Holding On||Peter Hayes (Divergent)

Chapter 11

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I was standing in a dark room, no windows or doors in sight. There seemed to be a glow of light beaming down on me, but the source was unidentifiable. I spun around in a circle, trying to find something out of the ordinary. When I returned to my starting position, a masked man stood holding a gun to Marlene's head. The mousy haired girl sat kneeling, her screams blocked by a gag. She was crying, the tears dribbling down her pale face. I could make out the words she was saying behind the gag. "Piper! Help me!"

The masked man held the gun steadily to her head. He was ready to fire. "It's all your fault." He chuckled sickly. "It's all your fault that your best friend is here. It's all your fault your best friend is doing to die."

"What did I do?" I screamed. "What did I do? I didn't do anything! I'm innocent!" My heart was racing, my forehead, palms and back of my neck sweating heavily. What did I do to make my best friend get into so much trouble?

"IT'S YOUR FAULT MARLENE'S GOING TO DIE! YOU CAN'T SAVE HER!" The masked gunman bellowed. Marlene was sobbing, her brown eyes piercing mine. A familiar feeling washed over me, igniting a memory within my brain:

This isn't real.

A gun appeared upon the floor. I bent down to pick it up, the metal icy against my hands. I held up the pistol, aiming at the gunman's head, clicking the bullet into place. I fired immediately, watching the blood spray Marlene.

***

Me eyes snapped open, my whole body jolting upwards. I was panting, feeling my heart rate decrease. "Where's Marlene?" I yell.

"She's okay, she's back in the dormitory." Four told me. I exhaled with relief, wiping my palms on my jeans. As I glanced at Four, I noticed looked concerned. He tapped a few buttons on the screen, his eyes narrowing.

"Is everything okay with the computer?" I ask Four.

"Where did you get the gun from?" He fired at me. "It was really unclear, but I saw you pull a gun out of nowhere."

My breath hitched. Anything I am about to say would impact the impression Four had on me. Would he figure out my Divergence? "It was there, on the floor. I didn't notice it at first. It was really shocking."

"Piper," Four said seriously. "I need to ask you a question, okay? And you have to answer with full honesty."

"I'm no Candor, but I'll try," I shrugged.

"What were your Aptitude Test results?" I felt my heart stop. He is onto me.

"Dauntless." I answer with the utmost confidence. "Why does that matter, anyway?"

"Because guns appearing out of nowhere isn't normal, Piper. Plus, you spent one minute in this sim." Four whispered. "You aren't reacting the Dauntless way to your sims. You need to think like a Dauntless if you want to survive here..."

I left the fear sim room immediately afterwards.

***

I sit on the roof with a large plate of Dauntless cake mounted on. Marlene sits next to me, nibbling upon a fragment of cake she pulled from the pile beside us. It has been ages since Marlene and I had some alone time. "How was your last sim?" She asked.

"Awful," I shook my head, "you were in it... it was my fault you were about to die - but I saved you, Mar." Marlene put her arms around me, hugging me softly. I hugged her back, tears sliding across my cheek. "It was so fucking scary."

"Piper, I'm here. I'll stay with you as long as I can, and so will you." She murmured into my neck. "We're best friends aren't we? With those cheesy tattoos and everything." We both laughed, letting go of each other. "Oh!" She exclaimed. "I never noticed your nose piercing!"

"Yeah," I laughed, twirling the ring on the right side of my nose. "And I got a new tattoo, check it out." I turned my back to Marlene, pulling down the back of my top a little to show her the angel wings I had spreading out on my back. "It reminded me of my mum a little, so I decided I'd get it." I turned back around to face Marlene.

"That's really cute." Marlene grinned. "If you don't mind me asking, how're you coping since your mum?"

"I've been okay. It was four years ago, anyways. It still haunts me, you know?" I shrug. "Uriah helped a lot. He's a really good friend, and he knows what it's like with his dad and everything."

Marlene didn't say anything afterwards. "Do you like Uriah?"

"As in like like?" I asked, raising an eyebrow. "Because of you mean that then no, he's just my friend! I've never thought of him as more than a friend."

Marlene sighed. "Okay... can I admit something to you?"

"What?"

"I kinda like Uri - but don't tell anyone!" She ran a hand through her hair, flicking it backwards. "It's not too big of a crush, but he's cute, and I like him." Marlene smiled a little. I smirked, nudging her.

"Mar's got a crush," I said in a sing-song tone. She smacked my shoulder, telling me to shut up.

"I'm not the only one you shithead." She sniggered. "I see you with that Peter boy, acting so loved up."

"What? Are you stupid?" I shrieked, slapping Marlene's shoulder. She merely laughed at my disgust. "Marlene, you're the biggest bitch ever."

"You're not denying it!" She jeered, cackling.

"Maybe because I do like him!" I blurted out. Immediately, my hands clamped over my mouth. Marlene was laugh so hard I thought she was about to fall off the roof. I grab a handful of Dauntless cake and begin eating it, an angry childlike expression across my face.

"Aw, I'm teasing, Piper," Marlene exhaled, putting an arm around me. "But if you do like Peter be carful, okay? He's bad news."

I like the bad boys, though.