A couple days later, Madeline met up with her friends at the cafeteria in school. She began to start the conversation with the subject of her being urged to find somewhere to work.
"Now I immediately have to find a job," said Madeline, "or else, I'm grounded. But I still have to get the car fixed for the little scratch I made."
"Why did you put a scratch on the car again?" asked Debra.
"I was protesting!"
"Peacefully?"
"Sort of. I mean, I did hurt a car so maybe not that peacefully."
"You're such a princess," Andrea said sarcastically.
"So you had a fit because you have to get a job?" questioned Lizzie.
"Yes, it appears so I did."
"So... what's wrong with getting a job?"
"Hello? It will affect my dignity."
"Your dignity?" inquired Skye.
"Getting a job is not embarrassing," said Lizzie.
"It is if you're me," responded Madeline.
"Then I feel so sorry for you."
"There's nothing wrong with getting a job, Maddie," said Andrea. "Of course, there is something wrong with getting fired from a job."
"Were you fired from your last job?" asked Lizzie.
"Yes, sadly."
"How did you get fired?" asked Skye.
"I got into a fight with one of the customers. They gonna tell me how a phone works; I'm the employee!"
"Andrea, how many jobs have you been fired from?"
"Seven."
"How many jobs have you had?"
"Seven. What? I don't learn!"
"Because of fights?"
"Because of fights."
"Good thing I never been where you worked at," Lizzie commented.
"Well, it would be a good thing if you were racist. I mean not the racist part; the whole 'coming in the store' thing."
"You wouldn't have to worry about that. I understand your Mexican background so it's all good."
"I'm not just Mexican."
"What?"
"Guys, can we focus on me?" asked Madeline. "I need to know the advantages of going to work."
"That's easy," said Skye. "You can get paid. I get paid nine dollars an hour when I work part-time at the instrument store."
"I get paid ten dollars an hour when I work every summer at the surf shack," Debra added.
"Why, aren't you a lucky duck?"
"Nine and ten does not make that much of a difference."
"Oh, it makes that big of a difference. Nine is a random number."
"It does not matter. Ten minus nine equals one, meaning we're one dollar apart."
"But do you know what I could've bought if I could have had just one dollar?"
"It's not a big deal. I mean it could if you include tips."
"You get tips?"
"Hey, don't ignore the powers of the surf shack."
"I thought you work at a bead shop," said Lizzie.
"No, it is a bead shop," responded Debra. "We just call it a 'surf shack' because it is surrounded by a lot of surf shacks."
"Why can't you get the store to move out of the beach?" Madeline questioned.
"Where else am I going to sell my beads?"
"Who buys beads at the beach?"
"Uh, I do."
"No, true that. True that; I feel you."
"Alright, Maddie, getting a job is not a big of a deal," Andrea jumped in. "You just think it's a big of a deal because you never had to work. But once you get one, you'll comprehend a way of receiving money and it will become a piece of cake. Besides, you go to school every day and we work there. Going to school is like completing a job that is never-ending and if you want out, find your way out. But overall, working is nothing."
"Okay," Madeline responded, "I trust you."
"And you don't trust all of us?" inquired Skye.
"Of course I do, Skye. I trust all of you. If getting a job is not as bad as it sounds, then I shouldn't be a brat about it."
"Good."
"That's the spirit, Maddie," smiled Lizzie. "And you're lucky that your parents are making you get a job. Mine won't let me anymore."
"Why not?" asked Debra.
"Because my parents say that I am known as a 'fire hazard'. I don't know what they mean by that but I hope it's translation for 'You're really special!'"
"Yeah, that's what it's translation for," Andrea cleared her throat.
"And I thought nine was a prime number."
"Now I rest my case."
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