𝑇𝑅𝐴𝑃𝑃𝐸𝐷 𝐼𝑁 𝐹𝑅𝐸𝐸𝐷𝑂𝑀

𝑆𝐼𝑋~ 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑚𝑝𝑒𝑑𝑒

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Nightmares were definitely not uncommon in Mada. The things we were exposed to growing up had certainly resulted in many for me. Dreams were frowned upon in Mada, as they could spark conversations that were deemed far too imaginative for the city's people. In addition, dreaming had the potential to create ideas about what was beyond The Wall.

Of course, one isn't in control of whether they dream or not, but we were simply forbidden from sharing them with others. I experienced many dreams in which I was not in Mada, although I kept them to myself in fear of getting into trouble. But the nightmares...they had always been more prominent.

My surroundings came into focus. I was marching rapidly in time with a swarm of people my age, towards what looked like The Wall. I could tell from my memory that we were near the gate. The sky was dark with storm clouds, but it wasn't yet raining.

The group began to disperse, separating into different lines. I could make out Sariah, Callum, and Arlo beside me, as I followed the group into a line. It seemed like we had to go through security, to make sure we didn't have weapons or anything dangerous in our bags. As our line shortened, I saw two guards going through peoples' bags. Soon, I reached the front of the line and immediately swung my bag off of my shoulder, handing it to the guard. I glanced nervously towards the gun slung over his back. Straightening my spine and pulling my shoulders back, I reminded myself to breathe. To play it off like I was innocent. Although one might not have assumed it, I was somewhat of a skilled actress.

I watched as the guard searched my bag, praying that there was nothing inside that would spark any questions. The man paused and held up a wad of clothing I had packed. "What are these for?" he asked in a suspicious tone. I held my head high and replied quickly, "It looks like it may rain." I gestured towards the darkening clouds. The man grumbled something under his breath that I couldn't quite make out, but he returned the clothes to my bag. My response had satisfied him, and this caused my confidence to grow. Moments later, he gave me a short nod, and handed me my bag and gestured for me to be on my way.

I turned around to see if my friends were still in line, but they had already appeared beside me. Nola was there now too, but I didn't think twice about how she had found us. My brain felt foggy and time seemed to move too quickly for me to comprehend my surroundings. I barely noticed when droplets of rain trickled down my face, which had quickly begun to pour down rapidly.

I could tell something was wrong at this point, as people ran for shelter, the truck was nowhere in sight. I exchanged worried looks with my friends. Soon, we were swept away by the forceful crowd, which pushed us away from the gate and towards the shops where people had gathered in clusters to escape the storm.

We began pushing against them, making our way back towards the gate. I could hear the truck now. We were getting close, and I spotted the truck. The driver was emptying the crates out, handing the guards supplies, who wheeled them away on large metal carts.

Once again, I exchanged glances with my friends. For some reason, I couldn't seem to form words. I could only communicate through my facial expressions, something my friends and I had nearly mastered during our years in Mada. The guards and driver were now out of sight, so we seized our chance. Arlo picked Nola up as we began running towards the truck. When we reached the back, Callum immediately tried to open the door, but soon realized it was locked. The hatch wouldn't budge and Callum's efforts were doing nothing against its strength.