The Revolt

PART TWO

--PART TWO--

"Manda."

I blink my eyes open to see Luke staring at me. He's squatting close to the ground, his cot empty behind him. He looks excited, his eyes twinkling. Allie's still asleep, lightly snoring.

"What are you doing awake?" I yawn. "You're gonna get in trouble if the director sees you up."

"I gotta show you something." A dazzling smile spreads across his face, the one that makes him irresistible to look at.

I groan, pulling my thin blanket over my head. "I've seen everything there is to see."

"Nope, Amanda, get up. You won't wanna miss this." He shakes me fiercely, rocking my body side-to-side.

"Luke, do you know what they'll do to us if they hear us? Or if they see us?" I'm gripped with terror as I think of how many whip lashes we would receive. My back would be a maze of scars.

"Amanda. It's worth it."

My mouth sets in a straight line and I glare up at him. His blonde hair looks dirty in the pale moonlight. But his eyes haven't dimmed a bit.

"I'm gonna kill you." I shove my blanket aside and push myself to my feet.

Luke links his arm through mine without hesitation and drags me through the rows of cots we pull out at night. I stumble along beside him, narrowly avoiding kicking the heads of my fellow digits.

Luke slides to a stop two feet before a dark line in the dirt. I recognize it; the line that marks the end of Sector Three. The line that no one is supposed to cross. Beyond it is a flat, deserted wasteland of heat and dirt. No more sectors and no more directors. Just the outside.

"Seriously?" I glare sideways at Luke, who's looking elatedly at the line. For some reason, this infuriates me. He knows how much I hate this place. He knows how much I want out. "This is what you wanted to show me? Is this some kind of sick joke?"

He shakes his head wildly. "Watch."

He steps away from me, inching slowly towards the border. I know what he's doing. He's testing it. I flail for him, but I'm too afraid to go after him. I'm too afraid to get caught.

He's one foot away. Half a foot before he crosses it. One inch. One centimeter.

"Luke, stop" I close my eyes. "Please stop."

He doesn't answer.

"Luke?"

Silence. My heart stops. I hold my breath, waiting for him to disappear from me forever.

But he doesn't.

"See?" he finally says. My eyes snap open. He's standing on the other side, beaming. "It's a lie, Amanda. Scares us so we stay."

I look at him, open-mouthed, wide-eyed. He's standing outside Sector Three. Outside. Free.

He holds his hand out to me, outstretched over the powerless border. I take it, my breath shaky. Luke pulls me over the line and smoothly into his arms. He grips me to him, holding me like he's never going to let me go.

"How did you find out?" I ask quietly. I can't stop looking around. Tumbleweeds, rocks, cactuses. Everything that we can look at from our district, but not actually see. Yes, we're in the middle of a desert. Yes, there's nowhere to go even if we did take the chance and run. But it's the most beautiful sight I've seen in five years.

"I saw someone out here," he whispers. "I don't know who."

A director? Chief? If they find us out here, they'll kill us.