Human Error

BOOK 1 // FOURTEEN: Fair Trade

"If you could just place your finger here," she told me, gesturing toward the reader. "You'll feel a slight prick as it draws blood, but that's all we need."

I did everything I could to stop my hand trembling as I placed my index finger into the groove and held it there. There were exactly three beeps to count before I felt the sharp stab, and I forced myself not to move my hand away.

"It'll take a couple of seconds for the analysis to come through." She was still looking at the screen, sparing me any unnecessary scrutiny. "It's not like we're running a full DNA sequence, or anything. Just testing for a couple of markers."

Markers of modification. The exact information coded into every cell of my body, and that I was going to every length to conceal. The pounding of my heart intensified even more.

Then, suddenly, the screen flashed green.

"All done," she said breezily. When I moved my hand back, I had to grip them together so she wouldn't notice the shaking. "You're all clear."

"Oh. Right."

"Thanks so much for coming in today, Astrid," she said. "I'm sorry we had to go through all this. It's probably insulting to have to sit here and prove you're telling the truth, but with everything going on..." Her voice tailed off, and I fought not to squirm under the implication. "Well, we've all got to be careful. But I guess that's irrelevant here! We're happy to have you join us at Old Stratford."

"Great." This time, when I managed to smile, it felt a little more genuine. "Thank you."

"Someone at the desk can sort you out with your schedule and everything. I think you were approved for all the classes you applied for. Should be plain sailing from here on out."

She rose from her seat, outstretching her hand for me to shake. I hesitated for a second, before forcing myself to reach out and take it, hoping I could keep it steady for just those few moments.

"Thanks," I said again.

"No problem. Welcome to the college."

***

As it turned out, the place was a maze.

The KHA campus was huge, but its familiarity made all the buildings seem closer together, which was exactly what I was missing here. The classrooms inside this single building twisted themselves into an impossible labyrinth, where identical layouts made each one blend into the next. Even with an impeccable memory, how was I supposed to tell apart room 3B and 3C when they were exact replicas? On my first day, I had no hope.

Not to mention what I'd actually been worried about turned into nothing at all. Though the way I looked would never turn heads in a school full of modified kids, I'd been convinced things would be different here. My appearance alone felt enough to get me thrown out – and I was supposed to walk these corridors every day.

And yet passing through, it didn't take long to realise this wasn't the case. Whereas everyone at the academy fell somewhere near perfection, the students at Old Stratford turned my head for a very different reason. They were all so different. There were guys that towered over me, long and lanky, right up against those barely pushing five feet. Girls with natural waves, tight ringlet curls, frizz flat-ironed into submission. Dull, unaltered brown eyes. Spots. Freckles. Flaws.

I'd been terrified of standing out. But the students here stood such stark contrasts to each other that it seemed nothing could look out of place.