveyor,” Claire said, quieter now. “He assist in agricultural planning and development . He’d lose his license if he said ‘close enough.’ So I don’t like ‘close enough’ either.”
Adrian nodded, like that made sense. “Your mom still runs that daycare in Merced, right?”
Claire blinked. “How do you—”
“I read files,” he said. “Only the parts I need. You’re protective. That’s why you’re good at this.”
She didn’t know whether to be annoyed or grateful.
“Fine,” she said. “But next time, I sign off before the trucks move.”
“Deal,” Adrian said. “And Claire?”
“What?”
“Thanks for showing up at 6 a.m. to yell at me.”
She rolled her eyes, but for the first time, she didn’t leave mad.
- Writer
