Zayden took one look at me and a wave of concern flooded his face.
"Auslina, what's wrong?" he asked in a gentle tone. I began shaking my head as Istin began to run towards me. He spread his arms and I ran into them and nuzzled my face into the crook of his neck. I could feel his tears falling onto the top of my head as he played with my hair as the other hand rubbed my back in a comforting way.
"You're crazy for coming here, you know that, right?" he laughed at me as his voice cracked. I nodded. "I missed you."
"I missed you too," I cried. He lifted my head up so he could look me in the eyes. Smiling, he wiped away my tears.
"You're going to be okay, I'm going to protect you, okay? You'll be fine," he encouraged. I nodded and he hugged me one last time. "Alright, let's get your friend to the infirmary and then we can catch up. I'm Istin, by the way."
"I'm Zayden," he replied, shaking hands with my brother. Istin led the way as I stood behind him and Zayden trailed behind slightly.
"So, Zayden, he seems nice." Istin nudged me with his elbow, winking. I slapped him lightly and laughed.
"I just met him! Plus, he's just a friend."
"'Just a friend,' yeah right, that's what they all say."
"I'm serious!" I laughed. He stopped at a white door and Zayden ran into us. I laughed as Istin opened up the door.
"Hey Kyla, this is my little sister Auslina and her friend Zayden. He got a bit beaten up when, well, I actually don't know what happened," Istin trailed off and I started up, finishing off his sentence.
"Let's put this in simple words. Mister afraid of heights here didn't want to jump, Four yelled and pushed him off, he landed in a bad position on the net, then fell off." Zayden groaned as he was reminded of what happened. Kyla led him over to a bed and laid him down gently. She sat down on the edge and turned to us.
"He'll probably only be in here for an hour, he'll be fine. You two can head off and I'll get him to meet you in the cafeteria for dinner," she smiled. Thanking her, Istin grabbed onto my hand and pulled me out, starting to run. I chased him until we stopped on a road of shops. My mouth opened in shock as I took it all in. There were so many things here that we didn't have in Amity, because it wasn't peaceful or had no help in bringing peace. There was liquor stores, restaurants, weapon stores, and the best of all, a tattoo parlor. I jumped up and down as I slapped my brother. He laughed and caught hold of shoulders, keeping me on my feet.
"I want a tattoo I want a tattoo!" I screamed in his face. A straight look replaced the light-hearted one as he scolded me.
"Oh no, there's no way my baby sister's getting a tattoo."
"But Istin," I whined, dragging out the last syllable of his name, "I'm a Dauntless now, I need to look tough to be tough!" I pretended to bulge my muscles and he laughed, but still looked at me a bit worried.
"I know, and I'm very proud that you stuck with your decision, despite my rebuttal. Just because you're a Dauntless now, it doesn't mean you're not my baby sister," he said, looking upset. I pulled him into a hug.
"I'll always be you're baby sister," I said into his neck. We stayed like that for a while before I heard a loud scream coming from the net I had landed in earlier. Worried, I instantly ran over as I heard Istin call my name and begin to follow me, but I kept running. I got to the net and froze.
In front of me were two girls wearing the same color clothes as me, who I recognized as the Laurent twins, but something was wrong. One was kneeling, crying, and the other was on the ground, surrounded by a pool of red. She missed the net. She missed the net. I was about to race forward, but I felt someone grab onto my arms and pull me back.
"No! Let go of me! I have to help her! She has to get to the infirmary! Why isn't anyone helping her?" I screamed as I tried to get out of whoever's grip I was in. The grip turned me around and I was greeted by Istin's sorrowful face.
"It's the Laurent twins, Istin, we have to help them, we have to!" I screamed. He pulled me into a hug and stroked my hair as I cried. "Why isn't anyone helping her?"
"This is the danger faction, we're not in Amity any more, Aus," he said quietly, kissing the top of my head, "it's different here."
