Adeleigh's Amends

With nurture, Adeleigh held my head close to her side as she peered above the crowd. I kept to myself, youthfully ruffling my fingers through her long, wavy brown hair. Adeleigh stared down at me and spoke rather deliberately, "I need you to look me in the eyes and promise me you will keep it on." I remained leaning beside her while the sun gleamed down onto my face. "Anna, please look at me! I know you're afraid, but I'm not sure what's happening," she said. "Addy, we've been standing out here all day. My feet are hurting, and the sun is starting to burn," I exclaimed. Adeleigh, now holding me more tightly towards her, began to rub my arm as a means of comfort. "I know Anna. I'm trying to figure out what's happening. I can see officers going around talking to people, so we will find out what's happening once they make their way towards us, okay?" she uttered reassuringly. I continued to cling to her, fatigued and displeased over the circumstances I found myself in. Several people were shouting and cursing, crying and weeping, but I took solace in my sister's composure. I wanted to follow her lead, even though I found myself growing more immobilized as time moved forward. A few other children I could make out through the gaps between the adults looked similar to me in age. One girl even mirrored my exact clothing style, minus the flower petal embroidery of my sundress and the heart-shaped locket Adeleigh just secured around my neck. Still hearing the crowd of people grow more enraged as the warmest hours of the day passed, I fixed my focus up at Adeleigh's face to gather any updates she may have had solely based on her facial expressions. Each time I looked up, they were always the same, dismal but composed. Dismally lost because she still had no answers and desperately controlled because I needed her to have them. Gazing up at her, I asked, "Is anything happening, Addy?" With hesitation in her voice, she replied, "The officers are still going around talking to people, but it looks like they're getting close to us. I will talk with them myself when they are close enough. Please, don't say anything when they do speak to us, Anna." I nodded my head in agreement.

As Adeleigh and I stood patiently awaiting the arrival of any officer, I could hear the sounds of upheaval transition into something slightly more sinister. The sound of people wailing desperately in the distance. With fear piercing throughout my imagination, I looked up and asked, "Addy, why are people starting to cry like that?" Adeleigh remained silent and began to grip my entire body towards her like she was trying to shield me. "An officer is coming, Anna. Just stay quiet while I speak with him, okay?" Adeleigh uttered softly. Positioned firmly in front of my sister, I allowed my head to laze down towards the ground. As soon as I did, a pair of darkened leather boots consumed my vision. I cautiously gazed upwards and realized that it was one of the officers. "The last name?" the officer muttered, as though he didn't care. "Abrams," Adeleigh replied, "Adeleigh and Anna Abrams." With his pen and notepad, the officer wrote our names down. He then tilted his head back up and examined Adeleigh rather oddly. He glanced down at me with disregard, but with Adeleigh, his gaze was undeniably lewd. As a few uneasy seconds passed, I could feel Adeleigh's grasp begin to clench my shoulders out of distress. "Last name 'A' is under my jurisdiction," the officer said with an unexpectedly thick accent, "So you two will come with me, now." I looked up behind me at Adeleigh and observed her apprehensive demeanor suppressed by compliance. She nodded her head with dignity as she always had growing up, and we followed the officer through the crowd of sorrow. As we approached this secured metallic doorway, Adeleigh stood beside me and grabbed my hand. She entwined her fingers with mine and used her thumb to rub my hand comfortably. "It'll be okay, Anna, I promise," she murmured.

Standing beside my sister, I felt this sense of calm. Like she was able to subdue my fears with something as simple as her touch. Even with everything happening behind us, Adeleigh made me feel soothed in the mind and heart. The officer used his key-card to unlock the doorway, and we followed him inside. Now being inside the building, Adeleigh and I felt a slight sense of relief as we, for the time being, no longer had to stand beneath the blistering sun. "Sit," the officer directed. Adeleigh and I did as we were told but looked at each other with skepticism. There weren't any other people, and throughout the room, there was hardly any light. There were small window squares positioned high up on the walls that allowed for some light to shine through, but with sundown approaching, it felt like the room we were in was hardly an improvement from our previous location. "Stay seated and silent," the officer ordered. We remained silent and poised as he walked away and into another room down the hallway. As soon as the door closed shut, Adeleigh and I exhaled, ill at ease. "Anna, I want you to know that I love you," Adeleigh said gloomily, "I want you to know that I love you and that I'm sorry I haven't been the nicest to you." I moved closer beside her so she could feel my comfort. "I love you too, Addy, it's okay," I responded as I allowed my head to lean on her shoulder in repose. "I know that you're such a smart and gifted person Anna. You're such a strong and capable girl," Adeleigh said while resting her head against mine. The tone within the room somehow grew even more dreary as neither of us spoke a word to each other for at least a few minutes. Adeleigh, still resting her head on mine, began to cry quietly, and her tears began to drip down onto my hair. "It's just that," Adeleigh said with a sniffle, "I feel like I'm never really there for you, Anna. I'm sorry for always giving you a hard time. I need to be more of a role model. Someone that you can lean on for anything." I lifted my head to look at her and replied, "Addy, I can lean on you. You make me feel safe, and when I think of you, you make me feel strong." Still, with tears coming down her face, Adeleigh smiled at me with fulfillment then held me close. The door at the end of the hallway opened, and another officer stepped out. "Adeleigh and Anna Abrams," the man said. Both Adeleigh and I looked at each other somberly, sat up off the bench, and walked over towards the officer. He reminded me of the previous officer in both demeanor and tone. His accent wasn't what I considered to be usual but was similar to that of the previous officer. As we entered the room, a large stone staircase led to an upper platform where masculine voices resonated. Both Adeleigh and I followed the officer up the stairs, hand in hand. When we made our way to the top, the officer immediately told us to unhand each other, so we did. The first thing we noticed was an immaculate wooden desk with an officer sitting behind facing the window. Another officer stood with his arms behind his back, leering at us like we were somehow beneath him. The officer who led us up the stairs retreated down and out of the room. "You," the standing soldier pointed at me, "Sit there." I looked over at the nicely padded bench and sat. The officer began to make his way over to Adeleigh, making her body and facial expression tense. He examined her visually, circling her, snickering a bit. Adeleigh's face began to twitch slightly, and as he put his face closer to hers, her eyes began to squint. With his face close to hers, he grinned rather wickedly. "Sir," he said plainly and walked down the stairs where he seemingly sat down. Adeleigh, still standing center floor, spoke out toward the officer behind the desk, "Please, can you tell us what's happening? Why are we here, sir?" The officer slowly spun his chair around and looked at Adeleigh with an inexpressive face. "Age?" the officer asked. "Seventeen." Adeleigh responded. "Talents?" the officer continued with haste. Adeleigh ever so gently glanced over at the floor, thinking of what to say next. The officer stood up out of his chair and peered at Adeleigh, awaiting a response. Adeleigh remained silent and held her own two hands together. I could see a few tears running down her cheeks, so I decided to unseat myself and make my way over towards her to provide her with comfort. As soon as I got up, the officer looked at me and said authoritatively, "Sit down." I immediately sat back down. Adeleigh, still holding her hands together, glanced over at me for a moment and then back at the officer with modesty. With displeasure, he returned to his swivel chair and spun back around towards the window. "What about you?" he mumbled carelessly. Adeleigh looked at me, which made it apparent that he was awaiting my response. "Your age?" he asked irritably. "Ten," I replied. "And your talents?" he asked curiously. Similar to Adeleigh, I couldn't think of how to respond. The room was silent, aside from a faint chuckle from the officer at the bottom of the stairs. After a few more moments of stillness, the officer spun back around and stood up with a sort of finality. He walked over to Adeleigh and leaned against his desk with his arms crossed. He stared at her intensively and then towards me with the same expression. Then, fixing his attention on Adeleigh, he addressed her rather conclusively. "Which of you is most useful?" he questioned. At this moment, Adeleigh's face seemed overwhelmed with sorrow, as somehow something had registered. "I won't ask again, girl," the officer declared. "Anna is smart, strong-hearted, and useful, sir," Adeleigh replied, "She is someone I have always leaned on." I looked at her with complete admiration. "Good," he replied as he sat back down and swiveled towards the window. "Room B-13!" he said aloud. Adeleigh looked at me and began to cry contentedly. The guard came back up the stairs and grabbed Adeleigh's arm. He began pulling her down the stairs with him, but she resisted. At that moment, Adeleigh's tears were eternal, but she never broke eye contact with me. As the officer dragged her down the stairs, I stood up recklessly to look into her eyes. She signaled me to stay quiet with her free hand, then patted her chest and reached out towards me. "Oh God, Anna, I love y-!" she screamed. The door slammed shut, and I quickly returned to my seat, grasping the heart-shaped locket around my neck that Adeleigh has just gestured. "Now, bring me my paperwork downstairs," the officer commanded, "It's dated May 8th, 2045. Titled the American Reduction." I immediately sat up and made my way down the stairs to a clipboard with thick paperwork sitting on one of the chairs. As I handed the board to the officer, I glanced out the window, hoping to see Adeleigh. She wasn't there. Nobody was anymore. I sat down again and continued to await any requests the officer had, all the while allowing myself to depart into the coming sunset mentally. It was the only appeasing thing that I had, and when the ashy black clouds suddenly filled the sky, I prayed that it would rain and wash away my pain.

Adeleigh's Amends,

By Nathan Fisher