Consensus: Part 1 - Citizen

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The audience gave a short round of applause for the speaker before getting up from their seats. The citizens at the edge of the seating area moved out of their aisles toward discussion booths, which had been set up around the perimeter of the auditorium.

"I'll take Suzanne to her class and meet you back in here," Clarine said.

Marshall grabbed Gareth's hand. "Alright. Which booth will you be at?"

"I've been thinking a lot about what Officers Dougherty and Naylor said the other night ... about crime in the Outskirts."

Marshall glanced over to the law enforcement booth. "OK. I'll drop Gareth off and meet you there. Rena?"

"Yeah?"

"Instead of tagging along with us, I think it would be good for you to join the other young adults this time."

Rena bit her lip as she looked across the auditorium to where other citizens her age were heading through double doors. If she was going to start voting again, it made sense to get informed on the issues affecting her age group. But she felt like her chest was being crushed by an invisible force. She wished the doors led out to the Barrens. Then she'd have no problem walking through them. She'd even run.

"Come find us when you're done," Clarine added, leaving no room for discussion.

Rena watched her parents leave the aisle and make their way toward the hallway leading to the kids' area. Then she turned and walked the other direction, quickly finding herself surrounded by people her own age. She recognized some of them from school, though she didn't know their names. Others were complete strangers. This community hall served more than just her school district.

Once through the double doors, the crowd spread out into a large, square room, about a tenth the size of the main auditorium. The space was divided into a grid, with aisles between each booth. Rena wandered down the center aisle, casually inspecting the reading material floating above the Collective terminals at each one. Inside, chairs were arranged in circles. Some booths were already full and hosting lively discussions. The empty ones were easy to spot, because the adult discussion leaders stood near the aisle, trying to make eye contact with people passing by.

One man glanced at Rena's hand and apparently decided she wasn't rated well enough to be concerned about school curriculum. He didn't say a word to her.

"Hi there," said a young woman across the aisle.

Rena tried to look the other way. But she couldn't help noticing the woman's blonde hair, twisted into a double helix shape, hanging down to the back of her knees.

"Are you happy with the current selection of music on the Collective?"

Rena reluctantly made eye contact, not wanting to be rude. "I don't know."

"Well, did you know that there are thousands of talented musicians who can't make a living today because the industry is controlled by the votes of adults?"

Rena shook her head.

"Young people have the time to vote more often than adults, but your voices won't be heard unless—"

"No, thank you," Rena said, noticing that the woman's discussion area was an empty ring of chairs. She sped up and continued down the aisle, wishing Dal was at her side. Not only would his presence have been a convenient distraction, but he was one of the only people who understood Rena's aversion to conversations where the only goal was agreement. But Dal only came to consensus when his parents were available, which was almost never.