Chapter Eight:

Vivian

I sit and tend to Tobias's shoulder. He hadn't lost a lot of blood, not as much as me anyway, so he was able to wait until I had woken up to be healed. I had to cut away his shit, which lay in a bloody heap at my feet, so my hands worked gently over his bare back. I had cleaned his wound and removed the bullet. Now I was patching him up. He must've felt something because he woke with a groan.

He looks around for a few seconds then his eyes find mine. "Dammit Vivian, you seriously tried to make a move on me while I was sleeping? It's not a good thing to remove someone else's cloths when they're unconscious. I have no trust in you when you say 'I'm not hitting on you' at this point in time."

At some point this had just become a joke between us and I don't know when or how. "Sorry, I couldn't help myself." I say sarcastically. "Medics are always so drawn to wounds that I couldn't help tearing off your shirt and bandaging your wounds. I really hope your girlfriend doesn't mind."

He smiles a little. "Good to know you're okay then."

"I personally don't cut myself in general, but I can't have them following us as we continue our journey." I explain.

Tobias nods, "No need to explain, I understand perfectly." He sighs, sitting up. "Was Larkin telling the truth? Is Tris seriously alive?" he asks, his tone growing serious.

"I know you the type of person who could have every person in the world telling you one thing, but you wouldn't believe them unless you have proof. So I will tell you this again, Tris is alive and Larkin said she was okay." I tell him. "I don't blame you for not trusting me, but I will prove it to you one day and when that day comes I hope you can trust me as a person. I have no reason to lie to you and if I ever tell you a lie, it is because what I knew and believed to be true actually wasn't. Are we clear on that much?"

"Yes," Tobias says.

"Good."

"So Larkin's your boyfriend." Tobias says.

I nod, "Yes, he is."

"That was nice of him to give us guns and help us escape."

"Wouldn't you have done the same if it was Tris in that position instead of me? Because I would've." I sigh, "I kind of corrupted Larkin a long time ago so that he realized who was right and who was wrong in all of this. He's kind of a spy, I a way I guess."

"Which is why he wouldn't harm us," Tobias concludes.

"That, and he is a GD. Most of his family is that way; they're just really good at resisting serums. Larkin's older brother Spen is the only GP in their family. I agreed with the Hemmingway's that their secret would never be told, not even to Spen."

"That must be hard, forcing yourself to resist serums all the time. I'm a GD and it just comes naturally to me."

"That's what Tris told me," I say, "But yes, they have to or they'll risk exile or even death,"

I look around at the room. It is small, with a bunch of useless items lining the floor. The red wall paper was falling off and ceiling tiles had fallen down. I sit on a stool beside the ragged brown couch. There were tears in the cushions and no legs at the bottom. A shaggy rug that may have been white once, stretches out over the ground; a typical fringe home.

I rub my arm, feeling the bandage and the faint throbbing. It didn't hurt that much, but I had busted an artery which had really concerned me. When I had woken up, the girl, Maia, and I had token off my bandage and repaired my arm again. After that adventure, I passed out on the table. When I woke up, I came over to help repair Tobias. Maia wasn't a bad medic, I had noticed, but she still had much to learn.

"How's your arm?" Tobias asks, following my movements.

"Throbbing, but it doesn't hurt that much actually." I tell him. "How's your shoulder?"

"It hurts, but it could be worse."

"I would've done a better job had I had better supplies." I tell him.

"I think you did a great job, but getting shot hurts."

I snort, "Tell me about it."

I hear footsteps and we both look over. Standing in the hallway are Maia and Cylus. Maia is holding a tray of food and cautiously brings it towards us. "I made you two breakfast." She says, putting the tray down on the couch beside Tobias. She backs us and stands protectively in front of her brother. They look similar, with their dirty blonde hair and soft brown eyes. Maia is thinner than Cylus, like she makes sure he is fed before she is.

"Thank you, Maia and Cylus." I tell them.

I see Cylus, who was hiding behind Maia, step towards me. Maia tries to hold him back, but he keeps going until he's standing right in front of me. "Miss," he says to me. "We have a sister who is really sick and-"

"Shush Cylus," Maia scolds.

I look up at her, "It's okay, really." I turn my focus back down to Cylus. "Your sister is sick?" he nods. "Because you helped us, I will help you. Will you take me to her?" Cylus nods and takes my hand, pulling me up a flight of stairs. I hear Tobias and Maia follow close behind. "You don't have to come, Tobias. It'll probably be really boring."

"You don't need to leave my sight." He says. I don't understand why he would say something like that, but I dismiss is and follow Cylus into a room. There is nothing in it except a bed with a sleeping girl on it.

"Will you help her?" Cylus asks me.

"I will try." I answer walking towards the bed. The girl laying on it is very pale, with beads of sweat forming on her head. I touch it and almost burn my hand. I look over to Maia. "Will you bring me cold water and a cloth? I have to break her fever."

Maia nods and leaves the room. I return my attention to the girl. During my time in the fringe I had learned to be a doctor without all of the fancy supplies. Of course I am more accurate with them, but I can do pretty well without. I take her wrist and check her pulse. It takes a moment to find it, but when I do it is slow and faint.

"Cylus," I say looking at him.

"Yes Miss?"

"I want you tell me what her symptoms are." I say. "Does she throw up?"

"She throws up everything we give her and she even coughs up blood." Cylus tells me.

"Is there anything else?"

"I don't know, Maia doesn't normally let me in here. She doesn't want me to get sick like Emily."

Maia returns with a pale of iced water and a cloth. I dip the cloth into the water and lay it on Emily's head. "Maia, are you good at finding plants?" I ask her.

"Yes, I love plants."

I ask for a piece of paper and a moment later I am writing a list of plants I need to make a medicine. I hand it to Maia. "I need you to bring me these. Take Tobias with you for protection."

Maia and Tobias leave the room. I sit with Emily and try to draw down her fever.

"Will she be okay?" Cylus asks me.

My best guess is that Emily has Scarlet Fever. The last time I had helped someone with it, I was successful, so I wasn't too worried. "Yeah, she'll be okay."