Bedtime Stories

 "The Free-Thinkers had always been looked down upon since the dawn of Utopia. There could only be Confined-Thinkers or none at all. Teenagers, such as myself, were automatically ruled as Free-Thinkers at the ages of 13- 20 by the government, along with the mentally disabled, and any criminal that tried to bring our Utopia to ruins. And so, as any outsider may have guessed, teenagers were seen as the criminally-insane parasites of the world up until adulthood.

Confined-Thinkers at the ages of Childbearing would often be afraid to have a child, knowing that they would have to deal with a Free-Thinker later on in life, but were forced to have a child by the rules and regulations of our society. Often, by the time their child came to be a Free- Thinker, the parents would send them to a camp provided for by the government, meant to enhance their concentration on useful things to our society: A Concentration Camp. My parents did both of the previous things.

Mother and Father both had had completely different childhoods, and had met and been together since the government had married them when they were both Marrying Age. Mother hadn't needed to go to Camp when she was a teenager because she never became a Free- Thinker, growing up in a strict family that made the thought virtually impossible. Father, on the other hand, was sent to Camp when he was only 10 years of age and up until he was 25 years of age, ( Marrying Age), when he was forced to marry and become useful for our society. And so, as I stood by the train, pleading with my parents not to make me go, I began thinking.

"- you must, it's for your own good," Mother was stating with her usual robotic voice.

"Then why have you let me stay at home for the last 6 years!?" I questioned.

"You've never been a problem until now," she deadpanned and added, "And even so, when you became a teenager I was going to bring you then, but Father begged me not to send you, so I gave in, which turned out to be a mistake." she frowned.

I looked at Father, begging him with my eyes, Please don't make me. I know what happens there. Father was trying not to cry, tight lipped, eyes watering; It was against the law to show such strong negative emotions, for it showed ungratefulness and guilt. I looked back to my mother again, if only she knew where she was sending me. She looked back at me with anger shown across her face and pointed to the train car. I was making a scene and that angered her. I quickly hugged Father and whispered in his ear, "I love you," before hastily swinging my bag onto my shoulders and jogging to the train car before it left.

I sat on the train with all of the other dishevelled looking teens. Many of them were so young, too young, maybe 12 or 13, just sprouting from childhood, only to be placed on a train to be shipped to some correction facility. Some were crying, others were sleeping, and I was just observing. I was observing all of the poor souls that were about to be changed forever. If only it was just a correction facility.

Mother and Father never really got along very well and always differed in opinion of how our household and even how our society should be run. They stayed together for my entire life, but I had no doubt that the second I left, Mother would be filing for a separation and would make a new marriage with a new man who had done the same.

I used to be a very obedient child, under Mother's brainwashing, I'd do what she said with no question and I'd gain her approval. That was all I wanted back then, approval, someone to tell me that I was doing the right thing, that I was a good person, that who I was was acceptable. She'd always remind me of how brilliant a child I was compared to the teenagers that she had seen on the streets. She'd remind me never to become a Free- Thinker and I tried to listen. Soon enough, I became tired of always keeping my thoughts in my head, refraining from what I'd like to say, to say something more acceptable and pleasant. I became bored with showing positive emotions even when I wanted to cry and scream and say hurtful things. The negative emotions only became worse as I got older.