The Distance Between Us | Eric Coulter

five

After returning to the dorms to change while I steadily ignored all the stares and gossip I was getting from my fellow initiates, I hurried out of the room without waiting for anybody else.

A burly Dauntless member awaits us down the hall, instructing me to toss my old Erudite clothes into a burning pile of wood before heading to the dining hall.

I toss them in without a backwards glance. Yeah, I definitely won't be missing that stuffy getup.

The dining hall is bustling when I step foot into it and it's so packed with people that I struggle to find a seat.

Raising on my toes, I strain my neck as I scan the room hoping to find a free table.

I finally manage to find an empty seat in the back corner of the room and I'm about to start making my way to it when my eyes snag on the familiar pair of blue eyes that belongs to one infuriating leader.

The moment he sees me, Eric rises from his seat and starts to make his way to me with vengeance burning in his eyes.

His long strides eat up the distance between us and I narrow my eyes at him, refusing to let him deter.

Just as I take another step towards the seat that I've set my eyes on, an arm drapes itself across my shoulders and reroutes me to the other direction.

I look to my right to see a boy with brown, shaggy hair and deep bronzed skin I've never seen before leading me away from Eric and frown.

"You sure know how to pick 'em, newbie." The boy grins at me, "Of all the people you could've possibly pissed off, you chose the moodiest, most vicious bastard there is."

"I didn't mean to piss him off. He's my friend," I pause before adding thoughtfully, "At least I thought he was."

The boy blinks slowly at me before he breaks down into a fit of laughter, "I hate to break it to you, but Eric doesn't have friends."

I glance over my shoulder to see Eric glaring our way, clearly none too happy that what's-his-name had foiled his plans.

Feeling victorious, I smile sweetly at him, before flipping him off which sends the stranger beside me into another bout of laughter.

"Aw, man. I like you already." He declares before turning to speak to someone else, "Look who I bumped into!"

I look down to see that we've stopped in front of a table that's currently occupied by Four, who looks up from his plate and raises a brow at the boy.

"Zeke, please tell me she's here on her own free will and that you didn't just drag her here."

Zeke shrugs sliding into the seat across from Four, "Judging by what you've told me about her, does she look like the kind of person who would get let someone force her into doing something she wouldn't want to?"

Four quirks a brow at his- judging by their interaction- friend and jerks his chin at the empty seat beside Zeke, "Have a seat, initiate."

I oblige, settling in the seat Four had indicated when a pretty brunette plops down on the other side of me.

"Is this the initiate who gave Eric a run for his money?" She loudly questions, drawing gazes our way and I shift uncomfortably in my seat.

I clear my throat awkwardly, deciding I should probably say something.

"I'm Rory," I say lamely and the girl chuckles.

"Oh, we know who you are." She extends a hand for me to shake, "I'm Shauna."

For some reason, I find myself waving instead of shaking her hand and mentally cursing myself. Damn it, I've never done well in social situations. Eric was my only friend back in Erudite and look how that turned out.

Instead of getting insulted at how rude I've come across, the girl simply laughs and leans in closer to me.

"Now that we're basically friends, what's going on between you and Eric?"

"Shauna..." Four drawls warningly but she simply waves him off.

"Oh, please. Don't act like you're not at all curious." She rolls her eyes at him, resting her chin in her palm and gazing at me with intrigued eyes. "So, what is it?"

My eyes dart between the three of them as my mind whirls. I'm not quite sure how good of an idea it is to spill my guts to a bunch of strangers, but they seemed like good people and I desperately needed people to vent to considering the fact that I lost my confidant two years ago and now, I'm just plain confused as to why he seems to see me as his enemy.

"He's my best friend," I blurted before quickly correcting, "He was my best friend. Now...I'm not quite sure what's going on between us."

There was a bit of stunned silence as my new friends exchanged a couple of glances.

"You were best friends...with Eric..." Zeke says slowly as if his mind couldn't quite comprehend it all, "How did you even put up with him? I don't mean any offence, but the guy's an asshole."

It's funny how if you'd asked me a couple of days ago I would've vehemently disagreed. The word asshole wouldn't have been a word I would've used to describe Eric Coulter. Loyal, sweet, caring, amazing. Definitely.

In my eyes, he was anything but an asshole. However, I'm not so sure about that anymore.

"In his defence, he wasn't always one," I say, trying to keep the hurt from my voice. I don't think I did a very good job at it though, seeing as how the three sets of eyes that were staring at me now shone with sympathy.

I shrug, feigning indifference. "But hey, if he wants a war, he has one. I'm sure as hell not going to let him push me around."

Shauna and Zeke let out a cheer in unison, the latter reaching out to clap me on the shoulder.

"That's the spirit!" Zeke grins, "I say we sneak into his room and we find a way to get rid of his mattress like he did with yours. An eye for an eye, right?"

Four lets out a disgruntled grunt, "Careful," He warns, shooting Zeke a glare.

"Come on, Four. Lighten up!" Zeke leans over to shove him playfully.

Four cracks a smile but his expression turns serious again as he turns to me, "I'm not going to stop you, but...just make sure you know what you're getting yourself into."

Despite everything, I wasn't afraid of Eric. For some reason, my gut tells me that Eric wouldn't really hurt me. I just hope it doesn't fail me.

My eyes cut across the dining hall and I find Eric already staring my way when my gaze meets his.

Anger fills my chest once again when I think about the pain he'd caused since I got here.

Reaching up, I curl my fingers around the locket hanging around my neck.

Eric's gaze follows the movement, his eyes darkening as he realises what I was clutching onto.

Then, his eyes snap back to mine and he scowls. I glare back at him before I turn a smile on Zeke, "You know, I think I might just take you up on that offer."