You Must Remember This

Chapter 33: Because I Could Not Stop For Death

It had taken Frank and other leadership students many hours to hash out a plan for implementing the school's new dress code, but even as they spoke, student volunteers were delivering outfits to everyone who did not already own something appropriate. Even Ms. Foster did not expect the level of student engagement they received, but as it turned out, free gifts warmed even the coldest of hearts. In a flash, the weekend passed with nothing but prelude to Monday. Frank left his house especially early, navigating the hilly sidewalks at an almost frenetic pace with a manic eye; if he even spotted one fellow classmate walking too, in a car, or anywhere, wearing formal dress, his victory was assured. Arriving at school without seeing much of anything, he positioned himself at the top of the main entrance and waited to greet everyone who arrived.

John privately mourned the loss of his sweatpants; his car wasn't heated, and now he felt cold as he drove. Traffic was heavier than usual that day on the freeway, and even though he had an unprecedented opportunity to admire the half-wooded neighborhood around him, he could only think of his sudden desire to be curled up under a blanket at home. John parked across the street from Heller, and as he waited for the traffic light along with everyone else, he could only marvel: people indeed were following orders! Even the Epsilons wore tight-fitting jackets, pantsuits, and garish ties, just like the rest of them. Some freshmen struggled to walk comfortably in their dress shoes, walking heel-to-toe like they had never walked before, but at least so far there were no protests. People looked nice, especially Beth, who John saw lingering by the entrance of the football field.

"How does it feel? Your tie's off, let me adjust it," she insisted; John had never tied a tie himself before, and had undue faith in his ability to follow YouTube tutorials.

"The tie? A bit tight."

"No, finally dressing formally. Everyone's equal now; it doesn't feel like the Alphas are simply rubbing it in anymore."

"You're an Alpha too, Beth."

"Well that doesn't mean I was rubbing it in before! This reminds me of what I imagine a Model UN conference to look like more than anything; what's the word... ah yes, professional." Beth was already regretting her decision to wear high heels.

"I would complain about my loss of individuality if I ever expressed that through my fashion originally. You know, it's always bothered me when people wore 'weird' clothes before. You know what I mean, strange designs and crop tops and clashing hues. This is a far more preferable aesthetic."

"You think crop tops are weird? Wow, you are sheltered. Wait up for me—it's a bit hard to climb stairs quickly in these; I don't know how Juliet does it."

One of John's fears when he heard about the new policy was that the teachers wouldn't play along too; to John, how a person dressed signaled authority, and if the teachers' outfits were ramshackle, then they lost their divine right to give instructions. Ms. Liu, at least, had chosen to set a good example for her students, not that she ever dressed too informally, anyway.

"I like the tie, John. Good color contrast—your shoe's untied too, by the way."

"Are you in favor of this policy, Ms. Liu?" She walked to the door where John was and tried to stare outside, where students were milling about in their by-now normal positions, some carrying briefcases instead of backpacks.

"My initial worry was that some students wouldn't have access to the same quality of clothes as everyone else, but as that problem was solved, I don't know what to think. I can say that compared to the celery juice or TigerTalk—Mr. Ivanov was telling me earlier how they can see all your data—this is a better idea on the surface. It looks like my students out there aren't complaining, and all of them are wearing their outfits, which given their compliance with other requests is absolutely extraordinary. It's funny really, when Frank talked to me last year with a fury in his eye and spoke of a complete overhaul of the school, I was expecting something a bit more fundamental, but all that's really changed is that we sing the national anthem now. Even the Alpha brunches were expanded to include free-lunch kids because they weren't able to eat breakfast otherwise. So yeah, why not, John. I'm in favor of this." Other students began coming in, all just as jovial as usual besides Regina, and Ms. Liu called a quick poll: