Equilibrium - #ProjectWomanUp

One

The day is hot, it is near the seventh month of the annum. I wipe the sweat that has collected on the back of neck away, holding my platinum hair out the way as I do so. The summer weather is always hot where I live, but today seems worse.

I tug slightly on my white dress, smoothing it out from where it is stuck to my thighs. The moisture in the air makes my lips chap; I wet them with my tongue. I try and not think about the heat; I listen closely to the service.

"--but in the cities of these peoples that the Lord your God is giving you for an inheritance, you shall save alive nothing that breathes, but you shall devote them to complete destruction, the Hittites and the Amorites, the Canaanites and the Perizzites, the Hivites and the Jebusites, as the Lord, your God has commanded--"

I zone out. It is not that I don't believe in god, it is that I have yet seen evidence of this magical world he created. So even though I expected to be devote to this supreme god, I doubt him. But then, I have a tendency to doubt everything.

Glancing to my left, I sweep my eyes over the people crammed in the small church. Some fanning themselves, others just tolerating the humidity with proud sweaty temples. Every person in the church has the same Blue band around their upper left arm – signifying their section. I wear one too; we never leave the section, but that doesn't matter.

I connect eye contact with a familiar pair of grey eyes; Daniel Stiles. Daniel is my fiancé – I have been engaged to him since I was sixteen. He is a good looking boy, with ash coloured hair and a sharp jaw line. He is the dream of every girl ever. He is poster worthy.

He is sat in the isle in front of me; tie and suit covering his body, as he sits next to his family. Even though we live together, we have to spend Sundays with our families. That's the rule of the sections; well for a Civilian anywhere.

I share a smile with my childhood sweetheart. Dating since twelve, engaged since sixteen, living together since seventeen. Daniel then turns back around to the front, listening to the priest read.

My eyes carry on their scan. This time they end up on someone else; someone I don't know. A Warrior. He is dressed in complete black, a Blue band around his bulging bicep. The man has black hair cut short, and his body is larger than any I have seen before. He leans casually against the church wall, looking bored and annoyed. There is a gun strapped to either hip, a knife in his boot.

When he catches me staring he curls his lip up in annoyance. I gulp – scared – he is a Warrior after all. A killer, a fighter, a hero. But I know he can't be that good of a Warrior, because he is protecting not fighting. A Warrior goes through certain tests – I'm not sure on the details – and the lower ranking ones do protecting jobs and the higher ranking ones are fighters.

I turn away from his gaze, a small blush on my cheeks at been caught staring at the Warrior. I have little experiences with Warriors, but I find them intimidating.

When the church service is over, I walk outside with everyone else. A hand touches my waist and I jump in shock; spinning on my heels to see the person behind me. I relax when I realise it is just Daniel.

"You were distracting during the service, are you alright?" he asks me. I love Daniel, I do, but he has a tendency to be condescending towards me. I don't like that, but I pretend not to mind. I have an inclination to ignore my true feelings, and pretend I didn't have any.

"I'm fine" I assure him, "just hot".

"Alright, but you're lucky no when else noticed your lack of concentration. It's disrespectful, Barbara" he warns me. I nod along, knowing that already. "I'll meet you at home tonight" he nods to me. I smile as I lean up to kiss him goodbye.