"What is that?" I asked pointing at the large tree in our apartment.
"It's a Christmas tree" Tobias answers laughing. I don't get what's so funny.
"A what?" I ask.
"A Christmas tree. We decorate it and put presents under it and on Christmas day, December 25th we open them. It's a centuries old tradition" he explains.
"Okay. So with what do we decorate it?" I ask.
"Here" he shows me three large boxes with Christmas ornaments, tinsel in white and red and lights.
He sets up the tree close to the window and grabs the lights, rounding the tree from top to bottom, leaving space between the rows of light, probably for the colored tinsels.
While he is doing that I carefully take out the ornaments and place them on the kitchen table, examining each one of them. They all seem knew to me and I momentarily wonder if this his first Christmas tree as well.
"Tobias?" I ask and he stops what he is doing looking at me. "Did you have a Christmas tree before?"
"Abnegation, remember" he says pointing at himself. I roll my eyes. Of course I know that. While growing up in Abnegation no kid was allowed to celebrate Christmas, let alone have a Christmas tree or God forbid presents.
"I know that" I say sighing dramatically, which makes him laugh heartily. I love it when he laughs. He is always so serious and stern looking, so Four, but when it's just the two of us his just my sweet, loving, romantic Tobias. God, I love this man so much. "What I meant was, did you have a Christmas tree the past two years, since joining Dauntless?"
"No" he answers matter-of-factly.
"Why not?" I ask handing him a red tinsel.
"I didn't feel like celebrating. Before you came I didn't care much about anything or anyone. But that has changed. I have changed. You have changed me. For the better" he walks toward me and wraps me in his arm, resting his chin on my head, while I listen to the steady beat of his heart. "I love you, Six."
"I love you too, Four." We stay like this for a little while longer, just enjoying the closeness.
"We should finish the tree before supper time" he says pulling away from me.
We continue decorating until there are no more ornaments left. Tobias turns on the Christmas lights and I'm completely mesmerized by them. I've never seen anything more beautiful than this Christmas tree. My first Christmas tree. No. Tobias's and my first Christmas tree. I smile brightly and he notices my good mood.
"What made you so happy?" he asks me before placing a soft kiss to my right cheek.
"You. You always make me happy. But right now this Christmas tree. I was just thinking this is our first Christmas tree and our first Christmas and I am so happy that we experience this together" I say emotion thick in my voice.
"I know. I'm happy we can experience this together. And so many other things. I have to say, I can't wait for December 25th to come" he says, just as choked up as I am.
"Me neither."
Damn. Gifts. I still need to buy gifts. I have to make a list so that I won't forget anyone. Tobias seems to notice the shift in my mood and asks me about it.
"What is wrong?"
"Uhm, I was just now realizing I have to get gifts for all our friends" I say bashfully.
"Would you mind if we do it together. I mean instead of buying two gifts for each of our friends let's buy something together."
"That'll be great. Thank you. Do you have a pen and paper? We should make a list of people we want to give presents."
He nods and gets a pen and a paper out of his desk drawer and hands them to me. I sit down at the small desk and write down the names of our friends.
Will
Christina
Zeke
Shauna
Uriah
Marlene
Lynn
Tori
And a few more, but these eight are our closest friends. We decide to go gift shopping the next day, since it's already too late for that and it's nearly supper time anyway.
We leave the apartment and head toward the cafeteria where our friends greet us at our regular table. We sit down and everyone seems to be extra cheerful these days. Christina says it's because of the holiday season and I just have to agree since I'm new to all this. I decide to ask Christina later for some advice. I have absolutely no idea what to get for Tobias. While Tobias talks to Zeke about something that happened in the control room I take advantage of the situation and lean in toward Christina asking her to ask me loud enough for Tobias to hear to join her tomorrow before lunch in her apartment. Over the past several months we got to know each other so well that we can almost read each other's minds when we need too. She knows that I need to speak to her alone and therefore she asks loud enough for Tobias to hear us if I could join her for a little girl time. I immediately say yes and she just smiles brightly at me.
After we finish supper Tobias and I excuse ourselves and go back to our apartment. We stay up for a little while longer enjoying the Christmas lights and each other's company. I yawn a few times and Tobias picks me up bridal style and carries me into our bedroom. He sets me down on the bed and suddenly I'm not that sleepy anymore. I beckon him to me with my right index finger and he takes the hint, smart boy that he is.
I wake up early the next morning still wrapped tightly in Tobias's arms. I love it when we spoon, I feel safe and home whenever he holds me. I try to get out of his hold without waking him up, but I should know by now that I'll never be able to just sneak out of bed. I smile brightly when he pulls me back to his naked chest and places a kiss on my right ear, before whispering "Morning honey".
"Good morning, babe. Did you sleep well?" I ask him, back still turned to him.
"Best sleep in years" he answers still sleepy.
"You say that every morning" I laugh.
"Well, every night I sleep better. Especially after a good workout the night before" he teases.
"Tobias" I say blushing crimson.
"What?" he asks innocently.
I turn around in his arms and kiss him softly on the lips, before he licks my bottom lip with his tongue. We deepen our kiss and before we know it we work out again. Twice, actually.
It is almost ten in the morning when we finally leave the apartment and go to grab a bite in the cafeteria. I'm not really in the mood for something big – I only eat a banana muffin and have a cup of coffee. I kiss Tobias goodbye and tell him I'll see him back here at lunch.
I walk up to Christina's apartment and knock twice before Will answers. It's not uncommon for him to spend the night at her place or her at his place so I just say good morning and enter. He is fully dressed which means he was already heading out. He kisses Christina good bye and leaves us alone.
"Spill it" she says the moment the door closes behind Will.
"I need to get Four a Christmas gift, but I have no clue what a good Christmas gift would be."
"Well, you know him better than me. But I think it would be best if you ignore the fact that it is Christmas."
"What do you mean" I ask, not sure where this is going.
"I mean, imagine you just want to give him something, no special occasion or for any reason whatsoever. You just want to give the guy that you love something to tell him how much you appreciate him. Something that means something to the both of you" she explains.
Just then a thought crosses my mind. I know what to get him. I thank her for her advice and ask her if she would like to go for a little shopping trip with me. Of course, she agrees the second I say shopping. We enter the Pit and I ask her if we could stop by at the tattoo parlor, because I wanted to say hi to Tori. While Christina talks to some pink-haired girl, I walk over to Tori and ask her if I might get an appointment for the evening of December 23rd. She checks and asks me to stop by at 8 PM that night. I agree and tell her what I want. She looks at me a little amused but agrees to what I'm asking. I walk back to Christina and we have a speed shopping trip through the many Dauntless clothing stores. I buy myself some new outfits, mostly to cover up the fact that I bought a few for Tobias. Christina was right that once I buy him stuff for no reason whatsoever it'll be easier. And I love buying things for him. The two outfits I bought for him looked great in the store and I'm sure they will look even better on him. He never buys things for himself. Huh, I wonder if it's because he was raised in Abnegation. I know I don't like to buy things for myself because of that. Thankfully, I have Chris as a friend and she often buys stuff for me I hardly think I would need but end up loving.
It is nearly noon and we decide to head to the cafeteria. We spot our guys at our regular table talking about little things. Cristina slides down next to Will and I next to Tobias, across from my two best friends.
"Did you have a nice time with Christina?" Tobias asks, when everyone was engrossed in some story Zeke was telling.
"I did actually, she wanted to buy something for Will and I just went along. I saw a few items we could get for some of our friends. I'll show them to you later" I tell him.
"I see you bought a few things yourself. Though not as many as Christina" he says with a chuckle. I can't help but smile. I love it when he is so relaxed and happy. Although he still has his Four mask on, I can tell he is happy.
After lunch we go back to the apartment where I leave my bags in the bedroom and hurry back into the living room where Tobias is patiently waiting for me. I launch myself into his open arms and he catches me, pulling me close to his warm body, placing a gentle kiss to my lips. We stay like this for a few minutes before he groans and puts me back down. He grabs my right hand and we leave to go gift shopping.
We spend the whole afternoon looking for gifts for all our friends. So far we got a brand new leather jacket for Zeke, silver earrings with one small red ruby each for Shauna, a silver necklace with a dark Dauntless-flame pendant for Marlene, new combat boots for Lynn, a coupon for 10 free Dauntless cakes at the confectionery store for Uriah, a new premium pencil set for Tori, who loves to draw. The only two people left on our list are Will and Christina. We walk hand in hand from one store to the other until I see the perfect gift for Christina. A black mid-thigh cocktail dress with black faux-crystals all over it. It's both sweet and sexy and so Christina. I show it to Tobias and he decides to wait for me outside. I can't blame him. He is probably tired. Damn, I'm tired. I walk through the store while the salesgirl wraps up the dress, when I notice the lingerie section. I look over a few items and decide to buy something provocative for once. It'll go well with what I have in mind for Tobias. I grab the lingerie I want and pay for it, hiding it under Christina's gift. I walk outside and see Tobias patiently waiting for me.
"One more gift" I sigh.
"Actually, I bought the last one while you bought Christina's" he tells me, pulling out a small box out of one of the bags.
"What is it?" I ask curiously. I can't see it, since it's wrapped already.
"A new watch" he answers.
"That is great. Let's go home" I say. He takes my hand and we return to our apartment, happy that this shopping trip finally came to an end. We deposit the gifts under our Christmas tree, making sure that each gift has the proper name tag attached to it.
On the evening of December 23rd I tell Tobias that I have to help Tori pick out a gift for her new boyfriend and ask him to grab me a slice of pizza to eat later in our apartment.
I'm sitting now in Tori's apartment, since it's more private than the tattoo parlor, for more than an hour waiting patiently to see the master piece that she is drawing on my body. I told her that I wanted a larger raven over my heart that represented Tobias of course. But I also wanted a tattoo for him and his eyes only. If I would have wanted to do this months ago when I first came to Dauntless I wouldn't have been able to do it. But after several beauty and waxing sessions first with just Christina and now with our whole group of girlfriends, I'm comfortable pulling my pants down, at least enough for Tori to give me one special tattoo right above my most intimate place. I asked her to tattoo the roman numeral IV surrounded above it by the words ever and and below always, forming a never-ending circle. She tells me to not shower until tomorrow afternoon and try to avoid soap on the tattooed skin at least until the day after tomorrow. She places a band-aid on each tattoo and I go back to my apartment.
Tobias is waiting for me on the couch reading a book. I eat my slice of pizza and tell him that I'm beat. I go into our bedroom and make sure Tobias doesn't see the band-aids. I change quickly into my PJ's and jump into bed. He follows me shortly, pulling me close to his chest like every night and we both fall into a peaceful sleep.
The next evening is magical. The Dauntless cafeteria looks like a winter wonderland picture and the food is absolutely delicious. We exchange gifts and after a little while longer Tobias and I excuse ourselves under the pretext of being tired. A huge, fat lie, but nobody says anything to us.
We get back to our apartment put the gifts we got from our friends under the Christmas tree. I then grab the two gifts I have for Tobias handing them to him. He smiles and opens them.
"Do you like your new outfits?" I ask, suddenly afraid he might not.
"Of course I do. Thank you" he says kissing me gently on the lips. "Here, this is for you" he hands me a big box. I open it and find a gorgeous crimson knee-high cocktail dress with a black band just under the breasts. Inside the big box is a smaller one. I take it and open it. My breath is momentarily taking away by the sight before me. Inside the smaller box, on a black velvet cushion is a silver necklace with a silver heart pendant that has one single black diamond in the middle of it.
"Oh my God, Tobias. It's beautiful. But it's too much" I say, unable to take my eyes off of it.
"No it's not. I love you very much and nothing will ever be enough" he says kissing my temple.
"Here, help me put it on" I say handing him the necklace. He puts it on and I turn around kissing him passionately. We only let go of each other when breathing becomes an issue. "I have another gift for you" I say seductively "Follow me into the bedroom" I say standing up and walking into our bedroom, making sure to sway my hips as much as I can. He follows closely behind grabbing my waist and pulling me into him. He starts kissing my neck until he reaches my dress he groans and pulls away slightly. I turn around to look at him.
"What is it, Tobias?" I ask innocently. He looks at me with furrowed eyebrows.
"You are definitely too dressed" he says pouting. I have to laugh at his statement.
"Well your gift is under this dress" I say seductively. His eyes widen for a moment, lust clearly taking over. I know what his thinking, but he is in for an surprise. I turn around and let him unzip my dress. He slides the dress off of my shoulders and we let it fall to the floor. I'm now standing only in my black lace lingerie, my back still turned to him. Tobias wraps his arms around my waist and slowly starts kissing my right earlobe, then down my neck, further down to my shoulder, all the while his hands explore my front until finding my aching breasts and kneading them gently. He turns me around and immediately crashes his lips to mine and explores my mouth with his tongue. The more passionate and wild our kiss gets the higher the temperature between my legs becomes. When he finally leaves my mouth and kisses down my throat, along my collarbone I moan deeply, but then he suddenly stops. I open my eyes to see what happened that made him stop. He is just staring at my boobs. No, wait. He saw it. The forth raven. His raven.
"Merry Christmas, Tobias" I say. He looks into my eyes and I see tears glistening in his.
"You gave me a raven?" he asks incredulous.
"Of course, you are the most important person in my life. I love you with all my heart. You will always be in my heart and it will always belong to you, no matter what" I say a little chocked up.
At my admission he crashes his mouth back on mine and kisses my hungrily, passionately, but more importantly with all the love he feels for me. When he finally pulls away a stray tear slides down his cheek and he smiles brightly at me.
"I love you, Tris, my love, my life, my everything."
Now I'm the one who starts crying. He brushes the tears away with his thumbs and kisses the trail the tears left behind until his lips find mine again. We continue kissing like this for several minutes until the desire builds up again and we land on the bed. We don't waste much time and after a thorough exploration of my breasts and tummy area Tobias slides further down toward my womanhood and stops abruptly. The see-through thong I'm wearing really doesn't let anything up to the imagination, but it allows him to see my newest tattoo. The one I got just for him. He pulls the thong down my legs and off, throwing it away never averting his eyes from the tattoo.
"Tris…"he starts but soon stops even trying to speak.
"Do you like it? I wanted something that only you could see. Now and forever. I'm yours today and everyday to come, for ever and always" I say a little choked up.
He looks up at me and smiles.
"This is the best gift I've ever gotten. I love you so much. Now, for ever and always."
He returns to my mouth and kisses my passionately. We end up setting a new personal record in terms of work outs in the bedroom and I'm sure I will be sore tomorrow. But I don't mind. I love Christmas.