Bliss

Chapter 3

Kiori attacked the next morning.

Margo's hairbrush had been dipped in invisiglue, which was not fun getting out. After breakfast, Kiori wrote her initials in lipstick on Margo's mirror. An hour later, she pumped soap in Margo's water while she wasn't looking.

It was then when Margo realized she needed to make peace with the little heathen.

"Do you have a bike?" she asked.

"Why would I have a bike? No one rides those anymore," Kiori scoffed.

"Guess you'll have to walk then."

Margo pulled her hair into a ponytail while Kiori rolled her eyes. She yawned, pretending to look bored, but Margo knew she was curious. She hadn't been outside since the three days that she'd came. She was probably stir-crazy.

"Where are we going?" Kiori wondered.

Margo didn't miss the fact she said 'we.' "Have you ever been to the Border Bridge?"

"No. I don't see the point of it anyway. The Implanted never come over here, and the Nonimplanted aren't allowed across. I think it's stupid."

That wasn't entirely true—Margo's parents visited once a month. Most kids in Crud barely saw their parents until they were Implanted. Margo imagined Kiori's weren't coming if they were familiar with her behavior.

"I think it's cool," Margo told her.

Kiori snorted. "Of course you do."

Margo closed the door behind them. "What's that supposed to mean?"

The girl didn't answer, only examined the row of bikes in front of the dorm. Rusty and Dusty were all that were left—the other girls had hoverboards.

"That's a nice bike," Kiori remarked, stroking the handlebars of Dusty. If Avrilyn were there, she'd probably faint. No one touched Dusty without her permission.

"Don't!" Margo exclaimed. She ripped Kiori away from the bike.

"What's wrong with you?" the girl growled. "I wasn't going to damage it!"

Margo hopped on Rusty. She frowned, wanting to apologize, but the words wouldn't come out. So instead she explained, "That was my friend's bike. Avrilyn Rineheart. Ever heard of her?" Kiori didn't respond, so Margo continued, "She doesn't like when others touch her stuff."

"Yeah, well, she's not here anymore," Kiori said. Then she pulled the bike away from the rack and sat on the fabric seat.

Margo held back a scream. Avrilyn would kill her when she found out someone else was using Dusty.

"Are you gonna sit there and gawk or are we going to that bridge?" Kiori asked.

Margo bit her lip and led the way. Kiori went slow, either admiring the view or the boys that couldn't take their eyes off her. Probably the latter, considering every building was dilapidated and rusty.

"It's really dirty here," she said softly, "and old. It looks like everything's going to fall apart."

"I wouldn't doubt it," Margo agreed.

Kiori was probably reminiscing in her childhood fantasy, as most kids did when they got to Crud. When everyone turned twelve, as soon as a dorm was open, they'd be shipped off to the little town of Crud. This was where they'd go to school until they were sixteen, when they would be Implanted.