Get Yourself A Job

[cassettesnake]

 Lights blazed in a red wash and the buzzing opening chords to the song shook the room. The crowd roared and stuck up devil horns "We!" "Are!" The frontman opened his arms out wide strutting to downstage center lit with a glowing white spot as the other band members became backlit. "The-" Suddenly the sound cut and whatever band name was to be proclaimed was devoured by screeching static and squealing feedback. "Fuck fuck fuck fuck." This hadn't happened at sound check, levels were pushed down to try to suppress the ear wrenching noise. Static and buzz through a headset 

 

"Sound what's going on?" 

 

"Lights hold" 

 

"Fuck she's starting the opening riff we gotta go." 

 

"Lights 5 go." 

 

"Sound wake up." "Sound! Wake up!"

 

"Obsidian! Wake up!" 

 

"Huh what?" Obsidian jerked upright.

 

Kyle, hext roommate stood right next to hext bedside table. "Duuude, you gotta like job interview today- that's hella important!" She opened the window, which provided a scenic view of brick wall, but did let light in. Obsidian begrudgingly shook hexxelf awake and gathered hext things.

 

"Y'know me and the research crew are trekking out today for the field study expedition - its a big one, maybe I'll get to name a dragonfly species!" Kyle paused and stepped out to lean on the doorway, "I'll be gone for an entire month so don't like - set a fire or anything yeah?"

 

"Yeah," Obsidian nodded. When Kyle and her moutains of backpacks and strapped on sleeping bags left Obsidian waved. "Don't die!"

 

There was no response. 

 

---

 

"I'm sorry but you're not really what we're looking for in this position. There is a certain um- professionality we seek here and if you won't "undye" your blue hair I'm afraid that will be a deal breaker." The woman in a blouse and blazer smiled with her teeth and stood up, straightening her papers. She looked the spitting image of professionalism and Obsidian wondered if she'd gone to classes, no, "workshops" for that.

 

"Ok thank you, er have a good day." They hid the dejected exhaustion from their voice

 

The interview nodded curtly, "Our secretary will show you to the door Mx. Rainn."

 

Looking for a job was tedious and Obsidian was tired. Hex already had plenty stacked against hexa and that was even with some neat flattening: whatever hopefully ambiguous button up counted as business causal, hext neopronouns set traded out for hext second choice: they/them, Obsidian becomes Adrien, and all of hext best expertise gets tucked into one line of hext resume because well, what kind of desk job or diner would hire a techie like hexa? 

 

See, Obsidian was best at one of the rarest jobs- not being a glitzy actor performing on stage, not being a rockstar, not even a shouts and clipboards director, more like the proverbial third wheel to these people. Hex was and would always be behind the scenes, in the shadows, unassuming, clad in all black. If you didn't see hex or notice hex, then hex was doing hext job right.

 

"I um, couldn't help but overhear-" Great the secretary was talking to hexa, he looked sidelong at the door hex came from then continued, "you've done work as a like roadie or whatever yeah?"

 

"Something like that, yes," Obsidian's words slowed and curved into slight suspicion.

 

"Well I gotta friend, know a gal, she's looking for a new soundguy as the last one has abruptly found a spiritual calling in pyrotechnics instead or something to that tune." He waved his hands around.

 

"Seriously? I mean, I'll shoot a shot if you have a lead." The guy grinned at this, wrote a contact number into Obsidian's phone, and handed it back.

 

"Sorry if that was like, presumptious or whatever-" the secretary was saying but Obdisian cut him off,

 

"Hey man," hex puts a hand on his shoulder, "you just made my day. Have a good one alright." He nodded. Obsidian stepped back onto the street and somehow the sunlight was a little nicer outside, the otherwise bleak office park with pesticide drenched bushes cut to perfection and an expanse of parking lot stretched out in front of hexa. 

 

The drive back stretched and stretched. It's less like hex was driving down the road and more like road kept spawning in front of them. Every intersection looks the same. These streets were not a smokey grantine grey like cities are, adorned with black bubblegum freckles on every block. Rather, they were a pasty grey like stucco that dropped down a few shades, tripping over pantone hues until everything became matte and hazy. 

 

Obsidian's hand-me-down car sputtered along until hex got to the apartment building hex was currently holed up in. Hex was half expecting hext roommate Kyle to be home but then remembered she was off on a field research trip for the next what, month? Which meant it was just the pleasant company of the radio, rumbling traffic, and thumps from upstairs, for Obsidian.

 

Hex flopped down to some reheated leftovers and a video game when hex saw that hext phone was

open to the note with the number of the last sliver of hope hex had before giving up on being a starving artist altogether. Hex glanced at the time- it was six, but also the work hex wants was never a nine to five. They dialed anyways, expecting at worst to leave a voicemail.

 

After ringing twice a box popped up on hext phone reading, "The number you have reached is using Real Time Text everything you type will be sent live." Obsidian tapped ok and it changed to a screen very similar to hext texting app.

 

{Hello you're calling Cat's Cradle - local live music and shows, how can I help you?}

 

{Hi yes I wanted to I got this number from a guy who}

 

Obsidian shook hext head, this person didn't need to know Obsidian's whole ordeal from this morning. Hex gathered hext thoughts

 

{I'm looking for a job I'm trained as a theater sound technician and I heard that you maybe had an open position?}

 

{Whoa hey that's awesome actually! So like yes we are looking for a sound engineer, but well I know the tagline is music and shows we're really only doing music these days. Have you set up a band before?}

 

{Yes}

 

{Sweet okay oh sorry, what was your name again?}

 

{Adrien Rainn, I go by Obsidian- it's not like legal though so on paperw}

 

{Hey my name is Death Grip per/person so don't worry about it. The Lady takes care of paperwork and she gets it. Your legal/real/whatever name is kept in The Lady's records and we call you what you want.}

 

{Thats} Obsidian let out a breath {really great to hear}

 

{Pronouns?}

 

{hex/hexa/hext}

 

{Radical. So scheduling- ugh my least favorite part of calls. When can you come in? We do have to audition you or well "interview" you}

 

{I'm free whenever} Obsidian omitted the "because I'm helplessly unemployed and need to keep proving I'm looking for work" part.

 

{Sick, tomorrow night 6:00?} 

 

{Yes I can do that}

 

{Radical and hey- just between you and me word from The Lady is we're in a little bit of a fix until we get a new sound person. Not saying you can just not know your stuff, but if you do you'll definitely be on the team. But also playing double duty if you get what I mean}

 

{Double duty triple duty yeah I've been there.}

 

{Alright perf so show up tomorrow I don't have to explain call time to you. Also this number takes you to the office phone so if a show is happening it wont be answered.}

 

{Ok, thank you again Death Grip}

  

{No problem, see you tomorrow night and let's hope The Lady is merciful to you :P}

 

 

The phone call shut off- Obsidian wasn't sure what that last part meant but hex could get to this place, do an interview, and if what Death Grip said about per venue having a skeleton crew then hex was pretty likely to get the gig- or job. Hopefully it was a fully full job but even a gig would help at this point.