Until Death Do Us Apart ➪ 𝔼𝕣𝕚𝕔 ℂ𝕠𝕦𝕝𝕥𝕖𝕣

Chapter Two: World Of Pain

I was once again woken by the banging of a fist on the door. Four. I groaned and pulled the sheets over my head. Eventually, I decided to get up with the others and get dressed.

We walked to the pit, where we were greeted by Four and Eric.

"Today you'll be throwing knives," Eric said, his voice sharp. "It's simple—just hit the target."

We all started throwing. I threw one, and it hit the leg of the target. I threw another, and this time it hit the head. One more, and I managed to hit right in the middle of the stomach.

"Good job, Jordan," Eric said, surprising me. I smiled; it was the first time he had used my name.

I watched Al as he threw one. It hit the ground with a loud bang.

"Well, that was pathetic," Eric said, his voice laced with mockery.

"It slipped," Al mumbled.

"Then go get it," Eric snapped.

Al looked at him like he was crazy. "While they're throwing?"

"Scared?" Eric asked with a smirk.

"Yeah, a little bit. Who wants to get stabbed by an airborne knife?" Al said, clearly nervous.

Eric's eyes narrowed. "Everyone stop," he commanded. "Go stand in front of the target."

Al hesitated but slowly walked to the target. I put my hand over my eyes—I couldn't watch.

"If you flinch, you're out," Eric added. I felt a surge of panic for Al. I couldn't let him go through with this.

"Stop," I said, my voice shaky. Both Eric and Four looked at me.

"Anyone can stand in front of a target. It doesn't prove anything," I said, immediately regretting it.

Eric raised an eyebrow. "Then it should be easy for you to take his place."

Al moved aside, and I walked toward the target, my legs shaking. "The same thing applies to you," Eric said.

Four threw the first knife. It hit the wood right next to me.

"Come on, Four, you can get closer than that," I teased, swallowing hard.

He threw another, this one landing above my head. Eric rolled his eyes, grabbed a knife from Four's hands, and threw it—right against my ear. It cut me.

"Points for bravery, stiff. But not as much as you just lost for opening your mouth," Eric said coldly. "We're done for the day. Everyone, get out."

I walked away angrily, shoving my knives into my pockets.

"You alright?" Eric asked, his voice softer than usual.

"Like you care," I sneered.

"I had to put you in your place, stiff. We're raising soldiers, not rebels."

"Don't call me stiff. My name is Jordan. Whether you like it or not, that's what it is," I said, my voice low but firm.

Eric chuckled. "I think that's the most I've heard you talk in one sitting, stiff."

My blood boiled. Without thinking, I grabbed one of my knives and threw it at him.

Oh my god, what the hell did I just do?

The knife barely missed him. Eric looked at me, his eyes filled with anger. He started toward me, and I stammered.

"I-I'm sorry," I said, my voice shaking.

"Yeah, you better be. Because for the next three weeks, you're gonna be in a world of pain," he snarled.

What did I just do? I groaned and walked to the cafeteria, trying to shake off the feeling of dread that was creeping up on me. I sat next to my friends, hoping they wouldn't notice how rattled I was.

"That was incredible what you did for me, Jordan," Al said, grinning.

I smiled weakly. "You're welcome."

After a while in the cafeteria, we walked outside, guns in hand. There were dummies lined up against a brick wall. Target practice.

They'd shown us how to use the guns earlier. Five of us went at a time. I was with Peter, Will, Al, Christina, and a few others I didn't know. I shot a few times, but they missed horribly, hitting the back wall instead of the targets.

I loosened my grip on the gun, feeling disappointed in myself.

"Statistically speaking, you should've hit the target at least once by now—by accident, even," Will said, glancing over at me.

I looked down in shame. I was going to be factionless.

"Alright, let's go for a run now," Four said. I mentally groaned.

We started running in a group. I was the slowest out of everyone, my legs burning with every step. We began slowing down as we saw a group of factionless.

"What do we got here?" Four asked.

"Factionless," one of the Dauntless initiates muttered. "Not doing anything."

"Check it out, stiff," Peter said, nudging me with his elbow. "That's gonna be your new family. Go say hi."

How much worse could today get?

I bit my lip. Maybe Peter was right. Maybe that was going to be my new home.