Saven Deception by Siobhan Davis

in my fists and sigh.
    “It can be as uncomplicated as you want it
to be. Write back and tell him you’re a star. Let’s see how he responds.”
    I pinch the bridge of my nose and sigh
wearily. I shouldn’t care. It’s not as if I’d be permitted to have any future
with a boy like him, or any boy for that matter, so it’s better that I tell him
and end this—whatever this is—before it begins. Might as well get it out of the
way now. My heart protests wildly against my head, but the logical side of my
brain wins out over the nostalgic, sappy side.
    Best to put a stop to this now before I do
something stupid.
    Like fall in love with him.
    “You’re right. I don’t know why I’m
entertaining the notion of it anyway. I’m not interested in casual flings, and
that’s all this would be, even if he could overlook my social status.”
    “Stop that, Sadie. It’s damn infuriating.”
Jenna snaps her fingers in my face. “You deserve to have a little fun, and
there’s nothing wrong with it. Everyone needs love in their life, and unless
I’m mistaken, you haven’t had much of that. So, you should seize the
opportunity when it comes your way. Go on,” she urges, nudging me, “Tell him.”
    I type with trembling hands. I’m so
nervous I could puke. I spend about ten minutes typing and erasing in a
repetitive manner. Jenna hovers wordlessly over me the whole time, but I don’t
miss the vociferous sighs or the exasperated tapping of her foot.
    “Good God, woman,” she shrieks when I’ve
eventually tested her patience to the limit. “Stop trying to sugarcoat it
because that’s damned near impossible. Just spell it out. Direct is best.”
    Taking her advice, I erase my previous
message and type quickly.
     
    From:
SOwens
    To:
LChandler
     
    Hi
Logan,
     
    Thanks
for your message. I’m a star so I guess there’s no point in continuing this?
    Sadie.
     
    My finger hovers fretfully over the send
button. Closing my eyes, I press down. I can’t recall a time when I was so
anxious that I physically felt sick. This is so out of my comfort zone it’s not
funny.
    A little while later, Jenna returns to
Odie, and I’m silently praying he hasn’t seduced Neve by now. Jenna’s been gone
a lot longer than she had indicated. If Odie is anything like his lower class
male counterparts, then every female is fair game. The government loves it that
way. I’m surprised they don’t give out awards, though “Male Whore of the Year”
and “Biggest Slut on the Planet” don’t have an appealing ring to them.
    I spend an hour watching my screen for a
response that doesn’t arrive. I’m jittery as hell and as irritable as my mom on
a good day. Moping around here all day will do me no good. So, I deliberately
leave my D-pad on my bed and head to the training room, determined to put my
time to good use.
    An hour later, I dash back to my room,
like a crack addict in desperate need of a fix. No flashing icon greets me and
I deflate. Flinging my D-pad back on my bed, I decide to do something totally
unnatural.
    I head to the gym, hoping to expel some of
my repressed frustration.
    Reminding myself to complain to Vin about
the choice of gym attire, I pull the tiny black shorts down lower over the
cheeks of my bum and adjust the lycra top that stops right under my bust. I
scan myself from all angles to ensure I’m not exposing any side-boob. Honestly,
I imagine I’d be wearing more if I were prepped for a day at the beach.
    Gathering my courage, I push through the
double doors into the gym. Several pairs of eyes flit in my direction, and I
feel sick all over again. Hastily glancing around, I let out a low groan when I
realize I’m the only female in here. But I can’t chicken out now because that
would be an obvious show of weakness. So, I force one foot in front of the
other and ignore the heated stares I’m picking up from all corners.
    Stopping in front of one of the less
technical looking machines, I drape my towel over the