The Pairing

Pushed

This isn't a cliche love story.

This is a story of girl meets boy and eventually fall in love. Sounds very cliche right? Wrong. It doesn't happen as easily as that.

I'm 16 now: the age required to be entered to the system. This system has been running for 15 years now. My generation are the last products of true love.

Anyone younger is a product of science. A product of two individuals forced together by the government to populate our city. According to the system these individuals are compatible with one another and will live happily. Generally not the case.

"1496" My number. I step forward awaiting the male that carries that same number.

"1496" Called again, nobody steps forward. "I'm sorry dear, he must be late." I stand silently and nod.

"1496, please step forward." Finally a figure emerges beside me, uniform all over the place and drool stains down his cheek.

"Sorry, slept in." The woman before us rolls her eyes and ushers us into the next stage.

I analysed him once more. Eyes were different colours, hair scruffy over them slightly, nails chewed and a slight stench surrounded his being. How was this creature compatible with me?

"So, you think I'm a mess?" He asks, raising an eyebrow at me. "You're thinking how I guessed. You're staring pretty hard with a disgusted look on your face which could say it all but I'm also a minorion. You yourself are an analysion."

I roll my eyes at his strength. At the age of 5, each child is given a strength. There are four of these: Analysion - the strength to analyse things in great detail, more detail than the naked eye can see; Minorion - the strength to go into others' minds and read their thoughts; Audithion - the strength to hear sounds from miles away to look out for potential danger; Linguilion - the strength to understand and speak any language, even that of animals.

Before this day I had wished to be paired with a linguilion, but now I am stuck with the strength I wanted least of all.

"You're supposed to be silent. But yes. You are a mess and I have no idea how I am going to cope with your smell."

A smile emerges from the corner of his mouth and he steps forward once more.

I always dreaded the day I turned 16.

Next stage: The Joining

This is the part where we sign our lives to eachother for a lifetime. It's sometimes called marriage.

My grandparents told me that once you needed parents permission to marry at the age of 16. Now it's the law. If you aren't joined to someone you are an outcast, forced out of the city and denied entrance again.

Nobody risked it nowadays, because they wouldn't only be outcasting themselves, but their significant other too.

"1496."

We take a step forward and hold out our left hands. A sample of blood is taken from our ring fingers and put into a small test tube. They use this to have our joining officially in their records by blood.

"Repeat this," a woman, wearing a workmaid's uniform much like every other adult here, said, "I promise to be joined to this person and make the city of Brookestown great again."

"I promise to be joined to this person and make the city of Brookestown great again," we say in unison, not looking at each other once.

"Granger Hart and River Davies, now Hart, you are officially joined."

Granger. Granger Hart. My partner for the rest of eternity. Being outcast might have been more tolerable than this.

Stage Three: The Planning

We won't be planning anything like the name may suggest. We will be given a plan of what our future will look like.

"1496, step forward."

We move together and a screen lights up before us.

A house down Pennington Street. 2 children, one male and one female. A dog for guarding. Granger, a job at the state. Me, a work from home agent.

A man appears beside us and hands us our keys, uniforms and medication. The medication to create the gender of our children. This gets taken in a few months down the line.

He bows before us and walks away, leaving us for our final stage.

Stage Four: The Future

Our future starts now and there's nothing we can do about it. Not a thing.