NEW FRIEND

Just as Ulanni was about to continue prodding Sarah for answers, she heard the sound of shuffling feet coming from the direction of the door. It was followed by the jiggling sound of keys, indicating that someone was about to enter the room.

Wow, morning already?" Ulanni exclaimed, feeling a mix of surprise and reluctance as she realized that her time with her new friend had flown by too quickly.

It was a feeling she wasn't used to, having just made her first-ever friend in the compound. On top of that, she was eager to learn about what secrets lay behind the imposing gate that had piqued her curiosity for so long.

The sudden creak of the opening door jolted her out of her trance, and she squinted as bright rays of sunlight flooded into the room. It took a few moments for her eyes to adjust to the sudden light; she reflexively closed them for a moment before reopening them to take in her surroundings.

Ulanni turned her head towards her newfound friend, trying to get a sense of whether they had crossed paths before or if she was a new arrival.

As Ulan glanced over at Sarah, she noticed that she had her head nestled in her lap, her blue hair forming a tangled mess that resembled a bird's nest. Despite her disheveled appearance, Ulan couldn't help but find Sarah's posture and position quite endearing.

Upon raising her head, Ulani found out that Sarah's whole eyes were looking blurry and had a misty color, like Ulani's usual eye color. Ulani didn't want to jump to conclusions yet because if someone saw her for the first time they would also think that she was blind.

Perhaps Sarah also had unusual eyes like Ulani. This thought made Ulani feel enthusiastic.

"Now get out of here, you lot!" the old man guarding the door blurted in a muffled voice.

Slowly getting up from the ground, Ulani immediately felt pain in her thighs and lower back area. "Ahrrr... that hurts a lot," she thought to herself. She turned to her side and looked at Sarah, who didn't seem to feel any pain in the slightest.

As Ulani stepped out of the dark room, she looked up at the sky and noticed that it was still very early in the morning. The sun had yet to rise in the sky.

Ulani turned to see Sarah stepping out of the dark room, unsure of what to expect. However, what she saw was not at all what she had been expecting.

Sarah walked out of the dark room as if she could see perfectly well, with her eyes fixed straight ahead of her.

Ulani was itching to ask Sarah if she was blind, but since they had already left the dark room, she didn't want to risk getting punished again if she was caught talking to her.

"She was now expected to return to her sleeping block, wait for the other children to wake up and complete their morning routine, before congregating at the board to select their daily tasks."

She cast a final glance at Sarah, determined to ingrain her face in her memory. With a heavy heart, she turned left and made her way towards a distant building, hoping that she would have the opportunity to see Sarah again someday.

Ulanni quickened her pace as she made her way towards the door in the distance. It felt as if it were located high up in a mountain, and she was growing increasingly weak with each step. Her stomach ached terribly, as if something heavy had been pressing down on it for hours.

"In my current state, I feel like I could eat an entire cow in a matter of minutes," Ulanni muttered to herself.

Ulanni pushed open the brown door and stepped inside, the door closing soundlessly behind her.

The small hallway was deserted, and Ulanni saw no one in sight. She walked silently on the creaky wooden floor, doing her best to avoid the squeaky parts.

Ulanni finally arrived at her destination. In front of her was a large curtain, which she pushed aside before walking into the room. Rows and rows of beds stretched out before her, each one holding a sleeping figure.

Ulanni always found it comical that the sleeping children looked like loaves of bread in an oven, especially since they were all dressed in brown sleepwear.

Ulanni stifled a laugh that was about to escape her mouth as she made her way through the mass of sleeping girls. She continued until she found her numbered bed.

Boldly inscribed on the edge of the bed was the number three hundred. Ulanni groaned inwardly as someone else already occupied the bed.

After walking around for some time, Ulanni finally found an unoccupied bed. Unfortunately, the bed was in poor condition and not fit for sleeping.

However, she was so exhausted that she didn't care about the state of the bed and plopped down on it. "Well, beggars can't be choosers," she muttered to herself.

As soon as her head hit the mattress, she drifted off into a dreamless slumber.

However, she doubted that she would be able to sleep for long.