Resist

Helpless

My heart races as I stand at the doors, my brother's arm linked in mine. My future is behind them; I'm not ready.

"I can't go in, Michael." I break away from him, turning to face the the elegant railing of the staircase, snow covering the ground around me.

"You have to, Hanna. It's for the good of the family. You find your suitor and all of this will be over."

"I'm not ready."

"It doesn't matter if you're ready," His short brown hair blows in the breeze, he should have put more gel in. "Just get in and get out. The quicker you do this, the quicker our worries disappear. We don't need this excess weight on our shoulders, we're over our heads as it is." 

He's talking about our deal with the Bianco's. They said if I marry by my seventeenth birthday then they'll let our knowledge of their involvement in the mafia slide. They recommended that I attend this gala to find a suitor, and to my dismay, my father agreed. So here we are, my brother and I, outside the mahogany doors of this winter gala ball.

"Hanna?" I look back at my brother, the haze of thoughts in my brain pushed to the back of my mind.

"Yes?"

"I'm so sorry you have to do this. But it's for the good of the family." He squeezes my shoulder and I nod, patting the snow off the royal blue fabric of my dress and linking my arm with his once again. I take a deep breath as the doors open, revealing my brother and I at the top of a grand staircase.

"Hanna Elizabeth Davis of Stonesbury." A man calls off a list in his hand. I smile as I enter, looking around the room at the beautiful, handcrafted gowns and suits of the 'competition', as my father would say. My brother leads us over to a table to the left of the stairs where we need to register our attendance.

"Place your finger here." Michael points to a small, black screen with a hole in the centre. I oblige, and after a few seconds I feel a sharp jab in my finger.

"Ow!" I pull away quickly to see a needle where the hole in the screen once was. "What does..." I trail off.

"It scans your fingerprint and takes a blood sample." He responds. 

"Why do they need a blood sample?" I ask, somewhat confused.

"To match you with your suitor, but for now, just mingle. I'll keep an eye on you." He places a wristband on my arm walks away, leaving me standing by myself feeling very confused. 

I walk around for a few minutes, trying to find someone to talk to, when someone taps me on the shoulder. I turn around and see a boy around my age with dark hair and green eyes. "Hey, I'm Luka." He bows.

"Hanna." I reply, curtsying. I don't really know what to do at these sorts of events. He holds out his hand and I take it, somewhat hesitantly. He walks me to the middle of the room where others are dancing and he puts his hands on my waist; I put mine around his neck. "What are you doing here, Hanna?"

"Same as you I presume."

"You accidentally killed your cat so your mother made you attend this ball as a punishment?" My eyes widen, but he just laughs. "I'm kidding, my mother thought it would be a good idea for me to get up off my ass for once in my life and do something for the family."

"My father's just using this courtship as a way to get himself out of trouble." I sigh.

"What a world we live in." He agrees. We continue dancing until the song finishes and we say our goodbyes. This is so boring, how long does it take to match someone? What's even the point of mingling with others when the likelihood of ever seeing them again is next to nothing. I ponder this thought as I walk over to the champagne tower, grabbing a glass from the top and taking a sip. I probably shouldn't be drinking this, if father found out he'd be at my neck. I'm about to take another sip when the world is suddenly flipped upside-down and I land on the ground with a thud.

"Shit, sorry." A hand reaches for mine and pulls me up off the floor. I dust myself off before looking at my mystery savior. He has blonde hair, cut in layers reaching his chin, bright blue eyes and tanned skin. He'd be around the same height as me if I had heels on.

"It's fine." I shrug it off, my eyes still trying to focus. Once they do, I examine him further. He's wearing a black dress shirt with the sleeves rolled up and the top button undone, a royal blue tie, untied and hanging around his neck and black dress pants. He doesn't seem like he belongs here. "What's your name?" I ask, trying to create some small talk.

"Like you don't know." He rolls his eyes, seeming uninterested.

"I don't." I laugh a little bit. He just glares at me.

"Hayden Gallivan, next time watch where you're going." I freeze when I hear the name. Gallivan, as in the richest name known to anyone who's anyone? My father has been trying to connect with the Gallivan's for years, to no avail, and I think I just met their son. Forget what I said before, he definitely belongs here, but I just know that I despise him. The wristband on my arm vibrates, and I look down to see a message:

Match complete: DAVIS, Hanna Elizabeth (O-), meet at the Genetic Matchmaking table to meet your suitor.

I look around and see everyone else reading off their wristbands or heading in the direction of the table, so I do the same. I wait in the line for a few minutes, almost shaking in anticipation of what's to come. I probably haven't even spoken to my suitor at all tonight given the amount of people here. When I finally arrive at the table, they ask to scan my finger again, but this time no needle pricks my finger. I move on to the next person at the table and they hand me a small, square piece of parchment. I walk away and turn it over, reading it:

Enter cubicle 13.

I walk past the table and into the cubicle marked 13. I sit there alone for a few minutes until the curtain stirs and in walks a tall man wearing sunglasses. I cower slightly in the corner, trying not to make him see. This can't be my suitor, he looks like he's in his forties. He grabs my wrist and pulls me out of the cubicle and in the direction of the exit.

"What are you doing? Where are you taking me?" I screech and try to rip his fingers from my wrist, but he's too strong.

"I'm taking you to your suitor." He replies straight-faced.

"At least let me say goodbye to my brother!"

"No."

"Please!" I look around desperately, searching for Michael's familiar face within the crowd of people. "Michael!" I spot him by the bar, he looks in my direction as he recognises his name. His eyes widen and tear up, but he doesn't come. "Michael, please!" I look pleadingly in his direction but he just stands there, a tear finally trickling down his cheek, quickly wiping it away before anyone else sees. "Don't let them take me." I end up whispering, giving in to the hold of the man, letting him pull me out into the cold evening air.