Paytah

Once the guards pushed me in a room and locked me in, I collapsed to the floor.

I force myself to hold back tears. The fact that this whole fucking test was within a whole other test, and the fact that they let it continue when I was being beaten by my own mother...

It makes me sick.

I look up, but there's not much to look at. Once again, this whole building is in a large dome, keeping us in, keeping us contained. There's a single bed in the corner, a small bathroom, and a dresser. No window. My eyes move up to a black blob in the corner.

A video camera. Once again watching my every move.

I'm fucking sick of it.

"Great," I say, my voice raspy. The tears are there, waiting for me to break, to let them fall.

I won't let them fall.

I stand back up, wincing as I go. Whenever pain shoots through me all I can see is my mother standing there watching me suffer, not even flinching as I screamed.

And pain has been a common thing lately.

I check my wounds. Not terrible. Only bruises and scars from a while ago, except the fresh bruise on my jaw I received from a guard earlier today. I'm starving though, and would kill for a glass of water.

I think of the others. I knew Lana was okay, she was with me. But Aira and Juris I was worried about. They seemed okay, tired and confused, but okay. I hope they didn't look at me like I was weak, like I was suffering.

I was suffering.

I don't want anyone to know.

I don't want them to know that I couldn't save myself. I don't want them to realize that I was beaten and starved, and that my mother was the reason for all of this. I don't want them to give me pity, I don't want to be looked down upon.

I fear all of that.

There's a knock on the door, then the jingling of keys. The door opens and in comes a girl, not old, maybe my age.

My mind flashes back. I'm eighteen. I've been eighteen for a little bit now. Shit.

"Hey." She says cooly. I stare at her, probably making her uncomfortable, but I could care less. Her skin is like caramel, same with her eyes. Her hair is a bit darker, short and curly like Lana's.

"Who are you?"

"Roma, nice to meet you. Or, at least nice to meet you in person. It's different from seeing you through a screen." She says. She walks past me and places a glass of water on my dresser. It's silent for a moment. She looks at me again.

"Oh, sorry. You probably want more info than just my name," she smiles, "I work here. First day, well, for all of us I guess. I'm in charge of this floor. I'm supposed to check up on everyone once in a while."

"Aren't you kind of young to work here?" I ask. She looks at me like I'm crazy.

"Aren't you kind of young? Besides, there's not much people who want to work here. Believe it or not, over half of the population is afraid of you." She smiles, like its funny. I watch her tentatively, wondering if she's serious or not.

"Are you afraid?" I ask.

She looks at me, eyeing me up and down. "No."

"I could kill you right now." I say, and I open my palm. Roma watches as fire appears, her face filled with curiosity.

"I could kill you too." She says simply, and she pats something that's in her back pocket. A gun.

A gun. I pointed a gun right at Lana's head, I pointed one right at my head..

"I will admit, your power is cooler," she says.

"I didn't ask for it," I say, and she nods. She understands. She understands I didn't ask for any of this. Nobody has understood that before, or at least it never seemed like it.

"Hanson suggests you get an hour of downtime each day, to recover. And that's all I have for you. Oh, Kitchen is downstairs-"

"Where are the others?" I ask.

She smiles a little. "You guys really do care for each other. They aren't on this floor, that's all I know. You'll find them." She says. "You guys always find each other."

"Thanks." I say, and she waves as she walks out the door.

I chug down the glass of water and head out the door. I walk downstairs, the cafeteria right there when I walk down. I don't see the others, not even people I recognize. I stand in line, behind a male with large glasses. He looks back for a moment, then turns his eyes away. After a few seconds, he turns again.

"Sorry I'm staring," he says, "but you're Paytah." He says, pushing up his glasses. I nod, but he keeps his eyes glued.

"Aira and Juris worked with me in the computer room. They and the girl Lana left to get you. Glad they succeeded," he says, "I'm James, by the way."

"Do you know where they are?" I ask, trying to push away the images that are flashing in my mind when he said that they 'left to get me'.

"Not sure. Sorry," he says, looking at me sadly.

I nod and quick grab an apple. I could eat everything here right now, but I feel too sick.

And I feel even worse when I see her.

She's leaning against the wall right next to the stairs. She has her arms crossed, a smile plastered on her face. Even though we are now the same, she makes me feel worthless again. She makes me feel like I'm still in her grasp, still until her control.

My mother.

I can't move. I can't look away, but I want to, I need to. I didn't even think that she was here. I forgot that she's an element too, a part in this large experiment.

The apple is no longer in my hand. I must've dropped it.

She smiles wider, a shiver runs down my spine.

And a pair of arms grab me just in time when I faint.

******

Hello!!!

Well, I'm so excited for book 3!

Again I'm sorry it's a slow beginning!

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Thank you !