Daisyfields

A young woman lives in a bland, utopian community. Things take a turn for the worst when she realizes that all is not what it seems. No one can be trusted.

When Milly awoke, her dreams evaporated from her groggy mind, pixelating into nothing. Milly did not want to wake up. She wished she could stay in bed. But as she sat up and looked to her right, the alarm clock rhythmically bleeping on her white bedside table told her it was six thirty AM. This meant that it was time to get up. Routine is key, after all.

Milly crossed her small room towards the bathroom door which stood ajar. She crouched down in the doorway to greet Sophia with a scratch behind her left ear. As she stood up and entered the bathroom the tabby trotted in with her, watching Milly’s every move. After Milly relieved herself, she recorded the deed on the touch screen computer mounted above the toilet. When she finished entering her details, a notification popped up declaring that it had been some time since she had recorded a bowel movement. Milly blushed, peering over her shoulder at Sophia. The cat was watching her intently, her eyes of liquid gold fixed on her human. Her gaze immediately soothed Milly, who then proceeded to order a breakfast of oatmeal and a side of prunes, as recommended by the computer screen.

Sophia’s eyes never left her human as she slid out of her cream coloured silken night gown, which fell fluidly onto the cool bathroom tiles. Her human was a fine one. She had a sylphlike silhouette, her body toned well from spending 60 minutes every day at the Daisyfields gym (routine is key). Milly stepped into her shower and began running the water. When she moved under the showerhead, her strawberry blond bounce of shoulder length locks began snaking over her cheeks and around her neck. She closed her eyes and allowed the steaming water to flow over her face. She enjoyed the way in which the heat loosened her knotted muscles, running over them like a gentle caress. Milly often found her muscles painfully taught after a night’s rest, though her mind never really prodded at what the cause may be. Such things did not warrant much thinking. There are other things to think about.

After her shower, Milly dried her body with a soft, cream coloured towel. Shades of cream, grey and white dressed the entire bathroom as well as her room. In fact, all the small living facilities in Daisyfields were decorated in this uniform blandness. This did not bother Milly however. Plain is safe. Routine.

Once dried, Milly stepped onto a glass scale between the toilet and white kitchen basin. The small screen flashed “54kg” and the computer above the toilet uttered a satisfied beep.

Milly then moved to the small white cabinet above the basin and faced the mirror mounted on its door. As the camera behind the mirror scanned her face, she studied her reflection. Her short hair was still twisted into a towel on the top of her head. Light, feminine lashes framed her grey eyes, her small nose lightly kissed by a spatter of freckles. When she twisted the towel from her head her damp locks fell to frame her round face. She pinched one of the locks between her forefinger and thumb, pulling it down to examine its length. It had grown back quickly, and this pleased her. She would be ready for shearing in no more than three weeks.

By the time Milly was dressed she had five minutes to spare before breakfast would be served. She hastily made her bed, tucking all the corners of the duvet underneath the matrass just as she did every morning. When she kneeled on the right hand side of the bed to tuck in the last lolling lip, something out of place caught her eye. A pale string was dangling from the base of her bed. The sight of it made Milly sigh, causing the string to swing in an anxious burst. She reached out and tugged at the string, which snapped easily.

It was then, just as she was about to get up, that she saw it. A wooden block stood at the centre of the floorspace beneath her bed. Her heart leaped at the sight of it. It was a plain block, fashioned from a dark wood and lacking any additional details but for it being slightly rectangular. She had never seen the thing before, a thought which caused her great discomfort. Nothing was ever out of place in her world. Her mind was groping frantically at explanations as to what exactly the block may be, but she was unable to find any. The thing simply waited there, its acute corners boastful and harsh and seeming to challenge Milly.

You don’t like that I’m in your space? Its voice demanded in her head. Well then come down here, little Milly. Crawl into my cave and do something about it.

It was just as she thought she may be brave enough to reach out and touch the thing that her alarm clock bleated frantically. The sound startled her and with a small jerk she banged her head against the base of the bed. It was time for breakfast, and she could not be late. That would be an even greater transgression than whatever the thing under her bed may be. She gave the arrogant thing a final look, then leapt to her feet and hasted towards her door.

“I’ll see you later, Sophia!” She called over her shoulder. Sophia’s golden eyes followed Milly until she slammed the door behind her. The cat then made her way to the bedroom windowsill, where she watched her human rush down the street towards the eating hall.

 

 

“You were almost late, Milly.”

Milly smiled apologetically at the Staff member greeting her at the door.

“Yeah, I’m sorry. I struggled to get out of bed this morning.”

The Staff member, a female, nodded and reached out to take Milly’s left hand, which she offered up without any hesitation. Using her free hand, the Staff member felt for Milly’s pulse with her slender, grey fingers. They were about half longer than Milly’s own, and lacked any nails. She then slid her fingers down to Milly’s hand, seizing her index finger.

“Tom is already seated.” she said, while producing a small needle. Milly did not care for needles, but she focussed on the kind face of the Staff Member to calm her nerves. Her eyes occupied most of her face; they were dark and deep, unending like bottomless wells. The large eyes left just enough space for her tiny mouth and two small nostrils dotted just above her pale lips. When she smiled, her lips curled back to unveil her small teeth that looked like rows of tiny needles. Though the face was a strange one, it was oddly comforting.

“Has he been waiting long?” Milly asked.

 “Oh, you know Tom. Always early.”

“He says he likes watching everyone come in. Says it’s like watching a trickling stream grow into a river.” Milly winced when the Staff member pricked her finger. A bead of deep red bloomed on its tip. The Staff member dabbed the droplet with an ear pick, deposited the pick into a labelled tube and gave Milly a small piece of cotton wool to still the bleeding.

“Are you still satisfied with your match to Tom?” The Staff member asked. She picked up a touchpad and began tapping at its screen.

“I am happy, yes. He is a good man and interesting to talk to.”

“Has the relationship progressed yet? Physically?”

Milly could feel her face flush. Tom was her first match, and she still found speaking to the Staff about their intimate relations slightly awkward. But she knew nothing good could come from not speaking openly to them. They knew everything else about her, after all.

“Not fully, but I think it will soon.”

“Good. Please remember that today is your scheduled blood-day.” The Staff Member smiled kindly and handed her a small circular pill case. Milly opened the case, threw the cocktails of vitamins and medicines down her throat and chased them with a small cup of water provided by the Staff member. The Staff member then thanked her and stepped aside so that Milly may proceed into the eating hall. Around her, there were many Staff members stationed near the entrance ensuring that no one would enter without being examined.

The eating hall had a strong clinical feel to it. White tables large enough to sit six guests each were arranged throughout the room, all perfectly placed and equally spaced. The tiles and walls were all white and always impeccably clean. Story-high windows, so clean they looked like open archways, lined the walls to the left and right. As the hall filled with residents, everyone walked directly to their usual seat and joined their usual table mates as they did every morning and every evening (routine). The comforting hum of polite conversation buzzed through the air; everyone spoke, but no one spoke too loud. Members of Staff continuously entered through automatic doors at the back of the hall carrying plates of food to guests filled with anticipation. If the eating hall filled with the monotonously dressed residents were a blank canvas, the plates of food would transform it into a masterpiece.

With life at Daisyfields being as structured and scheduled as it was the guests’ main source of delight was through the remarkable meals prepared for them by the Staff. On that morning, plates of decadent breakfast foods danced before the residents. Breads and rolls and eggs in all possible forms, fruits and yogurts, peppers, mushrooms, all plated to a picturesque perfection. Milly admired the masterfully crafted plates which surrounded her, and felt her heart sink as she remembered that she would only be having oatmeal and prunes.

Tom was sitting at one of the central tables. When he stood up to greet her with a kiss on the cheek his long, dark hair tickled her nose. She stepped back to admire the hair, which hung to just above his hips.

“Please tell me you are due for a shearing.” She said, taking a strand of it and turning it into a makeshift moustache for herself. It almost matched his own facial hair, which cascaded down to his stomach.

“After breakfast, actually.” he said. Tom had a warm smile which always reached his dark eyes. It was one of the things Milly truly liked about him.

“Today is blood-day for me,” Milly announced as Tom pulled out her chair for her and gestured valiantly for her to take her seat. She sat down and immediately scooped a spoonful of the steaming oatmeal which had arrived just before her. It wasn’t until she had already begun eating that she noticed Tom’s sister sitting across from her.

“Morning, Lady.” She said.

Instead of responding with a kind “Good morning” as she was expected to, Lady simply stared at her plate. Milly looked at her for a moment. Her dark complexion seemed unusually pale, her eyes weighed down by heavy bags. Milly was about to redirect her attention to her breakfast when Lady finally spoke.

“Isn’t it weird that our cats never eat?”

“What do you mean?”

“Our cats.” She repeated, a wisp of tremor toying at her voice.

“They never eat. Or at least we don’t feed them. We eat, so why don’t they?”

Milly frowned, annoyed by the absurdity of the question.

“She’s been going on like this all morning.” Tom noted. He did not look up from his plate.

“Ignore her.”

The thought had never crossed Milly’s mind before. Every resident of Daisyfields owned a cat. As far as she knew, those cats never needed to eat before. It seemed a silly thought to entertain. Things were as they were and they weren’t to be questioned.

“We live and we eat. The Staff live and they eat. Cats live, they should eat.”

“Would you stop that!” Milly said. She felt an unease grow in the back of her skull, like the deliberate creeping of a hairy spider. The dangling string danced in her mind’s eye. The image of the wooden thing.

Lady held her gaze for a moment, then pushed her untouched plate of food aside and rose to leave. A Staff member, a male this time though only distinguishable by a slightly bigger build, materialized behind her.

“Lady, you didn’t even take a single bite.” He said. She responded, but refrained from making eye contact.

“I’m not hungry.”

As she turned to leave, the Staff member produced a touch pad and began tapping at its screen. His face seemed touched ever so slightly by concern. Milly once again revisited her oatmeal, tipping the side of prunes into her bowl. She tried to kill the spider slowly weaving inside her mind but found it was impossible.

 

 

“You were real quiet during breakfast.” Milly felt Tom’s hand tighten its grip on her own.

“Are you okay?”

“I’m fine.” She said. She knew she was not truly fine, but felt it better to keep her discovery of the thing under her bed to herself. At least until she could figure out what it was, and more importantly what it was doing there.

The two of them were having their usual morning walk. There was only a single road in Daisyfields. It ran in a spiral, its epicentre being the first housing unit which was followed by exactly one hundred and eighty two replicas. The road spiralled around and around, with the outermost circle consisting of the public buildings: The salon, the clinic, the rec centre, the eating hall and finally the gym, all of which were enormous buildings built in a perfectly cuboid shape. After the gym, the road curbed into the forest and after that… Well who knew? It most likely just ended. The thick forest framed Daisyfields in a perfectly wild circle. It was like a wonderful hedge which seemed to embrace the little town, keeping all the residents safe. Every morning Milly and Tom wold walk a straight line to the Daisyfields epicentre, then follow the spiral outwards. Tom thoroughly enjoyed walking the road, watching how other residents went about their days and listening to snippets of conversations in passing. On that particular day, their walk would culminate at the clinic for Milly’s bleeding, followed by the salon for Tom’s shearing.

Daisyfields was exceptionally beautiful on that morning. Spring was Milly’s favourite season. The gentle rays of the late morning sun kissed her shoulders like a timid lover. It was almost impossible to find a spot of grass, as every lawn was mantled in daisies of all colours. The tree fuchsias lining the road were in bloom and technicolour hummingbirds flickered between the crimson, trumpeted flowers. Their singing was unabashed, as though intoxicated by the flowers’ nectar. Milly found it funny, however, that she could not recall how long it had been since winter ended.

 “I hope my sister didn’t upset you with her nonsense.” Tom said. “I mean it’s silly, really. Why would she think that animals need to eat? It’s not like they do much.”

“Are birds animals?”

 Tom scoffed at the obviousness of the answer, only to then furrow his brow in uncertainty. He was silent for a moment, looking at the petite hummingbirds playfully dancing between the trees.

“Well I’d say so,” He finally concluded, nodding his head as if it would add a sense of finality to his answer.

“I mean they sure aren’t like us, much less do they seem like the Staff.”

“Well they eat, don’t they? I mean why else would they stick their tiny beaks into the fuchsias? There must be something good and sweet in there for them to suck at. Else why do it? Can’t just be for the smell, can it Tom?”

“Silly Milly.” Tom said, raising her hand to his mouth to kiss her fingers. His beard tickled her in a way she didn’t like, and she was glad he was about to be done with it.

“They put their beaks in there because it’s their jobs! All the dirt that the trees suck up from the ground builds up in those little red trumpets, and it’s the hummingbirds’ job to clean it out. Else the flowers get all messy and they don’t smell nice anymore. Then the birds let their droppings full of earth fall to the ground and the dirt goes back where it came from. It’s a very elegant cycle.”

Milly stared up at Tom, her eyes wide with admiration.

“How do you know that?”

“I asked a Staff member once and he told me. Said it’s a really big problem but the birds know it’s their job so we don’t have to worry. Same way it’s our cats’ job to keep us company and make sure we are never lonely.”

“You are the smartest, most amazing man in the world.” Milly squeezed his hand, feeling an ease wash over her like a warm summers breeze.

It will be summer soon, she thought. It’s been spring for as long as I can remember.

 

 

Milly squeezed Tom’s hand and buried her face against his arm when the Staff member produced the needle. She was sitting on a slightly reclined chair in the bleeding ward, with Tom seated on a folding chair by her side. He kissed the top of her head in an attempt to reassure her. She winced when the cool tip slipped easily through her skin, and felt her stomach churn uneasily.

“See? Once again that didn’t hurt a bit, did it dear?”

Milly ignored Tom, not wanting to admit to her overreaction.

“A phobia is hardly ever a fear rooted in logic,” the Staff member explained as the scarlet fluid began snaking swiftly out of Milly’s arm toward the blood bag.

“It is not something we can control, and can stem from any number of past experiences or traumas that you might not even remember.”

Milly looked up at the Staff member. She was uncertain whether she had seen this particular one before, and tried to memorise her face out of gratitude for her understanding. It was difficult with the Staff members; they all seemed so eerily alike.

“Thank you, it’s good to know that some people understand that.”

The Staff member’s tiny fold of a mouth curled into a smile. She then moved to the resident in the neighbouring chair.

With most of her unease having passed, Milly looked over to the bag as its belly began swelling with her blood. According to Milly’s chart, that specific day was her thirty second bleeding-day. It was also, as far as she could recall, the first time she ever began wondering about why they needed to take her blood. She looked around her and noted that twenty other residents were sitting in the bleeding ward, each of them giving a bag of blood. All twenty of them would be back in 50 days. Had any of them ever wondered why?

Milly was about to ask Tom whether he knew, when the Staff member was back at her side, removing the needle from her arm and patching up the miniscule wound it left. Milly took in the Staff member’s kind eyes as she handed her a glass of orange juice, and decided that her question was a silly one.

 

 

At first, Tom looked extremely funny to Milly without his hair. The top of his head shone like a marble in the sharp light of the salon. His face seemed soft and a bit shrunken, as if he were a caricature of the real Tom. She reassured herself in the fact that it would begin to grow back all too quickly; it would most likely be a mop of shoulder length locks within a week. As the mounds of thick, dark hair was carefully collected from the floor and packaged into neat plastic bags, the Staff member that had sheared Tom gushed over his lustrous locks.

“Whichever Staff member gets to wear these is really lucky. You have very thick and healthy hair, Tom! Your diet must be so good!”

Tom’s bare face filled with pride. His expressions seemed blatant without the masking effect of his thick beard. Milly leaned over his shoulder and kissed his smooth cheek, the velvety texture solidifying her belief that she did like sheared Tom more than his shaggy predecessor. His skin smelled of musk.

The scent of him lingered as the two of them made their way to the Daisyfields gym for their daily workout (routine), and Milly found her mind swimming in reveries of Tom that made her blush, bashful of her thoughts. Her mind continued to playfully toy at Tom’s attractiveness as she watched him across from her in the gym. She went back to her conversation with the Staff member that morning, remembering how she had said that she believed the two of them would soon become physical. The idea excited her more than ever at that moment, as she tried not to ogle him too obviously whilst working out. She saw his muscles tense and relax, recalled how nice he smelled and how soft his skin felt. She felt her face flush, and knew very well it wasn’t caused by her workout.

What on earth did they put in my food this morning? She mused, a smile toying at the corner of her lips. However, the smile slowly faded as the thought lingered in her mind. A slight unease stirred in her chest. And again, for what felt like the millionth time, she thought of the nervous dangling string and of the arrogant wooden block.

 

 

After their workout Tom walked with Milly back to her unit and greeted her with a kiss at her door. Milly’s heart fluttered wildly at his closeness, and sunk when he broke the kiss and turned to leave. The thought of him leaving made her ache inside. Not wanting him to leave, she felt her words leap from her lips before she could rein them in.

“Hey, Tom, wait!” Her nerves quieted her as he turned back to face her. When she said nothing a knowing smile crept over his face. She gathered the courage to speak.

“Maybe we could ask that they deliver our dinner to my room tonight? I’ll light candles. It could be romantic.” She shrugged to play down how nervous she was feeling. His smiled turned into a joyous grin.

“That sounds amazing, Milly. I’ll give them a call.” He smiled at her for another second, then waved a final wave and turned back to the street. Milly brimmed with happiness and excitement, delighted that her suggestion could make him so happy. That the thought of time spent alone with her could make him smile like that. When he moved out of sight, she went inside to be greeted by Sophia.

As she shut the wooden door behind her, all thoughts of Tom and their plans for the night were cast back into the shadow of the wooden block. She stood for a moment, only staring at the bed. Sophia weaved affectionately between her legs, her persistent purring resonating through Milly’s body. The purring had a calming quality, and a soft cloud of serenity enveloped the sharp, demanding image of the block in her mind. She looked down at her pet, who gazed back at her through her large eyes like shimmering pools of molten sunlight.

Why don’t they eat, though? Lady’s voice whispered in the back of her mind. She felt that same spider that she felt at breakfast, weaving and scratching at the back of her skull. Milly turned away from her bed and instead went to the bathroom; Sophia following faithfully at her heals. She sat down and relieved herself, after which she stood up and punched the necessary details into the touchpad. She then turned to go wash her hands. Sophia, anticipating her human’s next move, ran ahead of her in the direction of the basin. The moment the cat turned her back on Milly, she spun around as swiftly as she could, speeding out the bathroom and slamming the door behind her. She dove to the side of the bed and desperately started groping for the block which had been waiting patiently all day. She ignored the distressed yelping and scratching behind the closed bathroom door as she pulled the block towards her. She sat up and ran her fingers against the smooth, dark wood. When she turned it over she discovered a small latch on the side and her heart leapt.

It’s a box!

Hands shaking, she undid the latch and the box opened with ease. Inside was a small, rectangular glass bottle. The glass was dark, obscuring its contents. A yellowing label was stuck to its upward facing side with the words “Drink me!” scribbled on it. Milly recognised the handwriting immediately, though she was unable to recall from where. As if animated by an unseen force, Milly lifted the bottle and began unscrewing its cap. She did not think, she merely acted. It was as though the command on the bottle were impossible to resist. She lifted the small bottle to her lips and took a single gulp. The liquid burnt her throat as it travelled to her stomach, Milly’s face contorting into a tortured expression of pain and revulsion. She felt she might become sick all over her perfectly clean floors, but the nausea only lasted a moment. Then she was fine.

She did not feel any different but for the bitter, metallic aftertaste lingering in her mouth. She looked at the bottle and immediately felt incredibly stupid. She had ingested something that she had no inkling of what it may be, simply because a piece of paper told her to. She knew it was always good to follow orders. But this was not a Staff member. It was a bottle.

Milly became aware again of Sophia’s frantic whining. She sealed the bottle away in its wooden casket and hid it back under her bed. When she opened the bathroom door, Sophia immediately quieted down, her despair dissipating at the reunion with her human. Milly reached down and scratched between her ears apologetically.

“I’m so sorry, girl. I suddenly realised I had to tell Tom something, and I had to run and see if I can catch him. I didn’t realise you were still in there.”

Milly did not know where this lie came from. All she knew is that it was important to tell it.

 

 

Weeds of unease had slowly begun creeping and growing inside Milly’s mind after drinking the mystery elixir. It had been about an hour since she took it. She sat on her bed, her back to the wall, and stared out of her bedroom window. She thought about spring. It had always been spring in Daisyfields. She was certain of it then; the seasons did not change there. It has not changed a single time since she had started living there. How long has that been? She could not recall. She knew she did not live in that twisted town her whole life. Memories of a previous life were slowly rerooting in her brain. She grasped at them mentally, as one does when you feel a dream grow just out of reach after waking. Like trying to catch smoke in your bare hands. She felt as though her mind was on a rollercoaster (what’s that?), with every new (old) memory shaking her like a sudden loop in the ride. Images of a woman kept bombarding her. A woman that looked like her but older. A woman who smelt of warmth and love and cinnamon in tea. Her heart wretched and tore inside her ribcage as she put a name to the face.

Mom.

When last did she see her mother? Where was she in the world? It was just her and her mother always, she knew this. It was them against the world. She would make her breakfast in the mornings and pack her lunch and take her to school and kiss her forehead goodbye. As she got older she hated the kisses because what if someone saw and thought she was a baby? But now as she sat there she felt more like a hopeless child than ever.

She felt trapped and lost, incarcerated in an upside down topsy-turvy world where they kept them like livestock. Because she knew then that was what they were. The Staff harvest their hair, their blood, their milk and most likely even their meat when they grew old enough that the other things were no longer of use. She couldn’t remember ever seeing older people in Daisyfields. Where else could they have gone? What else could the Staff be doing that no one had any idea of? Do they test cosmetics and medication on them? Do they experiment on them to see what else they could possibly exploit? Do they breed them? Milly thought of Tom, of her sudden flaming need for him, and she knew she had the answer to that question.

Her thoughts then turned to the box itself.

How did it get there in the first place? Could it have been one of them? The term “Good Samaritan” formed inside her mind, though she could not recall where it had come from. Either way, one thing was for certain: she could not risk trusting any of the Staff members.

A knock on the door startled Milly from her frenzied train of thought. She looked over at her bedside alarm clock. It was only five o’clock, about an hour too early for Tom to be at the door. She scooted from her bed and headed to the door and opened it. Milly felt as though the ground fell away from underneath her feet when she saw the female Staff member standing in her doorway. She looked at the thing’s face, her stomach lurching at its obscenity. The large eyes no longer calmed her, but stirred a deep and horrible revulsion in her. Its lips were dry and scaly, the dark eyes wet and sickly. Its smile seemed unnatural and twisted, as though its face was never meant to curve that way but knew it had to in order to trick the animal in front of it. The head was large, misshapen and unmistakeably… Milly groped for the word, and when she found it her face grew ashen.

Alien.

“Are you all right Milly?” The creature asked in a guttural gurgle. She had brought with her a trolley full of the standard compilation of instrumentation and medicine preluding dinner in Daisyfields. Milly knew she had to mask her distress from the thing, not wanting her to suspect anything.

“Oh, I’m fine. Just so very nervous. Tom is coming over tonight and I have special plans with him.” She looked at her feet, trying to feign a coy nervousness.

“It will be my very first time.” The thing in her doorway’s insect eyes lit up with excited understanding.

“Well that’s just wonderful, Milly! Your special plans are the very reason I’m here. Since you won’t be joining the rest of us for dinner, I have to come to perform your physical here. And since I now know of the big night you have planned, it might be good to check a few extra things as well.”

It hesitated for a moment, an expectant expression on its strange face, then said: “May I come in?”

“Oh, yes, of course!” Milly stepped aside, trying to disguise her reluctance.

The initial physical went much the same as the one in the morning. Her pulse was felt and her finger pricked, a few standard questions were asked and Milly tried to answer them with as much conviction as she could muster up. Knowing what she did, however, the questions which always seemed so mundane sent a chill down her spine as she imagined the implications of her answers. The physical progressed into unknown territory for Milly when she was asked to take off her clothes, don a loose gown and lie down on her bed. She was probed and prodded and swabbed. She felt violated. Desecrated. And she could not do anything to stop it.

“I know you must feel so uncomfortable, Milly. But this is all for the better. We want everything to be perfectly in order for your special night.”

When it was finally over Milly was allowed to get dressed. She opened the door for the Staff member, but before it left, it handed Milly the small tube of pills like the one Milly had taken that morning along with the small plastic cup of water. As Milly took the container in her hands, she noticed the small note taped to it, reading “Drink me!”. She suddenly understood why she had drunk from the secret bottle under her bed. She lifted the tube to her mouth and took the pills. The Staff member left, and when Milly was certain she was out of site she walked outside to the seclusion of the back of her unit and stuck her finger down her throat.

When she was sure that she had completely emptied her stomach, she did her best to bury the evidence. She was lucky in that her unit was one of the few that was built on the outer circle of the spiralling road; no one would have been able to see her. There were no windows there, so she knew Sophia would not have seen her. She knew at that point that her pet was not in any way an animal. At best she was a robot, a camera of sorts recording her every move at home. She looked around her, and was pleased to see that there were no hummingbirds floating above her, though she wasn’t sure just what they were and whether they were watching her too. When she believed the coast was clear, she snuck back around her unit to go inside and brush her teeth.

When she reached her door, she heard her name being called and turned to face the street. Lady stood there, most likely on her way to the eating hall. She was smiling, clearly in a better mood than that morning. However, there was something about her eyes, making them seem far away.

“Lady,” Milly acknowledged her, and moved to greet her. After their hug, Milly stepped back and looked at her, trying to think of a way to say what she needed to say.

“I thought about what you said this morning. About the cats.”

“What do you mean? I don’t remember anything about cats?”

“You said that cats don’t eat and it’s weird. You seemed really upset, Lady.”

Lady stared at her, her face making it clear that she did not comprehend what she heard. Milly’s heart sank in her chest.

“Do you not remember this, Lady?” Lady blinked, and then smiled apologetically.

“Oh, wow, Milly I was feeling so sick this morning I could barely eat! But then a kind Staff member noticed my state and gave me some stomach medicine. I went home and took the nicest nap, and wouldn’t you know it I feel so much better now! But the medicine did make me a bit groggy so I can’t really remember all too much of it. I’m sorry if I have forgotten anything important. You said something about a cat?”

Milly stared at her, perplexed. She might have stared for a beat too long, she was not sure. But then she simply feigned a smile.

“You know, it’s nothing. I just realised it was Tom I spoke to, not you. I’m glad you feel better, Lady. Enjoy dinner tonight. I’ll see you tomorrow morning.”

Lady called to Milly as she turned away, most likely enquiring on why she wouldn’t be going to dinner. Milly couldn’t be sure. All she could think of at that moment was how glad she was that she had regurgitated those pills.

 

 

Milly’s mind was made up by the time Tom knocked on her door. She had to wake him up, snap him out of whatever trance the Staff had him in. And when he knew the truth they could plan to escape. She knew all too well she wouldn’t be able to do it alone. When she opened the door and saw his expectant smile, his blissful ignorance, her heart almost broke. The night would definitely not go as he was hoping. She hugged and kissed him, and when she broke the embrace she stepped back as though to let him in. Before he could come in she produced the small bottle of liquid truth and held it up to his face. Tom did not hesitate. The moment he laid eyes on the bottle he grabbed it, unscrewed the cap and gulped down an amount that made Milly cringe.

Tom’s reaction was much the same as Milly’s. The moment he swallowed, he seemed for a moment as though he would be sick, after which his face morphed from nauseated to enraged.

“Why did I drink that?” he demanded, as though Milly was to blame in some way.

“Because you knew you should.” She stated calmly, taking the bottle from him and screwing it shut.

“A Staff member gave it to me to give to you. It’s for our special night.”

Tom’s face relaxed slightly as his initial distress subsided, though a slight disgust at the elixir’s taste lingered. Milly stood on her toes to kiss his lips in order to further reassure him. She was intensely aware of the harsh stubble scratching her as they kissed, and she wondered what supplements may have been snuck into their dinner to further aid Tom’s hair regrowth.

Their food was carted into the room on a trolley which Tom had picked up from the dining hall on his way over. A decadent platter of finger foods was artfully plated for them with so much finesse that Milly would have struggled to eat it even if she had planned on doing so. A single red rose stretched gracefully from its slender crystal vase, and tealight candles flickered playfully. A bottle of sparkling grape juice had already been opened, and was chilling contently in the ice bucket attached to the trolley’s side. Milly threw her duvet on the floor and placed the platter in the middle, after which she dimmed her lights and began slowly placing the tealight candles around the room. She told Tom to sit and dig in, promising to pore them both a glass before she joined him. She noted that their dinner, though very delightful to look at, would not be very filling. Of course, they wouldn’t want to eat too much anyway. You don’t feel very sexy when you are bloated and stuffed.

Milly hoped to avoid the food until the magic potion had the desired effect on Tom. As she sat down across from him, she began wondering whether the food would have any effect on them or not. However, even after eating quite a portion of the food, Milly could see Tom growing visibly uncomfortable within 20 minutes of taking his drink. He had begun the night making his usual small talk, trying to impress Milly with his broad knowledge of this and that. Milly smiled and nodded as though nothing was amiss, hoping that it would have a calming effect once he started coming to.

He grew fidgety as the date progressed; sweat began to form like small dewdrops on his forehead. He soon ceased trying to make conversation, falling into an awkward stillness. He repeatedly tugged at his collar, his dark eyes shifting this way and that, never really focussing on Milly’s face. He constantly cleared his throat, and refrained from eating any more food. All the while Milly sat in silence, watching, and waiting. When his distress grew to the point that Milly believed he might flee at any moment she began speaking to him as calmly as possible.

“Tom, I know you are nervous. I am too. This is such a big night for us. And I have never, you know…”

As she trailed off, Tom’s eyes finally met hers. He seemed as though he found her words completely outrageous, the way one might look at someone wondering what they would eat for lunch as a tornado rushed towards them.

“No one has ever seen me naked before.” Milly continued.

“Now I know this may sound silly, but do you think we could take our clothes off under the covers? We can both get under there and do it together. Then when I feel ready, when I’m comfortable, we can lift the duvet and I will let you look at me.”

She could see in his eyes that he comprehended her words, but she also understood that he did not realise what her true intentions were. She began packing the platters off of the duvet, then gave him a look which she hoped would seem knowing. She held his gaze for a moment, and then tried again.

“Tom, please trust me.” He stared at her for a moment still. Then he stood up and lied down on the bed. His body was straight and stiff as a board. Milly threw the thick duvet over him, covering him completely, and then crawled in next to him. When she lied down she curled into his arms, and just as he wanted to say something she silenced him with her fingertips.

“Speak as softly as you can.” She said. She hesitated for a moment and then lifted her fingers. She could feel his wild heartbeat from their closeness, so clearly it could have been her own.

“Milly I’m scared. I’m remembering… I don’t even know, it’s such a blur but I know it’s real I just…”

“It is real, Tom. I’m remembering things too. Just be as quiet as you can. I don’t want Sophia to hear.”

“Oh, oh s**t the cats! They don’t f*****g eat Milly! You think they watch us? Do you think they record us or something?”

“I know they do Tom. Love, I know this is going to be difficult- stop wailing! I know this is difficult Tom, but try and clear your mind quickly. Tom, we have to get out of here. I don’t know how much time we have, Sophia probably saw me give you the drink and I don’t know if they know what it does but if they do they will come for us Tom. They will come.”

Tom let loose a final, near inaudible whimper after which he drew a deep breath and began composing himself. When he spoke again, Milly heard a certain quality of control that gave her the faintest flicker of hope.

“We always thought of the gym as the end. The road that goes into the forest just goes nowhere, so why walk there? Well I did once. I walked past the gym and I walked and walked and walked until my alarm bleated and I woke up in my bed. I didn’t remember that until this moment. I don’t think it was a dream. I think I was on my way somewhere that I shouldn’t be going. It could be strait into their labs, but it could also be out. It’s a risk, but right now I just can’t think of anywhere else we could go Milly.”

Milly nodded, then noticed that Tom probably couldn’t see her and breathed “Yeah.”

They lay there for a moment in silence, preparing themselves for what was coming. And then they moved.

As they sat up, Milly tossed the covers in Sophia’s direction. The duvet covered the cat, shielding them from its eerily golden glare. Tom was on top of the bundle on the floor in an instant, stomping on the mound of moving duvet. A grotesque crunch tore through the silence, and Sophia began wailing terribly. The sound sickened Milly and she covered her ears, watching in horror as Tom continued stomping. The animalistic wailing quickly began cracking and distorting like the sound of a gramophone playing a melted record. When the unnatural wailing finally stopped, Tom turned to her and yelled: “Let’s go!”

“Wait!” Milly protested, snapping from her horrified paralysis. She dropped to her knees and reached for the base of her bed. She used the tips of her nails to toy lose a single piece of string from the stitching. She then jumped up, stepped awkwardly over the broken thing under the blanket and followed Tom out the door.

 

 

It took all the willpower that Milly could gather within herself not to run. Running would be suspicious. So they simply walked along the only road in Daisyfields. The gym was growing at a steady pace as they approached it, and so was the part of the forest into which the road curved as it moved past the gym. The trees lining the road grew in ordered rows with some space between the trees. As the forest edge radiated away from the road to form the frame around Daisyfields, it grew increasingly thick and tangled. Like a barrier. Milly thought, knowing that that was most definitely its intended purpose.

Before they could reach the gym, they had to make it past the eating hall. As they neared it they passed a few people that had just finished their dinner and would be making their way home. Their faces were smiling though their eyes seamed glazed and dead. Milly greeted all of them with as kind a smile as she could conjure up, though she knew it must have seemed insincere and insane. With the eating hall growing nearer, the human traffic leaving it grew denser and more difficult to navigate. A wave of claustrophobia gripped Milly’s being, her heart bucked fiercely in her chest like an unyielding stallion. She squeezed Tom’s hand desperately as the crowd became so thick that they were forced to come to a stop. Milly looked up at Tom and saw in his pale face that he was thinking the same thing that she was.

We can’t run now, even if we want to. Even if we have to. Another, even more horrible thought then entered Milly’s mind with a dizzying blow.

If the residents are leaving the hall, the Staff will be right on their heels.

She did not know how she hadn’t realised this sooner. They would be leaving at any moment, and when they do they will see them walking towards the gym. She turned around on the spot, grabbed onto Tom’s arm and began urging him in the direction of the other’s movement.

“Milly, what…”

“The Staff are in there, Tom. They’ll be coming out any moment now.” Tom’s eyes widened and he turned to peer over his shoulder. After a moment of thinking, he spoke up.

“We can follow the crowd for a few paces and then leave the road between the first two units. Then we make our way along the edge of the forest behind all the buildings. Its darkest there. They won’t see us unless we directly cross paths with one of them.” When Milly did not say anything in response, he added: “It’s the only chance we have.”

Milly hesitated for another second, and then nodded. It wasn’t a fool proof plan, but it really was the only chance they had. So they moved for another minute with the crowd, past the salon and the clinic, until they reached the first unit. They made their way through the crowd which had started diffusing into a more loosely packed structure and then darted through the gap between the first and second units.

There were no sources of light once one left the street, so as Milly and Tom moved towards the back of the houses they were almost immediately plunged into darkness. Tom wrapped his left arm around Milly to guide her forward and stuck out his right to feel for the thick edge of the forest. Their eyes began adjusting to the darkness just before they reached it, but Tom proceeded with his outstretched hand none the less, as if touching the natural barrier between themselves and their freedom would provide some sort of comfort and security. He kept his fingers on the branches as they turned towards the direction of the gym.

They had to move much slower this time, silent as cornered mice hiding in the small crack between a piece of furniture and a wall. Every step was filled with nervous caution. The snapping of a single twig beneath their feet would snitch their whereabouts to the nearest Staff member, exploding like a bullet from the executioner’s riffle. After what seemed like an eternity but could in reality have taken no more than twice the time of their original journey, Milly and Tom reached the back of the eating hall. Its massive structure seemed haunted in its deserted state which was only amplified by the ghostly glow from the streetlights, framing it like a halo. As they snuck onwards in the darkness, the sound of a strict female voice rang like a siren through the thick silence.

“Go get her now!”

A shock jolted through Milly’s body, and were it not for Tom’s firm hand slamming shut over her mouth she may have screamed. When he was sure she would not scream, he slid his hand from her face. She looked in the direction of the sound, and saw that it had come from much farther than she had thought. Three Staff members were hastily making their way through the units away from the eating hall. Whoever they were going after, it did not seem to be Milly. Milly squeezed the arm that Tom had kept wrapped around her, letting him know that she was ready to move on.

Every step was painstakingly slow; as though they dare not trust the earth beneath their feet to keep their presence a secret. They moved this way for a second eternity. Milly felt like they were the ones staying in place as the final stretch of the Daisyfields road moved by them on an old conveyor belt. As the eating hall shrank away behind them, the gym began to grow rapidly. The gym was surrounded by a certain air of finality and surreality. Milly did not know how this would end. She did not know whether they would escape, whether she would get out and be able to see her mother again. But she knew that after they had reached their final milestone they would surely find out.

The gym was enormous; what little light reached them was almost completely blocked as they moved into its immense shadow. Milly pressed her body into Tom’s as tightly as she could. It became increasingly difficult to use the hedge as a guide, as the spaces between the trees and shrubbery began to increase. With the road leading into the forest only a few paces away, Tom brought them to a stop. He lowered his lips to Milly’s ears and spoke in a near inaudible whisper, as quiet as the flutters of a butterfly’s wings.

“We should move through the trees. If we move directly on the road they will…”

“Tom?” A voice called from the direction of the gym. Tom spun Milly around towards the trees, shielding her with his body. A solitary female silhouette was bathed in the stream of light reaching past the side of the massive gym. Milly felt Tom’s body tighten.

“Lady,” he whispered. Lady spoke again, her voice sounding thin and reedy.

“Tom, I can’t see you. Are you there? Please come back Tom. Please don’t leave me alone. I’m… I’m scared.”

Milly wanted to grab onto Tom. She wanted to tell him that it had to be a trap, but before she could move Tom sprinted from her side and frantically dashed in the direction of his sister. Milly’s heart filled with dread as she saw him cover the distance between them. He closed in on her at an amazing pace. Milly’s horror was on the verge of melting into relief when she caught a glimpse of something moving in the shadows behind the gym. She heard herself yelling out desperately to Tom, her voice high and hysteric. But she knew that it was too late.

A high pitched sweee sound punctuated her screams, and she saw a tiny dart move through the crack of streetlight directly into Tom’s neck. He stopped in his tracks and raised his hands to where the dart stuck out of him. He gave two final inebriated steps, then fell to his knees and slumped onto his side. Lady simply stood over him with a stoic expression on her face. The movement in the shadows materialised into three Staff members who rushed to his collapsed body. They stood there for a moment, speaking in hushed tones. The three of them then looked up, directly at Milly, and began rushing towards her. Milly, who had watched Tom’s demise in a petrified horror, snapped out of her paralysis and turned to run into the black jungle.

Milly ran blindly into the forest, no longer caring about how much noise she made. She ran with outstretched arms, feeling for stray branches and trees in the darkness. She sprinted this way and that, desperate to lose the three Staff member. Her adrenaline fuelled breathing was sharp and frantic. Her lungs began to scream in white hot protest, but she knew that if she wanted to escape she could not afford to slow down. She could hear the snapping of sticks and twigs behind her slowly grow fainter. She knew the distance between them was increasing. Still, she dared not look back at her pursuers. She ran and ran and dodged and ran until she realised that the only twigs that she could hear snapping were those beneath her own feat. Finally gathering enough courage, she peered over her shoulder. Though the lack of light made it difficult to see, her eyes had adjusted enough for her to believe that she may have lost them. She turned her head back around, only to feel her forehead explode with a bright red pain. The blow forced her head to come to a stop while her lower body momentum swept her feet out from under her. Milly fell on her back so hard that the air was knocked out of her lungs.

She laid on the ground, desperately gasping for air as she stared up into the arrogantly thick stray branch which had hit her in the face. Beating waves of pain radiated from the impact site above her brow, and warm sticky blood crept down her face as her lungs finally inflated with a gasp. Milly sat up, wiped the blood away from her eyes and tried to push herself to her feet. Her head was swimming from the blow, but as she sat up she heard the distant snapping and grunting of the Staff members closing in on her again and she knew she had to move. She rose to her feet and grabbed on to the branch that had hit her for support. Her trembling legs felt as weak as blades of grass.

The snapping and grunting grew louder as the Staff members closed in on their target. Milly staggered forward, willing herself to regain her momentum. As she ran her mother materialised in front of her, as if stepping through a portal from a distant universe. Though Milly kept running, her mother remained just out of reach.

Keep running, Milly, the apparition begged, its face as warm as an embrace. You can do it girl, you are so strong!

The sight of her mother was too much to bear, the sound of her voice tugging so hard at Milly’s heart that a blubbering sob escaped from deep within her chest. She focussed on her mother’s kind eyes as the snapping and grunting continued to grow louder. She drank in the creases that decorated her eyes as a result of her countless smiles.

Oh please don’t let me forget her, she begged to some unseen force as the dreaded sweeeee sound sang over her sobs.

Please let me remember her face, she pleaded as a second and third came and went. And when the fourth one came and buried itself in her left shoulder, she stopped and only stared. She measured the length of her mother’s curls as she fell to the floor. She memorised the freckles on her nose as she felt her head hit the forest floor. And when her eyes fell shut, she was sure that she could smell her.

She smells like cinnamon in tea.

And then only darkness.

 

 

When Milly awoke, her dreams evaporated from her groggy mind, pixelating into nothing. Milly did not want to wake up. She wished she could stay in bed. She had woken up with a terrible headache. But as she sat up and looked to her right, the alarm clock rhythmically bleeping on her white bedside table told her it was six thirty AM. This meant that it was time to get up.

Routine is key, after all.