I slowly walk into the cafeteria, and see a very hyper Uriah waving at me to come sit by him. I give a small grin and walk over. They'd told us we were to eat lunch before the test. Apparently it caused some people to get sick if they didn't eat enough. That's what happened to Cade the day he took the test.
"Hey Mia!" Uriah says with his mouth full with a hamburger. I force myself to laugh. I hadn't seen a hamburger in over three years. Cade would make them in secret after dad died. But after Cade had transferred to Dauntless, there was no way I could sneak one.
"Hey Uriah." I smile as I sit across from him.
"This is Marlene," he smiles at the girl to his right. I smile at her politely. Surprisingly she returns the smile. "And this is Lynn." He ruffles the hair of the girl to his left. She rolls her eyes before tucking into her food.
"Where's your food?" Marlene asks me, shooting me a concerned glance. I forgot to grab my lunch. I'd spent too much time in the morning awkwardly putting on some topical pain medication on my back. I automatically bring my hand to cup the back to my neck as I give her a sheepish look.
"I kinda forgot it at home." I reply. She shakes her head and pushes some cake towards me. I raise an eyebrow, but take it anyway. The Dauntless have a thing for chocolate cake, at least that's what dad told me. He never tried to make it himself though. He was certain he couldn't make it with ingredients in the Erudite stores. Dauntless added something special to it, but he never told us what.
When I come back to the current moment, Uriah is bouncing in his seat. Marlene has a look of amusement on her face, and even Lynn looks somewhat interested.
"What?" I ask looking at all three of them.
"A person's first experience with Dauntless chocolate cake is a euphoric experience." Marlene says.
Uriah wiggles his eyebrows at her after she finishes her explanation.
"Shut up, Uri." She rolls her eyes and laughs. I snort and take a bite of the cake. I almost drop the fork as I swallow. They look worriedly at me. I then smirk at Uriah.
"I never knew you could have a foodgasm." Uriah bursts out into laughter, this time Lynn joins him as Marlene just rolls her eyes at us. I catch an amused smirk on her face when she lowers it to spoon some more food into her mouth.
While it came out as a joke, Erudite food wasn't that good. Despite all the recent dog piling on Abnegation, Erudite food was very basic as well. Except for the gastronomy people. But mom wasn't one of those. She was an accountant for the faction. That meant we had bland food regularly.
"Thanks for the cake, Marlene." I give her a cheeky smile.
"You're welcome." She mumbles and then sighs. Uriah looks over at her concerned.
"You okay?" He asks quietly. She nods.
"I'm just stuck with another one of you now. Why did you have to go corrupt this poor girl?" She asks him. I can't help but laugh.
"Hey! I never corrupted her, she corrupted herself!" He exclaims.
"I never knew such a thing was possible." I tell him, my voice filled with sarcasm.
"Well," he pauses to think, "you're just a bad Erudite." He sticks his tongue out at me. Lynn elbows him.
"Low blow," she hisses. I smile at her.
"I know I am." I reply cheekily at Uriah as I grab a grape from his tray and plop it in my mouth. Lynn's eyes widen in surprise, but she doesn't question me.
"Alright everyone." We hear a voice call throughout the room. "Lunch is now over, please leave the lunchroom if you are not testing today!" The Erudite man calls. "We will begin testing shortly." He finishes his speech and moves from the doors of the lunchroom and sits by a Dauntless woman. I had seen her here last year around testing time. I guess she was there to test Abnegation kids.
"So," Uriah says as I finish my last bite of cake. "You ready for your test?" He asks me.
"Yup." I say, before tossing the now empty plastic plate in the trash behind me.
"You sure you're not scared?" Lynn asks.
"Nope." I reply honestly. "I think I know what my result won't be, and even despite what the test says, I might still choose the faction I want to be in." I say to her. She looks me in the eye and nods.
"You're alright, Nose." She smirks and grabs her own plate to throw away.
"Thanks, Lynn." I smirk back. Uriah just shakes his head at me. I stick out my tongue and he tosses a paper ball at me. I catch it and throw it back at him, hitting him on the tip of my nose. No pun intended.
"Oh, you want to fight?" He taunts me as he reaches to pick up the ball.
"Is it really a fight if we know I will win?" I taunt back. Marlene gets a grin on her face. She is about to add to the conversation when the Erudite man begins to speak again.
"We will call ten of you to take your test, when your name is called, you will follow us to your testing site." Some nod, I just stare over at the door. This test will help me choose my future. For better or worse.
I zone out as he begins calling names. I suddenly feel a light kick to my shin. I don't flinch, which seems to surprise Lynn.
"They called your name, Nose," she says. I rub my shin for a second as I give her a tight smile. I was slipping up too much today. Showing too much of my pain.
"Thanks." I say as I grab my bag.
"Be brave, Mia." Uriah says to me.
"Always." I smile back.
"Nerd." He calls out to me.
"You're a nerd for knowing the reference." I say, smirking over my shoulder. He rolls his eyes and motions with his hands for me to keep moving. I sigh and walk over to the Erudite man. He motions for me to join the line. I go to the back with the two Abnegation students.
We then follow an Abnegation woman down a hallway that I had never been in before. She makes everyone stop in front of a door. I am in front of number eight.
"Alright, you all may enter the rooms. Good luck." The woman that led us into the hallway says softly. I take a deep breath and walk into the room. The walls in the room, unlike others in the school, are covered in mirrors. What about the Abnegation kids? The test administrators? Aren't they not supposed to look in the mirror?
In the center of the room is a chair that looks like a dentist's. At the computer was an Abnegation woman with dark brown hair pulled to the back of her head.
"My name is Natalie Prior, have a seat, Mia." She smiles at me softly. One of my biggest fears is the dentist office. I swallow hard and drop my bag to the side of the chair as I slowly recline back into it. I've always hated the dentist. That combined with the pain in my back make this the most uncomfortable position. How am I supposed to do a test like this?
attaches some wires from the computer to my head and hands me a shot glass, breaking me from my thoughts. What type of test would require all of this? Was it to make sure we're not cheating?
"What is it?" I ask her, my brow furrowed.
"Bottoms up." She says, still smiling. It reminds me of dad, he would say the same thing whenever he made me take disgusting medicine. I sigh and hold my nose as I down the shot. I close my eyes as I hand the glass back to Mrs. Prior. It was as disgusting as I thought it would be. But I don't have time to focus on it. My vision begins to blur, everything is spinning, and then suddenly I'm no longer in the dentist chair.
I open my eyes and I'm back in the lunchroom. Despite the clear skies earlier in the day, when I look out the windows snow falls down heavily. The ground already seems to be covered and I dread the journey back home. I hadn't brought a jacket. It wasn't supposed to snow today.
I turn to head back towards the testing rooms. Something must have happened as the lunchroom is empty. Had I had a negative reaction to the test? Had everyone already gone home? I'm just about to push open the door when a woman's voice stops me.
"Choose," she says. I turn around to see a woman. I can't make out her features, all I see is her long hair pulled back into a knot behind her head. Was she Abnegation?
"Choose," she says again. I look down at the two baskets she presents. In one, there is cheese. In the other there is a knife. What sort of test is this? Would I need these for future parts of the test?
"Choose," she says a third time. I reach out instinctively.
I feel the rough handle of the knife against my palm as I wrap my fingers around it. The knife would last longer than the cheese. I could protect myself if something more nefarious came up in the next portion of the test. As soon as the knife is securely in my hand, the baskets as well as the woman disappear.
I look around the empty lunchroom. My heart begins to beat faster. I make my way to stand with my back to one of the walls. My dad would train us in self defense when mom wasn't home. He didn't want us to be caught out somewhere, to be attacked, and not have a way to fight back.
"Preparation eradicates cowardice, mija."
This was the first time I'd felt the need to use his teachings outside of our home.
I wouldn't let him down. I can't let him down. Not now. Not ever.
I feel the cool wall against my back through my shirt. The welts on my back sting, but I ignore them. Dad said to always make sure an enemy can't get behind you. But even more importantly, they can't see your weakness.
It's not long before I see it. A large dog. Much larger than any dog I have ever seen. Drool falls out of its muzzle as it stalks the lunchroom. It pauses, its muzzle in the air. And then it turns towards me. I feel my breath hitch in my throat as its eyes land on me and it begins to approach.
I immediately lower myself to the ground. I look away from the dog despite everything in my body telling me to keep my eyes on the threat. Instead, I look at the floor. I hope that this is submissive enough for the dog. I hear its footsteps fast approaching.
I brace myself, the knife held firmly in my hand.
Just as the footsteps make their way into striking range, I hear it.
A whine. I wait for a second, and then another, and when I finally have the courage to look up, the dog is on its side, practically begging to be pet. I grin, but don't reach out to pet it. Animals can change quickly.
I hear footsteps in the room and look up. There's a small girl, her hair in pigtails that bounce off her shoulders as she skips into the room. She gives me a large toothy smile before she looks down at the dog.
"Puppy!" She yells, running towards it. I go to call out for her to run, but it's too late. The dog has already started running towards her.
I don't think. I act. I run, struggling to catch up to the large dog, but eventually I'm able to tackle it. Just as I feel it's breath on my neck, I'm no longer in the room. Instead I'm gasping for air while holding onto the rope on the bus I'd rode to school this morning.
Instead of the old man offering me his seat like he had earlier, he says something different. He holds out the day's newspaper, a crazed man is on the cover. I vaguely recognize the face, but I don't know where I'd seen it last.
"Do you know this man?" The Abnegation man asks. I shake my head.
"No sir," I say. Proud my voice doesn't crack.
"Are you sure you haven't seen this man?" The Abnegation man shakes the paper, his voice sounding more desperate.
"No sir, I really haven't." I turn away from the old man and look towards the front of the bus. I see a man at the front, a hat covering most of his face, but it's clear that it's the man from the picture. I cover the gasp in my throat with a cough.
"Miss, are you really sure? If you told me if you've seen this man, it could save my life!"
"I'm sorry, sir. I haven't seen him." I turn back towards the front of the bus, but the man is out of the seat. I look over to see him walking back towards us, a knife identical to my own in his hand. I grip the knife tightly and wait for the man to come closer.
I inch closer to the door. If I wait for the right moment I can jump off the bus. I can avoid him. The bus jostles suddenly, knocking the hat off the man. The Abnegation man gasps and looks at me, his eyes filled with betrayal and fear.
"You lied! You lied! At least try to save me now!" He begs me, desperate. The man from the paper is walking towards us now, the bus is still in motion. I stable myself against the pole, blocking the old man, protecting him.
The man from the paper is factionless. I can see it by his clothing. I swallow hard as he walks up to me. It's clear that he's been drinking. The scent of alcohol wafts off of him in waves.
"And what do you think you are doing, little girl?" He slurs.
"Just going to school," I say casually. "Maybe you should sit back down."
"No," he laughs.
"I am here to kill that old man that you are protecting." He says as he tries to stumble around me. I block him with my body. His force surprises me, but I hold my ground.
He grunts, angry this time, and tries to stab me with the knife in his hand. It is too late though.
My knife is already embedded in his stomach.
I blink hard, begging the tears to not appear. Not now. Not when I need to see. But in that blink I'm transported from the bus to the testing room.
I'm gasping for air in the dentist chair. It's not the first time. This time, though, I feel removing the wires connected to my head and I sit up, checking for blood on my shirt. There is none.
"What the hell was that?" I eventually ask.
"That," she pauses. "Was an inconclusive test."
"Please don't tell me I have to do it again," I say, my voice cracking. She doesn't answer me, instead she walks out the door.
"Give me a moment," she calls over her shoulder.
Each second she's gone causes my heart to beat faster. Would I have to take the test again? Would I be factionless because the test was inconclusive?
"My apologies, Mia." She says when she reenters the room. "There's only so much time to go in to manually enter a test result."
"But you said it was-"
"Forget what I said earlier," she says firmly. "The test made you ill after you made your choice of the knife."
"It… did?" I say, uncertainty clear in my voice.
"You are to not tell anyone about the former result," she says as she finishes her job from earlier, carefully picking the wires from my head. "The world is dangerous for those who are divergent."
"Divergent?"
"Those who have an aptitude for more than one faction."
"But-but-"
"I know," she says gently. She gives a fond smile. Is this what had happened to Cade? "I put your test result in as dauntless, the playback will fade after you choose the knife."
"And that will be enough?"
"It will," she says. "Now, it's time for you to go back into the lunchroom."
"Wait," I say as we're almost at the door. "Which factions do I have an aptitude for?"
"Dauntless for your bravery in the simulation," she says. "As well as Abnegation for your selflessness in risking your life for the girl and for the Abnegation man." I close my eyes briefly, the scene flashing before me. I feel her hand on my arm pull me out of the vision. "And erudite for your logic in dealing with the dog and the man on the bus."
She opens the door before I can ask any other questions. She gives me a brief stern look before it turns back to the calm, small smile she had when we first met.
"Everything alright?" The Erudite man asks as we exit the room. I feel his gaze burn into me. He worked with my mother.
"Mia only ate a small amount of sweets before the test, she became ill almost immediately after her faction was made clear," Mrs. Prior lies easily. The man shakes his head before nodding towards the door back to the lunch room.
"Even this test," I hear him whisper under his breath as I pass by him.
Yeah.
Even this test.