I felt a small jolt, the family car going over a small pothole in the road as I breathed deeply and started to wake myself up. I could feel the dry acrid heat against my skin, sweaty from the warmth of the car as I blearily I opened my eyes, feeling disorientated. Slowly as they came into focus, I realised that I was staring down at orange trousers, my head bent forward at a painful angle and I shuffled in my seat to sit up straight.
Confusion hit me. This wasn't my parents car. Where in the Heavens was I? It looked like some kind of old fashioned school bus, like you saw in documentaries about the twenty hundreds. I seemed to be sitting behind the bus driver, at least I presumed he was the bus driver - he was wearing a sweaty tan uniform with unrecognizable patches on his sleeve and a official look hat, stained from sweat around the edges. I took another deep breath to try and clear the fog from my head. I don't remember getting on the bus. My hair was sticking to my face, obscuring my view and I reached up to push it out of my eyes. Something was holding them behind me. I could feel...a warm metal perhaps holding me down, keeping my hands behind my back. Where in the Heavens was I?
A gravelly voice jolted me to full alertness.
"Alright darlings we're here. Welcome to Sandler Finishing School! The finest in re-doctrine and reconditioning this side of the world." The voice said as he walked to the back of the bus were he paused. "Keep quiet and do as you're told and you'll graduate in no time. Now I'm about to unfasten your locks to your chair, make any sudden movements and we will simply punish you. And I promise you, you won't like that. Clear?"
Two other voices called out, startling me. I didn't know there were two other girls on the bus. One of them sounded like she was crying, the other a resigned quiet voice. I heard his footsteps come quickly striding up to my back when suddenly a hand tangled painfully in my hair, pulling it tight and wrenching my head up.
"Clear?" he hissed, angrily in my ear.
"Yes sir" I rasped, coughing from the dryness of my mouth. Slowly his hand released its tight grip on my hair.
"That was close, princess. Remember to always answer me or you'll regret it, understood?"
"Yes sir" I agreed quickly. I breathed a small sigh of relief but suddenly I was being shoved forward, my legs reflexively kicking out for balance.
"Stop fucking struggling" he ordered angrily and I had to take a deep breath to calm myself as he pushed my forward some more and painfully pulled my arms up and started tightening the chains for a second. Suddenly some of the weight fell off and I realised that he had unlocked them from the chair. He let me go and walked away. Slowly I sat up, my eyes tracking him as he moved to the back of the bus to unfasten the girl sitting at the back. Tears had streaked her make up as she cried to herself softly. With short brown hair and full lips she looked pretty, even wearing the same horrible orange jumpsuit that I was wearing. She cowered away from the guard as he stood over her, his hands pushing her down and pulling her arms up painfully as he unlocked her chains before moving onto the final girl sitting a couple of rows behind me. Defeat was plastered over her beautifully delicate features. She looked like a spoilt brat but certainly didn't act like it as she hunched herself over to make it easier for the guard to reach her arms. Her hair was slightly shorter then mine, touching her shoulders, and it fell like a curtain to hide her face as she was unlocked from her seat. As the guard straightened he gave me a look, frowning when he saw me watching him. I quickly turned back around and tried to cover my shivers as he walked towards me, his boots thumping heavily on the floor of the bus. Thank the Heavens, he walked past me and pressed a button on the door to the bus, opening it with a hiss.
"Right girls out you come and follow me for registration." He ordered us before he stepped out into the blinding sunshine. The girls stood and walked past us, the driver watching them pass before giving me a look before I quickly jumped up and nearly stumbled when I realised my hands were still bound behind my back. Quickly I caught my balance and followed them out. Whiteness filled my vision and I took 2 steps before stumbling into the girl who was still sobbing to herself.
"Careful back there!" Our guard ordered before he grabbed my arm and pulled me forward.
"This way" He ordered us as he pulled me along. I went with him, there was no chance of getting out his grip, as we walked up to the wide glass doors. The guards eyed us with interest as they held the door open and we walked through into the cool interior. The trainers on my feet squeaked as we were marched past several rows of doors and up to the front desk where we were stopped in front of a short man wearing the same uniform as our guards.
Forms were produced and shoved onto the desk as this new guard pulled out a pair of glasses from his pocket and shoved them on the tip of his nose. Shuffling through them he glanced at each of us in turn before picking up his pen and signing them. He passed them back to our original guard.
"Kennedy has room 4, Terris room 18 and McLean room 19." He said before pressing a button on his phone and picking it up. As our guards led us away I only caught a quiet "That's shuttle 4431 arrived.." before we were out of hearing. A door with a large 4 on it was suddenly in front of me and I was being pushed through leaving me standing in a room that somewhat looked like a doctor's office. A large desk dominated the room, computer and office clutter stacked neatly to the side. Framed certificates filled one of the walls, thick heavy doors on the other walls. Apart from the 2 guards and woman in a lab coat sitting behind the desk it wouldn't have felt threatening.
She looked to be about in her late thirties and with a stern look on her face I got the impression that she was a professional. Her make up was light and her dark hair was tied up in a tidy bun. The frown on her face deepened as she saw me looking at her.
"First day at Sandlers and you're already late. Sit down and answer my questions" She said in a clipped voice.
Slowly I stepped forward and eying the two guards, carefully sat down on the hard chair in front of the desk.
"Where am I?" I asked.