Free

Ten. Ten years. That's how long I've been stuck. Stuck at level three. Level three of ten. I should be done by now. I'm 20 years old, and I'm stuck with a ton of nine year olds every day. I should be living my life. I could be married. I could be living on my own. But no, I'm stuck in level three, and surrounded by kids half my age. And there's no way out.

Well, I guess there is one way. Pass. Pass the test, and move on to level four. Then I'd finally be making some sort of progress, I mean, I'd be almost 30 by the time I would finish,  I would finally be free. But for now, I have to pass the test.

The test is a 100 question test on everything, from everyday skills, to math. At every level, the difficulty of the test increases. It's hard, but not impossible.

But it feels that way.

I mean, they do prepare you, but not very well. It's all one on one learning, they say it's the best way to learn. Everyone has a different teacher, and are taught different things. And then the tests are over everything. Imagine if a dog was taught its whole life to walk on four legs, and then when it goes to obedience school, to pass, it has to walk on two legs, only to walk on four legs for the rest of its life. That's what the test is. Tested over information you never knew, and you'll never need.

Everyone thinks it's the best thing ever. You're taught what you're good at. But then you're practically expected to just know everything else. And that's not how life works. I love the fact that we're taught what we're good at, as it expands those skills. So why are we tested over those other skills, when we don't need them, or aren't even taught them. It makes no sense. But for some reason, everyone seems to do fine. Everyone except for me. But according to everyone I've ever met, I'm crazy smart. But I guess that's not good enough. Not good enough for the computer who decides my fate. Whether or not I can leave the cage that grips my arms and holds me back from living life the way it was meant to be.

---

I grabbed my bag and my keys, and left for school. I hugged my mom goodbye, and went on my way. I stopped at a quaint little coffee shop and grabbed something quick to eat before I arrived at the school. The school was an average sized building. It was two floors. The top floor was often for students who had just moved up to level three. The bottom floor is for students who have had to be held back for another year. It also has the cafeteria, and places to work and practice your craft.

There's only one other student on the bottom floor. His name is Augustus. He's been stuck for two years now. He's thirteen, nice kid. His craft is writing. He's let me read some of his stories, they're amazing. He'll definitely become a writer of some sort.

I guess I never said what my craft is. Mine is art. I've always loved it. I feel like I can express myself more. Every painting tells a story, whether it be a tale of love, tragedy, or friendship, every painting is a tale, and every artist has a story to tell.

But I guess being an artist doesn't really matter. What matters is that I pass the test of skills I'll never use. And not just one test. Ten. I have to past ten tests, to live the life I was meant to.

I walk into the school and say hello to Rachel. I've been here so long, it's not even strange for me to call the teachers by their first names. Besides, some of them are only a few years older than me.

I find my room. Room 193. Same room every day for nine years. Same teacher. Miss Token. She lets me call her Jenny though. We've become very close. She's 32 years old. I've had her every year. She was also an artist. But sadly, she can only teach me the same thing over, and over, and over again, because I keep getting stuck. Every level the one on one learning also gets more challenging, along with the tests. Most of our days are just spent talking about the world around us. She's not supposed to, but she does teach me some of the things about math, and writing, and music. Things on the test. She's a very nice lady who is a great teacher, but she really wants me to pass the test, for my sake. There have been many lessons where I have broken down in tears, I would be so upset.