The Claiming

Chapter Five

Before we leave, all the new couples are required to go to the main office of the Plaza to get our house assignments. I hang onto Alec's arm nervously, wondering if we'll get a nice, new house, or a dirty, rat-infested house. I've heard of people getting one or the other—I just hope we're lucky.

"Next," a grouchy old lady rasps in a loud voice.

Alec and I inch forward together, terrified of the woman.

"Names, please," she says, her voice completely monotone, but hoarse like a smoker's.

"Alec and Isabella Bentley," Alec says, suddenly smiling at the sound of our names together.

I try to hide my reflecting grin, but I fail dreadfully. Alec catches my smile and chuckles silently.

The nasty old woman places a piece of paper on the countertop, facing our way. "Sign here, young man."

As Alec grips a pen and writes his name neatly on the line at the bottom of the paper, the lady retrieves a pink slip of paper and writes on it.

Once Alec finishes signing, he hands the woman the signed paper, and then she thrusts the pink slip at us and two keys. "This is your house address and two keys to the house. It has two bedrooms and two bathrooms. One floor. If you have more than two children, then the city will move you to a larger house. Until then, this one is yours. Take care of it."

Alec pockets both of the keys and then holds up the paper between us, gazing at it as if it is the most precious thing he's ever held. I nudge him out of the way of others so we don't hold up the line.

"This is it, Belle," he says excitedly. "This is where it begins."

Gently, I slip the piece of paper from his fingers and look at it myself.

Street 92, House 4

Well, that's a pretty boring title. I thought the Family District would be all happy and cozy... I'm probably just thinking too much into this.

Alec takes my hand and pulls me close to his side. "Ready?" he says gently.

The buzzing of the other couples around us in the main office is starting to make me nervous. Chance and Riah have already taken off, so nothing is keeping us here.

"Yes," I say with a smile.

***

We're definitely not in one of those happy family homes that Chance and Alec lived in with their families. All my life I had dreamed about having that perfect little paneled house with the white picket fence and all that crap, but then we get here, and all my dreams burst into violent flames.

The house is tiny, yes, but it is dark and depressing—boring if anything. The flat roof is bound to make leaks more susceptible in our ceiling (I would know since I lived at the Facility my entire life...a building with a stupid flat roof and water-damaged ceilings beyond repair), and the low foundation just makes me uncomfortable. A window is on each side of the rusty metal door. Bars line the windows, too, which does not make me feel any better about our shady neighborhood either.

Turns out, the Family District is its own little world. The place where Alec and Chance grew up was a form of middle-upper class. This is lower class for sure.

"I'm sure this is how all the couples start out," Alec says to me reassuringly as we stand outside the house beside his car parked in the gravel driveway.

I've always been fascinated by the fact that Alec even has a car. It's small and bright blue, rusty around the bottom. He never really talks about it, but sometimes the four of us will ride in it when we go on little trips around the city. Alec had parked his car in the back of the Plaza, so when it started to rain after we received our house assignment, he sprinted out to his car while I stood under the awning of the building. I was definitely charmed by his gentlemanliness... I can't believe that's a word... We drove to our new neighborhood talking enthusiastically about everything except for the relationship we're going to have to develop. I didn't want to worry about that at the moment. All I cared about was the present moment of finding out what kind of house we would have.