Candor or Dauntless: Truth or Dare (Watty Awards 2013)

Part 15: Never trust an Amity

I shake my head and smile.

"I'll sleep on the floor." He stands and arches his back.

"No, no, it's fine. We're civilized people, we can sleep in the same bed. It's too big for one person." He shrugs and plops down on the bed. He weighs more than me, so I go flying off the mattress and into the air.

I glare at him and he smiles, "Just like old times." He whistles.

I smile, "In a way. I'm hungry. Do you know where the Cafeteria is?" I ask him. He shakes his head. "Well, I'm going to go try to find it. Bye, Tobias." I say.

"I'm gonna take a nap. Bring me back some food!" He shouts as I walk out the door. I walk around until I come across Johanna's office. I walk in and see Max, but no Johanna.

"Um...Max?" I ask.

He turns to me, "Yeah?"

I smile, "Um...Do you know where I can get some food?"

He smiles, "Follow me." He grabs my lower arm and leads me. His touch is gentle and comforting. We walk down dark hallways and past closed doors. We reach a large room. Above the entrance, there's a sign, 'Mess Hall'.

We walk in, his fingers still lightly pressing into the skin above my elbow. He walks with me into line. His hand drops and he grabs a plate of spaghetti. I grab a plate of apple slices and bread. I sit down and he sits next to me, a little to close for comfort. I'm sitting on the edge, so I can't move over. I eat in silence. The bread tastes funny so I hand it to Max.

He smiles, "Tastes a bit funny, eh?" I nod.

"They put a special serum in it. It's supposed to keep us calm, but all it does is wind me up. I feel like I'm suffocatin' when I eat it, you know?" He whispers to me, letting an unknown accent creep into his voice. I nod along. He keeps my bread, but doesn't eat it. When I'm finished, I stand and carry my plate to the garbage. I throw it away. By the time I reach the exit, Max has my hand. I try to unravel it, but his grip tightens. What kind of Amity is he?

He drags me down many corridors. Finally, we reach a room at the end of a pitch black hall. He holds open the door and pushes me inside. There's no way this guy is Amity, or is he? Does not eating the bread change people?

He walks in behind me, his hands clasped in front of him.

"Six, is it?" He asks. I nod, unable to speak.

"Well, well, Six, I always get what I want, and right now, I want you." His tone changes and his face contorts. I don't say anything. I don't want to piss of an Amity. Especially one who hasn't had Peace Serum lately. He closes the space between us in two long strides. I walk backwards until I hit the wall. He grabs my face roughly and tries to kiss me. I bite his lip. He backs up, but then charges again. I feel his hands touch the sides of me, he fits them to my hips and tries to kiss me again. I head-butt him and he falls. I run to the door, but it's locked. He has the key.

I turn to face him. The key is dangling from his neck. I sigh. He charges at me again, but this time he picks me up and throws me onto the bed. He lays next to me. He tries to kiss me again. I let him think that I gave up. I kiss him back. He smiles and I feel worthless. I feel dirty. His hands wrap around me and he pulls my head away from his. I scream into his ear. He shrieks and jumps back. His eyes fill with anger. He grabs my shoulders and pulls me toward him. He runs his hands over my shoulders and down my chest, groping me, before pressing his mouth to mine. I open my mouth and spit into his.

I scream again, this time louder, "TOBIAS!" He pulls away from me and screams into his hands. His back is turned to me. I pounce onto his back and grab his long, blonde hair. I yank as hard as I can and he screams in pain. His hair falls out and into my hands. I toss it away from me. He turns to me again, hands clenched into fists.

I scream again, "TOBIAS! HELP M-" My voice comes out muffled at the end. His hand covers my mouth. I take all my strength and punch his temple. He hardly blinks. I'd like to believe Tobias is coming, but he doesn't know these halls. He's probably still sleeping.

He gropes my chest again. It's like Peter all over again. My throat burns but I yell his name again. Max's thick hand covers my mouth again. I bite down hard on his rough, callused skin. He screams in agony and I hear a pound. It might be my imagination, but it fills me with hope. Max must hear it too, because he runs to the door and looks out. He sighs and turns to me again.

"Looks like your all mine. Your boyfriend left you with me." He says, a smirk playing across my lips. He walks to me again. He grips my cheeks and pulls my face to his. I play along, and he believes me. He puts my head on his shoulder and he kisses my neck.

I scream out, "HELP ME," directly into his ear. He grabs my face harder. I cry out in pain. He backs up a few steps and drags me with him. He lifts me up and throws me into the wall. I rebound off the wall and onto the floor. I stand, with pain all through out my body. I hear another slam. Max grunts and walks to the door. He peeks outside, taking off the necklace that holds my freedom. He opens the door and leaves. I run to the door and see Tobias and Max in the hall.

Max is clutching his nose

and Tobias's fists are clenched. I yell his name again. He looks at the door and says something I can't hear. Max rolls his eyes and Tobias grabs him and punches him. Max falls limp in the hallway. Tobias walks over to him and searches his pockets, coming up with the key. I back away from the door so he can open it.

He walks in, "Tris? Where are you? Are you okay?" He searches. I walk out from behind the door and grab him in my arms, warm tears spring from my eyes.

He pulls back, "What happened? Are you okay? Did he hurt you?" He badgers me with questions.

I sigh, "Can I tell you later? I'm fine, really. But I really need a shower." He nods and walks with me. I put my arm around him and his arm comes around me. We walk back to Johanna's office. This time she's here.

"Can you tell us our room number?" We ask.

She nods, "123." We walk back to our room. He opens the door and I run to the bathroom. I take a long shower, making sure I scrub my face and neck. I walk to the sink. I brush my teeth to remove his spit from my mouth. I put on a tanktop and shorts and walk out to Tobias.

He's lying on the bed awake.

"Does my back look red?" I ask him and turn around. I hear him walk to me. He lifts my shirt and grunts.

"Yes. It's bruising already." I nod.

"We better get you some ice. Then, we'll go see Johanna." He walks over to the fridge and pulls of an ice pack. He goes into his bag and grabs a roll of gauze. He returns to me and places the ice pack gently against my back. He wraps the gauze around my whole body twice. He pulls down my shirt,

"Alright, let's go see Johanna." He says. I nod. We walk, hand in hand, to Johanna's office. I open the door and Max is sitting with a bandaged nose. I stand in the corner while Tobias confronts them.

"Good, he's here. Do you kn--"

She cuts him off, "Four, your presence here is not necessary. You are a guest here. There's no need to go swinging fists on innocent people because you and Six had a fight." She says.

He shakes his head, "We didn't have a fight. He," He points at Max, "Kidnapped her! Her practically broke her back!" He says fuming.

Max stands and faces him, "He's lying." Max says calmly, like an Amity.

Johanna stands too, "Now, now, Four, there's no need to lie. I know we all can't be Candor." She says. Tobias leaps onto Max. He punches his face. Johanna yells for help. Two strong men walk in and peel Tobias off of Max.

"Now, Four, because you're under our care, we must resolve this issue calmly." She nods to the men, "Get me a vile of Peace Serum and a needle. Stat!" She says and the men drop Tobias, but continue to take Max.