A/N Hey guys! Wanted to get another update done before school started. Sorry this is taking me some time, I just want the chapters to be long enough to be worth your while. If you still have problems with the length, please review and I'll try to fix it. This chapter may be a little sketchy at one part since we know that Tobias and Tris like each other, but I purposely made it so that they're not experiencing any kind of sexual tension whatsoever. I think I'm just paranoid, but still. Let me know what you guys think! I love reading your reviews :)

Disclaimer: Divergent belongs to Veronica Roth.

TOBIAS

I drove home in a daze. It hurt a lot to see Tris upset, and for some reason she seemed to be upset because of me. I couldn't think of why.

Either way, I was going to be seeing her tonight for youth group. She was finally playing with us onstage, and she had been ecstatic for this moment for practically the entire summer. I knew she wouldn't let me ruin it for her.

I walked up the steps to my front door and took out my keys to unlock the door. But when I turned the doorknob, I realized that it had been unlocked the whole time. But I made sure it was locked this morning before I left for the station…

By the time I noticed the extra pair of shoes at the door, it was too late to leave. Marcus made eye contact with me, and I gulped, trying to remember if I did anything wrong. I completely forgot that Marcus was coming back today, and he gets furious about the tiniest things…

"What's in the sink, Tobias?" He raises his eyebrows sternly as I walk past him and look at the kitchen sink. In it are my cereal bowl and spoon from breakfast today.

I turn back to him and try not to cower. "I, um, I was going to wash that as soon as I came back from…" I trail off as I remember that Marcus doesn't know about my job at the radio station. He doesn't think I need one, because I'll just be taking over his job in his company later on. But unbeknownst to him, I'm saving up to move out as soon as I turn 18. Which is in four months. Four long, long, months.

"Where did you go?" Marcus narrows his eyes at me.

I start. "Um, to Zeke's. He broke his leg." Every lie has a shred of truth.

Marcus visibly relaxes. For reasons I'll never know, he trusts Zeke, of all people. Of course, Zeke is always on his best behavior when he sees Marcus, but he's still Zeke.

"Well take care of the dishes in the sink." He leaves. I almost can't believe my good luck. My back isn't going to be whipped today.

But then I hear his booming voice from the living room. I rush there and see my guitar case open with my guitar in it, next to the computer where the mic was still set up. I guess I forgot to put it away before I went to bed last night. I was up late recording the song I wrote for Tris. It was amazing, and I wanted to play it for her as soon as I could.

Marcus picks up the mic, a vein popping out in his forehead. He accidentally presses a button on the mic, turning the recording light on. "What is this?"

"I was just-"

"I told you, Tobias, I don't care if you play this stupid music as long as I don't hear it and I don't see it." He gestures to the open case and waves his fisted hand with the mic in it. "This is called seeing it."

I feel myself start to back out of the room as he steps toward me, sliding the belt out of his pant loops.

"Wait, I can-"

"This is for your own good, Tobias."

TRIS

I may be feeling hurt by Tobias, but that's not going to stop me from enjoying my first night worshipping onstage.

I get to the church and set up my keyboard, plugging everything in. Will's in the back checking all the sound levels and monitoring the music mix. We do a soundcheck for the mic and keys and then I'm done. By now, everyone's here except for our leading man-Tobias.

"Where's Tobias?" I ask Zeke. He's sitting down with his guitar, his broken leg stretched straight out in front of him.

He looks up at me, then glances at the clock. His mouth presses in a firm line. "I forgot. He said he's not going to make it."

"He did?" I furrow my brow. "But he was planning on being here this morning. We were texting about it before I met him at the station."

Zeke shoots a stern glance at me. "Just drop it, okay Tris? It's none of your business anyway."

I involuntarily take a step back. Zeke's sudden change in personality shocks me. "O-okay."

The rest of the night passes by in a blur. The worship, the music, the pats on the back, the compliments, it all felt so...washed out. I walked through youth group in a daze, muttering the occasional form of assent or gratitude.

"Tris!"

All the voices seemed to blend together as Zeke avoided my eyes the entire night. Something was wrong, I could feel it, and he wasn't telling me. Had something happened to Tobias? Did my abrupt exit at the station this morning shake him up that much?

"Tris!"

Pfft. A girl can dream.

"TRIS!" Christina punches me in the arm.

"Ow!" I yelp, jumping away from her.

She rolls her eyes. "Have you even been listening to what I'm saying about my date with Will on Friday?"

"You have a date with Will on Friday?" My voice raises an octave in pitch, a trait that has definitely been due to how much time I've been spending with Chris lately.

"Uh, yeah. I texted you about it this afternoon."

I look at my feet, inspecting my shoes. I hadn't checked my phone since this morning in case Tobias had texted me. It was obvious he didn't understand why I had been upset, and I had no need for insincere apologies.

"Sorry, my phone died."

"Are you okay?" I look up and Christina looks at me with concern. "You've kind of been in your own world tonight."

"Yeah, I'm just…" My words trail off as my eyes drift to Tobias' empty chair. He knew how excited I was about playing tonight, and it seemed like he was excited too. He wouldn't just miss it, even if he didn't want to face me after this morning. He may have been a little insensitive today, but he's still a thoughtful guy. I know him too well for me to believe Zeke.

I realize Christina is still staring at me expectantly. I clear my throat. "Yeah, must've just been surreal playing tonight."

"No, that's not it." She glances at Tobias' chair. "It's him, isn't it?"

"Who?" I feign ignorance.

She shoves me lightly. "Tris, I can tell you're lying. You bite the inside of your cheek unconsciously. It's your tell." She flips her hair. "I read a book on lie detection once. You can call me the Human Lie Detector now."

"Fine." I sigh. "Yes, I'm worried about him, okay? He should be here, and he's not."

"Maybe you should just go check on him after youth group. I'm sure you could just ask Zeke for his address."

"That's the thing that made me so suspicious!" I threw my hands in the air with frustration. "I think Zeke knows something's wrong, and he's not telling me. I can't get any information from him."

Christina taps her chin. "Oh, if only you had another friend with Tobias' address…" Her gaze slides towards Will across the room before coming back to me. Then she sees the look in my eyes. "No, Tris, I am not going to ask Will for his address. If you want it, you go get it."

"Please?" I give her my best puppy dog look. "I'll pay you back somehow, I promise."

She sighs and rolls her eyes. "Fine. But you owe me." She walks over to Will and starts talking to him inaudibly. I watch them, praying that Will hands over the address.

Christina gives him a face quite similar to the one I gave her a few moments ago before Will shrugs. I pick at my cuticles, not wanting to see the look of disappointment on Christina's face when Will denies her.

But instead, when I look up, Christina is flouncing back to me, a smile plastered onto her face, and Will is grinning at me behind her. I narrow my eyes at them both. "What?"

"Here's the address." Will hands his phone to me, and I take a picture of it.

"Why-"

"This is the first time Tobias has shown some interest in a girl," he chuckles, interrupting me. "Of course I'm going to help Christina set you guys up together."

"What?" I glare at Christina. "What do you think you're doing?"

Her smile fades. "What's wrong, Tris? I thought you'd be happy to find out that he likes you."

"He doesn't." I bite my lip as I think back to the radio station incident. "I know he doesn't."

Christina gives me a sad look before scowling at Will. "Did he expressly tell you that he liked Tris?"

"Yes!" Will's voice is filled with disbelief at my statement. "Zeke called us all over to his house to brainstorm ideas to woo her and everything. He definitely likes her."

"Tris?" Christina peers at me closely. "Did something happen that I don't know about?"

As I tell them about what happened at the radio station this morning, a crease appears between Will's eyebrows and Christina starts to glower at nothing in particular.

"That makes no sense." Will runs a hand through his hair. "He's not the type of person to change like that."

"All I know is that he hurt my best friend and I'm going to kill him." She clenches her fists.

"Whoa, easy there, tiger," Will says, taking one of her hands and rubbing it soothingly. She blushes at this and I instinctively smile. They're so cute together! But my smile slowly melts away as I realize that it'll never happen to me. They're the lucky ones, I guess.

"So here's the plan." Christina's voice interrupts my thoughts. "Even though he may not be my favorite person at the moment, I can see that you still care about him a lot. So after youth group, go to his house and confront him. Interrogate him. No matter what. Sure, he may be feeling bad for this morning, but that's no reason to miss your first night playing onstage."

"Okay." Then my face falls. "Oh no, I was supposed to be Caleb's ride home today. I can't stop by his house with Caleb...he'll ask too many questions."

"Are you sure that you're his ride?" Will points behind me, and I look and see him exiting with Peter and Cara. "He looks pretty good to me."

Sure enough, when I check my phone, I see that he's going to Peter's house after youth group. "Great. Then I'm all clear to visit Tobias." I turn towards Christina. "How do I look?"

The corners of her mouth curl up, but it doesn't reach her eyes. "Like you're about to get hurt."

TOBIAS

I groan. I try to get up, but with every movement my back screams in pain. I crawl forward miserably and look back at the wall that I've been slumped up against for who knows how long. It's red, sticky with my smeared blood. I sigh. I guess it'll be more to clean up later, along with those dishes in the sink.

I drag my way up the stairs as the after-Marcus routine starts to set in. I try to minimize my back movement as much as possible. When I finally get to my room around a half hour later, my thin white T-shirt is soaked with not just my blood but my sweat, as well. Gritting my teeth, I force myself to block out the inevitable pain as I heave my arms over my head and pull my shirt off in one fluid motion. I can't suppress the groan that escapes my mouth, or the tears that flow out of my eyes. Oh God, please help me. It's worse than normal.

I lie down on my bed on my stomach, letting my back air dry. Tomorrow I'll be absent from school, and Zeke will come over after and help me put myself back together if I'm still hurting.

I reach for the phone on my nightstand and dully check the time. Youth group is over by now, and I feel a deep pang when I realize that I missed Tris' first night playing with us. She probably hates me now...first this morning, and then missing her debut with the band.

I still don't really know what I did wrong there, but I'm sure I'll figure it out later.

My reverie is interrupted by a sharp rap at the door. I jump, startled, before stifling another yell. Marcus most likely went out for a business dinner after he finished with me, but if he sees someone at the door…

Let's just say there will be no need for Zeke to come back for me tomorrow.

The person keeps knocking, but then I hear a lilting voice.

"Tobias? Are you okay?"

My heart clenches as I stay silent. Tris.

"I know you're in there. The car is in the driveway."

I hold my breath, hoping she goes away. She can't see me. Not now. Not like this. God, when I asked for help, this was NOT what I wanted...

"Come on, I'm worried about you. It's not like you to miss tonight."

I wait for a few more seconds before I hear her footsteps retreat down the porch, and I breathe a sigh of relief. But then my muscles tense again when I hear footsteps coming back up with determination.

"I don't care, I'm coming in."

I hear the doorknob turn as the door creaks open. Marcus never locks the door when he goes out.

"Tobias?"

I hear her feet scamper up the stairs, and then she materializes in the doorway of my room. She meets my eyes before noticing the bloody mess on my back. I close my eyes, cringing, as she opens her mouth.

"What happened to you?!"

TRIS

I never expected to see this.

Tobias shuts his eyes. "Tris, please don't-"

"Who did this to you?" I can't stop the words that are bubbling from my mouth. Lord, please help me be of some use to Tobias. "Are you okay? Can I help you? Does it hurt? Maybe-"

"Shh, Tris, it's okay." He shifts, obviously enduring a lot of pain. I think I actually see a tear leak out of one of his eyes. "I'm fine."

"No, you're obviously not." I gingerly sit by him on the bed. "Who did this to you?"

"Um." He hesitates.

I'm about to press for more information, but then I remember that we all have our problems. He'll tell me when he's ready. "It's okay, you don't have to tell me. However, you do need to tell me where your first aid kit is."

"Bathroom across the hall, under the sink," he grunts. "There's a bandage roll and some ointment."

I don't even want to question why the statement seems like a routine thing to say for him. I rush across the corridor and grab the supplies, wetting a towel with hot water as well. When I come back, he's scooted across the bed a little to make room for me to sit. I carefully sit myself down, making sure not to touch him or cause him any more agony.

"This may hurt a little," I mutter. Tobias nods.

I slowly dab away the dried blood on his back with the towel. He draws a breath sharply as I touch one of his deeper cuts. When I finally clear everything away, I see that all the blood is coming from four deep gashes, crisscrossed from the bottom of his shoulders to the lower part of his torso. Though there's still a little blood oozing out, it seems to be slowing down.

"Tris, I-" He stops. "I'm sorry."

I hum as I continue to work. "For what?"

"For not showing up at youth group tonight."

"I don't think that's quite your fault, Tobias." I pick up the ointment and prepare to spread it over all the cuts.

"Well that's not-" He moans as I smear the ointment. "That feels nice. Thanks, Tris."

"Of course. You were saying?"

"Um." He pauses. "What was wrong this morning?"

"Sit up, I need to wrap this around you." I close the ointment and pick up the roll of bandage cloth.

He sits up, but then turns to face me on the bed. "Don't avoid the question."

I wrap it tightly around his body and torso, making sure I cover all of the gashes. "I...it doesn't matter at the moment."

I secure the edge of the bandage with a safety pin and then stand up off the bed. He stands up with me before softly walking to his closet and pulling out a dark shirt. Then he faces me, shirt in hand. "You know I care about you, right?"

"Y-yes?" I feel a lump in my throat.

"I'm serious." He looks me in the eye, and I squirm. "I do."

"Okay."

"Well if we're in agreement, I'd like to know what I did wrong this morning so I don't repeat it. Fair?" He sits on his bed, shirt still in his hand, and then pats the spot beside him. "Sit. Spill."

I plop myself down with a huff. "I was hurt by something you said, okay? With Eric. That's all I'm giving you, though. I'll tell you when you tell me who beat you up today."

He looks away for a second. "It may be a while before that happens," he says so softly that I almost miss it.

Then he looks at me again, the familiar sparkle in his eyes returning. "So, I may need a little help with this…" He hands me the shirt.

I roll my eyes and gently put it on him, careful not to touch his back or make him move in a way that causes too much discomfort. "That good?"

"Yeah." We slowly make our way to the door, a comfortable silence between us. When we get to the steps of his porch, he stops and turns his gaze to me. His blue eyes are intense, and I have to focus on trying not to fidget.

"Thank you, Tris. Really. You didn't have to do all this."

"I was worried about you," I say truthfully. "I knew something was wrong. I'm glad I came...I'm not sure when you would've gotten help."

"Yeah, Zeke usually checks on me the day after when things like this happen, but it feels nice to be taken care of immediately."

"This isn't just a one time thing, is it?" I say it more as a statement than a question as Tobias' eyes grow wide at what he just admitted.

He opens his mouth to speak but I cut him off. "No, I had my suspicions when Zeke was acting all hushed-up about your lack of appearance. It's okay. I know you'll tell me in your own time."

"You know, that's probably the nicest thing someone's ever done for me." Tobias gives me a small smile.

"What? Clean up your back?"

"No. Wait for me." He grins before turning back to the house. "Take care, Tris."

A/N Did I overdo that? Too cheesy? Let me know! Looking forward to reading your reviews! ~skutti2000