𝑭𝑶𝑼𝑹 𝑴𝑶𝑹𝑨𝑵𝑻 . Tobias Eaton

*ೃ༄ 21 ༄ೃ*

After dinner we were back into the training room. all huddled in a group. Some were alert and ready to hear the rankings and some were dozing off from the night they had last night.

For me, I had to be nothing but alert. I needed to be above this line. My life depended on my ranking, to ensure that my secret is safe for now.

Max appears above the railing, his dominance wasn't unnoticed and the chatter dies down. Max was a strongly built character, his dark skin gleamed in the light and you could see the crease between his eyebrows and nose, he was a serious man like the other Dauntless leaders, a pattern I seemed to notice. Their physical and emotion strength was a trait to be admired, I know Peter admired that, but so do I. I want to be strong. 

Maybe if I pass the first stage of initiation I'll be able to feel more part of Dauntless, like I have proved everyone wrong, that I'm capable of living the ruthless reputation that is expected? At least I want to be able to, but only a number and a red line will tell me my fate.

"If your marked above the red line, you move onto the second stage of training. If you're below it, we'll waste no time on you...Here are your rankings." Max motions to the board, his voice deep, loud and stern.

The suspense killed me and I waited impatiently for the initiate ranking to slowly appear on the screen, I immediately noticed my name on the top line.

Second ranking.

I couldn't help but form a smile on my face as not only was I second but I was above Peter who was at third. I was able to be here for another day.

The following included Uriah at fourth place, Will at seventh place, Sarai in ninth place and Al in twenty first place.

"Go Quinn!" Sarai chants out.

Peter didn't say anything when the rankings went up, which, given his tendency to complain about anything that doesn't go his way, is surprising. He just walks away to the rooms. His exit from the hall feels like I was the only one to notice, which makes me feel even more uneasy. He can't possibly be satisfied with third place. Not Peter.

Will and Sarai slap hands, and the thud of their hands pull me out of my trance about Peter. This moment is one I'm supposed to enjoy. Will claps me on the back with a hand bigger than my shoulder blade. His support wasn't comparable to the others. Sometimes I felt like Sarai envied my achievements.

"Look at you. Number two," Will says, grinning.

"Still might not have been good enough," I remind him.

"I hope you're joking," he scoffs. "We should celebrate."

"Well, let's go, then," says Sarai, grabbing my arm with one hand and Al's arm with the other. "Come on, Al. You don't know how the Dauntless-borns did. You don't know anything for sure."

"I'm just going to go to bed," he mumbles, pulling his arm free.

Will and Sarai shrug as Al walks away from our group, his posture slum. If I was Al I would feel the same way. We want to do our best, get as high as possible and when that backfires it's hard not to be disappointed. I wanted to be there for Al, let him know that the second stage of training can get him climbing up on the ranks but I didn't, a slight part of me wanted to enjoy this night and deal with it tomorrow.

In the hallway, it is easy to forget about Al and Molly's revenge and Peter's suspicious calm, and easy to pretend that what separates us as friends does not exist. But lingering at the back of my mind is the fact that Sarai and Will are my competitors. If I want to keep my place, I'm going to have to fight for it.

I just hope I don't have to betray them in the process.  

~~~~

wtf is Peter's problem...