My eyes snap open to the darkened room. I see the shadow of someone standing over me, but I cannot see who it is. My fingers come up to try and pry off the hand covering my mouth, but when my fingers invade the skin, I feel the brutal cold touch of metal—a ring. Before I could move a muscle more, a whisper fills my ear.
"It's Paige." Her hot breath flows against my cheek. The hair on the back of my neck stands up, and an itch goes down my spine.
Her hand lets go of my mouth, and I shuffle to my feet. I follow her shadow out of the bedroom and into my dim-lit living space. I can't help but notice how different she looks in her casual wear. Her legs are concealed in baggy sweatpants, her top half by a long t-shirt.
"What the hell?" I whisper. "How did you get in here? The ID pads. You need my fingerprint."
Her hands wave in front of her. "It doesn't matter." Her voice is still quiet. "We're going back to the gate."
"Now?" I say. "After curfew?"
"Yes, Dally's waiting for us," Her eyes roll. "Get your jacket. We're leaving."
...
In the six years I've lived in this hell hole, I have never left my room after curfew. The harshly lit hallways are quiet, and the filtered air is stale and cold. Our footsteps on the metal walkways sound like bricks hitting the floor. Paige and I carefully navigate the twisting hallways until we arrive at the Hub. The Dining Hall entrance stations two guards. When they finally move into a different hallway, we jolt across the lengthy room and through the broken chain-link fence, and into the restricted area of the compound. Gate 5 is about a fifteen-minute walk, so I have plenty of time for my mind to race.
Paige's fluffy pink slippers tap on the floor as she walks next to me. Her hair is in a bun, and I can see the faint lines of platinum highlights twisting through her hair. Her ears have small diamond earrings in them that sparkle in the LED lamps overhead.
Seeing her without all the makeup and glitter is bizarre. She's usually dressed in business casual, and I know she dresses that way because she has her reputation to keep. If anyone saw her like this, they would think less of her. It makes me happy that she's okay with letting me see her like this. It's much more natural. And I like it.
This side of her reminds me that she's just like the rest of us, and the Founder is just another person. Why does he give us such a front? I know he must look professional, but it's more than professionality. The Richlings look at him as a god—a savior. I suppose that's because they think he saved them from their demise, but he's another person. A normal person. Like me. Like everyone here. He has feelings and wants and desires. He makes mistakes just like the rest of us. Why does everyone follow him so blindly?
Paige slows down, so we're walking in unison. I can smell the coconut lotion she's wearing, making my heart beat faster.
"What are we doing?" I realize I haven't said a word to her since before leaving my room. She hasn't either, and I'm guessing she's lost in thought.
"What do you think?" She says sarcastically. I'm taken back by the sarcasm. I haven't seen this part of Paige often, but I feel like she's talking down to me when I do. It isn't like her.
"Paige—" I stop walking.
She lets out a breathy sigh as she stops and turns to me. "Sorry. I'm just stressed."
"What's bothering you?" I ask.
"I'm just frustrated with my father."
"Did something happen?"
"We argued." Paige's shoulders tense. "He refuses to look into the knocking. He says it's a waste of time, that the scientists have it under control and that it's not safe to go outside. He then went on a tangent about how I needed to be more involved in the decision-making. He said my job isn't fulfilling."
"He said that?" I almost gasp.
"I love teaching!" Paige's face drops. "It's not a good enough job to him. He said I scored high enough on my tests that I could work as an engineer or in politics, and I don't want to do either!"
"Maybe he sees more potential in you," I say.
"No, he wants more from me. It's been that way my whole life."
"I'm sorry, Paige." I walk up to her and hug her. It's the first time I've ever hugged her. I rest my chin on the top of her head while her arms come to cling to my jacket. She squeezes tightly, almost making the breath hitch out of my lungs. I smell the faint soft scent of her vanilla shampoo that still lingers in her hair. She lets out a muffled cry into my chest, and without hesitation, I squeeze her tighter.
When she lets go, her eyes meet mine, and I can see the water building in them. "Don't cry," I say, rubbing her upper arm.
"I'm sorry. I know I shouldn't get so worked up over this. It's just brought up other feelings."
"Why do you think your fathers like that?" I ask.
Her eyes flick to the ceiling. "Honestly, I don't know. Maybe it's because my father sees me as a child still?"
"All parents feel that way." I say, "Maybe he's trying to protect you."
Paige huffs. "Are you taking his side?"
"Of course not," I give her a reassuring smile. "I just hate seeing you so upset."
"I just don't get it." Paige's hands push down to the floor. "Why isn't my father looking for a chance to get out of here? I feel like there's something I'm missing."
"I get it," I say. "There has to be a reason. Maybe your father knows something we don't?"
"He has to," Paige says, tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear.
We begin walking again. I can see Paige wiping her watery eyes out of the corner of my eye. I feel bad for her. Having so much pressure on her shoulders must be overwhelming.
We pass a cave drop-off that's covered in caution tape. The tape looks years old. It's covered in dust and hangs in a pile on the rocky ground. I can hear the echo of our footsteps moving down and back up the cave. I've always been afraid to go too close to them. The last time I stared into one of them, I swear I saw something move. I know my mind was playing tricks on me, but the bottomless trench looks too menacing not to have a monster at the bottom.
When we get to Gate 5, I see Dally sitting against the door. "About time." He says as he stands up.
"Blame the guards for our tardiness," Paige says.
"This couldn't wait until tomorrow?" He asks. "I don't want to get caught."
"I want to try to hear the knock again. Everyone's sleeping, so there's nothing to interfere." Paige says.
"Go on then," Dally's arm motions to the gate. "Hurry and give it a knock so I can go back home."
Paige walks up to the metal and places her hand against it.
Knock, knock, knock.
The silence heard after her knock is mind-boggling. I've never heard somewhere sound so empty.
"Hmm," Paige's hand goes to her chin. "Maybe they left?"
"Or it was a storm." Dally's voice is sharp.
"Don't tell me you believe that," Paige says, annoyed.
"I honestly don't care who—or what it was. I'll only care if it gets me out of here."
"They're there," Paige says, her confidence showing through the tone in her voice. "I know they are."
She knocks again—this time louder than before. Again, the deafening silence enters my ears.
Paige grunts, frustration covering her face. "Why won't they knock?"
"Maybe they can't hear us?" I suggest.
Dally speaks up. "Or they left, and they probably found something better to do than wait by a door for a knock."
"Is there something I can use to bang on the door?" Paige asks, her eyes flicking around the tunnel.
"Here," I say and pick up the bottle we brought down earlier today. It still had a few sips of alcohol in it. We were rushing to talk to Mr. Smith that we forgot to take the bottle with us. I hand it to Paige's outstretched hand, and she grips it with white knuckles.
"Okay, here I go." The bottle flies through the air and lands in the middle of the gate—shards of glass rain on the floor.
"What the—" I start. "I didn't mean for you to break it."
"Shhhhh!" Paige's finger snaps to her mouth.
Silence.
"I don't understand," Paige says, her mouth turning into a frown.
Her slippers crunch on the glass as she walks towards the gate. Her palms turn into fists, and she bangs on the gate with so much force I can see them turning red.
"Paige."
"No! I need to hear the knocking!" Panic springs into her voice.
"Why is this so important to you?" Dally asks.
"I have to prove to my father that there are people out there!" Distress lingers through her words. "I can't be wrong." She finally stops banging on the gate. She slides down the metal and onto the glass-littered floor with a hard breath.
"So, this is a contest?" Dally shakes his head, irritated.
"No," Paige is quiet now. Her hands move to her face, covering it with her fingers. I kneel to her and place a hand on her shoulder.
"It's okay," I try and reassure her.
Suddenly, I hear a cluck come from the gate. It's quiet, but it's enough to make the hair on the back of my neck stand up. Paige whips her head around, and a smile creeps into her face.
"Yes!" She yells. Her fists bang on the metal. "Hello! Is anyone there?"
There's not another clunk or even a tap, and Paige's rapid breathing is the only thing I can hear.
"We have to figure out how to open the gate," Paige says, her eyes filled with excitement.
"Do you want to kill us all?" Dally protests.
"The air is breathable! If someone is out there knocking on the gate, we can breathe. We won't die."
Dally's hand goes to rub his temples. "We don't know for sure."
"How can we open the gate?" I ask.
"I might have an idea," Paige says while her lips curl up into a smile. "I just got to gain one of the guard's trusts. Then I can somehow figure out how to open the gate. I'm going to need your guy's help."
"No, no, no." Dally waves his hands out in front of him. "I'm not getting involved, and it's not my place."
Paige's eyes flick to me, her eyebrows furrowing. "Please, Ethan?"
Part of me doesn't want anything to do with this. If I get caught snooping around or going against the Founder's rules, I will surely get put into a jail cell. Or worse, shot. But the only way I'm going to find out if my father's alive is by helping Paige.
After a sigh, I say: "Of course."
Dally rolls his eyes. "Great. Does this mean I have to be the one keeping you two from getting caught?"
Paige's face lights up, her deep dimples surrounding her bright smile. "You're going to help?"
"No," he says. "I'm going to monitor."
Which means he's going to help.
"Thanks, Dally," Paige says.
For the first time in a long time, I have hope. Hope to get out of here. Hope to see my father again. It makes tears come to my eyes just thinking about it. But, when I see the two guards turn the corner, the tears disappear, and I freeze.