"Kyla, get your ass downstairs and out of my house!"

"Coming, mum!" I hop into my jeans, smiling at my mum's complaints. She likes to play up the impatient mother act, but I know she's excited for me.

I'm excited for me—this is huge.

Barreling through the door and down the stairs, I grab my bracelet from the hallway coat hooks. It's a metal cuff bracelet, brand new, inscribed with a blue stripe and two grey dashes. My first day wearing my Worker bracelet. I put it on and admire it in the morning light, watching how it glints inside the imprinted pattern.

"Kyla, will you get a move on? You're going to be late." Mum stands in the hallway door with her hands on her hips.

I grin like a loon and lean in to give her a kiss. "Thanks, mum. I'll see you later."

"Watch out on the roads, hun. Monday motors are the worst." She mutters, heading back into the house to start her own work. Mum does data analysis from home—it's not the most glamorous of jobs, but it gave her time to raise Caleb and me, so she was happy with the arrangement. Plus, she has plenty of spare time to write conspiracy theories about AI cores replacing her, "Any day now, just you wait!"

I leave through the front door and climb down our apartment block's fifteen flights of stairs. Stepping outside, I take a moment to close my eyes and enjoy the sun on my face. A gentle wind ruffles my hair, and I struggle to get it back into a loose ponytail as I walk.

It's a good day to start my new life.

College was fun, but I was never cut out for astrophysics. Mum had high hopes of me becoming a VIP one day, but I don't think it was ever possible, not really. She was terrified when I dropped out early. I don't care much—I'll be happy so long as I'm employed.

I cross the street and round the corner at a trot, coming up on Avery Street, 3rd. As I near the alleyway on my left, I remember that I should keep my distance. I cross back to the other side, glancing behind me as I walk. The alley is cold and dark, even on this sunny morning. I see shadows moving in the distant corners, between the refuse bins and the back entryways of the apartments here. I wonder who they are, how they got there, whether they'll ever make it out.

"ERROR. ERROR. PEDESTRIAN COLLISION PREVENTION SYSTEM."

The car next to me blares out its warning over a concealed tannoy speaker. I walked out right in front of it.

"Shit. Sorry!" I wave to the passengers, an assembled group of VIPs reading their phone screens and paying me no attention. I dodge out of the way, and the car restarts its navigation, silently rolling along the middle lane—probably heading to Centre Square.

My phone buzzes.

Caleb: Kyla, you're gonna wreck it today. But good luck, anyway. I'll stop by for a drink at lunch!

I grin, imagining serving my brother during his lunch break. "Oh, what is that, Sir? You'd like a cup of Revenge? Ah yes, I have an iced variety I think you'll love!"

Damn. Revenge would be an excellent drink for Emotiv. I'll have to remember that one.

I'm at the storefront in no time, staring up at the neon signage above the glass windows. A small drinks bar from the outside, an unassuming traveller might not realise the magic inside Emotiv. But today, I'm going to be one of the team. The tables and chairs inside are empty—it's another thirty minutes until they open. Even with the lights off, I can see the enormous copper machinery at one end of the store—all manner of steamers and presses, grinders and drip filters line the counter.

I gulp at the realisation that I will have to learn how to use all this.

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"Kyla?" a voice calls from my left. A worker holds a side door open, wearing a tan apron over a white shirt. Short copper hair, dark brown skin, gorgeous brown eyes with thick eyelashes, and a killer figure. I look directly back in their eyes before they catch me ogling.

"Hi, I'm Dani Lutz. Frank asked me to let you in and get you started this morning."

I nod and shake their hand, noting the bracelet—white stripe, two grey dashes. Non-Binary. Worker. "Hey Dani, I'm Ky—oh, you already knew who I was." Idiot.

Dani smiles at me, tilting their head to one side in pity. "Hey, it's cool. I was nervous my first day, too. Come on in."

Walking into Emotiv is like stepping into an industrial warehouse that's been abandoned for fifty years. The walls are all bare concrete—skimmed especially, no doubt, to match the other thousand Emotiv shops all over the country. The counters, tables, and chairs are all blackened steel, but plants grow everywhere.

I move over to the front desk, reaching out for a long trailing ivy that drapes over the corner. "Are these all real?"

"Oh, sure," Dani answers, locking the doors and entering a code to the number pad, "Frank says he likes them. They're a nightmare to look after, though!"

"It's amazing." I glance up and follow the trail of plants along the ceiling—they trail and intertwine, leading right down the centre of the cafe to the front desk, where the Copper Monstrosity awaits. My stomach lurches. "Oh."

Dani slaps me on the shoulder. "You'll get it in no time. Come on. You need an apron."

They lead me into the back room and rummage around in the store cupboard for my uniform. I put on a tan apron to match their own and tie my unruly hair into a high bun.

"Right!" Dani claps their hands together. "Set up time. If you follow me around, I'll talk you through how I start a shift, and then we'll get to serving when we open up."

Over the next half an hour, Dani shows me how to turn on the drink machines, where to find the various syrups used in the unique Emotiv blends, and where the mixers are kept. "Mixing is an art, not a science," they singsong while gathering cleaning supplies, "you'll find your own style in time. Before we open, let me fix you a drink."

Ah. Crap. "Oh, I couldn't possibly, thank you, but I err—I can't afford—"

"Staff perk!" They grin, cheeks dimpling at the corners of their lips.

I can't help but return their smile. "Wow, that's generous."

Dani chuckles. "Yeah, don't get too excited. 'Performance enhancers only', I'm afraid. Still, it's better than nothing. So what would you like? I can make you anything from the bottom shelf."

They gesture towards the lowest line of syrup bottles arranged neatly on a steel storage rack under the counter. I scan the labels, one by one.

Empathy, Interest, Pride, Aspiration, Focus, Gratitude...

"How about Focus?" I ask, still worried that I'm imposing.

Dani grins, "Great choice. I make a fab cup of Focus. Here, let me show you how. Soy milk or Oat?"

"Oat, please." I watch carefully as Dani takes the bottle of oat milk and pours a measure into a steel jug.

"First, we steam—"Dani shows me how to use the steamer with the milk, cleaning it off each time, then motions to the bottom shelf. "Mixer first, syrup afterwards. Don't ask me why; it just tastes better that way. One pump per worker, two per VIP. No exceptions!"

They recite the rules by memory, squirting a single pump of aqua coloured liquid into my cup of oat milk.

"Focus is stirred gently—I find a wooden stirrer works best to keep the bubbles intact. Here—"they hand me the cup, "enjoy."

"Thank you, this smells so good." I inhale the cool aroma of mint mixed with citrus and rosemary. The aqua foam swirls in the cup, begging me to taste it. I take a sip, sweet and savoury all at once, and sigh. "It's so good, Dani."

"Right? You'll be making them in no time. For today, you're watching. One more rule - no bracelet, no credits, no service. I cannot tell you how important this is. Every customer, you check the bracelet first—you know how to read a bracelet?"

I nod. "Fairly confident with them, yeah."

"Pop quiz, then. White stripe?" they hold up their hand to show me the bracelet.

"Non-Binary."

"Very good. One dash?"

"VIP."

"Yeah, you're fine. I have to check—some people just don't pay attention to the basics around here. Or they're new, from the boonies." Dani rolls their eyes at me like I know what they're talking about. I smile and nod, clueless.

"Okay," they announce, "opening time. Watch and learn, sweety, watch and learn."