He still had quite a lot to... learn

Not like she has a choice in this.

Alice let Micheal interlock their fingers while they headed towards the center. There was suddenly a long line that was moving quite slowly.

She looked at their hands and then up at Michael's plain white face and could easily tell he was delighted.

What was the big deal with holding hands anyway? She always saw people doing it. Couples, parents and their kids, friends... That concept seemed to have held familiarity but she couldn't understand that familiarity.

Not anymore.

Yes, she couldn't recall the feelings she got from holding hands with her mother while she was still young.

She looked at her hand with Micheal's. Maybe the reason she wasn't able to recall was because those familiar and warm feelings, feeble emotions, were all beaten out of her. Along with 70 more kids who were taken into the den with her at that time.

She sighed.