Alicard and his sister split up as they walked into the school. They both had their own lives and friend groups and rarely mingled with each other at school. Just inside the school and off to the right were two girls and three guys that Alicard knew. The two girls, Erica, and Maril, were both petite women. Erica wore glasses and always sported a frown, while Maril was usually smirking like something dirty was always going through her mind. Out of the three guys, Jason was the tallest at 6'3 but still shorter than Alicard. Randy was the shortest of them all including the girls, being only 5'3. Last but not least was Mark.
Mark looked like the kind of guy who wouldn't stand out in a crowd. He had average height and looks; he was thin and lean just like everyone else. Surprisingly though, he didn't have green hair. Mark was actually the son of a three-star General. Since Mark's family had a much greater than average wealth, they were able to afford to have the radiation regularly removed from their bodies. Since there was no radiation, his hair had grown with a natural blonde color that was rarely seen even in the old times.
Alicard chatted with his friends for a while before the bell rang, signifying they had but five minutes to get to their first class of the day. The group walked to their first class while sharing their hopes and dreams in regard to the upcoming selection.
#
The first class they had was homeroom. After the teacher walked in, he shared some pleasantries and then called role.
"Since today is the last day of school and you all have already finished all of your tests, today will be an easy day. I'll start by going over a bit about what to expect for the life path selection on Monday and we'll finish with the graduation ceremony for our class. There will be no lessons today. Does anyone have any questions?"
A few students in class raised their hands.
"You, there." -he pointed to Abigail in the back of the classroom. – "What is your question?"
"Yes, Sir!"
Abigail stood up to ask her question.
"Will the selection for both cities be held together in the same place, or will we do it separately?"
"It will take all day just with our city so they will have their own in Restoration City."
The teacher pointed to another student.
"What is your question?"
The teacher went on to answer four more questions before no one else raised their hand. Alicard was listening intently all the while. This being a major point in his life, he wanted to make sure that he understood fully.
"I'm sure all of you know the reason for the selection so I will not bore you with that since they're going to tell you again anyways on Monday. There are four major groupings in regard to the life paths; there is service, government, education, and production. All four groups offer lives that you can live in comfort, but government and education jobs offer some significant benefits.
These benefits include things like being able to remove radiation from the body, having access to certain more nutritional foods, and even moving to higher echelons of society. For example, as a teacher, I'm at the top of the lower class, but the vice-principal and the principal are both solidly in the middle class. A three-star General like Mark's father is even upper class."
Alicard continued to listen to the teacher as he went on for the next few hours about different jobs that you could be assigned to and about the class system. After what seemed like forever, the bell rang for lunch time. After they have lunch, it would finally be time for graduation!
#
Back inside of the classroom, the teacher had set up everything for the graduation ceremony. A podium was set up where his desk use to be and there was a table full of diplomas to hand out. Even centuries after the collapse of the original sun, some things just didn't change.
One by one, students were called up to the podium to receive their diploma and say a few words to the rest of the class. Afterwards, the teacher took their picture with a camera that printed the photos immediately. Since it went in alphabetical order, it wasn't long before Alicard heard his name be called.
As Alicard walked up to the front of the room, excitement started to bubble forth. He couldn't help but breakout into a huge cheesy grin. As he stepped up onto the podium, he tried to think of whatever words he should say.
"Here's to one of us becoming King!"
He threw both of his hands up into the air as the class applauded.
"I just hope it's not me!"
The entire class, including the teacher, broke out into a fit of laughter. Each and every one of them wouldn't mind being King. Although it was undoubtedly the most honorable job in the world and one of the most difficult, the perks that came with it were unimaginable. For one, it was the only job that didn't force retirement at 60. Not only would you be the King of the world, but you would be so for 100 years!
Some time had passed and eventually the entire class had all gone up to the podium. After it was all said and done, the teacher went up to the podium and prepared to give a farewell speech.
"It has been a wonderful year with you all. We've laughed and cried and shared many moments together. I wish you all the best of luck in regard to your life path selection on Monday! Maybe we'll see each other again someday."
#
Alicard and the others were talking after class ended.
"How about we all go out for a nice dinner? It'll be my treat. It's the least we can do since there's a chance, we'll never see each other again after today."
Mark spoke to the group while wrapping his arms around Alicard and Maril.
"What do you think guys?"
"Yea" -he tossed his arm around Mark—"That's a great idea."
"I guess."
She shrugged Mark's arm off of her shoulder.
"I don't have anything better to do."
"It's decided then! Let's meet in an hour at Breezeway Restaurant!"
Mark took off running home and yelled back after he was a few feet away.
"Don't be late guys!"
The others all said their goodbyes and promises to meet up in an hour before dispersing. Alicard wasn't left alone long before Alice popped back up. She then proceeded to tell him all about her day and the plans that she made with her friends. It turned out that her friend group was doing something similar but there wasn't anyone quite as wealthy as Mark in their group. Because of that, they decided to all just go to the park and have a picnic.
Alicard told his sister about his day as well as they walked home. She was a bit jealous that he was going to a fancy restaurant with his group but nonetheless she was happy for him. The walk home seemed quicker than the walk to school even though it took the same amount of time. He could feel that his life was finally about to peak. The future held so many mysteries and a whole lot of intrigue.
'I wonder what my life is going to be like in the future…'
Upon arriving home, the siblings were both embraced by their parents. Freya was sobbing and mumbling something about her children being all grown up while Drake just stood silently with a warm smile on his face. Few things made a parent happier than knowing they did a good job in raising their children. Finally, they told their parents that they had made plans with their friends to go and celebrate soon and left to go get ready.
#
Alicard left his house and felt the warm radiation fueled sun beaming down on him. He was no longer wearing the school uniform but had traded it in for a stylish fit. White sneakers adorned his feet, while the black pants had been traded for a pair of comfortable blue jeans. Gone was the school shirt and bow tie. Replacing it was a plain white polo. With a light sigh, he walked off down the road toward the restaurant.
#
The Breezeway Restaurant was the most popular restaurant among the middle class. It wasn't nice enough to be frequented by the upper class, but it was also too expensive to be afforded by the lower class. By the time that he got to the restaurant, Mark, Maril, and Abigail were already there. After waiting for a few minutes, the other two finally showed up. They all went inside and found a table to sit at.
The waitress came and took their orders. Mark could be seen whispering something into her ear, but he didn't say anything until after she left.
"I've got a big surprise for you guys! Since we're finally out of school, we are allowed to drink!"
Mark grabbed a bottle of clear liquid from the waitress who had just returned.
"This is my biggest treat towards you all! Let's have some fun tonight!"
Alicard was amazed. He had never seen any alcohol before. Not only was he not old enough until now, but it was also incredibly expensive. If that was it, then his parents might have tried some in their lives, but it was also a restricted drink. You had to be at least of the middle class in order to buy it.
Mark poured each of them a glass as the food was being brought out. Laughter rang across the table nonstop. Alicard could feel his head getting a bit light and the colors around him started to become more vibrant. It wasn't long before he was seeing double.