The mask irritates his face, but he keeps his hands by his side. The clean ones get jumpy if an infected messes with its mask. He keeps his head down but can feel the sideways glances bouncing towards him. He hears the shuffling as they unsuccessfully attempt to quietly distance themselves from him.
His anger rises but he forces it down. Violence from an infected results in only one thing: extermination. As much as he wants to scream and throw himself at these people, he knows he can’t risk it. He would be taken out before the first punch was thrown. Members of the secret guard are everywhere, constantly watching the infected.
He keeps his cool, silently brooding as his stop approaches. He gets up to leave, avoiding eye contact with everyone, just as they like. Stepping off the bus, he runs head on into a clean one. She jumps back, gasping, and brushes off her clothes as if he were filthy.
“That’s it,” he thinks to himself. “I’ve had enough.”
He leaves the woman in the street and races up the stairs of his apartment building, a place like many others designated for the infected ones. He enters his apartment, a clean-room, the device by the door beeping to indicate his mask is securely in place, as it ought to be. This is the one place an infected can take his mask off without consequences, but that will soon change.
He sits at his kitchen table, devising his plan. He knows what his fate will be but the infected have to start somewhere. They are sick and tired of being treated as second-class citizens. New laws are being enacted weekly, stripping more rights of the infected. They aren’t even considered human anymore.
A revolution is needed to help his fellow infected brothers and sisters. The clean ones are no better than them. Tomorrow, they will see. If they resist, they will pay. Once the masks come off, they’ll be no turning back.
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Join the Trifecta Challenge
Word Count – 333
Mask
3: a protective covering for the face; a gas mask; a device covering the mouth and nose to facilitate inhalation; a comparable device to prevent exhalation of infective material; a cosmetic preparation for the skin of the face that produces a tightening effect as it dries
Arden Ruth 
A cool dystopian tale! Enjoyed it. 🙂
Thank you very much!
Looks like a revolt is coming. It doesn’t matter to the story, but still, I’m curious what they are infected with 🙂
Haha – Me too! I kept thinking up all these different things. I may have to expand on this one at a later date 🙂
Later? So, tomorrow then? You won’t keep us waiting too long will you?
Haha! Sorry – I love open endings 🙂
Cliffhanger?
Maybe 🙂
The next day I imagine will be very bad for the non-infected.
I believe you’re correct 🙂
Tame zombies? Superflu carriers? They’ve got a fever and the only cure is more cowbell?
It’s for sure the latter 🙂
I knew it!
Awesome. I always dig dystopian/sci-fi stuff like this. Would be great to see you expand on this teaser!
I’ve heard a lot of that so I may have to or everyone will end up revolting against me!!
Disease makes for a good story and it looks like you created a entire “Disease” race. Great read.
Thank you so much!
Oh WOW. this totally reminds me of 1984. very very well-written!
Thank you so much!
I love a good revolution story. Great work!
Thank you!
So,life does come full circle 🙂 What a great piece-loved that the “infected” decided to pay his tormentors back-once all of them get a taste of his “medicine”,guess all will be in the same boat-no separate rules anymore-from Dystopia to Utopia-at least in the eyes of the infected?
Thanks so much! I may have to expand on this one. The short story is just not enough 🙂
:-)I agree-would love to read more,its very interesting.
I actually read this two ways: a dystopian tale, and the modern-day story of a man with paranoid schizophrenia. Maybe the infection – and people’s reaction to it – is in his head. Either way, I thought it was a great little story.
Ooh that’s a great little twist! I like the way you think 🙂
“An infected” makes me want to go wash my hands. 🙂 Thanks so much for linking up. You make dystopia seem almost inviting.
Thank you!! 🙂