The Black Sheeps
Description
In order to have children of their own, couples will have to purchase them with 'Parent Points'. Almost all parents would try and earn a few thousand parent points in order to get a perfect child. A child that's beautiful, and predicted to continue being perfect as they grow up. However, there are rare cases where parents, who have not earned enough parent points, are unable to purchase a perfect child. In this case, they look at the cheaper children. Children who costs a minimum of 100 parent points. Children who are labeled as flaws, and predicted to continue being flaws as they grow up.
They are the Black Sheeps.
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disclaimer! do read before continuing!
If some of you feel as if the plot of this story is familiar to something else, its because I got the idea of this story from a writing prompt from tumblr!
Please do read the beautiful short story from the talented tumblr user, caffeinewitchcraft. CLICK HERE TO READ.
I will be using her idea/writing in my prologue/foreward, and that will be it! The rest of the story from chapter one onwards will written by me!
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the blacksheeps
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kim rina // 1998
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kang daniel // 1997
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lai guanlin // 2000
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park chanyeol // 1997
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kim jongin // 1998
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kim mingyu // 1998
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jeon wonwoo // 1997
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wang jackson // 1997
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park jinyoung // 1996
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Foreword
prologue; year 2028
The facility's staff welcomed her with open arms, eyes flicking over her designer clothes and purse. Their smiles brightened even more when they scanned her Parent Points, an eight digit number appearing on the screen.
"This way, Miss Kim." one of the social workers, Ms Jung, said, gestering her arms towards a hallway, "I have just the nursery for you.
She followed Ms Jung obediently, looking neither right nor left. Ms Jung was clearly taking her to the higher point children, the ones at the heart of the facility, the protected ones. Miss Kim could hear crying as they passed the first window and her hands curled into fists behind her back.
“Here we are,” Ms Jung chirped, stopping in front of a large, viewing window. “Please, let me know if you see one to your liking. I have all the relevant information here.” She held up her data pad and smiled.
Ms Kim stepped forward, eyes dropping to the plaque just under the window.
Flower Petal Room. Advanced language skills, superior mathematics, excellent athleticism. 80,000-120,000 Parent Points.
The children in the room screamed with laughter as their caregiver chased them around a brightly colored carpet. They were all young here, babies and toddlers. If they became older, they would become cheaper and cheaper until they would be labeled as ten-year-old prodigies for just a few thousand parent points.
Miss Kim’s jaw tenses as she took in the aura of the room. There were books strewn all over the ground, intermingled with toys and puzzles and snack boxes. There was caretaker for every three children, equipped with radios and first aid training in case there were any injuries. She could see genuine affection on the caretakers’ faces as they played with the children, listening to them, loving them.
“They’re lovely,” Miss Kim told Ms Jung, not taking her eyes off the room. “Really.”
“Thank you,” Ms Jung smiled. “We begin the educational process early. These children are magnificently bright, you see, sure to flourish in your home.”
“I’m sure,” Miss Kim said, “but I don't think I'll take any of them.” She her heel and headed back down the hallway, strides long and sure.
“M-Miss Kim?” Ms Jung stutterred. “Wait!”
Miss Kim did not wait at all. She walked past the 50,000 point children, and caught a glimpse of solid beds, individual heaters, and caretakers beginning to prepare the evening meals with the kids. She saw smiles and heard laughter and was happy for these children, she truly was.
However, she hated that not all the kids here were so cared for.
“Really,” Ms Jung huffed, fixing her loose hair, “I don’t think you’ll find a child to your satisfaction here!”
Miss Kim ignored her yet again, and slowed down. These nurseries were marked differently now. The 1000-2000 point kids’ room was plainer, still bright and cheerful but not quite so…vibrant. The caretakers here wore scrubs, like how nurses do, and they sat at folding tables, not oak ones. The children were munching on carrots and brocolli, some biscuits.
There was one more room at the end of the hallway. Miss Kim knew what it was.
“If you haven’t seen any child you like,” Ms Jung said, catching Miss Kim's arm, “we have a sister facility in Jeju Island! I hear they have a little girl with the biggest eyes– Miss Kim, wait!”
Miss Kim stopped in front of the last window. It was yellow with age and there were chicken wires embedded in the glass. In the bottom right corner, there was a web of cracks as if it had been hit with great force from the inside.
The plaque under this window read:
Black Sheeps. Disruptive behaviors, low proficiency in core subjects. 100-200 PP.
There were fifteen kids in this room, which was wrong since this nursery was much smaller than the others. Their beds were metal bunk beds with thin, space saver mattresses. The children sat scattered on the floor as there were not enough chairs for all of them. They ranged in age, from toddlers to teenagers and their clothing looked old, worn, and did not look similar from the children in the other rooms.
There were also no caregivers at all.
“It takes certain certifications to handle these children,” Ms Jung says, flustered. “We can’t afford to keep a specialist on the staff 24/7. I assure you, the children don’t particularly mind it. They’re a…slow group.”
Miss Kim saw the bags under each set of eyes. She saw the way they sat, backs too tense and straight to be anything but aware of being observed. She saw the food wrappers littering the ground, the grease in their hair, and the scarcity of color in the room and gritted her teeth.
“All of them,” she said. She thinks about her big house, all the rooms, all the money. She did not plan for this, not so soon, but she knew it was now or never. She knew that if they were not purchased till they were 18 years old, they would be kicked out of the facility and thrown into the world they had no knwoledge of. “I’ll take all of them.”
Ms Jung sputtered, “Miss Kim! I–I admire your charity but a woman of your position, if I may speak openly and with respect, can not buy a 100 point child!”
“A woman of my position?” Miss Kim repeated, eyebrows climbing up her forehead.
“Exactly,” Ms Jung said, nodding fiercely. “You are a woman in the public eye, Miss Kim, and you need a child able to do you justice! One of the 10,000 PP children, even, would serve you better!”
“I think a 100 point child could handle it just fine.” Miss Kim said, twitching.
Ms Jung seemed appalled. “I assure you, they can’t! They will never grow up to be whatever you expect them to be. The only path they might be in the future is...one that does not seem bright and happy."
Miss Kim straightened her poise and looked at Ms Jung directly in the eyes, "So you're telling me that all these children in this room will never grow up successful or bright, or even the slightest bit happy?"
Miss Jung agreed instantly, "Yes, they never will. Trust me."
Miss Kim turned her head towards the children in the room. Her eyes scanned each child, all of them looking back at her with tired and anxious eyes.
She turned back to Miss Jung, a gentle smile on her face, "But I ended up succesful, and bright. And I'm the happiest that I had ever been. So no, Miss Jung. I will not trust you with those words." She took out her Parent Point Card and gave it to Miss Jung, "But I will trust you in preparing the paperwork for all of these children."
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