Tris' Journal:
Sunday, March 8
Sequester, Day 1
Today I slept in, made pancakes for breakfast, and read a book. Lunch was cheese, crackers, and an apple. I cleaned my bathroom thoroughly and tried out some of the games Christina put on my tablet. For dinner I cooked a chicken breast, some rice, and peas. It was bland, but familiar, and made me think of my parents.
I still can't believe they're really gone. I wonder how Caleb is doing. What job did he choose? Are they doing sequester in Erudite, too? Does he have a girlfriend? Is he happy? Does he even know that our parents died?
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Monday, March 9
Sequester, Day 2
Last night was rough. Having a chance to spend some time alone is good, I think. It's hard, but it's giving me a chance to grieve. I have plenty of time to think about my family and really process my loss. I started working on drawing a portrait of my parents last night. I did several sketches, but I haven't gotten it right yet.
Today I ate cereal for breakfast. Lunch was leftovers - I can't afford for anything to go to waste. Dinner was a ham steak, baked potato, and some green beans.
I played more of the games Christina put on my tablet. They're actually pretty fun. I also watched some old movies and read some more of my book.
This house arrest-sequester thing is really weird. It's like a sick day, but I'm not sick. I'm glad that tomorrow is my day to leave and buy supplies.
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Tuesday, March 10
Sequester, Day 3
This morning I was worried about my finances. It's been two weeks since Max shut down the tattoo parlor, so I haven't been working. I spent most of my meager savings on my new tablet. When I logged on to the Dauntless point tracking system, I was surprised to see that some money had been deposited into my account. I sent an email to leadership, and got a reply from Eric. He explained that since leadership had temporarily closed the shop, we were being paid three-quarters of our usual salary to help us get by. He further explained that I was also paid for the night I spent working in the grocery store. What shocked me the most was that Eric actually bothered to ask me if I would be okay with so little coming in. As an apprentice I wasn't making much money, so cutting it by a quarter leaves me a pretty small sum. I assured him that my apartment was comfortable and my needs were few, so I would be fine, but to be honest, I'm a little worried. I'm going to have to keep things simple and stretch my income to cover expenses. But if anyone can do it, it's me. I was Abnegation until ten months ago, so I know how to keep it simple.
During my time to go out today, I ran a small load of laundry, got a few grocery items, and bought a crochet hook and some cotton yarn. I thought it might make me feel closer to my mother if I took up crocheting washcloths like she used to do.
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Wednesday, March 11
Sequester, Day 4
Today was HARD. I'm going stir crazy. I have everything I need, but I'm stressed about the future, and it will be another SIX DAYS before I'm allowed to leave my apartment. The 'Dauntless Community' social app is full of rumors, complaints about leadership, and people whining about being stuck at home with their kids. It makes me sad to see so many complaining about too much togetherness while I'm alone. What I wouldn't give for one more quiet night at home with my parents and brother.
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Thursday, March 12
Sequester, Day 5
If I wasn't keeping this journal, I would have no idea what day it is. As it is I find myself wondering if it's Wednesday or Thursday.
I did some cooking today. I made soup and lasagna, portioned them out, and froze the single servings. When I took out the trash (tied the bag and left it outside my door for pickup as instructed), I found a package outside my door. It was from Christina, and all it contained was the sex toy she had given me in the cafeteria, and a note saying that I "forgot" it the other day and should "put it to good use" during the sequester. Needless to say, I buried it in a drawer. Seriously embarrassing. I hope no one else saw what was in the bag sitting by my door!
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Friday, March 13
Sequester, Day 6
Apparently bread is hard to find. Demand for it is up, but people in Dauntless rarely bake. A few cooks from the kitchens have been baking to supply the store, but it's not enough. I shared a simple recipe on Dauntless Community, and a lot of people asked me questions. Someone suggested that I should make a video, so I emailed Will about how to do that. He sent me the steps for making and posting a video, and I gave it a try. It's really awkward seeing yourself on a video - I HATE my voice! But I got it recorded and posted.
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Saturday, March 14
Sequester, Day 7
When I woke up this morning I had over a hundred new comments, questions, and direct messages on the Dauntless Community app. My bread video was watched HUNDREDS of times, even in Candor and Erudite! Some of the comments were about ways I could improve the quality of my video production. A lot of the questions were about other options for people who don't have yeast. I decided to do another video, and showed how to make flour tortillas. The video came out better, thanks to the tips I received.
This evening I got an email from Eric. He told me that leadership really appreciated what I did by making those videos. I guess they've been really stressed about providing for everyone since we're a faction of people who are used to getting their meals at the cafeteria. He asked if I need anything to make more videos. I replied requesting flour, butter, and eggs. I also suggested that the leaders should prepare for the fact that those staples would be in higher demand as people did more cooking at home.
An hour later there was a knock on my door…
I startled at the sudden noise. Who would try to visit during the sequester? I looked through the peephole in my door, and saw Eric standing there with a paper grocery bag in his arms.
My heart raced at the sight. Eric might be a jerk, but those arms of his are yummy, and he looked so domestic bringing me groceries. I opened the door and took a step back, careful to keep several feet of space between us, as mandated.
"Tris," Eric greeted. "I brought your supplies."
"Th… thank you," I stammered.
Eric marched in like he owned the place. He walked right to the kitchen and began unloading. He'd brought the flour, butter, and eggs I requested, and also sugar, cocoa powder, vanilla, several containers of spices, more milk, yeast, baking soda, baking powder, and a list.
"The leadership team has some ideas for you," he said gruffly. "We thought about having someone from the kitchen do videos, but we decided that you're better. They use special equipment and cook for an entire faction. You have the kind of kitchen that others have, and you can cook for a family or a few people. You also have a nice calm, relaxed way that people respond to."
"Thank you," I said, touched by the compliment.
"My, um, my phone number is on that paper, too," Eric said. "You know, if you need any more supplies or anything. Or if you need help with the video stuff. You know…"
"Thanks," I repeated, wondering why he seemed nervous. Was he afraid I'd read too much into it?
"I, uh, I noticed that the second video was better than the first," he said. "Like lighting and stuff."
He watched them? Maybe the leaders watched them together. They did talk about it.
"Yeah," I replied, "I'm not real tech savvy. But Will told me how to record and upload the first one, and a bunch of people gave me tips after that. I tried a few things, and the second video came out better."
"I can make a few more suggestions if you're interested," Eric offered.
I gratefully accepted. I mean, video production is not my thing. I never wanted it to be my thing. Yet here we are…
Eric pointed out some things about the lighting in my apartment and adjusted some settings on my tablet, then had me record a short test video. It looked a lot better. My first attempts had given me dark shadows under my eyes, and the adjustments Eric made improved that dramatically. I thanked him and offered him some bread.
"Really?" Eric asked as his eyes lit up.
"Of course," I said, handing him a loaf. "I'm doing all this baking now, but I live alone. I can't eat half of this; I'm getting fat as it is!"
"You are not fat," Eric argued, opening the bag to inhale deeply of the fresh-baked bread.
"I will be if I keep baking," I said with a laugh. "Someone should make videos about exercising from home."
"That's not a bad idea," Eric said around the mouthful of bread he had ripped off the corner of the loaf.
I couldn't help but laugh watching Eric stuff his face with bread. "Aren't you eating?" I asked him.
"Not enough," he admitted. "The leaders are working practically around the clock. I could cook if I had time, but I don't. The cafeteria is still cooking for the infirmary, so they've been bringing us lunch, but the rest of the time I'm on my own."
I hadn't thought about the fact that while most of us are sitting around bored, others were busier than ever. Max and some of the other leaders had spouses to take care of the at-home chores, but Eric was pretty much on his own.
"Tuesday is my shopping day," I said to the young leader still stuffing his face with bread. "If you want, I can pick things up for you. Just set it up with the grocery store and text me a list. Oh, I'll need your apartment code, too, so I can put things away."
"What do you want in exchange?" Eric growled warily.
"Nothing!" I said, offended that he would even ask. "What did I tell you that night at the grocery store? This is my faction, too. I'm getting paid to not work while you work harder than ever. It's not fair. All I'm offering to do is pick up your groceries while I'm getting mine."
Eric stared at me with his mouth hanging open. I rolled my eyes, but I couldn't get past the realization that Eric was genuinely surprised by someone offering to help him, even with something as small as picking up his groceries. Does no one care for this guy?
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Sunday, March 15
Sequester, Day 8
I miss church. In Abnegation, religious services were part of our normal. Every Sunday morning we gathered for age-appropriate religious classes, followed by a community-wide service. We sang together about God and serving others. The minister would speak. Babies cried, and their parents snuck them out of the room so they wouldn't disturb anyone. Neighbors would ask one another about their families and jobs, or they would talk about the weather, the council, or the factionless. After service friends and extended families would have guests join them for lunch. Kids played outside, no one worked or did chores outside of that day's meal prep. In the evening we went back to the church for another Bible lesson. It was calm, relaxed, and the best day of the week.
Here in Dauntless, Sunday is just another day of the week. Before the sequestering, stores and the cafeteria were open on Sundays. People worked and did chores. Being the city's security never takes a day off, so I suppose we found the days all alike.
In sequester the days are alike as well. Every day I cook, eat, clean, play games, read, and try to work through the boredom. Today I made a video about pancakes. It was on the list Eric gave me. I never thought people would need help making pancakes, but some people are just that unfamiliar with cooking. In the video I talked about the 'just add water' pancake mixes that you can buy, then (because I'm told the stores are running out of mix) I showed how to make them from scratch. After that I talked about syrup, and explained how Amity taps maple trees and boils down the sap. I also talked about other ways to serve pancakes, like dropping fruit or chocolate in the batter or wrapping them around sausage. It was a fun video to make, and naturally I ended up eating pancakes for dinner.
Less than an hour after I posted my video, I got a text from Eric…
E: Your pancake video made me hungry.
T: I'd offer to share, but leadership is making us all stay in sequester.
E: Very funny
E: Were you serious about helping me get groceries?
T: Sure. I'm allowed out of the house on Tuesdays from 10-noon. That's plenty of time to start laundry, get food, move clothes to the dryer, drop off your stuff, and get home.
E: Ugh, laundry. If I extend your time by an hour could you help with that, too? I'm washing boxers in the bathtub in the middle of the night. My shower curtain rod has become a clothesline, and nothing feels like it's actually clean.
I couldn't help but laugh - and blush - at the thought of Eric washing boxer shorts in his bathtub. Was I really willing to take on the young leader's laundry? Groceries, sure, but laundry seemed so… personal.
E: Tris? You can say no. This isn't an order from your leader, it's just a request.
T: Yeah, sure, I can help you with laundry. Can you leave a bag of your laundry by my door on Tuesday morning? Detergent wouldn't hurt either. I don't have a lot, and I don't know what kind you use.
E: Someone on your floor has 8am-10am as their window, so I'm assuming they do laundry then. Your new window is Tuesdays from 10am-1pm. Is that ok?
T: Great. If you drop off a bag of stuff before that I can wash, get groceries, move everything to the dryer, and get the clean clothes and groceries returned to you by 1pm.
E: Thank you so much. You have no idea how much this helps me.
T: No problem. Don't forget your sheets and towels. It would also help to have an empty basket I can put the clean stuff in when it's done.
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Monday, March 16
Sequester, Day 9
I think I'm getting the hang of this new life in sequester. Thank God for Dauntless Community! Some of the members use it to whine, but I've seen so many good things, too. One family ran low on toilet paper and posted their willingness to pay for it if someone with a sooner shopping window could grab them a pack. An hour later they came back saying they no longer needed it because someone had left a jumbo pack by their door. People are using the app and other social tools to hold virtual game nights, help kids with homework, and make music together. I have new friends that I didn't know before, and several tattoo clients have reached out to ask if I could start drawing their next tattoos.
Eric sent me his grocery list today, and all the information I need to get his things charged to his account and deliver them to his door. Sequester has changed my opinion about him. I'm impressed by how hard he and the other leaders work. There is so much we don't see, and so much that the leaders do just because it needs to be done. Abnegation always talked about servant-leadership. Here in Dauntless they don't talk about it, but they sure live it out. Today I prepared a big batch of cookies for the leaders and some other homemade foods to send along with Eric's groceries. I hope he isn't all weird about it and can just accept my homemade goodies as a thank you for all the hard work our leaders do.
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Tuesday, March 17
Sequester, Day 10
This is the busiest day I've had since sequester began! I got up around seven so I would be all ready to hit the ground running when my window opened at ten. There was a manilla envelope just inside my front door containing my new permit to be out from 10-1 instead of 10-noon, and a note with a few things Eric wanted me to add to his shopping list. I opened the door and found Eric's laundry waiting for me, along with a huge bottle of laundry detergent, some antibacterial cleaning wipes, and a package of latex gloves. Per Eric's instructions, I put on gloves and sorted his clothes. Everything in Dauntless is black, so the only real sorting I had to do was to separate the socks and underwear-type things from the others. One load would be washed warm and the other cold. I put the cold load in his empty basket and the warm load back in the laundry bag. Eric's sheets and towels were all grey, so I decided to wash them all together.
Right at ten I hurried to my floor's laundry room and started six loads of clothes. Mine were pretty small loads since it has only been like ten days, but Eric had so much laundry that I wondered if he was changing clothes three times a day or if he hasn't done laundry in weeks.
When everything was started I went to the store to shop. Eric's list was very specific, with the exact brands, flavors, etc. that he wanted me to buy. I found myself wondering if he already had those details in his head, or if it might have been faster for him to do his own shopping than to make up this elaborate list. There was only one thing on his list that I couldn't find, a protein shake powder. Lucy, the grocery clerk with purple hair, told me that it was only available at the shop that sold all the vitamins and nutritional supplements. I was glad that Eric had extended my shopping window by an hour, because it took some negotiating to get the supplement shop to charge Eric and let me take his purchase. In the end he had to call and approve the purchase over the phone, but I got his precious protein powder.
I got the laundry all done and folded, and took everything back to Eric's apartment. His place is really nice. It's bigger than mine. I think it has a second bedroom, or maybe a home office, because there were three doors in the hallway. I didn't open any doors, but I know one was a bathroom because it was already open. His kitchen has grey and black granite countertops, cherry cabinetry, and stainless steel appliances - much nicer than my worn oak and laminate! The walls are a pale grey, not unlike the color of his eyes. The living room has black leather furniture, a huge TV, and several bookshelves. Everything is really masculine, but nice - grey and black, with touches of blue.
I wasn't sure how much I should do; it felt awkward and intrusive being there without him. I decided to leave the heaping basket of clean laundry on his coffee table, and put away the perishable food items, leaving everything else neatly on his kitchen island. I had a little time, so I gathered up the coffee cups scattered around the living room and kitchen, and washed the dishes that were in the sink. Apparently, Eric was keeping an eye on me, because he texted again as soon as I got home…
E: Thank you for all your help today. You really didn't have to do my dishes.
T: I had time. I would have made your bed and put the towels away, but I didn't want to snoop around your house.
E: I have two sets of sheets. I made the bed when I took those off.
E: Anyway, I really appreciate your help, and the way you respected my privacy. I'll admit I was nervous about having someone in my place when I wasn't there.
T: No worries, Eric. I keep telling you I don't have a motive. I'm just trying to help out. My dad was on the council, so I know how hard leaders work. With everything going on right now, it's crazier than usual. I get that, and I want to help.
E: Just letting you know, I authorized you to get your full pay amount instead of three-quarters. You might not be working at the tattoo shop, but you're working, and helping me, plus a lot of others. Those cooking videos help a lot.
T: Thank you. I'm totally awkward on camera, but if it helps people, I'll do it. Any requests for my next video?
E: Stiffs eat chicken, right?
T: Yes
E: According to the grocery store, people are buying ground beef, but few are buying chicken, especially the whole chickens. Maybe you could show people what to do to cook a chicken?
T: I don't have a whole chicken, but I can do that next week.
E: I can fix that, oh domestic queen. Thou shall have a whole chicken by the end of the day.
I couldn't help but laugh. It surprised me how Eric had this goofy side to him.
T: Much thanks to thee, oh knight. Ye shall have thine chicken video on the morrow.
E: Will you do the whole video in olde English? Don't say anything, just do it and wait to see what the audience says.
T: No! Maybe on April Fools Day or something
E: That would be funny, you totally should.