Emergent

Chapter 2

The wind blows violently as all the new Dauntless initiates stand on the roof. I can feel the occasional drop of rain, and I desperately wish for the bad weather to hold off until we get somewhere it's a bit harder to fall off of.

I shiver slightly, wishing I was wearing something warmer, and huddle next to Amy in the hope she will shield me from the cold. She grins at my discomfort. I hope that means we are becoming friends. The other boy I had been talking to, Silas, taps his foot quickly against the concrete. It doesn't look like the adrenaline of the train jump has faded from any of us yet.

Suddenly, the still-rowdy Dauntless-born initiates silence themselves. The group I'm standing in takes that as a sign to shut up as well. The reason soon becomes clear; a Dauntless man is standing on the edge of the roof about to address us. I don't know how he did that so comfortably, with no apparent fear of falling off. He has damp blond hair, cut relatively short, and piercings scattered across his face. Tattoos peek out from under his shirt, which is tight-fitting enough to indicate a very muscular body resided underneath. I knew plenty of good looking boys in Amity, but none of them looked good in this way. There was no denying it- he was very attractive.

He starts speaking, but due to the weather some of his words are snatched by the wind. I catch something about the train, and coming this far, but not getting comfortable yet. Nothing overly reassuring. I start to wonder how we are getting off this roof.

As he speaks, he runs his eyes over everyone gathered before him. The Dauntless-born all look at the ground; clearly this man is important and fear inspiring. Eventually, his stare fixes on me. Now, I'm used to men staring at me. But even though there was the initial run up-and-down of my body, it doesn't feel like it's with the same intent. Only when he smirks do I realise how silly and out of place I must look in my red Amity dress. While I was used to my beauty being something to admire, it had never been something to ridicule before. I try to meet his gaze with a frown, but he's already looked away. Fine, then. My appearance had always been my greatest strength, and as shallow as that sounds I wasn't going to let that change here. If this man and anyone else I came across wanted to underestimate me because of my pretty face, they were going to get one hell of a shock.

I finish convincing myself of this when I realise I've missed everything else that had been said. The people around me all start pushing forward, towards the edge again.

I look at Amy in confusion, but she just grabs my arm to keep me with her.

One of the Dauntless-born initiates steps forward. Her bright red hair is cropped short, but it still blows across her face. She grins, and I know she feels completely in her element. Before I can whisper a question to someone around me, it is answered; she gestures rudely to all of us, gives us one last smile, and falls backwards. I feel my mouth drop open.

"Right," the blond man says. Finally, I can hear him properly. "Who's next?"

This must be the next stage of initiation then. I try to peer forwards to see who the next volunteer is, but the boy in front of me must have felt me move and taken it to mean I was stepping forward. A path clears from me to the edge, and I have no choice but to make my way forward.

At least I hadn't gone first. I would far rather someone else suffer the consequences of a Dauntless prank-gone-wrong than me. I grin to myself. At least I'd made the right choice not choosing Abnegation.

The man waiting for me must see my amused expression, because he stares at me in a rather intimidating way as I approach. This time I make sure he sees my scowl, as tempted as I was to look down and apologise for doing nothing.

I make it to the edge of the roof, and glance back to get a reassuring nod or smile from Amy or Silas. Instead, I get a wolf whistle from a tall boy from Erudite. Any nervousness I was holding (which was a lot) fades away to be replaced with annoyance. I wasn't object to admiration. I was used to it. But at least the Amity boys were mostly respectful about it. I turn back around, tell my butterflies to go where the sun doesn't shine, and fall forwards. I do it without thinking, or I know my body will betray me.