You And Me Against The World | ✅

Chapter 12

I barely register that the train approaches Abnegation. I jump to my feet and walk to the door waiting for the train to slow down enough for me to jump off. I almost fall over when I hit the ground but manage to regain my balance quickly. I really need to practice more jumping on and off trains. I'll ask Tobias if he would like to do that with me. Or maybe Christina. I wasn't a really good friend to her lately. I make a mental note to ask her when I get back. I walk the familiar path through Abnegation and resist the urge to walk toward my parents' house. It's odd. I thought I would still see it as home. It is, sort of, but now that I'm starting my new life with Tobias my home is with him in Dauntless.

I walk passed the gray Abnegation houses and head east toward the meadow where my mom probably waits for me. I'm not disappointed when I find her sitting under the old oak tree, where we used to spend hours when I was a kid. It was the only place Caleb and I could enjoy our childhood without the restriction of Abnegation upbringing rules. Back then I didn't understand why my mom let us do this, but now that I know that she was Dauntless-born it makes sense.

"Hey mom," I say and apparently pull her out of her own thoughts.

"Hello, sweetheart," she says smiling.

"Thanks for meeting me here," I say.

"Beatrice, please. You know I would do anything for you and your brother," she says. "Do you want to sit down or take a walk," she asks.

"Let's take a walk," I say. We walk for a while before I start telling her what happened yesterday after I fell asleep. When I finish my story mom remains quiet for some time, obviously thinking about what this means and why it happened.

"And it never happened before?" she asks.

"No, I would have told you. On the train ride here I thought maybe my mind connected to Myra's since I met her during initiation, but we were never close to bond like this. I mean, if I couldn't create this bond between Caleb and me, why would it be possible with a complete stranger?"

"Maybe it had nothing to do with her," mom suggests.

"Then why would I go there? I don't know anyone there."

"Yes, but maybe it doesn't have anything to do with a person. Maybe it's the place that's calling you," she says, not sure of what she is implying.

"Really mom? Am I not enough of a freak?" I ask raising an eyebrow.

"You are not a freak," my mom says and starts laughing. I join her. The freak-thing is our inside joke for my ability. After a while my mom looks serious at me and adds, "Maybe your ability develops, grows. Remember when you were little you could only hear my thoughts when it was completely silent around you and you touched my hand?" she asks. I nod. "Then when you got older you managed to read my mind by just concentrating, without touching me. you managed to create the connection between the two of us and we started talking in our minds with each other. I'm well aware that you had to practice a lot to be able to do this, but it also came in time. The older you got the stronger you became. Maybe this is a new stage," she suggests. I have to think about it. But until I can figure out what it really means maybe I shouldn't kill myself over things I can't control.

"I went furniture shopping today," I say and she looks curiously at me. "Four and I are moving into a bigger apartment," I explain.

"That's nice. I can't wait to see it. If I'm invited, of course."

"Of course, you are. Both you and dad. Four and I would love to have you over."

"You really love that boy," my mom says caressing my cheek.