The Azuli by Cassidy Shay (best beach reads of all time TXT) 📕

doubt my determination. I will get out of here. I will be gone in a days, and you’ll never see me again.” I walked out of the room then, but just stood in the hall for a moment. I stood still and silent as I cooled down, and then headed to Jack’s room.
When I got there, no one else was in the small room. I sat down on the bed, hoping that Jack would show up soon, but he didn’t. When the bell for dinner rang, I headed to Macy’s room, where Collin would be expecting me. I didn’t have to wait long.
I heard his cart before I saw him. There was a squeaky wheel that always gave him away. I waited until he was in the room, and as soon as he stepped through the door, I pounced on him.
I grabbed his face and brought it down to mine. Our lips met, and something inside me exploded. The kiss was vicious. My lips, hungry for his, took more than they gave back. He was much more submissive, obeying my silent commands. He gave what I wanted to take, and absorbed the small amount that I gave.
After a few moments, we broke apart. His eyes held hurt, but also passion. “I thought I missed seeing you earlier,” I said. “It scared me to death. I couldn’t imagine not seeing you when there are so few days left.”
“Don’t worry. If I had been here at lunch, I would have come back during dinner to see you. I won’t let you get away without seeing me every day. I need to see you.” He wrapped his arms around my shoulders, and I folded into him. It was perfect.
He kissed me again, but it was a soft, sweet kiss. We broke apart and I started laughing. “What’s so funny?” he asked.
“The whole situation. It’s pointless to even bother growing our relationship because I’m leaving so soon. But we do it anyway. Why are we such irrational human beings?”
Now it was his turn to laugh. “Because we love each other, Penny. You do strange things for the ones you love.” I stepped back and studied him for a while, thinking of the time I had used those same words earlier in the day.
“I know,” I said, and then sat on the bed. I decided to change the subject. “Carl was writing. He has been for years, apparently. He’s been writing ever since he came here. His poem is… Absolutely amazing.” I sighed. I didn’t know why I chose to tell Collin about Carl, but I knew that Collin could be trusted.
I reached into my pocket, where I had put the poem. I pulled it out and handed it to Collin, and waited as he read it.
“Wow,” he said quietly. Then, because he knew me better than I knew myself, he asked, “So did you tell him about us drawing?” I nodded and he sighed. “Well, let’s just hope that he loves you as much as he says he does, so that he won’t tell anyone. That could end badly.”
“I’m sorry,” I said. “For some reason, I felt like he deserved to know. I knew his secret, and now he knows mine.”
“It’s okay, Penny,” he said. “I’m sure everything will be fine.” He wrapped his arms tight around me. “God, I’m going to miss you. Are you sure you won’t stay?” His voice quivered, and although it sounded hopeful, I knew that it was false hope. Knowing that I would break down if I actually opened my mouth to speak, I just nodded.
He put his lips to my forehead and kept them there for a few seconds. Although it was something so small and simple, he managed to put so much love and tenderness into this one action that I almost melted on the spot. When he pulled away, the spot where his lips had been was very, very warm. He looked into my eyes and said, “I have to go now. I’ve been getting chewed out because I’m always in a rush to get everything done, and things don’t get cleaned properly.” He sighed a heavy, painful sigh. “I’ll see you tomorrow.” He kissed me on the cheek before he turned and left the room. After a few minutes, I left to go to my cell, feeling drained of all energy. Despite how late I had slept in, I fell asleep almost as soon as my head hit the pillow.
I woke up early the next morning, and almost tripped over Carl, who was sleeping on the floor. “Watch it,” he mumbled, and I whispered a quiet apology before leaving the room.
I walked through the halls until I reached the storage room, where a very bored-looking Vipero sat on a chair. “Can I have a book to read, please?” I asked.
The New World had kept some books, but banished others. The Azuli were the only ones with access to the books that had been banned, and that was only through Memories. The government had gotten rid of any books that gave any idea of rebellion, war, or any type of government besides a dictatorship. The New World was truly the only thing that anyone alive would ever know.
Even though some of the best books had been banned, there were still many that I liked. Fairy tales and fantasies, but also other things. My favorite book was a children’s story about a boy and a tree. “The Giving Tree, by Shel Silverstein,” I said when he asked me what book I wanted. He went into the storage room and returned with the book.
I headed back to my room, but didn’t go in. Instead, I sat on the floor with my back to the wall and returned to the world where everything was simple. For a couple hours, I read and reread the book until everyone was awake.
Both boring and uneventful, the day passed slowly. When it was almost time to go to bed, I took the book back to the storage room. There was a different guard that time, one who was a little younger.
“Have a good night,” he said with a wink. I stared at him, confused. “Well, it’s been three nights now. Obviously something’s gonna happen between you two tonight, if it hasn’t already.” I was shocked that he would say something like that, when Vipero rarely talked to Azuli unless it was on official business. What I didn’t know was that he was exactly right.
When I got back to the room, Carl was sitting at the table. “I’ll sleep on the floor tonight,” I said.
He turned around and I saw that his face looked pinched, frustrated. Angry. “No you won’t,” he said quietly. “You’ll be on the bed tonight.” He smiled a mean, vicious smile. “But I’m not sure how much sleep you’ll be getting.” He came toward me slowly, the expression on his face not changing a bit. I backed up until I hit the bed, and then crawled backwards on it until I was pressed into the far corner. Stuck, with a cold wall behind me and a cruel, twisted person in front of me.

Chapter 10

I tried to move across the room, but my legs refused. The space in between them was torn and burning, and I knew that it would be sore for days. There was blood all over the bed, covering my clothes as well. My eyes hurt from crying so long that I ran out of tears.
Part of my mind had no idea what happened the night before, but the other part was well aware of what went on a couple of hours before. Flashes of the terrifying scene kept showing up, making the experience impossible to forget. I had never felt so exposed and vulnerable in my life, and I was disgusted.
I was disgusted with Carl, for what he did he did to me. He took every bit of my innocence, and he robbed me of something I wanted someone special to have. I was disgusted with the Academy, for allowing the situation to present itself. If it weren’t for the stupid experiments, I would be fine right now. I was disgusted with Collin for lying to me. He told me that he’d be there to rescue me, and he wasn’t. But most of all, I was disgusted with myself for being so weak and afraid. I could have screamed, could have kicked and punched harder than I had. But my fear weakened me, so that I was unable to stop such a horrible thing from happening.
I felt my insides move around, and I shifted my body so that my head hung over the side of the bed. After a minute, I finally hurled, spewing yellow-brown chunks all over the floor. Some girl, who I’d never met before, poked her head in the doorway, her nose wrinkled because of the smell.
“Oh, no,” she said, and ran off. Several minutes later, I heard her voice in the hallway. “… just smelled something awful, so I decided to check it out. Poor girl had thrown up all over the place.” They reached my door and pulled it open, and I cringed.
Collin stood next to the girl. I had hoped that it would be someone else to come clean the mess, so that Collin wouldn’t see me this way. Since the girl was still there, I checked to make sure all the blood spots were covered up. I knew that Collin will see them soon, though.
“Thanks,” he said to the girl. “I got this. You can go.” He shut the door and ran over to me. “Penny, are you okay?” I shuddered and shook my head. “What happened?”
I didn’t answer, mainly because I didn’t have to. I knew that he’d figure it out. I leaned into him, revealing the red spots on the bed. “Did he…” he started, but he didn’t finish. “Let’s get this cleaned up before the smell becomes permanent.”
He stripped the bed first, and then began mopping the floor. “Put these on the bed whenever you start feeling better,” he said, and handed me bed sheets. “I have to go take care of something, but I’ll be back as soon as I can.” He leaned down to kiss my cheek, then turned and left. It’s almost an hour before I hear from Collin again. “Sorry it took so long,” he whispered into my ear as he wrapped his arms around me.
It’s fine,” I reassured him, leaning as far into his chest as I possibly could. “I’m just glad that you’re back.” I took a few deep breaths. It was silent for a moment, and then I thought about my parents. “Collin, my parents won’t see me like this, will they?”
He shook his head. “They’re out touring some part of the Academy, and then they leave this afternoon. You’ll have to say good-bye to them, but they will