Out There (11 page)

They all cheered and each of them took turns to walk through and come out on the other side. Then, as my turn came, I placed my hands flat under the bark, gripping it with my fingertips, and manoeuvred myself directly under it. Then I ran through, holding the bark over my head. I turned back just as I got through to see the Bubble sealing once again and the forest turning into nothing but darkness.

Everyone threw themselves at me and we all collapsed in a heap on the ground, laughing and exclaiming, “We made it!”

“And even though we were almost eaten, I still had fun,” Jade said.

“Aw Jade!” I hugged her tight. “I'm sorry I almost had you eaten.”

“It's OK, I guess we're even now.”

“Look how light it is,” Lexi gasped, “we should probably head back.”

“Oh my mother is going to be so worried,” Bri said, picking herself off the top of the heap.

“Mine too. My sister is so lucky she gets her own house.” Lexi got up too.

“Let's go then.” Katelyn stood and held out her hands to help me and Jade up.

The five of us quickly walked around the ring of grass until we saw the tree that we passed on the way in. I carefully leant my bark against it so we could use it if I was ever able to convince them to go back. Then we each crawled through the hedge and walked over to the ring of houses until we reached the alley between the buildings. Taking turns to slip through, we eventually made it to the tram stop and I had that same experience of thinking everyone was staring at me.

There were only a few people on the tram as it was pretty early, but still enough to freak me out. It was like all their eyes were trained on me suspiciously. No one else seemed to notice it and they were excitedly chatting about one thing or another. I prayed that no one would ever find out that we got out, for I had no idea what the consequences would be.

Soon Bri and I got off at our stop.

“Well, thanks for a great night, Ava. I mean it was a bit scary at times but it was cool to do something different,”

“Hey, I'm just glad we made it back in one piece.”

“Yeah, well, goodnight. Or good morning I guess.” She began to walk over to her house.

“Good morning.” I waved and strolled up to my door.

Then I thought about Mother and how she would be worried sick about me. I imagined her pacing back and forth in the living room wondering where I was, thinking of all the places I could be and trying to figure out whom to call to confirm it.

Slowly I turned the doorknob and quietly let myself in. As I shut the door silently, I braced myself for Mother to come running out into the hallway to confront me. But she didn't.

I hung up my coat and walked into the kitchen to see if she was waiting in there. In my mind I saw her sitting at the table drinking coffee and, without looking up, saying, “Welcome home Ava” as I walked in, that blank expression on her face. But she wasn't in there.

“Mother?” I called out.

Nothing.

I walked over to the intercom and saw I had a message.

“Hi Ava, it's your mother. I'm sorry I had to run out to work early again. I hope you slept well, and get a good breakfast today, OK? I should be home regular time, sorry I didn't get to see you this morning, darling. Have a good last few days of break.”

I sighed. Some part of me questioned whether it was a good thing or a bad thing. Yes, it was probably for the best that Mother never discovered I was gone, which would have saved me a lot of lying. But, then again, it almost made me sad that she didn't even realise I was gone all night. Did she even care?

I climbed the stairs to my room and saw it was exactly how I had left it. The pillows were still under the blanket to look like I was in my bed when I obviously wasn't. She hadn't even bothered to check on me like she always did before leaving. She just ran off to go to her precious job.

Maybe I was being selfish. She was probably just really busy and had to rush. I mean, she was the Leader, so what were my individual needs next to a whole community's needs?

I went back downstairs and suddenly discovered that I was starving. I began to prepare myself a sandwich and recalled in my mind all that had happened the night before. Then the intercom beeped.

Putting down my sandwich, I waited to see who was calling. Most likely it was Katelyn. But then I heard another voice altogether. It was Mother.

“Hello this is Donna Hart, seventh Leader of the Council.” It was surprising to hear her introduce herself when obviously I knew who she was. I took a bite of my sandwich and walked closer to the intercom so she could hear me better.

“Hi Mother, yes I did get a good breakfast if that's what you were going to…”

“And I am here today to talk to you about a very exciting time for every single one of us here in Emiscyra.”

Why did she interrupt me? I looked at the intercom to check it was a call, not a message. The screen read:
Incoming call
, then it changed to:
Broadcast
, then back to
Incoming call
.

So, it wasn't Mother calling me, it was her calling every intercom in the entire city. She must have been giving out an important message, as that was the only real reason for broadcasts. She continued:

“I am here to discuss the Repopulation Phase.”

The Repopulation Phase? I guess the time had finally come. “And I am proud to announce that it will begin this week!”
This week?

“So now I shall explain the procedure, as I am sure many of you are very excited to know how this will all play out. Firstly, you will be part of the Phase if you were younger than age one on the first day of the city. That day being June 30
^th
Year 1. Anyone older does not apply. Therefore fifty-seven girls in our community will be taking part. Congratulations on holding this honour.

“Everyone that is eligible will take part in rotation, from eldest to youngest. You must be eighteen to undergo the procedure, which I shall explain shortly, however it may not begin exactly on your eighteenth birthday but shortly after.”

I took another bite of my sandwich and sat on the chair in the hallway. I turned one on July 6
^th
Year 1 shortly after the city was founded. So wouldn't that have made me one of the first people to take part? It was an exciting yet scary thought. So I leant in closer, waiting to hear what Mother said next.

“The Repopulation Phase is the phase of our city's development in which we shall help our community to grow. We have built this city and made it strong, but that would all be for nothing if we didn't have people to leave our legacy to. This phase is about creating future generations while also giving our children the responsibility and honour of leading the way.

“Now I know that to many of us the idea of having children without men seems impossible. But I am here today to tell you that it is not. Sylvia Carter, the woman we owe all our technology and innovation to, has created the solution. When the Movement started, she created billions of frozen fertilised eggs, each with an analysed and approved DNA sequence. All girls of course. So now our children can carry our grandchildren just like we have always dreamt they could. So ladies, it is possible. We have found a way to do the unthinkable, without men.

“And now to explain how this will work. Each girl who is eligible will give birth to two children, one at age eighteen and the other between twenty-one and twenty-five. We shall be sending the order of the applicants to every intercom within a few weeks. Then each girl will be notified about a week before she is due to begin treatment. On the day she is requested, she will go to our newly built Community Reproduction Centre. She will then undergo a short surgery that will consist of impregnating her with one checked and approved embryo. Then she will remain in the Centre during her pregnancy of nine months and will be monitored and cared for, to ensure a healthy pregnancy and birth. She will follow a regular schedule of exercise, healthy diet and sleep.

“Once the child is born, the mother will receive funding from the Council on behalf of the child. Then when the child turns ten she will gain control over her income. Each child will get the same education as their mother, for fifteen years from age three till eighteen, specialising for five years.

“All girls that have already graduated have received their own houses, and so will girls who still have to graduate that do not apply. However, girls that do apply, when they graduate, will not receive their own house but will continue to live with their mothers. This will allow their mothers to help them raise their children.

“The first girl has already been notified as she will begin treatment nine months before her birthday. This is so she can be monitored to ensure the process goes smoothly and so the second girl can begin on schedule. The first girl holds a great honour and we all owe her our gratitude for accepting to be the first to embark on this exciting journey.

“If this process is successful, then it will cycle through future generations for many years to come. I cannot express how excited I am and I hope you all share this excitement with me. Good luck to all of you.”

The intercom stopped flashing and I was left to soak in the silence. I was eligible. It was the strangest feeling. I was going to be a mother. I had never really thought about it like that before. There would be little Avas running around. I mean they wouldn't really be little Avas seeing as they carried artificial DNA. But they would still be mine.

Mine.

I would be their role model, the person to guide them, to teach them about the world, to help them grow and develop and contribute to society. They would call me Mother. And I would get to name them. How would I ever come up with names? There were so many.

What would they look like? Probably not like Mother or me, with our rare periwinkle blue eyes and jet-black ringlets. I hoped they would have eyes like Katelyn – warm and caring and thoughtful. Or hair like Brianna – fiery red that sparkled gold in the sun. Or golden brown skin like Lexi and her older sister, Tatiana.

It was all so much. I felt like my world had opened up and it would suddenly be full of more than just me. There would be another me.

But then again, she wouldn't be me. She would be unique, with her own hopes and dreams and likes and dislikes. Would she always order the special like I did? Or would she ever ask me what lay outside the Bubble? If she did, I would take her there and show her how beautiful it was. It would be our secret. Me and my daughter exploring the unknown.

My
daughter.

My daydream faded and I slowly gathered myself and returned to the kitchen. I also noticed that I had finished my sandwich even though I didn't remember doing so. I must have been so preoccupied with Mother's broadcast.

Then the idea of the procedure came into my mind. I would have to spend nine months in a centre with a child growing inside of me. Nine months? I had no idea how it worked. They never taught us how children were made.

I recalled a class, before specialisation, where I raised my hand I asked the teacher, “How do you make children?” I must have been eight. She looked at me for a moment with a puzzled expression then said, “Before the Movement you needed a man and a woman but now we have a new method, thanks to Sylvia Carter.”

Back then no one knew about what the new method was, they just knew that it existed. The teacher never told me why you needed a man or what actually happened so I just assumed they had to build a child together, like from a kit. When I got older I figured that wouldn't make sense because a child grew inside a woman, but I still didn't really know. Every time I asked people they just said it didn't concern me and therefore me knowing or not wouldn't make a difference.

Hearing about the Repopulation Phase suddenly made me more curious and I took a moment to consider asking Mother. Then I realised she would never tell me anyway so there was no point.

After sitting in the kitchen for what felt like hours, I decided to intercom Katelyn to talk about the broadcast. I strolled over to the intercom and dialled her house.

“Hello?”

“Hi, it's Ava.”

“Oh, hello Ava darling. Do you want to speak to Katelyn?” “Hi Jennifer! I haven't seen you in ages, I miss your red velvet.”

“I know, Katelyn told me you've been needing some cake. Well, drop by soon and I'll make you some.”

“You're the best!”

She laughed. “Now I'll go and get Katelyn for you.”

“OK, thank you.”

Katelyn's mother left and the intercom read
On Hold
. I hoped she was serious about the cake.

“Ava?”

“Hey Kay. Did you hear the broadcast?”

“Yeah I did.”

“So, any thoughts?”

“Your mother did great,” she replied.

“Not about my mother! Thoughts on what she said.”

“Oh, well, I thought it was really exciting but not really what I was expecting.”