The Clinic: Test Seven (mild language, sexual conduct)
Test Seven
Several days had passed since my incident with Zaien in the woods. I only had two days before I disappeared.
Things with Byren had gotten better. We had become more of a couple than when I'd gotten close to Zaien. Things had slowly turned back to the way they were before the beginning of the two weeks.
Giles was his normal, goofy self while Aime was still as silent as before. Fate was her normal motherly, egotistical self. Things were...normal.
Pes and Jamie hung out around us a little more and I had a feeling it was because Zaien had asked them. Jamie seemed to always be around Aime, though. She always seemed too preoccupied with following Pes around like a puppy dog.
Zaien...I hadn't seen him since that night.
That night, after I'd passed out, he'd replaced the mic and left me in my bed. I hadn't gotten a fever and I hadn't seen him since. Sometimes I guessed that he was listening in on my conversations but I was never quite sure.
If it wasn't for the cold feeling in my chest and the mic, it would've been like he didn't exist.
I'd asked Jamie and Pes about him a few times but they just said that he'd been keeping to himself lately.
Slowly, everything had returned to normal and I'd casually slipped back into my old life.
"We're having a party," Fate said casually as we sat at dinner. "In my room after dinner. It'll be short because of lights out but it should be fun. I'm inviting a bunch of the Guards and Patients."
"What exactly for?" I asked, confused. "I mean, what exactly is there to celebrate?"
"You're going away," she said, smirking. "You, Claire, are going to go out in style!!"
She fired off with questions about my likes and dislikes and any question possible before turning to Giles and plotting with him. Eventually, Byren and I left the dining room and settled in my own.
He was the first out of us to say anthing.
"So, you have today and tomorrow," he said sadly. "And then you're gone for good."
I smiled and kissed him gently.
"Think about me being free," I said softly. "Pretend that I'm being let go by the Clinic. Pretend that I'm going to find my real family."
But that was a lie. We were all orphans. Or, well, we were supposed to be. Some of us, like Byren, could vaguely remember siblings and Celti had Zaien as her brother, apparently.
With our records being burned, we didn't really know.
"I love you," he whispered softly.
"I love you too."
He leaned forward and kissed me softly, his lips pressing against my own in the barest of touches before he pulled away.
"I better get to my room," he said quietly. "I love you, Claire."
"I love you too, Byren."
He left, shutting the door behind him, and I climbed into my bed for the night.
Two days. I had only two days before I would disappear and there was no one left on my side.
Byren and the others could help at all without risk of being hurt. Zaien and the other Guards would be no help, either. They were loyal to Feiral and Jate.
I was alone.
"Lights out!" Jate yelled. "Now!"
The routine coninued as normal and I was almost thankful for it...until my door opened silently and someone came in.
"Don't move," someone said, covering my mouth. "It's me, Claire."
I relaxed as I looked into familair, icy green eyes. He looked almost like a stranger to me now.
Zaien had dark circles beneath his eyes from what I guessed to be lack of sleep.
He was paler than normal and thinner. His eyes were practically lifeless. Zaien was normally clean shaven and his hair was brushed neatly. That couldn't have been farther off from the slight stubble on his jaw and the mess that was his hair.
"Zaien," I hissed. "What are you doing in here?!"
"We still haven't talked about the plan," he breathed. "We have to—before you go with them.
"Leave—you look horrible," I sighed. "You need sleep!!"
"Sleep won't help me," he said tiredly. "The plan, Claire! We have to hurry!! We don't have as much time as we did before!"
I frowned and patted the bed beside me.
"Zaien, sleep first, plan second. You need sleep."
He blew out a sigh and slid into the bed beside me. His skin was ice cold and I suppressed the shiver that worked it's way through me.
"You're freezing," I whispered, pulling him to me. "Are you sick? Tell me how I can help!"
He closed his eyes tightly and laid his head on my chest, taking a slow, deep breath.
"Just go to sleep," he said quietly. "Sleep first, plan second. We'll plan tomorrow afternoon."
He relaxed against me and I smiled before snuggling into him and, likewise, falling asleep.
"Claire-bear time to get up!" Jamie said giddily from the opposite side of the door. "Wakey, wakey!!"
I groaned and shifted, stretching out before shooting up and looking around the room.
Zaien was gone. There wasn't a trace of him. I couldn't help but wonder if last night had been a dream.
"I'm up, Jamie," I yelled, changing into another set of clothes. That was when I saw it—the letter. "I'll be out soon!"
Claire,
Before dinner go to Aime's room. She is doing a favor for Pes. It will be safe there, to talk.
Zaien
I stared at the note and then at the bed. Last night had be no dream. It was real.
Which meant I had to plan out today very carefully.
I stuffed the note into my pocket and met Jamie on the other side of the door. He was smiling widely, Aime at his side.
We went downstairs after exachanging greetings. Apparently I'd woken up earlier than normal seeing as Byren was in the testing room.
"Claire," Jate said as Aime and Jamie entered the testing room. "You won't be tested in there today. I'd like you to come with me."
Jate turned on his heel and I glanced back once at the door before following him. He stopped in front of the old breeding room door and pulled out a set of keys.
"Open this door," he commanded, handing me the keys.
I took them and, shakily, unlocked the door. It took me a few tries before I could actually push the door open. When it gave without warning I stumbled in—Jate's sigh told me that it was a normal reaction.
The room was freezing—worse than the winds that chilled the area around the Clinic.
"This used to be a room for Breeders," he explained, walking over to a medical chair. It looked as if it had been recently put in the room since it hadn't collected dust. "But, as you know, breeding never went so well with the Patients and the regular testing so we had to stop it.
"Go sit on the chair while I get ready. I'll only be a moment so I expect you be silent and obedient."
I obeyed while he walked over to a cabinet and started pulling out needles and vials and other things I couldn't put names to.
"There is a reason that this room is is such a state of disrepair," he said calmly, walking back to me. "And you will possibly find out why in a few moments."
He jerked my arm out and slid the syringe into place, pulling back on it. My blood filled the vial as a result.
I'd never been tested this way. I'd had my blood take a handful of times but it was just to make sure that I was regulating like normal and the chemicals and drugs weren't giving me extra diseases.
Jate stabbed another syringe and took out about three milligrams of a white liquid from an unlabeled box before transferring both my blood and the liquid into another syringe and shaking it gently.
"Your arm."
I held out my unwounded arm and he sat the syringe down, pulling out two sets of handcuffs. I gave him a confused look but he simply used them to anchor me to the chair before picking the syringe back up and coming back to me.
"You will either feel nothing at all or this is going to be excrutiatingly painful," he said placidly. "Just a warning beforehand."
He eased the needle into my arm, more careful than he had with the other, and pushed down on the plunger.
The liquid flowed easily into my vein and I looked up at Jate. His eyes were focused on me. Nowhere in particular—just on me.
It was almost as if he was waiting for something to happen.
“Wh—”
I cut off as something clamped around my throat, cutting off my oxygen. My gaze darted to Jate who looked almost—twistedly—excited.
“Be still, Claire,” he ordered. “It will be over soon if you stay still and not fight it.”
A fever started from the wound and seared through my veins at an alarmingly inhuman rate for blood to flow. It felt as if it, my blood, was trying to push through my skin as the feverious heat increased.
The pushing and heat were only the beginning.
The two feelings grew to an intestity that I thought that my skin was going to split so it could escape. It was as if something was inside of me, clawing to get out beneath every inch of my skin.
And then it happened. Whatever was inside of me sliced out of my veins, through my muscles, and shredded its way out of my skin.
I screamed. The intesity of it was so much that I could feel my own body shaking. I heard, somewhere, glass shatter but my own mind was too occupied with the gashes I was sure that were on my skin.
Or, what was left of my skin.
Eternity seemed to stretch forever—an eternity of pain and blackness. When I was finally able to open my eyes the white walls almost hurt.
“Good girl, Claire,” I heard Jate say as both my mind and body began to shut down and grow numb. “Good girl.”
“Claire,” I heard a voice said softly. “Open your eyes, Claire—it is time for you to wake up.”
Even though the small motion made my enitre body scream at me in pain, I forced my eyes open and met soft, orange ones. They belonged to a woman.
The woman was about five-nine with wavy, waist-length silver hair. Her skin was a smooth, pale ivory. The orange of her eyes was a startling contrast to the rest of her but, somehow, they fit.
Her dress had no sleeves and only rose to her collar bone. The fabric was tightly fit until it reached the bottom of her ribs where it slowly loosened to the bottom. It’s white color made her look like an angel.
“Claire,” she said in a soft, melodic voice. It was almost hypnotizing. “You need to listen to me.”
I tried to speak but no words came. She understood what I was trying to say.
“Claire, trust Zaien. No matter what you must trust him. He will help you.”
Zaien? Trust him? Who was this woman and how did she know Zaien? How did she know me?
“Claire?” Byren called out from the other side of my door. “Are you awake?”
My eyes darted over to the door and then back to the woman.
She was gone.
“Claire?” Byren repeated, opening the door. “Are you awake?”
“Y-Yeah,” I managed, wincing at the pain slicing through me. It had eased a little but was still there. “I’m…awake.”
He came in and frowned, walking to my side. Something was different about him but I wasn’t sure what it was, exactly.
“Za-Zaien,” I groaned, attamtping to stand. It ended fuitely when I ell back down. “I need to find…Zaien.”
I doubled over, coughing violently, and Byren wrapped his arms around me.
“Claire,” he said firmly, forcing me to look at him once the coughing subsided. “When you’re able to move, you’re leaving.”
All thoughts vanished. The pain eavporated. All that was left was the feeling of my blood turning to ice as it flowed into my veins.
Had a full day already passed? Was it even possible?
“Leaving?”
My voice sounded hollow, even to myself, so I could only begin to imagine how it sounded to Byren.
“I love you, Claire,” he said softly, his voice sad. “You mean everything to me.”
No matter how hard I tried, the words wouldn’t come.
I loved Byren—I did. But, then, why couldn’t I tell him? Why wouldn’t the words come out?
He leaned forward and pressed his lips gently to mine and my body recoiled against my will. There was something different about both of us. Something I couldn’t place.
“Zaien,” I repeated when he pulled away. “Get Zaien. Please…Byren.”
Byren’s brown-green eyes darkened and turned cold as he stood. Everything about him screamed ‘anger’ to me as he walked out of the room.
‘Why does she love him? Why not me? I’ve—’
I blinked and looked up. Had I been hearing things? It sounded as if Byren…
I shook my head. It was impossible. I couldn’t read minds. The drugs were the most likeliest cause.
My body was still sore and achy but I ignored it as I went to my closet, pulled out a clean uniform, and dressed. The pain seemed to be leassening with every second and I was thankful for it.
The bag I’d packed a couple of days ago was still beside my bed and I couldn’t help smiling.
This room held so many memories. It was hard to imagine that I would never come back here.
“Claire?”
I turned and met icy green eyes and could’ve fallen to the ground and started crying then and there. The relief that flooded through me nearly sent me to my knees.
Byren wasn’t with him so I guessed that he’d told Zaien to go to my room and then went somewhere else. I was actually happy that he wasn’t here which made no sense in my mind.
“Claire,” he repeated, shutting the door behind him as he closed the distance between us. “What’s wrong?”
“I had to make sure that you were safe,” I breathed.
My legs gave out from beneath me and Zaien reacted immediately, ctaching me before I’d barely fallen.
“Thanks,” I managed, sinking my fingers into his uniform’s vest. “I’m…sorry.”
“Don’t be,” he said softly, helping me sit on the bed. “You’re welcome—I don’t mind helping you.”
Something was different about Zaien, too. He seemed…sad. Sad and, almost, sorry.
“Why were you worried about me?” he asked once I was comfortably seated. “You should be more worried about your own well being.”
I opened my mouth to speak but the door slamming open cut me off and made me jump. Zaien only turned around as if he had been expecting it.
Feiral stood in the door way, her white eyes glared and me and I cringed from the intensity of them.
‘It’s time…’
I looked at Zaien. Was that his voice I’d just heard?
“It is time,” Feiral said coyly. She held a hand out to me and uttered one, condeming word. “Come.”
My heart dropped and I gave Zaien a final look before standing and crossing the room to Feiral. She latched onto my wrist and I winced, looking over my shoulder at Zaien.
He was on one knee, his forehead pressed against his half folded hands. His elebows rested on my bed and I couldn’t stop the words that came out of my mouth.
“I love you too,” I said, smiling. “I’m sorry we couldn’t make another deal.”
His eyes met mine and Feiral dragged me away completely before he could even try to reply.
I closed my eyes and let Feiral lead me away. Away from my home. Away from everyone at the Clinic.
Away from Zaien.
This was the end.
