"Never," Wilbur said, "I ain't exactly got a clean slate. Boss'd either laugh at me or tell me t'take a hike if I ask fer more. I thought about it, but I dunno. I ain't real employable."
He made a face, enjoying more pizza and washing it down with beer. If he cooked instead of just buying take-out all the time, he would probably find himself in a better place financially. Wilbur just hadn't ever needed to change things up. He'd never had a reason to spend money on anyone besides himself.
"Maybe I could ask Jack t'talk t'my boss for me," Wilbur mused. Wilbur didn't consider himself a coward, but he really disliked the idea of losing his job and his home by asking for a raise the wrong way. Sometimes it was better to just use the resources available to him than it was to blunder through it himself.