Tris

"I didn't come here to steal anything, David."

I twist and lunge toward the device. The gun goes off and pain races through my body. I don't even know where the bullet hit me.

I can still hear Caleb repeating the code for Matthew. With a quaking hand I type in the numbers on the keypad.

The gun goes off again. I think I have reached my pain threshold, or possibly it's just the adrenaline running through me because this time I don't feel the bullet hit me.

I start to fall, and slam my hand into the keypad on my way down. A light turns on behind the green button. I hear a beep and a churning sound.

As I slide to the floor, my vision blurring, I notice a slumped figure behind David. It's Caleb, a gun held in his shaking hand. I keep myself awake long enough to hear his last words.

"I'm sorry, Beatrice," he says, his voice barely audible, "I love you."

I watch him take his last shaky breath before blacking out.

Tobias

As we walk into the compound, I know for a fact that Caleb succeeded, because there is no one in sight. That can only mean that they have been reset, their memories forever altered.

"Where is everyone?" Amar says.

We walk through the abandoned security checkpoint without stopping. On the other side, I see Cara. The side of her face is badly bruised, and there's a bandage on her head, but that's not what concerns me. What concerns me is the troubled look on her face.

"What is it?" I say.

Cara shakes her head.

"Where's Tris?" I say.

"I'm sorry, Tobias"

"Sorry about what?" Christina says roughly. "Tell us what happened!"

"Tris went into the weapons lab instead of Caleb," Cara says, "She survived the death serum but she…she was shot. She's still alive, but barely. It doesn't look good."

Christina yells something, but to me her voice is muffled. All I can do is stand still, hoping it isn't true.

But of course. Of course Tris would go into the weapons lab instead of Caleb.

But this isn't over. She isn't gone yet and if I know her, then I know she won't stop fighting. She will give it all she has to try and come back to me.

"I want to see her," I say, my voice surprisingly steady.

"Tobias," Cara starts, as if I'm giving myself a false hope by seeing her. I round on her.

"Don't you dare talk to me as if she's already gone!" I shout. Tears are now beginning to fall freely, but I don't wipe them away. "She has survived too much to be killed by a simple bullet! Now I don't care if every single one of you has given up on her. I won't give up until she draws her last breath. Now I want to see her!"

Cara looks as if she is going to argue, but thinks better of it.

"She's still in surgery, but you can be waiting for her when she gets out," She says calmly.

Apparently everyone realizes that I need to be alone because even Christina doesn't follow us. Cara leads me to the hospital wing and I slump down in a chair. She is about to walk away, but then a thought hits me.

"Where's Caleb," I growl, "Won't even come to see how his own sister is doing when she is the one dying and it should be him! I swear, the next time I see him,"

"You won't," Cara interrupts, "See him, I mean. He's the reason Tris is alive at all. He showed up as Tris was about to release the memory serum and found David in there with her. By the time Caleb had made his way through the room with the lingering death serum, David must have already shot Tris, but if Caleb hadn't of shot David when he did, Tris wouldn't have made it out of there alive."

I can't believe it. He actually sacrificed himself. Cara must be able to read the look of shock on my face because she adds,

"I guess he realized that the only way to show that he truly did love his sister despite his betrayal was to sacrifice himself for her."

And with that she walks away, leaving me alone with my thoughts.

At first I thought about Caleb. Does this one ultimate sacrifice forgive him for all the wrong he has done? He previously betrayed his own sister, and almost assisted in her death. Was he acting out of love, or guilt? He surely knew that if she died and he survived he wouldn't be able to live with himself. But Caleb and Tris were close at one time. Maybe he truly was acting out of love for his sister.

I don't know. And honestly, I know I'm only thinking about Caleb because it's a good distraction. If I don't keep my mind busy, I'll begin to worry and think the worst.

How long has she been in surgery? Is the increasing time a good thing or a bad thing? Every minute that goes by, at least the fact that the doctor hasn't returned means that Tris is still alive and breathing. But is it taking so long because some unexpected complication has arisen? No one has survived the death serum without an antidote before, as far as we know. Maybe it has some lasting effects that complicate the surgery.

In an attempt to once again distract myself, I think of her. Not the Tris that is currently in surgery fighting for her life, but the small but strong Tris I have gotten to know and love.

I remember the first time I saw her.

I had seen her around Abnegation when we were younger, sure. In the hallways at school, at my mother's fake funeral, but I didn't really see her until she jumped first; until she left Beatrice behind and became Tris.

When her body first hit the net, all I registered was a gray blur. I pulled her across it and her hand was small, but warm, and then she stood before me, short and thin and in all ways unremarkable-except that she had jumped first. The Stiff had jumped first.

Even I didn't jump first.

Her eyes were so stern, so insistent. Beautiful.

As I think of her, I realize I am silently crying again. But not because I fear Tris will lose the battle she is currently fighting, but because I know she will come back to me. Somewhere, she knows I am thinking about her and she will come back to me.

I have always underestimated her. Even when we were both at Dauntless, I tried to protect her. I soon realized, however that not only was I incapable of protecting her, but she didn't need my protection. She has always been so stubborn and strong. But every time she reaches an obstacle, I still try, and fail, to stand in her way to soften the blow and am always surprised when she conquers whatever life throws at her.

I know this is one obstacle I can't try to overcome for her. She is on her own, but I know now that she is capable. And I focus on this as time crawls on and I wait for her to be removed from the battlefield.

I don't know how much time has passed when the doctor finally emerges. He looks exhausted. He looks like I feel: completely drained. But unfortunately this means that as he approaches me, his face is completely unreadable.

I jump up out of the chair as he comes to a stop in front of me. I don't even have to ask how she is doing.

"Well," he sighs, "the surgery went as well as could be expected."

What does that mean? He says it as if it could be a good thing or a bad thing. I mentally tell myself to shut up and just let him finish.

"For now, all we can do is wait. Luckily, the bullet missed her heart by centimeters, but she had lost a lot of blood before we got to her."

I swallow hard.

"Do you think she'll make it?" I ask, my voice barely audible.

"I don't know," he says shaking his head slightly, "But we will do all we can for her. She's a fighter."

I nod.

"May I see her?"

He leads me into a room where Tris is lying very still on a mattress, with lots of machines hooked up to her, keeping her alive. He leaves me with her. I was too distracted by the sight of her to even thank the doctor for all he has done for her. Not that words alone could express the gratitude I feel for giving her the best fighting chance.

She is so pale. I walk towards her and hold one of her hands in mine. They are ice. But I don't let go. I want her to know that I'm here. That I haven't given up on her. With my free hand I gently move her hair away from her face and softly kiss her lips.

"I'm not leaving," I whisper, my face still inches from hers, "until you can return that." And with that, I sit down next to her and caress her hand with my thumb, hoping to return some of the warmth that is always radiating off of her.

At some point I fall asleep.

I dream of her.

Tobias

I wake up to find Christina sitting next to me, her face wet and blotchy. It's strange to see her like this. Christina, who always acts tough and has a snide remark ready for any occasion.

"Don't tell me you've given up on her too," I say, lifting my head from Tris' mattress. I look down and notice our hands are still intertwined. My hand is sore and stiff, but instead of letting go, I simply switch hands.

Christina jumps at the sound of my voice. She didn't realize I was awake.

"Of course not," she sniffs defiantly, "I would not be here if I had. You're not the only one who loves her you know."

"I know," I say softly.

After that we sit in an understanding silence for a long time. Or at least it feels like a long time. With Tris's life hanging in the balance, time seems to move much slower.

But after a while Christina gets up and walks towards the door. She stops in the doorway and turns around to face me.

"She's going to wake up," Christina says confidently. And with that she walks out.

I pass the time thinking about Tris some more. Remembering back to when she was an initiate. How though she was at such a disadvantage, she was still so determined. I think about climbing the Ferris wheel with her. She was fearless. She was what motivated me to keep going. What still motivates me to keep going.

I think about when she joined me in my fear landscape. She knew it was only a simulation, yet she still jumped in front of me and sheltered me from my father's lash. She remained selfless even though she had left that faction behind.

Once again I fall asleep, but this time, I wake to feel movement in the hand I am holding. I open my eyes and see her small thumb gently moving across my rough skin.

Tris

I open my eyes and see him sleeping, his hand connected to mine. He is what kept me here. I miss my parents, I want to be with them, but they didn't sacrifice their lives for me to just give up. I start caressing his hand with my thumb. When he wakes up, I want him to know I'm here. I want him to wake up realizing that I didn't leave him.

I finally feel him stir and he lets out a gasp. He sits bolt upright and exclaims,

"Tris!"

Though I'm still quite weak and in a considerable amount of pain, I manage a smile that he wholeheartedly returns. I don't care about the pain. I'm alive and he is here. That's all that matters.

He then lifts my head up slightly and begins to kiss me. Generally I wouldn't complain, but I'm still very weak and breathing is a little more difficult than usual. So, I indulge myself as much as I can but then I open my eyes and say against his lips,

"Tobias."

He pulls away and looks at me, concerned.

"I'm so sorry," he says, looking me up and down, "Did I hurt you? I wasn't thinking,"

"Never apologize for that," I interrupt, smiling slightly, "I'm just a bit more fragile than normal."

He still looks a bit angry with himself but simply kisses me on the forehead before taking both my hands in his.

He looks at me intently.

"I knew you would come back. I knew you would never stop fighting," he says shakily.

"And I knew you wouldn't give up on me," I add. "You are what kept me fighting, Tobias."

"I always underestimate you," he says, "but once again you have proven that you are so much stronger than the rest of us. You did it. You released the memory serum."

I smile briefly, but then my smile fades as I remember something.

"Caleb," I say. I remember his sacrifice and his last words to me.

"I'm sorry Beatrice, I love you."

"He made his choice," says Tobias gently. "Just as you made your choice to risk your life instead of his, he chose to save you, even though he knew he wouldn't survive."

"I wouldn't let him do it because I knew he was doing it out of guilt, not love. And we weren't giving him much of a choice. If I had let him do it, sacrifice himself in that way, his death would have been on my hands and it still wouldn't make up for what he had done."

"Tris," Tobias says gently, "you don't have to explain yourself to me. I know why you did it, and though I don't know if I could live in a world without you in it, I- I think you did the right thing." He takes a steadying breath. "Caleb's sacrifice saved your life. And I see now that it was love that motivated him to give his life to try and save yours. He did the one thing that might allow you to forgive him."

I blink tears out of my eyes. It's not fair that Caleb's forgiveness cost his life. There were plenty of times right after Caleb's betrayal that I wished he was dead. But now, it's different. I know now that he truly felt regret for what he had done, and that he still loved me and was willing to prove this by giving his life.

So many people have given their life for me. But I won't let it be a waste. I'm alive. And I won't ever take that for granted.

Tris

The next couple of weeks were painful. The worst part was over though. I knew that it was a miracle I was even alive and as long as Tobias was by my side, that was good enough for me.

I hated feeling fragile again. I pushed myself every day, as much as Tobias and the doctors would let me that is, to regain my strength.

Tobias wasn't the only one by my side. When I wasn't with Tobias, which was very rare, I was with Christina. It was nice to see that her usual fiery nature was returning as my strength was.

Eventually, though, my strength did begin to return and I was finally given the okay to leave.

One day, Tobias came up to me, grinning.

"So," he said, lightly stroking my cheek, "you ready to go home?"

I start a little at that word.

"Home?" I say, confused. "What do you mean home? We don't have a home anymore."

"That's not true," he says lightly. "Home is wherever we are together. But in the literal sense," he says almost nervously, "I was thinking that maybe we could stay in my house."

"Your house?" I ask, confused. "Your Abnegation house that you grew up in?"

"Yeah, well, I figured that I don't want my childhood home to only bring horrible memories." He steps closer to me. "I figured we could make some better ones."

I look up at him. His face is inches from mine.

"But how can we go back there? Now that we know that there is so much more out there. Now that we know that it was basically a prison."

"I'm not saying we have to stay there forever, Tris. But we have never even gotten the chance to enjoy a bit of the quiet life. We have never been free. Why don't we see if we can love each other in the quiet times as we have in the hectic ones before we start our next adventure, whatever that may be."

At first I have no words. But then I stand on my tiptoes and whisper,

"I think, that is a wonderful idea," and I finally kiss him without holding back. All we register is each other. I feel warmth radiate throughout my body; I feel like I could stay in his arms forever. I momentarily forget all my pain, physical and otherwise.

And then all too soon, it's over. Well, interrupted is the more appropriate word.

"Come on, you guys," I hear Christina say, a smile in her voice, "you have the rest of your lives for that. You might want to come up for some air."

Finally we break apart.

"Man, you sure do know how to ruin a moment," I say grinning.

As we leave the compound, I think about the outside world. What's out there? Someday I hope to find out, but for now, the quiet life that Tobias suggests sounds pretty nice.

I wish my parents could get to experience this freedom of a society without factions. But I know that their sacrifice wasn't in vain.

And it's not like I don't have a family anymore. I do. I will always have Christina and Tobias. I know that.

I rest my head on Tobias's shoulder.

It's time to go home.