Six Years Later - Choosing Ceremony

"Tobias Eaton." Jack Kang calls my name, and before I can get up, Marcus lays a hand on my arm. "Don't forget your promise, dear," he whispers. It's obvious he's mocking me. Now that I'm sixteen, I've grown taller, so much that I tower over Marcus.

This is both a blessing and a curse, because while I can use my height as an advantage to prevent physical aggression, it hasn't stopped Marcus from cursing the day I was born more than ever. I ignore his warning and pull away from his grasp.

He can't hurt me, not anymore, not after I forced myself to break the vase. I hurled it at the floor this morning, then dumped its remains beneath a pile of garbage in our trash can, and tucked the smallest shard away in my pocket. Marcus wouldn't beat me.

Not this time. I smile to myself. Head up, shoulders back. That's what my mom would have said. I can feel the eyes of every Abnegation member focused on me, certain that I will come back to them, that I will serve others and never think of myself until the day I die.

What they do not know is that, for the first time in my life, I will be selfish. I will not keep the promise I made so many years ago to my faction. I take the knife from Jack, cut myself, and let my blood fall on the sizzling coals.