Numbered

Chapter Four

 Chapter Four

Kylie was a quiet person, which was unusual because she liked to fight. Most of the kids in her street who dared her to fight them were loud, obnoxious people who thought they were better than her. Which was why at first she’d earned a lot of money by fighting. Nobody knew how good she was.

And then people began to cotton on to her skills. They’d been hustled by her for a while, but now they knew she was as good as a professional, nobody bothered to bet their money that she would lose. And people rarely fought with her. Except ones who’d gotten above themselves, or the stupid ones. Most commonly it was guys who thought they could beat her. She’d been at the top of her game.

Now, in Topaz, she was the weak one. She couldn’t fight here, not if she wanted to be punished more harshly. And even if she could fight, there’d be no one to fight with. The people here were ABOVE fighting. They probably regarded it as a peasant’s sport, which it was. Kylie had started fighting in the streets because of a lack of entertainment, and also a lack of money. Fighting provided her both a thrill and coins in her pocket.

She woke up early to start her ‘shift’. It was not a shift really, because it lasted the whole day. She rarely got the chance to have a break. When she did get lunch, she had to eat it quickly, in case the Worths wanted something during theirs.

It was later in the day, when Jared came by the kitchen. He wasn’t wearing a suit this time. He had just got changed from after school, and now he was dressed in a navy sweater and jeans. She had never seen such a casual look on him before. It was like he wasn’t a Five. He looked like a 3 maybe, or even a 2. His hair wasn’t combed back either. It was messy like someone had just ruffled it.

 Michel was on his day off, which meant more work for Kylie. Another chef was being brought in to cook the three-course dinner, but so far Kylie had dealt with the breakfast and the lunch.

Jared pulled out a chair at the island in the kitchen and sat on it, stretching his legs in front of him. His parents were working – it was just him and Kylie alone in the house. She bit her lip when she heard the scrape of the chair against the tiled floor.

She went to get the mop out of the cupboard to clean the floor but he stopped her. “You don’t have to do that,” he said, softly, as if his parents were still here. “The floors are spotless.”

“But it’s my daily duties, sir,” she answered, hovering in the kitchen. Her fingers were grasping the cold metal handle of the mop, and she was debating whether or not to obey him. It was strange being here with him, without the presence of his parents. It felt strange acting as if he were her master, when he looked to be around the same age as her.

“Well, then I demand that you miss this daily duty,” he said, lifting up his chin in a way meant to mock his father. “Please. I feel guilty watching you cleaning whilst I’m sitting here doing nothing.”

She hesitated. He had an earnest expression, so she could tell he wasn’t playing some joke on her. His eyes latched onto hers again, and she found it impossible to look away.

“Alright,” she said, reluctantly, placing the mop back in the cupboard. Hurriedly, she added, “Okay, sir.”

“You don’t have to call me sir, either,” he laughed. “Why are you scared?”

Kylie shook her head. “I’m not scared. I’m just…” She was confused. Why was he being so kind to her? Didn’t the fact that she was a Zero repel him?

Kylie kept a straight face. She wasn’t about to spill her thoughts to this stranger. And he was a Five – the government’s lapdogs. Surely that counted for a reason not to tell him how she felt.