Wire Fence

Chapter 6 - Dawai's Book

Chapter 6 -

The warm feeling that came with Dawai's kiss and my kiss in return did not last long. Forgetting everything that had happened was not permanent. As soon as I was back on the street with the sun in my eyes, the floodgates opened and every single miniscule fact came rushing in. I nearly fainted from the sudden burst of naturally shocking information.

Could it be true?

I doubted Alridy had ever been the way Dawai had explained it a few minutes prior. It wasn't possible. The Leader was a good man. He took care of us. His men took care of us. He and his Men only took necessary actions; nothing more, nothing less. They wouldn't kill someone just because they couldn't work. I mean, I had yet to met someone who wasn't able to work, but I doubted anything would happen to them if that were the case. And they would never force people to move into Alridy, even in the very beginning! Everyone came here willingly. It was the most wonderful place in the world!The citizens gave birth to children who, naturally, remained here and later had children of their own who stayed in Alridy as well because it was home. Outsiders weren't allowed because they had evil intentions. The woman and her son were, in fact, the evil creatures of the void beyond the Border. In their minds, they created horrible plans as to how to get rid of our perfect world due to their jealously and longing to be accepted into such a wonderful community. That's what the Leader told us, and he was a man who was never wrong. Anyone who convinced us to leave Alridy was just trying to reduce our community into nothing. Dawai should have known that. 

I cut back through the shops, stopping every so often to look at the fresh produce. I stole glances at men's watches to keep track of the time, even though doing such could earn me a very minor punishment (painful nonetheless). I found that, by the time I got home, Mother would already be awake and down at the shop. 

When Mother was still in school, one of the Leader's main Men came in to speak to her through a translator. The translator was a woman of the man's age, who could in turn speak to and for mother. Anyway, Mother was told that she had a great talent in speaking, and therefore the Leader would like her to open her own shop. This would be a shop specified for young woman, as they wanted to spend money but found great trouble when they couldn't speak to the older men running to Shops in Center Alridy. The next day, Mother was moved into an apartment above an empty space that would become her shop. She was accompanied by her new husband; my Father. She was sixteen. Father was eighteen. They had been married one day.  

"Good morning," I muttered, passing through doors that had been propped open to allow fresh air inside. I nodded and smiled at mother; the situation about Dawai between Mother and I had been put aside but not forgotten. She didn't smile back, though.

"Where have you been?"

"I met Lenina by the Shops. She was out for some tomato seeds, and I decided to tag along with her and help her find someone to shop for her. It took a while. There are no boys that will willingly shop without anything in return," I explained. It wasn't a total lie. I had walked with Lenina for a while, but I hadn't helped her find her shopper, "You know she has a garden? She thinks it's such a wonderful idea as she wont have to spend so much money on produce in the future. I think that if the Leader were to find out, he'd ban gardens. Oh how devastated Lenina would be!" 

By the way I explained this meeting, Mother took my word for it. Although she was probably still suspicious of me, and wondering if I visited Dawai instead of Lenina, she asked no more questions as to my whereabouts. 

"Oh! That reminds me; Lenina asked if we had any soap. Her family has run out and is of dire need."

I've lied a lot in my life. But in the past few days I've lied too much, and it was all starting to make my stomach hurt and my head spin. Hopefully, this would be the last lie I ever told, apart from when I was asked if I was still seeing Dawai. As soon as he went to the Leader and told him about the Outsiders in Alridy, we'd be back to our normal routine and I'd become an honest, innocent girl with nothing to hide once again.