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Chapter 3, everyone!

"Okay, Zeke will go to the training room and show the Candor the guns and the Pire. Lauren you will show them the dormitory and Tris and Four will greet them and take them to the dining hall for dinner." Tori shuts the black notebook and glances at the rest of us surrounded around the table. "Any questions?"
No one says anything. She nods once and says," Good. Remember, we want them to come here so try to be approachable." I feel like she looks right at Tobias and me during her last sentence. Everyone leaves the room at the same time and goes to the different positions Tori assigned to them. Tobias takes my hand as we cross the Pit on the way to the train tracks outside.

The summer sun blinds me momentarily and I blink until everything comes back into focus. The tips of the skyscrapers surrounding Dauntless sparkle from the light and flowers bloom in the cracks of the streets. Signs of summer of everywhere. Suddenly, I hear the familiar squeal of the train's brakes coming to a stop and see the faces of the Candor students peering at the compound in the windows. One boy's arm thrusts out and points a finger at Four, probably informing the other Candor who he is. "Remember to avoid the net as much as possible," Four says. "We don't need to take the scare tactic out of initiation day."

I nod just as the Candor file out of the train car. They are loud but not Dauntless loud as they approach us. They huddle around us, gesturing at each other and at the compound.

"Welcome to Dauntless, "Tobias shouts over the students and instantly they fall silent. "My name is Four and I will be your instructor along with Tris." I raise my hand in a half wave.

"This, as you know, is the Dauntless compound. If you choose Dauntless as your faction, this will be your home."

A girl in the back of the group asks, "Is it true that the Abnegation faction is here too?"

Tobias nods once. "Yes. Until their faction is restored. "

"I heard you were a Stiff," A large boy says with a smirk. "You still a little Stiff, Four?"
I hear a couple of snickers and feel Tobias tense beside me. "What's your name," Tobias barks.
"Henry," the boy answers.
"Henry, if you choose Dauntless to be your faction, you should know that taunting is a sign of cowardice and is not looked upon kindly here. So if this is where you plan to stay, you better shape up real quick."
More snickers come from the group but this time it's directed at Henry not Tobias. Tobias turns back to the group as a whole. "When you walk inside, there will be three more leaders waiting to show you around." And with that Tobias opens the door and we file inside.

I take a quick count of the group and gather that there is about fifteen of them. About half of them will transfer to Dauntless I figure since the highest initiate rate comes from Candor. My lips purse when I realize my Erudite side of my Divergence is kicking in. "Aren't you a little young to be an instructor?" a girl asks me as we are passing through the doors.
"A little," I admit. "But I know how to fight and I learn quickly."
She nods like she is processing the information.
"My name is Tris," I say.
"I know. I'm Iridescent but most people call me Iris."
We walk a little further until we get to the chasm. The Candor fall silent in both awe and fear. "This is pretty stupid," says a brunet headed boy by the railing. "I'm willing to bet you've had your handful of people either try to jump off for the fun of it or to commit suicide."

I turn away feeling as if he punched me in the stomach. Al. Tobias glances at me and I see a question in his eyes: are you okay? I nod blinking back tears.
"We try to teach our Dauntless initiates that there is a fine line between bravery and idiocy. Jumping off this would not be bravery; it would be just plain stupid. As for the suicide..." He looks at me and continues," We can only hope that it doesn't get to that point and try to prevent it as much as we possibly can."
A tear rolls down my cheek and I wipe it away quickly before any of the students see it. I'm not quick enough apparently because the boy says," Did you know someone who jumped?"
Tobias turns away and leads the group towards the cafeteria full of the Abnegation.

They are silent as we come in not wanting to draw attention to themselves. The Candor are, however, whispering and making fun of the Abnegation, probably loud enough for them to hear. I'm furious at the Candor. Maybe Abnegation's clothes are unflattering and maybe they are a little more reserved than the other factions but so what? They have done nothing to hurt any of the other factions yet they are the most picked on. Tobias must sense my tension because he clears his throat loudly and the whispering stops. "The Abnegation and Dauntless want to welcome you with a dinner that we made," I say to the Candor who are already eyeing the chocolate cake. Just then the Dauntless come barging in laughing and talking loudly. The Candor all turn to stare.

I love my faction for its bluntness and because they are brave and free. But there are parts of it that I'd love to tear apart. My Abnegation part of me says that the way they are acting is like they have close to no dignity. One of the couples are making out in the line and his hand is up her shirt. How intimate. Tobias and I both hate public displays of affection and try to keep it to a minimal around other people unlike the other Dauntless couples who insist on this kind of behavior. The same boy who questioned Tobias about the chasm starts smiling at the scene and one of the girls smacks him on the head. "You're so stupid, Gabe," The girl says and rolls her eyes.
"I didn't hear any objections from you, Delilah," Gabe snaps back.
"I'm sorry, Gabe, was I interrupting your boner?" Delilah spits back with a smirk.
The entire group laughs and I see even Tobias smiling. Delilah is definitely Dauntless. We file into a line behind the Dauntless members and grab our trays. All the Candor are eyeing the cake as they eat so when they finish their meal they are eager to sink their forks into the fluffy and gooey substance.

I smile to myself thinking about the other night when Tobias and I made the cake together. "What are you smiling about?"
I shrug, still smiling like a lunatic. "How good you tasted when we made that delicious cake together."
He laughs then puts a finger to my lips and says quietly," No one is supposed to know about the cake or me tasting so delicious."
I laugh.
Delilah, Gabe, Henry and three other Candors I don't recognize sit at our end of the table while Iris and the rest are seated at the other end trying to talk over the noise in the cafeteria. "So did you really transfer here?" a girl with honey colored hair asks me.
"Yes," I answer taking Tobias hand under the table. "We both did."
"I don't blame you," says a boy with black hair. "Abnegation is a strange faction."
"That's not very polite. You should respect that they came from Abnegation," a bleach blond girl says quietly. By looking at her shyness and persistence to be friendly, she looks like the perfect candidate for Amity.
"They left for a reason, Polly," The black haired boy says pointedly.
"You still shouldn't insult it, Joshua. It's rude."
Joshua snorts, clearly signaling that he is not wanting to continue the conversation. When the silence gets too uncomfortable, Tobias asks them their names. Polly, Joshua, Gabe, Henry, and Delilah are familiar but the rest are new. A girl with honey colored hair introduces herself as Jenna, another girl with carrot colored hair says her name is Zoe, and the shy boy who says he's twins with Polly says his name is Connor. He looks older than he actually is with the creases between his eyebrows and his caramel colored hair is falling loosely in curls. I can see the muscles bulging out of his shirt. He'd be good in the first stage of Dauntless with his obvious physical strength.

Soon lunch is over and the students are being led by Lauren to the dorms. Tobias and I linger in the cafeteria with the Abnegation, our black clothes mixing with their gray ones.

"That one is the big dipper," Tobias says and takes my hand into his own and guides it to connect the dots. The net underneath us dips under the movement. The sky painted itself a deep navy color and stars dance where a roof should be. The ledge that I jumped off of almost a year ago is barely visible in the starlight. He points another star out to me, saying something about it being a planet but I'm not looking at the stars; I'm looking at him. He's so beautiful with his shy smile and blue eyes and in this moment I can fully remember why I fell in love with him in the first place.
I lean over and kiss his cheek spontaneously, my heart swelling. He stops in mid-sentence and smiles at me. "What was that for?"
My hands wind themselves in his hair. "I just love you," I whisper and snuggle next to him, laying my head right where his heart is. I hear it beating, steady and strong, and have to stop myself from crying. I'm so glad Eric didn't pull the trigger and end his life the same night that ended my parents' lives and Will. I think I would have lost it.
"I love you too," He says softly and kisses my nose. We lay there quietly for a while, my hand lightly tracing the muscle on his stomach, until I ask," Do you think that this is all there is?"

He moves from my touch, my finger slipping off of his stomach, and turns to face me.

"I mean, if we die. Do you think there is anything after this life?"

He doesn't answer right away. "Yeah," he says. "My mother used to read me this book called Bible and it talked about heaven. I believe in that."

"Are you just saying that because that's what Abnegation taught you?"

"No." His thumb traces circles around the back of my hand. "God is out there." He nudges my shoulder, smiling a bit. "And so are your parents."

I return his smile and lay my head back into the crook of his neck. The sky winks through the hole in the ceiling and as my eyes flutter shut, I imagine that it's my parents watching over me.

Thanks for reading and review!

Kel