Priya made breakfast for everyone once again. Quinn walked downstairs right as she placed some crispy hash-browns and fresh ripe mangoes on his plate.
“Thanks, Pree. I feel like I’m living at a fine hotel with first class service. What are you up to today?”
“Well, I’m taking a catch-up exam in genetics for the first month I missed. I’m ready for it. I’ll take three other catch-up exams this week. I need to do a little more studying, but I’m nearly caught up in all of my classes.”
“That’s great Pree. Wait a minute. You covered a month’s worth of college prep classes in only a few days while winning a chess tournament and starting a social network?”
“It’s no big deal, the classes are easy. It’s beginning stuff.”
Quinn glanced over at Sanjay, who sat down in front of his veggie omelet, which Priya cooked exactly the way he liked. They both raised their eyebrows in mock disgust at her perfection.
“I’m kidding Pree,” Sanjay said. “This is a great omelet. I’m not sure how you do it but don’t stop.”
Soon Priya walked to school. She met Sophie and Amy on the way.
“I’m nervous about today,” Priya said. “After the tournament, I’m starting to realize the depth of fear and ignorance out there. We know the kids will be worse.”
Sophie looked down the street at the facade of the main school hall.
“I hope a few people are on our side. This is getting rough. You know the word spread over the weekend about the chess match. The fear might increase.”
“It’ll be okay guys,” Amy said. “I’ll stand up for you, to show support from a normal—”
Priya and Sophie turned to Amy and tilted their heads.
“I mean a non-modified person. I’ll make them realize there’s nothing to be afraid of. I haven’t turned into a zombie. Humor can help.”
“Good idea,” Priya said. “I wish people would realize we’re—”
“Ugh, they’re staring again,” Amy said shaking her head.
Priya ignored the crowd on either side of them.
“Keep walking and we’ll talk as though nothing is unusual.”
They walked into the genetics class, ignoring the attention. Priya and Sophie took the catch-up test. Other students kept glancing over at them despite admonishments by the Mr. Watson. Once they were finished, they turned in their tests. The students noticed how quickly they completed the tests.
“Pree, why are there so many empty seats?” Sophie thought to her. “Last Friday an open seat couldn’t be found.”
“Yeah, what’s that about?” Priya thought back. “I’m going to ask—”
Sophie cut her off and thought, “No, wait until after class.”
“Okay fine, I’ll wait,” Priya thought.
She wanted to bring up the topic in front of everybody but decided against it. After class they waited for the rest of the students to leave, and they walked up to Mr. Watson.
He smiled at them.
“You guys both got 100% on the catch-up test. I’ve never seen anything like it. I’m impressed. A month’s worth of learning in only a few days.”
“It wasn’t a big deal Mr. Watson,” Priya said. “The questions were easy. Genetics gets more complex, doesn’t it?”
“Oh yes, the topic gets much more complex. Do you have a question? I watched you looking around. You may want to know why the class and the lab were half empty today.”
“We were wondering about that,” Sophie said.
“This morning, many parents decided to take their children out of this class. It’s because they’re afraid of you. They’re ignorant. Don’t be upset about it.”
“Oh, I’m not upset,” Priya said. “I’m angry. They don’t know anything about anything. Are we back in the dark ages or something? Are they going to try to burn us at the stake like witches?”
Mr. Watson smiled.
“Well, I wouldn’t go that far, but I think you’re in for a challenging time. I won’t stand for ignorant behavior in my class, but you’ll face ignorance wherever you go. Prepare yourself ahead of time so you can handle situations without losing your composure.”
“We tried our best at the chess match,” Sophie said. “We didn’t engage the audience. We were scared though. One parent threw a chess piece at us.”
“This is an age-old story,” Mr. Watson said. “The parents of the opposing team often booed Ice hockey genius Wayne Gretzky. His skills exceeded those of the other children. You must develop a thick skin for immature adult behavior. Don’t be aggressive, but don’t back down unless your life is at stake. Got it?”
“Thanks Mr. Watson,” Priya said. “You’re the greatest teacher ever. We gotta get to our next class now. We’ll be here tomorrow.”
As they walked out, they were joined by Amy who waited outside the door.
“I’ll be your bodyguard,” she said.
They laughed and headed to the biology class, past the curious students who kept their distance. As they walked in, their heart sank. Half of the desks were empty. The students who did show up sat in one half of the room, leaving the other half empty.
Priya couldn’t contain herself. She stared at the other kids.
“What is this? Safety in numbers?” she asked out loud. “You’re not a school of fish and I’m no shark. Ugh.”
The kids huddled on their side of the room while Priya and Sophie sat on their empty side in disgust.
“Mutants,” one of them whispered.
Priya ignored the comment.
Ms. Perez stood up from behind her desk.
“Okay, stop now. I want some answers, or this class will be canceled. None of you will get into college.”
That got everyone’s attention.
“Good. Now why are you all sitting on one side of the class? You’re the students who decided to stay in this school. Are you are still scared or something? Let’s start in the front row. Please enlighten me as to why you are sitting over there. I want one-sentence answers.”
She pointed to the first student in the first row.
“Well, they might be carrying some weird disease.”
“Next,” Ms. Perez said as she pointed to the next student. “Yes, you.”
“They might be reading my mind.”
“Next.”
“They might try to cheat by looking at my answers.”
“Next.”
“I don’t care where I sit. I happen to be over on this side.”
“Next.”
“Me too.”
“Next.”
“I don’t want to sit next to mutants. they’re not human.”
“Next.”
“I’m not prejudiced but they make me nervous.”
“Next.”
“I don’t care but my parents told me to sit away from them.”
“Next.”
“Me too.”
“Okay, there you go,” Ms. Perez said. “Most of this is based on fear of the unknown. Let’s get to know Priya and Sophie and find out whether they’re a threat to us. Is this okay with you guys?”
Priya waved her hand in disgust at the other students.
“Fine. Be my guest.”
“Whatever,” Sophie said. “Sorry Ms. Perez.”
“Okay, since this is an introduction to biology class, let’s find out if there’s anything real to be frightened about. Can I take a swab of your hands and cheeks?”
“Sure,” Priya and Sophie said in unison.
The class glanced at each other and whispered because of how in sync they seemed to be.
We’ll grow the cultures in Petri dishes and discover what species of microorganisms are there. We’ll compare those with similar cultures taken from the rest of you. One of the most important things about science is discovery. It’s a search for the truth. We’ll discover the truth tomorrow and over the coming days when we understand what has grown in the Petri dishes.”
Soon the class ended. In fourth period, they experienced the same problems.
Priya thought to Sophie, who sat in a different classroom, “Here we go again. Only half the students are here. What’s happening?”
“Yeah, I’d say the class is half full and they’re staying away from me,” Sophie thought to Priya. “We need to stay calm so we can help the others when they go back to school. I think the swabs are a great idea. I like Ms. Perez.”
“I like her too,” Priya thought back. “I’m glad our teachers are enlightened. They’re in a difficult position. They’re losing students and money for the school. If the students don’t return soon, we might be kicked out because the school might be afraid of going bankrupt. We need to prove we’re no threat.”
As they ate lunch in the cafeteria, alone in a corner, a single student approached them.
“Can I sit with you guys?” she said.
“Sure,” Priya said.
“I’m Cheryse. I’m in your genetics class.”
“Oh yes,” Sophie said. “You’re in the back row on the right.”
“I always try to avoid attention, so I sit in back,” Cheryse said. “Anyway, I’m sorry for the way they’re treating you. Not everybody hates you. Many people want to be friends with you, but they stay away because of the peer pressure. If they were to be seen with you, they’d become outcasts too.”
“Thanks for saying that,” Priya said. “I wondered if everyone hated us.”
“They don’t all hate you, but about half the people are afraid of contracting some disease, some think you’re stuck up because you’re smart, and some think you’ll read their mind and take over their bodies. They think you’re an Omanji in the body of what used to be Priya. There’s a lot of conspiracy stuff going around. Some of us think those people are overreacting and you’re okay. I’m going to go now, or I’ll be made an outcast too.”
Cheryse walked away before anyone noticed.
Priya shook her head.
“We have a lot of work ahead of us if we ever want to live a normal life.”
“I’m having trouble too,” Amy said. “They correlate me with you guys and now they think I might be an Omanji, or I might carry diseases caught by being too close to you guys.”
“You can go if you want,” Sophie said.
“No, I’m with you guys now,” Amy said. “I think I want to be a civil rights lawyer. Well, I love science and programming more, but who knows.”
The rest of the day was more of the same. After school, the three of them walked to Priya’s house to study.
Amy stopped reading her genetics text and put down her eyepiece.
“Did you understand what Mr. Watson said about diploid species?”
“Oh, that’s easy,” Priya said. “Humans are a diploid species and so are peas. The offspring has two copies of each gene, one from each parent. Most mammals are diploid, though a few isolated exceptions exist. Most cells in our bodies are diploid. Diploid organisms which carry two copies of the same allele from a gene are called homozygous at that gene locus. Those with two different alleles of a given gene are heterozygous.”
Amy glanced down at her hands.
“I understand.”
“Are you okay Amy,” Sophie said.
“I don’t know. I guess I’m used to being the smart one. I used to help you guys and now you help me. I used to feel important because I could help. Now I’m dragging you guys down. I’m not worth anything anymore.”
Priya shook her head.
“Amy, if you attach your sense of self-esteem to external things like your looks, intelligence, wealth, or your popularity attained by those things, you’re lost. However, if you attach your sense of self-esteem to how you treat others, to your principles, or to making the world a better place, your self-esteem will be high. You’re standing by us as our friend, which makes you worthier as a person than whether you master genetics in a semester in high school.”
“I agree,” Sophie said. “We value you for who you are, not what you are.”
“Thanks guys, that means a lot to me. I need to reevaluate what’s important in my life.”
“You did that already when you decided to stand by us, even if it meant being ostracized,” Sophie said. “You showed us what you’re worth.”
Amy kept looking down, but she smiled.
“Hey, let’s find out how Amy’s social network is filling out,” Sophie said.
“Hey, over 6,000 members are signed up. It’ll be easier to track what’s happening here, though the telepathic collective awareness is faster and more direct.”
Priya read comments under a thread called racism.
“Hmm. Most of us are having the same problems we’re having.”
Priya and Sophie made numerous posts and vowed to create a policy for dealing with these problems. A member named Pablo promised to stand up for their rights in the court system.
“We need to stick together,” they all vowed.
“See Amy?” Priya said. “You helped us out by creating this network for us. It’s your kind nature that should be the foundation of your self-worth.”
“Thanks, I know you’re right. It’ll take me a while to get over this. I’ll be fine. My self-worth is tied up in what I do for others.”
“You’re a human be-ing, not a human do-ing” Priya said.
They hugged.
They studied until about 9pm. Afterwards, Sophie and Amy went home. Priya contacted Nisha.
“Mom, how did your day go?”
“I’ve been anxious all day. I still haven’t heard anything from Bok. It’s been several days. The Omanji continue to ignore us. Approximately 4,000 spheres are in orbit. We can’t launch satellites into orbit now because they might hit one of those spheres. Some people tried to kidnap one of your modified friends. Other people are posing as parents in other countries to try to kidnap them over there. Also, I’ve been reading about how people are treating the modified children once they go home. I’m sure you had a dreadful day. It’s disgusting. Everything is a mess.”
“We had a tough day, but we survived,” Priya said. “I’m starting to adjust to my new mind, but it’s growing every day.
“How is your mind working?” Nisha said.
“Well, it seems more, um, expansive. It’s hard to explain. Learning is becoming easier every day, but people and their behavior are becoming more difficult. Today I wasn’t as upset to see the rest of the class huddled on the other side of the classroom. They seemed more like frightened animals. I have more empathy for them. I still got angry a few times.”
“That’s great to know Pree. Be careful, there’s a lot of ignorance and fear out there. Your exposure to the Omanji makes it more difficult. Those students are worried about the Omanji when they see you.”
“Yes, but they’re also worried about me and what I am. They don’t think I’m human. Sometimes I wonder whether I am human.”
“Of course, you’re human,” Nisha said. “You still sense human feelings and emotions, right?”
“That’s for sure. I think they’re enhanced now.”
“You’re human.”
Priya smiled.
They talked for a while longer and disconnected. They soon fell asleep.