The World Outside

The outside world was unknown to her, but she could see a glimpse of it through the window in his room. As far as she could tell, he was her only way out of the only life she'd ever known.

In a time long before her own, the people were set up for decline. The powers that be enclosed everyone within the walls of The Great Structure. The people were told it was for their own good - that the world beyond the walls would soon cease to be habitable. Unbeknownst to the ones essentially locking up the human race, some citizens went rogue and escaped before the walls were sealed.

The walls began simply as physical structures and they stayed that way for quite some time. However, as could be expected, there came a time when people began to get restless; they longed for the freedom of the open world they used to know. When the physical barrier was beginning to show damage from multiple escape attempts, a new net of “protection” was put in place. The wall was not just a wall any longer - it was something more. This new form of blockage was incomprehensible to the people and without being able to understand how they were being held in, they began to lose (along with their sanity) hope of ever getting out.

In the early days, The "Great" Structure allowed for recognition of the outside world. Windows were plentiful, encouraging the citizens to enjoy the sights of their former home and making attempted escapes less likely. From time to time, those remaining on the outside would be glimpsed by an onlooker from one of the many windows, sparking wonder as to why they are all locked away when their counterparts (though few in number) seem to be flourishing along with the world said to be plunging into ruin. Or was it growing out of it?

The new layer separating the two worlds was designed to take away all of the windows to the outside. There was one window, however, that could never be fully eliminated. The overseers did not understand it and could not find a way to program it out of existence. They knew it existed, this weak point, but could not locate it; it appeared only in one spot at a time, but that place was not stagnant. They, in their all-consuming search, had never seen it.

The last window to the outside world was accessible to everyone in a different place. The window held the power not just to show its viewer a glimpse of the other side, but to be opened, allowing that person to pass through unhindered - but only if it could be kept in one place for long enough. Had anyone figured this out? Did anyone know the key to their freedom? If they did, they did not tell.

By the time Mariella came into existence, the new window-less net technology was already in place. The only world she knew existed within the confines of The Great Structure. She had, of course, heard stories of the time before the enclosure. She had been told about places where you could stand up high and look out over miles and miles of open spaces- no sharp, vertical walls to stop your gaze, your dreams. Although she often decided she was comfortable enough in this place - she was relatively safe, she had what she needed, and she knew it would not end - she found herself longing for something more.

Ben was also from the time after the windows, so he knew no other world firsthand, but he would always remember the vision of beauty he saw as a toddler when a window appeared just briefly on the wall when his mother sang to him. When she finished the song, the window faded - leaving behind nothing but gray wall and a memory. Even though the window vanished, Ben carried with him the knowledge that he could be free if he ever found it again - and he knew he would. He was positive.

Before Mariella met Ben, she had never seen a window. She had never seen the sun shining through the trees. She had never seen luscious green grass blowing in the breeze. When she first met Ben, she could tell by the hopeful glimmer in his eyes that he knew there was something beyond what she lived every day in that large, stale, gray box. Mariella knew he was the key to a better life for her. He went about life differently because of his privilege. He was lucky enough to glimpse the world beyond and understand that it was attainable. It would come in time, but he would soon have the choice to leave his controlled life for an unpredictable world of possibilities. He already knew what decision he would make.

Soon after Mariella and Ben began seeing each other, it happened. She saw a glimpse of the window for the very first time. She was perched on the edge of his bed and it appeared on the wall directly in front of her face. She had never seen anything of such beauty, such mystery, and such wonder. Every time she visited his room, she would see the window for a second longer. She knew this was her place of opportunity - with him.

Before long, they could both see the window when they were together. A life together in the outside world was theirs for the taking. He knew what he would do, but would she take the risk?