Locked In

October 4, 3030 Time Unknown         "Look, we have a plan, all right, Dad?" Scarlett snaps. "You'll only slow us down."           We had returned back to my house, discussing where we need to go next to reach the city limits. We were so close, but of course, we ran into Bentley Anderson. Scarlett's right though, he would slow us down with his drunk ass.         "I would not," Bentley protests.         Scarlett just rolls her eyes, crossing her arms over her chest. Chloe steps in between the two. "Listen, guys," she says. "We're wasting time talking about this." She turns to Scarlett. "We need to figure out where to go as soon as possible."         "I agree," I say, feeling left out of the conversation.         Chloe pulls out her map from her jeans and lies the parchment out on the coffee table. I point to the area, informing the others it's our current location.         "The end of the city is just a few miles west," Scarlett realizes, dragging her finger across the map. "We can make it by tonight."         "Sounds like a plan," Bentley says, his voice gruff.         Scarlett glares at her father. "How many times do I have to tell you to get it through your thick skull? You. Are. Not. Coming."         Bentley scoffs. "I won’t take orders from a disappointment."         I immediately glance over to Scarlett to see hurt laced across her facial features, her mouth slightly gaped. She quickly closes it and clears her throat, blinking quickly.          "You can come with us, Mr. Anderson," I say, my voice tight. "But once we get out of this city, you walk in the opposite direction as us."         Bentley holds his hand out. "Deal."         I stare at him coldly and shake his hand. His grip is weak compared to mine. ******         "Why did you say my dad could come?" Scarlett whispers harshly, the four of us sneaking through the dark alleys. We duck ourselves into the darkness, making sure not to disturb anything that could give away our position. Scarlett and I are walking together, with Bentley in front of us and Chloe behind.         "I don’t know, but, Scarlett," I whisper. "He might be a dick, but he's still your dad."         "Whatever." She glares at the back of her father's head. "I don't trust him. There's something about him."         "Yeah, I agree, but we're gonna get out of this city tonight, then he's out of your life forever." I slip my hand into hers, giving it a light squeeze. "You'll never have to see him again."         Scarlett hesitates but nods nonetheless. We continue through the city, stopping here and there when we spot guards. Eventually, I quietly climb up the fire escape of a tall building to get to the roof. At this height, I have a huge view of the huge city. I look toward the direction we need to go, seeing there are only about a dozen buildings left until it reaches its end.         As quietly and quickly as possible, I hurry back down, dropping next to Scarlett. "We're almost there," I inform quietly. "Just a few more blocks."         Scarlett smiles a real, genuine smile that I haven’t seen in a long time.          "What are we waiting for? Let's get out of here!" She breaks into a run, and the three of us immediately follow. I can hear Bentley struggling behind us because of his weak endurance, but I don't dare slow down. Neither does Scarlett or Chloe. We make a few turns; one to the right, then another right, then a left. Just as we think we've made it, Chloe suddenly flies back as if she hit something invisible.         I immediately join her side, making sure she's okay, and help her up to her feet. I turn to see what knocked her down, but I’m met with nothing. I can see the trees and grass up ahead. Scarlett cautiously steps forward, reaching her hand out. Her hand makes contact with something. I can see waves of an invisible force and I hear a slight humming sound coming from it. Scarlett removes her hand, causing the noise to stop.         "What is that?" Chloe asks.         "I don’t know, maybe a force field?" Scarlett replies. "Whatever it is, it has to be how they keep us in the city."         "Then how are we supposed to get out?" I demand.         "How the hell am I supposed to know? It’s not like there’s a great big red button that says 'Press Here To Shut Down Force Field.'"         I groan in agitation. "There's gotta be something. There's gotta be another way to shut it down." I turn to Bentley, who's oddly been quiet since he caught up with us. "Do you know anything, Mr. Anderson?"         "No," he replies. "I'm not some tech wizard."         "No," Scarlett says, glaring at her father. "No, you're just a drunk bastard."         "Okay," I quickly intervene before an argument can break loose with the two of them going at each other’s throats. "Anybody have any ideas?" I ask, pulling Scarlett to my side to get her away from Bentley as far as possible.         It's silent for a long moment, the only sounds we can hear are our breaths. I try to think hard, wondering how we can shut this force field down.         "What about the Capitol?" Chloe suggests. "Maybe they have a control panel there to shut it down. We can just sneak in, find the panel, shut it down, then sneak our way back out."         Scarlett stares at her with a blank look. "Okay, there are two problems with that. One, the plan sucks. The Capitol is the most tightly secured facility in the city, there’s no way we could even get on the property without being caught. Two, the Capitol is too obvious of a place to put the off switch of a force field keeping in its citizens."         Chloe sighs in exasperation, crossing her arms over her chest. "Then where the hell could it be?"         Scarlett shrugs and sighs before suddenly perking up. "The school."         "What?" I ask, confused.         "The school. That has to be where the panel is. Think about it: the shootings started there, right? What if the government was not only trying to scare us, but to also clear the building?"         Chloe raises a brow. “Why wouldn’t they just pull the fire alarm or something instead of killing innocent children? That still would’ve cleared out the building.”         Scarlett shakes her head. “No, that would’ve only been for a short amount of time. They needed it to stay empty.”          I begin to catch on.  "So they can keep the panel guarded and keep the force field up."         Chloe groans, agitated. "We spent two days risking our lives to get to this location. Now you're telling me we have to go all the way back to the school just to unlock the force field, then come back? I mean, who's to say they won't just close it right back up before we get back?"         That’s a good point.          "Then I'll go alone," Scarlett says. "You guys hide here, and I'll make my way to the school and unlock the force field. Then you guys run."         I immediately shake my head. "No. No way. Remember our deal? We're not separating again."         Scarlett opens her mouth to protest, but I press my hand against her lips. "I'm not leaving you," I say. "We'll go together."         She rolls her eyes, then removes my hand from my mouth. "I was going to say Dad can go instead." She turns to Bentley, raising her brow and crossing her arms. "Come on, Dad, be the hero I always hoped you were, deep down in that dark soul of yours."         Bentley scowls at his daughter, taking a step toward her. Instinctively, I step out in front of Scarlett, wrapping a protective arm around her. Her father only cackles, throwing his hands up in the air in surrender and taking a step back.         "I don't see why you're protecting a slut like her," Bentley slurs, and I almost lunge myself at him, but Scarlett grips my arm.         "Just ignore him," Scarlett whispers, looking at me pleadingly. Her hands rest against my chest, her eyes staring up at mine. Those beautiful green irises of hers have a small glint from the moon.          I release a sigh, feeling my muscles relax as she slides her hands up to my neck. She gives me a soft smile, her thumbs caressing my jawline. Staring into each other's eyes with only the moonlight making us somewhat visible, it's as if it's only me and Scarlett. Without even realizing it, I slowly lean forward the same time she does, as if there's a magnetic force wanting to bring us together. We're only centimeters away from touching when. . .         "Get on the ground!"         We pull apart, and I swivel around to see three guards approaching us with their guns aimed. I recognize two of the voices to be Sanders and Silva. I immediately raise my hands the same time as Chloe and Scarlett, the three of us getting down on our knees.         Bentley walks around us with a satisfied look. "You should've listened to your gut, Scarlett." He shakes his head. "I mean, did you really think I would let you leave this city?"         Scarlett only glares at him as each of the three guards handcuff us. "I hate you."         Bentley only laughs. "Trust me, Scarlett, I hate you more than you could ever know."         I growl at Bentley, wishing I could break free from these cuffs so I can kill him. "Where are you going to take us?"         "Isn't it obvious? The Capitol." Bentley smirks. "It's time to see if you're worthy for the president."