Why me? 

The thought gnawed at Sam as he slumped at his school desk. It was a day they all dreaded: parents spouting the joys of their profession in front of the entire class. 

He rubbed his eyes. At least his father had been promoted and was no longer just a Patent Clerk, though Jasper was still quick to point out that Einstein had once been. 

Jasper Van Sandt looked nervous, his hands fidgeting in the lap of his faded tweed suit as Sally Jacobs’ mother droned on about insurance. Despite a classroom of rapt faces, not one student would recall five words from her speech, all of them were instead focused on the glamour and gossip surrounding her brief appearance on The Apprentice. 

‘Any questions?’ Mrs Jacobs purred.