I don't own Divergent!
Chapter Four
TRIS'S POV
"AWW Tris!" Christina squeals. "Although, I'm still slightly angry with him that's sweet!"
I roll my eyes conspicuously. It's not as if Four asked me on a date or anything. It's not as if he would either.
"Christina, he doesn't like me or anything like that," I aver.
"Then what does "meet me at the Pier at 8:00" sound like to YOU?" Christina asks swinging her hands up on the bars of the silver towel rack.
"It sounds like a friendly invite to me," I maunder.
I had a feeling that Christina would overreact if I told her. Hell, she always overreacted if I talked about a boy.
"You can't really mean that Tris! Seriously I think he's pretty hot, and I have a boyfriend," Christina says.
I chuckle but then stop suddenly aware of a problem.
"Christina, what am I going wear?" I ask lowly.
Christina always felt like she needed to make me beautiful-which I'm not- but I always declined politely. Maybe if I let her try once then she would stop infinitely pestering me.
"Are you asking me to help you dress?" Christina says freezing from swinging on the towel rack. Her deep brown eyes are lit with stashed away excitement.
I inwardly roll my eyes but try to make myself seem substantially genuine.
"I'm letting you just this once. Emphasis on once though," I say deadly serious.
"God! Thank you! I thought this day would never come," Christina shouts.
"Nothing like a dress though. Just something a bit nicer?" I ask half questioning half stating.
"Ok, ok I won't go full supermodel on you Tris, but seriously you're gorgeous you would look awesome," Christina says.
I laugh audibly for her to hear. I could be pretty but I'm not. Maybe though if I dress a bit prettier it might work.
Christina lunges for her suitcase while I stand in front of the mirror with my hands on my chin and elbows propped on the counter.
She throws a black shirt at me that cuts across my shoulders when I put it on and a pair of tight washed out blue jeans. She pins on a pair of silver-colored earrings that slightly dangle and then bows with flourish.
"Tris you will knock Mr. Number away," Christina says grinning her face off.
I check the watch I'm wearing and it says 7:55.
"Thanks a ton Christina," I say giving her a half smile.
"Ok now remember you tell me every single detail. Have fun, but not too much fun kid," she orders me.
"Yes mom," I say rolling my eyes.
She thinks I'm going on a date, I laugh to myself in my head.
"Ok now out! Don't make him wait too long!" She shouts.
The other girls and guys went out to the zip line again because Uriah insisted that it was better when you couldn't see. I make a mental note to tell Uriah that he's crazy- again. Although that could be the reason, he is Dauntless in the first place.
I run out of the cabin/hotel and streak past the other Dauntless. I notice that I should've brought a jacket because it's slightly chilly but I brush off the thought.
I'm more excited then I let on to Christina. She was right he is handsome. I feel my cheeks get hot over the thought of him shirtless when we were swimming.
"Really should've brought a sweater Tris," I mutter to myself as I walk on the wooden planks of the Pier the wind softly caressing my bare skin.
Four didn't say exactly where we would meet so I just slowly stroll down the Pier. The sun just set and I could hear the night animals sounding quietly. I stop at the wooden railing on the left of the Pier and prop up my elbows.
My dad used to tell me that the monsters would come out at night and would only take the bad girls. The 'not selfless' ones as he described. I used to work my hardest to try to be selfless and obedient but then I started noticing that I wasn't acting like myself.
Dad was livid when I signed up to stay at Camp Faction for the whole summer. My mom convinced him that I would be fine since I had friends there. All of Chicago knows about this camp because it is so famous so when he asked me what faction I was going to join and I said Dauntless he was appalled. He was probably expecting Abnegation.
Not this time dad.
"Hey you look different," a voice says next to me.
I jump shocked out of thought. When I see Four in his black tee shirt and jeans, I scowl. At the same time, though my heart stutters.
"God, Four anybody ever tell you to not sneak up on girls at night?" I ask swinging a hand on my hip.
I feel Dauntless when I snap or do something cocky.
"You came," is all he says.
My eyebrows knit in confusion. "Of course I came," I say.
"Then this is your surprise," he says his head cocked slightly to the side gesturing to the whole carnival area.
I feel a pulse of victory. Ha-ha Christina, I think. This isn't a date. Then a warm feeling goes through me. I absolutely loved carnival themed things.
"Really, this is my surprise?" I ask surprise obvious in my tone.
"You don't like it? I wasn't sure if you liked the carnival thing so-" he starts trailing off.
His cool expression that's usually more easy and reserved is spotted with red embarrassment. I'm confused for a second before I comprehend what he's saying.
"Oh, Four that's not what I meant. I adore carnivals but I thought- thought we were here for something else. Because well earlier with Christina," I say fumbling to correct my mess up.
"Oh. Can we forget about that for a while? I don't want to talk about that now," he says asking me.
His blue eyes break me when they look at me innocently and I crack.
"Ok," I say giving him a reprieve from my Erudite mindset.
Curse those Erudite and their know-it-all outlook. The whole day I've been wondering what was bothering Four and now I have to force myself to not ask when I can.
"Good so what do you want to do first?" He asks me his eyes alive.
"Hm I don't know... Go win me a jacket?" I ask chuckling to myself.
"You're cold? I didn't even notice, here," he says and I feel a leather jacket envelope my shoulders.
I'm about to refuse it and slip it back off when he gives me the innocent look with those blue eyes again. What have I gotten myself into?
"So tell me about yourself," he says as we stroll down the Pier.
"There's not really much to say," I respond shuffling my feet. I meticulously slip each arm into the jacket and take a deep breath of the leather. It smells rough and like metal with a hint of masculine smells.
"There must be something, how about your family?" He asks.
I would be suspicious of a boy asking questions but this is a camp. Meet different people and all of those things. I don't think Four would be a stalker. It's actually irrelevant to think I would be worth the person to stalk.
"Well, I have my brother Caleb, my mom, and my dad," I say giving him an "I told you so look".
He doesn't flash a smile or anything. I wonder what's nettling him.
"Curious but what's your last name?"
"Prior. What's yours?"
"My last name is Eaton," he says.
A pinch of familiarity pricks my gut but when I try to remember the memory, nothing surfaces. Eaton. Something about that name makes me shiver, even in Four's large jacket.
We walk down the Pier I spot the Ferris Wheel. The carts are slowly winding in a circle and the lights flash on and off in unison to a heartbeat. I would ask Four if he wanted to go there but I remember his fear of heights and I'm scared to be too close to him alone.
"If I can ask a question, but do you like penguins?" Four asks slightly smiling.
"Penguins? Um yeah sure," I say wondering where he's going with the question.
"Then a penguin you will win," he says starting off toward a booth with a square of long glass soda bottles.
"PLAY THE RING TOSS AND WIN A FABULOUS PRIZE! FIVE TICKETS PER PERSON!" An announcer at the booth yells. She wears all black so she must be from Dauntless. I also see she has a couple of tattoos.
I'm hypothesizing that these booths were made by the Dauntless and Erudite considering half the games are strategy and the other are just dare deviling. The booths, even if they are Dauntless, are designed to look like an authentic carnival booth. They're all adorned with red and white stripes that shape into a tent.
"Oh Four those games are such a rip-off, I've never even won once," I say trying to convince him he's wasting his money. "And I'm Dauntless."
Christina and I played the game multiple times at different carnivals and we both never won anything.
"Trust me I'm a terrific aim," he says buying a roll of red tickets and starting off toward the booth.
He hands the woman, which he seems acquainted with five tickets. She smiles and shakes her head at Four.
"Four, want to introduce me before you show off?" The woman says.
I hang back shyly biting my lip a bit. God, why was I Abnegation?
"Oh Tris this is Tori- she works at the tattoo parlor in Dauntless, and Tori this is Tris," Four says slipping his eyes back from me to Tori.
I walk up and shake Tori's hand. Something I'm still not used to because in Abnegation we- they -don't shake hands.
"Nice to meet you Tris," she says. "Lucky girl, you are. I've never even seen Four hang around a girl that he likes." She whispers as Four starts organizing the colorful circle rings that Tori passed to him.
I step back startled. "Nice to meet you too Tori but Four doesn't like me. We're just friends I guess," I say trying to explain the confusing relationship I had with him.
"I'm not sure about that but think what you want," Tori says giving me a confusing smile.
"Come on Four," I groan as he misses the bottle that he was aiming for, the scarlet ring bouncing off into the remaining area.
"I've got this Tris, shut up," he says playfully squinting his eyes as if it'll help him aim better.
I kick his foot but he just tosses another ring in. It twirls around and bounces on multiple bottles before flinging to the ground violently.
"Four..." I groan.
"What's wrong Tris? Think you can do better than me," he asks the playful edge hanging obvious in his deep voice.
"Of course Four," I reply.
I bunch up the sleeves of his jacket in my hands until I can feel the leather about to rip.
He digs his hand into the scarlet red bucket and pulls out two more rings. Two black rings. Dauntless.
"Here Tris, make this and I would kiss you," he says. The thick certainty that I'm not going to make the ring in is obvious by his slurred tone.
My heart stutters when he says that but I quickly bury down the feeling.
Don't underestimate a girl Four, I think coolly.
"Same time Tris? You throw your ring when I throw mine," he says smiling.
He thinks I'm going to miss. I smile to myself. Think again.
"Remember you only have to make one to win," Tori says her hands skimming her tattoos carefully.
I always considered getting a tattoo, but if my father knew, he would be absolutely livid. He has always been quietly biased to Dauntless although not as much whereas compared to his opposition toward Erudite.
"Oh we know," Four and I say glancing at Tori at the same time. I scowl at Four.
I line up my hand with a bottle and practice throwing it without actually letting go.
"Hey have too much to drink or something? I think this Dauntless girl doesn't know how to throw," a snotty voice says from behind me.
"I bet you can't even make this, Peter," I say glaring.
Peter and his friends Molly and Drew stand behind me snarling.
"Sure Stiff tell me when you make it and I'll give you fifty bucks."
I met Peter during Dauntless initiation when he almost tried to kill me in our hand-to-hand combat fight. He called me the regular nickname of "Stiff" for Abnegation. I hated Peter during initiation but my hate just turned to pity when I realized how sad of a person he is.
"Go away if you're going to insult," Four says his tone low and dangerous.
Something sparks like fear and remembrance in Peter's eyes and he stalks off. I give Four a questioning look and he just shrugs it off.
"One, two, three!' Four counts down suddenly and he throws his ring.
I watch as my black one collides with Four's. They gyrate and clink against the glass bottles the impact creating random spurts of sound. They both collide again and spin on top of a bottle.
"I win!" I exclaim. I look over at Four who is grinning.
Oh bloody hell, I think slowly.
I flit my eyes over to Four's ring that lies on top of a bottle.
"Told you I was a terrific aim," he says bravado in his voice.
I turn to Tori and point at a monkey with a striped red and white hat. Four points at the same penguin he was talking of giving me. It's bright blue and is a cute stuffed animal. Tori takes both of them off and hands them to each of us.
"Bye Tori!" Four calls as we walk away from the booth. Tori shakes her head at Four and winks at me. I feel my cheeks flush.
"Here," Four says gesturing the penguin toward me casually. "It makes up for me running out."
I smile and hand him my monkey . He takes it grinning. I don't want to break the mood but I need answers. Especially about him.
"Four we all still need to know went on earlier," I say.
He looks at the ground. "I know, after this, I promise."
"Ok Four," I say and then feel guilty for bringing it up when I said I wouldn't. "So what else do you want to do?"
"After you get your fifty bucks from Peter," he asks chuckling darkly.
"Of course," I reply grinning.
He points at a couple of real guns that you shoot at a target. I lightly smile. With all the odd things going on right now we're always still Dauntless.
A/N: I didn't want a lot of drama in this chapter so it wasn't action-packed. I hope you guys like this chapter. Read & Review!