Shymers

by Jen Naumann

  I walk alongside the building a while longer, trying to make it less obvious that I am following Tayrn. Just as my right foot hovers off the edge of the sidewalk, a hand latches on to my arm and pulls me back.

  I look up to find Zeke staring down on me.

  His clothes are as damp as mine from the unpleasant temperatures, and his wet hair hangs even farther into his eyes than usual. The dark shadow his hair creates makes him appear frightening. His expression is anything but friendly.

  “Where do you think you’re going?” he asks, narrowing his eyes.

  “Zeke!” I yell out in surprise. “What are you doing here? Have you been following me this whole time?”

  He snorts. “What doyou think? I knew you were lying to me when you said you had to go to the lavatory. I thought I would see where it was you were going.”

  I steal a look across the street. Tayrn stands beside a drink stand on the sidewalk. Her head is bent low, but her eyes peer at me from behind her shoulder. What will happen if she decides to leave me?

  I turn to the building on my left, where the dogs still pace behind the cages and snap their jaws. Across the yard, a few soldiers stand at the entrance of the building with their guns held firm. Farther down are even more soldiers, gathered around big vehicles that remind me of the helicopters that took us from the Free Lands.

  My eyes shift beyond the vehicles to find a stone fortress that looks as big as a mountain. The building is a monstrosity, filling up more than one block and stretching so far back the other end is not visible. Tall, metal gates reach high into the sky with rolls of sharp razors on top. More dogs stand guard beside rows of more soldiers. All at once it hits me—this is where people are held in suspension.

  My mother is somewhere in that building.

  My heart sinks again. I had never imagined it would be so well guarded with so many soldiers. How will I ever get inside? Now I understand why Harrison was so reluctant to agree to help and why Bree treated me like I was crazy for coming up with such an idea.

  “I have to go,” I tell Zeke, glancing over at Tayrn again. “I don’t have time to talk.”

  “What could you possibly have to do this far away from the orphanage? Something tells me you don’t have permission to be here.” His voice is low and filled with unspoken threats. It reminds me all too much of the way the director spoke to me in the orphanage the night before.

  “And youdo? Please,” I beg. “Just let me go.”

  Again, he gives me his off-balanced smile and lets out a low laugh. The odor of his breath drifts toward me, smelling like something rotten. “There’s something you don’t know about me, Olive.”

  I shiver when I realize something is terribly wrong. I was right in deciding earlier not to tell him of our plans. It would have been a mistake.

  He’s not a friend.

  “What’s that?” I ask in a quivering voice.

  “I may not be a Future, but my father is a soldier—a veryhigh ranking soldier.” He pauses and licks his parched lips. “I know what you’re trying to do, and I’m here to make sure it doesn’t happen.”

  My heart seizes. His grip on my arm is so tight it hurts. Panicked, I look across the street for Tayrn, but see she is gone. She must have seen everything and left to join Harrison on her own. How can I blame her? I probably would have done the same. If she had tried to save me, she could have easily been captured as well for helping a Shymer. There would be no point in that. At least Harrison and his cousin have a chance of running away together and working on his playlist to enjoy the time he has left.

  Zeke drags me toward the building. I remember a term my mother once used to describe the hopeless outcome for someone who was caught for being unregistered. Now it applies to me.

  I am most definitelyscrewed.

  Harrison

  12 – Welcome to the Rebel World

  Just as soon as Director Mahr is gone from sight, my heart begins taking on its normal pace. At least I was able to stash the pack holding my grandfather’s book behind a nearby wall before the director realized I was holding two of them. My father would have been devastated to know all our family’s memories and knowledge of the old world had been lost because of my carelessness.

  Somehow I convinced the director that I had come upon the pack while on cleaning duty and was taking it down to the trash pile. I think he only believed me as I haven’t caused any trouble in the past. Just like everyone else here, I have always kept to myself. Still, he threatened me with suspension if he were to catch me doing anything else out of the ordinary. Because of this, I know I can’t stay and risk him discovering that Olive is involved in my plans. We will have to leave right away.

  Once the orphanage is still for the night, I retrieve the pack with my grandfather’s book and slink down the hallway to the girls’ sleeping chambers. As I approach the doorway, my stomach drops. Three guardians stand watch. In all my time here, I have never seen such a thing. Does Director Mahr know I have been spending time with Olive? What if he suspects I will try to take her with me? She may be in danger.

  Holding my breath, I lean against the cold brick wall and squeeze my eyes together. I will have to leave without Olive. There’s no other choice. I will find a way to get her a message and tell her to meet me somewhere else—somewhere far away from Director Mahr’s suspicious watch.

  Having walked through the tall archways a hundred times, I sneak down to the entrance without being seen or heard. I hope to never have to walk these halls again.

  Near the front door sits a guardian I know well. She’s frail and old, with silver streaks running through her dark hair. Her pale skin hangs loosely around her face in thin bags. She looks to be fighting for consciousness as her head bobs up and down. She won’t be any kind of a threat. Still, I have to find some way to get past her.

  A cool hand suddenly clamps over my mouth. I jump in surprise and thrash my elbow out at my unknown attacker.

  Zeke leans back to avoid the blow. “It’s just me! I didn’t want you to yell out,” he whispers, dropping his hand from my mouth.

  “You’re lucky I didn’t knock you out,” I grumble.

  He points to where the guardian sits with her eyes now closed. “Let me take care of the old bag. Once you get outside, you’ll be home free.”

  My breath catches. Never in a million years would I have imagined Zeke would offer to help do something that is considered highly rebellious. Would there be a reason for him to trick me into trusting him?

  “You know I’m leaving? Why would you help me?”

  His shoulders rise and fall. “I figure someone has to make it out of this nightmare.”

  Is he really going to make it this easy? “Come with me,” I offer.

  “Nah,” he says, shaking his head. “The Rebel ways are not for me. I’m just doing this as a favor to a friend.”

  I narrow my eyes. “So you’re not going to report me?”

  “We’re friends, Harrison. Why would I do that?”

  The idea of asking him to give Olive a message flashes through my mind. But can I really trust him enough to put Olive’s fate in his hands? His brown eyes blend in with the dark hallway, making him appear dangerous. A wave of shivers trails up my spine.

  “I’ll pretend I’m sleepwalking and she’ll follow me down the hall. You know I’ve been caught actually walking in my sleep a bunch of times. She won’t suspect a thing.”

  I offer him my hand. “Thanks, man. I wish there was some way I could return the favor.”

  “Don’t mention it,” he says, looking away and refusing my hand.

  Still in shock over our exchange, I watch as he heads in the direction of the old woman. After a full minute passes and her eyes flutter back open, she calls out and chases after him. I take the opportunity to sneak right through the front door, undetected.

  Using a trick I learned from Edgar back in the days when we were planning to join the Rebels, I pick the lock on the gate that separates the orphanage from t
he outside world. The rumors have always been that none of the Shymers in the Traverse Orphanage have ever been brave enough to try to break free, so there has never been much need for security. My heart hammers wildly up into my throat when the lock falls away and I realize I am free. It seems far too easy.

  The night is still and the air covers me like a thick blanket. Without the sun’s harmful rays, I don’t have to worry about staying underneath the canopies and I’m able to run freely in the streets. The soldiers are not at their usual posts, but it won’t be long until someone patrols the area. When Director Mahr gets word that I’m missing, they will activate the tracking device on my communicator. I don’t have much time.

  Blocks away, with the orphanage far behind me, I crouch behind a bush to call the one person I know I can trust.

  “Harrison?” My cousin’s voice is deeper than usual with the trail end of sleep I have pulled her from. “Why are you calling so late? Is something wrong?”

  I chuckle to myself. Not only is Tayrn intelligent and naturally attractive, but she is also extremely kind—especially for a Future. Her mother and father are considered very wealthy and would never associate themselves with us because of my parents’ decision to raise their Shymer children. When Tayrn and I were young, we learned that our mothers were sisters and started talking to each other at school. Since I was worried what would happen to her if she was caught talking to me, our meetings were always quick and discreet. We sometimes would even pass handwritten notes to each other. We have only called each other on our communicators a couple times before. I’m the only one who knows she is a supporter of the Rebels.

  “I’m running away, Tayrn.” I whisper.

  “As inright now?” Her voice rises to a higher level. “How? Where are you?”

  “I left the orphanage. I was going to wait until morning, but the director caught me packing and threatened to suspend me if I didn’t mind my place. I’m going to the border to find the Rebels.”

  For a moment I worry she has ended the call, as her end is silent. Then, “Are you alone?”

  “Yes, but that wasn’t the plan. I met someone. We were going to leave together after we tried to visit her mother in suspension.” I clench my jaw. Olive will probably still try to visit her mother on her own. She will be placing herself in so much danger.

  “Her mother?” Tayrn says, mocking me. “So you’re saying that you’re running away with a girl? Is she pretty?” My cousin is only a few months older than I am, yet she sometimes teases me the way I imagine an older sister would.

  Rolling my eyes in the darkness, I ask, “What does that matter?”

  “I’m just curious why you’re finally deciding to leave after spending all that time locked in that awful orphanage. I wish you would have done it a long time ago.”

  “Olive was raised in the Free Lands. She only came here when her mother was caught as unregistered and suspended. She doesn’t fit in here. She’s different from anyone I’ve ever met. In the time I’ve spent with her, I’ve come to realize that I don’t belong here, either.”

  “Olive?” my cousin repeats. “You mean the pretty new blond girl with the adorable freckles?That’swho you were planning to run away with?”

  I blow out the air in my lungs, not wanting to discuss Olive with her. When I don’t answer, Tayrn giggles. “Don’t be mad! I’m so happy for you, Harrison! I wish more Shymers would realize it’s okay to have those kinds of feelings. You must really care about her if you’re ready to risk everything to be with her, huh?”

  My jaw clenches. This is not a type of conversation I’ve ever had before. I don’t know how much I want to tell my cousin. “I will do whatever it takes for the chance to be with her,” I answer quietly.

  “I’m so happy for you!” she trills, a little too loudly. “How soon is her DOD?”

  The unknown makes my chest tight. What if Olive’s DOD is much sooner than we all thought and I don’t ever have a chance to see her again? “For some reason, they haven’t told her yet.”

  “Maybe she really knows and doesn’t want to tell you.”

  I consider this. Why wouldn’t Olive tell me? She’s always saying she’s sorry for things that are out of her control. Maybe she feels guilty that she will outlive me and doesn’t want to hurt me. I’ve seen her Shymer mark, so I know without any doubt that she is one. Then again, why wouldn’t the government have told her the date by now?

  “Harrison? Are you still there?”

  I clear my throat. “Yeah, just thinking, I guess. It doesn’t matter. She wanted to bring one of her friends with. Do you know Bree?”

  “I think so. Short, cute, dark hair, always smiling?”

  “Yeah. I have to ask you a really big favor, Tayrn. It’s dangerous and you could easily be caught. I wouldn’t ask if it weren’t important.”

  “Spit it out, already,” she grumbles.

  “I need you to contact Olive and Bree to let them know what happened. Tell them I had to leave early, and that they need to meet me tomorrow night at sunset near the border in Future territory. Olive doesn’t have a communicator, so you’ll have to tell her in person.”

  She sighs loudly and mutters something under her breath. “I’ll do it, on one condition.”

  What condition could she possibly have? I hold my breath.

  “I want to come with you.”

  Tayrn already plans to leave for another country once she graduates. It is easy for the Futures to get permission to leave if they have a good enough reason for doing so. Tayrn is extremely intelligent and was accepted into a program that allows Futures to study at a secondary school in a country calledFrance.

  Frustrated, I bring my hands up to my face. “Why would you want to leave now? You’ll be out of here soon enough. It’s not worth the risk!”

  “You know me, Harrison. I see Society the same as you. I can’t take it anymore either! I’m tired of Society and all these horrible Futures I have to spend every minute of my time with! Plus…I’ve been seeing someone.”

  “Does that mean we’ll be bringinganother person?” There are already too many people coming, and my father told me to go alone. What are the chances of a group of this size crossing over undetected?

  “No. She will come over later on her own. She has been begging me to cross to the Free Lands where she says I will be safe. If you love Olive even half as much as Lani and I love each other, you’ll understand how important this is to her.”

  I press my eyelids shut. Leaving Olive in the orphanage was one of the hardest things I’ve ever had to do and I will do whatever it takes for us to be together again. “Is this Lani person a Future?”

  “What does that matter?” Again, her tone is mocking.

  “It doesn’t.” Even though I can only be with Olive for a short time before my own DOD, being together is still worth fighting for. I would do anything for her.

  “Where will you go until tomorrow?” she asks.

  The faint glow of the moon allows me to see a fairly long way into the distance. Finding a good hiding spot until morning may be difficult. At that point, my next problem will be escaping the detection of the soldiers. None of this is going to be easy. “I haven’t planned that far ahead. I will lay low until then, I guess.”

  “You can’t be outside that long without some kind of cover or water. Did you bring any of those things?”

  I cringe. My plan was doomed from the start. “No. The orphanage director caught me sneaking through the hallways with my packs. I had to leave everything behind.”

  She is quiet for a moment. “Hold on, I think I may have an idea. How long would it take for you to get to the school by foot?”

  Walking that far seems impossible and if I’m caught by a solider at this hour of night, they’ll know something is amiss. Yet there is no other way for me to travel. “I don’t know. Two hours? Maybe three?”

  “I will have Lani meet you there. She knows people who can help you. They can get you over the border. Safely.�
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  “Tayrn…do you…you know…reallytrust this girl?”

  “Of course,” she snaps, obviously angry with for me asking. “I wouldn’t even consider asking her to help you if I didn’t.”

  “I’m sorry I asked. Of course you do. Please be safe tomorrow. Make sure no one sees you talking to Olive. I would hate for anything to happen…to either one of you.”

  “Don’t worry about it. Next time you see me we’ll be in the Free Lands with our girlfriends safely at our sides.”

  When I end the call on my communicator, the knot in the pit of my stomach stirs.

  * * *

  The first rays of dawn are beginning to break through the dark night when I reach the school. My feet are burning from all the walking and I need something to drink, but at least I made it without being discovered.

  The mighty stone building I have spent most of my life in looks different now that I know I am leaving and won’t ever have to set foot inside again. I no longer dread another minute of being treated like I’m worthless by the Futures, or having to sit among the sad faces of the other Shymers. I won’t ever again have to stare out the windows during lessons and wonder how different my life would have been if my parents took us to live in the Free Lands.

  Instead I am filled with memories of bringing my little brother and sister here with me, the conversations I shared with Edgar, and the first time I laid eyes on Olive.

  The ideas of destiny and things that are “meant to be” are concepts carried over from the old world. Grandpa Red sometimes referred to them, saying nothing in the new Society could be explained with those terms. Suddenly, I wonder if maybe he was wrong. If I had run off with Edgar all those years ago to join the Rebels, I never would have met Olive. If I had run away from the orphanage against my mother’s wishes, I wouldn’t be planning to run away with Olive now. Maybe thereis such thing as destiny. Maybe there is a reason I met Olive.

  I don’t realize how lost in my thoughts I’ve become until I hear an angry voice yell my name. A small girl of maybe sixteen with bright purple hair spiked above her head and several tattoos spiraling up her neck steps out from behind the building. She wears unusual clothing—a skirt in bright pink, a green top, and black material covering her legs. Her amber eyes are soft, although her brow is covered with metal piercings. The features of her face are very delicate, feminine. Without the wild colored hair and the deep scowl on her face, she could be very pretty.