Allegiant (Continuation)

Chapter 17

(10 years later)
Natalia's POV

I slip on a purple shirt, dark jeans, and combat boots. It is only 6 am, so I stare out of my window at the familiar horizon.

We moved here, to a small town just outside of Chicago, 10 years ago. I was six. Christina, Uriah, and their kids Noah, Emily, and Lynn live on one side of us. Shauna, Zeke and their son Leo live on the other side.

We were some of the first settlers here, and even after 10 years we are still among only few others. Being so small, we still go to a school in Chicago. It is a very long commute.

At 6:30 I walk next door to Noah's and Emily's house. They look rather flustered when I open the door. "Lynn being tough?" I ask. Noah nods his head, I almost see fear in his eyes.

I walk over Lynn's room and knock. She responds with yelling, "What!" She is a very feisty six year old.

I walk in and she brightens up. Her dark curls are a mess, forming a frizzy halo around her head. She is also still in pajamas. "Look at this new toy that Mommy bought me!" I laugh. Lynn and I have always had a special connection. "That's awesome," I say "but why don't we get ready for school, and then we can play with it later." She nods and within 5 minutes I have her dressed, brushed, and ready to go.

Noah gives me an astounded look. I laugh. "How do you do it Tessa?" I give him a serious look and say, "Mind control." We both break out in large grins. Our gaze holds longer then socially acceptable, and I soon feel a tug at the hem of my shirt. I look down to see Lynn showing me the time on her colorful, cartoon watch. I open the door, and she runs in a pink blur. Noah, Emily and I sigh and run after her.

We run a while until the old, metal train tracks come into view. I put my ear to the tracks and hear a slight mechanical buzz. I back up and nod toward Noah. We prepare ourselves to jump. Emily lifts up Lynn and holds her tight in her arms.

We see the big metal train travel like a bullit towards us. I inhale and run, I jump into the car and am quickly followed by Noah, Emily and Lynn. I remember when Daddy first taught me to jump into the train. I was 8 years old. I remember how nervous Daddy was at first, unwilling to let me go. I smile at the thought.

We take the long journey in silence. Noah and I occasionally exchange glances, and it is as if we are having an entire conversation. We know each so well that we can practically read each other's minds.
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We jump off the train. I look over my school. We walk Lynn over to the elementary school next door, a faded yellow building. After we stroll over to our usual spot, to wait until the bell rings.

We sit on the old metal bench, which makes odd creaking sounds. I look over my school. My parents refer to it as the Hub. It is made mostly of large windows and thin metal beams, which have began to rust over the years. The high school is 'privileged' to be in the big building. Elementary and middle are in two smaller buildings next door, that look as if they were put together in one day. I look around and think of how much we are still like the old ways. We learn a lot about the factions and the war, etc. I know that both my parents were Dauntless, and that my mother was Abnegation-born. I don't know about my father, I've learned over the years that his past is a touchy subject, so for the most part I leave it alone.

A rather perky girl in red and yellow bounces up to me, hands me, Emily, and Noah a flyer and says, "Hope you can make it!" With way to much enthusiasm. I look at it, it's for some dance that is coming up. I will never show it, but I'm actually exited. Believe it or not, I really love dances, even if I end up going alone. This dance is different though, it's 'girls ask guys'. I look around at my options.

The 'popular' crowd consists of more perky girls and athletic, (and mentally below average) boys. Next I look at a group of people who seem to be crowding around a pile of books. I'm pretty decent in school, but I couldn't even imagine dedicating my entire life to studying and learning.

Then there are the kids who say whatever, whenever. They don't have any filter between their mouth and brain, it disgusts me that they take such pride in that. Next their is the 'helping hands' club, they will do anything for anybody. After that, their are kids who, like Noah, Emily and I ride that train to school. But we aren't like them, we think before we do something, we don't just put our lives in jeopardy for the fun of it like they do. At the end of all of this, it comes down to Noah, our friends Keri, Emily, Jason, Leo and I. We don't really fit in to any particular category. We are a mixture of various personalities and backgrounds. In some strange way, I find this comforting, I don't have to conform, but am rather welcomed for being unique.

I spot Jason, Keri, and Leo and wave them over. Practically shoving me off the bench, they take their seats. Leo is a few months younger then us all, and quieter as well. Keri and Jason are twins, just like Noah and Emily. Though, they have there distinct differences. Keri and Jason tend to have a love-hate relationship, whereas Emily and Noah are incredibly close.

We all make idle chitchat until the bell rings. Emily and I have first period together, so we walk together. "Do you know who are going to ask to the dance?" I ask. "No" I can hear that she is unsure, but decide to drop the topic. We enter class and prepare for a very long day.
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The bell rings for lunch and Noah and I exchange a look of relief. Together, we walk to the cafeteria where we will meet the rest of the group. Noah takes an awe fully long time to pack up, so we walk the empty halls to lunch. Suddenly he stops. I stop too, and am about to ask him what's wrong when he takes my hands. I am silenced by shock.

Before he can speak though, Emily comes running through the halls. Noah let's go of my hands quickly and puts a lot of space in between us. "There you two are!" Emily says, out of breath. "We thought that Mrs. Marie put you in detention!" We run to the cafeteria.

Noah and I don't dare make eye contact. Everyone shifts uncomfortably, tension obviously in the air. "Tessa, do you want to go throw away our trash?" I nod.

On the walk there he rubs his hand along the back of his neck and says, "It meant nothing, what I did. I mean, umm, I was just off balance and needed to hold onto you for support. That's all." I don't know why but I feel a little depressed by his words. Do I have feelings for him? I dismiss the thought from my mind, I am being irrational. I shake my head and tell him "ok", before storming back to our table.

"Hey Jason," I say, "Want to go to the dance with me?" He looks a little shocked, but says yes. I don't know why, but both Emily and Noah's faces get suddenly very pale.

We eat the rest of lunch in silence, waiting for the bell.

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