Measuring Time

The Clock is Ticking

I was bored, and mom and dad were still at work, so I went for a walk. I know we're not supposed to, the government says it's to keep us safe. But I think the government is either paranoid or really controlling. I've had a bad sense lately that it's the second one....

My parents won't even notice I'm gone. If they come back today. The government awards work above all else. School is brutal and as soon as you graduate, you work. Work, work, work. If you don't get done on time, then too bad. You don't sleep till it's finished.
So I walked by school and remembered that my Junior year of high school starts tomorrow. It's all I have to do now. Read and work, read and work, read and work. Ever since my only friend moved.
I kept walking, through the Reserves and to the Unclean Area. That's what we call it, anyway. I heard it used to be a department store, but now the government keeps all the supplies and passes it out accordingly. Mostly on work and quality. It's all very specific.
I've walked through the Area before, but my parents would flip if they found out. They think I'm such a good little girl. I follow all the rules. Listen, follow, obey. Listen, follow, obey. The motto of our society. My family is the perfect poster-family for the government. My parents got good jobs because they never gave anything a second thought. Never gave anything a thought, in fact. They blindly follow, like loyal guard dogs. They'd give their lives for our dictator (sorry, President) before me.
I think it's actually pretty good they don't know too much about me. They'd explode if they knew I've been questioning rules and rulers and my "elders" since I could think for myself.
I saw a boy running by, and I had an urge to follow him. I ran after him until he reached an abandoned building deep in the Area. I slowed, and waited for him to come out. After a few minutes, I jogged to where he went in. It looked dangerous, but my curiosity was almost overwhelming. So I went inside and it was creepy.
I looked around the abandoned warehouse, following the boy I saw run in here a few minutes ago. I knew I saw someone. I hear footsteps running by, it sounds like on the other side of the walls. Thin walls.
It was half past 5, so I new I'd have to get home soon, I had school tomorrow. My first day. Sigh. I really was not looking forward to English. I knew my teacher was a horrible teacher, my reference being my one-year-older brother who had her last year. He's a Senior now, so he's graduating this year. Lucky him, he only has one year left to study the Revolution of the People. Most boring subject ever. What's worse, we study it every year.
Well, anyway, I should probably head back now. I started to turn around when I heard someone running. I figured it was the boy I saw, so I sprinted after him. I could feel the adrenaline pumping like I've read about so much. It reminded me of all the books I needed to read piling up on my desk. None of them were for school, I finished those ages ago.
I was the fastest reader in my class. All my classmates knew, but they didn't care. And I couldn't care less. The last thing I want is to be in the spotlight, so I just sit in my corner of the room and read. Read until I forget where I am, who I am, or what I'm supposed to be doing. Even just the Approved Books can take me places.
Enough school talk, back to the chase. I hit a dead end and turned around to keep running. I had great stamina, my PE teacher said. I paused at an intersection, and big hands grabbed me from behind.
"Get off me!" I screamed.
"Quiet," he warned, "How did you find this place? I don't think you're a member."
"Member?" I whispered urgently, "Member of what?"
"Nothing. Just leave." He said, "Now." He added, in that creepy calm you fear usually by adults.
"No. You can't make me." I replied stubbornly, "I can stay if I want to stay. Now what are you talking about? Member of what?"
"Classified information. Who are you anyway?" He asked.
"Who am I?" I asked incredulously, "Who are you? You're the one who grabbed me!"
"I'm Ethan Lowey. Now who are you?"
"Iris Stanley."
"So why are you here?" He asked with a scowl.
"I was curious." I said, and since that sounded pretty pathetic, I added, "I saw someone run in here."
"Do you know who it was?" He asked, now genuinely curious, "We might as well banish whoever led a civilian here."
"Actually," I start slowly, "I think it was you." Now he looked straight at me, surprised and looking deeply ashamed.
"What is this place?" I ask, changing the topic, "It's incredible."
"Yeah, it is." He agreed. "But no time for a tour, you have to go. Before you find anything else."
"What, there's more?" I tease, "I can't believe you wouldn't just run here for fun. Unless you were, leading a civilian, or something. And why is that so terrible?"
"Because if you find out what's going on, you'll either have to join or be banished." He said it seriously, rapidly looking around with nervousness reflected in his dark blue eyes.
I've heard of banishment, but he seemed like maybe he was joking before. I knew he wasn't now. I've heard it's worse then death, and the government, or even just an exclusive club, could banish you. What it means is, you get kicked out of your society. And the societies are way too far apart to get to them, unless you prepared. Rumor is, there are three choices after banishment. Survive alone, get to the next society, or die trying. Another rumor is that my friends family didn't leave, but were banished. I can't believe that. If I do it means she's probably dead. But I'm starting to have to believe that. But I try not to think about that...too much.
Anyway, he told me to leave again, then turned around. He headed farther into the building and didn't turn around to check if I'd gone. Bad move on his part. I waited about 10 seconds, then followed him. I took care to keep my footsteps light, glad I was small enough to do so. I never lost sight of him, though sometimes I could only catch a little bit of him going around the corner. I almost lost him when he went into a hidden room, but I just barely saw the door shut.
"...we need to fight back!" Yelled an unfamiliar voice.
"They're working people to death!" Called another.
"Almost literally." Said an almost identical-sounding voice.
Then, "Does anyone have any ideas? We need other people to join." That one, I did recognize. It was Ethan.
"They're too scared. C'mon, E, you've seen them more than any of us." I assumed he was talking to Ethan, who seemed to be the leader of this group.
"And, hey where's Will? He never misses a meeting, he's our leader." Says another, I stand corrected.
"He's in hiding. Remember?" How many people were in there? I looked through the dirty window and, I have to say, they have quite the group here. This room is huge and there must be at least 30 people in there.
"The government is trying to control everything!"
I just couldn't help it. I burst in the room, and yelled, "I knew it!" They all looked at me, I had never been so embarrassed in my life. Or had so many people focused on me. But at least I didn't blush. "I knew it! I knew there was something wrong with our stupid government! They won't give us anything but rules! If we don't work we get banished!"
They were still just staring at me.
Ethan spoke first, "What are you doing here?"
"C'mon 'E,'" I say, mockingly, "You really thought I would leave after you dropped a mystery like that on me? And you didn't even check to make sure I left! Rookie mistake. Even I would've at least checked." I sounded a lot more confident then I felt.
"Who is this?" One boy said, looking to Ethan for guidance.
"This is Iris. She was just leaving." He said, looking at me, as if trying to convey a hint. I got the hint, but rejected it.
"No I wasn't." He looked incredibly annoyed at me. "Hey, it was you who said, 'Find out more and your joining or banished.'" I could tell I had him there. "And I don't care to be banished. So I guess I have to join?" An arrogant smile was threatening to take over for my apathetic expression.
"No." Ethan demanded loudly.
"C'mon," said the boy who called him 'E,' "You of all people know that rule. You warned her. We can't make exceptions. Just by finding this place she's learned too much."
"Yeah man," said two twins in unison, they must have been the similar voices earlier, "She's got to stay or go for good." Said one, "Your choice." Said the other.
"Umm," I say, drawing their attention to me, "Yeah, hi. I'm still here. So, you can stop talking about me like I'm not. Also, little thing, I think I should be allowed to choose whether I live and join or get banished? I don't care who your leader is." I say, looking at Ethan on the word "leader."
"Hey, I'm not the leader." He said defensively.
"Then you must be the runner-up or honorary leader or something." I said.
"Why would I be?" He asked.
"You've got to be kidding me," I say, incredulous, "You can't see how they look up to you? They just asked you what they should do about my being here. They just told you to decide whether I live or die. Pardon me, but I'm liking my odds that you're next if this Will guy doesn't return."
I suddenly noticed that no one met my eyes. Or Ethan's, for that matter.
"One more thing, is this the Resistance?" I ask, changing the topic again.
"You ask that like you've heard of us." One of the twins said.
"Of course I have." I say matter-of-factly. Looking at the crowd, I see almost all of their eyes simultaneously widen in horror and fear. It'd be funny in different circumstances. "Only rumors, of course." Half of them visibly relax. "Anyone who knows the meaning of the word 'gossip' has been spouting off about the Resistance. Anything happens, blame the Resistance. Break a leg? Darn Resistance. Break a pencil? This is all the Resistance's fault!"
"So why do you want to join then?" Asks Ethan.
"Oh, I don't talk about that kind of stuff, but literally everyone else in my grade does. There are only 100 kids in my grade, and I've heard all of them complain about you guys. I guess I'm just the exception." I smile.
"No, really. Why do you want to join?" Ethan asked.
"I think my best friend got banished last year." I admitted, my smile slipping off my face, "I don't know for sure but people don't just leave for no reason. Unless they were forced to."
They made me go sit in a separate room while they decide if I could join. I was practically bored out of my mind. I wish I had a book, but I didn't think I'd be going anywhere when I left. So, I just sat on the ground, twiddled my thumbs, stared at the ceiling, blah blah blah.

Ethan came to get me a while later. "Fine. You can join. But you blab about us, your gone. I don't mean out of the Resistance, I mean out of this society." Ethan says, he's obviously just trying to intimidate me so I'll quit. It won't work. I haven't been scared since my friend left.
"Great." This time, I let the smile slide across my face. Ethan looked furious, which I took as an added bonus.
I kept going to the meetings, and Will didn't come back so, after 10 more meetings (twice a week) I said we should elect someone else. Fine, not someone else, Ethan. They agreed and he just stood there, looking starstruck.
It took awhile, but they started trusting me a little bit. I had a little bit of a head start because I had a reason to side with them. I started hanging out with a few of them, partially to find someone to sit with, and also because they all had a reason to join the Resistance. Some of their stories were pretty cool.
After a few more meetings, Ethan announced he was appointing some advisers. I sat in the back with a couple other members I had talked to a little bit while he said he'd have a second-in-command and a group of advisers.
"In the group," he announced, "Will be Eric and Eli (the twins), Christopher (the boy who calls him 'E'), and Gabrielle." He motioned to the people who's names he said. After they came up, he announced, "And my second-in-command," the tension in the room was almost tangible, "Will be Iris Stanley."
If I had a drink, I would've done a spit take. I couldn't believe it. They had just let me in weeks ago. They had just started trusting me a week or two ago. They only trusted me at all because of my friend who got banished. But he looked at me, and smiled. That was how he signaled me. I got up and went to the front of the room with him. I think Ethan will be a great leader. And if he screws up a little? I'll be there to help him.