Tobias doesn't relax his hold on me, so I sit close, with my head resting on his chest, as he picks his next victim.
"Lynn," he says, elbowing the girl on his other side, "which faction?"
"Dauntless!" she yells, rolling her eyes as if it's the most obvious thing in the world.
Tobias thinks for a minute, then grins.
"I dare you to get a tattoo. My choice."
"Can I know what it is before I decide?" she asks.
"Hmmm…" he says, tapping his index finger on his chin. "No!"
"Then no way!" she calls, throwing her sweatshirt into the middle of the circle.
"Tris," Lynn says, "we all want to know more about you and Four, so I pick you."
"I already did Candor," I remind her, "so I guess I'll take Abnegation."
Lynn smiles. "I dare you to serve your friends and our curiosity by letting us ask you ten yes and no questions about you and Four."
Yes or no questions can't be too bad. I won't be asked to reveal his real name or his fears or anything, so I comply.
Our friends group together, whispering the questions they want to ask. Lynn is their spokesperson since it's her dare.
"Have you guys done it?"
My face flames red. "No."
They whisper again and Lynn turns to us, "Have you kissed?"
I nod.
"Do you know his real name?" Christina cuts in.
Lynn looks a little peeved at Chris for cutting in, but it's a good question, so she lets it go.
"Yes," I reply.
Zeke and Shauna's eyebrows lift at this revelation.
"What is it?" Christina pushes.
"Yes or no questions only," growls Tobias. Christina pouts and I grin.
"Did you know he liked you before the end of initiation?" Lynn asks at Marlene's prompting.
"Yes," I reply.
"But you didn't get together, like officially, until after initiation?"
"Well," I hesitate, "I guess like, um, not officially."
"Did you kiss before the end of initiation?" Lynn continues grilling me.
"Yes," I admit, my cheeks pink.
"Have you been inside his apartment?" asks Zeke.
I nod and Shauna says, "Wow! I've never seen Four's apartment, and I've known him for two years."
"Have you seen each other naked?" asks Uriah. Lynn rolls her eyes and gives up on controlling the questioning.
"No," I say. "I've seen him without a shirt, but that's it."
"She's not an initiate any more, man," says Zeke. "What are you waiting for?"
"Yes or no questions only," Tobias growls again, giving Zeke a pointed look. I put a hand on his arm to steady him.
"I came from Abnegation," I begin. "Physical contact and nudity are frowned upon there. Four understands that. He's being patient with me, and I appreciate that. And I'm counting that question, because I answered it. You have one left."
Our friends huddle together and whisper back and forth, trying to come up with the perfect last question to ask us. Eventually they reach a consensus and turn to us.
"Have you been on any dates?" Lynn asks on the group's behalf.
I look up at Tobias before answering. "Not really. I mean one night we went out late riding trains and talking, and after my fear simulation final he took me back to his place to hang out for a bit, but we were keeping things quiet, so we haven't done the traditional dating things."
"We'll fix that," says Tobias, rubbing my back.
"I know," I smile at him, "we have all the time in the world."
"I have something else to say," I announce, and everyone turns to look at me expectantly. "Will, what faction?"
Our friends groan. They were hoping for juicy details. Teasing them was so fun.
"Well, I failed at Erudite, so I guess I'll try Dauntless," Will replies.
"I dare you to do the cinnamon challenge!" I yell.
"No way!" says Will. "That's impossible!"
He removes his shirt, now down to just his jeans and underwear, and I smirk thinking of all the layers I hid under my dress.
Will turns to Uriah, who chooses Abnegation. Will dares Uriah to give him a foot rub for five minutes while the game continues. Uriah agrees, though it is clear he's not happy about it.
Uriah chooses Shauna, who picks Candor.
"What on earth can you possibly see in my brother?" asks Uriah.
Shauna smiles. "Well, he's really cute, and he's funny. He treats me well. I can be myself around him, and we have a lot of fun together."
Zeke rewards Shauna with a long kiss, and everyone boos and throws pillows at the two lovers. They laugh and throw the pillows back. Before a full-blown pillow fight can break out, Shauna brings us back to the game.
"Lynn, little sister, you can't pick Dauntless. What are you going to do?"
"Um, Candor, I guess," says Lynn as if the words were unfamiliar on her tongue.
"Tell us your deepest, darkest secret," says Shauna with an evil glint in her eyes.
Lynn takes a deep breath and blows it out. It sounds shaky. What secret can Lynn possibly have that would be this difficult to tell?
"OK," begins Lynn. "So, um, I guess I never really told this to anyone, but, um, well, I'm kind of… Well, I'm actually gay. I'm a lesbian."
"Cool," says Uriah, then clamps his hand over his mouth.
Zeke looks shocked, but Shauna has a smug look on her face.
"I totally knew it," she says.
"Thank you for sharing your truth," says Christina. It's a phrase left over from her years in Candor, but it seems to fit.
We all nod in agreement and Tobias and Marlene, seated on either side of Lynn, pat her on the shoulders. I smile at her in an effort to remind her that she is among friends. She lets out another deep, shaky breath and turns everyone's attention back to the game.