Chapter 17 - Eleanor

Don't count anyone out.

13 years old

" W hat do you think it is?" Veronica pulled gently at the pink ribbon wrapped around the gift addressed to me. I'd found it at my door this morning with no note telling me who it was from. I took it to class, and my friends surrounded my desk before the teacher entered, admiring the pretty wrapping.

"I'm not sure," I said. I knew who I'd hoped it was from but I couldn't say that out loud. Young Ladies weren't allowed to do the things other girls did. Things like talk to boys and fall in love. If we were overheard, I could be punished.

"Well, open it!" Olive hissed. "Whoever it's from must really like you to get that fancy paper. I bet it's something good."

"Can you imagine?" Nancy, more boy-obsessed than any of us, sighed and held her hands to her chest. "What if it's from a DIT? Maybe one of them braved punishment just to make sure you got a birthday present from him."

"You really think one of those pests would be that thoughtful?" Olive, always bitter about anyone else getting attention, snickered. "And for Eleanor?"

"What's that supposed to mean?" Veronica stood up for me. Veronica was always sticking up for everyone when Olive was being a real snob. "You wish one of the DITs would look at you twice. Maybe if you ranked higher you'd get presents like Eleanor."

"Will you please just open it!" Pearl shrieked over the arguing. We stopped and returned to the box in front of me.

I lifted the ribbon and began to pull. Just as I had the ribbon free, loud talking entered the room, and the DITs came in. We looked up from my desk and turned to them.

They hardly gave us any attention, but two boys paused to stare.

Milton and Callahan. They were watching us with intense curiosity.

The other Young Ladies noticed and began to giggle and whisper.

"It has to be one of them. Look at how they're both looking at you, Eleanor!" Nancy exclaimed. "Oh, I would die. Callahan is the most handsome boy in the entire class."

"Milton is cute too," I argued. She wasn't wrong. Callahan was incredibly handsome. His hazel eyes had an intensity that made all of our 13-year-old hearts and bellies flutter. When they weren't in training, Callahan had a tendency to let his hair flop over his eyes, making him look playful, and when he smiled...

But it wasn't Callahan who had my interest. He was actually mean to me, most days. He'd trip me in the halls, call me names based on my height or my age, because I was the youngest. He called me baby all the time. I hated him and it was obvious he hated me too.

"It wasn't Callahan," I decided. I returned to the gift, carefully unwrapping it so I wouldn't tear the paper. I opened the box underneath and gasped as I found a book with an anchor drawn on the front.

The History and Art of Tattooing Through the Decades.

"What is it?" Helen asked, tilting her head.

I pressed the book to my chest, hiding the title from my friends. They wouldn't understand; they thought my passion for drawing was silly.

"It's a journal I've been eyeing at the penny store for months," I lied.

"I haven't seen one with an anchor." Olive scrunched up her nose.

"There's dozens of designs," Veronica argued with her. "And I know for a fact I've seen you hide stuff in the back of the shelves until you can come back to pay for them. That's probably what Eleanor did, isn't it?"

I nodded, silently thanking her for covering me. Veronica didn't understand me, but she accepted me.

"Well, it's a lovely gift." Helen nodded and returned to her desk. The others trailed away to theirs as well. Our teacher walked in and all the DITs and Young Ladies hurried to our desks to listen to her drone on about the plant life that survived the bombs.

But I didn't hear a single word she said. I was too excited to go to my room and lose myself in my new book. I spent the hour looking at the back of Milton's head, hoping he could hear my silent thank you I was throwing his way.

Of course, it was so like him to be thoughtful, I sighed. He'd been next to me the whole time during our field trip below while I was asking all the questions. Sometimes I thought he didn't listen to what I said, but I was wrong. He had been listening the whole time. He really did like me.

I made a plan. I would catch him at dinner tonight and thank him. Maybe I'd be able to sneak us away for just a moment.

Maybe we'd kiss.Wouldn't that be romantic?

I never thought in a million years that I'd have someone who wanted to do those things with me, but maybe the impossible was possible. If I stood on my tiptoes and closed my eyes, would Milton lean down and press his lips to mine?

My stomach had butterflies as I left class and went to the next. It was such a touching gift I wanted to cry at how nice it was. How did he even get his hands on something like this? He must have gotten it down below, in Gen Pop. That's the only place they would have books like this.

The DITs who were 16 years old, were allowed to go down twice a month. They had to sign in and out, so the warden, Cecil, knew who was where and when, but they had so much more freedom than us in the Young Ladies program. We'd never be allowed down below.

I'd worried that once the DITs were allowed to go down, that Milton and the other DITs would find girlfriends. Now, with the thoughtful gift in my hand, I felt silly. He wasn't looking for a girlfriend. He'd been looking for a gift for me.

Every chance I got to talk to him, it felt like Callahan would come around, interrupting us. He was doing it on purpose, I was sure of it. He hated the idea of me being happy.

"What are you doing around here, baby-face?" Callahan sneered at dinner time. "Shouldn't you be over at that table? Giggling and pointing at us?"

I blushed and clenched my fists. "You are horrible, Callahan."

He stood and Milton kicked him under the table. "Shut the fuck up, Cal. What's up, Eleanor?" Milton beamed up at me. I grew giddy and my eyes went to the floor.

"I just wanted to say thank you for the present."

His eyebrows rose and then he flicked his eyes to Callahan. Callahan's face turned into an even deeper scowl. He must not have known Milton had bought me something. Milton ignored him and grinned.

"Well, you're mighty welcome, darling. Now, why don't you go eat dinner? I'll catch you later."

I nodded and bounced back to my seat, ready to do exactly as Cal had mocked me for, giggle and point at their table.

I went to bed hugging the book and vowed to pay him back for it soon. I was determined to get my first kiss from Milton. The next day, however, he didn't even look at me. In fact, he hardly looked up from his desk, and when he did, I gasped. He had a bright purple and blue shiner on his right eye. What happened?

I wanted to ask but I couldn't catch him alone. Callahan wasn't with him, but his other DIT friends kept him surrounded. Callahan wasn't at school at all that day. Or at meals. I was so confused. Had they fought? Was it because Cal didn't like Milton gifting me something? Was his hatred of me so strong, he couldn't stand his best friend giving me attention?

I went to the library after dinner, and my Daddy went to sit with the other Daddies to play cards. We were safe here so he took the opportunity to relax where he could.

I was lost in my new birthday book when a figure joined me at my table. I looked up to see Callahan. My stomach muscles tightened with fear.

Why was he here?

"What do you want?" I hissed.

He glared at me putting his arms on the table and folding his hands together.

"I just wanted to say I think it's pretty rude for someone to give you a gift and you don't thank them."

I paused in my anger.

"What are you talking about?" I closed my book and his eyes dipped to it. I shook my head. "Milton gave me this."

"No, he didn't. I did."