How do I make money ethically?

I should probably mention that my full ride scholarship to Kale University didn't cover room and board.

Before I left home, my mom offered to pay for at least part of the cost, but I didn't want to rely on her. Mom had already supported me for too long - she didn't need to keep paying for food and a roof over my head when I was living over two thousand miles away from her. It was both illogical and unethical.

However, by October, I was beginning to regret that decision. The money that I had made by mowing lawns in middle and high school covered the first few payments, but that money quickly ran out. As I focused on saving every cent for my room and board, I realized that I couldn't attend football games, buy pizza, or do anything that a normal college student should be able to do. I had two choices: asking my mom for more money or getting a job.

I spent some time considering my dilemma, but in the end, the choice was easy. I couldn't go back and ask Mom to pay for my room and board after I had already told her that I would pay for it myself. I wasn't the type to go back on my promises. I had to find some sort of way to earn enough money to pay for room and board myself.

However, I had no idea where to find a job, and I was still searching when the next Guyliner Club meeting arrived. Just like I had for the previous meeting, I walked to the Pendragon Center and found the other members waiting for me on the second floor. I hadn't put as much effort into my eyeliner that time around, but I still thought that it looked pretty good.

"Hey Ryan," Gerard said, smiling. "It's good to see you."

"It's good to see you too," I said as I sat down between Gerard and Pete.

"How have you all been?" Gerard asked.

"Comparative Politics is killing me," Pete complained.

"Really?" Laura said. "I liked that class."

"You must have had a different professor," Pete said.

"One of my dogs got sick," Frank said.

"That's too bad," Pete said.

"What about you, Ryan?" Gerard asked. "What's new with you?"

"My next room and board payment is coming up," I said. "I have no idea how I'm going to pay for it."

All of the other Guyliner Club members groaned. "I totally get that, Ryan," Frank said. "Room and board is ridiculously expensive here. That's why I moved into the Greek Friendship Society house. It's way cheaper."

"No, you moved into the Greek Friendship Society house because we let you have your dogs," Gerard said.

"That's the other reason," Frank said.

"I'm going to be so in debt when I graduate," Pete said. "It's not my fault that Kale gave me a lousy financial aid package!"

"Welcome to the life of a college student, Ryan," Laura said. "We're all broke."

"I don't know what you guys are complaining about," Gerard said as he sipped his coffee. "Kale isn't that expensive."

"Gerard, you went to a New England private school and your family owns a freaking multinational corporation," Frank said. "You have absolutely no right to say that Kale isn't that expensive."

"Actually, I'm from New Jersey," Gerard said. "That's not in New England."

"My point still stands," Frank said.

Gerard sighed and said, "I'm sorry. I do need to work on checking my privilege."

"That's all I needed to hear," Frank said.

I glanced over at Pete, who had stopped listening to the conversation and was playing with a purple fidget spinner instead, apparently not realizing that those had gone out of style several months ago. Once she realized that Pete wasn't paying any attention, Laura snatched the toy from him. "Hey! Give that back!" Pete exclaimed as Laura tossed it across the room, narrowly missing Gerard's head.

"You can have it back after the meeting's over," Laura said.

"I have some news for you all," Gerard said.

"What is it?" I asked, curious as to what Gerard had to say.

"I'm an actor now!" Gerard exclaimed. "Well, I mean, I'm really just an extra in Ray Toro's senior project, and he's paying me in Starbucks gift cards, but that counts, doesn't it?"

"That's kind of cool," Frank said.

"I'm glad you think so, Frank," Gerard said.

"Have you decided on your senior project yet?" Frank asked.

"I'm still trying to decide between the graphic novel and the series of paintings," Gerard said. "I might try both and decide later."

"Laura?" Frank said. "What are you doing for your senior project?"

"I don't have to do one," Laura replied. "It's only the art kids who need it."

Frank considered this for a few minutes before Gerard changed the subject. "Are all of you going to the Aubergine Dream tonight?" he asked.

"I'm going for sure," Frank said.

"I'm there every night!" Pete exclaimed.

"Me too," Laura said.

"What's the Aubergine Dream?" I asked.

"How have you never heard of the Aubergine Dream?" Frank said as he gave me an incredulous look.

"It's only the second coolest bar in all of Old Haven," Gerard said.

"Aren't there only two bars in Old Haven?" Laura noted.

"I'm still confused," I said.

"Let's put it this way," Frank said. "The Aubergine Dream is a bar just outside of campus. It's not as trendy as the Poisoned Youth, but all of us go there anyways because it's an easy escape from campus life and they have a really talented singer who performs every night."

"Also, their daiquiris are delicious," Pete added.

"So the Aubergine Dream is a bar, and you're asking me if I want to go there tonight?" I said.

"Precisely," Frank said.

"I'm only eighteen, Frank," I reminded him.

"That doesn't matter," Frank said. "You can either get a fake ID or just go without drinking anything alcoholic. The Aubergine Dream is just a nice place for socializing."

"I agree," Laura said. "You don't need to be twenty one to have fun at the Aubergine."

"Fine," I said. "I'll tag along."

"Wait a second," Gerard said. "I have a brilliant idea."

"What is it?" I asked.

"Please tell me that you're not going to start a rock band, release four excellent albums, and then break it up twelve years later, breaking the hearts of millions of crying emos," Frank said.

"No, that's not even close to my idea," Gerard said. "How did you even come up with that?"

"I don't know," Frank admitted.

"Anyways, Ryan you play the piano, don't you?" Gerard said.

"Yes, I do," I said. I hadn't practiced in a few days, and I certainly missed hearing the soft notes and tantalizing little memories hidden in the piano, but without a doubt, I did play the piano.

"I thought I remembered you playing in Flack Hall," Gerard said. "There's a singer at the Aubergine Dream, and he's looking for a piano accompanist. Would you be interested? I'm sure the Aubergine would pay you good money to do it."

It took me a few minutes to process Gerard's offer, but I desperately needed the money. I couldn't afford to turn down anything that sounded remotely like a job offer. "I'm interested," I told him.

"Awesome," Gerard said. "I'll introduce you to Brendon tonight, and then you two can take it from there."

"Gerard, can we wrap this up?" Laura said. "I'm going to be late to Foreign Policy again."

Gerard nodded. "I'll see you all in two weeks," he said.

"Can I have my fidget spinner back please?" Pete asked.

Gerard sighed. "Yes Pete, you can have your fidget spinner back." Pete immediately scrambled to the other side of the room to find his fidget spinner, while I calmly left the Pendragon Center and walked back to Flack Hall.

On my way back to the Pendragon Center, I couldn't help but reconsider the ethics of my job offer. It wasn't a terribly valid offer, since I hadn't met anyone at the Aubergine yet, and they were the ones who would potentially pay me for my piano playing, but the chance to make some money excited me.

However, it couldn't be very ethical for a place like the Aubergine Dream to employ a boy who wasn't even old enough to drink yet. At that point in my life, I didn't care. With my room and board payments approaching, I valued money more than any vaguely defined moral principle. Money was something that was both tangible and powerful, and as much as I wanted to make money ethically, if I was given the choice between money and ethics, I would have chosen the money.

Does that make me a selfish person? Perhaps, but being at the Aubergine didn't harm anyone. If it didn't harm anyone, then it couldn't be all that bad. If anything, a new job could only help everyone. The patrons at the Aubergine would be entertained by my piano playing, and I would earn some extra cash to pay off my bills and stop needing to borrow money from Patrick all the time.

If I had been asked to murder someone for money, for example, I might have refused the offer, but playing the piano seemed like an easy, painless job. Hanging out a bar all the time as an eighteen year old was a little questionable, but it wasn't that bad in comparison. It wasn't unethical in my opinion, at least not enough for me to refuse the offer.

When I returned to Flack Hall, I crashed onto the bed and stared at the white stucco ceiling. Both Great People of Mathematics and the Guyliner Club meeting had taken all of the energy out of me, and I desperately needed a quick nap. I closed my eyes and drifted off to sleep.

"RYAN! WAKE UP!" I heard Gerard scream as he knocked on my door. I snapped my eyes open, opened the door, and saw him standing directly in front of me, dressed entirely in black. "Seriously Ryan?" he said. "Over the last three hours, I dyed my hair, worked on my graphic novel, listened to the Misfits, and helped Frank walk his dogs, and all you did was sleep?"

"I was tired," I grumbled as I got out of bed.

"Come on," Gerard said. "We're going to the Aubergine." I followed Gerard out of my residence hall, where we met up with Pete, Frank, and Laura before heading towards the Aubergine Dream.

"You'll thank us for this later," Frank said, and believe it or not, he was right.