The choices you made | Eric Coulter (Under Reconstruction)

x13. Cross my heart and hope to die | pt. 1

Ellie slowly opened her eyes.
It was hard too because the whole world was spinning right now.

She knew she'd wake up in the nursery someday, but she didn't realize it will happen right after her first mission.

That must be such a disappointment to the Leadership after this.

But, she didn't care.
Not anymore.

Aside from the horrors in the Abnegation, her fragile mind has endured, creating an endless physical trauma, with losing her consciousness she has also lost every bit of loyalty she pledged to Dauntless only a couple of days ago.

This wasn't a warrior faction anymore.
This was home to a zillion of robots ready to be catapulted right on the field without their consent.

"Are you okay?", a familiar voice of safety asked her. But, it didn't matter that she was safe. Because none of the people she cared for weren't anymore.

"I am... I am.", she tried to climb up the pillow, but the sedatives were still kicking in, so that was still quite a task.

"How are you?", she asked, somehow managing to get up.

Her arm was still a bit sore. No matter how strong the sedatives were, she couldn't just pretend that she wasn't badly injured. She was.

"It's just a scratch.", he said, his leg still outstretched next to Ellie's bed. It looked far better than Ellie's arm anyway.

"Turns out that Stiffs weren't bad at shooting as we thought.", she smiled weakly, scarcely looking at Eric.
But, she was trying too, so hard.

His face was the only one she wanted to see right now, no matter what.
She didn't know how, but there was always a little of forgiveness left in her heart for him, even though he has been pushing all of the limits of her emotions, beliefs, and attitudes at once.
Maybe that was a part of growing up.
She couldn't quite understand it all.
Nevertheless, Eric simply smiled back at her, not even trying to hide his troubled mind.
Four and Tris went missing, which was now official information, but Ellie was secretly thankful for that.

Oh, how she wished it simply ended all last night.

***

Eleanor silently followed Eric and Max, while they babbled as if nothing was happening around them.
She was quiet.
Her mind was collapsing.

The scenery around her wasn't pleasant.
It wasn't pleasant at all.
It was disastrous and very hard to bear with it you don't have a stomach for it.
And truth to be told, Ellie didn't have it at all.
Her body was intoxicated with her heart beating mercilessly and her breathing was heavy, all in the effort to maintain the same motionless expression Eric every day had glued on his face.

Dauntless was forcing the Abnegation out of their houses, beating them, killing them.
Searching for divergences.
Searching for her.

People pleaded for their lives, for their children and families, crying, wailing, and screaming. There were blood, mud, and water wherever she tried to put her step.

While walking, she has just passed one simple, poor mother hugging and protecting her five-year-old girl, who wasn't even crying. Children of that age aren't always aware of what's going on in the world. This time, the world was Chicago itself.

And Eric just smiled, as if he didn't date a Divergent himself.
Not that she was sure, but...

All of the sudden, Tris and Four galloped out of an already wrecked house in front of them.
Eric stopped them for some kind of reason.