Blue Eyed Man

Chapter 14

Six years later...

Tyler's POV

    Test day. Today we will take the aptitude test to determine what faction we should choose on choosing day. Every sixteen year old from every faction, Dauntless, Erudite, Abnegation, Candor, Amity and even the factionless, will take the test. It's a simulation or sim.

    I've been listening to Jeanine Matthews explain the importance of the test and to "trust the test." Blah blah blah. I'm tuning her out. Dad explained this to me, and I'm not exactly a fan of her. I'm not a fan of people in general, but she might as well be on my hit list.

    Soon, she is done talking.

    Hallelujah.

    She was getting annoying. She leads us back to a hallway with a line of doors on the wall. I stand in front of one until I'm told to enter. When I walk in, I'm greeted by an older woman in gray. Abnegation. She has a kind smile and soft eyes. I know this woman as my grandmother.

    "My name is Natalie Prior," she explains before she looks up from the computer. She seems to be having trouble with it. She looks up. "Oh my goodness! Tyler!"

    "Hello grandma," I greet her kindly. I don't like many people, but I can't help but love my grandma. She is so humble and kind yet strong willed and tough all at the same time.

    "I can't believe I'm administering your test!" A smile was emerged on her face. She is practically glowing with excitement.

    I sit down in the chair that's in the center of the room as she pulls out a cup filled with blue liquid.

    "This will put you into a sim. You will be offered a series of choices. Your response will determine your test result and faction." She hands me the cup. I drink the liquid and quickly lay back and am put into the sim.

    I open my eyes to see lots of mirrors. My curiosity gets the best of me, and I go look into one. All of my reflections follow me, except one. She offers me a choice between meat or a knife. I'm not one to play by the rules, so I grab both. Soon a huge dog appears growling at me.

    "Please, boy. C'mon. I don't really want to hurt you," I say calmly. I fall to my knees, drop the meat in front of me, close my eyes and hold my hand out in front of me. I open my eyes I see what appears to be a sweet little dog with his nose on my hand. I gently stroke his head.

    "Puppy!" I hear an excited voice in the distance. It's me from the past staring at this dog. I don't love people, but dogs are so sweet. I've always loved them. I turn back to see that the dog has turned back rabid. It snarls and growls at my younger version before charging her. Before I can even think, I am chasing after it and launch myself on top of it.

    I wake up in the chair in the test room. My grandma is looking at me with concern. She looks form the computer to me and back to the computer. "Darn your father," I hear her whisper.

    "What?" I ask.

    She says nothing. It's like she doesn't know how to say it. I have a bad feeling in my gut. I think I know what this is. I've heard of it before, but it can't be. They aren't real, are they?

    "Inconclusive. Your test results are inconclusive."

    Divergent. I heard of them before. The test doesn't work on them. They don't fit into just one faction.

    "What were my results?"

    "Dauntless, Erudite and Amity."

    Great. So what do I do at the ceremony tomorrow?

    "Get up," my grandma orders in a panicked voice. "Go out the back door. I've sent someone to get you. I entered your results as Dauntless. People will be less likely to question your result if it's from the faction of your origin. If anyone asked, you were sick. Trust me, this isn't my first encounter with divergence."

     I do as she says. I go out the door. I continue walking until I'm outside. It never occurred to me to ask who was coming to get me or where to meet them. But, it becomes obvious when I see Eric walking towards me with a worried look on his face. He embraces me and then puts his hand on the middle of my back and begins to lead me to the train.

    As we walks he leans to my ear and just whispers, "Don't worry. Everything's gonna be fine. It's gonna be ok."

Is he trying to convince me or himself?