Shymers (16 page)

“Yes, sir,” I answer in a quiet voice.

“
Good nigh
t
, Miss Mensing,” he hisses, pointing at the garbage can off to the side of the hallway.

“Good night,” I say politely, turning. I nearly fall apart when he is gone from sight. There is no time to warn Harrison that the director is suspicious of me. It would be too risky. Having no other choice, I throw the food into the garbage.

* * *

The next morning, Harrison does not show up for breakfast. I sit by myself and push my food around as we had the night before, trying not to draw any unwanted attention. With my head held low, I frantically search the dining hall. The same orphans go about their business, just like any other day.
 

When it’s time to leave and I still can’t find Harrison, my chest pinches tight. Where is he? Did he change his mind about leaving with me? Did the Director catch him trying to meet me? I mingle in with the other Shymers on the walk to the shuttle station. Harrison is still nowhere to be seen. The greasy haired boy who always sits with him, however, is in the back of the line.

I tug on his arm. “Where’s Harrison?”

His smile reveals a mouth full of gaping holes. He is not the only Shymer I’ve seen with missing teeth. Kai once told me no one would spend the money on Shymers in orphanages. This boy is just one among the many with poor health.

“You’re that new girl he’s sweet on,” he says.

My face turns red. Why would he would know of Harrison’s feelings for me when the two of them always seem to be fighting? Maybe it’s just some observation he made on his own. “Do you know where he is?”

The boy shrugs his shoulders that rest at my eye level. “He wasn’t there this morning.”

“Did you see him go to bed?”

“I haven’t seen him since dinner last night,” he tells me.

The shuttle screeches to a stop in front of us. A knot at the pit of my stomach grows with my multiplied panic. What about Bree? She’s usually one of the first ones at the station every morning, and she’s nowhere to be seen, either. The Shymers around us begin to climb on board. I stand and watch until the last one climbs in.

Still, no Bree.

With airway is tight, I struggle to find my breath
.
Where are the
y
?

“You okay?” the boy asks.

I jump, unaware that he is still next to me. Looking out from underneath his greasy hair, his long face is filled with red, angry blemishes. Something in his eye reminds me of a wounded animal. Before today, it never occurred to me that he may be unpopular even with the Shymers. Maybe Harrison had befriended him because of it.

“I don’t feel well,” I say truthfully.

He places his hand on my arm. It’s cold and dry, despite the already warm weather. “Do you want me to take you back to the orphanage?”

I shake my head. The orphanage is the last place I want to go. At least in lessons I know Director Mahr isn’t lurking somewhere, waiting to pop out of the darkness. If I can help it, I hope to never return to that orphanage again. “We better get on before the shuttle leaves.”

Pushing his hand under my arm, the boy helps me step up into the shuttle. I take Harrison’s spot on the bench beside him. “I’m Olive,” I say, holding my hand out.

“Zeke,” he answers, taking my hand in his. His grip is sticky and cold. He’s nervous. “I have less than a month until my DOD. What about you?”

Wincing, my stomach drops. Everyone I have met here is so close to death. Yet they continue to go to this terrible place where they are not welcome, all because the government wants to keep an eye on them.

“I don’t know,” I answer. “I was raised in the Free Lands. My parents never told me.”

Zeke nods like he already knew this. We don’t speak the rest of the way. I struggle to keep from breaking down and sobbing when the panic of my missing friends consumes me. What have I done? Have I gotten them both in trouble because of my idea to run? Are they both locked away in suspension for having rebellious thoughts?

Before long, the shuttle pulls in front of the school. I stand in the aisle beside Zeke and follow him out. As we step out under the canopy, I miss the last step and nearly stumble to the ground.

Zeke catches me, frowning. “Are you feeling okay? Do you want me to take you to the nurse?”

“I’m okay,” I insist.

“Be careful,” he warns before we part ways for our first lesson.

The Shymers greet me with their standard shy and awkward smiles when I take my seat. Angie, a very small and quiet girl I’ve come to know little about, slides into Bree’s seat next to me. Dressed in the usual drab clothing of a trademark Shymer, the sides of her long brown hair are tied back with a worn, gray ribbon.

“I’m so excited for Bree,” she says with a bright smile. Smiling is something I had not seen Angie do before now. Her little nose is pushed up by her lips and she looks even younger than I had guessed.

I turn to face her, my heart skipping a beat. “Why? Do you know where she is?”

She continues to smile, although her head cocks to the side. “Didn’t she tell you? I heard her parents took her out today so they could start on her playlist.”

The air is suddenly stolen from my lungs. Did Bree tell her parents goodbye and instead they offered to help her with her playlist? In past conversations, I know of only a few things on her list—things like going to a music festival and visiting a zoo where all the remaining animals are kept. But I wouldn’t even know where to begin searching for her. I don’t know where anything is in Society, and I have no way of getting around. If I leave now, I may never see her again.

The instructor enters the room and abruptly starts class where we last left off.

I hide my tears behind my hands.

I have lost another friend.

* * *

When lunchtime rolls around, I don’t have the stomach to face the usual crowd without without Bree, Harrison and Kai. Instead, I sit in the empty hallway outside of my next classroom. The quiet surrounding me is peaceful, although I wish I could hear the rustle of leaves or a bird call like I would in the Free Lands, if only to remind me of home.

The day has been filled with little emotion other than guilt for what has happened. I should have just run away on my own without getting my new friends involved. No matter what else happens, I have to leave after the last buzzer of the day, just as Harrison and I had planned.

On my own, there won’t be any chance of seeing my mother. I don’t even know where to find the suspension building. What
I
d
o
know is how to find my way around the Free Lands. If I am at least able to find the border and somehow make it over, then I know I will be safe.

A sickening realization settles in my stomach like a great, heavy rock. What if I never see Harrison again? What if he was put in suspension because of our plans? I would never forgive myself.

Well before the next buzzer sounds, a Future strides down the hallway. She is tall and thin with a smooth, narrow face that pales in beauty compared to her large blue eyes. Thick clusters of long blond hair rest on her shoulders, bouncing with each step she takes. Her short denim shorts are paired with a bright pink top that reflects color onto her face. Like most Futures, she is smiling. But her smile is something different, warm. It almost makes her appear friendly. While it’s true that the Futures are all considered attractive, this girl is striking in a way that takes your breath away.

And she is walking straight toward me.

I brace myself.

Just feet away, she stops and looks down on me.

“Olive,” she says in a voice that is as beautiful as she is.

“Yes?” I answer, my own voice shaking. How does she know who I am? Has she been sent by Director Mahr to check up on me? I cough to clear the nerves from my throat. “That’s me.”

Her smile widens. “I thought so. I have a message for you.”

My throat is so dry and tight, it takes great effort to find my voice again. “Am I in trouble?”

She giggles. Since coming into Society, giggling is something I have rarely heard. I like the sound of it. It instantly reminds me of running through the forest with Taylor. Although painful to think of my old friend, the memory also brings a small wave of comfort.

The girl shakes her head, her blond mane dancing over her shoulders, and crouches down. The smell of flowers and something else—maybe her shampoo—slams into me. “No,” she whispers. “Harrison sent me.”

A sudden surge of jealousy runs through my veins. It happens with such speed that I fear I will do something irrational, like cry or yell out. I take in a deep breath to calm myself. The fact he gave this Future a message also fills me with hope. Maybe he is safe. Maybe he made it to the Free Lands.

“Is he okay?” I ask.

She nods and scrambles around to sit on the floor beside me. “He was caught with the packs and threatened with suspension, so he had to leave early.” Her voice is so low that I almost wonder if I really heard what she just said.

The backpacks were another bad idea in this half-cooked plan of ours. We should have known it would be too risky for Harrison to carry them around. He may as well have carried a sign saying he’s planning to run away. “Where is he?”

“He went into hiding to wait until you can join him. You and your friend Bree are supposed to meet him at the edge of the Future territory.”

“Bree’s gone. She won’t be coming.” My eyes water when I think of leaving my friend behind. “And I don’t know my way around Society.”

“Then I’ll take you,” she says without any further consideration.

I look hard at her. Why would a Future be so willing to help? Is she in love with Harrison? Other than holding my hand, he hasn’t shown any interest in me as anything but a friend. Maybe I was wrong to assume he feels something for me.

“How did he get the message to you?” I ask, swallowing the jealousy down.

She taps the spot behind her ear. “He contacted me on his communicator.”

I glance down the hallway. Our whole conversation could put us in danger. Someone could appear and take me away at any moment for even having such rebellious thoughts. “He shouldn’t have done that. It isn’t safe.”

She rests her hand on my arm and grins. “He wanted to make sure you weren’t left behind. He really cares about you, Olive. He’s willing to do anything for you.”

Heat rushes to my face. I have never blushed as many times in my entire life as I have since first meeting Harrison. “Why do you want to help me?” I ask. “You’re a Future, right? Why do you even care what happens to a couple of Shymers?”

Her big blue eyes sparkle with mischief. “My name is Tayrn. I’m Harrison’s cousin.”

I gasp. Maybe it shouldn’t come as a surprise that she’s related to Harrison—they are both beautiful. Still, the fact that she’s so willing to help is a surprise. From what I’ve been told, most Futures don’t have anything to do with their Shymer relatives. I blink back at her, wondering if she has had any of the surgical procedures to alter her face or if she just looks naturally stunning.

“Aren’t you afraid of being caught?” I ask. “What if they somehow find out after we’re gone that you helped us?” The Director’s threat rings in my head and I shiver.

Tayrn shakes her head, making her golden hair do another dance. Her wide smile reveals a mouth full of perfect white teeth, like Harrison’s. “That won’t happen. I’m crossing over with you.”

11 – I Know What You’re Trying to Do

The buzzer announcing the end of lunch sounds. We both jump in surprise. Tayrn turns back to me and laughs so hard that I can’t stop myself from laughing along with her. More than anything, our nerves over the situation have gotten the best of us.

“I have to go,” she says, standing quickly. Her eyes are still filled with tears from laughing, but also look worried as the Futures and Shymers begin to invade the hall. “Meet me out behind the school at the end of the day. We will have to move fast. If we are seen together, it will cause suspicion.”

The hallway is soon completely flooded with students. Without another word or look, Tayrn whirls around on her heels and is gone. I stand for a moment watching after her, unable to believe what just happened.

I know Tayrn is right. Returning to the orphanage is not an option after Director Mahr caught Harrison trying to leave. I am filled with relief that Harrison was able to get away before the Director followed through with his threats.

I also need to finish out my day of lessons. If I don’t show it may draw attention, even though the teachers rarely pay that much attention to the Shymers. But the school does track students by the use of their tablets. If mine is inactive they may come looking for me.

The rest of the day couldn’t go any slower. I pass Tayrn once in the hallway. As expected, she doesn’t acknowledge me in any way. At her side are two other Futures that, quite obviously
,
hav
e
had the surgeries performed as their faces are too tight and their lips are too big. Tayrn has to have been born the way she is—only nature could make something that seemingly perfect.