Excerpt
Chapter
1
Scarlett
stared out the window of her history class.
The
Blue droned on at the front of the room, but Scarlett hated the story of the Government, not that she would dare say as much aloud. Blah, blah, blah. Citizens couldn’t be trusted to share. Blah, blah, blah. They had been organized according to
abilities and were allowed to live their best lives as long as they followed
the rules. Blah, blah, blah.
Scarlett
had never seen one of these Citizens, but she had been shown
many pictures. They looked just like her, except for the fact they weren’t
as intelligent. But that wasn’t always something you could see.
Scarlett
shifted to a more comfortable position in her chair and dared a
glance over her shoulder at Jaylin. Jaylin was staring intently at the
Blue as though they hadn’t been told this same story before, as though she
might absorb some detail that she had missed during another account.
Scarlett
sighed softly as her mind turned to what she would do when she
was finished with her classes for the day. She had exactly two hours of
free time before dinner. Free time was the only chance she would have to
see Rhys because males and females weren’t often allowed to mingle.
A
piece of paper landed on her desk, and Scarlett’s eyes flew up. The Blue
was already moving on to the next desk. A quiz? On what? They hadn’t
learned anything ew. Scarlett waited for the signal to turn her paper over and
quickly scanned the questions. Then, rolling her eyes at the quick bout of
anxiety, she raced through the quiz, circling the correct answers.
All
of her other classes moved on to new material after a week or two. But
his- tory class—it was always the same. At least she was guaranteed a good
grade. What Scarlett couldn’t wait for was the “Life in the Cities” class.
But she wouldn’t be able to take that one until she was a Blue, and who
knew when that would be. She had been a Green for three years, but she
could continue to be a Green for an- other five if she wasn’t able to meet
the right goals. She could potentially remain a Green forever, but she
knew that wasn’t a real possibility, not with her dedication to the training.
A grating beep signaled the end of class, and Scarlett placed her book carefully into
her satchel. Everyone remained silent until they exited the classroom, then Jaylin
grabbed Scarlett’s arm.
“Female! You have got to come with me. Miya and I are planning on partic- ipating
in the Optional Fitness Program, and you have to join us.”
Scarlett
nodded, trying to match Jaylin’s enthusiasm for the program.
Scarlett enjoyed working out, and she often spent time exercising during
her free hours. But there was something about having another program in
lieu of choosing her own exercises that made Scarlett wary of
joining.
“Thanks,
Jaylin, but Rhys and I are going to practice in the shooting
range today.”
“You
can practice tomorrow. The program is only four days a week.”
Scarlett
and Jaylin were old friends. They had been promoted to Green on the same
day and had nervously learned to navigate the new waters together.
Scarlett knew her friend wouldn’t be hurt if she turned her down.
“I
think I need more aim training than ab training,” Scarlett said. They
had reached the end of the hall. “I’ll see you at dinner time.”
Jaylin
shrugged, making a pouty face that Scarlett knew was exaggerated.
“Fine, female, abandon me then. Miya and I will talk bad about you behind
your back.”
Scarlett
laughed. “Just don’t wear out your lips from using them too much.”
Scarlett
hurried toward the front door, which led to the gate that separated
the males’ and females’ training centers. There was only one way to pass
from one to the other, and you had to be approved by the Blue guarding it.
It was a fair process. Scarlett had never been denied entry.
She
stepped up to the guard and presented her badge to be scanned. The
guard nodded as the time flashed up on the board along with Scarlett’s
information. She entered the males’ training compound, heading around the
building rather than through it. Scarlett found most males maintained a
horrendous odor, and it was best to avoid them in concentrated numbers when
possible.
Scarlett
entered the males’ shooting range, scanning the pods for the familiar dark
curls. Pod 3. The pod where they had met.
Scarlett
checked out a longer rifle and headed toward the pod, adjusting her safety
gear. She waited for Rhys to lower his pistol and bob his head slightly to
let her know he knew she was waiting to enter.
Carefully,
Scarlett slipped the sound-proof glass door open then closed. She stood
beside Rhys, taking her position on the other shooter’s mark. Rhys
didn’t hogwash her with boring questions of how her classes were. He
already knew. He took the same classes, just in the males’ training
center.
“Five
shots?” Rhys asked instead.
Scarlett
raised her rifle. “I don’t have my gun of choice. I thought I would
go with something I hadn’t practiced with for a while.”
“All
the better,” Rhys responded, aiming and firing five shots in quick
succes- sion. Four hit the middle of the target. The other one missed by
two centimeters.
“Why?
Because you’re assured of a win? Is that why you want to compete?
Be- cause you can’t normally provide a challenge for me?”
Rhys
smiled as he waited for her to take her turn. Scarlett hesitated, but
she wasn’t one to back down from a challenge. She turned toward the target
and took her time aiming, the bulky weapon unfamiliar in her grip.
Finally, she took her shots, pausing between each one.
“Two,”
Rhys declared bluntly.
“Yes,
two. Thank you. My eyes are working very well.”
Rhys
laughed a little as he lifted his safety goggles and propped them on
the top of his head. “Hey, I couldn’t be sure after those shots. Besides,
you agreed to it. I didn’t force you into anything.”
“Sure,”
Scarlett said, copying his move with the goggles. “The ‘peer
pressure’ came on pretty strong.” Scarlett looked toward the booth where
she had checked out the rifle, wondering what had made her grab it. She
hated being beaten.
Rhys
laughed and turned toward the target once more. They had
various competitions and “trick shots” they could try, but Scarlett had
something else on her mind. She gazed through the pod toward the east. She
couldn’t see the Mound from here. The dorm’s tall frame was too close, but
that didn’t mean it wasn’t on her mind.
“Your
turn,” Rhys responded impatiently.
Scarlett
shook her head “I have a better idea,” she said, even as her
stomach twisted into knots. “I’m ready to get over my fear.”
“Of
heights?” Rhys knew her well. He followed her gaze, then laughed,
rubbing his coffee-colored hands together in enjoyment. “What are you
going to do? Scale the dorm?”
Scarlett
laughed. “Uh . . . no.”
“Then
what? There’s nothing else taller than that, so if you don’t scale the
dorm building, then you’re letting me down.”
“There’s
the Mound,” Scarlett said, referring to the large thing that lurked
just outside the fence, just outside the area they were allowed to go. No
one quite knew what it was made of, but it looked possible to scale.
Rhys
gave her an incredulous look. “You’re not serious. When?”
Scarlett
shrugged, the nervousness making her feel weak. She turned to the tar- get
and took a few shots to calm her nerves. They were near the bullseye,
close enough with the unfamiliar weapon that she felt assured again.
“Tonight.”
“After
lights out?”
Scarlett
nodded. “Yes. The only question is . . . are you coming with
me?”
Rhys
cocked an eyebrow. “I never miss out on an adventure, but . . . I
also don’t break the rules. The rules are there for a reason.”
The
corner of Scarlett’s mouth curved up just a bit. “What rule would we
be breaking?”
Rhys
shook his head. “I don’t know. How about never leaving the training
cen- ter walls? Or the one about staying in bed between lights out and
morning wake up? Do you want me to go on?”
Scarlett sighed. “Those are Level 1 infractions; it’s not like you’ve never broken the
rules before.”
“Yeah,
but two Level 1 infractions?” Rhys sighed and inspected the pistol
care- fully. “I’ll do it. I mean, for you. But I know I’m close to being
promoted. I know I’m going to be a Blue soon, and when that happens, none
of this. I can’t risk being stuck at the training center for the rest of my
career. I want to be in a City.”
Scarlett
nodded. “Okay, tonight. I’ll see you an hour after lights out where
the fences meet.”
Rhys
considered her idea for a minute. “Okay, I’ll be there.” The seriousness
of their plan weighed on them as they continued shooting.
Scarlett
couldn’t back down. She had been considering the idea for weeks, and now
seemed like the time to do it. After all, Mrs. said you should conquer all
fears before entering a City. And that meant facing them. Now that the
plan was in place, Scarlett felt nervous, like maybe she shouldn’t have
suggested it, like maybe they would be better waiting one more night. She
glanced askew at Rhys. She didn’t dare say anything to him now. He would
never let her live it down. So, tonight it would be.
About Laurel Solorzano:
Laurel Solorzano has enjoyed writing since she was
in middle school, exchanging manuscripts for years with her best friend. After
traveling the globe for a time, Laurel set her goal to become a published
author. As she works teaching English and
Spanish, she writes stories in
her free time.
Laurel currently lives
in Raleigh, North
Carolina with her husband, Yader.
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