Work it off

"Well you'd have to work it off, be employed by us until you pay off the bribe!" The woman told Jessica. The reporter hated this idea, but it seemed like the only option. It was either this or prison. "And how long will that take!?" She asked angrily. "I can check, one moment please. " The woman began to type away on her computer.

After a very awkward moment, the woman had an answer. "Six months, total, with good behaviour." The woman responded. Jessica felt panic and fear flow through her body, that was a very long time. Her mind raced as she began to think about the commitments she made, her job even! "Umm.. yeah that's quite a long time.." Jessica responded, a sheepish hint at shortening the length.

The woman was in no mood for negotiation. "Well I'm sure the cops I call can give your a shorter term!" The woman threatened and picked up her phone. "No no no!!! Okay fine, I'll do it." Jessica panicked and launched herself forward to stop the woman calling the cops. She didn't wanna do this, but prison would be FAR worse.

The woman smiled. "Good, all I need from you is your signature on all these, don't read them. Your punishment for causing all this trouble is also to find out for yourself what your next 6 months are." The woman demanded and tapped her finger on top of a small pile of contracts. Through gritted teeth, Jessica signed each one like a tired celebrity signing posters.

After the last signature, the woman gathered up the contracts. "Right, let's begin."