The Bones of the Forest

  ***

  Amanda enrolled for school the next day. She had only fifteen students in her graduating class – a definite change from the 350 in her city school. Like her, they had all recently moved from the city because a parent had gotten a job for the pharmaceutical company.

  Unlike her, the rest of them lived in the small new town. The town had a single school for all grades, a grocery store, a pharmacy, two sit-down restaurants, a deli, a hamburger place, and a dozen or so shops. Most of the shops were owned by spouses of people who worked for the pharmaceutical company.

  On the first day of school, no one said a word to her. In fact, no one said much of anything, except when the teacher called on them. Amanda figured they had just gotten out of quarantine like her and were shy. She sat down next to one of the other girls at lunch, “I’m Amanda.”

  “Kylie.”

  “Have you lived here long?”

  “Three months tomorrow. How about you?”

  “I just got through quarantine yesterday.”

  “Do you miss the city?”

  “Not so much. How about you?”

  “I hate it here. And I’m going to say so on my next interview. Do you think they’ll send me back?”

  “You have to go through another interview?”

  “Don’t you?”

  “No. At least I don’t think so.” Amanda thought back on what they’d said to her yesterday. She knew her mother had to go back in a month to see how the pills they’d prescribed were working. But as far as she knew, she was home free.

  “All the kids I talk to have to go twice a year. Just to make sure the dosage is right on the vitamins. You know, they don’t put vitamins in the water out here. It means we could die. I almost did.”

  “You almost died?”

  “Sure,” Kylie lowered her voice. “About three weeks after we moved out here, I started hearing voices.”

  “What did they say?”

  “They told me I was worthless and that I should just get it over with.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “You know, off myself.”

  “Good thing you didn’t,” Amanda was dumbfounded. She had heard of suicide happening in the past – Marilyn Monroe, Ernest Hemingway, some of the terrorists in prison. But she’d never known anyone who actually considered it.

  Kylie shrugged, “I guess. Anyway, I told my mother what I was feeling. She’s a pharmacist, so she knew right away what was wrong. She called one of her friends in the city and they hooked me up with some vitamin replacement pills to last until my first interview. Now I get them legitimately, of course. Just like everyone else.”

  “What does everyone do for fun around here?”

  “Fun?” Kylie looked confused for a minute. “Oh, there’s a movie theater. And they say they’re going to put in a skating rink, but it might not be ready this winter. Some of the kids hang out at The Grill on the Hill. Darryl’s Mom owns it, so Darryl and his friends get a discount.” Kylie pointed to a good-looking blonde boy sitting with each arm around a different girl.

  “Which one’s his girlfriend?” Amanda asked.

  “Neither. They both just hang out with him for the discounted food. No one really likes Darryl. His father’s one of the top scientists at the company and Darryl lets it go to his head.”

  “Thanks for the warning.”

  “You would have figured it out yourself sooner or later.”

  Just then a bell sounded. “Guess it’s time to go back to class,” Amanda said.

  “Yeah. Another exciting afternoon of Math, History, and Physical Education.” Kylie stood up and started back to the classroom. Amanda walked beside her.