Unchanged Read Online Free Page A

Kaelen commands again. This time he grabs my chin and holds it steady. It might be the only part of me not trembling.
    â€œHe’s nothing. He doesn’t matter anymore. What is this about? Why are you reacting this way?”
    â€œI … I … don’t know.” My voice is shattered. Barely recognizable.
    It’s the truth, though. I don’t know. I don’t understand why his mere presence turns me into this quivering mess. It’s like every time I see him, I open up some kind of poorly covered chasm inside of me. Some tunnel to the past that I can’t disconnect myself from. He’s not my father. He never was. He’s just a scientist who got too close. Who broke his vows to the Objective.
    â€œHe’s … he’s…” I go on.
    â€œHe’s irrelevant. He’s a traitor.”
    I nod.
    â€œAnd you are not.”
    â€œI … was .”
    â€œNot anymore.”
    I nod again.
    â€œDr. A fixed you. He gave you another chance. You should be grateful.”
    I try to keep my teeth from clattering. “I … I … am.”
    â€œGood. Now use that. Use whatever you’re feeling right now to reconfirm your commitment to the Objective. You are not the person you used to be. You are not a traitor like him.”
    The way he says “him” I’m not sure if he’s referring to Rio or to the boy from my memories. The one who helped me escape. But I know better than to ask. It doesn’t matter anyway.
    I’m not like either of them.
    â€œOkay?” he asks me.
    I take in a shuddering breath. “Okay.”
    He leans in and places a gentle kiss on my lips. “Good.” He wraps his fingers around mine and gives me a tug. “C’mon. Let’s get back. Evening meal starts in a few minutes.”

 
    5
    WATCHFUL
    The Residential Sector is large and well landscaped. It’s where most of the compound employees spend their free time. In the center there is a complex of five tall apartment buildings connected to the rest of the sector with landscaped pathways. These are the housing units for the scientists, employees, and their families.
    Kaelen and I live in the Owner’s Estate with Dr. A and his staff. It’s a beautiful house at the back of the sector that was modeled after a pre–Civil War Southern plantation.
    I’ve heard some people complain about how out of place it looks among the ultramodern architecture of the rest of the compound, but Dr. A doesn’t seem to mind. Plus, he’s placed VersaScreens in every window, so when you peer out from within, it looks like the house is surrounded by green meadows and cherry blossoms.
    When we reach the entrance to the sector, a MagBall game has commenced on the Rec Field. The few teenagers who live on the compound—children of Diotech employees—like to play it in the evenings, after the weather has cooled down.
    They all stop and stare at us as we pass, letting the silver oblong ball linger in the air, untouched and unguarded. A few of them whisper to each other.
    I have grown accustomed to this reaction. It’s become an everyday occurrence.
    It doesn’t bother me.
    â€œYou and Kaelen are so special,” Dr. A likes to tell me. “You will elicit awe and envy everywhere you go. You were kept a secret for so many years. Give the Normates time to get used to the idea of your existence.”
    That’s what Dr. A calls them. Normates. An amalgamation of normal and primate . It amuses me that he uses the word so loosely, when he himself is plagued by the same limitations they are.
    I stop walking and stare back at them. I don’t mean it to be a challenge, but they appear to take it that way, because they all look away and return to their game, pretending that they don’t notice me. I watch the action for a minute. I know the rules of MagBall from an upload. When I asked Dr. A if I could join in one time,