The Claiming

Chapter Six

Ugh, middle school all over again. I pray that this becomes easier.

***

When I wake, Alec isn't there. I change into my regular Facility uniform of a blue dress which I hate. But I don't have anything else besides my Claiming dress which hangs up in the bathroom by a lone hanger we found in the closet. A weird feeling clots up in the pit of my stomach as I stand in front of the full-length mirror by the dresser in our bedroom. The knee-length dress gives me no figure, nothing. It looks like something you'd give a ten-year-old to wear to church in the 90's. (That's something I heard Ms. Cadence say one time. She did a lot of historical studies when she was younger.)

Uncomfortably, I step out of the bedroom into the hallway. In my socks, I drag my feet quietly down the hallway. When I reach the kitchen, I see Alec sitting at the table going through envelope after envelope, some opened, some still to be opened. On the kitchen counter are about ten bags of groceries lined up near the fridge.

"Alec..?" I say tiredly.

He looks up with a blank expression at first, but when he sees me, he smiles warmly. "Hey, did you sleep well?"

"I guess," I shrug. "Did I wake up halfway through the night?"

He chuckles. "You did. But don't worry about it. I'm glad I could help you go back to sleep."

My memory starts to recover. He held me tight until I fell asleep, and I loved it. I can't keep myself from beaming as I pass through the doorway and over to the window in front of the kitchen table. It looks out into the backyard, which is pathetically small, but at least there's some grass. I'd say it's the size of our bedroom.

I sit down in the chair next to him and put my head down on the table. "I'm still not awake," I moan.

I feel his hand on my back, and he starts to move it in circles around my shoulders. "Well, I was thinking we could go to the Central District and find some new clothes for you. That is, if you want some..."

"Yes!" I exclaim, sitting up straight. "Yes, please!"

He starts to laugh again. "Then we will go! I just have to go through this mail and put the groceries away that my parents brought over. They went shopping for us earlier this morning and brought it by while you were still asleep."

"That's so sweet of them," I say, pushing myself up from the seat. I start to go through the groceries and put them away myself in the empty fridge and cabinets. "What kind of mail is all that? Why is there so much when we just moved here?"

"It's a bunch of stuff that new families have to fill out and send back to the Plaza or the Royal District. Things like identifying ourselves, health forms, family history forms—stuff like that. There's also a form for work information, but that form isn't due for a while. The Royal District is inviting new families to attend a career screening tomorrow to find out where we fit in the best."

I nod slowly. "Is that a requirement?"

He sighs. "Unfortunately, yes. That's where we technically get our jobs."

I sigh. "All right then. I don't think I'm very good at anything, though..."

"Sure you are!" Alec says.

"Oh, yeah? Like what?" I challenge.

He stares at me, unable to answer. "Uh..."

I giggle. "See? Absolutely nothing."

"Well, maybe there's a hidden talent in you just waiting to come out! That's what the screening is for."

"We can only hope," I say.