Holidays For Some
Mayhem is finished with school for this year, as confirmed by a call from the office. They may just dig up an undone scrap of paperwork, but he's done.
Which means that he's on the job market for the holidays.
First mistake: Using Polite Writer Rules to apply for work.
You don't want to be a Nice Writer when looking for a summer job. Nice Writers give the people on the other side an ENTIRE MONTH to get back or whatever their stated waiting period is, whichever is most convenient.
As you can guess, that doesn't work when you're getting onto the temporary seasonal job market. For that market, you have to do the Annoying White Boi thing: refuse to take 'no' for an answer, keep presenting yourself as an option, and seek every avenue you can spot.
Son of mine must learn these things.
Best of luck in your baby steps into adult life, my child. May you run. May you fly.