Chapter 31- Love's a Gathered Storm.

I take one more look at Tobias, one more look at the beautiful moonlight and twinkling night sky and commit to the darkness.

I really should learn how to swim more often.

Something feather-like softly whispers a trail down my spine. A touch: of some sort. I inhale, my eyes closed, my body still asleep.

Something hard yet surprisingly soft is underneath me. I don't ask questions. I don't open my eyes. I just try to capture as many more minutes of sleep I can muster.

I hear quiet shuffling around me: to my left and right. Followed by soft voices, whispering: Quick!

I continue not to acknowledge it.

It's then that I feel the sun's vibrant rays spray a gold sheen across the room and over my covered eyes. Since when do I have a window in my bedroom?

A million questions. A million answers.

And I really don't care about any of them.

A few seconds pass as I try to fall back into dreamy paradise, but my brain stops me. I do not have a window in my hotel room. I know for a fact that my mattress is extremely soft and not as hard as what I'm laying on.

It's then that absolutely everything floods back to me. Piece by piece, I answer the dozen questions inside my sleepy and confused head. Memories from last night begin to quickly resurrect once again, flooding back to my system. I squeeze my eyes open.

They meet a half-naked Tobias who is asleep. I'm lying on top of him, my breasts pressed against his chest, completely naked. Before I can admit that this is my new favourite position to sleep in, bitter, icy cold water is chucked over me and I gasp out an ear-piercing, deafening shriek.

Everything happens in a matter of seconds.

I swing back, screaming. Wrap my exposed chest abruptly with the blanket. Wake Tobias up in the process. My eyes instantly lock gazes with my pranksters.

Zeke and Uriah are standing in front of me. Laughing their asses off.

'WHAT THE HELL, DUDE?' Tobias shouts, enraged, shoving away water from his face which missed my spine. His muscles tense, he switches into protective mode in an instant.

Zeke wipes away his tears, bending over he says, 'Oh God!' He struggles to breath, chocking on his own laughter.

He high-fives Uriah.

'Your faces were,' breathes in humorously, 'priceless.' Breathes out.

'This is not funny!' I scream, feeling the heat rising to my cheeks and praying it isn't noticeable.

'Oh!' Uriah answers, 'this is extremely funny! I even got it on video!' he says, waving his phone in the air.

My eyes widen. Tobias looks like he is about to murder someone. 'Uriah, turn the video off now.'

'Why don't you come and get it?' he asks innocently, 'I mean you should have clothes on right now since you are in such a public place, so why don't you come and get it off of me?'

Mortification.

I'm drowned in it. Painted in it. Absorbed in it.

I don't respond.

Uriah shuts off the camera.

'Ha! That's because both of you are naked! Oh my God, Sex in the pool. Sex ON a sun bed. Now that's something I have never tried before.' Uriah grins.

'How did you know where we were?' I ask, trying to change the subject, knowing my face is as red as fire.

'Oh well we checked your apartment, sneaked in through your balcony door-you should lock that by the way.' Zeke says, ' I got the whole gang together and we were going to go… swimming surprisingly. But obviously,you thought of that first,' he grimaces, 'but now, I can't stand the thought of going swimming now that I know you guys had sex in the pool.'

'We didn't have sex in the pool!' I say, surprised by my voice, suddenly strong to my defense.

'Whatever you say princess, whatever you say…' Uriah mumbles.

'You really think we believe you since you are both naked?' Zeke grins.

'I never said we didn't have sex at all,' I mumble under my breath.

'What was that, Tris?' Uriah narrows his eyes, a Cheshire grin draped along his lips.

I'm scared that I'll never be able to live this down. I'm scared that I won't be able to fight back my blush every time mentions swimming.

'Both of you out! Now!' Tobias roars, the smallest amount of rose betraying his emotionless face.

Uriah and Zeke both jump at the sound of Tobias' voice and whip their hands above their heads, slowly backing away until they disappear behind the curtain and start walking off.

I let out a breath.

The stone walls around me mock my humiliation, at the same time I moan into my makeshift pillow, by refracting the sound of Uriah's and Zeke's howls of laughter around the room. The sound is distant as if it is floating away, but reminds me just as I think they disappear, how ever-present the laughter is, how it will always be. It is engraved in my brain now. Forever.

Grey is an odd colour. Subdued. Reserved. Unemotional. The colour of indecision and compromise.

Too much grey carries sadness. Borderlines with black.

Death. Mystery.

Too little grey welcomes livelihood. Borderlines with white.

Life.

Someone tried to hang the sun on the sky today.

They failed.

The sky is weeping in mourning from the absence of the sun, drizzling us with the faintest kiss of rain. The sky is grey.

So is the pavement.

It's spotless. Stripped of any kind of infraction. Neatly tiled, stretching across the length of the avenue Tobias and I are walking in. Stunningly carved, white-stone two storeys buildings are positioned too perfectly down the straight avenue laid out before us. Windows, dark brown that contrast the stone, are adjacent to each other. The light dazzling off all of them. Brown wood and black metal benches grace the sidewalk of the road with planted trees hugging the sides of them. The trees are greener then I have ever seen before. Others hurriedly carry on with their business, their heads down, not realising the beauty in front of them. The beauty you only get to see once in your life.

This is the centre of town. Centre of life.

My eyes are swinging from one merchandise shop to another. To the smell of freshly baked bread, to the loud shouting of shopkeepers advertising their products, to the earthly smell of freshly picked vegetables, to books and to TVs and all sort of other things I have only ever imagined. I make a mental note to stop by the farmers market while I am here.

Eddie is directing us through the crowd, as if he has memorised the entire place—which I wouldn't be surprised if he has. I'm starting to get use to his type of clothing now: denim jeans, blue polo shirt, a jacket. It's seems normal now. Seeing him in such freeing colours. Seeing everyone in colours like that.

Tobias and I trip over our own feet in astonishment as we shove past people to get through the thick crowd. Our eyes are wide, soaking up our surroundings as we walk through small roads and past dozens and dozens of shops.

We are meeting George here in the centre of town today, in a small coffee shop. It seems bizarre that we interrogated him only yesterday and yet now here we are: running, in a hurry to meet him at a coffee shop.

We reach the end of the avenue and take a sharp left.

My eyes float from left to right before landing on the coffee shop in front of me. Situated on the corner of the avenue and covered in black wooden frames and doors with glass windows so clean, so huge, I can see absolutely everything going on inside it, is the infamous coffee shop better known as: Starbucks.

There is an aroma of roasted coffee in the air that slaps me straight in the face as I walk in. People everywhere, with phones, laptops: chatting, laughing, and drinking. I follow Eddie to the counter where they are selling drinks and the barista asks me what I would like. Bewildered, I search through the menu, unsure. What on earth is a triple, venti, soy, no foam latte? Is that even English?!

'Would you like something cold or hot?' Eddie asks me, sensing my confusion while trying to hold back a small smile from stretching across his face.

'Hot, please.'

Eddie thinks for a second. Then says: 'Two Cappuccinos then, please,' he address the barista, 'Four, do you want one?'

'Yeah, okay,' he responds. I'm still wondering what a Cappuccino is when Tobias looks over to me and squeezes my hand. It's random but a sweet gesture and as I raise my eyes, all of a sudden, I understand why he did it. The young, attractive female taking our order is looking at Tobias, fluttering her eye lashes so much I want to laugh at how stupid she looks.

'Make that three.'

The young female barista nods, turning her attention to Eddie as she writes something down.

'For here?'

'Yes,' Eddie replies.

The barista turns to Tobias. 'Your names?'

I frown. 'Excuse me?'

Why would they want our names? We are just ordering coffee.

Edward actually chuckles. 'It's just the Starbucks thing, Tris,' he turns towards the woman. 'Edward, Tris and Four.'

'Four? Like the number?'

'Exactly like the number.' I say irately and realise both Tobias and I said that at the exact same time. I turn my head to him, placing my hand on his shoulder, grinning.

'You guys are idiots,' Eddie laughs just as the coffee machine is turned on by someone behind, roaring to life with the sweet smell of roasted, dark coffee and the woman and several other people behind the bar, start to make our drinks. We stand to the side, waiting and the girl asks the next customers what they would like.

'What time is George coming?' I ask.

'Should be any time now.' Tobias replies.

We thank a different barista as we collect our drinks and walk to some comfortable-looking sofas. I take a sip of my drink and my eyes widen when the foam and strong coffee races down my throat. So delicious! Tobias has the same reaction. And Eddie? He just grins, shaking his head and taking another sip of his own coffee.

'You're really missing out if you don't have a good coffee shop in Chicago.' Eddie comments. I laugh. It's true.

I sit next to Tobias on a larger sofa as Eddie sits opposite me near the window but also near the door so we can see George enter.

My eyes linger to Tobias and I chuckle when I see a moustache of foam on his upper lip. Before I know what I am doing, I'm whispering come here and sliding closer so that our arms are touching and I wipe away the existing foam around his mouth with my fingers. As I do it, his eyes lock with mine and become darker and I almost forget how to breathe. God, I could take him here on this table. I begin to lean in to kiss him but am interrupted by Eddie, coughing.

A blush takes over my whole face. I had forgotten he was there. We move away several inches. 'George is here,' he says, nodding his head over to the door.

George strolls in, in casual attire, looking too much like Tori. The hair, the face, the height. He quickly orders a drink which looks like a cold one and we wave him over.

We all stand up to shake George's hand as he smiles at us. 'Please take a seat.' I say.

He seems entirely too upbeat considering yesterday we had him tied up. God, we sound like serial killers not normal young adults.

'How are you?' I start, willing a smile.

'I'm fine, thank you. You?'

'Yeah, I'm good.' I reply.

He takes a sip of his drink. Pauses for a few moments.

'So … what exactly did you want to talk about? Didn't you get all your answers yesterday?' George says,raising his eyebrows as he sets his ice-coffee on the table, droplets of condensation gliding down the drink, creating a puddle of water around it.

'Yes,' Tobias answers this time. 'Most of them.' Pauses. He looks as if he is about to say something but then closes his mouth.

'What's going to happen to Tori?' George asks, softly. 'I just can't believe she would do such a thing.'

'She wanted revenge George, she thought,' I inhale. 'She thought that they killed you.'

His muscles are tense, eyebrows furrowed, a slight frown plastered across his face, as if a transparent innocent cloud of guilt is lingering above him.

'I just-' he clears his throat. 'I thought that it would help her. That it would help me. She wouldn't have to worry about me and I couldn't tell her I was going to escape with Amar, because in case of the event that people interrogated her I wanted people to think she knew nothing.' He lets out a breath. 'It's all my fault.' The words are little more than a guilty whisper under his breath.

I'm about to tell him, it's not. Everything is okay. But that's not the truth. That's far, far from the truth and he knows it.

'How did you leave? You did it as if you killed a fly.' Tobias asks, arms positioned on his thighs, leaning forward.

'We left late at night. I still remember the air outside being so quiet and stiff. We ran forward in a straight line and we never looked back. We knocked out a few guards without injuring them, we didn't want to leave evidence by killing them and we just ran, on foot outside. And well, after about a week we found this place. We pretended we were immigrants and we got jobs. Trying to build up some money so we could buy an apartment.'

'You and Amar live together then?' I ask, leaning in on my elbows as I position them on my knees.

'Yeah, our first apartment was cheap but pretty shabby so after a year we moved out into a nicer one.'

'And Amar got a job with the government?' Eddie says, sounding more like a statement than a question.

'Yeah.'

'It seems odd to me,' Eddie replies, 'that a man with so many lies ended up with a governmental position.'

George laughs. A deep rumble. 'You think the government don't have secrets?'

Even I chuckle. I know for a fact they do.

'It just seems unlikely.' Eddie argues and sighs, furring his eyebrow in the process.

Soon, an hour slips by as we continue to talk. The shop looks as busier as ever as we say our final goodbyes to George and open the door to leave.

I feel the cold air fly over my shoulder, flipping my hair back as Tobias and I walk hand in hand with Eddie towards the square. I inhale the fresh air, loving the feeling of being outside. Feels a lot like freedom.

The cold air flies over my shoulder, flipping my hair back as Tobias and I walk hand in hand, following Eddie to the square. I inhale the fresh air, loving the feeling of being outside.

A city square, dazzling with life, is wrapped around a large central stone building. Just the sight of it makes me gasp. Small, petite, red coloured striped farmer's market tents line the centre of the large pebbled area, the shopkeepers shouting with delight about their products. Surrounding the edges are restaurants and more shops than I can ever imagine and a large fountain, displaying a large dance of water. There are trees and other sorts of greenery everywhere. I nudge Tobias over to the farmer's market there but something catches his eye instead.

'Hey, why don't you get Eddie to go with you? I'm just going to go over there.' Tobias says, looking distracted and pointing towards the general area of shops and restaurants.

'Um, okay?' I answer, walking in the general direction of the market as Tobias strides towards Eddie. I only catch a part of their conversation as I wonder off.

'Look after Tris, okay? I'm going to do that thing I talked to you about.'

'Yeah, sure mate. No problem.' Eddie answers directly.

I shrug off Tobias' mysterious nature and investigate the area, Eddie following closely behind.

I casually stroll over to the first stall, excitement building up within me. Everything is so extravagant! This person sells freshly made jams in glasses with all different types of fruit!

'How am I going to pay for any of this Eddie? I don't have any of those, uh, what do you call them here dollees?'

'Dollars,' Eddie chuckles. 'And don't worry about it Tris. Under strict instructions from the Leader Nicholas herself, I was told to pay everything for you and charge it to her card.'

'Oh,' I say, shocked. 'Wow, that's so kind of her.'

'Yeah,' he laughs, 'it helps being the Leader of the city. Oh Tris, before I forget, tomorrow evening there will be a gala held at a particular building. We would love for all of your squad to come, I'll send a car. Don't forget!'

I internally groan knowing Christina will want to go shopping.

'Hello!' The shopkeeper cheerfully greets us as I turn towards his stall, mesmerised. 'Are you looking for anything in particular?'

'Not really. What do you recommend?' I answer, smiling. The man must be in his late 50s, with dark hair, wrinkles slowly stretching across his complexion, signs of years of hard and tough work.

'Well, we have the classics,' he points to the jams in the front row. 'Strawberry, blueberry, apricot and so on.' He gestures to the second row. 'Then you have my favourites: raspberry and rhubarb, peach and amaretto, cranberry, pineapple and finally spiced pear jam.'

I have no clue what a pineapple is. Nor an amaretto.

My eyes are wide when he finishes and I end up buying four of the old man's favourites along with the apricot jam. The total is five dollars and Eddie hands it over.

The jam, oozing with colour, is contained in a cute glass jar with paper on top saying which flavour it is and a string around the lid.

Eddie and I walk over to all the next stalls, varying from jewellery, clothes, fruits and vegetables, books and electronics.

As time flies by, I purchase multiple books, scarfs, a few pieces of clothing for my mother and father, some souvenirs, jewellery and this peculiar pineapple from the fruits and vegetables table that looks freakishly weird! It has spikes and all! I have never seen anything like it.

I see Tobias across from the market, walking back with his hands … empty. Hmm, I expected him to buy at least, something? Well, I think it can be said that I did the shopping for him.

Eddie has disappeared. I think shopping may bore him, so he gave me 50 dollars and went off to some geeky, computer store nearby.

Men.

I purchase my last item and make a vow to get everyone to come here one more time before we leave and turn around to walk towards Tobias. Instead, I slam into a wall.

I mean a hard chest. Strong hands grab my arms to steady me as I tremble back a bit from the large impact.

Shock registers through me as a stranger catches me.

'Oh! I am so sorry!' I gasp, taking a step back as his hands fall to his sides and I start apologising to the young gentleman in front of me.

'Don't worry.' He smiles. A smile, I'm sure, a million of girls go weak for. He's very attractive. Blonde hair, blue eyes. Muscles. Not nearly attractive as Tobias, though.

'But you better watch where you are going next time; you never know who wants to see you fall intentionally.' he smiles, showing his straight, shiny, white teeth.

My breathing falters for a split second. Then I smile back at him.

The words are thrown into the air as if he says them every day as a greeting. As if there isn't a darker meaning towards it.

My eyes are torn downwards and I catch a glimpse of a small piece of black card, shimmering in the light, that I hadn't noticed before. There are many of them.

'What's that?' I ask, pointing towards his cards. Is that too personal? Is that rude? 'Sorry, I don't mean to intrude-'

He cuts me off. 'Oh! No, it's fine.' He lifts the cards so I can see them, grinning. 'I'm a therapist and so, sometimes, I like to brighten people's day with some random quotes, some are inspiring and others make you think about life in a different way. Here have some.'

He hands me two.

'Wow, uh, thank you! That's awesome! ' I say, smiling as I look down at the cards.

'Yeah, have a good day. Wait, I didn't catch your name?'

'Tris,' I reply.

'Have a good day, Tris,' he nods, his lips curling into a smile.

'You, too!' I shout as he walks away towards a different stall.

Standing still in the middle of the farmers market, I let my gaze fall down to the petite, thin black card with silver typed writing. My hand reaches over to flip the card over and I read it:

'Your love's a gathered storm

I chased across the sky

A moment in your arms

became the reason why

You alone are my light

I would give anything to feel

you in my arms tonight.

-Josef Thompson'

And suddenly, I'm grinning. Grinning, because the quote reminds me of Tobias and the love I feel for him. Grinning, because out of all the bad things that have happened over the past couple of months, we still have each other.

I feel a shadow over me.

'What are you looking at?' Tobias frowns and I jerk my head up, shocked at his sudden appearance.

'Oh, Tobias!' I fling my arms around his neck, hugging him.

'What's wrong? Who was that guy? Did he hurt you? What is that?' He exclaims frantically, getting into protective mode as he wraps his arms around my waist. His eyes glazing over mine with so much emotion pouring into them I smile at how protective he is.

'Oh, too many questions Tobias! I'm fine,' I sing, ecstatic. 'I just love you so much!' I bring my lips up to his and kiss him greedily.

'Woah, Tris,' he breaks apart, breathless. 'You know we are in the middle of a market right?'

I gasp. Tumbling down back into reality and pulling away from Tobias, who's laughing at my quickly arising blush. Damn it, cheeks. Giving away my emotions.

'Stop laughing!' I whisper, punching his shoulder and shyly looking down at the pavement, smiling because I'm too embarrassed to join in with his laughter.

He chuckles once more. 'I'm not, darling! I just love the way you blush.'

I roll my eyes.

He takes my waist after recovering from his laugh and pulls me in the direction of the shop Eddie is in.

I feel stares from the left of me shoot my back as I drift away from the centre. I tilt my head to the left, ever so subtlety, to get a closer look but I see nothing in the shadows other than a flash of grey clothing. A flash of grey clothing that was watching me.

This has happened twice now.

Once, on our way back from visiting the Mayor of Security and now: this.

Maybe it's nothing.

It could just be a coincidence.

Maybe I'm overreacting.

But grey is such an odd colour.

I wake to the sound of running water. I flutter my eyes open a few times and once they creep into a focus and I smile when I see Tobias in the bathroom, the door wide open. I pull the white sheet from the bed around my shoulders and chuckle when I see the pile of clothes from last night's lovemaking.

I lean against the bathroom door-so quietly; he hasn't even noticed me yet. Tobias jaw flexes to the side as he smears white shaving foam around his chin and uses the cut throat razor to shave his stubble. His shoulder muscles move as the knife slides alongside his neck and I'm mesmerised by it. His jaw clenched. His muscles flexing. His towel hanging low on his hips.

My eyes travel to the reflection of the mirror caressing his abs. So God damn perfect. He leans in closer towards the mirror and lifts his head up to shave just underneath his jaw.

'Are you going to just watch me?' His smirk catches my words in my throat.

'Would you believe me if I told you that I find you incredibly sexy when I watch you shave?'

His laughter vibrates through me. He finishes off the last piece near his ear before running water over his chin and then the towel.

'Why do you use a knife and not a razor?' I whisper, walking closer towards him.

'I prefer it.' He shrugs, rubbing his now clean shaven face.

I'm standing in front of him now. 'I must say,' surprised that my voice is laced with lust, 'that there is something very masculine about it.'

'Is that so? You know I do it for this particular lady.'

'Oh?' his eyes are laced with mischief as I grin. 'Do I know this lady?'

'I think you might do,' he whispers, softly. I feel his hands trace my bare arms, then drop down to my waist. I feel every movement of his hand, every touch through the thin veil of lining, barely trying to keep me decent. I'm leaning into him before I know it, feeling his skin against mine, inhaling his scent. His finger touches my bottom lip before his mouth does. So soft- as if he's not sure whether I will vanish into thin air at his touch. The way he looks at me takes my breath away, his eyes thick with desire and lust but also happiness. I feel his hands gently move inside of the white sheet loosely around me and I can't breathe.

I want to stay like this forever. I never want to let go.

Tobias leans in again, so tender, so perfectly. His lips, softer than I have ever known, kisses my neck and I feel his heavy breaths against my neck. He smells of mint, sandalwood and shaving cream. Who knew that would be a nice combination.

He's memorising the feel of my lips and the curves of my body and I'm forgetting how to breathe, forgetting how to clasp the sheet around me and it drapes to me before falling to the floor in a pool of linen.

'Oh God,' I hear Tobias moan as he pulls me flush against him, naked.

It all changes in a matter of seconds.

He kisses me stronger, desperately, urgently as if his life depends on it. Looking at me as if I make him feel alive, as if I have just woken him from a lifetime of sleep. His hands travel to the small of my back as I kiss his jaw, his throat, where only a minute ago a knife had been. I run my hands along his shoulders, his neck, his abs, his back and he thrusts his tongue into my mouth and I dip my fingertips into his back lightly as I conceal my moan.

When I pull back, his lips are on my neck and my jaw and my breasts and I gasp for air as he massages them. He mumbles something along the lines of 'you're so sexy,' and I feel his grin as I moan his name in his ear over and over and over.

With my lips aligned to his ear and his mouth on my jaw, I lick the bottom of his ear before whispering: ' I was wondering if you would help me shower?'

It's like someone flicked a switch and everything happens in speed-mode.

Tobias lifts me up and I wrap my legs around his hips and I feel his towel fall down. He walks towards the shower and turns it on. In a mere couple of seconds, the water is a good temperature and I'm drowned in it.

I'm against the wall.

I feel his unsteady rise and fall of his back as he breathes and he's running the cold shower gel around my bare thighs, up past my ribs, around my lower back, past my hip bone, up towards my neck. In a matter of seconds, he places the shampoo in my hair and slowly begins to massage it and I close my eyes, memorizing the way his hands move along my hair.

Once I rinse off the soap, I shift my hands up behind his neck, clinging to him, feeling a deep desire in my lower stomach ignite. I feel him against me and this time our lovemaking lasts for what feels like a few rough and heated moments.

With two white towels around my head and body, I walk towards my dresser, retrieving my clothes. That was the best shower I have ever taken.

Tobias is in the kitchen now, cooking us breakfast using the ingredients I bought yesterday at the farmer's market, instead of ordering food.

I throw my underwear and shirt on quickly as I search for my trousers I wore yesterday. Once I look around the room I spot them draped over a chair. I go to retrieve them and pull them on.

After doing my little skinny jeans dance, I begin to walk towards the bedroom door when I feel a piece of card poking my thighs. Curious, I slip it out of my jean pocket and flip it over.

It's the second card I never got to read from the dark haired stranger I bumped into yesterday. A card to brighten my day. Supposedly.

It's black all over, the words sparkling in silver.

The same words that leave me breathless. Curious. Intrigued.

Words that go along the lines of this:

The lion always chases the deer.

Because he can.

Because he is the master.

But the question is: are you the lion or the deer?

Only the south winds can tell what will dwell.

Only time will tell.

So, be careful my dear.

A/N Can I get a big hurray for updating on time (sort of?) Couple of hours late but it's here!

Thank you SO SO SO SO MUCH to my amazingly awesome editor/decision helper/motivator: Anastasia but thank you even more for staying up late with me to edit this!

Next chapter has a mass of suspense (what's with that quote?!) , action and romance so stay tune for the next update on Tuesday!

Please R&R!

I'm typing this with my eyes closed now. I'm exhausted. So goodnight! Or goodmorning, it's nearly 3 in the morning...

Peace out!

-UKDauntlessGirl.