Beyond The Fence

Chapter 3:

Albama was all narrow streets cracked by time and age, with a crater in the road here and a pothole there. Often you would find men and women, sleeping on the sidewalk in cardboard boxes, their cheekbones jutting out of their pallid and malnourished skins. The world beyond the fence was no different. Besides the fact that there was no population.

For about a half a mile outside the fence, there were only abandoned streets. The road that lay before them was nothing but a tarmac ribbon, worn out by time. The two of them walked through the same monotonous landscape for about an hour or so, till they saw a fancy building covering their horizon.

Clary's eyes lit up with joy and she rushed to the building, Nelson running behind her. Soon they were standing on the foot of a library. Clary looked up in awe at the mass of concrete that lay before her. Meters of glass were strung together by steel, reflecting the light of the moon above and illuminating the ground beneath them.

Clary turned to face Nelson, whose eyes were gleaming in amazement. She flashed her happiest smile at him and squealing a little, she opened the door and stepped inside, with Nelson just behind her.

They were met with row after row of neatly lined up books, their spines facing outward. Comfortable cushions were there too, along with tables for quiet study. Together the two of them walked aisle after aisle, Nelson running his hand along the spines of the books.

"I don't see any danger here." Nelson said to Clary, who was struggling to get a book out from the Young Adult's section.

"Yeah, I know ri-", Clary was saying, but her voice was interrupted by another one.

A male voice.

"Hey, who's out there?" the guy called out.

Clary's eyes widened, threatening to come out of their sockets. Nelson went to stand beside her and took hold of her hand, as the guy approached them.

"Stealing books, were you?" the young boy said, pointing to the book that Clary had finally succeeded in getting out of the shelf. She dropped it immediately, in fear and in amazement.

Is he another escapee from Albama? Or is he an automaton who makes sure that everyone stays within the boundaries of Albama?

Because as far as I know, there is no human life outside Albama. Then who is this boy?, she thought.

"Child, has no one ever taught you to respect books and not to just throw them on the floor like that?" he asked, his faced scrunched up in disgust as he bent to pick the book up from the floor, interrupting Clary's thoughts.

"Who are you?" Clary finally mustered up the courage to ask.

"That is the question I should be asking you, lady."

"I'm an escapee. Just like you."

"What? Where did you escape from?"

"The same place as you, dimwit."

"What place did I escape from?"

"Albama. Duh."

The boy let out a gasp loud enough to make the hair on the nape of Clary's neck stand. His eyes were widened in bewilderment and he took hold of one of the chairs to keep him standing, as if the weight of the fact that they had escaped from Albama was too much for him to bear. Nelson eyed the man suspiciously, whilst Clary rolled her eyes at him.

What an actor, she thought.

"Y-you guys are from Albama? But what about t-the f-fence?" he asked, stuttering.

"We cut through it. How did you escape?" Nelson answered.

"YOU CUT THROUGH THE FENCE? WHERE WERE THE GUARDS?"

"Sleeping."

"I don't believe you."

"What is there to not believe?"

"That you guys are from Albama."

"Then what do you think? We just dropped out of the sky right now? There is no human existence on this whole planet, except for Albama, so of course we're from there!" Clary yelled at the guy in frustration.

The guy was still staring at them in amazement.

"Lift your shirt up." He said.

"What did you just say?" Nelson said, moving to stand in front of Clary, so as to block her from the guy's view.

"Oh, I'm so sorry. I was supposed to ask you that question." The boy said, his cheeks flushed in embarrassment.

Nelson pulled his shirt up a little, to reveal a mark on his stomach. It was an "A" written in cursive in a circle. Everyone in Albama had it tattooed on them on the time of their birth.

"I can't believe this," the guy said.

"Don't you have it too?" Clary asked, narrowing her eyes at the boy.

"No, only Alabamians have that."

"Wait, what? You aren't from Albama?"

The guy lifted his shirt up to reveal a skin, clean of any tattoo.

"There's so much you don't know, kid." the young boy said.