The Freaks

chapter nine

Just like Serena said, she saved me a seat in the main room.

She looks up at my approach, moving over to give me more space as I sink into the chair beside her. She smiles but my face feels too heavy to give her a proper one back, so I end up giving her a half-grin instead.

A tin of food is ready for me as I get comfortable on the seat, pulling it closer to the table. The words Lamb Stew are written in black very simply on the shiny metallic surface, without a brand or even a logo to accompany it. I grab the spoon from inside the metal and take the first bite, swallowing the serving whole even though it is much too hot.

In a couple of spoonfuls, the whole canned good is wiped clean.

"You must have been hungry," Serena says from next to me, still spooning food from her own tin, one that says Beef Stew instead. She moves the can closer to me. "Do you want to share mine? I have more than enough."

I shake my head. "No, no, it's fine. It's your dinner."

Serena laughs and shuffles closer to me, scooping some of her stew inside my empty container. "Here. Enjoy," she says, the smile still upon her lips. She nudges my elbow with hers playfully. "You need to eat anyway if you're going to be training for four weeks straight."

I let out a small laugh, though inside I'm cringing at the thought. "Thanks." I dunk the spoon in and taste it. It's better than mine. I eat the half Serena gave slowly, savouring the amazing taste before I finish it.

The chatter going on around is almost deafening. The Freak opposite me is having a heated argument with the Freak to Serena's left about whether or not he had more than one ration today for dinner. The argument is so loud and annoying that I have to physically stop myself from looking over at them both, because I know if I do, I'll end up saying something I'll probably regret.

I strike up my own conversation with Serena to drown out the noise. I turn to look at her at the same time she looks over at me. "So how many Freaks are in this place?" I ask, spooning a small amount of the food into my mouth.

She quickly swallows and gulps down some water before saying, "About..." She looks directly at the table like she's counting something there only she can see. "Maybe eighty or ninety Freaks now."

I look around the dining hall quickly, scanning the tables scattered across the room. There's easily about fifty or sixty present here now, so the rest of them must be doing jobs or anything else they do around here.

"Where did they come from?" I turn back to Serena when I ask my question aloud.

She lets out a tiny laugh. "Everywhere," she says, locking eyes with me before looking at the rest of the Freaks around the room. "The teleporters searched for weeks trying to find them. They were scattered in houses and flats and even schools. I heard they put up a real fight against the teleporters, thinking they were Soldiers or something."

A flash of my friends and I comes to mind as I turn my head to stare down at the table. The pain of us being shoved onto the ground in our living room prickles at my skin again, but I push the feelings far away before it has a real effect on my mind. I swallow down the lump in my throat and turn back to Serena, plastering on a smile even though all I want to do is frown.

"If it was that guy that picked me, you and Nox up from the prison," I say, "then I can see why some of the Freaks were scared of him."

She tilts her head at me. "Oh, you mean Clyd?" She lets out a laugh. "Yeah, he does look scary, but he's a real softy when you get to know him."

So the Freak that brought me here does have a name. When I first met him, he seemed like he was ready to beat me into the ground if I crossed him. I guess I'm wrong. I smile and laugh a little along with Serena, even when the pain in my chest at missing my friends won't dissipate.