Rat (A Divergent Prequel and Eric Love Story)

Chapter 20- Jack of all Trades

Today was the day. This one day, this one test will decide the entire path of my life, factionless or Dauntless. This decides my occupation, my role and my reputation at Dauntless, if I even get to stay.

Today was the last day of my training, and in an hour, I will undergo the final test. A week had gone by since my life-changing moment on the floor of our bathroom, and during this week, I've trained day and night, constantly trying to work up the courage to stab Jeanine during my last fear. However, I now had nine fears, adding on the death of my child and Eric leaving me as a single mother. God, I loved to call myself a mother.

Eric immediately went into father mode, not letting me lift hardly anything, protesting my want to practice the Fear Landscape and even going to Amity to stock our refrigerator with the healthiest of foods to ensure our child's good nutrition. Although I'm happy that he cares so much, I still miss my greasy platters of bacon and eggs for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

The spare bedroom had been cleaned out, although I had no idea that it was even a bedroom, because Eric had stacked it to the ceiling with so much junk. At a slow pace, we had started the beginning of what would be our child's nursery. Eric wanted the walls to be black like the traditional Dauntless nursery, but I insisted on light blue, regardless of the gender, so I could paint nice little clouds on the walls.

"Are you nervous?" Eric asked, as we walked side by side to the Fear Landscape Room, a large glass room. We still couldn't even hold hands or show any signs of love until my initiation was over.

"Just a lot," I said sarcastically.

Like every time we entered a room, Eric would enter first, making his way over to the other leaders (which would be all of them today to witness that final test) and I would count to ten and then enter as well. Eric was worried that they would see the fear of him leaving me or our baby being harmed, but by then, I would be an official Dauntless and actually allowed to be with him so there would be nothing they could do. Besides, I remember being slightly conscious and hearing Max tell Eric that he knew.

When I entered after counting to ten, the large room was absolutely packed. It seemed as though all of Dauntless had arrived for this moment.

Max began to call out each initiate in backward alphabetical order, beginning with Kait, whose time was 25:04 with 14 fears. I quietly congratulated her.

"Matthews, Rose." Max's deep voice bellowed. I entered the small glass room, where Eric wished me luck and plunged the needle into my neck, releasing the orange liquid.

I was drowning in the chasm, pinned on the rock that I had been impaled upon, which didn't allow me to move. I thought of Eric sitting with me at the chasm.

Eric sat on the bed, a gun ready for fire was gripped tightly in his hand.

"I can't stand you." He said through gritted teeth. Boom. The gun shot a hole through his chest. I thought of when he first told me his story, so vulnerable and broken.

I was in my old Erudite bedroom, the walls caving in, trapping me in my Rat Trap. I thought of our first kiss, wrapped up in his leather jacket after sleeping soundly in his bed.

The wind blew hard. The Hancock Building was far behind me as I fell farther and farther away. I thought of when Eric and I had fought in the training room, and laughed our hearts out after my vicious head-butt. He had kissed me in front of all the initiates that day.

Eric and Jeanine smiled wickedly at me. I felt the liquid splash my face and the fire rage upon me, burning me alive. I thought of Eric taking care of me, carrying me after I had fallen off of the chasm and kissing the scars on my back so tenderly.

"This baby is your problem, not mine. It's your fault for laying on your back." Eric spat at me, as he tore at the crib in the spare bedroom. "Get out of my apartment." I thought of how jealous he had been when he thought I was with Zeke and how regardless, he hugged me so tightly, saying "Don't ever scare me like that again," after I had fallen off the Hancock Building.

I lay on Eric's bed, blood covered sheets over my cut open stomach. Max held my dead baby in his hands. He had cut my child out of my stomach. I thought of when Eric had admitted his love for me, how passionately he had kissed me. I thought of how he wanted to prove to me that his love was real and that he wouldn't take advantage of me.

The floor of the bathroom was covered with blood. Edwin pinned me to the ground, having his way with me. I thought of Eric and I giving ourselves to one another in a moment of pure passion and love. I thought of how gentle he was, afraid to hurt me.

Jeanine stood over me, slicing away at my flesh, rendering me helpless. She carved the letters over and over, taking her time. I thought of when I told Eric that he was going to be a father, how happy he was to finally have a happy family, a family that included me as his loving wife. He couldn't wait for our child. I knew at that moment that he would make the best husband and an even better father.

"Rose Matthews, 7 minutes and 24 seconds." Max shouted in disbelief.

"I believe that's a record!" another leader shouted.

"And she did it all while pregnant with a leader's child." Max stated in annoyance, sending gasps through the crowd of Dauntless who had not been watching as the leaders had.

I felt an arm snake around my waist, Eric's. "Well, she's an official Dauntless now, so what can you do?" He teased.

Jackson approached me, looking excited. "How did you go through it that quick?"

"I guess I just went to my happy place." I smiled, looking over at the father of my child.

We were led to the cafeteria, where a large screen revealed our names and pictures.

My name and a picture of a smiling red head appeared beside a number 2. Jackson was first, and I'll be damned if he didn't deserve it.

"Hey look, we both were 2nd ," Eric smiled, his hand finally in mine.

Later, we went into a room that faced two large desks, where every leader squeezed in together behind them.

"You will now choose your jobs and your housing. Look over the sheets that you were given and we will call you up by rank to choose." One of the leaders announced.

Jackson of course went first and accepted the leadership choice in a heartbeat.

"Rose?" Eric called.

I approached the desks. "Don't worry about the housing, she will be living with me," Eric said, not looking up from his files.

I already knew exactly what I wanted. "I want to work in the infirmary," I stated. "And possibly administer the aptitude test, too."

Eric began to chuckle. "I thought you were joking when you said that."

"Nope." I said, popping the 'p'.

"We also recommend that you check into training the new initiates as well." Max said, shuffling around some papers.

"Can I do all three?" I asked.

"If you want to."

"Then put me down for all three."

"You do realize that you don't need three jobs when your fiancé is a leader, right?" Eric asked, teasingly.

I smiled in response, ready to set out on my new life as a wife, mother, nurse, trainer, tester, and an official Dauntless member.