A/N: Please be aware that this story deal with abuse andmental illness and how to move on

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Tobias

If there is one thing that I've learned throughout living with Marcus is that emotion is a powerful tool. It drives you. However, in this scenario, it is best to suppress your emotions.

I stand completely still and hug my arms close to my chest as the cold air hits my back. For a brief second, it feels good as my back continues to sear in pain but then I hear the familiar sound of air as the belt connects with my back. I lurch forward and collapse towards the floor and curl in on myself as the belt continues to strike

Sometimes in moments like this, it's easy to lose yourself to insanity in moments like this. As I feel myself start to slip I repeat what I remember.

"My name is Tobias. I have no last name just like my brother and sister. Their names are Will and Sage. Today is the day we're we typically meet in secret. I don't think I'll make it. My mother Tris is dead. My father, also named Tobias, doesn't remember me. I am in Abnegation with my caretaker Marcus. He hates me, and hurts me worse than he did my father. Perhaps it's because I look exactly like my father when he was young, but I know that some part of Marcus enjoys inflicting pain. I want to leave and I will"

By the time he's done, I can't feel anything. I can hear him grip the belt as he runs his hands along it and he flicks the excess blood off and it splatters against me. I watch as he leaves the house and I continue to lay still. Today's punishment was worse than usual and I choose to lay still until it doesn't hurt. Through the window, I can see the daylight turn to darkness and I pray he doesn't come back. I estimate he'll be back in the morning expecting everything to be done and cleaned.

A couple of hours llater the door opens and I cringe. I expect Marcus to come in and yell at me for not moving but instead, I hear the soft tap of feet and the door quietly shutting. My eyes crack open enough to see my brother and sister.

Sage steps across me and into the kitchen before heading upstairs to the bathroom. Will steps the few feet it takes to get to my body and gently pries the Abnegation shirt out of my hands. As it leaves I can see it soaked with blood. Will gently grabs my shoulder and helps me sit up straight. I wince in pain as he takes the white jacket off and wraps it around my shoulders as we wait for Sage.

"How did you know?" My voice is hoarse as I ask the question.

"You didn't show up to meet with us," he looks at me sadly and I don't want to see the pity in his eyes.

I have always lied about Marcus's treatment of me but they know I lie. They have tried to help me before but I always say no. My mind is always telling me to get help but also telling me to say no. I have tried to leave multiple times but Jeanine always manages to find me and send me back. It had gotten to the point where I gave up and decided to lie and put a brave face on. At this moment all my secrets are laid out on the floor. I expect to see pity or sadness but I see none of that in Will's face.

"I'm sorry I lied to both of you," I say.

"It's okay, well, actually it's not. We all have secrets for a reason, it's okay to keep some of them for yourself."

I laugh before wincing in pain, "How very Candor of you."

A smile spreads on his lips as I joke. He rolls his sleeves up and the smile fades as Sage walks in. There are tears in her eyes and I wish I could stop them. I sit upon the floor and Will wipes the blood off of my face and cleans the blood around my neck. Sage is crying behind me as she accesses the puzzle of my back.

"You need to lay down," her voice wobbles as she tells me what to do. I use Wills jacket to lay on. We're far enough away from the pile of blood that Will immediately starts to clean. I can feel Sage's fingers as she looks at my back and cleans it as gently as possible. Every once in a while, there are sharp pains but I grit my teeth until she's done. By the time she cleans the blood away the floor is scrubbed clean.

"This might hurt," she says.

I nod and clench my mouth together as she starts to rearrange the skin and fix whatever skin she can. She is gentle and Will hands her the material to stitch me back together. Hours pass until finally, they help me sit up and wrap my back in bandages and help me dress. My cheeks flush with embarrassment. By the time I'm "fixed" and the house looks clean daylight is starting to trickle in. Will and Sage are covered in blood and tired looking. They hug me gently.

"You should probably go," I say, "Before Marcus gets back."

Sage immediately shakes her head and squeezes my hand tightly, "We're going to say with you and make sure nothing else happens."

I go to protest but Will speaks first, "Let's be honest no one from our factions is going to miss us."

I nod at them and it feels strange to have people worry about you. Strange to have people fight for you and take care of you. Tears sting my eyes and we go to sit on the couch in the simple living room. I am in the middle with Sage and Will on each side. Our hands are tightly clasped together and we sit in silence thinking about everything that will change in just a month. I want to be free. Just like our father broke free from Marcus. The door opens and Marcus steps in with anger on his face, but it quickly fades as he sees the three of us.

I feel their hands tighten around mine and this is my family. The three of us on a couch and my siblings prepare to stand up for me. My family is not with Marcus, just like how their family is not with Peter and Caleb. They are simply substitutes. I have faint memories of my real parents but they are gone either dead or not remembering. There is a part of me that wants the truth about what happened to my parents. We intend to find the truth together and perhaps even foolishly hope to have our father back in our lives, but in this moment I have finally found the family I've unknowingly always had.