Death O'Clock

The streets were crowded with kids and parents full of joy and impatience. They were in front of a mall to which the Swinton family only went in special occasions; they lived in a rural area, and their car was almost in shambles. That poor Dodge Aries had stories to tell as old as time, and its engine would be too loud about them. Either that, or it would just stop sharing them due to fatigue, age or perhaps lack of care.
Edgard Swinton, however, always blamed big companies for making products that would always break in a specific amount of time. "Built-in obsolescence" was the name, but he always called it "scheduled obsolescence" for whatever reason. He knew he was wrong, he knew that was not the name. But he was stubborn and too old for his age. Except for when he was with his kid, Eliott Swinton――that little guy gave him the spirit that he would lose after being done with his nine to fiver every day. He absolutely loathed his job: he worked in retail in a 30-miles-away Walmart. But that hatred towards enterprises and their products was not enough to keep a family that he truly loved. That's why he would keep going with it, despite taking a day off in order to buy what would be Eliott's new favorite game: Pokémon Sapphire.

The line was already almost a mile long, even though they woke up very early.

"God bless, dad! This line will never end."

"Come on, Eliott. Don't name The Great Maker in vain! Where are the manners?"

Edgard could not contain the laughter in the middle of that statement.

"I'm just kidding. God damn it, we woke so early for this shit?!"

"Dad, don't be so loud.", asked Eliott, ashamed. Everyone was staring at him and his father.

An hour had passed, and it was finally Eliott's turn to get his own copy of the game. He was almost shaking, it truly was the best day in his life. And what other gift is more satisfying for a father than seeing his child so full of joy? For Edgard there was nothing more fulfilling than this: his kid, jumping and smiling. Happy at least after all that had occurred not even 2 years ago.

The trip back home was very congested.