Chapter 6
❀⊱┄┄┄┄┄┄┄┄┄┄┄⊰❀
. . . 𝕪𝕖𝕒𝕣 𝟚𝟘𝟞𝟟 . . .

. . 𝕠𝕟𝕖 𝕞𝕠𝕟𝕥𝕙 𝕝𝕒𝕥𝕖𝕣. .

It had been a month since that happened, which meant a month full of pretending. No one knew about it. No one but me. It was also a month of waiting. Waiting that maybe it wasn't a malfunction. That I wasn't a defect.

But still. Nothing.

I had no choice but to keep it a secret from them.

What if it means something else?

What if having none is dangerous?

As the saying goes, "Ignorance is a bliss," so I just brushed off those thoughts.

At the end of the day, I was still different from them. Because of that, I became cautious on what I wear and how I move.

There was only 3 months left before the year ends. It was unbelievable how I changed in just a month. It gladdened me on how I will enter a new year with a new me.

Thanks to the family I had, I learned how to show emotions and accept feelings I'd never felt before. I could smile and laugh without stopping myself. It came out naturally.

Inspite of the changes that happened in me, the sarcastic and prankster me didn't leave. I still found it fun teasing them, especially Yves. But unlike before, I would limit it before I could hurt others.

"Vivi! Mimi wants you to go to her  office!" I heard Lara shouted outside the door. During my free time, I would always spend it in the library. The kids would often sulk and ignore me for hours because I kept on isolating myself rather than playing with them. They grew fond of me as the month passed by.

I saw the knob twist as Lara opened it. "You never go out there, do you?" Lara said with amusement in her voice.

I put the book down on the table and stood up. My lips curved upwards, "You know me too well," I responded as I walked towards the door. "Why does Mimi want me to meet her?" I asked her.

She shrugged. "I don't know. She never told me anything."

"Oh, the bookworm is out," Yves joked when I bumped into him as I went out. I snorted and replied, "Well hello there, scaredy cat."

"Shut up." I giggled to his response and continued walking. When Mimi's office was right in front of me, I knocked the door thrice. A voice then signaled me to come in.

Mimi stopped what she was doing and looked up. "Hi sweetie. Take a seat." I sat on the empty chair in front of her desk.

"Why'd you call me?" I straightforwardly asked.

"About that, I would like to ask your opinion about sending you to school."

Uh...no way.

I'd never attended one because my past orphanage never took the time to enroll me, although everyone was required. Also, I didn't feel the need to. I knew almost everything so it would be tiresome to go to school everyday. Besides, I didn't like the idea of hanging out with people I don't know. I wouldn't guarantee that I would act nicely towards others.

"Will you still convince me anyway if I say no?"

She nodded. "It would be great if you meet other people besides us. I know you're self-taught and is already wise enough so you don't have to worry about your grades."

Why does it seem they know a lot about me?

"Don't worry, dear. Yves, Lara, Jim, and Cassidy will be there to accompany you. You will be in the same school and section," she added.

Because of her last statement, I thought it wouldn't be a bad idea going to school, knowing I had them with me. With that, I agreed.

As much as I heard from Lara, the schools here were exactly what it should be–a place for learning and socializing. Even though it was managed by The Supreme, it was one of the exceptions where people can show their emotions. Students could freely roam around and do anything during break time. Only on break time.

The fun all ends during class hours because of the certain rules imposed.

They were quite simple.

1. Eye contact with any professor or staff is not allowed. The same goes for any facial expressions.

2. Do not do anything unnecessary unless you're told to.

3.  When ordered, do it with no hesitation. Do not dare defy their words.

Simple, right?

It was basically the same rules as the law created by The Supreme. It wouldn't be that hard to follow since we were already trained to do that since birth.

But nothing was certain. The Supreme could sometimes be unpredictable so who knows if they have something up in their sleeves.

After coming up with an agreement, Mimi and I decided to go see where the school was. Any sort of vehicle wasn't needed since it was only a fifteen minute walk from home.

As we arrived, I noticed that we weren't the only ones here enrolling. I figured that most of them were newly turned thirteen-year-old kids or someone who wasn't given the opportunity to go to school like me.

The school was wide. Wide enough to fit thousands of students inside and out. Regardless of the modernized appearance of the building, it was still surrounded by nature. Trees and grass were seen everywhere. We were in the province after all.

We stepped inside and searched for the Registrar's office. The school was unexpectedly lively because of the kids talking since there was no staff in sight. I also never knew it was cold in the campus. I wished I brought my jacket with me.

The line for the enrollment was lengthy; I was slowly becoming impatient. Their noise was getting into my nerves. I was so close of bursting my irritation out. Thankfully, I learned a way to control my temper.

Yves taught me a trick. Apparently, counting helps in calming down, usually when feeling anger and annoyance. Ever since, I'd been doing this and it helped me a lot.

So I started counting.

1..2..3..4..5..6..7..8..9..10..

When I finally reached half of a hundred, we were called. It was time to sign and fill some papers.

Contrary to the length of waiting time, it went by faster than I expected. Everything I needed to prepare was already given, as well as my uniform and ID.

I was getting slightly excited with the thought of me going to school, together with Yves and others. I never experienced it before so I was thankful to Mimi for giving me this chance.

As soon as we got home, I prepared my things for tomorrow since it was my first day. The others did the same, too.

After that, I immediately spent my time reading what I left earlier at the backyard. I was at the bench, under the gigantic tree which was near the back gate. The sun was slowly setting down, orange rays illuminating the yard. I took the time to watch the sunset.

It was quite a view.

Until it wasn't.

My eyes wandered to the gate–the red gate–adjacent to the tree. I wasn't sure if it was just a fabrication of my mind, but I could feel eyes staring at me. I felt a weird presence coming out of there.

It was screaming for help.

I was thinking of going out to see if there was any but I remembered what Yves and Mimi said on my first day here.

Do you know how dangerous the outside is?

You didn't go outside the back gate, right?

I was having the urge to go outside until I heard someone that stopped me from doing it. Doing something I could regret.

"So, you're going to school with us now huh?"

Yves. I turned my face at him. I didn't know what to do, whether to tell him what I just felt or not.

"If you're here to tease me, then you're free to leave," I said as I continued to read.

He sat down beside me. "Nah. I'm just...happy for you, you know?"

I stopped reading and shifted my attention to him. "Why'd you feel that way?"

He smiled. "You're improving faster than I thought. Never thought you'll actually agree with Mimi."

"Well, when I think about it, it's not that bad. Especially when I have you and others."

"Oooh, great to hear you're relying on us for once."

I turned my face the other way. "It's not like that. It's just... It's better than being alone."

"Oooh, great to hear you don't want to be alone for once," he teased, again.

"Oooh, I'm really close to punching your face if you don't stop teasing me," I jokingly threatened, copying his tone earlier.

He threw his hands up as a gesture to surrender. "Okay, okay. I'll stop," he said in the midst of chuckling. "Jeez."

I looked up at the sky. It seemed like it was a habit of me to look up when I'm thinking. "Hey..." I called.

"Hmm?"

In the end, I tried to bring up the topic.

I faced him and asked, "Remember the first day I got here?"

He nodded. "Of course. I would never forget that." A smile was forming on his lips. I clearly knew what he was thinking.

"Do you perhaps...remember telling me...about how dangerous it is to go outside?" I finally said, carefully picking the words.

The smile that was there was gone in a split second as I saw him stiffened a bit. He looked...terrified.

He quickly stood up. "Let's not talk about this," he said, not meeting my eyes.

Now I'm getting suspicious.

"No wait!" He attempted to walk away so I followed him. "Just hear me out! I think there's something in there, I don't know. It could be my imagination but I'm not really sure."

The way he didn't listen to me made me ran to him. Luckily, I caught up on him and grabbed his wrists. "Just freaking listen to me!" To my surprise, he slapped my hands away.

"Enough, Vivi. I said I don't want to talk about it, didn't I? So please, just let it go."

This was my first time seeing him like this.

"No. Not unless you tell me why you're acting like this!"

"I don't need to tell you everything." he turned his back at me and walked away once more. Just like earlier, I followed him.

"Just tell me, please! What's with the gate?" I tried to shout the words.

"Stop," I heard him utter.

"You're making me curious, Yves so just tell me! What's with the outside that making you act this way?!"

"I said enough!"

I immediately stopped when he raised his voice at me. Hearing I wasn't stepping forward was a cue for him to continue walking, leaving me alone.

Alone watching his back fade away from my sight.

Alone realizing what have I done.

What have I done?

❀⊱┄┄┄┄┄┄┄┄┄┄┄⊰❀

A/N:

Hey there readers! The picture above is what the school looks like hehe. I couldn't find the name of it but I think it's a museum idk. I also don't know if it's real or just a model hahaha so credits to the owner hehe. I also chose this since it suited the setting where Vivi was at. Semi-futuristic hahaha

Anywayss, any guess on why Yves acted that way? Why did Yves refuse to tell Vivi about what's on 'the outside'? Was it really an imagination or not?

Comment down your thoughts and guesses! I would love to hear those and see who guess the closest! 💖💖