Dauntless

Chapter 16

Jonathan.
I stared at him, and he stared back, maybe he recognized me.
His monk haircut was gone, it was now short at sides and long on top, gelled out of his face. His cheekbones were prominent, as was his jawline. He was wearing a loose vest, so I could see the muscles on his body, on his arms as well. He wasn't super muscular, like Zack or Rico, he was more like Adrian, skinny, but strong. I looked into his blue eyes, I'd never noticed them before, they were always hidden behind glasses.
He was attractive, definitely, and I wondered if he had been before. I never noticed because I'd always tried to avoid him before.
I looked more closely, and I could see the dauntless sign, with 'DAUNTLESS- the brave' written underneath it, tattooed on the right side of his chest.
"Zoe?" He said. I looked at him and nodded.
"Jonathan?" I gawped, he replied immediately.
"Joe. It's Joe now." I nodded.
"You look so different." I said, not meaning to say it.
"Yeah, I've tried hard. I want to change, I don't want to be the know-it-all, erudite kid, that you've come so much to hate." He said.
"I'm so sorry!" I apologized, "I didn't hate you! I was just jealous!" I said.
He laughed.
"Well, maybe I was jealous of you too. Watching you jump off that train every day, it seemed like the coolest thing!" He said. I smiled slightly.
"How come I didn't see you after the choosing ceremony?" I asked, then I realized something,
"Were you the transfer everybody was so shocked about?" He nodded, smiling.
"Yep, they took one look at me and thought, 'why would he transfer to dauntless? He's sure to fail', but I'm not going to. I'm gonna show them." He paused, then answered my first question, "I didn't want you to see me, I was too embarrassed, I jumped on a separate carriage." I nodded.
"I'm still so sorry about all those years-" I tried to apologize again.
"No. Don't. It doesn't bother me. Hey, maybe we can start again? Like we just met? Like you never knew the old me?" He suggested.
"No. I'd love to, but not forgetting the old you, because then it would just be a lie." He looked at me. Then said,
"Sure, whatever you say." He smiled slightly, and I smiled back.
"I'll see you then." He said.
"Yeah, see you." I replied, walking back to my table.
"Where's the cake?" Asked Ella, as I returned empty handed.
"Oh my gosh! You wouldn't believe what just happened!" And I told them everything.