A/N: Here it is, guys, the last chapter! I just wanted to take a moment to say a few thank yous to some amazing people that made the journey of writing this alternate ending really special!

Firstly, to everyone who read the story and reviewed – you don't know how much I appreciate your kind words! A special thanks and huge virtual hug to ashray4 and Allie1146 for leaving a review on every single chapter – you guys are my rock! Big hug also to xxForeverADreamxx for your lovely reviews on the last few chapters as well :)

Secondly, thank you to ChibiRealm, for giving amazing feedback on my stories and for becoming someone that I can discuss anything Divergent-related (and even some not-Divergent related stuff!) with. You have definitely given me plenty of food for thought this past month!

And finally – thank you to my best friend Steffi, for being the reason that I wrote this ending in the first place, and for your constant support and patience while I took my time fleshing out the chapters. You're the best and I'm glad I had you to share the traumatic Allegiant experience with!

To everyone who's taken the time to read my writing – I hope I do you all justice and that this last chapter makes you happier than the original version! :)

Epilogue: Tris

I reach our meeting place just as the sun is rising, with Tobias' note folded into my palm.

The Ferris wheel, at dawn.

-4

I can tell he's not here yet, so I lean against the door of an empty building and wait, keeping the looming silhouette of the Ferris wheel in sight. After the incident at the Bureau, Johanna was quick to negotiate an agreement with David's government and form a new board of representatives for Chicago. Tobias told me when his mother stood down, one of her conditions for surrender was that the citizens would be allowed to vote for their new leaders, and Johanna stayed true to her word. In the months that followed, she recruited a group of volunteers – mainly former Abnegation members, unsurprisingly – to help rebuild the old factionless quarters and merge them with the rest of the city. This is one of the only areas that has been left untouched.

It's not unusual that Tobias was awake early enough to slip his note through my apartment door unnoticed – it's been four years now, but the nightmares don't get easier for either of us. In a strange way, I'm glad. It reminds us that we didn't always have the luxury of waking up each morning, knowing the people we loved were safe and happy.

I hear him before I see him. Even after all this time, Tobias still keeps to the shadows when he moves, out of habit. He has a backpack slung haphazardly over one shoulder, which instantly sends my heart racing – in the past, every time Tobias has appeared armed with a bag, it's usually been followed in quick succession with some sort of elaborate plan, either involving kissing, near-death experiences, or a combination of both. He reaches me before I can figure out what he's up to and pulls me in for a long, deep kiss. When we break away, he grins and curls his fingers around mine, tugging me back towards the Ferris wheel.

The realisation comes just as we reach the base of the wheel, where the ladder starts. "You're kidding me."

Tobias responds by slipping his arm through the remaining strap of his bag, securing it tightly on his shoulders and pretending to busy himself with testing the rungs for security. He shifts his stance so that he faces away from me, but not before I catch the look of amusement on his face. If I had doubts before, there aren't any now – he is definitely up to something. "For God's sake, Tobias, what is so important that you have to wait until we're fifty metres off the ground to tell me?"

Again, he ignores my question, simply gesturing for me to get on first. "Fine. I'm not the one afraid of heights." It's an unnecessarily mean-spirited comment, but his evasiveness is starting to get on my nerves. I haul myself onto the ladder and begin climbing up slowly, feeling Tobias' hands graze my ankles every now and again as he catches the rungs beneath me. By the time we reach the first platform, I can hear his breaths coming out in loud gasps. The dizzying height has wiped any traces of mirth clean from his face, and a pang of guilt chides me for my cruel remark about his fear.

We take a moment to catch our breath, and then Tobias sets down his backpack and begins pulling out containers of food. His face betrays no emotion as he arranges them in the space between us, and my lips are already forming the question, when he removes the last item. A bread roll, woven into a figure eight to symbolise infinity.

There are few occasions that the Abnegation celebrate – to be precise, only three. Initiation is the largest ceremony that Abnegation allows, and that is only because it's seen as a sign of community. The other two are usually conducted in private, amongst the company of relatives and in rare instances, in the presence of close friends. I haven't witnessed either of them, but I'm sure I've heard enough about both to recognise one if I saw it.

As Tobias places the bread on the plate directly in front of me, everything clicks into place. "Is this- Are you- Are we getting married?"

He raises his eyes to meet mine, and suddenly, we're back on the train to Amity headquarters, and he is the boy wondering how to tell his girlfriend that he loves her for the first time. "I've been thinking about this for a while." Of course he has. "You know me better than anyone else. In some ways, better than I know myself. I've given you everything I have – except this. This is the last part of me, and now I want to give it to you." He pauses, and his uncertainty fills the air between us. "I know we're still young, but what does it matter if I do this in one year, or two years, or ten? It will still be you. It will always be you."

I don't trust myself to speak, so instead, I grab a fistful of Tobias' grey t-shirt, pulling him closer and kissing him so forcefully that when we stop, we're both gasping for air. He turns to retrieve the backpack and begins rummaging around in it for something else. "Any final questions before we go ahead with this? This is your last chance to back out – if you discover later that I'm a psychopath, it's not my fault."

"Only one." Tobias raises his eyebrows. "Where did you get all of this? As far as I know, there's only one family in Abnegation that makes this bread, and they-" I trail off, not quite able to finish the sentence. They died in Jeanine's attack.

"Well, turns out I have to revoke my conclusion that your brother's good for nothing, after all."

"You got Caleb involved in this?"

"Well, I had to ask someone permission for your hand in marriage." He takes out a metal bowl and a small knife from his bag, balancing the latter in the palm of his right hand.

I frown at him, confused. "I don't remember this being part of the Abnegation ceremony."

"It's not. It's Dauntless. Well, almost – technically speaking, there are supposed to be coals burning in the bowl, but I thought that might be a bit impractical, given where we are."

"And it never occurred to you that we could just do this, you know, not on the Ferris wheel?"

"This was where we were first alone together. And I thought it was important to acknowledge both the faction that gave birth to us, and the one that united us." He drags the knife across his palm and passes it to me. I do the same and then we press our hands together, holding them over the metal bowl. Tobias recites the Dauntless vows and I mouth the few words that I know with him.

When we're done, he leans across the bowl and touches his lips to mine, so gentle that for a second I think I've imagined it. I return his kiss with a little more insistence and he pulls away, laughing.

"What?" I say, somewhat defensively.

"I just think...maybe we should do this with both feet on the ground."

Evelyn was appointed by David as a liaison officer not long after she left – it was his way of bridging the gap between the government outside the city's limits and Chicago's new council members. She was the one that started Commemoration Day. In theory, it's supposed to be a celebration of our peaceful existence, and a tribute to the sacrifices of our friends, family and neighbours – the ones that got us here. But I know it also serves as a warning. I know it's also a chance for them to say – do not repeat the mistakes that brought down our city and divided our people.

Today marks the four-year anniversary, and our friends are waiting for us at the Hancock building, as usual. It's tradition for us to start our celebrations with zip-lining, and last year, I managed to coax Caleb into a sling for the first time. Tobias still refuses to join us, opting to wait at the bottom for the first person to come down, but I'm determined that this will be the year he changes his mind.

By the time we arrive, everyone has already gathered at the base of the building and Zeke is telling a story that sends Christina into fits of laughter while Shauna sinks into her wheelchair, shaking her head in amusement. Caleb and Matthew finished designing a set of mechanical legs for her two months ago, but she still can't stand on them too long before her muscles ache.

Caleb spots us first and raises a hand in greeting – he's standing a little too close to Cara, so that when he brings his hand back down, it brushes against hers and they both spring apart like they've been electrocuted. Physical affection wasn't really an Abnegation trait, and I kind of figure it wouldn't be common practice amongst the Erudite either.

Christina rolls her eyes. "Honestly, how old are you guys? Everyone at the labs know you've got the hots for each other." Cara has an indignant expression on her face, but the blush rising in her cheeks just spurs Christina on. "If you want to kiss, just go ahead and do it already. It's not like we haven't seen it before." At this, she shoots a pointed look at Tobias, who is standing with his hand on the small of my back. He just shrugs away the comment, unfazed.

Caleb clears his throat and changes the topic quickly. "So, who's staying at the bottom this year?"

Tobias steps forward, and at the same time, Caleb and I say, "Not you."

"Come on, Four," Caleb continues, "You, of all people, should have cause to celebrate today." That gets everyone's attention, and he smiles triumphantly. The past few years have turned Caleb and Tobias into almost-friends, although it was only begrudgingly at first. It doesn't mean they don't still enjoy making each other squirm the first chance they get.

Christina narrows her eyes suspiciously at us. "What's he talking about?"

Patience is definitely not one of Christina's virtues, and we're going to the fringe tomorrow to help with a mass relocation – it's a long trip, and if I don't tell her now, she's going to spend the whole time grilling me anyway. I direct an imploring look at Tobias, but he just scratches the back of his neck, clearly as uncomfortable with the attention as I am. The movement catches Zeke's attention though, and he flicks his eyes back and forth between the twin marks on our left palms. "No way. No. Way."

"No way, what?" Christina throws her hands up in frustration. "Is someone going to tell me what's going on?"

Zeke breaks into a grin that looks too big for his face and claps Tobias on the shoulder, laughing. "Well done." Then, because Christina looks like she's about to shoot someone, he adds, "These two just got married."

We're lost in the hugs and questions and congratulations of our friends, and I know that I will keep this memory close – this feeling of being loved and needed and above all, safe. If I have learnt anything, it's that our lives are fragile, and any time we have with the people we love is a blessing.

It feels like a lifetime ago that I thought bravery was about being fearless. Now I know it's really about our choices. It's choosing not to let regret and grief stop us from moving forward. It's acknowledging that every goodbye we say could be our last, and choosing to live anyway.

I won't forget that.

A/N: So that's it, guys! Please let me know your thoughts on this final chapter – is there anything you would've done differently? Anything else you would have liked to see in the ending? :) I hope I did you all proud!