Andrew stared at the closed gates of the orphanage. That was it. A chapter of his life, over. He waved one last time to the gathered crowd from inside. His friends, his family.

He promised to visit as soon as he could. To bring gifts when he found a job. The younger ones made him do a pinky swear, even. Andrew took his duffle bag and checked to see if he hadn’t forgotten his most prized possession. His laptop.

The very same he had gotten from a history contest two years ago. It wasn’t the most powerful of laptops, but Andrew had an Office package inside, one that came with the laptop already paid for, and a photo editor.

Andrew was an orphan. His parents had loved him much, and he remembered it being so. But they had died in a car crash. None of Andrew’s relatives had stepped up to take him in.

The boy, who had finished high school just last month, didn’t blame them. Both of his parents were from poor families. His relatives struggled to keep their children fed. They couldn’t afford for another person to come live with them.

Still, Andrew hadn’t despaired. At the orphanage he, a single child, had found a ton of brothers and sisters. Both older, who taught him all he should know to have a nice life. And younger, who brought joy to his days and had gotten him out of his pain when he first arrived in the tall, gray, building that had housed him for ten whole years.

Ever since his home economics selective in the first grade, Andrew had always been mindful of his money. His parents had given him a dollar per day, back when they were alive, and home economics have taught him that it was better to save up and buy a sweater than a bag of candy each day.

That realization had hit harder in the orphanage, where he got only fifty cents per day. He had always made sure to eat the meals provided in the orphanage, and he had even bought himself a lunch box to pack lunch for school.

The matron had always called him a sharp boy. She made sure to have extra cooked, so he could have something for his lunch box. Even though the meals were heavily budgeted.

In exchange, Andrew helped do the dishes after school before doing his homework. The arrangement had been a nice one. Now, Andrew had his last lunch from the orphanage in his lunchbox. He had first washed the dishes from the morning crowd before leaving. The matron had told him he didn’t have to, but Andrew had insisted. He didn’t do handouts. He was sure that he would earn his way in the world.

Apart from helping in the kitchen, for the past five years, he had done babysitting for the people who lived near the orphanage. Their neighborhood was popular with young families, so, Andrew had plenty of work these past few years.

As a result, he had saved up two thousand dollars. He had a bank account since he was sixteen and his money were there. Before that, he had let the matron hold on to them. Knowing full well, the woman was proud of him for working and wouldn’t take any of his money.

Sure, he could have had more money. He did his homework while he babysat and so, he had worked quite a bit of hours. But, he had given some money to his fellow orphans over the years when they didn’t have clothes or needed it for an outing. He got some money back, but not all.

Andrew didn’t regret helping, though. He knew that not everyone was good with money. And the children of the orphanage always repaid him somehow. By washing the dishes instead of him, or, taking up his cleaning duty. Not that Andrew made them, but, they would do it and then tell him that they couldn’t return the money.

Those were few and far between cases, and Andrew was glad for it. After all, he had started working to make sure he could get at least a couple of months worth of rent and groceries money for precisely this time of his life. For life outside the safety of the orphanage.

Andrew turned a corner and neared the place he had rented. All his necessities, bar food, were included in the rent. The apartment’s owner lived two apartments down and had told Andrew that if he needed something repaired, he should just come to him.

The young man knew he was getting such a nice deal because he was an orphan. He vowed to keep his apartment clean and to find a job as soon as possible, so he wouldn’t end up asking Mr. Sanders for delays on his payments.

Andrew turned another corner and saw the old antique shop on Elm Street. He had gone there once or twice, for gifts, over the years. It had a mix of modern and antique merchandise, and things were cheap.

His eyes were about to move away from it, when he noticed something on the door. It was a poster. Curious, he went to look at it and saw it was a job offer.

Are you quick-witted and good with bargaining?

Then I want you to work for me!

Must have a high school diploma and be willing to work eight hours per day.

Day shifts only.

Good for people with no experience, but, some previous working experience would be a plus.

Some knowledge of history would also be considered a plus.

Apply before the third of April on [email protected]

No first of April joke applications, please.

Andrew reread the note. This was quite the luck, considering it was the second of April. Just one more day, and he couldn’t have applied! He rushed the rest of the way to the apartment. He had paid Mr. Sanders yesterday, so, there was no need to go and see him today.

Excited, Andrew took out his laptop and connected to the WI-FI, the password of which was qwerty123456. Personally, Andrew thought that everyone could break it, but he didn’t mind. After all, the internet plan was unlimited, and he shared with Mr. Sanders. So, he figured, the password was this easy so that the old man won’t forget it.