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bradfordarchive · 5 years

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clicks my fingers to no humanly discernible rhythm as i strut bk onto the dash w chara number two!! (it’s me nai bk again bt this time wearing a stick on moustache). bradley’s pinterest is HERE n u kno the drill mre abt her under the cut n like this fr those Sweet Sweet plots!!

MARGARET QUALLEY / CIS-FEMALE — don’t look now, but is that bradley milligan i see? the 23 year old psychology student is in their junior year and she is a rochester alum. i hear they can be brave, resilient, destructive and ruthless, so maybe keep that in mind. i bet she will make a name for themselves living in off campus. ( nai. 23. gmt. she/her. )

aesthetics: singeing a hole in your fishnets with the cherry of a menthol, spitting a pistachio behind the bar just to hear it ping off the nozzle top bottles, lemon in a fresh cut, a war torn poppy standing alone in an empty field, poking bruises, stomping over flowerbeds when there’s a path right next to it, dangling over ledges just to feel your chest jolt, a snarling rottweiler that should be muzzled, limp feet poking out behind a door, ‘I PROMISE I DON’T BITE’ scrawled on a name tag, slapping a bald head in front of you at the cinema like it’s a bongo, not owning a single jacket that isn’t stolen, driving a stolen car in the wrong lane against the traffic, blowing coke in someone’s face after asking “hey, does this smell funny to you?”, hair more feral than a wolf cub and eyes smudgier than a coal mine.

BACKGROUND:

father runs a gang n strip club in queens called ‘no angels’ tht fronts an affluent drug trade, primarily coke. his name is tony milligan n his gang is p infamous around there fr being jst like…. completely cutthroat n awful. they were nicknamed ‘tony’s rottweilers’ by locals bc he bsically has all of these trained dogs on leash at his command n they’re still a growing organisation tday

he’s pretty much the worst human being alive n bradley hs like….. a lot of issues with herself as a result of years of toxicity n abuse

in terms of more family bkground info her mum’s name was alyssa n she vanished when bradley was 12. jst like…. into thin air. nothing. no note. zilch. gan! n when bradley asked her dad abt it his response was essentially “guess she didn’t love us enough to stay”. as bradley’s got older tho n become (without intention) more involved in the business side of things, it’s become pretty clear there was far more to the story.

they had a horrible marriage n tony ws quite violent at the best of times, which didn’t help the fact tht alyssa ws struggling a lot w severe depression n rly just… not in the mindset to b dealing w anything else on top of tht, even where motherhood ws concerned. bradley p much… would look after her a lot n they’d both b scared of her dad n it was just a whole mess.

anyway im rambling bt basically tony (bradley’s dad) gt wind of alyssa sleeping w men tht worked fr him n he just… got rid. bradley’s kind of worked out over the yrs tht her mum didn’t jst leave on her own accord n tht something must hav happened to her bt she’s too scared of her dad to ever directly accuse him

when her mum went all of her dad’s cruelty pretty mch got channelled straight onto her. it ws diluted between two before bt as u can probably imagine her upbringing was jst…. a steep downhill decline frm tht point onwards

she learnt ways 2 deal w the incurring trauma bt they weren’t healthy ones at all! bsically jst. will do or take anything fr the distraction. chases a thrill like it’s the only way to remind her she’s alive. has absolutely no regard fr her own wellbeing n sometimes gets other ppl in trouble too bc she’s so insatiably reckless

she hd….2 separate stints of psychiatric hospitalisation n she never tlks abt it. like ever. acknowledging she’s been vulnerable is her worst nightmare n bc of the way her dad raised her she always thinks any sign of struggling within herself is weakness. truly does…. not kno how to properly emotion

CUT TO!!!! huntington beach. she’s currently living in a spacious loft above a rly busy bar tht i picture like. p close to campus so a lot of students prob frequent it?? she loves it bc she can sit on the window sill smoking n argue w ppl tht walk past drunk. jst randomly callin out like. nice chest hair Loser. i feel like she hasn’t even paid fr wifi she jst uses the bar’s free one n like. goes in there expecting free drinks all the time?? is jst like erm? i live here? let me drink? this is my house? aka she’s. a lot.

her dad’s opening up a new strip club (also called no angels bc he’s trying to lowkey make it like a chain) n he’s only allowed her to make the move bc she’s overseeing it kind of???? as well as a few guys tht worked fr him back in queens. one in particular called billy hs made the move n he’s a menace so. three cheers fr anarchy!

PERSONALITY:

the kind of sour cherry only certain people have a taste for

once drank a bottle of whiskey, insisted she could still do a cartwheel and accidentally kicked an old man’s front tooth out in the process. proceeded 2 collapse into a flower bed and laugh so much abt it that she cried

barely takes anything seriously 50% of the time and is angry the other 50%

if she was a coffee she’d be black with five grains of sugar that you couldn’t taste until the last sip

high functioning alcoholic. if u ever see her w a coffee cup u jst kno tht one sniff will confirm high alcohol percentage. honestly idk hw she does it her liver must b yellin

loyal to a point of fault. if she cares abt u and u murder a man in cold blood she’ll brawl anyone that says ur guilty

honestly wld probably fight a person over anything. sometimes she’ll jst be having a bad day n she’ll burst n take it out on whoever says the wrong thing. a minefield!

has the worst luck in romance…. ever. the majority of her past bfs hav been absolute beasts n as a result she kind of has the ‘romance is dead n love is a lie’ mentality

speakin of which i feel like she’s bi bt wldnt have dated a girl or anythin. like guys r probably…. her preference just bc historically theyv treated her worse n she hs a very self destructive personality like that. sexy!

dresses like courtney love, 2014 sky ferreira and a character from this is england had a baby. mostly wears stolen clothes from strangers and jackets that swamp her. hair is p much always a wild mess n she usually hd kind of smudgy/smoky makeup bcos apparently she’s allergic to combs and generally looking presentable… relatable content

she’s v sarcastic. sometimes blunt. kind of has a habit of…. assessing a person n she’s quite perceptive bc she’s been trained to b by the way she always has to monitor her dad’s expression fr the slightest emotion change. she’s quite confident n can p much mke a conversation out of whatever. sort of independent too like she hs a bunch of friends bt she doesn’t care abt going out places alone if she’s in a certain mood n jst wants…… to get into chaos. she’s probably kind of known around campus bt itd b a 50/50 balance between bein known as intimidating n bein known as that one girl tht always gets into anarchy

likes: fishnets, stealing cars, throwing watermelons off rooftops and whiskey

dislikes: amy schumer, honesty, yellow tulips and going home

PLOTS:

someone tht got a job at the new strip club her dad opened up in town?? either as a dancer or bartender or whtever. just a forewarning it’s probably gna b a pretty..... seedy and Not That Pleasant environment bc it’s like. a crime hotspot inevitably bc it’s a gang hangout so. ur chara wld truly be in fr a rollercoaster ride to say the least

she deals coke fr her dad’s gang bt it’s more like. a hobby than a steady source of income tht she Needs bc she just likes the thrill of the fact tht encounters in tht line of work can turn sour tbh. a Thrill Seeker! mayb she deals to ur muse??

anyone….. she’s brawled in the past like. she’s literally a menace i cnt express this enough. wil jst randomly throw a drink in someone’s face fr no reason bc she’s bored. she’s probably pissed off 1000 diff ppl in 1000 diff ways. the possibilities r endless n i jst think tht’s a sexy prospect!

fwbs perhaps??? exes??? (probably ws a tumultuous relationship wtever…. ur muse is like like bradley is. a handful)

mayb someone tht she met at an aa meeting when she hd to go fr a court mandated thing one time after bein arrested fr public indecency. i feel like there’s probably a rly expensive statue somewhere thts fancily Sculpted n she like. did a flying kick n kicked the dick of it off n gt arrested fr it

ppl she……. Goes Wild Goes Crazy w. truly jst the most self destructive person alive so anyone w a similar mindset wld b a hellish bt fun combination

on the contrary a gd influence cld b nice perhaps? like someone tht genuinely cares abt her n she jst doesn’t kno hw to compute it

um. honestly the world’s our oyster. hmu n we cn brainstorm if none of tht catches ur eye!

#huntingtonintro #depression tw #abuse tw #drugs tw #alcohol tw #alcoholism tw #hospitalisation tw #disappearance tw #death tw #grief tw #murder tw #self harm tw #addiction tw #so sry there r so many tws bradleys life hs been. An Experience to say the least

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beautifulramblingbrains · 7 years

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Crush - Chapter 8. Bye

Pairing: Eric/OC *Abbey* Fandom: Divergent Rating: M

A memory from Eric’s past plays tricks on him. And it’s all about the girl, Abbey Ainsworth.

A/N: I’m having so much fun with this!

Tags: @iammarylastar @badassbaker @pathybo@mimigemrose@frecklefaceb @beltz2016 @ariwolff14 @lauraaan182 @kenzieam @tigpooh67 @elaacreditava@equalstrashflavoredtrash@murmelinchen

Mark swipes his balding hair to one side with a clammy hand.

It's not that he was nervous. No. It was an excitement bleeding through him and spreading into every limb, jamming at the tips of his fingers as an indescribable but pleasurable twitch.

Ahead of him lays Amity's Hospice but his eyes aren't concentrated on it, they are flitting from side to side, behind him, on the ground of where he walks as he contemplates his next cautious move. Then, with a small grin of glee, he finally lands on a few of his men lingering by the door.

Outside stands the young Dauntless guards and as he approaches they seem to slip their hands over the trigger of their guns in anticipation… until they notice who it is.

"Mark," one of the men greets him and he bows his head respectfully in response.

"Johanna has sent me on an errand. Would you believe it, someone has burnt themselves on the bonfire tonight! Only minor thankfully, but I must get some treatment."

There's a moment's pause but he's not worried. This was plan A. Plan B involves a little extra force, if he so needed.

"Okay. But make it quick," the seemingly head-honcho of the Dauntless guards replies and he's nudged by one of the others while they whisper between themselves for a few seconds until Mark overhears, "He's Amity… Johanna's…" And with that, the argument is settled and he's being waved through.

But he stops between them, eyeing the one on his right. He leans a little into him and whispers, "Long live the resistance."

Everything's sudden and thought through. His men pounce and they use a particular serum to wipe their memories from the past few hours, temporarily knocking them unconscious.

"Place them in the fields. They will think they drank too much."

Only one of Mark's men follows him into the hospice. They slip by unnoticed, past the nurse too busy with her nose in a book behind the counter, and follow the line of rooms until they find the one they are after.

The man inside is cuffed onto the bed, his leg bandaged from Eric's nippy weapon. When he sees Mark his eyes light up. "Thank God! You came! Get me out of here…" he pulls on the restraints for the added effect.

Mark's pace is slow, casual, stepping lightly towards him. "I'm sorry, Tate. You are an unreliable source to us now." He pokes his index finger directly into his wound and at the same time clamps his hand over his mouth as Tate garbles a high cry into his palm.

Over his shoulder, he gives a quick signal to one of his more reliable men.

"Pliers…"

Abbey's laying bare on her side, her hands running over Eric's stomach, tracing the taut muscles until she reaches the more softer skin of his crotch. "Rise and shine sleeping beauty." She knows he's kind of awake but not quite ready to move yet.

"No," he replies quickly.

"No?" She pulls away and balances on her elbows for a second. "I think somebody needs a little practice in the arts of politeness."

"Somebody is trying to sleep."

Abbey furrows her brows, a disastrous attempt, and pokes him in his side. "Well, I'm getting up and I'll make coffee."

"No, no. I'm up. Don't bother. Your coffee offends me…" He suddenly jolts upwards, pushing her over. "…In many ways you can't imagine," he snidely finishes, close to her face.

"Pfft, so what? I'm still alive."

"Your blood is used to the poison you produce, I'm not surprised." Eric strolls out of her room naked and Abbey can't take her eyes off his butt. – Until he turns suddenly and smirks across at her.

"Very cheeky." His laugh echoes from the other room and she allows herself to roll onto her back under the small strip of light fluttering in from the curtains. "Eric?"

"Yeah!"

She hesitates, suddenly thinking about all the times his mom opened the door to her and greeted her with outstretched arms as if she was one of her own. "Do you want me to come with you?"

"No."

A few minutes' pass and he reappears, still as butt naked as he was before and is surprised by Abbey fishing around in one of her drawers. "Ab's, what are you doing?"

"If I can't go, then I want you to take something with you." She barely looks at him, disappearing past him out of the door and to the bathroom.

"Don't even-"

She pops her head back in the room and smirks. "It's not an option."

"Not flowers." He tries a more straight-to-the-point reply and command wrapped into one. His mouth is slightly agape as he tries to fathom the dynamics and inner workings of the creature he shares a bed with.

"Your Mom liked flowers. Every woman likes flowers," her voice echoes from the bathroom.

"I'm not carrying flowers with me."

"Don't be so masculine all your life…" She slips back in the room, washed and underwear-clad before rummaging back in the drawers. "You act as if it's a major sin, like they'll infect you." He watches her carefully when she pulls out a coral dress and throws it over her head. Her efforts in getting ready and appearing graceful in seconds were unmatched to any other.

"Can we restart this morning again?"

"No. Eric listen-"

"You're not letting this go, are you?" His face is back into its usual frown.

"Nope."

Eric pulls himself up, grabbing his clothes from the floor and dressing at an inhumanly possible speed. "If you can catch me before I leave for Erudite, then I'll take them." He leaves without another word, just a smug look on his face.

Abbey shrugs. "Game on, Mister."

Abbey smiles to herself.

Like Eric was going to leave and not say goodbye or check she would be okay in his absence. The thought was laughable. She knew him too well. – But not only that, she had in fact managed to keep up with him.

His gray eyes peer down at her, each side of his mouth etched up slightly as if he somehow knew exactly what she was thinking.

"Here," she passes him a delicate bouquet and without much choice he takes it. – Although, he does lob it somewhere into the cab.

The trucks are sitting idle. Two of them are leaving today. One with some of the Dauntless who are swapping with refreshed members. The other, Eric's, is going to Erudite.

"I'll be back tonight." He touches her arm briefly. "Don't miss me too much." He leans in and brushes his lips against hers in a tiny moment, then he's moving away and pulls himself up into the cab. "While I'm away… shave your legs…" He winks handsomely, slamming the door.

"Ass." But it's light and she didn't mean it.

She's trying desperately not to show her emotions towards the arrangements with Eric's Mother. Eric's faux attitude was just a way to hide how he was feeling. She really hadn't said anything about it or mentioned it and he'd mainly kept it to himself. In a way, Abbey thought he may have confided in her, but he didn't, which was also expected of course. It didn't mean it didn't hurt. And bottling up emotions were hardly her forte.

His hand waves out of the window as the truck pulls off, scrabbling at the graveled turf underneath and Abbey flutters her fingers lightly at him.

"Good morning, Abbey." She's caught off guard and turns to be faced with Johanna.

"Hi, Johanna."

"How's Eric holding up?"

Abbey sighs, "Erm. He's okay I guess. He hasn't really said anything." She frowns, staring down at her feet, feeling slightly embarrassed that she was the only person close to him and she didn't really know what was running through his mind. "He's handling it in a very Eric kind of way."

"I gathered."

"I… better get going. I'm supposed to be opening up this morning."

Johanna puts a hand on her shoulder as she tries to pass. "If you need anything, anything at all. Please, just come and find me." Her smile falters a little. "I have some extra time on my hands these days and I'm not one for being side-lined… As much as Eric would like me to shift into the shadows and denounce my role, I will fight. I will fight for Amity, to keep it as it once was."

"I'm sure things will go back to normal once the problem with the factionless gets sorted."

"I hope so, dear, I really do." Johanna pauses, her eyes seemingly questioning or debating something internally. "You ever thought of taking a more suited role within Amity?"

"I'm very happy with what I'm doing."

"Just think about it. I see so many beneficial things presented in you that it's hard to ignore… You have the fire I sometimes wish I had. Eric sees it. I see it."

Abbey shakes her head. "I'm a florist, Johanna. What can I possibly contribute towards Amity?" she laughs. "Thanks for considering me, though."

Johanna stares off after Abbey, now a little brisker in her steps. Johanna's words were no doubt swimming through her mind. To herself, Johanna mumbles, "More than you know."

Abbey was a part of Eric now. Eric was sure to be the next main voice of Dauntless once Max had begun his slow abdication into the back-seat in the years to come. Having Abbey as a potential hierarchy in Amity, her position would be greatly unmatched with her connection to Dauntless, securing all the things Johanna had had to mold around and beg for. Protection. Personnel. Supplies.

Dauntless' connection with Erudite was also strong, and Abbey being ex-Erudite, the numbers laid heavily in her favor. If she was guided, taught the ways of Leadership, Johanna had no doubts Abbey could run Amity and she could think of no person better for the job.

The reason her thoughts had expanded on the subject was because of the severity of the situation. There was danger lurking behind every faction. There was no need in the past to have a line-up for her role and she'd never given it much thought. But now, if something happened, the only potential suitor was Mark who was heavily supported. And for some reason, she was becoming to detest the thought.

But the only person to convince Abbey to even think about the role was the fool she had to put up with in the past week… Eric.

Abbey's lost in her own troubled thoughts, no thanks to Johanna who seemingly threw a spanner in the works. As if there wasn't enough on her plate at the moment.

She actually liked her job. She liked what she did, the casual element to it and never, not once, thought about changing her role and especially not to anything Johanna had been obviously planning for.

Some Dauntless on her right gives her the eye as she passes and she tries to quickly smile at them. They still watch her and eventually, she turns a corner - not before glaring at them.

Whatever they thought about her, or her and Eric, she couldn't care less for. She was her own person, her own being and ruled the way in which it panned out. If she wanted to be with Eric, she had to accept the obvious distaste the Dauntless would probably have for her Amity skin. She would just have to steel her backbone a little more. In some ways, she had to be a little more like Eric, but in her own way, like how they were when they were younger.

Abbey has the key for the door clutched tightly in her hand as the shop sits quietly and lifeless in front of her. - She would have to work on the outside of the shop, the display was abysmal.

Under the arch of the doorway, she's about to put the key in the door, when down by the floor, something wrapped in ripped cotton and some standard yarn tied into a neat bow, captures her eye. Peering down, she nudges it with her foot thinking its rubbish or something blown in from the pathways. It's slightly heavier than expected…

She doesn't know why, but her hands become clammy. She twists the key in her fingers, a wave of anxiety sweeping through her before crouching down, checking around her. Had someone left her something here? Or was it something for the other girls?

With a timid, prodding finger, she unwraps the bow. But the material is stuck to whatever it is and she can't imagine grabbing the thing. She uses the key to pull at the material. Slowly, there's a sticky, wet, peeling sound and situated neatly in the bottom… is a tongue.

It knocks her off her feet and she scrambles backward, withholding the burning scream clawing at her throat. Using her hands to scrabble at the dirt, she peels off and away from the shop, the bottom of her dress fluttering behind her as her legs pump and the air scorches in her lungs.

Of course, the Dauntless guards are now gone, so she heads for Johanna's office. The barn door is open and she sprints inside and up the steps - landing into Mark. Johanna looks wide-eyed and taken aback at Abbey's panicked and sweaty form.

"The shop… There is… By the shop" Mark rubs her back as she tries to spit the words out.

"It's okay, Abbey. Calm down." Johanna rushes to her, pulling on her arm, placing her into her chair.

"What's by the shop?" Mark asks.

"There was a tongue. Wrapped outside the shop."

"What!" Johanna puts her hands to her chest. "Mark, go! Now!" Abbey's hyperventilating in front of her while Mark dashes down the steps. "It was probably cattle and some teenagers messing about. We've had reports on missing-"

"No! It was more than that. It was smaller! I know what I saw!"

"You're saying it looked human?"

"Yes!" Abbey rubs at her face messily. She'd never seen a removed human tongue before but it wasn't hard to recognize. "Christ sake," she whines against her hand. "It had an A carved into the middle of it. It was meant for me! I thought we were safe?"

"We are safe. And I will make sure that this situation is of the utmost importance. We'll get to the bottom of this, I swear."

Feet sounds on the steps and Abbey hums through her fingers, "Who is it?" Her voice a little shaky and eyes darting wildly.

"There was nothing there?" Mark shrugs as he approaches. "Just your key in the door."

"Impossible! I dropped the key. I mean, I used the key to open whatever it was wrapped in, then I dropped it. I never put the key in the door!"

"The key was in the door, Abbey. Are you sure you saw what you saw?"

"Would I make this up, Mark!?"

Johanna puts both hands on her shoulder. "Of course not. We believe you." She scowls at Mark a little with his brashness. "Take the guards and check around," she says while still looking at him and he nods, leaving just as quickly. "Maybe you should go home? Stay at home for the day? There must be a lot of things on your mind."

"Johanna, I swear, there was tongue wrapped in the doorway of the shop! Someone was there. They took it. They were watching me!"

"And I believe you. I will send someone to keep a close eye on you." She strokes her head. "I'll walk you home."

Abbey stands, wiping at her eyes furiously. "Okay, thank you." She barely finishes talking as a Dauntless runs up the steps.

"Johanna… we have a situation."

"What now?"

"The factionless being held at the hospice… he's gone."

Abbey feels as though she's drained of complete color. Her hair sits sticky on her head and she all but drags her feet to her door. She gives the Dauntless guard a small nod as she opens her door and now knows why Eric is so furious that she never locks it.

Johanna couldn't walk her home, she needed to address the missing person, figure out why no one saw him leave, and why the guards in front of the hospice weren't there. – It was made harder by the fact that the guards originally there were probably already back at Dauntless by now.

Even though a Dauntless is standing outside, inside her home is eerie now that she is alone. It's cooler in here and the air still, more comfortable than outside, but somehow, she still feels deprived of the usual homely feeling.

Her dress is pulled over her head and thrown on the floor as she makes her way to the bedroom. She can still smell the evidence of Eric's deodorant or aftershave – not being able to make up her mind which was which as for when he was close she was always overcome with his familiar scent. She plops herself onto the bed, it's cool on top of the sheets and she nuzzles her nose into the covers. – Yep, she can definitely still smell him.

Abbey missed him. Already.

It was hard to sleep without him on the days they were having their dispute, but she knew he was still around. Today is different, she knew he wasn't here and wouldn't be for a while.

Moving her head to the side she trails across to her mirror, blinking a few times, thinking her eyes had deceived her.

The picture from the harvest.

Eric's leaning into her, her holding on to his jacket, and he's smiling down at her as she smiles up at him. It's rare to see him caught in such a natural, undefended way.

The picture is overly large compared to the others, printed even, not a proper photo. She finds herself crawling to the end of the bed and then sitting, staring at it.

Eric wouldn't have put it there… would he?

Why didn't he say anything? Did he come here before he left? Was there time for that?

She unsticks it from the mirror and turns it over. There is only a date written on the back. Yesterday's date. Taking another minute to really take in every aspect of the picture, she then smiles lightly to herself. He must've put it here. Who else knew apart from the kid who took it?

Looking at him gives her a new spark and she pulls herself up. – No, the sick prank will not get to her. That's all it had to be, some sick prank. Human tongue – was she mad? She did have quite the imagination sometimes…

It had to be some kids or teenagers, maybe trying to get to Eric through her. Maybe even some of the Dauntless guards? This is what they wanted, they wanted her crying all the way home to Eric.

No.

She will go to work.

"Abbey! Oh my god! I heard, are you okay?" Clem rushes to her. "Johanna was here first thing when I arrived and told us."

"Yeah, I'm fine. It was just the shock. I'm fine now. Probably some… kids." She bites at her lip and tries to act confident.

Upon her voice, Sandra appears from out back. "Doesn't make it right."

"Can we talk about something else?" She rubs at her temple. "It's all that's been running through my mind all morning." Abbey brushes a small hand through her locks, wanting nothing more than today to be over with. Now she was here she was slightly more nervous than she thought she would've been.

Sandra and Clem share a look. "I'm sure Clem has some gossip."

Clem blushes an awfully close color to the bunch of roses nearest to her. "I certainly do."

"It's highly criminal!" Sandra chuckles.

"What? What is it?" It was the perfect distraction, what Abbey really needed. "Well? Don't keep me waiting." She inhales a large breath and puts on her usually bouncy façade as she drags Clem to the desk and plonks her on the shoddy wooden stool.

"He's one of the Dauntless guards."

"You didn't!" Abbey controls the urge to hop on the balls of her feet, a common excitable expression that Eric ripped her for. "Clem! I never would've thought!"

"It's a secret. Plus, he's gone back today, so I don't actually have to face him."

"What happened?" Abbey's hands are by her mouth in anticipation, her eyes never leaving the girl in front of her.

Clem's aflame. "Well let's just say, once you go Dauntless, there's no time for Abnegation, Amity, Erudite or Candor." Abbey chokes on laughter. "I can see why Eric was so tempting!" Sandra crosses her legs, holding her stomach. "I wonder what being Dauntless is like…"

"I guess we sort of know!" Sandra bellows and the whole shop almost lifts in their high-spirited giggles. Their laughter descends and Sandra motions with her hand. "We better get the rest of the harvest flowers into the water, before we lose them all."

"I'll get them." Abbey floats past the girls and through the small archway into the back. Out here is not so luxurious as the front, just a small kitchen, a desk covered in papers, rolls of ribbon tacked onto the walls. There's one more door that leads to a small toilet and then the trashy, paint-chipped backdoor. The lock is unhooked and the chain dangling to one side as Abbey kicks the door open. Sandra has already been busy putting away the excess flowers from the night and she grabs at the nearest load. They look a little wilted and sad already.

She marches back through to the shop. "Maybe we should give these out to some of the main buildings. There's plenty enough-" She stops, taking in Sandra and Clem ducking behind the counter, just catching the shadowed back of someone disappearing from view. "What's… going on?" The backdoor slams from behind her and the two women scream. They all rush to the front of the shop and Abbey is the only one to pause, wiggling the key from the inside port, and throwing the door closed behind her.

As she blinks up, a dark clad figure stands incredibly close, inside the shop, up against the glass.

Their face is covered, and it tilts at her ever so slightly as their breath marks the window. Then from one hand, a syringe tip is scraped slowly across the glass of the door, in the letter of an A.

Abbey turns the key, locking them in.

The other hand of the figure is slowly turning the handle, the knob twisting under Abbey's own palm. Then they realize, pelting their fists onto the door and she stumbles backward.

"Run! … Run now!"

In the midst of their wracking breaths, the shop window is smashed.

Johanna paces in front of them. "This can't go on." She mainly speaks to Mark. "We are being terrorized within our own sanctuary. We need to know who is doing this, and we need to know today… We also need to find the missing factionless man…" she grumbles, a gripe at Mark. She heads back over to the girls and comforts Clem who is the most shaken, putting a warm hand on her shoulder.

"It's me they are trying to scare," Abbey speaks up. "They are not after you," she tries to comfort the others, but it's doing nothing for her and her tone is mixed with the same affliction as she peers down at her shoes.

"It seems to me that they have planned this for exactly when Eric wouldn't be here and that only solidifies that it's him they are really trying to provoke." Johanna snaps her head up. "Mark, leave us. Put the word out and get some people to clean up the shop. Check for any evidence." She then walks over to her desk, grabbing her phone. "I'm going to call Eric."

"No! No, you can't. He's at his own Mother's funeral. Now is not the time, just… just wait for him to get back," Abbey pleads.

"He's going to be awful with me if he finds out I didn't call him at the first instance."

Abbey thinks for a second. "Call Max then. Just don't call Eric."

Johanna puts the palm of her hand to her head and rubs. "What are we going to do until he gets back?"

"I'll stay here… until the end of the day." Abbey tries to figure out exactly how many hours it would be until 'the end of the day'. "I'll wait here until Eric gets back."

Johanna watches Abbey sleep. She's sat behind her desk and Abbey's sprawled out on the small sofa situated to one part of her loft. They've been here all day, escorted to the toilets and back, never leaving each other's sights. There had also been no news or evidence - in which she could have second guessed.

The small lamp on her desk is the only dim light in the room and for the hundredth time, she yawns into her hand, feeling herself giving in to the nightly hours. She felt so helpless, so undermined. But her indifferent backbone and motherly nature is what keeps her awake.

Headlights scan the room from outside and just by the shrill braking of the loud truck, she knows Eric has arrived.

It takes only a few seconds for him to come bowling into the room, scanning the scene before him, and then without a word, heading over to Abbey.

Crouching down, he pushes her hair to one side and she wakes instantly, throwing her arms over him.

"You're back!" she muffles into the side of his jacket and he cups her head defensively. Then his anger strikes.

"Can somebody tell me what the fuck happened when I was away? Did everyone just suddenly go apeshit?" He pulls Abbey's head back, thumbs over her cheeks and peers deeply into her eyes, almost trying to access the hidden information, checking possibly for any injuries.

"Somebody has taken it upon themselves to terrorize Abbey while you have been away. We didn't know to what extent until the shop incident." Johanna tries to speak sternly, even though she is exhausted.

"He had a syringe in his hand! With God knows what! Writing my initial!" Abbey's resolve has disappeared and her words frantic. "I was just there! Just outback! If I hadn't…" She's breathing heavy and anxiously looking towards the stairs. "If I'd have been any slower…"

"Don't. That's enough." Eric pulls her closer. "I'm here. I promise nothing is going to happen to you." His voice is deceptively calm and fluid, but also affirmative. – One Johanna hadn't heard before.

"Have you made arrangements with Max?" he asks without looking, catching Johanna from her wanderings. His hand now cups Abbey's brown locks in his hand, massaging his fingertips slowly into her scalp.

"He's processing more men, sending another squadron. They're due any time now."

"Good," comes Eric's clipped reply and Johanna raises her eyebrows.

Slowly he turns to face her, standing and tilting his head back. "Good, because I'm leaving and going back to Dauntless."

"What!" Abbey shouts, but he holds his hand out to quieten her. His face is practically unreadable but hers is furious.

His eyes glint mysteriously for a minute as they roam over her, a ghost of a smile playing on the sides of his mouth. "And Abbey is coming with me…"

"You can't just disappear back to Dauntless. Abbey's life is here." Johanna's brows are dipped so far into the middle of her head, Eric has a hard time of taking her seriously.

"Abbey is safer with me."

Johanna scrabbles for a reasonable argument. Finding none, she throws her hands in the air. "She'll be eaten alive at Dauntless! How can you guarantee her safety at Dauntless?"

"I am present you know," Abbey mutters.

"Oh, but leaving her here to an unknown force, chasing her around shit-covered fields, is? Dauntless seems a much safer bet than Amity at this moment. It will be a week or two max. I'm not risking leaving her here. I'm not playing games. Until Amity is secure, Abbey will be with me. And in the meantime, I'm going to send in as many Dauntless as possible to sniff out the factionless." Eric puts his hands behind his back and takes one or two steps closer towards Johanna. "Perhaps Jack can help?" he talks lowly to himself, eyes trailing off in thought. – Perhaps he'll just ransack Amity and that would be the end of it.

"You can't do this, Eric," Johanna shakes her head.

"Wouldn't Dauntless, be like, really disapproving of me being there?"

"Oh I can, and I will. This situation is completely reasonable for these type of actions. And the effect is immediate."

"I don't wear black." For that Abbey earns herself a simmering frown from Eric.

Eric turns back to Johanna. He's pristine even under duress, through the hours, and highly intimidating now that he's got more than one reason to be. "No one is to know she's gone, where she's gone, or who she is with. Do you understand?"

"Wouldn't be hard to guess…"

"Abbey!" he snaps to quieten her.

Johanna tilts back into her chair, the breath catching in her lungs slightly. She wasn't going to win this. "Okay, but I want regular contact. Just me. And I can assure you I won't say anything. It's not like I have anything to lose once this all blows over."

"Eric, I'm not leaving without my stuff," Abbey pushes his arm, recapturing his attention.

"Grab essentials. But don't pack those silly dresses, you won't be wearing them."

"Ohhhh no. No way." Her eyes close as she expressively shakes her head, but is snapped out of it by Eric gripping her arm and yanking her towards the stairs.

"We leave tonight."

Every step she practically misses but is held tight with just one of Eric's hands. "I'm not playing Dauntless. You can forget it."

"Scared of wearing pants for once in your life?" Along the hay-strewn floor, he continues to drag her, out into the night, heading directly for her place.

"It's not that… It's stupid…"

"You're stupid if you can think you can skip and dance around dauntless in what… Orange? Pink? … Maybe a bright yellow?" his sarcasm is what Abbey mainly rolls her eyes at.

He pushes on her hovel's door and it swings open. He chucks her a dissatisfactory look. "This stops now. You have to be more careful."

Even though it was her that was supposed to be packing, Eric's taken it upon himself. He's like an unrelenting tornado as he throws himself into every room, chucking random items onto the bed that he thinks she will need. When she pulls out her own duffle bag – with pink flowers on, he jams different mixtures of shoes and empties one of her underwear drawers entirely into it before rushing to the bathroom.

Abbey names it, Panic-packing.

When he comes back in she's picking things out, neatly placing them back into the drawers, throwing trainers to one side of the room.

"Abbey, seriously? We don't have time."

"I haven't worn some of this stuff in months…"

"Just pack your fucking bag."

"If you'd let me pack, I would. You seem to be just dumping the nearest thing in here. I mean…" she pulls out a pair of skin-coloured tights, "Why would I need this?"

"We don't have time. We need to leave before anybody notices I've been back." With that, he throws three types of body lotion, hairspray and a hairbrush she barely uses into the bag. "That's enough, let's go."

Gasping, her mouth drops open. "You've been in my vanity cupboard?"

His eyebrows ask the question 'And what?'

"Okay… I'll just get my toothbrush-" But he bowls out of the room and comes back with it in hand.

"Let's go." He tautly zips the bag throwing it over his shoulder and grabs her arm. Abbey spins as she was facing the wrong way, looking back into her room wantonly.

"Bye," she says quietly to her things. "Eric, wait! I need to lock-"

His pace is furious. "Johanna will do it."

Abbey pants as she's still dragged towards the truck and he opens the door, launching her bag across the seats before pushing her quickly up by her ass. "Eric!" But he's relentless, pushing her more so that he can get in, not bothering for courtesy or spatial awareness.

The trucks thrown into reverse and Abbey lurches forwards into his held-out and ready arm. "Put your seatbelt on," he tells her while pressing his foot down onto the pedal and skidding across the dirt that he would be happy not to see for the next fifteen years.

Out of the glowing lamp of Johanna's barn, she watches from the window, a ghostly silhouette peering out after the pale gray truck disappearing quickly up the track. She sighs. But this was good. This will be good for Amity – she tells herself.

If she can convince Abbey to take a small role into leadership, her time at Dauntless would be invaluable.

#crush #chapter 8 #bye #eric and abbey #eric coulter #jai courtney #divergent #insurgent #beautifulramblingbrains #eric #eric divergent fanfiction #fanfiction

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