Thank you SO much to Bamberlee for editing!

My apologies this is late. I got back from California after spring break to all this craziness, and have been working up until yesterday, and a little bit today.

There is one chapter left after this.

And a new story if you're super bored!

Happy Reading and Stay Safe!


I open my eyes to an arm in my face.

I try to shove it away, but it comes right back, poking my cheek until my eyes open.

"What are you doing?" I ask through gritted teeth, swatting the hand away.

"Eva!" He's persistent; he pokes me again, and I'm afraid to look and see what time it is. I swear I just fell asleep minutes ago. A second passes before he pulls on my hair, then shoves himself closer until there is no space between us. When I pry my eyes open, my vision is filled with striped pajamas and an angry glare.

"I want water."

"No."

"YES!"

"No!"

"YESSSSSS!"

"Fine," I don't argue any further. I untangle myself from the warm sheets and heavy blankets, and I sit up with zero enthusiasm. "I thought you said you weren't thirsty."

"I am thirsty! Water! Water! Water!"

I stare at Ethan with as much contempt as I can muster, and he throws it right back at me.

"Eva, you have to get me water! Adam is sleeping!"

"He won't be if you keep yelling." I grouse at Ethan, though it's a lost cause. He's practically sitting on me, and I wonder when Charlotte had time to get pregnant with more children. "I'll be right back. Try to keep it down."

"Okay. I'll be quiet!" Ethan yells, but everyone else is dead to the world.

Especially Adam.

I glare at him, too.

He and Evan were sound asleep. Evan was as close to him as he could get, wearing the same pajamas Ethan had on, and his arm was thrown over Adam's. Neither of them had woken up to Ethan's demands for water, not even when he shrieks and yells my name.

"Eva, hurry!"

"I'm going," I answer grumpily.

I slide off the bed to a cold floor, and I swear under my breath, wondering how we got roped into this.

Actually, I knew how. My father had asked, then insisted, then threatened me into letting them spend the night. Turns out, while he liked Karl and was willing to help when he could, he'd had his fill of small children in his bed. My mother said the first night they stayed was fun. They watched movies, made popcorn, and showed my father how to use his own tablet. They convinced my mother to let them take extra long baths and they wanted my father to read them their bedtime stories. They were angels, right up until they announced they could only sleep in my parent's bed. Getting them to sleep took hours, until my father loudly announced everyone was going to bed and there were no more stories, or snacks, or taking pictures on his phone.

The second night was the same, but my dad woke up with a sore neck, Ethan's foot in his face, and no covers. My mother had a tough time getting them to eat anything other than sugar cookies and dinosaur shaped chicken nuggets. By noon, my father pawned them off on Rylan.

That didn't last long.

In theory, Rylan was the perfect person to entertain small children. His apartment was full of toys, he was more than fun, and he didn't mind chaos. Toward the afternoon, he took them outside to build snowmen, then promptly forgot about them when he was called back inside to investigate an alarm going off. He got halfway up the stairs before he realized his mistake, and he made everyone promise not to tell Karl he'd left his kids in the snow. He made up for it by taking them to get cocoa and more cookies. They were good for him, until one spilled his drink all over the floor, and the other took off to follow someone else outside, laughing evilly as Rylan tried to simultaneously clean up the mess and corral the other one back inside. He bribed them both with a piece of chocolate cake, then called Christina and demanded she come help him.

By five, they were ready to crash.

Rylan included.

Since Charlotte and Karl were staying for one more night, and my parents weren't so enthused to wind up not sleeping again, they came to us. Jason had already politely said he couldn't have them come over because Meghan was sick. We knew this was sort of true; he'd texted Adam earlier to tell him she wasn't feeling too hot, and he didn't think it would be much longer before she went into labor. Four was spending the evening helping Kacie with something in the control room. Tris wasn't even here. Even Karl's friends were no help; they were all on patrol and all not scheduled to return until much later.

That left Adam and me, the only people who really knew Ethan and Evan.

It started out fine.

Rylan dropped them off, his hair a mess, his shirt untucked, and his hands sticky, and he left faster than I've ever seen him leave before. He didn't even try to hang around or check out his own portrait. He split before Ethan was fully in the door, cheerfully calling out good luck and announcing he was going to bed.

I was expecting them to be holy terrors, but to my surprise, they were pretty well behaved. We ordered dinner from Quinten and they ate without any complaints. I gave them a bath with way too much bubble bath, and once done, they both insisted the guest room was too scary to sleep in.

To my surprise, Adam shrugged and gave in, assuming he'd get more sleep if they weren't yelling his name all night from the guest room.

I figured Adam would wind up in there at some point, because they were both clingy and both wanted to sleep as close as possible. But he wasn't bothered by them at all. He and Evan told me some not so scary story, and the two of them were out cold a minute after they were done. Ethan was a little less eager to go to sleep, but he eventually conked out holding onto a chunk of my hair, and his leg was thrown over mine.

But now he was awake, demanding water and scooting closer and closer to Adam.

"Anything else?"

He shakes his head, his blonde hair sticking up in a few directions, and his angelic appearance a total lie.

"I'll be right back."

I head into the kitchen, blindly stumbling down a dark hallway, until I can find the light switch. The kitchen is bathed in too bright lighting, and I squint as I search for a glass. I fill it up slowly, knowing he wants ice and water and the special water that was in the bottle my father had brought over because it was the only water my father would drink and therefore the only water Ethan would drink, and I jump when my phone buzzes.

"Shit!"

I almost drop the water, but I save it in time. I grab my long forgotten phone on the counter, and I swipe up to see a message from my grandpa.

It's a picture of him and my grandmother. They're sitting in front of their fireplace, with Ginger on their lap, and she's waving wildly at whoever is taking the photo. They look cozy and happy, and in the corner is a blur of Forrest talking to Woody and Paisley and Holly deep in discussion.

I smile when I read the message below it. I read it a few times, and it takes Ethan yelling my name to jerk me back to reality. I don't respond, because it's late, too late for them all to be up, but also because I don't have an answer for them.

I'm not sure when Adam and I will be back, but I would bet everything I own Ginger is counting down the minutes until his return.


"He's a terrorist. That one."

Adam points to Ethan, balanced carefully on the arm of our couch, on one foot. Ethan is frozen perfectly still, but he slyly glances out of the corner of his eye to see if we are looking at him, and when he can see that we are, he jumps.

Onto the coffee table, sliding a few feet until he falls right off the other side.

"Again!"

He pops back up like this is something he does every day, and I silently hope Karl is ready to return to his original precious offspring.

"Adam! EVA! WATCH ME!" Ethan yells so loud that we both jump, and he makes sure we're looking at him. He jumps, spins around until he's dizzy, then laughs hysterically.

"Doesn't this make you want to have like, five of them?" I glance up at Adam out of the corner of my eye, and he snickers. I'm sitting against his chest, with our feet propped up on the ottoman in front of us. On his other side is Evan, playing a game on a tablet I don't remember him showing up with. "Maybe six?"

"Why stop there? Why not seven? Eight? Nine, if they have as much energy as Ethan." Adam's answer is dry and funny and downright rich with sarcasm as he watches Ethan climb back onto the arm of the couch. Ethan grins innocently at his stare; his shirt black like Adam's and his tiny boxers are the same color. He waits until he has either Adam's approval or disapproval, and it's clear it doesn't matter which one.

He leaps again, giggling hysterically as he slides across, then falls off the table once more.

"Ten," I lean back further against him, feeling a speck of competitiveness over who got to be closer. Adam had to feel suffocated; Evan had been glued to his side since he woke up, and I wasn't any better. We'd sat down with the intention to watch something, but instead were treated to Ethan performing this daring routine over and over. "Thanks for letting them stay the night. I don't think my parents could handle much more."

"Yeah, no big deal. Your dad looked pretty over it," Adam laughs, and I catch him glancing down at me. He throws me this half smile, like he has some secret he's dying to tell me, but he just can't.

I don't mind at all.

Since he and his father had talked, things were better. Even though their talk was in the middle of Clyde's, spoken back and forth quickly, and barely scratching the surface of how they felt, it was what they needed. Adam got to tell him what was bothering him, and Four said what Adam wanted to hear: that his father was sorry for blaming him and very glad he was alive.

It wasn't everything, but it was a start. The smallest speck of understanding between them that could potentially be so much more. It would take more time for them to talk further, but for now, Adam's spirits were lifted. I assumed Four's had, too, until I learned he was still working to make sure Rylan's story was more fact than fiction.

The news of Blythe going missing wasn't exactly shocking, but it didn't make me feel any better.

"Do you want to go to dinner tonight? To that one fancier place? They're going home, right?" Adam looks back over at Ethan, pretending to be asleep on the floor. "Or are they staying with us again?"

"No, they're going home. Rylan said he's picking them up in a little bit and he's going to take them to Karl. We can go to dinner." I look up at him, wondering if there's a reason he wants to eat there. The only times I'd ever gone was with my father and mother, and it wasn't a place I would normally pick. "Is it a special occasion?"

"Sort of," Adam answers off handedly. His fingers find the ends of my hair, and he twirls it around while Ethan stands up, then immediately collapses to the floor like we can't see him. "It's a surprise."

"I can't wait," I move closer to him, trying to figure out what it could be. I come up with absolutely nothing, but that's fine. "I also can't wait until Rylan gets here."

"Me neither."

Adam pulls me as close as he can, without squishing Evan. He finally picks a show to watch, something a little more child friendly than the horror movies my father gifted us, and Ethan continues leaping off the couch. We spend the next hour watching talking dogs try and save the day, over and over, until Rylan gleefully shows up to take Ethan and Evan home, swearing loudly when he realizes Evan has his missing tablet.

The one he just ordered a replacement for.


Hours later, after Ethan and Evan have been returned to their parents, Meghan gives birth.

The phone call is expected. We're still some of the very few who knew they were having a baby, and we'd been waiting for it to happen. Adam answered on the first ring, the call coming at a much better time than two in the morning but a less better time considering we were on our way out the door, and he congratulated Jason while gesturing for me to put my shoes on.

"I told him we'd be right there."

Adam looked excited. His eyes lit up at both his friend having a baby and being one of the few people who knew it was happening. I quickly tied my shoes, grabbed my phone, and reached for his hand. He took it immediately, sliding his fingers between mine until our palms touched, then practically dragged me out the door.

One brisk walk later, we were back in the infirmary, being led to the same area Charlotte had been, and taken to a room that looked identical to the others. It's a flat color, painted to be soothing and relaxing, but it makes me nervous. It's a little drab, and it feels way more claustrophobic then it did at two in the morning.

"Hey! You guys came!"

We're greeted by Jason, and he looks just as alive as Karl. I'd always known him to be less serious than my father, more responsible than Rylan, but fully capable of pranking someone if the need be. I knew his own journey here had taken him from side kick and ever loyal friend of my father's, to his own unique story. He and Meghan had long been happy together, never once feeling like they were missing out on having children and living this cool, almost hip life.

Until now.

Jason looks completely different. His hair is pulled up just like Rylan's so it's out of his face, and his eyes look sort of red, like he's been rubbing them. But he's beaming, truly happy at the tiny baby in his arms, and even prouder of his wife. He keeps looking at her with a stare of disbelief, and she smiles every time he does.

I hate to compare them, because Charlotte had two children before Elle and Elyse, but Meghan doesn't look quite as great as Charlotte did. She looks a little pale, a lot tired, and she winces when she sits up. I notice there are lots of extra things on her: an IV slid into the top of her wrist, a bracelet with her name and some allergies printed on it, and a general aura of pure exhaustion.

She still looks pretty.

And incredibly happy.

"I didn't think you guys would be here so soon." She's flustered as we walk in, but it vanishes the second she sees it's just Adam and me. "Do your parents know? Are they outside?"

"No," Adam shakes his head, and he heads right for Jason. "I didn't say a word. Eva, did you?"

"Nope," I linger behind him for a minute, smiling at Meghan as she fixes her hair. It's piled up on top of her head, and she gives up after a minute of trying to rearrange it. She doesn't have the hospital gown on, either. She's got what looks to be Jason's shirt, and a pair of black pajama pants. "I think if anyone was wondering where you were, they'd just assume you were sick. But I still can't believe you pulled this off."

"Me either," Meghan smiles back, and she moves so Jason and Adam can sit on the end of the bed. She has a second wrist band with her doctor's name, along with their credentials from Erudite. I don't recognize the name, just the tiny Erudite logo beside it. "Jason is determined to just…show up with a baby."

"I am!" He laughs, and it takes him a second to hand Adam his son. "I think everyone will be pretty surprised. Here, his name is Elijah. You two are the first to meet him."

"Really?" Adam looks honored, and he very carefully takes Elijah from Jason. "Elijah? Did you plan this with Karl?"

"No," Jason laughs, and even Meghan finds him funny. "It's my dad's name. Meghan liked it, so we decided to use it."

"Are you going to call him Eli?" I stand in front of Adam, and I grin at Elijah. He's bigger than Ella and Elyse are, and his hair is a reddish blonde color. "He's really handsome."

Adam looks up at me, sort of expectantly. It's clear he's very happy for his friend, and I like it even better that his friend is Jason. So I reach out to touch Elijah's hair, and I have to admit he's adorable. His hair is soft beneath my fingers, and he opens his eyes when I move my hand away. He looks right up at me, then looks back at Adam. I like him; I wonder if he'll take after his father and believe Dauntless is haunted, or if Jason will wait until he's older to introduce him to the world of the paranormal.

Or if he'll take after Meghan and someday insist upon making his hair a different shocking color.

"Thanks Eva," Jason looks pleased, and Adam nods.

"He is. I thought Meghan said all babies look like old men."

"They do," Meghan wrinkles her nose, but her eyes fall to Elijah. "Almost all newborns are all scrunched up and wrinkly, but I think Elijah is pretty cute. He looks just like Jason."

Jason looks over at her, and I can see why he changed his mind about having a baby. It's clear Meghan thinks the world of him and their son. He reaches for her hand, frowning at the IV still stuck in the top, and I feel wildly invasive at being here.

"Do you like him?" I ask, more to distract myself. It wasn't like Adam was going to announce he thought Elijah was terrible. "Better than Ethan?"

To his credit, Adam laughs, and he leans back. His shirt is a dark button down I haven't seen before, and his pants are black. His shoes are black, too, and they match the ones I have on.

"That's not hard. Though his spin kick was out of this world."

"We heard he's been having a rough time. Eric said he doesn't like when Karl isn't at home. They were a little nervous to bring the girls home because Ethan wasn't happy to be getting two little sisters." Jason lets go of Meghan's hand, and he frowns when his phone rings. "Oh shit. Speak of the devil. Should I tell Eric? He'll know something's up."

Meghan grins, but she shakes her head no. "You can if you want, but you've made it this far. You sure you don't want to wait a few more days? You could bring him to your meeting. I'd love to see Eric's face when you show up with a baby."

Jason quickly debates this, then nods. He answers my father's phone call quickly, but steps outside to talk to him.

"What are you guys doing tonight? Anything fun?" Meghan stares at us, patiently waiting to hear about our plans. Adam looks at me, grinning widely as he hands me Elijah, and he waits until he's sure I have him.

For the second time in days, there's a tiny baby in my arms, though Elijah weighs considerably more.

"We're going to dinner. We have a reservation at seven," Adam informs her, but his eyes are on me. He reaches out to touch Elijah's hair, and his fingers stay there for a minute. "It's our anniversary."

"Of what?" I ask suspiciously, pulled beneath the wave of horror of not realizing what day it was. I try to figure out what the significance of today could be, but I can't figure it out. "Of not dying? Of the day we met? Did I miss your birthday?"

"Of the day Eva threw herself at me," Adam answers with perfect seriousness, but he cracks up at the look on my face. My glare isn't enough to make him stop, and even Meghan is trying not to laugh. "Okay, it's not that. I just thought it would be nice to eat somewhere besides Clyde's."

"Are you going to the…whatever the fancy one is?" Meghan leans back against the pillow, and I nod. I shift Elijah closer to me, not sure why I'm adjusting him. He's fine. He occasionally looks around, but he's pretty content in the dark black blanket. I smile at the dark color, because even his pajamas are black. "Jason and I went there once. It was…interesting. I thought it was overpriced but Jason liked it."

"Yeah, it was hard to get in. They didn't seem to want to take my name. I finally got through when I told them I was bringing Eva."

"The perks of dating me are endless," I sweetly remind him, and I step forward to hand Meghan her baby. "He really is adorable, Meghan. I was wondering if he'd have red hair."

"Me too," she smiles warmly, and I remember our conversation by the elevators. "I'm really glad you guys came by first. I don't think I have enough energy to deal with Rylan."

"I'm pretty sure he's sleeping. I think Ethan and Evan wore him out," Adam puts his palms behind him, and he leans back to look at me, then Meghan. "We should head out. Let you guys rest."

"Thank you," Meghan tries hard not to look too relieved, but she is.

She takes Elijah from me, very carefully, and I remember Charlotte looking like a pro. Meghan is more careful as she moves him, and she sort of collapses against the pillows with Elijah against her chest. "Will you tell Jason to take his time? I'm just going to shut my eyes for a minute."

"Sure," I answer, and Adam stands up. He tells her goodbye and wishes her congratulations on the baby, then takes my hand in his. "We can come by once you guys are home. Or…just call us if you need a break."

"That's really sweet. I would have thought you two would have had your fill of babies this week." Meghan's eyes shut for a moment, but they open a second later. "Enjoy your dinner."

We leave right as Jason comes back in. He's still on the phone, but he hugs both Adam and me, mouths he'll call one of us later, and returns to Meghan. The door shuts behind us, softly, and I can't help but feel a strange wave of happiness for the two of them.

After weeks of tense debates over parents, grandparents, and the threat of survival, it feels good.


"Is this okay?"

Adam looks at me from his spot on the ground. His feet are up in front of him, and the dinner is neatly arranged on the blanket we'd found. He tilts his head, and his shoulders are up higher than normal. There's an air of nervousness to him, one that wasn't there earlier. It's a funny look; not like he's going to bolt or dump me and then bolt, but like I might not like this and instead demand we go back down into the restaurant.

Which would have proven impossible.

They'd somehow lost our reservation.

We'd shown up dressed nicer than we normally would have, and for a fleeting moment, I was excited to eat there. It wasn't that I needed to be wined and dined at a place that cost the remaining few points we had left from initiation, but the thought of a nice dinner with Adam and no one else was sort of cool. No parents asking for forgiveness and grace as they dealt with their own issues. No parents just dropping by to say hello. No babies. No toddlers. No uncle, still mourning the loss of his presumed fiancée who still was MIA. No next-door neighbor, dropping by yet again, to ask if I had any coffee, while shirtless.

Just Adam and me.

Unfortunately, our hopes were dashed when the hostess nervously informed us she didn't have Adam's name written down, and neither did anyone else. She frantically flipped through page after page, but ultimately, his name wasn't anywhere. There was a moment of wavering hope when she realized who we were, and I saw her scan the printed layout of the restaurant in an attempt to find us a table. While we were both polite at that moment, there was a chance one of us would call our parents down here, and the hostess would find herself out of a job for refusing to seat a leader's son or daughter.

It vanished when someone came over and whispered furiously at her, then us. They offered to let us order, they'd prep our food to go, and we wouldn't have to pay.

We agreed.

We took it upstairs, to the roof, right to the very spot where Adam and I used to meet. The blanket was a long shot, having been left out here by someone else with this very idea, but we were willing to risk it over sitting on the ground. It was quiet, warm enough from the fire we'd lit in the trash can with Rylan's name scratched into it, and alone enough that I didn't feel like someone would crash our party.

The sky was dark, so inky it looked endless, and the stars were plentiful. Every so often there was a howl; a whoosh of wind or a crackle of the fire, and it felt like we were anywhere but here. I found this better than sitting there with the ancient members of Dauntless demanding more wine, extra salad dressing, and a discount for somehow still being alive.

"This is perfect. We don't even have to tip the guy in the tuxedo who didn't want to wait on us anyway." I grin at Adam, completely content to sit out here. It is still cold, but not so cold that this was proving impossible. "Are you going to tell me what we're celebrating?"

"I already told you," Adam smirks, and his words are cheeky. "We're celebrating the day you decided you couldn't live without me."

"Oh, so when I was like, three days old?" I shrug around the forkful of mashed potatoes, and he smiles back smugly. "Or, when our mothers forced us to take naps together so they could gossip while we slept? How did you even pick a date?"

"I guessed," Adam laughs. "But it could be any of those. Take your pick."

"Let me think about it before I settle on just one." I adjust my legs to the side of me, wondering how long we could stay out here. A lot of our relationship –friendship or current relationship – revolved around being outside. We'd met outside for years before the start of each school year. He'd stood outside the choosing ceremony, waiting for me to show up. We'd jumped together, though he would have continued on to Amity if I'd asked him to. We'd had our first kiss outside, atop my grandfather's Ferris wheel of death, and we'd gotten lost in the woods and saved ourselves.

All outside.

Which was probably why being stuck underground was feeling so wrong these days.

"Adam, are you…can I ask you something?" I fumble with the steak in front of me, stabbing it aimlessly a few times and wondering if I'd ever met the cow who was now my dinner. Jason had once given up eating meat. It didn't last long, but Rylan liked to remind him he'd been head butted by a cow once, and how this proved they were our natural enemy.

"Sure. Are you going to read me a poem?"

I look up to see Adam trying very hard to keep a straight face. I make a face back at him, remembering my horror when he showed up, and I was certain he'd come to read me some sappy poetry while I was trapped in Amity.

I was never so happy to be proven wrong when I figured out why he was really there.

"Actually, I am. Ethan taught me one. Something about one fish, two fish…" I trail off, watching as Adam cuts his own steak. He pauses when I stop talking, then looks up at me.

"Um, are you going to keep going? You can't leave me hanging right there," he deadpans as he stabs the steak, then pauses when his expression turns serious. "Eva, what's wrong?"

I swallow thickly, and the air seems to drop a few degrees. I stall by staring at his shirt until my eyes blur, and I look up at his face to make everything clear.

"Do you think we made a mistake?" I set my fork down, and I lean in closer. He does, too. His blue eyes are glued to mine, and he waits until I can say the next part. "Picking Dauntless?"

"I thought…I thought you wanted to stay here. You have your mom and dad…your friends…" Adam justifies my decision for me, reminding me of the very reasons I'd given him for wanting to stay. "You didn't want to leave any of them."

"I promised my dad I wouldn't," I confess, and it feels strangely freeing to tell someone this. My father wasn't the only reason I stayed, but he was a good one. "But I keep thinking, that maybe…maybe…"

"Maybe you should have picked somewhere else?" Adam sets his fork down, and this dinner swings in a whole different direction than I'm sure he had planned. "Are you saying you should have gone to Amity? Or do you just want to go back because it was…"

He stops, too.

I watch his face carefully, and it's like the same memories are right there.

"Because it was sort of our thing. Because you and I were there and no one else was butting in?"

"Yeah," I drop my gaze, and the confusion is immediate. "I keep thinking about going back. I miss my grandpa and grandma, and I feel really stupid because half of my family is here. But there's nothing here I want to do. I don't want to ask my dad for a job so you and I don't get stuck out on the rotating patrols. I don't want to spend my days…underground, or staring at a computer screen or trying to figure out if Rylan set something on fire and if it was because he was bored or he's trying to cover up evidence."

Adam nods, and his understanding is a huge relief.

"Yeah, I know the feeling. I haven't picked anything. I keep looking at the jobs available and they're all…just, not what I would want to do. Then I thought, maybe this is where we start. Maybe we take one and work our way up, and fifteen years from now, we find jobs we like." He ends his statement with a sarcastic grin, then exhales heavily. "I could always ask my dad. I'm sure given the state of things, he'd sign off on whatever I asked. I'm sure your dad would do the same. They could make something up if they had to."

"Yeah, but I don't want them to." I answer dejectedly, and I suddenly wish I'd never brought this up. I was effectively ruining this night and my intent was the exact opposite. "You know what? I'm sorry. You wanted to have this nice dinner and I'm just…thinking about something stupid. Or too serious."

"It's not stupid. I would have gone with you. I told you if you'd asked me to go to another faction, I would have," Adam reminds me. He sits up straighter, and the nervous look returns. "Actually, I wanted to talk to you about something serious. I've been thinking about this and I, uh, wasn't sure how to ask you."

"Ask me what?"

There's a woozy rush when Adam looks at me, and his eyes are dark. He smiles, the corners of his lips turning up slightly, then he moves to push the plates out of the way. Our dinner is long forgotten as he scoots closer to me, and the space between us is gone when he finally winds up sitting only inches away.

"Adam?"

His name echoes on the roof, bouncing off the high wall where a security camera had long ceased working. It bounces off the slanted slope of poorly done, rocky paving, and right off the ledge, where I'd nearly tripped and fallen to my death.

Right over the place where we'd stood, and he'd given me the bracelet before school started.

"I know you said you don't want to, so not now, and maybe not anytime soon. Not this year, or even next year…maybe three years?" Adam thinks out loud, and I realize I've grasped onto his fingers. I pull him closer, wondering what he could possibly be talking about.

The only thing I can come up with is in three years, we'll be three years into whatever low ranking jobs we'd taken, but he's not talking about that. The look on his face tells me he's been thinking about this for a while now, and it's now or never.

"Evangelina," he stares as he says my full name, and I swear my heart stops beating for a solid minute.

"Yes?"

"I was thinking one day, you and I could get married."

"You want to marry me? Now?" I blurt out without thinking, and Adam stifles down his snicker at my answer.

"Not like, this second. I know you said you didn't want to get married when you were eighteen. But we could wait. I just thought…after everything that happened, it would make sense. I mean, I didn't think we'd survive what happened in Amity, and after nearly dying and having everyone assuming we're going to get married, maybe we could just do it. We don't even have to tell anyone if you don't want to. But this way, we're in it together, and if things don't work out here, we can always…leave. Together. You know how I feel about you, and I was just…I was hoping you'd say yes. Or at least think about it. It doesn't have to be right now. I just don't want anything to change before I had the chance to ask."

He stares at me hopefully, and his eyes don't leave mine.

For a minute, neither of us say anything. I just look at him, thinking that if someone had told me I'd wind up spending most of my nights with Adam, that he and I would complete our initiation in another faction, would nearly die together all because of some family secrets, and he'd propose a few weeks later, I'd have laughed in their face. Never in a million years did I believe this would happen. But it is, and it's not everyone's theory coming true. It's Adam going after what he wants, which is a life with someone who loves him, and wanting it sooner rather than later.

There's only one small problem.

"You really think we could get away with getting married and not telling anyone?" I chew on the side of my cheek to stop from grinning stupidly, because the idea of marrying him doesn't sound so bad. Even though there wasn't a chance in hell someone wouldn't figure it out. "They'll find out as soon as we fill out the paperwork. Then they'll come find us and want to know why we didn't tell them and who-"

"So is that a yes?" Adam interrupts me, and his impatience makes me smile even wider. "Are you going to marry me, Evangelina Coulter?"

"Only if you promise me we can name all our kids something that starts with the letter E," I shrug, and I'm nearly knocked over by him. "Adam!"

I yelp his name when he kisses me, his lips crashing into mine as he celebrates his triumphant proposal. I let go of his hand to grasp onto him; my fingers skimming over his cheeks, soft and warm and sharper than I remember, and his fingers find my jaw. He cradles them there for a moment, then pulls me closer, tilting my head up at him.

"You have to say yes, Eva. You can't just say Adam." He points this out as he breaks our kiss, but his nose touches my temple. "Otherwise I'm not sure this counts."

"Yes," I sigh, overwhelmed with the feeling of complete sureness. "I'll marry you. Is that better?"

"It is," Adam kisses my cheek, then moves to look at me. "Are you sure? You really want to do this? Or are you holding out for your next door neighbor?"

"I said yes! Now get off me," I laugh, trying to arrange myself into a better seated position. I rise up to kiss him again, stupidly happy over something everyone was so sure would happen, and I don't even care that they were right. In fact, it seems dumb that I was ever annoyed over such words. "I'll marry you, but not here. Not in Dauntless."

Adam's hands fall from my hair, but his nod is as quick as his smile. He understands immediately, and I had a feeling he would.

"I think I have an idea you'll like."

His fingers skim over my cheeks, his touch cold and light, and there's a feeling of total completeness. It comes from nowhere, much like the homesickness had, and it brings forth the realization that he was who I needed all along.

I doubt we'll be able to keep this a secret for very long, but for now, I am incredibly happy to celebrate with Adam, and only Adam.


We celebrate, again, once we're home.

I look up at Adam's face, hovering over mine, and all I can see is how happy he looks. The tension is gone from him, his shoulders have relaxed down to where they should be, and his eyes are on mine. It's intense enough that I would normally look away, but I don't. I reach up to touch the slant of his cheekbone, and the half smile is immediate. His head turns to rest against my fingers, and the frantic pace from a few minutes ago is gone.

We'd pretty much skipped eating the rest of our dinner.

We were both high off the feeling of knowing this was forever. It was something I'd never felt before, a heavy dose of pure and total completeness that my family didn't give me. It wasn't that I'd grown up unloved in any way, but this was different. I didn't need Adam to complete me, but I liked that he did. He was the only one who understood the way we'd grown up, and he was content and happy to be with me. He wasn't asking for me to change; he didn't want me to be more daring, less daring, have different hair, prove how edgy or brave I was, nor did he care that I came with enough family members to start our own army.

He loved me for me, and I'd been wrong in thinking he didn't like me.

Maybe he'd never disliked me.

"You look so happy," I curl my fingers into his hair, gently urging him to be closer. This wasn't what I meant to say. I hadn't even meant to speak, because it was all too good to ruin by saying something dumb or commenting on what we were doing. But after weeks of tense, dark times, his happiness was well earned, but most importantly, contagious.

"Yeah, well there was a chance you'd say no," Adam teases, and his forehead touches mine. "Or you'd have to think about it."

I laugh when he shakes his head, like he can shake that very thought away if he tries hard enough.

I wouldn't have said I wanted to wait, nor would I have said no.

I never truly pictured myself getting married to anyone. There had never been anyone brave enough to try and win over my father or dumb enough to try and ignore him altogether. Adam had had my father's approval for some time now, and all that was left was making this absolutely official.

I had the feeling it would be happening as soon as possible.

"I don't need to think about it."

I pull his head down to mine, kissing him until he's grinning from ear to ear, until the lovely warm feeling spreads through my entire body, and I am certain we won't be getting out of bed anytime soon.

We don't.


A few days later, after spending precious hours away from everyone, Nikolai waits for me.

He looks different than I remember; his shirt is a little sleeker and more fitted than before, and his boots are shiny and tight with equally stiff laces. His hair is perfection, combed into place with the barest hint of a flip at the ends, and it's recently been cut shorter than I remember seeing.

He sits with Christian, equally elegant but arguably more excitable, at a large table in the most expensive restaurant Dauntless has.

The one that lost our reservation.

I take a seat at the table across from them, feeling fairly underdressed. My own dark sundress is pretty, but a size too large, and slightly shorter than what felt acceptable for such fine dining. It was also nowhere near as Dauntless as what they had on, and I'd thrown it on hastily, after receiving this invitation.

"You look nice," Nikolai eyes me up and down, and I can't tell if he's being serious or he's mocking me.

"Thanks," I glance around quickly, suddenly wondering if I was about to be ambushed. Was this the moment when someone jumped out from behind the row of booths, yelling and cheering that I'd been selected for a Dauntless makeover and it was happening right now. "It's just…a dress that I had in my closet."

"I figured," he eyes me again, but he smiles, and gestures to the man beside him. "I know you know Christian. I just wanted to inform you I've taken a position working with him. Your father offered me a job working for him, which was ultimately very kind considering my mother tried to take him down. But office work isn't really my thing. Neither is stomping through the muddy snow."

"I see," my gaze flicks from him, to Christian, clearly dying to say something. He smiles warmly at me, but I know he's just biding his time until he has the chance to really speak. "And what will you be doing?"

"What won't I be doing?" Nikolai waves dramatically, then graciously accepts a generous amount of wine from the server. He watches her fill his glass then looks at me.

"Oh, no thank you. I'll just have…some water." My last foray into drinking had left me feeling dizzy and weird, and I had no desire to recreate that feeling in the middle of the day. "Well, congratulations. Christian would be amazing to work for."

Across from me, Christian grins even wider.

He looks exactly the same as my earliest memory of him. Slight, with hair large and just as dramatic as he is. His own jacket isn't a uniform jacket, but a coat lined with a shiny fabric that glimmers beneath the lights. His boots sparkle, the buckle a dark gold, with his initials engraved on it.

While this might be a dream partnership for Nikolai, only one of them could be the most fabulous. I predicted there would be a violent duel that eventually unfolded in between rows of dark fabric and the yards of pink Christian kept on hand just for my mother.

I hope Christian hid the sewing needles in advance.

"Thank you, Eva. I'm honored to finally have someone who shares my vision. My dream was for your father to collaborate on a line, but somehow, he's always busy." Christian pauses, and the insult on his face is fleeting. "With your mother, I'm assuming. I thought I'd catch him for a minute, but when I stopped by today, he opened the door and snapped for me to come back later."

I shake my head, toying with the fork in front of me. It's heavy and lethal feeling, and I wonder when the silverware here became so aggressive. "You probably interrupted them. They, uh, still really like each other."

"Cute," Nikolai interrupts, looking mildly grossed out. "Anyway, I invited you down here because we need to catch up. I want to hear all about Amity. Christian wants to hear about the clothes…"

"Lots of ill-fitting prairie ensembles. I'm right, aren't I?" Christian interrupts. "I've been to Amity plenty of times. Things have improved with Harrison there, but his choice of clothing can be questionable as well. Let's be honest, he once wore a tuxedo to the last meeting I was forced to attend."

"Well…."

He's not entirely wrong, but I can't bring myself to admit it. In Amity, they wore some normal clothes in addition to the dresses, especially the people working out in the fields. No farmer was going to wear a dress to stomp through the mud, unless they were my mother. But I knew what Christian was thinking. And my grandfather's clothes could be a little out there, though every time I saw him, he was dressed normally.

"Forrest had pants on. My aunts looked normal," I try to reason with them, but I'm cut off by Nikolai.

"Fascinating, truly. But I want to hear about Kat, and why she's taken the most wretched job we have. Also, why she looks violently ill every time I see her. I don't so much care about Rachel or Pink. I see them all the time." Nikolai waits while the waitress drops off my water, and she practically whispers she'll be right back in an attempt at sophistication. "Most importantly, I want to hear about your time in Amity with Adam. Because let me tell you, I saw his father while he was gone, and the word vicious doesn't even begin to describe how he looked. But Adam is certainly looking much happier these days."

"I saw him, too. I'm not too impressed with him lately. He seems to be…more tortured than usual. I think he had the same shirt on for three days in a row. Same black, wrinkled…ensemble." Christian offers this not at all helpful statement, and I realize I have a choice here.

I could explain everything, every painful detail of what had happened and delve deep into Four and Adam's personal business and that Four probably had more than one black shirt and pants, or I could wrap this up quickly, and figure out if Nikolai knew anything about Kat that I hadn't heard yet.

I could also tell them Adam and I had talked about getting married, but that wouldn't be conducive of our plans to keep this quiet.

"Adam and I…we were in Amity. You know I was attacked during the War Games. I was told to stay there with my grandpa, and Adam was told to go back to Dauntless. He didn't want to stay here, so he showed up that night and he stayed with me until we ran into Marcus. Neither of us knew he had a grandfather out there, and it wasn't good. We wound up, um…" I stop for a moment, but they're both listening intently. "I'm sure you heard. Marcus wanted to kill us. He tried. We managed to get away from him, crossed the river, and made our way to Erudite. It was absolutely freezing and we probably would have died if we hadn't found the train."

"Great job staying alive. But what did you do in Amity?" Nikolai ignores the part about death completely and focuses in on the part that I wasn't elaborating on. "I heard about his grandpa. We heard Four didn't tell him shit and it got out of hand. But what did you do there? Rake leaves? Stare at the stars? Conjure up a corn demon?"

"You mean in the faction?" I look at him in surprise, and he shrugs. "We just…hung out. I have a lot of family there, so we visited with them. Adam went sledding. I helped my grandma. I don't know. We watched a movie…"

There was a lot that had happened in Amity.

Just thinking of it forces up a wave of homesickness, even though I was currently home. I have a sudden longing for the far away forest, the fire crackling while Adam talked to me until I fell asleep, and the breakfasts with my grandparents and whoever else in the family showed up. I try to shake this feeling away; I have family here, a floor above me. Two parents, probably half asleep on the couch together, while my mother forced my father to watch some cheesy movie someone swore she'd love on his lunch break.

I had an entire family here, including extended family: my uncle, too many godfathers, the number one godfather, Karl, even Adam's parents.

So why did I feel like I wanted to be anywhere but Dauntless.

"Eva, you look a little nauseous." Nikolai is too observant. "We should order. You probably need to eat. You returned from Amity a bit… underfed."

"I did not," I scowl, and I push the thought of Adam smiling down at me in my grandmother's garden away. "I'm just…tired. I've been busy."

"Busy doing things with…Adam?" Nikolai says this while flashing a blinding grin, then he sighs in exasperation. "Okay, I know. This is very much your personal business and you and Adam are very private. I get it. But I spent weeks working out by him, weeks watching him stare at you until he was brave enough to tell you how he felt and weeks listening to him defend what he was doing to his moron friends, I feel like I deserve to know. You two get to spend some time away from here, you return practically engaged, and no one ever sees you. Am I even invited to your wedding?"

I freeze, because I know he's exaggerating. There is no way he'd know Adam actually proposed, and there's nothing in his words but pure curiosity and a dash of hope that he will get to be invited to what would no doubt be a huge event.

Unlike everyone else who wanted to know what was going on, Nikolai wasn't asking because he found the situation funny or hilarious. He had been a part of this. He'd told me Adam liked me, and he'd even insisted we'd end up together once we were alone.

He'd been right.

I just wasn't sure he was the first person I'd tell.

That would be my grandfather in Erudite.

"He hasn't…not really..." I manage to answer, and I recognize my mistake the minute I say the words. "Christian, no! I didn't…we aren't planning a wedding! We…he…"

Christian silences me by holding up both his hands. His smirk is well earned, because it's obvious he's been waiting for this day for some time.

"Okay, first of all, I never got to design a wedding dress for your mother. Your father married her in the middle of the evening, without telling a soul. Including her. She wore some ill-fitting, off the rack…gown to the dinner they were going to, and while it was pretty and fine, it was not a wedding dress. I was involved in their second wedding, but I've been waiting for yours. You're even prettier than she is, and you deserve the wedding of your dreams."

"I'm ...we're not…" I frantically try to think of a way to explain this to him. "He might not even want to have a wedding. We heard about it all in Amity, and then once we were back. He might think it would be better if we just…live together."

"Live together? In sin?" Christian gasps, pretending to be horrified. "I'm just kidding. I'm hardly one to talk. I just wanted to be here so you can agree that I will be the one making your dress. Whenever Eaton finds the time to propose."

"Sure," I agree immediately, knowing it would be better to appease him now than spend all lunch insisting otherwise. "You can make whatever you want, and if I ever get married, you'll be ready."

"Great," Christian looks pleased, and I can see his mind whirling. "How tall are you again?"

"What is Adam doing? Did you two pick jobs yet?" Nikolai asks the real question here, and I shake my head.

"No," my voice sounds dejected, and I am. "Everyone picked ahead of us and there's really nothing either of us want. I was thinking I'd talk to my dad and see what we could do. I don't want to be on some random patrol squad for hours on end. And I don't want Adam gone for weeks at a time."

"Both options sound miserable."

Nikolai stops speaking when the waitress returns to take our order. I order a salad, then after a glare from Nikolai, I order some chicken. He and Christian both order steak, and their attention is back on me before I can think of a way to change the subject.

They do it for me.

They bring up Kat and Zander, and I spend the rest of my lunch paying careful attention as he reveals the very gritty details of their very public breakup, and Zander's unfortunately very public meltdown.

The only thing I truly take away from this lunch, is that my planned reconciliation with Kat might not go according to plan.


"What are you going to say?"

I lie on my parent's bed, upside down, halfway watching my father fix his jacket. He's dressed like he's going somewhere important; the uniform is black and heavy, and he sighs in exasperation when he doesn't like how it fits.

"Did your mother shrink this?" He's not really asking me. He scowls at his reflection, and I shrug from the bed.

"I don't think she does the laundry. You said we weren't allowed to use the microwave so we both assumed the washing machine was off limits, too." I remind him while I stare at their ceiling, debating my next move. I'd stopped by here after lunch, and I was hoping to find both my parents home. Instead, I found just my father, trying to find his boots and preparing to leave for Candor.

I didn't have to go, which was great, because I hadn't prepared any statement.

I'd been too busy trying to track Kat down.

Turned out, Nikolai had lots of information. He hadn't just seen her around, looking miserable and pale. He also hadn't just heard about Zander's meltdown over their breakup. He had witnessed it. Kat had also turned to him in a moment of desperation, not over me, but over the fact that she'd never be together with my uncle.

He told me all this while slicing apart his steak. Christian nodded every so often, not entirely invested but happy to be involved, and he would occasionally point out that Kat was the only girl on the squad she'd joined. This fun fact had caused Zander to spiral even further; he loathed the idea that in a moment of vulnerability, some other guy would win her over while he was out of the picture.

He also mentioned she wasn't my biggest fan these days. In her mind, I was one of the numerous reasons she couldn't be together with Zander. Maybe the number one reason. My inability to accept her on the spot apology had led her to believe I didn't want them together, and she refused to think anything else. Even when Rachel and Pink pointed out that wasn't true.

This wasn't a great turn of events. The weight of disappointment was immediate. I might have been able to help Adam and his father talk, but I was thinking Kat was a lost cause. I knew I couldn't save everyone and everything here, but the thought of losing one of my best friends was a like a punch to the stomach.

"Yeah, well I'd prefer not to have the apartment flooded," my father responds darkly, and his mood is pretty crappy. "Where's Adam? What are you doing? I thought you were having lunch with…the dramatic guy. I offered him a job since his father is barely holding it together, but he said he's fine. I was a little surprised since no one ever turns me down."

I roll my eyes even though he can't see me.

"I'm sure you don't want him working for you, but that was nice. I did have lunch with him. He told me he's working with Christian. So that'll be fun." I inform him joylessly, thinking that Nikolai will redesign everything in Dauntless to his liking. "I finished eating lunch and I came here to find you. But you seem like you're leaving and…"

"I'm going to talk to Jack about Blythe. Since she went missing, they're suspecting she's hiding out in another faction."

"Is she really worth all this trouble?" I examine the ceiling again, hoping there would be some answers there.

There aren't.

"Yes. She already tried to kill you once. Wasn't that enough? Or you want her to do it again?" My father turns to look at me with one very fatherly glare –the kind hinting he knew my question wasn't a real one, because if it was, he was going to be annoyed I'd asked it. "You want Marcus to happen all over again?"

"Blythe didn't look like the kind of person who'd be wandering around in the woods," I point out, but my brilliant counter argument is lost on him. "I just…don't want to think about seeing someone else who would like me dead."

"Yeah, well get used to it."

"ERIC!"

My father's extreme sarcasm is not appreciated by my mother. She's returned from wherever she was, and she stands in the doorway, looking irritated at what he said.

"Don't tell her that! No one else wants Eva dead." She steps forward, then back when he raises his eyebrows in defense. "Blythe is…just a terrible person. But she's it. Marcus is gone and he only wanted Eva because she was with Adam. Don't make Eva think everyone is out to kill her."

My father tilts his head at her, and his expression stays bored.

"The Coulters are used to having people want them dead. You, of all people, should know this. More importantly, did you shrink my jacket? It doesn't fit right."

"Don't try to change the subject," my mother relents when she heads over to him, and she fixes the sleeve. "You have it buttoned all weird. Did you get dressed in the dark?"

"No. Where were you? I thought you said you were going to see Charlotte." My father ignores her question, and he lets her fix his jacket. He's silent while she works, fixing the collar, rebuttoning the cuffs on the sleeves, and her fingers linger as she debates whether to zip it up for him.

"I did. She's good. The babies are good. Jason was there, too. He wants to know if you're almost ready." My mother stays right in front of him, and her head comes up to the middle of his chest. He's looking down at her with a smirky grin, and he waits patiently until she looks up at him. "Do you have to go to Candor today Are you sure? Can't Four go?"

His expression changes to something tense.

"Everly, do you want me to stay home?"

He's dead serious. Despite the fact that Blythe being missing could be a security risk, the latest in what seemed like a never-ending rotation of villains vying to take what wasn't theirs, he was willing to stay here. I can see his mind whirling, thinking how he'll send someone in his place, and he won't have to go. He didn't often shirk any of his responsibilities, but every so often, he chose my mother over everything else.

It was a common theme with them.

It was well known she was the only person who ever had any pull over him. Some might try to pull authority or demand his time and attention, but at the end of the day, only she could get him to listen.

Which meant Four would get to do his job today.

"I just…" my mother stops, and she glances over at me.

Sometimes, looking at her was a lot like looking at myself. We were almost the same height, her hair was as long as mine, just as dark and shiny, and she still didn't look much older. Her dress was one I'd worn before, ending up in my closet because Carol couldn't tell who it belonged to, and it fit her the same way it fit me.

The sleeves were too long, and one side was sliding off her shoulder.

The only difference between us was she looked tired. Really tired.

"How long will you be gone? An hour?"

I look over at them, his hands now in hers, and I take this as my cue to leave. She was either not feeling great, or they'd been up all night, and now she wanted him to stay with her.

Which meant I needed to leave before I caught what she had, or before they got grossly affectionate.

"All afternoon," my father answers, and I know he's not going. He's staring at her with a very concerned expression, and my guess is he'll make her go down to the infirmary. Or he'll make Arlene come up here, along with half her staff. "Everly, are you sure you're okay?"

"I'm fine," she answers immediately, and she smiles at me. "Eva, are you okay? Did something happen at lunch?"

"I'm alright. I just found out Kat is mad at me for not accepting her apology during the War Games and refuses to speak to Zander. I was thinking I should go find her, but I don't know where she works." I sit up, and I decide it's time for me figure this out once and for all. "Do either of you know where her squad meets?"

They both look at me, and after a minute, they shake their heads.

"You could find Jason and ask him. He occasionally checks in on them for fun." My father looks torn. He wants to help me, but my mother wants him to stay with her. The struggle is all over his face, but totally unnecessary.

I hop off the bed and smile brightly.

"I'll go ask him. I wanted to see how Meghan is anyway."

"Meghan?" My mother looks confused, and I've forgotten no one knows she's pregnant. "Eva, don't worry too much about Kat. She'll come around. One way or another. You've been friends too long to let it come to this."

"I think I can fix it. She did apologize and I want her to know I don't care if she marries Zander." I walk over to them, and but I linger by their dresser. On top of it, pushed carefully to the back, is paperwork from my father. My grandfather's name is at the very top, and a quick glimpse shows it's a report on my attack. "I'll see you guys later. I hope you feel better."

"I'm fine!" my mother's protest is suspicious and I'm not entirely convinced. I could write it off as her missing my father. She didn't like him to be gone the same way he didn't like her to be gone, but she looks a little too exhausted for her to want him to stay home. "I've been working a lot to make sure everyone knows things are safe. When Four and Rylan were announced missing, the factions panicked. The damage control took longer than we anticipated. There's just…too much going on for me to handle all by myself."

"Are they still worried?" I look right at my mother, and her answer is a slow nod.

"It's getting better. But…it'll take some time. Blythe's disappearance doesn't help, though I'm hoping they realize she won't get very far. I don't think she can survive without her butler."

My father snickers. "She can't. The likelihood of her hanging out anywhere but her own home is pretty low. She wouldn't have the first idea how to survive anywhere but with her staff." He pauses, and his grey eyes find mine. "When you have time, make sure you put together some notes on what happened. It'll be easier to remember if you have it written down. Jack will want to hear your side of the story, and the more information you can give him, the more helpful it'll be."

"I'll work on it tonight," I promise, and I wave goodbye. "I'll see you guys later."

"Bye Eva," they both answer at the same time.

I leave them standing there, still debating if my father was going to leave, and I smile when I make it to the kitchen.

He wasn't going anywhere, and they both knew it.


I decide not to bother Jason.

Instead of dropping by, I text him, asking if he'd seen Kat lately. He responds instantly, saying he hasn't for a few days, but he knows which squad she's on, and they're back in a half hour. He also sends a picture of himself holding Elijah, and I come to a dead stop in the hallway. His happiness is so strong I can feel it through my phone, even more so in the second photo of Meghan holding their son. I save the pictures to my phone, and for one wild second, I fully understand just how much they love each other.

I thank him, and I promise Adam and I will come by to visit as soon as we can.


My grandfather answers on the second ring.

I must have caught him at a good time; normally it rings for a while, and I know he's either in surgery or with patients, so I don't mind. Today, he answers quickly, but it sounds like he's somewhere crowded.

"Eva! How are you?" He greets me with as much as enthusiasm as one would expect, and in the background, there's a familiar bustling noise. I decide he's at the coffee shop Adam and I had been at, and I can almost picture him standing in line. "Everything thing okay? Is your father behaving?"

"He's good. Fine, he's actually home with my mom," I answer while waiting in my own line to get coffee. I'd come down here in hopes of finding Kat, knowing there was a slim chance she'd stop by somewhere Zander liked. "She's not…I don't think she feels too good."

"Is she alright?" my grandfather's concern is loud and clear, and I know I have to be careful with what I say or he'll show up here in the next few hours. "Is she sick? There's this virus going around and…"

"I think she's just been busy and she's tired. She said the factions were panicked because Four and Rylan were announced as missing and the high alert freaked everyone out. They came back but now Blythe is…" I stop myself from saying much more, but he already knows.

"Yeah, I heard. My guess is she's at home. Camille and I were talking about going by there."

"You were?" My words are loud enough that the guy in front of me glances back slightly. "Why? I thought she hates everyone."

"Oh, she does. But she's not one to back down. If she's gone silent, everyone should be worried. This means she's planning something. She knows she'll be found guilty of attacking you. Plus, Jack is huge on conspiracy theories. He'll want to know all about how she planned everything." My grandpa is oddly cheerful, and I panic when I realize he's probably already gone looking for her.

"Grandpa, did you go to her house!" I half whisper, half yell this, because as nice as he was, I wouldn't put it past him. While he wasn't one to make rash decisions or do anything stupid, it was becoming clear the whole family was bonding together to bring her down.

"I did. She tried to harm my granddaughter. I thought the very least she could do was explain herself." He sounds grouchy now, his tone darkening as he orders coffee for him and Camille. "We went prepared. Rylan went with us. We thought she might talk but the house was dark. She's either hiding inside or she's fled the faction."

"Okay, well that doesn't sound very safe." I step forward, nearing the counter and the man with all the metal in his face. "I think my dad might not want you to do that."

"Well, he doesn't need to know. Though I'm sure Rylan told him. He stayed for a few hours after we left to do some paperwork on it. They're trying to build a case against her." He pauses, and I hear someone ask for his name. "Anyway, how are you feeling? Are you and Adam good? Recovered from your hypothermia?"

"We're really good, actually." I stall a few steps from where I'd order, and I wait while the line comes to a halt. "I was calling because…I wanted to tell you before I told anyone else…"

"He proposed, didn't he?"

My grandpa can't help himself. He blurts this out before I can finish speaking, but I can hear the grin in his voice.

"Eva?"

"He did," I smile at nothing in particular, because this was the best secret I'd ever had. "We talked about it for a while. He said we didn't have to get married anytime soon, but he wanted to ask me."

"Did you say yes?"

"I did," I laugh at the slightly demanding tone, because it sounded like he was asking me if I was taking my vitamins. "So, I don't have a date or anything, but I wanted to tell you before I told anyone-"

"A date for what?"

I nearly drop the phone when I look over to find Rylan standing right there. Gone are his neon colored outfits and mismatched shoelaces, and his official uniform has returned. He even looks extra official now, because he's glaring at me. His head is cocked to the side suspiciously, his hands are on his hips, and he's armed.

Which meant there was a chance he'd shoot me if I didn't tell him what I was talking about.

"EVANGELINA COULTER."

"I have to go, grandpa. I love you. I'll call you really soon, I promise." I hang up before my grandpa can protest, because the wrath of Rylan is far more pressing than the few scant details I have for my grandpa.

"A date for what? What are you planning? Are you and Adam…moving?" Rylan steps closer, threateningly, or as threateningly as someone can who has just been handed two coffees. "Are you…hosting a dinner? Is it a murder mystery dinner party? Am I invited?"

"No, it's…um…" I glance around frantically, hoping something will spark an idea to throw him off. It wasn't that I didn't want to tell him, but Rylan was the absolute worst at keeping secrets. I might as well ask someone to project my engagement all over the walls if I was going to reveal what I had been talking about. "We're having…a…"

"A baby?"

"No!" I step away from him, crashing into the man in front of me. To my horror, I realize it's Henry, and he looks down at me with sheer disappointment. "Sorry, I'm so sorry, Henry."

"So am I."

He looks dejected, but that's not my concern. I'm sure somewhere in this faction was someone else who was short with dark hair, and he could fall in love with her.

"Eva…" Rylan says my name warningly, and I have few precious seconds to think of what to tell him. There was a chance, a very small, microscopic chance he'd keep quiet, but that was overshadowed by his inability to control his excitement. "Tell me. Now."

"I can't." I shake my head, and I step back further. I wind up stepping on Henry's foot, and he pushes me back at Rylan.

"I'd help you…but….you know… the whole Adam being in love with you thing and you rejecting me…"

"Oh, so you finally realized that?" I turn to glare at Henry, and he makes a face. "Maybe now you can keep your shirt on whenever you come by for a coffee mug."

"You really want to be with Four's kid? He's like, a day older than you. What can he even provide for you? Is he even paying for the apartment you live in? Does he even have a job?" Henry grows irritable, having failed to secure a Coulter in his life, and he crosses his arms over his chest. "His hair is too long, by the way. It's impractical for a soldier here. Unless, he's not going to be an active soldier."

"That's none of your business," I hiss, but I don't have to worry.

Rylan, the number one godfather and all around most protective member of Dauntless, is on the case.

"You think you can dare talk about my godson like that?"

"Your godson?"

Henry and I speak at the same time, and we both look at each other.

Rylan calling Adam his godson was a stretch, considering Adam and I had barely announced anything. Or considering that Four would probably choke on whatever he was drinking if he heard Rylan making any claim to Adam.

"Yeah, you heard me. My godson. Just like a real son. Which, he could have been. Either way, no one messes with either of them." Rylan glares even harder, and his eyes flash with an idea that I hope Henry knows is a sign he should leave. "In fact, I should have you demoted. I love demoting people. Ask me how many people I've demoted in my lifetime here. I dare you."

"Whoa, look, you're the one who came after her while she was telling her grandfather they don't have a wedding date. I bet all my points here she wasn't going to tell you. We know you can't keep your mouth shut. About anything. Including your…nonbiological godson." Henry smiles smugly, and he hits the nerve that I was hoping to avoid.

Rylan shoots me one very accusatory stare, and he steps closer to me. "Is this true?"

He steps even closer, and the man with the metal in his face yells out someone's order. I'm tempted to sprint over and steal it, just to avoid answering this question.

Ultimately, I know Rylan just wants the best for me, and after spending two weeks in the woods with Four, maybe he deserves this.

"Actually, you know what? Adam did propose, and we don't have a date. And yes, I wasn't going to tell anyone except for you and my grandpa. Because…you two are the ones I trust the most! You both are great at…planning…parties." I smile widely, because it's not entirely untrue.

I did trust my grandpa, and I would have to hope Rylan could follow through with this secret now that he knew.

Plus, he did throw some fun parties.

His death count at these parties was only at one so far, but to be fair, the guy was really old. And probably shouldn't have been that close to the chasm.

"Really?" Rylan isn't as flattered as one would think, and I exhale heavily.

"Okay, well, actually we weren't going to tell anyone. I promised my grandpa I would tell him first. So I did, and I wasn't planning on telling anyone else. Even my parents don't know." I turn to look at Henry, still lingering nearby, probably trying to figure out a way to order his coffee without his shirt on. "We just wanted to keep it between us for a while. We don't even know when it'll happen. It could be a while from now. But now you know, and so does Henry."

"I'd like to be in the wedding. If you want me to keep this quiet," Henry demands, and I suddenly understand my father's dislike of him. "As the best man."

"No."

"I could stand in as the groom, in case Eaton gets cold feet," Henry offers slickly, and I stare at him with all the politeness I can muster. He stares back, his offer still there, a legitimate deal he's hoping I'll accept, and he doesn't back down.

I glare at him, hoping they make his drink decaf.

"You can…attend. How about that?"

He makes a face. "Ugh, fine. Hopefully by the time you two set a date, invite all of Dauntless, hire Quinten to cater it, pick out a dress, and realize your lives will now be incredibly public, you'll come to your senses. I could keep you away from all that."

"What do you mean incredibly public?" To my horror, I step closer to Henry, wondering what he was talking about. "I don't have to invite everyone. No one would even know-"

"Please. Your father owes it to the faction. There's no way you'll get away with not having a huge wedding. He married your mother his way the first time, but even they caved to the pressure of having a large wedding." Henry rolls his eyes, and Rylan doesn't disagree.

"Rylan?"

"He's not wrong. Eric and Everly did wind up having a big wedding. The second time around. He thought Everly deserved to have a huge party, and she did. But there was some pressure. Everyone was furious he didn't invite them the first time." Rylan recants these statements like they're facts, and he chews on his cheek for a minute. "Sorry, Eva. You might get stuck having more people there than you or Adam want. Weddings are a big deal, especially for anyone related to a leader. It'll be expected that Eric hosts a dinner for the leaders of all the other factions, and they'll all bring their families and…it could be fun!"

He sounds excited, and my plan of marrying Adam somewhere else, away from all of…that, comes crashing down.

"Either way, order your coffee because I know who you're looking for and where they are."

"You do?" I turn back to look at him, and he points dramatically.

"Go get 'em, killer. I'll keep your engagement a secret. So will Henry, or I'll let Karl use him for target practice during the next initiation."

I almost don't hear the last part of his sentence or Henry's protest, because I take off.

There, right in the doorway of the faction's darkest coffee shop, is Kat.


"Where are you working?"

It takes her a second, but eventually Kat blinks at me like she can't believe I'm asking her such a mundane question. For a fleeting moment, it is good to see her. I take in her appearance –just as crummy as everyone had been claiming, and I try to pretend I don't notice how tired she is. Or how she somehow looks sharper, less thrilled to see me than I would hope, and her eyes are dull.

Her posture solidifies my theory that she isn't happy to see me when she sinks into the seat and sighs in annoyance.

"Squad ninety-three. We head out for two weeks and return for two weeks. It's harder than I thought it would be." Her confession is honest, and hope blossoms that this means she's willing to talk. "The guys are decent. They're all…way older and they like this squad because sometimes the weeks stack up and then you get a month off. A month on will suck, but oh well. What else do I have to do?"

My hope dies when she shrugs dismissively. She reaches for one of the coffees I'd bought us, and her nails are painted a vibrant red color that matches her hair.

"What about you? Did your father pick something? Or gift you his job?"

This time, she looks right at me, and it's like looking at a stranger.

Except one who knows everything about you.

"Wait, don't tell me. You're going to work for him, but you don't actually have to do any work?" Kat continues on, and the anger is there, heavy and hurting, and I understand it. Coming from her perspective, my father would be the one to rescue me from working something like her position, and I don't fault her for thinking otherwise. "You and Adam ranked high enough. I'm sure finding something won't be hard."

"I actually haven't picked anything yet. They made us wait until they were sure we were recovered from… the attack, and by the time we got to look at the list, there wasn't much left." I hate that I sound too apologetic, like I'm making excuses for myself. "We did rank high, but we can't take the jobs from the people who took them. Nor would we want to. That's not fair."

"I guess," Kat sips the drink like she's sure I've poisoned it, and the reunion sinks to a few levels of discomfort. "Eva, I think we should just get to it. Why do you need to talk to me? I tried to talk to you weeks ago and you blew me off. What's changed?"

My eyes widen, even though I knew this was coming.

"Kat…I don't want things to be this way. When you talked to me, we were in the middle of the War Games! I wasn't…I wasn't expecting to talk about our argument then." I sit up straighter, ignoring the swarm of members sliding past us to get straws and napkins. Kat had picked the worst seat possible, one out of the way and toward the back, but it made for an easy get away should she want to stand up and run. "I was sort of blindsided you were dating my uncle. That's all. If I was dating your uncle…"

"I don't have an uncle," she snaps, and I do my best not to be frustrated.

"Okay, well if you did." I wait for her to look less furious, but it doesn't happen. "I don't care if you date Zander. I saw him when I got back and he's miserable without you. I wanted to tell you…. I think you should get back together with him."

"How kind of you," Kat answers so darkly I physically lean back. "Anything else you want to approve? Thoughts on my job? My uniform?"

"Why are you acting like this? I want you and Zander to be happy. I don't care where you work or what you do. I saw Zander when I got back and he was devastated you dumped him. I don't want you to think that I'm in the way of you guys being together. I think if you had just been honest, this wouldn't even have happened." It's my turn to snap at her, and I'm tempted to answer my phone. It's currently vibrating in front of me, and Adam's name is lit up on the screen.

It only takes a second for Kat's eyes to flash down to it, and when she looks up, her gaze is less angry.

"And you're…with him now? Really with him? All I've heard is how impressed everyone is you two survived. Even the guys I work with said they would have died in the snow." The anger dulls for just a minute, and I figure I have mere seconds before she resumes hating me.

I look at her, the girl who used to hang around just to see my dad so she could tell me how handsome he was, and I can't let things end badly between us.

"He proposed," I tell her quietly, mostly so no one else hears. "After what happened with his grandfather, he asked if I would marry him one day."

Kat is silent.

Her fingers tighten on her coffee cup, and it looks like she's trying to figure out what to say. She'll either be happy for me, or annoyed I had one thing going for me.

"Are you going to marry him?" She leans in, slowly forgetting the months of animosity and weird awkwardness. "Eva, I thought you didn't want to marry anyone! I thought you said you wouldn't get married young because your mom did and everyone assumed you would."

"I said yes. I just don't know when. I told him I didn't want to get married here, and I didn't want a huge wedding…" I trail off, and she shakes her head.

"Your parents are going to freak. Especially your dad. He's going to make sure you have the biggest wedding in the history of Dauntless." She looks at me, and the dullness from her stare is gone and replaced with the barest flicker of excitement. "Is Adam ready for this? It's always been him and his mom and dad. Does he know half of Amity is going to show up?"

"I'm not actually sure he's aware of what he's getting into," I answer, holding onto this glimmer of hope. I now know how Adam and Four must have felt, trying to navigate how the other was feeling in an attempt to reconcile. "Kat, I don't want to lose you as my friend. I want you to be there with me when I do get married. If…or when it ever happens."

The words sound foreign coming from my mouth considering my feelings on marriage, but I have to admit I like the idea of having Adam by my side forever. My mother and father had been a great example for me, proving that all marriages took work, but it would be worth it.

"Plus, I think my mother either has the plague or is pregnant." I announce, and Kat's eyes widen even further.

"WHAT!"

She shrieks loud enough that I'm sure we'll be asked to leave, and I crack up at the look on her face. Metalface also does, but then he steels himself back to indifference as he wipes down the counter near us.

"I stopped by earlier. She's really tired and pale and she asked my dad to stay home with her instead of going to Candor. He's supposed to go talk about Blythe." I reveal this in hopes she'll stay, but also because I'd come to this suspicion a few minutes ago. "She's been reported missing."

"Yeah, they advised us to look for her. They told us to report anyone who even resembles her," Kat leans forward, and she looks around to make sure no one is listening. "You really think your mom and dad will have another baby? I thought you were the end all for them?"

I roll my eyes, which is the only appropriate response to such an idea.

"I wouldn't put it past them. My dad seems kind of bored these days, and my mom looked awful. Well, not awful, but like she definitely does not feel good. It's a possibility. She's only…" I try to think of how old my mother is. "…thirty-seven."

"Oh, she's pregnant. We all know how much your father loves her. He's made the whole faction aware," Kat snickers, and our fight sort of fizzles away. "Do you remember how he'd get all cranky when she'd fall asleep when they were watching a movie? Or how he'd go on and on about how she worked too much and he never got to see her despite the fact that he was in her office all the time?"

"How could I forget?" I take a sip of my drink, and I nearly gag at the sweetness. "Shit, what is this?"

"I think you have Jason's drink. It has his name on the cup. It says he did mobile ordering," Kat answers through her laugh, and sure enough, she points to the label. "I saw him the other day and he was kind of odd. He came down to make sure everyone had returned from one of the routes with Kacie and Four, but he was super impatient. One of the trucks was late and I thought he'd lose his mind."

"He's…got a lot going on." I hope my answer is enough, because I don't want to share why he was really impatient. My guess was he was waiting for his son to be born, but his baby wasn't my news to share. "Whatever he's busy with, this drink is really gross."

"Yeah, well I'm pretty sure it's chocolate milk, nine shots of espresso, and whipped cream. Oh, and add some extra chocolate."

I set Jason's drink down far away from me, and I figure I should probably order him another one.

"I'm going to have them remake it. I can drop it off," I hesitate to stand up, and Kat must feel the same. She nods, and her shoulders slump again. "Kat, can you…. would you at least talk to Zander? He's miserable. I don't think he's doing very well."

Her stare drops to Jason's drink. She mulls this over, something still nagging at her, but she eventually meets my stare.

"He's not. I read his messages. I just can't bring myself to respond." Her fingers dig into her cup, tense and unhappy. "I feel like I ruined everything by dating him. I miss him so much, and I hate how it feels like my life is garbage. I took this job thinking I'd get away from everything, and all I do is think about how I've completely isolated myself."

"Call him, please. I know he wants to talk to you. Even if nothing comes from it, at least you'll both have some closure." I say a silent prayer there is no closure, but this brings them back together. "If you end up back with him, I'd be really happy for you both."

"Yeah, but Eva…you should have seen the look on your face when you found out…"

"I was pretty thrown off. But I learned the hard way life is short. You could die tomorrow. I want you to be happy, and if being with Zander is what makes you happy, then…I'm good with that." I finish up my sentence with a bright smile, hoping she believes me.

I wasn't lying.

After nearly being murdered in Amity, I couldn't imagine being the reason two people who wanted to be together couldn't.

"Plus, I can introduce you as my aunt. You have no idea how jealous Rylan will be that you're actually a member of the family."

It takes a whole minute, three yelled out coffee orders, and two more phone calls form Adam but Kat finally smiles, really smiles, and the remaining anger she's been holding onto is gone. "So, we're officially friends again? You really forgive me for not talking to you?"

"If you forgive me for not accepting this right away," I smile back. "And if everything works out the way I think it will, we won't just be friends. We'll be family. Literally."

She looks down, nodding her head, and I can feel her relief.

It might not have been what either of us were expecting, but this was far better than how things had been. I didn't want Kat to hate me, I didn't hate her, and I wanted her and Zander to be happy. Even more so, I wanted her to feel safe and loved, and more than welcome as part of the family.

Things were changing quickly, and this felt like the start of a brand new beginning.

And if I had to guess, I had a feeling she and Zander would be married the second they got back together.


"So you're good now? You and Kat?"

Adam mumbles the words against my hair. He's watching something on the large screen mounted to the wall in our bedroom, and I'm half watching it. It's pretty gory; the people on the screen have come back to life to terrorize the living, and a small group is doing their best to survive. Adam seems to like the show, but I find it annoying.

Especially every time I think someone is dead and they get right back up.

"Yeah, we talked for a little while. I told her I'm fine with her being with Zander, even though she shouldn't be waiting on my opinion. But I think she needed to hear I was okay, because she said she'd call Zander. I don't want them to stay apart just because of me. Oh, and she works some really shitty route. They're gone for two weeks at a time."

"Sounds…awful." Adam answers, but he's distracted.

His attention isn't entirely on the show, but on my hand. He holds up my fingers, examining them one by one, and he only stops when I look up at him. The position is awkward, but he grins down at me.

"What?"

"Do you want a big wedding?" My question comes out of nowhere, but I've been thinking about this off and on all night. There was a chance he might, but since he'd grown up with less family members in his business, my guess was he'd prefer something smaller. "Or do you want just our family?"

"Are you asking because you spent all day thinking about marrying me?" Adam says this teasingly, but he's not wrong. "Which is funny since you said you want to wait…"

"I had to tell Rylan," I confess, and Adam's head knocks into mine in either surprise or horror at this news. "He sort of overheard me talking to my grandpa and I couldn't not tell him. He'd be devastated to find out he was left out of the secret."

"I don't care if you tell anyone," Adam answers, and he adjusts himself behind me. I can't tell if he wants a better view of the living dead, or he just wants me closer to him. "We could get married tonight. I was going with whatever you said."

"Tonight?" I turn to look at him, and he shrugs. His hair falls into his forehead, obscuring his vision until he shakes it away. "How?"

The smile on his face is slow and smug. He opens his mouth to answer me, clearly having an answer to this important question, but he doesn't get the chance.

An alarm goes off on both our phones, blaring and loud and at full volume. When we glance over at it, the screen is lit up with sheer brightness, and dark words announcing that all factions are being shut down immediately.