“Have you come here freely and of your own volition?”

“Yes, I have.”

“Have you reviewed the terms of the agreement with an attorney before signing it?”

“I have.”

“Did you bring a bank certified check in the amount specified?”

“I did.” He nodded as he handed the man an envelope.

“Ok, Mr. Hegira, everything seems to be in order. Do you have any questions at this time?”

Antonio’s apprehensions were gone. He felt this was right for him and his entire family, with one important exception, of course. “No, everything was clear and I’m good.”

The representative seemed pleased. “Ok, well then… and this is something you will get used to doing yourself… in fact, it will become second nature to you. Please scan my UPC.”

Antonio lifted his phone and pointed it at the tattooed UPC code on the representative’s left cheek. A small green light appeared for a second or two at the edge of his left eye and a tiny beep could be heard emitting from… from… hmm, Antonio thought to himself, maybe I do have a question after all. Where do they implant the speaker? He chose not to ask.

The representative, hearing the beep and feeling the customary dopamine burst for having made the sale, stood with noticeable vigor and held his hand outward for Antonio to shake. 

“Congratulations and welcome to the Allgood family. This will be the best decision you will ever make!”

After shaking hands, the representative continued: “I’ll bring you down to see Kaitlyn, your Personal Implementation Representative. You’re going to love her.”

After proceeding down a cubicle filled room the size of a large warehouse, Antonio was introduced to Kaitlyn. Unlike the gentlemen he just met, who must have chosen the A Package, she clearly went with C Package all the way. The Allgood branding was on her arms, legs, neck, and upper torso. Her UPC code was not only on her two cheeks, but also on her forehead, forearms, upper chest, and chin. Hard to miss that, he thought to himself.

Then, in an awkward eruption, Kaitlyn jumped to her feet and shoved her arm forward. It was as though she was leading with the forearm UPC, wanting him to notice it first. “I’m Kaitlyn and welcome to the Allgood family. I see you have chosen the A Package. Wonderful, wonderful. I did the same but then upgraded to B and then eventually C, so for some it’s slow and steady wins the race, right?”… she giggled nervously, and annoyingly.

“Ah sure, yeah… guess so.”

“Ok, I have the branding schedule for you here in this first packet, for your home and car in here in a second, and the orientation and training calendar here as well. Please don’t forget to stop in the Wardrobe Department for your Starter Kit. My contact information is inside and I want you to call or text me at any time. OK? Seriously, day or night.”

“Yeah, great. Thank you.”

“Have I done a good job describing the start up phase and next steps? Have I demonstrated that you are my greatest priority? That I will be available for you at any time? Would you rate me a 10 out of 10 in customer service, if asked?”

“Yes, great. A solid 10.”

“Super. Would you scan me? Now she was holding out her right hand not to shake but for a reading.” Antonio obliged and Kaitlyn’s eye flashed green and then something wherever beeped. “Thank you so, so much. You’ll learn early on in training that you have to ask for the scan. That’s how you make money doing this… that plus encouraging branding upgrades. That’s the way this is all optimized for you, your family, and for all of us here in the Allgood family. Remember, we always try to optimize for the Allgood family.”

After meeting with Kaitlyn, Antonio headed to the Initiation Center where the face inking was to take place. Because he had chosen A Package, he would receive the UPC on his cheek and the Allgood logo, which included two arms raised upward, as if in prayer, and a bright red diamond in the center on his forehead. This was only the initiation phase; further inking would take place in two weeks. The eye light, speaker, and central transmitter unit would be installed based on the calendar located inside one of the packets located within the Allgood cinch sack he was carrying. Antonio wondered if he would learn about the speaker placement inside that packet.

As Antonio sat in the waiting room, he thought back on the many conversations with his family about this decision. Because his wife and two oldest children had already been sponsored themselves, one by Allgood and two others by Swayjugain, this was not a difficult decision. Allison, his youngest, ever the renegade child… argued against it, though. She said that the changes were needlessly permanent, especially the body tattooing. He argued back that the house can always be repainted and you get a new car and wardrobe, but the tattoos… yeah, she was right about that. Permanent. She was aggressively opposed to this.

After departing the Allgood Welcome Pavilion, Antonio rode the subway back to his home. As he sat in the crowded car, he looked around and studied the many faces within his line of sight. All but one was sponsored. One person there was the unwanted, the undesirable, and unable to make the grade – clearly unable to be accepted by Allgood, Swayjugain or any of the others. One person in the entire subway car essentially permanently flashing the brand of a loser. He remembered this feeling painfully well, having taken so long to find sponsorship himself. Today was a great triumph. Finally his waiting, the long ordeal, was over.

But this was Allison’s future fate, he feared. He considered the challenging road ahead for her and the struggles she would face.

His heart sank for Allison. He could not stop thinking about her.