The Future isn't Bright

Twenty

Ulysses slowly gathered all of us in the loud dining hall. I was still grabbing those wonderful apples from the nearly empty fruit cart and putting them in a pouch I created out of my t-shirt.

"They're not that good," Mac said jokingly with her arms crossed.

"You don’t know what you’re talking about," I said as I bit into what I believed to be my fourth apple. Ulysses opened his bearded mouth to speak but paused when he spotted me. He simply smiled.

"Alright, I hope you've filled your stomachs a little, or a lot," he looked at me, causing a warm blush to creep onto my cheeks as I wiped my face of apple juice.

"The next part of our tour is the long-awaited dorms. Now, we'll head back to your previous rooms to gather your personal belongings. Unfortunately for you, single rooms are available to you only on your first night at the Compound. The rest your time will be spent in the dorms, along with three to four other recruits."

Ulysses turned on his heels and opened one of the giant dining hall doors for all of us. Oslo came out of nowhere and grabbed one of the seven apples from my makeshift pouch.

"Hey!" I grabbed for it, but he pulled away quickly. I had the intention to eat all of them.

"I'll make it up to you later," he said as he bit into my precious apple. My eyes widened, not quite knowing what he meant. Mac took notice of this.

"He's cute!" she whispered in my ear and hurried off.

"You're absurd!" I called after her. True, I've never thought of a male that way, so I wasn't one to judge, but Oslo? I shook the thought from my head. I had walking to do.

Ulysses led us back down the metal hallways to the rooms we woke up in this morning, after being properly gassed, of course.

"I'll give you five minutes to grab your belongings, so please hurry," Ulysses said as he rolled up his sleeve and set a timer on his watch. Chloe and the boys seemed to rush to their rooms trainers, so I did the same. As soon as Mac and I entered the room, she kicked off her shoes and pounced on the bed.

"Mac, I only have five minutes. You might as well be productive and help me pack." I looked at her sternly.

"Oh loosen up, Donna. You should join me. It's impossible to jump on the bunk beds you'll be stuck in," she said between jumps. Bunk beds? They sounded like a nightmare. And that would also mean bunking with someone, which I wasn't looking forward to unless it was Chloe. Although Mac’s offer sounded semi-appealing, I declined by reaching under the shifting mattress for my suitcase. I checked inside and sure enough, everything was there, even Grandmother's book. No need for any packing. The thought of my grandmother made me not feel a little sick to my stomach, but I managed to shake the feeling off.

I sat down by Mac's feet and looked up at her. She acted like such a child. No wonder Femme didn't suit her. Without warning, she landed sitting right next to me, panting.

"Are you always such a prude?" she asked jokingly.

"Are you always this hyper?" I countered.

"Only every day!" she laughed as she grabbed my shoulder and threw me back on the bed.

"Was that necessary?" I said as I spit my hair from my mouth and tried to get back into sitting position.

"Absolutely! Lighten up a little. This isn't Femme. But then again, I was like you in the beginning too. You'll come around," she smiled.

"Come around to what?" I raised my eyebrow, not catching her gist.

"To the Compound," she said as if that explained anything, "But come on, let's get you to your dorm room."