Catalina and the 31

Chapter Six- Force Fields and Dorms

Catalina looked over at Jayla, but found she had already grabbed her backpack and was walking through the hallway towards the dorm rooms. Catalina took the two room keys from Ms. Quinn and hurried to catch up with her. As she passed by the other rooms, Catalina noticed that each of the rooms had a number on their door, with no door looking alike. Some were red with fancy lettering on a silver plate ( that was room 001, Adalynn and Kierra's room ), while others were blue with "Room five" printed on a gold square. Soon they arrived at a plain brown door with a brass number plate that read "012" in a business-like font.

Jayla frowned. "I guess we're the borings," she said. She must have noticed the different doors as they had walked by too. Although Catalina didn't respond, she was worried. Am I so unspecial that I have the most inconspicuous door in the hall? The retinal and fingerprint scanner also was as plain as could be - it was brass with a black screen on the front.

Jayla stepped forward. The scanner was right at eye height for her. After a few seconds the screen glowed green. Then she put her thumb on the screen, and when it glowed green again, she took it off. The door quietly swung open. However, when Catalina tried to step though as well, she found she couldn't. An invisible force field must be here! She thought to herself. Invisible force fields analysed the DNA of the person stepping through and prevented anyone else from crossing. How much security does this school need?

Catalina stood on her tiptoes to let the retinal scanner scan her eye. After it glowed green, she put her thumb on the screen. When it finally turned green again, the door opened and Catalina stepped through.

What she saw amazed her. Their room could have been used to house 5 people - there was that much space! The far wall was a wall of windows, that showed them the view of the lake below. The curtains were a pretty shade of blue. The room seemed to be in two sections - and the dividing line bisected the window.

Each half was the mirrored image of the other. Both four poster beds had sky blue bedspreads with white polka dots. The white throw pillows were arranged in the exact same manner. The front pillow was embroidered in blue thread with each of their names. Next to each bed was a little white nightstand. Two white dressers were on the corners of the wall of windows. On each wall, there was an open white closet with brass handles, with a mirror on one of the closet doors. Catalina could see that their clothes had already been put into them, along with some outfits that looked like school uniforms. On the adjacent wall there were two white desks, already filled with school supplies and the latest techtops. Each desk had a drawer and racks with school books in them. Two blue backpacks leaned against the desks. In between them was the slot that Ms. quinn had told them about. There was a smooth piece of metal right below it, with padding and a large borders on its sides. Probably to prevent the tablets from falling, thought Catalina.

The bathroom was to Catalina's right. She peeked her head inside. The bathroom was printine - decorated in the same blue and white thee as the rest of their room. There was a large shower and a white tub that could have easily fit three people. Two sinks faced a large mirror, each with its own set of drawers and counter space. Toothbrushes were already put into little cups that served as toothbrush holders. A tube of toothpaste sat next to each sink.

Catalina looked around her room in wonder. It was amazing! She had never seen a room so big. Her old house in Argentina could have fit inside of it.

She looked over at her new roommate. Jayla didn't seem so ecstatic. She scoffed. "Seriously, embroidered pillows? A blue and white theme? They should have let us choose what colors we want! Can I get my bedspread changed to black?"

Catalina chose not to respond, thinking getting along peacefully was worth not sharing her opinion. Changing the topic, she exclaimed, "Ohh, look! There's the pamphlet of classes!"