CHAPTER EIGHT: ERIC'S POV
It's amazing how much someone can get on your nerves. After the Stiff jumped, taking off her grey dress and revealing Dauntless clothes that clung to her curves, showing off a belly button ring, I've been fascinated by her.
Four called her a rebel, but I didn't think that she would be this much of one! I expected her to be shy, timid, modest, but with tattoos. He told me they had gotten some, and I saw them. They fit her, somehow making her look even more Dauntless.
She looked like she would last. She didn't hold herself inwardly, like the other Stiff; instead she stood up straight, and somehow, even though she was at least a foot shorter than me, she looked tall. She looked like a trained warrior. She looked proud.
She insulted me right before she jumped. Laughter filled my ears and I saw red for a moment before I calmed down. Icy Eric came out. I would not show mercy on her. Four asked me to rank her, since he was her brother. I thought about taking off points just for insubordination.
She was the first jumper. I expected nothing less from her. Then she stood up against me again, telling the transfers things I hadn't even explained to them yet.
She laughed at me. Right in my face. I admit, it was a nice sound, echoing like fairy bells around the tunnels, but...I jerked out of my daydream. It didn't sound nice. I didn't find her interesting.
Keep telling yourself that, a little voice in my head taunted. Maybe if you repeat it enough, you'll believe it.
I dismiss the transfers, all except her. I wave Four away when he glances at me and his sister, who is still standing tall and proud. He looks worried, but brushes it off and leaves, sending me a parting glare as he walks away. I watch his retreating form, then turn to the Stiff.
She has bravery, but she's not going to get far with that attitude of hers. I step closer to her. Her face is smooth, but I see fear in her eyes. Good. She should fear me.
Alexa coughs. "Umm, Eric, ever heard of a personal bubble? You're kinda intruding in it." I pin her to the wall, my hands on her shoulders. They are strong, but small. I bet she can pack a punch.
"Eric?" Her voice is breathy, but not in a flirtatious way. She's frightened. "Personal space issues?" I don't care. She made a fool of me...thrice.
I lean in so close our noses are almost touching. "I don't like people embarrassing me."
She looks like she's going to pass out, but I ignore the twinge of concern that I feel for her when I see her small, pinched face. She's pale. I didn't think I scared her that much.
"Do you understand me?" I growl in her ear.
"Eric!" Alexa gasps. She looks like she's fighting an internal battle. She looks past me at someone who's not there; her eyes widen, her breaths come in short, ragged bursts, then she slumps to the ground.
"Shit!" I swear. What did I do? I didn't think she'd be so scared that she would faint. I lift her in my arms; she barely weighs anything. Bringing out my inner Erudite, I survey her. She's underweight, at least for her size and age.
I think about what I did wrong as I fast-walk towards the infirmary. People stop and stare as I cross the Pit; they don't bother me. (A/N: Anyone get that movie reference? Shoutout to whoever answers.)
I feel terrible. The poor girl has already endured such mental trauma in her short life, I didn't think what memories my anger might bring up. Shit.
When I reach the infirmary, Hana, Uriah and Zeke's mother, is on duty. "What the —"
I look down at the unconscious girl. "Hana, she fainted." Hana rolls her eyes at me, the only person I allow to do that. She's pretty much everyone's mother, even the adults.
"So I see, Eric," she says, sarcasm clear in her voice. "Set her down over there." She waves in the vague direction of a bed, clearly not paying attention, looking through her computer at Alexa's file.
I set Alexa down on the bed. How could I have done this to her? I knew about her abusive past, but I didn't stop and think about what might happen if I pushed her too much.
"Well, Eric," Hana says, sitting on a spinning stool at Alexa's side, "It seems that Alexa here is severely depressed. I'm not going to tell you the other things; that will be up to her." I clench my fists.
"Hana," I say through gritted teeth, "I need to know. I can't let Alexa participate in training if she doesn't feel up to it. We don't need another Jacob." Jacob died during training from a stray bullet, caused by another initiate claiming to be alright after being knocked out and receiving a concussion and shooting guns only a few hours after.
Hana nods agreement. "But I still refuse to let you hear or read Alexa's private information. That will be for me, and only me, to know. She will have to tell you if she decides to trust you."
I sigh. "Let me guess. She has trust issues as well?" Hana nods, standing up and patting my shoulder.
"It's not her fault, Eric," she murmurs in my ear, so low only I can hear her. I know it's not her fault; it's that bastard Marcus's. I want to find him, and punch him so hard he can't see straight. Or maybe just kill him.
A weak voice interrupts my thoughts, "Eric?" I turn, and see Alexa, trying, and failing, to sit up in bed. I frown and push her back down.
"Don't move, Alexa," I say, trying to make my voice sound soothing and comforting. She gives up and studies me warily, like I might pounce at any time. "Look, Alexa," I begin, then stop. "I just wanted to say...I'm sorry." Her eyes widen, like she hadn't been expecting that. I sigh and run my hands through my hair. "Four told me about...your father."
I'm surprised at how fast that weak, timid little voice turned ferocious. "That man is no father of mine!" She spits out, as if the words are burning her mouth.
"I know, Alexa," I say. "I'm sorry. I lost control. I won't do it again, I promise. Just...please just tell me what exactly he did to you so I know what not to do."
She looks up at me with her large blue eyes, startlingly like Four's, only more feminine. Four told me that her eyes changed colors depending on her mood, but I hadn't really believed him...until now.
When she arrived at Dauntless, happy, her eyes were a bright, shining, electric blue. Now, she looked sad and her eyes were more midnight blue, like Four's, but with small flecks of celery green and gold.
She clears a throat and I jump, embarrassed to be caught staring. "Uh..." She looks terrified. I can understand why: she's going to tell a near stranger her life story about her abusive father. "Well, it started with just To-Four."
I smile at her, a real smile, not the creepy, unsettling one that I use on people who piss me off. "I know his name."
She smiles back, albeit weakly. "Well, Tobias was, ironically, four, when our mother died. Marcus started whipping Toby, and he slapped or punched me occasionally. Over the years, it got worse. He, uh, did it with me, the first time being when I was 13."
I clench my fists. How could any...man...do that to their children? Alexa continues, "When Tobias left, he turned the beatings for two onto one. Namely, me." She smiles ruefully. "This went on until I left."
I give her my best puppy eyes. "Can I see?"
Alexa looks at me out of the corners of her eyes, as if she's not sure why I care. "Um, are you sure?" She asks. I nod. She sighs and turns so her back is facing me. She lifts her shirt to around her neck. "If you want to see it all, you have to, uh, unclasp..." I can hear the blush in her voice, although her face is turned away and her head is down.
I can feel the blood rushing to my cheeks. She's so cute. Wait, what?! I can't crush on an initiate!
I unhook her bra carefully and draw in a sharp breath.
Her back is literally in tatters. It's the worst injury I've ever seen, even surpassing Four's. There are indents from, I'm assuming, the belt buckle. The flesh is red and raw, but thankfully not infected.
I re-clasp her bra and pull her shirt back down. I can't trust my voice, because I'll just start shouting if I open my mouth, and I don't want to scare her. She must realize this because she breaks the silence. "Uh, that's not all. He cut me too."
I stand up and start pacing. I check my anger and say in my calmest voice, "Can I kill him?"
She laughs nervously. "No." My face obviously shows disappointment, because she laughs again, this time with more merriment. It sounds like the tinkling of crystal bells. "I'm going to kill him."
I laugh along with her, and it feels nice. She speaks shyly. "Um, Eric, why do people say you're mean? You're much nicer than I expected you to be, from the stories I've heard about you."
I shrug and say, "Everyone thinks that I'm a sadistic asshole, so they never come near me. They think that I've slept with half of the Dauntless compound, and after a while, I just never bothered trying to correct them."
"Have you?" She asks. "Slept with half the compound, I mean." I shake my head vigorously.
"No. In fact, I've never, uh, slept with anyone." I scratch the back of my neck, something I do when I'm nervous or uncomfortable. Her face softens.
Abruptly changing the subject, as her face had started glowing pink, she says, "When can I leave?"
A/N: I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Please let me know in a review *puppy dog eyes* XD
~ 4ever