“I said twenty push ups, maggot! Not ten! Get down there and eat some dirt!” I watched as forty Palm Trees were rudely chastised by their trainer, and soon to be mine. Some women in the black suits had brought me into the training center minutes after I had gotten settled in my new apartment. It was just as terrifying as the first time.

The trainer turned around. He was at least six and a half feet tall and fairly bulky, giving off and intimidating vibe. His black goatee was shaved into a simple triangle and his head was gleaming with sweat. The man had dark skin, several tattoos covering his arms, neck, and legs. Training wear was black pants and a grey shirt, something that bored me to death.

The trainer’s face was wrinkled to show his intensity and annoyance. Slowly approaching me, he stopped inches from my face, his chest basically meeting my nose. I wasn’t going to lie, I was nervous. This reminded me of times in the forest, where I met animals bigger and stronger than me. A wave of nostalgia washed over me, making my knees wobble. I still stood though, sweating down my neck and back.

“You must be Patient Zero,” the trainer said, his voice at a normal decibel range. His voice was only a hushed whisper, as if he couldn’t let anyone else hear. I nodded and he took a step back. “My name is Harley. I train all the new Palms. I understand that you’re a Recluse?” Harley placed his hands on his hips comfortably.

“I am. And, please, just call me Annie,” I replied nervously. My palms were sweating like crazy and I was sure that I was about to pass out.

“Alright, Annie. As long as you call me Harley, I’ll call you by your name. We have a special program for Recluses but, I’ll let you work with the little kids today,” he told me. “Welcome to the Palm Tree Training Program.” I nodded and Harley walked to the front of the group, ushering me to follow him. The group sat on the ground, panting and catching their breaths.

“Listen up, everyone!” Harley raised his voice again. “This here is Annie, our newest addition to the program! Make some room, give her space to work, and give her a bit of respect, all right?!” The Palm Trees scurried out of the way and made a small spot for me to use. I stepped into my box and Harley began to give out commands.

“Give me forty jumping jacks! Now!” Everyone around me began to jump and fling their arms around, some panting and crying. One girl in front of me stopped, leaned over, threw up all over the floor, and then continued to jump, wiping her mouth with her sleeve. I gagged a little bit but jumped up and down like the rest of them, moving my arms up and down. I counted each one in my head and almost lost count as someone hit the ground. 37… 38… 39… 40…

I stopped and arched my back, taking a gulp of air. I slowly breathed out to see no one else finished yet. Harley eyed me curiously, yelling something along the lines of, ‘You’re done?’ I nodded and watched as another man fell to the ground, sliding out of the routine for a break. I waited another thirty seconds before people began to finish up. Gulps of air were sucked from the room as different muscles and people begged for oxygen.

Harley made the group do one-hundred pushups, forty crunches, and at least two hundred other reps of different exercises until almost everyone had thrown up at least once. Near the end, I realised we had been there for hours.

The routine went on for weeks. Everyday for six weeks, my schedule was the same. I would wake up in my musty apartment, eat some breakfast, have a short walk for supplies, and then wait at my house for the women in the black suits. I saw Pearson again for a moment and she explained that the women in the black suits were called Tragedies. They would take me to my workout, which became a hot, vomit covered Hell. When I finished my workout, I would walk home and pass out on my couch.

But today, today was different. Instead of being dragged to a torturous workout, I was dragged to the main building that I had entered weeks ago. It was Isa’s building. I stood in the lobby for a few moments before a girl stood next to me, hair white as snow.

“Hey, Patient Zero,” she greeted. “Dragged to the meeting?”

“Hi, Pearson,” I replied, shrugging. “I guess.” We walked up to the conference room, entering to see Isa along with several other people. And suddenly, I was put in a very bad spot. Isa sat at the head of the table, a cold glare on her face as she watched Pearson and I walk in. Next to her was Jackson, who still looked awkward around me. There were a few other people, everyone with different looking faces and diverse styles. A pair of twins had matching pink hair, one boy was a completely different ethnicity than everyone, and at the other end of the table, was my older brother, Derek.

“Glad you could make it, Patient Zero,” Isa greeted. I pulled out a chair and sat down in it, glancing across the table. I was suddenly very anxious about what we were doing here. It was some big meeting but, I didn’t have much authority.

“We’re here to discuss Patient One, our newest guinea pig to Cotin, our serum.” I furrowed my eyebrows, wondering who Patient One was, if I was Patient Zero. I looked around but, no one seemed to be remotely worried. One doctor on the other side of the table began to explain Cotin and what it was but, I couldn’t wrap my head around most of it.

“It’s made to enhance your immune system and muscle performance,” the doctor explained. “You should be stronger, more able to fight, and less of a danger as a Recluse. Even though the Governor may through Recluses out, we want to change that so no one dies. You would become a Civil and be able to live freely in the city. Your DNA changes under the effects of Cotin and makes you less dangerous.”

Another scientist went into detail about how effective the serum worked and how it had worked perfectly well on mice and dogs. I still doubted the formula’s effects. One scientist noticed the purple bruise on my arm, still not having disappeared from the incident six weeks ago. The green veins protruded from my skin, wrapping around and down my forearm like vines. He requested that I have tests done after the meeting.

“Who’s Patient One,” I asked, obviously confused and a bit curious.

“His name is Charlie,” Isa said. The door to the conference room opened and Charlie was wheeled in, strapped to his chair, unconscious. I felt sick about this. What had they been doing to him? It didn’t look like he had been fine. “He’s been in the hospital,” Isa said, as if she had read my thoughts. “We were waiting to see if you passed before we wanted to find another patient. You seem fine from the serum.”

“I don’t think this is the best idea, Isa,” I said warily. Several people at the table stayed quiet, including my older brother. He hadn’t spoken a word to me, let alone acknowledged me.

“Annie,” Jackson started. “Charlie has a ton of mental issues. Cotin would help him with that. We need more people to test it on and, prisoners are the best option. So, we need to test it on you and Charlie.”

“I’m not a prisoner, I’m a soldier here,” I argued. But no one said anything to defend me. So that was it, I was a prisoner of war. I was going to be forced to become their stupid soldier. I didn’t want to be the staple of the Palm Trees, the insignia of their ranks, I didn’t want anything to do with the Palm Trees.

“Annie, the vote was made and majority rules,” said a voice across the room. It was Derek, his voice deep and glare dark.

“Okay so, why do you need me here if the vote was already made,” I challenged, looking at Isa rather than my brother. Isa shrugged nonchalantly, which got on my nerves, having someone’s life in her hands. She played with it as if it were nothing.

“Because like I said, we had to be sure you survived. Unfortunately, your dose was not big enough since you managed to escape the hospital.” Isa sneered and I rolled my eyes, sighing. I didn’t want any more of the stuff in my veins, no matter how bad I wanted to be accepted.

Sure, I didn’t mind living in the woods but, that didn’t mean that I didn’t mind being excluded from everything. It was a normal human thing to crave attention and affection from others. Any touch I received was like fire and ice, my heart always beat fast when someone made eye contact with me, the use of my name was like a bell clear as day. It was human nature to yearn for acceptance. Social acceptance was required to thrive. I wanted to thrive. I didn’t want to survive anymore.

“Fine, I’m here, I’ll take your stupid medicine. But, I don’t want to be the face or your war movement,” I said, standing up. “I don’t want to be the face that people see.”

“Why not,” Isa asked, almost looking confused. “It’s fame, it’s acceptance, it’s everything a Recluse would want, am I correct?”

“No, you’re not. I don’t want the fame, I don’t want the title. It’s never going to change the fact that everyone still knows I was born wrong.”

And with that, I turned on my heel and marched straight out of Isa’s office.