A/N- Hope everyone had a great holiday period! I'm very glad that it's over! My hours have been cut in half so I can hopefully get back on schedule to post once a week rotating between 'A Twist of Fate' and 'Eye of the storm'. This chapter is kind of filler, with the next one really getting the ball rolling! So look forward to the next update! And thank you to everyone who's followed and faved! I especially want to say thank you to those who have stuck with me these few years! We're nearly there with the story! And thank you to the guest who reviewed the last chapter, the best part of uploading my work here is hearing what you all think of it! Have a great week, Bethany x

Chapter 30

Tobias's POV

"You found a way out?" I excitedly ask, moving onto the bed.

She shakes her brunette head, her mouth twisting, "maybe? But we're definitely getting somewhere."

I turn back to Lauren, whatever she was about to say disappearing from thought, "you're going to have to stay here to keep look out."

"Bang on the wall if you see anyone approach," Tris adds. I smile over to her, glad we're on the same page. "Come on, Four," she says, breaking off bits of wood, "there's no time to waste."

Helping her quickly, we made a hole big enough for me to squeeze through. She moves out of the way as I awkwardly shimmy through the spikey entryway. At one point, I actually thought I had gotten stuck, with my knees pressed against the other side of the wall, and my head still in the cell. Tris, every once in a while, starts giggling to herself, and I know exactly what it's about.

"If I hear one more laugh out of you, Princess…"

She turns around, and I can feel the grin penetrating the dark space around us as her feet crunch against the ground, "or what?"

I grab her before she takes any more steps backwards, my body itching to be close to her again. I push away the thought of the walls closing in, and tangle my hand in her hair. The other moves to tug at her waist. "Do you really want to know?"

I feel her push herself closer, and my body buzzes with energy the more I feel of her, my already beating heart picking up its pace. Her hands travel up my chest, slowly making their way to rest on my neck, "I think I'd like you to show me."

And without needing to be persuaded further, I pull her in, my lips capturing hers. She smiles against my mouth, her stupidly soft lips nearly putting me into overdrive; the intensity of the motions hitting the roof.

And almost like our minds are one, her tongue ever so slightly runs against my bottom lip. Opening my mouth gladly, her tongue dances with mine, and what should be a passing thought captures me like sinking sand. How many times has she done this before? And how far has she taken it?

We haven't had nearly enough time to talk to each other about anything to do with whatever is going on with us, and in the long run I know the unknown is going to build and build until it all comes crashing down.

But for now, I let myself enjoy having her with me, even though I know it isn't nearly the right thing to do at this moment in time.

And then she's pulling back, like the thought just passed her own mind. Her wobbly breaths mimic my own, and I feel her thumb rub over my bottom lip, my heavy eyes latching onto her small smile. "Come on, Tobias; I don't want her thinking I've left her."

I nod absentmindedly, latching onto the way my name sounds coming out of her mouth. No one calls me that name, my Dauntless name Four overtaking my mother and father's choice since day one. I never thought I'd want anyone calling me that, but for some reason the name Four has never sounded right coming from her lips.

"Wait, Tris-" I say, trying to catch up with her without tripping on the loose stones on the floor. "Who's waiting?"

She doesn't answer, and a few seconds later she crouches down. Not realising she was about to do it, I hit into her, and have to steady myself against the wall.

"Nice one, clumsy," she says, deadpan. Before I can reply, she's moving through the wall.

Excitement surges through me, the thought of her finding a way out overshadowing her shake of the head when I asked back in the other room. I follow her through, having more trouble than she did yet again.

I look up as I get through the door, entering into another mostly empty room.

Tris, already standing, is talking. I scamper up, worry overtaking any buzz I just had. If we've been found out already-

But as I move to go and stand in front of her, I see the other person. Tori's eyes move to me, widening. And I want to say relief floods her, but her head starts shaking, her eyes glueing back on Tris.

"You two can't be here, you need to leave." Tris's hand comes out in front of her, reaching for Tori. But Tori steps backwards.

"We're not leaving without you, Tori," Tris says softly. I glance at the Princess's tense face, her words opposing her demeanour. "We came here to find you."

Tori, having been here maybe less than a day longer than my group, looks as if she's taken the brunt of this village's anger. Dark bags hang beneath her eyes, her thin lips pulling in an unyielding frown. There's a dark shadow just under her jaw, and I slowly realise it's a bruise. Anger floods in, knowing they've hurt her both physically and mentally enough to vanish any pity I may have had for the town.

But that seems to be the last of Tori's worries, her eyes magnetising back to Tris's, the urgency in her tone penetrating us both. "You've only got days, Princess. You need to leave."

Tris's face turns to mine, her eyes wide. Tori's words hang between us, the worst outcome left unsaid.

"What do you know?" I forcefully ask.

Hard brown eyes meet mine, some switch turning off or on. "It's the lake, stay away from-"

Loud banging comes from behind us, and I turn within seconds, expecting someone to be behind us. But I face nothing.

Remembering the plan, I grab hold of Tris's arm, pulling her back to the small door. I look to the wall now, seeing that there's no way for anyone that comes in here to not notice the square rip in the wallpaper. Scanning the room, my eyes land on an old looking painting.

I gently push Tris towards the door, but she turns around when she feels my hand fall from her arm.

I move towards the painting, grabbing the sizeable piece and walking back over to Tori, "put this in front of the door when we leave."

She grabs onto the picture, nodding.

Tris, frustratingly not through the door, comes back up to my side, "we'll come back for you, just hang on for a bit longer."

I drag her back, not waiting for Tori's reply. Number one priority is getting Tris back to our room.

I make her go first, then I'm on her heels and we're rushing through the tight passage. We clumsily stumble back through the hole in the wall, rouge splinters of wood snagging our clothes.

A panicked looking Lauren stands by the window, her attention snapping to us when I'm just climbing onto the bed. "You're cutting it stupidly close, Four! The guards are nearly at the door!"

Standing up, my eyes land on Tris. Her mind on the situation at hand, she frantically searches the room for something to cover our obvious hole in the wall. She comes up empty handed, and the only thing I can think of wide enough to cover the hole is us. I grab her quickly, falling back onto the mattress as I hear the guards open the first door.

Shuffling backwards, I pull Tris close, then look to Lauren, her having the best view of the black pit behind us.

Her quick eyes flicker from the door to Tris and I, and something changes. Her franticness ceases, eyes widening and body freezing up.

I pull Tris closer, the back of my bare wrist scratching against the edge of the hole.

The door opens, and Charlie walks into the room. I force myself to breathe through my ebbing panic, squeezing onto her to keep my hand still. Her own slides across my back, finding its way under my top. She rubs her thumb in fans across my lower back, and I try to focus on the motion and hope it helps my heart stop hammering in my chest.

I try to casually look at Charlie, and find him staring back at me. His brows pull together as he glances at Tris, then moves to Lauren.

"Made your choice then, Princess?" Charlie grins back at Tris, his words coming out oddly friendly.

Tris tenses up next to me, and I feel my own body stiffen at the prospect.

"Friends with Four?" She asks sweetly

"I think he wants to recruit me," he winks at her, "you'll have to ask him in what way." My mouth drops, his supposedly funny suggestion hanging in the room. And from the corner of my eye, I can see Tris's lips pressing together hard. I guess it's good she still has a sense of humour.

Charlie then turns around, and motions behind him. Two guards move past the doorway, both holding a tray of bland looking food. They leave it on the floor, exiting as fast as they entered.

"You'll have to share," Charlie states, kicking the tray further into the room, "I wasn't expecting another mouth to feed."

And then he shuts the door, leaving us alone, again.

Tris and I don't move from the hole in the wall for a handful of minutes, worried that someone will barge in unannounced. But when Lauren moves away from the window, and my achy muscles begin to relax.

Tris sits forward, stretching her arms together behind her back, "we're going to need to find something to cover that hole."

I nod absentmindedly, too focused on the way her brown stands fall away from her neck as she stretches it to the right.

But then she's shoving a plate in front of my face, and I blink out of it.

I move out of the way of the grimey looking food, shaking my head, "eat as much as you want, I'll finish the rest."

"Four…" She exasperatedly sighs, "when did you eat last?" I open my mouth, a small fib about to leave- "And don't lie to me."

"Yesterday evening wasn't all that long ago-"

She moves over to the bed Lauren's been quietly sitting on, grabbing a bread roll and breaking it in half. She hands the other half to Lauren, which she takes gladly.

She leans against the wall, smiling, "eat up."

Not having the energy to argue, I do as she says. But I leave the only appetising part of the dish on the tray, watching as she pushes Lauren to eat the gruel like substance.

"It looks gross anyway," she says, her face scrunched together.

I chuck the roll her way, watching as she catches it with ease. There's no way her stomach isn't empty after just a half of a roll.

She gives me a small smile, thankfully not chucking it back at me. It helps me relax, knowing she's got something in her stomach.

The rest of the evening goes by slowly, and soon it's pitch black, and we're settling down for the night.

Lauren, walking into the small bathroom connected to the cell, leaves Tris and I alone.

She's led down on the bed, resting on her side. I move over to her, having just vacated the bathroom. Her eyes are closed as I sit at the bottom of the bed, leaning against the wooden pillar that connects the bunks. I watch her peaceful face for a few moments, trying to find within me a few of my own.

Her eyes then slowly open, landing on my own. She smiles lazily, pushing herself to the edge of the bed.

Without needing to think twice, I shimmy up the bed, laying down next to her. Our faces now lay parallel to each other, and my hand reaches out automatically to rest on her soft pink cheek.

Her brown eyes flutter back closed, and my chest aches just to see those familiar cloudy blue ones I have unceremoniously fallen for.

"You know," I say quietly, my hand moving into her hair, thumb sticking onto her cheek, "no matter how much I want you with me at all times, I really wish you would have stayed back home."

"I could easily say the same thing back to you, Tobias," she mumbles, eye's sleepily opening again, "but we're a team now. You're not dealing with this alone."

Heart surging into my throat, all I can do is nod back. She's right, like always.

And instead of answering, I do the thing that is on my mind 24 hours a day.

Pulling her in, I brush my lips against hers. I just about hear a soft sigh leave her lips before she presses them against my own harder. But I don't let it hasten, wanting to keep the delicate nature of it, the innocence whole.

I pull back when I hear the creak of the toilet door, not wanting to make Lauren any more uncomfortable than she no doubt already is.

Placing a soft kiss against Tris's forehead, I force myself to lay on my back, giving me enough space from her that I'm able to have some clear thoughts.

But like the relentless tide she is, she's against my side, cheek pressed against my chest. These quiet moments, the ordinary ones that could easily be brushed away with my memory, are the ones I so desperately want to hold onto. Before I met her, I had no interest in any romantic relationship. Knowing Nita was going to pick me against my will was enough to chain up my heart. The thought of meeting anyone else was a waste of time, wishful thinking that would turn to heartache. But then, standing in Athua's grand hall, listening to the speaker call Nita's name when Tosken hadn't even gone yet, my legs had gone weak. Such relief only comes once in a lifetime, and it only lasted minutes. Then Tris had walked in, and painful guilt had settled in relief's place.

I almost want to laugh at how trivial this all is- Tris's head resting on my chest, my fingers moving mindlessly through her hair. And I can't help but latch onto her being my reason to get out of here. I've only just started living these past few months, and I won't let it be cut short by some rebel group.

And as I hear her breathing even out, I promise myself there will be more time for this. There will be time to figure us out, time to do this properly.