NADINE'S P.O.V
I saw the rude soldier again in the dining hall.
He didn't seem so rude when he was around his friends but as soon as his eyes locked with mine, the scowl returned. It was almost as if he kept it for me- or people like me. I saw him scowl the same way at the rest of us.
Father always told me that people hated us for who we were, they hated us because we got certain privileges and they didn't but it wasn't our fault. We allowed them live with us, we fed them and clothed them, the only catch was that they had to keep us safe. It was a fair exchange in my books but not everyone thought that way.
"How did your talk with Joshua go?" father asked snapping me out of my thoughts.
He hadn't said a word about it since I returned from training but I knew he had been itching to say something. Now that I knew what he really intended, I was a bit annoyed. I had no interest in being turned into a breeding mare by him or anyone else.
"Fine," I answered curtly.
I couldn't speak as I wanted, we were in public and if there was one thing father hated, it was being disrespected in public. People looked up to him and he loved his image arguably more than he loved a lot of things- sometimes even me.
"Don't be stubborn, Nadine," he snapped. "Did you discuss anything?"
"If you're talking about whether I will be his wife and have his babies, then no, we didn't discuss it," I whispered harshly. "I don't appreciate decisions being made about me without consulting me first."
He snorted. "Please, you would be dead if I didn't make decisions for you. We have to pull our weight, Nadine, there is no world outside of here. If you're looking for a love story then you're never going to find it. This way, you can ensure the survival of the human race and secure a place for your child."
I exhaled deeply but said nothing. I knew that nothing I said would change his mind so there was no need trying, especially not when I couldn't win. I loved being alive, but sometimes I wondered if it would have been easier if I was among the people who chose to kill themselves when the outbreak started.
Living here was like living in a prison. Everything I did, everything I ate or said was carefully monitored. I couldn't even take a shit without someone knowing. It got tiring very fast.
"Why are we here?" I asked instead.
The dining hall was meant to be for eating but most people preferred to eat on their own. Now, we only used it whenever someone wanted to make an announcement, and by someone, I meant General Trent.
I could count on one hand the number of times I had seen the general. He kept to himself mainly and only tolerated the presence of some of his closest confidantes- one of whom was my father. Dad never spoke of his meetings with the general, only that I was too young to understand.
He was an older man, with greying hair and harsh eyes that made one quiver. I didn't like him much because there was something about him that just unsettled me.
When he walked up to the dais, everyone fell silent. "Thank you all for coming. As you are aware, earlier today, there was a siren. I know there have been some concerns but there is nothing to worry about."
I heard a low snort from my left and I turned to find some of the soldiers mumbling amongst themselves. It was clear they didn't agree with his choice of words but no one paid them any attention.
If they didn't agree then surely something was wrong. They were the ones who had to go out. Was Trent lying to protect us from worry?
"Nadine, focus," father hissed and I sharply turned back to Trent who had continued speaking.
"I want to assure you all that there is nowhere safer than here. We are far out of the reach of those monsters but for safety precautions, there will be no explorations for the next few days. The soldiers will be assigned to different families, do be sure to treat them with the utmost kindness and respect."
As he finished speaking, some women went round handing out envelopes. One of them got to our table and placed a small notecard in front of us. On it was a single name- Caine.
"Do you know who this is?" I asked my father who just waved me away.
"They're all the same to me," he stood to his feet. "Wait here, the soldier will take you back to the room."
Before I had the chance to respond, he was already walking out. I wanted to call out to him but decided against it, realizing that it would only piss him off. I let him leave and watched as the soldiers started making their way to their families.
I watched as a burly soldier with shaggy dark hair made his way over to Joshua's family and frowned when Mr. Pickett dismissed him. I wasn't too privileged that I couldn't see how soldiers were treated sometimes.
"Are you going to sit there all day?" I turned to the sound of the voice.
It was the same man from earlier- the one who had bumped into me in the hallway and he did not look pleased to see me. His eyes were narrowed as he stared at me and his hands were crossed over his chest in what seemed to be annoyance.
"I'm waiting for-"
Before I could finish, he dropped a note card in front of me. There was one word on it- Tyler- that was my last name.
"You must be Caine," I held out my hand to him. "It's nice to meet you."
He stared down at my hand for a full minute until I got uncomfortable enough and stuck it back by my side.
"Look, I'm sorry about earlier," I began. "We just got off on the wrong foot and-"
"I don't need your apology, Just stay out of my way and we'll be fine."
My cheeks burned. "There's no need to be an ass."
"I'm not here to be your friend, princess, if that's what you're looking for then you can get someone else. Me and you are not the same."
"I'm just trying to be nice."
"Then don't."