After the end of the series, I thought this would be something nice to write since I liked the friendship between Four and Christina. Veronica Roth owns Divergent. Allegient spoilers.

"Midnight"

The clock strikes midnight and the ticking mimics my heartbeat. Slow, hallow, echoing in my ears. I lay here for the ninety-eighth night in a row without Tris in my arms. Ninety-eight nights, ninety-eight days without her. It almost feels like years, even centuries, since I last saw her. My arms have been empty since then, and my heart has been shallow. I miss her soft breathing as she slept next to me, but all I have now is half-cold sheets and the moonlight to keep me company.

Sometimes I can see her face on the ceiling of my bedroom, her bright eyes looking down at me with wonder and a tiny smile playing on her lips. But when I blink, she's gone, faded into the white paint, and my heart sinks a little more. I have reached out to touch her sometimes, but I can't reach far enough, and even if I could, I wouldn't feel flesh and soft skin, but instead a cold ceiling. I know she's dead and the images are a figment of my imagination, but it soothes me even though it hurts me when she vanishes into nothing.

I have no one now. The only person I can even bother to talk to is Christina, but we can't hold a civil conversation for more than ten minutes before we begin to bicker back and forth. But even with that, she has become the only person I can confide in and speak about my loss without worry. She has lost many things, too: her friends, her best friend, her first love. I can't pretend like I'm the only one hurting when I can hear the cries she emits when she's lonely. She has come to me for comfort a few times, but not enough that I could count on only one entire hand. Just a few, no more.

We have our happy moments. Of course, they never reach the number of our bad ones, but when I find the good moments, I snatch them and take them in while I still have them in my hands. Christina taught me that trick, and it works well. It prevents me from putting a gun to my head and taking myself out. I have to hold on. If not for myself, for Christina. She has no one to console her. She slipped away from her family and has become close to me. I wish I could say it's too close for my liking, but I would be lying. I feel guilty that I need her more than anything right now.

I can't believe I'm actually admitting that I need Christina. I never once thought that I'd need her in my life, but I do. And she needs me.

My eyes close as I try to drift off into a dreamless sleep without the thought of Tris or Christina, or anything else, really. I just need one silent night without thoughts. It's easier said than done, though. I lay there for awhile, attempting to lull myself to sleep with my steady breathing and the strong beating of my heart. It used to beat for Tris. Now it beats for no one.

I suddenly hear soft footsteps coming towards my open door. I should feel alarmed and jump up in worry, but I know those footsteps. They're small, quiet, and stealthy. I don't even have to open my eyes to see who has come into my room, as I am not too surprised when this happens.

The blanket slightly lifts up on the empty side of my bed and a small weight presses into it, a few inches away from me. I can smell her scent, soft and light, like laundry. She curls up next to me and nestles into the sheets. Her hand finds mine under the covers, and I grasp it. I wrap an arm around her and pull her close to me, letting her cry into my shirt.

"Couldn't sleep, Christina?" I ask, my eyes still closed. She shakes her head. "Me neither."

I press my lips to her forehead and hold her close to my body, so close that I can feel her heartbeat. Her tears soak my shirt, but I'm used to it. I let her cry it out, and I keep her close to me, afraid to let go. I will never let her go. She needs me, and I need her.

My heart begins to beat rhythmically again, but this time, it's for Christina.