In The Clear: Prologue II
Two figures walking down the Toronto sidewalks, it should feel like any ordinary day.
Except there's nothing ordinary about the pair, not by a long shot.
The city blocks have become more familiar over the past several months. Matt remembers his first walk down them with Guiliana's hand tight on his wrist. The new privilege was supposed to be a gift, a promise that the freedom they once enjoyed would someday return. That day should've been filled with excitement, but Matt recalls shaking with every step.
The world wasn't what he remembered. He's never been this afraid to simply walk unaccompanied. There were days not long ago that Matt had rode along on his rusted bicycle with nothing but paint cans to weigh him down. He hadn't known what was out there.
Is that the difference? Is knowing what's made the world so terrifying? Was there always someone waiting in the shadows and Matt just didn't have the mind to realize?
No. The truth is that no one cared about the night-shift barista until The Cut made them care. No one watched him. No one stopped him from going where he pleased. No one badgered him for paintings then forced him through more treatment when his hands refused what his lips promised. He's Matthew Belmont, Season 8 Winner and, for some reason, that matters.
He isn't just Matt anymore - a kid with nowhere to go yet a fast desire to get there. He'll never be so unremarkable again, even with a dozen unknown faces passing by. Even in the dimly-lit streets of Toronto, he can't be invisible.
Funny enough, that's pretty much the only thing Matt wants these days.
That's why, when Vito showed up with a knock at his door, he didn't turn him away. The three - sometimes four - of them go on these walks whenever they can. The route's always the same. Matt knows there's got to be someone tailing them. He understands that it's too dangerous out here to let them have even one square block of true freedom.
Still, pretending is enough. It's enough to believe that he's as free as the air blowing across his cheeks or the moths circling the streetlamps. It's enough to forget about the apartment and the hospital and pretend the only place Matt's headed is Abbotsford, British Columbia. It has to be.
Matt doesn't have anything else.
They walk half the route in silence. Both boys have it memorized by now and Matt barely has to look up to know which way to turn. They're allowed down the main road that connects their apartment building and Toronto General. From there, they walk past the main entrance to the far edge of the hospital. The first street on this side is too quiet, so they're permitted to go one further. As soon as they turn this next corner, they'll be facing their apartment again. More than likely, they'll head straight past it and walk the route a second time.
Their routines are like clockwork now. Even Vito, who's only been living with them for a few months, has settled into his own miserable dance. Guiliana tries to make things fun. She's their only break from routine, but that in itself has become part of it. There are only so many restaurants on their approved list. Netflix only has so many movies that all of them can agree on. Matt can only tell her that everything's great so many times before he'd rather gouge out his own eyes.
Pretending is routine. Frustration is routine. Secrecy is routine.
It's only when Vito drags him by the arm down an undesignated side street that Matt realizes how easy it is to break.
His eyes widen and Vito leaps forward in an attempt to place a hand over his mouth. Matt pushes him away out of little more than instinct. His back hits the building beside them, the feeling of concrete through his shirt far too familiar. His heart feels like it's going to jump from his chest. Matt scans around, not knowing what for until his gaze finds it - a knife locked between Vito's fingers.
"What are you -" Matt starts but he's slammed further into the wall before he can continue.
Vito shakes his head. "We need to-"
"We need to what?"
He doesn't answer. The next thing Matt knows, he's watching Vito plunge the tip of the dull knife into the flesh of his palm. It's all he can do to keep himself from screaming. Matt lunges forward in an attempt to disarm him, but Vito holds tight to the handle. "Are you insane?"
"It can be taken out," Vito grunts. "They can't do this without us."
"What are you talking about?" Matt's heart feels like it's trying to leave between his teeth as blood spurts from Vito's hand. He gasps in pain but he doesn't stop. Matt doesn't know what to do.
"The basement," Vito hisses. "They're using us. They're lying to us."
"About what?"
"Everything."
Matt watched through the window as nurses rushed to Lior's side. There was blood, so much of it streaming down his face that Matt could barely make out his features. Lior's eyes were closed, but his chest was still moving. He wasn't dead. There was so much blood.
He'd pulled out the implant. Matt had watched him do it, his body frozen across the table from the ex-contestant. He didn't move to help him. He couldn't even tell himself to breathe. Matt stared until they pulled him outside. They tried to tear him away from the window, but someone had stopped them.
"Is he dead?" Matt knew the answer.
"He'll receive the best care possible. They'll do everything in their power not to lose him now, so much rests on his shoulders."
All Matt could do in response was nod. A few weeks later, Lior had been back sitting across from him at that same table. He looked more like a corpse than he had with blood dripping from his chin.
Matt glances around quickly. This isn't part of their approved route, but there's no doubt in his mind that they're being watched. They have to be quiet and even then there's not much time. More than likely, time doesn't even matter. The network knows where they are. They own this city, that's the only reason Dr. Liu believes they'll be safe here. Whether it's seconds or minutes from now, they'll be caught.
Matt touches Vito's opposite palm, the one that the knife hasn't hit yet. It's a silent reminder, one that he hopes will get through to the younger Winner. There are two, there's not enough time. Vito meets his eye and shakes his head. He dives in with his fingers to where Matt can just make out a sliver of silver.
The pain is worse than he could've expected, but Vito can't stop. He's already messed this up. He's already no doubt alerted the network to his plan by attempting to remove the tracker. If he gets caught now, he'll never get a second chance. They'll never trust him again. He'll spend the rest of his life in a place no better than the hospital basement.
Vito digs deeper. He gags as the knife clangs off something solid and his fingers go numb on that hand. He looks down and he can see it, the blinking red a dead giveaway for doesn't belong here. He reaches down but it's too slippery to grab hold of. Vito turns his head to the side as another wave of nausea hits. He throws the knife at Matt, who catches it as far away from himself as humanly possible.
Vito extends his hand back until his wrist is fully exposed. He slams it as hard as he can into the concrete wall.
His head spins.
Again.
Vito falls forward into the wall before someone drags him back to his feet. The knife handle is thrust back into his hands. He looks down, but the red light is gone. He can see the cracked bulb where it should blink, but it doesn't. He can also see the exposed tendons of his wrist staring back at him. Vito tries to move his fingers on that hand but they don't respond.
Matt pushes him forward. Vito had forgotten he was even here.
The same blurry fog swirls in his mind. He clumsily grabs hold of Matt, barely managing to cling to his arm. He can't tell if it's pain or whatever drugs they've pumped into him that's making his head spin. He doesn't care. The only thing that matters is she was right. The notes in Elise's computer told him where to find the tracker. It told him that the right depended on the left for signal, that removing the left would disable them both.
He broke it.
The pain in Vito's arm doesn't compare to the overwhelming euphoria that comes with that realization. Vito shoves the knife back towards Matt. He has to do this now. "Come on!"
Matt shakes his head and pushes the weapon away. "Run."
Matt can't do it. He can't leave them.
It doesn't matter that his every muscle is screaming to take the knife, to do whatever it takes to cut this thing out of him because it worked. He saw the light go out. Vito destroyed the tracker. It's the only thing Matt's wanted since he got here, since he won. The tracker is the network's link to him. Without it, they can't find him.
He can be free.
But he doesn't take the knife back. Not only because his fingers feel too numb to try, but because he can't let himself. Guiliana. Alexis. Lior, Bronte, and Eden. There are too many people here that need him. No matter how badly Matt wants to be selfish, how badly he wants to say he'll go get help for them elsewhere. Matt knows the truth.
If he leaves now, he'll never come back. He'll run until his feet give out. He'll run until he's far, far away from any memory of The Cut. He'll never come back, not for anyone.
No matter how much he'd hate himself for it.
Whatever Vito's going to do, he'll have to do it alone. And he'll have to do it now.
"This is our chance." Vito looks around as he speaks. The fog hasn't lifted, but it's not getting stronger. Contrastingly, he can see it in Matt's eyes. They're doing the same to him that they've done countless times to Vito. He knows they're coming.
If he wants a chance, he has to go.
So, Vito shoves the kitchen knife deep in his pocket and takes off in the first direction he faces. He takes turns at random with no plan in mind for where to go. He figures that eventually he'll find somewhere to hide. Right now is safe, while the sun is barely setting, but soon it'll be dark. The patrol cameras will be out within the hour. He has to disappear before that happens.
He slows to a steady walk as he approaches a busier street. Vito pulls the sweater over his head and discards it in the alley. The one underneath is darker, a deep blue that nearly matches his bedroom walls. With any luck, they'll be looking for him in the yellow sweater he left with.
Truth be told, luck is just about all he has right now.
Still, he has to try. Vito can't keep going like this. He doesn't know who he is. He doesn't understand what they're telling him aside from the fact that it sounds nice. The notebook page sits stiff against his chest. He can't forget the words. THIS ISN'T ME. What isn't? Vito has to know.
He's not Elise.
He's not Damien.
He doesn't even feel like Vito.
So who is he? And why has that question led him here, to the streets of Toronto that are no more familiar than some fairytale city? What exactly is he hoping to find out here?
Isn't that the million dollar question.
When a car pulls up beside him nearly an hour later, he finds a new question. Vito quickens his pace as it slows beside him. He turns down a one-way but finds the same dark vehicle on the other side. Vito's breaths start to dry as he tries to look through the tinted windows, but it's impossible to make out the driver. The only thing that's clear is that he's being followed.
Why did I think it would be this easy?
Vito breaks into a sprint as it reaches him again. He doesn't care that it makes him stick out like a sore thumb. All he can think is that it's going to be over before it even started. All he can think about is Lev and how useless Vito is to him if he can't even make it an hour out here. All he can think of is the crumpled paper resting against his chest and the fact that he's never going to understand what it means.
"Need a lift?"
Vito's blood runs cold as he turns slowly. The driver's side window is down now, revealing someone that can't be much older than Vito. Despite only being able to see half his face as he stares forward, Vito takes in as much as he can. He has dark features and hair to match, a wry smile, and his half-gaze feels like a spotlight in the dark streets. Vito doesn't recognize him, but that's little comfort. Who knows how many people work for the network around here? They'll all be out looking for him.
"I'm not what you think," the man says. Vito swallows and examines the car. It's nothing like the sleek sedans or SUVs he's always been transported in. The dark colour is littered with cracks and more than a few streaks that are the same shade as traffic cones. He looks more closely at the driver as he turns fully to face Vito. There's a dirtied bandage over one eye that looks like it hasn't been changed in several days.
Maybe it's the stupidest thing he's ever done, but two steps later and Vito's thrown himself into the back seat. The driver doesn't need any prompting and his foot's back on the gas before Vito can even right himself in the seat. He fumbles for a seat belt but there isn't one.
"Hold on tight," the man tells him. Vito reaches up and grabs hold of the handle over the window. It does little to cushion the sharp turn.
"Who are you?"
"Hakaru," he says. "But you can call me Ru." No doubt he sees Vito start to open his mouth, because Vito watches him smile in the rearview mirror. "Don't worry about it, I know who you are."
"Where are we going?" Vito swallows as the street light turns red ahead of them. He wants to yell at Ru to keep going, but he doesn't. He still hasn't decided if this was a mistake.
"To see the Protestors," Ru shrugs. Vito can feel him watching through the rearview mirror and he squirms under his single-eyed gaze. "I take it you've heard of them."
In fact, Vito has. He only heard Lev use the term once, but Dr. Liu's reaction made the term stick in his head better than almost anything else. He's spent several hours mulling the words over, trying to think of whether he's heard it before but if he has he doesn't remember. Vito remembers hearing about protests surrounding The Cut but this sounds like more than paper signs and chants. And it looks like Vito's planted himself firmly in their grasp.
He's not sure whether to be relieved, or downright terrified.
Season 10 Contestants
Bowen "Bowie" Bridges, 18, Quebec City QC - 001
Shane Kilroy, 18, Whitehorse YK - 002
Dominique "Dom" Briones, 17, Hamilton ON - 003
Bridget Francis, 18, Victoria BC - 004
Lawrence Yao-Sartre, 18, Montreal QC - 005
Marceline "Marcy" Toussaint, 16, Vancouver, BC - 006
Angel "Omar" Jardinez, 18, Calgary AB - 007
Madigan "Meg" Ulrich, 18, London ON - 008
Noam Steiner, 18, Ottawa ON - 009
Vasilisa "Vasi" Zhukalova, 18, Montreal QC - 010
Lyanna Coramar, 17, Brandon MB - 011
Eris Perrault, 17, Winnipeg MB - 012
Lilliana Sterling-Hargreaves, 17, Ottawa ON - 013
Riley Lenihan, 18, Turney Valley AB - 014
Casimir "Casi" Kaminski, 17, Revelstoke BC - 015
Amadis Navarro, 17, Brandon MB - 016
Myra Ranet, 17, Fredericton NB - 017
Ramsey "Ram" Thorn, 17, Vancouver BC - 018
A/N: Hello! Introducing the cast of Season 10 and congratulations to all their wonderful submitters! The blog for this story can be found via the same link as last year (inthecuthg . weebly . com) under "Cast". For those of you that are new here, I encourage you to take a look around the blog as there are many other fun pages to explore.
For those of you unfamiliar with the past events of my verse, I'd like to direct you to the "Home" page of the blog. Here, you'll find a button labelled "The History". This will direct you to my subplot summary (warning: contains major spoilers). If you have any further questions, I'd be happy to answer.
Thank you to everyone that took the time to submit a character for this story. Decisions were incredibly hard this time around and I had to choose the best cast for this particular story. I hope there are no hard feelings. You're welcome to stick around for the story, but I completely understand if you don't.
Introductions will be done in groups of two over the next nine chapters. Yes, I'm switching things up this year. No need to be sus about it, but I know you will be (it's what I deserve). I don't currently have a timeline for when chapters will come out, but I'm hoping not too far apart. I'll be giving timeline updates in my channel in SYOT Verses (PM me for an invite if you're not already there).
First up will be Myra & Ramsey!
~ Olive