Life Unnormal

by Jill Caplin

  Security people rushed by and whisked away all of the suitcases. Stunned by their actions, Tessa and Maude hugged each other and started crying.

  Tessa felt like standing up for herself and asking for her stuff back until she noticed the teens who were crying and refusing to give up their suitcases left with Security.

  “What’s wrong with them?” Maude asked, “Why do they want our stuff?”

  “Who knows? It’s just so…wrong. I guess we don’t get to own anything.”

  “This really stinks. Wonder what’ll happen to us in The Annex?”

  “I have no idea. Let’s see what happens?”

  Another voice came over the loudspeaker, saying, “It’s time for transportation to The Thorndale Annex.”

  Tessa left with Maude, and they grabbed a seat on one of the several electric shuttles. She noticed several long rows of people lined up for transportation, including men and women with their children. It never occurred to her that the population of the city she lived close to had so many poor people.

  As she sat on the shuttle, Tessa wondered how she would escape from The Annex. Hope clung to Tessa, as she imagined one day, she would be with her parents again. She could never let go of such an idea for one minute.

  3

  Dorm

  In the shuttle, as it maneuvered towards New City, Tessa hoped to see a glimpse of the shops. Instead, Tessa watched out the small window as the shuttle traveled down the back alleys behind Thorndale’s New City.

  Out the windows, the dark tunnels of the underground twisted and turned down each road. She caught a few glimpses of lights came into the shuttle every few feet.

  On her way to Thorndale’s Annex, the Counter spoke one more time. He said, “The Annex, which is built next to a New City, is surrounded by a force field, so please keep your distance for your safety. Too close means sudden death. You people old enough to work will be assigned jobs and places to live.”

  The shuttle dropped them off in front of a building with a large wooden sign labeled “Female Teen Dorm.” Walking to the dorm, Tessa glanced up at the ceiling, seeing thin, solar tubes that allowed glimpses of dusty light to shine through. The grey walls of the tunnels surrounded her everywhere, no matter which way she turned.

  Once inside, a tall, stocky woman with dark hair and eyes wearing a grey jumpsuit escorted Tessa and Maude to two beds in a substantial room crowded with about fifty girls. Most of the girls were either sitting or lying on their beds. They were all dressed in the same tan shirts and jeans.

  Tessa noticed none of them bothered to look her way. So much for wondering why she lost her luggage. Didn’t matter if she didn’t like it. Tessa guessed the New Leaders wanted them all to look the same.

  Looking around the room, Tessa noticed the walls painted a drab shade of off-white. The off-yellow laminated floors were so thin and abrasive that it felt like she walked on uneven concrete. The air felt dry and stuffy as if it circulated slower in The Annex than in the auditorium.

  The woman, without a nametag, glared at Tessa, clearing her throat to get her attention. Keeping her head down, Tessa listened to her orders as she spoke in a harsh, monotone voice.

  “I am a Supervisor of the Dorms. You shall call me Supervisor. Please take off all of your clothing. It all needs disinfection,” she said, handing Tessa a towel. “You’ll need to take a shower. Dress in one of the uniforms in your trunk. It has everything you need from now on.”

  The Supervisor turned her back. With no privacy, Tessa had to undress. Blushing, with tears dripping down her cheeks, she hoped no one would waste time watching her. While undressing, Tessa placed the carving and the picture of her parents in the corner of the trunk at the foot of her bed. Wrapping the towel around herself, she left her clothing at her feet.

  With gloved hands, the woman deposited all of her clothes into a plastic bag and left. Tessa couldn’t believe the woman assumed they were contaminated. She also suspected she would never see the clothing again.

  She turned and watched Maude heading to the shower with a towel wrapped around her body.

  On the outside of the sizeable, open bathroom, a wooden sign with an electronic tablet next to it that read: “Everyone takes turns cleaning. This area must remain sanitary. You must wash your hands after meals and using the toilets.”

  Locating her name on the electronic schedule, Tessa counted only two days until her turn. Throughout the bathroom, she noticed the walls covered with mismatched tiles. Even the laminate felt hard and cold as if they were trying to save on heat.

  “Hey, Maude. Are you there?”

  “I’m done,” Maude said. Tessa did not see her anywhere.

  Crying while taking a quick shower allowed Tessa relief from some of her frustration, worrying about how she lost everything. After wiping her face with a towel, she became more determined to would figure a way out of the place. Wrapping herself up in the towel, she walked back to her bed.

  She checked out the contents of the trunk placed in front of her bed, Tessa sneered at the five pair of elastic waist blue jeans and five long and five short-sleeved tan cotton shirts. She also counted one grey nightgown, five pairs of white ankle socks, three sports bras, and underwear.

  There were no locks on the trunks. Dressing in one of the uniforms, Tessa gazed at Maude and some of the other girls. The only apparent differences between all of them were the shapes of their faces, or the color of their skin, hair, and eyes.

  The Supervisor then ordered Tessa, Maude, and the other new girls to form two sets of lines. In the first line, they got their haircut by a short dumpy woman with clippers. Tessa wondered why they had to get their hair cut just like people in the military. She kept thinking to herself how generic and impersonal everything appeared around her.

  Each girl’s hair got clipped to a short style above the ears. Some girls like Maude cried because their hair sat below their shoulders. Tessa liked her straight, brown hair short, but she had to be the exception to the rule with all the unhappy faces.

  Tessa observed one girl who kept her hands on her head, refusing to get her hair cut. The Supervisor tied the girl’s hands behind her back and then nodded to the woman who cut the hair. Instead of cutting the girl’s hair short, Tessa gasped as the woman shaved her head with an electric razor. Tessa felt so sorry for the girl, who sat there screaming.

  “Hair will be maintained above the ears for sanitary purposes,” the woman barked out as she cut the hair. It dropped into a tall barrel.

  In the next line, a Supervisor of Work assigned Tessa to a job washing vegetables at the Produce Containment Center. She walked with Maude back to their beds in the dorm.

  “What job you get?” Tessa asked Maude.

  “Loading laundry. What’s yours?”

  “Cleaning fruits and vegetables.”

  “Yeah, well I guess we have no choice.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “We are told what to wear, how short our hair can be, and what boring job to do here.”

  “That’s true, but maybe we can earn money to get out of here. That’s what The Counters said.”

  “Not sure if I believe that. Guess this place is all we got now.”

  Tessa worried about Maude. Maybe first losing her parents then her long pretty hair brought her to a point where everything around her seemed normal.

  Maybe, The Annex had become Maude’s new home, just like many of the girls in the dorm. Tessa could not argue with her if she made up her mind so soon.

  Tessa and Maude sat on their beds for just a few minutes when a few girls in the dorm walked up to them.

  “Hi, I’m Lana,” said a girl with bleached-blond hair, blue eyes, a toothpick figure and a high-pitched tone to her voice.

  “Hey, I’m Tessa. This is Maude.”

  “Where’re you working?” Lana asked.

  “Produce Containment Center,” Tessa said.

  “Washing vegetables all day? Your poor hands,” Lana said.

  �
��I’m used to that kind of work.”

  “And you think I’m not?” Lana snarled.

  “I don’t know what to think…yet,” Tessa said.

  “You know,” Maude said. “I have a job in the Laundry Center.”

  “Whatever. I get to fold the laundry. I have the easy job. You have to…wash it,” Lana said. She shrugged and threw her head back as she sauntered back to a bed across the room from her with all of the girls except one.

  The short girl who stayed behind had long, black eyelashes, green eyes, and curly black hair. Somehow, she looked so familiar to Tessa.

  “Never mind her. It’s just how she is,” said the girl who spoke with a thick city accent.

  “Don’t I know you?” Tessa asked her with a curious look.

  The girl reminded Tessa of a younger cousin she met a few years ago. With her father being an only child and his parents dying just after Tessa’s birth, she never met any of his family.

  Her mother, an only child, talked very little of her few relatives. Tessa never thought about any cousins she had.

  “I’m Felicia…your second or third cousin. We haven’t seen each other since you moved to the farm. Nice to see you again, Tessa.” Tessa walked up and hugged Felicia.

  “It’s so good to see you too. But your parents…”

  “My parents were on vacation in the city. Stayed with my Granny in the country. Said she couldn’t take care of me. So, she dropped me off.”

  “You doing okay now? How long have you been here?”

  “Two months. Wasn’t easy getting used to my parents being gone.”

  “Sorry to hear that,” Tessa said.

  “You lose your parents, too?” Felica asked. “Happened to all of us here.”

  “My parents left me alone. Said they were going to try and make it to Glenside.”

  “Really?” Felicia asked. “They might be alive?”

  “Hoping they are. One day I have to see if they made it.”

  “I might know of a way. Well, at least to get you into New City.”

  “What about escaping from the Annex?” Tessa asked.

  “Oh, there’s no way out of any Annex.”

  “Then how can I get into New City?”

  “It’s Exchange Day,” Felicia said.

  “What happens?” Maude asked.

  “Well, once a month, up to five girls can ask to be exchanged into New City.”

  “What kind of job would they get there?” Tessa asked, suspiciously.

  “For us, it’s usually some rich girl wanting a girl to be in her house as her servant.”

  “As a servant?” Tessa interrupted.

  “Yeah,” Felicia said.

  “Why not a shop?” Tessa asked.

  “Don’t ask me why?”

  “No one likes staying here?” Maude asked.

  “You get paid more there,” Felicia said, “You get to exchange places with someone who threw away their money.”

  “Someone would do that?” Maude asked. “Blow their money?”

  “You would be surprised by the number of fools who live there.”

  “Okay, how do I get to be in on this?” Tessa asked.

  “It’s a chance system. Give your name to the Supervisor of Work,” Felica said. “She puts your name on some list. Happens every first day of the month.”

  “Well, that’s awesome.” Tessa smiled.

  “I’m sixteen, too young to be picked. Just listen for the announcement about Exchange Day. Don’t miss it or you’ll miss out.”

  “Thanks for telling me all about it.”

  “Sure, why not?”

  Tessa almost laughed at Felicia with her comment, but somehow going from living in a house to living in a dorm within a matter of hours didn’t seem funny at all. They all lost their parents one way or another. It just seemed like a sad situation.

  She brushed away her feelings for time being after seeing Felicia smiling at her. Returning the smile, Tessa enjoyed the way Felicia liked sharing information. With everything so new, she wanted to learn all about life in The Annex.

  “What’s up?” Tessa asked.

  “Anything else you want to know?”

  “We get to eat anytime soon?” She asked, her stomach growling even though she had no conception of the time.

  “You’ll hear the bell for supper soon.”

  “A bell?” Maude asked.

  “It sounds when it’s time to sleep, to wake up…you get what I mean.”

  “Sure. What about the Supervisors around here?”

  . “Oh, they keep an eye on us all right. There’s one on every shift,” Felicia said. They make sure we follow the rules here and keep our distance from the… boys.”

  “Where do the young kids go?” Maude asked.

  “If you’re younger than fourteen, you get to go to the Beginning Enrichment Center.”

  “They go to an Enrichment Center?” Tessa asked.

  “I know, right? They stay a few years learning how to do our jobs.”

  “So, they’re in their own dorm?”

  “Yeah, all of us are separated by age groups. We’re the last stop before the Adult dorms.”

  “Thanks,” Tessa said, “for all of the info.”

  “Oh…there’s more. It can wait. You hear that annoying sound?” Felicia said with a grin. “Time for supper. No more talking. It’s one of their stupid rules.”

  Tessa stared at Felicia, following her down a long hallway to the dining room. Then she spotted the “No Talking” sign above the door. She noticed a few of the girls severing the food at the short cafeteria-style line. Tessa assumed the whole place had different jobs for all of the girls.

  She picked up a tray and silverware. She then accepted the pitiful serving of tasteless soy processed meat, half an apple and a glass of water. Tessa imagined how good a soy burger with sweet potato fries would taste at the moment. She sat down at one of the long-bolted tables between Maude and Felicia.

  After only ten minutes, the bell sounded, and the girls stopped eating. Tessa swallowed her last bites of food. She then followed the others as they dumped their food in the trash and placed their trays on a conveyor belt.

  After supper, she walked back to her bed. The room seemed half-empty as if several of the girls worked the night shift. Watching Felicia changing into her tan nightgown, Tessa decided it must be time for bed. She folded her uniform and placed it into her trunk. Tessa put on her nightgown and rested on her bed, realizing her first day in The Annex ended.

  Tessa noticed the lights dimming, leaving a soft glow in the room as she listened to a quieter bell. On her bed, Tessa felt a few tears fall down her cheek. Thinking how badly she missed her parents; she brushed the tears away. Crying wouldn’t change a thing.

  She reflected on what she learned from Felicia her first day. It reminded Tessa of history lessons of slavery in the South. Why the New Leaders figured resorting to slavery made sense to them, annoyed her. She clenched her teeth, feeling so irritated the way the New Leaders had the power to separate the rich and poor by job and housing status.

  Tessa worked on her plan. First, she needed to survive living in The Annex and then someday be exchanged into New City. Thinking to herself about how all of the girls in her dorm must have lost their parents just as she did after the event, Tessa started feeling not so alone. Except maybe, hers were still alive, and that made all the difference.

  4

  Work

  Tiring. The word would describe how Tessa felt while doing her job washing vegetables inside the Center. After the first few days, it hurt to raise her arms above her head. Even with wearing thin plastic gloves, her hands still looked like wrinkled sheets.

  First, she cleaned the vegetables and then placed them in a clean basin beside her. She set the pan on a conveyor belt, which moved down the line. The line eventually made its way into the kitchen.

  Tessa worked long hours with shifts that were through the weekend without a day off. Sometimes for ju
st a short break, she stared up at the ceiling covered in thin, vertical, solar tubes, taking in quick glimpses of sunlight.

  She longed for her home, where she imagined herself learning her father’s trade of selling clothing. With upper grades finished, all homeschooled teens followed their parents into their business on a farm, in a factory or store.

  The New City teens continued their education because their parents had the money for the tuition of an underground college. Her parents often told her the more money people made, the more schooling their kids received.

  At night, Tessa enjoyed talking with Felicia about family. she would fuss with her about their jobs. They liked to joke about how little they were paid.

  “Did you notice after they take out for our meals and everything else, we are not left with much to save?” Tessa asked.

  “Yeah. Hard to believe they not only charge us for living here but also the water and lousy heat.”

  “At least we have a home,” Maude said.

  Tessa rolled her eyes at her, thinking how it would take years to pay off her debt to the New Leaders before she could save anything.

  At her meals, the stupid, no talking rule gave Tessa more time to observe how her diet consisted mostly of bland mashed vegetables, soymilk, chewy brown rice and small pieces of palatable, soy-processed products. Tessa laughed, thinking how soy products became different shapes to look like chicken strips or nuggets but still tasted like soy.

  Every few days, she noted how a half of a piece of ripe fruit ended up on her plate. In the morning, next to a bowl of warm granola cereal and a metal cup of soymilk were two vitamins Tessa had to take. The Supervisors said the supplements kept them healthy. Tessa wondered if it could be something to counteract the lack of sun in The Annex. She missed eating the food from her family’s greenhouse almost as much as her parents.

  Back at her station, the most fun she had all day would be watching the boys doing their respective jobs in the warehouse and the back of the Center. Every day they would carry inside the heavy crates of vegetables and fruit from the hydroponic greenhouses.