This section is from Derrick's perspective
The room was thick with tension but no threat. I slouched in my chair behind Ivan, trying to drown out the buzz of heated voices. Two of the council members were up in arms, dragging Mr. Allen into their petty squabble. They were like flies, buzzing around a carcass, and it got under my skin. But they couldn't change the outcome now – we had won the vote.
I glanced over at the Sheriff, whose indifferent face was annoying. I didn't think he would oppose us. Ivan and Mr. Allen seemed to have counted on his vote, but oh well. We still won 5 to 3.
"Moving on," Pam continued, rifling through her stack of notes, "We should probably be finishing up. We all have plenty of homework to do. Any final motions for consideration?"
"I'm so ready for this day to be over," Ivan muttered under his breath as Mr. Allen was doing his job.
No one raised a hand, and Pam announced the end of the meeting.
Almost instantly, four people ran up to Ivan and Mr. Allen, asking questions about the plans and how things were managed. I wasn't paying too much attention until Mr. Allen turned to me and asked, "Derrick, you're the one who built the smoker and shower. Can you please give an explanation?"
I blinked hard. "Uhhh, um, okay. I, well, um. I used a stove to make a heater, built a frame and made some stalls, ran some pipes, and used clay pots and metal pots for the smoker and some chicken wire shelves in a 2x4 frame and canvas shell."
Pam walked and called out from halfway to the door, "Wait a minute. Did you say you have a hot shower?" She turned around and stalked up like a cougar on the prowl.
I looked between Ivan and Mr. Allen for help.
Mr. Allen jumped in "I'm sure we can arrange a time for all of you to take a look. I'm not sure how applicable it will be to solve any of our problems. But it wouldn't hurt to anything to explore the options. I'm sure you are excited about possibly solving a sanitation problem."
Pam waved a hand dismissively. "Town Council meeting is over; I'm being explicitly selfish. So please be so kind as to answer: Do you have a hot shower?"
Mr. Allen and Ivan nodded slowly. They looked scared of the rabid Pam.
Pam smiled wickedly and lustfully spun on her heels and waved a hand. "Tell Tsu I'll be there shortly. We haven't had a tea session in a long time."
I blinked, confused and concerned. Glancing around I noticed everyone in the room, even the obstinate Josey ben and Sheriff Hank looked with interested to Mr. Allen and Ivan.
Ivan spoke up raising his hands "Wait, do all of you want to come over to have a shower?"
A chorus of affirmative answers rose from the circle around us.
"Okay, if you want, bring towels and come on over to get dinner and shower at my place," Ivan said, turning to the small group that had gathered around us. Mr. Allen's face tightened with nerves. "Do you need to ask Tsu first?" he asked.
Ivan looked confused. "We are all friends. And they come over semi-regularly along with other friends. Along the way, we should also pick up Oscar since he didn't come over to the council meeting today." Mr. Allen stared at him, his confusion evident, but he didn't protest further.
I knew what he was getting at. This would be unthinkable with Mrs. Bitch at home. I'm hoping this will show Mr. Allen a bit more of how messed up Mrs. Bitch was.
"Sounds good to me," I said, eager to be done with the day's events.
Mr. Allen and Ivan prepared the new bathhouse at home. We prepared the first batch of water and got it warming, the sound of water hissing as it hit the heated metal of the tub making me smile. Mr. Allen and I walked into the tents, checking each of the stalls I had built. I flicked on the first shower head, and a tentative trickle of cold water spluttered out.
"Needs more time to heat up," Mr. Allen observed, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. "But it's working."
"Better than nothing," I muttered, turning off the shower head. In the end, I'd managed to make four functional stalls. The idea of creating a bathtub jacuzzi had been scrapped – too complicated for my current skill set.
"Let's give it some time to heat up properly before telling everyone," Mr. Allen suggested. Together, we stepped back outside, joining the others by the cold fire pit. Tsu and Maria worked double time to make dinner available quickly.
"Looks like you two are happy with everything. Is it working?" Ivan remarked, passing me a plate piled high with food.
"Yeah, it's working. Just need to wait some time for the water to heat up." I said, taking the first bite of food.
Finishing food quick I went to the water heater and checked it. To my surprise the water was way to hot. I called to everyone that it was hot, but someone would need to add cold water. Ivan walked up to the pump and sent water through the hose to me. Feelin with my finger till the water was pleasantly hot, I called him to stop.
Climbing down again, I led everyone into the stalls and explained how to turn on the shower heads. Everyone seemed to be happy with it.
As everyone showered, Mr. Allen, Ivan, and I managed the hot water to make sure the guests could shower first.
Every person who walked out of the shower was smiling like they were on cloud nine.
I refilled the tank to heat it up for the next group of people waiting to get clean from a day of hard work. I noticed the town council people standing in a circle. With the corner of my ear, I heard, "All in favor of Derrick making a shower like this in town for public use?"
My head snapped just in time to see all 8 people, including Ben, Josey, and the Sheriff, hold their hands up high and proud. I was a bit offended by having my time and effort volunteered. On the other hand, thinking about it for 3 seconds made it obvious that this would boost Mr. Allen's profile, making it easier for him to get his way.
"So Derick you up to batt." Ivan grinned looking up at me. "You up for the challenge?"
I sighed with exaggeration. "Fine, but only if people are willing to help."
"Think of it as a gesture of goodwill to get the holdouts on our side," Mr. Allen chimed in, sitting next to me. "We could use all the support we can get."
"Yeah, I figured the same thing," I nodded.
The next day, a group of people arrived mid-morning to take a look at the bath tent. Some were familiar faces from around town, while others were strangers who had heard about the project. As I explained my vision for a larger bathhouse with separate areas for men and women, their eyes widened with excitement.
With a shared goal in mind, we ventured into town, selecting a spot near the well pump to build the new bathhouse.
"Alright, folks," I began, addressing the crowd. "Let's break up into teams – one for the men's side and one for the women's. Make sure each side has needed specialists." I wish Mr. Allen could be hear to help, but he was with Ivan doing research in the library. Nerds...
As everyone eagerly joined their respective groups, I was impressed by the sight. With minimum friction, the group of a few dozen hard workers got the project going up quickly and cleaner than the one I built.
With effort we connected the pipes that would supply water to the newly constructed platform for the water heater from the water pump.
"Damn thing's rusted," I heard a group of men carrying a wood stove salvaged from a neighbor's garage. Putting it in place on the platform, he gave it a determined kick, and the stubborn door finally swung open. "There we go," he said, satisfied. "Now we just need some firewood."
"Leave that to me," another man called out, his voice carrying across the site. He came back with a wheelbarrow of wood. "A week's worth of showers for this, right?"
"Deal!" I shouted back, grinning. It was amazing to see the community banding together like this – all for the simple luxury of a shower. Word had spread quickly, and now there were at least a hundred people milling about looking at our progress, eager to experience the fruits of our labor.
"Alright, folks," I announced, wiping my hands on my pants. "I think it's time to fire this baby up!" Applause erupted as I lit the stove, sending a plume of smoke into the air.
"Great job, Derrick!" Ivan slapped me on the back, appearing out of nowhere and beaming with pride. "This is really something else."
"Couldn't have done it without all the help, not that you did anything here," I replied, looking around at the sea of smiling faces.
"Alright, everyone!" I called out, my voice full of authority. "The first round of showers is on the house – enjoy!"
As the crowd dispersed, eager to scrub away days' worth of dirt and grime, I made my way back home. Ivan and Mr. Allen walked beside me, deep in conversation about the results of their research and actions.
"Y'know, we bought a cart and some horses just the other day," he said, his eyes lighting up. "Thought it'd be good for hauling supplies and whatnot."
"Wait, what? I thought you were studying. Where did you find a horse and cart in the library?" I remarked.
"At the rancher 2 miles down the road. He traded it for 4 week supply of eggs and a $1000 credit. You can thank Malcolm for that bit of negotiation. Well, the horses don't seem to like me much," he admitted sheepishly. "But Tsu's got a way with 'em, so we should be alright."
"Good to hear," I replied, nodding. We reached our destination, the familiar sight of the bath tent standing before us. One of the guys from the apartment joined us, and together, we managed the bath tent, ensuring a smooth operation. We ended up being last in line to our own labor.
The day's work had left me satisfied and bone-tired. As the sun went down in town, I found myself on the porch of Maria's cabin. I eased myself into a creaky wooden chair, feeling my muscles sigh of relief as I leaned back and stretched out my legs, propping them on the railing.
There was something pleasant about listening to insects and birds duke it out as the twilight gradually transitioned to night.