Chapter 5
Tobias P.O.V.
"C'mon, Tris, we've always wanted to go! We have to!" I try to persuade Tris. She persists on me calling her that instead of Prior, even though she still calls me Eaton.
"Eaton, I don't know. Skyzone? Isn't it, like, an hour and a half away? You know I don't like driving far."
"I know, Tris, but it'll be worth it! Please? I won't rip a hole in the trampoline since I'm not as big as I used to be, either. Pleassssse? It's a good work out, too."
"Tobias," she groans in complaint.
"C'mon. I bet you can't beat me at the basketball they have there," I say, knowing she's extremely competitive.
"Don't use my weaknesses against me, Eaton."
"It's the only way, Prior," I say, aware that I used that nickname.
"As long as you don't use that nickname, I'll go," she says submissively.
"And I win once more." I smile. "So how about I pick you up at, say, five? Maybe we can go to a late dinner after?"
"Tobias, if I knew you any better I'd say you were taking me on a date," she says with a hint of teasing in her voice.
"It's only a date if you make it a date, Tris."
"Let's call it a… an outing. So, for our outing, Tobias, we're going to Skyzone and picking up a late dinner? And you'll be picking me up at 6?" she asks for clarification.
"Correct. Anything else you want to do?" I ask.
"Let's save it for another day." I can tell she is smirking, even over the phone. "I'll see you then." And with that, the line goes dead, leaving me with a repetitive beeping sound.
I smile to myself. It actually worked. Thank you, Zeke, I silently praise him.
I hear a knock on the door frame, even though the door is open. "Hey, Boss," says my new employee/personal trainer Jim, who was recently hired since I just opened last week, even though I wasn't here. I have people to do that for me. The place is already fairly busy since it's a good amount less than the membership for the YMCA.
"What do you need, Jim?" I ask since I'm in a fairly good mood, unlike earlier. I'm a very mercurial person; my mood tends to swing depending on who I talk to. And as for Tris… Let's just say I'm not usually in a bad mood when I'm around her or even just texting her, for that matter.
"You seem like you're in a better mood, Boss." Jim smiles.
"Well, Jim, because I am, actually. All with the words of one person." I beam. "What did you need talk to me about?"
"Well, sir, I was wondering if maybe you'd like to come out to drink with us staff in celebration of our new jobs. I don't know if you're one to typically talk much to your employees, but they all kind of elected me to come and ask you since you're rather intimidating. Anyway, would you like to come?"
"Ah, sorry, Jim. I can't. I actually just called my best friend and we're already going out tonight. Definitely another time though, man," I say politely.
"No worries. Hope you and your bud have a good time tonight."
"It's actually a girl. She will probably be working here soon, anyway. She doesn't have a boyfriend, but that doesn't mean any of you guys can flirt with her." I glare at him.
"Of course not, sir. Are you two just friends?"
"Unfortunately, yes." I sigh. "I'm pretty sure I'll be stuck in the friendzone for the rest of my life."
"What's the friendzone?" he asks.
"When your best friend begins to view you as no longer a dating option. Like a brother, or a sister. Or a lamp."
He chuckles at this, but I look up him with a straight face.
"Man, oh, man, does it suck. I've been there since my sophomore year of high school."
"Wow. And you're still in love with her?" he asks incredulously.
I nod. "Unfortunately, yes."
He whistles. "I hope it works out for you, man." He turns around and walks out.
"Me too, Jim," I mumble to myself. "Me too."
-4:45-
Deep breaths, Tobias, deep breaths. It's just Tris we're talking about. Your best friend. Your best friend, I remind myself. She obviously wants to keep it that way too. If she didn't want to keep that way, she wouldn't straight up tell me she didn't like me. If she didn't want to keep it that way, we'd be going on a date, not an "outing." If she didn't want to keep it that way, I'd be jumping with joy, not sitting in sorrow. Okay, I'll admit, that phrase was a bit melodramatic, but I'm not exactly jovial about it.
Although I understand why she was mad about me hating myself, I do not understand why she is giving me another chance, let alone go on an "outing" with me to actually have some fun. Who knows, maybe she'll even get to know more about new me.
Despite the fact that I'd be happy as a clam if she were in love with me and she felt the same about me over all these years, I'd rather her be in love with the new me and accept me how I am now, because I'm not the same person I used to be, and I don't just mean my physical demeanor.
When I was explaining to Tris about the meaning that lies beneath my flames, I was a bit overwrought, if I'm going to be honest. I don't completely hate myself, but I hate the fact that I have the potential to become the jerk I wish I never was. And Tris was right, I'm well on my way there, inauspiciously enough. I wish I could just be the perfect blend of good-looking, nice, and caring, which are really hard qualities to find individually, let alone all three in one person. But I try so hard. Well, at least, I'm going to try harder, starting now. I'm not going to be overly affectionate, but I'm not going to be a total asshole either. I'm going to be playful, where I insult her, but don't actually mean it. Much like teasing, I suppose.
So as I knock on her door, I think about my goals: flirt, tease, and listen.
"It's open!" yells Tris.
I slowly open the door to see Tris nowhere in sight.
"In the bathroom!" she yells, already answering my question.
I lean on the doorframe of the bathroom and cross my arms, somewhat of an akimbo position. I smirk.
"Well, don't you clean up nicely?" I say. "I really like your hair. Like, a lot. Really looks good on you. It brings out the rest of your features, like your breathtaking eyes." I wink.
She rolls her eyes. "Is this okay to go in?" she asks, referring to her outfit and hair.
I look her up and down, not hiding the fact that I'm full on checking her out. She wears a tight purple tank that matches the tips of her hair, aztec pants/leggings with blue, purple, and black accents (that are surprisingly adorable on her), and black Vans.
"You look amazing, Tris." I run my eyes over her once more, but still try not to make her uncomfortable. I meet her eyes and smile. She's also not wearing much make-up, which she somehow pulls off exceedingly. "Seriously, you make me look bad," I say, referring to my blue jeans and black under armor shirt with black Nikes.
"Tobias, isn't the girl supposed to worry about her looks?" she teases.
I smirk. "Yeah, but it's different when the guy is trying to impress the girl."
She smiles. "C'mon, let's get out of here." She nods towards the hall.
I put my arms out, motioning for her to go in front of me. "After you."
She smiles at me and walks into the hallway. She grabs her wallet and shoves it into one of her hidden pockets of her legging things.
"Ready?" she asks.
"Whenever you are."
"Let's get out of this shit-hole," she says, walking towards the door. "Lock it behind you," she shouts over her shoulder since I'm still in the doorway while she's sauntering toward my car in the parking lot.
I lock the door and close it behind me, and look at Tris's back, since she's still walking to my car. I can't help but let my eyes lower since she's wearing leggings, but quickly look away. I'm a gentleman, and I will not do it while she's unaware, unlike how I did in the bathroom, because she asked how she looked. The farthest my eyes actually went were to right where a tramp stamp would be.
I quickly run up to my car and open the door for her.
"Thanks, babe," she says with an over dramatized wink.
I round the car to the other side. "Babe?" I ask.
"Yeah?" she asks. "Oh. You mean why did I call you babe?" She chuckles.
I nod and start the car.
"I don't know." She smiles. "It kind of just came out, I guess. Do you mind?" she asks nervously.
"No." I laugh. "Just the situation, I guess… I don't know."
"I'm sorry," she says as I pull put of her parking lot. "I didn't mean to make it awkward or anything," she asks, blundered.
I shake my head. "No, Tris, it's completely okay. I don't mind." I look over at her and smile. "Get comfortable, it'll be a while."
"Do you mind if I play some of my music?" she asks. "I don't really know what you listen to anymore. What genre?"
I shrug. "Rock, mainly."
"Really?" she perks up. "What bands? Give me your top five."
"Well, my number one would definitely be Metallica, then Guns n Roses, then Pearl Jam, then Nirvana, then Three Days Grace, then Breaking Benjamin. I know that's six, but I love Breaking Benjamin." I shrug.
"Really?" She chuckles. "Your first four were older rock bands, then you have Three Days Grace and Breaking Benjamin, which are modern rock."
"I know, but I like some newer stuff that's not about sex," I say with a laugh. "Although Metallica doesn't really do that."
"True. My top five are Three Days Grace, Breaking Benjamin, Chevelle, Shinedown, and Evanescence. Then Metallica for my number six. Metallica is truly a legend, I can't not put them in there. What's your favorite song of all time?"
"Well, you probably don't know it because it's not a very popular song by them, but it's 'Dance With—"
"'Dance With the Devil'?!" Tris exclaims, almost jumping out of her seat.
"No way. There's no way you know that song. Nobody knows that song!" I smile.
"Whoever doesn't know that song hasn't lived," Tris says with a mock seriousness in her voice.
I shake my head. "I still can't believe it. Nobody knows that song and yet my best friend is just as obsessed with it as I am."
"Well, we totally need to rock out to it on the way there, what do you think?" she says with a wicked grin.
"I'm all for it, as long as you don't make fun of my singing." I smile.
"Have I ever?" She mirrors my expression and hooks her bluetooth up to the car and turns it up loud as possible as she turns our favorite song on.
When the chorus comes on, we both are screaming the lyrics at the tops of our lungs, no matter how off-key we seem to be.
When the end is reached, we both start laughing hysterically.
"Oh my god," I say, almost crying. "Reason #1 why I love you."
"Reason #1 why I love me too," she responds, still laughing.
"I'm serious," I say with only a smile left. "You really make me happy. And I'm kind of afraid of that."
Her laughter dies down to just a smile towards me. She quirks her head to the side. "Why would you be afraid of that, Tobias?"
"Why wouldn't I be afraid of someone who controls how I feel every second, minute, hour of the day?" I ask her with a small smile and short glance.
"That's a good point. But you know I'd never intentionally hurt you, right?"
I shrug. "Yeah, I know, but it doesn't change the fact that I have a right to be scared of you." I laugh.
"Aw, Tobias, I scare you?" she asks and grabs my arm, rubbing it up and down.
"Not like that, Tris. Not physically, but mentally. You completely change my demeanor just by talking to me. I was having a really shitty morning until I called you, and one of my employees even noticed that I was exceptionally happier. All because of you." I look over at her and smile. I reach over and grab her hand.
Oh shit. Was that too ballsy?
But I feel her fingers entwine with mine, eradicating my previous thoughts' doubts.
"I love you too, Tobias. More than anything," she says while staring outside the window, not looking at me.
"Look me in the eye and tell me that you really mean what you just said, Tris."
"But you're driving," she says blatantly.
"This is a four-lane highway that nobody ever uses anymore. Plus it'll only be three seconds." I look at Tris dead in the eye.
"I love you too, Tobias. More than anything," she says, confident, and matter-of-factly.
I sigh. "That almost seemed believable."