Soooo sorry for the long wait everyone :(
Eric Coulter: 18 years & 2 months old
Beatrice Prior: 17 years & 8 months old.
-o0o-ERIC-o0o-
Beatrice. Stealing!
"Mom?" I ask as I take in her worried expression. She looks at my face with the analyzing gaze the Erudite are known for. I notice her gaze lingers on my cheeks and my eyes.
"What happened sweetie?" She asks, concern etched on her face. "What are these cuts on your cheeks and where are your glasses?" She says, slowly inspecting my cheeks.
"Mom?" I try again, "What did she steal?"
"Two small bandages and some cotton." And I see her expression change from concern to horror as the realization hits her. "Oh my god!" She exclaims, "What happened Eric?"
"I ran into some bullies and they decided to punch me square in the face which in turn broke my glasses," I explain and she gasps audibly.
"She cleaned my face with the 'stolen supplies' from the infirmary," I emphasize what she recalled a few minutes ago.
"Oh god! I feel terrible for ruining the girl's only chance," she cries out and I cock an eyebrow at her. "Beatrice loved working in the infirmary. She loved learning all about first aid and I knew she loved so I helped her get the volunteering position under the guise of selflessness. She's such a sweet girl!" my mom says with an adoring expression? She liked her working there? And how does mom know her reasons?
I never knew she worked there. But I find her curiosity intriguing.
"She would be leaving now, can you go and talk to her for me? Tell her I am really sorry?" She asks and for some reason I find myself nodding. The idea of spending more time in Beatrice's company seems tempting enough. She understands is what I tell myself but even I am confused by my desire to spend time with her. What is wrong with me?
"And can you please fetch me a glass of that red drink?"
I fill the glass and for some reason I am getting a very bad feeling about this 'Red drink' Erudites started regularly drinking for the last few months.
Handing her the glass of the suspicious liquid and bidding her goodbye, I made my way towards the volunteering center. Stiffs always encourage their children to volunteer at night.
Walking in between the masses of grey clad bodies, I feel like the odd one out. The Abnegation don't gossip but it doesn't mean they don't notice suspicious behavior. I reach the volunteer center and curse myself. How do you look for a girl when you don't know her last name? For all I know there will be ten girls named Beatrice there.
I sigh. There is nothing I can do about it now so I have to face it head on. I hadn't bothered asking her last name since I didn't know I would need to look for her.
In all my internal musings I had totally forgotten I was walking in unfamiliar territory. Memorizing the city map doesn't mean I can find my way in crowded areas. I decide to swallow my pride and ask some Abnegation to help me which they will. I look in front of me to see a woman, looking around the crowd.
"I am so sorry i didn't see you there," says a female voice. She is strangely familiar.
I take in her appearance and see that she's an older Abnegation woman with blond hair and green eyes. Even her appearance is oddly familiar. "Hello there. My name is Natalie Prior. Can I help you?" she asks. Ever polite, that's how the Abnegation are, even if there's a total stranger waltzing in their faction.
Prior. Why does that sound familiar?
And then I remembered. Andrew Prior.
Prior!
She looks about his age if I had to guess, so I suppose she must be his wife or maybe a sister. I decide to ask her since I have heard that members of Abnegation know everyone from their faction.
"I am looking for Beatrice," I searched my brain for something to distinguish her from other possible Beatrices. "She volunteers in the school infirmary." That should do it.
"Of course dear, follow me," she replies kindly.
I follow her, weaving through the crowds, as she nods respectfully to many people along the way. She stops abruptly causing me to bump into her. "I am sorry Mrs. Prior," I apologize awkwardly. She waves me off with a kind smile.
"Eric?" I hear someone say. I turn around and come face to face with Beatrice. I nod and she gives me a small smile. "Thank you Mrs. Prior for helping me find her, can I borrow her for a while? I need to talk to her about something." I ask too politely for an Erudite. She nods slowly and asks "When can she be back?" I search my brain for an answer and give her an honest one.
"I don't know how long it can take since I will be choosing tomorrow and I might not have a chance to talk to her afterwards." She looks at Beatrice and nods her head towards me. Beatrice understands her cue and leads me out of the volunteer center.
We walk for a while and I am tempted to ask her where she's taking me but resist the urge since I don't want to sound mean. After all, she is taking her time off to talk to me. We stop and I take in my surroundings as she stops and sits down on the ground. My inner Erudite is screaming at me that my clothes will be ruined but I shut that part out as I sat down beside her, leaving a few feet between us. Abnegation are very sensitive about their personal space.
"So, what do you want to talk about?" Beatrice breaks the silence making me smile a little. She doesn't like awkward silence I guess.
"First off, I wanted to thank you for helping me. I guess no one stands up to bullies for Erudites so I was surprised. And that punch was awesome!" I say excitedly, remembering how perfect her timing and movement was.
She blushes at the compliment. "I believe you had already thanked me for it. I kinda feel guilty for punching him. He didn't look like he was expecting that," she giggles and I laugh.
"That is why it was awesome. It's like he wasn't expecting the unexpected." that makes her laugh with me.
"I am sorry about your loss though," she says genuinely. At my confused expression she elaborates, "Your glasses. He broke them, remember?" Oh. My glasses, I thought Beatrice knew they were just for show. I decide to remind her about it.
"It's cool. You were right though. They were just for show, so no harm done." I wave off her concerns.
Typical Abnegation, worrying about my useless glasses when she lost her position.
"I am really sorry too," I say genuinely. She looks at me expecting an explanation. "They removed you from your position. My mother told me how much you loved volunteering there."
"It's fine." she says, dismissively, "It was just a misunderstanding, Eric. I forgive Mrs Coulter, she didn't know the whole situation." And my mouth drops open at her answer. How can she forgive this easily? She's too good. Abnegations are too good. Beatrice just got accused of stealing supplies when she decided to help me and now it is being treated like a big crime where they will tell her family and her Faction leader about something this minuscule, but she's playing it off like it's not a big deal? It is a big deal since Abnegation can't gossip about it, but they will always remember. And if she chooses to stay in Abnegation, their silently accusing gaze will follow her everywhere.
"I told her the whole story. She was very sorry. I know for a fact that she wants you back, Beatrice." Ok, that isn't entirely true but for some reason I like my version of events better. "You were great with me. You helped me and respected my privacy even if it caused you all this trouble." I still can't grasp how someone can be so compassionate.
"I was well aware of the repercussions of my decision Eric. It's ok. Besides, I realized how I prefer volunteering in the Factionless. They really need all the help they can get." I may not have an aptitude for Candor, but I can read body language very well. She's upset but she's shrugging it off like it's not a big deal, like she is used to being treated this way. It never occurred to me that maybe she is.
"Beatrice-" I start but she cuts me off.
"No Eric, it's totally fine. I am an Abnegation so I am used to being treated like shit." And then she realizes what she just said as she covers her mouth with her hands. "I am sorry! I didn't mean any of it. I don't know where that kind of language came from. I am very sorry!" But something about her tells me that this apology isnt as genuine as it sounds.
I look in her eyes, trying to find any trace of guilt but I don't find any. Instead I see a wild fire raging in her eyes, threatening to burn whoever comes near it. She looks fierce. Dauntless! I shake my head at the thought.
"Have you made your decision yet?" She asks softly, breaking the serene silence. I shake my head. It's true. Up until my mom came home, I was certain I knew what I had to do, but, after seeing mom's reaction and hearing Beatrice's response, I am thinking I don't know at all. Should I stay in Erudite with my family? Should I forget everything about Beatrice's kindness and follow Jeanine's plans by choosing Dauntless? And let Jeanine murder an entire faction to gain power? And what about Divergents? They seem harmless, considering I am the only Divergent I know.
I shake my head no. "What was your aptitude test result?" She asks out of the blue.
I startle and look at her calm expression. "I am not supposed to tell anyone." I say.
"I am not anyone, Eric. I am no one to you. I am not trying to pry but I can see it is troubling you. You can tell me if you want to and I will take it to my grave if you want me to. I am Abnegation and we don't gossip, you know.," she says and I jerk my head at the familiar phrase. Mr Prior said I had to take my result to my grave. For some reason, I want to tell her. Maybe, because she looks like she wants to help. Or maybe, I just want to get it off my chest and my home faction isn't my best bet to talk about this. She's right, this is bothering me a lot.
"Dauntless, Erudite and Abnegation." I say softly, hoping she didn't hear me. She doesn't look alarmed.
"Three? That sounds rare. Why is that bothering you?" she asks.
"I don't know either. The aptitude test was supposed to tell me where I belong but it didn't. How do I know that the decision I made is the right one?" I ask no one in particular. I can't tell her about Divergents. It's dangerous to even carry that knowledge. Beatrice doesn't need to know that this is a matter of life and death for me.
She doesn't say anything, just takes my hand and squeezes tightly. I look at her and find her looking ahead. The Abnegation are very strict about touch. Every touch means something very significant which is the reason why you can only hold hands in public after getting married. That's also why I am looking at her face, trying to gauge her reaction. She looks at me and smiles shyly, the moonlight giving her face an eerie glow. She looks like an angel. Maybe, she is.
Erudites are firm non-believers when it comes to supernatural beings of any type including angels, but, sometimes I wonder if they are real.
"You have one day, Eric, use it wisely." she says, breaking the comfortable silence between us. "If you choose to stay, you think of your potential future. If for any reason, you decide that you belong somewhere else, don't waste it by dwelling on useless things but make some memories with those who belong in your heart." That is very good advice, one I am sure I will follow.
"What are you going to choose?" I ask, wanting to know what she sees herself doing.
"I cant choose this year."
"Why so?" I ask in a whisper. Maybe she can't choose because she's younger. Now that I think of it, I haven't seen her in any of my classes either.
"I am going to turn eighteen four months later, which is why I have to choose next year." So, I am six months older than her. We are both quiet once again and I welcome it. I shut out my worries, just for a second, to pretend that there is no impending war on Abnegation. No choosing ceremony ahead. And mostly, that I am not someone that Jeanine is trying to hunt. I can simply be….
"Just remember that it is your choice and yours alone. You will have to live with it, so, try to make sure you won't regret it" she says with a small laugh making me chuckle.
THAAAAANK YOOOOOU DRAGONMASTER65 for beta'ing this for me and generally being awesome :3