Radioactive - Book 1: Birth 🪼

Two

Today is Clinic Day at the school. It pretty much consists of everyone getting checked up, whether they are in the swell or not. Pretty much, it prepares those who just turned fourteen and haven't their swell yet, helps those who are in their first swell to understand their bodies, and then do routine checkups on any who are in their second swell or more, depending on how their bodies actually worked.
I hate Clinic Day.
All the cute little pregnant people are all so happy and joyous while those who are in between swells are talking about their kids and such. Everyone who was in between swells had at least one or two kids already at home. I am the only one who is going to see an Empty doctor so that he can just tell me the same thing that I hear every four months during Clinic Day. People like me, who can't make children, are called Empties since our bodies are never full of life.
There are lines of students and I watch from my seat against the wall as the chatter becomes overwhelmingly bee-like. Since I am the only one with problems, I am the last one to get checked because I'm not 'priority'. I don't understand why they don't check me out first and get it out of the way? I guess they just want me to sit here and suffer by watching all the happy kids show off their kids and all the pregnant people show off their bellies, boys competing on who is bigger.
"Hey, Skinny Hips, why are you sitting over here by yourself? Oh wait, I forgot, that's because you're a defective moron."
I glare at Tim, my personal bully, as he pats his stomach.
"I've got the greatest new, Skinny Hips, I'm in my first trimester with my third kid. But you'll never know what it feels like, huh? Sucks for you."
"Don't you have anything better to do?" I say, pulling my hoodie over my head.
"To miss an opportunity to make fun of an Empty? Please, I wouldn't pass it up for the world."
Suddenly an alarm goes off and everyone looks over at the pre-swell line, where a red light is flashing the crowd is parting as a nurse in a black nurse's outfit with bright blue trim is leading a young boy toward me. I am confused until she sits him down beside me and turns his back on him, going back to her station. I look at him as realization seems to hit him and he puts his face in his hands, beginning to cry.
Tim laughs, pointing at the boy. "Looks like you have a friend now, Skinny Hips! I think I'll just let him bask in his humiliation."
Tim leaves and I sigh, glancing at the kid beside me. He looks like he doesn't know where he wants to fit in. Actually, he looks different than the rest of the class...
"Stop staring at me." He says softly.
"I'm sorry. I'm not used to being joined in this section." He looks up and I lift an eyebrow. "Are you alright?"
"Yeah, I'm fine. Why?"
"You look pretty pale..."
The kid looks at himself and gasps, acting as if he never knew that.
"What's happening to me?"
"Uh... I don't know... um... My name is Ramey Fountain, but people just call me R."
The boy looks at me as I extend my hand and he goes to grab it but pulls my hand to his nose instead. I blink a little and he looks at me.
"I'm Nalak Ghoti. You... smell divine. Are you wearing a sort of cologne?" he says, sniffing closer to me.
I lift and eyebrow and scoot a little away from him.
"Uh, no. I just washed with soap."
"I see..." He kneads his forehead a little. "I'm sorry; I've been doing that lately. It's like I can smell this odd scent that only I can smell. Everyone smells so nice and wonderful. I don't know why though. But you smell extra special." He sniffs at me again. "Are you sure you haven't used anything?"
"Positive. I'm sorry about you not having a swell."
"I didn't get sent over here for that. The doctor was asking me these strange questions and when he asked if I had become aware of any sweet smelling odors in the past two years. When I said yes, they made me come over here."
I make a face when the door opens and a woman walks out.
"Ramey Fountain?"
"Yeah, that's me."
The woman smiles and then looks at Nalak.
"Another one? Well, you come along too."
She motions for us to follow her and we go inside.

****************

"You're not the same doctor I've had." I say.
"Yes, my name is Dr. White; I'm Diamond's mother." She says with a kind smile. "I have recently become certified to work with Empties in the school board."
"Can you not call us that?"
She smiles. "I'm sorry. You're right." She picks up a small file and looks at it. "Do you mind if your friend hears your file or would you like for him to step out?"
"Well, we're the same, I think, so I don't see a problem if he doesn't have a problem with me hearing his?" I say, looking at Nalak.
"No, I'm good..."
Dr. White smiles and goes over my file with me.
"So it looks like you had an operation when you were fourteen because your natural uterus wasn't compatible with your body?"
"Yeah."
"Not that it's any of my business, but why didn't you try to get an artificial one?"
"They said that the uterus was only half of the problem. The rest had to do with my body in general in that it didn't produce enough chemicals to form a bonding egg or something like that. It doesn't matter about if there is a womb or not."
"I see... did they do a blood test on you to see what was wrong?"
"They did but they said it came up negative."
"I see... And you, Mr. Ghoti?"
"It's pronounced 'fish'."
Dr. White looks at the file and lifts an eyebrow.
"G-H-O-T-I sounds like 'fish'?"
"It's French."
Dr. White makes a face. "I will take your word on it. I'll just call you Nalak."
"Most people do."
The door opens and the other doctor brings in a file, handing it to Dr. White. She takes it and nods to the man, opening it up.
"Let's see... Hmm... Do you told the doctor that you have been smelling sweet odors as of late?"
"Yeah..."
"How long have you been smelling these odors?"
"Ever since my fourteenth birthday, which was about two months ago."
"I see... and have you always been this pale?" Nalak looks at himself and shakes his head. "When did the paleness start?"
"Ramey just noticed it and so did I. It must have just started... Doctor, what's wrong with me?"
"Well, hopefully it's nothing but... these are symptoms of albinism."
Nalak gapes at Dr. White as she puts her hands on the table, looking at him with sympathy. I have never gotten to talk to Diamond, but if her mother is this nice towards Empties, then I have a hope that maybe she'll be really nice to me. Then again, Dr. White might be able to hide her disgust...
"Wh- what do I do then?" Nalak asks, looking panicked.
"I will write a note to your parents and also take a blood sample to see if it's albinism or if you are a rare male AlexGen. It's highly unlikely due to the odor detection. If we can catch it early, we may be able to prolong it for your high school years. If found early, the school is government ordered to provide the proper treatment until you graduate but as soon as you graduate, you are responsible for getting it yourself. Usually you have about two months until the treatment leaves your body for good and you begin again, so you'll have to find a job."
"O-okay... And what happens if it's too late?"
"Until you show the full physical attributes of albinism, the school can give you treatments that will slow it down. It most likely won't last half of the school year."
He nods and runs his hands through his brown curly hair.
"Right..."
"With that being said, the treatment will keep you from having a swell, if it is albinism."
"What if he is a male AlexGen?" I ask, feeling a bit sorry for him.
"It's highly unlikely. An AlexGen in itself is only a 4% chance and the percentage of a male AlexGen is about 0.8%, especially outside of the Heliotrope Sector. We'll know the results by next week."
Nalak nods and Dr. White looks at us.
"If you'll please lift your shirt sleeves so that I may get a blood sample from you both. I'll get them sent off to the RDC and they will be able to give us our answers. I'll call you both back in when the results arrive."
We nod and she takes blood from both of us.

******************

We open the door and I am surprised to see Diamond standing there.
"Oh!"
"I'm sorry." I mumble, walking past her in embarrassment.
She looks so cute in that baby doll shirt and makes her belly so delicate. If I stay, I'll say something stupid and ruin everything.
"Hey, R, right?"
I turn as Nalak walks up to me.
"I was wondering, would you like to be friends? I mean, I won't be able to keep the ones I have because they think I'm an Empty and you seem like a pretty nice guy... I think..."
"Uh, sure... but we won't be anywhere near each other." He blinks at me. "I mean in that I'm a junior and you're a freshman and our schedules are not even close to the same."
"That's okay. Lunch is the same time, right?"
"Yeah."
"There you go."
I didn't really like being intruded on like this but considering he seems to be making light of his own situation, I decide that a real friend is a good thing.
"I guess that's alright... I eat at the corner table in the cafeteria."
Nalak smiles and begins walking backwards.
"Coolio! It's pretty cool that there's only two of us."
I chuckle nervously as he waves and leaves.
I can't believe he can act like that conversation in the office never happened. I mean, he could be an albino! I wonder what happens if they find that out...