All characters from Divergent belong to Veronica Roth as well as all characters from Twilight belong to Stephanie Meyer. I own nothing except my version of events.
A/N: Hello everyone. In case you guys haven't read the update on my profile...
I've decided to cut back on my posting schedule. I've been very busy this summer and haven't had the time to edit and even less time to write new chapters and so I've decided to modify my updates to once a week, every Sunday, for the following 4-5 weeks. I obviously would never just leave this story unfinished because I am completely in love with it and the plot has evolved immensely since I've started writing but it's gonna get very complicated later on and I want to make sure I get there with some good writing and not disappoint you or myself with subpar writing.By the way, How hot are Bella and Eric together?!
Explosive! Am I right?
Oh and thank you guys for the comments, I really appreciate them and also thank you for following along as I write. Also, I too would like to find my Eric someday…
Chapter 12 What the hell?!
Hours later I found myself moving quickly down the stairs, or as quickly as I could manage in the state I was in. I felt sore for the very first time in my life, my thighs, hips, and everything else in between aching painfully albeit deliciously. I was now very well acquainted with the term 'thoroughly fucked'. I felt like my body had been put through a grueling workout. I'd imagined sex with Eric would be amazing, but the savage intensity I had not expected… but very obviously pleasantly surprised. It was now four in the morning and I needed to get down to the dorms before anyone found me missing. It also wouldn't hurt to take a power nap before I had to be awake again.
I was on the stairs above Tobias' floor when I saw the door open, Tris shuffling through while looking down at her feet.
"Ah, the walk of shame." I spoke out, quickly catching up to her and watching her freeze at the sound of my voice. "There's nothing like it." I remarked, slightly laughing at her.
She surprised me by glaring up at me. "Aren't you doing the same?" She asked.
I smirked at her audacity, but I had to admit I was also slightly proud. "Oh I'm not ashamed, Sweetheart." I contradicted her.
She tilted her head in silent defiance. "Neither am I." She declared.
"Good. You shouldn't be." I warned her, passing her on the stairs and ignoring her presence like I usually did. I admit I might to be a tad too overprotective of Tobias, but I couldn't help it. It was innate, something I had been born with and would never be able to get rid of. And because of that I needed to let her know in my own way I wouldn't tolerate mediocrity when it concerned my brother. And if she ever dared to show even an ounce of shame for being with my best friend I would kill her slowly, watching in delight as the light in her eyes dimmed slowly until disappearing completely...
Dammit, I've been hanging around Eric way too much already.
We reached the bottom floor and I moved to open the door when she spoke up again. "Why don't you like me, Bella?" She suddenly asked rather boldly.
I stiffened and turned around. She had a look of determination on her face as if ready to fight me to get answers, but instead of being threatened by it I inwardly smiled, happy to finally see her backbone make an appearance. This was what I've wanted to see, the fight in her eyes and a strength she exuded when she believed in something wholeheartedly.
"Did Four tell you about us?" I asked instead.
She nodded but corrected me, "you mean Tobias?"
I smiled a little before I answered her question. Relieved that Tobias had taken my advice and I could be honest with her now that I was assured my best friend had completely opened up to her.
"Because you're weak." I finally declared out loud. At my words, she flinched, and I hurriedly tried to amend my words to ease the harshness. "At least you used to be… but watching you fight to the death against three attackers, I finally saw the fire I've been waiting to see from you since we arrived. You can't afford to be weak, Tris, or a liability, not just for yourself but for Tobias as well. He doesn't need someone like that in his life. He might be older than me but I've protected him for as long as I can remember. I was his safe place when his father didn't act like one after his mother died. I was the one person that grounded him and protected him when he was at his lowest. If you want to be his safe place you need to live up to those expectations, and for that you need to be strong. You've only seen the aloof Dauntless he portrays to be, but once he lets you in, he'll let you in completely. I have a feeling he's started to last night... and because of this I need you to be brave. I need you to stand up for him when he's unable to, to carry him when he's at his weakest. I need you to be his safe place now that I won't be that for him anymore." I announce.
She watched me in silence, unable to form even a single word after my speech, but I could tell she was both shocked and awed at the same time. This is the most she's ever heard me speak, at least directly to her. After some time her speechlessness wore off and she nodded in understanding. "I'll work on it." She promised.
"As long as you do you'll find a friend in me too." I let her know, "But probably not until we pass initiation. We have to maintain pretenses, after all. Now more than ever." I reminded her, communicating that we both had roles to play. She quietly nodded in acceptance. "So, what should I expect to happen in a few hours? I'm sure shit's gonna hit the fan when Max finds out."
"I dont want Max to know. I told Tobias not to say a word."
I frowned at her response confused as to why the fuck she wouldn't want anyone to know. "Why not? They would get kicked out if you did… they should get kicked out for what they did."
But she only shook her head at me. "We can't, Eric won't want Max to find out about another attempted murder. He'd only tell us to keep quiet. All it would really do is put me more under his radar."
"But Al and Peter deserve to get kicked out. They're cowards." I tell her, speaking to her as if she were an idiot.
"Yeah but we don't even know who the third assailant was, and if I said anything it would get Tobias involved and Eric would get even more suspicious about us."
I thought about it for a silent moment. What she was saying made complete sense, it was true, Eric would want to keep the situation hush hush to save his own ass. And involving Tobias into this mess needlessly wasn't a good idea either. It would only make Eric go after him more, and we all knew he'd use Tris to accomplish that. We also didn't know who the third assailant was, though if I had to take a guess I was sure it would be James, but we also didn't have proof of that, only our suspicions. And we definitely couldn't depend on Peter to tell the truth.
I finally nodded and Tris released a breath at my acceptance. I inwardly smiled, pleased that she was still fearful of my reactions. I knew I had to warm up to her eventually but I needed time.
"He's lucky to have you, Bella." She said out of the blue.
I looked back at her initially confused at her words until I understood she was talking about Tobias. "Oh I know." I replied cheekily, hearing her giggle as we made our way out of the stairwell.
Instead of a nap I took a quick shower to clean off the sweat from my skin, though a part of me didn't want to remove Eric's scent. It was stupid really and as I finally laid in bed thinking over my idiotic thoughts I finally fell into a deep sleep.
In what felt like seconds later I felt hands shaking me awake.
"You're going to miss breakfast if you don't go now." Tris informed me.
I covered my mouth in a yawn and stretched out the kinks in my body, "Thanks."
She surprised me when she simply nodded, not bothering to engage me in further conversation, instead moving on towards the showers herself.
I got up already dressed and ready to go to breakfast. It was so late now that none of my friends were there any longer, not that I blamed them for not waking me up. Technically I didn't have to go, especially this early in the day. I only had two fears, and more often than not, it was a waste of time going through them repeatedly. Sometimes Eric would dismiss me when others' fears took longer. Or at least that's what he claimed, but I had a feeling it wasn't that simple, because even though I had been ignoring him up until last night, I knew Eric hated watching me go through my fears without being able to soothe me like he had the first time. I now realized how weird that sounded. Eric shouldn't care about my feelings... he's never cared about anyone else's, so what made me any different? Supremely bothered by that thought, I quickly pushed it away before it took root. Either way, I liked to show up just like everyone else to prevent being alienated more than I already was, not wanting others to think I was receiving any kind of special treatment.
I grabbed a breakfast bar and made my way out of the food hall, heading towards the serum rooms to catch up to them.
I was startled when I felt a rough hand pulling me to the side and I retaliated on instinct, going for the jugular, but he stopped my hand mere millimeters from his throat only to smile broadly at me.
"What the he-!" I started to yell but Eric clamped a hand over my mouth.
"Shhhh" he whispered out, letting my mouth go once he was assured I wouldn't make a scene to alert anyone of our hidden spot. "What is it with you and throats?" He asked in genuine curiosity.
"Everyone leaves their neck open." Duh!
He bit his lip to stop himself from laughing out loud but I could see his eyes sparkling in amusement. "You're something else."
"I aim to be." I said simply, there was nothing fun in being ordinary. I would think he'd understand... He wasn't like anyone I'd ever met either.
His eyes shifted from my eyes to my lips and the initial amusement displayed on his face transformed into something else entirely, making my heartbeat speed up in anticipation. "I miss being inside you already." He suddenly groaned out, shoving his tongue down my throat without another warning. But I welcomed it without question, giving him as much as he was giving me.
Unaware of his own body he slowly started to grind into me, I gasped at the feel of his bulge rubbing against the thin material of my leggings. I hadn't realized how much I missed him being inside of me either, though I realized it had only been a couple of hours since we'd last been together and therefore didn't make any sense.
He released my lips but only to start a slow trail down my neck, leaving wet kisses along my skin. One of his hands let go of my hip only to glide it up along the contours of my body.
"Eric." I moaned lowly into his ear, sticking the tip of my tongue out to lick along the side of his ear. I felt his entire body shiver at the action and I saved that bit of information for future reference, and then he suddenly dropped to his knees.
He looked up at me with a devastatingly wicked smile as he playfully slipped his fingertips into my waistband. "You wanted me on my knees." He reminded me.
I smiled down at him, tilting my hips toward his face in silent encouragement. "That I do." I confirmed just as playfully.
He smirked one last time before he pulled my leggings down. His eyes widening and swiveling up to me, "No underwear?"
I smiled and bit my lip, shaking my head as I watched him practically drooling below me.
"Fucking hell." He groaned out and wasted no more time shoving his face into my most sensitive area.
I groaned deep in my throat but cut it short, knowing I was already being too loud. It was hard to do, though. I was still sore from last night… or more like this morning and incredibly sensitive because of it. I could already feel my clit throbbing painfully with the need to release. I held off as best as I could, biting my lip and almost piercing the thin flesh with my teeth.
Eric's grip on my hips tightened and I looked down, discovering his hungry eyes devouring the pleasure on my face. I slid my hands along the sides of his shaved head and shoving him harder into me, wanting his eyes to release me from their dark hold.
He swiftly lifted my right foot off the ground to hang it over his shoulder, opening me up for him. He dipped his head lower until his tongue slipped inside of me, sliding it in and out delicately but with enough force to pull forth my orgasm. His moan at my release rumbled over my sensitive flesh, shooting an electric feel up and over my body making me drop my head back against the wall, my eyes closing up to the high heavens.
I felt myself pouring into his mouth, my orgasm continuing and producing more for him to taste. He didn't hesitate for a single second devouring every drop from me, his rough hands tightening on my flesh and greedily taking over my body. He didn't stop until he felt me sag back into the wall, helping me back into my clothes before standing up and grasping onto my face to watch the utterly relaxed expression on my face. His mouth and the area around it was glistening with my essence but he didn't make a move to clean it off. There was something so incredibly erotic about the action, or inaction in this case, as if he were wearing me like a badge of honor on his skin.
I decided to do it for him, sticking my tongue out and licking around his mouth, ending it with a kiss to his lips. Not being enough for him he shoved his tongue into my mouth, taking over the kiss as we mixed the taste of me in between our tongues.
Finally he opened his eyes and released my lips, both of us now breathing heavily again. I could feel his heart beating erratically under the thin material of his shirt. "I need to get you skirts and dresses, they're so much easier." He idly commented.
"Definitely not and I hate you so much." I said on a big exhale. I could wear dresses but I wasn't a big fan.
He smirked at me anyway watching the wanton expression on my face. "You want to, but you can't." He said, so sure of himself.
I didn't say anything in response because he was right, he blinked back at me as if remembering something, a look I couldn't identify crossing his features before he suddenly frowned down at me.
"Four told me what happened last night… Why didn't you tell me?" He asked in confusion, with a hint of indignancy mixed in.
"He told you?" I responded in surprise, my eyebrows shooting up to my hairline. I never thought Tobias would go against Tris' wishes. I also wondered why he had taken action without discussing it with me first at the very least. We usually made those kinds of decisions together.
He arched a brow in suspicion, "Was he not supposed to?"
I shrugged my shoulders, not knowing how else to respond to that.
Sensing I wouldn't directly answer his question he repeated another question. "Why didn't you tell me?"
"We were too busy doing other things… and I didn't think you would care."
His frown deepened at my answer. "I want you to tell me everything, Bella."
"Why?" I asked in confusion.
"Because I can help."
I have to admit, his answer caught me by surprise. I hadn't expected him to say that, not in a billion years. "Help? Help how?"
"In whatever way I need to. Give me the names and they're out." He said without hesitation.
I frown at him in confusion. "He's one of your favorites, and what about Max? He'll be on your ass for letting something like this happen again after the first time."
"I don't give a fuck, Bella. Give me the names and I'll deal with Max." I think my face displayed complete disbelief because his next words worked to cement them into my brain. "I'd kill anyone who poses a threat to you, Bella."
My eyes widened at his words. What? I gawk at him slack jawed, really because I'm too shocked to speak and if I ever find the power to do so I don't know what the hell I'm supposed to say to that. Thankfully my brain somehow finds a way to deflect instead and I say, "But they weren't trying to kill me, it was just Tris."
He shook his head and trapped me in his gaze again. "You're number two, Bella. You would be next."
I blink back at him still utterly confused. He could so easily tell Tobias, Tris, and I to keep quiet and pretend like it never happened keeping him free and clear from Max's wrath. Not to mention that since the beginning he's encouraged us all to fight to the death, not caring if anyone got hurt in the process. He's instilled a sense of desperate brutality in all of us to get ahead and it's like he was now going against his word, going against everything he stood for…
Because of me.
My brain couldn't comprehend and I think he saw that in me because he just shook his head and spoke again. "I'll take care of it. If anything else happens, let me know." He ordered. He remained where he was, waiting for confirmation, but we were both suddenly pulled out of the moment by an ear piercing scream.
I jumped in place, remembering the last time I'd heard a scream like that echoing through the hallways of Dauntless. Except this one sounded different, more pained than scared.
Eric frowned, turning his head in the direction of the scream and moved out of our hiding spot. It jarred me out of my frozen memory and I pushed myself off the wall to focus on the here and now, leaving the safety of our hiding spot and I following after the scream and towards the increase of clattering of voices coming from the chasm.
"He jumped!" One of the initiates yelled, pointing to the chasms in front of us. "He just jumped." She repeated again, her eyes glazed over in shock and horror.
Eric moved forward without hesitation, "Who?" The girl doesn't answer, just stands there frozen in place as a disturbing shiver takes over her body. But it only works to annoy Eric further because he suddenly grabs her by her arm and shakes her, trying to bring her back to the present. "Who jumped?!" He practically screams so close to her face that it works to jar her back into reality.
"Al." She whispers lowly, but it still manages to echo along the hall with everyone present having shut their mouths waiting for Eric to get the answers out of her.
He releases his hold on her arm and turns back to look at me, his jaw clenching at the news.
I give him nothing, not knowing what he wants from me at the moment, plus I think I'm also in shock.
"Michael." Eric calls out instead, turning his attention to a member nearby. "Get Billy and grab the ropes, we're gonna need to pull him out if his body is still down there." The guy moves quickly away doing Eric's bidding. "You", he points to an initiate Dauntless born currently trying to console the girl in shock. "Go get your instructors." He orders.
The guy looks down at his friend, he's about to leave her behind but thinks it over twice and ultimately decides to pull her along with him. She robotically follows after him and they disappear around the corner.
Eric moves back to my side. I can see he wants to touch me but at the last second refrains from doing so. "Stick around. You, Four, Tris and I are going to have a little chat."
I nod but don't respond. Quicker than I expected our instructors suddenly appear, the rest of the initiates crowding the space behind them.
"You three need to stay and clear out the area." He points to Jacob, Lauren and Rosalie. "I sent for Billy. If the body is still there, get it out. Make the necessary calls to get this shit handled."
"Why? Where are you going?" Rosalie asks suspiciously, her eyes shifting to me who's standing behind him.
"Not of your fucking concern, now do as I fucking say!" He roars in anger.
She flinches away and doesn't say more.
Eric motions for me to follow and I do, but apparently I'm not fast enough because he turns to grab me by the arm, roughly pulling me with him and motioning for Tobias and Tris to do so as well. I'd make sure he'd pay for that later. I know it's only for show. He can't outwardly display any form of preference, especially at a time like this, but I felt it was completely uncalled for.
I took a look back at my friends as they gawk at us following after Eric, I avoid eye contact, not knowing what the right thing to do here is. He lets go once we're out of sight from the crowd and I take my position next to Tris, knowing Tobias would want me to support her while he's unable to do so himself. I hold onto her hand and her grip tightens in mine as we follow after Eric. He leads us to the side of the pit, taking us up several flights of stairs until we hit an opening. We walk over a bridge and I look down noticing the pit underneath us. Huh, so that's where these tunnels lead to.
We make it into a hallway of offices and Eric opens a door, signaling for all of us to enter. I'm the last one to slip inside before the door closes behind me and I find myself in a room with a desk and a chair in front of us. There are bookshelves all along the sides and paperwork strewn about on top of the desk.
Eric moves to stand behind it and shoves the chair away from him, too angry to even take a seat. "Start getting your fucking stories straight before I get Max." He informs us.
I think all of our eyes widen at his words, not really believing he's currently giving us a chance to cover up what we don't want our leaders to know... but I should've seen it coming. His words this morning suddenly running in a loop through my brain, reminding me of what he had promised.Holy shit.
"What do you mean?" Tobias asks tentatively, the first one to speak for us. I was still too busy processing my own thoughts and Tris looked about ready to shut down in shock.
Eric rolled his eyes in annoyance. "Exactly what I said. You told me a little of what happened but I can see you've missed a lot of details. I know you three are all involved and I'm giving you the chance to get your stories straight before Max interrogates you. Now start, we don't have much time."
Tobias looks absolutely stunned over this sudden turn of events. I don't think he ever thought Eric would ever willingly help him. To be honest, I still couldn't believe it either.
I could see him fighting the urge to turn back to look at me for some kind of a sign or verification that this was really happening, but he knew he couldn't in front of Eric. Still he knows never to reject an opportunity when it's suddenly dropped on your lap and starts speaking. "I was making a quick check in the control room like I usually do before going home when I saw Tris getting attacked through the monitors. I ran back only to find Tris trying to fight off three masked men who were now trying to push her over the railing and into the chasm. I managed to pull two of them away from her and that's when Bella appeared, taking on the third attacker. One got away during the struggle and we never found out who it was. I took Peter to the infirmary and when I came back Al had disappeared."
"Al was crying at that point, begging Tris to forgive him but it was only upsetting her more and so I told him to go." I stepped in then, filling in the blank spots. "Tris was distraught and I needed to get her settled. We couldn't wait for Four to come back. Al ran away and we didn't bother to ask where to. Not that I cared anyway. I tried to convince Tris to go to the infirmary to make sure she wasn't injured but she refused to go if Peter was there so I took her back to the dorms. I didn't see Al again after that." I said, connecting my eyes with Eric. He knew I was lying but wouldn't contradict me.
"Why were you walking around outside of the dorms after hours?" He asked me with an arched brow, letting me know he'd caught a hole in my story.
Quick on my feet I made something up that was as close to the truth as I could get. "I couldn't sleep. You guys always remind us the training room is always open for us to use, even after phase one, so I was planning on going on a jog around the track to exhaust my mind. I was heading there when I heard Tris' scream." I said with a shrug.
He nodded in approval and turned his attention to Tris, who was silently staring down at the ground. "What about you?"
I took the opportunity to look up at Tobias. We connected eyes and I begrudgingly nodded, already knowing what he was asking from me. Tris wasn't responding and we needed her to corroborate our story. I was slightly irritated, I knew this was a lot for her to take in but I needed to see that backbone I had caught a glimpse of last night. I nudged her with my arm and she startled slightly before she looked up, I could see she was still in shock.
"I uh… couldn't sleep either. I was just walking around trying to uh…"
I slapped my hand over my face and rubbed my eyes before dropping them in frustration. I'm sure my lack of sleep thanks to Eric was affecting my level of patience. Why did she always have to be the weakest link? I looked up to Eric and for the first time the anger had disappeared from his face as he watched my irritation grow in amusement.
"You're going to have to lie better than that." He said shortly.
Tobias meeting his breaking point, after witnessing our interaction, zeroed in on Eric with clear suspicion in his eyes. He knew why Eric was doing this but he was having a hard time accepting it. I couldn't blame him, I was still processing the last thirty minutes of my life too. "Why are you doing this?"
Eric stood up to his full height, casually crossing his arms over his chest before responding. "Does it matter?"
"Yes." Tobias responded quickly.
"Well it shouldn't. All you need to know is that you owe me. Now get your girl to comply or else we're all fucking screwed!"
Oh Lord, a pissing contest. Just what we needed at a time like this…
Tobias startled for a split second at how Eric had so openly referred to his relationship with Tris so casually while not using it against him. At least not for now, but he'd made it clear he would owe him in the future, which I wasn't at all happy about. I didn't take any perceived forms of threat towards Tobias kindly. Granted, Eric might not know what Tobias meant to me but that didn't mean I wouldn't find my own way to intervene. I figured he wouldn't be surprised if I were a bitch and I decided to go around his order just to cross him. I was also incredibly annoyed that instead of helping to fix the issue, Tobias was just deflecting and discussing an issue that could be revisited at any other time. The real problem we had at the moment was fixing any holes we'd left on our version of events and getting Tris to comply.
I huffed in irritation, so done with the sudden burst of testosterone suddenly filling the space. Turning my attention to Tris I grasped onto her shoulders turning her to look at me. My irritation now growing with everyone in this fucking room, but I did my best to push that aside in order to shake some sense into her. "Look. I know this is hard for you. It fucking sucks, alright? The guy you thought was your friend tried to murder you last night and now you find out he committed suicide… I fucking get it. But we don't have time for you to shut down right now. I'm not trying to be a bitch here but you need to get your shit together long enough for us to get our stories straight. Now I need you to show me that goddamn spine you showed me last night. Can you do that for us, Tris?" I asked her, piercing her with a look that forced her to look at me and only me. "Remember what you promised." I whispered lowly in the end.
I saw the clarity fill her eyes as I spoke, my last words reminding her of the tentative truce we had formed just hours ago. Her mouth set firmly and her eyes focused completely before she nodded and stood up straight. "Ok."
I released a relieved breath and let her go, turning my attention back to the two idiots who were now just standing there gawking at us. I motioned for Eric to continue.
He rolled his eyes but did as I asked. "You couldn't sleep either and you were going to meet up with Bella in the training room for a jog but your attackers intercepted you. It would explain why you were there and why Bella would be looking out for you when you didn't appear."
"But everyone knows we're not friends." I contradicted.
"Max doesn't and you don't need to be. You could've just both happened to be awake at the same time and had the same idea."
"Still doesn't sound plausible, I talk shit about her all the time."
"You do?" She asked me in slight shock.
"What? We're not friends. We both know this."
"That's true."
Eric huffed in annoyance before speaking up again, "Doesn't matter. You don't have to say your friends and it works for our story. Stop trying to make this harder than it needs to be while I'm trying to help you."
"Didn't ask you to…" I muttered quietly, crossing my arms petulantly over my chest. Though I know I'm being the asshole right now because I actually do need Eric's help to keep Tobias protected. Still, my pride wouldn't let me accept that fact.
Eric throws me a look without saying a word and I know he wants to fight me but he already knows it's a losing battle, so he relents, instead redirecting his attention back to Tris. "Repeat it, and make it believable this time."
She did as she was told, looking Eric straight in the eyes as she told her side of the story. I was actually proud of her, she didn't even flinch at the obvious lie she had just told.
"Good. Now stay here while I go talk to Max before he hears it from somebody else."
We all nod and silently watch him go.
As soon as the door closes Tobias reaches for Tris, in an attempt to console her.
"I can't believe that Al…" she whispers then and trails off.
Watching her start to shake with emotion sparked something in me that I couldn't contain. It wasn't right for her to allow for someone else's decisions to affect her emotional well-being like that. I'd told her to be strong and she needed to learn how to manage that as soon as possible, starting with this. "You shouldn't cry for him. He was a coward." I inform her, moving away from them and making room on Eric's desk to sit on top.
"Bella." Tobias admonishes. I know I was being a bitch but I just couldn't help it, this whole thing had come out of left field. I opened my mouth to defend my words but Tris spoke up for me instead.
"No she's right." Tris said in agreement. "He was a coward, he chose the easy way out instead of facing the consequences of his actions. Max had made it clear what would happen if someone tried to eliminate the competition like that again. I'm sure they never thought they would fail at making it seem like it was an accident but they should have taken into consideration the consequences of a failed plan. Al should have accepted his punishment and lived among the Factionless like he deserved."
I nodded happily at her conclusion. At least we were in agreement now more than I ever thought possible.
"Still he was your friend." Tobias says, as if that allowed her to feel his loss.
"No. He wasn't. A real friend would never try to kill you."
"Bella." He growled.
"No. You know I'm right… and stop trying to coddle her. We're in Dauntless now, this isn't Abnegation anymore, Tobias. The rules are different here and we need to learn how to play by those rules." I admonished, by the anger on his face he knew I was right and if he wanted me to keep supporting them then he needed to make her stronger. Not keep her weak and useless.
"She's right." Tris spoke up for me again. "I have to be strong and learn how to play by their rules. Initiation isn't over yet and everyone will be gunning for both Bella and I since we're the top 2." She deduced correctly. "And you can't always be around to protect me, Tobias."
He sighed and released her, "I know." He said quietly, pacing the room in front of us as if he could find a better way to go about things.
He wouldn't though, this was the world we now lived in and he had to accept that eventually. What confused me more was the fact that he'd accepted that lifestyle for himself but not for Tris. Now how did that even make any sense? To distract myself, I grabbed a pen from Eric's desk and began to play with it while we waited for Eric to reappear and for Tobias to come to grips with our current predicament.
He suddenly stopped his pacing and turned to look at me. "He's doing this for you, isn't he?" Tobias finally asked the million dollar question he'd been holding onto since Eric trapped us in his office.
I looked up at him, raising a brow in question. I hadn't realized how bothered he was by that. "And what if he is?" I questioned back, crossing my legs as my feet dangled off the side.
"I thought it was just physical attraction." He asked in suspicion.
"It is." I shrugged indifferently, what did it fucking matter? "But can you blame the guy for wanting to protect his new booty call?"
"Oh God, Bella." He admonished in disgust, turning away from me and running his hands in his hair in exasperation, a tell-tale sign he was getting frustrated with me.
I watched in delight as he flustered, shaking his head at me in clear disbelief. Meanwhile I had managed to produce a laugh out of Tris. "Oh come on. You should be thanking me instead of looking at me like that. Having Eric on our side helps you out in the end.. and Tris. This way at least we're both getting something out of it."
Tris shakes her head at us in disbelief. "It's still weird to watch you both interact like that. Plus you're both so different."
I smiled at her observation, she wasn't wrong about us being different. "Who else do you think could manage to bring him out of his shell?"
He scoffed incredulously, "Oh and now you're taking credit."
"Of course! You'd be a stuffy little Abnegation if it weren't for me."
This time he did smile, opening his mouth with a witty remark but it died in his throat as the door opened again. Eric walking back in and his eyes finding me immediately, still seated on top of his desk.
"Comfortable?" He asked with an arched brow.
"Yup." I confirmed, popping the p at the end.
He shook his head and turned to look at the other couple, noticing the instant glare Tobias threw at him as his eyes moved from me to him repeatedly. The sight of Tris looking thoroughly entertained, didn't help, as if she hadn't been shocked into silence like she had been initially. He sighed out in defeat, "I'm assuming you told them?"
"Oh yeah, I didn't like you holding their own secret over their heads like that while we have our own. So I decided to give them a little ammo. He's my instructor after all." I said with a smile, batting my eyelashes up at him.
He rolled his eyes but instead of being angry over me ruining his plans he looked rather entertained. "You're going to be a pain in my ass, aren't you?" He asked in the end.
"Definitely."
He growled and moved forward, spreading my legs open to slip in between them and capturing my lips with his, not bothered at all with Tobias and Tris watching the display. I had to admit it was kind of weird. I knew he was paying me back for divulging our secret to them but my initial instinct was to pull away, but figuring I owed him for the help he so easily gave us I gave in in the end.
"Please stop." Tobias groaned in annoyance, forcing Eric to pull away from me.
He rolled his eyes but acquiesced. "Get your sweet ass off my desk." He ordered me before turning to look back at the other two. "Max wants to talk to you three." He informed us.
"Dun, dun, duuuun." I sang out an ominous tone as I jumped off his desk and looked over to Tris, "ready?"
She laughed leaving a small smile ghosting along her lips. "As I'll ever be."