CHAPTER 12
NATALIE POV
Once the other factions have left the Choosing Ceremony we start to clean the room. Marcus walks over to me and in a voice loud enough for the other Abnegation to hear he apologises for his outburst during the ceremony. He explains that he had not been expecting his son to be a traitor and that Tobias had been unstable ever since his mother had died.
I nod my forgiveness to him, and as he turns to move away I speak so only he can hear me, "I know what you did to him, I saw the evidence for myself. I also know Evelyn isn't dead. You should be careful Marcus you are on very thin ground."
All of a sudden a booming laugh comes from Marcus, I don't think anyone has heard an Abnegation laugh like this before. "Thank you Natalie, I would love to come for dinner next week. That is very kind of you." With that he walks away from me and because the whole room has been watching our interaction I smile as sweetly as I can even though it is extremely forced. Thinking to myself, you will never set foot in my home again.
After dinner I walk upstairs and knock on Beatrice's bedroom door.
"Come in," Beatrice calls out.
"Hi sweetie, how are you?"
"I'm okay, a bit tired", she tells me whilst yawning. I have to wonder if she is actually that tired or if she knows I'm about to talk to her about what I saw this morning.
"I saw you sleeping with Tobias this morning," I say as I give her a hug.
"Mum I'm sorry, I didn't'" as she is saying this I put my finger to her lip and tell her I'm not angry.
She looks up at me and before she can ask me why I say, "Beatrice it is okay. I don't want you to feel bad about what you did. I'm glad your father or Caleb didn't see you. I know Abnegation have very strict guidelines on what is appropriate behaviour but it doesn't mean you did anything wrong. If you lived in another faction then you would have different rules that you would be following."
We sit on Beatrice's bed and continue our talk. She tells me how when she went to leave him he asked her to stay and the feeling she got when he touched her. This made me smile and to remember why I came to Abnegation in the first place.
Beatrice tells me about what happened before the Choosing Ceremony. While I'm a little shocked at how bold Tobias had been it still gives me an opening to tell my daughter that when it is her time to choose that I will love her no matter what she chooses.
We sit and talk for hours, it feels good that I'm not holding back like the Abnegation teach us to. I get to tell her how I was from Dauntless and how her father and I fell in love, how we chose Abnegation so we could be together. There is so much more I could tell her, especially how I was originally from outside the fence. But I don't want to overwhelm her and hopefully she will never have to hear about or see that place.
Just as we are about to go to bed Beatrice asks, "Why did Tobias stay here last night?"
"That's not my story to tell Beatrice. I'm sure he will tell you when he is ready." With this I hug my daughter good night and leave her room.