SIXTEEN | ORANGE

I smoothed down the thighs of my dungarees, fidgeting uncomfortably in the corner of the room. I’d decided, at the last second, to wait in the doorway for Kathrena, so that the two of us could sit together.  I was concerned that she hadn’t come to school with me today, and I’d found – to my utmost surprise – that I’d missed her.

She seemed like she needed a friend at the moment. I’d always had Falmer to rely on, whereas Kathrena tended to keep to herself. Though she was open with Aradia and Ezrand, and, in fact, with the other Clan members, I didn’t think that there were any that she could call a close friend. She was open in all of the ways that I was not, but she seemed lonely. So I waited for her, my toe tapping in anticipation, in excitement, of finding out what the meeting was about.

Besides, I thought, it was strange indeed that she’d missed school today. Kathrena had a neatly