The Leader

21

"Right? This stuff if so cool," Tera agrees.

"Thank you." I turn from the mirror to see Tera rummaging through her trunk again. She pulls out a tube of red and smirks at me.

"Red lipstick looks good on blondes," she says, "or so I've heard."

I shrug and sit down in my spot and she settles in front of me.

"So, you've not worn makeup before?"

"There wasn't any reason to," I say. "All I did was work in the fields and go to school. I saw other girls wear it, but I never asked what it was."

"That makes sense." She applies the lipstick to my lips and tells me to rub them together. "Well, this group of girls in Candor bullied me about my appearance in school. They said they were just being honest, but they were just being mean. They're the reason I wear makeup."

"Tera, you are beautiful," I say, pulling her in for a hug. "You know, I heard that when people are mean to you that means that they're jealous of you. Those girls were probably just jealous that you were more beautiful, smarter, tougher, and funnier than they were."

"Thank you." She pulls away from the hug and smiles at me. "I'm not sure if I've told you this lately, but I'm so glad I transferred to Dauntless. You two are the best."

She pulls me and Finn into a group hug. I giggle and squeeze them gently before releasing them with a sigh. Tera glances at the clock before turning back toward me.

"You have fifteen minutes to change clothes and get to the roof."

"I don't have anything different to wear." I stand and rummage through my trunk. "I haven't gotten the chance to go shopping."

"I thought you might say that." Tera smirks and pulls a black dress out of her trunk. "I bought this a while ago and it was a bit too small, so I thought I'd keep it for you."

"Wow, that is beautiful." The bottom of the dress is layered and looks like it would come mid knee. And it has long sleeves made of lace that give it a Dauntless feel. "Wouldn't that be a bit much? We're only supposed to be talking."

"Well, if all goes well," she says, "maybe you can convince him to come to karaoke with us."

"I'm sold," I say with a grin. "Thank you so much."

"We'll turn around so you won't have to leave the room." She turns around and Finn does the same. "Ah, you're going to look so gorgeous."

I pull my tank top over my head and slip out of my jeans. I step into the dress and push my arms through the sleeves. I try to pull the zipper all the way up but I can't reach.

"Would you mind zipping me up?"

Tera turns around and it is obvious she likes how the dress looks on me. I turn around so she can zip the dress. Once she finishes I do a quick spin around, letting the bottom of the dress flow.

"So, what do you think?"

Finn says, "Wow, you look beautiful."

"I agree," Tera says, beaming. "I mean, you always look beautiful, but this is a different level of your beauty."

"I'm about to cry." I look up and blink a few times before laughing.

"Lucky for you, I applied the waterproof mascara." She pauses, as if debating on if she should say what she's thinking. "I didn't know how this talk would go." Her words were barely above a whisper, but I heard her clearly.

I have no idea how this chat with Eric is going to go either, but I am hoping for the best.

"I'm hoping it goes well," I say with a small smile. "Speaking of which, he told me to meet him at seven, so I better get going."