Dauntless

Chapter 15

We ran to the tattoo place I had seen earlier, a lot of other initiates who had just got their points, were heading there as well, so we ran to beat the crowds.
We got there and we doubled over, panting hard.
"Hello!" A voice laughed, it was Ira.
"Hi." I gasped.
"Did you run?" She asked. I nodded.
"You're gonna get a lot of customers today." Breathed Adrian, standing up.
"We wanted to beat the crowds." Finished Ella.
"Well then. We'd better get started then hadn't we."
Ella went first, she got a lion wearing a crown on her inner wrist, to resemble her crazy hair.
"I'm a lioness!" she said when she got it. Then it was my turn.
I chose some Indian feathers, on my neck, just under my ear.
We saw the crowd approaching and I dragged Ella back in line.
"But we already had ours done!" She said.
"Yeah, but we've still got points left! If want to get a piercing, then we have to get in line." I said.
"Yes! A piercing!" She squealed. Then we started deciding what we wanted.
Zack was getting the dauntless sign, the fire, on his right bicep.
"It'll bring out my muscles!" He said, and I rolled my eyes.
Adrian had heard us talking about piercings, and after he had got his tattoo on his inner wrist saying: 'DAUNTLESS - The Brave',
He wanted to get a lip ring. Ira shook her head,
"No can do honey. Sorry, but your an initiate, you'll be doing work and training, a lip ring sticks out too much."
"What?! Are you letting them get piercings?" He gestured at us.
"Depends where it is. But if you get punched in the face, a lip ring could seriously mess you up."
"Ok then." He sighed, "Can I have just a normal earing then?"
"Course." Said Ira.
When our turn came, we sat down and decided to get the same thing.
A cartilage ring at the top of our ear, it was a small silver loop with a little pattern on it.
We left and walked past the big line, glad we missed it.
With the remainder of our points, we bought some clothes. We got the necessities like new trainers or hoodies or jackets.
After lunch, Ella said,
"Hey guys, we should go to the zip wire!" Everybody's face lit up,
"Yesss!!!!!!" Shouted Adrian. He jumped up from the table and grabbed Ella's hand, they ran laughing and Zack and I ran with them.
We ran up lots of flights of stairs, and onto the roof. I opened my arms and breathed in the fresh, cold air.
I looked in front of me, and I saw a group of older dauntless, if Michelle had not transferred, she might be among them. But I'm glad she's not, she wouldn't fit in with the tattooed, pierced and hair dyed punks.
They looked at us.
A girl stepped forward, she had a lip ring and a nose piercing, her hair was aqua blue, like her eyes. She said,
"I thought you were too young too be up here." Zack stepped forward.
"Yeah but does anyone actually listen to the rules here?"
He looked at them, and they just looked around at each other. Impressed at his attitude towards them.
"Fine then, but get at the back of the line." The girl said.
We stood at the back of the line of older dauntless, watching as they shrieked on their way down the zip wire.
I could see the wire stretching as far as the eye could see, it went so high above the city, the view from it was breath taking. At the end of the line, a group of people will be there to catch me when I fall, I always wondered what would happen if you where the first one.
Then it was Zack's turn, the Aqua girl strapped him in tight,
"Good luck." She said, and she pushed him down the wire. He shrieked and cheered until his voice could be heard no more.
Then Adrian went, then Ella, and finally, me.
I sat in the big harness attached to the rope, Aqua fastened it on tight, and we sat there, waiting until we were certain Ella was down. I looked at her, she very pretty, with big blue eyes and long lashes. Her eyebrows arched perfectly over them, and her lips were plump and pink. I had a feeling that if Adrian or Zack took a close look at her, they would do anything she said.
"What's your name?" She asked. And I hoped she didn't notice me staring.
"Zoe. Yours?" I replied.
"Trisha." She said looking off into the distance.
"I like your hair." I said, trying to break the ice.
"Thanks." She said, "ok, you can go now. Good luck." And with that, I was thrust down the line.
I screamed, but I could hardly hear myself through the wind rushing through my ears. I look at the horizon, the sun was just setting over the sky line of sky scrapers. And another scream tore through my body.
I looked in front of me, where underneath the end of the line, was a group of the dauntless who had already come off the zip line, waiting.
I started undoing my harness as I neared the end, and as the brick wall of the building started zooming towards me, I let go.
I fell through the air, my harness swinging above me. I felt weightless, just for one second. And then many hands grabbed me and stopped my fall they cheered and put me upright on the ground, clapping me on the back.
I looked up, and I could see Trisha flying down the line, one hand up in the air, the other holding onto the harness, she was the last one so it probably hadn't been tightened as much as ours had been.
She waited until she was right on top of us, and then she let go and came falling towards us. I put out my hands, stretching to be as tall as everyone else.
She fell on to us, my palms lightly holding up her shoulder. We levitated her there for a moment, cheering and applauding, if we had any hands free.
We placed her on her feet, and she laughed and cheered with the others.
We followed them back into the building, while we were walking, Trisha came up to us.
"Dauntless born initiates?" She asked.
"Course." Said Adrian.
"You guys look fit, probably good in training." She said, looking us up and down. Out of the corner of my eye, I could just see the boys stick out their chests, proud of being complimented by a pretty, older dauntless girl. My thoughts confirmed.
"I was just wondering, coz everyone here is interested in hearing more about this transfer. Top of the ranking they say, apparently he's super good. Works out every day and night to make himself fit enough." She said. Another dauntless guy stepped into the conversation.
"Yeah, used to be a chubby erudite kid, good for nothing know-it-all. But now he's super fit, some girls are even falling for him, like Trisha here." He joked,
"Oh yeah! I totally am head over heels for him." She replied sarcastically.
"Or maybe he's out of your league." Replied the guy.
"Oh shut up Filippo!" Said Trisha, smacking the guy on the arm, obviously called Filippo.
"Never heard of him." Zack resumed the original conversation.
"Oh. His names Jonathan I think, can't remember the surname." My throat tightened.
"Fairfield." I managed.
"Oh yeah, that's it! Do you know him?" He asked, but I couldn't reply.
"He was probably in their class." Trisha answered for me.
I turned to Ella, her mouth was open as she stared at me.
'Jonathan?' She mouthed. And I nodded my head, gawping.
At dinner, he was all we could talk about, we explained to Zack and Adrian about him. They weren't in that class with him, so they didn't know who he was.
"Ugh, that cake is so good." I said, after we got off the subject of Jonathan.
"I'm gonna get some more."
I stood up, and walked to the food table, I grabbed another slice of cake, it was going fast, and I walked back through the crowd. I tried to get through the least crowded part, but as I was walking, someone bumped into me, my cake slid off the plate and onto the floor.
"Hey!" I shouted, looking up at the person. I gasped and dropped my plate. There was no doubting who it was.