“What are we?” Zoe snickered, lowering her head. She was a bit taller than him. Talking to Cody felt as if they both shared a secret conspiracy which no one else knew about. Zoe didn’t like conspiracies when talking to Iris. But with Cody, it was great fun.
“To Vera and her friends, we are the Beasts.” Cody said.
Zoe furrowed her eyebrows.
“Think of it. The Beasts are probably the aliens. And what are aliens? Those strangers whom we fear, but are probably more intelligent than us.”
“Ah,” Zoe laughed. “So that’s why. You think the Beasts are cool?” Zoe wondered.
“I know we hate them, and we should. In fact, I think we haven’t even seen the bad, menacing things they want to do to our kind yet. But if it comes down to cool and intelligent, I’d say they must be. Or why do we permit them to rule us?”
“Iris’s dad always says that the foolish men usually rule because the smart ones don’t really need the attention.” Zoe snuck a look at the birthday girl, Vera, who’d invited her, but never really spent any time speaking with her. She’d just said hi when Cody and Zoe arrived, bestowed an infuriating look upon Cody’s uncool shoes, then walked away. Zoe thought she’d just wait until the clock struck midnight, then leave. Iris was right, coming here was a mistake. Thankfully, there was Cody.
“I like Iris’s dad, but I beg to differ on this one,” Cody said. “If there are anyone who are fools it would be us, the citizens, for accepting to be ruled by the fool.”
“But don’t you think the Beasts are ugly creatures, or they would have shown themselves to us?” Zoe said.
“Ugly to us, maybe.”
“What is that supposed to mean?”
“In our perspective as a human, the Beasts could be ugly to us. They could be considered beautiful to their kind.”
“This means in their perspective, they might consider us ugly.” Zoe thought Cody’s mind was off the rocker. She liked off the rocker.
“Wow. Don’t get me started in this kind of philosophy.” Cody said. “You can’t handle me.”
“Try me,” Zoe winked, then suddenly realized she was flirting with Cody. She remembered how Iris always encouraged her to do whatever she wanted.
Actually, Cody shrugged when she said that. He gulped on his drink as if it was some magic potion, then said, “Okay. Here is something that would boggle your mind. Imagine this: the Beasts think of us as ugly creatures. I mean surely. Look at us. We have two eyes. Two legs and two arms. This might strike them as ugly, since they probably have one eye, one toe, and six arms. And they are green.”
Zoe laughed. “So?”
“So imagine if our looks aren’t what bothers them,” Cody’s face knotted and a warning finger appeared from nowhere. “Imagine if what bothers them… what makes us ugly to them, isn’t our looks.”
“What?” Zoe pondered. “Since when isn’t ugliness related to looks?”
“Imagine if the Beasts don’t like our actions; the way we do things. Our hate and envy, and everyday stupidity.”
“That’s a unique thought.” Zoe began thinking if she should kiss Cody tonight. He had such a dangerous mind. She liked boys with dangerous minds.
“What if the Beasts really see through us?” Cody said. “What if they know how shallow we are,” he pointed at Vera, who seemed offended by it. Cody acted fast and pretended he was waving at her. Vera felt unsettled and looked away. “What if the Beasts know how illogical we are? What if they see all those silly rules we follow like sheep everyday. What if they noticed that we mostly do nothing but hurt each other all day long? What if this makes us really ugly to them?”
“I never thought about it that way. I understand why you and Iris clicked right away,” Zoe considered. “But you sound like you’re defending them.”
“Not at all,” Cody said. “I know by heart that they are evil, and that taking the Bride is only the start of the bad things they will do to us later. All I’m saying is that, from a cosmic point of view, it’s really hard to tell who is beauty, and who is beast.”
“From a cosmic point of view?” Zoe laughed again and held her glass up. “Let’s make a toast.”
“I love toasts.” Cody said. “Let’s toast to Vera the obnoxious.” He lowered his voice. “It’s only fifteen minutes until the clock strikes midnight and Cinderella, I mean Vera, turns eighteen and escapes the Beasts’ wrath.”
“You sound like you doubt it,” Zoe said.
“Who knows?” Cody grinned. “The Beasts work in mysterious ways.”
20
Iris and Colton sat on one of the building’s rooftops in the Ruins, mostly waiting for the clock to strike twelve, so they’d know if Colton’s theory was plausible. Bully or not, no one deserved to be taken as a Bride for the Beasts, Iris had told Colton. She thought that the more time they spent together, she began to have a stronger influence on him. Who’d have thought Colton Ray would be dangling his barefoot feet from a building in the Ruins like her? He looked too attractive doing it.
“You know I haven’t seen any of the slugs who are supposedly inhabiting the Ruins?” Iris said, looking through her binoculars, scanning the area for any dangers.
“I’m not sure we want to meet one of them,” Colton said. “I did have the strange feeling though that someone was watching me while I was here before.”
Iris lowered the binoculars. “Me too,” she said. “I always have the feeling of someone watching me here in the Ruins, but I have never actually encountered anyone.”
“You think the Council’s watching us now?” Colton said.
“I think the Council would have caught us already if they were. They never hesitate putting someone in jail, and I don’t see the point in risking us telling everyone else about our findings.”
“We don’t really know much if you think about it,” Colton said. “We know almost nothing. We’re just rummaging in a pile of secrets, unable to pull one we’re certain of.”
“You’re right,” Iris shrugged her shoulders. “You think if the Beasts take Vera, it could lead us to something?”
“If they do, then all we have to do is search thoroughly, and find out what these girls have in common.”
“Well, the three of them are beauties.” Iris said, rather mumbling.
“What that’s supposed to mean? You have this incredibly beautiful vibe about you. If I were a Beast, I’d have taken you already. “
Iris was about to swallow her tongue, shying her eyes away from Colton. It was as if she wanted to disappear into a private room of her own and do a happy dance, somersault a couple of times, and then come back to him. Colton thought she was beautiful. In what world was this possible? Ironically, in a world ruled by Beasts.
“Are you okay?” he said. He looked a little uneasy. Was it possible he was a bit shy? No way. He’d just told her, standing by her window, that he wasn’t used to having girls as buddies. Of course, all girls wanted to play Barbie with him, Iris bit her lower lip.
“Never been better,” she leaned back on her elbows, pretending that confidence was her middle name.
“It’s only two minutes til twelve,” Colton said.
“Are you planning to take me to the ball and find my glass shoe then?” Iris flirted.
Colton didn’t reply. He raised his head from his watch and smirked slightly. It was the best eye-locking moment so far. Short, but meaningful. The boy wasn’t really annoyed by her presence, like how she’d thought things would turn out before.
“Are you ready to dance with me?” Colton said.
Wow. Was he flirting back?
“As we’re waiting for the clock, I wanted to tell you something,” Colton said.
Iris glanced at her position and thought it was a very kissable one. All Colton had to do was lean over and kiss her.
What kind of girl are you? The voice inside her head annoyed her. He just lost his girlfriend a short while ago. Besides, he said nothing about liking you. He could tell any girl she is
beautiful.
Iris thought her annoying inner-self was right, but she was excited and maybe a bit dreamy. But she had to be, she was seventeen. She could be taken by the Beasts any day of the year, and her life would be over. In a flash. Would she care then if she’d flirted with Colton or not? Iris was tripping on her thoughts. She’d never thought she’d be taken as a Bride herself, and she wondered why the thought had never occurred to her. Maybe because she hadn’t had anything going on with Colton before. He hadn’t even known she existed. But now, the mere possibility of having him in her life made it a precious life. Not that she couldn’t take care of herself, but with Colton, life seemed meaningful. Where would she find a hot boy who’s actually interested in all the weird things she liked?
Iris’s head was about to melt from the high voltage of thoughts. She noticed she hadn’t answered Colton.
“Iris?” He leaned closer. “Is something wrong?”
Iris kept looking in his eyes, distracting trances clouding her thoughts, her fear of being taken any moment crashing in on her. And with Colton near her, she felt a great desire. Not just for having him. But for life. It seemed so precious and so short all of a sudden. She ended up doing something shockingly beautiful.
21
Colton didn’t have enough time to register what Iris was doing. She answered him in the most unexpected way. It was faster than lightning and mind blowing, but in a beautiful way. It was nothing like he’d imagined. As he was leaning over her, making sure she was alright, Iris pulled his neck closer to her with one hand. She did it fast, a bit too aggressive, as if her life depended on it. She pulled his face in until their lips met, and she kissed him.
Colton had never been so vulnerable. Many girls had done this to him before. He knew he was an attractive guy. He even liked his looks in the mirror. But Iris was different. Never had he felt his heart race this way. He wanted this so bad, but it was a little scary she initiated it.
What a crazy girl, he thought. No wonder I make excuses to be next to her. And I’ve only known her for three days.
Colton and Iris’s lips stuck together for a while. She was inhaling him, and he did the same. He thought she’d never let go of him, until they were both out of breath. And he liked it.
But then Eva’s image fluttered behind his eyes, right in his mind’s eye. Something didn’t feel right. Slowly, he pushed Iris away from him.
“I-I’m sorry,” she felt embarrassed. “I mean, I don’t know why I did this. I-”
“Iris,” Colton shushed her. “It’s alright. I liked it.”
“You did?”
“It’s just, I can’t right now,” Colton said. “I admit, I like you a lot. But I can’t open up to anyone, before I am sure I did my best to help Eva—if I even can help her. But I need to make sure I didn’t just forget about her and go on with you.”
“Did you love her?” Iris leaned forward. Colton knew she wanted to talk about how he came to like her so fast, but she probably was embarrassed enough not to bring it up now. He had no explanation why he liked her anyway, so it was for the best not to talk about it.
“Of course I felt something for her,” Colton said. “She was my girlfriend. It’s just—you wouldn’t understand.”
“Try me.” Iris patted him gently.
“Boys like me, with my family’s history, with all the money we own, and with what I am expected to be in life, we don’t really choose the girls we end up with. It surely looks that way, but it isn’t always true.”
“How so? I thought you could have any girl you wanted. Actually, I know this for a fact. You just need to spend ten seconds in the girls’ bathroom.”
Colton laughed. “You shouldn’t be telling me that. Anyhow, I can get most of the girls I want, as long as they’re in my league. I don’t get to meet girls from other factions or classes, and choose someone I like to spend my time with, like you,” he raised his head to meet hers and touched her cheeks briefly, before pulling away again, remembering Eva.
Colton watched Iris speechless and confused. She must have never thought this about him, but he understood completely. Before he could open his mouth again, his phone beeped. It was twelve o’clock.
Both of them stared at each other, then placed their hands behind their ears, making sure they hadn’t missed the sound of the Horn of the Beast.
“No Call,” Iris said.
“So Vera is alright,” Colton noted. “And we’re back to square one. There is no relation whatsoever between the girls.”
Iris sighed, and Colton patted her now. She pulled his hands in hers. “Don’t worry. We’ll keep looking until we know what happened to Eva,” she said.
“Damn,” Colton fisted his other hand. “I don’t think I am doing my best. I am not using my mind the right way. There is something missing here. If only one of the girls ever came back to tell us what happened to her…”
“That’s practically daydreaming, Colton,” Iris said. “It will never happen.”
“Think, Colton, think.” He pulled his hand away from her and put both on his head. “Think,” he said, one more time. He could sense Iris worrying about him, not knowing what to do. “What if the uprising in the past wasn’t against the government or the old Council?” he wondered.
“Then who would it have been against?” Iris said.
“The Beasts,” Colton gazed back at Iris. “What if the Beasts always ruled, and the uprising was simply against them, just like the little revolution going on now?”
“That’s one heck of a thought.” Iris didn’t look keen about it. “Are you saying the Beasts ruled the Earth since whenever?”
“Since it began,” Colton suggested. “What if they created the Earth? What if it’s only a playground, and they are watching us up there?” Colton stood up and talked to the gray skies. “You see us. Don’t you? You’re laughing at us. This is only some kind of a TV show for you. Right?”
“Calm down, Colton,” Iris stood up, clinging to his arm.
“The uprising could have just been people like you and me, people that felt that this world doesn’t make any sense.” Colton told Iris. “The Beasts could be some kind of ugly, horrendous species that have great powers, but no looks at all. Something like that.” He paused for a moment. “Maybe they created this place and made fun of the people here. Others like us may have discovered this and rose up against them in the past, so the Beasts punished them and destroyed Earth.”
“If so, then why did they create us?” Iris didn’t look convinced in the least.
“Maybe we’re only a better version of who lived here before,” Colton said. “Like a version 2.0 of your favorite software or phone. We are their product, and they are enhancing us.”
“Please calm down, Colton,” Iris’s eyes were moistening. “You’re just feeling guilty about Eva. If the Beasts could create beautiful people like us, why didn’t they fix themselves? Are you even listening to yourself?”
Colton took a deep breath. Iris made more sense than whatever his mind came up with. She was right. He was only maddened that he had no clue what happened to Eva. And now that Vera wasn’t taken, there weren’t enough leads to follow. He felt lost.
“Maybe we should just let it go.” Iris said. Colton knew she didn’t mean it. She’d just said it to calm him down. “Maybe we should just accept it like everyone else, or we’ll go mad. Believe me, I’ve lost it many times thinking about this.”
“But…” Colton said, holding her in his arms. The mere presumption that she was about to cry now, broke his heart. He knew by now that he didn’t want this to happen to her. That he wanted to protect her.
“But what?” she leaned into his big chest.
“What if you’re next?” Colton squeezed tighter. The thought of losing her too drove him crazy.
“I don’t know, Colton,” she said. “I don’t know. I don’t want to even think about it.”
For the first time, Colton realized that as strong and stubborn as Iris pretended to be,
she was just as afraid as any other seventeen-year-old girl in The Second. Something told him that he’d soon have to fight the Beasts for her.
22
Colton drove Iris home in his metallic car. Frankly, Iris felt like choking in it. Spending too much time in the Ruins, she’d started hating everything shining in silver, everything that felt inhuman to her. The Ruins weren’t that bad, she’d been thinking along the way. Yes, they were grayed out and damaged, but there was some kind of unreasonable but beautiful, hope there. Iris imagined herself fixing the Ruins; planting seeds, building new houses, and bettering the soil. All the things she couldn’t do here in The Second, because the Beasts decided on behalf on everyone. Hell, the red roses grew in the Ruins, through all that mess. They never made it in The Second, where roses were plastic, almost metallic.
Colton had been silent all the way back. She thought she’d pushed it too far, kissing him. Seriously, what girl did that? What was she thinking? She just couldn’t help it. And although it looked like she were bold, pulling him closer to her lips, she was as vulnerable as newborn birds, waiting for their mother to come back and feed them in the nest.
But Colton proved to be a smart boy again. He drove with one hand, while he stretched his other to hold Iris’s hand. It was like he was telling her he wanted her, wanted to be with her. But she had to respect the time he had to give to Eva.
Iris understood that. In all truth, she’d crossed the line so many times when it came to Eva. People don’t just get over girlfriends so easy, even when they were the likes of Eva and Vera.
“We’ve arrived,” Colton stopped the car in front of her house and faced her. Iris said nothing. This was supposed to be the moment of the goodnight kiss. But it wasn’t going to happen. Things were escalating so fast and she worried that maybe they were only hanging out together out of fear, not love. “I’ll see you tomorrow?” Colton said. He sounded as if he were unsure he would.
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