Dauntless World

Chapter 1

ALL RIGHTS GO TO VERONICA ROTH!!

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I watch Tobias's face carefully as we walk to the dining hall, searching for any sign of disappointment. We spent the two hours lying on his bed, talking and kissing and eventually dozing off untill we heard shouts in the hallway--people on their way to the banquet. 

If anything, he seems lighter now than he was before. He smiles more, anyway. 

When we reach the entrance, we seperate. I go in first, and run to the table I share with Will and Christina. He enters second, a minute later, and sits down next to Zeke, who hands him a dark bottle. He waves it away. 

"Where did you go?" asks Christina. "Everyone else went back to the dormintory." 

"I just wandered around," I say. "I was too nervous to talk to everyone else about it."

"You have no reason to be nervous," Christina says, shaking her head. "I turned around to talk to Will for one second, and you were already done."

I detect a note of jealousy in her voice, and again, I wish I could explain that I was well prepared for the simulation, because of what I am. Instead I just shrug. 

"What job are you going to pick?" I ask her. 

"I'm thinking I might want a job like Four's. Training initiates," she says. "Scaring the living daylights out of them. You know, fun stuff. What about you?" 

"I guess...I could be an ambassador to the other factions," I say. "I think being a transfer would help me." 

"I was so hoping you would say Dauntless-Leader-in-training," sighs Christina. "Because that's what Peter wants. He couldn't shut up about it in the dorm earlier." 

"And it's what I want," adds Will. "Hopefully I ranked higher than him...oh, and all of the Dauntless-born initiates. Forgot about them." He groans. "Oh God. This is going to be impossible." 

"No it isn't," she says. Christina reaches for his hand and laces her fingers with his, like it's the most natural thing in the world. Will squeezes her hand.

"Question," says Christina, leaning forward. "The leaders who were watching your fear landscape...they were laughing about something." 

"Oh?" I bite my lip hard. "I'm glad my terror amuses them." 

"Any idea which obstacle it was?" she asks. 

"No."

"You're lying," she says. "You always bite the inside of your cheek when you lie. It's your tell." 

I stop biting the inside of my cheek. 

"Will's is pincing his lips together, if it makes you feel better," she adds. 

Will covers his mouth immediatley. 

"Okay, fine. I was afraid of...intimacy," I say. 

"Intimacy," repeats Christina. "Like...sex?" 

I tense up. And force myself to nod. Even if it was just Christina, and no one else around, I would still want to strangle her right now. I go over a few ways to inflict maximum injury with minimum force in my head. 

Will laughs. 

"What was that like?" she says. "I mean, did someone just...try to do it with you? Who was it?" 

"Oh, you know. Faceless...unidentifiable male," I say. "How were your moths?" 

"You promised you would never tell!" cries Christina, smacking my arm.