Tris felt like she had done everything and it had only been 20 minutes.
Was it possible to take a nap for 5 minutes and feel refreshed?
Could people cook, clean, listen to music, exercise, play app games, and change their clothes within only 15 minutes?!
She was feeling so abnormal. Either time hated her, or time itself was broken.
Though, how could the time be broken? Their freedom was ticking away, and the next horrifying mini game to take place was drawing near.
Even after watching the screen about a gazillion times, she looked over again.
Time Until Next Mini Game: 11:50:09
She was dreading the next game. Tris knew exactly how it felt to be playing in one, but now she had to watch someone else suffer through pain without her providing any help?
She knew at least one of her fears, yet no matter what she did to avoid it, it played in her life again and again starting from when her parents were killed to even now.
That specific fear was not spiders or snakes or the ordinary. It was being out of control.
She gets up and walks by the closet where a mirror hangs next to it.
Tris, as usual, frowns at herself as she glances at her reflection.
After all she had done to pass the time, she'd also decided to do a few push ups and sit ups.
Now, Tris was sort of regretting it.
Earlier, she had dug through her drawer until she finally found a muscle tee, a black sorts bra, and some comfortable black Adidas track pants.
It was her comfortable gym wear, but now, her hair was plastered to her face with sweat even though she'd worn a high ponytail, and she felt so exposed with her muscle tee.
It had been 20 minutes, and Tris was so sure that Four would walk out any minute.
But then, that voice played in her head again.
Why are you even trying to look good in front of him? You told yourself you'd go slow, but look at you wanting to look all dressed up and neat.
Tris sighs and runs over to get her towel. After wiping the sweat off her forehead, she pulls her hair out of its ponytail and settles for keeping it down, cascading over her shoulders.
And that's all.
She was wearing what she was comfortable with, and sort of listening to the voice, she decides to look like her usual self, but at least not look like someone poured a bucket of water onto her body.
Tris grabs her phone and flops onto her bed with a heaved sigh.
She was pretty afraid of her up-coming conversation with Four.
Tris felt so amazing around him, that she almost kissed him. Even better, he almost kissed her.
But she had basically promised herself that she'd go slow and steady with him, because she didn't know much about Four other than his favorite candy, color, and his playful personality.
Another thing to worry about. What were his intentions?
She could clearly remember him mentioning his playful attitude with everyone, even girls.
So was he popular back in school? A sweet heart? A player?
Tris shakes her head, maybe he was a player. He said himself that he was never in a serious relationship. So did he just have no relationships at all? Flings?... Sex?
Why was she feeling so afraid? They said that they were fine now, and they talked everything out, but, were they?
Then, in what felt like the most miracle of moments, her phone vibrated and she received a text.
Something to get my mind off Four, thank you. Tris thinks gratefully.
CHRISTINA- I'm so bored, wanna try and see if we can call each other? :/
TRIS- Okay, sure?
Tris holds the phone in her hand as she waits for it to ring, and she feels a rush of small excitement when there's a low default tone ringing softly in her ears.
"Hey Christina." Tris answers.
She pulls the phone away from her as she squeals. "Oh Tris! It works! This is amazing, now I get to talk your ear off!"
Tris grins. "Okay, so I can you talk my ear off then? I really need it."
She can practically feel the curiosity in Christina, but she is grateful that she doesn't push it. "Alright, well, Will is asleep right now." She tells her.
Tris chuckles. "Right...?"
"-And I'd rather tell you this in person but I don't wanna wait."
"That's fine, you can tell me." Tris answers.
"Well, first, I want you to act like a girl."
Tris rolls her eyes. "I am a girl, what in the world do you mean by that?"
The door opens and Four walks out of the bathroom with a towel in his arms. His hair is a bit damp and little beads of water rest on his eyelashes and neck.
Christina heaves a loud sigh. "Just do it!."
Tris glances at Four, then sucks in a deep breath. She pays attention to the phone again and girlishly shrugs her shoulders while twirling a strand of hair around her finger and giggling a bit too dramatically. "Kay, like, what's up?"
Four raises his eyebrows at her weirdly and Tris shakes her head at him with a roll of an eyes and a small smile.
"Okay, Tris. Well... Will kissed me!"
Tris feels herself snap out of her girly character and immediately jump up from the bed. "What?! When?! How?! Where?!"
"Oh my God, you can be a girl?" Christina laughs.
Tris is practically bouncing on her knees. "Just shut up and tell me! Details, dude!"
"Okay, so- Wait, no. I really wanna tell you this in person." Christina whines.
Tris feels her jaw drop. "What the hell, Christina?! You tell me this and now you expect me to wait with all this suspense and shit? The only time I act like this?"
Christina snickers, though it infuriates Tris. "No, it's just that you're acting so responsive to something so girly, and I want to see this in person. You know how you read books or listen to audio, and even though something sounds really good, you'd wanna see it IRL? That's how I feel."
Tris groans and flops down on her bed again. "Okay, fine. Anything else new?"
As Christina thinks of something to say, Tris looks over at Four who's dried his hair and face already. He catches her looking and gives a small small which she returns. His eye color is a deep shade of magnificent blue, and she already feels as though she can drown in them.
His face is glowing so purely... Or maybe that's because he took a shower.
Tris stifles a chuckle and returns her attention back to the phone, in time to hear Christina speak again.
"Dude, I don't know what to talk about. What about you, what'd ya cook?"
Tris glances over at the stove. "What a surprise! You don't know what to say?"
Christina huffs, but then gives a small laugh.
"Well, nothing out of this world, I just made some sandwiches and peeled some oranges."
"Oh, like, the cuties? I'm eating them right now."
Tris smiles. "Nice."
"Hey, what's your go-to chips?" Christina asks.
Tris shrugs. "Damn. I have a load of them. You can't not have a favorite, you know?"
"Uh. I have a favorite. Lays. Original."
Tris fakes a retching noise. "Bleh! Are you kidding me? Those are so classic! What about Pringles and Funyuns and Takis and Churritos and Doritos and Cheetos?!"
"What- What are those?"
Tris feels her heart in her throat. "No. No. You didn't say that. You did not just say that."
Christina is silent.
"Bro, have you even lived?"
Tris hears a quiet chuckle. "Aw, Will is waking up."
"Wow, change the topic."
Christina lets out a little giggle. "Well sorry, maybe you can get me those chips and make me change my mind? Otherwise, I'll stick with Lays."
Tris sighs. "Yeah, I'll be counting on it."
"Well, nice talking to ya, I'll talk later, I promise, bye!" Christina declares.
"Bye."
And when Tris hangs up, she is now alone with Four.
"When did you call Christina?" He asks.
Tris sets her phone down and glances back up at him. "She called me a couple minutes before you walked out."
He nods and sits on his bed while popping an orange slice into his mouth. "So. About that thing we were supposed to talk about..."
Holy Mother of... Here it comes. Tris thinks.
And after all her mental preparation and rants to herself, she completely forgets everything and shuts down.
Tris begins drawing circles onto her phone screen. "Well, you were upset. And I was trying to comfort you. And we got carried away. And it won't happen again."
"We got carried away." Four repeats with a cynical look.
Tris meets his eyes and firmly nods. "Yes."
She can easily tell that he's not buying her lie, but then he rakes a hand through his hair roughly.
He exhales forcefully. "Is it that hard to see, Tris?"
"See what?" She asks confused.
He looks a bit irritated now. "It's not that hard to figure out."
Tris has a million thoughts running through her head per minute. Was he really getting upset at something that she couldn't see? It's not like she could see the thoughts that go on in his head. Earlier, she was dreading this conversation because she didn't know his intentions and she was hella confused. So how is she supposed to know what he's talking about?
What was she supposed to 'figure out'?
Four presses his palms into his eyes. "I can't stop thinking about you, Tris." He breathes out quietly.
Tris stops breathing. What the hell was she supposed to say?
And just like that, her mind goes blank. And there is silence.
No, no, this wasn't how it was supposed to go. You were supposed to be slow with each other... And... And... He's attracted to you. The voice in her head panics.
She was losing it. It was like an over-load of information. It had only been what, a couple of days? How was that possible? How was she supposed to tell him that she didn't want a relationship, she didn't want what this was.
The problem was, she did, she was scared, there was going to be a mini game within the next several hours, and she didn't want to be heart broken.
She needed all her focus in her teammates' and her own survival.
All while she freaks out, Four has finally looked up at her to study her reaction, but Tris is absolutely expressionless by then.
"I- I don't think we can do anything about it, Four. " She shakily states.
"Why?" He finally speaks after a moment of silence.
Tris is quiet for a brief second. "...Because there's too much to do. Everyone's lives are on stake, and there's a game coming up."
She feels like she hasn't answered fully, so she restates her answer.
"I mean, a relationship is the last thing I'd look for in here. I don't want to be heart broken, and I don't want to deal with 'love' or whatever."
"I would never hurt you, Tris. I wouldn't allow you to get heart broken or anything."
"It's not just about you intentionally hurting me." Tris states bitterly.
Four rakes a hand through his hair again, expecting an elaborated answer. Due to which Tris sighs rather heavily.
"Here. Pretend, that I were to confess my liking for you, and right here right now, we kiss. We are now in a relationship. Several hours later, the next mini game has started. Who is chosen? You, Four. Then, something really horrible happens, and God forbid, but you die. Now here we all are, and how the hell do you think I would feel?"
Four is quiet before he slowly looks up at her. "But life is about taking chances, Princess."
Tris stares back at him with incredulity. "Are you kidding?"
"No. I'm dead serious. When was the last time you just sat back and relaxed? Just lived in the world without any precautions?"
Tris suddenly tenses. Well then, what a touchy touchy topic. "The last time I did, was right before my parents were killed. It's something that I regret so so so bad."
Just thinking about it was forcing her eyes to water, but she couldn't and wouldn't let it happen. Not now, not with Four in front of her, staring at her like she was suddenly the most precious and fragile thing that ever walked on the face of the earth.
She felt like throwing up, but she knew nothing would come. Tris gets up and walks over to the kitchen sink while opening the faucet. She fills up a glass of cold water and slowly drinks it, the cool liquid slipping down her throat and into her stomach. Her eyes tear up, and a few slide down her face without warning.
She could remember her parents death like it was playing again in front of her, and the regret spreads throughout her body all over again.
"Tris." A jolt goes through her, and she turns around.
She roughly wipes her tears away as she realizes that Four is standing right in front of her.
"Yeah?" She forces out, breathlessly.
He takes a deep breath and slowly lets it out. "I'm sorry."
Tris bites the inside of her lips and feels the tears start up again, when she suddenly steps forward and sets her hands on his waist.
She can't remember deciding to do that. But she also can't move away.
Slowly, she pulls herself against his chest, wrapping her arms around him, her fingers skimming the muscles of his back.
A few seconds later, Four touches the small of her back and presses her closer, while he smooths his other hand over her hair.
Tris felt small, like the height she was, but what he's doing doesn't scare her. She feels safe, like people should be with their loved ones.
But was this really going to turn into love?
Tris slowly glances up at Four, and he gives her an attentive look before resting his forehead onto hers while closing his eyes. Then, after a moment, he slowly grazes the tip of his nose along her neck, her jaw, her cheek, then touches his lips to her forehead, right between her eyebrows.
Tris closes her eyes as well, and lets the tears slide down her face. She didn't understand what this was. Whatever it was.
But she also didn't want to ruin it, so she says nothing.
Four doesn't move; he just stays there with his mouth pressed to her skin, offering her the comfort she either needs or deserves from the hurt she's feeling, and Tris stays there, leaning against the kitchen counter with her hands on his waist, for a long time.
Time Until Next Mini Game: 00:10:28
Tris stares at the time with half closed eyes while hugging a pillow to her chest.
Four was fast asleep in his bed beside her, but she would need to wake him up.
Tris couldn't explain her emotions with Four, but the closest words to sum them up right now was probably 'at ease'.
She was too tired to even sort out her thoughts, and either way, she knew that she'd be fully awake by the time the next mini game started, which was not far away.
Tris glances back at the kitchen sink, and suddenly remembers the way Four felt against her.
She couldn't tell how much time had passed, but certainly a lot.
Tris looks over at Four again and studies the soft features of his face while asleep. Was it honestly possible for someone to look so perfect and good-looking, she did not know.
She quickly gets up and slips on her gladiator sandals. She didn't care that she was still wearing her muscle tee and track pants, she just needed to wake up Four and get to the cafeteria now.
Tris quickly decides to get her hair out of her face and after pulling it into probably the most embarrassing, messiest bun, she grabs her phone, room key, and begins shaking Four awake.
When Four slowly sits up she goes to the fridge to grab a nice and cold water bottle which froze just a bit, then opens the door.
"Four, come on, we seriously gotta go, there's almost 5 minutes left!" She tells him while bouncing on her heels.
Four sleepily glances over at her, then grabs his necessities and follows her out of the door as he rubs the sleep out of his eyes and off his face.
Tris is quick to walk toward the cafeteria, and Four matches her pace after a few moments of yawning and trying to wake up.
Finally, they reach the cafeteria to find that a few people from the blue table still need to arrive.
Tris looks at the black table and immediately feels uneasy after spotting that there is space for two people to sit left, but right next to Al.
After walking over, she slides onto the seat followed by Four and wipes her hand onto her knees to get rid of the sweat that had gathered there.
Her and Four's thighs were pressed together from the limited amount of space, and she tries to keep her cool.
"Hi Tris." Al whispers, his words causing his breath to brush against the side of her neck.
Tris tenses and nods, a scent of strong lemongrass and sage filling her nostrils. "Hey."
She looks away and finds Uriah and Marlene staring at her.
"Hey, Tris." They greet at the same time.
Tris chuckles. "What, are you guys a couple or something? Don't couples think the same thing?"
Uriah looks embarrassed as Marlene bursts out laughing. "No, we're not."
Tris smiles and glances over at Christina who's unconsciously leaning against a Will that has a ghost of a smile dancing on his lips.
She also studies everyone on the table who's looking nervous and talking to each other, but when she gets back to Al, he's still already staring at her.
Tris immediately presses her hands into her thighs, hard, and gives him a forced smile.
Al instantly returns it with a grin, then, "There's only a minute left until the game starts."
Tris looks around. "How do you know?"
Al gestures toward the screen, and while doing so, he scoots closer to her.
Tris nods and discreetly scoots closer to Four, holding onto her thighs to keep her hands from shaking.
Al doesn't notice, but he goes back to talking to Will and Christina.
Tris shivers and looks away from him when suddenly Four's mouth is next to her ear and his hand is grabbing onto her right one.
"What's wrong?" He asks, while his warm and much more pleasurable breath tickles her ear.
Tris shakes her head. "Nothing, why?"
"...You were practically putting all your body weight on my leg."
Tris looks down and notices how her right hand is resting on his left thigh, and how he's still holding onto it.
Four notices and lets go, then looks back at her when she speaks.
"I'm sorry, I thought your thigh was my own." Tris answers sheepishly while biting the inside of her cheek.
"Are you sure you're fine? You look creeped out"
Tris glances over at Al who's laughing at something and shakes her head. "Yeah, I'm fine, positive, thanks though."
"Sure..." Four answers, brushing off her lie, before turning back to Uriah.
Finally, the last set of people walk in, and there's a loud ping as the cafeteria door locks and everyone turns toward the screen, already dreading the next game.
You all should be familiar with the procedure we have set for you when there is a game present. Again, same as last time, this game will only consist of one teammate per team.
However, each game will be different, as of this one, a few skills should be required. Some of which include, stamina, strength, speed, and essentially balance.
Without further ado, will kindly appreciate a volunteer to go and pull the lever.
Tris plays with her cold water bottle as someone from the blue table stands and makes their way over to the side where the lever is.
There's a series of clicks, and Tris begins to peel the label off the bottle as there's suddenly a single gasp coming from each table.
"Tris." Someone whispers to her.
She looks up and sees Al pointing. "Read the screen."
She glances up and is suddenly standing, and trying to get out of her seat, when Al grabs her arm and pulls her down.
GROUP A: MOLLY
GROUP B: CHRISTINA
She helplessly watches as Christina and a brown haired girl from the opposite table slowly walk toward the front of the room where Tris and Peter stood not so long ago.
Tris grabs her water bottle as she follows everyone else to the observation room, and she just manages to catch Christina's nervous gaze before the door shuts and she is now in a room with a screen of Molly and Christina bouncing on the heels of their shoes.
Tris makes her way over to the front of the screen where Will is looking like he'll freak out any second, and she places a comforting hand onto his arm.
Why she's not freaking out either, she did not know.
On the screen, the door slides open, and the two girls walk into the room where Tris almost died, except, she is surprised to see that this time, the scene is different.
And Tris is no longer in the mood to even hold her water bottle anymore.
A/N- So... If Tris is suddenly sick of her water bottle, does that mean it has something to do water?
AND HOLY MOTHER OF GOD THIS WAS THE SHITTIEST CHAPTER EVER AND I AM SO SO SO SORRY I FEEL SO HORRIBLE!
I won't put the DETAILS DETAILS,,,,,,,,,,
This chapter was supposed to be up and done by Friday, but my parents had the hugest and scariest fight ever, and my siblings and I were so scared because my mother acted like she'd kill my father on the spot, and we all would literally try and stay with my dad to prevent it, but then half way through, my mom runs into the room and makes a phone call, then she's like, PACK YOUR STUFF! And my siblings and I are thinking, 'Are we running away?!' but then EVEN THOUGH THE FIGHT IS SO EFFIN SCARY AS HELL, SUDDENLY MY MOM PUSHES US OUT OF THE DOOR WITH OUR PACKED CLOTHES, and standing there is our Aunt, and a minute later my dad goes to work.
So my Mom tells my aunt (her sister) to keep us at her house overnight because she wants us to get away, and my dad gets an extra 2 hour shift to stay away from my mom, and then yeah... I have no idea what's happened now, because I'm STILL at my aunt's house, and we have no clue what's going on, and yeah.
Believe me, I'd never let anyone know this but seeing how nobody knows who I am?... Hey there, this is my shitty abnormal life.
So with my aunt, we watched Inside Out in the theaters, believe me when I say it ALMOST explains my whole life with the parents and money and stuff.
Again, sorry for the horrible chapter.
Bye I guess...
Review, Favorite, Follow, whatever you want, again, I'm sorry, I just couldn't think properly when writing the rest of the chapter.
I'll just post this before I write more...