Color My World Generation One In-Depth Summary

     In the world in which the story takes place, people are made up of all sorts of colors. Red, orange, yellow, green, blue, purple, pink, gray, and brown to be exact. However, ten-year-old Ethereal is without color. She is an albino, a physical state admired and glorified by the rest of the world. Yet, that world is something Ethereal knows nothing about. Kept in a pure white room with tall walls encasing the yard she's given to explore, Ethereal has lived her entire life isolated from everyone else. The scientists tell her she's an important part of a project they have planned. Ethereal finds she has no issues with that. Almost no issues, anyway.

     Ethereal grows up knowing only three people. The first one, Mr. Blue, is in charge of her physical health. She doesn't mind when he does a simple check of her state from time to time, but in the majority of cases Ethereal finds herself sedated in the small medical room attached to her living space. It is what he does when she's unconscious that bothers her about the project. Ethereal never finds herself hurt. Unfortunately, she always finds that blood has been drawn, there are multiple needle holes in her arms, and something simply feels off when she wakes.

     As much as Ethereal doesn't like Mr. Blue's visits, they don't happen often. Who she does see everyday is a woman named Ms. Yellow. This scientist who is neither nice nor mean brings Ethereal her meals, checks on her twice a day, and overall makes sure nothing has happened to her. Who is nice to Ethereal is the final scientist allowed in her room, Eden Yonder. Mr. Blue and Ms. Yellow tell Ethereal to call him Mr. Green, but Eden refuses to let himself be called by that title. Ethereal grew confused when Eden told her long ago that he was in charge of monitoring her psychological health as she had no idea what that word meant, so Eden simply smiled and stated he was in charge of making sure she didn't turn into a nut case. Ethereal enjoys his frequent visits. His visits majorly contain them playing together or relaxing on the grassy hill. Occasionally though, Ethereal grows mad at Eden when he tries to tell her of the outside, normal world. She has no interest in such tales, and Eden isn't supposed to tell her that stuff anyway.

     It would go on to be that Ethereal would find her mindset changing rapidly. Eden shows up for an unscheduled visit only to reveal in a contained rush that she has to make a choice. Ethereal can refuse a sedative he has brought, but if she does he has to leave never to return and she would never see him again. On the other hand, if she trusts him they can continue to be together. Knowing she would go crazy losing the lone source of love she's had, Ethereal chooses to trust him. She easily falls asleep. When she wakes, a small rundown brown and gray building is where she now finds herself. Eden is there too, of course, and after instructing that they have to keep the windows covered, he explains the truth.
     The Company, as he calls it, is an illegal organization that dabbles in various trades and practices using legitimate businesses as fronts to hide their actions. A large focus of their efforts lies in the medical world. The Company realized that there was a lot of money to be made in offering albino children to rich prospective parents. Obtaining large amounts of sperm and egg donations using false pretenses, the donations containing the albino defect were altered and merged together to create embryos to place inside surrogate mothers working in their ranks. The result was a dozen or so albino children ready to be adopted- all done under the table and requiring vast sums of monetary compensation from the adopters. However, due to the incredible amounts of manipulation done to the children, many came out with varying degrees of physical and mental detriments.

     There were more shallow people out there willing to pay for broken children as long as they were white, Eden continued his explanation wryly, but there was more money to be made from healthy children. Ethereal, as luck would have it, had come out healthy. Since Ethereal's genes had already been manipulated to make the albinism dominant, future manipulation would be greatly reduced. It would take some time for her to grow, but she would soon be the perfect body to incubate the many children The Company would have her have for them to sell. They figure they could have her be accepting of this if she was never shown what it meant to live and to remove her ability to care about others by showing no care towards her.

     Eden foiled their plans as much as he could. Having grown up as an orphan, he was unknowingly dragged into his job when The Company caught wind of his incredible genius. Having nowhere to live after reaching adulthood and desperately needing to support himself, Eden was blind to the signs of deception. However, all his failed attempts to rescue Ethereal were not in vain when he made contact with another underground organization who were also determined to save the trapped child. They provided a means of getting Ethereal out of the Company compound, offered the hideout, and worked to procure new, false identities for the two of them to live normal lives. Eden admits though that hiding Ethereal while she's white is impossible. He gives her an injection, stolen from The Company, that turns her green, and Ethereal is dubbed his 'little sister' in order for him to continue watching over her.

     Now 'Meadow Yonder', Ethereal is introduced to the normal world when Eden brings her to live in Berrybrook County. Naturally, the abrupt change of scenery overwhelms her, and discovering she's innately shy doesn't help. In the end, Ethereal gets help to make the adjustment better. Blaze Vivid, Eden's best friend, watches over his nephew, Amaranth Vivid, due to Amaranth's father and Blaze's twin brother, Coal, and Amaranth's mother, Desire, dying in a car crash when he was an infant. Amaranth introduces Ethereal to his friends- Allium, Frost, Sunset, and Sunflower. A game of tag in the park allows them to bond, and Ethereal can't believe she once wished to remain isolated.

     Eden and Ethereal encounter their fair share of problems despite being safe from The Company desperate to find them. Eden neglects Ethereal for a while due to his guilt of not being able to recover the proof of The Company's true actions in order to let them live without the lies, as hiding Ethereal's albino condition and giving her a fake identity was the backup plan. Ethereal likewise becomes guilty of feeling sorry for herself for only having Eden to love her when Eden had no one to love him growing up. The two learn to communicate, and they determine that them being 'brother' and 'sister' is not a lie. They aren't related by blood, but they are family.

     Time begins to pass, and many things happen. It is discovered Ethereal has a weak immune system, something which allows a terrible case of pneumonia to nearly kill her. She makes more friends, including a boy, Sap Spring, that she doesn't realize Amaranth is jealous of. Sleepovers are had in a haunted barn. Her birthday is celebrated for the first time; Eden gifts her a dog, Button. Catching up in homeschooling allows Ethereal to attend school normally, but there she finds an enemy out of a bratty albino classmate, Purity Waters.

     It all adds up, and Ethereal reaches her teenage years. She worries as no progress has been made on uncovering evidence to reveal The Company's existence. The serum Eden stole must be injected twice a year for her to remain green, and that supply is limited. The worries deepen in intensity as the two catch on that the injection now lasts for short and short amounts of time as Ethereal grows. Ethereal even reverts to her albino state the first time such a thing occurs, which forces her to hide in her house until her green returns.

     There's more things to fuss over though than just her fragile safety net. Now in high school, the prospect of romance enters the fray. Amaranth grows moody and jealous when Ethereal and Sap grow closer despite the fact that he is dating another classmate, Cocoa Sweet. He apologies to Ethereal after becoming too childish, yet she comes to face similar emotions herself. Both Sap and Allium ask her to homecoming. Having never considered Allium as anything more than a friend, Ethereal struggles as she suppresses budding feelings for him while taking grasp of the relationship she had already been blossoming with Sap. Then, one afternoon with a lackluster date, Sap reveals after a kiss that he is also struggling with his feelings. Pressure from his parents for their line to remain green in addition to so many people assuming he and Ethereal would get together confused Sap into believing he liked Ethereal when he only ever wanted to like Ethereal. The truth of his emotions is that Ethereal is more like a sister to him. Upset and infuriated, Ethereal goes to Allium where it doesn't take long for them to realize that it's their feelings towards each other that are genuine.

     Ethereal and Allium enjoy their relationship immensely, but it is not within its ups and downs. Allium's father mysteriously took off when he was an infant never to be heard from again, which has left him more frightened than the average person of losing the people he loves. Ethereal hates the fact that there could come a day where she would take off without a word unable to contact him forever more if something went wrong with her secret situation. This issue comes to the forefront when Ethereal walks past an oblivious Ms. Yellow at the park. Already having had a scare once when they caught wind of an influential Company employee, 'Jac', being around in a place where Ethereal and Eden took a vacation, the two go into hiding until it can be determined if The Company is growing wise to their whereabouts. Eden's 'friends' uncover the brief passing was nothing more than coincidence as Ms. Yellow had simply been wandering about Berrybrook waiting for her connecting flight out of town.

     Eden and Ethereal return home, yet neither of them have any clue as to how to explain why they vanished for several weeks. Eden tells Ethereal that he believes she is mature enough to make the decision of whether or not it's right to trust her friends with more of the truth. She reluctantly finds out she does have to tell Allium a little something when he asks to talk to her that afternoon. Terrified upon hearing there's a mysterious reason why Ethereal could abruptly disappear one day, Allium is convinced to remain with her as, really, life is unpredictable. Something could happen to anyone at anytime. Why would he separate from her just because she's at risk for something for which she's already at risk?

     Though he says that, Ethereal overhears something different when they agree to go on a double date with Amaranth and Cocoa as their relationship is also crumbling. Allium admits to Amaranth when the two think they are along that he can't help but continue to be scared. He loves Ethereal. However, he's also frightened of his mother being left alone if something were to happen to him- as anyone who knows Ethereal is at risk thanks to her circumstances. The friends do their best to work the other towards of a choice of what they want to do, staying together or breaking up with their respective girlfriend, yet neither knows what to do. This all prompts Ethereal to lie. Letting Allium believe the situation isn't as serious as she first made it out to be, saying it's slowly being taken care of and getting better...it stabilizes the problem for a brief time.

     Yet things can never be easy. Craving security and not wanting to ruin every aspect of her relationship with Allium has Ethereal trying to blind herself to a dilemma she experienced in the past that's now popping up again. Ethereal likes Allium. Ethereal also likes Amaranth. Unanticipated advice comes after school from Purity, who has matured enough to form an amiable relationship with Ethereal. She tells Ethereal not to lure Allium into a relationship for stability's sake if they both have strong doubts, but to also make sure her emotions for Amaranth are more than a brief wondering if the grass is greener on the other side before she makes a big jump to another person. Having been avoiding Amaranth, Purity brings him to Ethereal so she can stop running away from what's hard to do.

     What neither Purity nor Ethereal knew was that Amaranth had come to a conclusion for himself. He is well aware of the fact that Ethereal has feelings for him as well as that both Allium and Ethereal are ready to let go of their relationship. Ethereal cannot get herself to admit it, however, and when Amaranth, swept up by his emotions and strangely assured conviction that he can handle the secrets Allium can't, kisses her, she slaps him twice before running off to seek Allium's comfort. This creates a giant rift between Ethereal, Allium, and Amaranth, and firmly cements the end of Amaranth and Cocoa's decimated relationship. The weeks that go by barely give Ethereal an opportunity to breathe when Allium crumbles her emotional state once more by finally accepting the truth and breaking up with her. Utterly depressed by this and the increasingly close threat of having to hide as the color changing serum is steadily running out, it takes several days of skipping school and comforting from Sunset and Sunflower to prompt Ethereal to continue to enjoy life while it's fully available to her.

     Ethereal makes a vow to swear off boys until she can live as Ethereal and not as 'Meadow'. This vow is almost forgotten when Allium sets her and Amaranth up on a surprise date several weeks later after growing tired of the two not doing anything despite the fact that they are indeed crazy for the other. The date goes well, and Ethereal enjoys herself. It is a brief relief for reality hits her that she can't stand to drag Amaranth into her mess. Much coercion is necessary for Amaranth to get Ethereal to reveal something of why she's so afraid, and even when she speaks what she can he merely promises that if she disappears he'll simply come find her. It takes Ethereal a few more weeks to work up the courage, but she and Amaranth begin dating. Life returns to normal, friendships are patched up, and Ethereal and her friends graduate from high school.
     Ethereal, Amaranth, Allium, Sunset, Sunflower, and Frost spend graduation day having fun, and Ethereal wakes up confident the next day even with her skin growing pale- the signifier that her green is about to vanish. Eden only has enough of the serum to keep her colored for a few days, but she and her brother are about to find freedom. Someone working within The Company's ranks has been feeding them information in order to bring the organization down. One last push is all that's needed to make things right. As usual, however, plans don't always work out how they should. The clumsy Eden drops and breaks the bottle with the last of the injection, which gives him no choice but to take Ethereal and hide her with one of his 'friends' while he works with the others to complete the final steps. Ethereal is dumbfounded when Eden's 'friend' turns out to also be his friend. Blaze reveals himself to be part of the helping organization and one of the main forces driving the 'Rescue Ethereal' project. Not only this, but Amaranth explains he has known of Ethereal's true identity and situation since he was young.
     With time being limited, Eden takes off to leave Blaze to catch up. A comment from Ethereal about how she feels unworthy of Eden's love for her when they aren't even related surprises Blaze and Amaranth. They knew there were some things Eden would have to keep secret from her for safety's sake, yet they had had no idea that he hadn't told her the two of them are actually brother and sister by blood. Their mother, Field, had a one night affair after a terrible fight with her husband, Jungle. The result of the affair was Eden. Given a choice of keeping her baby but losing Jungle or remaining with Jungle by giving up her baby, Field chose the latter. Eden was placed for adoption, never got adopted, and only met his mother after becoming an adult. It wasn't long past that time when Eden was pulled into The Company's clutches where reading the files of the albino project divulged that Jungle and Field had donated sperm and egg samples due to falling for the excuse that the donations would merely be used for checking new tests meant to discover genetic abnormalities. Blaze goes on to inform Ethereal that the injection she's been taken doesn't dye her body- its purpose is to give an albino their true coloring back.
     Learning this, and the fact that Eden was driven to deep depression due to his initial failures to rescue her, Ethereal frets more than ever over the safety of her brother. Amaranth comforts her after Blaze departs as well to help Eden. The couple relax and talk, and the following morning they wake to find 'Meadow's' green is gone for good. Several hours pass peacefully. The peace is shattered when intruders suddenly break into the house. Ethereal is drugged unconscious and stolen away while the sound of several gunshots leaves her wondering if Amaranth continues to live. It is no mystery when she wakes up in a locked room that The Company had found her. Ethereal is interrogated about the condition of her body, she is forcibly impregnated, and an employee, Stratus, abuses her both mentally and physically. About to break, Ethereal knows she must do something in order to try and escape.
     An unexpected ally comes in the form of Jac. Or, as Ethereal quickly discovers, the man who comes to check on her is none other than Jacaranda Blossom- Allium's father. Lured into The Company's clutches much like Eden had been, Jacaranda had never been able to escape. He instead rose through the ranks in order to survive, and he tells Ethereal he was tasked with making sure her recapture proceeded without issue. The inside informer giving out information was nothing more than a trap for The Company to narrow down her location. Unable to confirm if Eden, Blaze, and Amaranth still live from Jacaranda as that information has not come in yet, Ethereal then turns her attention to convincing Jacaranda to finally fight for his freedom. She would be safe, The Company would be exposed, and he could return to his family. Jacaranda hesitates, but agrees.
     Some weeks pass while more plans are crafted. Ethereal's concerns about when she'll be broken out are both eased and intensified when gunshots start ringing out. Jacaranda gets Ethereal away from Stratus and Dusty, another employee accompanying them throughout the halls, to tell her the plan was simply for Ethereal to be stolen back during her transfer to a more secure facility. The eruption of shooting meant something went wrong, and their allies had had no choice but to enter the building through force. Stratus grows wise to Jacaranda's deception, which leads to him separating Jacaranda and Ethereal while trying to take Jacaranda's life. Ethereal runs and runs and runs until she encounters a very much alive Amaranth who is there to help her. They sneak and take place in the gunfight in order to reach the entrance, and Amaranth kills Stratus when he comes after them and Blaze. The battle is won soon afterwards. Eden and Ethereal reunite in the parking lot that Jacaranda also managed to reach.
     With Jacaranda's knowledge, The Company is exposed and brought down with a massive thud. Eden and Ethereal becomes famous thanks to the part they played, and that is only a hint of the crazy situations they find themselves facing in the aftermath. Ethereal helps Jacaranda reunite with Allium, Allium's mother, Rose, reveals she is pregnant with Eden's child as the two had had a secret friends-with-benefits relationship, and Ethereal discovers her potential child would be fathered by Purity's father, Glacier, as the sperm he donated to a sperm bank had been illegally purchased by The Company to use in her insemination. More truths come to light when Eden takes Ethereal to meet Jungle and Field. The famous mathematician, Hunter Rune, randomly shows up, and his words expose the fact that he is Eden's father. Field had lied about being too drunk to remember who he was. Hunter would have taken Eden in, and he is furious over never being told about his son's existence. Eden, thinking differently, calms him by saying he would choose the same life again if he was given the choice. Otherwise, Ethereal would have been trapped forever.
     Despite being free, Ethereal does not escape all the consequences of The Company's actions. Their attempts to impregnate her succeeded. Ethereal now prepares for motherhood while Amaranth offers to marry her if she wants it. Ethereal states her intentions to marry him one day, but she turns down the opportunity for the moment. It is then when Amaranth realizes that was a good choice on her part as there was something else he needed to ask first. His research using all the illegal connections showed to him that his parents didn't simply die in a car crash. Their death was a murder by another unknown and mysterious someone. Amaranth wants to find out who and why, and doing that could put him in more danger in the future. Ethereal finds she cannot fathom the thought of loving anyone else but him. She declares she'll support him in his endeavor as he spent the majority of his life supporting and protecting her.
     Ethereal gives birth to a baby albino boy, Wisp, and from there on the years pass. Amaranth graduates from college, and he can wait no longer. This time around Ethereal accepts his proposal. The two marry and vow to always be together.