“Violet, do you think it is kind of strange how restricting our laws are?” Alex asked quietly, away from the hearing of the administration.
“Don’t talk about that here. There’re too many people around us,” Violet hissed in his ear, guiding him outside. “Let’s meet up by your house. I have to drop my bag off at home.”
The teenagers took their bags out of their lockers, heading home soon after. It was a quick walk, only taking ten minutes. Violet headed into her house to drop of her school supplies. She grabbed a notebook and pencil to write down notes. She knew the conversations could be seen as traitorous, but she did not like how restricted the citizens were. She had been questioning it for years now, but never spoke aloud about her thoughts.
When she arrived at Alex’s house, she knocked on his door three times. It was customary to knock based on urgency, three knocks are for things not urgent, four increases in urgency, and five means they need to get to the door as soon as possible. Alex opened the door quickly, ushering her into his bedroom.
“This is the only place that we’ll have complete privacy. My family isn’t home, but it is just in case one of them comes home early.” Alex explained, pulling out chairs for the two of them. “Now, let’s talk about the assembly we had earlier today.”
“Let’s start with the first law, to not disobey the laws. That is a suspicious one, why would it be in the lawbook? Did someone break the law once? Are they trying to control us?”
“So, we’re getting into the middle of it straight away? I think the city just wants to control us. These laws don’t allow us many freedoms, we aren’t even allowed to express ourselves! I understand the war devastated the lands, but how does the government know if their still barren and dangerous if they haven’t been out there?”
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“We would be imprisoned for life, or worse, if someone hears that. Everyone knows the outside lands are dangerous for human life. To go out there would mean to seal our fates.”
“But what if it’s not? It’s been over 100 years since the war, there could be plants again! I want to go look, to see the green grass and tall trees.”
“Alex, you’ll be killed! I don’t want you going out there alone to fall dead within a day!”
“Then come with me, Violet. You’ve been questioning this too. I’ve seen your eyes. You wish for an escape, too! Come with me to the outside lands! We could run and-”
“Alex, I’m not sure about this,” Violet interrupted him. “Even if we go, how will we find food? What about water, shelter?”
“We can bring some food with us, as well as water bottles. We could gather the stuff tonight and leave tomorrow, free of this city. Will you come with me?” He asked Violet, hope shining in his eyes.
Violet thought for a minute, debating the effects of leaving. Although the city had all everyone could ever need, it did not at the same time. She felt that they were surviving, but not living. “Alright, fine. We’ll go. But first, I need to gather a bag of supplies. I refuse to go unprepared.”
“YES!” Alex cheered, jumping to his feet. “We will leave before school starts. Bring your school backpack to avoid alerting other people of our plans.” He dumped his bag onto his bed, keeping only a notebook and writing utensils. “Let’s record our journey for other people. We could make history books.”
“I’m not too sure about making history, but I’ll head home now to get ready. I’ll see you before school starts.” With that, Violet left the house. On her way home, she noticed barely anyone was in the streets, which was concerning to her. Usually, the streets would be swarmed with people heading home from work. She hurried home, worried about the implications of this.