I feel the belt hit my back. I scream. This moment, repeating over and over again. I scream for him to stop. I scream for help. This just fuels the fire more.

I wake up sweat pouring down my face. I'm alone. I'm alone. No one can touch me. I look at my clock. 5:00 am. Great. I sit up and moan. My back aches from the whipping last night by Marcus. I force myself up and down the stairs. All of these grey walls look the same, in every abnegation house. They all look the same, but what happens inside makes all the difference.

My house is a welcoming comforting house. Not the one down the street. I remember the day Tobias, by best friend, left me; I remember how he said he wouldn't ever leave me. He was my best friend…how could he? I remember sitting in the choosing ceremony. Hear his blood fall onto the coals—the dauntless coals. He wouldn't even look at me. Now I am stuck here with his dad. I understood why he left me, but… he left me with Marcus.

My back burns like crazy from what happened the day before. Ever since Tobias left, Marcus has turned to me. I guess because me and Tobias were best friends I was like a sister to him. He has been hurting me for two years.

The first time he started abusing me was a week after Tobias left. He asked me to come and help him around the house. Being the selfless girl I am (note the sarcasm) I agreed, or rather my parents made me. He started my first beating me, and then, he started whipping me, but the worst part was, he took advantage of my femininity.

Today is the choosing ceremony where I will finally get to leave Marcus. I'm not just leaving because of him; I was never really selfless anyway. I already know what I'm going to choose. Dauntless. I can't imagine myself in any other faction. When we took our aptitude tests, I got dauntless. I think Marcus affected me because before I started coming to his house, I wouldn't have killed the dog, but last week, I didn't even think twice, I was in self-defense, and I may or may not have imagined the dog as Marcus.

I look at the clock, 7:00. I guess I lost track of time, but that's okay. I see my mother come down the stairs.

"You're up early."

"Yeah, couldn't go back to sleep."

"Well, big day today. Come on, it's time to cut your hair."

I watch as bright blonde pieces fall to the floor around my feet. I watch as my mother opens the mirror and then carefully pins up my hair into a beautiful bun.

I steal multiple glances at the mirror but I only do when my mother is occupied in pinning up my hair. I have seen my reflection before but only once every three months. I do find little reflective surfaces to peak at quickly like in my spoon when eating oatmeal or in the little glass of my watch, the only accessory we abnegation get. She walks back over the mirror.

"That's all you get."

A moment goes by of complete silence.

"Are you nervous?"

"Were you?"

"No, I was terrified."

This year the choosing ceremony will be hosted by abnegation. Only the council members of abnegation are allowed to host it and guess who volunteered. Marcus. I watch as he speaks but to me I don't hear anything. I just wait for the names out be called. He finishes up talking about the factions.

"—AND REMEMBER: FACTION BEFORE BLOOD!" and with that the names start. "Abbott, Emily"

Finally he says my name. "Prior, Beatrice" he slowly giving me the knife… and a death glare.

I slice my hand quickly without even wincing unlike everyone else. Without another hesitation I hover over the coals and then, I hear a satisfactory sizzle.

I'm free. I'm…

Finally Free

Just to clear something up, Beatrice is genetically pure or divergent but because of Marcus' beatings, it has changed her mind a bit so that is why I mentioned she would have killed the dog. In the aptitude test, she picked up the knife. Marcus made her braver, but he didn't change her DNA. You will see later in the story what I mean.