Chapter Two
With time running out, Nathan decides to try and make the most of one of his last days of independence.
Inspired by a story by: Clamorem Luporum
The next day was much like the hundreds that came before it. I woke up, showered, dressed in very basic clothing, and ate breakfast. It was while I was in the dining hall that I saw Joseph, another boy my age. His rather femenine mannerisms didn't make any sense to me, but he wasn't bad company.
“Oh, Nathan! Your big day is coming up!" he chirped.
I can't help but think of him as a canary when he speaks, if he ever stops you know something is wrong.
“It's not that big a deal." I say.
This seems to send him into one of his dramatic fits.
“How can you say that!? Your 18th birthday has to be one of the most important days of your life!"
I just shrug and eat a big spoonful of oatmeal.
“I've been dreaming of the day some studly Pokemorph will come and sweep me off my feet eversince my sexuality test." he continued.
One of the things they do when you go through puberty is attach electrodes to your head and show you some “explicit" pictures of various Pokemorphs. The electrodes measure your brain activity for signs of sexual attraction. You're also naked the whole time, so they also know the other way. They do this as a “Favor" to humans to make sure you end up with the gender you like the most. I was skeptical of the whole thing when I was scored as Homosexual dispite being angered and disgusted by every picture they showed me.
'Pokemorphs, we let you be oppressed by the gender you like most.' I think to myself.
“Nathan!" Joseph's bird-like voice snaps me out of my thought bubble.
“What?"
“I said you should hurry up, the van leaves in a few minutes." He says as he gets up.
Joseph may be an odd person, but at least he knows when to drop a conversation.
The ride to school was boring. I spent the whole ride looking out the window at the houses and parks going by. In two days the rest of my independence would disappear for good. I don't know how the idea first entered my brain, but when the van pulled up to the school I hesitated. I could go into the school building and be subjected to verbal sexual abuse. Or I could sneak away and spend the day in one of the parks I passed on the ride over.
It wasn't a hard choice. I soon found myself sneaking off campus, climbing over a wooden fence, and ditching my bag in a shrub. The trees were still bare, but some clouds provided shade from the sun. Everything seemed so much more vivid. The colors on the houses looked brighter, the air smelled sweeter, and the sounds of birds filled the air.
I spend the next couple hours walking around the park, smelling the air, watching the fountain, and just generally enjoying myself. I could have spent the whole day just doing nothing. But the cruel universe had other ideas. I was resting against the trunk of a maple tree -Or at least a tree with a lot of maple leaves beneath it- when a shadow blacked out the rays of the sun that had just come out. I opened one of my hazel eyes to see what cut off my warmth, and I came face to face with to Machamp policemen.
'Shit' Was my first thought.
My second thought was a bit more complicated.
“Ahh!" I screamed.
“Calm down son, we're just here to take you back to school." said the slightly larger of the two.
“Like hell you are!" I growl.
“Don't make this hard on yourself son." Said the smaller one.
He stepped forward and extended one of his hands towards me. I crab walk away from them.
“Stay back! I swear to god the first one of you that touches me looses their fucking eyes!" I say trying to sound intimidating.
It didn't work, and I soon found myself thrashing in the larger of the two's grip.
“Let go of me goddamnit!" I yelled.
It wasn't any use, it felt like I'd been entombed in concrete. And by the time they've got me in the back of their car my hands are bruised and sore. I was angry, at the cops, at society, but mostly at myself. I should've tried running, maybe one of them could have crushed me and ended my meaningless existence.
When they dropped me off at school, it was lunch time. Everyone had already taken their seats. I barely had time to get my food and find a empty place in the hall when the pain in my hands flared up. Helplessness is probably one of the worst feelings a human can feel. You know something is wrong, but you know in your heart that there isn't a thing you can do.