I spoke out of turn, and Joy tried to order food she isn’t supposed to have without asking permission. We have to stand with our hands flat on the t...able and expose our bodies to shame ourselves so that we remember to behave properly.”It was a very clear explanation, and Master had only recently instructed us to be clear with people when we are acting strangely. I don’t think I could have said it all with a straight face.“Is the punishment working?” he seemed empathetic towards our situation –. Elena had the gift of the green thumb. She would often buy plants that looked as if they should be thrown out and miraculously bring them back to life. Nikolai supposed that she used that same gift to bring him back to life as well after his less than clean life. But, that was the past and he worked hard to make sure that it stayed in the past.The little white cottage was just coming into view, when Nikolai noticed there was a strange car parked in the drive already. He pulled up next to the. .. Wait a minute. Alaina replayed the conversation with Ayanna. She didn’t know about it. How did she not know?“Ay, you didn’t hear about any of this before now?” she asked. “Nothing?”“What, you mean about your Class?”“No, the other thing.”“You mean—no, you kidding? I wouldn’t have believed it if you hadn’t told me yourself! I’m still not sure I do, A. I mean, c’mon, you’ve always hated his guts.” Seeing the look she was getting, Ayanna clarified, “Well, maybe not like you do now, but .... There was no answer, for a second I was afraid he might not understand my language but, after lowering his glass, he answered. “Hey.”His accent was heavy, raw. In his eyes, there wasn’t much besides confusion, as if he was surprised of finding me there as if he hadn’t smiled at me five minutes earlier. “You are thinking,” I warned me.“Can I sit?” That was the first thing I came up with.He nodded but stayed quiet. His glass, his dinner, everything was partially eating, it was clear I had.