I sat at the breakfast table, the steady hum of morning filling the kitchen around me—the clink of forks against plates, the soft murmur of my family talking, The sunlight filtered through the window, casting a warm glow over everything. For a moment, everything felt normal, like any other morning.
I tried to steady my thoughts, pushing aside the tension in my chest as I glanced at the clock. The pre-trials were just around the corner and sadly I had just turned 18 a few weeks ago, so I was of age now to take them, and the weight of that fact settled heavily on my shoulders. The trials were always an ominous presence, looming over us as the days ticked by. But this morning—today—was different. Today, everything was about to change.
My mom was chatting casually with Raegan about something trivial—probably work, or maybe it was the latest town gossip. I wasn't really listening. My mind was already drifting, preparing for the long day ahead. I was lost in the rhythm of my spoon stirring my oatmeal when the unexpected happened.
The sharp crackle of the speakers that was laced throughout the city broke through the air, pulling my attention towards the barely together window as the morning announcements began. It wasn't unusual to hear the usual blur of voices at this time, but something about the tone of the announcement made me pause mid-bite. My stomach clenched.
"Due to overpopulation in this year's census," the speaker's voice rang out, clear and chilling, "this year's pre-trials will be lowering the age limit... anyone ages 16 to 20 will be required to participate in this year's pre-trial."
The words felt like a physical blow. My hand trembled, and my spoon slipped from my grip, falling onto my plate with a loud clatter. It echoed through the room, a harsh reminder of what had just been said. My heart raced as my mind scrambled to process the announcement, but it felt like my thoughts were stalling, unable to catch up with the reality sinking in. but the shock wasn't for my behalf I was already getting prepared to go. no, it was for him. my younger brother.
Across the table, Raegan froze. His blue eyes went wide, a flicker of disbelief crossing his face. his black hair similar to mine covered his eyes ever so slightly. His shoulders tensed as he sat there, still in his pajamas, clearly caught off guard by the announcement. He wiped a bead of sweat from his forehead, a nervous laugh escaping him as he tried to mask the panic creeping into his voice.
"And here I thought I could stay in my pajamas all day," he joked weakly, forcing a chuckle that didn't reach his eyes. "Better get ready, haha."
The words fell flat, and I could hear the fear in his attempt to sound casual. My stomach twisted into knots as I tried to absorb what was happening. It felt like the ground had shifted beneath me. The air grew heavy, thick with tension, and everything seemed to slow down, each moment stretching longer than the last.
I couldn't hold it in any longer. A surge of anger rose up from deep within me. This can't be happening, I thought, clenching my fists tightly at my sides. "They've got to be joking," I muttered under my breath, my voice tight with frustration and disbelief. The words didn't seem to help. They didn't make anything feel less real.
The room fell silent, the usual buzz of family chatter gone, replaced by an uncomfortable stillness. The weight of the announcement hung in the air, oppressive and suffocating. My mom reached out, her hand brushing gently against my arm, but I pulled away, too consumed by the swirl of emotions within me to be comforted. Her touch was warm, but it felt distant—insufficient against the storm inside me. this isn't fair to Raegan. I thought once more.
The kitchen, which had always felt like a safe, warm haven, now felt cold. The walls, once familiar and inviting, seemed to close in around me, making it harder to breathe, the tick of the clock, the faint sound of birds outside—all of it seemed too loud now. Everything felt wrong.
I looked at Raegan again. He met my gaze, his expression mirroring my own—confusion, disbelief, and a raw, simmering fear. There was a wordless understanding between us, a silent acknowledgment of the shift in our reality. The pre-trials weren't just an event anymore; they were a force barreling toward us, unstoppable and unforgiving.
The uncertainty of what lay ahead gnawed at me. I could feel it deep in my gut, a pit of dread that only seemed to grow with each passing second. The pre-trials were supposed to be a distant concern, something others had to worry about. But now, it wasn't just a shadow on the horizon—it was right here, right now, waiting for us.
I swallowed hard, trying to ignore the tightness in my throat, but it wouldn't go away. It wasn't just about the pre-trials anymore; it was about what this meant for all of us. The fear of the unknown, the fear of what might happen if we couldn't meet the expectations placed on us—it all felt like too much.
I glanced around the table. My mom, had grown silent too, caught in the weight of the news. no one spoke. What was there to say? We all knew that nothing would be the same after today. The calm, ordinary morning we'd been living in just moments ago was gone, replaced by an overwhelming sense of dread.
I looked back at Raegan. He was fidgeting with his hands now, his face pale, and for the first time in a long while, I saw how scared he truly was. The future we had imagined for ourselves had just been ripped away, replaced with something far more terrifying.
The pre-trials weren't a distant event anymore. They were here. And they were going to change everything.
The silence in the kitchen stretched on, the weight of the announcement still hanging heavy over us. But then, my mom, still pale from being under the weather, let out a soft sigh. She wiped her forehead with the back of her hand, Raegan's voice finally piped back up, faint but still there. "It's for the greater good," he said, the words sounding strange as they left his lips. "Let's get ready, or else We're going to be late." his voice wavered slightly, betraying his worry as he glanced between mom and me, trying to mask the fear in his eyes.
I stood up, heart still racing, and began making my way to the door. But before I could leave, I heard mothers fragile voice.
"Raegan... you're not really going, are you?" Her question hung in the air, fragile as glass. It was hard to tell whether she was speaking out of concern for him or for herself. The illness that had kept her usually in bed for the past few months seemed to worsen by the second.
Raegan, always the one to downplay his own fears, forced a smile that didn't quite reach his eyes. He let out a strained chuckle, though I could hear the nervousness behind it. "Not much of a choice, huh?" His attempt to make light of the situation fell flat, and I could tell he was just as scared as I was.
Mom sighed deeply, her shoulders slumping with the weight of it all. "I thought only one of you would be going today, but now both of you?" She looked at us hopelessly, her voice trembling ever so slightly as she spoke. "I love you boys, just remember don't do your best on that test. They only take the highest scoring participants to the echelon trials... remember that."
Raegan and I exchanged a glance, the tension between us momentarily lifted by the absurdity of her words. We both nodded in unison. "Yes ma'am!" we said in a half-hearted chorus.
Mom smiled weakly, and I could see the strain in her face, but her eyes were full of affection. "Just... be careful," she whispered, her voice barely above a murmur.
"We'll be back by dinner time, don't worry," I said, my own voice steadying as I tried to reassure her. Raegan gave a quick nod of agreement, and with that, we both grabbed our jackets and made our way out the door.
The world outside seemed eerily quiet as we walked toward the transport station, the weight of the day's events pressing down on us. The pre-trials. The looming uncertainty. My stomach churned, but I forced myself to push it aside. It didn't help to dwell on it. I had to focus.
The ride to the testing area was long, but the silence between Raegan and me wasn't uncomfortable. We both had our own thoughts to work through, trying to prepare ourselves for what was about to happen. When we finally arrived at the testing area, the first thing I noticed was the state of the place.
It looked... abandoned.
"Man, this place is a dump," Raegan said, a faint chuckle in his voice as he surveyed the decaying structures and rundown buildings that surrounded us. The once-pristine facility now looked worn, like it had been forgotten by everyone who was supposed to take care of it. There was a lingering sense of neglect in the air, the peeling paint on the walls and the overgrown weeds creeping through cracks in the pavement.
I glanced around, taking it all in. "Tier 5 always has been," I replied, my voice flat. The truth of it hit me harder than I expected. The pre-trials weren't supposed to be a privilege or an honor—they were a harsh reality of our society, and this place, with its crumbling infrastructure, felt like the perfect reflection of our tier's status.
Raegan kicked at a piece of debris on the ground, sending it skittering across the dirt. He didn't seem to mind the state of the place too much—he was used to it by now. "Yeah, but could you imagine if we lived in Tier 1?" he said, a wistful tone creeping into his voice. "Man, that's luxury."
I thought about it for a moment. Tier 1—the upper echelon, where everything was shiny and perfect, where the air smelled cleaner, and the buildings gleamed. I couldn't imagine living there. But then again, I couldn't imagine living anywhere else either.
"I'd be fine living in Tier 3," I said, my words a little more grounded. "At least they've got decent food there."
Raegan snorted, clearly amused. "Yeah, but could you imagine the kind of people they must have living there? All polished and perfect. No thanks." He gave a half-hearted shrug, but there was a hint of bitterness in his tone. "I wonder what I did in my past life to be born into bum fuck Egypt of a tier..." His words trailed off into a half-joking laugh. "Maybe I was a murderer, haha!"
I looked at him, and for the briefest moment, we both shared a quiet understanding of what he was really saying. It was a defense mechanism, something we both used to cope with the hopelessness of our situation. The idea that we had somehow earned our place in the shittiest tier of society, as if it was some cosmic punishment, was absurd, but it was easier to joke about it than to face the reality.
The truth was, none of us had a choice. We were born where we were born, and we had to make the best of it.
We stood there for a moment longer, taking in the rundown testing grounds, before we were herded toward the entrance. The fear gnawing at me grew stronger, but I forced myself to breathe, to focus. Today was just another day.