To clarify: I know some of you were upset about how fast Tris seemed to forgive Tobias, but trust me, all is not perfect, and they aren't even boyfriend and girlfriend or anything yet! Tris is human, like all of us, and she wants to see the best in Tobias, whom she knows very well. She saw how sorry he was (he ran through the freezing weather to get to her for God's sake) and realized what happened wasn't his fault, but it doesn't mean it's all rainbows and sunshine between them now, and I didn't have that planned that way either. Believing him doesn't make her weak. Maybe I executed it poorly, but since the last chapter wasn't from Tris's POV it was hard to showcase what she was feeling.

**TW sexual harassment**

I also feel that some of you didn't get the gravity of the situation in the last chapter. Tobias didn't come onto Nita, nor invite her, he was drunk and she took advantage of him. It's wrong, disgusting, and awful. It is sexual harassment, not Tobias pulling the 'I was drunk' card to excuse cheating on Tris (not that they are even "dating" at this point in the story yet, mind you). He didn't know what to do because he wasn't in the right state of mind, and he sent her away once he remembered Tris.

**!**

I know this was slightly a longer author's note and I apologize, but I just wanted to make some clarifications about the last chapter due to some reviews. Thank you. Now, let's get to chapter 14.

Disclaimer: I don't own Divergent.

The first thing Tris registers when she wakes up on New Year's morning is that she is wrapped up in a tight embrace. The second thing she registers is that it's Tobias Eaton's scent that is hitting her in the face like a truck. The third thing she registers is that last night was a fever dream, and today is New Year's day. She can't believe that she's made it to another year, and better yet, she fell asleep next to Tobias Eaton.

They still have things to resolve, for sure. The sight of him and Nita liplocking on his bed will forever be burned into her brain. She hopes to god that she's not being a fool in believing what he told her. Tris doesn't often see the best in people, but this is Tobias, he seems to blind a lot of her logic. But after everything he's shared with her… he couldn't possibly lie about something like that, right? He practically sprinted to her in the dead of night to tell her how much she means to him.

Her whole life, Tris has been ever the pessimist. She just hopes that she's moved from total negativity to some more realism and level headedness.

She squirms a little in Tobias's tight grasp.

"You're awake. Finally," she hears Tobias's gruff voice murmur in her ear. His morning voice is even lower than his regular voice. She doesn't think she would mind waking up to it everyday in the future.

"How long have you been up?" Tris asks, twisting around to look at him. His bedhead is tousled up and he has a groggy look in his eyes. Though somehow he's still completely gorgeous, especially with the morning light streaming through the window and catching the golden hues in his brown locks, and bringing out the lighter blue flecks in his midnight eyes.

"Just a few minutes or so. I slept very well, though," he muses, with a smirk. Tris laughs a little, thinking of the last time they fell asleep on this bed together, and how different things are now. Last night, after their kiss, they laid down and spoke a little bit more, Tris eventually ending up in Tobias's arms. By the time he mumbled something about how he could call a cab to go home if she wanted him to, Tris was halfway asleep.

"What a coincidence. So did I," Tris tells him, allowing one of her hands to migrate down his chiseled face.

Tobias cups his hand behind the neck gently, and pulls her in for a deep kiss. She lets herself enjoy it for a few moments, sighing into his mouth, and threading her fingers through his hair as he wraps his arms around her middle to completely pull her on top of him.

He's such a good kisser, Tris thinks to herself. But then this thought leads to her thinking about his past experiences, then to her thinking about Nita, and then the image of them on his bed comes back in full force. As do the feelings she felt when she saw them like that.

She pulls back from Tobias, not being able to look him in the eye at the moment.

"Tris?" His concerned voice rings out, reaching up to tuck a piece of hair behind her ear.

"Um…" she closes her eyes and tries to fight her urge to vomit. "Yeah?"

"Are you okay?"

Honesty, Tris. Be honest. He was honest with you last night. "Well… not really."

Tobias sits up, on high alert mode now. "What is it?"

Tris rolls off of his lap and tries to will her face, which is no doubt bright red, to lose some of its color. "It's just… Nita."

Tobias's mouth presses into a firm line, "I see."

"It's not that… I think any of it is your fault. But… it just sucked. Seeing you guys like that, and what happened afterwards."

"She means nothing to me, Tris."

"I know that," Tris tells him, "But… it doesn't change how hurt I was. And, I don't know, I kind of want to take things a little bit slower. Just so I know what I want. All I'm saying is that we don't have to label this." She looks at him nervously, to see that his lower lip is caught between his teeth in a thinking stance.

"Tris, just having you even speaking to me is more than I could ask for after what happened last night. All of this… it's on your terms," Tobias takes one of her hands in his, "You call the shots. But just know… that I am ready to be a hundred percent all in with you, Tris. If you ever want that."

Tris knits her eyebrows together at his confessional. It was… the exact right thing to say. The future is so uncertain, she's going to college, he's starting his gallery here… she just wants to enjoy his company while it lasts. Even if it means her growing more and more attached to him.

She opens her arms for a large hug and he returns the embrace, both of them falling onto the bed together. "Thank you for saying that," she murmurs, as she fiddles with his shirt.

"Don't thank me for stupid stuff Tris. You deserve respect, you know."

Her lips quirk into a small smile, and they spend the next few minutes just holding each other, not saying anything. Tris is sure she's about to doze off into another sleep, when her door swings open.

"Beatrice have you seen my-" Caleb stops mid sentence and gapes at Tris and Tobias cuddled together on her bed.

"Yes Caleb?" Tris asks slowly, not making any means to move away from Tobias. While Caleb wasn't the biggest fan of Tobias at first, after Tobias stayed with the Prior's for a couple of weeks, they began to develop a friendship of sorts. Tris actually thinks that Caleb was sorry to see him go when he moved back in with Zeke and Shauna.

"What's going on here?" Caleb asks, taking up his authoritative tone.

"Nothing, we just fell asleep like this," Tris answers.

"Hmm." Her brother stares Tobias down for a few moments, "So he spent the night?"

"Yeah."

"Anything else you care to share?"

"No."

"Alright, then. I just came in to ask if you had seen my reading glasses. I've searched all over the penthouse and I can't find them."

"Check on the mantelpiece," Tris says tiredly, knowing that's where Caleb always leaves his glasses.

"Right. The mantelpiece. Thanks… um, see you guys," he says quickly, casting one more glance at Tobias before rushing out of the room. Of course, he doesn't close the door behind him.

Tris chuckles, shaking her head.

"What's so funny?" Tobias asks.

"Mmm… just thinking about how if that had been Caleb a month ago he would have flipped his shit if he saw us like that."

"You guys have come a long way, then."

"Yeah, we really have. That'll teach him to knock next time, though." Tris murmurs, starting to get lost in her own thoughts.

"Um, hey, I've been meaning to ask you… about college," Tobias says slowly after a few moments. "Haven't early decisions been released yet?"

"Uh, yeah…" Tris confesses. Her inbox feels weighed down by the decision emails she's been receiving from colleges. Including Columbia's. She's been too scared to open them, and has put them from her mind these past few days. Opening them means really confronting her future, and she doesn't think she's ready for that yet.

"And? Where've you gotten accepted to?"

"I wouldn't know. I haven't opened any of the emails."

"Tris."

"What."

He puts a comforting hand on her shoulder. "You need to face this all eventually."

Tris groans, plummeting face first onto the bed.

"It's a new year now," Tobias continues, "New beginnings, new horizons, all that stuff. You need to open those emails."

"But I'm scared," she whines.

"I get that," he answers softly, running his hand gently over her hair. "But I'm right here next to you. No matter what happens."

Tris exhales through her nose, and tries to compose herself. She wants to stay in this morning forever. Cuddled up next to Tobias, not knowing the path of her future, shut away in the comforts of her bedroom. But she needs to face the real world now. Like Tobias said; it's a new year.

"Okay," she sighs, sitting back up. She walks over to her desk to grab her laptop and sits back down next to Tobias as she navigates to her email. She can practically feel her heartbeat in her ears, as she pulls up her inbox and goes to her unread messages.

"This first one is from UCLA," Tris says, her fingers shaking over the keyboard.

"Let's open it, then!" Tobias demands with some enthusiasm.

"Ugh," Tris slams her laptop shut. "No, I can't do this!"

"Sure you can."

She shakes her head intensely. She knows that later she will feel embarrassed that Tobias saw her act like a child over this, but now, all she wants to do is curl up into a little ball and hide away from the world.

"How about I open it… and read it to you. Would that help?" Tobias asks.

"Um," Tris takes in a deep breath. "Yeah. It would. Here." She edges the laptop into his hands and faces away from him as he opens the email.

"Dear Beatrice," he starts off. "It is my pleasure to inform you of your admission to the Univ-"

"Holy shit!" She exclaims, snatching the laptop from him to read the email herself. She feels positively elated in the moment, her eyes scanning the words that let her know that she can have a future that is her own.

"You really thought you wouldn't get in?" Tobias asks, with a pointed eyebrow.

"Well-" Tris knows that compared to a lot of other kids she is really lucky. Private school education, good grades, wealthy family… she knew her chances were good. But there was still always some fear lingering in the back of her brain. "You can never be sure, you know?"

"Right. Well, you can open this next one yourself then?"

Tris has adrenaline coursing through her veins at the good news, so she nods, her confidence sufficiently boosted. This is from UC Berkeley, and she practically falls off the bed in excitement when she reads the words 'Congratulations'. She may or may not have done a happy dance. But a very small one. Yeah, she is seriously going to regret letting Tobias see her like this. Though he doesn't seem too bothered by her behavior. He's smiling at her like she's the only thing in the world that matters to him.

"Okay, okay," Tris says, once she's calmed down. "Pomona is next."

Tris doesn't necessarily know if she could see herself at Pomona. She knows the environment of the Claremont colleges is somewhat isolated, and the institutions are small. She's not exactly looking for that. However, they have a great interdisciplinary Media Studies program, which would give Tris a lot of opportunities in journalism. The program has amazing study abroad courses as well. She'll just have to see what happens.

"Accepted!" She exclaims, as she opens the email. She allows herself to be happy. She can't think too far into the future about having this difficult conversation with her mother. She needs to stay present in the moment.

"So, that's what? 3 for 3 so far?" Tobias asks.

"Yep. Oh God, the next one is from USC," she whines.

"You want to go there really badly, huh."

"Their journalism program is amazing, Tobias. Like top-tier. And the campus is gorgeous, and student life seems phenomenal, and I could… I dunno, I could really see myself there, you know?"

"Sounds like a match made in heaven. You better open it, Prior."

Tris grins, clicking on the email. Her heart nearly stops when she sees the words "you have been admitted". Jesus Christ, she almost throws her laptop in excitement. She has no words so she just turns the screen towards Tobias so he can read.

"Well, there you go," Tobias says.

"I… I can't believe it." Tris says, momentarily stunned. Everything she wants… it seems to be unfolding right in front of her.

"I'll visit you in LA."

"Shush, we don't know if I'm going yet. There's still Columbia," she says nervously, eyeing the final email.

"Prior, I can see how much you want USC. You're going."

"My mom-"

"Isn't you. She's not the one going to college."

"Try and tell her that."

"Maybe you should."

"Well- it's fine. I… have until May to make my final decision. Let's just, uh, see what Columbia has to say. And then I won't think about it for a while." Tris is thinking about it though. USC's gorgeous campus continues running through her brain, as does a possible future. School, travelling, writing for a living… the images that flash in her mind could be straight out of a pinterest board.

"Alright," Tobias says slowly, leaning over Tris's shoulder as she clicks the final email. Tris already knows what the answer is going to be. Her famous parents are both esteemed legacies, they've donated wings, libraries, research supplies, etc… She and Caleb are shoo-ins. So, when she sees the same "Congratulations" that were on the other four emails, she isn't surprised. She should feel proud of herself, hell, lots of kids would give their right arms to get into Columbia… but this isn't what she wants, and she knows that her parents are the main reason she achieved this in the first place.

"Good job. On all of it," Tobias says, pulling her into a side hug. She nods slowly, comforted by his presence and his support. But now that her elation has worn off from all the good news today, the question inside her brain remains; What am I going to do?

Well, Tris said she wouldn't think about it for a while, so that's what she's trying to do. Tobias asked her if she wanted to get out for a while, and she said yes, so he called Simon to take them over to his place.

Zeke and Shauna both jump up from the couch when they enter, and Tris is once again reminded of how she left this apartment last night. After seeing Tobias and Nita. Lip locked. On his bed. You need to get over it, she insists to herself.

"There you are!" Zeke says to Tobias. "We thought you died! Your location stopped sharing."

"I didn't die, but my phone did," Tobias answers, shrugging his jacket off, before reaching behind Tris to take hers off as well.

"So, how are things?" Shauna asks, her eyes darting between the two of them. How much did Tobias tell them about last night? Tris wonders.

"They're great. We fell asleep last night, and only woke up about an hour ago."

"Is that all you did?" Zeke implores. "Sleep?"

"Yes, Zeke," Tobias answers tightly, and Tris has to stifle her laughter.

"Okay," Zeke narrows his eyes, "I'll get more out of you later. Tris! Welcome back to our humble abode, can we get you anything to drink? Or eat?"

"Um, no thanks guys, I'm good," Tris answers lightly.

Tobias presses his hand between her shoulder blades, "We're just gonna go to my room. See you guys."

"Yeah, see you," Shauna answers, smiling slightly.

"Sorry about them," Tobias exhales, once he shuts the door of his room behind him.

"No need to apologize." Tris looks back to his bed, the same place that Nita had straddled him and kissed him while he was drunk. This… sucks.

Tobias sees where she's looking, and shifts awkwardly from one foot to the other. "I'm… really sorry about last night. Again."

"No need to apologize," Tris repeats. She closes her eyes and wills the image of them to be free from her mind before plopping down on his bed. Even if Tobias doesn't care about Nita, they used to sleep together. Can Tris get over that? She thinks she can… with time. "How's the gallery going?" She asks him, trying to change the subject.

"Good, we're sort of getting things started, I guess, and trying to come up with a tentative opening date. It's been kind of a lot of work… but I dunno, it's been fun? Meeting with artists, getting to… distance myself from my dad."

"Yeah… how are things with your dad?"

"He calls. I don't answer."

"I see." Tris doesn't bother telling him to grow a pair and own up. That would make her a massive hypocrite. She's just now finding out how hard it is to stand up to parents… and her mom isn't even a crazy psychopath like Marcus is. "Well, I'm proud of you. Whatever happens, I know it'll work itself out too."

"Thanks, Tris. Hopefully in this job, I can do even more giving back than I did with Eaton Enterprises. You know, donating proceeds to certain causes. I'm getting way ahead of myself, I know…"

"I think it's amazing."

"Thank you," he murmurs, gazing down at her with an indiscernible look in his eye.

Tris opens her mouth to respond, but then Tobias's eyes light up and he turns to the door. "Zeke! Shauna!" He shouts.

"Yeah!" They both shout back in unison.

"I forgot to tell you! Our friend Tris here got into UCLA, UC Berkeley, Pomona, USC, and Columbia!"

"Tobias," Tris whines in embarrassment, covering her face.

She hears footsteps pounding across the wooden floor and then the door swings open. "Tris! That's fucking amazing!" Shauna exclaims. "Get up here and hug me!"

Tris laughs, standing up to envelop Shauna in a tight hug. Zeke stands behind Shauna and opens his arms for his own hug.

Over his shoulder, she catches Tobias's eye. He's smiling softly at her, and gives her a wink which makes her giggle.

"So, you are off to some amazing college," Zeke states once he pulls back, "And our friend Tobias has his gallery opening soon. This calls for celebration! I'm gonna order some pizza!" He declares.

"Any excuse to order pizza," Tobias muses, stepping up to Tris and enveloping her in a hug from behind.

"That's right my brother!" Zeke exclaims as he skips out of the bedroom.

"Congrats again, Tris," Shauna adds, following Zeke and shutting the door behind her.

Tris turns around to face Tobias again, and they both just smile at one another. She tries to put the future from her mind… they have this time together. She will not take it for granted.

Her eyes land on the collar of his shirt, and she sees some ink sprawling out from underneath it. She's noticed this tattoo a couple times before, but now her curiosity is piqued.

"Can I ask you something?" She murmurs.

He brushes the hair framing her face behind her neck as he answers, "Sure."

"Can I see your tattoos?"

He stares at her for a moment before his gorgeous face cracks out into a grin, and he nods. "Yeah. You can."

He tugs the neck of his shirt over his head, and Tris is marveled at what she sees in front of her. Besides his incredibly sculpted abs, and toned pecs, his tattoos are… otherworldly.

Her eyes first land on the tattoo he told her about. He got it the night they first met. A bird leaving its cage. Tris loves what it symbolizes. Maybe because she, too, relates to it immensely.

Gently, she touches her fingers to it. When Tobias's breath hitches in response, she feels a deep thrill run through her stomach.

The other side of his rib cage is magnificent as well though. It's taken up by flames, licking up his entire side. Tris imagines this tattoo would've been rather painful to get, but God, it looks amazing on him. "What does this one mean?" She asks, lifting her eyes gently back up to his. He looks a little nervous. Why should he be nervous? He's literally the most gorgeous person I've ever laid eyes on.

"This is the first tattoo I got, when I was 18. It represents bravery, rebirth, and new beginnings. I got it when I moved out of Marcus's home."

"It's beautiful."

Her attention is then directed to his upper left arm. She notices a tattoo there, and another one in the same place on his right arm. She walks over to the left, and sees the words "memento mori", a latin phrase that Tris is familiar with.

"Remember you must die?" She questions, wondering why Tobias would get a morbid tattoo.

"It's not what it sounds like," he explains. "I got it… to remind myself that one day I won't be here. My life will inevitably come to an end, as does everyone's. So, while I'm here, I want to achieve what I can, and do as much good as possible."

Tris's mouth quirks up. Wow… he truly is amazing.

"And this one?" She steps over to his right arm. It says "memento vivere". "Remember you must live."

"Even though it means the opposite of memento mori… it has a similar message to me. To keep going, even through the tough times, while I can."

"I love it," Tris whispers, her fingers drifting over the script gently. "What about your back?"

Tobias gives her a half smile before turning around. Tris's mouth almost falls open at the wondrous sight in front of her.

Lines spiral up his back, and at the center are 5 symbols. A seal of flames, two hands grasping each other, a tree, a balanced scale, and an eye. Tris touches each symbol with her fingers gently, waiting for Tobias to explain.

"It took Tori a while to do these. I had to come back various times over a couple of weeks, but as you can see, she did an amazing job. These… symbolize everything I strive to be. Everything my father isn't. The flames, once again, represent bravery. The clasping hands represent selflessness, the tree represents kindness, then honesty, and intelligence."

"Wow," Tris whispers, her fingers gliding up and down his muscular back.

"Obviously I try my hardest to… embody these everyday. But you know it gets difficult sometimes. I continually struggle with kindness," he muses, which makes Tris laugh out loud. Maybe the Tobias she knows is different, because to her, he's one of the kindest souls she's ever met.

"It's beautiful," she tells him, and before she loses her nerve, she leans in and brings her lips softly to each symbol, loving the way he shivers as she does so.

He circles around slowly to meet her eyes again, and asks, "Is it okay if I kiss you?"

She nods, slowly. She wants him to… it feels right.

Smiling, he wraps his arms around her and pulls her against his bare torso. The kiss is slow and sensual, and leaves heat and desperation stirring in Tris's gut.

When they pull back from one another, he rests his forehead against hers, smiling slightly. "Thanks for showing me," she whispers.

"Anytime," he answers, placing a sweet kiss to the top of her forehead. They stand like that for a while… who knows how long. But their peaceful moment is interrupted soon enough by Zeke screaming, "Pizza is here!"

I hope you enjoyed chapter 14, I'm sorry it took so long to upload, but I cannot stress how busy I have been. Like insanely busy. And on top of this I've been planning my next story. It definitely won't be uploaded for a while, probably not until this summer if I'm being honest, but I'm really excited to share it. Alas, let's focus on the present, and finishing this story. Your support means the world, and I couldn't do any of this without you. Talk to you all next time, wishing everyone good health and good fortune.

-Kiki