Note: A prequel to my short story "Nobody Kisses Like Eric". It has a different nature and feel from the short story because the characters are a lot younger. Divergent Trilogy belongs to Veronica Roth. This is my creative take in that. Story transpires before Divergent.

ALL THE WRONG VIRTUES

Chapter 1

END OF ZIPLINE

I catch Margo having a liplock with a stranger. Again. This is the fifth time in a week. This time, she allows the punk to go deeper down on her throat. I am finding it even harder not to judge her each time.

I do not know if being too stuffed can compromise my consciousness. My vision blurs. Yet, watching two people choking on themselves is not a pleasant sight to see. It does not provide any comfort to my spinning head. I am starting to feel a little fatigue and a bit drowsy. I slam the powder room's door and into the loud common hall I walk. I am trying to keep my head up, but there is an invisible rope which keeps tugging me down towards the floor. Gravity feels heavier by seconds and the lights seems a little too bright. I put on my defense as shots of neon laser dance accros the room.

It is Saturday Night, the time of the week when the Dauntless youth forget about order. It is also the time of the week where it is best to rest in bed after demanding physical activities. But not, until your fellow comrades drag you down to the nearest bar, not taking "no" for an answer. Welcome to Dauntless, I guess.

"Yo! Suz!" Margo holds me by the waist, securing my weight few minutes before I kiss the fluorescent floor.

I take a good look at her behind my now glassy eyes. "What did you put inside that damn cake, Mar?" I ask, intending to sound authoritive and scary as possible, but instead, I sound a little too slurred.

Margo cackles, firing laugh like a machine gun. "Oh, dear... I think we have succeeded in making you stoned. Don't tell your folks!" Without holding back, Margo shouts. "Hey, everybody my girl is flying hiiiiiigh." Her voice battles with the blare of the trance music. I can smell the reek of alcohol and cigarette from her breath. I do not mean to describe her with disrespect. Margo is a sweet girl. She has an allure which attracts boy, the type of girl who turns head whenever she walks into a room.

Margo has toned, tattooed arms that look good in sleeveless uniform and nice legs I envy. She only stands as tall as I do, hence we are known as the Shorties. Her hair hangs just below her shoulder and she dons strikes of bright red highlight which juxtaposes with her natural jet black hair. Yet, I think she envies my auburn hair, as she keeps making passive aggressive comment about wanting to chop the half-length of it and reserve it in a jar for worship. In the training arena, she is competitive. She never tells me her trick for the time she managed to fracture the hip of a 200-pound her size and twice her age and she can run pretty fast. Unlike me, Margo who is quite social and unshy to express herself.

"Make a way you, fools. My girl flies... hard." She shooshes a group of boys on a nearby table. They makes us squirm at the edge of the sofa. I am sitting at the end, trying to identify who else is joining the table.

"Oh Poor Susan," One of the Dauntless boys jumps in front of my face, so close, I cringe as I smell strong smell of alcohol from his breath.

"Move back, Damian. Nobody touches my girl." Margo snarls.

"Easy, tigress."

"Why are you trying to mother her, Mar? Everyone knows that Susan needs a little sweet help of discovering herself. Isn't that right, Susan?" Damian rubs his hand on my palm, but Susan is quick enough to catch him and slaps him good.

"Yea, unless she visits the gym more often than candyshops." One of the boys snaps and I hear roaring laugh and claps.

"Back of, Myers. You are not my type anyway! No girls dig a mean boy." I snarls at the boy with short platinum hair with stupid face tattoo whom I reckon only by his last name. Myers is always seen with cigarette hanging from his lips. Hence why his teeth are distinguishly yellow and his gums are dark.

"My dear Susan, you are not my type either... and trust me chic dig a bad boy." Myer leaves with a bottle of beer in his hand and I swear I just want to smash the bottle right on his cocky face.

"Just don't listen to him, Suz." Margo holds my fist way before it swings. "You do not need any stamp of approval to feel good about yourself. Especially from that dickhead over there. Do you know what you need?"

Margo slips out something from her pocket. A tiny bottle filled with golden shimering liquid. I cannot help to feel the loosened muscled in my face which turns into a cheeky grin.

We only need three drops of Amity's peace serum on our drinks before I feel completely relaxed. And two more drops before the violent disco light turns into fairydust in my eyes. I chase them by my hand, making claps against the thunderous music. And I am aware that I have taken more than five drops by tonight. I am sure that somebody spike the Dauntless Cake I have had earlier.

"But seriously, Suz. Aren't you curious about yourself?"

"What do you mean by that?"

"You are fifteen. It is the age where you are supposed to, you know, kiss a boy at the back alley. Be frisky and all that." Margo leans closer to my face more than she is supposed to. "Be Dauntless and all."

"I do not know." I shrug, throwing my back on my seat. "I guess it is just not my strong interest. I don't see the whole point."

"The point is to have fun." Margo again laughs louder than she is supposed to

"The point is to have fun?" I repeat the sentence, more like challenging her.

"Yes," Margo bobs her head.

I adjust my seating position so I can stare at her so close, so my words travel faster back her sense. "I mean, what are your plans in life? What do you really want?"

"Oh, here we go, into the preaching phase of Susan Powers after too much of Peace Serum." She sounds as if she does not intend to slow her murmur. "It is surprising how a mild substance can take you far beyond wisdom of your age."

"Listen, next year we will have our first and last choosing ceremony." I say.

"So?"

"That means, we will set our history and never look back."

"Yeah so? That happens to everybody, Suz. My sister went to Erudite, my brother to Candor... but we need to move on. Life is too short too worry. That is why you need to live in the present, enjoy today just live a damn good life. Have your last chance to suck faces with Dauntless hunks because trust me, our faction has the good looking ones in the entirety of all factions."

Margo holds her mixture of coke and rum in the air, prompting to cheers. While I am only staring at my watered-down gin. "I am good."

"Cheers," Margo lifts her drink in the air and proceeds to chug the remain in one breath. I have to duck my face away when she burps in the next second.

"Damn it," I hiss.

"But I know one thing for sure." I can see red flusters blooms from her face.

"What?"

"That first... I admit that I am bad influence for you. And that second, you do not have to worry about the hunks, my dear."

"Because, I will find the right hunk for me eventually?"

Margo purses her thin lips, coated with neon purple chapstick. "Because you are not going anywhere. You are going to stay right here. In this faction. With me. I am signed up to be your sparing partner for combat class and cocktails every Saturday Night. And I am going to introduce you to new hunks..."

"Wow," I exhale. "You said about me behaving beyond the wise of my age. It feels like I am taking date note from my aunty who is 10 years more senior than I am."

Her glass clinks as it meets the table surface. "I tolerate that because you are my girl. Okay?"

My giggle bursts. "Hey, where are you going?" I ask as Margo makes a move, slides her body to the other end of the counter sofa.

She touches her forehead. "Ah, didn't I tell you that the initiates finish their initiation today. That means we are all heading to the zip line!"

Ah, Zip line!

I remembered the time I have had my first ride. I thought I will never be a big fan until I take the plunge. I can see the whole town lighting up. There is no barrier between myself and all the tall structures. I dive in from one tower to another, trying to take their lights inside my pocket. I can be too excited then forget to control my balance, so I swing from side to side and let other Dauntless yell for my safety.

"I am okay." I always shout back with my confidence... then going in-line for the next turn.

The city is dark but not quiet. Young people in Dauntless' uniform storm out to the street. Right now, I completely am lost of where I am. Margo is a runner and she has probably been somewhere ahead of me.

The sound of thrill and scream from above distracts me. I look at the sky, where young people are racing each other in full speed, dangling only by single thread. They slide off the rail from one building to another. Their sound pierce close to my ear, but I do not bother. I follow the railtrack until the finish line. I look at the sea of people in black and red in front of me. They gather just before the sturdy white brick wall, the end of the zip line. The Dauntless youth welcome their new comrades with full energy. There are shouts and claps. While I am looking for a particular face that will serve me a comfort when I see her, Margo. But that crazy chic with crazy domino hair color is nowhere to be found. I am stuck in the sea of strangers and their booze-smelled breath and sweats.

One initiate, a tall male, canons in speed from the zip line towards my direction. As he comes closer, I have a good look of him. His frame is sturdy and soldier-like. I am worried if the zipline cannot compromise his build, but it looks like he is doing alright. He is having fun I see. His thunderous laugh fills the air.

"Pull the brake! Pull the brake!" Everybody screams to warn him. But he response with great confidence. "Not yet! Not even..."

One second to impact, he tugs the break down. He stops, the tip of his nose meets the wall. I can see his face is getting red and full of flustered and nervous sweat as he catches his breath.

"... close." He closes his sentence in relief.

He does not seem to worry that he almost became a dead meat. And what I do not realize is that my arm is hugging his left leg, stopping him to canon further down the line, into the wall and crash. I guess my action is involuntary... and unnecessary.

I help him from the zipline. I reach for the hook beside his muscular upper arm that is showing from his sleveless jacket. I figure that he is taller than I expect.

As he lands, I see his height eclipses my short figure. It is hard to believe that he is an initiate, he looks tough enough and he seems to embody what a Dauntless should be. His tattooes are in the right place, inked down on both side of the neck. Piercing just above his bronze brows.

"Welcome to Dauntless." I do not wish the word slips so nervously.

The boy studies me for a brief second. Then he nods his head as a gesture I cannot guess. He leaves and gives me the most devious grin I have ever seen.