------ ELAIA -------
"The girl who doesn't cross her ankles when she is seated is asking for trouble," our etiquette instructor, miss Allery tells us in her shrill voice.
"When a girl makes such a vulgar display of unladylike behavior she is saying to the world that she is not a lady, but a heathen, and she becomes responsible for everything that happens to her," she continues on.
"Always remember this, especially when you are in the presence of men," miss Allery tells us, her hands clasped behind her back as she paces back and forth at the front of the classroom, her pink heels clicking against the white floor. "Men don't marry heathens."
"Who cares," I hear Castine mumble under her breath from her seat in front of me. Miss Allery freezes, turning towards Castine.
"What was that, dear?" She asks with a sweet smile plastered across her lips. She clasps her hands in front of her, waiting for a response.
Castine fidgets in her seat. "Uh, nothing, I was simply agreeing with you," she lies.
"Well, a lady should never mumble, and she shouldn't stutter, either," miss Allery replies, still smiling at Castine. "A girl should always speak clearly and respectfully. Remember that, girls," she says, nodding to us before returning to her lesson on posture.
I try to pay attention but it's no use. Etiquette class was always my least favorite class the last time I was here, and not much has changed.
I've been back at the facility for a few days now and to say the least, my roommate and I do not get along. Castine is always questioning things and getting herself into trouble. She wants to find a way out of the facility with the other girls from her city.
I couldn't care less. I just want to get back to Kres, and that's not going to happen if I act out. Acting out is the reason I ended up back at the facility in the first place. I know better than to make that mistake a second time. I'm not getting sent to the terrible place.
I spend quiet time dreaming of the life Kres and I will have together just as soon as I get out of here. We'll make time for each other. I know we will. Nothing is going to keep us apart. Not his place in our city, or mine.
History class goes by quickly and by the time lunch comes around, my stomach is grumbling with hunger.
I'm expecting to sit alone, but I'm one of the last girls in line. By the time I've gotten my food, all the tables are full. Except for the one Castine is seated at. I let out a small sigh before walking over and taking the seat across from her.
"Hey," she says after a moment, poking at her salad. I get the feeling that Castine doesn't like salad very much. "Were the other tables all full?" She asks me, not meeting my gaze.
"Yes," I reply, wishing lunch was already over. Castine and I hardly say two words to each other in our room, let alone eat meals together. This is awkward, and I'll be relieved when lunch is over.
She takes a bite of her salad, making a sour face as she forces herself to swallow. "Man, this stuff is awful," she remarks, taking a big gulp of water to wash it down.
I take a bite of my own salad. "Yeah, I suppose it is pretty bad," I agree. We share a laugh.
"How did you manage to suffer through this place the first time?" Castine asks, shaking her head.
I shrug. "I really don't know," I admit, taking another bite of my lunch. "I had my best friend with me last time."
Castine nods. "Well, my best friend is here with me, and I don't seem to be doing very well," she tells me with a laugh.
I stifle my own laughter because we're not supposed to laugh at things like that. "You're not from the city. It's going to take you longer to adjust," I tell her. "You just need to give yourself time."
Castine scoffs. "Or maybe I'll never adjust to this place and these rules because the people that run the city are insane," she whispers back.
I shake my head. "There you go again, disrespecting the city council and the men that take care of us," I retort.
"It's better than just blindly accepting this bullshit," she replies, snapping her wrist back as she gets shocked. Serves her right for swearing.
"Sometimes, "I reply coldly, holding her gaze as I sip my tea, "it's better to accept the life you have, than to try and force things to be what they are not."
She rolls her eyes. "Where do you get these ridiculous ideas?" She asks me, forcing herself to take another bite of her salad. She washes that one down with a gulp of water too.
"What do you even mean?" I ask her as I finish my salad. I push the plate away, taking the warm tea cup in my hands. The scents of mint swirl up my nose, calming me.
"Never mind," Castine grumbles, pushing her salad away also. She downs her entire cup of tea in one swallow before getting up from the table and storming off.
Goodness, she's touchy. I savor my cup of tea, grateful for a few moments without Castine. She's so antagonistic and that's not how girls are supposed to act at all. She's never going to graduate if she keeps acting like that.
-------
When all of our classes are done for the day, Mr. Morrison requests everyone's presence in the auditorium so that he can make an announcement. I arrive early, sitting only a few rows back from the stage. A few moments later, Castine takes the seat beside me and I groan inwardly.
"I'm sorry, if I stormed off earlier," she begins with a soft smile. I didn't even know Castine was capable of apologizing.
"It's alright," I reply, turning to meet her gaze. Her brown eyes are filled with concern.
"You're right. It's going to take me longer to adjust. This is all so strange and new to me, even after seven weeks of being here. I'm sorry if I've taken my frustration out on you," she tells me.
I nod in acceptance of her apology, but something feels off about this. This isn't normal for Castine. She would never apologize for her behavior, least of all to me. I'm about to ask her what's going on when Sebastian steps onto the stage. The room grows silent as we wait for him to speak.
"Good evening," he greets in his deep, refined voice. He clasps his hands behind his back as he looks out at all of us, dressed in his usual all black suit.
"Good evening, Mr. Morrison," we all reply. Well, most of us do.
"How are you all?" He asks, giving us a broad smile.
"Good," we all reply.
He nods in approval before clearing his throat. "As you are all aware, we have a very strict policy about what can and should be brought here from home," he continues.
"It has come to my attention that a few of you have decided to undermine this policy, and bring illegal things with you to the facility."
Sweat starts to bead on the palms of my hands. Does he know about the pin Trinia gave me? Are they going to take it away?
"This is unacceptable, girls," he chides, his tone strict. "As a result of your rule-breaking we have decided that we will be searching each girl's belongings and living quarters in order to combat these acts of defiance before they get any worse. If any of you are found to have an item of contraband in your possession, that item will be removed from the facility's premise and you will be disciplined accordingly," Mr. Morrison pauses a moment to give us all a pointed look.
"Do I make myself clear?" He asks after a moment. Most of the girls nod or reply with a simple 'yes'. But after what he's just said, I can barely breathe. They're going to find the pin. I'm going to get in trouble, and then they're going to send me to the terrible place. This is bad.
"We will be canceling all classes tomorrow so that we can adequately conduct these searches and your education will resume as usual on Friday." Without another word Mr. Morrison exits the stage and the handlers tell us we are dismissed.
"Are you okay?" Castine asks me hesitantly as we stand.
"Not here," I whisper, ever so slightly.
Castine gives me a pointed look but says nothing as we walk down the hall towards our room. She opens the door and I step in first kneeling down and pulling my suitcase from under my bed as Castine shuts the door.
I pop the latches on the case open, searching through the mess of my belongings until my fingers find the small metal pin. I take it from the case before standing and stalking over to where Castine is seated on her own bed. Without saying a word, I place the pin in her hands. She examines it for a moment, rubbing her fingers over the carved wildflowers.
"This is really cool," she tells me.
"I shouldn't have brought it with me," I whisper urgently, hoping Mr. Morrison isn't listening in. "My friend Trinia gave it to me before I left to come back here, and I wanted a little piece of her here with me," I explain.
"I don't think they're going to take something like this from you," Castine replies skeptically. "It's just a pin. It's harmless."
"Maybe, but they don't see it that way," I reply. "It doesn't matter if the thing I brought was harmless. I didn't follow the rules," I explain.
"So hide it," Castine tells me with a shrug. "There's no way they can possibly search every inch of this room." She goes back to examining the pin, turning it over in her hands. "Woah," she whispers after a moment.
"What? Is something wrong?" I ask her, glancing to the door.
"What the hell is the wildflower society?" She asks.
At first, I don't know what she means, but then I remember that there are words on the back of the pin. Castine must know how to read. "You can read?" I ask in shock.
Castine nods. "Yeah. I've been trying to keep it a secret from Sebastian," she tells me. "Do you have any idea what the wildflower society is?"
I shake my head. "No, I don't. Perhaps it was some garden club, or something? Trinia said she found it in her Grandmother's jewelry box," I explain.
Castine gives me a defiant smile. "And just when I thought you were one of them," she teases, handing the pin back to me.
"No. Wait- I am one of them," I quickly correct her. "I want to be one of them. I'm not getting sent to the terrible place."
"Suit yourself," Castine replies nonchalantly, handing the pin back to me. "I think it's total bullshit that they're going to search our rooms," she says, but her bracelet doesn't shock her.
I stare at her wide-eyed for a long moment.
"Could you please stop staring at me?" she asks, folding her arms over her chest.
"You just swore," I say.
"Well, no shit," she hisses back, bracing herself for the shock of pain. But nothing happens. "What the hell?" Still, nothing.
I stare down at the little pin in my hands, wondering where it came from. "I-I think it might be this," I tell her, holding up the glistening metal trinket.
Castine violently shakes her head, her thick brown curls flouncing back and forth. "It's just a pin, Elaia," she says, dragging out her words as if I'm an idiot. I take the pin and set it in the farthest corner of the room before walking back to Castine.
"Try swearing again," I tell her.
"What? Why-","Just try."
Castine rolls her eyes. "Fuck." She shudders as pain reverberates through her body. She's about to say something more but I hold my finger up, silencing her. Then, I retrieve the pin from the corner of the room, handing it to Castine. "Now try swearing," I tell her. She shakes her head, but does what I've asked anyways. When no shock of pain comes, Castine swears again. And again. And again. But she never receives a single shock of pain.
We stare at each other for a long time, wondering what deep, dark secret we've just uncovered. I don't know how, but I have to keep the handlers from finding this during the inspection tomorrow. We have to figure out what this thing is, and where it came from.
But more importantly, we need to learn what the wildflower society is.
------- Author's Note -------
Hello there, my dear readers! I hope you're all still enjoyng We Are Wildflowers!
What do you think the wildflower society is? Where do you think the pin came from? Do you think Elaia will get in trouble for having it? Let me know by dropping your thoughts in the comments!
Thank you all for reading, and don't forge to click the vote button if you're enjoying the story!
Stay inspired!
- M I R A N D A