Disclaimer: I don't own any characters familiar to The Divergent series.

Author's note: Sorry I disappeared, life got in the way. I can't tell you guys how many times I erased and re-wrote various parts of this chapter…before I felt comfortable with the finished product. I had anticipated on this being the last chapter, but I'm thinking I might add a short epilogue.

Chapter 3

Being friends had worked out much easier than either Tris or Eric thought it would be. For Tris, she'd spent the following weeks getting to know Eric, or as much as he was willing to share with her. There were still times when he was completely stand-offish. She'd since learned that it wasn't her, it was a mental handicap that he seemed to carry around when it came to trusting others. He was still the sarcastic man she'd always known, but Tris felt oddly closer to him than ever before. She'd taken to calling their nights together, 'experiences.' And she'd noticed that those experiences afforded them a sort of intimacy that hadn't existed previously. Tris often found herself experiencing moments of total attraction to him when she wanted nothing more than to throw caution to the wind. However, she'd meant what she told him the night above the chasm. She wouldn't be more than friends with him, she couldn't. She couldn't handle his mood swings and the constant push and pull.

As for Eric, he discovered himself in a completely new position. His friends were either those that he worked with or drank with. He hadn't had an actual friend since before he deferred from Erudite. Under that reasoning and the fact that Tris was a woman, he wasn't sure how things would…should progress. She didn't seem to have any issues keeping him in the 'friend zone,' so he made a point not to have issues with their new label. She was still the same person that she was before, and he had made several attempts at being honest with her; but there were times that he still struggled. Despite all that though, as the days progressed, he grew increasingly skeptical that their new friendship would last much longer. His feelings for her were steadily growing and he found himself uncomfortable with the knowledge that their casual encounters weren't so casual; or he didn't want them to be.

Her friends, though skeptical over his and Tris' new label, welcomed him with open arms…mostly. Of course, he and Four would never become pals. They still traded barbs and insults, but the intensity of hatred and dislike behind them had faded. Christina was also very weary of him, not that he particularly cared much. The Candor born had bothered him when she was an initiate, she bother him still. However, she was Tris' best friend (though he didn't understand why), and he made an effort not to discount her. That being said, Lauren, Will, Zeke and Uriah were willing to give him a chance; if not for his sake, than Tris.'

"You partying up tonight?" Eric asked, smirking down at the drink in Tris' hand.

"Always," she mumbled. Inwardly, she wondered if she'd ever feel 'normal' while hanging out in The Pit. She still remembered the wonder and excitement she'd experienced when she'd seen it for the first time. However, she'd never grasped the concept of 'letting loose.' And found herself, more often than not, feeling self-conscious when she joined the other members of Dauntless. "What about you? Are you behaving yourself?" Tris asked.

He smirked at her. "I always behave myself," he replied casually.

"Mmmhmm," she hummed along, though she found it difficult believing the words.

He chuckled. "I figure that I'll have an early night. We have a meeting in the morning with the other faction leaders." The last thing he'd needed was to be hungover during an already long and exhausting morning.

"Okay, well, if you change your mind…" She left the invitation for him to join them open. Though she really didn't think that he would.

"I'll keep that in mind," he replied, though he knew he wouldn't join them. He really did have a meeting the following morning and he didn't want to be unprepared for it.

He had fully intended to return to his apartment…alone. He'd long since embraced social drinking and the like, but he knew when enough was enough. He was toeing the line between feeling buzzed and feeling drunk, and he knew that one more drink would push him over.

"Eric."

The sound of his name forced his attention and he came to a stop. "Donna…" He greeted politely.

"It seems like it's been ages since we last spoke," she replied, moving closer to him.

Across The Pit, Tris attempted to join her friends in their conversation, but the sight of Eric and an unknown woman pulled at her interest. She found herself unable to look away from the pair.

"Tris, are you okay?"

The question forced her from her thoughts and she turned back to her friends. "Hmmm?"

Lauren frowned at her. "I asked if you were okay," she repeated. "What's wrong?"

"I…I don't know," Tris admitted quietly. She cast a quick glance over the rest of their friends, thankful that they were all too busy to take notice of their conversation. "I…" She cleared her throat. "Who's that?"

"Who's who?" Lauren asked. The Pit was full of people, she'd need to see whomever it was Tris was inquiring about.

"The woman with Eric," she replied, tilting her head in Eric's general direction.

It wasn't as if she'd been watching him or anything, but as soon as she saw the woman approach him, Tris was unable to hide her frown. She witnessed a familiarity between them that left her feeling uncomfortable. She'd approached him and touched his arm like she'd done it a thousand times before.

Lauren followed Tris' gaze, her own lips turned to a frown. "That's Donna." She'd never gotten on with the red head. Donna had joined Dauntless two years before she had, and Lauren had quickly learned that she was the female version of Eric when it came to sex and one night stands.

A severe frown pulled at Tris' mouth. Donna. Who the hell was Donna and where had she come from? Surely, she would have met the woman by now? And why was she touching Eric in such a way? "What is she to him?"

The older Dauntless woman could only shake her head. What was Tris looking for her to say? "What do you think she is to him?" She asked with a pointed look on her face as they witnessed the two kiss.

Tris frowned. "But…" He wasn't supposed to be with another woman. He said he was going to turn in for the night. Why would he lie to her?

Whether Tris realized it or not, she'd fallen for Eric. She'd known it, Four had known it. Hell, whenever Tris and Eric weren't present, the two were often the topic of conversation. It seemed as if everyone in Dauntless knew that something had shifted between the leader and the Abnegation transfer. "She's sort of been a reoccurring role in his life," Lauren whispered.

"But I never saw them together before," Tris shook her head.

"Maybe you did and you either forgot or just didn't care then?" Lauren supplied weakly. "I mean before you and Eric fell into bed with each other, did you really take a lot of notice in him?"

Tris shook her head, sadly. She watched Donna move in and kiss him while he responded to the action.

Eric always claimed he preferred one night stands, and she'd known that he had a lot of them. She just hadn't realized that he'd had someone…that was a regular hook-up. For a while Tris had felt special (though she tried to ignore it) because he'd returned to her for a second time. She'd felt as if she'd held something over his previous partners… Obviously, she wasn't so special…

"Tris," Lauren sighed.

The young woman shook her head. "I should have known better. I mean, I'm the one that said friends was all we could be." She just didn't think it'd hurt so much to see him with another woman.

Lauren hesitated upon voicing her next thoughts, but the look of sadness on her friend's face pushed her into action. "Four was right, you did fall for him."

Pausing to consider the words, the younger woman nibbled on her bottom lip. "I guess I did," Tris admitted sadly. "I…could you tell the others that I went home?"

"Do you want me to go with you?" Because really didn't need to hang in The Pit. She did that often enough.

Tris shook her head. "No, thanks though." She'd much rather stew in her self-pity alone.

All he could think about was the fact that this was wrong, so completely wrong. He'd never had performance issues, and he and Donna knew each other so well that there'd never been issues when it came to sex. His body still responded to her, of course it did, he was a red-blooded male and she was beautiful. But it didn't feel…right. And as she moved over him, ready to drop over his erect cock, he shook his head.

He gently pushed her away from him.

She exhaled an annoyed sigh. "What's wrong?"

Eric could only shake his head. "I can't do this." Rolling over, he sat on the edge of his bed. He'd never abstained from sex for so long before. Nearing two months since the night he shared with Tris, his body was begging for release. So when Donna had approached him in The Pit, he went along her, because why not? He had no formal ties holding him down, no prior engagements… But in the end, he couldn't do it.

"Why not?" She asked, turning to face him. Raising a hand, she ran a hand over his back. "I know you want me, I saw and felt the evidence of it."

He immediately stiffened, and it wasn't until she removed her hand from his person that he relaxed. "You are a very beautiful woman, Donna. But I can't do this."

Letting out a dramatic sigh, she leaned over the edge of the other side of the bed and began to retrieve her clothes. "It's her, isn't it? Tris?"

What the hell was he doing? Here he was in bed with a beautiful woman, and he didn't want her! He wanted Tris. He wanted her to be the woman in his bed. Until she'd come along, he'd never had an issue in taking a different lover to bed whenever the urge arose, but he felt dirty. And he certainly didn't like the fact that Donna (of all people) had mentioned her.

"She's the reason why you haven't come to me in four months," Donna continued on. "You two were together."

He dared not say anything in response.

"And this is what? You on the rebound?"

"It ended a while ago," denied in a stilted voice. Whatever it was, was over before it really began.

She shook her head. "Apparently not for you," she muttered. "I've never seen you like this before, and I've known you for years. You've never let a woman get to you, but she got past whatever walls you built."

"It wasn't intentional," Eric denied. "I didn't plan on-"

"Falling in love with her?" Donna interrupted.

"I'm not in love with her," he instantly replied. He wasn't, was he? No! Surely, he would have known if he'd fallen in love with someone.

"Are you sure about that?" She asked him softly. "The two of you may have had everyone else fooled, but I know how you are and I saw how you looked at her…still look at her." She couldn't say she was happy for him. Eric wasn't like everyone else, and he managed to keep everyone at arm's length. It had taken her years to worm herself into his affections, and even then, she was nothing more than the occasional confidant and bed buddy. He'd never once looked at her the way he looked at Tris. And she felt slightly embittered over it.

Her words tore at him. He couldn't have possibly been so open. He'd always made sure to maintain a respectable distance from Tris when they were in the presence of others.

"I don't know what happened between the two of you, but you need to either fix it or find closure," she cautioned as she finished dressing. Without a look backwards, she left the apartment.

"Jesus, what's wrong with me?" Eric asked, rubbing his face. He made his way to the shower, hoping to wash away the experience.

He'd never once had issues with Donna…with anyone. What had happened? How could that have happened? He and Tris weren't even together, yet she somehow managed to affect him in such a way! He'd never been so wrapped up in another woman. And he didn't like it.

After Rebecca, he swore that he'd never let another woman so close to him. He would never give someone else power over him, and he'd kept it going. But Tris had managed to get under his skin. He didn't know when it happened, but it had. And he didn't like it one bit.

He shouldn't have cared about her in the first place. And Tris' presence in his life shouldn't have affected him in that way; he should have been able to be with Donna without the thought of anyone else. He'd never cared before. Why did he care then?

Stepping under the shower spray, he attempted to wash away his thoughts…or at least find some sort of rhyme or reason to them.

"What are you doing?" She asked, staring at Eric's naked form.

He shrugged his shoulders. "I thought I'd join you," Eric replied easily. He stepped into the shower, sliding the door closed behind him. Slipping under the water, he washed out his hair.

He loved the fact that she was so…inexperienced. Normally, his partners were knowledgeable and willing. However, Tris made up for that in abundance with her eagerness and attentiveness. Several of her experiences were a 'first' for him as well, and Eric couldn't deny the fact that he liked it. He liked being the one that introduced her to various positions and experiences…because who didn't remember their first?

"I like the way you watch me," he admitted, leaning back into the water and letting it cleanse his hair of the shampoo.

Being a member of Dauntless, being a protector; it was expected to be in shape. He worked hard for his muscles, for his body…and it showed. And more than that, he knew he was attractive. He knew he appealed to the opposite sex, but the way that Tris managed to look at him… She looked at him like he was the only man in the world; when she looked at him.

She licked her lips. "I like the way you look," Tris responded through a burst of courage. It was so unlike something that she would normally say.

"I'm glad you approve," he murmured. Without turning from her, he pushed the water nozzle to spray higher. "Have you ever had sex in a shower?"

She shook her head in negative.

White hot pleasure coursed through him at the thought that he'd get to experience a first to her. He couldn't explain it, and he refused to ponder on it at that moment. Settling his hands on her waist, he pulled her closer to him. "Have you had that new serum?"

"I did."

His first and only experience with skin on skin contact had been years earlier, back before he'd transferred from Erudite. It was the stupidest thing he'd done. He'd allowed his lust to get the better of him. And as much as he thought he loved Rebecca, they could have ruined their lives with an unplanned pregnancy. They'd been lucky. He caught up with himself and pulled out at the last second. And from then on, he always remained safe.

"Good girl," he replied, leaning in capturing her mouth in a kiss. Their first night together, he'd gone through three condoms before she fell asleep for the night. And as much as he'd enjoyed the experience, he'd wanted to sheath himself inside of her without any barriers. His hands traveled down her hips before he cupped her ass in his hands and lifted her up.

However, he'd also remembered it as being the most pleasurable experience he'd ever had. Every other encounter until that point, though enjoyable didn't measure up. And he'd wanted to share that with Tris. He'd wanted to lose himself in her, he wanted to feel her without any barriers between them

Tris automatically wrapped her legs around him and hissed when her back gently fell against the cool shower wall. Her hands moved to his hair, running her fingers through it for the first time.

"I have you naked, against a shower wall, and you're playing with my hair?" He asked, smirking at her.

"I like the way it feels," she replied shaking her head at herself. She could only imagine what he thought of her, given the position she found herself in.

"Well, I like the way your pussy feels around my cock," he purred in her ear, pulling the lobe in his mouth and suckling on it. He was rewarded with a breathy moan. Easing a hand in between their bodies, he reached for his throbbing member and ran it against the length of her slit. He'd barely push the head of his cock inside her before pulling it back out. Resting his forehead against hers, he repeated the action two more times. "Fuck, you're already so wet for me…"

"Don't tease me, Eric," she moaned, throwing her head back.

"You want my cock inside you, Tris?"

She nodded in a jerky manner.

He eased himself inside her again; however, instead of pulling out as he had the previous times, he continued to push inside her. He watched her eyes close as her head fell backwards. "No, Tris. I want to see your eyes when I enter you for the first time without any barriers."

Eric didn't think he'd ever be able to properly compare her eyes to a color or label them against anything. They weren't quite brown, but they weren't hazel either. There were no tints of green in them, but the color in her eyes did seem to change upon the lighting. He hadn't realized it was possible until he'd met her. And locking eyes with her in that moment; watching her reaction to his ministrations caused his stomach to clench.

Eric ground his teeth together. Fuck, she felt so good around his cock! He honestly didn't know how he was going to last. Whatever experience she had before him couldn't have been much, she was so responsive to him, so wet. So tight! She fit him like a second glove, almost as if she was made for him. The thought crept up, unbidden, but it sent a shit ton of lust straight to his buried cock.

When he was buried to the hilt, Tris' eyes rolled shut.

Giving himself a moment to calm down and her a chance to get used to him, he leaned his head against her collar bone. "You feel so good around me, Tris," he confessed, kissing her tattoo. "Fucking amazing."

Rolling her hips against him, she urged him to go on.

Eric complied to her unspoken demand. Pulling out, he surged back in.

Just thinking about their shower excursion caused him to grow hard. Unable to help himself, he fisted his hand around his length and began jerking off. He hadn't needed to succumb to such a juvenile action since before his transfer. However, his body was aching for release and he couldn't help himself.

Closing his eyes, he remembered the feeling of losing himself in her body…multiple times. In his mind's eye, it was Tris' velvety passage that gripped his cock instead of his fist. He remembered pounding into her sweet body, and her mewls and keens of pleasure reverberated in his thoughts. He grunted in response. And then he thought about bending her over her table and fucking her from behind. He hadn't had back as he'd plowed her. And she'd cried in pleasure, but she'd taken everything he'd given.

"Fuck…"

He felt the familiar tingling crawling up his spine and he knew that his orgasm wasn't far off. A few pumps later, his cock erupted. His seed sprayed the shower wall as his head lulled backwards.

"I know I said that friends was a good idea, and maybe I thought it was at the time…" Tris nibbled on her bottom lip before shaking her head. "I don't know what I was thinking," she sighed. "Eric, you and I aren't friends. We've pretended to be, and maybe it worked for a while, but can you really tell me that there wasn't something bubbling just underneath the surface?" Scrunching her nose together, she frowned.

Rolling her eyes at her reflection, she shook her head. No! She would not be the one to cave! So what if she was the one to insist on friendship? She never would have had to make such a declaration if he wasn't so bi-polar in how he treated her!

Why couldn't he just be a normal guy? She understood that his past with Rebecca had irrevocably changed him, but when would Eric realize that not every woman was like the blonde? And why couldn't he seem to pull his head out of his ass under the realization that she didn't do casual? Tris couldn't claim that it was love, but she felt something for the young leader. And there were times that she didn't even understand why she'd fallen for him. But she had. And she was tired of fighting it and second guessing it.

"You know, talking to yourself isn't exactly subtle…"

Her shoulders dropped and she rolled her eyes at her companion. "Have you ever just stopped and considered…everything?"

Crossing his arms, Four leaned against the wall nearest to Tris.

"Everything would be so much easier if it was you," she whispered. "I mean, you…we…make sense. But Eric-"

"Not everything is about making sense. I can't believe I'm going to say this, but…you and Eric, though not conventional, work." To say he was shocked when he first learned about them, would be an understatement. However, he'd watched their interactions since then. Tris thought they didn't make sense, but he'd seen that they did. "Just because we worked at one point, that doesn't mean anything in the long run."

She nodded slowly. "I know. And part of me understands that, but then part…" Tris exhaled a sigh. "Things were just so easy between us, and I always knew where I stood with you."

"I've…I can't say that I know Eric, but I've known him since our initiation. And in all that time, I've never seen him interact with anyone, the way he does with you." The way that Eric was around Tris…Four could almost forget about the fact that he was the same stand-offish, sarcastic, arrogant and frustrating Eric he'd always been. "I'm not saying that everything will be romance and rainbows, but there's something there, Tris."

She shook her head. "He left The Pit last night with someone," she said, her voice nearly breaking.

"Lauren told me," he nodded uneasily, not sure how to proceed. He didn't want to offend her, but it was hardly fair that she was upset. "Weren't you the one that said friendship was all you could offer him?" He watched her wince in response, but she didn't deny him. "So then why wouldn't he be able to look elsewhere for…companionship?"

"Because he should have known that I only said that because he's emotionally stilted!"

He considered her response for a moment before frowning. "So you set him up to fail a test that he didn't even know about and you're acting this way because of it?" Four asked after a pause. "That's hardly fair."

"I didn't," she denied quickly. Had she? Her protests died off as she thought over his words. She hadn't meant for it to be considered a test. Honestly, she hadn't!

He waited for her to mull over the revelation she'd come to. "Let me ask you this, after everything is said and done, does it really matter?" She frowned in response to his inquiry. "Knowing what you do, seeing what you did last night, does it change your feelings for him?"

She shook her head, worrying her top lip between her teeth. "No," Tris replied simply. It didn't change anything. In fact, thinking about Eric with Donna, or anyone else, only reaffirmed her desire for him. She wanted him, and she wanted him to want her in return.

But what if she'd ruined things between them? Yes, Eric seemed to suffer from an emotional handicap, but since their attempt to be friends, he hadn't gone out of his way to be cruel. After her conversation with Four, she realized that she couldn't say the same. Eric had confessed that he felt something for her, and instead of embracing it, she'd denied him. What if Eric reconsidered his feelings for her because of it?

The last thing he wanted to do was paperwork. However, the notes he'd taken during the meeting needed to be typed up. Erudite generally took it upon themselves to take general dictation of the meetings, but Eric didn't care for the generalized, and often partial, summary that was provided by them. He preferred to have his own spin on things, so that if he had to look back on anything, his personal additions to notes would better help jog his memory.

He'd awakened that morning with the niggling of a headache. Between the confusing thoughts of Tris and the alcohol he'd considered the previous night, he stayed in bed as long as he could without being classified as late. He'd skipped breakfast in Dauntless. And though Abnegation served coffee, tea and water during the course of the meeting as well as various baked goods, it was nowhere near enough to fill him up. He couldn't take more than what was deemed acceptable without appearing rude.

Upon returning to Dauntless, the first thing he did was fill up a tray from the cafeteria and bring it up to his office so that he could also work on his notes. He hadn't expected to see anyone in his office when he opened the door. Locks weren't necessarily needed for the leaders' offices. Of course, Max had his locked whenever he wasn't in it, but he was the only of the leaders to do so. He stopped short at the sight of Tris, perched on his couch.

"Tris? Why are you here?" Belatedly, he realized just how his inquiry sounded and he tried to speak again. Setting the tray down on his desk, he tilted his head at her. "Is everything okay?" She appeared tense and her mouth was pulled down into a frown.

"I'm…maybe I shouldn't have come to your office?" She replied in a soft voice.

He frowned at her, wondering what was wrong with her. He hadn't seen her as quiet and unsure since her days as an initiate. "You know I don't care about that," he denied easily. "Has something happened?"

She shook her head quickly. "No. I…I just wanted to speak with you." Tris began fiddling with her fingers. "But I'm thinking that this probably isn't the best place, and I'm second guessing my decision to speak with you in the first place." Standing up, she approached him. "You're obviously busy, and I don't want to intrude," she excused weakly.

If it was anyone else, he may have just let them walk out the door with the understanding that they would speak later. However, he found himself unable to do that. When she tried to sidle next to him to exit the room, his hand shot out and he stopped her from leaving.

"Tris, what's going on?" He inquired in a soft voice.

With a gentle grasp of her arm, Tris came to a stop; however, she made no move to turn around and face him or shake his hand off.

"What's wrong?" He asked in an even softer voice than before, his eyes never wavering from her form. Immediately, she stiffened in his arms and he frowned at her. She'd never reacted in such a way to him, and he found himself not liking it one bit. "Tris, you can't come here, act like this and say the things you did without me being curious," he tried once again. If she left without explaining the issue, his thoughts would have been engaged elsewhere instead of the paperwork he had originally planned to do.

Expelling a deep breath, Tris opened her mouth to speak. She wasn't sure what would come of it, but she couldn't not say anything. Not after witnessing him with another woman, seeing him with Donna the previous night was a slap in the face. It drove her to madness and she experienced a form of jealousy like never before. "I…I saw you last night."

A look of dawning spread across his face and Eric fought to keep his face neutral of all expressions. He wouldn't dare insult her by pretending not to know what she was speaking of. A feeling of dread enveloped him and dropped down into the pit of his stomach. She'd seen him with Donna the previous night in the Pit? So…she'd seen them kiss and possibly saw them leave together… He hesitated, not sure what to expect from his companion. Realistically, she had no right to be upset or jealous. She held no prior claim to him in any form whatsoever. But he knew that if the situation was reversed and he'd seen her in the arms of another man, he'd have been furious! "Oh…" It was far from eloquent, but he found himself at a loss for words. She was the one that insisted they remain platonic. But he couldn't help but worry that he'd forever ruined things. Despite their understanding to remain friends, he hated the thought that if something could have happened but didn't, it would be because of his actions. His feelings for Tris had grown exponentially. Despite the fact that he hadn't ever intended on opening himself up to someone else; the idea wasn't as scary when it came to her.

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said anything," Tris apologized. "I have no right to be upset."

"No, you don't," Eric agreed easily. "You're the one that stressed that we couldn't be anything other than friends, Tris."

She nodded along with him. "I know, but the way you confronted me by the cafeteria that day…" Maybe if he hadn't pulled away from her in the first place, they'd be together? Or as close to 'together' as Eric was willing to go. "I knew how you felt about everything and I was okay with it…or I tried to be. I never intended to develop feelings for you, you know?"

Eric sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "Is this really about feeling something, anything, for me…or do you just not want anyone else to have me?"

"No!" She exclaimed, annoyed that he would even suggest such a thing. "Of course that isn't it. Do you really think that I could be so selfish?"

He shook his head in negative. He hadn't meant to offend her by asking that. However, it felt like a legitimate inquiry. She'd been the one that wanted to remain friends, how was he supposed to know that her feelings had changed? Tris learned to guard her emotions well in the months since initiation. "I'm sorry, I just had to ask."

"Somewhere along the way, I developed feelings for you. And I can't…maybe it was all so gradual, I didn't notice it at first. Watching you last night with Donna was like a punch in the gut, all those feelings came rushing to the surface." She'd been wholly unprepared for magnitude of emotions she'd felt in that minute. He'd put himself out there once and she'd denied him, now it was her turn to make the first move. "Please tell me that I'm not too late in saying this," she pleaded.

His eyes traveled the length of her body, from the top of her head to the tip of her toes and back up again. She appeared to be in earnest in her confession if the pleading expression on her face was anything to go by. "And what would you if I said I couldn't do that?"

Dread welled within her and her heart sank. She'd considered the possibility that he moved on; if not onto someone else, then from whatever he felt for her. What person in their right mind would stick around after being denied? Pushing down the disappointment she felt, Tris offered him a weak smile even though her eyes began to fill with unshed tears. "Then I would ask that you forget this conversation ever happened."

Eric shook his head. "And what if I told you that I can't do that either?"

What game was playing at? He'd alluded to the fact that he'd moved on from her, only to turn around and say something that could be construed hopeful. Unable to wipe the confusion on her face, she frowned at him. "Eric, please," she whispered. "Please don't joke right now."

His gaze settled on her face, looking from one of her eyes to another. Figuring that he'd tortured her enough, he pulled her against his body and used his arm to anchor her there against him. Using his free hand, he cupped the side of her face as he moved in to capture her lips. There was no hesitance or softness about their kiss. It was raw, passionate and hungry and they dueled for dominance as they molded their bodies against one another. When oxygen became an issue, Eric pulled back and surveyed his work. Her eyes were still closed, her lips swollen and tinted a rosy pink from their kiss.

Tris felt his breath fan over her face, but he made no move to kiss her again. When she opened her eyes and met his gaze, she was nearly knocked breathless by the intensity behind his blue-gray orbs. She couldn't remember ever having seen him so vulnerable when awake.

"What took you so long?" Eric asked, unable to think of anything else. "I was beginning to doubt that you felt something for me."

"I'm annoyingly stubborn, idiotic really," she waved away dramatically before locking her arms around his back. Resting her head against his chest, closed her eyes and inhaled his soothing scent. "I'm sorry I made you doubt me," Tris breathed against him.

Immediately returning the embrace, he locked his arms around her and tightened his hold when he heard her words. It didn't matter, none of it mattered. He was content to let the world fade away for a short time to a place where only the two of them existed.