“We can go with them,” Lazlo said, watching me stare after Blue and Max. “We could go right now.”
“No, it"s too late,” I shook my head and looked at him. “You know I can"t.”
“I don"t want you die in here.” His dark eyes were begging me to leave with him.
“Maybe I won"t. I mean, if anybody can survive this, it"s me, right?” I smirked at him.
“I know you"re joking, but it"s also true.” He took my hands in his, squeezing them tightly. “I"ll be right outside. Okay? I"ll stay right here, in this quarantine, for as long as you do.
And I promise you that when you"re ready, when you"ve had enough, when they"ve had enough, I"ll come and get you out.”
“Okay,” I nodded.
He put his hand on my cheek, using his thumb to brush away a tear, then he leaned in to kiss me. When he stopped, he closed his eyes and rested his forehead against mine. I put my hand on his chest, feeling his heart pound beneath it.
“You should go. I don"t want you getting caught.” I swallowed hard. “It"d make it harder for you to break in to see me again.”
“I will be back,” Lazlo promised.
“I know,” I smiled.
When he left, I leaned back against the door, gasping for breath. This hurt so much more than I thought it would. I was so much more afraid too. I stared at the small white room, knowing this might be my home for the rest of my life.
Unless they found a cure first. Or I just got too fed up, and took Tatum and Lazlo up on their offers. As much as this sucked, maybe it didn"t have to be forever.
I waited a half hour, hoping that gave Blue enough time to get out of here. Then I pushed the button by the door, the one that would summon soldiers and doctors. I went over and sat in the dentist chair in the middle of the room, and I waited to see how the rest of my life would begin.
## #
About the author:
Amanda Hocking is a lifelong Minnesotan obsessed with John Hughes and Jim Henson.
In between making collages and drinking too much Red Bull, she writes young adult urban fantasy and paranormal romance.
The first four books in her vampire series – My Blood Approves, Fate, Flutter, and Wisdom – are out now. Letters to Elise: A Peter Townsend Novella will be out Christmas 2010.
The first book in her new trilogy – Switched – is available now, and the sequel – Torn – will be out Fall 2010.
Connect with Me Online:
Twitter: http://twitter.com/amanda_hocking
My blog: http://amandahocking.blogspot.com/
Facebook Fan Page: http://www.facebook.com/amandahockingfans Bonus Excerpt!
Read an excerpt from Robert Duperre’s young adult dystopia The Fall
Prelude
The new day"s sun peers out over the rippling ocean water.Its light transforms the waves into an army of wild horses that pound the shore"s pristine sand. It is so bright that it seems as if the days will go on like this forever
From the rear of this gleaming white landscape rises a sheer cliff.A young girl stands on its precipice, the wind causing her long red hair to flutter. She gazes out at the deceptively barren sea, drinking in the wonder of its unknown treasures.
This girl of fourteen knows little more than the island kingdom she calls home.She was just a baby, an untapped vessel, when she and her clan arrived. This thought causes her mind to wander. Though she was too young to remember, the stories her Teacher has told her paint a vivid picture. They were delivered to paradise on a single ship, fifty-four individuals of varying backgrounds, landing on this very beach. They were alone and afraid, with nothing but their thoughts and ambition to surge them through each passing day. Yet in spite of their isolation, in spite of the struggle their civilized brains experienced in trying to adapt to an uncivilized realm, they managed.
The isolation lifted when the others came.Ship after ship – some large fishing boats like their own, some nothing more than rafts – drifted in from every direction, lured to Eden by the same unseen Star of Bethlehem that guided her own people. A hundred different factions with almost as many different languages, they were still greeted with the love of lost siblings. Soon their society on this lush little island numbered in the thousands. The early struggles with communication were enormous ( At times I wish we had a Mandarax, Teacher had told her once, and of course made her explore the meaning of such an odd statement for herself) but again, they managed, just as they had in the years leading up to their departure from their once and future homelands. Nothing as trivial as language could stop the forward momentum of survival and expansion.
Teacher is full of such wisdom-filled nuggets.