The Flame

Chapter one

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A/N: This is my first time writing a book... So I hope you like it! I got some of the ideas, for this book, from some of my favorites such as, Divergent by Veronica Roth, Selection Series by Kiera Cass, and The Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard.
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There's a full moon out tonight. I sit by a tall, wide tree outside my house. The breeze runs through my hair. I wait for Eric. Eric and I have been friends for a long time now. Eric is a class 6. A worker. But me on the other hand, I am a music artist. I sing at parties and play the piano. Even though we are in different classes we are still great friends.

"Hey!" I jerk around to see a tall, lean figure standing there. Eric.

"Ericson Smith Garcia," I yell. "Don't do that again!"

He laughs at me. I hit him in the arm playfully. We play around like this all the time.

After laughing for a bit, Eric talks, "I brought dinner." He takes a loaf of bread out of his jacket pocket, fresh from the oven. I feel the heat coming from it.

"How did you get this?" I ask him in surprise. It is so expensive to get a fresh loaf of bread here. I stare at him with wide eyes.

"I was working next to a bakery today. So I stole it." He shrugs his shoulders and I punch him in the arm, hard. "You could have been caught." I yell at him.

"But I wasn't," he says like it's nothing.

"Whatever." I say rolling my eyes.

We eat in silence for a while. Then Eric breaks the silence. "The test is in two days."

"Yeah I know," I reply. "Are you ready?"

"Not really." He looks at his feet. "Are you?"

I shrug. "I don't know," I look at him. He finally looks up at me.

"What's wrong?" I ask. His eyes are watery.

"Mom is not doing so well," He explains. "She has been getting sicker everyday." I walk over and hug him. We hug for a while. He breaks the hug and looks at me.

"I'm so sorry," I look up at him.

"it's okay. She will be fine." He sighs.

"Well I better get home. It's getting pretty late." He starts off behind the houses. I watch him until he rounds the corner. It's probably around 10 O'Clock. You are supposed to be in your house by 9 O'Clock but Eric and I meet at the tree every night.
I walk to my bedroom window. Mom and dad don't know I sneak out after curfew. If they do I would be in so much trouble. But not as much as if the officials do, I'll get whipped in the public square.

I slowly open the window. I step in quickly but quietly. I slip into my sweats. Then I sneak into my bed. Everyone is asleep by now. So I slowly drift off to sleep myself.

• • •

I wake up to rocks hitting my window. I roll over to see Eric standing there. The sun is just now rising. I run over and slide the window open.

"What are you-" I'm cut off by the sight in front of me. His eyes are puffy and red. He looks like he's been crying. "What's wrong?" I ask.

"It's mom." He sniffs, "she had a heart attack last night. They took her to the hospital."

"Oh my. I'm so sorry," I hop out the window and hug him. After a while he tries to pull away but I keep hold.
"Bell, I need to get to work now." He sniffs. I finally released. "Ok." I say. He pushes away to see me. He looks down at me and smiles. I smile back at him.

Then, slowly, he leans down and kisses me. It's warm, it sends heat running through me, soft like a baby's touch. He backs away and runs off behind the houses before I can say anything. I watch him round the corner. All I can think is what just happened. I stand there and blink at the horizon. The sun is just now rising and I better get to work as well.
I slide the window open and hop inside. I get dressed in my usual cloths. A blue skirt and a blue top. I put my clothes on and pull my hair into a simple braid to the side. I walk over to my dresser, to my jewelry box. I open it up to see a shiny, eagle necklace, sparkling in the sunlight. Dad gave it to me when I was little and I've worn it ever since.
I put the necklace on and walked downstairs. When I step into the kitchen, I'm hit with heat coming from the oatmeal sitting on the table. I walk over and sit at the table. I'm not very hungry but I eat it anyway. Mom stands at the sink doing dishes. "Hey beautiful princess." She says turning around and smiling at me.

"Hey." I smile back.

"How did you sleep?"

"Good," I say, finishing my oatmeal and bringing it over to the sink.

"Eric's mom is not doing so well. She had a heart attack last night."

"Oh no. That's terrible," She said with watery eyes. Her and Kristi have been friends for a long time. "Have you talked to him today?" She looks at me.
I look down at the floor. Remembering this morning. He kissed me for the first time. Soft and warm. I blushed red, "yes," I answer.

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I ride the public bus to work. I'm one of the last to get off at my stop because they pick me up in my section. Section 5. We are split into 7 sections. Sections by class. The test tomorrow will determine what class I go to. We head north. Where I'm going is South, which means we have to go all the way around section one.

Section 1 is the palace, the Royal Family. The palace is in the center of Madison, the city where I live. There are walls, lining the borders. No one has ever went out past them. Who knows what is out there. Only those who go to war know what is out there.

When I get to work, it is crowded with people everywhere. I'm singing at a party today. And I'm just on time. I'm walking to the front, when I accidentally trip and fall backwards. Surprisingly, someone catches me from behind.

"Wow, you ok there?" I turn around to see a tall, muscular man. With dirty blond hair and big brown eyes, about my age, standing there. I quickly straighten my skirt.

"Umm..." I scramble for words, "Y-yes, thank you." I look at him shyly. He looks familiar.

He chuckles, "no problem." He smiles back at me with straight, white teeth. I can't help but blush. "What's your name?" He asks.

"Bell," I answer. "Bell Evans."

"Well, Bell Evans. It was nice meeting you." Then he walked away, disappearing into the crowd. Who was he? She thought. She could've sworn she'd seen him before.

• • •

That night when I get home, I go straight to bed. I slowly drift off to sleep. I dream about Tomas, my older brother in war. He was sent off at age 18. The oldest son of every family is sent out there. He's been out there for 3 years. My dad made it to age 30. But Eric's dad never made it out.

When Tomas had to leave, Jenna and mom cried for days. Jenna is only 14 so she won't be leaving for a while. I spend the rest of the night dreaming about Tomas.

• • •
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A/N: Hope you like it so far! Please leave a comment about what you thought about it! Thanks💕