[ WP ] '' Hey , no flavor pill until you finish your nutrition cube ''

I grab a small cup of water off of the rolling belt dispenser and approach the nutrition line. Much like every other day, it ’ s quiet and far too bright in the Main Hall. I look up and down the line and it seems short for this time of day. Maybe I got up a bit earlier than I had thought. 
 
 I ’ m rudely staring at the silhouette of the girl in front of me as this all grey uniform is not very flattering on most, but she actually looks alright. I make a mental note to try to catch her face and commit it to memory. I stare down at my feet and revel in the fact that this stiff onesie doesn ’ t help my small frame all too much. When I reach the front of the line, a small yellow-brown cube is dispensed into my palm and I quickly swallow it and follow with the water. 
 
 I finish the cup of water and consider whether I want to swim or lift today. Swimming would be refreshing. I turn to leave for Gym Area 2, but am startled at a booming voice call out “ Hey! No flavor pill until you finish your nutrition cube! ” 
 
 From what I could tell, a girl on the line had attempted to palm her nutrition cube and get on the flavor pill line. Sheesh, the new ones never learn. I continued on my journey to Gym Area 2 and thought about my goals of 30 laps today as the sounds of thick combat boots slamming the floor and that shrill female voice became more distant as she was dragged to Containment. 
 
 I reach the locker room and grab a perfectly folded swimsuit from the dispenser. Heading over to the stall to change, I cross paths with the familiar silhouette from earlier. I briskly avert my eyes and shuffle into the changing stall. 
 
 I grabbed goggles from the poolside dispenser and dove in. I love being immersed in the cool water. The lingering smell of chlorine always reminded me of going to the neighborhood pool as a kid, and hanging out with all the other children from my neighborhood. I thought about those hot summer days as I swam a few laps. 
 
 Needing a break, I hopped up onto the ledge and walked over to the water bottle dispenser. I stood in front of the dispenser for a few moments, while alternating between chugging water and catching my breath. I noticed someone was waiting behind me and I jumped to the side. 
 
 “ Sorry! ” I said. The woman from earlier smiled at me peacefully. 
 
 “ No worries. ” She said with the slightest, possibly French accent. She stepped up to the dispenser and pushed her wrist to the reader and received her water bottle. She took a small sip and said “ I haven ’ t seen you around much before, are you new? ” 
 
 “ No, I ’ ve been here for a while, about 2 years, I was just- “ I paused and felt my face grow flush. I knew I had the classic Maya deer in the headlights expression plastered across my face. Completely frozen, I considered diving back into the pool when she broke the silence. 
 
 “ Well, I ’ ve only been here for about 3 weeks. It ’ s a lot more barren here than I expected. ” She said with a fleeting sadness. 
 
 “ That ’ s ironic. ” I retorted. 
 
 She laughed and again I felt my face grow flush. She was very attractive and I wasn ’ t used to so much conversation. 
 
 “ I ’ m Afia. ” She said. “ What ’ s your name? ” 
 
 “ Maya. ” I said with a small nod. 
 
 Afia looked down with a warm smile. “ Maya, after check-ins tonight, would you like to observe the stars with me? ” 
 
 I wasn ’ t sure how this was possible, but of course I did, whatever it meant. I wanted to spend more time with Afia. She told me her block number - 168AF, and we planned to meet there after check ins. 
 
 
 
 
 I stared at myself in the small mirror outside of the showers. My frustration grew as I started at my undefined waist line, made ambiguous by the curves of my body in combination with these horribly designed uniforms. I straightened by back and hurried off to check ins. 
 
 My doctor, a small man with thin brown hair and eyes slightly too far apart looked at me through round glasses. 
 
 “ Maya, how are you feeling since your return to campus? ” He asked, half concerned. 
 
 “ Fine. ” I replied with a smile. “ I even swam today ” 
 
 “ That ’ s great, Maya. Glad to hear it. Sorry to cut this short, but Dr. Kow is in to see you today. ” 
 
 As soon as my doctor left, a very tall, intimidating man entered the room in a long, white lab coat. Without looking up from his clipboard, he said “ Hello Maya, I ’ m Dr. Kow. I oversee all of the doctors on campus. I am here because of your recent Procedure trip. How have you been feeling? ” 
 
 “ Great. All is well. ” I shifted uncomfortably. Not that I wasn ’ t feeling well, it ’ s just that his presence made me genuinely uncomfortable. 
 
 Dr. Kow glanced up from her notes to stare a me for a moment. “ Maya, would you mind standing? ” 
 
 I stood. 
 
 “ Great, now spin for me please. ” 
 
 I smiled resentfully and did a 360, In doing so, Dr. Kow was not shy in feeling me up. A slight squeeze on my ass and both hands sizing up my boobs, I got frustrated. I still do n't understand how they get away with treating us like this. I turned to him directly. “ Was there something wrong with my eggs? ” 
 
 Dr. Kow looks appalled at my question. “ Not at all! Quite the opposite. I can already tell why they want you for additional procedures. It could speed up your stay at campus, you know. ” 
 
 “ Oh. ” I said meekly. 
 
 The rest of our interaction was nothing of note. 
 
 I immediately began making my way over to Afia ’ s block. 168 AF. I from the Medical hall, I had to go past the Facilities Hall and the Bunker to get there. I ’ d make this quick to avoid any unexplainable situations. 
 
 Finally, I arrive at AF block. Scanning the uncluttered room for 168AF. Many beautiful, tall, dark skinned girls were relaxing and getting ready for bed. Stretching, reading, or just chatting, it was nice to be over in one of the quieter blocks. I found 168 and approached. Afia was already there, lying on her bed. 
 
 She glanced over her book and smiled at me. Without saying a word she got up and left her bed, and I followed. 
 
 In a part of campus I had never seen before, Afia brought us to a narrow ladder that was definitely off limits, but also possibly dangerous. 
 
 “ Afia, have you done this before? ” I said nervously. 
 
 “ Trust me. ” Afia replied with a confidence I couldn ’ t deny. 
 
 I climbed the ladder and she followed. 
 
 When we reached the top, we were in a cylindrical, oversized crawl space. I moved forward and noticed there was a window on the top of it. A skylight. An actual view of the sky. Afia was proving to be an invaluable friend at this point. 
 
 “ Holy shit. ” I said quietly in amazement. 
 
 “ I know, it ’ s beautiful. ” Afia said. 
 
 We settled in and talked for hours. It gets lonely in here and once you find someone it ’ s hard not to cling to them. 
 
 I told Afia all about my life. Growing up in New York, my family, my friends on the outside, my hatred of campus. ” 
 
 Asia ’ s life story was far more intriguing than mine. Even though Afia is from Senegal, she spent lots of her life traveling throughout Europe, which is how she ended up here on campus. But she has already accomplished so much. Even though she was only five years older than me, I felt like she had a lifetime ’ s worth of wisdom over my head. It just made her all the more attractive. 
 
 As dawn grew near, the conversation dwindled and I was enjoying Afia ’ s company. She suddenly turned to me with an unfamiliar expression of desperation. 
 
 “ I need to get out of here Maya. I don ’ t understand how you ’ ve been here so long. You can ’ t imagine they ’ re just going to let us back out into the world after this shit? This can ’ t end well for us. I ’ m not done living. ” 
 
 Tears were welling up in her eyes. She seemed to be searching my face for an answer. I didn ’ t have one. I stared back blankly. 
 
 “ Maya. you have been here for a while. You know a lot about this place. Way more than I do anyway. Just sharing the information you have picked up over your time here will provide so much. Will you at least help me? ” 

