Cutting through Stone

C H A P T E R 3

[I   J U S T   C A N ' T]

Jane's POV

        It was dinner time and I sat alone. I had completely forgotten that Sam and Nick were out on their biweekly date night. It had been a new tradition they started and yet here I was. I picked at what was left of my pasta with my fork and sighed. A few days after my first day of training with Eric, I had overhead a couple of dauntless girls talking about me. Apparently I  was the perfect Dauntless leader, I was practically married to my job and I hadn't even gotten it yet. I don't really go out because...well, Sam and Nick were really my only friends. This sudden realization had been clouding my thoughts after that. Eric noticed something was wrong when my fighting skills had become sloppier than usual and the matches became shorter and shorter. I didn't tell him of course, I mean how do you say that without sounding pathetic? Hi, I'm married to a job I don't have. I stay at home everyday when I'm not training because I only have two friends who are also dating each other so I get left behind on date nights. Welcome to the basic life of a third wheel. "Ugh!" I stabbed my pasta with my fork, causing some sauce to splash onto my face and hair. "Great." I muttered, trying to locate any and all sauce to wipe clean with my napkin. "You know, and I'm just you know having an idea, but the pasta might be a lot better if it goes in your mouth. I'm just saying of course." I looked up too see Eric smirking as usual. I rolled my eyes at him,"Just help me get the sauce out of my hair." Eric sat beside me and placed his tray down. "Not with that attitude." Eric chuckled at his own joke. "Eric." I sighed. Eric's face softened. He did a quick look over of my face and hair then grabbed my napkin from my hand and began wiping different areas of my face and hair. Eric then used his finger to move a stray strand of hair and tucked it behind my ear. Eric'ss eyes held mine in a deep gaze. I could see concern mixed in his piercing gray-green eyes. "Oh my gosh, you guys are so cute!" A shrill girly voice spoke from the other side of the table. I looked up to see Tris and Four sitting across from us. Eric and I looked at each other for what seemed like forever when sudden realization of how we must have looked to others in the room. We quickly scooted away from each other and coughed awkwardly. Tris giggled. "Wasn't there a reason you dragged me over here besides making them feel awkward?" Four said to Tris. "Oh yea! Well, Four and I were invited to a party at Uriah's place and wanted to see if you'd like to come...You're welcome to come as well, Eric." Tris said happily without making eye contact with Eric. "I don't know Tris, I don't have anything to wear and I'm not too good with parties." Tris and I weren't exactly friends but we weren't enemies or anything. She was a nice kind hearted person, we just didn't see each other much. Eric and Tris weren't friends at all but Eric had stopped trying to pick on Tris during initiation when he had tried to push Tris off the bridge similar to Christina but I may or may not have tackled him before he could...I don't even- any who. "I can help you find something." Tris suggested. Before I could speak, Eric had spoken up,"She'll go." "What!" I looked at Eric in shock. "You're going. Tris'll help you get ready." I looked at Eric, completely dumbfounded,"Since when do you decide for me?" "Since I was leader, got any objections?" I glared at Eric, just hoping that self-absorbed head of his blew up from the intensity. "Good." Tris and Four seemed to be quite amused by our little dispute. "OK, so we'll go shopping now. Then head over to my place to get ready. Christina will meet us at my place to help do your makeup." Tris was going so fast that I didn't even have time to register the full situation before she began to drag me off. "M-makeup?"

        Tris and I went from store to store trying to find "the perfect dress". Once we had found a dress we headed back to her apartment. Four had left to check on the two new guys in the control room and Christina had just arrived. Tris found a pair of beige heeled boots to match the beige on the front of the chest of the dress which was all black except for that spot. Christina braided my hair into a complicated looking waterfall braid and curled the rest. Christina and Tris put a peach colored shadow on my eyelids and white on my brow bone and a nude tan lipstick to match. Since I wasn't taking anything with me besides my keys, I didn't need a purse.