The Secrets of the Dupont Family

Chapter 6

Past

I was dragging my feet over the hard rocky ground. My legs were tired, the sun was scorching down but I knew better than to stop walking. A few feet in front of me I could see another girl walking just as unsteady as I was. It was the same thing every day. Get up in ten seconds when the bell rang, roll up your sleeping mat and watch some poor soul do fifty sit ups for not making their bed in time.

We all stood in line for the bathroom and only the last girl was allowed to flush, so you can imagine the stench after the first few went. However after a few weeks in this place you lose the last bit of dignity that you have anyway. We ate plain oatmeal and had to run the first few rounds of the day. Staff would yell at anyone who didn't walk fast enough, if you didn't increase your pace, you would lose all the points you build up that week. We walked around the building in circles surrounded by the fences that kept us inside. Escaping was impossible and if you succeeded... well there was nothing out there for miles anyway.

"Puedes caminar más rápido que eso, Lyra!" I got my first warning from a staff on duty.

I increased my pace a little but not to much. I still had to go for 45 minutes and I would collapse if I exerted all of my energy in the first few. I tried to match my speed to the girl in front of me, but was careful not to get too close and get a warning for attempting contact. Next to the sound of our feet hitting the ground I could hear that stupid tape playing through the speakers. Every day we heard the same people telling their stories over and over again. I could almost recite it word for word.

"Era adicto al alcohol, pero High Impact me ayudó a encontrar el camino de regreso a la sociedad normal..."

I felt like bashing my skull in with a rock every time they put on the tapes. I rather go back digging holes in the ground with a spoon than do these rounds. At least then I could escape the annoying voices. I walked passed the first base for the tenth time, according to my estimations I had thirty more rounds to go until the hour was up. I passed by the cages. Only one girl was inside one. Laying on the ground on her belly with her hands on her back. Her chin coated in sand and blood from one of the staff members grinding it into the ground.

She was lucky though, that cage didn't have fire ants unlike the one next to her.

I found that out myself the hard way.

Present

The weekend came quickly. It took some time to get used to school again this week and I was glad to have two days of rest. The student body and everything that came with it was overwhelming. I thought school was just a place to learn. Instead I found out that it was a very important place that didn't just gave you an education. No, this was a whole social climate where you had to belong to a group, stand out from the crowd but not in a bad way. Rumors about students were flying around the school from the parking lot to lunch and back. I was just trying to make it through this first semester with passing grades, I didn't sign up for this.

So when I woke up on Saturday, I stayed in bed a little longer than normal. After getting some breakfast and a nice shower I decided to start studying to keep up with my schedule. All the subjects were hard but I had the most trouble with Math. The level was just too high and I could read the problem a hundred times but even then I couldn't solve it. So after five hours I took a break and went downstairs for some lemonade.