Thank you SO much to Bamberlee for editing & sending this back so early! She thought we could update with an extra chapter this week.
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Have a super great day tomorrow!
"How often does he come back to Amity?"
I stand behind Everly, helping her place bacon in the frying pan. Her dark hair is now brushed and braided out of the way, and she's dressed. Her bare feet step on mine every so often, and she tenses up when I ask about her father.
Her real father.
I was thrown off by this revelation when she said it last night, spoken like it was common knowledge, and even more thrown off to see him on the phone. He'd walked right over to Rylan, looked at us, and said my name.
Harrison was exactly what I imagined when I thought of a leader in Dauntless.
He was tall, older, but fit. His hair was casually disheveled, and his uniform was impressive. I've seen the Dauntless soldiers before. Some of them were occasionally brought to the Erudite hospital, though Daniel had mentioned Dauntless had its own infirmary. They preferred to take care of their soldiers there, but he always frowned and ranted how it wasn't up to his standards. A close friend of his ran it, and every so often, she would call to ask for some upgrades or his help with a case.
The soldiers were always rough looking. Strong. Fearless. Their fearlessness made them stupid, and every so often, their stupidity brought them to Daniel.
I'd never really looked at them and saw myself walking alongside them or overseeing them. The idea was Jeanine's, and because it was an attractive offer, I went with it. I assumed I would be fine. I would never be injured, never bleed out for my faction, but if I did, it would be honorable.
I wouldn't be sent to some shitty infirmary or dragged to Erudite. I'd handle it on my own, the way a real soldier should.
I thought about this routinely, planning just another aspect of my future, before I changed my mind.
"He comes back pretty frequently. He has a house here that he owns, but…" Everly pauses, and she steps away from the stove. Her back hits my chest, and I reach out to adjust the temperature.
Cooking is something at which I'm fairly skilled.
She looked surprised at this. She stared when I said I'd help her, and she was even more surprised when I did.
"But?" My arms tighten around her, and for a moment, she stays pressed against me. The feeling of her is nice, strange, but nice. "He doesn't stay long enough? You said he always leaves."
"Well, he does live in Dauntless." Her answer is quiet, and it's one I'm sure she's been told herself. "He would try and stay the weekend sometimes, but he always got called back."
"You want him to stay here forever? Wouldn't that be a little weird? Wouldn't Hank feel strange?"
Neither of us move. The bacon sizzles and pops, and Everly's head rests in the middle of my chest. I feel her inhale slowly, and her exhale is heavy.
"Hank wouldn't care. At least, I don't think he would. I don't think my mom loves Harrison anymore. He's just…always working. He said his job is intense and she understands."
"Is that why you wanted to pick Dauntless?" I lean forward to grasp the spatula to flip the bacon over, and my chin touches her head. "Here, we'll flip them and cook the other side. Then we'll start the eggs."
"Do you think we would have made it there? I'm sure you would have, but what about me? Rylan and Frank were all beat up and –"
She stops, and I can feel her struggle. She shrugs, giving in to the what if of picking somewhere other than Amity.
I dislike the what if, because if she had picked Dauntless, I would be here alone.
"No. Frank would have punched you in the face by now. Rylan probably wouldn't have," I offer up, and she lets out a small laugh. "I think you did the right thing by staying here."
"Really? You think I made the right choice?" Everly sounds incredulous, and she looks up at me in total disbelief.
I smile tightly, uncomfortable at the painful turn this conversation has taken, and I can't admit this would be entirely different without her.
"Yeah, yeah, I do."
I spend most of Sunday reading a book.
The irony of this isn't lost on me, or Everly. She comes downstairs with a basket full of clothes, and her stare finds me immediately. The couch I'm sitting on isn't the best. It's not even big enough to fill the space, but it's worn and comfortable, and someone had left a novel on the small table beside it.
Horror novels had never been my thing.
I like horror movies.
Back in Erudite, we had giant, flat screens in most of our rooms. If you wished, you could subscribe to some service which gave you access to On Demand programing. There was a catalogue of shows to pick from, all from an era I'd never known.
Daniel preferred to watch the news, a weekly show filmed in Erudite. It was one of the only few live programs; the anchors were always the same, and they read carefully selected news briefs. Sometimes they had guests. Most of the time, they discussed what was going on or what they wanted us to know was going on, gave their Jeanine approved opinions, and they were always well informed.
Rylan had a theory they only told us the news Jeanine approved of. He loved to argue with Daniel over this, claiming there was more going on than we were being told. He liked when Daniel got all riled up, insisting we were hearing exactly what we needed to hear, and Blythe would sit silently, looking annoyed at everything and everyone.
Blythe disliked all the programing. On the off chance she turned the screen on, she used it as background noise. She'd finish up work while listening to the news on the lowest level possible, and she usually turned it off once it got on her nerves.
Rylan and I loved it.
We watched all kinds of shit. A chef who forced people to cook for him, then offered a scathing critique of their work. A show about vampires trying to fit in, filmed like a documentary. People performing stupid stunts, both on themselves and strangers, all while laughing hysterically. There were things Rylan insisted were called movies, longer programs that ran for up to two hours, and told a complete story.
We both agreed the bloody and gory ones were the best. We figured out how to get around the parent controls to allow anything and everything. We watched action movies, comedies, ghosts and demons, and every so often, Rylan made us watch a cartoon. Since we were trapped in Erudite with little to do past getting coffee, it was a great way to kill time, and I found myself watching them off and on.
Here, there is absolutely nothing high tech.
The fanciest thing might be the refrigerator, or maybe my phone.
With a few hours of free time, I had picked up whatever book someone had left behind, and I started reading. The first hour flew by. I read quickly and was soon immersed in the world of a man who decided to open up an amusement park with genetically engineered dinosaurs as the main attraction.
I smirked, finding plenty of comparisons between the old man and Jeanine. I hope like hell she never gets the idea to clone anyone, or long extinct animals, and there's a flash of horror in knowing she's probably already thought of this. I shrug the idea away, figuring it's not entirely my problem anymore. I keep reading, and I get right to the part where the tour takes a turn for the worse, when Everly sits down at the end of the couch.
"Where did you get that?" Her eyes are glued to the book in my hands, and I look up slowly.
I hold her stare, unblinking, even when she shifts closer.
"Am I not supposed to read it?" I hold the book up, wondering if Everly was perhaps very possessive over her dinosaur book. "Is it yours? Are you an avid fan of dinosaurs?"
I cock my head at her, wondering if she likes to read. The idea is appealing, because I like to read. It would be nice to have someone around who shares my appreciation for a well written novel, especially here. Her mother had a lot of books, but I would bet they were full of recipes for teas and oils, and probably nothing that would hold my interest.
"My dad gave it to me," she slides even closer, side eyeing me when I don't hand the book over.
"Which one?"
She juts her chin out at my question, and I smirk.
"Come on, Amity. Which one of your fathers secretly likes to read about genetically modified animals?" I watch her keep coming closer, and daringly so, until her knee touches my thigh. "It's Hank, isn't it? I knew there was more to him than his collection of poisonous plants. Is he from Erudite?"
"It was Harrison," Everly stares right at me, and when our eyes meet –her green eyes flashing at me –she thinks she's got me. She smiles, sweetly, then lunges for the book. "I'm not done with it yet! Eric!""
I have the advantage of being not only taller, but much stronger.
I hold it away from her, liking the way her cheeks flush and she fails to have any balance whatsoever. She's not mad, more determined to wrangle the book out of my hands so she can read it, and I have the utmost appreciation for her not wanting someone else to have her book.
The teasing is mostly good natured; her cheeks flush a lovely shade of pink, and her eyes return to mine with a dark glare.
"Did you get to the part where the lawyer gets eaten yet?" I dangle the book back in front of her, and she misses again. She lands on my chest, falling forward, but she doesn't move. Everly stays right there, and her face is inches from mine. Her lips part in surprise, and she's even prettier when she's mad.
"I just started it."
Her words are profoundly serious, but her lips turn up slightly.
I know because my gaze drops to them.
Lush and soft looking, just inches away from me. Her hair falls forward, grazing my chest with tiny movement, and she smells good. She swallows, the two of us unconsciously inching toward each other, and then it's gone.
The knock on the door is so loud I drop the book. There's a flash of disappointment from both of us, and not just because the book lands with a thud and my page is lost. The moment was a surprise, strangely warm and intense, but it's gone once Forrest shows up, loud and enthusiastic.
The woods are noisy.
My boots crunch over every dead branch and twig, but that's just the beginning. The birds fly from tree to tree, chirping as they watch me from high above, and the leaves rustle. To the side of me is a river, rushing quickly and louder than I would expect, and Everly had warned me it is deep.
She'd watched me leave with a look of concern, but Forrest told her to go back to fixing her million dresses. Between their annoyed conversation, each irritated at the other, I learned everyone in Amity is proficient at sewing. The laundry basket was full of clothes needing to be mended. Everly scowled at him, but she did return to hemming one of the darker ones, and to my surprise, I saw my own shirts in the pile she was working on.
Well, the shirts I'd been given.
Having a wardrobe here still feels strange.
"You doing good? Need a break?"
Up ahead, Forrest turns around to make sure I'm following him.
I shake my head no, and he patiently waits for me to catch up.
The hike had been his idea. He'd shown up in the afternoon and asked if I wanted to tag along, then hinted I really should. Forrest isn't lacking for friends, so I wasn't entirely convinced he wanted to hang out, but so far, that was exactly what he wanted. He asked me a few questions about Erudite, a single question of what my parents' names are, and then told me he wanted to show me something.
He failed to mention that since he'd grown up here, his idea of a fun hike was taking the hardest trail possible. Out in the middle of nowhere, there are few paths. Every so often, there are man made markers or signs, and well-worn areas where I know the members of Amity frequent.
Forrest eventually led us off the path and right into the most uneven, rocky path the woods seemed to offer.
Our hike turned into a steep incline, and he kept going, leading me deeper and deeper into the forest. At one point, our climb turned vertical, and he grinned when I easily pulled myself up.
"We're almost there," Forrest grins, and I have the strange feeling he's enjoying this brotherly bonding.
That's what he'd called it. I watched Everly's stare darken when he spoke, and I knew she didn't like the implication Forrest was hinting at. I'm not his brother, but the suggestion was I would be if I married her. I threw her a tight smile, laced up some boots, and she darkly informed me we were having chicken for dinner. She didn't even appreciate when I asked her if it was Don, and she resumed her sewing with an unamused expression and the book safely tucked beside her.
Forrest laughed.
He laughs now as we reach a cliff, and were he not so determined to make sure Everly and I get married, I'd think he'd planned to kill me.
"Okay, so you're the only one who I think will appreciate this. I know you're not chicken shit. The others seem…less brave. Plus, they don't live with Everly. Or Everly doesn't live with them." Forrest's words are choppy as he catches his breath, and he points to the edge. "Come look. Don't get too close just yet."
I step forward, albeit reluctantly.
I am now completely sure he only wants to be friends, though no one in Amity isn't friends. I join him a few steps away from the edge, and the view before me is something I'd only seen in a movie Rylan chose because we'd seen everything else.
The cliff is just as high as it appears. About twenty feet below us is a decent sized lake. It's the runoff of the river cutting through the trees, and there's a small bank leading into the forest. The trees aren't so close together in this particular section, and above us, the sunlight burns hotter than on the pathways.
"We're gonna jump. We can swim to the shore. There's a trail that leads back up here. It only takes a few minutes. My record is thirty-seven times in one hour."
"You want to jump into the lake? How deep is it?" I glance down over the edge, and I wait for my stomach to drop.
It doesn't.
There's a spark of adrenaline at the thought of leaping off the edge, provided it's deep enough.
"Forrest?"
"It's way deep. We always bring the guys we like out here. The ones we know aren't afraid of really living in Amity."
"We?" I turn to face him, and I should have known.
He and I aren't the only ones on this hike.
Behind him are a dozen or so men, all roughly my age. I recognize a few as Amity born initiates, and the others must be his friends.
"Everyone, this is Eric. Eric this is…well, these are my friends. A few work at the bar, like Charlie, he's over there," Forrest pauses to point out Charlie, and he waves from behind Jake and Ryan. "You met those two. We've got Judd, still enjoying his birthday weekend, Matt, Tony, and Echo. Oh, and that's Matt's sister, Lacey. She's pretty tough."
"Hey."
Lacey, who does not fit her name at all, eyes me up and down like she's inspecting me. Her hair is cut short, she has on the same pants as her brother, and what appears to be his shirt, but she's incredibly welcoming.
"Nice to meet you. We heard a lot about you." Lacey offers me her hand, and she all but silently challenges me to jump first. "You uh, you afraid of heights? Water? Things that swim in the water?"
"No," I stare back at her, and after a minute, Matt rolls his eyes.
"Lacey, let him live. He's Amity, not Dauntless. We don't need a list of every fear he's ever had." Matt walks over to me, and he also sticks out his hand. "Sorry. Our uncle lives in Dauntless. He comes by once a year, and when he's here, he likes to tell us all about Dauntless. And how brave he is. Or isn't. Because if you ask me, if you have to talk about being brave, you aren't."
"You're not wrong," I answer, shrugging my shoulders. "Have you jumped this before?"
"A million times. It's twenty seconds of pure adrenaline. The first time, I cried. I thought I would die before I hit the water. Can you swim?" Matt looks right at me, genuinely concerned over this. "If you can't, you either gotta jump far out, so you'll be closer to shore, or uh, learn. Real quick."
"I can swim," I glance around him, at Forrest starting to unbutton his shirt, and I realize they're all following suit.
"You have pools in Erudite? I heard everyone who lives there is a rich asshole. Especially you." Matt cracks a grin, but we both know he's not entirely joking. "You had a pool, didn't you? Someone said your dad owns the hospital."
"We did have a pool. I rarely used it, but I had one. My…father…" I pause, and the words taste sour in my mouth. "… works there. He's a brain surgeon. He'd probably like to own it," I stop talking when Forrest grins, and he cheerfully tells me to leave my shirt and pants here, unless I want to walk back to Amity dripping wet.
"Boxers are fine. They'll dry quick."
"Are you nervous?" Matt's friend Tony wanders over, pulling his shirt over his head. "Close your eyes. It makes it worse if you keep them open."
"That's shitty advice, T." Lacey calls out, and she only ditches her button-down shirt. She leaves the tank top on and kicks off her boots. "Eric, you're up first. After him, it's fair game. Last one in works my shift next Friday."
"Wait, what?" I look around in confusion, but no one pays attention. Lacey pushes me forward. I crouch down to untie my boots, and I kick them off by my shirt. My pants follow. She nods, and I stand up, mustering up some scant appreciation for the sun.
It feels good, burning and warm, and unrelenting as the afternoon goes on.
"You're up first. Give yourself a bit of a running start and don't chicken out. If you do, we'll tell everyone. Welcome to Amity." Lacey smiles, and she slaps my shoulder.
The others grin along with her.
Forrest gestures for me to jump, and I glance down once more, gauging how this will go.
Below me is a pool of deep green water. Some parts are dark enough they appear black, and every so often, a wave laps at the bank. I can't make out anything else, and Forrest nudges me, pointing to absolutely nothing.
"You won't get bit. The fish don't mind. Um, hey, I just wanted to tell you, I know Amity is not where you were planning on living. I think most people can see that. I heard the same rumors going around and uh, I like you regardless. Everly really likes you. My dad likes you. My friends will like you, too. Especially if you jump. Promise. We heard to get into Dauntless, you have to jump off a roof."
I tilt my head at his words, and Rylan pops into my head.
"You do." I answer quickly, nodding my head. "But I'm not worried about anyone liking me. I'd prefer if they didn't."
Forrest snickers. "Good luck with that."
"Thanks," I retort, moving closer to the edge. I then back up a step, and ready myself.
"First jumper, Eric!" Lacey yells out, and it's the last thing I hear.
I take a deep inhale, and I leap off the edge before I can think of all the reasons why this isn't smart. The logic of Dauntless having some minimal safety net or way of making sure their initiates don't die pops into my head, and so does the thought that being fearless doesn't mean shit.
Fear could be a good thing.
It could be exhilarating.
It is.
I jump into the air. There's a moment of weightlessness, brief and freeing before my lungs tighten and my stomach tenses. The nerves kick in, but they also kick off the rush of adrenaline, and the absolute thrill this brings. I am powerless to stop my fall; it feels insane to hear everyone yelling, and the top of the water appears before I'm ready.
I hit it easily, crashing and plunging far beneath the surface into dark, cold water. The chill is immediate and shocking, but I feel alive. I reach the surface after mere seconds, and my appearance brings forth a round of cheers and screams. They yell my name, from above, then they all leap at the same time.
There's a chaos to everyone jumping and falling, and I move out of the way, heading toward the bank. Their splash makes waves, hitting my back and shoulders, and I push my hair back, wiping my face off.
"Yes! You did it! You didn't even flinch!"
Someone yells my name in congratulations. Their camaraderie and welcome feels intensely good. It's warm and honest, excited and thrilled I'd joined them, and real. There's a connection born here that I won't be able to shake, and with one single act, these men –and Lacey –now have my back.
"Come on. I'll race you back to the top. We can stay out here until around four. If it gets too dark, it's hard to get back. The trail dips off where it's hard to see." Forrest swims over to me, easily, with little effort, and the others follow him toward the shore.
They all share the same tan skin, the lean but fit build, and the ease of being here. Matt and Tony push each other, laughing as Matt trips getting out of the lake, and Tony yells when Charlie throws water at him. They take off running, not a care in the world, until only Forrest lingers beside me. He waits until Lacey moves past, slicking her hair back and beating half the boys to the incline.
Forrest watches. He stalls for a second; he pushes his own hair back, almost as long as his sister's, and just as dark. He eyes me to make sure I'm alright, and I am.
The pulse pounding feeling of jumping is electrifying. My nerves scream for me to do it again; they demand the high of safe terror, and the rush of feeling myself fall from the earth. It's like nothing I've ever felt before, and I'm desperate to feel it again.
"You ready?" This time, I wait for him. The awkward first steps, or really, tenth steps, of friendship are taken, and he grins, slapping me on the arm.
I'm nowhere near as tan as him, but it won't be long.
"You'll fit in fine here, dude. You just wait and see."
"He took you to the cliff, didn't he? He made you jump?"
Everly greets me suspiciously, her expression not amused but still stuck to my wet hair. Forrest and his friends were total liars. My boxers never dried on the walk back, and neither did my hair. I kept the shirt off since it's cooler now, and Everly's eyes move from my face, down my neck, to my chest. I smirk when she keeps staring, until I clear my throat.
"He didn't make me jump. I did it of my own free will." I flash her a blinding, cocky grin, and she's unimpressed.
"Were you afraid? It's pretty high. Does Erudite allow you to jump from high places?" She looks up at me, and my fingers graze hers as I walk by.
I pause, thinking about the few seconds of weightlessness and the explosion of cold once I hit the lake. The thrill of plunging far beneath the surface, and the triumph of conquering the cliff. The combination high this had given me, and I have to admit, I feel pretty fearless.
I'd like to see anyone in Erudite jump.
"So you were afraid?" Everly asks again, looking different than I remember her. Her dress slips, borrowed or sewn for someone other than her, and I wonder if she's ever made the jump. I could imagine her, her feet close to the edge as she glanced down, and I bet she'd leap willingly, without any hesitation.
The look on her face tells me she has.
"Have you done it? Were you afraid?" I turn the question around on her, and her own no is immediate.
"I'm not afraid of anything."
She's a tiny little liar, and her words make me smirk even harder.
"Good," I retort, and I walk away feeling pretty fucking high on life. "Me either."
The feeling continues when I'm summoned to Johanna's office.
The stables are warm. They smell like a barn, and the horses neigh as I walk through. I stare back at a few, taking in their black eyes and quiet demands for my attention, and I pause at one. It's much larger up close, it's white mane glossy and shiny despite living here, and it stares me down with all the intimidation a horse can manage. I reach my hand out before I can stop myself, and the horse moves right over.
"He likes you."
I turn in full surprise to see Johanna standing a few feet away. She smiles, pleased with this interaction between man and animal, and her stare void of anything but warmth.
"Do you want to know his name?"
She keeps walking, pulling the shawl around her tighter and taking in my dark shirt and pants. I couldn't bring myself to put on anything that screamed Amity, and I'd found one of the shirts Everly had been working on. It's blue, so blue it's nearly black, and the pants match it. I'd skipped a jacket to enjoy the last few warm days and gone to her office.
I was curious what she wanted.
Everly mentioned everyone met with her, and odds were, it was to see how I was liking Amity. I narrowed my eyes at this declaration, because if I announced I hated living here, what would they do? Make me factionless? Allow me to come back and help make dinner?
The real conundrum isn't that I dislike Amity. I find small ways to appreciate what they do and who they are. I had made a few friends, a startling event considering I dislike most people, and I was even more stunned to find I didn't hate living with Everly.
My hesitation in being here is simple: Amity is good, welcoming and trusting, to a fault.
I watched Forrest gladly help the factionless find the Dome, and I watched several of them linger long after lunch was over. There was the faintest hint of unease to them. They were close to my age, clever, and had an agenda.
Almost all of them met with Landon as they walked out, and he went right with them back into the woods.
I was starting to feel like something was going on, and the only regret in not helping Jeanine was that I would have known.
"Karl."
Johanna says this brightly, coming to a stop beside me. She reaches out to pet Karl as well, and he's clearly used to her attention. He moves his head into her hands, and snorts when she pulls it away.
"I wanted to talk to you about a few things. Without anyone around." Her eyes find mine, wise and trustworthy, and I immediately wonder if it's an act. "Will you come upstairs? I'd like to show you something."
I agree because her words hold some promise I don't recognize.
By the time I leave, it's nearly dark.
I hold the paper in my hands tightly, and I walk quickly. I say hello to absolutely no one, but I do follow the path toward my own home, then I keep going. I count the houses silently as I pass by. When I get to ten, I stop, and I hesitate to take the left path.
It winds up higher than I can see. There's an incline here as the land stretches on, and the walk up the path would be a slight hike. The homes back here are just as large as the ones along the road, but darker. They are more compact, built up higher and tighter, though a few sprawl out between the trees. There are paved walkways leading to the paths, and every few houses have a truck parked in front.
All the trucks are old. They are clearly work trucks no longer in use, and most look like they haven't been driven in years.
The house I'm looking for sits at the top of the pathway. If I squint, I can see it, though it's purposely set back to make it harder to see than the others.
It's unassuming in its build, but there are plenty of details that give it away.
The large, floor to ceiling glass windows for one.
The elegant blue mailbox would be two.
And the man standing there, his hair parted neatly to the side and his black glasses thick and familiar, is three.
He smiles at whoever calls his name, and he shuts the mailbox with a grin. His blue shirt is neatly pressed, royal and less fitted, and his slacks are nicer than the work pants the farmers have on. He waits for the woman to greet him, her arms full of baked goods and a few vegetables, and they head inside together.
I stand there staring, wondering how the fuck my father failed to mention this.
Two weeks pass in the blink of an eye.
The cliché of this hits me in the face, along with a chicken, and the girl from Abnegation is horrified.
"I am so sorry," she apologizes immediately, tucking her blonde hair behind her ear and attempting to blend into the shelf. "Trent said to toss him the chickens that wouldn't get down and I didn't see you there and I thought you were him."
"I'm not," I bark, and she backs up further. I'm not about to slam her into the cage, but the look on her face tells me she thinks I am. "What are you doing? I'm not here to kill you. I'm trying to get through here."
"I know but…"
"Who are you? How old are you?" I eye her up and down, noticing she's not remarkable in any way. She's not much taller than Everly, nor much older looking, but very plain. Her face is long and narrow, her eyes are blue, and her shirt is oversized. She could pass as someone who's lived here forever, and I muster up the common courtesy to not sneer at her.
She's lucky Johanna is hovering in the background.
She'd dropped by to see how everyone was doing and stayed for the show. Our task today, squawked out by Carole, was to collect the eggs from the hens. It was unbelievably easy, but slow monotonous work. I was bored after twenty minutes, then I discovered some of the roosters had wandered in.
Carole brightly told us to get them out of here because they'd steal the eggs.
She hadn't mentioned throwing anything.
"I'm eighteen. How old are you? Twenty-five?" Her biting remark dies when I step closer, and I regrettably realize who she reminds me of.
Frank.
"What's your name?" I look up, waving at Johanna, and she smiles at the conversation we're having. She must have bathed in peace serum because she looks pleased. She can't hear us, and after three seconds, she wanders away to compliment Carole's chicken print leggings.
"Bea—"
She stops talking when Everly shows up, and the difference between them is striking. I've worked to quit comparing everyone against the others. My brain wants to separate and sort everything by black and white facts; I listed the few friends I'd made this way, even Everly, in an attempt to see which faction is superior.
Everly is good. I figured this out a few nights ago, when her cold feet found my leg and I couldn't bring myself to kick her away. Ashley was not good, and had she been here, I would have pushed her right off the bed and onto the hardwood floors.
Noelle is annoying as fuck. There is no comparison to anyone, she just sucks.
Forrest is safe. I don't have a brother, so I compare him to an imaginary one, who would have not been safe nor would he have been on my side.
Ryan and Jake are an alternate universe version of Rylan and Jason. They are all good, helpful, and these two stood next to me while we watched the factionless sneak in for lunch, then explained they had worked in the fields and this is how Amity repays them.
Hank is decent. Really nice, very smart, and impressively detailed. He and Daniel are comparable for every reason in the world. Daniel isn't as down to Earth. Even as friendly and outgoing as he is, he's still Daniel Coulter. He prides himself on being very smart, and he likes everyone knowing who he is. Hank knows he's smart, but he doesn't care.
And he likes his wife.
Eden is good, too. She isn't someone I'd want to hang out with, but out of everyone here, she is the most opposite of Erudite in every way. Eden is kind, and not as out of it as one would assume. She's sincere and always smiling, having shown up a few days ago to drop off tea for Everly, and unbothered. I stared at her, not sure I should even accept the tea, and she happily told me Everly had been drinking it since she was sixteen.
Everly, showing up mere seconds after her mother left, groaned and shoved it far into one of the kitchen cabinets and warned me not to drink it.
I forced myself to decrease how often I reflected on Erudite. A large part of me knew I'd never go back. My return would come only as a member of the Amity faction, and it would bring great horror and shame to my parents. I tried to imagine showing up as the delivery person to drop off the produce with the others and it evoked a strong feeling of horror for me as well. There was a chance I'd get dragged back against my will, but it was unlikely.
I have yet to see Jeanine.
Or Harrison.
I've been waiting for him to show up, but he hasn't.
"What are you doing to Tris?" Everly looks up at me in confusion, and she stops close to my side. I've become accustomed to everyone's lack of social boundaries here. Everly has none. She isn't afraid to sleep by me, stand by me, sit by me, or eat by me. She's always close, her leg pressed against mine or her hair in my face, and I wonder if this is a learned trait. If everyone in Amity is taught the closer the better, because no one seems to mind the lack of space.
But Everly is never close to anyone else.
She favors me, and because we live together, I let her.
There is also the tiny, unfortunate fact that I am somewhat fond of her. I'd finished her dinosaur book, and once I promised not to spoil the end for her –spoken dryly and with a look that hinted I would do just that – she smugly told me there is a sequel, and she has it. She threatened not to share it, and her own smile was pretty slick.
I had nothing to counter back, so I pulled on the ends of her hair. She was seated so close that this was easy; my arm was behind her, and without realizing it, my fingers crept toward the nape of her neck. She glanced up when they grazed the side, and I pulled them away as quickly as I could.
She'd looked disappointed, and I spent the rest of the night distracting myself by trying to figure out how someone built this house. Whatever this was between us, two weeks of slowly accepting her arm against mine while she read the book, and the slow, careful teasing that never crossed any line, hadn't lessened at all.
It was only intensified, even as I tried to keep her at arm's length.
She refused.
Physically.
"She threw a chicken at my face," I cock an eyebrow at Everly, and she struggles not to laugh. She fails, and Bea or Tris, whatever her name is, relaxes a fraction of an inch. "I just asked her name."
"Okay, well, I was asked to come find you. There's someone here to see you."
"Who?" My gaze whips back to Everly, and she smiles.
Her dress is green today. It matches her eyes, maybe a shade darker, and her hair has come out of the braid she'd spent a whole two minutes fixing this morning. I ignore all of this –for good reasons –but I do wait until she answers cheerfully.
"I don't know. She said her name's Arlene and it's important that she talk to you."
I curse loudly, so loudly someone throws another chicken, and Carole descends upon them with all the feathery rage one is allowed to have here.
I leave as her lecture on chicken handling reaches fever pitch, and I don't look back, not even when Everly yelps to wait for her.
"What the fuck are you doing here? Are you eating? Are you doing okay? You look…well, you look interesting. Your hair is a mess."
"It's nice to see you, too. Did Satan give you the day off today?" I glare at Arlene, almost the same height as me, and I loathe the very sight of her. "Or actually, did Satan send you here? You should tell Blythe she's slipping. I expected one of her minions last week."
Arlene glares at me, pushing her large glasses up to the bridge of her nose, and her exhale is as sharp as her bedside manner.
We aren't close.
I'd known her for years; she liked to remind me she was there when I was born, and this gave her some eternal link to the Coulter family. She originally started as Daniel's assistant, and she clawed her way through the ranks. Daniel was quick to grin and point out she was incredibly smart, eager to learn, and she soaked up knowledge like no other. Despite this –a quick rise to glory in the Erudite Hospital and a slew of credentials behind her –she wasn't all ego. She was service driven, and her desire to help others, no matter how annoyed she appeared, led her to take the position in Dauntless.
Or so he claimed.
Rylan swore he heard she was paid off handsomely to take over their poorly run clinic.
"I see Amity hasn't dulled your attitude yet. I will admit this is good. I couldn't bring myself to imagine you frolicking through the fields." Arlene pauses, and her scrubs are as black as the night. Her hair is spiked up in every direction, and I know her lack of patience extends to it as well. "Daniel sent me. He didn't find Eden's physical…satisfactory."
"That's a shame. Unfortunately, I won't be taking my pants off for you," I shrug, and I try to look past her.
There, perched on the wooden fence, sits Everly.
And Sophia.
And Courtney.
And Tris or whatever her name is.
All watching with identical wide eyes, occasionally whispering to one another.
"Did Eden ask you to take your pants off? Because she barely took your temperature, according to the chart she turned in." Arlene snaps. "Eric, why did you come here? What the hell are you going to do in Amity? Your father is distraught at you throwing away a promising life in Erudite. Or Dauntless. He's not so keen on Dauntless but at least he visits there."
"I thought you worked in Dauntless now. Isn't your loyalty to them. Why do you care where I am?" I cross my arms over my chest, and my stare doesn't budge. "Look, you can tell Daniel, that while I appreciate the faux concern on my behalf, I didn't want to work in a lab, and I certainly didn't want to work for Jeanine. Hunting Divergents is dirty work and you know it. You're in on it, too, aren't you? That's really why you're here."
Arlene's eyes tense ever so slightly.
"I'm not in on it. I took her training on how they're tested and I observed a few times. They wanted a clinical background to assist. She's lost almost everyone brought to her, so they were hoping someone else would have some insight, but only from a medical standpoint." She pauses, and neither of us look away. "Your mother suggested me. I worked as long as I could stand it, then went back to Dauntless. The tests are a waste. She's fighting minor percentages that are written off as a computer error."
"Fascinating. How's Rylan?" I relax when Everly glances at me, and she stares at Arlene like she's an alien. "I heard Dauntless is intense."
"He's fine. Or as fine as he can be. Every initiate winds up in the infirmary. He's no exception."
"Good. Tell him hi for me." I rock back on my heels, and there's a pang beneath my ribs. It's the thought of my friend being in Dauntless, but not so much that he's in another faction or getting beat up, but that Jeanine is coming for him. "Why does Jeanine want the Divergents so badly? What's she planning? Blythe was always so desperate to help her."
"Blythe would do anything for her sister. You know that. But really, why does Jeanine ask for anything she does? They're always studying and researching. This particular topic caught her eye, and she won't let it go. She's convinced they're working against her. She doesn't think they belong anywhere."
"Are they?" I cock one eyebrow, and she stares back with minimal patience. "Come on, Arlene. Don't tell me Blythe makes you do her work and you get nothing in return. She had to tell you something."
Arlene rolls her eyes. Her lips quirk into a snigger, and we both know she can't stand Blythe. "That woman wouldn't tell me anything if she needed it to save her life. Look, the real reason I'm here is your father sent me. He's been helping in Dauntless, upgrading some of the equipment and training some of the new staff. He wants to come see you, but they have rules about him visiting."
"They do?" I try not to look at Everly, now busy showing Tris something in the far distance. It's likely to be another cow, probably in a color more aesthetically pleasing than black and white. "Is he banned?"
Arlene's hesitation is accompanied by a huff of laughter. "Let's just say…. their head doctor doesn't exactly see eye to eye with the head neurosurgeon. She felt like he insulted her, and he did. He doesn't believe herbs and oils cure anything."
"I think anyone with a brain knows that," I exhale heavily, again, and Arlene shakes her head.
"Are you happy?"
"Do you care?" I shoot back, and we both know she doesn't.
She'd been the nurse to lay into Daniel about my broken arm, but her concern never went past that. Children in the Erudite hospitals were a liability, but more of a liability was his reputation. If word got out his own son sat in the hospital alone, for hours, someone might not greet him as cheerfully the next time they saw him.
His reputation is everything to him.
"Well, I have to admit, I was taken aback to hear where you'd chosen." Arlene glances back to where I'm looking, and her lips press into a fine line. "Which one of them is it?"
"What?" I look at her in sheer annoyance, and I know what she's getting at. "Please. I didn't come here for any of them."
"You walked out with the dark haired one. What's her name? I heard someone say it when they asked her to go find you. Evelyn?"
I stare at Arlene's black scrubs, and her name is stitched on them.
The thread is a royal blue, bright and bold.
I nod my head, unwilling to say Everly's real name.
"What did that lady want?"
This time, Everly sits on my side of the bed, brushing her hair.
Noelle had been right in guessing I'd watched Everly brush it. It was long and often tangled or falling out of the bun it was in. She brushed it often, and it didn't seem to bother her.
"Do you know her?"
"She worked in Erudite for a while. With Daniel." I answer offhandedly, completely unwilling to unravel this whole mystery tonight. Explaining who Arlene is would be time consuming, and explaining Daniel would take days. "He sent her here to see how I'm doing."
"Daniel is your father?" Everly looks up, and she looks thoughtful. "Have you always called him by his first name?"
I blink down at her, stretched out where I sleep, and I narrow my eyes. "Move."
"It's warmer over here," she protests, but she does scoot over. "Does he let you call him Daniel?"
"He doesn't let me do anything. He's not very fatherly, therefore I'm not about to call him Dad." The words are, again, bitter tasting. It's not that he was some shitty asshole parent, nor had he ever struck me or done more than raise his voice. It was the absence of his parenting altogether. I don't know why he'd even bothered to have a child when he had no time for one. "What do you call your…fathers?"
"Dad. Sometimes I call Harrison Harrison. Only if it gets confusing."
Her tone changes, and she sounds defeated. Having two father figures in her life doesn't seem any better than me having zero.
"I see."
I push the covers back, and I climb in, strangely exhausted from spending the day with Carole. I suppose I shouldn't be shocked; her own husband looks run down every time I see him, and I imagine she runs him ragged.
"Is your dad going to come here?" Everly asks, and she reclines back on her own side of the bed.
She's still close to me. In reality, where she sleeps is more like two thirds of the bed, and it ensures she winds up with some part of her touching me. An arm. A hand. A foot. Her hair. Her leg thrown over me, once, which resulted in some annoyed rearranging when I woke up hot and sweaty and with a burning desire to do more than push her away.
I let out a bark of laughter thinking about Daniel Coulter, medical genius and snappy dresser, wandering down the pathways of Amity, looking for his son.
Though he has a reason to come, two actually, I would bet on my life he'll stay away. Especially if he is banned.
"Now wouldn't that be funny."
I close my eyes, settling against the cold sheets, and Everly says something else. It sounds a lot like, I'd like to meet him, or something as insane as I think he sounds nice, but I don't correct her.
I fall asleep instantly, dreaming of absolutely nothing.
She wakes me up in the middle of the night by saying my name urgently. It's not loud at all, and it takes her several tries before I open my eyes. When I blink away the darkness, I see her inches away from me, her eyebrows high and a wide smile on her face.
"You have to get up. We have the hunt tonight."
For a second, I wonder if this is a cruel dream. Her words evoke Jeanine's image in my head, until Everly shakes my shoulder.
"You have to get up and get dressed. Did you forget the treasure hunt is tonight?"
I stare up at her, half hoping she'll disappear. She looks enthused, or as enthused as one can be considering the clock beside her reads 1:30 am, and her hair is pulled up. She's already dressed, her sweater mocking me considering it's not that cold out, and her fingers stay on my shirt.
"What in the actual fuck is a treasure hunt? No one told me about it," I sit up, and she pushes a few stray strands of her hair back into place. "Everly."
"Really? No one told you?"
"No," I scowl, and I want to lay back down. "Go back to sleep. I think you're dreaming."
"I'm not dreaming, Eric! You'll see," she laughs, secretive as ever. I don't break her stare, and she smiles infuriatingly wider. "Everyone in the initiation class participates. We get put on a team. It's fun."
My jaw clenches down.
"You look thrilled, and I'm sure you'll love it, but we have to go soon. If we're late, it'll just be you and me." Everly's words are urgent, and she slides off the bed before I can throw the covers back. "You'll need a jacket. It gets cold at night. And a flashlight. Oh, and maybe some matches. Actually, do you have a knife? You'll need one of those, too."
My feet hit the cold floor, and I stare at her with absolutely zero enthusiasm and a wave of regret over not taking up Arlene on her offer to head to Dauntless with her.
I stare at Forrest with an utter loathing that's impossible to hide.
I'd bumped into him a few times since our cliff jumping hike, but I quickly learned he was busy. Not only did he have a bar to run, he had a fiancée, parents with a million children, and he was a popular member of Amity. He was often seen helping members of the faction any way he could; on a day not as hot as the others, he helped load up the delivery trucks, took Zander on a pony ride, helped May fix a fence, and painted his parent's porch. Then he went to work.
He always waved, yelled my name, and offered to meet up for a drink.
I would have gone, but for a selfish reason, I didn't.
That selfish reason stood right by me, wrapped in an oversized sweater.
"You guys are late. Very late. Which is cool, I get. But this means you're on your own. We already divided up the teams," Forrest grins, and he shoves a map in my hands. He gives Everly a flashlight, and he motions into the pitch-black darkness of the woods. "There's a half mile boundary into the woods. It's marked so no one gets lost. The lake isn't off limits, but Johanna asked we try and steer clear. Everywhere else is free game."
"That's not very much space," Everly looks disappointed. "You guys got -"
"I know. We got to go further into the woods. But we also lost Lacey for a while, so we promised we'd keep it closer this time around."
"What are we doing?" I glare at all of them, unable to hide my displeasure at this. A half hour ago, I was dead asleep. The bed I shared was warm, warmer as Everly moved closer and closer, and it was just us. I had learned to appreciate the darkness of the bedroom, the secluded feeling of being away from the faction, and the quiet, heavy silence as we both slept.
Out here, it's loud as everyone mills around the playground, preparing to head out.
"We do this every initiation. Dauntless has the War Games. Erudite has…a math off or something," Forrest pauses, and he grins at my unimpressed, non-Amity approved scowl. "Abnegation spends a night feeding the factionless. Candor has a murder mystery party. We have a treasure hunt."
"I think I'd rather attend the murder mystery party," I answer dryly, and Everly holds up the map.
"Forrest, I think this map is wrong. I think it's—"
"It's not wrong! I made them myself. You're holding it upside down." Forrest goes on without looking at Everly, and the others with him nod. Matt and Tony are helping another group, Echo and Judd are showing someone where to go, and Lacey is handing out supplies. The other groups have more people on their teams; Everly and I are the only ones with two, and I wonder if this is a disadvantage.
A few feet away, Noelle, Trent and Trevor all begin to argue over who knows directions better, and I decide Everly and I will be just fine. She'd grown up here, so there was a high chance we'd finish this treasure hunt and head back home in no time.
"Okay, so you have two hours to find everything on the map. You finish at the X. If you don't find anything by the two hours, head there anyway."
"What happens if we lose?" Someone, one of the few transfers I don't know, calls out.
"Nothing. Everyone wins here. It's just a fun activity and a great way to explore Amity." Forrest looks confused when one bright soul mutters –in the dark– and he glances at Everly. "Did you figure out your map?"
"Yes, Forrest it's wrong. It shows the barn as –"
"GO!"
Forrest yells over her, and the teams take off running.
Except for us. Everly stares at her brother with a look of disdain, and her exhale is heavy. "Really?"
"Good luck Squirt. I'm sure you and Eric will have fun."
He waves us goodbye without looking, then he skips off to join Matt and Tony. The three of them encourage another group to leave, and I glance down at Everly when they clink their beers together, and he loudly informs them he brought plenty.
"Shoot," Everly stands beside me with her arms now crossed, looking oddly concerned. "I guess we'll be fine."
Her lack of confidence makes me nervous.
Thirty minutes later, I figure out why.
The map is entirely wrong.
It's not upside down at all, it's like Forrest created it from memory after downing several of his own drinks. I don't know if it's intentional, but Everly shakes her head, and goes on to reveal not only is it incorrect, Forrest has no clue how long a mile actually is.
"He's a moron," she mutters, and we traipse further into the playground, slowly approaching the abandoned area.
The treasure hunt isn't overly complicated; Forrest created the map, marked off where the treasure is hidden, and a return point where everyone would meet. The catch is finding the treasure before the other teams. There are all sorts of items listed, but only a certain number of each, and our goal is to find them before the other teams.
I was right in my thinking that partnering with Everly had its advantages. She knew the places he was talking about and the landmarks he was trying to have us go to, and we were able to find them despite them being in the wrong spot on the map. The other Amity born had this advantage as well, but Everly knew more about her brother than them, and in turn, we found almost everything.
Except for the last two remaining objects.
"There's no flag over here."
My words are heavy with exhaustion and weariness, and for the first time since choosing Amity, I loathe myself for being petty. The sky is no longer as black as it was, but it's not an encouraging sight. I've been spoiled by having a home away from everyone else and it's making my attitude bleak.
Even worse, is the realization that this isn't over yet.
We've already been out here for nearly the whole two hours. I found the will to keep going only at the thought of telling Rylan how my night went. While he was probably asleep after a long day of learning to fight or maybe participating in the War Games, I was deep in the woods, trying to find what Forrest deemed treasure.
A particular type of flower.
Six acorns, all marked with a star.
A chicken feather, preferably from Carole's yard.
A dozen small rocks from the shore of the lake.
A single dandelion with a tiny ribbon tied around it.
A red flag, hidden in a rickety, abandoned playground.
A muffin for each of us, baked by Hank and Eden, mostly to keep us going.
Water, from Jerry, with a big grin.
Amity stayed awake all night for this. Everywhere we walked, the homes were lit up, members were sitting on their porches, shouting words of encouragement and cheer. Some had fires going, some were sitting closer to the path, and almost all were outdoors. I was horrified to learn there is no real point to this game. It ends at the X, with one final task, and even the team who has the most objects isn't the real winner.
The entire point, Everly explained, was to have fun.
In the dark. In the middle of the night. With zero weapons.
"You know, I've heard of the War Games. I heard they get to shoot at each other," Everly steps over a log, and she trips over something resting against it. I grab her by the elbow, and she throws me a bright smile. We'd left after I found the flag shoved in a slide, and I had waved it at her with absolutely no enthusiasm. "Thanks."
"Don't mention it." I grit out, and my mood sours.
I'm slowly losing my will to live in Amity.
As much as I tried, it was hard to be thrilled about finding random objects when I could be sleeping. I vaguely wondered if Dauntless was having their War Games tonight, and if it was more enjoyable than this.
"You look really miserable," Everly comments carefully, and she reaches for my arm as we exit the playground. I feel her take hold of it, stepping closer to me so she doesn't slip, and she doesn't let go. The forest slopes here, and her fingers dig into my sleeve as we make our way down. "It's supposed to be fun."
"It's…" I stop before I can add not, because she seems to be enjoying herself. "I'm tired. We're going to get no sleep tonight and we have initiation tomorrow."
"We can sleep for a little while. Anyway, we're almost done," she grins, and we head for our final destination.
The last X is deep in the woods, farther than the half mile boundary Forrest had claimed, and near a clearing. It overlooks a valley, and in the dark, it has an eerie feel to it. The area is bleak, more silent than other parts of the woods, and deserted when we arrive.
I glance around in pure exasperation, and I struggle with all sorts of violent thoughts when we are the only ones here.
"What's the last item on the list?" I ask, pressing my palms over my eyes. I press harder, hoping when the burst of color fades I'll be back home in bed. The idea of Amity being my home makes me grit my teeth together, and Everly notices.
"We have to catch four fireflies."
I lower my hands with defeated exhaustion. "What?"
"Did you have them in Erudite? We catch them all the time here. We just need four and we'll probably let them go once everyone shows up." Everly glances around, and she points to a large, wooden crate off to the side. "Grab a jar. Let's hurry and finish and then we can wait for everyone."
I stay silent.
She glances up at me, her hair tangled from sliding down the playground equipment and falling out of the ponytail she had hastily thrown it into, and our eyes meet. She steps closer, right in front of my chest, and her smile is encouraging. "We're almost done. I promise. Last year, I had to sit with my parents and hand out the muffins. So, this…this time was way more fun. Even if you don't like it."
Her words catch me off guard.
My expression slips at the thought of her life here, and I grudgingly nod. Behind her, the sky is still dark, but it's light enough that I have hope we're almost done.
And if we are, that means both of us get to go home, and fall back into bed. It's enough to make me shrug, and ignore the thought that in Erudite, or Dauntless, this would have been considered a giant waste of time.
"Okay."
"Hey, you have to wake up. They're all showing up now."
A hand touches my face, tracing over my cheek and slips into my hair. The feeling is soothing, encouraging me to keep my eyes shut, and it stays there. The fingers are cold, but the sensation, while completely foreign, is nice. I finally open my eyes to Everly's sweater, the sky still dark, and a low chatter coming from the forest.
"What are you talking about?" I mumble against her sweater, but I open my eyes wider.
She and I were sitting on the ground with our backs against a large fallen tree branch. We'd decided to sit down once we caught the required fireflies. Everly caught them easily, gently placed them in the jar, and she promised she'd let them go once everyone arrived. We sat close to each other for no reason other than making sure we had all of Forrest's required items, and once we were sure we did, I leaned my head back.
I must have fallen asleep.
I lift my head away from Everly, horrified that I'd fallen asleep on her. The act felt juvenile, and my brain is heavy with sleep as I try to wake up.
"What time is it?"
"I think it's close to four? I don't really know." Everly shrugs, and she looks up at me. "Are you okay? You fell asleep right after we sat down."
I press my lips together, ignoring her question.
"Eric?"
Truth be told, I am exhausted. I'd stayed up a few nights, unable to sleep as the thought of life in Amity ran through my head. It popped up every time I was about to fall asleep, leaving me wide awake. I have some promise here, and some potential, and that is a horrifying thought.
Or is it?
The other part of my brain argues it is not. I'd seen the hard work it takes to run Amity. I'd witnessed farmers working all day, a kitchen staff running day and night, and Johanna, overseeing all of it. She had looked weary during our talk, but it was a different kind of weary.
I understand it now, because all I want to do is drag Everly home and go to bed. Not think for a few hours, or maybe a few days, depending on what time this treasure hunt wraps up.
"Aren't you tired?" I look at her, her face so close to mine, and she shakes her head. "No?"
"I am. But this was nice."
"Nice?" I raise an eyebrow at her, and her expression changes to total amusement. "Yeah, I love wandering through the woods to find acorns. In the dark. Highlight of my initiation."
"I thought the highlight of your initiation was Tris throwing a chicken in your face," Everly answers seriously, and she only looks away when the rest of the class shows up.
It's like the walking dead arriving.
Almost everyone looks tired.
Some look alive and excited, and to my surprise, no one looks disappointed. Even the ones who didn't find half the shit on Forrest's list don't look upset. Noelle and Trent and Trevor rush by, claiming a spot a few feet away, and some of the others sit nearby. Everyone waits patiently, showing the other teams what they found and laughing over how incorrect the maps were. I listen to Jake and Ryan announce they found everything but the flag, and I smirk knowing we have it.
"Do we have everyone? Are we missing anyone?" Forrest shows up with Zander on his shoulders, and they stroll through with matching, enthused grins. "Nice. Okay, congratulations everyone! This is a time-honored tradition here. You all did amazing. If you found the flag, raise your hand."
He pauses at the front, and he surveys the crowd. I hold it up with a smug grin, and Jake and Ryan both look jealous.
"No way! Alright, Amity born, you just got bested by one of the transfers. You'll never live that down. Everyone, congratulations to Eric and Everly. You both get tomorrow, well, really today, off and you get a late start tomorrow. The rest of you will meet as planned in whatever area you're working in. We also need volunteers to start planning the Fall Festival, so if that interests you, let me know!" Forrest is absolutely psyched about all of this, and he and Zander both throw their arms up. "Since we're done, we're gonna count to ten and let the fireflies go. You can all head home after, and hopefully get a few hours of sleep!"
I expect grumbling and some protests, but his words are met with total acceptance. I sink back in relief knowing I can go home and go to bed, and beside me, Everly struggles to open the jar.
"Shit. Did you tighten this? I can't get it open."
"No. Let me see." I take it from her as the countdown begins. The fireflies are little, flitting around happily despite being held captive, and they move faster when the jar shakes. I slip while unscrewing the lid, and I slice my finger on the sharp underside. The pain and blood are quick. I wince more out of habit than actual pain.
"Motherfucker," I swear, shaking my finger and trying to keep the lid on.
"We're on three, not four!" Someone yells back, and next to me, Everly loses her fight in not giggling.
"I didn't say four! I said, motherfucker!" I yell back, and I turn when she takes my hand in hers. She's placed the lid back on the jar so they don't escape just yet, but her attention is on me.
"Let me see. You might need stitches," she pulls my hand closer to her, and I try to yank it back, unwilling to have her mother perform such a feat. "Eric, let me see your hand!"
"It's fine," I bark at her, but she eventually wins.
The crowd chants six as she pulls it back, examining the cut. Her hands are still cold, and she very carefully touches mine. The touch is light, pressing close to where the cut is but not touching it, and she doesn't let go.
"It looks okay. I think it'll be fine without my mom stitching it."
"Oh, thank God," I exhale heavily, ignoring her snickering over my panic. "I'm not really in the mood to lose a finger."
"She knows what she's doing," Everly finally lets go, and she sinks back against the tree with me. She looks a little more tired now, and her shoulder touches my side. "When he gets to ten, you can open the lid."
I look down at her, the top of her head now against my arm, and I move it without thinking. She immediately leans in, and I pull her closer, ignoring the strange feeling of letting her sit like this. The jar rests in front of us, and the chanting continues to eight, growing louder as it goes on.
"You do it," I nudge her carefully, watching as she reaches for it.
"Thanks for finding the flag, Eric." Everly yawns, and she unscrews the jar a few more turns. "You were a good teammate. Better than Noelle would have been."
I let out a bark of laughter, and in the distance, Forrest and Zander jump up and down as everyone screams nine.
"Thanks, Amity. Glad I could be better than the most annoying person in this initiation."
She laughs as someone yells ten, and she takes the lid off the jar. I have to admit, the sight is impressive. Pointless, but impressive. The still dark sky stays dark, but now it's lit up with scores of fireflies. They look glittery as they rise upward, and everyone is silent as they watch them. It's like nothing I've ever seen before, or really care to.
I look down to see if Everly finds this as magical as everyone else, the glow filling the air along with a few gasps of awe, and I forget all about the stupid treasure hunt.
Everly leans against me, her head resting now in the middle of my chest, and she has my hand back in hers.
I watch her match our fingers up, examining how much larger my hand is than hers, until she very, very gently slides her fingers between mine.
I don't move.
The glow continues for a while, until the sun begins to rise, the sky turns pink, and the fireflies take off. They vanish back into the woods, presumably to where they were before, and no one moves. Everyone watches the sun rise for a few more moments, and once it's just high enough to be light, Everly asks if I'm ready to go home.