Restart

Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Aralia

My room wasn't what I was used to. Last time I knew all my roommates -all three of them- and despised them. I guess it really wasn't their fault that they were under Restarts control, but I hated them anyway. At the same time though, I pitied them. They couldn't resist the Influence-the brainwashing method used by Restart-like I could, so this was the life they were doomed to live.

I had never been in this part of the school before. The furniture was all in different places than my last room and the room was much smaller. There was space for only two to bunk. Where was my roommate? If I was destined to hate her, and live in he same room as her (Not him. The boys had separate dorms than girls.) I might as well know who she is.

I looked around the room, but still couldn't find her. The guards left, locking the door as they went. But as the door swung close, a figure appeared from her hiding place behind the door. I jumped. She must be my roommate. The girl approached me slowly. There was something off about her.

"I can resist the Influence." She told me. If Restart hadn't already figured it out, telling this to a stranger the first time you meet wasn't going to help. "I know you can too." How could she possibly know that? Was it really that obvious? " No, I can read minds." She just answered my thoughts! Can she really read minds? Probably. Maybe I should trust her... Anything I think, she will know anyway....Wait! This could be a trap! I should be careful around her. Don't admit to anything.

"What are you talking about? Resisting the Influence? I should report you." Good, now she w...

"Oh come on, Aralia." She knows my name... what else does she now about me? "Only what you're thinking."

"Could you just stop answering my thoughts, for a minute?! It's really annoying." That probably wasn't the best thing to say right now. The girl looked down sheepishly.

"Sorry. It's just... I've never met someone else that wasn't under the Influence." She stepped closer to me and stuck out her hand. "I'm Mira." I shook her hand.

"I'm-"

"I know who you are." Oh, really? I hadn't noticed!!! She let go of my hand and turned toward the bunk beds. "You can have the top bunk." I grabbed her shoulder.

"Wait. I'm sorry Mira. I just... I guess I'm not used to talking to real people my own age." Not necessarily true, but she didn't need to know that. She blinked. Oops, she can read minds.

"No, it's fine. I understand. Even if you don't." What does that mean? " You know what? It doesn't matter. This is not the conversation I intended to have with you. There is something very important I need you to answer. Or for you to think about if you don't already know the answer..." Just get on with it. She took a deep breath. "Why do you think Restart wants you so bad?"

"What do you mean? I escaped, so they brought me back. I mean they'd probably do the same for any other student here."

"That's the thing, Aralia. They really don't do that with every student. Only you." She squinted her eyes at me, like maybe if she looked hard enough she would be able to see the answer.

"Well, what do you think they would do if a Gifted...you know...escaped?"

"No one escapes very often...but if they did that would probably prove them dangerous to have around, so, putting them back in the school..."

"I see what your saying." I climbed up to the top bunk, and sat down with my feet dangling over the edge. I swung my feet back and forth in a repetitive motion. I'm not sure why...but it helped me think. And so I thought, I have no idea what that would mean for ME.

" I do, though, have one possible answer." Said Mira. My feet stopped. I looked over at her expectantly. "If they considered you to be too valuable to simply get rid of, they might put you back in the school to try to convince you to be on their side." That would never work. The Influence doesn't work on me." Oh, I assure you, they would find a way."

"And that's supposed to assure me?" She mumbled something in reply, but I never intended the question to be answered. I sighed. "Me? Valuable? What would make ME valuable?" I met Mira's eyes, and she raised her eyebrows as if the answer was obvious. And maybe it was. "Of course! But...there's nothing special about my Gift."

"Well, what's your Gift?" I opened my mouth to tell her but she put up a hand to stop me. "No. I want you to show me. I read your mind, and know what you were about to say, but that's not what I meant. I asked you what your gift was. What you were about to tell me was what YOU think your gift is. That's only what you know about it. Now, show me your gift. I already showed you mine." I nodded and turned toward the single bedroom window. I took a deep breath and closed my eyes in concentration. I heard the glass shatter as a great big green vine burst through the window. I laughed, knowing I had done this. I had made the plant grow. I wondered for a moment if I should use the plants to break away the wall, like I did to escape last time. No, they wouldn't have put me in a room that I would be able to do that to. Only the window would break. And it was too small to fit through.

"Now kill it." Mira demanded.

"What I can't-"

"Just. Kill. It." She hadn't raised her voice, but it still had the same effect. I waved my arm at the vine, trying to prove to her that I can't kill things. I can only make plants grow. To my surprise, the vine withered and wilted, collapsing beside me on the bed. I killed it. I didn't mean to kill it. I never wanted to kill anything. I don't want to be Gifted. I don't want this Gift. I don't want to kill things. I tried to convinced myself that I never killed this vine, once bursting with life, but now with all the life drained out of it because of me. I imagined that the life I took from it was like energy. Flowing like invisible liquid. I had stolen that energy, and now I was simply returning it. It was flowing from me, back to the lifeless vine.

"You brought it back to life." I opened my eyes, wiping away the tears I hadn't realized I cried. I gazed in amazement at the plant. It wound it's way around my arm, as it suddenly split into another vine, which approached Mira. We both exchanged grins. I didn't just have the power to make plants grow. I could kill plants, and bring them back to life too. But we also both understood that I could do this to any living thing. That was why I was valuable. That was why Restart wanted me so bad. Now I finally understood.