I sit in a row of chairs in between an Erudite boy and an Abnegation girl. This is it. Today's the day of the Choosing Ceremony. The day where I will choose Dauntless and leave everything behind me.
I look over to the Candor section where my father and Clara are already seated. My dad asked me continuously what I got in my Aptitude test, and I simply repeated over and over that the information was 'classified' and that I wasn't supposed to say. It wasn't exactly a lie.
They will be hurt by my choosing Dauntless, I know, but it would be a lot worse for them if I chose Amity. And, of course, there's less chance of me being rejected.
I feel butterflies in my stomach as Jeanine Matthews, mounts the stage to do a speech, but I remind myself that I am making the right choice. If I choose to stay in Candor, I will have written my own death sentence.
"Welcome to the Choosing Ceremony," Jeanine Matthews begins. It's the Erudite's turn to host this year. The year after this will be Candor. I remember when I was younger that I used to love it when it was my dad's turn to speak. The memory makes me feel guilty but I try to brush it aside, "The importance of this moment cannot be understated..."
Jeanine Matthews talks about the significance of each choice, and then begins to read out the manifesto of each of the factions. With the reading out of Candor, Erudite and Amity, her tone is neutral, but when it comes to Abnegation, there's a slight hint of scorn. Most of the Erudite snigger, though the Erudite boy I'm sitting next to looks down on the floor in embarrassment and the Abnegation girl beside me takes deep breaths, as if to control her anger.
And then Jeanine reads out the Dauntless manifesto, and there's one sentence that strikes me: "We believe in ordinary acts of bravery, in the courage that drives one person to stand up for another".
I don't know if I believe in that. I have never stood up for a person in my life. I know if I was truly brave, then I would have stuck up for April Meadows rather than standing by and letting Isaac pick on her and her brother.
Have I had moments of bravery? Am I brave enough for Dauntless? Me sneaking into the school library every morning, was that brave? It went against all judgement to go against my Candor ideals just to satisfy my curiosity and love of reading.
I think I am more Erudite than Dauntless, but I know from the test that Dauntless is part of me, however hidden. And I must bring it out to survive and thrive in Dauntless.
Jeanine Matthews begins to read out the names of the sixteen year olds. My heart beats faster as each name is called and it gets closer and closer to my name. All the choices are predictable. Amity choose Amity. Abnegation choose Abnegation. Dauntless choose Dauntless. Candor choose Candor. And Erudite choose Erudite.
It's all the same-until the Erudite boy beside me is called that is. As he stands up and mounts the stage, I see how small he is, yet he holds himself with a quiet self-assurance.
There's an expectant hush as he takes a new knife from Jeanine, but the hush turns into a gasp, as he doesn't head towards the Erudite bowl, but instead towards the Abnegation one.
As the boy cuts his hand open with the knife and holds his bleeding hand over the Abnegation bowl, there are murmurs from the Erudites as they begin to move restlessly and glare at the Abnegation, who stare at their feet.
Before, the blood falls into the bowl, however, the boy removes his hand and looks at the crowd. I see his face fall as he takes in the angry and aggressive Erudites and the shuffling Abnegations. I see his shoulders rise and fall as he takes in a shuddering breath, as if steeling himself for something. Then he turns around, and holds out his hand over a bowl.
But this time it isn't the Abnegation bowl-there's gasps of confusion and shock as drops of his blood fall onto the burning coals. He's chosen Dauntless.
I hold my breath, expecting Jeanine to reject his decision, but she just smiles and says, "Dauntless," to the crowd. This is almost unprecedented. Hardly anyone changes their decision last minute-and no one has changed it due to Faction relations before. The boy has sacrificed his future with Abnegation just to make sure the temporary peace between Erudite and Abnegation last longer. It's almost unbelievable. And it's definitely not something I would ever do.
And then my name's called. I walk steadily to the stage and take the new knife from Jeanine. I hear the gasps from behind me as I walk away from the Candor bowl and towards the Dauntless one. I don't need to look around to picture the hurt on my dad's and Clara's faces. But the boy before me has made this decision easier. I'm not the only one transferring to a different faction, nor am I the first.
I grimace as the knife in my hand pieces the skin of my left hand. I hold my hand over the Dauntless bowl, gasping from the heat of the coals. Seconds pass as I wait for the blood from my hand to fall-long seconds, and which each one I feel the oppression from the crowd mounting.
Finally, a single drop of my crimson blood falls onto the burning coals, sizzling gently, and I hear Jeanine's announcement of "Dauntless," ring in my ears.
Without looking at the section where I know my dad and Clara will be sitting, I head over to the Dauntless and gratefully take a plaster that is handed to me.
I stand next to them, my eyes on the floor, and take a deep breath as the next few names are called. I've taken the first step that will now dictate how I will live the rest of my life. I've joined Dauntless. Now I need to focus on surviving. And to do that, I have to pretend I'm not smart.
A hand touches my shoulder and looking up, I realise that my acting skills already need to come into play. It's Isaac, the Erudite boy who beat up April. He's just transferred to Dauntless and is reaching for a plaster with his other hand. Though I'm not small, he is far taller than average height. He doesn't look down as he puts the plaster on and his blue eyes bore coolly into mine. I try not to feel intimidated as I wait for him to speak. Then, when he's smoothed over the plaster, he finally says, "So, you chose Dauntless?"
"Yeah," I try for a stupid giggle. But it comes out more of a high terrified squeak. I try to look confused as if I don't really remember him, as I say, "It's Isaac, right? The boy from the canteen?" I'm confused as to why he's even talking to me, but, then again, he might be as nervous as I am in joining a new faction.
"That's me," he smirks, holding out his hand, "And you're Brooke?" No, he's definitely not nervous. With a sinking feeling, I realise that he probably sees me as a fellow bully. It's not the nicest revelation, but I suppose no one would guess that a bully would be Divergent.
Not trusting myself to speak, I nod mutely and shake his outstretched hand, attempting to plaster a stupid smile on my face. I turn to look back at the Choosing Ceremony.
April's brother, River, is currently on the stage, and there's a collective gasp as his blood drops into the Abnegation bowl. It's not really much of a surprise though. If an Amity would transfer, it makes the most sense for them to go to Abnegation and vice versa. The factions are quite similar.
Next up is their sister, who unsurprisingly picks Amity. She rushes over to her faction and trips up on her long yellow dress that she was wearing.
Beside me, Isaac scoffs, "Amity and Abnegation are such worthless factions."
Old Brooke would have argued about this. Old Brooke would have said that all factions have their uses, no matter their differences. But as new-idiotic Brooke, I don't have the 'intelligence' to defend Amity and Abnegation.
"Yeah," I attempt to copy his snigger, which sounds wrong to my ears.
We watch April mount the stage, her shoulders back and back straight, exuding self-confidence. With a farewell glance towards the Amity section and a nod to her brother in the Abnegation section, she slices her hand with the knife, wincing as she does, and drops the blood onto the Dauntless bowls.
I should have expected her decision to choose Dauntless, but watching her make her way towards us is still a shock. She spots Isaac next to me and her smile turns into a scowl, and she sends a glare in our direction.
I blanch, but Isaac just sniggers, and I turn to look at him, and see that he is grinning somehow menacingly yet casually at her. Her glare unbelievably hardens.
"She won't make it to Dauntless," Isaac says to me confidently, "You'll see. Amity-transfers are rare." I note that he knows a lot about Dauntless but I don't say something. I've only just met him but he strikes me as someone who likes the sound of his own voice.
We turn our attention back to the Choosing Ceremony. By the time, it is over, there are, including me, Isaac and April, seven Candor-transfers, five Erudites, one Abnegation-transfer and one Amity (April).
I glance over to my family, and I see that Clara is crying in my dad's arms. I know it's better for both them and me that they don't know about my Divergence, but the twinge of guilt that I felt at the start of the Ceremony threatens to overcome me and I blink away the tears in my eyes.
I force down the emotions I'm feeling and follow the rest of the Dauntless out of the hall. They begin running down some stairs, and a feeling of eagerness surges through me, taking place of my guilt. This is it. We're on our way to Dauntless.