Someone using her name downstairs roused Nyla from her nap. Even with her ring on, Nyla could clearly hear the discussion in the family room.
“Mason, go get Nyla for dinner,” Edmond barked at his daughter. There was no rustle of movement. “Now,” he hissed, his tone frigid with displeasure.
“Why do I have to?” Mason whined.
Edmond sighed. “Because I told you to. Until you are eighteen, you will do as I say.”
Mason snorted in disgust. “You’re so old fashioned, Dad. It’s not like that anymore in the real world. Imagine what the voters would think if they knew that you run your house like a prison.”
“Mason,” Veronica warned. “Do what your father says.”
“Why? I don’t want to be around It.”
“For the last time,” Edmond growled. “Nyla is not an ‘it’, even if she’s a Menhit.”
“I’ll do it,” Eason cut in, ending the conversation before his sister could say anything else. Nyla heard his footsteps start towards the stairs. Rising, she straightened her clothing so it laid the best it could on her too-tall frame. They were slightly uncomfortable, but Nyla wasn’t going to complain. At least they were clean.
The sound of walking feet stopped, and Nyla turned to find Eason standing in the doorway. His brow furrowed in question. “Did you know I was coming up to get you?”
“Yes, I could hear you,” Nyla replied.
“Did you -,” he started. “Did you hear the entire conversation downstairs?”
Nyla nodded. Eason didn’t say anything for a moment and kept his eyes focused on the floor.
“I’m sorry for what Mason said. She’s just having a tough time adjusting. She has some old-fashioned ideas just like our father, but she’d never admit it.”
Nyla shook her head. “There’s nothing to be sorry for. She was only telling the truth. Menhits are not ‘normal.’ The government hasn’t even classified us as human. It’s common knowledge.”
“But you are human, just different than everyone else.”
Nyla shook her head. “No, we aren’t. At least that’s what I was taught.” Eason stared at her, still leaning against the doorframe. Nyla wondered what she had said to make him look at her like she was a specimen under a microscope. “Did I say something wrong?” Nyla asked.
“No,” Eason said, shaking his head. “No, you didn’t. Let’s head downstairs.” He turned to leave. Nyla followed, staying several feet behind him. On the stairs, he said, “We have dinner together every night, even when Dad is campaigning. He’s very traditional sometimes.”
“I will be ready every night then,” Nyla promised.
“I’m sure if you don’t want to one night, Mom will let you pass on dinner and send a tray up,” he offered. “She’ more indulgent to us than Dad is.
“No,” Nyla said. “I will do as is expected.” Eason frowned at her again. “Is something the matter?” she asked.
“Do you always follow orders, Nyla?” Eason had never used her name before, and it reverberated through her, catching her off guard.
Startled by her own reaction, she snapped, “Yes, of course. That’s what a good soldier does.”
Eason nodded as they entered the dining room, as if she had cleared up some mystery. Nyla took in the too-large table filling up the space. It could comfortably seat twenty, but today it only had place settings for five which were all huddled towards one end. Edmond sat at the head of the table with Veronica on his right.
“Nyla, sit next to Mason,” Edmond directed. “Eason, sit next to your mother.” Mason snorted and rolled her eyes while plopping down in her assigned seat. Nyla made sure a foot of distance separated her from Mason. Humans typically didn’t like being near Menhits, and Mason didn’t seem to be an exception.
“How was work today, dear?” Veronica asked her husband.
Edmond finished chewing his bite. “It went very well. We finished planning the rest of the campaign route, and I’m excited to say that the family will be able to attend several rallies together.”
“Yippee,” Mason groaned.
“Enough from you, young lady. You know how important it is to have everyone there; the public loves a good healthy family.”
Mason snorted but didn’t respond to her father’s scowl.
“How do you like the food, Nyla?” Veronica inquired. “Is it okay?”
Nyla pushed around a bite of stuffed mushroom. “I’ve never had anything like this before. The military doesn’t serve fresh food. I’m also not used to eating this much food in one sitting.” Meeting Veronica’s wide eyes, she added, “It’s palatable, very rich in flavors.”
“Oh good,” Veronica tittered. “There are two more courses after this, though. I hope you can save some room for them.
“In this house, we eat what is presented to us without complaint,” Edmond told Nyla, his eyes flashing as if daring her to contradict him.
“Even if it’s gross,” Mason muttered under her breath.
“That’s what we do in the military as well. Thank you for telling me.” A calmness had started to enter Nyla’s chest every time the Brauns did something similar to military standards. She didn’t know what it meant, but she wished she could hold onto the reprieve. The differences between her old life and her new were overwhelming, even after just half a day.
Steaming bowls of soup replaced the plates. Just as rich as the mushrooms, the soup had an overwhelming taste to Nyla. She hated to think about how she would have felt had the ring not been dulling her sense.
How do people eat like this every day? she wondered.
Roger, the butler, handed out the steaming bowls of soup. Nyla focused on the bowl before her, trying to determine what the contents would taste like. It was vaguely green, but leaning towards brown. Suddenly, a movement out of the corner of her eye caught her attention. Roger was standing between her and Mason, one last bowl on the tray. As he picked it up, Mason scooted her chair to the side so that it rammed into Roger. The bowl in his hands slipped. Instinctually, Nyla reached out and caught it, drenching herself in the steaming liquid as she did.
Everyone stared at Nyla who was still holding the now-empty bowl for a moment before chaos erupted. Nyla set the bowl down and stared around the room perplexed as Edmond and Veronica stood, both yelling simultaneously at Mason.
“Mason!”
“How dare you!”
“Do you know how hot that soup was? You could have burned her! You might have!”
“What,” Mason drawled, cutting off her parents, “is your guys’ problem? She’s the one that caught the bowl and spilled it all over herself. I didn’t do anything.”
Eason rose and went around the table to Nyla’s side. “We all watched you slam into Roger with your chair. Don’t act so innocent.” He ducked down to start mopping up the hardwood floor. The butler, who had jumped forward to assist, faded into the background and allowed Eason to continue. Nyla grabbed her napkin and started blotting at her arm. The soup had been scalding, and her skin had started to turn a bright red.
“My problem,” Edmond boomed, “is that you are treating our guest like scum on the bottom of your shoe! An inanimate object you can abuse as you will!”Mason laughed. “You’re kidding me, right? She might as well be an inanimate object, Dad. I mean, look at her. Her face hasn’t changed once, not even when the soup hit her. She’s just a breathing doll. And you saw how she caught that bowl, she moved so fast that you couldn’t even see her hands! She’s a freak.”Nyla unconsciously reached up to her face and felt her mouth. It was relaxed, different from the tightly pressed lips all around her. She knew that her face was different – it was part of being a Menhit. Emotions were a foreign concept she didn’t understand and couldn’t display. “It’s okay,” Nyla cut in. “I know I’m different. Mason is just pointing out the obvious.”The room froze, and Nyla
“Well, don’t you look nice!” Veronica squealed, fluttering around Nyla. The pair stood before the new smart mirror hanging over Nyla’s closet door, inspecting her appearance.After dinner the night before, Veronica had brought bag after bag of clothing into Nyla’s room. As she unpacked each item, she explained why she had picked it out for Nyla. Most of the reasons had to do with Nyla’s blonde hair, which was so different than Veronica’s curtain of ebony.She had arrived at Nyla’s door at six that morning insisting that Nyla needed help getting ready. When called upon to pick her outfit for the day, Nyla settled on a plain long sleeve top in a color Veronica called ‘sea-green’ and a pair of jeans. It would hide the lingering burns on her arm from the night before. “So simple, yet they look so stylish on you because of your tall frame! I’m so happy they fit!” Veronica admired loudly. “I
“So recently! And you’re already in school! Come, sit by me and tell me all about your adventures, like how you got to live with the Brauns.”Before Nyla could reply, Eason reached behind him and grabbed her gloved hand to keep her from moving. Sarah noticed the gesture, and her eyebrows rose. “No,” he said icily, “Nyla is sitting next to me.” Without saying goodbye, Eason dragged Nyla over to two empty desks in the corner, and motioned for her to sit down. The boy sitting in front of Eason smiled and waved before turning back to the worksheet he was hastily finishing on his holopad.“Is there a problem with Sarah?” Nyla asked, eyeing Eason critically. The interaction with the girl didn’t make sense. She hadn’t asked anything inappropriate, as far as Nyla was aware.Eason sighed. “Just stay away from Sarah. She’s not someone you want to get involved with.”“Okay,&rdq
The next day followed the same pattern as the day before, except for the bathroom incident. After emerging from a stall, Nyla found her path blocked by Sarah. Her hawk nose was scrunched like she smelt something terrible.“Nyla,” Sarah purred. She gave Nyla a once over, and stopped on the gloves she wore. “What are the odds of us seeing each other here?”“Statistically likely, actually,” Nyla automatically responded.Sarah blinked twice, seemingly lost for words.Nyla stepped around the girl and headed for the sink.“You’re the only girl I’ve ever seen Eason be around. He doesn’t even spend time with his sister.” Sarah said while following her.“He’s my host family,” Nyla responded.Sarah stared at Nyla in the mirror. “That’s not it. I don’t know what’s going on, but I’m going to find out. There’s something… d
Breanne chewed thoughtfully. “I can’t do anything that would upset anyone here because my future and my family’s future depends on it. If I make someone mad, their family can wipe mine from existence.”Nyla thought about all of the powerful students here. She had the Governor’s protection, but Breanne had no one.“And it doesn’t help that I’m painfully shy,” Breanne added while putting down her sandwich.Nyla squinted at Breanne, sizing her up. “You don’t seem shy to me.” Unless Nyla didn’t actually know what shy meant.Shaking her head, Breanne explained, “Not with you, Nyla. I knew when I first saw you that we were the same: outcasts.”“How?” Nyla asked. Was there something about her that made her stand out?Breanne blushed to the roots of her out of control hair. “I don’t know. It’s just, well, we both look different. We
The first weekend posed a dilemma for Nyla. She didn’t know what to do with herself. All the Brauns seemed to be busy with one thing or another, and Nyla wanted to stay out of their way. The best she could do was keep to herself in her room. At a loss as to how to occupy the endless hours, she spent all of Saturday lying on her bedroom floor, gazing up at the ceiling. Her head felt hollow, the same way her chest did – as if someone had taken a dull spoon and scraped out all her insides.That first night in the house, she had quickly realized the bed was too soft, too foreign to lay on comfortably. The cots she had slept on all her life were hard, the thin mattresses doing little to cushion the metal bars that ran through their centers. After tossing and turning for several hours, she had grabbed the flattest pillow and lightest blanket and laid out on the floor. The plush carpet cushioned her just enough to keep her hips from aching. Once comfortable, she had fall
Eason’s soft words came as a shock to her. She had expected a definition – she knew all the definitions for the different emotions. The Major had taught them to her, although they had never meant anything to her. Thinking of the Major brought a sharp memory to focus. Nyla gasped.“What is it?” Eason asked.Keeping her eyes squeezed shut, Nyla stepped back in time. “There’s a moment – I think I know what you’re talking about.“Well, tell me about it,” Eason directed softly, his tone still light. Nyla could hear him move closer.“I was younger, much younger. It must have been right after I joined the military. The Major had been gone for several days, and Sergeant Ryan had told me to stay in my tent until he returned. Early one morning, the Major walked back in, back before he was supposed to be. The moment my eyes landed on him, I felt like everything was right in the world again, as if the
On Tuesday morning, Nyla, Eason, and Mason were almost down the stairs when the trio froze as one. Veronica was standing at the foot of the stairs, wringing her hands. She didn’t notice their approach as she was too focused on Edmond, who was pacing at the far end of the hall with his phone pressed against his ear.Realizing she had an audience, Veronica dropped her hands and pasted on a painfully fake grin. “Oh good, you’re all here.”“Why is it good?” Eason asked slowly, eyeing his mother warily.“I won't have to repeat myself. There’s been a change of plans, and we’re taking you out of class today. It’s like a mini-vacation! Isn't that nice?” Veronica nervously tittered.Frowning, Mason asked, “What’s going on, Mom?”“What? Nothing dear! Everything is just fine!”“But –,” Edmond’s approach cut Eason off.“Yo