chapter one

I turned the knob and walked in the room. The door creaked, but no one’s head turned. I peaked inside the room, as it was still silent. I was expecting someone to greet me at least, but nothing. As I walked in the classroom, the young woman sitting at the front desk got up and smiled.

“Hi young man. How am I helping you?”

Her teeth were pearly white and her cheeks were full and blushed. She seemed so genuine; I was not sure how to answer her.

“I… I am the new student. Alan Kaygo?!” I felt like in imbecile as I questioned my name. She was still smiling, and nodded. The other students were still nose in their books, not even noticing the odd kid out. Every boy had a bowl cut, and every girl had their hair long and straight. Bangs seemed be to required.

“I see you were given your books.” She was still smiley. It was getting to me, and I started to sweat. The teacher �" I was guessing �" turned to the class and cleared her throat.

“Class. We have a new student. His name is Alan.” She turned her head towards me and everyone in the class looked up. I was cut off guard and waved awkwardly.

“Hi.” I muttered.

My classmates did not seem to hear me and went back to reading. I looked at the empty desk in the back of the room and was getting ready to walk to it when my new teacher stopped me.

“Oh, young man, you are not ready for class today. You need to go home and follow to protocol.” She went to her desk and pulled a list of things to do. I nodded, confused and looked around, hoping to see a friendly face. No one budged. I waved back and murmured a good bye as I walked away from the classroom.

The halls were quiet, and clean. Every locker seemed to have been repainted the summer before and there was no graffiti on the walls. The tiles were so shiny, I could see my reflection as I was walking. I sighed and walked out of the building.

I looked at the map the mayor had given me.

When I first arrived here, alone like everyone, I had a meeting with the mayor. He had explained to me the rules. This place was my alternative to prison and so I was going to be taught a lesson, he had shouted. He seemed to be the only one here who had some kind of opinion.

I was given an apartment, and groceries. Every day, a mailman was supposed to come and deliver me food, along with water. I was not to argue about the food or the beverage that I was to receive.

My neighbors weren’t very talkative, but I figured that’s just them. Apparently, no one in the town is talkative or cheery. I was alone, in a town filled with people.

Once back at my apartment, I sat my books on the counter, and dropped my backpack to the floor. I pulled out the list and started reading it. I was given a month to complete this list and show up to class, ready to learn.

First on the list was the strange haircut everyone had. I passed my hand through my dirty blond buzz cut hair and wondered how I was suppose to grow them a five inches in a month. As I took a pencil out my bag, I remembered the salon on the way to the library. I made a mental note to stop by so I could ask how I was supposed to follow this one rule. I circled “haircut” and added a question mark next to it. I read the second rule, “Get books”. Done, I crossed it out. “Read all the books”. I shrugged and crossed that one out too. Why would I read all those books when they will be explained in my classes? Ridiculous.

I left the list on my counter as I turned for the fridge. The mailman had brought me my first rations, consisting of celery, peanut butter, steak, green beans and water. I ran my hand through my hair again and stuck my tongue out. Where were the chips? Or even just a snack?

I was already missing home, even though it was the last place I wanted to be.

I sat down and buried my face in my hands, remembering my family back at the court, crying as they heard my sentence. I wasn’t a bad kid; I just had made some stupid decision. Decisions that resulted in me spending at least ten years in this environment. I remembered my little brother tugging on my mother’s shirt as she let her tears fall quietly so that my baby sister wasn’t alarmed. My father’s jaw tightening up, grabbing my little brother by the shoulder, telling him to quiet down. Those memories were so vivid in my head.

The last week at my house was incredibly awkward. I packed my one suitcase, and locked myself in my room. I couldn’t face my distort mother or my alcoholic father. My siblings would have to live without their big brother. I had destroyed my family. As if this wasn’t enough, there were police officers waited at every entrance of my house, constant reminder of my punishment. My father couldn’t leave for work without being brought to mind the failure is son has become, bringing the bottle back to his lips. The least I could hope for was that he wouldn’t hurt my family, and that little Agnes could grow up in a somewhat safe environment.

The day I left, I kissed my baby sister, Agnes, Good bye, telling her everything a girl should know about boys. Not to be tricked by their words, and not to fall for the bad boys. I hugged my little brother, Timothy, and told him to protect his baby sister, and to learn from my mistake. I looked into my mom’s eyes, which were already filled with her salty tears. She muttered a good bye and gave me a bag of chocolate chip cookies she had prepared this very-morning. She quickly dropped her head down, letting the tears fall to the ground. Little Timothy hugged Mother’s leg in the hope to make her feel better while Father did not even move from the couch. He waved, without looking at me and mumbled a “see you in ten years”.

The police escorted me out of the house, leaving the premises along with me. All memories of my bad behavior were gone, along with me. I sat in the back of the car, and the police officer drove away. My house disappeared around the corner. A tear rolled down my cheek as the authorities were teasing me for being a cry-baby.

It was a long ride to come here. I was put to sleep when I arrived at the police station, so that I wouldn’t know which roads to take if I wanted to come back home. I woke up in a room, in jeans and a white T-shirt. I rubbed my eyes, confused. For some reason, I expected to wake up in my room, with Timothy shaking my bed, and Agnes stealing my blanket. When I realized the hard metal bed I was laying on, I realized how far away from home I was. Shortly after that, I had my meeting with the mayor.

After the explanations of the rule, I realized prison might have been nicer. Everything was forbidden here, expect for: breathing, eating, sleeping, studying, washing and going to the bathroom.

I let out a huge sigh before, looking up to my kitchen laying. What did I get myself into? I looked around my new apartment and noticed how bare and empty it was. There was a couch with a TV, a coffee table where a pile of costars was sitting, waiting to be used. A laundry room was my next stop, a tiny light bulb was attempting to light up the room, where a dryer and a washer were sitting. They were very easy to use, three buttons each. I shrugged and moved on. My bedroom.I hadn’t inspected my room yet. I was too busy not missing my first day of school, which ended up being just a quick appearance. My room help a bed, a cupboard, a shelf, a desk, a lamp desk and a chair. Nothing more, nothing less. A window provided a natural glow, which made the room seem whiter. I sighed again, thinking of decorating this place. I hadn’t seen a store on the map yet, but figured a trip in town could help me forget my difficult first day.

Reviews

[Jenny DelVecchio]

This looks like a good start to a great story, I can't wait to read more.