In Case of Rejection

CHAPTER ELEVEN

Friday came and went in a blur. Olive was unresponsive all day, just like Matthew expected her to be. The only conversation he got out of her were bitter remarks at the state of things. He couldn't blame her. He remembered all too well the feelings that consumed him when Luke was taken. Fear, resentment, despair -- all layers of his own personal hell that he could only describe as some kind of mourning. He felt truly sad for her. He hated being so unsettled, and he only wished he could spare Olive from the reality.

"Do you want to do something today after school? We can go to the Arcade, go to Ms. Peterson's?" The words sounded sad and uncertain coming from Matthew, and he hated himself for being so bad at consoling. They were in fourth period, just before lunch time, sitting beside each other in calculus like they always did. She didn't say anything, just kept her head down, eyes focused on her work.

"We can go down to Nerve Center, if you want," Matthew said, and her head snapped upward. She looked at him sternly.

"Yes," she said, nodding.

"Are you sure? We can-" Matthew's heart thumped in his chest, wondering if he'd made a mistake.

"Yes," Olive cut him off, then returned to her work.

They went straight there from school, taking an alternate route off Main Street, to the left, down towards D Block. It made Matthew's stomach turn, walking down the unfamiliar streets. He looked down behind him, catching a glimpse of the buzz around the Arcade, and he wished so badly for them to go there instead.

He'd never been to Nerve Center before -- he'd seen it from the outside and in commercials, but he liked to stay as far away from it as possible. The place gave him the creeps on every level. It was always swarming with Bots, for one thing. Nerve Center was where the designated Sector 18 Bots were sent, after their long, guarded journey from Sector 3, where all DefTech materials were created and distributed.

Nerve Center is where they come to life -- where they first step out into the world. Nerve Center had its own collection of gadgets and tools that made the repair and upkeep of Bots possible.

Matthew's legs felt heavy with dread, but he tried to keep an air of confidence in his stride for Olive. She was the opposite -- where she had been listless and uninspired all day, she almost had a skip in her step. She took long, determined steps, past the people, past the Bots. It was almost like everyone else was stepping out of her way.

It was bigger than Matthew remembered it, not having been this far down D Block since he was a child. It was known that no one traveled down D Block unless absolutely necessary. The further they walked, the more eerily unoccupied the street became. It was a harsh contrast to the rest of Sector 18 at that time of day, teeming with life. These streets were swarmed with Bots, some traveling with their usual mechanical walk, some standing at attention, scanning over whatever life they could detect.

Olive paid no attention, walking straight up to the big, gray building on the left, and pulling open the glass double doors. From the outside it was one big pale slab, about twelve stories high, with long, frosted windows on all sides. Where Matthew expected it to be worn, dirty, or covered in a layer of dust like all of the other buildings in Sector 18, the building gleamed. He couldn't fathom how Nerve Center was kept so rigidly tidy.

He followed in right behind her, scared enough to reach out and grab her hand. His heart jumped into his throat at the rush of cool air that fell over him once through the doors.
Standing there on the main floor, his senses were bombarded with quiet, and he swallowed. The floors were pristine white tile, perfectly preserved despite Sector 18's dirt-paved streets. Another abnormality, and he took in a deep breath. He wondered if they'd recognize him. It was stupid, he'd only been there a handful of times as a child, when his Dad still worked in Sector 18.