SUMMARY:
When a three-year-old boy's mistake gives Eric a chance to restore a broken family, and in turn restore his faith in love.
During the anniversary of her husband's death, Ana Carter is shocked that her son insists Eric Coulter is his father. She does her best to convince the little three-year-old that his father has not come home. But her son is persistent. And soon both she and Eric find that they don't mind indulging in this case of mistaken identity. Modern day AU. (Eric/OC)

RATING:
M for vulgar language, some violence and sexual scenes.

DISCLAIMER:
I do not own Divergent. All characters, places associated with the book belong to Veronica Roth.
All OCs are the creative property of missalohahula.

RESTORATION
Meaning: A return of something/someone to a former, original, normal or unimpaired condition.
Related words: rebuilding, recovery, renewal or repair

Prologue

Eric Coulter blew out a deep breath as he parked his truck in front of his fiancé's house - well, the house was his also considering that he had just moved in. Truth be told, he wasn't completely moved in - the reason for him to have been away for the past couple days. It was hell to pack up boxes, move and work full-time. He threw his cap onto the dashboard and climbed out of his truck, only to stop and notice that where Tris's car was normally parked his best friend's truck was parked there instead.

It wasn't unusual to see his best friend's truck parked outside, especially since the three of them had been best friends for almost ten years now.

"Tobias must have been drunk tonight," he chuckled as he dusted his jeans and grabbed a box from the back of the truck-bed.

He had met Tobias Eaton their first year at University - shared dorm rooms from their Freshmen year to their last. That was how Eric met his fiancé, Tris Prior. Tobias had been friends with Tris's brother, Caleb since they were in the first grade. When Tris had decided to go to Dauntless University, Caleb had asked Tobias to keep a watchful eye on his sister. Eric had helped at first, too. Then as the months went by, it had turned into something more.

Not long after Eric and Tris were engaged. However, the wedding date was always put on the back burner due to some excuse Tris would come up with. Tobias had told Eric to be patient and perhaps he should tick a few things off from Tris's list - for example, getting a stable, full-time job, moving out of his sister's house, getting a dependable car, etc. What he never confided to either of them was that his father had passed away while he was in college, his mother had started battling cancer not long after that. He felt obligated to help his siblings. Just like the wedding date, his dreams were put on the back burner too.

Now, he had good news. This was why he had rushed back to see Tris - surprise her.

Glancing at the boxes, he knew this would take a long time. Hangover or not, Eric was going to solicit Tobias's help in unloading his truck.

Eric opened the door quietly and took notice of something else he didn't expect to see - clothes were in the hallway. Did someone break in?

"Tris?" Eric set the box down on the floor and looked over at the living room to see the couch was empty. Where was Tobias? If there was a break-in, surely Tobias would have heard something. "Honey? Is everything okay? Where are you," he called out, slowly walking towards their room.

Across the hallway, he noticed that the guestroom's door was wide open - the sheet and blanket untouched. What was going on? Where was Tobias?

His heart was beating a million beats per second as a thud sounded behind their bedroom door.

Automatically, in police-officer mode, Eric pulled out his gun from his holster and had just put his hand on their bedroom door handle when he heard Tobias and Tris's frantic whispers.

It couldn't be.

He didn't want to be suspicious, but this didn't make sense.

Unless...

No, there was no fucking way.

Before he could act, the door swung open to reveal Tris - a shirt haphazardly thrown onto her petite body. She graced him with a smile. "Eric, you're home," she breathed out, pulling the door behind her shut. "So early?"

Eric licked his lips as he put his gun down on a table in the hallway.

"His truck is parked outside, Tris," he stated, turning back to look at her. "I didn't think anything, that was until I saw that no one has been sleeping on the couch or in the guest bedroom," his eyes pinned her to her spot as her chest began to rise and fall in panic. "And I can't help but notice that that's not my shirt you're wearing."

"Eric," she shook her head and looked away from him.

The door behind her opened to reveal Tobias standing there in just his boxers. "I should fucking kill you where you stand," Eric growled.

"You can try," Tobias's jaw ticked.

Normally, he would have teased Tobias about this sort of thing. It had happened twice before with Nita and Lauren - Tobias's ex-girlfriends - where Tobias was the man on the side and Eric had to go and rescue his ass from being shot at by some convicted husband who was just released. But this was different.

Tris was pregnant with Eric's baby and they were engaged for fuck's sake.

Eric's fists tightened, and he marched past Tris only for her to grab his arm. "No, Eric! Please!"

Eric waited for an apology - he was expecting it to come. If Tris begged for his forgiveness, then he'd give it to her. He might not marry her, but he'd provide for his child. If she gave him something. But what she did say, he hadn't expected at all.

"It's not entirely Tobias's fault. It just sort of..."

"Don't you dare tell me it just happened. Betraying your fiancé doesn't just happen," Eric pulled his arm free. "Was this the first time?"

"Eric, man," Tobias began. "Look, it wasn't meant to happen. But it did and now," he paused and scratched the back of his neck. "We didn't mean for you to find out like this. I swear we thought..."

"How long," Eric questioned, looking at his fiancé. Tris looked away. "How long, dammit?" His voice rose, and Tris cringed slightly.

"About a year," Tobias answered for her.

Reality slammed into Eric's mind as though it were a wrecking ball. Tris was four months pregnant. If they had been fooling around for a year, then...

Eric whirled around, throwing his fist out at Tobias. Tobias took the punch, knocking him to his feet. When Eric climbed on top of Tobias to level another punch to him, Tobias struck back with a punch of his own. Sure he and Tobias had gotten into some fights back in the day - but that was when they fought alongside one another against some punk from a frat or someone bullying one of their friends. But now, they were going up against each other and that reminded Eric that Tobias was just slightly better than him. But that didn't matter at the moment. All Eric could do was see red.

Tris was his fiancé.

Tris made him believe that she was pregnant with his child.

He was going to give it Tobias the best that he could. Eric tasted the blood from his lip as he and Tobias began to exchange blows.

"Stop," Tris screamed as a nearby lamp and bedside table crashed and broke under the two swinging bodies. "Stop it, both of you!"

Tobias hesitated but Eric regrouped, throwing an uppercut before connecting with Tobias's temple. He went down again. And just before Eric was about to let Tobias have everything he could dish out, Tris jumped in front of him.

Immediately, the sight of the small swell of her stomach made him pull up short. He had loved this woman once. He had loved the child in her. Now the child wasn't his, she wasn't his. She probably never had been. He relaxed his fists as Tris scurried to Tobias's side. Not his - but Tobias's. She had made her choice. And it wasn't him.

"We tried to fight it, Eric," Tobias rasped out as Eric saw Tris touch his face.

"Fought it so hard that you knocked her up," Eric snarled. "Fuck you, man. Fuck you, both."

Tris turned back to him, her hair messed and her eyes red with sadness. "Eric, I didn't mean to hurt you. It just..."

"What is wrong with you," Eric interrupted Tris, "I came here to tell you that I sold my family's property. Everything in Erudite is gone so that I could buy you that house you wanted in Dauntless - pay for our kid's future. I passed the test yesterday. I made Sergeant. Finally committed to a full-time job," he sighed.

Tris's face paled slightly as Tobias stood behind her - a look of pity on his face. Eric had just done everything that Tris had ever wanted him to do and now he was walking away empty-handed. This wasn't his home anymore. It wasn't really. He hadn't finished moving in. This was Tris's house and this was her life. She and Tobias had just erased Eric from it.

"Congratulations to me, I guess," Eric chuckled darkly. "I thought I come home and tell my fiancé the good news."

"Eric, I..."

"Save it," he shook his head and looked towards Tobias. "And you, you're a piece of shit, you know that? Every time, I argued with Tris about my family, about changing my priorities and you," Eric huffed. "You just moved right in. This isn't the first time, either." He looked Tobias in the eye. "Those other guys whose wives and girlfriends you slept with, I laughed at. But this," he gestured around the room. "We were friends, Tobias. Friends. I never thought for a moment that either of you would betray me like that."

Eric walked to the closet, pulling his old University duffle from the top and stuffed whatever clothes he could get his hands on inside. He tried not to let the fact that some of Tobias's clothes were in there sting him.

He trusted them both.

Tobias had the decency to stay out of his way. Tris on the other hand, followed him around, sniffling with her arms wrapped around herself. He couldn't look at her right now.

"Will you," Eric asked.

"I will," she cried joyful tears before Eric wrapped his arms around her middle and picked her up.

"She said yes! She fucking said yes," Eric shouted as some of their friends came out and began to pop confetti and rain down silly string on the two of them.

That all seemed like a distant memory now.

He couldn't believe it. After all that he was doing for her, to give her the life she wanted. Eric could only assume that it was too little, too late. He slung the duffle over his shoulder, walked to the kitchen and grabbed a few pictures he had on the fridge.

He ran his thumb over the picture of him, his mother and his three siblings at his college graduation. They were so proud of him, all his hard work. And just now, they had all been so excited for the baby. Eric's older sister encouraged him to sell the property, provide for Tris and the baby. They all had to start pitching in to help. And she was no exception. What would he tell them now?

Tris's quiet sobs sounded behind him again. "Were you ever going to tell me the baby wasn't mine?"

"If I had known that you had done all of..."

"Would you have told me about the baby," Eric repeated, not wanting to hear any more excuses from Tris.

"Probably. Tobias and I talked about it. And," she paused and sniffed, "we were really going to tell you, Eric."

Eric put the picture into his back pocket and walked out of the house. Throwing the box and duffle in the back, he saw Tris standing on the front porch - Tobias had just come outside to join her. His best friend had stolen his life. He shook his head, starting his truck, slammed his foot on the gas pedal and tore down the street.

He'd go to the station, get a shower there. There was no way in hell, he'd ever come back to this town.