Easy Street
Easy Street
We stopped at the college on the way out of town. There weren’t many people around, but we found all the program information we needed.
“It’s actually pretty cool here,” Adam said. We wandered the campus before going into a cafe to get some coffee and something to eat. We sat outside and watched people walk past.
Adam flipped through the program information.
“What do you see me as?” he asked.
“An electrician? A graphic designer? A hairdresser?”
“Did you pick up that last one by mistake?”
“Yeah, maybe.”
“Graphic design,” I said.
“I might do electrician. IT says they offer apprenticeships. I could do that for a while and then start to think about graphic design.”
“Probably a good idea,” I said. I looked at the brochure for the electrician program. IT seemed like it would be interesting. And totally something I could see Adam doing. But it didn’t matter to me what he was doing as long as he was in school and not trying to figure out a new way to get rich quick.
I was incredibly tired, and my stomach clenched against the coffee.
“I have to hit the washroom,” I said, standing. Adam was still looking at the brochures. He nodded.
The quiet and peace of the single-stall washroom was such a relief that I spent more time in there than I needed to. I threw water on my face and dried it off a couple of times. We had been so close to disaster. So close I didn’t even what to think about it.
When I got back to the table, Adam was staring into his coffee.
“You okay?” I asked as I sat down.
“That was stupid,” he said. “So stupid. Why am I so stupid?”
“You’re not,” I said.
“Prove it.”
“You’re sitting here, not going back to jail.”
“That’s only because of you.”
“You made your own choice back there. You decided to do it.”
He nodded but didn't’ seem convinced.
“It was close,” I said.
“Really close. I never should have trusted Mike. He was always dodgy.”
He looked up at me, his eyes bright and glistening. “I guess I wanted to believe it could be that easy.”
“I know,” I said.
“Maybe I should stop looking for the easy way.” I didn’t reply. “You have no idea what it’s like in prison.”
“I don’t.”
“You have to get hard to survive. You have to look for ways to get ahead. Just little things. An extra shift in the library or kitchen to have something to do. The right friends so you don’t always have to be looking over your shoulder. It’s so tiring, Rob.”
“Yeah,” I said.
“I don’t want to do it again.” He’s started to cry. I hadn’t even noticed it. I heard it in his voice, and then he was wiping at his eyes. “Ever.”
“You won’t,” I said. “Get into this program. Get the apprenticeship or whatever, and it’s like none of this ever happened.”
“It’ll never be like none of this ever happened,” Adam said.
“It could be close,” I said.
“Yeah. I guess it could.”
We talked more on the ride home, but not about what was going to happen next. Instead it was about other car rides we’d taken. About the cottage we used to visit. The days that seemed so far in our past that they might as well have belonged to other people. But they didn’t. They were ours.
Eventually I fell asleep, and I didn’t wake up until we were just on the edge of our town. I sat up with a horrible taste in my mouth.
“What time is it?”
“Late afternoon,” Adam said, laughing. “It’s been a day.”
“I can’t wait to go to bed.”
“Dude, you just slept for, like, three hours. I’m the one who can’t wait to go to bed.”
We pulled up outside the house. The front door was open. Mom was out on the porch with a cup of coffee in her hands. She waved at us.
“Don’t tell her what happened,” Adam said.
“There’s no way I would say a word to her.”
Adam grabbed the brochures. “I don’t want to disappoint her anymore.”
“I think you’re heading in the right direction,” I said.
He nodded to this, then opened his door and stepped outside.
“How was it?” Mom asked.
Adam got hyped up, waving the brochures as he crossed the lawn.
“Electrician,” Adam said.
Mom’s face lit up. It was really good to see.
“Yeah?”
“Everyone needs electricity, rights?”
We sat down on either side of Mom, and Adam began describing the school. The buildings and people and how he felt so energized there. He went quiet for a moment, and Mom laid her head on his shoulder.
“This is going to be good,” she said.
“It is,” Adam replied. “I know it is.”
Rob is happy that his brother, Adam, is out of prison, but he doesn’t feel like they’re as close as they once were. Everyone, including his mother, is wondering what Adam’s going to do with himself now that he’s out after two and a half years. Working with his parole officer, Adam could work with other ex-cons, but he is more interested in making it on his own. He tells his mom that he has plans to go to Humber College in Toronto for some art or graphic design courses, and, although he hasn’t finished high school yet, the programs will allow him to graduate while earning college credits. Adam asks to borrow his mom’s car and invites Adam to go with him to check out Humber College the next day.
With a four hour drive ahead of them, Rob wants to talk with his brother but certainly not anything about prison. So, he tries to bring up the good times, like vacationing in Muskoka. However, the conversation turns to how Rob and his mom moved to be near Adam in jail, but, if he did go to school in Toronto, it might be better for their mom. As they drove into Toronto, Adam tells Rob to pull into an alleyway on Queen Street. Rob knows something’s up, but he does as his brother asks.
They end up in a basement apartment with a guy named Ben who asks Rob if he still spins “mad beats”. This takes Rob by surprise since he hasn’t DJ’d in a long time. They walk through the apartment and enter a room filled with pot plants. Ben tells Adam that they’re looking for a DJ for a nightclub since the usual guy got busted for something. Rob doesn’t know what’s going on but is filled in quickly. It turns out that Ben and his “friends” grow and distribute pot, but since the government is now selling pot, their company needs to “diversify”. What they want to do is make marijuana cider, but they need some capital to get it started. To get this capital, Ben has a plan to rob a local nightclub named Industrial because they get a lot of money for covers and sell hard drugs to the patrons, which Ben and his friends are against. The plan is to get Rob in as a DJ and have Adam with him as a helper. Then, once the place is full, Adam is to rob the office and beat it out of there. When successful, Rob and Adam get a cut. To Adam, this sounds like a great Robin Hood scenario - robbing from some creepy chemical dealers in order to support a more organic business. Rob, however, knows this is an awful idea.
They get back in the car, and Rob lets Adam have it, telling him what a stupid idea this really is. After Adam starts talking about how he just needs a break to start a new life, Rob knows that he has to at least check it out with him - even though he knows it’s a bad idea, but he loves his brother and can’t ditch him now.
They arrive at Industrial so that Rob can set up his tracks and check out the equipment. While he’s doing that, Adam has a chance to figure out how he is going to go from the Green Room to the office and make their quick escape. Although Rob is nervous about Adam, he’s so excited to be back spinning beats and is really getting into it. With his practice set figured out, Rob and Adam leave the nightclub.
Later on, they return to Industrial, and Rob gets ready to do his set. Rob does a great job in the DJ booth and then passes it off to the next DJ while he and Adam take a break in the Green Room. While they’re in there, Adam acts nervous, checking the fridge, looking out the door to the office, checking the fridge again. They both notice that there are cameras everywhere! Rob starts asking Adam if this is still a good idea, and Adam tells him that he’s going to take all the money they steal and take off. Rob calls him on this because he’s still upset about how Adam left him and his mom the last time. They don’t have time to talk more as it’s time for Rob’s second DJ set.
From up in the DJ booth, Rob has a good view of the floor. He sees Ben and his three friends enter the club, shaking hands with the bouncer. This was a lot different story than Ben told Rob and Adam when he said that he couldn’t be seen in the club! Rob watched them move around the outside of the room, but Adam couldn’t see them. Then, Rob watched Ben and his friend walk into the green room and come out moments later with full looking packs. Suddenly, everything clicked for Rob - this was a set up! Rob quickly finishes his set, passes the booth off to the next DJ, and searches for Adam. Rob spots Adam just as he’s entering the green room. Rob runs to him and stops Adam just as he’s leaving with a backpack. Rob notices that Adam’s pack is definitely not as full as Ben and his buddies’ packs. Rob tells Adam that it’s a set up, but Adam doesn’t want to believe him. Adam says they’ll talk with Ben and tell him they were just checking it out and will do it next week. Just as they’re leaving, one of the other DJs enters and questions them about what they’re doing there. In conversation, the DJ calls Rob by his real name, not his stage name. Now Rob knows that this DJ is in on the set up as well! Just then, the manager stops the music and announces that everyone has to leave due to difficulties in the club.
When everyone leaves, the bouncers question Adam about what’s in his bag. Thankfully, when they go through it, they only find the vinyl records he brought and no money. As the bouncers keep looking, Rob and Adam leave the night club and step out into the bright daylight. The brothers sit in their car, quiet and in disbelief. Rob points to the side of the building when he notices that there is no exit door like they were told - it was definitely a complete set up by Ben.
Relieved about not getting caught, the brothers return home. Adam has plans to go to college to be an electrician and stay away from any questionable adventures.
Ross’ text takes the reader on a fast-paced adventure that explores themes relevant to teenagers, including family struggles and connections. Though there are some moments that ask the reader to suspend belief, this does not detract from the overall positive messages of the text. Easy Street would appeal to older teenagers who are exploring family dynamics, especially those with siblings who have been in jail.
Penta Ledger is a teacher-librarian at Gravenhurst High School in Gravenhurst, Ontario.