Zoe had a couple of hours before she had to be at work, so she decided to take a run around the park and get another loaf of bread from Riverside Bakery and Café. She was in the mood for a grill cheese or as most city folk called them grilled cheese sandwich. Smiling to herself, Zoe changed into some more running clothes, walked into her living room, stretched, and then donned her running shoes. Zoe exited her home, locked the doors, activated the security system, and took off jogging down the pier.

*

“Hey Zoe. You’re here early,” Wendy said as Zoe stepped up to the counter.

“Hey Wendy. I was about to say the same thing to you,” Zoe replied. The bakery was just as busy this morning as it had been on Sunday. “Is it always this busy here in the mornings?”

“Yeah. You haven’t seen anything yet though. Come back in an hour when more people are rushing to grab a quick muffin and coffee before going to work,” Wendy said. “I’m pulling a double today so I can make some extra credits.”

“That makes sense and no thanks when it comes to coming back,” Zoe replied. “I’ll take a loaf of whole wheat bread though.”

“A whole loaf?”

“Yeah. I’ve moved nearby and plan to start eating at home more to save some credits.”

“Don’t blame you,” Wendy replied. “We’re out of the whole wheat unless you’re willing to wait for more to bake.”

“Don’t have time to wait.”

“We have white and butter bread ready to go though.”

“I’ll take a loaf of white then,” Zoe said.

“You should get some croissants,” Wendy urged.

“Alright. Get me a half dozen of them too,” Zoe agreed after smelling the fresh pastries. The waitress smiled and Zoe returned it. “Do you get commission or something?”

“Your order is coming right up,” Wendy said as a smug looking grin replaced the smile on her face instead of answering Zoe’s question.

*

“I should have moved my bike from the parking garage yesterday,” Zoe muttered to herself as she shut the porch’s gate and headed down the pier at a brisk walk.

Zoe’s hair was up in a ponytail, and she was wearing her new blue jeans, jean jacket, and the yellow underlayer short sleeved riding shirt she had bought when she purchased all the leather gear. Zoe’s backpack was slung over her shoulders, and she was wearing her ankle boots. She just preferred them to the knee-high boots.

She greeted several of her neighbors as she passed them. Most returned the greeting and a few exchanged hurried introductions. Most everyone seemed to be in a hurry to get to work.

“You really must love denim,” a woman that had introduced herself as Barbara Smith said.

“I do and it’s just different enough from the leather all the other couriers wear,” Zoe replied.

“That’s true,” Barbara laughed as she stopped at her car. “Take care.”

“You too,” Zoe replied as she continued to her GT4.

*

Zoe smiled to herself as her police scanner proved its worth. She had been zipping in and out of traffic on her way to Cartier Transport’s office but slowed after the scanner had flashed a warning about an upcoming speed trap.

Zoe had spent part of Sunday afternoon modifying the scanner so that it added a color-coded ticker to her HUD. She had quickly gotten tired of listening to the police comms and imagined others would as well. So, she coded the ticker option.

Red messages meant violent crime, major accidents, and other unusual police incidents. Orange meant the police were talking about the user. Yellow meant upcoming traffic stops or speed traps. Green was used for general police communications.

Zoe gunned her bike once she was past the trap and out of range of any drones. She screamed in joy, “Woohoo!”

*

“You’re not going to cancel the party this weekend too, are you?” TK asked when Zoe walked into the office.

“Good morning to you too,” Zoe replied.

“Morning. Fine. Whatever. Answer the question,” TK said.

“Good morning, Zoe. Ignore him,” Chloe said. Zoe returned the greeting. “Is there anything you can do about the police chatter? It gets…”

“Irritating?” Zoe asked.

“Yes!”

“I’m sending you an updated copy. This one has a color-coded ticker you can use. Everything is explained in the tiny help file,” Zoe replied sending the program to her coworker. Seeing the expressions on Newt’s and Vee’s faces, she sent them the updated copy too.

“Thanks!” the other two couriers chorused.

“Where’s ours?” Terr asked.

“Where are my credits?” Zoe countered.

“How much?” Terr asked.

“For you guys, 100 credits since we all work for Henri and Chloe. Anyone else will have to pay at least 200 credits.”

“Hey!” Cee said. “You don’t work for me.”

“It’s only a matter of time,” Newt replied grinning at Chloe.

“Here’s 100 credits Zoe,” Henri said as he joined them. “What’s this about a party?”

“Why did you cancel breakfast yesterday?” Newt asked.

“And why are you wearing so much denim?” Vee asked.

“I’ll explain everything,” Zoe said as everyone took a seat.

*

“Where are we going for lunch?” Cee asked as the couriers walked to their bikes. “How about that bakery and café again?”

“That’s fine with me,” TK replied.

“That works for me,” Terr said.

“I’m game,” Vee replied.

“Sure,” Newt added.

“I’m going home to eat,” Zoe said.

“What?” Vee asked.

“Why?” Newt asked.

“How come?” Terr asked.

“Can we join you?” Cee asked. “I would love to see your new place.”

“First you breakup the look we all had going with your farmgirl thing and now you want to breakup our lunch gang,” TK said. “What’s next?

“Farmgirl?” Zoe sputtered. The others laughed. “I like my jean jacket thank you very much.”

“Ignore TK. The denim suits you,” Chloe said. “But you didn’t answer my question.”

“Sure, you guys can come eat at my place. I made vegetable soup yesterday.”

“You mean vegetable beef, right?” Terr asked. Zoe shook her head. “I’ll stop by the café and get something to bring with me.”

“Me too,” TK said.

“I’ll try your soup,” Chloe said.

“Can we have sandwiches too?” Newt asked.

“I guess. I bought a fresh loaf of bread from the bakery this morning and have cheese, ham, and lettuce,” Zoe answered.

“That works for us,” Vee said for her and Newt, who nodded in agreement.

“Alright. I’ll see you guys at 12. You’ll have to message me to get in or stop by the marina office for pier permission though,” Zoe said.