"What's this?" Dan asked, taking the drink Phil was offering him.

"I found some alcohol-free stuff in the back room," Phil explained. "It's lemonade."

"Lemonade?" Dan sniffed it suspiciously. Bubbles flew up his nose and he sneezed, cat-like. "What is that?"

"It's not dangerous," Phil said with a laugh, handing a glass to PJ. "Go on, try it."

Dan took a sip of the sweet drink and a smile spread across his face.

"Good?" Phil asked, smiling.

"It's been so long since I've drunk anything with flavour," Dan said. "You have no idea how boring that energy drink they give us gets after a while."

Phil sat down on the stool beside Dan and smiled widely, nudging him with his elbow. "Maybe you'll have to start coming here more often?"

It was those words that scared Dan more than anything else. More often? He knew he was breaking the law, he knew it was wrong to come here, and more than anything else, he couldn't stop the persistent feeling that just visiting the club was dangerous for him - not just because he might get shot by the army, but also because he'd always been told his brain could be corrupted by people like these.

"Y-yeah," he stammered. "Actually, I think I might have to go now."

Phil looked bewildered. "Why? What did I say? I'm so sorry, please don't leave-"

PJ put a hand gently on Phil's arm and Dan felt a burst of jealousy at their relationship. "We'll come back." He lowered his voice and whispered so only Phil could hear, "I think he listens to the Imperial Leader a little too much. Hopefully coming here can make him a bit less dependent on the personality the government created for him."

Phil nodded in understanding while Dan stood, fuming. Why was PJ, his best friend, whispering about him to some guy he'd only known for a few days?

"It's been good meeting you, Dan," Phil said, standing up and offering his hand. "Stay safe out there, okay?"

Dan took his hand and shook it once, a little more sharply than necessary. "We'll try."

He slid off the stool and looked at PJ, who raised his eyebrows. Dan gave him a look as though to say 'not now'.

"See you, Phil," PJ said, shaking Phil's hand enthusiastically. "Thanks for having us."

"Any time!" Phil stood and watched them as Dan almost dragged PJ away through the tables of people and up to the door. He turned to the barman. "Two shots of whatever's closest, please."

The barman slid two glasses of a bright green substance over to him and he downed them quickly. The sooner he forgot Dan's pretty face, the better.

As soon as Dan and PJ were up in the bookshop, PJ turned and snapped, "I don't know what you were doing there, but if you do that next time you can leave on your own, okay?"

Dan nodded shamefacedly. "I got scared. I'm sorry." He looked at the floor.

"It's okay, just... Next time we come, you won't get scared again, will you?"

"I don't think so."

PJ let the subject drop, and instead he led Dan outside the bookshop. They'd been in there for about an hour, and Dan was slightly worried that people would be suspicious. Nobody seemed to have a problem, though.

"It's a library," PJ whispered, answering Dan's unspoken question. "People spend hours in there, reading their propaganda magazines."

Dan raised an eyebrow, but didn't comment. It was frowned upon to talk in the streets, and he could see a large group of soldiers walking down the other side of the street. He didn't want to get on their bad side.

Dan and PJ only lived a few minutes away from the bookshop, so they were home in almost no time. PJ glanced at himself in the mirror and saw with satisfaction that the blue eyedrops were fading and the bright green of his eyes was starting to come through. "That place is amazing," he said after a moment.

"Amazing? I mean, it was nice to have a drink that actually tasted of something, but-"

"Not that," PJ said, looking at Dan, his expression unfathomable. "The whole concept of it. People doing whatever they want and not having to constantly check for security cameras or soldiers. They all seem so happy, and it just makes me realise how awful our lives are in comparison to theirs."

"That seems a bit harsh," Dan said. "I mean, sure, we all have to look the same, but it's not like we're starving, or trapped, or-"

"Goddammit, Dan, why can't you see? We are trapped. Look at yourself. You're defending our Imperial Leader, the man who's running the army and shooting people for not following his rules. Remember the woman who forgot to do her hair?" He paused for a moment to let his words sink in. Dan had been very badly affected by the incident, although PJ wasn't sure why. "And yet you're defending him, saying 'well, at least we have food' and 'we're not trapped' but we are, Dan. We really are. And you can't see that because you've never thought about it. You're basically just the stereotype of what our Imperial Lea- of what It wants you to be."

HAPPY 2017 GUYS HERE IS AN UPDATE OF MY FAVOURITE BOOK :D