It takes me what feels like hours, but was really no longer than a minute, to absorb what just happened.
I look over at Tobias, sliding his shirt over his head, and see his hair falling unruly around his face as he turns to look at me. His face is plastered with a fake smile and I wonder what I did wrong. I smile back and realize that just seconds ago we were going to...what? What were we going to do?
I feel my stomach flip and heat rushes to my face as I look away but I know he saw me.
"So-Uhh" clearing my throat I walk over to where my shirt was tossed and shake my head.
'How do you forget that your shirt was taken off?' I ask myself, 'You really are losing it, huh?'
I pull it over my head and I feel the build up of static, fly-aways stick up and around my face. I ignore the pesky strands of hair and smooth the small wrinkles on my shirt to avoid looking at him.
"So, What's all happened since-"my voice catches and Tobias looks at me now, his expression mimics the stoic glance I received when we first met.
Crap.
"Since what? Since you sided with my father", The heat comes back making my already pale skin blotchy with shame, he stands with his back to me, toward the window in his room over looking the glass ceiling of the dauntless compound. Since the first time I was here, when Peter nearly threw me in the chasm, I had always wondered why he had such a nice room. I mean, I didn't think that an initiate trainer would be held at such high standards especially with a covetous asshole like Eric around, but discovering his near perfect score in all three levels of training made it less hard to believe that he would be held to such adulation.
"You already know that I had to do it, Tobias, it's not a bad thing" I tell him, my voice coming out husky and unsure. A few minutes ago he was saying how he saved me, how he would always be there to save me, I feel as if the arrival of Peter triggered some unknown hostility. Well come to think of it, I elicit enough hostility on my own.
He sighs, pushing his hands through his growing hair and he turns around to me, "How do I know that though? If it wasn't as bad as I thought, then why couldn't you have told me before I had to find out you went behind my back and deliberately sabotaged what I was trying to do, Tris? What we all needed to do. " I see the effort in his face as he tries not to raise his voice.
He's standing closer now, much closer, close enough that I can see the line of black ink trailing it's way around the arc in his neck. I quickly flick my eyes to his; now luminous, and they burn into me as he looks down, I look away and see the stumble on his jaw ,usually smooth to the touch. Unaware of my actions I reach out and rest my palm the side of his face. He hesitates for a moment then his eyes shut, and he lets out a quiet sigh that is nearly inaudible.
We stand like this for a few minutes, as tense as two blades in a stalemate, until finally he reaches his hand up and covers my hand with his, lacing his fingers between mine.
"We can talk about this later" he breathes out, his breath stirring up the loose strands of hair on my forehead. I sigh, relieved in knowing that the questions I don't know how to answer are gone for the moment, but the look in his eyes hold a promise.
Feeling as if I've said enough, and feeling spent on all the arguing I turn and start off down the dim corridor that Peter went through, leaving Tobias behind.
***
I'm about halfway to the pit when hear the commotion. The echo of voices slip their way down the corridor, bouncing of the walls as the shouts create a pounding headache.
They don't sound happy.
I feel my pace quicken and before I'm aware of it my feet break into a run and my senses kick in, using the voices as a compass, leading me to my destination.
I'm a few yards from a the thick metal door with no given handle, that I know leads to a vast empty room labeled the pit for obvious reasons, when a tight muscled arm encircles my shoulders pulling me to a stop.
My assailants other arm reaches around my abdomen, pressing my back against the hard torso.
My body relaxes for a split second before tensing.
Whom I first thought was Tobias has a longer thinner build with sharper, tighter muscles. The arms, which in fact belong to a male; judging by the thick straight hair on their arms, don't handle me with the gentle care of Tobias but with the rough, jerky movements of someone who does not care at all. But the body behind me is eerily familiar.
I hear another set of foot steps down the hall as a hand covers my mouth and I'm pulled into the recess of a wall hidden from sight.
"Keep still, stiff", And I do but not out of obedience. His voice, so cold and sharp, is like the crack of a whip. My mind whirls back to when I was an initiate, unaware of the dangers our new faction would bring, when three boys attacked me and tried to kill me.
One of whom I thought was my friend died "with honor". The second was cast into shame as factionless after Tobias sent him to the hospital and he failed stage 3. The third, a ruthless boy with a code for keeping things even, a boy who has tried to kill me yet has saved me on certain occasions. In fact, he's one who just walked in on me not 10 minutes earlier.
"Peter" I try to say but it comes out as a grumble, his hand blocking the space for my voice to travel.
I hear Peter suck in a breathe ready to respond but he stills just as Tobias comes running down the corridor.
He must've sensed something was off because even from here I can see the lines of worry in his face, the drop of sweat clinging to his brow. I see the way his chest heaves, he must've run from his room.
And then he's gone, running through the door I was going towards. I struggle against Peter as he spins me to face him, his hand still covering my mouth. He looks behind my shoulder then back at me and his voice comes out in a whisper.
"We have to go, Tris",his eyes hold my gaze, a luminous green strangely captivating until you know what he's capable of. He breathes out a frustrated sigh, his breath smelling of lemons and spice, a strange combination.
"Are u listening to me?" Peter hisses, giving me a little shake.
Again I don't reply and Peter scoffs, grabbing my wrist and pulling me down the hallway opposite Tobias. Releasing his hold on my mouth he pulls out an empty cylinder and my skin prickles. I freeze again, too shocked to scream for help.
Sensing my tension Peter turns to look at me with mock sincerity, "Take it easy stiff, It's not what you think." He begins to walk forward opening another door that leads to a musty smelling room lit only with a small candle in the corner.
"While you were getting it on with your boy toy, I was in the meeting with the Factionless, the dauntless, the Erudite, the Amity and what's left of the Candor and Abnegation and we were all trying to come up with the plan for what happens next. All I really know is that at 10:00pm they are going to carry out said plan. They say the plan is going to solve the faction problem and we won't be lab rats anymore. I'm still not convinced that there isn't a bunch of wackjobs running this place so this-"
He gestures to the syringe in his hand still making his way around the room.
"-Is for our benefit, one quick shot to the vein and were in the clear." He stops at a desk in thje corner of the room and hands me the syringe, yanking something out from underneath and then I see the stark black barrel. Well you and I know this is better so you hold that and I shoot"
I see his smile reflected off the candlelight, oddly white in the dark space.
"What did they decide then" I ask feeling a prick of pity when he speaks of the loss of Candor. I know what its like to lose a father. I do my best to hide the empathy in my voice, knowing he doesn't deserve it, but I've never been any good at acting.
Peter looks back at me questioningly and I grunt in frustration.
"Their plan" I say letting my hands fall to my sides "the next course of action? What the hell is going on?"
Peter looks at me again with a look I can't quite place, "I don't know really, It's something about the fence something a Factionless heard from Cara before she disappeared. That's why I came looking for you, it's your great whatever's video that started this mess after all."
"What do you mean Cara disappeared, and why would you leave the meeting that held the only possibility of leverage for us." I ignore the ignorance of his last statement.
"Someone heard she made it outside the fence. Some people say she went crazy after Will and after her parents, well you know what happened." I feel my skin burn and I wonder if he could stop me from jamming this into his chest, but he continues talking. "And I don't really know why I left, alright. I just knew that I somehow needed to find you" his eyes are void of emotion.
"Why didn't you say anything when you came to Tobias' room in the first place," I ask, too worried in what's going on now to think about what happened in the past.
He muses over it for a second before he responds. "Judging by the look of his face when I walked in, I decided it would be better to talk to someone I could handle, which is you, versus someone that could break my arms without a second thought."
I think of our time in Amity and remember how it was a fairly even fight, I'm about to point out his own lack of pride when it comes to Tobias, but decide against it. Its no use to waste my time on him.
"Well, now what?"
"Now we have to leave" I open my mouth to respond but he beats me to it as if reading my thoughts.
"I know, you're wondering about your boyfriend but we sent Uriah to tell him to meet us at the train tracks at 9:30. I knew Four would listen to Uriah, we go there and see if we can figure out what the actual plan is and maybe, depending on what it is, we can stop it. But, if we cant, then we leave."
I'm taken aback at the fact that Peter actually thought ahead and that he actually talked to Uriah about the situation in a serious manner where no one died. Impressive.
I nod and walk forward, towards peter and the door that reads Exit but something about his response is questionable. "Wait, where would we go if we left." I ask him.
He smiles and pushes the door open, a cool breeze sends a shiver through me.
"Behind the walls." I can hear the smile in his voice, and despite our differences I smile too.
Outside.
Finally outside these walls.
I follow behind him and ask the time, feeling oddly vulnerable without the sun to tell me.
I see his smile spread further across his face, as if thinking of something pleasant.
"It's 9:24"
***