CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE: Happiness Loves Company

Tobias
New Year's Day

I wake with long, blonde hair tickling my face and the weight of Tris's head on my chest, her body pressed against my side and her legs tangled in mine. Her face is relaxed and pink lips slightly parted. Beautiful. I immediately remember our incredible start to the new year and smile. Despite the too-bright sunlight streaming through my window and the dull, throbbing headache leftover from drinking a little too much last night, I think this must be the most perfect morning of my life so far.

When I asked Tris to that New Year's Eve party, I never dared imagine the night would end up as it did. Even hoping for a kiss when the ball dropped seemed like wishful thinking. I wanted the party to be a date—honestly, I have wanted each and every time we have spent together this past month to be a date—but I never guessed she could think of it that way yet. I don't know what changed for Tris last night, but I can only hope and pray that she hasn't changed her mind. If she wakes this morning with regret… I don't know what I'll do.

I gently kiss the top of Tris's head before I slip out of bed, careful not to wake her, and put on some boxers. After taking some ibuprofen, drinking a glass of water and using the bathroom, I set a few pills and a bottle of water on the nightstand for Tris before climbing back into bed with her. I never really have been someone who likes to cuddle—with Chris, I would turn over and sleep with my back to her as soon as she fell asleep, and I definitely wouldn't have come back to bed like this. But now, all I want is to keep Tris close. I wrap my arms back around her and pull her close before I close my eyes again. She stirs a little, but then just snuggles closer to me. I smile at the happy little sigh she lets out before her breathing falls back into the slow, steady pattern of sleep, and I begin to drift off, too.

When I open my eyes again, I am met with piercing gray-blue staring back at me. "Morning, handsome," Tris says. Her voice is thick with sleep and she smiles with her eyes. One of my arms serves as her pillow, and she rests one hand on my chest, the other wrapping around my waist.

"Morning, beautiful," I reply, my free hand sliding up her back and into her tangled hair as I pull her into a kiss. Fuck, I want her again already, right now, and I know, pressed against each other like this, she can feel exactly what she does to me. But I pull back and scoot away from her a little. I need to know how she feels about what happened between us.

"So, last night…" I start.

"—was amazing," she interrupts.

I couldn't stop my smile if I tried. "You don't regret it then? Because I mean, we were kind of drunk, and I mean…"

Tris shakes her head. "I definitely don't regret it. Do you?"

I pause, trying to word my answer. "That depends on what you want, Tris," I say slowly. "I don't want this to have just been a hook-up, I want a relationship. I want you to be mine." I hold my breath. If she doesn't want the same thing I do, then as amazing as last night was, it will only hurt that much more when she rejects me.

Tris cups my cheek with her hand as she gives me a shy smile and bites her lip. "I want that too, Tobias." Then she leans in and kisses me, then pulls away and smiles.

"So now does that mean I can call you my girlfriend instead of 'my Tris'?" I ask, smirking.

Tris laughs. "I think it does." She rolls away from me and gets out of bed, and I instantly feel the loss and pout. "I'm going to take a shower," she says, picking up my t-shirt from the floor and pulling it over her head. She doesn't even put on panties. Then she pauses at the door and looks back at me with one eyebrow raised. "You coming?"

I'm out of bed in a flash.

Tris

I am almost giddy with excitement as Tobias and I walk toward the entrance of Navy Pier. This morning, Tobias told me he wanted to take me out on a real, official date. So I went back to my dorm room and got ready, though not in a dress or anything, since the date would be outdoors in the dead of winter. But I put my favorite skinny jeans and a soft black sweater on over matching black lace bra and panties, straightened my hair, and fixed my make-up.

Tobias arrived at my door not with a dozen cut roses, but a small potted lily plant. He remembered me mentioning that I hated seeing flowers die—it's just such a waste when they could be enjoyed without killing them. I love my potted plant. I'll think of Tobias every time I see it.

I set the potted plant on my windowsill and bend down to smell the blossoms. "Mmm," I hum. "They're beautiful."

"Not as beautiful as you are," Tobias says, and I raise my eyebrows.

"Seriously, Four? That was so cheesy," I chuckle as I turn to him.

"It's the truth," he grins as he steps closer to me. "Besides, you loved it. Admit it."

"I won't," I insist, smiling as he pulls me closer by my hips and kisses my neck. "I can't condone anything that cliché."

"Fine," he huffs, pulling away. I begin to back away when a mischievous smirk crosses his face, and he takes a step forward for each one I take back. "I guess," he says slowly as my legs hit my bed, stopping me from backing any further away from him, "I'll have to tickle it out of you!"

I fall back on the bed laughing deep from my belly, writhing and flailing as he pinches at my sides, moving up and down my sides, tickling my stomach. I'm laughing so hard that my stomach muscles ache. I swat at him and he grabs both my wrists and suddenly my hands are pinned over my head and we both fall silent, breathless.

"So beautiful," he whispers before closing the distance between us.

Tobias has never been to Navy Pier before, and I have only been here once—I had begged Eric to take me our first summer together, and he did so begrudgingly, complaining that it was too "touristy". It turns out that Navy Pier is an entirely different experience in the winter. It is a winter wonderland here- in fact, there is a sign that tells us so- with blow-up snowmen and Christmas decorations everywhere, and the brightly colored lights illuminate the snow in a mosaic of color.

I take a bite of by-the-slice pizza as we walk through Navy Pier. It's a warm day for January, and the sun peeks through the gray clouds. "So, what should we do first?"

I see something flash across Tobias's eyes, but then he smiles. "Carousel?" I laugh—it's one of the tamest rides here. But I take the hand he holds out and walk with him toward it. I hop on a wooden lion, and he takes the zebra next to me. The ride starts and picks up speed as Calliope music plays from the center of the carousel. His zebra bobs up as my lion dips downward, then they exchange positions, only level for a moment. We hold hands the whole time, the angles of our arms pivoting back and forth like a see-saw, both of us laughing at the childish fun.

Next we ride the zero-gravity ride, then one with carriages that spin. I come out of it so dizzy that I fall against Tobias.

Tobias eyes the strongman game, the one with the big hammer. He grins at me. "I'm going to win you one of those big animals."

"It'll hardly fit in my dorm room," I laugh.

Tobias grins. "Good. If it crowds you out, you'll spend more time at mine." I push him playfully and he scurries over to the game, giving the operator some cash.

It take three tries for him to hit hard enough to ring the bell, but when he does, he grins at me proudly as he points out the big, three-foot-tall blue bear he wanted for me. We haven't made it far before I realize our oversight in winning the bear when he did.

"You know we now have to drag this thing all over the carnival with us, don't you?"

"Yeah," Tobias answers, rubbing the back of his neck, "I was just realizing that, actually. Do you want to pick one more ride and take our new friend home?"

I nod eagerly and drag him to my favorite ride: the Centennial Wheel, a ferris wheel that stands several hundred feet tall.

Tobias looks hesitant, but then shoots me a smile and hands the cash to the operator, who closes us in the shiny blue gondola. This new wheel has only been up for less than a year, and I am pleased to find that the air inside is warm—the gondola is heated.

I sit straight upright next to Tobias, eagerly looking out the window to see the view of the city as we gain altitude. Our bear friend sits on the bench across from us. But after a moment, I notice how tense Tobias is. When I look at his face, I see his clenched jaw, his body's rigid posture, and beads of sweat forming on his furrowed brow.

"What's wrong?" I ask. He is breathing faster than normal. Tobias's eyes dart around, but otherwise, he doesn't move a muscle. It finally dawns on me. "You're afraid of heights." I am not asking a question, but rather, stating a fact.

Tobias nods slowly, his face oddly pale under his olive skin tone.

"Why didn't you say something?!" I scold. "We didn't have to do this, Tobias. I could have waited and gone with Marlene or someone another time."

Tobias gulps, and his Adam's apple bobs. "I told you before, Tris," he says. "You make me feel brave. I don't want to make my decisions out of fear. With you, I can face it." He stares into my eyes—through them, beyond them, into my soul, and I know there is much more to what he is saying than just facing his fear of heights. There is more that he wants to face, with me to back him up, with me to rely on.

Then Tobias leans in and, gripping my waist a little harder than he normally would, he grazes his lips against mine. I wrap my arms around his neck and pull him closer, deepening the kiss, and we forget everything around us for a few minutes. When the gondola stops, swinging back and forth, we pull away and I see that we are at almost the very top of the wheel.

"Wow," I whisper, taking in the city lights around us. I scoot toward Tobias on the bench, so that my hip is flush against his, and put my arm around his back, my hand on his waist. He wraps his arm around my shoulder, and grasps my free hand with his, gripping it tightly. "It's beautiful, isn't it?" I glance at him and as he opens his mouth and I interrupt him. "And don't say 'not as beautiful as you are,' again," I giggle. "I can't take any more cheeseball comments today."

"Cheeseball?!" he gasps. "Don't make fun of my Wisconsin roots." He presses a kiss to my temple. He's still tense, but not nearly as much as before, when the ride first started.

We kiss most of the way down, taking our time, not in any rush. I could kiss him all day long. When the gondola stops at the bottom and the attendant opens the door, Tobias smiles at me—finally relaxed—and offers me his right hand as he picks up my giant stuffed bear with his left.

"Well," Tobias says, drawing lazy circles on my palm, "should we go introduce this guy to his new home, or do you want to grab some ice cream before we go?"

"Too cold for ice cream," I decide after a moment of contemplation. "Let's take Big Blue home, and then we can cuddle up on the couch and watch a movie, and drink some hot chocolate to warm up," I suggest.

Tobias agrees as we reach what I think must be a big patch of grass, but it's covered by snow. Then he says, "Big Blue, huh? That's not very creative, Beatrice."

I push him over, and Big Blue breaks his fall as he lands on the snowy ground. "I can't believe you just called me Beatrice," I grumble, shaking my head. When he smiles at me, though, I can't help smiling back, no matter what he just called me.

"What?" he says, surprising me by sweeping my legs out from under me and quickly pinning me to the ground when I fall, laughing. "I thought I'd try it out. No good?"

I shake my head. "Definitely not. Maybe on special occasions. You know, holidays, anniversaries…"

"So there will be anniversaries?" he murmurs in my ear before sucking the lobe into his mouth.

I inhale sharply before humming, "Mmhmm… there'd better be."

"Good." Then he sits back on his heels before standing and offering me a hand to pull me up. I take it and let him pull me to my feet. "Come on, let's get Big Blue home."

I smile to myself as we walk to his car, amazed that this sexy, sweet, fun boy is mine.