Issuu

Normal

“No one is too ordinary for our agency,” she said, handing him a ticket. She looked him up and down before she continued. “I don’t think you’ll have anything to worry about. Why, if you did, you wouldn’t be here, would you?” Avery grasped his ticket in his palm and went to the waiting room to go sit with the rest of the non-inducted. The girl with the green hair sat next to him, her leg shaking to the 6/8 time signature that blasted through her Walkman headphones. Across from him, a young man who resembled Parliaments and Red Bull picked at the tattered waistline of his sweatpants. “109,” a monotone voice boomed over the intercom. PRB stopped picking at his pants and wiped his nose with the back of his palm. Then, he made his way over to the induction area, where they collected his ticket and let him through the turnstile. Adjacent to the turnstile stood the door that they sent you through once all was said and done. Avery caught a glimpse of someone as they exited. Hair parted neatly to the right. Belt buckle shined, shirt tucked in, collar pleated. A watch to top it all off. So…normal. Avery gulped and thought back to what the lady at the front desk said. Why, if you did, you wouldn’t be here, would you? It’s a sacrifice you’ll have to make eventually. At least that’s what his parents always told him. He picked at his fingernails, nervous. “Are you scared?” Green Hair asked. She had taken off her headphones. “No,” Avery replied, though he was. “Liar,” she said. “I was the first time. Everyone is.” Avery was confused. The first time? Isn’t there…only one? “Couldn’t stand it anymore. Ripped it out.” She showed Avery a squareshaped scar behind her ear. “As always, impulsivity got the best of me,” she continued, “Word of advice: Go along with it. I’ve seen where not doing so takes you. Just…go along with it. It gets better.”