A Beautiful Reflection From Firework Eyes

Tear It Down, Break The Barricade

The guard's name is Matty. I was right—he is only 22, just barely four years older than I am.

"Most of us aren't here by choice," Matty explains. "A lot of us were drafted. After people like you were discovered—people with powers, the government became terrified. They drafted a lot of people. Some of us were sent here—to this facility."

"Are there more of us?" I ask. "Other facilities?"

Matty shrugs. "Possibly. This is the only one I've heard of. But it might be that there are more of you who are just hiding out. No one is really certain of anything."

"Were you drafted?" Alex asks.

Matty shakes his head. "No. I volunteered." He sees the expression on our faces and laughs. "Not because of that," he says. "I have—had a little sister. She was one of you. After she was taken away, I volunteered to try to find her and save her."

I exchange a glance with Alex, shocked.

"She's not here," Matty sighs. "If she's still alive, I'm not sure what happened to her."

"I'm sorry," I say. I know exactly how it feels, the guilt and hopelessness. The feeling that I should have done more, even though there was nothing else to do. "My little brother disappeared—he's not one of us but I never found out what happened to him."

Matty looks sympathetic. "If I can't do anything to help her, I might as well help you," he says.

"So, do you think there is any way for us to escape?" Alex asks.

Matty looks uncertain. "I don't think so," he admits. "There's only one entrance and it's heavily guarded. I'd have to check with the other guards. Don't worry, I won't say anything about you," he adds hastily, seeing Alex tense up.

"Really, anything you can do is helpful," I say.

"I can meet you here tomorrow night," Matty replies.

"Thank you," I say. "I'm really sorry for all of this."

"Honesty," he says. "I would've helped you anyway. I'd help you because that's what a good person should do."

---

It's not just Matty who feels this way. The next day, he brings with him another guard. The three of us freeze as we see the two of them enter.

"Who the hell is this?" Alex growls, pushing himself up from the wall.

"Relax," Matty holds up his hands. "He's a old friend."

"What kind of friend?" Alex asks. "The kind who will turn us in?"

"Alex, chill," Jack says, reaching over to grab his boyfriend. "Let the man speak."

"This is Rian," Matty says. "And no. He wouldn't. I trust him with my life."

"Hi," Rian says. He gives us a small wave.

"Why are you doing this?" Alex asks, his posture stiff.

"Because it's the right thing to do," Rian says. "You didn't do anything wrong to deserve being locked up. Anyway, I've known Matty for a long time. His little sister was practically like a little sister to me. When he told me his plan, I went with him, but you know how that turned out. So I might as well help you guys out." Alex relaxes slightly as I nudge him, giving him a glare.

"So, what do you need?" Matty asks.

"If we could get you outside, you could make a break for it," Rian says. "Across the field?"

"It's too risky," Jack says. "I can't turn that many people invisible at once. They'd spot us and start shooting immediately."

"How many people are in the control room at once?" I inquire.

"At least four," Rian says. "Matty and I couldn't manage to hijack it."

"Could we get any other guards in on it?" Jack asks.

Rian shakes his head. "Most of them are okay with what's happening here," he says somberly. "You were lucky you found us. Everyone else probably would've turned you in. To get a promotion and all."

"They would do that?" I ask.

"You have too much faith in them," Rian laughs. "Most of them think it's right for you to be locked up in here. Especially Radke."

"Who?" I ask.

"Black hair, silver pin," Rian says. "He's an officer. Got promoted a while ago."

"Oh, him," Jack smiles proudly. "I've pissed him off enough times."

"You have," Rian says, grimacing. "He's ranted about you enough. He hates your guts."

"Well, I hate his."

"What did you do?" I ask.

"Every so often I sneak into his room and destroy a few things," Jack says. "I'm always back in my room before he knows though. He's never been able to prove it's was me."

Matty shakes his head. "You're trouble, you know?"

Jack winks. "I know. But he's an ass. He deserves it."

"What did he do?" Rian asks.

Jack grimaces. "He's my half brother. And the one who turned me in."

Heavy silence follows as we process the information. Alex slips his hand into Jack's squeezing it, comforting him. From the look on Alex's face, he already knew.

"I'm sorry," Rian says at last. "Man, that sucks."

"Yeah." Jack shrugs, then nods. He looks eager to change the subject. "So, did Matty fill you in?"

"I think so," Rian says. "You need a way out, right?"

"We've tried everything," I sigh. "There's only one door. No windows. The vent shafts are too small and the ones that we can fit in don't lead anywhere."

"How did you get into the vent shaft?" Matty asks, confused. "They're on the ceiling. Not to mention screwed shut."

Jack holds up a screwdriver. "Alex can fly and Vic is small," he responds. "I'm just good at stealing tools."

"We were determined," Alex says. "But now we've run out of options. We're stuck."

"There's—" Matty looks over at Rian, silently confirming something before continuing. "I found this out last night. But there's actually one window in this place."

"Really?" I ask, sending a glance at Jack and Alex, who both shrug. What did we miss? "Where?"

"In Mr. Styles' office," Rian says.

"He has an office?" Jack exclaims.

"I guess that makes sense," Alex mutters. "But how the hell did we miss it?"

"It's the locked door," I realize. "The one that we could never get into."

"Yeah, why couldn't we?" Jack asks. "We got into the control room."

"Because that's where Styles keeps his personal stuff," Rian says. "Family photos and all."

"He keeps those in the Facility?" Alex asks.

Matty shrugs. "Something about his son," he says. "That's why he's so invested in this." I frown, my thoughts whirling in my mind. I never knew about this. He's never mentioned it.

"So, tomorrow night?" Rian asks. "Matty can unlock the door and meet you out there. I monitor from the control room—that's my shift tomorrow."

"Sounds like a plan," Alex says, giving Rian and fist bump. "See you tomorrow, team."

---

*Sighs*

Okay...so I know it's not true in real life, but just go along with it? Please? I promise it's necessary for the plot and characters and etc. :)

On a side note, Look!

A wild Rian Dawson has appeared.