Hey Divergenters, I just wanted to say a few things.

I absolutely love the crazy amount of reviews, follows, and favorites, but so many people have been unfollowing and stuff! Like I had 320 follows when I last updated, I lost 17! And I had 220 favs, I lost 3! Please don't do that, I will always update, but it'll take a bit of time because I HAVE A LIFE.

Also, my new story coming out soon.

Please review, follow, favorite, and check out my other stories!

Chapter XXVI. Nightmares and the Bread

TRIS

I find myself in a familiar-looking room, Tobias's apartment.

"This is for your own good, Tris. You know that, right?" Tobias slips a belt off of his waist.

"Tobias, wait!" I shout. "This isn't real! This isn't you!"

"This is for your own good," he repeats. He whacked me in the hand with the buckle and I feel my knees give out. My limbs sprawl on the floor, and I feel the tears come on.

"Don't be a coward, Tris! Get up!" he scolds, hitting me again. But I don't get up. I stay glued to the floor in my salty tears.

"This isn't you," I whisper, the few tears streaming down my face straying into my mouth. He smiles evilly, in a way that I would have never imagined my Tobias to, and he morphs into Marcus.

"This is for your own good," he says, and he takes the belt across my entire back, causing me to cry out in pain.

When I that I don't hear yells from neighbors to keep it down in here, I realize that this was all a dream.

He takes the belt, whipping harder and harder, over and over again, his black eyes staring into mine.

"This is for your own good."

Suddenly, I find my eyes staring up at the Amity ceiling.

I wonder what kind soul woke me up from the terrible dream and I sit up, turning to see Tobias standing at the door.

Part of me wants to curl up in a ball, afraid that he'll come at me with a belt, but then I really look at him. He looks kind and caring, and in his dark blue eyes that shine in the dark is fear.

"C'mere," I say quietly, scooting down, pain visible in my voice.

In the dim light I can see him flush and I suddenly remember that I'm not wearing any pants, and I blush.

"Bad dream?" he asks softly.

I nod, tears welling up in my eyes.

"You?"

He looks down for a second, then meets my eyes. "Yeah."

"What happened?" he asks me.

I shake my head vigorously, tears streaming down my cheeks like a stream; smooth and gentle.

He takes one of my cheeks gently in his hand, and rubs his thumbs idly in small circles; I can still feel the spark, even after all we've been through.

"We're all right you know," he says quietly, reassuring me. "You and me. Okay?"

I take a shaky deep breath and nod.

"Nothing else is alright," he whispers against my cheek. "But we are."

"Tobias," I whisper. I am about to say something, but lust takes over my mind, and I press my lips firmly to his. His warm hands brush down to my sides, working their way down my legs. Chills spark throughout my body, but I wrap my leg around him, pulling myself closer to him. I feel nervousness creeping up into my throat, but I try not to let it show.

He slips his hand carefully under the hem of my shirt, and a faint sigh that I can't contain escapes my mouth. I see him blush lightly, making me blush.

His lips move down my neck, his hands running up and down my back, which erupts with a chilling sensation. I clutch my fists in his shirt; I just as afraid of this as he is.

I bring my hand up, accidentally brushing the bandage on his shoulder, and I feel him flinch in pain, and I instantly feel guilty. We both stop for a moment, lying tangled in each other's arms.

"Sorry," I whisper; somehow tears are beginning to make their way down my cheeks.

"Don't apologize," he whispers back, wiping my cheeks gently with his fingertips.

"I don't mean to be such I mess," I say at normal volume, my voice cracking. "I just feel so…" vulnerable, I finish off in my head. I shake my head.

"Hey now," he says comfortingly, "Don't worry, you're not the only one Tris. My…" he shakes his head and I frown, already knowing what he's thinking about.

"It's wrong," I say, louder. "It doesn't matter if your parents are in a better place—they aren't here with you, and that'swrong, Tobias." He meets my eyes. "It shouldn't have happened. It shouldn't have happened to you. And anyone who tells you it's okay is a liar."

I honestly have no idea where that came from, and what made me say it. It's not like I am trying to be a parental figure or anything. I mean, my parents weren't exactly the best examples. My dad is a major asshole, and my mom is just a coward who left me with the devil.

But somehow, someday, in a twisted future that is long gone, maybe Andrew and Natalie Prior would be my in-laws, sadly I would have Caleb as one too, if we even survive that long. They seem decent, way more compared to my broken family.

Tobias notices that I've been having many thoughts swirling through my head and he whispers, "Sleep." He wraps his arm around me so tight that I almost have trouble breathing, but I don't care. I need the comfort just as much as he does. I wrap my arm around his waist with no hesitation.

"I'll fight the bad dreams off if they come to get you," he says.

"With what?" I ask curiously.

He thinks for a moment then responds with only, "My bare hands, obviously."

I smile softly, and bury my face in his shoulder, and I allow one single tear to fall for Marcus, because he is worth no more than that, maybe even less. I nuzzle my face into his shoulder deeper, and before I drift into a deep sleep, I hear him whisper.

"I love you, Tris,"

I open my mouth to respond, but then I close my eyelids and fall asleep.

I love you too, Tobias.

-o0o-

I slip my legs silently out from his, hopping in the shower. I take a quick shower, then I hop out, slipping on a shirt and jeans. I hold the hair brush in my hand and instantly think of Christina. I frown. I hope my best friend is alive, wherever she is.

I brush through my short hair, trying to remove knots and tame the split ends.

I hear Tobias stir, and I see his head pop up.

"Good morning," I say, as calm as I can. "How did you sleep?"

"Okay," he whispers, standing up. He wraps his arms around my waist, putting his head on top of mine. I set the brush down and hold his hands in mine. I stroke his fingers softly, needing the comfort just as much as she does.

"I should go get ready," he says after a while.

"Okay," I say. He releases from the embrace and steps out of the room.

I pick up the brush and continue brushing, only hearing the sound of brush against knotted hair, barely able to hear his footsteps.

When I stop brushing and my hair looks presentable enough, I can hear him as clear as day.

"Don't call me Stiff you little jerk," he says angrily.

"I can call you whatever I want," a boy's voice says snottily, almost Candor.

Peter.

Then I hear a fist collide with a jaw. Inside, I feel pride for him, but I know that the Amity will definitely not feel the same way.

I run out of the room to find people of every faction surrounding the two grappling figures. A large man dressed in red grabs Tobias's right arm and pulls him off of Peter.

As Tobias flies by me, I see guilt piercing in his eyes, and I feel inevitable guilt for my dream, yet again, I had no right to be dreaming such a thing about him.

"Tobias, calm down!" I say, grabbing his shoulders.

"He has the hard drive," Tobias says, and I suddenly realize why he's so angry. "He stole it from me! He has it!"

I walk over to Peter, red lining my vision, ignoring the woman speaking softly to him, and I press my foot into his ribcage, hard. But I don't care about the whimpers of pain coming from him.

He doesn't have the right to pain.

"We won't be in a safe house forever," I whisper, "and this wasn't very smart of you."

I lean down and pull the flash drive out of his pocket and his fear-filled eyes stare back at me, immobilized by fear.

I turn back to Tobias and add, "Not very smart of you either. Do you want us to get kicked out?"

He scowls at me. The bulky Amity man who restrained him earlier begins to pull him toward the Conflict Room with the help of another man.

"What do you think you're doing? Let go of me!" he exclaims.

"You violated the terms of our peace agreement," he says gently. "We must follow protocol."

"Just go," I whisper softly to him. "You need to cool down."

No one argues with me.

The two Amity men lead Tobias down a hallway and I follow cautiously. "Watch your step," one of them says. "The floorboards are uneven here."

Finally, after numerous hallways, we arrive at the Conflict Room.

"Are you putting me in time-out of something?" he asks, scowling.

I feel my claustrophobia exploding in the tiny room, and I walk out to the orchard for some fresh air.

I sit on a small wooden bench until I hear a voice calling my name.

"Four!" It calls. It sounds confused. "Four! Where are you?"

I recognize the voice as Tobias's, but he sounds too happy…he sounds so…Amity.

"Tobias?" I ask, ducking under the branch of an apple tree. He runs toward me, a silly smile on his face until he falls. I catch him, my fingers burning with electricity. His dark blue eyes are missing the hints of black, shining brighter.

He smiles goofily.

"What did they—"

He cuts me off with a kiss. I kiss back, desire filling in me, but then I pull back, curious why he's acting like this.

"That was lame," he says, his voice sounding like a child's. "Okay, no it wasn't, but…"

He leans down to kiss me, but I press a finger to his lips.

"Tobias," I say sternly, holding back a laugh. "What did they do to you? You're acting like a lunatic."

"That's not very nice of you to say," he says, his voice sounding like a schoolteacher's. I feel a tingle in my spine. "They put me in a good mood, that's all. And now I really want to kiss you, so if you could just relax—"

"I'm not going to kiss you. I'm going to figure out what's going on." I say softly.

He pouts, then his face lights up. "That's why you like me!" he exclaims. "Because you're not very nice either! It makes so much more sense now!"

"Come on," I say. "We're going to see Johanna."

"I like you too."

"That's encouraging," I say flatly, trying not to laugh again. "Come on. Oh, for God's sake. I'll just drag you."

"No!" he says like a little child, not getting what he wants.

I sigh, then get an idea. "Want to kiss? Here, we can kiss somewhere. Follow me."

He smiles brightly, and obediently follows.

We walk for a bit, and when we reach her office, she is sitting behind her desk.

"Hey, are we kissing here?" I blush at his words.

"You really shouldn't cover up your scar," Tobias says, and despite how much I try to shut him up, he keeps talking. "You'd look prettier with your hair out of your face." I can't help but feel jealous for a moment, then I realize what the problem at hand is.

I make him sit down, and he laughs.

"What did you do to him?" I say angrily. "What in God's name did you do?"

"I…" Johanna frowns. "They must have given him too much. We had the stronger type in the Conflict Room when he was given it."

"They must have given him too much of what?" I ask angrily.

"You have a nice voice," Tobias says to me.

"Tobias," I say softly, "please be quiet."

"The peace serum," Johanna says calmly. "In small doses, it has a mild, calming effect and improves the mood. The only side effect is slight dizziness. We administer it to members of our community who have trouble keeping the peace."

I snort. Now everything makes sense.

"I'm not an idiot," I say haughtily. "Every member of your community has trouble keeping the peace, because they're all human. You probably dump it in the water supply."

Johanna doesn't respond immediately. Instead, she folds her hands calmly in front of her.

"Clearly you know that this is not the case, or this conflict would not have occurred," she says. "But whatever we agree to do here, we do together, as a faction. If I could give the serum to everyone in the city, I would. You would certainly not be in the situation you are in now if I had."

She makes me feel sick to my stomach. "Oh, definitely," I say, my voice dripping with sarcasm. "Drugging the entire population is the best solution to our problem. Great plan."

"Sarcasm is not kind, Four," she says gently, her voice making me want to puke. "Now, I am sorry about the mistake in giving too much to Tobias, I really am. But he violated the terms of our agreement, and I'm afraid that you might not be able to stay here much longer as a result. The conflict between him and the boy—Peter—is not something we can forget."

"Don't worry," I snarl. "We intend to leave as soon as humanly possible."

"Good," she says, smiling. "Peace between Amity and Dauntless can only happen when we maintain our distance from each other."

"That explains a lot." I blurt out.

"Excuse me?" she says, incredulous. I may have gone overboard. "What are you insinuating?"

Well, there's no going back, I think. "It explains," I say through gritted teeth, "why, under a pretense of neutrality—as if such a thing is possible!—you have left us to die at the hands of the Erudite."

Johanna sighs and looks out the window.

"The Amity wouldn't do something like that," Tobias says loudly. "That's mean."

I choose to ignore him.

"It is for the sake of peace that we remain uninvolved—"

"Peace," I spit, cutting her off. "Yes, I'm sure it will be very peaceful when we are all either dead or cowering in submission under the threat of mind control or stuck in an endless simulation."

Johanna makes a face, and I see Tobias trying to mimic it. I hold back a laugh.

"The decision was not mine to make," she says, suppressing her anger. "If it was, perhaps we would be having a different conversation right now."

Uriah would be proud of me, I made an Amity mad, I think.

"Are you saying you disagree with them?" I ask sharply.

"I am saying," she says, "that it isn't my place to disagree with my faction publicly, but I might, in the privacy of my own heart."

"Tobias and I will be gone in two days," I say angrily. "I hope your faction doesn't change their decision to make this compound a safe house."

"Our decisions are no easily unmade," she reassures. "What about Peter?"

I groan inwardly. "You'll have to deal with him separately," I say. "Because he won't be coming with us."

I take Tobias's hand in mine, and begin to lead him out of the room.

"Four," Johanna says. "If you and your friends wish to remain…untouched, by our serum, you may want to avoid the bread."

I snort. Zalia was right after all, the single thought makes memories of my friends zoom through my head, and I hope that they are all okay.

"Thanks," I mutter over my shoulder.

I knew it.

Please review, follow, favorite, and check out my other stories! Also, please don't unfollow or unfavorite, I will always update, even if it takes time!

~TrissyPoo