"How Love and Sympathy with potent charm

Warm the cold heart, the lifted hand disarm;

Allure with pleasures, and alarm with pains,

And bind Society in golden chains." -Erasmus Darwin

 Hunger is a destructive, peculiar feeling.  From one moment, I can go from perfectly fine, holding my own against the forces of attraction–better known as Ather standing over me–and in the next, I can be holding my stomach as it erupts into incredibly loud and embarrassing growls.

"Oh, God," I groan for the umpteenth time as I press my hand against my abdomen.  At this point, I'm past trying to seem appealing in front of the boy standing next to me.  I think I'd moved on from attempting anything close to seduction the moment he was given the task of dragging me to Kassandra and Kalina's dorm.

"Are–are you okay?  Is your head starting to hurt again?"  Ather waves a small flashlight into my eyes, as if that'll help the burning feeling that's rising in my stomach.  Thinking back to when we first started driving toward the facility, I can't remember the last time I had a meal.  Maybe Nes wasn't lying.  I must be malnourished, judging from the inexplicable pain that my abdomen is causing me.  I can't help but feel sorry for Ather, who will most likely have to assume the job of my babysitter again.

"No, I think I'm just hungry," I manage to say before another groan escapes my mouth.  I feel like I'm about to throw up, though at the same time I feel like I could eat a thousand courses and still come out hungry.  Just as I'm mulling over this idea, another realization come upon me.  This time, it's even more embarrassing.

"Lia?  You're going to be fine.  I'll get you to the cafeteria and we'll continue the medical examination later."  The way he gives me a concerned look and places the back of his hand on my forehead makes me even more anxious to say what's about to come next.

"I'm not–" In a flurry of panic, I try to search for the right words.  "–really hungry anymore."

Ather cocks his head to the side, to which I respond with another whimper of agony.

"What I'm trying to say is–" What am I trying to say?  I'd like to know, myself. "–You can leave me alone now.  I'll be fine."

"You're not fine, Lia," he waves in my general direction for effect.  "You're practically starving.  Either that, or you're being melodramatic over one missed meal."

I would absolutely love to wipe that smirk off of his face, but the cramps hurtling through my body are paralyzing me at the moment.

"Here, let's go to the cafeteria together.  We can get you something small to eat so you won't throw it back up, okay?"  Ather wraps his arm around my hip and I'm fairly sure my heart has lodged itself into my throat.  The touchiness is completely unnecessary, though I'm not going to complain, seeing as I already have no control over my body.  

"I really don't need your help.  Please."  I'm practically begging him at this point.  My cramps are starting to subside, which only means that what I've been fearing is about to come very, very soon.

"I understand your embarrassment, Lia."  My eyes widen.  For a boy, he's very perceptive.  I don't think my brother could even understand what I'm going through right now.  "You're nervous around me.  I tend to have that affect on women."

Ather chuckles, as if he's some sort of comedic genius.  I think I hate him.  No, I know I hate him.

"Alright, I think it's time we parted ways."  I push away from his almost-embrace and stumble toward the doors.

"Lia!  Okay, I apologize.  I suppose that was insensitive of me.  What's really going on?"  He jogs up to me.  The doors slide open, thankfully, and I make a break for it.  Full throttle, unstoppable speedwalking is what will widen the gap between me and Ather.  He yells out my name a few times, but I'm too focused to reply back.

***

"Kalina!  Kassandra!  Please open the door."  I bang my fist against the locked door in front of me, using my other hand to wave at the two sisters through the small window.  For a split second, I take my appearance into consideration.  I most definitely look like a deranged lunatic at the moment, with my hair plastered to my sweaty face and my clothes considerably mishappen.  I look down at the pants I'm wearing.  Maybe not entirely mishappen.

"Lia!"  Kassandra exclaims, opening the door.  "Welcome–"

"What happened to you?  You're practically creating a tornado."  As usual, Kalina can perfectly interpret the mess I've created.

"I need to use the bathroom."

"Okay, well, it's right down the hall–"

"No, I need to use the bathroom."  I raise an eyebrow while waving my hand up and down my torso.  "I'm about to have my p–"

"Lia!"  Ather's body comes into view as he rounds a corner.

Oh, god.  I press my forehead against the wall, dispensing a verbose quantity of swearwords from my lips.  At this point, all I need is Chase walking down the hallway, loudly saying that it's my time of month.

"Back away, pretty boy," Kassandra crosses her arms as she places herself in front of me.  "Lia's not seeing anyone right now."

"Excuse me?"  Ather steps closer, and as if it's choreographed, we take a step back.  I feel guilty for not disclosing my personal issues with him, but judging from the cramps that just passed, I'm assuming that I don't have much time to chat.

"Can we talk about this later?  This is urgent."  I helplessly look at the twins, and, thankfully, they understand my hurry.

Like soldiers preparing the launch of a missile, Kassandra and Kalina march me into the dorm with their backs turned against a laughably confused Ather.

"Do you have a preference?"  Kalina asks as she rummages through a duffel bag.  

"Anything will suffice, thanks."  With that, Kalina tosses tampons and pads in my direction, all of which I somehow manage to catch before falling to the floor.

"Make sure you put those in your pockets when you're walking down the hallway.  Ather might still be out there, and you know how sensitive boys are when it comes to menstruation."  

Kassandra laughs, but I take her advice seriously.  I've done enough damage to Ather's image of me already.  I don't need him to see me lugging tampons across the hall.  The hallway is empty, however, when I leave the room.  I can't tell whether I'm relieved or disappointed to see Ather gone.

***

"I can't believe this," Dox laughs for what feels like the millionth time.  "You acted as body guards so that Lia could go to the bathroom?"

"We couldn't just leave her there."  Kalina rolls her eyes.  "Ather looked like he was about to pounce on her."

The whole table bursts into laughter after Dox wiggles his eyebrows suggestively.  At this moment, I believe I've come to terms with the idea that my skin tone will permanently be pink. 

"Are you feeling okay, now?"  Liv asks, nudging me.  I feel myself relax a bit as the table moves on to a new subject.

"Definitely.  My stomach is satiated for now, but I can't seem to get rid of these cramps."  As if on cue, my abdomen shoots up in pain.   

Noticing the grimace on my face, Liv pushes herself away from the table.  "Lia and I are going to the Hub.  Do you guys need anything?"

Everybody shakes their head in unison, and with that, Liv steers me out of the cafeteria.

"What's 'The Hub?'" 

"It's basically this facility's grocery store, except everything is free for staff members, within reason."  Liv walks toward the elevator, and I'm once again transfixed by the shifting panels surrounding us.

After entering, she continues, "It's on the bottom floor, in case you ever need anything."

"Why at the bottom?"  I ask.  I've always assumed the bottom floor for the facility is meant to hold precious cargo, like secret nuclear bombs or camouflaged drones.  It's refreshing to know that the program manages to maintain some amount of normality within its walls.

"It's an air-locked area, so if we are ever victims of the disease, those that aren't carrying it can safely live at the Hub until the strain is eradicated."  While the notion seems justifiable, I can't help but wonder how those affected by the strain would be treated.  Would they be left to die above the air-locked area?  Would their eradication be at the hands of the program itself?

 Before too many questions can rise up in my mind, the doors of the elevator open to the Hub.  The room itself is nothing exceptional, with its white tiled floors and matching white walls.  However, it's what's spread across the room that's eye-catching.  From baby food to cosmetics, the room carries every necessity that a person can ask for.  After a bit of searching, I spot the medicine aisle, which holds a wide array of pills.  I can see what Liv meant when shopping within reason.  Without any rules, people could raid this entire floor. 

"Will regular pain medication work?"  Liv asks, rattling a small bottle of pills.  I nod and continue wandering through the store, eventually stopping at its center, which faces a circle of rows and rows of groceries.  Just as I'm about to turn back to the section I just came from, I notice a very distressed-looking Ather talking to Liv.

"I don't know why they're here, Olivia.  It's not like I follow their orders anymore.  I'm in your sector now, remember?"  Ather animatedly says to Liv, completely ignoring my approaching footsteps.

"It's not like I'm afraid of them.  I'm just curious, especially since we haven't had a person in custody since Janice.  I've never even seen an orderly get reprimanded before, let alone cuffed."  Their eyes are focused on the row ahead of them, which seems to be full of people in matching uniforms.  Squinting, I read the cursive "C" inscripted on the front pocket of their uniforms.  Cosmas.  So the military force really is involved with this program.

"Lia."  Ather looks as if he's surprised to see me while Liv just looks anxious.

"What's going on?"  I ask, craning my neck to see what's going on.  There's not that many Cosmas officers, but, judging from the worried look on my friends' faces, it seems as though this sort of visit rarely happens.

"They're arresting an officer," Liv says, after a moment's hesitation.  "They never come down to the Hub, though.  I've barely seen one officer in my entire stay here, and that's just for personal escorts.  Something is wrong."

Even though I barely have the same amount of experience with the program, I can still deduce that much.  Something definitely is wrong.  The people who were shopping here earlier seem to have disappeared, leaving us with the guards.  

"We've found him, Ms. Adams," one of the men talks into his shoulder with one hand gripping the arm of what appears to be a detained officer.  "What's the status of the girl?"

As if on cue, the elevator opens, with Nes emerging from it.  A mixture of emotions pass through me, though the most resounding and confusing of all of them is fear.  I'm afraid of this woman, even as she's been hospitable enough to show me around the facility.  I feel her eyes zero in on me, and I can't help but shake the feeling that I'm being cornered as the prey.  

"I've found her," Nes says, still staring at me with her blank eyes.

In a flurry of motion, one of the aisles tips over from behind, where the soldiers are.  I slowly turn around, watching as the detainee thrashes against the hold of the guards, pushing toward something in front of him.  Pushing toward me.

"Don't touch her!"  The man yells, though his movements become slower and sloppier as the officers stick a needle into his neck.

All at once, the images piece themselves together.  The man's voice, the silver cuffs wrapped around his wrists.  His familiar mess of hair and fighting spirit.  The chained man isn't just any officer.  He's my brother.

***

A/N: I legitimately had no idea what I was going to write for this chapter until today.  It's like a major piece of the puzzle came together all of a sudden and I'm so grateful.  I'm so excited to see where the story will take us!   

This is a fairly short author's note, since I don't really have much to say since I need to get on my homework right now, haha.

Oh!  I wanted to say THANK YOU for 500+ views!  That's incredible and I'm still freaking out over how amazing this is.  Once again, I'd like to say THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU for supporting me and reading my story.  You have no idea how good I feel knowing that people are reading what I'm writing.

I've been thinking about doing a random Q&A at some point as an extra bonus to the story, so message me what you think/possible questions.  I'd love to answer them, even if it's just asking me to read your story.  Speaking of reading your stories, if you'd like me to read yours, then also comment here with the title.  I'd love to add some more books to my library collection. :)

Stay lunar,

Liliana