Universe X

Chapter 3

[Carrie's POV]

I had been awake for a while. Lauren was still out. I wasn't worried because Lauren could sleep for a year if she wanted to. I never really realized how claustrophobic I was, so for the last 10 minutes I had been sitting Lotus style on the floor, eyes closed, breathing deeply.

Congratulations, Carrie. You now have a boyfriend. I thought. Why did I say yes? I don't like Xander like that. I like - I stopped myself. No. He likes someone else. Remember?

Yes, said In-My-Head-Carrie. But he never said it wasn't you.

That's true. But he would have told me, right? In-My-Head-Carrie didn't answer. Great. Now she's gone.

"Ummm...Carrie?" Lauren's voice jerked me back to reality and out of my head. I opened my eyes.

"Morning, sleepyhead." I said. Lauren looked at me.

"Um. Where the heck are we?" She said. I shrugged.

"A box." I said. She rolled her eyes.

"Who is she?" Lauren thumbed over her shoulder. A small girl was curled up in the corner.

"I didn't notice her." I said honestly. Lauren looked at me, disbelievingly.

"You didn't notice that there was another girl, in the same room as us?" I shrugged.

"Hey. I was trying not to notice how small of a space we're in. You'll never guess. I'm actually extremely claustrophobic." I said. Lauren smiled.

"Great time to find out." That was Lauren. No matter the situation, she could always make you laugh. We both froze as the girl moved. She blinked sleepily.

"M-Matt?" She yawned. Lauren and I looked at each other.

"No, actually. I've never met a Matt in my life. I'm Carrie and that's Lauren." I gestured.

"I'm Amie." Amie said. "I live in the Outskirts." Lauren and I exchanged excited looks. We had never even seen a person from the Ouskirts because they were banned from the City.

"But where's - where's Matt?" she said, sounding panicked. I shook my head.

"We don't know who Matt is or where he is." She began wringing her hands.

"I've got to find him. I have to. Oh god. Oh god. Oh god." She murmured.

"I'm sure he's fine." Lauren began comfortingly.

"No. He must be so scared. He's blind." She added timidly. I had never met a blind person before. "I wonder if the Government found out." She continued.

"Found out about what?" asked Lauren.

"We were looking for Matt's twin sister. A girl named Caroline Tarunde." I blinked.

"But that's impossible."

"Why?"

"Because I'm Caroline Tarunde. And I don't have any siblings. It's forbidden." Amie looked doubtful.

"Well, since Matt can't see, he never told me about a physical description. He said he would know by her voice and since he isn't here..." she trailed off. I sat down next to Amie.

"So this Matt. He's my twin?" I said. Amie shrugged.

"Well, your name is Caroline Tarunde. But - "

"Please. Call me Carrie. I've always hated being called Caroline." I inturrupted.

"Okay. What I was going to say was that there is a possiblilty that you aren't siblings. But we won't know until Matt confirms it." Tears filled her eyes. "But we might not see him again."

Just then, the wall to our right dissolved and three Officials walked in.

"Please come with us." said one in a clipped tone. It was a she, I noted. The other two seemed to be males, from their builds. We got up and walked with the woman leading us, then Lauren, Amie, and I, followed by the two men.

"Excuse me," Lauren said. "But where are we going?" The woman Official stopped and turned to us.

"You will be taken to room 4. Please. No more interruptions." Amie, Lauren, and I exchanged glances. We walked down a series of hallways and stopped in front of a door marked with the number 4.

The woman Official opened the door and ushered us inside.

"Dr. Craytra will be with you shortly." She said as she closed the door. Moments later, a door on the opposite wall opened and Xander, Lars, Noah, and a boy I didn't know were pushed inside. I rushed at them.

"Xander! Lars! Noah! Boy I don't know! Are you guys okay?" I asked as I hugged them all. Lars laughed.

"Yup. All in one piece. You guys okay?" We nodded.

"Matt!" Amie rushed past us to where the boy stood looking around.

"Amie!" He hugged her, his sightless eyes fixed over her shoulder.

"Matt, there's someone you have to meet."

"Is it Caroline? The guys told me about her." I stepped toward him.

"Hi, Matt. I'm Carrie." Matt stood looking toward me.

"It's you." He said simply. I blinked.

"How could I have a brother I don't even know about?" I asked.

"My mom and dad, well my adopted mom and dad, told me that our parents were scared for our future so they gave me to our aunt and uncle."

"And you live in the Outskirts?" Matt nodded. Xander had made his way over to me and had one arm draped comfortably over my shoulders. I could feel Lars' eyes on us, but I ignored it.

Just then, a tall man with greying hair stepped into the room.

"Hello, children." He said. His voice gave me the chills. Xander wrapped his arm tighter around me.

"Some first date, huh?" he joked trying to lighten the mood. I smiled faintly.

 "Please, have a seat." On cue, seven chairs appeared out of thin air. I sat gingerly, half-expecting for the chair to disappear just as quickly.

"Sir," Noah said. "Why are we here?" The man laughed, a cold empty sound.

"All in good time." I shivered. This guy was creeping me out.

"But Sir," Amie asked. "Who are you?" The man smiled chillingly.

"I am your creator."

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Hello readers!

Yay! Let's hear it for CHAPTER 3!!! I'm so excited. This story is moving faster than I thought it would which is AMAZING!!! I am so pumped right now! Please vote and comment. Hoped you enjoyed it!

Peace, Love, and Uploads,

SOAR