Divergent High: College Life

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I get off the bus, and wait for the bus driver to allow me to cross. I'm not too old, probably around eleven or twelve. I cross the street, skipping to the next song on my iPod Classic. I pull my hood over my head, and keep my head up, watching for cars and sketchy people. It's Portland, so that's not unusual.

I see a van, not like a soccer mom's minivan, but a creepy looking one. I turn right on the sidewalk, looking back at the van for a second. Two strange and scary looking men get out of the van, I turn my head around and keep walking towards my house. I pull one of the earbuds out of my ear so I could possibly hear someone if they came up behind me.

Someone grabs my backpack, and I have to stop walking. I take the straps off my shoulders and start running.

"Don't just stand there! Go get her!" I hear one of the men yell. The voice sounds very familiar, but I can't quite tell who it is.

I keep running, thankful that I'm great at it. I run past my house, and straight into the forest that surrounds most of the neighborhood. I weave around trees, hoping to lose the guy, or the two guys. I look back to see where they're at, and when I turn my head back around, the only thing I see is a tree.

I should stop running, I think.  I should move around the tree.

But I don't think that fast enough to be able to stop running or move around the tree, so I run into the tree, and then fall to my knees. I look behind me, and sure enough, the guy is there ready to snatch me.

He's a big dude, built think and athletic. I can't see any facial features though, and that's probably what scares me the most. He picks me up, and that's when I wake up.

My eyes shoot open. I sit up, panting, and pushing my slightly sweaty hair back from my face. I take deep breaths, and run my fingers through the slightly damp hair attached to my head.

Tobias wakes up a little bit too, and props his head up on a pillow.

"Are you okay?" he asks.

"Yeah," I say while laying back down. He wraps his arms around me. "It was just a nightmare."

"Do you want to talk about it?"

I shake my head. "No, not right now."

"Okay," he whispers and kisses the top of my head. He starts gently rubbing my back, and I fall back asleep easily.
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The little bit of sunlight that is able to peek through the clouds and cracks in my curtains is enough to wake me. I blink a few times and sit up with my knees pulled up to my chest.

I get up and put my hair into a messy bun. I hear the shower going in the bathroom, so I'll get ready after breakfast. I grab my phone and slide it in between my hip and the waistband of my running shorts. I leave my room and go downstairs to the kitchen.

Mom isn't making anything, so I just get some juice and a bowl of Honey Nut Cheerios. I eat in the kitchen, on my phone the entire time.

"Morning," Mom says.

"Morning," I say, only looking up from my phone for a second.

"Ugh, teenagers."

"It would actually be, 'ugh, adults'. I'm 20, not 14, Mom."