True Colors

The morning of the test I walked into the kitchen and my parents were sitting at the table waiting for me. As I poured a cup of coffee my mom asked me a question.

"You excited baby?"

"I guess," I mutter as I sip my coffee. "I don't really know what to expect."

"Well it's just like going to the doctor, you go in to answer some questions, have your blood drawn, and then they give you some information that explains your results," Dad explains.”Oh and they will give a sort of presentation at the beginning.”

"What if I don't get the same color as you?" I ask.

"Plenty of families have multiple colors in their family; but most are in the same color wheel. No one ever gets something so different, you'll most likely get Green like us or maybe a Yellow or a Blue," Mom said.

I stir my cup of coffee thinking of how different I am from my mother not only in personality but in looks too. Her dark wavy hair lays around her shoulders, and her olive eyes have flecks of emerald, whereas my copper curls fall down my back, my blue eyes, and scattered freckles make me look like I am adopted. Mom told me it was a recessive gene on her dad's side that gave me my light complexion and ginger hair. She showed me a picture once of her great uncle. I did look like him, almost identical.The crack of the bacon frying snaps me back to breakfast.

"I guess I better get going soon then, my appointment is at nine," I say.

I head up to my room to finish getting ready. I stand at my dresser fixing my hair into a pony tale to try and contain my curls. They flow down past my shoulders. I straighten my black striped dress. I don't want to sway in any way by wearing color. Then I open the clasp to my grandmother's locket. She gave it to me on my fifteenth birthday. She told me it was her good luck charm, and that she would be passing that luck on to me. I close the clasp around my neck. Hopefully this really brings me luck today, I think and I turn out the door to my future.

The testing center is just like my dad said, a doctor's office. I sign in at the front desk and wait for them to call me back. The waiting room is cold, sterile and made to look overly happy. The chairs sit in rows with lots of empty seats around the room. Only about sixteen of us will be tested this session. I see a few I recognize from school but most of my friends have already been tested. They now have great careers based on their test results and have started new lives. We all said we would never let something change us but clearly this test changes everything.

“What color are you hoping to get?” the boy next to me asked. His hair was spiked slightly with gel and still looked wet.

“I don’t know, I have heard great things about being a purple and my parents are green. I have a few friends that are reds, blues and teals. But, I still don’t know much about the colors. Everyone talks about them secretly and then says, ‘you’ll find out at your ceremony’ it's annoying.”

“Same thing happens to me, I am kind of hoping for a red like my dad. He seems happy and successful. I’m Tyler by the way,” he said, sticking his hand out.

“Kayla,” I replied as I shook his hand. His touch shocked me a bit. The shocking feeling turns to nerves as the large wooden door at the end of the hall swings open. A small woman with short brunette hair, that flipped out all directions intentionally, stood there with a clipboard. She called out names and people lined up behind her.

“Turner” she called. I stood up and straightened my dress. I followed Tyler and the others who walked behind her. She led us to a room filled with what looked like a vending machine.

“Attention,” she called. “When it is your turn at the machine you will place your hand in the designated area and a laser will scan your fingerprints. Your information and photo should appear on the screen. It will ask if your information is correct. When you say yes, a small needle will come down and prick your finger and a blood sample will be collected. Any questions?”

No one said anything. So we all found a machine and began the process. It was quick and efficient. When I slid my hand in the opening, my information appeared and as soon as I said yes I felt the sting of a needle. The prick was so quick it shocked me more than it hurt. When the machine beeped and said thank you I pulled my hand out and noticed the small bandage on my index finger.

Once we all were finished we were led into a small auditorium. We all found a spot in the plush seats and noticed there were a handful of people standing on stage. One looked like a doctor, two others looked like number crunchers and Miles Oliver, the creator of the test. I only know who he is because of school. We would watch all of his conferences as the test was growing in popularity.

Miles stepped up to the microphone and the lights dimmed slightly. The screen behind him began to lower down.

“Good Morning my fine friends, today is a special day because today is the day that you find out who you are supposed to be. Today we will be taking some blood from you and after running a quick analysis we will bring you all back in here and announce your colors."

Announce our colors? No one mentioned that before. "Did you know they announced colors at the end?" I whispered to Tyler.

"No I didn't know about it, maybe it helps you meet others who are like you," he suggested.

I shrugged my shoulders and heard Miles continue to talk about what we already knew from school. I started looking around the dark auditorium, I couldn’t really make out any faces except for those who were closer to the stage lights.The movement of people along the aisles caught my attention. There were more people standing along the wall like they were waiting to escort people out. But Miles' discussion about the colors brought me back to the moment at hand.

“The colors are connected to personality traits and gauge you for what you will be successful for in the future. I like to think of my color as a way to describe not only who I am but also what I am capable of. For example we have seen a large number of criminals are associated with the color orange but that does not mean that only criminals are orange. Remember last year that girl in California, who was a pink, attacked her parents. So the colors are not an exact science but we are getting there,” Miles said. “To help you all understand we have a chart to show you. Can you turn on the presentation please.”

The wall lit up with a color coded chart that read:

Red = Active, energetic, optimistic,​​they want to add to this world, many officers and military personnel are this color. Business men and women also pull this color

Gold = Authority and Power, we have not seen this color yet

White = Purity or innocence; doctors and nurses are this color

Blue = Tranquil, calm, peaceful. Many of our priests or therapists are this color

Green = Healing, caring, nurturing. Many of our farmers and botanists are this color

Teal = Fun, calming and nurturing. We see many teachers as this color

Yellow = Hardworking, dedicated, good with their hands. Many mechanics, technicians and other blue collar worker are yellow

Orange = Dishonest, Sneaky, risk takers, they are either criminals or can be stunt people. We also see some firefighters and first responders this color

Pink = Pretty, relaxed and usually some kind of arts related. We see many creative people with the color pink.

Purple = Famous, celebrities, royalty. Regal, classic. Musicians, actors and creative people normally are this color. Those destined for success.

Disclaimer - These descriptions are not always correct, the data is still being tested and evaluated.

The microphone static brought our attention back to Miles. The doctor leaned over and whispered in his ear. “I was just informed that your results are in. It’s time to find out who you really are.”

We all lined up against the edge of the wall and headed toward the stage. “Adams” Miles calls. A tall blonde girl steps onto the stage, her long braid hangs over her shoulder. “Green,” Miles said as a flash of green light flares across the wall. She then was handed some paperwork and her picture was taken. The scene hit me with deja vu as it reminded me of graduation. The ceremony continued with other colors flashing around the room. Three blues, a few teals, a green and a red. Tyler was next.

“Red.” Tyler was so excited he jumped at the bright color flashing around the stage.

He headed down the stage as I walked to the edge of the stage. I stood there waiting, my heart started to race as the nervousness grew in my stomach. I felt my palms slick with sweat, I wiped them down my hips to dry them on my dress. Miles flipped the page and looked at my results and a look of fear and shock flashed across his face. “Turner,” he said.

“Gold”

The dark smoke covered the wall as the light faded away fast. I could feel my face flush as the whispers built around me. I grab my paperwork and head across the stage. I sit next to Tyler and hope the stares stop.

“Well at least you know you will do something great and you will be the first to do so,” he said reassuringly. “You have to be powerful and authoritative. The Leader’s fancy chart said so.”

His smile lifted the boulder that I felt growing in my throat. I hate being the center of attention and now that’s all I am. The first ever Gold. What does this mean for me? Miles finished up his speeches and we were all told to head out the doors. As I walked towards the door, I was stopped by a large man in a suit. “Mr. Oliver would like a minute of your time.”

Feeling like it wasn’t much of a choice I followed him to Mr. Oliver’s office. There he greeted me with a smile, “Kayla lovely to meet you.” he gestures for me to sit down

“It's an honor to meet you sir,” I say as I take a seat across from him.

“Do you know why you are here Kayla," I shook my head. "You are the first and only Gold, do you know that?” he said.

“I suspected, I have never heard of anyone being a Gold. What does that mean for me?” I ask.

“Well you will have a new role as our new leader,” he said.

“What? What do you mean?” I stutter.

“You will be the Queen of the Colors, the leader of our people.”