Star-gazing: Eric Coulter

Chapter 11

TW: swearing, arachnophobia, sa, (fear landscapes), violence, body dysmorphia, talk of intoxication.

Song: Us
Artist: James Bay

If you are easily affected by any trigger warnings above, please do not read this following chapter as it may affect you. 

Layla's pov:

A couple days later, Eric and I still aren't on speaking terms and I've been doing my best to ignore him. I know that we will eventually make up but I really don't have the effort to deal with him at the moment. After what had happened recently, I've become a lot more worn-out and fallen back on old habits that give me a small amount of comfort. I'm still staying at Four's which isn't really helping my wedded situation— I couldn't care less at what Eric thinks right now. What's done is done.

I'm making a black coffee when Four leaves his bedroom to approach me in his kitchen, "You ready for the fear landscapes today?" His face is all beat up from yesterday, when Eric found out I was staying with my best friend.
"No, not really." I state, drinking from the large mug. I'm quieter than usual and although Four has no idea what has happened, he is comforting. We aren't going to breakfast today as the leaders and higher-ranked Dauntless people are redoing their fear landscapes today— Jeanine ordered it a couple weeks ago as Erudite hadn't been able to find anymore Divergents in a while.

There isn't much conversation after that, we leave a few minutes after to head towards the mental training room. There's clear tension when we arrive, some of the other leaders are already there (standing around the table where a screen is placed). The screen ensures that we can all see what is happening in each other's fear landscapes and point out anything that screams Divergence. The room is quiet with not much conversations as everyone is racked with nerves about others calling them weak for their fears.

I don't talk and lean against the thick, plastic, white table, my hands turning white from the harsh grip I have on it. Everyone else arrives a few minutes after us (Jeanine included). Slamming the doors open, Eric makes a grand entrance, I don't look at him when he marches over to stand beside Max and the Erudite witch. The first person is called into the room and we watch their landscape before he comes back out, pale and shaky. I give him a weak smile which he doesn't return— I don't blame him. In total he had sixteen fears and was deemed fit to continue at Dauntless (Divergent clear).

We watch through everyone else's landscapes, Dylan eventually strides out of the room. A wide grin on his face, as he attempts to hide the discomfort on his face. I give him a hug and small pat on the back, he stands behind Four and I.

"Eric Coulter." Max calls, I swallow a lump that has formed in my throat as I watch Eric grumble before being taken into the room. His first fear is on the screen before I can think of anything else:

He's back at Erudite, fire surrounds the building he's in. Glass is smashed everywhere and burnt corpses are piled up at his feet. He rushes through the large, flickering flames and reaches a room. Room 164. His mothers' apartment. One shove and the door falls down in front of him.

"Mother!" He's loosing oxygen by the second. The walls are red and orange, although quickly turning black, "Mother, where are you?!" His voice is panic-stricken and laced with worry. He barges into her bedroom without a second thought, April is on the floor, her face so burnt that you wouldn't be able to know it was her if she didn't have that necklace Eric and I gave her after we graduated initiation.
"No! Fuck, fuck, fuck!"
"Wake up, Mother!" As he gets to her, black dots appear on the screen, he's dying from inhalation...

Then he wakes up in another room, he's trapped. In a box that is slowly getting smaller and smaller and smaller. It's going to crush him. He looks around and finds two pins, he jams them in the walls: one in the ceiling and one in the corner of the floor. Upon this, the vent at the other side of the box he's in opens. He climbs out just to be in the pit.