CHAPTERNINE_MED STUDENT
September 19, 2032

 It’s the next day. There was a knock on the door of the Emerson house. Declan approached it, and opened it. He saw it was Nathan, who looked like was panicking.

 Declan rolled his eyes, and told him, “You know, there is a thing called texting on your phone.”

 Nathan blinked, and said with a nervous laugh, “Oh yeah! I forgot.”

 Declan raised an eyebrow as he asked, “Okay, were you hit on the head or something? You’re a Gen-Mod. You’re supposed to be smart.”

 He thought for a moment, and said, “You know, maybe I was. I don’t know.”

 Declan sighed, and let Nathan in the house. He asked Nathan, “So, what brings you here?”

 He replied, “Okay, I did something, and I’m so confused. I…I bit my girlfriend’s neck, and I somehow made some tattoo on her neck. It had some seal with my name underneath it. Now she wants to go to the doctor to make sure if it’s not affected.”

 Declan told him, “Nathan, she’s your mate. Of course what you did was normal. You marked her.”

 Nathan raised an eyebrow as he asked, “Seriously? I marked her, and it’s normal?”

 “Yes, it is normal. You have to stop thinking you’re normal because you’re not. As for Rachel going to see a doctor, she shouldn’t. She has to go the Agency to get the mark checked out.”

 “Okay, why can’t she go to the doctor?”

 “They’ll be suspicious, unless you’re lucky that your doctor is a Gen-Mod.”

 “Okay…where is the Agency?”

 “In the City…which is the middle of London. You’re living in Cleveland, which is in the district of Ealing, which is the far west side of London.”

 Nathan nodded his head slowly, and asked, “So, it’s far, isn’t it?”

 “Yeah, it’s pretty far. So you can either borrow Rachel’s car, or take a bunch of transfers by several options: Bus, tube, or over-ground train. Or even taxis.”

 With that, Nathan slumped onto the couch. He told Declan, “You make San Antonio sound like it’s a small town.”

 “What do you lot have for public transit?”

 “Buses. Just buses. Oh, and they’re building some subway system. A lot of controversy surrounding that project.”

 “Is that city spreading out?”

 “Oh yeah, it is. Though, I heard rumors that the more ghetto parts are getting some rapid makeover. How? I got no clue.”

 Declan thought for a moment, and asked, “Are there Gen-Mods in San Antonio?”

 Nathan replied, “Yeah. The school I went to had a lot of them. My parents explained to me that Gen-Mods are actually controversial in San Antonio. It’s a religious issue, especially in the more Latino areas. But the Gen-Mod population keeps growing, especially in those same areas.”

 Declan sat next to him, and said, “Well, you better get going.”

 Nathan sighed, and said, “Yeah, I guess so.”

 So he got up, and left the house. He walked over to Rachel’s car, and got inside. He told her where the Agency was, and she began driving.

 At the same time, Matt was napping in his room after coming home from church service. Just then, his mom came into his room. She woke him up, saying, “Matthew, there’s a girl asking for you.”

 Matt groggily sat up on his bed. He then went downstairs. He saw the blonde girl sitting on the couch. She turned to face him. He saw it was Kimmy.

 She gave him a warm smile as he walked up to her. He smiled back as he sat next to her. He asked her, “This is a surprise. Wait, how do you know where I live?”

 She shrugged, “Google. Besides, I…erm…fancy you. Like, really fancy you.”

 Matt’s eyes widen at that. He told her, “Wow. Erm, that was kind of fast. I mean, I knew we knew each other, but all of a sudden you like me. You’re sure you fancy me?”

 “Of course I do! I just know I do. I, erm, can we go on a date? Please? It can be something simple, like a coffee date at Starbucks.”

 Matt was still surprised by all of this. He knew girls would throw themselves at him, but with Kimmy, she was strange. He could tell this was more than a crush. It was like she actually loves him. He looked at her pleading eyes. He could’ve sworn he saw a tear about to come out.

 He sighed, and said, “Yeah, sure. Erm, we can go now, if you’d like.”

 Kimmy grinned, and hugged him tightly. He felt her unusual strength on him that he began to cough. She pulled away, and blushed. Matt smiled, but he couldn’t help have this nagging feeling about her: That she was very strange, and not like the other girls.

 About an hour later, Nathan and Rachel arrived at the Genetic Birth and Adoption Agency in the City of London. Nathan asked her, “Did you know about this place?”

 She said, “I’ve heard of it, and I have seen the building, but I never thought much about it. Are you sure we can’t go to a doctor?”

 “Trust me, I would, but Declan said we can’t trust doctors. We have to talk to a Gen-Mod Specialist. And he said what I did was natural.”

 Then he sighed as he looked out the window, “I think I need to start accepting that I’m not normal. That I’m this…this thing. I don’t want to be this monster. Everything I’m doing isn’t human.”

 Rachel sighed as she parked the car. She told him, “Nathan…it’s okay. You just have to get used to the fact that you’re…more advanced than I am.”

 “I guess so.”

 With that, the two got out of her car. They walked inside. Rachel walked up to a receptionist, and asked, “Can I get this mark checked out?”

 Rachel wiped off the makeup on her neck, revealing the mark Nathan gave her. The receptionist dropped her jaw. She then made an appointment. She told them, “Okay, Specialist Rogers will see you as soon as possible.”

 As soon as Nathan and Rachel were about to sit down, a young man approaches them. He was extremely beautiful, and he wore glasses. He greeted them, “Hello, I’m Specialist Kyle Rogers. I’ll lead you two to a room.”

 So Rachel and Nathan followed him to a room. Rachel sat on a table. Kyle examined her mark, and was impressed by what he saw. He told them, “The mark is perfect. You’re in good health. And guess what? The words are in Hebrew.”

 With that, Nathan raised an eyebrow, while Rachel didn’t look too surprised. She said, “I thought the words looked like they’re in Hebrew.”

 Kyle explained, “Apparently, Nathan here was created in Israel, hence the Hebrew words. Anyway, you got nothing to worry about. The mark is clean, and it won’t affect your health.”

 Nathan slumped into his chair, and said, “I knew my parents adopted me, but if I’m from Israel, how did I end up in San Antonio?”

 Kyle shrugged, and said, “You’ll have to talk to your parents about this.”

 Rachel asked, “So how do you know this mark won’t affect me?”

 Kyle looked around, and closed the door. He grabbed a chair, and said, “Okay, I’m a Gen-Mod myself. I’m one of the older Gen-Mods, but I lack what Nathan has here. I’m not programmed to need mates. I can date anyone I want, and it won’t kill me. I might be able to mark my partner, but that remains to be seen as I haven’t had any urges to do so. And in case you’re wondering, I’m 21, and a med student. Working here helps me gain experience I would need to become a doctor.”

 With that, Rachel and Nathan were shocked by all this. Rachel asked him, “Okay, what is the oldest Gen-Mod around?”

 “There’s a lot of them, actually. The oldest ones are 25. They have less, I guess, stuff than teenagers and younger. The earlier they were made, the more ‘normal’ they are.”

 With that, both Nathan and Rachel nodded their heads. Then Kyle asked him, “Nathan, how did you feel when you marked her?”

 Nathan’s face redden as he remember exactly how he felt. Then he said nervously, “Um, satisfied, actually. I’m not proud of that at all.”

 Rachel bit her lip when she heard that. Kyle told him, “It’s perfectly normal feel satisfied after you’ve marked your mate. I’m guessing you’ve lived your life as a Normal, but you just recently found out that you’re a Gen-Mod?

 Nathan nodded his head. Kyle continued, “Yeah, it’s a shock. But the more your educate yourself, and learn what you’re actually capable of, then you won’t be so shocked so easily.”

 Nathan nodded his head, and asked, “So Rachel’s okay?”

 “Yeah, she’s okay. Just cover up the mark with makeup, and no one will suspect a thing. She may go home.”

 Rachel nodded her head as she bit her lip. As she got off the table, Kyle gave her and Nathan holographic cards. He told them, “Contact me if you two got any concerns about the Gen-Mods.”

 Rachel said, “Yeah, sure.”

 With that, the two left. Nathan walked her to her car. As for Rachel, she had a lot on her mind…and Kyle was one of them.

 _______________________________________________________________________

IN THE PIC IS KYLE RODGERS (Theo James)>>>>