It was noon, and Bro was in the boys' room watching the world go by through the window. That was until he got the urge to go out and do something.
"Anyone want to go somewhere? Anyone at all?" he asked, leaving his room.
The siblings, who were all watching TV, looked at each other, surprised.
"Well, this attitude seems a bit out of place for you, Bro," Amelia said. "You okay?"
"I don't know why, but I suddenly felt the drive to, well, drive!" he admitted.
"Can we go to the toy store?" Lily requested, raising her hand.
Everyone went quiet for a few seconds.
Bro pointed at her and yelled, "Toy store! Everyone in the car!"
Quickly, the five fumbled into their car and started driving to the toy store. On Seal Island, people had cars that ran on clean energy for the sake of the seals and themselves. But the siblings' car?
It was unlike any other car on the island. It was modified by Bro, and could turn into a submarine or a helicopter whenever needed.
On the way to the store, Zaire saw Mary on her walk. Mary locked her eyes on his, causing him to look away, blushing. He, Porter, and Lily were in the back seats, while Amelia sat in the front and Bro drove.
A few minutes later, the five arrived in the city. A woman wearing a crimson sweater and black pants was standing by the crosswalk, waiting for the signal to cross.
"Ugh, can this light hold any longer?" she muttered to herself. Looking around, she started to cross, despite the crosswalk sign saying not to walk yet.
"Bro, look out!" Amelia screamed.
Bro spotted the woman in front of him and slammed his foot on the brake. He was forced to spin the steering wheel as stopping wouldn't be enough at this point. The car barely missed the person and spun out, crashing into a tree.
"I think my drive to drive is gone..." Bro groaned, trying to adjust his eyesight. "Everyone okay?"
Everyone responded with groans but admitted they were okay.
Lily turned around in her seat and saw flashing red and blue lights.
"Guys...? I don't think we're technically at fault here, but..." she pointed toward the incoming police car.
"No problem," Bro stated, pulling his license out of his wallet. "I'll just get my license and everything will be just..."
As he looked over at his wallet, his eyes went wide.
"Take the wheel!" he yelled at Amelia before using his bands to turn into a ball of light and zoom out of the car's window.
Amelia took the driver's seat and put both hands on the wheel while Zaire hopped into the front passenger side.
A minute or two later, an officer with blonde hair and blue eyes walked up to the window.
"License and registration, please.."
30 Minutes Later
The four came back from the toy store and parked in the driveway. All filed out empty-handed, save for Lily, who was holding a Garbie doll in her arms.
Zaire grabbed the keys to unlock the house, but the second they touched the door, it fell forward and crashed onto the floor, emitting a loud noise that echoed throughout the home. Bro could be seen, dusting off some stuff.
"Oh, you're back," Bro waved. "How did it go?"
"It went well," Lily replied. "Amelia got let off with only a warning."
"Just a warning?" Bro asked. "That tree we crashed into is gonna need therapy!"
The room went uncomfortably quiet, as if the moment someone said anything, they would instantly shut up, courtesy of some unknown force.
"So, about earlier today," Porter said.
"I know, I know. Sorry about that, Amelia," Bro sighed.
"What even happened?" Zaire asked. "All I remember is that Bro yelled 'take the wheel' and waltzed outta there."
"Yeah, about that. It turns out my license expired," Bro explained, showing the others his license.
Lily swiped the license from his hands and inspected it further. "Bro Altrast? Who names their kid 'Bro'?"
"Probably parents who expected another kid," he replied, snatching his license back. "Besides, It's just a nickname. I have an actual name, but just don't use it for… reasons."
"Is that legal?" Porter asked.
"Apparently it is in Glitchview," Bro replied in a shrug.
"What are you going to do?" Zaire asked.
"I'll go to the DMV tomorrow, and if all goes well, my license will be good the next day," Bro stated.
The others all nodded.
"In the meantime..." Bro looked and pointed at the toy in Lily's hands. "How's that doll, Lil'?"
The Next Day
Early in the morning, long before sunrise, Bro left the house and walked to the fountain in the middle of the subdivision. As he sat on one side of the fountain, he wondered if renewing his license was a good idea. After all, if he or the other siblings needed to be somewhere, he could just use his bands to get them there in a short amount of time. Although, he'd have to carry them one at a time…
As he was thinking, a voice spoke from behind him and halted his thoughts. Bro turned around and saw Lily, still in her pajamas.
"Lily? What are you doing up and out?" Bro asked. "It's four in the morning."
"I could ask you the same thing," Lily retorted. "So, what are you doing?"
"Just thinking," Bro said, watching the moon slowly disappear below the horizon.
"Why think? Just do it! Go get your license renewed!" Lily replied in a cheer.
Bro looked at Lily, thinking she doesn't understand his situation.
"What? From what I heard, driving with an expired license is a big no-no. Plus, even though we're all fine and we barely missed trouble, you should renew your license just so you don't freak out and have Amelia cover for you again. At least, that's what I think."
Bro looked at the moon again, then back at Lily, who shrugged at him.
"If it's not for yourself, at least do it for Amelia. One of the last things she needs is a ticket," she added.
He took out his phone to look at the time. "The place doesn't open for another two hours," he muttered, putting the phone back in his pocket.
"Well, what should we do in the meantime?" Lily asked.
"You mean, what should I do. You need to go back to bed," Bro ordered. "If you want, I'll walk you back home, but as for me, I have some things I want to take care of."
"No, I'll be okay," Lily waved, "just be careful."
Bro nodded and walked to the gates of the subdivision. He spent 10 minutes zooming around the city in a ball of light and another hour at the mall killing time.
An hour before the Seal Island DMV opened, Bro went to the store to pick up some food items like Brite for the others, and some malt and tiramisu for himself. As he was heading to the checkout, he saw an old lady reaching for something on a high shelf.
Just for the sake of doing something good for the day, he went and helped the old lady grab the item she needed.
"Why thank you, sonny," The old lady chuckled as she slowly walked toward another aisle.
As Bro waved goodbye and turned around, a sheet of notebook paper flew into his face. As he grabbed the sheet and pulled it off of his face, he saw a tall woman standing in front of him. She was wearing a crimson sweater, black hair in a bun, and black pants.
"And now that you got that woman's chores done, here's what I need you to get for me," the woman said, looking at her phone. "And make it quick, would you? I don't have all day."
Bro looked at the sheet of paper in his hand. It was a list full of stuff, stuff that would take far too long for Bro to retrieve.
"What" was the only word Bro could say. Confused, no less.
The woman was growing impatient.
"Um, are you deaf?" she asked. "The list. I need it done in an hour."
Bro wondered what she was talking about, and came to three possible outcomes. One- The woman thought he worked here, two- the woman thought he was downright stupid, or three- nope, it was definitely the first thing.
While thinking, Bro could've sworn he's heard of these kinds of experiences somewhere.
"Oh, no no no, lady," Bro responded, dropping the paper and stepping back. "I don't know what you're thinking, but I am not employed in this particular type of workforce."
A confused look faded onto the woman's face.
"I don't work here," Bro clarified.
Clearly, the woman did not like this response.
"You don't work here? Why else would you help that old lady?" she asked, slowly getting angry.
"Because an object was out of her reach and I wanted to make her shopping trip a bit easier," Bro explained. "I didn't have to help her, and I certainly don't need to help you get stuff that you are completely capable of getting yourself."
This statement only made the woman angrier.
"Don't you talk to me like that! Do you know who I am? Don't you know that the customer is always right? Now go get me my stuff!" she demanded.
"Not a chance," Bro replied calmly. "I'm a customer here and quite frankly, because of your attitude, I wouldn't help you even if I DID work here!"
This woman threw a tantrum, stomping her feet and screaming like a teapot.
"I know you work here, don't lie to me, you disobedient, little- I want to speak to your manager!" she shouted.
Hearing those last seven words made Bro realize exactly who he was dealing with. As he looked around, he saw the old lady he helped earlier, still walking down the aisle. He then turned back to the angry lady, stepped back a few feet, and ran towards her. Sliding his items under her legs, he leaped over her and nabbed his groceries on the ground in style.
"I'm not dealing with this. And by the way, lady, employees here wear uniforms. Use your eyes," Bro grunted, strutting off to the checkout, leaving the lady screaming.
The lady probably would've caught him if a random crowd didn't show up out of nowhere.
After Bro paid for his items and left the store, he went to the DMV next.
The building was fairly bright, and despite it being open for five minutes, there were already a few people.
Bro began to back out and prepared to leave when he turned around and saw Lily in front of him.
"Going somewhere?" she smirked, raising an eyebrow.
"What are you doing in the city by yourself?" Bro asked.
As he asked that, he noticed the lady from the store from a few blocks away running towards him.
"Know what? Less questions, glad you didn't get kidnapped," he sighed, retreating back into the building. As Lily got his groceries and took a seat, Bro took a number and sat next to her. He didn't have to wait very long until he was next.
"Welcome to the DMV, how can I be of assistance?" A man asked in a monotone voice. This guy was hauling luggage under his eyes and looked like he could use a coffee or two. Or ten.
"Hello, sir. I came to get my license renewed," Bro explained, handing his license to the man. The man looked over his license, though because his pupils weren't visible, it was impossible to tell where he was actually looking.
"Alright, I'll take care of this right now," The man said, putting his license in a machine. As he waited for the machine to finish doing its thing, he asked Bro a question.
"So, you're the guy who has a mysterious name, aren't you?"
"There's more than one of us, but yeah, I'm one of them," Bro replied.
"Interesting. I wish I could have a mysterious name. It'd be a great conversation starter," the man chuckled.
The machine beeped and spat out Bro's license. The expiration date on it was changed.
"Alright, looks like this license will be valid for a while now," The man announced, handing the license back to Bro.
"So that's all?" Lily asked.
"Sure, that's all," the man responded, "unless he wants to do the optional driving test."
Bro was about to decline when he saw the entitled woman from the store burst through the doors.
"Yeah sure, let's go! I want to take the driving test!" Bro demanded.
"Go through the door on my left, please," The man pointed to a door with a blue curtain in front of it.
"But Bro," Lily remarked. "You don't have to do it if you don't want to."
The woman saw Bro and screamed, "YOU!"
"You're right, I don't have to, but I'm doing it anyway!" Bro retorted, taking Lily's hand and disappearing through the curtain.
As the two went down the stairwell, they overheard the woman yelling about a slacker employee with a black jacket not helping her through the walls.
They had now reached the driving test zone and saw a freshly washed blue minivan, likely the car they were going to drive in. Bro took the driver's seat while Lily hopped in the back. Someone else was in the front passenger side, and Lily realized who it was.
"You look familiar..." she told the woman.
It was the blonde-haired, blue-eyed officer from yesterday.
"First off, I am single but not available, so don't even think of trying to hit on me," the woman stated, not looking away from her clipboard. "Second, passing the written test doesn't mean jack to me. You need to prove you can actually drive. Playing your racing games doesn't count, either. And third..."
"I could've sworn I've seen you before," she said, looking at Lily.
"Me and my family get around the city a lot," Lily replied with a grin.
After Bro fastened his seatbelt, he slowly moved the car forward and awaited the instructor's instructions.
"You're going want to make a left here," she stated, writing something on her clipboard.
Even early in the morning, the city would normally have cars up, down, and around the streets. But as this test was going on, there were very few cars, something that Bro took full advantage of.
While stopping at a red light, a red vehicle bolted down the same street and rear-ended them.
"Is everyone ok?" the instructor asked.
"We're fine," the two siblings answered in unison.
In no more than a few seconds, the same lady from earlier walked up to the car and pounded on the window.
"Angry lady, nine-o-clock. What should I do?" Bro turned to the instructor.
"Roll down the window," she suggested. "I'll be right here if anything goes south."
Bro, while dizzy, nodded his head slowly and rolled down the window, and suddenly…
"Finally! I got you now!" The woman yelled, grabbing Bro's arm. "You are going back to that store and you are going to help me with my list, you slacker!"
"Are you serious?!" Bro tried to get his arm free but this woman's nails were digging into his sleeve. "You spent all this time looking for someone who doesn't even work at that store!"
"Lies! All lies!" she screeched.
"If it's a lie and I work here, WHY wasn't I wearing a uniform?!" Bro questioned.
The woman stammered, as if she was about to piece together an awfully constructed sentence.
"Well, It's YOUR fault for not wearing it on the job. You should be ashamed for trying to trick others into thinking you're just a customer!" she shouted.
"I probably would be ashamed… if I worked there, lady!" Bro shouted back.
He looked back at the instructor, who was watching this one-sided conversation unfold the whole time.
"This lady has been following me around the store, accusing me of lying and working there when I haven't and never have," he explained to the instructor. "Would this count as harassment?"
The instructor got a book from the glove compartment and went through the table of contents. "I'm not entirely sure, I'm going to have to check the officer guidelines for what counts."
Clearly, the word 'officer' is an enemy against entitlement.
"You're not an officer! You're a liar! I want proof! Prove you're an officer!" the lady screamed.
"With pleasure."
The so-called officer put the book down, put on an officer hat, and pulled out a badge and a card with her face and the name Jesse on it. "I'm just taking a small job as a driving instructor for a bit of extra money."
"I can't see it from here!" the lady whined. "Bring it closer!"
"Ma'am, my badge is inches away from your face. I know you can see it," Officer Jesse replied.
Madame Sweater threw another hissy fit which ended in her kicking the passenger side of the car and leaving a dent.
"Oh, no you don't! I JUST got this car washed!" Officer Jesse yelled as she got out of the car and began to chase after the woman.
"I'm going after her. I want you to turn around and park it back at the DMV," she ordered.
Bro gave a thumbs up and prepared to drive back.
"Ooh, can I sit in the front?" Lily asked.
"Nope."
15 Minutes Later
Back at the DMV, Miss Scratch and Screech was seated and in handcuffs. There were two other officers watching so she wouldn't run off again.
"I didn't do anything wrong! I was stalked by two psycho teens and assaulted by one of your officers! You should be arresting them, not me!"
As she struggled to get out of the chair, the man who took care of Bro's license went up to him, Lily and Officer Jesse.
Before saying anything, he gave a very long sigh.
"On behalf of my wife, I want to deeply apologize for the trouble she gave you all," he stated.
"It's fine, sir," Bro replied. "If only she would understand that I'm not an employee at SmallMart. And... my condolences."
"Pardon me, but your wife has caused some damage to a vehicle, as well as done some other stuff," Officer Jesse interrupted.
"Oh brother, not again…" the man groaned, shaking his head. "What are they this time?"
Officer Jesse brought up a notepad and read off the list.
"Those would be two counts of intended damage to private property, reckless driving, attempted assault on an officer, three counts of attempting to evade an officer, jaywalking, and twenty-two counts of harassment."
The man sighed again.
"I'm honestly not surprised. Years ago, she saved the mayor from an accident and was given the key to the city from them. I'm not sure if the young people know this, but at the time, having a key to the city gave you special perks, like limo rides and all that. But these days, it's nothing more than a giant keepsake now."
"That explains the entitled behavior," Lily said, the man nodding in confirmation.
Officer Jesse turned to the teens.
"You two can go now. As for you sir, might I suggest some family humbling exercises…?
The two walked off, waving goodbye to Officer Jesse, the DMV employee, the other officers and Queen Yells-a-Lot.
"Still got those groceries?" Bro asked.
"Yep!" Lily smiled.
"Well then, I've done everything I needed to do today. I got my license renewed, and got some food for you guys. All we have to do now is get home."
As Lily and Bro reached the subdivision, Lily asked, "What even happened today?"
The only thing Bro could say was, "I don't know about you, but I think I just lived through a story on Bluuit."
After passing through the gate and waving to their fellow neighbors, they finally made it to the house. Instead of using the keys, he knocked on the door to which Porter answered.
"Oh, you're back!" he greeted with a smile.
"Already?" Amelia asked, peering from the kitchen. "It's only noon!"
"We were out that long?" Bro asked, genuinely surprised. "I'm off to watch the world pass by some more, then. See you in the evening."
Bro ran towards the boys' bedroom and shut the door, leaving the other four to go on their day.
"So, Lily, how was your day out with Bro?" Amelia asked.
"It was weird," Lily replied. "Holding groceries and watching my big brother get yelled at by some crazy lady was something."
"Why was he being yelled at?" Zaire asked, laying on the couch.
"He kept being accused of working somewhere he didn't. And this lady just kept going and going…"
"Sounds like one of those stories on Bluuit," Amelia chuckled.
In no more than five minutes, Bro shuffled out of the bedroom and said, "It's still bright outside and I feel the drive to drive again, so... Anyone want to go somewhere? Anyone at all?"