Happy Reading Everyone!

Happy New Year! May 2021 bring you all joy and a much better year!

Chapter 10

Thursday/ December 31st

Tris' POV

My eyes slowly open as the sun peeks through the window. It's funny how fast my body got accustomed to sleeping with Tobias, the past two nights have been awful because of going back to being the only one in my bed. I spent the major portion of the night tossing and turning, never being able to find a comfortable spot until I finally used a large pillow as a body. But the lack of body heat didn't fool my body or my mind, not one little bit. The pillow was no substitute for Tobias' warm and hard body.

I honestly don't know what to expect from tonight. Tobias, from my understanding, is still unaware that I have come back to town. The butterflies in my stomach have me lacking an appetite this morning. We didn't end things well when we parted ways. He couldn't even bare to look at me before he left. I think that's what hurt the most, him walking away and not looking back at me before he walked out the door, but I also know my rejection really hurt him. We both felt that there was something happening between us... The strong, unbreakable bond that was there, we both definitely felt it. He was more than willing to take a chance on me, on us. I knew what it took for him to take that big step and take a chance with me, as Tobias had been emotionally and physically abandoned and abused while growing up. He made it his purpose not to get close to anyone, yet there we were. There was no denying what was happening between us, the connection that we both felt towards each other from the moment that we saw each other, but I was too scared of what we were and what we could be in the future. I feared that it all could one day blow up in my face, yet again. But Hana was right, my mother was right… I have to be willing to take a chance on him and on love.

A knock on my door wakes me up from my lack of sleep. As I slowly sit up, the door creaks open and Christina peeks her head in. Smiling when she sees me sitting up and awake, she opens the door wider so she can pass through it, carrying two large cups of hot coffee. She then kicks the door closed behind her with her foot.

"The girls will be over here later to help us out. I figured you and I could have a little girl time before that. How about some breakfast?" She asks, taking a seat next to me on the bed while handing me my cup of coffee.

"Don't you have other guests to take care of?" I ask. She told me last night that her and Will were really pleased that the B&B was completely full. I got the last room that was available and only because there was a last minute cancelation. I wonder what I would have done last night if the original guests of this room didn't cancel? I'm still really nervous about seeing Tobias, not knowing what will come of tonight once he sees that I am back. I take a much needed gulp of coffee, loving the burn as it goes down my frozen throat.

"Oh, Will is taking care of our guests. I got up early and made their breakfast. All he has to do is keep it warm until the last guest is fed. A monkey could fill that role," she says, amused. We both laugh at the thought of a monkey actually cooking in her kitchen. We sit back on the bed, enjoying our coffee while making small talk and having nothing else to do. It's Perfect.

I was thankful for the drama free morning. Christina and I stayed relaxing in my bed, probably a little longer than we really should have, but we both figured it was no big deal seeing that all of her guests were out and about and nothing really needed to be done for them.

Marlene was the first one to arrive after lunch. She was laughing hard as she came into my room with high heels in one hand and a bottle of wine in the other while screaming, "Let's get this party started!" Although the only thing that really caught my attention was the extremely high heels that she was carrying, they look deadly and I mean deadly and sexy as fuck. They are black with shiny black gemstones covering every inch of the shoe, including the heels. I might end up in the hospital tonight from wearing those things. I probably won't even get a chance to walk up to Tobias and surprise him if I wear those death traps.

Shauna arrived not long after as she was in charge of bringing me a dress. Or perhaps I should say dresses, as she ended up bringing three different options for us all to pick out. That wasn't the only thing that she brought with her, as Zeke came in trailing behind her. His expression is somewhere between being amused, surprised and disappointed. I stand up from my bed, meeting him halfway to the door. He finally truly smiles, opening his arms wide open for me. I welcome his embrace as he hugs me tightly, before lifting me up off of the floor. I squeal in surprised as my feet fly in the air.

"It's about time you finally woke up and smelled the roses," he says, as he gently places me back down on my feet. I giggle, as I bounce on the floor. "So number boy doesn't know you're here. Well, I for one can't wait till he knows you are back and for good. I gotta say, Four has been nothing but a miserable bastard to deal with ever since you left town. He has been nothing but a jackass, not that I'm surprised… But this is a whole new level of his holy grouchiness," he says, smiling.

"Well… I'm not sure if I should take that as a complement or not," I say, smiling. This is Zeke after all.

"Take it as…We need you to make him happy so the rest of us don't have to deal with his holy grouchiness," he says on the verge of laughter again. I slap his shoulder playfully, as he should be more sensitive towards his best friend.

"I'll make sure that Four is in his spot on time tonight, okay. You just make sure you don't chicken out and run," he blurts out while smiling, as he turns around and closes the door behind him.

"Gotta love that man," Shauna says, blushing like a schoolgirl. Christina, Marlene and I all say, "Yeah, yeah," together while shrugging it off and rolling our eyes at her. But really it's so cute how those two are together. I may not know the exact amount of years that they have been together, but I do know it's been a really long time. And if they can still act so madly in love after all this time, then they have my heart and I only hope that one day Tobias and I can look as happy.

We all hang out for as long as we can. I can feel the nervousness from everyone in the room, that is mirroring my own. Marlene, Shauna and Christina all try to keep my mind occupied and for me not to worry about the millions of things that could go wrong tonight. Marlene of course talks about the new year and all that she and Uriah wish to accomplish. Christina tells us about the renovations that she and Will want to work on in the garden. Along with buying the small property in the back of the B&B so they can expand not only the garden but add in a pool for their guests to enjoy during the hotter months. Shauna blurted out that she and Zeke started talking about the possibilities of trying to start a family. At first I tried to imagine Zeke, the goofball that he is, a father, but then I quickly smiled as I could totally see the wonderful father that he would be to their child.

Time flies as we all share some laughter and conversation. Before we all know it the new year is upon us and we all have to begin getting ready. Christina begins on my makeup, as the girls start on my hair. We all take turns in the torture chair so Christina can have her way with all of us. Shauna and Marlene both end up making large loose curls in my hair, letting my now long curls hit my shoulders. Marlene also lets me borrow her heart chain necklace and matching earrings. Once my makeup and hair is all set in what feels like cement, Shauna pulls out the large black bag that has all three of the dresses that she just couldn't choose from. She holds the dresses out to show us, one at a time. The first one is a bright red dress that is thin and has a lot of layers of fabric. I easily shake my head from side to side, saying no. The second dress is absolutely gorgeous, although it's rather short for the cold winter air…but I do love it. The bottom of the dress has a thin, black pencil skirt and the top part of the dress is sleeveless with a black crocheted lace overlay on top of a beautiful white fabric. My long black wool coat will definitely go well with it. The last one is a black dress with elbow length sleeves. It looks long enough to fall below the knee and the form of the dress will drape over my body vs hugging it and giving my already small curves some attention. After much debating between the ladies, we all go with the too short, gorgeous, but well fitting black dress.

I have never had friends that were girls before, unless they wanted to get close to me to be near Peter. It's strange to feel this way, it's like they are the sisters that I have never had before. I'm so thankful to have them all in my life.

Tobias' POV

I honestly don't know what the hell has gotten into Zeke. He called me demanding that I meet his sorry ass at the bar tonight for a late dinner and to look my best. When I questioned what got into his ass, he just went off about it being New Years and we need to start the new year off right.

I really just wanted to stay home with Girl and perhaps have an early night. There's nothing pressing that can't wait until tomorrow, but when Zeke threatened me with the whole," I'll drag your ass out in your underwear thing." Although I know I can take on Zeke any day of the week, I also know he would take what he said as a challenge. He would probably even go as far as enlisting Uriah and even Will into carrying out his threat.

"Hey Zeke," I yell out, the bar is beyond crowded as the night is still young. I take a seat at what could be the very last seat at the bar, or perhaps even the whole place. I glance around making sure that everyone seems to be in control of themselves. I'm all for having the time of your life, especially on New Years, but still there are some people that can take it too far.

"Hey, his grumpiness has finally graced us with his presence," Zeke says, grinning from ear to ear. I suddenly have the weirdest feeling in the pit of my stomach, like there is something that I'm missing. I decided to just shrug it off for now.

"Fuck off!" I say, glaring at him.

"My point exactly," he says, laughing. Asshole. He wipes off the counter before he reaches underneath the bar and pulls out a beer. He takes the top off, using the countertop as leverage. He places the beer between the two of us, smiling, knowing damn well I could go for a beer right now. I move fast to accept the beer and down a large gulp of it, letting the cold, delicious drink wash down the misery that I have felt for the past two days.

"So, do you want to talk about what has been bothering you?" Zeke asks, leaning in over the counter.

"Nope," I say, bluntly. That is the last thing I want to talk about. It's bad enough that I can't get my mind off of Tris… I don't want to verbally say how much I miss her to the whole bar.

"Alright then… We won't talk about it," Zeke says, straightening up. He leaves, heading into the kitchen. When he comes back out a few minutes later he takes the seat that is now vacant next to me. He then places on the counter before the two of us, two burgers that are filled with all of the fixings and some crispy french fries. I may not feel comfortable sharing everything with Zeke, but I am really thankful for having such a good friend like him in my life. "I just…want to say that you'll be alright bro," he says, patting me on the back as we begin to dig into our last meal of the year. We have another round of beers before Zeke points out that he has to get back to work. I decided to stick around, not having anywhere else to go tonight.

A little after eleven, Zeke tells his coworkers to cover for him. I imagine he probably wants to see Shauna and kiss her at midnight. I don't blame him though, I would want to do the same thing with Tris if she was still here. Shit, just the thought of Tris has my mind racing, remembering the feel of her gorgeous lips against mine, the feel of her warm, small, bare body against my own. I admit it wasnt all about sex, I really enjoyed her company when we were together, but I'm still man enough to say being with her in that way was the best time of my existence.

Zeke's hand suddenly wrapping around my arm and dragging me out of my bar stool wakes me up from my fog. He doesn't take my struggle to stay on my seat as a refusal, it only makes him grab a hold of me even harder. I can't help but wonder if those few beers that he had got him drunk already. "Come on, let's go," he growls out. He mutters something under his breath, that he has a delivery time and he can't be late. I finally give in, letting him drag me away from my bar stool and into the street.

The minute we step out into the busy street the Christmas lights are all lit, as the folks of Dauntless are all excitedly waiting for our version of the ball to drop. It's a sad imitation, but the folks around here just love it.

We stand in the center of the town's square where many have come to know it as the Pit. I watch as those with excited smiles on their faces all wait for the familiar speech from Mayor Mathews to start. She always says practically the same thing every year, as she blesses our town for the new year to come. She always finishes her speech just five minutes before midnight. Her husband stands proudly next to her on stage. As he is just as eager to receive his own midnight kiss from his wife. I dig my hands into my pockets, keeping them warm while waiting for the almighty speech to start. I notice Zeke's eyes light up, as he notices something behind me. I don't bother to turn around, as I would imagine it's Shauna finally making it here. Only I notice his smile grows even wider by the second, I can't help but wonder what that is about.

"Well hello, ladies," he says, his voice sounding too cheerful for it to just be Shauna. He holds his right arm out, to take the love of his life in his arms. She doesn't stop until she is in them.

"Happy New Years, Four…." Shauna says, smiling suspiciously. What the hell is going on right now?

"Thanks," I begin to say, but am cut off by a familiar voice from behind me.

"Happy New Years, Tobias," I turn towards the only person that knows my real name. The only person that I want to kiss at the stroke of midnight. But how? I stand there like the frozen, shocked man that I am with my mouth gaped wide open. She takes the last few remaining steps between us, smiling. I can't help but let my eyes run up and down her gorgeous body. My eyes linger on the high as hell heels that she is wearing. Holy fuck!

"How?" Is the only word that my mind and mouth can form, as her hands land on my chest. I instantly reach up, placing my own hands on top of hers. I think a part of me just needs to make sure that this is real, that I'm not dreaming and that she is really here.

"Good evening and Happy New Year!" Mayor Mathews begins her all too familiar speech, but to be honest I could care less about that right now. My hand slides down to Tris' lower back, guiding her out of the edge of the crowd, hoping for a little privacy between us.

"Tris. I-" I begin to say, but her soft, cold finger presses against my lips, telling me that she wants to be the one to speak first. I easily give in, wanting to know how she is here and why. I can feel my heart swell with love, adoration and hope as I wait for her to speak. Could this mean what I think it does?

"Tobias, please let me talk," she asks, I nod, allowing her to be the one to talk first.

"My whole life…I always had this plan. I thought that's what I wanted, what I was destined to do with my life, but the truth is I never felt comfortable in my own life like I have felt in the last few days that I was, when I was here with you. I thought we were moving too fast… that we were just fooling ourselves. But the truth is I have never felt more right, more my truest self than when I am...I am with you," she says, her eyes fill with unshed tears. Is she saying? I reach up, cupping her face with my right hand, loving the feel of her.

"Tris? What are you saying?" I ask, as Mayor Mathews is concluding her speech. Which only means we have five minutes until the new year arrives.

"I'm saying that I want us to try, I'm not scared anymore. I… I love you," she says, her tears run down her gorgeous face as my thumb reaches up wiping them away. My heart swells even more than I thought possible. Is this real? Did she just say-

"I love you too, Tris, but what about your work… your apartment? I can't ask you to give up everything you worked so hard for," I say. I hate the thought of losing her, especially now, but I don't want to be selfish.

"I quit my job yesterday. Honestly, I never wanted to be a part of the corporate world. I want my job to be more meaningful, more personal," she explains. "I don't care where my home is, as long as its with you," she says, her eyes are the most intense I have ever seen them. As I hear the Mayor begin the countdown, I lean into Tris resting our foreheads together, looking deep into her beautiful blue-grey eyes.

"Happy New Year, baby. I love you," I say, barely above a whisper.

"And to many more ahead of us. I love you too," she says, as the crowd yells out "Happy New Year!" Tris and I lean into each other, as our lips crash hungrily against the other's. This may just be the best New Years I have ever had in my whole life.

A/N

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

I'm so happy you all are enjoying my holiday story.

Brainstormed with : FDFobsessed

Like always happy reading, be safe and stay healthy.

Trini