Lotus Lines

Maybe

"Ida!" My muscles tense. Zachariah makes his way to me after we've been dismissed. "Ida hey." I keep my eyes from his gaze. "Uhm. Who'd you get paired with?"
A lump forms in my throat. "Uhm, Gideon." Zach is silent and stares down. "I'm sorry." I whisper.
"It's dumb. Really dumb. But this doesn't mean things between us have to change. It really doesn't. We're still compatible.
"Who'd you get?" My voice is uneasy.
Zach squirms and taps his foot anxiously.
"They said I wasn't compatible with anyone really. I'm not sure what that means..." although I shouldn't be, I'm relieved.
"That means you get your own Lotus Pod to control." I say optimistically. He stays quiet. "Hey, what's wrong?"
"According to the Buds, we are not compatible."
"I know. An-and maybe they're wrong. Maybe they mixed it all up or something..." my voice trails off. Zach looks at me coldly.
"You know how wrong of a statement that is." I nod.
"Like you said, that doesn't mean we can't stay being so close. We can remain how we are." He nods and smiles, but I know it's fake. "Cmon, let's head to our rooms and pack."

———

In the morning we're sent to the dining hall for our last breakfast. The food isn't how I remembered it. It's bland and almost even sour. This whole ordeal has left me feeling sour. I stare at my oatmeal and drift into thought.
"You want your breakfast soup?" Juliana asks with a mouth full of food.
"Uh, you can have it." I say chuckling as I push it towards her. "I'm keeping the apple though."

———

I've seen movies and read books where princesses wear expensive jewelry, pirates wear stolen silks and the classic black boots,  and witches wear dark eerie cloaks. I've come to conclusion that clothing is one of the, if not the main way for one to express themself. Usually we're required to wear specific suits given to us by the Buds. They're plain and beige, very boring.
Now that we are considered more grown than children, we have shed our boring suits, and have been given a wide variety of clothing for us to choose.  I chose many, many dresses. They were so very beautiful. Some girls stared at the clothes I chose and walked away.  However one girl came up to me and complimented me, telling me how beautiful they'd look. Her name is Octavia. She's reserved like me, but is very well liked.

———

I sit and wait on my old bed, waiting in my new dark blue dress and black shiny shoes. The tights I wore were itchy but I loved them anyway. I held onto my suit case as Juliana stomped around in her overalls and frog top.
"Honestly I don't know what they were thinking. Why even give me a choice of picking a piece of clothing with a frog on it when it's already certain I'm going to pick it."
"You're so odd, Julie." Breanna laughed.
Juliana walks towards me and steps down on one knee,
"Your majesty." I stand and curtsy, taking her hand,
"Oh my, what a charming prince." We laugh as Juliana flops down next to me.

———

We were called down to the trains reversed alphabetical. Meaning me and my podmates were the last few to leave. I said goodbye to the home I'd always known, hoping one day I might be back to visit.
The train moved swiftly and fast, making its way to our new home. We traveled outward, towards the outskirts of our ground block. I exit the train, looking up at the digital list of the letter pairs and our rooms. Juliana is on the other side of the Lotus Hive. I wave goodbye to her and walked towards my room. We were told that although we'd be in the same hive apartment, we'd have separate bedrooms, separate beds, and separate bathrooms. I open the door and look inside, to see Gideon sitting on the one bed in sight. My heart drops.
What the hell.