Alexander the Babysitter/Ling Morin at the Arcade

Narrator  – 09:00 UTC Alexander leans nonchalantly against the counter, waiting for his new boss Stanley to give him his first assignment. Stanley, with clipboard in hand, is doing his best to manage all the loud, rambunctious children at their facility. He looks like he desparately needs more help. Stanley finally extricates himself from a group of kids and delegates another member of the team to take over. He strides over to Alexander, dodging little human obstacles on the way. Because of the ragged state of affairs, he dispensed with the pleasantries of a greeting (they had already met).

Stanley Harper  – 09:00 UTC Your first charge is... He rifles through the papers on his clipboard Ling Morin. We'll see how well you can handle her first and then evaluate you on your performance. Remember. We are here to take care of children, not to slack off. I'll be checking in on you from time to time. She'll be over at the arcade. That's in the back over there. He jerks his thumb somewhere vaguely behind him.

Narrator  – 09:00 UTC Stanley abruptly excuses himself and walks briskly toward another group of youngsters.

Alexander Maxwell  – 09:00 UTC Wait, I'm taking care of one kid?

Stanley Harper  – 09:00 UTC Yeah. Good luck!

Narrator  – 09:00 UTC Stanley had vanished into the wall of people. Alexander stood perplexed for a moment. Why would he get a job taking care of just one kid? He pondered Stanley's last words. Was he actually going to need luck to deal with this child? Alexander meandered towards the vague direction that Stanley had directed him. The main room he was in was fully carpeted and littered with knee high tables surrounded by tiny plastic chairs. As he took a left around the corner, he began hearing the telltale sounds of digital tunes and sound effects mixed with loud button mashing. He stood at the open entrance to the arcade. He hadn't expected a fully stocked arcade to be in this day care facility. He counted nearly fifteen machines that were active, with names that reminded him of both the 80s and the far future. Alexander wondered why there weren't more kids playing in the arcade. Maybe the machines were broken, he thought. After trying a few, he realized he was right. The games worked fine, but the controls were so off that he gave up in frustration. Gotta focus, he told himself. He made his way to the furthest, darkest corner of the arcade. There, with his back to him, was the child he was supposed to watch.

Alexander Maxwell  – 09:00 UTC Hey. My name is Alex. Stanley told me that we would be hanging out today.

Narrator  – 09:00 UTC Without even turning around, the girl responded unphased.

Ling Morin  – 09:00 UTC Go away. I need to concentrate.

Alexander Maxwell  – 09:00 UTC That's cool. You trying to beat the high score in... Time Jump 3?

Narrator  – 09:00 UTC Ling Morin was playing a shooting game. While people usually moved around enjoying the physical aspect of the game, she stood stock still. Her back was straight and her legs were slightly more than shoulder width apart. She handled the gun lightly, bringing her elbows to her side at rest with barrel up, then arms extended forward while shooting. If Alexander hadn't known any better, he would have even guessed she was taught by a professional.

Narrator  – 09:00 UTC To Be Continued