01| 1950'S BOY

The wage gap and social status were too important back then.
Grayson came from the poorest part of town. That area no one looked at without disdain or disgust, where the streets weren't paved and drugs were more plentiful than money.

He worked in a factory, one of the biggest in the city, though that didn't mean he earned much. He worked late and had to take care of his siblings because his father was an alcoholic and lived on the south side of town. His father's addiction had left him with the enormous responsibility of caring for his two younger brothers and his ailing mother; his main reason for working was to pay for the expensive medication to treat her illness.

Lately, things were going terribly for Grayson. His middle brother, Fred, was wondering if his girlfriend was pregnant. Great, another mouth to feed. The youngest was misbehaving at school. It was the second time he'd been called in because his brother had gotten into fights. And yet, he still went to work. He was on his break, slumped in a corner, his uniform stained and unbuttoned to his chest, his face hidden by his helmet, when Lenny, one of his friends, approached and shook him roughly, his voice thick with irritating excitement. He was babbling about an angel who had just arrived at the company.

"The weed's messing with your brain cells, idiot... You're crazy."

He grunted, irritated by the interruption. The insult didn't stop his friends from dragging him down the corridors.

That's where he saw her. He almost choked when he saw her.

He even straightened up when she greeted him. And although he knew he didn't stand a chance with a girl of her status, he decided to approach her. He had nothing to lose by trying.

A lower-class man who becomes infatuated with his boss's young daughter.