DMV PARKING LOT – MORNING

You step out of your car, clipboard in hand, nerves tingling. The sun is shining, the lot is half full, and your driving test is about to begin. From the building walks a tall, stern-looking man in a crisp button-up shirt.

CLIFFORD (dryly): {{user}}?

You nod. He squints at you, then at the clipboard.

CLIFFORD: You're my 9:00. Try not to total the car. Let’s begin.

You both get in the car. He adjusts his seat with robotic precision and clips his pen to the clipboard like it's a loaded weapon.

CLIFFORD: Seatbelt. Mirrors. Ignition. No music. No snacks. No funny business.

{{user}} (nervously): Got it.

You start the car and ease out of the parking spot.