The Disk Reader

This story is a project I did for school, and I got a really good mark on it so I decided to post it. (: It's futuristic/ sci-fi short story with a Christian twist. Hope you like it! :D ^.^

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THU-THUMP. THU-THUMP. I could feel my heart pounding on the walls of my chest. Nervousness swept through my body and I couldn’t stop my hands from shaking. I glanced around at the whitewashed walls of the gym. Posters and streamers welcomed all the new students, including myself. The room started to get warm as hundreds upon hundreds of students filed in. Sweat sprung up along the back of my neck. The bleachers groaned in protest as teens piled on to them. The smell of cologne and perfume hung heavy in the air.

I felt eyes pressed on me. My silky, jet-black hair stood out like a black shadow among the blonde and light brown curls. I flipped my black hair over my shoulder as my amber eyes flitted from the other newcomers to the stage, hidden among the folds of the crimson curtain. I tried to ignore the whispers of others, but they pulsed through my head like a beating drum. Emo… Goth… Loner… They knew nothing. I knew nothing.

           Suddenly, the bright, fluorescent lights dimmed to a dull glow. The din of the room quickly quieted to a few sporadic whispers as the maroon curtain raised up to expose the wooden stage upon which stood the disk reader. My heart lurched into my throat. Nobody…

Bursting with pride, the superintendent strode out on stage towards the awaiting podium. The room went dead silent as he arched his long back towards the microphone.

“Hello dear students! Welcome back to Rauther High!” exclaimed the lanky, balding man. A cheer erupted from the students. “First of all, my name is, as you all know, Master Pholatine. Now enough about me, let’s all warmly welcome our new students this year!” Another cheer. “Come up, then, and let us read your info disks, as is custom! Come come! No time to loose!”

I slowly stood up with the rest of the new kids, and I felt all eyes turn towards us. My breath was coming out in ragged gasps as I trailed behind the other students. I wrung my hands; it was all I could do to keep from hyperventilating. The stage came ever closer, and before long I was striding up the stairs. Not breaking formation, the line I was in stopped, and turned to face the crowd. I felt my face flush as everyone silently stared at us.

“Alright,” Master Pholatine announced, spinning on his heel, “Everyone, please take out your info disks, and let us know who you are!” he said it with as much gusto as possible.

One by one, we took out our disks, and moved slowly forward towards the machine. Each time someone would come up, Master Pholatine would pluck up the disk and place it into the machine. Each time, a hologram would come up filled with the details of each student, including birthdates and family members. They held everything someone would ever need to know about you. Next thing I knew, I was staring into the droopy eyes of Master Pholatine.

“Disk, please,” he said reaching down to my clenched fist. Gingerly, he prod open my hand, picked up the disk and placed into the machine. My stomach tightened and I started swaying lightheaded. A small bubble popped up with my name. Reina Naveurten. Nothing else; just my name. Snickers raced through the crowd and suddenly, a chant churned through everyone, swelling like the sea and it soon overflowed, rolling off their tongues in a hypnotic way.

“Nobody! Nobody! Nobody! Nobody!” It didn’t stop. The taunts just kept coming.

Tears streaming down my face, I raced forward, grabbed my disk and dashed off the stage not looking back. The sneers followed me out and I couldn’t shake them loose. I kept running and running and running, stopping for nothing. Eventually, I tired myself out, and I collapsed against a wall. I cried until I couldn’t cry anymore, and then I stared sullenly at the ground. Voices drifted down the hall towards me as students made their way to class. Few looked at me, for I was a nobody, but those who did smirked, laughed, jeered, and kept walking. A bell rang somewhere in the distance, and the couple remaining stragglers hastily went through class doors. They were right. I was a nobody.

Out of nowhere a voice whispered, “I was a nobody too. But not anymore.” A shadowy figure stepped out of the darkness into the hall. A dark green hoodie hide the figure’s face, casting shadows across it. Basic jeans and sneakers, with a backpack flung across the shoulders. He looked like the average student. But for some reason, for some odd reason, I could tell he wasn’t average.

“Who are you?” I inquired, my voice rasping out.

“I am who God wants me to be,” was his simple reply.

“God?”

“Have you not heard of Him?” he questioned, tilting his head slightly.

“Well, I’ve only heard stories and rumours, but… I’ve never really known him, you know? But what does he have to do with anything? Look, I should really be getting to class…” I said, standing up to leave.

“Wait! Please!” Slowly I turned around to face him. “There’s a meeting just about to start, and I think it might be able to answer your questions better than me. Please, will you come?”

Sighing, I replied, “Alright, fine. I’ll go.” A smile spread across his face.

“Come along then,” he gestured, leading the way. “Oh, my name’s Antip, by the way.”

“Reina. Pleasure to meet you.”

As we walked through the deserted halls, he asked me about myself and about how I knew about God. Most of my answers were inconclusive and incomplete. I soon realized how little I actually knew. I ended up asking him more questions than he asked me. Suddenly we came up to an open door. We went through it and I found us standing in a small lounge area. A small stage was set up in the middle of the room, couches and armchairs surrounding it with Bibles placed on side tables. Antip gestured to an open seat, so I settled down just as someone stepped up on stage.

I sighed, preparing for the worst as the man on stage introduced himself as Pastor Guyan. I sat there, in that armchair, not moving as the Pastor spoke. At first, I wished there would be an opportunity for me to leave, but my interest sparked as he kept talking. Eventually, I opened my ears and my heart. His words touched me. They were changing me, and I didn’t mind. I just sat there soaking in every word. Pastor Guyan stopped talking, his sermon over. But I wanted to know more. I reached over, grabbed a Bible and started reading. I sat there, in that armchair, not moving as I kept reading…

… and reading…

… and reading.

“Reina?” I glanced up to see Antip kneeling in front of me, a smile spread wide across his face. His hood was pushed back, reveling tender blue eyes and spiked hair. Yes, the average kid, but not. Same same, but different.“Reina… It’s time to go home. You read all day.” He said with a chuckle.

“Oh. May I borrow it?” I asked nodding at the Bible.

“Keep it.” He smiled.

“Thank you.” I smiled back. I cradled the Bible and headed home.

*******

Crowds pressed in all around me as I headed towards the school. My eyelids were heavy with sleep. I spent the whole night reading. It was the best night of my life. I urged forward towards the security gate. The only way in was to scan your disk. For once in my life I wasn’t nervous. I reached the gate and handed my disk over. The security guard scanned it with a smirk. He remembered me from yesterday. The hologram popped up, and with a flash, information spread across the whole screen. The info was endless. I heard gasps from behind me. Never before was there that much info on a disk.

“Who… who are you?” the guard stuttered.

I smiled, took my disk, and replied, “I am who God wants me to be.”