The minute I laid down in my own bed last night, it hit me. I'd lost my mind. I couldn't figure out what had come over me. I played back the things I had said and done, and I actually felt ill. I barely know him and I told him that I loved him. You took things way too far, Beatrice. As I contemplated how I would ever look him in the eye again, another wave a nausea washed over me. I quickly raced to the bathroom and spent the next several hours vomiting. My only comfort had been that at least I had something to take my mind off of Four and the mess I had made with him.

Today went by in a complete and awful haze. Problem solving, lunch, Watchers. No sign of Four, thankfully. During dinner, my mind began to clear and I realized I had two options. The first one – the smart one, was to never, ever, get on that train again. The second - the one I knew I would take – was to jump on that train again this very night and find out just how much of a mess I'd made. I've never chosen the easy path. I had to see him. And right now I'm waiting for the train. I can hear it coming. I want to run back to Erudite but I force myself to stay put. And then I see him, in the doorway.

When he pulls me into the car, I'm instantly reassured. And that's when I realize we're not alone. I gasp and start backing away from them, but Four is right behind me. He puts his hands on both of my shoulders, steadying me.

"It's OK," Four says. "These are my friends Zeke and Shauna."

"This is Tris."

They're both staring at me with the same odd expression, like I'm an animal in a zoo. I stare back, not knowing what to say. Zeke is tall like Four, but stockier. Shauna has streaks of purple in her hair, piercings in her lip and eyebrow, and the usual complement of Dauntless tattoos. I wonder if I look as strange to them as they do to me. I wait for Four to explain what's going on, but it's Zeke who breaks the silence.

"You're probably wondering why we're here." Zeke takes a deep breath. "I did something stupid." At this, Shauna half laughs, half snorts. Zeke shoots her a warning look, and she quiets. He turns back to me.

"See, I gave Four some cake to give to you." He glances nervously at Four, but then smiles apologetically at me. "And uh, I should have told him what was in the cake."

He sits down on a bench and Shauna sits next to him. Four sits down across from them, and motions me to sit next to him. I wonder if I should take his hand, but he's staring intently at Zeke and I can't read him.

I find my voice. "What was in the cake?" It's pitched too high, and I resolve to control it.

"Well, regular Dauntless cake just has a lot of protein in it and an appetite stimulant. Helps you build muscle."

"OK."

"So, um… Tris – It's probably nothing, but did anything … unusual happen after you ate it?"

This time when I look to Four, he's looking back at me intently. The second our eyes meet, we both yank them away and back to Zeke as quickly as we can. I realize that he's as embarrassed as I am.

Shauna sees it, too, and stifles another laugh.

I try to make my voice sound natural. "Like what?"

I can see Zeke is getting even more nervous. "Oh man… well, it's kind of hard to explain…"

Shauna can barely control herself. "Go on, Zeke, explain what you mean by un-us-u-al."

At this, the pair collapse into giggles. I don't even see the knife until it's lodged in the seatback, less than an inch from Zeke's head. This silences them both, but instead of fear, I only see mild annoyance – maybe amusement, even, on Zeke's face. He pulls the knife out and tosses it back to Four.

"You know I hate it when you do that."

"Quit playing around, Zeke. Tell her what was in the cake."

"It's my mom's recipe. She puts Amity bread in it. Sometimes the combination can make people act a little, uh, different."

I get it, now. Amy had told me about the bread. It all makes sense now. Friendliness plus appetite stimulant equals… whatever that was. There's no way I'm going to let them continue laughing at me. Or Four. I put on my best Jeanine Matthews voice.

"That's interesting Zeke, but I don't recall doing anything I wouldn't have done ordinarily." I find Four's hand next to mine and squeeze it. "Maybe it doesn't work on the Erudite." Four squeezes my hand back.

Zeke's body sags with relief. "Wow, OK, phew! That's great. Well, no harm done – right Four?"

"I guess not." He still sounds unconvinced, though.

I glance over at Shauna. She's watching me and Four, a bemused half-smile on her face. I can see she's not as easily fooled as Zeke, but she says nothing.

"Well Tris, either way, we're going to make it up to you. We're going on a little picnic, and there's a surprise for you at the end."

I look to Four, wondering if I should trust them, but he looks relaxed.

"It's time to jump."

We're in Dauntless territory, in a square between several tall buildings, but they all seem unconcerned as they spread a blanket on top of the concrete and start unpacking their backpacks. Zeke hands out hamburgers and Shauna deftly tosses us each a muffin. I'm curious about Four's friends. Four seems to find their casual teasing banter relaxing, though he doesn't join in much. I feign disappointment at the muffin. "What, no cake?"

Zeke and Shauna laugh, and even Four smiles. "I like this girl."

With that, we start eating. Zeke and Shauna were both Dauntless born, and entertain me with stories from their childhood. "Yeah, it was quite a shock for Four here, growing up Stiff." Zeke playfully punches him in the arm. "We're still working on loosening him up."

"Yeah, but would you believe that Four taught me how to fight?" Shauna tells me. "I'd be factionless if it weren't for him."

"He's teaching me to fight, too." I tell them.

"Really?" She looks me up and down. "I'm surprised you're not covered in bruises."

"He doesn't actually hit me."

Shauna gives Four the same odd smile she gave me on the train.

"I was hoping you might come one night and help me train her." Four asks.

Shauna looks me up and down, the doubt apparent on her face. "Really? She looks small."

"She's tough." Four answers.

"And after tonight she'll be one of us." Zeke turns to me. "You need to understand what that means, though, Tris."

Shauna rolls her eyes, "Here's where Zeke gets poetic."

"C'mon, this is important. See, we're soldiers – warriors. At any moment we can be called to lay down our lives. Courage is important, sure, but what propels a soldier into battle is his honor. A sacred pledge to his fellow soldiers. I'd call it trust, but it goes way beyond that. Being Dauntless isn't about pulling stunts, or throwing crazy parties, or having a bunch of tattoos. We do all that because we know we could die tomorrow, and so we live without regrets. We live now, we leave nothing unsaid. We're all heart – and that's what being Dauntless means. Four and Shauna – and any other Dauntless soldier - they know I'd walk through fire for them, and I know they would do the same for me. And because of that, we're invincible. It's like the ancient Spartans. Each man went into battle with a spear and a shield. But his shield wasn't for his own protection, it was to protect the man to his left. And in turn, the man to his right protected him. They got it, they understood this thing we have. And they were legendary."

I glance at Shauna and despite her earlier mocking, I can see a faint sheen coating her eyes. Four is watching Zeke intently and nodding. In that moment, I get it, too.

Zeke continues. "Four trusts you, and because of that, we trust you. We're going to take you someplace that's only for us Dauntless. Shauna's going to give you some clothes to change into. If we're caught, it could be very bad for all of us. And it's dangerous. But if we pull it off, it'll be something you'll never forget." Zeke is leaning forward now, watching my reaction carefully. "So Tris, are you in?"

I don't even think about it. "I'm in."

With that, Zeke lets out a loud whoop, Shauna claps, and Four grins. "So, uh, what did I just agree to?" I ask.

"Just come with us." Says Zeke. "Four's going to meet us on the other side."

I don't like the idea of being separated from him. I look to Four.

"It's OK." He reassures me. "Go."

I look back at Zeke and Shauna, still wavering, despite my earlier bravado.

"You trust them?" I ask Four.

"With his life." Interjects Zeke.

"No, more than that, I trust them with yours." He smiles at me now. "Be brave." And with that he turns and starts running down the empty City street.

"C'mon, let's go." Shauna motions to me. I follow her and Zeke to the tallest building in the square. Once inside, Zeke finds the stairs and starts ascending. Shauna pulls me aside and takes from her backpack a pair of black pants and a black shirt and hands them to me. "We don't expect to find many people up there, it's supposed to be closed tonight, but if anybody asks, you're my little sister Lynn. Got it? I nod and start to change. "Listen, Tris?"

"Yeah?"

"One other thing. Zeke gave me some of that cake once, too." I pause, one leg into my borrowed pants. "It doesn't make people do things they don't want to do. It just makes it easier to do the things you already want to do. I just thought you should know." I smile back but say nothing, continuing to dress.

"How do I look?"

"Dauntless." She replies, approvingly. "C'mon, we need to get to the roof."

We finally make it there, and once outside, I am awestruck by the view. Except for us, it's completely deserted.

"This is amazing!"

"You ain't seen nothing, yet!" exclaims Zeke. He's standing by the edge, and I notice that there is a series of cables attached to the building that seems to run high above the entire Dauntless sector. Suspended from one of the cable is a kind of harness. "It's called a zipline. We strap you in here, and it takes you out over the City. When you get to the end, you pull the brake here. Simple, right?"

Looking out over the City and realizing how high we are, it sounds anything but simple, but there's no way I'm backing out now. I grin. "Let's do it!"

Zeke laughs and high fives Shauna. "That's my girl! You ready?"

Shauna helps me up into the harness and checks each strap.

"Ready."

And then he lets go…

And I'm flying.

The wind is screaming in my ears and my hair is whipping around my face. I hold my arms out as if they're wings, and feel myself gliding through the air. Up ahead, I can see that the cable is threaded through a damaged building, so I tuck my arms in as I whip through the tunnel. When I come out the other side, there is a building to my left that is so close I can almost touch it. Its façade is mirrored, and I watch myself as I fly. Nothing can touch me here, and all of the problems that surround me back on the ground are forgotten. Then it's down, down, down in a deep, terrifying, exhilarating dive. I can see in front of me now a painted bullseye on the brick face of a building that is directly in my path. I reach back and grapple for the brake. It takes a few tries, but I finally grasp it and pull with all my strength. I stop only inches from the wall, gasping and thrilled.

Four is here and he reaches up to unhook me. I drop into his arms and he cradles me there for a moment, before setting me gently onto my feet.

There are no words, so I reach up and pull him into a kiss. He wraps his arms around me, and I am, once again, home.

A/N As always, I appreciate your suggestions and comments.

Standard Disclaimer: All rights to Divergent and its characters belong to Veronica Roth.