*The Selection*
I glanced around the large banquet hall, where everyone was standing in small groups, chatting mindlessly with each other. My eyes scanned the crowd for that one face I was dying to see, Ky’s. I knew what tonight stood for: tonight was the night all of our lives would change forever. Some would be taken from their families and be trained by the Society to become a top athlete or a soldier—to bring glory and honor to us all. That, as I had long been taught, was the whole point of the Society: to bring glory back to a once-great civilization. A tight knot formed at the base of my stomach, even though my mother had said there was nothing to be afraid of, that everything was going to be just fine. I had everything to be afraid of.
I spotted Ky near the food table, idly picking at one of the finger food plates, and I couldn’t help but smile. Ky always stood out in a crowd, from his cherry-red hair to his outfit of choice that night, a neon blue suit and hair shellacked into place with gel. He was about to bite into a small sandwich when I called out to him.
“Ky!” I yelled. I could tell I caught him off-guard because as soon as he heard his name, he dropped his food, which landed on his suit.
“Come on, man.” He brushed off the crumbs and rubbed out the slight stain. I gave a choked laugh, picked up the hem of my dress, and pushed my way through the crowd of children.
“Thanks, now my mom is going to freak out,” he laughed. His blue eyes were bright and stood out against his suit. They always seemed to stand out, no matter what he was wearing.
“Anytime,” I laughed. Ky always had a way of making everything feel alright, even when I knew it wasn’t. “Aren’t you nervous about tonight?” I asked, and picked at a loose bead on my dress.
“Nah.” He waved his hand through the air.
A lump began to form in my throat. “But Ky, don’t you know what tonight stands for?”
“Of course I do, but I don’t care. I never get picked for anything, so what makes this any different? Besides, the only thing I’m good at is swimming, and I don’t think the Society really cares much about that. So there’s nothing to worry about.” He flashed a genuine smile.
“Yeah, you’re right,” I replied, and cast my eyes away from him. Children around the room were dressed their best for the occasion. Many of us would go home with their parents tonight and forget this ever happened, but a selected few would be taken by Officers and led away, never to return to their families.
“Piper?” Ky asked, stepping closer to me.
“Yeah?” I spotted a girl in a blazing neon pink dress. Her golden blonde hair, laced with white flowers, sat like a crown on her head. I recognized her from my Physical Training class. She wasn’t good at anything, but she wasn’t awful either; she had earned top scores in a few of the harder sports, but nothing major to remember. Still, she looked excited, like something big was going to happen to her—like she wanted to be selected.
“Don’t worry.” He grabbed my hand and gave it a tight squeeze.
I gave him a small smile as a woman stepped up to the podium. The red heels she was wearing made her so tall that she had to hunch over her notes, making the spotlights catch the silver streaks in her midnight-black hair. “Please, children stand with your parents,” she began. “We will be announcing the names shortly.” Her shrill voice only served to make me even more nervous.
“Well, I’ve got to go find my mom. I’ll see you later!” said Ky, and pulled his hand away from mine. I watched as he pushed past a couple of adults and disappeared.
Panic bubbled inside my chest. I was now standing alone in a room full of strangers, all of whom were about to watch my whole world change. ”Mom? Dad!” I called in a high-pitched voice as I scanned the sea of faces.
“Right here, Piper.” Even as I felt my dad place a strong, sturdy hand on my shoulder, I couldn’t stop the tears. I swirled around on the balls of my feet and hugged his legs tightly.
“Aww, don’t worry, sweetheart,” he soothed. “Come on, let’s take our seats.” He grabbed my hand and led me to a long table. My mother was already seated, talking to a woman across from her.
“Don’t you look pretty today!” the woman told me with a smile. I glanced down at my dress and smiled back. I was wearing my favorite shade of light blue that evening, and my hair had been fixed into a simple bun. My mom had said that I looked like Cinderella, some princess from The Old World.
“What do we say, Piper?” my mother replied, and lightly nudged me with her elbow.
“Thank you,” I whispered.
“Jonas hates what he’s wearing tonight—he keeps calling a three-thousand-credit silk suit ‘a monkey’s birthday party outfit,’” the woman continued, turning back to my mother. “The nerve of that boy! His father and I worked hard for those credits. Speaking of which, where’s my son? Jonas! Jonas Miller, get over here right now!” The lady roughly pushed to her feet, and my eyes followed her as she grabbed a boy by the arm and spun him around.
My father let out a low chuckle. “Some children don’t belong in the Society, they belong in a zoo.”
My mother was laughing, too, though she tried to hide it. “Hush,” she whispered as she covered her painted lips with her glowing fingernails.
“But not you Piper,” my father continued. “You belong in an aquarium.”
I erupted in a fit of giggles. “Yes, I do,” I relied, and slid into the seat next to my mother. I listened to the buzzing conversion and couldn’t help but smile. Maybe everything was going to be alright.
“Good evening, ladies and gentlemen!” The woman’s voice echoed throughout the banquet hall again. Everyone fell instantly silent and craned their necks to face her.
“Tonight is one of the biggest nights for your young children,” she announced. “Tonight is the night on which the Elite and Normals will be forever separated.”
I gulped hard.
“The Normals will live a rich and fulfilling life. The Elites will work to bring honor back to our great Society.” Cheers ricocheted off of the walls, and the woman gave a wicked grin before everything seemed to go dark. “Now, if you all will turn your attention to the wall screen ahead, the names of our future Elites will appear.”
I grabbed my mother’s hand and gave it a hard squeeze.
The wall screened powered up, showing the Society’s symbol, then faded into a bright white screen. It seemed nothing was happening until the anthem blasted out of the speakers, and then a picture of a boy appeared. Wild cheers erupted from his family.
“Carter Robins,” the woman called out. Everyone began to clap as the boy made his way onto the stage. He gave the crowd a bright smile and sat in one of the seats behind the woman.
Clapping could still be heard when the anthem rang out again. It was a girl this time.
“Alicia Portillo.” There were more claps as the girl made her way to the stage. The light makeup that covered her face was now smudged with tears. I didn’t know if they were tears of happiness of terror, or a mix of both. I glanced up at my mother, who was staring at the children on stage with admiration.
It continued to go from boy to girl for what seemed like hours. Every time a name was called out, I would sigh with relief—it was another name that was not my own. We were rapidly approaching the end, and a comforting feeling spread throughout my chest. Everything was going to be alright, neither Ky nor I was going to be chosen, and we would be able to live our lives as planned.
The woman called the last girl’s name, and I smiled. I wasn’t chosen, and I would never be chosen. I would live my life as a Normal. Scanning the room for Ky, I spotted him on the farthest end of my table and tried to catch his eye. He had his hands clenched into tight fists, however, and his eyes were focused intently on the wall screen. I wanted to run up to him and tell him that everything was going to be okay, that we weren’t going to be Selected.
That’s when my whole world spun out of control. The anthem rang out, and I turned my head and saw the blue eyes before anything else. My heart slammed out of my chest.
“No.” I whispered. “No!”
“Ky Martian,” the woman called with a smile.
My eyes filled instantly, and I shoved my chair away from the table and leapt to my feet. “Move!” I cried, pushing people out of my way in my effort to reach Ky. Through my tears, I could faintly see that he was already on stage. His eyes seemed to be full of tears, too.
“Piper!” my father called, racing after me, but I couldn’t stop. I had to reach Ky. As I pushed more people out of my way, I heard tearing sounds, which meant that I was ruining the most beautiful dress my parents had ever bought me.
“Ky!” I yelled, and pushed my way to the front.
The woman on the podium was now staring at me, her eyes drawn into a hard line. “Officers, keep this girl in line,” she ordered, and I felt them wrap their arms around me.
“No!” I thrashed in their iron grips. “Ky!”
The Officers dragging me out of the banquet hall, and my mother and father followed closely behind. “Hold still!” I heard one of the Officers snap.
“Don’t hurt her!” my mother cried. That when I felt a sharp stab in my left arm, and everything went fuzzy around me.
“Ky.” My voice was a weak grunt now, and I struggled to stay awake. I had to get to Ky and keep him from leaving.
“Just take her home. The sedative will wear off overnight.”
Everything went black around me. I couldn’t see, but I could still hear the soft murmurs of my parents’ voices, and the hot tears that struck my cheek.
I couldn’t understand it; Ky had been so sure that he wouldn’t be selected. We were both so sure. But now I had lost my best friend, and I would never see him again.