My apologies for any typos or anything. enjoying writing this story. i would love to know your thoughts, leave me a review! we're gonna get to see TJ and Natalie's stories soon which are super exciting. well at least to me haha. thanks for reading.

Chapter 8

Tobias

Tris and I enter our home and I immediately walk into the bedroom. There on the dresser is the sculpture my mother gave me when I was younger. It is shiny and beautiful, unlike the sculpture my son had.

My son.

I couldn't believe the words inside my head. I'm still waiting on Tris' hand to graze my face and wake me up. Urging me to go to work. But I know this was no dream. I still felt like I was floating.

I see Tris standing in the doorway, her body nearly drowned by my old sweater. Her hips still jutted out in curves underneath it. I swallowed, my throat dry and I realized how thirsty and hungry I was. I didn't get a chance to eat lunch. Nor did Tris. She looked pale and a little shaky.

"I'm going to make us something to eat. Lay down, honey." I say grabbing her hand softly, leading her to the bed. She sighs and pulls herself into my chest. I kiss her forehead and smell her hair. It is still painted with honeysuckle, but not as strong as it was this morning.

"I can't believe it, Tobias…I can't believe it."

"I know." I say. "I still think we're in a simulation."

She shakes her head in my chest and says "No. I know we're not. I would've woke up by now. But…our children. Those are our kids. They're so strong and beautiful. Just like you. They look just like you how I wanted our kids to."

I feel her heartbeat against my own and I breathe deeply and say "Really? They look like you. I'm glad they're just as beautiful as you are."

"TJ…he could be your twin, Tobias." She gasps softly looking up at me.

I couldn't deny that the boy took strongly after me. But his eyes were hers and his face was softer than mine. He was shorter than I thought he would be. But he couldn't be anymore than fifteen at most, maybe he would grow taller.

I thought about how his back was sketched in the same black ink that covered my own and wondered why he would get them. Was it a tribute to me?

I pushed the arrogant thought out of my head and embraced Tris more.

"Natalie…she's…" Tris began.

"Like her mother. Strong and beautiful." I say finishing her sentence.

Tris' eyes well up glossy and she cries softly into my chest. I am slightly shocked by it.

"What's wrong, Tris? Tris?"

She sniffs and says "Tobias…we have a family in the future. You and me. That's all I've ever wanted. I was so afraid…that it'd never happen. Cause my whole stupid fear of intimacy."

I chuckle and kiss her mouth. She presses back.

"You sure you still have that fear? You seem pretty 'dauntless' when you let go." I smirk. She hits my shoulder lightly and grins. "Shut up."

"Resurgent…I never would have thought something like could have existed." I say thinking back to future Caleb's video.

"Natalie's eyes. They turned orange, like the Dauntless attack serum that destroyed Abnegation." Tris said her eyes wide. I didn't see them, but I know she was able to control Zeke and Christina somehow.

I suppose I should feel more surprised by fact my future children have some kind of super genetic abilities, but honestly, I'm still trying to wrap my head around the fact I have children in the first place. Twins at that. There's a part of me that still doesn't believe it.

Tris' body trembles a little in my arms and I look down at her. Her eyes are puffy and blotchy from crying.

"C'mon, why don't you rest. I'll bring you some food."

She nods and sits down on the bed, crossing her legs as she leans her back against the wall. Her arms are wrapped around the fluffy pillow and she's breathing deeply into the fabric.

As I walk into the kitchen, I open the cabinet and pull a loaf of sliced bread out. We would have to go shopping soon as it was halfway gone. Our fridge was nearly empty too when I open it. I pull out two packages of cold cuts, one turkey, the other chicken. I decide to just use the rest since there were only a few slices left in each. I pile the sandwiches as high I can with whatever cheese and wilting lettuce I find.

I grabbed the plates and a container of mixed fruits that were chopped into chunks and slices, balancing them and two bottles of water in the nook of my right arm. I walk back into the bedroom and see Tris still sitting on the bed, staring at the photograph Natalie gave to me.

"How'd she find that?" I say sitting on the bed, placing a plate with a sandwich in front of her. She's smiling at it and her bright eyes are so focused on the image, she doesn't look at what she's eating. After taking a large bite of the sandwich, she chews a few times and swallows.

"You left it there. In your apartment. I forgot we took this."

I lean over and see my eighteen year old self and sixteen year old Tris standing next to me. It wasn't visible, but I remember us holding hands behind the initiates in front of us.

"They shouldn't be staying there. In Dauntless. With no lights or heat or food." She mumbles picking at the lettuce in her sandwich.

I stop midway through my bite and shake my head.

"Tris…they can't stay here. We barely have room for ourselves!"

She looks up at me indignantly, her eyes piercing through my own.

"We have a couch and a floor. They can sleep in our bed for all I care, I'll sleep on the floor."

"You really believe them so easily, Tris! I can't understand you."

She balls her fists up and breathes hard.

"You don't trust me?"

There it is. The question that has always been a thorn with us. Of course I trust her. It's them I don't trust. But I see it in her eyes. She's so convinced that this isn't some sick joke. That these two people who've come out seemingly nowhere are from a future that we cannot even fathom. That they have some sort of power that we have yet to understand. I can't believe such a tall tale so easily.

"I do trust you Tris. You know I do. That's not the problem here."

She eats her sandwich more and then opens the container of fruit. Her fingers pick at a sliced strawberry and honey dew and she pops them in her mouth together. She sucks the juice from her thumbs then wipes the residue on her pants.

"Tobias. I know it doesn't seem real. That it doesn't seem possible. But we know there's a whole world out there now. That this, this city isn't the only thing left in the world. We've seen things. I almost died. But somehow, I came back. Some how I'm here. I know it's crazy, Tobias. But lately…lately I've been feeling strange. I feel like something is going to happen. That whatever we did all those years ago, was only the beginning. Then they show up and look just like you and me. I feel like I've known them. Because I know they're us."

I shake my head and fold my hands on my lap. Tris is chewing her bottom lip and staring at me, her eyes glossing over again. I feel my jaw stiffen a little.

"You really want to help them?" I ask with a sigh.

"More than anything, Tobias." She says looking at the window. The sun was fading now and the light was a gradient of yellow and orange. Small dust particles danced in the rays between the canvas curtains.

"Okay." I agree. "We'll see what's up."

She puts the plate with the bread crusts and pieces of lettuce on the nightstand beside her. Tris rises on her knees and pulls me toward her and kisses me. Her lips are sticky from the fruit. I taste pineapple on my lips when she breaks away from me.

"Thank you. Thank you." She breathes into my shoulder. I rub her back tenderly and she she sighs and inhales in small intervals. It doesn't take me long to realize she's fallen asleep.

I lay down with her and watch her hair fall over her face. Her eyelids are fluttering and her mouth falls open a little. I roll over on my back and stare at the off white ceiling above me, counting the jagged lines and cracks in them. It felt small around me. The space. If we were to have a family, we'd need to move out.

I closed my eyes and imagined small legs and feet running through the hallway, running into my arms as I pick up the small body with them. Tris' eyes are staring at me, wide and bright and little plump lips are open and smiling with no teeth. I smile to myself. I feel Tris' body shift next to mine and nudge a little closer to me.

I'm woken up to the sound of the toilet flushing and I open my eyes to see the alarm clock read eight-forty five. I didn't expect to be asleep that long. I wonder why I feel so tired?

Tris walks out of the bathroom, in a black tank top and blue jeans. Her bare feet are pattering against the wooden floor and toward the small closet door in front of our bed. She opens it and takes out a black leather jacket with quilted panels on the breasts and pockets. Her hair is brushed down evenly on each side and her cheeks seem brighter and fuller than earlier today.

"Feeling better?" I say with a yawn.

She doesn't look at me as she bends down to pull out her short black boots. "Yes. Hurry and get dressed, we have to go get Caleb, I'm sure he's still at the office and I don't want to miss the train."

I almost open my mouth to ask why we needed to find Caleb, but then I remembered. Today wasn't a dream as I hoped.

I rise out of the bed slowly. I look down at my feet and sigh. I knew that Tris wouldn't stop until she helped these strange children out. Children she so desperately believed belonged to us. I had a bad feeling my stomach when I slipped on my shoes and grabbed my black hooded sweatshirt from the navy suede chair my mother got for me when I moved in here. She said it really was a peace offering for Tris, but they still aren't as close as I'd like them to be. It's still weird for me at times being around Evelyn.

Tris was nearly out the front door when I heard her call to me. "Tobias, pick up the pace."

"I'm coming! Calm your horses. Sheesh."

I looked at the small ornate sculpture on my dresser and imagined the duplicate I saw earlier transform into the hologram machine. I shake my head.

Soon, Tris and I make our way down to the street. We don't live that far away from the train tracks, but they were always headed south from where we lived and worked. If we wanted to ride them, we'd have to walk a bit further. Luckily we were going south tonight to get Caleb. From there we could catch a line straight to the Hancock Building on the way back.

The streets were chilly and still a little full. Some people were just leaving work, police trucks were parked or patrolling quietly. I waved to one of them passing by. A former Dauntless woman with a bat tattoo on her neck I used to work with in the computer rooms gave me a curt nod as she turned the corner. A lot of them just couldn't let go of the jobs that allowed them to carry a gun.

Thinking of that, I realized I still had the pistol Zeke gave me earlier. It was holstered behind my back, the sweatshirt covering it. I fumbled behind me quickly to make sure the safety was on and to my relief it was. I hope I wouldn't have to use it tonight. I was afraid of how much it felt foreign in my hands earlier, but still comfortable and familiar at the same time. When I fired at the boy the recoil of it felt good. I shuddered at the thought.

Tris is a few steps ahead of me near the stairs going toward the tracks. She turns to me and then looks down at her watch.

"Nine o' five." She says. "The train should be here in five minutes, and it'll only take us about ten or fifteen to get to Caleb. We won't have much time to convince him. He'll just have to come for himself. I hope Christina and Zeke are still coming. She said she'd bring Cara right?" she asks me anxiously.

"I don't remember her mentioning it." I say walking up the stairs next to her.

"Damn." she mutters nervously.

"Tris. Calm down." I say putting my hands on her shoulders as she stops looking down the tracks for the train.

"I'm trying. But…"

"You're excited and scared at the same time?" I say raising an eyebrow at her.

"Yes." She says. Even though her head is turned, I can feel her grinning. It's the way she looks at me when she wants me. When she lets go and wants my body on top of hers. No clothes. Between her thighs.

I have to keep focused.

The train roars in the distance. It's early.

"Perfect." Tris says her eyes still gleaming even under the night sky. She grabs my hand and then we run.

See you all next chapter!