A/N: All good things must come to an end, right? I have enjoyed writing this story and spending some more time with Fourtris and the rest of the Divergent cast. Thank you to everyone who read, reviewed, followed, and favorited. If you enjoy my writing, check out my other pieces. I've written for the Divergent and Hunger Games worlds.
XOXO,
Libby
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Thinking of Candor, I decide to pick Christina to go next.
"I've been thinking that I'd go with Abnegation next, but you probably know lots of ways to make that torturous, so I'll pick Amity," she says.
Amity has to be my least natural faction. I think hard for a few minutes about my options. I could do something musical, artistic, or affectionate. Christina sings unashamedly in the shower, and her fashion sense indicates an eye for artistry, so I cue in on affection. I know that she and Will are kind of seeing each other, so there's no fun in that.
"I dare you to go around the circle, sit on each person's lap, and give them a kiss on the cheek."
I have a feeling that my Abnegation tendencies have made my dare lame, because Christina just shrugs. She walks to Uriah, perches herself on his knees, and gives him a peck on the cheek. Yup, it's lame.
Christina moves around the circle to Zeke, Shauna, and Marlene. She almost backs down when Lynn gives her a vicious scowl, but manages to complete the dare. Tobias is next, and I see Christina's hands shake as she approaches him.
"He's nicer than you think," I offer, "and he's not your instructor anymore, so you don't have to worry that he's going to shoot you or anything."
Chris nods and barely sits on the edge of Tobias' knees. She carefully leans in, making as little contact as possible, and brushes the tiniest kiss on his cheek before jumping quickly off his lap. His cheeks are slightly pink, and I wonder if all Abnegation blush like we do.
"You did this to me!" Christina says as she turns to me.
She drops herself heavily in my lap, throws her arms around my neck, and kisses my cheek with a loud smack. I squeal and push her off my lap, making her laugh.
"You did this to yourself!" she says, laughing.
Her last stop is on Will's lap, and she makes herself quite comfortable there before giving him a big kiss on the lips and a little one on his cheek. She makes no move to get off Will's lap, and he seems perfectly content to have her stay there.
"It's getting late," Christina whines with a yawn. "I have to work again tomorrow."
Uriah chimes in, "You know guys, Four has had four of the five factions, and he's gotten them all right. If he gets his Amity right he will have completed them all. Christina should ask him an Amity question. If he gets it right we would have a winner."
Everyone seems to like this idea, so Christina takes a minute to think about an Amity dare for Tobias.
"OK, Four," she says, "I dare you to give everyone a five-second goodnight hug, then carry Tris back to your place and let her stay the night with you."
This is uncomfortable for Tobias, but doable, so he accepts the challenge. As everyone finds their discarded clothing, he takes his place by the door. Christina and Will leave first. His hug for Christina is brotherly and a bit stiff. His hug for Will is flat-out awkward, and I can tell they're both counting down the five seconds.
Marlene and Lynn leave next, and Marlene gets the same stiff, brotherly hug that Tobias gave Christina. He's a bit warmer with Lynn, and whispers something in her ear before letting go. She nods and smiles at him, and I make a mental note to ask about it later.
Uriah and Zeke get bro hugs, then Uriah insists on hugging me as well before leaving. Shauna gets the same stiff, sisterly hug that the other girls got, but she hugs back with more warmth. I suppose that she has a different view of Tobias, not having been his student.
"You forgot something," says Zeke as we are turning to leave.
"What's that?" asks Tobias, a confused look on his face.
"You didn't hug Tris," Zeke replies, a broad grin spreading across his face.
Tobias turns to me, and pulls me into a tight hug. I let my arms wrap around his neck as his hands slide around my waist to my back. He picks me up so my feet dangle off the floor, and I laugh and plant a kiss on the side of his neck. He sets me back on the floor and gives me a gentle kiss on the lips before letting go.
"How come I didn't get a hug like that?" teases Zeke in mock disappointment.
"You're too heavy," Tobias teases back as we turn to go.
When the door closes behind us, Tobias turns to me, his eyes shy and uncertain.
"I'm, um, supposed to carry you home," he says, "but if you're uncomfortable, we don't have to. They won't know."
I pull him in for another hug and whisper in his ear, "You better make good on your dare."
He grins at me and throws me over his shoulder like a sack of flour. I resist the urge to squeal as he runs down the hall. I see Zeke's door open, and he sticks his head out. He's probably hoping to catch us welching on the dare. He grins at me and I wave over Tobias' back as we turn a corner out of his sight.
When we arrive at his apartment, Tobias sets me down so he can dig his keys out of his pocket and open his door. He holds the door open for me, and I walk in. As usual, I am struck by how sparse the furnishings are. Tobias has accumulated about as much in two years as I have in two weeks. We could each move out of our apartments with a single box.
"Can I get you anything?" Tobias asks, his Abnegation instincts kicking in.
"No, thank you," I reply.
We stand shyly near the door for a minute.
"Can I ask you a question?" I begin, hesitantly. "You don't have to answer if you don't want to."
Tobias looks worried. Although I know a lot more than most people about his past, it's still not easy for him to open up about himself.
"Ok…" he says, warily.
"I was just wondering what you said to Lynn. You know, when you hugged her by the door."
"Oh, sure," he says, relieved. "I just thanked her for sharing with us about her sexual orientation. I told her that she was really brave and that I hoped she was satisfied with the way we reacted. Coming out is hard for a lot of people, and I wanted to make sure we properly acknowledged the bravery of taking that step."
I think of how Lynn had responded to him with an affirmative nod and a smile, and feel pleased with the way we responded to her news.
"That was very thoughtful of you. Open homosexuality is virtually unheard of in Abnegation. Is it common in Dauntless?"
Tobias considers my question for a minute. "I can think of a few, and it's pretty well accepted here. Dauntless is pretty much 'anything goes,' but it's not super common. Especially for the guys. Everyone here is so big on being tough that they forget what it really means to be brave."
As I contemplate this, I yawn. It really is quite late. Tobias, of course, notices.
"Let me get you something to sleep in," he says, moving toward his closet.
"That's not necessary," I say. "I came to the game prepared with layers. I have some things under my dress that I can sleep in."
Tobias nods and walks into the bathroom where he takes a new toothbrush from a cabinet and offers it to me.
"You can get ready in the bathroom in you like."
I nod and pass into the bathroom, where I wash up and strip down to my shorts, camisole, and underwear. I make a neat pile of my other clothes and walk out to the main room. While I was in the bathroom, Tobias put clean sheets on the bed for me, made the bed, and put together a place on the floor for himself, just like he did after I was attacked by Peter, Drew, and Al. I can't help feeling disappointed; I was hoping that now that we're dating, we might share the bed. I don't know that I'm ready for sex, but I'm pretty sure I would enjoy waking up in Tobias' arms.
"Is everything OK?" he asks, noticing my hesitation. "I put clean sheets on the bed for you."
"Thank you," I reply, willing myself to be brave. "You don't have to sleep on the floor, you know."
His eyebrows lift in surprise. "I thought that… You know… With your fear and all… I thought you might want your space."
I hate myself right now.
"I really hate this fear," I say, trying to explain myself. "It's horrible being afraid of something you know is going to be good. I just wish I could be Dauntless, but sometimes the Abnegation in me is like an anchor."
Tobias nods. "We walked away from our past, but it stayed with us, too. I haven't seen my father in two years, but I still expect to be hit every time I do something he wouldn't approve of. And he wouldn't approve of anything we do here in Dauntless. But the past isn't all bad. It made you who you are, and I really like who you are. You're brave for others. You think about their feelings, about my feelings. You're sensitive in a way no Dauntless girl is. I like that about you."
I close the distance between us and launch myself into Tobias' arms. He pulls me into a tight embrace, and my feet dangle off the floor again. I plant kisses on his neck, jawline, and face. He does the same to me, and when our lips find each other, the kiss is passionate, hungry. He carries me to his bed and gently lays me down without breaking the kiss. I pull back and scoot my body to the far edge of the bed.
"Join me," I say, gesturing at the empty space beside me on the bed.
Tobias nods and moves toward the door to lock up and turn out the lights.
As he slides into the bed beside me, Tobias whispers, "I love you, Six."
"And I love you, Four."