Repose

[Call: Newt P/Jack P]

Ring

[A box of 30 notebooks, along with a fountain pen, and several ballpoint pens arrive, unwrapped, for Liam R. Included is a blank, white card, within is printed the entirety of this conversation and very finely printed 'Merry Christmas.']

[In an envelope with a postcard tucked inside and Jack's full name scrawled on the front: A fully paid BIG jump and a weekend to recover.]

[They come wrapped in the Capital Times and twine: a stack of sci-fi books. They’re all worn, well-used paperbacks. A business card of a used bookstore in the Capital is tucked into one of them, with one word written on the back in chickenscratch: thanks.]

[Santa is out of sight, but Eddie can probably hear the noise on the roof of the arcade, though his visitor does try to be quiet as can be. If he heads up at 2pm, as arranged, he'll find an old and handmade quilt spread out. Atop it are two shotglasses and some good booze, along with a baggie of weed (a strain that Santa was assured melts away stress and makes the smoker feel bright) and rolling papers. There's also an envelope propped against the bottle for Eddie. It says Adventure! on the front, and if he chooses to open it there are two paid tickets for a little-known (and more techie) offshoot of the Dream Clinic in the Capital. It's an underground type place, and the tickets say there's an adventure ready for him and a guest, pre-created, whenever he wishes to visit. Should he decided to attend with someone other than his Santa, the adventure will remain precisely as programmed. It involves a sleekly dystopian future world where, upon arrival, Eddie will find himself in a sleek and futuristic capsule in space and with a fully functional AI that will explain he has stolen secret schematics from the very, very bad guys, and that he has to sneak his way to a banned, outlier world in order to deliver his schematics. It's a very dangerous mission, and it's planned out to the last detail. The note explains that the personas in the dream are all open-programming, and will therefore respond to whatever he does in a unique manner. It includes a caveat for high-risk and danger, and the duration of immersion can be up to a full-week in the adventure (a few hours in real time). There's a bit of handwriting on the back of the ticket that specifically states Eddie's name. It says: It's not all fake.]

[Everything she asked for is provided:

• A receipt from her lawyer stating her account fees have been settled in full.


• Medium, 32 B. A note folded into the box states: Thank the girl at the counter at the store, she picked them.


• A bottle of whiskey with a bag of swedish fish taped to it.


• A Whole Foods giftcard for $500. Note attached - I just found out this fucking place charges 20 fucking dollars for a pound of coffee.


• A very reasonable used 2014 CR-V in dark red, with all the extras a reasonably priced crossover SUV can provide - leather seats, sunroof, etc. The car is brought to her place by a guy from the dealership, who hands over the keys and the paperwork.]

[A printed voucher in a white envelope for up to 20 free singing lessons in 2018 with a well-established private teacher in the Capital. The envelope is taped to a liter bottle of Maker's Mark, and enclosed is a short note:] Enough whiskey to make a guy forget he got sold by his parents this Christmas. Take that family history and sing it, Taylor Swift.