E.A.T.O.N.

Chapter 10

My heart thumped so hard and fast that I was certain that it was going to leap out of my chest. I didn't know what to do. Had she seen me? No, she couldn't have. I was right near the back of the long, long line, as the choosing was done in reserve alphabetical order. Anyway, she wasn't even looking in my direction. She was looking straight ahead of her into the crowd somewhere. Trying to make my moves as subtle as possible, so not to attract attention, I followed her eyeline through the crowd. Past the first row, past the second row and the third and right past the next ten. Right to my parents.

She was looking straight at them, so intently that her eyes almost burst out of their sockets. Shock, fear and sadness flashed through her face before she regained composure and strolled towards the front of the stage. A hush fell across the crowd. With her head held high. She began the speech that is spoken at every single choosing ceremony.

"Welcome to the choosing ceremony"

Her steely voice filled the air.

"Today, you will choose your factions. Before now you have followed your parents paths. Now you will pave your own."

Anna spoke this line with a hint of passion, which I found upsetting really. She definitely didn't follow her parents paths, OUR parents paths.

"Long ago, there was a Great War. Our ancestors blamed five different things for the destruction of our city."

Oh will she just get on with it.

"Those who blamed aggression formed Amity."

I wasn't going to pick Amity.

"Candor was made from those who blamed dishonesty."

I wasn't going to pick Candor.

"If you thought cowardice was to blame, you joined Dauntless."

I wasn't going to pick Dauntless.

"The people that blamed selfishness became Abnegation."

I was definitely going to pick Abnegation.

"The rest blamed ignorance and formed Erudite."

Let's not even discuss Erudite right now.

"So," Anna said with a smile, "Let's begin. Zito, Caleb."