Among Us

Taylor was being led down a long hallway with plain gray walls. The Instructor's heels clacked on the loosely tiled floor ahead of her.

Taylor wore a black space suit with combat boots, and she pushed a hand through the long part of her undercut. Her suit felt baggy on her body, despite her being 5'6". She didn't mind, though, because the suit was comfortable- just her type.

They had received some underclothes for nighttime and whatnot, and Taylor carried the duffel bag with her. She observed the walls, boring paintings hanging on them as the overhead lights flickered.

Her heart began to beat faster as they neared the door at the end of the hallway... closer to the others. The Instructor turned to face Taylor, and she stopped abruptly.

"Now, when you enter, there will be people. Lots of them, and you probably won't know any of them."

"Adrian!" Someone inside yells playfully, causing Taylor and the Instructor to jump. It was a male, so Taylor's chances of blending in were beginning to look unlikely.

This was a rehabilitation program, and guys struggled more often than girls did. She wouldn't be surprised if she was one of the only- if not the only- girls there.

"Anyways," The Instructor clears her throat, demanding Taylor's attention once more. "Don't get too close with these people. They will probably have their helmets already on, since no one wants to carry the heavy things.

"Family will be here to say goodbye in half an hour, so you have some time to mingle with the others. Enjoy, but remember- do not get too close with these people. They aren't your friends."

Taylor nodded, and the Instructor opened the door. Taylor enters a room full of people, each wearing a space suit, each a different color. Lime, Cyan, Violet, Red, Brown, Pink.

Red. The guy in the red space suit had dark hair, and he was tall. Taylor couldn't take her eyes off of him as he joked around with Blue.

They've got names. She glances around the room, the decor not much better in here than in the hallway. Teal chairs were lined up against the wall and a few coffee tables had magazines on them but that was it. There was a shelf with pamphlets for the program in the corner, but the place was like a doctor's waiting room.

"Can Taylor Jackson please come back?"

The people- lots- were a small group of teenagers. They had broken off into groups, talking with people similar to their personalities. Taylor wasn't surprised, it reminded her of her high school- different cliques for different people.

Red was definitely popular. He has a name. Despite what the Instructor said, no one was wearing a helmet. They sat at these people's feet or on a chair near where they were.

A dark-skinned girl laughs, and Taylor notices her white space suit. It looks pretty, contrasting her skin like a chiaroscuro. Her hair was straightened, and Taylor moved her gaze to the girl next to her.

Purple hair, matching her suit. It was a lavender, so it didn't really fall seamlessly with her suit, but it was close enough. She was tanned, and she kept cracking jokes, and the other girl kept adding to it until they both couldn't breathe.

Red and Blue were chuckling, scanning the room as well before Red's eyes met Taylor's. She hoped she didn't blush, it would be obvious against her pale skin.

She approached the two, nodding a sup at them before Blue smirks. "Look, it's a girl!"

Red elbows him. "Leave her alone, dude." Blue and Red looked alike, except one had blue eyes and the other a caramel brown, respectively.

"Hey to you, too," Taylor smiles back at Blue. He stares at her for a moment, eyeing her up and down.

"I'm Adrian," Blue finally says, and Taylor smiles.

"Nice to meet you." She glances over at Red, the one who caught her eye.

"I'm Henry," He waves, and she nods. She stood still for a moment, wanting to introduce herself without sounding stupid before Henry says, "Are you gonna introduce yourself? Or do we have to come up with a nickname for you like we have the others?"

Surprise crosses Taylor's face before she nods. "Yeah, I'm Taylor." She extends her hand, both boys shake it. "What do you mean nicknames?"

"They're pretty good," Adrian smirks, a canine showing. Taylor raises an eyebrow.

Henry smiles, too, looking at Taylor. "It's not as bad or good as he makes it out to be. I don't know how you've interpreted it, but the names are innocent."

Taylor smiles, too, glancing around the room. "So, who's who?"

"Ah, we got a new recruit!" Adrian exclaims, grinning at Taylor.

"If you tell me some names."

"Okay, Okay." Henry smiles, turning Taylor so she can observe the room with them. His touch ignites her, and she lets him move her wherever. "So, Yellow, right? Name's Chelsea." He pauses. "Pretend we're not introducing you to everyone, or they'll know we were talking about them."

Taylor nods, so Henry continues, a hand on her shoulder, the other subtly pointing. "Yellow is Bubbly."

"Bubbly?" Taylor repeats.

"Yes. I told you they were innocent." She smiles, and he continues. "Brown is Gabriel, he's Detective. Orange is Logan, he's Brit; Pink is Illyria, Model." Henry grins. "Adrian thinks she's hot."

Adrian glares, but Henry continues. "Green and Lime, Oliver and Anthony, they're The Twins; this guy," Henry points at Adrian. "Is asshole. Cyan is Lydia, she doesn't have a nickname. Purple is Violet- no joke- and she's Singer girl; White is Angela, she doesn't have a nickname yet."

"Red is Dickwad." Adrian says, leaning against the wall with his arms folded.

Henry flips him off, smiling. "Remember, when we introduce ourselves, you don't know them."

Taylor nods. "Got it." After a pause, "Why are you guys here?"

Henry grins, sharing a glance with Adrian. Was there a joke? Obviously, these two were friends long before the Shuttle.

"Basically, partying," Henry begins. "You know, some dope and other drugs, selling them and then I drank a lot. Not an alcoholic- I promise. Just a party animal. Also, vandalism. I do graffiti."

"What's your tag?"

"Penises." Adrian says, and Henry actually hits him. "Sheesh, it was a joke."

"Not now," Henry smiles at Taylor. "Um, I do my name. Big letters, but I rearrange the letters."

Taylor nods. "That's cool."

He nods. "I play around with it for a bit in my sketchbook before putting it on a wall."

"Good idea. What about Adrian?"

"Same thing, except I stole things instead of graffitiing things." Adrian answers.

"What about you?" Henry asks.

Taylor shrugs, wishing the reason she was here seemed as badass as theirs. "I stole my dad's money and credit cards- one too many times- and I vandalized public property." She grins. "My tag is the penises."

"Are you serious?" Adrian asks, his mouth dropped open.

Taylor laughs and shakes her head. "Not my tag, but I draw them on stop signs sometimes. And No Outlet signs." She mimics a chef's kiss. "Perfect!"

The boys laugh, and Adrian says, "Henry didn't just do his name, by the way. He's really talented. He's not just a party animal."

Henry glares at him, but Taylor raises an inquiring eyebrow.

Henry takes a deep breath. "I drew zoo animals sometimes. Elephants, zebras, lions, giraffes. Sometimes I would do some birds, for the kids. I was basically teaching them it was okay, so I feel kind of bad about it."

"Why? That's amazing!"

"Well, now we'll have more graffiti artists on the run. They'll not only cover up original artwork, but they will also get in trouble. Hopefully nothing like this stupid game we're going to be playing."

"Well," Taylor says, smiling at Henry. "You can't teach brainless creatures."

Adrian guffaws and Henry's mouth drops open. "They're not brainless!" He protests.

A man who defends kids? Who possibly likes kids? Taylor smirks, ready to keep this thing going. "Okay, so one brain cell equals smart. Got it."

Adrian was still laughing, hands on his knees as he wheezed for air, and Henry still looked shocked. "That's not nice!"

Taylor smiles, shrugging. "Gotta squeeze some hate in there somewhere."

Henry still looked shocked- maybe he thinks all women want and like kids. "Maternal instinct" or whatever. Taylor just waves, wandering over to the girls.

Pink, White, and Violet- no, purple, then Violet. Pink was tall, her height all in her legs. Leg model? Taylor guessed, but the girl was beautiful, with dark blue eyes- like the depths of the ocean- and dark brown hair draped over a shoulder. She even stood like a model.

White's eyes were dark brown, almost hiding her pupils were nearly concealed while Purple's eyes were a pale blue. They welcomed Taylor quickly, returning to their conversation about the space shuttle and asking Taylor too many questions.

The Instructor comes in, ringing a little handbell and demanding everyone's attention. "We're going to do introductions, you should know each other before we send you off together. You have fifteen minutes to formally introduce yourselves before your families can come in and say goodbye. Get going!"

Everyone gathers in a circle, saying who they are and giving an age. Taylor found it odd, since she hadn't shared the latter with them. Turns out, most of them were 16-18 years old, the exceptions being Gabriel and Chelsea, who were 15 and 14.

Afterwards, they break off into different groups again, waiting for their families. Chelsea and Gabriel sat together, she was talking and he was listening intently.

Her blonde hair was in pigtails, and they bounced as she talked. Gabriel looked just like Adrian, maybe they were brothers.

Taylor made her way over to Cyan-Lydia, and smiled. "Hey,"

"Hey," Lydia's hair was dyed, cyan at the roots and fading into black. She had blue eyes close enough to her hair, and Taylor wandered back over to the three girls. Chelsea was telling Gabriel how she was here for running away.

"So, what are you guys here for?" Taylor asks, keeping an eye on the clock. Six minutes.

Angela was on for being a "disrespectful daughter"- no tank tops, crop tops, or short shorts. Violet was here for fighting a man for telling her she was worthless, and Illyria was hesitant to share why she was there.

"I stole my dad's money too many times, and I vandalized public property," Taylor offers, so Illyria feels more comfortable.

Instead, Illyria cackles. "Aw, someone still lives with Daddy?" She laughs again before walking away, keeping her reason to herself.

"Sorry," Violet apologizes, smiling sympathetically. "She can be like that sometimes." Her smile seems to turn into something else as she admits, "It was a little funny. You know, most of us don't have good relationships with our parents, so don't rub it in. It might get you killed."

Taylor frowns, walking away before things could get worse. Green and Lime- Oliver and Anthony, were fighting over who looks better. They were identical, and Taylor was glad they had two separate colors.

The only thing telling them apart beside their color was their hair- Lime had longer hair that flopped over an eye, and Green's was short and neat. Sandy blonde, with green eyes. Cute, but not really attractive.

You're not here to find love. But Red is hot. She finds him across the room, talking to Adrian still. Definitely friends before the Shuttle.

A buzzer went off, alerting them to find their families or let their families find them. Gabriel went to Adrian, and Taylor noticed a baseball cap, a gold star taped on it and the letters scribbled with brown. A sheriff? Cute.

When Taylor spots her dad in the crowd, and she directs him to a corner so they can talk in privacy. But he's not the only she saw come in.