Let's not talk about the fact that the last time I updated was in February.
Chapter 7
After the Choosing Ceremony was over, Carter lost Grayson in the rushing crowd of new initiates and Dauntless born. She didn't look at him as she sat down after she chose Dauntless, but she was desperate to find him now. As Carter searched for him, she enjoyed the burning sensation in her lungs and the thud of her feet on the pavement. Running was as exhilarating for Carter as it was for her mother.
Even as the mob of kids thinned out, Carter still couldn't find Grayson. Alone, she climbed up to the tracks and waited to start running again.
As her search for her best friend continued, Carter saw a Candor transfer climbing up suddenly slip right at the top. He called out in shock, dangling by his fingertips. Right before he could slip and fall to his death, possibly bringing other climbers down with him, Carter grabbed his wrist. Finally, she was able to hoist him up, away from any imminent danger.
For a second they just looked at each other. Carter was able to take in his features. Dark brown, shaggy hair, a few shades darker than her own. Exciting, bright green eyes. Tall and lanky. He was very handsome.
"You saved me." He said, his breathing still heavy.
Carter started to turn. She could hear the train coming. "Yeah, I did." She stated. "Don't make me regret it." Carter could feel the stranger's eyes on her still. She was getting unnerved by his presence, so when she could start running, she was relieved.
She scanned the train car she was in for Grayson, or another friendly face. There were none. Only faces of transfers filled the car. Carter sighed and turned around. All of a sudden she was face to face with the boy she rescued.
"My name is Paxton. Paxton Radley." He said.
Carter narrowed her eyes. "What kind of name is Paxton? It's definitely not a Candor name." Her voice came out a little more judgmental than she had intended.
Paxton scratched the back of his neck uncomfortably, obviously sensing the hostility in Carter's voice. "My parents were both former Dauntless." He stated, still scratching his neck. "They regretted their decision and I think they just wanted a little part of it back. Naming me was one way to get it."
Carter fought to make her voice sound more relaxed. "So you were basically born to be Dauntless?"
"I guess so." Paxton muttered.
"Me too." Carter said. "Both of my parents are kind of Dauntless legends."
Paxton's eyes grew wide, as if he knew something. "You wouldn't happen to be an Eaton would you?"
"How did you know that?" Carter demanded, the hostility clear in her voice. She didn't like that this boy she had just met possibly knows her parents.
"My parents were there when Four Eaton transferred. They basically worshipped the ground he walked on. Honestly, they considered him a superhero. Neither of them forgot after they left. They're not going to be proud of me if I don't end up just like him." Paxton muttered the last part ruefully.
"Well you got a lot to live up to." Carter said darkly, and turned away from Paxton. She knew her father was widely known; it was no secret that he had dominated the competition in Dauntless. But those people didn't know him. They had no right to try and push his greatness onto their son.
"I'm not going to try and be him." Paxton said defensively. "My parents are not the reason that I transferred. The result of my aptitude test was actually Dauntless."
Carter turned back to him, her anger growing quickly. "I don't care Paxton. I honestly don't. Just leave my parents out of it. It's a sensitive subject right now."
Paxton opened his mouth to retort, but then thought better of it when he saw just how angry Carter was getting. As she turned away from him again, he wanted to ask why she was so irritated, but he held his tongue. It wasn't his place. He may be from Candor, but getting on the wrong side of this girl, an Eaton, seemed dangerous.
Carter refused to turn in Paxton's direction for the rest of the train ride. She just stared at the wall of the train and waited for the moment when she could jump off. Jump off of this train and get away from that boy and find Grayson. She wasn't sure what she was going to say to him when she finally got to him. His last words were a little unexpected.
Carter knew that she had feelings for her best friend. She had known that for a very long time. It had never occurred to her, though, that he actually reciprocated those feelings. The one time they tried it was just so awkward. Neither of them knew how to act around each other, so they just went back to being friends. It was easy; at least it was at first.
The feelings hadn't gone away for Carter, and apparently it was the same for Grayson. It was easy to shove them away when she thought that Grayson didn't see her like that. Now that she knew the truth, it was like the feelings were bubbling up and were about to burst at any minute. Carter just hoped that she was alone with Grayson when they did.
When the time finally came to jump off of the train, Carter couldn't have been more relieved. She backed up a few steps and took off full speed towards the building she needed to land on to escape certain death. Landing gracefully wasn't a problem. Every Dauntless born had done it many times. Carter landed on her feet and scanned the crowd once again. There he was. Grayson was on the other side of the group. His eyes were alive with excitement and a few locks of his hair drooped over his forehead.
Carter considered snaking through the mass of sixteen year olds, but the Dauntless leader had already begun to speak.
"Listen up! My name is Damon, one of the leaders of your new faction!"
Damon was 26 year old in his fifth year of leadership. He was basically the new Max, according to Carters mother. He stood tall with a lean, but very strong build. His gray-dyed hair stood in spikes as he addressed us, his black eyes looking at us with disdain. She didn't know him well, but she did know he was a bit of a brute, and also a very good leader.
"Below us is the member's entrance to our compound. If you can't jump, then you don't belong here. So, who wants to go first?"
"You want us to jump? Off of that ledge?" asked a Candor girl, fear obviously coursing through her.
Damon smirks at her and gives a simple answer. "Yes."
Every Dauntless born on the roof was smiling. All of them new there was a net at the bottom. They always jumped last so they could watch the transfers squirm. Carter was getting prodded in the back, so she erased her smile in case it was a transfer.
When she turned, Paxton was there. Why couldn't she get away from him?
"Is there something at the bottom?" He whispered at her.
"I don't know," she replied stonily, and turned back around. Carter noticed a boy take a cautious step forward. He was one of the few Amity transfers that came to Dauntless. The drugged bread was probably still clouding his judgment, making him feel braver than he actually was.
"A hippie? The first to jump? Unheard of." Muttered a Dauntless born behind me.
The Amity boy stood on the ledge, peering over it for a long moment. Then he jumped. There was a collective gasp from the transfers and everyone stood silently, waiting for some sign that the boy hadn't just leapt to his death."
"FIRST JUMPER – ADAM!" Yelled a booming voice that seemingly came from nowhere. All of Dauntless-that was there anyways-cheered and applauded. The transfers, confused, finally seemed to get that we weren't making them jump to their ends.
While more transfers were making their way to the ledge, Carter took the opportunity to go find Grayson. She weaved among her peers and tried to get closer. Her friend was fixated on the jumping sixteen year-olds that he didn't notice her when she showed up next to him. Carter stood there awkwardly, unsure of what to do, which was extremely odd. Usually Carter knew exactly what to do, especially when it came to her best friend.
By the time last transfer had jumped, it had become blatantly obvious to Carter that Grayson was purposely not looking at her. Irritated by his childish behavior, Carter stalked up to the ledge and jumped. Even though she'd done it hundreds of times, it was still exhilarating. All too soon she hit the net. One of the trainers unnecessarily helped her out and she stood off to the side away from the transfers. Right after her, down came Grayson. He rolled out of the net and placed himself behind Carter.
He was so close that she could feel his light breaths on the nape of her neck, sending shivers down her spine. Then the warm air traveled to her right ear, and a nearly silent whisper stood out among all of the noise. A simple, seemingly meaningless, two word whisper that drove Carter crazy, blocked out everything but her and Grayson.
"Hey there."
I feel bad for leaving this for so long. I'm gonna be a senior and I just can't stop thinking about my future long enough to write and actually enjoy it. I get an email from colleges every day, thanks to my ACT score of 31, so that doesn't help. I'm trying though. And that's what counts. So please just try to stick with me and this story.
~A
