Chapter 6 First assignment

Vee's POV

By ninety, sweat stings the bruise on my face. My lower lip quivers as I puff out air from my lungs, trying to keep myself up.

I fail woefully, collapsing with a groan.

"Oh?" James laughs. "I thought the loud mouth had more fight than that."

A few people snicker.

I grit my teeth, pushing myself back up. What is he, a high schooler? Why does he act so darn childish?

“Ninety-one, Ninety-two…”

The others continue to warm up in the field.

At one hundred, I feel as though my arms no longer belong to me. Yet I still have two hundred left. The thought alone nearly crushes me.

Knowing James will make this the most humiliating day of my life if I give up, I keep going.

“One hundred and forty-three,” I bite out, my chest burning badly. My wrists ache terribly from the tension on the still fresh wounds from my father's cuffs.

I fall again. And before anyone notices, James clicks his tongue dramatically.

“Come on, we all know you can't do it. Probably got sent here because you were caught running from home huh?”

I squeeze my eyes shut, then I push myself up again.

“Two hundred… Two hundred and thirty,”

Soon after that, I realize that not only my voice is counting.

Every number comes with a new kind of pain. At two hundred and fifty-seven, tears blur my vision.

I hate that they do. I hate that more pair of eyes are watching me. I hate James' voice. I hate Roman and his stinky pride most of all.

More tears pour out my eyes. And maybe a sob or two. And yes I collapse again… and again. But I won't give up.

No way am I giving that jerk something new to laugh about.

"Three hundred." The number leaves my mouth in a whisper.

A loud uproar fills the atmosphere but I just lay on the ground, gathering my composure for several seconds.

When I finally manage to stand, my legs wobble. Roman nods toward the crowd and Sun House is still cheering for me. It takes me a while to realize he wants me to join them.

My jaw tightens. Deep inside of me, I just want to walk away. Instead, I drag myself toward the lines.

Roman waits until I reach them before speaking. "Today is Selection Day. Only Sun House will be choosing"

Everyone goes deadly silent.

One after the other, residents of sun house step forward to pick a paper from the box.

I have absolutely no idea what is happening. Not wanting to stand out again, I follow everyone else.

Some people celebrate having nothing when they open their papers. But with my luck I know I'll probably get the worst of it.

I pick one.

When I unfold it, four words stare back at me.

Chosen Eli. Ocean House.

Chloe takes the slip from my hand and reads it. "You've paired with Eli from Ocean House."

"Paired?"

She nods, folding the paper then walking off to the group wearing blue shirts.

I stay where I am, rubbing my sore shoulders. Every muscle in my body aches from those stupid push-ups. Even breathing hurts terribly.

After about a minute, Chloe returns with a boy.

He looks around my age. His hair falls over his forehead, hiding most of his face. His shoulders are deliberately hunched, and his eyes don't leave the ground.

He looks like someone who has never been confident in his life.

How did he make it on the list of deranged minds?

"Eli," Chloe says. "You'll be joined to Vee. She's new, so keep her company."

The boy gives the tiniest nod, managing to keep his eyes from us.

"Come on." Chloe gestures toward the front of the field where Roman is.

The closer we get to him, the more annoyed I am.

Maybe it is the way he carries himself, like everyone around him exists because he allows it. Maybe it is those eyes. They are too dark, so empty.

I already hate them.

We stop in front of him and without being told, Eli holds out his right hand.

Roman quietly takes it. My heart clenches when he pulls out metal handcuffs. He locks it around Eli’s wrist then turns to me.

"Why..."

Before I can finish, Roman reaches for me.

Instinct makes me pull back, my ribs aching from how hard my heart is beating in my chest.

He pauses for half a second, studying me.

"Your hand." He says.

Reluctantly, I stretch out my hand.

His fingers close around my wrist and I bite down on my lip, stifling a wince.

The cold metal snaps into place.

I look down, briefly studying the short chain connecting me to Eli.

"What is this for?"

Roman lets go.

"Your assignment." He responds before turning to the pair behind us.

I glance around and everyone is acting so unbothered as though chaining strangers together is the most normal thing in the world.

"Dinner?"Chloe questions.

I look at the handcuffs again. "You expect us to eat like this?"

"I expect you to do everything like that until the time expires."

"For how long exactly?"

"Till the bell rings." She says.

Eli still hasn't lifted his head or said anything.

I want to ask Chloe if he's mute but I don't want to do that when he's right beside me.

The cafeteria is already crowded by the time we get there.

Chloe picks up a tray then proceeds to serve herself.

I do not want anything. Still, I grab some rice and stew because I know better than to skip another meal.

She glances at Eli. "What do you want?"

He shakes his head.

We carry our trays to an empty table.

Sitting down takes more effort than it should because every movement I make has to match Eli's.

The chain clinks against the table as we both gently place our hurting hands to rest.

I hate the feeling of metal against my skin but I can't complain. I certainly don't intend to do another push up.

My hands tremble as I lift a spoon of rice to my mouth. I tighten my grip but sadly it doesn't help.

"They sell electrolytes." I almost miss his quiet voice.

Eli keeps his eyes on the cuffs. "I could help you... um..." He clears his throat. "We'll have to move together. It will help with the shaking."

For a moment, I just look at him. This is the first thing he has said to me.

"Okay." I murmur, rising to my feet. We head back to the serving counter to get the drinks.

"You aren't new here." I say, watching how familiar he is with the setting. He shakes his head once, then nothing.

He clearly doesn’t want to talk so I don't try to initiate a conversation again.

We get the drink and head back.

Halfway there, Eli suddenly stops. The chain pulls tight between us, hurting my wrist a little.

He is staring ahead, his face pale.

"There you are." Someone laughs.

When I look over, I immediately understand why he stopped.