"Lunch."
"How would you describe it?" Jeanine asks.
"Awesome, sarcastic, and unmistakingly weird." I reply.
"And why would you describe it in this way?" Jeanine says eagerly, like a news reporter picking up on an interesting story.
"How could you describe it anyway else?" I say, not necessarily answering the question, and leave.
And it was. Christina nudged me in line at the cafeteria.
"So... you and Peter are a thing?" She asked excited.
I looked at her harshly and almost slapped her, but I could never slap the brown face looking at me, a bit sarcastically, and then I realized that she was joking.
"Hey!" I protested. She smirked.
"I got you there for a second! Isn't Peter a bag of - stuff?" She said angrily, and with a bit of a lift. "I'm sorry..."
"It's fine." I said hesitantly, not knowing how much info I should give away. "I... hear interesting words sometimes." I smiled at her smirk.
Will gasped from the other side of me, and Christina blushed. I stifled a laugh - Christina has always had a crush on Will for as long as I can remember.
Zeke, on the other side of Will, snorted. "It's so true though... and, the Dauntless Cake is delicious! So, regular table?" Zeke led us over to our regular gang's table. But there was someone occupying my seat.
"Hello, Tris." Peter smiled coldly. "I've reserved a place for you outside the border." He said a bit coldly. Then he leaned over and kissed my cheek.
Christina whooped, and I glared at her as he led me away.
Outside the border: a nice, quiet spot just out of sight of the Dauntless spot of the school, also known as the Dauntless compound. The first thing I saw was Molly and Drew on a bench, playing cards. They looked up as we entered, and they stood up. Drew put the cards in his pocket and grinned.
"You actually got her here?" He drawled. Molly laughed. "What a slump."
I put my tray on a table and sat down, taking a bite of Dauntless Cake. "Um, excuse me?"
"I can't believe you actually brought her here!" Molly exclaimed. "Well, then, we can have our bit of fun here." She grinned.
They advanced towards me. I got up swiftly and kneed Molly in the stomach. While she was hunched over, I leaped over her and into a tree. I climbed it swiftly, but Drew was faster.
He grabbed my leg and pulled me down so I was level with him, and hit me with branches. I slid down the tree, scraping my hands.
I got punched, slapped, and hit with branches, while I only got to give three punches and two slaps. Overall, I called it unfair.
When they stopped, Molly patched my clothes back up and smiled at me. "You tell anyone, Miss Prissy Trissy Prior, and we'll make your life miserable." She smirked, and then I noticed that Drew had eaten my food, including the rest of my Dauntless Cake. Then they set my tray on my hands and Peter and I went back to the cafeteria, just in time for the next class.
This continued for several days. It began to take a toll on my health, my weight, and my mood. Finally, Tobias noticed.
"Hey... Tris?" He approached me in line at the cafeteria at dinner. "I was wondering... we can share my seat, when Peter comes?" He seemed kind of awkward. I smiled to put him at ease. He smiled back, and I blushed a bit. I hope he didn't notice. Smiling really makes the difference in a face; it seemed to light up, and yet it was as if there was something hidden there... a guard, but beyond the guard, something else. Like a bird, with a broken wing.
I nodded. "Of course. But... why did you ask?" I was curious.
"You're hiding something." He said. "Um." I stated. "Why would you think that?"
"I just know you're hiding something." He said firmly. "Peter and his gang are doing something to you. Don't put up your guard, I can see you're doing it now. We're going to share my seat, and if he tries to take you, I'll punch him." I admit it... I didn't expect him to follow through.
When we were going to our table for dinner, though, Peter came up next to me and tugged on my arm. I looked at Tobias, shrugged, and began to follow Peter, rubbing my hurt right shoulder from earlier today.
Peter yelled, rubbing an eye, and I gasped as Tobias began beating up Peter. Peter got away and ran outside the border himself, alone. I gaped at Tobias, and he just shrugged and we walked back to the table together. "Thanks." I ventured.
"Do you honestly think I wouldn't follow through?" He asked. For an answer, I shrugged and rolled my eyes, and we went back to the table. He put some ice on my shoulder, and I looked askance at him. He grinned a bit. "You're hurt on that shoulder... I saw you rubbing it, and you slid the sleeve off your shoulder a bit and I saw a bruise." He said in a low voice. Zeke clapped Tobias on the back, and he winced the tiniest bit, glaring at Zeke and Uriah, who were both staring into the distance. Uriah shoved some Dauntless Cake into his mouth.
"All right. Which one of you clapped me on my back... which I very clearly told you not to do?" Tobias asked, pretending hurt. Zeke, Uriah, and Will both pointed at each other. We laughed, and Shauna shook her head. "You children are hilarious." She said, grabbing Zeke's uneaten Dauntless Cake. He frowned and went to get some more. We laughed as Shauna investigated the cake, and then ate the slice. She put broccoli on Uriah's plate when he wasn't looking. He frowned.
"Hey!" He protested and flung the broccoli back to Shauna, who threw it at Zeke after he sat back down. Soon, a full food fight was taking hold of the cafeteria.
"What is going on here!" Marcus bellowed, entering the cafeteria. "Good food everywhere! Tobias, I expected better of you! In my office, immediately!" Marcus left in a huff, after a burst of "Clean all this up, all of you!" Tobias slunk after Marcus, after giving me a long look that meant something... but I couldn't figure it out quite yet. Besides, I was too busy picking up food.
Then, I got an idea in my head. I followed Tobias and Marcus.