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i. the introduction
IT'S ANOTHER SCHOOL day in Boston, Massachusetts in a broken world sectioned with different institutions. The one Remy stayed in, with her older sister, was military-controlled by a group called FEDRA - and it wasn't pleasant. Aside from the military intentionally provoking the living and the undead they also fed children spoonful's of their faithless propaganda. It was required ten students per classroom for safety regulations after a couple of kids from a class of thirty played like they were infected for giggles. Everyone speculated that they were exiled, but with FEDRA owning an itchy trigger finger like it was hereditary, it seemed unlikely.
Remy sat in the classroom away from the others who sat on desks, chairs, and on the floor to chat with their companions. They were all finished except for her. It wasn't like she could help it - certain arrangements of words often tricked her mind. It was an assignment about how the military "saved humanity" from going completely ballistic. She was frustrated with herself. She missed Riley assisting her through her assignments but they had different class schedules.
It was like she could hear people laughing at her and poking fun, but she didn't dare to look away from her journal. The yellow wooden pencil was gripped in her dominant hand as she sketched away; drawing straight lines and adding shadows. Then an actual shadow washed over her, and she could tell by the girl's cheap perfume who it was: Sophia Rodriguez.
Sophia had bronzed brown skin and was short in height. She had dark brown hair that was always pulled back in a ponytail. Her silver studded earrings filled the piercing holes and glistened in the natural light that shined through the opened window of the classroom. Every time she'd smile her green eyes would squint. She'd switch in and out of the English language fluently depending on whoever she was talking to.
"Vamos a meternos con ella," Sophia whispered to her clique before strolling over to Remy's area. She pressed her palms into the desk as she gripped the edge, swinging her hair to one side and clicking her tongue before speaking.
"Need some help, little one? Too bad your sister isn't here with you. I bet she does your work for you," the posse giggled erratically and it made Remy breathe through her teeth.
"I don't need her help," she mumbled.
"You sure? Everyone's finished with their work. Writing an essay with excellent grammar and punctuation is easy... Can't say the same for you, though."
Remy never stopped her work with the pencil and she never peeled her eyes from the lined white sheet. She unknowingly pressed the pencil deeper into the sheet, making lines darker in places she didn't want. Her heart started thumping and it felt like she was running in a marathon. Sophia looked down at the desk after silently critiquing the girl's appearance. When she saw the picture she was sketching, she allowed a devilish smirk to tug at her lips. She grabbed the journal from her and pointed at the sketch, laughing.
