Ordinary Acts of Bravery [A Divergent Fanfic]

Chapter 32 - The mask we wear

Gabriel guided me away from the others, towards one of the walls of the apartment. It provided us some privacy but not much. I raised an eyebrow at Gabriel and made sure there were at least two meters between us as I leant against the wall. "What do you want?" I asked without hesitation, and without hiding my discontent for him.

Gabriel chuckled, his own 'playing victim' mask faded away, to reveal his true hide. Being this close to Gabriel allowed me to really notice the faint scars still lingering from Eric's attack. Each and every one of them provided me with a little more happiness.

"So, I've heard the rumors." Gabriel laughed and inched closer. I stood my ground, watching him with narrowed eyes. "Are you really sleeping with him?" Gabriel whispered after he had lowered his head further to me. Gabriel was one of those people that was annoyingly taller than everyone else.

"I don't see why it's any of your business." I snapped at him, keeping my voice low enough to remain in a whisper. "What do you want?" I asked again, raising my arms up to wrap them around my chest. It was a way of protecting myself from him, from his gaze that kept traveling down. Making me aware of the necklace I was wearing. It had become much heavier under his gaze.

Gabriel smiled even wider and straightened up just as someone stepped out from the kitchen opposite of us. "Welcome, Welcome all to my humble abode." Ezekiel said when he stepped out. It was the guard I had met on the fence stepped out. So, it was his party.

My attention had shifted to him when he spoke, but I should never have done that because Gabriel took that moment to close the distance between us. When his hand was securely on the back of my head, my head snapped back to him, in time for him to place his lips on mine again.

This time I was ready for it and bit hard into his bottom lip. Gabriel growled and retracted just as something black flashed before my eyes, pushing Gabriel up against the wall. My eyes widened, this time it was Eric. With hands securely wrapped around Gabriel's shirt, he shoved the taller man against the wall, raising him a few inches from the floor.

"Eric!" His name left my lips simultaneously with someone else. I quickly grabbed onto Eric's forearm and tried pulling him away from Gabriel, but my strength alone wouldn't be enough. I took in the furious Eric as he held Gabriel against the wall, chest heaving, nostrils flaring, looking absolutely feral. Even his eyes were extremely narrow and filled with hate towards this one person.

Then another pair of arms reached around Eric's torso. Someone else was strong enough to pull Eric away. Gabriel landed on his feet when Eric was torn away from him. It was Ezekiel that came into view as he forced Eric around behind him, making him stand between the two men. Ezekiel spread his arms out to keep them separated.

Eric only had eyes for Gabriel and didn't see Ly approach. None of us would have guessed what she did next. Her small fist collided with Eric's cheek, sending his head to the left. "What the fuck is wrong with you, you monster!" Ly screamed at Eric as her sister wrapped her arms around her, pulling her back. Tadeo soon joined to help hold Ly back. "You fucking coward, attacking without reason!" Ly continued to scream.

"Without reason?" Ezekiel scoffed, raising an eyebrow. "I don't think that was without reason." Then the older dauntless turned to me. His eyes shifted to my lips, and I raised a hand to them, feeling the blood from the wound I had inflicted on Gabriel. My eyes snapped to Gabriel's lips, fresh blood was still flowing from the bite wound on his lower lip. I had managed to get him quite good.

But I felt really disgusted. My hands worked ferociously to remove the blood, moving with erratic movements. Eric noticed and he lost all sense of calm, dashing to me as his hands cupped my cheeks. I felt him remove what remained of Gabriel on my lips. Tears swelled and I grabbed onto his sleeves. It brought him even closer to me, though it didn't seem humanly possible.