You’ve got teeth for a reason.

  Ever slurped and swallowed the noodles whole. Normally he would chew, but time was of the essence.

  *Logan told me to get a phone during my lunch break, I have to hurry.*

  He hefted the bowl of soup up, splashing a little on the table in the process of drinking it. His chair squeaked indignantly as he pushed it back, rising and pulling out a $20 note from his pocket all in one movement. He liked this no-nonsense shop, run by a husband and wife team. They liked him because he always paid in cash.

  *OK, he said the Telstra store had good deals at the moment.* Ever looked left and right, hands on hips. *Any idea where it is, Mentor?*

  What am I, your GPS? Death grumbled. Your new phone will direct you next time. This is the only time I’ll take you.

  But Mentor, haven’t you been taking me to reapings all this time? Ever thought to himself, smiling.

  —--

  “Hey there, how can I help you?” The girl had a pretty customer service smile. If her hair had been black and not blonde plus a little shorter, she might have passed for Taylor.

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  “Hi,” Ever said, looking around. There were rectangular devices on display on tables around them. “I’m looking for a phone.”

  “Well, you’ve come to the right place!” The girl said, spreading her arms. The name tag on her chest said ‘Jen’. “What sort of phone are you looking for?”

  “I… I’m not sure,” Ever said. “My boss just told me to get a phone.”

  “OK,” the girl nodded. Behind her effervescent personality, Ever could see her mind racing ahead. “Well, if you want our newest phones with the best cameras, processors and built in AI…” she turned and started moving towards a central table. Ever followed her mutely. His eyes were drawn to the screens in all their crystal clear brilliance, but all he saw was the time: 11:48am. The second thing he saw was their price.

  “All I’ve got is a thousand dollars.” He pulled out a stack of the notes and showed it to Jen. She stared at the cash unblinking, as if her brain had short-circuited for a moment.

  “Oh, well you would be looking at our lower end models then.” Her energy had noticeably dropped off. She pointed toward a table in the corner. “You’ll be able to pick up a phone for as low as $600, though…” a glint returned to her eyes, “how much data were you planning on using per month?”

  “Um,” Ever said, “I don’t know. What’s data for?”

  Jen forced a strained laugh. “You know what, maybe it would be better if you were to get a prepaid SIM card.”

  Moments later, Ever dashed out of the Telstra store with his first smartphone. He had two minutes left. If he wasn’t back on time Taylor would…

  He stopped abruptly. Taylor wasn’t there, at least right now - he hoped only for right now, anyway.