In a nightmare world ravaged by misery, the Imperium offers utopia to a select few. When Arya and Everett are recruited into this elite society, they choose to leave their homes against their families' wishes.
Naive and young, Arya and Everett are...
The cold, unfriendly voice of a stranger drags me out of my dreamless slumber. As I'm pulling myself up, my elbows pressing into the cool mattress, I notice Everett doing the same, his movements groggier and slower than mine. A second later, I spot the male citizen standing at the doorway, glaring at us with equal parts disdain and apprehension.
"You must leave now," he says, his arms resting perfectly still at his sides. "Return to your pods immediately."
Without waiting for a response, he turns and leaves, the door hissing softly as it shuts behind him.
I climb to my feet, relieved to find that my limbs are much more cooperative now than they were before I got the second treatment from the Foreman. But when I near the door and feel Everett standing right behind me, his fingers trailing down my arm towards my palm, a new kind of pain lodges itself in my chest. Snatching my hand away, I grimace as the realization comes flooding back:
He hid what he knew about the previous recruits. He kept a secret from me.
"Arya?" he says, taken aback by my temper. "What's wrong? Are you okay?"
"No," I reply shortly before throwing the door open and heading into the pristine hallway. The citizen who asked us to leave the Wellness Hub is now nowhere in sight.
I walk along the serpentine, sparsely crowded corridors in search of the exit while Everett follows, repeatedly enquiring after me. Finally, as we emerge out of the Wellness Hub and descend the grand staircase, I look up at the night sky - perfect, moonless, and ink-blue. A moment later, Everett's warm hands grab my shoulders, gently turning me to face him.
"Arya, this is torture," he groans, lowering his head to search my eyes. "Please, talk to me. What's the matter?"
For the first time since Everett and I awoke, I allow my gaze to meet his. My voice is thick with indignation when I mutter, "I think you already know."
Realization dawns on him quickly, his expression morphing from desperate confusion to guilt. The shock of it all hits me once more with even greater force. Shaking myself free of his hold, I continue down the empty, well-lit path leading to the pods.
"Arya, please, I am so sorry." The regret in his voice makes my heart clench despite my anger. "I didn't understand what I was looking at that day! I didn't want to worry you when you needed to focus on healing and-"
He stops mid-sentence when I shoot a sharp look at him over my shoulder.
"I should've told you, I know," he says pleadingly. "I never meant to hide anything from you. Please, Arya. All I saw that day was a bunch of codes, you know, like M929 and F930, and all the records except ours said, 'subject deceased'. I didn't get the chance to see much else."
I pick up my pace as the familiar white building materializes in the distance. I can hear Everett pursuing me, the sound of his footsteps heavy and uneven like he's having trouble keeping up.
"Arya, wait!" he huffs as we climb the stairs to our pods and emerge into the long, quiet hallway. With a guilty grimace, I slow down, allowing him to fall into step beside me in front of the door marked F930. Everett cups my cheeks gingerly, careful not to put too much pressure on the bruises. "I am so sorry, Arya. Please. I don't know what I was thinking, I should've just told you."
"We're supposed to stick together," I mutter, my eyes glued to the floor.
"I know," he says softly before apologizing once again.
"It's okay, but we've got to tell each other everything," I say finally, giving a small smile when Everett nods, his shoulders sagging with relief.
When I take a good look at him up close, I notice the black-and-blue bruises in greater detail, and my skin prickles with anger at the citizens who attacked us. Shaking my head to clear it, I reach up to push a strand of his deep brown hair away from his eyes.
"We have to talk about what the Foreman said to me when you were asleep," I say, self-consciously lowering my voice even though the hallway is vacant.
"Okay," he nods. "I'll just shower and grab the water from my room and meet you at yours, yeah?"
I turn to look at the blinking red light on the door behind me. All of a sudden, the thought of the boxy, dismal room with the hidden panels makes me shudder uncomfortably.
"Not here," I decide. "We should go somewhere else. We can leave the doors unlocked with our bracelets and find a place outside."
"But where? What if someone catches us?"
"Just trust me."
"Of course, but . . ." Everett raises his eyebrows. "What's going on, Arya? What did he say to you?"
"I'll explain everything," I say, trying to sound a lot more assured than I feel at the moment. I lower my voice even further, craning my neck until my lips are close to his ear. "You know how the Foreman keeps saying our Chips failed, like it was a mistake or something?"
Everett nods, his sharp, bright gaze filled with concern as I let out a hesitant, shaky breath.
"Well, I . . . I don't think it was an accident at all."
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