30 January 2013
I was Wiped. I did something bad. Now my name is Caroline. And I'm about to do something bad again.
It was morning. I'd forgotten how much I liked morning. Clear air and bird song; the scenery for a romantic ballad. Much at opposite with my mutinous life. Or so I supposed, since my life only started yesterday. I lay underneath a thin white cover and stared at the blank ceiling. Blank, like my mind.
'Caroline?'
I heard Mrs Woollendale before I saw her. Her pudgy face was red with the effort of climbing a single set of stairs. Her belly swung in front of her, and I had no doubt that her massive arms and copious breasts weighed her down.
'Yes?'
'It is time to eat.'
'Okay.'
'Come on down.'
'Okay.'
In the dining hall there were several girls and boys. They all had the same emotionless expression as I did. One boy looked up as I entered. He scanned his eyes over me then looked away. I wondered what he saw. I looked in the mirror for the first time this morning. All I saw was pale skin and dark eyes and dark hair and dark eye bags. Nothing remarkable.
'Sit here.'
'Okay.'
Mrs Woollendale pulled out a chair. I had to sit opposite the boy who had looked at me. I looked at him. He had lovely hair: dark red or brown. Blue eyes. His skin was light but not as light as mine. His was an actual shade, whereas mine just looked neglected. Slop was pushed in front of me by an expectant looking Mrs Woollendale. I ate it. It tasted vile. But I ate it.
'It's time to go for a run, now.'
The boy spoke to me. He had glinting eyes when he spoke. I wondered idly if all boys had those sorts of eyes. I hoped so. He looked prettier when they glinted.
'Okay.'
It turned out that 'we' was just me and him. Harvey. He told me his name was Harvey.
'I like the name Harvey.'
'Thank you. What's yours?'
'My what?'
'Your name.'
'Oh. It's Caroline.'
We ran in silence for a little while. The streets all looked the same to me. Empty grey pockets of lifelessness. It started to rain. It didn't bother me. I looked at Harvey. It didn't seem to bother him, either.
'You don't talk much do you?'
Didn't I?
'I suppose not.'
More silence. I liked the quiet. It meant I could hear the rain. I loved the sound of the rain. It was comforting. Harvey was casting me sideways glances.
'Are you in?'
'Excuse me?'
In? What was 'In'?
'In? Are you? Are you Wiped or will you Wipe?'
I looked at Harvey. He looked earnest. Droplets of rain were stuck in his lashes. It looked pretty. I didn't understand him.
'I don't understand.'
Pause.
'Here's the think, Caroline. Those of us who are Wiped ate settled into two groups. There's the Wiped and the Wipers. We're going to rise again. I, for one, want to know why I was Wiped. Don't you?'
'I don't know.'
This boy confused me. I just wanted a bath. I was cold now. It had been raining a long time.
'Do you know why you were Wiped?'
'For a new start. I am privileged.'
That was the standard reply. I was taught that. I was Wiped for a new start. I was privileged. I was lucky.
'That's a load of bullshit.'
'Excuse me?'
'Bullshit. It means 'rubbish'. Anyway, I'll tell you something. Can you keep a secret from Mrs Woollendale?'
Can I? Secrets aren't allowed. But I did so want to know what Harvey was talking about.
'Yes.'
'You weren't Wiped as a privilege. You're a criminal. You've been Wiped because you were a danger to society. Now you're a blank slate.'
Something inside me clenched.
'Now, what are you going to do about it, Caroline? You were slated. Your mind was violated. Doesn't it make you angry?'
'Yes.'
Wiped: The Truth. • Opuss № I