The System

Chapter 10

Harry's home was exactly what I had been expecting. Nothing beautiful but nothing horrible, either. To be fair, my expectations hadn't been that high.

The structure was very close to the centre of town, an area that mainly single people lived in. Really, it was just for those who had little money. Potential trouble-makers, I thought. They keep those most likely to rebel as close to the centre as possible. It's easier to notice when they go somewhere they shouldn't be.

I had never heard of Harry before, meaning that he was most likely a nobody. He lived in an apartment block similar to the one I had lived in before I had partnered with Ben, all those years ago. It was similar in structure to all of the other buildings in Eriton, only there were stairs on the sides of each 'house', showing that they were really only one story homes.

At least, that's what I had thought. I jumped when Sharon pressed the car horn.

Before I could ask what was happening a pretty, but tiny, blonde girl came bounding down the steps of the apartment building. She had a massive grin on her face as though she was on her way to the biggest party ever. To my surprise, the girl got into the back of the car.

"Emily, this is Katy, she works in the home store in town. Katy, you'll know Emily," Sharon introduced them both and Katy smiled broadly at me.

"So she's the one kicking up a stink," She said, looking me up and down. "I should have known. Harry's a sucker for a brunette." Sharon and Katy began laughing as though this were hilarious as Sharon pulled away from the kerb, taking them away from the centre of Eriton.

"What does Harry think of her?" Katy asked Sharon, who simply smirked and winked at her in the rear-view mirror.

"What's that supposed to mean?" I asked, noticing the silent exchange.

"Oh, nothing!" Sharon laughed just as Katy said, "He hates you." This only made Sharon laugh harder.

It was strange seeing Sharon so happy. Even with the big welt, her eyes crinkled in laughter with Katy - obviously it was a kind of friendship that I had never known with another woman. They seemed to be so comfortable in each other's company. I could imagine them staying over at each other's houses, getting ready for parties and sharing secrets with one another. Somehow the age difference didn't much matter, though Sharon had to be at least old enough to be Katy's mother. In fact, it amazed me that, though I was much closer in age to her, Sharon had been babying me in a way that she didn't seem to with Katy.

"Don't worry," Katy smiled at me patronisingly. "He doesn't like anybody, really. Especially not new members." The girl must've been about 19 and yet she had this way of looking down on people. I didn't know what it was but I could feel her hackles rising. Whether it was jealousy - I had assumed that Sharon didn't have any other friends - or simply that the girl was blatantly rude, I wanted to shut her up. "I wouldn't be surprised if he didn't let you into the meeting. He won't want you knowing things. I don't even want you knowing things!"

"And what on earth would you know?" I retorted, turning in my chair. I knew what I was about to do was childish and rude and definitely wouldn't gain me friends in the long run. And yet I had to. People from this "rebellion" – though it seemed more of a social group – looking down on my lack of skill was starting to grate on me. "What age are you? About 19? I have almost ten years more experience in this town than you do. I know people in this town who wouldn't even give you directions on the street! What would you do if you got split from the group in the middle of the town? I can navigate most of Eriton with my eyes closed. I'd bet you've not even been here a year, so have a bit of respect, you stupid little girl."

No one said anything. The only sounds were my angry breathing, as I turned back around in my chair to face the front, and the tyres on the road. At some point it got dark, but I didn't even notice how long we had been driving for. The thing was, I just don't do outbursts. I made my point through calm discussion. I knew that having allies was a good idea in this town. I was certain that I needed allies within this rebellion group. I felt as if I'd fucked up so badly that I might as well have asked Sharon to take me home then and there.