TWO

After gaining permission to leave – an annoyed wave of the hand – Zach left the classroom with a tired exhale. Once in the empty hallway, he broke into a run, sprinting all the way to the principal’s office. He slipped as he turned a corner; his sneakers squeaked through the silent hallway. He compensated by using the floor and wall for support, before using the momentum to get back on his feet.

“I’m here, what’s the problem?” Zach gasped out, bursting into the office. Ms. Park gave him an unamused glare. He glanced over at the chairs and held back the groaning sigh that threatened to flow through his body.

Brielle was sitting in one of the chairs, her arms folded and her body slouched. Jacob sat next to her, his back straight and rigid as he twisted his hands together in his lap. His head was bowed.

Well, this couldn’t be good.

“Sit down, Mr. Bennet,” said Ms. Park sharply, pointing at a chair.

Oh, dear… We’re in trouble.

Yet again.

Zach sat down in the empty chair next to Jacob. He tried to get a reaction out of the boy, but he wouldn’t look up. Worry snaked around Zach’s heart. He glanced over at Brielle, but she gave him no response.

“What’s going on?” asked Zach.

Ms. Park pursed her lips in irritation. “Miss Durante and Mr. Blythe have been in a fight.”

An incredulous look lifted Zach’s features. That’s what this is all about? You’ve got to be kidding me. “Already?” he asked. His lips formed into a tense smile. “It’s not even lunchtime, guys.”

Irritation bloomed through the woman’s expression. Zach winced, wishing he’d kept his mouth shut.

“This is no joking matter, Mr. Bennet,” said Ms. Park, her eyes widening in disapproval. “This is a serious offense and must be treated as such.” Zach nodded, trying to look contrite. This seemed to pacify her and she continued, “Fighting, as you know, is not tolerated at this school. Furthermore—”

“Yeah, I know, but it’s just them,” said Zach, interrupting her. She glared at him and he added hurriedly, “I mean, they’re like brother and sister. Couldn’t you let them off with a warning?”

“You misunderstand me, Mr. Bennet,” said Ms. Park, her lips thinning as her features pinched together. She’s gonna get wrinkles if she keeps that up… “They weren’t fighting with each other, but with some other students.”

“What?”

Zach twisted in his seat, staring at his two friends. Exasperated annoyance twisted in his chest. The day had already started poorly, for crying out loud. Couldn’t they have avoided the fight? They were going to get kicked out of school at this rate.

Jacob kept his head down, while Brielle glared viciously at the woman. She trembled, as if she were about to explode at any moment. With a sigh, Zach’s heart softened. He leaned forward and gently touched the edge of Jacob’s chin, lifting the boy’s head up. He sucked in his breath.

Now I get it. I should’ve known…

The side of Jacob’s lip was swollen with dried blood. His right eye was beginning to close from the swelling. Red blended with his dark skin, a hint of yellow entering the area. The boy was going to have a whopper of a bruised eye in a day or so.

“Oh, Jacob, how’d this happen?” whispered Zach, tilting the boy’s face to the side to survey the damage. The boy’s eyes watered; his lips trembled. But he shrugged and continued to stay silent.

“I’ll tell ya how it happened!” snapped Brielle, bolting to her feet. She smashed the side of her fist against the wall; everyone in the room jumped in their seats. The framed pictures on the wall rattled. Her words came out in a low, angry hiss. “They were ganging up on him! He was on the ground—” Brielle bit the word out as if she were saying a filthy expletive. “—and they were kicking him like a dog! No one was stopping it.”

A dark, malevolent glare was sent to Ms. Park.

“None of the teachers seemed to notice,” said Brielle, her tone hard. “Even though they were watching. So,” she whispered. Her lips thinned. She lifted her chin, her expression challenging. “I stopped it.”

“Miss Durante, you’re already in enough trouble as it is,” said Ms. Park, unaffected. “Do not add violence against school property to the list.” The woman pointed at the chair. “Now, sit down.”

Brielle didn’t obey at first, her stance reeking of defiance. Her chest heaved, the anger blazing. She sat back down in her chair with a huff and crossed her arms, a scowl perpetually on her face.

This wasn’t going to end well; precedence had ingrained this into Zach. He’d been forced to accept this unfair fact of their lives. Avoiding trouble was the way he’d learned to cope with this situation.

No back talking, no fighting, no retaliation against others – no matter how much he or his friends were in the right – doing this meant no trouble with adults. No trouble with adults meant safety and security.

However, Brielle was young and had a thing for justice.

Zach liked that part in the young girl.

But this wasn’t a justice system – and even then the odds were stacked against them. This was school, the most unfair institution in the world. Because the fight involved one of them, they would be at fault. It was automatic; it was the default. None of the teachers would punish the instigators. Because of who they were, they had no choice but to take the blame.

And it was everything but fair.

“You punching that boy was uncalled for, Miss Durante,” said Ms. Park. Her tone was unforgiving. “You will serve detention all next week. You are extremely lucky that I’m not suspending you for this. If…” The woman hesitated, as if looking for the right word to describe their profession. “…other things get in the way, then you will make up the time. You should be thankful for my leniency. Do I make myself clear?”

Brielle looked away, her chest rising. She nodded a fraction of an inch. Jacob gnawed on the other side of his lower lip, like a dog with a chew toy. His eyes watered with unshed tears.

Oh, Jacob. I’m so sorry. I wish I could fix it.

We’ll get through this. It’s Friday – no more dealing with this crap until Monday. Even though it’s not even lunch and we’re still getting into more trouble…

Not that everyday isn’t like this.

The weekends were never long enough.

“And what about the jerk?” demanded Brielle, her head whipping back up. Her amber eyes flared. “You gonna let the guy who was beating on Jacob go free? As if we haven’t noticed that he’s not here!”

“Brielle!” hissed Zach.

“Miss Durante! You’re not to take that tone with me!” shouted Ms. Park, her chest puffing up as she sat straighter in her seat. “How d—”

“But it’s true!” cried Brielle; the betrayal bled through her tone. “He was the one who was beating Jacob up. Why am I in trouble for trying to defend my family?”

Ms. Park drew in a deep breath, her fingers reaching up to pinch the bridge of her nose. She lowered her hand; there was no sympathy in her expression.

“Mr. Clifton’s punishment is none of your concern. You should only take in consideration your own actions.” She motioned to Jacob. “I’m letting Mr. Blythe off with a warning. You’re dismissed and if I see any of you in my office again today, you can expect suspension.”

He didn’t even do anything. Thank you for your magnanimous compassion.

Jacob lowered his head, his hands twisting more in his lap. His dark eyebrows furrowed with worry. Brielle trembled in outrage, her lips thinned to a near invisible line. Just as she opened her mouth to retort, Zach overrode her, his voice cold, “Brielle, be silent.”

Her gaze whipped to the side. Zach shook his head. A wounded glimmer of light flickered in her eyes, before she dropped her head. Her fists clenched at her sides. The air slipped out of Zach’s chest. He took a deep breath and let it out slowly.

It was easier to nod and take the blame for things, than to argue for their justice. It was easier to keep their heads down. It was easier this way. They were branded as troublemakers and everyone wanted to scorn them. Nothing would change their views.

He gritted his teeth; he clenched a fist.

Zach stood up, the chair scraping against the floor. “We’re sorry for the trouble we’ve caused, Ms. Park,” he said, nodding politely at her. She didn’t acknowledge him nor look up from her computer.

Zach put a hand onto Jacob’s shoulder. The boy’s chair creaked softly as he stood up. Brielle was the loudest of the three of them, shoving her chair back and bolting to her feet. She whirled around and huffed out of the room. Zach silently closed the door behind himself and walked through the hallway with the other two.

“Are you in pain?” asked Zach, after they put some distance between themselves and the principal’s office. Jacob shook his head, keeping his gaze on the floor. They stopped.

“It’s—not—fair!” cried Brielle, each kick punctuating with her words as she vented her frustrations on the nearest locker. The clang of her kicks rang clear through the hallway. Zach didn’t stop her.

Better the locker than someone’s knees.

“I know,” said Zach, his voice low.

The girl glared up at him, her eyes glittering with unshed tears. “It’s still not fair!” Brielle shouted. She tucked her lower lip in her mouth and bit down, her teeth burying deep into her flesh. Her mouth trembled.

Zach lightly tapped her chin. “Stop, you’ll hurt yourself.”

Brielle whipped her head away. Her teeth disappeared behind her lips. She glared at Jacob. “Why didn’t you fight back?” she demanded. “You could’ve beaten the crap out of those jerks! Why didn’t you fight?! Why did you just lay there and take it?”

Jacob flinched. He looked between the two of them, biting his lip nervously. Zach tapped his chin, giving him a pointed look, and the boy stopped. Jacob shrugged and curled his arms around his chest. When Brielle didn’t push him, he sighed.

“Not supposed to fight,” whispered Jacob, his voice gentle.

Brielle’s face scrunched up. “So, you’re saying I shouldn’t have helped you,” she said, her tone filled with betrayal. “Because that’s fighting?”

Jacob shook his head, looking down at the ground. “No.” There was a pause. He twisted his hands. “Thank you.”

All the anger drained from Brielle’s body. She crossed her arms and let out a soft huff, before she turned her head to the side. A faint blush graced her cheeks. Zach smiled. Despite her brash nature, Brielle had a good heart. Her embarrassment by a simple ‘thank you’ was endearing.

“Whatever. Someone has to make sure you don’t come home with bruises.”

Jacob smiled. Before the girl could stop him, Jacob threw his arms around her in a hug.

Brielle squeaked. “All right, all right, I get it,” she said, pushing against Jacob. He didn’t budge. “Will ya ge’off me!?”

Zach laughed lightly. He drew them both into a hug and lifted them in the air. There were heated protests from Brielle, while Jacob giggled. After a moment, he let them down, but kept an arm around each of their shoulders. Brielle’s lips were lifted in an annoyed pout, but her cheeks were pink and her eyebrows were relaxed.

“You should get back to class,” said Zach, ruffling their hair. Jacob smiled and laughed. Brielle jerked away, acting mortified. “You should clean up a little before you go.”

Jacob nodded, leaning into the side hug for a moment longer. He walked down the hallway towards a bathroom. Brielle shrugged Zach’s arm from off her shoulders. Before she could walk away, he grabbed her by the underarm, holding her back.

“Thank you, Bri, for trying to protect Jacob,” whispered Zach. “That was very nice of you.”

“And look what it got me,” said Brielle with a growl, tugging her arm out of his grasp. “A week of detention. I get blamed for punching that jerk, when he doesn’t even get a warning for the crap he pulled. How’s that fair?”

“It’s not.”

“I always thought adults were supposed to look out for kids,” cried Brielle, her hands gesturing wildly. “But they’re scared of us. Just because we’re different. It’s not fair!”

“I know.”

“Why aren’t they protecting us?” asked Brielle, her tone dropping. A soft, vulnerable light entered her eyes. “Just because we’re different, does that no longer make us human?”

Zach put a hand on his forehead and let out a low sigh. “Being different doesn’t make us any less human,” he whispered. Zach squeezed her shoulder. “You know that.”

Brielle didn’t answer. She pursed her lips together and gave him a sharp nod. She turned away and walked back to her class with her hands shoved into her jean pockets; her shoulders were hunched over.

Zach rubbed his forehead, pinching the space between his eyebrows. How long ‘til lunch? With another tired sigh, he went back to his classroom. He sat down in his seat and stared at the board. He refused to look down.

There was new graffiti on his desk.

As the day progressed, he couldn’t concentrate, too aware of the eyes that would glance back at him. In between class periods, Zach tried to avoid drawing attention to himself; those eyes never stopped staring at him. Phone notifications whistled, chirped, and chimed as he passed by clusters of students. The laughter wasn’t subtle; the division was apparent.

Zach clenched his jaw and lifted his chin, slamming his locker shut.

He hated this. He hated that the students got away with this. They could bully them all they wanted and the teachers would never do a thing to stop it. The teachers weren’t discreet about their enmity towards Zach and his five friends – and the students had latched onto this like leeches.

It wasn’t long before they knew the truth. A group of six orphans living together under government control; there were twelve other such groups across the country. It didn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out who and what they were.

Even then, the teachers and students had no fears in treating them this way.

There was some consolation: it was against the law to reveal their identities to others. Though, this was only regulated online. Strict as it was, it didn’t stop the students from gossiping quietly amongst themselves.

Lunch came. As Zach walked into the cafeteria, he saw Hikaru in the middle of the line. He waved at her and she smiled back, her features tense. The whispers didn’t stop, but the uncomfortable twisting in his stomach faded. After grabbing his lunch, Zach walked through the path of tables, going to the very back of the room. Hikaru, Drake, and Sevati were already seated at the old table.

As Zach sat down, Brielle and Jacob joined them. The benches creaked with age. The cafeteria buzzed with voices all around them. Black marks marred the surface of the table – as usual. Sevati traced a finger over some of the marks with an impassive expression on her face. Brielle glared at her spot. Zach rubbed his eyes.

Is this ever going to stop? Aren’t they bored of this yet?

“Lift your trays,” said Hikaru with an air of someone prepared. She motioned with a hand while she pulled something out of her backpack. As they followed her instructions, she placed a red tablecloth over the surface, obscuring the individualized graffiti.

A brooding silence fell over the group. The food tasted like sawdust in Zach’s mouth. Once, he tried to say something – anything to encourage them – but the crestfallen faces killed the words in his throat. Hikaru tended to Jacob’s face with a first aid kit that she always carried in her backpack.

How am I supposed to be a leader, when I can’t say anything to cheer them up? I can’t even give them any hope. I have nothing.

So much for the ‘new’ day.

But just a few more hours and it’ll be over.

They separated to their next classes without a word. It was during the next to final period when something inside Zach’s pocket buzzed silently. He pulled the cheap phone out of his jean pocket.

Unit Twelve, assemble.