Bliss

Chapter 1

There were two weeks until Margo would feel.

Two weeks until she would be a normal, functioning civilian in society, just as her parents, her grandparents, and her best friend had become. On September 21, Margo would finally earn her happy emotions.

As Margo drifted down the street on her rusty bike, she had one thing on her mind. One person, that is. Avrilyn, Margo's best friend, was getting her Implant today. By this evening, she'd have her first happy emotions. She'd feel joyful and excited and all sorts of feelings Margo had never experienced.

"I'll visit you as soon as the procedure is over," Avrilyn had promised. "We'll meet at the Border Bridge."

It was a promise that drove Margo to ride to the bridge an hour earlier than the girls agreed on. She was nervous—a feeling that only people under sixteen endured. What if Avrilyn was different after the Implant, just as Margo's other friends had been?

When Margo had told Avrilyn about her worries, she said, "You know me, Margo. I'd never leave you behind, even if you're grumpy and I'm happy."

But Margo was still anxious. One of the symptoms of the Implant was new interests. Most people left at least one interest behind, wether it was a hobby or a Nonimplanted friend.

Margo parked her bike—Rusty—on the Border River bank. Normally, there'd be another bike—Avrilyn's Dusty—laying next to her's, which lead Margo to another pang of panic. What if Avrilyn didn't want to ride bikes anymore? It was her passion. She was better than any of the Nonimplanted, and she could do tricks and balance on one wheel. That's how she earned money: she'd put on bike shows.

The river below the bridge was murky and polluted on one half, while the other section of the water was clear and clean. It was the Border Divide, the place that separated Nonimplanted, the dirties, from the Implanted, the pures.

"What are you doing?" asked a patrol officer from the Pure City gates. He, unlike most Implanted, did not smile or laugh. A scowl disfigured his face.

"I'm waiting for a friend," Margo replied. She tapped on her buzzlet, a brown colored watch strapped to her wrist. She scrolled through her holograms until she found one of Avrilyn doing a wiggly dance.

"I don't care about your tech, kid," the officer spat. "You just stay on that side of the bridge."

Margo ignored him. "Her name is Avrilyn Rineheart. She just got her Implant. Do you recognize her?"

"No." But the officer didn't even look at the hologram. He was clearly disinterested in Margo, and he marched back to his spot at the gate.

There was a broad gold line painted across the bridge that separated Crud, Margo's town, from Pure City. She and her friends used to jump across the line and run when the patrol officers came after them.

Now all her friends were Implanted and living in Pure City. One of them, Luke Grimes, already had a wife and daughter, even though it had only been a year since he was Implanted. Jessica Odell was an actress. Molly Jefferson was popular for her crazy stunts, like skydiving and holding her breath for three minutes. Before her Implant, she was cautious and quiet. Now she was all over the news.

Margo and Avrilyn made an oath: they'd take small steps after being Implanted. Which meant no getting married, no kids, no dangerous stunts. At least not for a while.

Margo checked the time. Half past six. Avrilyn would be there any minute, freshly Implanted.

But she never came.

Margo waited an hour, skipping stones along the river and pacing up and down the bridge. Even the patrol officers seemed to give her looks of pity.

She's probably on her way, Margo kept reminding herself. She might have a headache from the procedure.

"I'm starting to suspect you're not waiting for a friend," the patrol officer said, not an ounce of sympathy in his voice. "I don't tolerate loitering, Cruddie. Do you know the punishment for crossing the Border?"

She nodded, scrambling back to her bike, Rusty.

"I don't want to catch you here again, got it?" the officer asked.

"Yeah." Then Margo hopped on Rusty and sped away, off into the streets of Crud.