Branding Them

"Dehlia?"

She heard someone calling her name with urgency causing her brows to crease yet her eyes didn't open. This wasn't the time she usually woke up and where was that voice coming from? 

Perhaps she must be dreaming? Dehlia thought and went back to her sleep. No nightmare would ruin her day today. However, that voice became louder, "Come on, Dahlia, we are late!" She even felt a push. 

Thanks to that gesture, Dahlia's eyes finally flew opened and her heart stopped short. What the hell?

With record-breaking speed, Dahlia sat up at once to look around her environment, and then her eyes fell on the figure that had woken her up from her sleep. It was a young woman - an unfamiliar woman.

Delia's gaze moved along the room once more and a question escaped her lips, "Where am I?" 

"Huh?" The other girl seemed to be confused. 

This wasn't her room, Dehlia was sure of it nor does she have a roommate? She doesn't even know who the hell she was, could she be a burglar? However, before Dehlia could confirm her speculations, the girl flicked her forehead with her finger and it was painful. 

Pain? 

She could feel pain? 

Then this should be real. 

"I knew I shouldn't have helped you sneak out to get a short nap when you're usually a mess when you wake," She sighed, "You do know how important today's event is to us-it determines our fate!" 

"Today's event? Determine their fate?" Dahlia repeated after her like a mindless zombie. Oh no, something was wrong here. 

Could it be that someone kidnapped her from her place and brought her here? Dehlia gasped, could this be a human trafficking ring? Oh no. 

Then her eyes fell on the clothes she was wearing and another gasp - much stronger and louder than the first one - left her mouth. Someone, please tell her that she was dreaming. 

Dehlia was wearing a French maid outfit - a very, very, very, very, revealing one. The nuns at the orphanage would surely die of a heart attack when they see her in this attire. 

The maid uniform was a short-sleeve black dress with white trim and rested above her knee showing off a ton of her slim thighs. 

It had a white half-apron, with ruffles around it, and was completed with long black fishnet stockings that were designed with a garter at the top. 

The neckline of the dress was so low and revealed the push-up bra she wore underneath that served her boobs up like Ice-cream in bowls. In one word, she looked like she was sexual role-playing. 

After two seconds of trying not to freak out, Dahlia announced, "Look, I don't know who you are or what the hell I'm doing here but I'm sure you got the wrong person,"

"Huh?" The girl gave her a stupid look, "Did you hit your head somewhere while you were asleep, Dahlia?"

No, she was sane - saner than ever. They were the ones confusing her. She had slept last night and woke up to see herself in a strange person. She needed an explanation and a way to wake up from this nightmare.

Suddenly the door to the room was forcibly open and there came in a pale-looking bulky man that made Dahlia swallow down a gulp. She couldn't explain it but her instincts told her this person was dangerous.

"What are you both doing here! Go join the others immediately," He boomed at them with intensity, causing shivers to climb down Dahlia's back that when the unfamiliar girl grabbed her hand and began to lead her away, she didn't even complain.

Everything was moving so fast and her brain was trying hard to absorb the information as quickly as it came. One thing was for sure, this was real - she could feel pain. 

However, the question was how? And where the hell was she? It was only when she figured these first questions that she would be able to figure out the secondary questions and their answers. 

Dahlia was so lost in thoughts that she didn't know when she bumped into someone. However, the victim didn't even react and that was when she woke up from her reverie to discover that she was standing in a file.

Then she realized something, the victim was dressed just like her? What in the name of God was happening here? 

Dehlia popped her head out to look at the long line and saw that everyone was in the same maid attire as hers, including the girl that had woken her. Was this a cult or what? Dehlia was creeped out each passing minute with every discovery she made. Something was not right here. 

"Why are you so fidgety today?" The girl startled her since she was behind her. 

"Would you believe me if I told you that I woke up this morning and found myself here?" Dahlia breathed, "I don't belong here, whatever this place is," 

"And would you believe me if I told you that I've known you since the past week you came here and that you're being so strange right now?" She retorted and Dahlia realized that explaining her situation to her was a loss of breath. She must think she was going crazy. 

Dahlia tried to go over this situation in her head. Perhaps she died in her sleep and this was the afterlife? However, what kind of afterlife department would have her dressed up like a prostitute? 

Was that why she was standing in a line? She was in heaven and was about to see God? However, didn't the lesson she learned from the church say God was holy? Also, why were there no males here? Did they all go to Hell or did they arrive at the gate of heaven before her? 

Or perhaps, she was reborn? This fast? Did she somehow jump into the future? It didn't make sense and she was running out of ideas. 

As she drew closer to the exit, Dahlia realized that each girl that reached the entrance would stretch their hand to the figure standing there and she would place a device that looked like a scanner over her skin for some seconds and the girl leaves afterward with the next person doing the same. 

"What are they doing?" Dehlia asked that girl from behind her - she was good at giving information. 

"Branding us," 

"Us?" She was stunned. 

"Yeah, it's a number on our skin so the guest can be able to identify their drink. But don't worry, it goes away at a specified time," She assured her. 

Dahlia was stunned, the guest use the number on their skin to identify their drinks? What kind of twisted paradise was this place? 

Sadly, if only Delia understood that when the girl said "drink" she literally referred to them, humans, then she would have escaped on time.