"Eric Fucking Coulter." Christina says.

"Yup." Tris answers.

Tris is sitting at her kitchen island, taking a break from going over the leadership standards and protocol files, eating ice cream together via a video chat with her best friend.

"Trade." Chris says. Tris caps off her cookie dough ice cream pint and switches to the fudge brownie. She watches as Christina switches from her fudge brownie pint to her own cookie dough. "See, it's almost like we're together."

"Almost." Tris sighs.

Two days ago, she found out that Eric Coulter, her coworker in leadership and barely acquaintance for the past three years was indeed ManofMystery that she started talking to almost six months ago on the DateMe app. Thankfully, any further awkward conversation was thwarted when she had to finish getting her shots after testing negative for the virus. The rest of their Friday was one meeting after another, mostly due to Erudite discovering a possible vaccine to this virus, and their normally relatively quiet weekends have been filled with updates and plans for testing the newly developed vaccine serum. It's been pretty easy to avoid him.

"You still haven't talked to him?" Chris asks around a spoonful of ice cream.

"What am I supposed to say? We legitimately have spoken maybe fifty words outside of forced interactions at our job in over three years of me being here. Forty of those words were probably him calling me a Stiff and me bitching at him for not using my real name." Tris argues.

"However, you spent the last several months typing thousands of words, spending hours talking to this guy when you didn't know it was him." Christina retorts.

"But then I found out it was him! He's a jerk." Tris replies.

"Is he though?" Chris asks. "I mean, he wasn't a jerk when you talked to him through the app. You were crazy about him then." Christina presses. "You guys were supposed to meet right before the lockdown, what would have happened then?"

"I don't want to think about it." Tris sighs.

"Look, we're still locked down, so this is your chance to really get to know Eric. If it's not worth it, you at least know and get it out of your system. You've been hung up on the mystery. Knowing it's him barely even scratches the surface of that mystery. Outside of the couple of guys we see him drink with, does anyone actually know him? Talk to him. Give the kid a chance." Christina says.

"But it's Eric…" She whines.

"Tris, you are being ridiculous. You willingly signed up for an app that could have matched you with anyone in the entire faction. It could have been Peter, or your own cousin, heck it could have been Harrison! You took this chance because you wanted to get to know someone on more than just a surface level, and you did. You wouldn't have ever given Eric a chance if it weren't for this app, but guess what he's a match. You like him, just admit it." Christina argues.

"I do like him, a lot actually. I never expected to, but I really do." Tris admits. "What if it's just an online or anonymous thing, and we find out we just can't work in real life?"

"There is literally only one way to find out." Christina prods.

"You're right, I need to figure this out." Tris agrees.

"It's not the sock collector from the basement that you were hoping for, just a smoking hot man with an air of mystery and incredible abs. You poor thing." Christina replies sarcastically.

"Breaking up and making up with Will is making you soft." Tris says and Christina cracks up.

"Text him. Love you. Bye!" Chris says before logging off.

Tris sits at her counter and stews. While she was in a relationship with Peter she didn't necessarily look at other men. Eric is attractive, but he is a total enigma. She knows that during her own initiation he was part of the Dauntless leadership team who helped to expose former Erudite leader Jeanine Matthews in her own efforts to overthrow the government and take control from Abnegation. Now that Tris is a leader herself, she can't imagine the pressures he felt as an eighteen year old fresh out of initiation put into a position where he had to fight a powerful leader from his former faction. He had to grow up awfully fast.

Tris also knows that Eric was previously in his own serious relationship with Lauren Montross, the Dauntless-born initiation instructor. Lauren and Eric had apparently gotten together during their own initiation class, and broke up right before this past batch of initiates had arrived at Dauntless. Tris had been training the transfers with Tobias, and she watched how hard it seemed for Lauren and Eric to work together. What if she and Eric did get together and it didn't work out? The leadership team wouldn't approve of any fighting within the ranks.

Eric does seem to keep his head down and do his job. Tris cannot remember him being involved in anything even slightly scandalous. He didn't seem to be close with anyone on the leadership staff, except maybe Max, and even that was questionable. Eric's a good leader, there's not a doubt about that, but if he were truly interested in her why wouldn't he have spoken to her when he's had so many chances?

He's always so serious, and his intelligence makes it so he comes across as a cocky asshole sometimes, but truth be told he's never been out of line with Tris or anyone she knows.

Christina was right, Eric is a complete mystery, one that intrigues Tris. If nothing else, maybe she can find out why he didn't have the common courtesy to tell her he wasn't attracted to her after he received the picture.

Tris: I'm sorry for not responding. I guess we're trading off on the ghosting.

His response is immediate.

Eric: Apology accepted.

Tris has no idea what to say or where to take this conversation. She tries to keep it light, but decides to rib him a bit.

Tris: So you're afraid of needles?

Eric: It was a reason to talk to you. I've been wanting to clear this up, but haven't found a way to actually approach you. I'm used to being in control of things, and I've not have any control over having a simple conversation with someone I've known for several years.

Tris decides to take a chance and rip the bandage off.

Tris: You were interested when it was just the app, when you saw the picture you ghosted. I get it, I'm not your type. You could have simply said that.

Eric: You think I ghosted you because it was you?

Tris: Didn't you?

Eric: It's more complicated than that. I realized I had not given you much of a chance in our in person interactions. You've been here three years, my coworker for more than two of those years and I hadn't even known how much we had in common or how well we could get along because I wrote you off as a Stiff. I guess you're right, I did ghost because I found out it was you, but the reason behind it was all me. I tend to keep a small circle and I was surprised that you made it in.

Tris: I can understand that. I didn't expect it to be you either, which is why it took me almost two days to reply to your last text. I honestly thought I was talking to Peter there at the end, and when you offered via the app to reveal who you were to me I panicked. I enjoyed talking to you so much that had I found out it was him it would have really hurt.

Eric: Are you just glad that it's not him, or could you possibly be glad that it's me?

Tris was shocked. Well shit, he was ripping his own bandage off, wasn't he?

Tris: A little of both.

Eric: Good. I won't lie, finding out it was you threw me for a damn loop, but I came to realize that I'm glad it's you.

The tone of an emergency faction meeting sounds and she joins the video conference link immediately. She's surprised to see leaders in place from each of the factions.

Tris: What is this about?

Eric: No idea.

After some formalities, and many in leadership welcoming him back, Marcus Eaton calls the meeting to order.

"Good evening all, and thank you for gathering on such short notice. Celestine and I wanted to bring you all together for a very important announcement." Marcus says.

"Yes, hello everyone," Celestine Bordeaux, the leader of Erudite continues, "We are excited to announce a successful serum has been administered to our most dire patients of this virus, two of which were received by our own city leaders Andrew Prior and Harrison MacNulty. Both leaders have made a full recovery, with no traces of the virus in their system. Between the vaccine, and now this cure, we believe we can eradicate this virus."

There are cheers and applause from everyone on the call. Tris is especially thankful hearing that her father has successfully been cured of this nightmare.

Eric: The news about your dad is great. I'm so happy for you.

Tris: I'm so happy, this news about my father, and finally talking to you. It's an amazing day.

Eric: I have the dumbest smile on my face from reading that text.

Tris scrolls through the video conference until she finds Eric's face, which is beaming in a rare smile that she hopes to see more often.