The Girl in the Hourglass

High school is tough enough without being a ticking time bomb.

No...really. My name is Kyrie Maxwell and I lost the genetic lottery. My parents are Supers and it turns out they never should have had me.

I’m what they call a Double-Red. A child of two genetically modified individuals lacking a key combination of genes that would keep me stable.

They tell me the meds are to keep calm. What they mean is they keep me numb. Too much excitement and I, literally, could explode, so they make sure I feel nothing. I’ve been doped my entire life. Well...until I decided I wasn’t going to take it anymore.

You know what I say? What’s the point? If they aren’t going to let me live, why try so hard to keep me alive?

Wait…do you hear something ticking?