TRIS:

As soon as I take my mothers hand, she is gone. Black is all I see. I wait there for a while, I don't know how long, in that dark space. I hear a faint beeping noise somewhere in the darkness. I am not ready to be dead yet, but I know that is what I am, it must be. My mother came to take me away, away from my friends, away from Tobias. And I went with her. Tobias! Suddenly it hits me all at once. How could I leave him? I shouldn't have left him. He needs me, and I need him, and he is where I want to be, always. I suddenly feel panic rushing through me. What will he do when he finds out that I am dead? Will he be able to keep himself together, or will he fall to pieces? I feel terrible for doing this to him. I was so sure that I would be able to make it through this, that's why I came instead of Caleb. It was stupid of me to think that I was invincible. I let myself fall deeper into the darkness.

Some time later, I hear it again, the beeping. I struggle to see past the darkness that is so heavy all around me. It is then that I hear his voice. "Tris?" I know that voice. It is the one voice that can warm my soul, can make me feel safe, and whole. "Tris?" he calls to me again. "Tris, hey, can you hear me?" I struggle through the darkness to find him. Finally, I see light, and a blurry face above me. I am suddenly aware of a warm hand on my cheek. As my eyes adjust, I see him. Tobias. But what is he doing here, if I am dead?

"Come on, Tris, wake up." His voice is louder now, clearer than before. I hear the beeping again, and I see that it comes from a machine next to me. It is then that I realize I am not dead. I am alive. I am alive and with Tobias. Everything floods back at once; the death serum that I survived, my confrontation with David, the pain of the bullets hitting my flesh, pressing the button that stopped the simulation as I fell to the floor. But I am not dead.

I struggle to speak. My throat feels so dry. "Tobias," I manage to whisper.

"Tris!" his voice is strained with emotion, and he has tears in his eyes. "Thank god, you're awake, you're awake!" he leans in and kisses me on the forehead, then my cheek, and then my lips. "How long was I out?" I ask in a raspy voice. "Six days," he answers. "I don't know what I would have done if you-" his voice catches, and he loses all composure, his shoulders shaking with each sob. I reach up and touch his face, just to make sure he's really here, to show him that I am here, and that neither of us is going anywhere. We are together, and that is enough for now. It is enough forever.

EPILOGUE - two and a half years later:

I wake to the sound of Tobias whispering my name. I open my eyes and see him lying next to me on the bed, a grin spread across his face. I smile back.

"I have a surprise for you," he says.

"Really?" I ask. "What kind of surprise?"

He leans over and kisses me.

"You'll see," he says. "Get dressed." And then he's on his feet and helping me up.

It took me 3 months to get back on my feet and out of the wheelchair, and even longer after that to be able to walk on my own. When David shot me, one of the bullets hit me in the back, and damaged a nerve. I still need help up stairs sometimes.

As we arrive at the Hancock building, I see all my friends waiting for us. Christina, Cara, Zeke, Matthew, Amar, Shauna, they're all here.

"Where's Caleb?" Tobias asks. Caleb found me in time to carry me back to the hospital before I lost too much blood. He saved my life. I guess I hadn't lost my brother forever, after all.

"He wimped out, said he's just meet us at the bottom." Christina answers. I realize what the surprise is.

"Ziplining?" I ask, grinning from ear to ear. "You so owe me," Tobias says, and we walk into the building.

When we get to the top, Christina is the first to climb into the sling. "What do you think? Face-up or backward?" she asks. "Backward," Matthew says. "I wanted to go face-up so I don't wet my pants, and I don't want you copying me."

"Going face-up will only make that more likely to happen, you know." Christina says. "So go ahead and do it so I can start calling you wetpants."

I laugh, and Christina climbs into the sling feet-first.

After that, Cara goes down, then one-by-one until it's just me, Tobias, and Zeke.

"I don't think I can do it," Tobias says nervously.

"Of course you can!" Zeke says, "You're, Four. Dauntless legend! You can face anything."

"Hey," I say gently, putting my hand on his arm. "Zeke's right, don't think about it, just... do it for me."

He looks at me for a moment, and then finally asks, "How did you get in?"

I smile. "Face-first."

I give him a kiss on the cheek and Tobias climbs shakily into the sling, and grips both sides. He looks at me, and I smile encouragingly. He stares down at the street, and Zeke pushes him forward. As he falls toward the ground, I can hear him screaming. I laugh so hard I can barely climb into the sling myself.

I climb in, face-first, like Tobias, and begin to fall forward. As I pick up speed, I begin to feel weightless; the spring air feels cool and fast as it pushes against my body. I fall faster, and faster, and I release a shout of adrenaline. Like the first time I did this, I hold my arms out to pretend that I am flying. As I sail high above the city streets, it is easy to let go of the pain that has become a part of my life, I let go of the memories of loss, and violence, and embrace the freeing exhilaration rising up within me. I lost a family when the factions turned against each other. But Christina says the best thing to do when you've been through the things we have, is to concentrate on the good parts of life, to notice when they come around. As I slow to a stop, I know that this is one of those moments.

I look down at all the faces smiling up at me. Among them, I find Caleb, who waves up at me. I see Tobias wink at me as he grabs Matthew's forearm so they can make the human net that will catch me. I release myself from the sling, and fall into the arms of my family.