I ghoul you ❤️

The shock of a lifetime.

I got back to the dorm around 3 am, and because it was a Saturday today, I spent the entire day with my friends out on the dead grass patch the school likes to call 'the oval'. The tree we spent our date under is the only living tree that sits in the very corner of the field. According to Si and Ti, Dean has been watering it since he got here a year and a half ago.

The luscious tree-shaded us throughout the whole day as we ate more stolen snacks and talked about literally everything and more. At one point, the boys had found a ball to kick around. I almost lost an eye several times because of Cooper's stray balls. He is not good at sports.

When we had gotten back to our rooms, I checked my charm and noticed a message from my father. I instantly gave my father a holo call only to be left waiting five minutes for him to answer..

"Hello, little bug."

He seemed out of breath, his forehead covered in sweat and pure panic and paranoia took hold of his face.

"Hey... Dad."

"Listen little bug, the council has come to a decision regarding those laws I was telling you about."

"What has that got to do with me? You never told me what those laws were for?"

He lets out a big sigh just as the girls had walked into the dorm. They looked at the holo with concern before sneaking their way over to the bed opposite mine.

Dad began to massage circles into his head as if to push away what has pained him,  guess that's what he's going to come out with next. 

"Well, Alyssa, the laws are regarding ghouls and how we move forward. There's been a recent spike in ghoul diagnoses. So, the council has decided to move the ghouls to a separate city within the walls."

I look at him in disbelief, "So what does that mean Dad?"

I could tell he was struggling, he was scratching the back of his neck, and he kept readjusting his hair.

"It means you and the rest of your friends will be moved to a facility in Terrance. It's the closest city to the walls. It means you won't be able to see your mum and I anymore and it means that you won't be able to go to school or get a job."

My friends look at me in shock and I begin to tear up, "So you're saying I won't be considered a person anymore."

He nods his head and looks down at the ground, "I'm sorry little bug, I've tried everything I can. They have made their decision."

"That's it? I'm just being shipped off to basically a prison because some teenage arsehole force-fed me. That's fucking stupid Dad."

"I know Sweetie, but I can't do much now. It's out of my hands."

I scoff. Sure it is.

"How long until they enforce this 'law'?"

"You've got a month left at school and then they'll be moving all the students to the facility."

"Ok, well I'll talk to you later dad. That is if they don't take my charm off me."

He lets out another troubling sign, "Oh what now dad? Are they going to take my charm too?"

"Yes, sweetheart. Ghouls won't be allowed any form of contact with humans."

"Ok, well I'll talk to you later dad."

"Sweetie wa-"

I hang up before he can finish talking and turned to my friends who were already crying.

"I'm so sorry girls."

They shook their heads and pulled me into a group hug where we all cried over the death of a life we had come to love. We cried over the birth of the unknown as we realise, moving to the facility would mean the end of school and the end of the best treatment we had received all our life. 

"We have to tell the boys."

Si shook her head, "How do you tell someone that they're about to become worth less than a goat? I mean that's essentially what your dad said. We aren't even considered people anymore."

I let out a pained sigh, removed myself from the tangle of arms, and walked over to our secret stash.

"If we bring a peace offering maybe it will be easier to break the news."

We threw on our biggest hoodies, stashed the pockets full of snacks, and carefully snuck down the hall to the stairway that lead to the boy's dorm. We snuck past the camera that hid in the corners and the corridors guarded by night workers until we found the door that has a name card next to an orange marker: the boy's dorm room.

We silently entered to find them huddled in the corner with a blanket thrown over them, a flashlight shining speckles of light through the fabric. Their whispers bounced off the walls and the bodies were so close to one another that they looked like small children.

We crept closer and closer until we stood over them. They still hadn't noticed our presence. I signaled for the girls to jump, and on the count of three, we jumped on top of them causing them to let out high-pitched screams of fright.

Giggling, I ripped off the blanket to find three terrified boys gripping their chests in fear.

"Why the fuck did you scare us like that?! What is your problem today?"
The girls and I continue to giggle at their behavior before sitting down beside them.

"Another score for the girls in the prank war I recon."

We all continue to giggle as we forced ourselves into the circle the boys had made on the floor with pillows and blankets. We quietened down to try to get more serious about the situation, it was taking so much energy to not cry but what can you do? Nothing happy ever lasts for me, I should have known that having such a peaceful life compared to before wouldn't last long.

"We've got some important news to share with you guys. But we brought snacks to lessen the blow."

"Lessen the blow? Wtf are you on about?"

Sienna moves closer to her brother and rests her head on his shoulder, "Just listen, Mason. It's important that you do."

He looks at her funny, confused by her behavior before he huffs in frustration but gets comfortable listening. And now all eyes are on me.

'My father rang me earlier, and in a month's time, ghouls will no longer be considered humans."

The room remains silent but their faces say it all. A mix of hurt, anxiety, and fear consumes them but they still remain still and wait for me to continue.

"In a month's time, all ghouls will be rounded up and placed into a facility next to the wall where we will remain until we die. We cannot contact humans nor interact with them. We will basically become livestock."

I get no reaction as they sit there in shock, trying to process the information I'm giving them.

"In other words, we will need to stick together to survive this."