“What do you think you’re doing? You can’t give R187 candy!” he snatched it out of my hands.
“Why not, Dr. Vodola? If you don’t learn to let this little girl live, you’re going to ruin the whole experiment. If you keep doing so, we will be forced to take the little girl away from you. You’re destroying the experiment and proving to everyone out there that a clone can’t become part of society.” The woman said.
Dr. Green unwrapped a new shiny hard candy and gave it to me.
“Now, Sawyer, you’re not to lose her.”
I was excited, jumping up and down as I stood next to Sawyer before we went to the bus stop. I was nervous, but Dr. Vodola told me that the school was for kindergarten to fifth grade, so I would be able to go with Sawyer, who was going into third grade.
“I know, Dad.”
Sawyer rolled his greenish eyes then looked down at me. I was so happy to be getting out of the house. Not only was I going to leave the house, but I wasn’t being dragged to another meeting. I was leaving the house without Dr. Vodola. I even got a few new clothes and shoes instead of my shirt with the skirt. I still was sleeping in the corner of the lab, but I got to leave the house now.
“What do I tell the teacher my name is?”
I knew the man who was yelling at Dr. Vodola had said I needed a real name, but Dr. Vodola hadn’t given me one yet.
“Bye dad,” Sawyer called out as he pulled me out the door to go to the bus stop.
“Why are we in a rush?”
I nearly stumbled to keep up with Sawyer before he slowed down.
“Mom used to call you Madeline when we were little.”
Sawyer was focused on the ground as he held my hand, and we headed for the corner of the street.
“I didn’t think I had a mom?”
“You don’t. My mom called you Madeline.”
I was confused.
“Where is your mom?”
Sawyer let go of my hand and kept walking. His steps were longer than mine.
“Sawyer! Slow down. I can’t keep up with you.”
Sawyer stopped as I ran to get him. Sawyer’s eyes were on the ground.
“I don’t want to talk about it.”
I knew that tone. I got it from Dr. Vodola all the time.
“What’s school like Sawyer?”
He sighed.
“You’ll see.”
I was sitting at my desk nervously as the other kids were outside playing. I folded my hands on my desk as I rested my head on them. The other kids didn’t like me. They stared at me, called me a freak, threw a crayon at me because I knew the answers, and they didn’t, pulled my hair, and kept me out of their games. Then to top it off, a little boy threw sand at me.
I could hear the laughter from the other kids as I felt a tear fall from one of my eyes. Today had not been what I thought school would be like. I couldn’t just sit there any longer because it was boring, so I got up and walked over to the shelf of books. I was smaller than the other kids, and I hadn’t noticed it until we were in line. I tried to get the book from one of the shelves while standing on my toes. Finally, I got the book and sat next to the door to watch the others while I read.
“Madeline, why don’t you come out here and play?”
I looked up from the book to see my teacher. She seemed to be the same age as the Doctor with reddish-blonde hair. She was a smiley person and was genuinely lovely, unlike the Doctor, though.
“They don’t like me.”
I stared back at the book.
“How about you sit down next to me then? It’s a nice day?”
I glanced at her again as she held out a hand. I nodded my head as I put the book on the shelf and held her hand. I followed her into the blinding light and sat next to her on the bench.
“I saw you had a book. Can you read?”
“Yes, the Doctor was teaching me some things like you were doing today. I can read chapter books.”
“What else did he teach you?”
I tried to think back as I watched the other kids on the swings.
“Um, he taught me math, reading, writing, science, and a few other things.”
“How long has he been teaching you?”
“For a while, I don’t know.”
“Do you have any friends?”
I looked up at her smiling face as she tried to be sweet. Dropping my gaze to the ground as I watched my feet hang because they were too short to touch the ground. I just shook my head. I noticed that I had something else different than the other kids. They all had last names, and I barely even had a first name; with this coming back to me, my eyes started to burn.
“Oh, Madeline, it’s okay.”
“Even Sawyer doesn’t like me.”
“Who’s Sawyer?”
“Sawyer is the Doctor’s son. Sawyer is furious at me all the time.”
“Does he go to this school?”
I nodded my head as I brushed away the tear.
“What grade is he in?”
“Sawyer is in third grade.”
She stood up and told the teacher next to her something. She grinned at me and held her hand out. I took it, and we walked through the classroom
