The Childhood Friend - Chapter 1
Written by: yuki-pearl
"Beatrice. Beatrice. Wake up." Tobias knocked on her window.
Beatrice rubbed her eyes and walked to her window. "Hi Tobias. I'm awake now. Thanks a lot though."
Tobias laughed and Beatrice rolled her eyes.
"Do you wanna come in for some breakfast?" Beatrice mumbled.
"No, I'm ok. I already ate at home." Said the grinning Tobias. "I'll wait for you outside, yeah?"
Beatrice nodded and she went downstairs for breakfast, meeting Caleb. "Good morning Caleb."
"Good morning Beatrice." Caleb yawned as he spread strawberry jam on his slice of toast.
"Good morning sweetheart. Would you like some pancakes?" Beatrice's mother asked.
Beatrice nodded her head violently and her mother laughed. When her plate of pancakes arrived, she wolfed them down like there was no tomorrow. After eating breakfast, she went upstairs to wear her light grey dress and tied up her hair in an Abnegation bun with a few bobby pins and a hair tie. She left the house after putting on her boots.
"What took so long?" Tobias asked.
"Hey, we had pancakes today, and I had to wait. So I'm sorry for my inconvenience." Beatrice bowed.
Tobias giggled. "So, today's unexpected. Why did you want to meet up?" Beatrice asked curiously, fiddling with the piece of thread that came loose from her dress, but always forgot to cut it.
Tobias's expression darkened. "Ah, you remember that we need to choose, yes? For tomorrow, because it's Choosing Day. Remember?"
Beatrice hesitated. "Oh right Tobias, you're 16 now, unlike me." She stared at her shoes pitifully.
Tobias sighed. "I honestly have no idea what I should choose. I mean, I want to be all of them you know? Be selfless like Abnegation, be honest like Candor, be brave like Dauntless, be smart like Erudite and be kind like Amity. I would love to be all 5, but why must I choose? It's not really fair, isn't it? I bet others are also like me, they don't know what to choose. What will you do Beatrice if you were me?" He asked.
Beatrice thought. "If I were you, I would do what my heart tells me to do. If I must be smart in order to protect somebody, then I'll be an Erudite. If I need to be smart in order to protect one of my loved ones, I'll be a Candor, etc. It's all up to who you want to protect at the end. It's not my choice if you want to be an Erudite or Amity, etc. Just do what your heart wants to do and I'll try my best to support you. After all, I'm one of your best friends, and best friends stick together and support each other." Beatrice looked up at the sky pitifully. "You know, it'll be great if you could stay in Abnegation - we can still see each other even after the Choosing Ceremony, and we won't be separated. We will still be best friends as well!"
"You know Beatrice, I want to stay in Abnegation too, because of you. But I don't want to." Tobias said. "And I don't want to be Abnegation just for you, I have other stuff in my mind as well, so I can't just listen to you..." Tobias started to slow down as soon as he realised what he just said. "Oh.. Hey hey, I'm sorry Beatrice. I don't know what popped up in my head just now."
Beatrice raised her hand, tears started to fall. "Just leave me alone. You chose one of the worst days to say this to me. I hate you Tobias. Don't bother to talk to me." Beatrice spat out. She turned to the direction of her house and started running home, leaving Tobias in the middle of the pavement.
Beatrice's POV
Before I reached my house, I broke down in tears. My eyes were like faucet that you couldn't turn off. My best friend didn't like me after all. Of course not. After countless of days being teased, with people yelling out "Hey Tobias, is Beatrice your girlfriend now?" or "Are you secretly dating?" Who would feel fine after tonnes of people keep on washing remarks down like that, and not even caring?! How could an Abnegation be so selfish?
Caleb was walking towards me, but it didn't seem like he noticed me. Until the sound of the footsteps started accelerating. "Beatrice! Beatrice! Beatrice!" I didn't bother responding. The voice came from my own dear brother of course, as concerned as he'd never been before.
"Is it about Tobias, Beatrice? Is it because of him? Are you crying because of Tobias?" Caleb demanded, shaking my shoulders.
I couldn't lie, Caleb could detect any lie told. (future Candor I see...) "Yes. I don't want him to leave. Or maybe it's just me, you know. I might be just too used to having him around all the time that I can't bear not seeing him again. That might be the reason." I replied. "Oh Caleb, I don't know. I don't know." I pulled out my bobby pins and my hair tie, that kept my neat and tidy Abnegation bun together. My blonde hair fluttered in the air, like it was finally free from the wraths of my hair tie and bobby pins. Caleb tucked some of my hair behind my ear.
"Beatrice, let's go home okay?" Caleb offered. I nodded. We walked home together in silence, hand in hand.
Tobias's POV
It felt like the end of the world when I saw Beatrice cry. And walk away from me. In front of me. And because of ME. Maybe I didn't consider her or her feelings at all. I always wanted to protect her. But now I broke her. She ran away from me. I'm a coward. Such a stupid guy. I'm such a cow- Wait. Coward. The Dauntless blame cowardism. I want to be brave, strong, so I can protect Beatrice, even if she doesn't let me. I'll be Dauntless.
On the day of the Choosing Ceremony, I'm loosing my mind.
"Tobias Eaton." I walked forward with my back straight. No regrets. No regrets. I looked at the grey rocks with guilt, remembering Beatrice, the Prior family that loved me like a 3rd child. I turned to look at the sea of grey. I spotted Caleb and his parents, but no sign of Beatrice. Maybe she just needed the toilet. I cut myself on the palm and dripped my blood on the black coals. I went towards the cheering sea of black, as they escorted me into my new life as Dauntless.
Beatrice's POV
Actually, I did see Tobias. Of course I didn't want to go see my best friend join some other faction without me. I was late, so I couldn't go in, but then I heard "Tobias Eaton" loud and clear. And then I heard people yelling "Dauntless!" I turned away and ran home.
Caleb came into my room after the Choosing Ceremony. "Do you know what Tobias got? You didn't see him and he looked a bit worried."
"No, it's his life. Why should he include me into his own affairs?" I replied nonchalantly.
"Well, I just thought that you would like to know, being his best friend and all. But do you even want to know?" Caleb asked, staring at me.
I felt so selfish. The reason why I wanted Tobias to stay was because I was selfish. I wasn't thinking about his future at all, which was so not Abnegation of me. I sighed heavily and turned to look at Caleb.
"I know what faction he's in. He's in Dauntless." I said. "Don't worry so much you know, I'm not gonna cry just because Tobias left. I'm okay Caleb, I'm not that weak."
Caleb sighed as well. "I know, I know. You're all grown up now. I miss the old days where you would always consult me whenever you had any problems, where I stepped in and took care of things."
"Well then, I'm not the dansel in distress anymore, aren't I?" I replied.
"Yup, it's just big brother habits." Caleb laughed and I laughed with him, remembering the memories we shared together as the Prior twins.
Tobias's POV
I miss Beatrice a lot. maybe I should've chosen Abnegation, where I could still see here, and she wouldn't hate me. But if I didn't leave Abnegation, I'd have to bear being with my family, something that I want to avoid at all costs.
I jumped off the train with the other Dauntless initiates and I felt pure bliss and joy. I had a feeling that I would enjoy being Dauntless.
And that's the end of Chapter 1. This was originally an idea from my notebook, I just copied and pasted it on here. So, the next chapter is gonna be 2 years after, when it's Beatrice's Choosing Ceremony! :3
yuki-pearl signing off.