Restless Earth

Chapter 2: Rose

"You're late," the instructor snaps, glaring at me with crossed arms. He's a big and scary man with a gruff voice.

I offer an innocent smile. "Whoops! Sorry, I got held up."

I awkwardly tiptoe to the line of recruits, standing next to a boy with red hair. The instructor scowls at me, but surprisingly let's my tardy go.

My braid is extremely messy and my uniform is slightly wrinkled from lying on the floor all night. Snickers and murmurs fill the room.

"Lucky for you, Rose here has volunteered to do all chores tonight herself," the instructor says.

Dammit...

Training on the first day contains only explaining every single little rule of this place, not to mention covering every nook and cranny of the area. I'm forced to skip dinner, considering the never ending piles of dishes waiting for me.

Someone enters the kitchen, but I don't bother looking. I'm currently occupied with scrubbing a pot as angry as possible.

"What do you want?" I snap. I suddenly pray it's not one of my bosses. But it turns out to be the boy I stood next to earlier.

"Just putting my plate away. You need some help?" He asks.

"I'm just fine on my own. Put the plate in the sink."

He obeys, hesitating before leaving. A part of me wishes I accepted his help, but it's instinct for me to immediately claim I have everything under control. I mean, I do after all.

... Right?

It takes almost all night to finish the chores. I stumble into the girl's dormitory and crash in one of the bunks, only to wake up 2 hours later.

A girl attempts to shake me awake. "C'mon, we have to get dressed. I'm guessing you're not planning on being late again."

I groan. The military sounded great at first. I can be a hero here. Maybe people could actually care about my existence. But I don't know if it's worth waking up at dawn every morning.

_____________________

"Miss Davenport!"

"Wha?" I slur, lifting my head up sleepily.

My blurry vision focuses on a very angry teacher. I fell asleep in class. I cringe as a detention slip flutters itself on to my desk.

I glance at the person sitting next to me. It's that boy again. He has a detention slip too.

I look at it in confusion. "What did you do?"

"I figured you probably needed some sleep. I tried to hide it and make it look like you were reading a book," he replies.

He offers a smile, demonstrating by opening a book and putting it in front of my face.

"I don't need your help," I snap, but pause as I glance at him awkwardly. "But thanks, I guess."