Tris walked the halls alone, as she so often did now that she was at odds with her friends. It was lonely, but Tris fell into old habits easily; Abnegation were not social by nature.
She walked down the corridor from her apartment to the lunchroom, absently chewing on her swollen lip. There was a small cut on her bottom lip where Eric had pierced her skin with his teeth during that bruising kiss. Her bottom lip was several shades redder than usual and twice the size. It also throbbed uncomfortably since she had received the wound.
Needless to say, it was noticeable, and Tris was not at all surprised when Four stopped her in the hallway, eyeing her lip. He was the only person in Dauntless who didn't currently hate her, even if she would be humiliated by thoughts of her fear landscape every time she saw him.
"What happened to you?" He spoke quietly, but with a raised brow.
"Got in a fight," Tris smiled uneasily, thinking that it wasn't really a lie. She wasn't Candor, not by any stretch of the imagination.
"On your first day as a member? That's a true Dauntless if I ever met one." He joked, but the air was still tense around them and Tris figured she wasn't the only one who was uncomfortable.
"I was just going to get some lunch," she broke the silence that was beginning to settle around them, then cringed inwardly. It sounded like an invitation... "I mean, I should probably go before they run out of pudding." She attempted a small smile, wriggling a little under his heavy gaze.
"Yeah," he replied hoarsely, then cleared his throat. "I'll see you around, Tris."
She was thankful when he walked away and took a calming breath before continuing on her was as well. It wasn't that she didn't want to see Four, especially since he was pretty much her only option for polite conversation. But memories of her fear landscape, coupled with her own doubts and last night's events put her in a place where even being around him made her heart race as if she was doing something wrong.
Though the results of one's fear simulations were usually kept private, that one aspect of Tris' sim was so unusual that it was leaked and the whole of Dauntless seemed to take interest. The news of a trainer fooling around with a student spread like wildfire, though it couldn't be further from the truth.
She couldn't blame her friends for thinking the worst, not when all they had to go by were these rumors, which she gathered were much farther from the truth now as compared to when she first started hearing the whispers.
What bothered Tris most was that if she hadn't been so taken aback by the situation, Tris would have realized it was just a simulation, and perhaps she would have responded differently. Saved herself some dignity.
The line to get a tray was not long, as lunch was almost over, and Tris fell into place wordlessly behind a tall man with a smoothly shaved head. It was only then that she allowed herself to look around the room, and she was sorely sorry that she did. Her friends sat at a table near the center of the room, all together despite the lateness of the lunch hour. Christina even had the audacity to stare at her, but she did not smile or wave her over. No one did.
Tris had been dreading this situation. She didn't want to further isolate herself or feed the rumors by sitting alone. Nor did she want to risk being rejected by a whole table full of her former friends if she attempted to join them.
The choice was made for her as she grabbed her tray and turned with hesitation.
"Stiff! Right here." Shocking enough was how loud his voice was in the large room, but more surprising was that it was Eric who spoke from over to her left.
His table was deserted, save for the man himself. He certainly had no qualms about sitting alone.
It was a safe decision, as Eric was a Leader. As a Dauntless member, she would be obliged to obey his demands. Tris found herself breathing in relief as Eric unknowingly helped her escape her dilemma- even if he only wanted to secretly torment her or belittle her further, she'd take it over her other choices.
Carefully, she set her tray at Eric's table, watching his face for any hint of aggression. He simply chewed a bite of his hamburger and gestured with a wave of his hand to the empty chair across from him. She took the seat, not waiting for him to speak before she began to arrange her tray to eat.
After last night, she should have been too angry with him to even tolerate his company, but she couldn't bring herself to hate him for his actions. Her own behavior had been just as out-of-line as his.
As if to prove just that, Tris caught sight of a bruise on his jaw as he eyed her. It was just the size of Tris' closed fist.
She smiled, finishing a bite of her meal.
"Is there something different about you today?" She laughed quietly, taking in his whole profile as she spoke.
"I could ask you the same," he responded, not without a hint a humor in his voice. His probing eyes finally settled on her fat lip and a small grin overtook his lips.
She smiled back and felt the split in her lip crack again and the tiny spot of blood slide through the cracks of her bottom lip.
Without a word, Tris put her napkin to her lip to clean up, and hopefully staunch the bleeding so that she could finish eating.
Eric watched her with lazy intent, eyes on the smear of crimson across the pure white napkin.
"You want to know something? Red looks good on you, Stiff."
"Not as nice as black and blue looks on you," she countered without missing a beat.
This only made his grin wider, lips pulled taut over perfect, white teeth. Tris remembered how he had looked with her blood on his lips and teeth and she suppressed a shudder.
It probably wouldn't do to tease him. He was a Dauntless leader, after all, and quite sober at the present time.
"I wanted to thank you," Tris spoke softly, not surprised when Eric's eyes narrowed suspiciously.
"Whatever for?" He drawled, looking uninterested. Tris spotted that flame behind his eyes, so much like last night when they had met on the roof. He was curious, and not even his cold facade could hide it completely.
"You brought to my attention that my former friends really don't want a thing to do with me. I think I might be as much as a pariah as you are."
In addition, he had helped her save face by requesting her presence at his table, but Tris didn't think he would appreciate the fact. Most likely, he simply wanted to torment her over her fall from grace, at least once more. She held no illusions that he had done it out of the goodness of his heart.
Something in her words triggered his temper and Eric snorted through his nose.
"The difference between us, Stiff, is that my own lack of socialization is by choice. I still command all due respect that comes with being a Dauntless leader. And... perhaps you will too, someday."
"Excuse me?"
She wasn't completely sure that she'd heard him correctly.
"You must know," he spoke with an air of false disappointment, his lips curling into that creepy smile again. "The number one initiate is usually put on the fast track for leadership training. Has Max not spoken to you about your future career?"
He had not, but Tris wasn't about to admit it. She nodded non-comittedly, thinking of her meeting with leadership later on this afternoon.
"Will you take the job?" Eric asked, resuming his poker face.
"I'm unsure," she muttered, thinking of the impressive brains and strength of the Dauntless leaders. Did they really think she was suited to become one of them? Or was Eric merely playing a game with her?
"I'd have thought you did some thinking on the subject last night. A six pack should have been more than enough to clear up some of your worries."
Tris blushed now, embarrassed that her drinking was apparently not going to remain confidential. Not that there was anything wrong with drinking, especially to the Dauntless. Tris didn't like the tone in which he spoke if it, as if she had actually done something wrong.
"I had other things on my mind," she bristled, tensing her body to make a speedy exit if the need arose.
"Seems to me like you need to get your priorities straight. Stop pining over Number Boy and think about yourself, Tris."
It wasn't lost on Tris that he used her given name, probably for the first time since she arrived at the Dauntless compound. The shock was second to his words, however, as Triff scoffed and glared at Eric for his impudence.
"You've got some nerve-"
"So I've been told," he laughed, though without any humor. With his next movements, he gathered trash on his tray and prepared to stand. "Just think about it before you talk to Max today. There's no other career here worth taking, especially not for the top initiate."