Aunt Taylor's Library

Chapter 3 (Lily)

(The picture is Aunt Taylor's library, except imagine a thousand times more cluttered with stacks of books)

(Lily)

I stared out the window for a second, then looked back at Kylie. Not at her clothes, but at her face. "You look older."

She frowned and looked at me. "Now that you mention it, so do you."

She didn't look that much older, not like forty or something. She looked like she'd aged a year or two, maybe. But that wasn't possible, was it?

Kylie looked out the window again, then down at her book. "Couldn't be..." She muttered.

"Couldn't be what?"

She opened the book and flipped through a few pages, then handed it to me. "Read this."

I took the book and started reading. "The houses on my street are all the same size and shape. They are made of gray cement, with few windows, in economical, no-nonsense rectangles. Their lawns are crabgrass and their mailboxes are dull metal. To some the sight might be gloomy, but to me their simplicity is comforting."

I glanced up, understanding dawning. Kylie's excited face greeted me. "You don't think we're actually..." I trailed off.

"In Chicago?" Kylie squealed, like a true fangirl. She bounced up and down. "Well, it seems logical enough!"

"Logical?" I laughed. "Suddenly leaving Aunt Taylor's library and appearing in a fictional world in the blink of an eye certainly isn't logical. Maybe she drugged the lemonade?"

Kylie rolled her eyes and pinched me. "Did that seem real enough?"

I rubbed my arm. "Ow."

"Who cares about 'logical', anyway? We are literally inside our favorite book!" She bounced again.

I gasped. "That would explain why we look older! We're sixteen now!"

At the same time we squealed, "The Choosing Ceremony!"

Kylie quickly calmed down. "Ok, we're obviously in Abnegation. Let's act like it." She started towards the door.

I frowned. "Where are you going?"

"To school, of course. I assume it's the day before the Choosing Ceremony, since that's where I left off reading. Come on." She turned and left.

I frowned, but followed. I didn't want to stay, but what if we had just randomly appeared in some random Abnegation family's bedroom? Wouldn't it be a little strange for us to walk downstairs and disrupt their life? But Kylie was already halfway down the stairs. Too late now.

Strangely enough, the two adults downstairs acted as if they had always known us. We ate breakfast with them in silence, then left for school.

"Where do we go?" I whispered. Kylie suddenly squealed again, though she put her hand over her mouth. "What?" I asked.

She pointed up the road, to where two Abnegation teens were walking. The boy was bigger, with dark hair. The girl was a lot smaller, with a blonde bun. "It's... It's.." Kylie was too excited to finish her sentence.

"It's Tris and Caleb!" I exclaimed, louder than I meant to.

They turned, and saw us. Then, they started walking towards us. "Are you all right?" Caleb asked. Kylie looked like she was about to have a feels attack, and I was barely able to keep my emotions under control enough to nod.

Tris- Beatrice, that is, smiled at us. "We can walk with you to school, if you like."

Caleb nodded. "If you're feeling ill," he said, to Kylie, "we could help you to the nurse, Kylie."

Kylie stared, open-mouthed. How did he know her name. He frowned. "Are you sure you're all right?"

I recovered from my shock quickly. "She's just nervous." I smiled.

We walked to the bus stop in relative silence. I never realized just how hard it would be to be Abnegation. Never talking about yourself really limits conversation.

On the bus, everyone except Beatrice gave up their seats. I remember that from the book, which Kylie stashed in her gray school bag. Kylie and I spent the whole time staring out the window. It was so different from what I imagined, yet even better than anything my mind came up with.

When we entered the school, it was exactly how the book described it. Well, Duh, since this is straight from the book. The hallways were crowded with sixteen-year-olds trying to get the most out of their day. It was obvious which faction each kid belonged to, based not only on their clothes, but on the way they act. It's sort of something that can't be conveyed in words, so of course I didn't pick it up. Of course, different factions act differently, I knew that, but this is beyond that. I can't quite explain it.

Beatrice says, "Aptitude tests today."

Caleb nods. I glance at Kylie. "You aren't at all worried about what they'll tell you?" I can barely contain my excitement. I just stole a line from Tris Prior!

He raises an eyebrow at us. "Are you?"

Kylie and I shrug. Beatrice smiles and says, "Not really."

He smiles back. "Well... have a good day."

The rest of the morning goes by too slowly. The test don't begin until after lunch, and Kylie and I don't know exactly where to go. We just follow Beatrice, and people don't seem to see anything wrong. It's the most fun I've had in a long time. Finally, we end up waiting in the cafeteria for the aptitude tests, along with the rest of the students. We sit and wait, doing nothing, like true Abnegation kids, until they start calling groups.