Chapter two

Chapter Two:

“I have to be to work in twenty minutes, what aren’t you understanding?” I ask Baylee and Will when we get about half way home.

“I was lost from the beginning, I’m going to fail if there are too many math questions,” Baylee says, and it is obvious she is about to start crying.

“No you won’t, math is easy once you get the basics down. We can work on it when I get home. You’ll do fine.”

“No I won’t. If I couldn’t get it in the last five years of Seminar I’m not going to get it in the next month either. It doesn’t matter how many times you tell me how to do it. I’m going to fail, I might as well give up now.” She is crying by the time she gets two words out and sobbing by the time she is done and I can barely understand a word she says.

“Bay, honey, you’re going to do great on the Exam. You are one of the smartest people I know.” Will steps in and saves me from saying something stupid that will hurt her feelings.

She was right of course. My sister was great at a lot of things, but math wasn’t one of them and as much as I tried to help her she didn’t get it. All she could really do at this point was hope the math section was small and study the things she did get to make sure she did well everywhere else.

“No I’m not, I’m stupid and I’m going to fail.” She runs ahead of us when she is done talking, apparently done with the conversation.

“I should go try and make her feel better. Would you help me with math when you’re off work?”

“Sure, I’m working a double shift though so it won’t be until tomorrow.” I sigh, wishing Baylee would have believed me without questioning it like she used to.

“Okay, sounds great. Thanks so much Dayten.” Then he is off, running to catch up to her and leaving me alone.

With both of them gone I turn back to town and head towards the generator. I’d been working there for three years and the path was familiar; so many times walking it in the dark made it easy to get lost in my thoughts and it shocks me when someone calls my name from behind me.

“Dayten, wait up!” I stop and turn around to see Evan running towards me.

“What’s up?” I ask as he falls into step with me.

“I just got off work and was heading to find you. I finally have enough money to pay you back.” He says, shoving a heavy bag of coins towards me. He’d borrowed the money about two months before when his mom first got sick. I’d never regretted giving to him, I wish someone would have done the same thing for me, but I knew dad would have been mad if he knew so it was good I got it back before he noticed.

“Thanks Evan.” I shove it into my pocket before anyone else can see it. He had perfect timing. Baylee was out of medicine again and I had been starting to panic. It was the whole reason I signed up for two double shifts in a row. Now that Evan paid me back we would probably have enough to get more.

“Thank you, I really don’t know what we would have done without it.” We walk in uncomfortable silence for a minute, the weight of what would have happened without the money between us before he changes the subject, “How is Baylee doing?”

“She’ll be better now that we can get her medicine.”

“Does that mean they know what is wrong with her? I thought they couldn’t figure it out.” They couldn’t figure it out, that was why Evan was one of the only people in the district who knew she was sick. She told me so that she didn’t have to worry dad, and I had told Evan because I couldn’t deal with it on my own. I didn’t want to watch her go through the same thing mom had, not alone, not again.

“They still don’t know what it is but they started giving her some pills that help with the headaches.”

The headaches weren’t the only thing wrong with her but she said they were the worst. The dizziness and fevers came and passed throughout the day. When she passed out she didn’t notice until she woke up on the floor. The headaches though, those lasted for days when they came and made even opening her eyes to painful to stand. Taking these pills made them come less often and let her get up and go out more and so they were worth it, no matter how high the doctors made the price.

“I’m glad she’s doing better. Has she told Will yet?”

“No. I doubt she does.” She didn’t want to worry him. She was sure that she would get better, not worse like mom had. She kept saying she would tell him if they ended up in the same district after the Exam, that if there was a future for them then she would tell him. I didn’t believe she really would though. She would marry him and not tell him. She was too stubborn in her belief that she was getting better.

“Poor guy. As bad as it sounds I hope they end up in different districts. He wouldn’t handle her getting sick and dying as well as your dad did with your mom.” Evan speaks me thoughts exactly but as much as I agree with him I want to punch him for saying it out loud. Baylee couldn’t die like mom, she was too young and I couldn’t imagine life without her in it.  We were twins for a reason, we needed each other. She was not going to die like mom. I wouldn’t let her.

“I have to get to work. I’ll see you later.” I try to get rid of him but he just speeds up with me.

“I didn’t mean to make you mad. I’m sorry, I figured it was a fact that this is going to kill her. I mean it did to your mom. I wasn’t trying to be rude. I’m not good at thinking before I say stuff.”

“It’s okay,” I say, even though I am mad, “I’m just late for work. I’ll talk to you later.”

“Okay. My mom wants you to come over when you have a few minutes. She has something for you.”

“I will.” I say, and then he stops and I’m walking alone again, my thoughts not as comfortable as they were before our conversation despite the money in my pocket.

By the time I reach the generator my mood is black and I’m ready for the day to be over. I want to go get Baylee’s pills, the ones that won’t let her die just like I won’t; and then I want to go home and all in my bed, it misses me as much as I do it; and I want to sleep and dream of the future, the one where I go somewhere I can learn how to make Baylee better for real. Instead I go into the building that is more likely to be my future to neglect me bed and my sister so that I can pay for them both.