The Test [#1]

Chapter 17: Lissa

The leaders were all sitting around a table---all except for Five, who had just opened the door for me. They waited patiently for her to take a seat before focussing their attention on me. I can feel them burning holes in my head. It's not helpful that I had just finished bawling my eyes out.

The room itself is kind of dull. The walls were black and there was only one window in the ceiling so it wasn't too bright. There was a chandelier in the middle of the ceiling that hung just ten feet off the ground. There wasn't much in the room. The table, eight chairs, a filing cabinet in the corner, and a small chair that faced the table in which they were sitting at.

The room reminded me of a movie I watched with my brother a long time ago. Where the main characters tried to solve a mystery.

One clears his throat before handing me a sheet of paper. I immediately recognized it as The Test I took.

Guilt settles in the pit of my stomach as I read over all of the questions again. My eyes water at the thought of leaving tomorrow with all those other kids who failed.

"I assume you know why you're here?" One asks, his voice carrying an edge.

I give a slight nod before looking up at him. "Yeah."

He folds his arm in front of him. "Are you going to tell us before we come into conclusions or would you like for us to tell you our theory?"

I take a deep shaky breath. I feel like I should tell them. Be honest before they can accuse me of anything. It always seemed to work with my parents.

But I decide against it and let them speak.

"Very well," One says darkly, making the back of my neck hairs stick up.

He gestures at Seven, who gladly stands up and walks over to me. I hand him the paper and he looks over it. "What's your name?"

"Clarissa," I answer cooly.

He glares at me. "You're full name."

I roll my eyes. "Clarissa Stevens."

"Who are your parents?"

I hesitate. I forgot which names I put on there. I mentally choke myself. How could I have forgotten my own relatives' names?

Seven clears his throat at me. "Your parents?"

Then I suddenly remember. "Christina and Ronald Stevens," I say, breathing a sigh of relief.

I can feel them all looking at me suspiciously but I ignore them and wait for the next question.

"Where do you live before you were sent here?"

Now that is a problem. Considering I don't remember exactly what address I put on there. But I continue talking anyways.

"123 Northeast Jk Lane, Washington Street."

His eyes narrow at me. "Okay," he says slowly. "Any siblings?"

"No," I say, a little too quickly, keeping my gaze fixed on the ground, wondering why it hasn't swallowed me up yet.

"Grades?"

Then I start crying. The tears freely fall down my cheek. "I was failing three of my classes," I admit. "I mean, it's not my fault I hate math and science and gym, right?"

Seven's eyes light up in amusement. Though I'm not sure if it's because I told him I was failing gym or because he found out I was lying.

He looks back at One and nods. I'm not sure what happened next but I was being dragged by my hair. The door was being opened and I was being pulled towards somewhere in the cafeteria. Seven drags me up the stairs of the stage as I sob, trying to get him to let go.

I hear yelling and I can immediately tell its Daniel and Peter.

I was finally let go off. It takes a moment for me to realize that I had been put in front of everyone in the cafeteria. Everyone stared at me, their eyes wide in terror.

Looking up, I see a finger pointed right at me.

"This girl," One seethes into the mic, "is a liar."

That caused a little of a commotion.

Five was kneeling beside me, trying to help me up. I push her off and angrily wipe my face.

Daniel catches my eye and I can see the worry behind them. I try to give him a reassuring smile but it came out more like a grimace.

Two men were pulling me up from the ground I was laying on.

"Tell them what you lied about," One says to me.

I purse my lips, feeling more tears rush down my face.

His eyes grow dark. "Tell them," he says darkly before grabbing me by the arm and pulling me in front of the mic.

My heart was beating ten times faster than it probably should. I've never been so scared of getting hurt before.

"I lied about everything," I sob into the mic. "On The Test."

"Except for my name," I say as an afterthought.

Diana's eyes widen from the front row where she was worriedly watching me. Macy's jaw drops. Peter and Daniel just stare at me, angry looks on there faces.

"She's a liar," Two says. "What a joke, right? All this time we spent on order and she's the first to disobey."

I cover my face, trying to get myself to stop crying. "I...I'm s-sorry," I mutter.

Five gives me a guilty look as One glares at me with cold eyes. "She deserves to be punished," he tells everyone. "This is a warning to all of you: do not mess with our patience."

Seven holds out a gun and points it at me. My eyes widen and I feel myself start shaking. Slowly, I crouch back to the ground waiting for it to be over with.

I wait for a while knowing he's just waiting for his leader to give him the go. I hear a click as the bullet settles in place.

There's a lot of screaming in the cafeteria but I ignore it all.

Flashes of my family go through my mind. Me and Daniel as we grew up together. My whole life just flashes before my eyes.

Then I hear the shooting of the gun and prepare myself.

Saying a silent goodbye to everyone I love.

HEY!!!

WHAT DO YOU THINK? I DIDN'T REALLY KNOW WHAT TO DO WITH THIS CHAPTER. BUT I REALLY HOPE YOU GUYS LIKED IT.

WHAT DO YOU THINK HAPPENED TO LISSA? WHAT DO YOU THINK WILL BE DANIEL'S REACTION?

SORRY FOR MAKING YOU WAIT A WHILE!! I AM LOSING ALL CREATIVITY AND HAVE ABSOLUTELY NO IDEA WHAT TO MAKE THIS ONE ABOUT.

PLEASE COMMENT!!!! I NEED FEEDBACK. EVEN IF IT'S JUST TO TELL ME I MESSED UP SOMEWHERE. I COULD USE SOME HELP!!!

THANK YOU GUYS SO MUCH FOR READING!! IT MEANS A LOT.

HAVE A FANTASTIC DAY!!!

:'P