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Chapter One Part Two
“What is that supposed to mean?” I snap at him. “Of course you’re going to see me again.”
“It’s silly. I know. He is nearly always wrong. This felt different,” he sputters. “My uh, my spiritual advisor. You know him. He well, I normally don’t listen to his predictions. They are silly. But, I, I saw him have this one. It scared me so bad.” he looks like he was about to cry and I leaned in and hugged him. “It made me realize I, I don’t want to live without you. Without you by my side.”
“Oh. Just, give me time. I mean we aren’t even dating,” I started. “I’m curious though. Tell me what did Pewiten say exactly. He isn’t known to be perfectly accurate.”
“I know, I know. I know we aren’t together and I know Pewiten can be a little off,” he responded. “He was just talking to me and he closed his eyes really tight and he gasped. Later he spoke to me privately and told me that my friend, you, were going to go away. And he said that this fate rested on one decision you will make. So here, I’ve made the opportunity for us to stay together. Please stay with me forever.” I am not sure what to think. The way he spoke made me believe all this madness. Or it made me believe he believed it. I look at the ring, he probably got the diamond from the mines.
“Um, um. I just, I want to think this through. I mean, this is crazy for me. I mean, I know you as the boy who chased me on the playground.”
“But I was also your first kiss,” he says in defense.
“When we were seven and experimenting!” I lean back and close my eyes. “What do you want me to say?”
“I want you to say yes,” he tells me.
“Here, I have an idea. Let’s start hanging out and in five years ask me again.”
“I suppose. Alright. Keep the ring. But don’t leave me. Please,” he begs.
“I will. I won’t.” The rest of the night we spend joking around and talking. When I leave he hugs me.
Later, at home I lie in the dark room so I could relax. I wonder where the rest of the world gets their light without a sun. If the rumors of terrible beasts outside the empire is true they probably don’t need light. The Rainbow Sun provides light for us at all time. We build dark rooms in the basement to sleep in. I think about what happened today. I can’t just transplant my life. I have to look after Mom and Dad and the donkeys. I start falling asleep.
I know I’m dreaming when I find myself standing in Ruby’s Eye, the center of the Empire of Colors. I’m in front of a line of people and they are taking turns laughing at me. The funny thing is, since I have no idea what Ruby’s Eye looks like, the buildings look like the houses on my street and everyone is wearing grey even though red is the only legal color. They were laughing at me because I was from Popelia. Popelia is regarded as lower because grey isn’t a color but an absence of light and since we worship a sun it is an outcast. It was a weird dream.
I wake up the next morning still in my dress from the last night. Pulling myself out of bed I start my morning routine. First I shed my night clothes or in this case my dress from last night and put on a bathing suit under a sweatsuit. I walk to the public baths since we didn’t own one. Once I’m there I take off the sweatsuit I dip into the pool of clean grey water. Even though the water was opaque and I make sure I come early enough that no one is here I keep my suit on so that no one can see what’s on my stomach. I dry off and run home. Once I’m home I get dressed in normal clothes- shorts and t-shirt. But first I stare at my stomach. Around my belly button is a huge, bright, and sun shaped mark. Someone in my family must have been from Blossom Valley where orange is the legal color. However orange isn’t allowed here and I’d be a pariah if others found out. So would my family.
Next I brush my teeth. Damn I’m out of toothpaste and I don’t know how much toothpaste is costing now. I brush my teeth with water and go to the kitchen. I make some rice and mix it with some grug. It’s so gritty but the rice makes it bearable.
What if my power is like, telekinetic or mind reading! I wouldn’t have to clean if I was telekinetic and I if I could mind read I could ease my way through life. I want to travel the world but since it’s illegal and the punishment is death, I’d like to at least travel Popelia, the grey continent. Here in Marengo there is just mining and manufacturing. I raise donkeys, Mom sews clothing, and Dad works in the factories. Maybe it’s the same in all the other cities but I’d like to see for myself. If I marry Steve would I be able to travel? He probably would give me the money.
I finish my food and go outside to feed the donkeys. Mixing the animal feed with the colorless straw I grow I start feeling weak. It’s not unusual for me so I just keep working. After finishing caring for our donkeys I go inside to wash my hands and pull out some old tools to give our truck a going over. Most people in Marengo have automobiles but very few use them more than twice a week to get to further places. I usually ride donkeys and I lend them out to others to ride. I always take collateral because donkeys are real meat and food is desired by all. I also milk the jennies to sell to make soap, cheese, and cosmetics. I know how to make all of those but I have deals with manufacturers so I get a good price selling as well as free soap and cosmetics. The cheese guys are a little more frugal and I have to buy it myself which I never do.
I make most of the money in the house with the donkeys. Dad works an assembly line to create different toys. It’s a job with very low pay since most people don’t buy toys. Mom of course is a seamstress and most of the clothes around town is her work but she hasn’t been sewing often anymore and we can’t count on her for steady income. It may sound like we do well for ourselves but even when we have enough money there just isn’t enough supply for us to purchase. There are very few items and they are exuberantly priced.
I feel dizzy but I once I finish tightening and cleaning bits of the truck I mount one of the donkeys and travel past the dusty roads of town. Donkeys are wonderful pack animals. I have tied up 20 gallons of milk on the ass of this ass. I quietly ride through the neighborhoods. The houses look the same as they have been for the 20 years of my life. Grey and square. There are trees with grey bark and grey leaves. There is grey grasses and once I’m in the nicer neighborhoods there is grey pavement. I feel a harsh breeze push to my side while riding. I look up. Maybe it’s a mirage but I could just see the fringe of purple hair from over the border. That’s very rare but beautiful when it happens. The purple is so strong compared to the dull of Popelia. Maybe other continents think of their own color as dull but I get the feeling that none as much as we do here.
Once I get into the manufacturing part of town the scenery changes. The buildings are much, much bigger and the buildings are made of grey brick instead of the solid color houses. To be honest I’m not sure what the houses are made of. I head into cosmetics factory and drop off the milk.
“Hey Jack, your supply is here. Do I get paid today?” I shouted in the window.
“No money today but I do have a new product you can have. It’s a warm grey. We just got the color approved by the council in Tecza and started production this month. This is the first time this color will be shown here in all of Popelia! Here, have a full set. We call the color Sun Silver.”
“Woah, that’s pretty neat! Thanks Jack. I’ll see you tomorrow!” I think he says something after that but I’m already riding away.
I pass all the factories. I pass the toy factory where my dad works, I pass the canning factory where they create grug, I pass the clothing factory where they spit out cheap clothes for way too much money, I pass the car factory which is the biggest factory here, and I pass all the rest. I get to some of the furthest factories before I reach my destination. I head into the soap factory.
“Hey there Anne, what have you got for us today?” asked Edward, the secretary in the front of the building.
“Seven gallons of milk as you ordered. I’m going to need to get more donkeys if you keep ordering so much! I already have 95! I’m saving up to get a few cows. What do you think? They produce much more milk but are less useful and extremely expensive and resource heavy,” I told Edward. I like Edward a lot. He’s really fun and easy to talk to. He has a daughter, Emiline, who I’ve met a few times. She’s only seven but she’s smart and a lot of fun. She’s very interested in animals and I promised her I’d show her my donkeys.
“Sounds good to me! I don’t know much about animals but you must if you own 95 donkeys!” he told me. “How do you have the space for them all?”
“I have a 3 pens and two barns but during the day I let them roam free range around my yard and the neighborhood, they’re very smart and don’t let anyone near them. I’ve actually only had a few go missing over the years.”
“Don’t people try to steal them?”
“Not really. People like my mom enough or they don’t know how to slaughter them. I’m just lucky in that regard.”
“It’s always a pleasure to talk to you but shouldn’t you be going?” I wasn’t sure what he meant but I said,
“Yeah, I guess. See you!”
I ride to the soap factory but it’s closed! I’m not about to give them the milk without payment so I ride home. Since I had the extra time from not going inside to drop off the milk to the soap guys I let the donkey take it easy on the way back. I guess I didn’t see the Rainbow Sun’s hair this morning because it’s not windy anymore. It takes a lot of wind to see it. The wind would have to be blowing all day to be that powerful.
When I make it home it’s like no one else is around which isn’t so weird but a little disorienting. I ride up to my house and I see my mother looking annoying.
“Where have you been? The Sun Council is here to make an announcement. Put on something nice and let’s go! Hurry!”
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