Chosen

Chapter 8

There are fifty-seven and a third ceiling tiles in my room. I know because I counted them at least a dozen times in the past four hours. Before that it was floor tiles. I gave up on those after three hundred twenty six though. Too hard to keep track once I got to the middle of the floor.

Last night I snuck back to my room through the compound, ducking behind corners to avoid running into anyone. I'm still having trouble processing yesterday. It's half dream, half nightmare. Never, not once in my entire existence did I ever believe I could be anything other than the next community chief. Now not only do I have a whole new job and future, but countless questions about West and his hideout in the debris of the cave-in.

I turn my head to look at the clock mounted on the wall. It's 6:33 in the morning. Time to face the day. I almost fall on the floor as I get out of bed. Ugh. The mirror displays a girl with a rats nest for hair and deep circles under her eyes. Yanking a brush through the tangles, I tie my hair back in a no-nonsense ponytail. There's nothing to be done for the bruise-like circles below my eyes.

After I dress for the day, I head down to breakfast. I keep my eyes down the entire time, hoping to avoid questions and sympathetic glances. Today it's toast, a couple sausage links, and a small slice of cantaloupe. I hate cantaloupe, so I eat it first so I can kill the flavor with the other items on my plate. I risk scanning the room for West, but I don't see him. Darn.

I'm working on ripping my toast into small pieces when Jay shows up. Rushes up is more like it. "Where were you yesterday after the ceremony?" He's half frantic, demanding answers. "I waited outside, I went up to the Glass Garden, I went by your room, I even tried to go to the tech wing. I thought Crane did something to you!" He has to stop then to take a breath.

"Sorry Jay, I just...freaked out. I had to get out of there and think," I try to calm him down.

He sits down with a huff. "You could have told me. I would have given you space."

The thing is, I know he would have. Jay always seems to know what I need. It's part of what makes him my best friend. "Sorry," I say again with a sigh.

Jay puts his head down on the table. "It's okay. You're the one who just got their world turned upside down. I shouldn't be bugging you about it."

I smile at him gratefully and start eating my torn bits of toast. "So, what did I miss after the ceremony?" I ask him as he stuffs his toast into his mouth whole.

"Wll, mst pple dnn't knnw yet," he says with his mouth full.

"Jay, that's disgusting. You need to stop trying to talk with your mouth full. Nobody can understand you anyway." I nibble on another piece of toast.

He swallows. "Sorry. As I was saying, most people don't know yet. I think Crane is trying to keep it under wraps. Not that it's hard."

I shoot him a quizzical look. I don't get it. I would have thought the news would be everywhere by now.

Jay answers my unspoken thought. "News actually doesn't travel that far if it's not broadcast on the intercom. Think about it. People work at their jobs all day and really only get together at mealtimes. You can bet Crane forced the few people who know what happened to keep their mouths shut." He grimaces bitterly.

Huh. I lean back in my chair. I guess I was avoiding eye contact with people for nothing.

"So, what's your plan for today?" Jay asks as he starts inhaling his sausage. "You going to report to Norman?"

"Norman!" I drop my fork with a clatter. "Holy shit, is he okay?"

"What do you mean, is he okay?" Jay looks at me with alarm. "What happened?"