I do not own Divergent. All rights to Veronica Roth. Thank you VR for creating such wonderful characters that we can have fun with. Here you go. The final chapter of Decisions. I hope you like Tris' decision.

The day after his unplanned rendezvous with Tris in the alcove, Eric volunteered to oversee the overhauling of the guard system at the fence. He felt it would be good for him to gain some distance from Tris; not only to help him ease the pain of his broken heart but give Tris time to acclimate herself with Four again without the distraction of his presence.

Five months later, Eric returned from his assignment at the fence. On the ride back to the Dauntless compound, his mind was consumed by the thought of seeing Tris again after such a long absence. He cursed himself internally when he realized his love for Tris had not lessened over the last few months. If anything, he felt that it only grew stronger. He wondered how she had coped with his absence. Did she miss him nearly as much as he missed her? Eric felt guilty for not saying goodbye to her. He was too much of a coward to face her before he left. He was afraid if he saw her one last time, he would fall to his knees and beg her to take him back on any terms. But he refused let his weakness for her consume him any further so he just left without one word to her.

Eric prepared himself to face Tris' wrath when he returned. He knew she would be angry with him for not telling her he was leaving. He decided he would take whatever punishment she would give him. Eric prayed that it would be a fist to the face; he could live with that. The pain of it would fade quickly enough. He could not live with her shunning him from her life. He didn't know how he could live with that; being so close to her yet not being a part of her life.

Eric was brought out of his thoughts when he heard the truck engine shut off and the door opening. When he stepped from the truck, he was greeted by Max. They shook hands while Max praised Eric's work at being able to get the new guard system in place and functioning at top efficiency in such a short amount of time. It had been expected that Eric would be gone for up to a year. Max insisted on announcing Eric's return and giving him the recognition he rightfully deserved for a job well done. It was dinner time so they made their way to the catwalk in the canteen for the announcement.

As they stood on the catwalk, Eric scanned the crowd for the object of his desire. Soon enough his eyes landed on a young woman who had her back to him. Even though he could not see her face, he recognized the curves of her body, despite some thickening around her hips. Those curves were forever seared into his memory. He noted the woman's hair was much shorter than the last time he saw it, but there was no doubt in his mind that it was her, it was Tris, his Tris. He stifled the moan in his throat but couldn't stop his pupils began from dilating with love, lust and want at the site of her.

Max called for everyone's attention. Eric noticed Tris tried to twist in her seat to look up at the catwalk but when she couldn't, he saw Uriah extend a hand, offering to help her stand up. Once she was on her feet, she turned and that's when Eric saw it; her hand laying against her rounded belly. Eric's breath caught in his throat, his mouth went dry. Tris was pregnant. He couldn't remove his eyes from the bump that protruded from her body until the movement of someone else caught his attention. Four had approached Tris to help her turn around. Eric was only brought out of his stupor when Max patted him on the shoulder.

When Max began to address the crowd before him, Tris lifted her eyes towards him and was rendered speechless at the site of Eric next to him. When their eyes met, she felt tears swell in her eyes. She smiled at him but Eric was too distracted by her pregnancy to return it. She tried to cover her stomach when she noticed his eyes focused on it. This was not the way she had intended for him to find out about the life that was growing inside of her. It was too late now however so she would just have to face him and deal with his emotions head on. Tris' attention was brought back to the present when the crowd around her began to cheer at Eric's return. Tris smiled at him again and clapped her hands in an attempt to show him how happy she was that he was finally home.

Eric felt tears threaten to break through but he used all of his willpower to keep them at bay. The ache he felt in his heart the last time he and Tris were together was nothing compared to what he felt at that moment. Although he had expected to find Tris and Four together in their relationship, it never occurred to him that they would take the next step and start a family. Suddenly all fantasies of reuniting with Tris turned to nightmares of her and Four cooing over their newborn child. Whenever Eric had dreamt of Tris holding a child in her arms, it was their child; a perfect blend of the two of them. When realization hit that his dream would never become a reality, Eric couldn't get away from Tris fast enough. He excused himself by telling Max he wanted to go home and clean up. Max nodded his head before Eric took one last look at Tris and made a beeline straight to the nearest bar.

Several hours later, Tris sat in Eric's apartment waiting for him to come home. After she saw him leave the catwalk, Tris made her way to his apartment, thinking he would head home after being gone for so long. She figured it was better to face him sooner about her condition rather than later. When she did not find him at home, she figured it would be a while before he returned, assuming he was getting shit-faced over his discovery of her pregnancy. Tris was relieved when Uriah had called her and told her he had found Eric on one of the camera's in a bar.

Tris threw open the door and sighed at the site of Eric, drunk beyond belief, slumped over Uriah. She helped Uriah take him into his bedroom. Once they had stripped him down to his boxer briefs and laid him down in bed, she thanked Uriah for his help and assured him she could handle Eric from there. Uriah wished her luck in dealing with Eric's drunken ass and kissed her on the cheek before leaving. Tris walked back to Eric's bedroom, leaned against the door jamb and just watched him sleep. She was concerned about how drunk he was, but yet she still felt happy that he was finally back home in Dauntless. She worried about finally confronting him with everything that was happening, but decided she would deal with that when he finally sobered up. She walked to the bed and crawled under the covers. She placed a tender kiss on Eric's forehead and then wrapped herself around him.

Eric awoke the next morning with a feeling of a jackhammer pounding away in his head. He managed to pry one eye open to find the time. It was three o'clock in the afternoon. He squeezed his eye shut again as he rubbed his head, groaning. His thoughts briefly turned to a dream he suddenly remembered. Despite the pain in his head, he smiled. He dreamt about Tris wrapped in his arms. However his smile faltered as reality came crashing down around him when he remembered seeing Tris in the canteen the night before, her belly round with Four's child. He tried, but failed, to keep tears from trickling down the side of his face.

"I was beginning to wonder if you were going to sleep through supper too. You've missed breakfast and lunch."

Eric jumped, not expecting anyone to be in his home. He immediately recognized the voice and lifted his head towards it. He groaned as a wave of nausea passed through him from moving too quickly. Despite his best attempt at keeping the contents in his stomach, it had a different idea. Eric sprang from the bed and ran towards the bathroom, barely making it to the toilet before expelling what remnants he had in his stomach. He relaxed at the feel of warm hands rubbing his back, soothing the pain from his gut-wrenching vomiting.

"You've got the dry heaves. Take deep breaths. It will help relax your gag reflex and ease the urge to continue vomiting."

Eric nodded his head and did as he was instructed. Soon his stomached settled enough that he could lean back against the wall. The cool tile felt refreshing as did the cool wash cloth that was being rubbed against his face, neck and chest. He gladly accepted the cold glass of water and slowly drank enough for his voice to return.

"Why are you here?" he asked in a gruff voice.

"Taking care of you." Tris replied as she continued to wipe him with the wash cloth.

"Thanks for your concern, but you should go home. I'm in no condition right now to fight Four if he finds you here with me."

"I assure you that you don't need to worry about that. Four will not be looking for me."

"What do you mean?"

"We will talk about that later. Right now, let's get you cleaned up and feeling better." Tris turned around on her knees and started the shower. "I will get you a fresh towel." She struggled to stand up from her protruding tummy.

Eric noticed her difficultly. "Let me help you before you hurt yourself and…your baby." The last two words threatened the return of the vomiting but he swallowed hard to hold it down. Eric managed to stand up and extended his hands towards Tris. She reluctantly accepted them knowing she would most likely but stuck on the floor without his help.

Once on her feet, Tris exited the bathroom to fetch a clean towel for Eric. By the time she had returned, Eric was already in the shower. She quietly slipped into the bathroom and laid down the towel. She then closed the door behind her and walked to the kitchen to start a kettle of tea.

Twenty minutes later, she heard the bathroom door open. When she walked into the bedroom she found Eric sitting on the edge of the bed with his head laying in his hands. She walked towards the bed until she was standing in front of him. She lifted his head from his hands and placed it on her belly then proceeded to gently massage his scalp in an attempt to ease the pain she knew he felt. It took Eric a few moments to relax against her when he realized where she had laid his head against her. But his longing to feel her touch again overshadowed his knowledge of what laid below and to whom it belonged and he wrapped his arms around her and began to nuzzle against her tummy.

They both lost track of how long they had been holding each other. They were only brought out of their blissfulness when they felt the baby moving inside of Tris. Eric unwrapped himself from Tris and stood up. He thanked her for taking care of him then and walked to the living room where he plopped down on the couch.

Tris sighed as she knew the time had arrived for them to talk about the situation at hand. She followed Eric out of the bedroom and detoured to the kitchen for their cups of tea before following him to the living room. She handed Eric his cup and sat down beside him.

After several awkward minutes of silence as they drank their tea, Eric finally decided to speak up. Although he was enjoying Tris' presence, he knew it would be better for them both if she left sooner rather than later.

"Thank you for the tea. I'm feeling much better now so I can take care of myself. There's really no need for you to hang around."

Tris nodded.

"Besides, I'm sure you must be exhausted from being up all night taking care of me. You need your rest and you need to take care of your…baby."

"I managed to get some sleep last night and a nap earlier so we're fine." Tris replied as she rubbed her belly.

Eric's dream popped to the fore front of his mind at Tris' comment. Was it really a dream or did it really happen? "Where did you sleep?" he cautiously asked.

"With you." She casually responded.

"That wasn't a dream?" he said more so to himself than Tris.

"You mean when you woke up, kissed me and told me you loved me then held me the rest of the night?" Tris asked. Eric nodded. "No, it wasn't a dream," Tris smirked. "I enjoyed every single minute of it and it looked like you did too by the shit-eating grin you had on your face when you fell back to sleep."

Eric face reddened at his inappropriate actions towards Tris. Although it is what he wanted more than anything else, he knew it was wrong given the fact that she was pregnant with another man's child. "I'm sorry. I-I didn't mean to cross the line."

Tris sat her cup down before she stood up and moved in front of Eric. She sat down on the coffee table and took his hands in hers. "I'm not sorry. And you didn't cross the line. You didn't do anything wrong. I wanted it as much as you did. I've missed you so much, Eric."

"I'm sorry Tris. I'm sorry that I was too much of a coward to say goodbye to you before I left. I…I just…"

"It's okay Eric. I'm not mad at you for not saying goodbye. I saw the suffering in your eyes the last time we were together. I don't blame you for leaving. I knew you would eventually be back. And now you are and I'm so happy."

Eric chuckled, relieved that he was not going to get a fist to the face considering the current pounding in his head. "I don't deserve a friend like you. You are too good for me."

"A friend? Is that all I am to you now?" Tris asked with sadness in her voice.

"No, Tris. You are so much more than that to me but if that's all I can have with you since you and Four are together, then I will be happy with just being your friend."

Puzzled by Eric's belief that she was together with Four, it finally dawned on her that maybe he hadn't heard about what happened between them. "I'm sorry Eric, I just assumed you had heard about what happened. Four and I are not together. We broke up."

"What do you mean you broke up? When?"

"The day I walked in and saw him cheating on me."

Letting Tris' words sink in, anger began to consume Eric. How in the hell could that son of a bitch cheat on someone as beautiful and special as Tris, especially when they are having a child together.

"He cheated on you? What the fuck? How could he do that to you?"

"Well, in all fairness, I wasn't being faithful to him either. It actually explained a lot about what was happening in our relationship when I found out how long it had been going on."

"What's her name? Who was he cheating on you with?"

Tris smirked at his question knowing the answer. She knew Eric would be just as shocked, as was the entire Faction, when she had found out who it was.

"It was a transfer from two years ago. I knew they had become friends, I just hadn't realized how good until I found them in bed together."

"Two years ago?" Eric struggled through the pain in his head to recall who was in the initiation class then. A few names popped into his head. He made an awful face as he thought how much Four had lowered his standards if he chose one of those hell hounds over Tris. "Is it that Amity transfer Meghan?"

Tris shook her head no.

"One of the Candor transfers? Melody? Katrina?"

Tris began to chuckle as she continued to shake her head no.

"Oh, God." Eric paused and wrinkled his nose as the thought of the next name on his list. "Please tell me it's not that girl with the wart on the end of her nose? The one from Euradite? I think her name was Candice?"

Even Tris had to make an awful face at the thought of that girl. Tris did not like to make fun of the way people looked but even she had to admit that unfortunate girl had been beaten with the proverbial ugly stick. Once again Tris shook her head no as she shuddered at the thought of Four being with that girl.

"Am I forgetting someone? I can only think of four female transfers from two years ago."

"It was the transfer from Abnegation." Tris answered, trying to hide the smirk on her face.

"Abnegation? That's impossible. You are the last female Abnegation transfer we've had."

"I know."

"I don't understand. How can she be from Abnegation then? The only Abnegation transfer we had two years ago was a boy named Samuel."

"He goes by just Sam now." Tris could see the wheels trying to turn in Eric's head. They were obviously being slowed down from the hangover he was still nursing. Tris wiggled her eyebrows when the answer finally came to Eric. His eyes widened like saucers.

"Are you telling me that Four cheated on you with Sam?"

Tris couldn't help but laugh at Eric's expression as she nodded in the affirmative to him. Eric was not opposed to same sex relationships, but it was just not something he was into personally. He was just dumbfounded at realizing that Four was in one. An image came to his mind as he replayed Tris' comments in his head.

"Wait. Did you say you saw Four cheating on you with Sam?"

Tris again couldn't contain her laughter when she saw Eric's expression at the thought of her actually seeing them together. She decided to have a little fun at his expense. "Are you asking me if I actually saw Four's dick up Sam's a…"

Before she could finish her sentence, Eric placed his hand over her mouth. "For the love of God, Tris, please do not finish that sentence. I've already got a picture of it in my head."

Tris continued to giggle and Eric only removed his hand when she agreed not to finish her question. "The answer is yes, I did see them. And trust me when I say I know what you mean about having an image in your head. That is one that is permanently seared into my brain."

"I can't believe Four is gay." Eric states as he shakes his head trying to get the new information to sink in. "I just don't understand. He couldn't keep his hands off of you after initiation." Eric smirked as he wiggled his eyebrows. "How can he not want your gorgeous, sexy body? I could never keep my hands off those fabulous curves of yours."

Tris giggled as Eric gently tickled her thighs. "My 'fabulous' curves, as you so eloquently put it, are what turned him off. It apparently was my 'boyish' figure that attracted him to me. He got less interested as I began to mature into my body. If you've forgotten, I looked a lot like Sam when I first arrived here."

"He's an idiot." Eric proclaimed before they started to laugh again. Once they managed to regain their composure, Eric laced his fingers through Tris'. "I'm so sorry you had to go through that alone." His eyes lingered upon her belly. "What have you decided about the baby?"

Tris paused, trying to think of how to respond. The time had come to face the issue. "I'm hoping the father will want to be a part of his life. If not, then I will raise him on my own."

"Did you say he? Are you sure or are you just using that particular pronoun?"

Tris couldn't contain the smile on her face as he pulled one hand away from Eric's and proudly rubbed her belly. "It's a boy. I had an ultrasound done a few days ago to confirm it. I have a son." She took a deep breath before proceeding. "We have a son."

"I just want you to know that I will be there in any way you need me Tris. I will be there for you 24/7. And if Four slacks in his responsibilities of being this child's father, you just let me know. I will whip him into shape."

After listening to Eric's last comment, Tris realized that he did not pick up on what she was trying to imply to him. "Eric, I don't think you understood what I was trying to tell you."

"What do you mean?"

Apparently Eric's hangover was affecting his cognition more than she had originally thought. Tris drew up another deep breath before explaining it to him.

"Eric, I didn't mean that Four and I are having a son." Tris paused letting Eric absorb what she had just said. Still not seeing it registering in his mind, she continued. "Eric, I meant you and I are having a son." Tris grabbed his hand, placed it upon her stomach then covered it with her own. "This is our child Eric. You and I created him."

Tris sat there waiting for Eric's reaction. She wasn't sure what it would be given his current state. Eric pulled his eyes from hers to look at his hand on her stomach then back to her eyes and back to his hand. His face remained expressionless which worried Tris. For the last few months since she found out about the pregnancy, she worried what Eric's reaction would be to it.

Eric cautiously moved his other hand and placed it on her stomach beside his other one. As if on que, their son began to move around again, like earlier in the bedroom, at his father's touch. Eric jumped at the unexpected action. He couldn't contain the smile that formed on his face. Tris was carrying his child. It was his child, not Four's. His dream had become a reality unbeknownst to him. Tears began to trickle down his face at the happiness that encased him at that moment. He felt Tris' fingers wipe them away but she couldn't keep up with all of them. Normally embarrassed to show a weakness like crying, he didn't even attempt to hide the sobs that came forth as he fell to his knees then wrapped his arms around Tris and laid his head on her stomach that held their child.

Tris couldn't help the tears of joy that fell from her own eyes at the feel of Eric's embrace and the sight of his acceptance of their child. Her fear of his rejection finally falling away, she returned his embrace and wept along with him. She squeezed him even tighter when he proclaimed his love to her.

"I love you, Tris. I love you so much. Thank you. Thank you for giving me the greatest gift I could ever hope for. I love you." She felt him pull up her shirt to expose her growing belly. Eric placed lingering kisses all around her belly as he caressed it. "I love you too, my son. I will always protect you and your Mommy until the day I die. That is my promise to the both of you."

"I love you too Eric." Eric raised his head and looked into Tris' eyes. It was the first time she had ever confessed her love to him. "I love you Eric. I'm so sorry I didn't say it our last night together. I had been in love with you for months before you said anything. I just never in my wildest dreams expected you to feel the same way. I was just too much of a coward to end things with Four and I hurt you so badly. I'm so sorry Eric. Please forgive me?"

"Baby, there is nothing to forgive. I was just as much of a coward as you were when I left for the fence. Can you forgive me for not being here to help you deal with your breakup with Four?"

"Eric, there was nothing you could have done even if you had been here. It was something I had to do on my own. And I just want you to know that I had already made my decision to leave Four when I found out he was seeing Sam. You need to know that I chose you over Four because I wanted to be with you, not because I ended things for him cheating on me."

"Thank you. Thank you for choosing me over Four. You will never know how much that means to me. I love you so much, Tris."

"I love you too Eric. Our son loves you." Tris shook her head trying to finish purging her fear of Eric's rejection from her heart and mind.

"What is it, Tris? What's wrong? Talk to me, Sweetheart."

"I-I was just so afraid that you wouldn't love me anymore when you finally came home. That you wouldn't want anything to do with our son. I was so afraid I ruined his chance at having a relationship with his father because I was a coward."

Eric stood up and picked Tris up bridal style and carried her to the couch. He sat her in his lap and tried to console her as she cried. "It's okay, Baby. I'm here. You didn't ruin anything. I'm not sure how it's even possible but I love you more now than before I left. And just so you know, even if things wouldn't have worked out with us, I would never abandon our child. I can't explain it, but I've only known for a few minutes now that I'm going to be a father yet I already love this little guy so much. Is that crazy or what?" Eric chuckles.

Tris leaned up from Eric and pressed her lips to his. It was a kiss filled with their love and passion for one another. I need of oxygen, they finally pulled apart. "It's not crazy. I fell in love with our son the moment they told me I was pregnant. I can't wait for him to be born and hold him in my arms for the first time."

Eric smiled at Tris as he thought the same thing. The day their son would be born. Then it hit him, he didn't even know when that would be. "When? When will he be born? I don't even know how far a long you are. I'm a terrible father already. I don't even know when my son will be born."

Unable to contain her giggle at Eric's rambling, she placed her fingers on his chin and so he would look her in the eyes. "You are not a terrible father. You didn't even know I was pregnant until yesterday so how could you be expected to know my due date. It's in three months by the way."

Eric placed his hand on Tris' stomach. "Three months? He will be here in three months? That doesn't give us much time to get everything done."

"We have plenty of time Eric. Besides, I already have a crib and a few clothes picked out. I'm still trying to decide on a theme for a nursery. I was hoping you would help me with that." Tris proceeded to place her own hand on Eric's as she snuggled up against him as he continued to caress her stomach.

Suddenly a loud rumbling sounded through the room. Eric gave Tris a puzzled look. Tris shrugged her shoulders. "I think our son is trying to tell us he's hungry."

"When was the last time you ate?"

"I had a snack just before you woke up."

Eric gave her a stink eye. "Did you skip breakfast and lunch because you were here taking care of me?"

Tris gave the stink eye back to Eric. "Are you kidding? You must not have seen me eat yesterday in the canteen." Tris smirked. "Trust me when I say I eat enough for 10 people. There is no way this little guy lets me get away without eating."

Finally convinced that Tris was telling the truth, Eric rolled her off of him and helped her from the couch. "Do you feel well enough to go to the canteen with me?" She asked him.

"I'm feeling much better. Actually food sounds good. But we have to make one stop first then we can go eat." Eric slipped his boots on and tied them then proceeded to help Tris with her shoes when she whined that she could get them on.

After Eric helped Tris put her jacket on and they left the apartment, she questioned him about the stop they had to make on their way to the canteen. "Where are we going, Eric?"

"Max's office." He replied as he laced their fingers together.

"What do you need to talk to Max about?"

Eric brought Tris' hand to his lips and placed a kissed on it as they continued to walk. Ever so casually he answered her. "A marriage license."

There you go. I hope you are happy with the ending. I'm thinking of doing an epilogue if I get enough requests. Thanks for reading my story.