Chapter 18 — Summer On The Terrace

The autonomous roof model is written on a big board, not in a pretty presentation. Each entry has the person's name, time, and substitution. Uncle Sau is responsible for structural and technical inspection; students subject to tree calendar; kitchens are subject to harvest regulations; The user council reserves the right to stop operations when danger is detected.

The military added loading procedures: no soil trays that are too heavy, no roof drilling, all new rigs must have drawings and approval. Vy added paths, rest areas and instruction signs. Ha adds an output limit. My added audio and image rights.

Long created a three-source budget: school funds, community fundraising and non-exclusive grants. No one source has the right to decide alone.

“What if the company takes up more than half of the money?” Long asked.

“Not accepted,” Vy replied.

“So the project may be slow.”

“Slow but not possessive.”

Quan looked at her and said: "Write the threshold clearly. Don't rely on feelings."

They set a thirty percent threshold and a one-year deadline. All sponsorship must be public, all content has the right to withdraw.

Freshman Ngoc Ha proposed a mechanism to change shifts during exams. A security guard wanted to join the council because he was the one who locked the door. The cleaning lady asked to place the tools lower. The proposals go into regulations, even though they do not make good drawings.

Ms. Huong read and requested to add an assessment section after each semester. “A good regulation must allow us to recognize that it is wrong.”

Vy wrote.

Independent structural inspection arrived one afternoon. Engineers not affiliated with the school or company, measure loads, check waterproofing and review drawings. Conclusion: it is possible to keep the garden light, but must repair the water tank and remove a large part of the tray. The advertising frame in the old position will fail if not reinforced.

Quan heard the conclusion and was neither happy nor sad. “Just as planned.”

Vy asked if the engineer could reinforce it. He said it's possible, but the cost is high and the classroom impact is high.

The Council chose not to install the frame in area C. The company moved to a lower frontage location, with its own appraisal. Advertising contract is fixed.

Mrs. Nhan brought the signature. The company sponsors the waterproofing layer, non-exclusively, unnamed. In return, they are listed in the donation report and have access to a year's worth of aggregated data, not personal data.

My read, added the right to delete after the deadline and prohibit resale. Mrs. Nhan signed.

“You're harder than a lawyer,” she said.

“Because the data are real people.”

Mrs. Nhan smiled tiredly. “I will remember.”

Quan signs the technical part, Vy signs the design part as a group, not individually. Long signed the budget under supervision.

After signing, no one rang. They had to remove the large tray, repair the tub, move the plants and redo the schedule. Ha regrets having to give up the tomato plants, but she keeps the seeds to plant a new batch.

“The county doesn't remember the old tank,” she said. “They just need land.”

Vy brought that sentence into the news, but asked Ha first. Ha agreed.

My recorded a new podcast episode, using only confirmed lyrics. She read each participant's name and did not use too loud background music. The episode was listened to more than the previous version, because listeners wanted to know how the group corrected the error.

Long made his sponsorship report public. Some students still don't believe him, but they can check the data.

Quan went to repair electricity on the weekend to send money back home. Vy accepted a job drawing a resort area for a coffee shop, paying the right amount. They do not use their own money to save the project, but also do not consider making money a betrayal of their ideals.

One afternoon, Vy asked Quan if he wanted to go eat or not. He said after checking the valve. She said to check together.

Two people stood next to the water tank and heard the valve close. Vy asked: "If you didn't have a terrace, would you still do engineering?"

“Yes. But maybe without thinking much about the users.”

“And I still do architecture, but I can continue to draw where no one operates.”

They don't talk about love. But they have started choosing someone else in the way of profession.

At the bottom of the regulations, Ms. Huong wrote: "The terrace does not belong to this group. This group is just taking care of it for a period of time."

The regulations are tested in the first week with an outdoor classroom. Instructor registration, number of people limited, exits kept empty. When a student brought an easel that was too large, the person on duty asked it to be placed downstairs. No one has to call Quan.

Uncle Sau checked the waterproofing layer after the classroom and noted there was no standing water. Ha updated the vegetable yield, saying two trays were wormy but did not use strong medicine because it was close to the kitchen.

Long invited a school accountant to look at the fund. This person discovered that two invoices for materials were duplicated, not due to fraud but due to the supplier changing the code. Long edited and posted comments.

“The more I go public, the more I realize I'm not perfect,” he said.

“That's why publicity is necessary,” My replied.

Ms. Nhan sent an internal report, and the inspection team found that a chart still used the wrong sensor data. They asked to fix it before the company sent it to the customer. Ms. Nhan agreed, saying she needed more time.

Vy asked: "What if the customer has seen the old version?"

“I will send a correction.”

“Send original data as well.”

Ms. Nhan nodded, but did not promise that customers would like it.

The user council schedules monthly meetings. Representatives are replaced each semester, not allowing one group to hold power for long. Ms. Huong acts as an advisor and does not make decisions for her.

Quan created a download guide with pictures, so that non-technical people can understand. Vy checks the text, My makes the audio version.

A sudden rain fell. Water flows through the new channel without overflowing. The water catchment tank is full to the mark, the float is closed. Everyone stood under the corrugated iron roof, watching the system do it right once.

“It's not called success just because of one rain,” Quan said.

“But it can record data,” Vy replied.

They record rainfall, time, water level and moisture stains. Uncle Sau checked the engine room, there was no leak.

After the rain, several trays of trees fell due to the wind. Ha rebuilt it and added laces. Quan checked the towing load, Vy edited the drawing. One student asked why not remove all the light trays.

“Because the garden needs to learn from mistakes, not erase all differences,” Ha said.

Long received notice of the school fund's second disbursement, but requested a report after three months. You make a schedule.

Vy completed her personal project, included the garden part in the community research section, and recorded the names of the group and users. She did not use Quan's photo without permission.

Quan asked: "Can you use my photo if I sign it?"

“Yes. But I don't need it.”

"Why?"

“Because work doesn't need a face to prove it.”

Quan smiled, seemingly relieved.

The waterproofing layer is complete. The garden has fewer trays, but the paths are wide and easy to use. Ngoc Ha sowed new seeds and named a replacement.

On the regulation board, a line was added: “If no one is sure, stop and ask.”

Vy looked at it and thought it was the hardest and most necessary question to do.

The new regulations are twelve pages long, but the most read part is the one-page sign on the door. It states who can go on the roof, who to notify, when to stop watering, when to call security and How to record an incident. Ha wanted to add illustrations because not everyone is used to reading forms. Quan drew a diagram of the path, using large arrows and black and white symbols so that people who could not distinguish color could still see.

The group tests the rules with a rehearsal. One person plays the role of a customer who wants to take pictures, one person plays the role of a delivery staff, and one person plays the role of a student who discovered the water overflow. My stood outside and noted who asked for permission, who decided on their own, and where the words caused misunderstandings. After twenty minutes, they discovered that the line “person in charge of the garden” had no clear meaning: whether it was the person on duty, the designer, or the contractor.

Hanh changed it to "person on duty during the hours listed on the board". If you can't reach them, call the backup number. She crosses out statements that sound professional but don't help anyone do their job. Vy regretted a paragraph she wrote about "sustainability", but deleted it when she realized it didn't tell anyone what to do.

Mrs. Nhan came to look at the facade. The company wanted a larger logo, and the students wanted the garden's name to be easier to read. The two sides measure the distance from the wheelchair path and the pedestrian's perspective. Finally, they chose a low board with small enough letters, turned off at ten o'clock at night. Ms. Nhan said this option is not as noticeable as a sign on the roof, but consumes less electricity and does not require additional drilling.

Long read the terms of sponsorship: the company cannot request student lists, cannot use user photos without permission, and must make any design changes public. He sent three questions back to the legal department. Mrs. Nhan was not upset; She said those questions helped her defend her proposal when presenting it to her superiors.

At night, Vy and Quan posted the new diagram together. They stood far enough apart so as not to touch shoulders. Quan asked her if she wanted to change the board position. Vy measured again and said to leave it as is. A simple question that makes evening work a lot lighter.

Vy taped the loose corner of the paper, then rechecked the distance from the walkway before going down.

She recorded the completion time in the duty book.

The page is photographed and sent to a shared folder for the shift changer to find.