JOB OFFERS
ERIC POV
I walk into the dining hall and a hush falls over the room. I am starting to hate that I have this affect on people. I can feel the stares without even looking. I slowly search the room until I see the person I am looking for. Four. He is sitting with a bunch of transfer initiates. Looking at the initiates with such hope in their eyes is a sickening sight to me. If only they knew what was really going on.
I reach my destination and I take the seat next to Four. There is no greeting between us, just a loathing that has simmered since we both transferred two years ago.
"Well, aren't you going to introduce me?" I ask, nodding my head towards the initiates.
"This is Tris, Christina and Suzy," Four says.
"Two Stiffs. Who would have thought that the Abnegation population in Dauntless could triple in a few short hours," I say. "We'll see how long you both last."
I look at Tris and Suzy and I can already see Tris eyeing me suspiciously. Smart girl I think to myself. I tap my fingers on the table.
"What have you been doing lately, Four?" I ask.
Four lifts a shoulder. "Nothing really," he says.
"Max tells me he keeps trying to meet with you, and you don't show up," I say. "He requested that I find out what's going on with you."
Four looks at me carefully and then says, "Tell him that I am satisfied with the position I currently hold."
"So he wants to give you a job," I say. I need to drag this out before I hit him with my bombshell. I know he isn't going to be happy with me. If I'm lucky he will keep his composure, if I'm not I could end up in the infirmary.
"So it would seem," Four says.
"And you aren't interested."
"I haven't been interested for two years," he says.
"Well it's time you did get interested Four," I say with authority. "I have accepted Max's offer on your behalf."
His head spins quickly back to me and I can see the hate he has for me in his eyes. "You have to be joking right now Eric," he says.
"No, not joking here Four. I told Max you will be happy to accept his offer," I say.
"I will go to Max right now and explain there has been a break down in your communication skills Eric," he says as he starts to rise from the table.
"Sit down," I say forcefully as I put a hand on his shoulder to keep him in place. "I can't talk to you about this here."
I look over to see Suzy staring at me. I look at the blond in her Abnegation clothes and a picture of her dressed in Dauntless black flashes through my mind and almost brings a smile to my face. She is looking so intently at me; I have to look away before she burns holes into my irises. It is like she can see straight through me. I feel a shiver run through me.
"I don't have anything to say to you about this Eric. I'm not doing it," he says through clenched teeth.
"Look I will make you a deal. You take the rest of the day off. I'll take the initiates to the dorms and give them the rest of the tour. Then I will meet you at your place and explain everything," I say.
He is shaking his head but I know he can't turn this down. I know he is wanting to know what it going on. He can't help himself. This way he can stop snooping around looking for answers. I rise from my seat and start to walk off then I turn and with a smile say, "I'll even bring the beers."
I am standing outside the door to the dormitory. It is time to deliver the news about rankings and cuts. I like to be able to see the reactions of the initiates when I deliver this news. You can get a good indication of who deserves to be here and who would be better of factionless.
"For those of you who don't know, my name is Eric," I say. "I am one of five leaders of the Dauntless. We take the initiation process very seriously here, so I volunteered to oversee most of your training."
I look around at the initiates faces and they look nervous. I look at Tris and she looks nauseous. Has Four already turned her against me or is she just really perceptive. The other Abnegation girl is staring at me. I don't know what it is but every time she looks at me I feel naked.
"Some ground rules," I say. "You have to be in the training room by eight o'clock every day. Training takes place every day from eight to six, with a break for lunch. You are free to do whatever you like after six. You will also get some time off between each stage of initiation."
I stop and make sure that it looks like they are listening. There is always at least one initiate who can't follow the schedule. It looks as though they realise what is going on so instead of repeating myself I continue.
"You are only permitted to leave the compound when accompanied by a Dauntless," I tell them. There will be someone who will break this rule. There always is. "Behind this door is the room where you will be sleeping for the next few weeks."
"In the first stage of initiation, we keep transfers and Dauntless-born initiates separate, but that doesn't mean you are evaluated separately. At the end of initiation, your ranking will be determined in comparison with the Dauntless-born initiates. And they are better than you are already. So I expect—"
"Rankings?" an Erudite girl asks. "Why are we ranked?"
I smile, mainly just to intimidate them. "Your rankings serve two purposes," I say. "The first is that is determines the order in which you will select a job after initiation. There are only a few desirable positions available."
"The second purpose," I say. This is where I need to observe the reactions of the ten initiates before me. "Is that only the top ten initiates are made members."
The Candor girl standing with Tris and Suzy says, "What?"
"There are eleven Dauntless-borns, and ten of you," I say. "Four initiates will be cut at the end of stage one. The remainder will be cut after the final test."
I can see the shock in their eyes. Suzy and Christina are looking between each other but Tris is just staring at me. She might not look like much but I can see the steely resolve behind those eyes. She will probably make it with that attitude. Suzy though is a worry. She looks like she is going to break down at any moment.
"What do we do if we're cut?" Peter asks.
"You leave the Dauntless compound and live factionless," I say indifferently.
The Erudite girl clamps a hand over her mouth and stifles a sob. Suzy is staring at me, once I said the word factionless her body language changed. She stood straighter held her head up. This might just be the motivation she needs to make it here. She is afraid to live factionless, understandable coming from Abnegation; she would have had a lot of contact with them.
"But that's . . . not fair!" the larger Candor girl, I think her name is Molly, says. "If we had known—"
She is not going to make it. I can see that already. One Candor and one Erudite will be gone. I can see that with their attitudes they will not make it. If have to want this if you don't want it enough you will never get through it.
"Are you saying that if you had known this before the Choosing Ceremony, you wouldn't have chosen Dauntless?" I snap. "Because it that's the case, you should get out now. If you are really one of us, it won't matter to you that you might fail. And if it does, you are a coward."
I push the door to the dormitory open.
"You chose us," I say. "Now we have to choose you."
I watch as the initiates file into the room. I know that in a few weeks they all could be gone to the factionless or they could be all members. I doubt that they will be all members. I can already see a few who won't make it. Then there will be the ones who just can't cope with the physical side of it. Then once we start dealing with their fears, well that is where most start to crumble. There are only a small few both Dauntless-born and transfers that can cope well with this part of training.
When Max proposed cuts for initiates I was shocked. But I needed to impress him so I went along with it. I have spent the last two years here following orders from two different faction leaders and it needs to stop. I need to stop this path I am on. Unfortunately the only person that can help me is the person I hate most in Dauntless. Four. I am just closing the door to the dormitory when I see him walking towards me.
FOUR POV
I get back to my room and I can't keep still. I just keep pacing my living room. What the hell is Eric up to? I need to see Tris. I can't just wait until training tomorrow; I need to see her now. These last two years without her have been miserable. I am glad I no longer have to be near Marcus but I haven't been living. I've been existing. Waiting, hoping that I heard her right that night and that we'd be together. Now she is here but she feels like she is still so far away.
I stop pacing the room and grab my keys and walk out the door. Eric can wait I need to go and see Tris. I need her to know I care and that I want us to be together. It just can't be until initiation is over. I have to make sure she gets through initiation.
I get to the dormitory door and I see Eric walking out. He must have just finished the end of the tour with the initiates. Now they will know that they aren't all going to make it. I'm glad he told them. I was not looking forward to the looks on their faces when they found out this information.
"What are you doing here Four?" Eric asks.
"I just came to check that the initiates were settling in all right," I say.
"All of the initiates Four? Or just a certain one?"
"I don't know what you mean Eric," I say.
"Don't play dumb. I saw you playing footsies under the table with her," he says. I know he means Tris. Knowing Eric he isn't saying her name because she's from Abnegation and he hates anyone from Abnegation, especially me.
"Her name is Tris Eric," I say, "I don't think it's any of your business."
"She is an initiate Four. Remember that. She might not be here in a couple of weeks; she doesn't look like she will make it past day one. I'm going to get the beer, so don't take too long. I will meet you at your place."
"Fine," I say. Thinking she will be here in a couple of weeks. She will become a member. I push the door to the dormitory open and walk in.
I walk in and see Tris sitting on a bed talking to that Candor girl Christina and Susan. I walk over to them and I say, "Tris I need to talk to you."
Christina and Susan, I really need to start thinking of her as Suzy, look at me and then back at Tris and to me again. I know Suzy knows who I am but Christina doesn't. Christina while looking intimidated by me also looks shocked that I am singling out Tris.
Tris gives them both a look that I think means it is okay and then she follows me out the door. We walk down the corridors until I find an area where I know there are no cameras and I also know people walking past won't see us. I just stand here looking at her. So glad that she is here but so afraid for her and what she will need to do in the next few weeks to become a Dauntless member.
"Tobias are you okay?" she asks. At the sound of the name I haven't used in two years I am brought back to reality. I pull her towards me and engulf her in a hug. I hear a sigh come from her lips as she wraps her arms around my waist. I pull away just enough so that I can see her face.
"I'm so glad you are here Tris," I say. "I just can't believe it's really you."
"I promised I would come Tobias," she says.
"I know. But I was so out of it that night and I always wondered if I heard you correctly or if I heard only what I wanted to hear," I say.
"So Four?" she asks. I know it is a question.
"I wanted to sever all ties to him. So when I got here my trainer Amar gave me the name Four."
"Is there a one, two and three here too?" she asks with a grin on her face. I know she is only teasing me. I'm just glad no one else can hear us.
"Ohhh you are funny Beatrice Prior," I say pulling her close to me again. I can't help but chuckle a little. Only Tris could ever tease me and get away with it. "No it is the number of fears I have. It is a Dauntless record."
"Tris initiation is going to be hard," I say. She nods. "No I mean really hard. You are going to be pushed to breaking point. Eric is helping to train and he is ruthless."
"What is his deal?"
I start to shake my head. "I don't know. To say we hate each other would be an understatement. But now he wants me to take this leadership job. I just don't know. I don't understand what is going on with him at all."
"Is that the job he was talking about at dinner? You seemed really angry with him."
"When I finished initiation I was offered a job in leadership and I turned it down. From what he was telling me he has now accepted that job for me. So I don't know what he is up to but hopefully I will find out tonight."
"What is Susan doing here?" I ask.
"I'm not sure. I don't think she knows either. Susan and Caleb have been flirting with each other for the last year. We all thought they would stay in Abnegation and get married but Caleb transferred to Erudite and –"
"Wait. Caleb transferred to Erudite? How is that possible he was so Abnegation," I say.
"I know. I had no idea and neither did Susan. So Susan told me that she knew her brother Robert was going to transfer to Amity and then Caleb transferred to Erudite and then I transferred here so she decided that she would follow me. She told me that she couldn't live with people looking at her with pity in their eyes. So she thought that her best chance was to come to Dauntless because they help protect people and she would feel like she is still helping people here."
I can understand that she wouldn't want people to look at her with pity. It is exactly how I feel about people knowing about Marcus and what he did to me. But I have no idea how I am going to be able to get her through initiation. Tris has a fire in her that will help her to succeed but with Susan I'm not sure how I am going to be able to help her.
"Tobias what are we? I mean what is this? I don't know if I'm saying this correctly," Tris says.
"Tris you are my best friend. I can't explain how much I have missed you and hoped that I would see you again. But-," I say
"But," Tris says and sighs. "But I need to get through initiation. You are my instructor and have had a completely different life for the last two years. Plus I see the way the girls here look at you," she says. I can hear the disappointment in her voice.
"Tris," I say. I pull away from her just enough so I can put my hand on her chin and make her look me in the eyes. "Tris there has been no other girl, none. I'm not interested in any one but you. I know we need to get to know each other again. I get that. But there has never been and will never be anyone but you, I promise." God this is so hard. I just want to take her back to my apartment and talk, not have to hide and be able to catch up after losing two years because of my transferring to Dauntless. I lean down and give Tris a kiss on her forehead and we just stay like this until we are interrupted by Eric.
"Okay love birds I think it's time Tris got back to the dormitory," Eric says.
"I will see you tomorrow," I say. Reluctantly letting go of Tris. "We are going to have to act like we don't know each other around the other initiates. I don't want them to think you are being favoured, it will cause you too much trouble."
Tris nods her head and says, "Good night Four, Eric." And then starts to walk towards the dormitory. Leaving me in the hallway with Eric and a case of beer. This should be fun I think sarcastically to myself.