"Everyone Jump!"
I look at Christina, her eyes tell me she's panicking. I hold out my hand for her to hold.
She smiles gently and takes it.
"You ready?" I quietly say to her.
She nods and we jump together.
We crash onto the rocks and she starts to roll away from where we landed. I look down and see my skirt ripped, my skirt was tight and a bit too short, I would always get in trouble for it. My shirt was black and baggy sort off with a white collar. I liked the colour black on me, brought out my natural tan but these clothes didnt matter anymore, there not mine.
"Gather round people" the brunette I followed shouts.
Selfishly, I dont wait for Christina to get up I just go straight to where I was told too.
We all gather around and he's talking about how dauntless are brave and fearless but as hes talking someone comes up behind me and pulls on my shirt a little.
It's Christina.
"You okay?" I whisper.
Well I thought I whispered it anyway, somehow the brunette stops talking and looks directly at me which encourages everyone else too.
"You, come here" he said mischievously.
"Me?" I look at him confused.
He nods.
"You seem to act like you know what your doing, prove it." He smirks
I look to my left and widen my eyes to Christina; the 'what the fuck do i do' look.
She shrugs her shoulders and panics for me
I know not to show it, but I'm scared now.
I walk past everyone not even giving them what they want. They want me to be scared and embarrass myself so I can be the embarrassment.
"Your going to jump." he says.
Everyone starts looking at one another. Some people gasp, some people laugh and others just stand there in confusion.
"Dont worry you're not going to die" he whispers to me so only I can hear.
"What so I just jump, jump off here?"
"Mmh" He smirks
I take a deep breath and look down, it just keeps going down, how will i not die? But I know I cant turn around, I cant not jump, I'll be the joke, people will laugh at me. So I just jumped.
I have no idea what came over to me to jumped but I have.
crash
I bounce back up, back down, then up again then back down till I lay up and see a bunch of people staring at me. I look up to where I jumped to see everyone hoovered over the roof i just jumped off, staring at me to see if I'm alive.
"First jumper everyone." He starts clapping, long pause in between each clap. He's sarcastically clapping, no one else.
He's embarrassing me.
He stops clapping as soon as he sees me. I blow a little piece of hair out of my face and grab onto the pole and swing my legs forward so i'm sitting, legs dangling down to a massive drop. I put my hand in front of him and he grabs it firmly, he pulls me over and with his other hand grabs my waist to support me.
I look up at him, his beautiful big brown eyes looking back down at me, he's tanned and has brownish hair which, more i look at it, looks kind of curly. He doesn't smile, he doesn't do anything but stare back at me. I'm admiring him and he's looking back at me blankly. He lets go of my waist and i walk away letting go of his hand in mine.
"Whats your name jumper?" he asks.
"Kayleigh." I said.
This whole time we haven't unlocked eye contact, I didn't want to be the one too look away, I'm trying to make an impression; not cocky but confident.
crash
We both look away and look at the net.
"Kay?" A familiar voice squeals.
Christina.
"Yeah?" I say
No one's ever called me Kay. Never had a nickname before, never crossed my mind to have one.
kay
I like it.
The guy looks at me and I look back at him, he stares me down for a second but I look away as Christina gets up. As I look back at him still looking at me I point with my eyes at Christina and raise an eyebrow.
One by one they all come jumping down. Last to jump was the brunette I followed with the piercing above his eyebrow. He shaved his hair off on the sides but on top had almost a man-bun, it was dark brunette almost black. He had 3 visible tattoos too, one on his neck the other two on his forearm, but you wouldn't of even noticed them with the size of his biceps
He divides us into groups and designates a leader for each, he points the guy to our group and walks over to us. Me and Christina are together, standing at the front - accidental - I'm not making it look like I'm licking anyones arse.
"I'm four, and I'll be your leader"
His voice is deep.
"Four like the number four?" Christina jokes.
I know it was a heartless joke but I cant help but cringe. Was she trying to lighten the mood, was she trying to flirt? Me and her are the only girls in our group so she can get all his attention easily.
You can tell who chose the groups, the brunette guy, one with the piercing, has practically all the girls. Clearly his intention all along.
"Exactly like the number four." He nods sternly
He doesn't even let out a smile. Blank.
"What happened, one, two, three taken?" she side smiles.
Okay now I've got second hand embarrassment. I looked to my side without turning my head hoping she'd see me telling her to shut up.
He sighs and walks over.
"Whats your name?"
Oh. Maybe it did work.
"Christina." She looks up to him.
"Well, Christina. The first lesson you learn from me... If you want to survive here."
I hear her gulp, loudly.
"Is keep your mouth shut"
He turns and looks at me after he says it. He looks at me as if I was the one to say anything.
I haven't even said anything.
The look he gave me though, my stomachs turning, he knew what he was doing.
He shows us around, gives us a tour of dauntless. He walks us through a hallway where all of the 'leaders' rooms are. I peak into one of the rooms, its massive, modern and furnished. It's definitely an upgrade from our shared bunks and bathroom.
"Think of it as a hierarchy, the higher you are the better you get treated."
Clearly.
After taking us to get changed - The girls got to get changed into leggings or gym shorts, I chose gym shorts, with either a leather jacket or just a normal sports one. I went for the sport jacket, I thought the leather was cliche - Four took us to the training ground. There was a boxing ring in the centre, surrounded by punching bags all around. There was a couple of wood cut outs with what I'm only guessing holes from knifes thrown at them. Lots of other things around but God knows what for.
By the ring, there was a tv like screen, that projected a table, a table with all our names on it. Four gathered us all around it.
"By the end of this week, if your names in red.."
He presses a button on his remote.
"Then your out. Forever"
I feel everyone else look around at one another. But what they don't realise is the disadvantages me and Christina have, were the only girls here. Now I'm normally anti-sexism, but its science.
Four explains theres going to be 4 competitions to complete, as much as you dont want to be last, you also want to be first.
"Remember when I was on about a hierarchy. Well you come first in this you go againts Erics #1"
Eric?
"Whoever wins your a step higher then everyone else here." He explains.
A couple more shitty pep talks and he basically tells us to go do our own thing
I drag Christina over to the furthest away punching bag and start pretending to be practicing when really I want to talk to her.
"This isn't fair." I demand.
"I know! How come we have to have the shitty communal homes while he can have the luxury of his own, gorgeous, room."
"Look at us, then look at everyone else!" I'm rounding myself up now. I'm actually deeping the disadvantage were at.
She looks at me confused.
"I don't get it."
Shes no help.
"Forget it."
I turn my back on her and start boxing. My mom signed me up to box after all my protests and temper tantrums about not wanting to do ballet. My mom wanted me to do a sport though, even if it was unlady like. She needed to find a way for me to exercise and not get fat, to stay her tiny skinny baby for as long as i could. I remember when I turned 14 I was already a C cup, she told me to stop boxing and do dance as most dance girls were flat and skinny. Apparently big boobs weren't the look.
Imagine how she felt when I told her I needed new bras. I went up two sizes in a year.
"Fuck me Kay where did you learn that?" Christina squealed.
I laugh it off
"I've always done boxing." I explain.
"Teach me?" She asks.
I smile at her and come up behind her and move her hands to where they need to be.
"Your doing it wrong."
A deep voice coming behind me says.
I turn around and look up to him. How long has he been there for?
"How am i?" I cross my arms and raise one eyebrow.
"If she hits anyone with a right hook like that, she'll end up hurting herself more then hitting them. Her arm isn't turned out right."
"I'm not trying to perfect something first try when she doesn't even know how to do it" I bark back.
"Your not going to perfect it when yours isn't perfect."
Offended.
"And how would you know?" I question.
"I saw your right hook earlier, your bending your elbow in too soon."
"Oh so you were watching me?"
Fuck.
Why did I say that? Of course he was watching me he's my leader after all. Now i've just made it look like I'm flirting with him.
"Promblem?"
I don't say anything. I'm scared I'm going to fuck it up.
I turn back around and move Christinas arm how Four said I should.
She hits the pad harder this time, even though her thumb was on the inside of her grip.
"You try it... Kay"
He called me kay.
I look back at him questioning him with my body language, he encourages me to do so slapping the bag a couple times.
I put my right foot forward, left foot back, into stance. I position my right fist up and left fist a littler lower.
bang
Probably the hardest I've punched anything. I smile to myself, proudly, before I turn back around. It was perfect, my elbow was bent precisely, the power on the hit was astonishing, there was nothing he bad he could say about it.
"Your left foot needs to be closer to your right." He says before turning around.
I laugh to myself.
He had nothing else to say but correct something that never mattered in the first place.