Outside

Chapter 1

"I'm not masochistic, I'm just saying that I wanna know what it's like to be stranded in the middle of nowhere, alone, with nothing but my fists and maybe a bag of croutons keeping me alive." I insist.

"Croutons, nice choice." My best friend responds. "I would have chosen brownie bites, but croutons are still valid." He studies my expression for a moment, searching for insincerity. "Oh, you're not even kidding at all, are you?"

"I have never joked about anything in my entire life."

"You literally say something stupid every 2 seconds, but sure." He shakes his head at me, cracking a grin.

"Ok but seriously, Kyan, imagine it. No school, no laws, no need to wake up early in the morning. Just the world at your feet. Doesn't that sound like paradise?" I ask, staring out the observatory window into the Outside.

"You think The Aequa would let you take croutons with you? Nox, if you're exiled, you don't get to take anything with you. It's not a magical wonderland out there. The Outside is hell on earth, that why it's used as punishment for people who misbehave." Kyan tells me, fiddling with the hem of his shirt between his fingers.

"But doesn't it look pretty?" I ask him, flashing him a smirk, gesturing to the endless sea of dirt and rocks.

"Dehydration. Hunger. Heat stroke. Murder."

"Sounds like a party."

His eyebrows furrow, and I can tell he isn't in the mood for this kind of humor anymore. "Don't joke about this, ok? If they hear you talking like this, you'll be-"

"I'll shut up." I interrupt him.

"I don't know if you know this, Nox, but you're the best thing that's ever happened to me. I don't care if you wanna sleep in and skip school, this is your life that would be at stake. Promise me you won't do something stupid and leave me all by myself knowing you're out there rotting in the middle of nowhere, ok?" He gives me a tight-lipped smile.

"I know," I assure him, "you're my best friend, I don't wanna lose you either."

"I guess... I guess I'm just being paranoid about tomorrow." He admits. "The Transfer Event is my least favorite day in the year. Standing alone of a stage while Opulent people examine you and determine your self-worth by your body and like... three sentences about yourself? Now that's something I wouldn't miss if I was exiled."

"Just get it over with." I tell him. "Yeah it's annoying, but it comes and goes quickly, and then everything goes back to normal."

"They're gonna pick you one of these days, you know that, right?"

"What do you mean?" I ask him, grabbing him by the hand and pulling him over to the benches in the middle of the room that circle the top of the glass staircase that leads back down to the library. We sit down and he lets out a shaky breath before answering.

"They're looking for the perfect of the perfect." He explains. "You're a decent-looking girl with a strong spirit and incredible strength. Who wouldn't want you to be their houseworker?"

"Ah, stop flattering me," I lower my head. "Lunch-lady Erika's fish tacos would get better grades than me, and those things get at least 40 people sick every time she makes them." I shrug, scoffing.

"Why'd you have to remind me of those?!" He pouts, playfully shaking me by the shoulders before letting go, letting out a sigh as he does so. "I don't ever think I'll be able to eat cod again without having some kinda PTSD attack." He laughs.