Into the Night

Chapter 16 - Tris POV

Thursday November 27th

"Delivery for you Tris." He smiles leaning towards me.

"Thanks." I groan and turn to walk back inside.

He grabs my arm. A little rougher than necessary. "I'm under orders. Need to watch with my own two eyes and make sure you follow through. It's very important to this experiment Tris."

I want to sock him in the face.

I take the cap off the needle he gave me and lift up my shirt just a bit, exposing my pale skin to the chilly air. It smells like concrete and rain out here, one of my favorite combinations. The red and orange leaves flying by against the dark gray sky help distract me from the point of the needle penetrating my skin. I push the mixture in, and remove the point. It stings. More than the other two. I lose my balance for just a moment and lean against the building.

He just smiles at me. "See ya Saturday Tris. Happy Holidays." He's such a snake.

Pushing the door open with my shoulder and stalk back inside the Pit. Christina gives me a funny look. "Why was Peter out there with you?"

"Doesn't matter." I say avoiding her onslaught of questions sure to come.

My heart is heavy and my stomach is growling. Thanksgiving used to be one of my favorite holidays. Time with family, no school, and the food was always the best. I would wake up those Thursday mornings and my chest would swell. My mom always told me my smile was infectious. She would have pancakes and sausage waiting in the kitchen and the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade on the television.

Today is still Thanksgiving, but it's so different than my childhood. The day is cold, windy and it's dumping outside. The weather report said it's supposed to drop below freezing tonight, likely freezing the roads for tomorrow and havoc for the early morning Black Friday shoppers. I was never a fan.

One good thing though, is that today is one of the only days of the year that Dauntless is closed. No one really wants to watch sexy pilgrims dancing with the smell of turkey in the air. Indians maybe, but it's not really our theme. Maybe Amity?

It's not really the best night for tips either. Because it's Thanksgiving, and entering the stages of a pre winter storm outside, not many people come in. We don't normally get more than thirty or forty on Thanksgiving. Last year we only had twenty.

And we're lucky too, since tonight is a night of dancing for us. So we get an extra day off.

The little food that we do serve tonight is almost all Thanksgiving based too. Sure we still have our normal menu available, but tonight we also serve pumpkin pie, turkey burgers, and a Thanksgiving platter of a turkey leg with mashed potatoes, gravy and green beans. Or you could upgrade it a double platter and get more turkey.

Another reason we all like this night so much, is that the Pit will close like any other dancing night, at 10pm, and every one of us, waitresses and cooks sit down for a small Thanksgiving dinner of our own. Except this night, we get to close an hour early.

Matthew gets two turkey's set aside for us, and they cook all day. I'm in charge of my mom's famous gravy and my dad's fluffy bread rolls. Shauna makes the mashed potatoes. Christina is in charge of vegetables. Lynn sets the table and usually makes the pie for us, but this year, she has Marlene to help. Since Marlene has worked at a bakery before, it all fit. Lynn was blushing immediately after Marlene offered to help. They'll make three pies this year: pumpkin, chocolate, and apple.

Zeke doesn't show up tonight, much to Shauna's disappointment. Neither does Four.

As it gets darker outside, the whole building smells more and more like a family dinning room. The lighting is bright, but not turned up all the way. There are some autumn decorations spread out left over from Halloween. It's warm, and everyone is smiling as we work. It's calm, and relaxed without being overbearing. It makes me miss my parents even more. Even Caleb crosses my mind. I hope he's okay.