The morning light crept through the massive window beside their bed, the first golden rays of the sun spilling onto the concrete floor of their flat. The warm glow bathed everything it touched, refreshing and inviting. V was the first to wake up, her long eyelashes softly fluttering open as the sunlight kissed her face. The sun, now almost fully risen above the faction wall, painted the sky with shades of amber and pink. It climbed steadily, reaching towering skyscrapers that surrounded them.
She laid still for a moment, looking around their massive flat, watching as the golden sunlight filled the room even fuller. It felt as if the world was waking up with only her, the soft warmth of the sun coaxing her into the new day. With a soft exhale, V finally decided it was time to get up and go for a run. She slowly sat up, feeling the cool sheets shift around her as sat all the way up in their bed. The air was crisp but comforting, and the sunlight spilling in made the room feel like a sanctuary.
She turned her head to the other side of the bed, where Eric was sprawled across the mattress, his face buried deep in the pile of pillows at the head of their bed. His chest rose and fell with slow, even breaths, completely relaxed. At his feet, Chicago was curled up, his fur a dark contrast against the white sheets, his eyes half-lidded as he watched V. She smiled at him and the dog's tail twitched slightly. The faintest of thuds against the foot of the bed as it softly tapped the blankets, a silent greeting to his girl.
V smiled, reaching down to scratch behind the dog's ears. She loved these quiet mornings, when the world felt far away, and it was just the three of them. Chicago's tail gave another soft thump, this time just a little firmer. The feeling, though still very gentle, was enough to wake Eric up.
"What?" Eric gasped, his heart jumping out of his chest as his head shot upright from the pile of pillows and he pushed himself up, ready to attack. He looked around the room and saw it was just Chicago's tail wagging as he looked at V.
Eric blinked a few times, still disoriented, before turning his head to see V sitting up in bed, her silhouette framed by the golden light pouring in from the window. "Morning," he muttered, his voice low and raspy from sleep. He laid his head back down and smiled at her, trying to wake up.
V had herself propped up against the headboard, absentmindedly running her fingers through her tangled dark hair, staring into the void. Eric couldn't help but think how sexy she was when she first woke up, the quiet serenity of the moment only adding to the allure.
He rubbed his face with both hands, feeling the scruff on his jaw and the lingering grogginess in his head. He yawned, as the warmth of the room began to settle over him. He turned his head to look at the bedside alarm, seeing that it was 6:30 AM. Still early, but the day had already begun for them both.
"Going running?" He asked, his voice still thick with sleep and he watched her swing her legs out of bed and gently step onto the floor. She moved gracefully, walking toward their small bathroom to get ready.
"Yeah," she quietly replied, her voice calm but with a hint of determination. V pulled some running clothes out of their tiny closet before going into the bathroom to change and get ready for the day. Eric settled back into the bed, his body sinking into the warmth of the sheets again. He closed his eyes for a moment, savoring the peace before the day fully caught up with him.
A few minutes later, V stepped out of the bathroom, now dressed. Eric opened his eyes and admired her in a pair of sleek black running tights and a long-sleeve shirt that hugged her frame in all the right ways. His eyes followed her every movement as she walked across the room, getting ready for her run still.
"Be careful," he murmured, his voice thick and low, almost growling as he rolled back onto his pillow, closing his eyes once more.
"I know," she said with a smirk, pulling his favorite hoodie off the couch and pulling it over her head as it engulfed her.
Chicago sat down by the front door, waiting expectantly. His eyes never left V as she walked over, ready to clip his leash onto his collar. His tail gave a slight wag as he sat, calm and composed, their communication unspoken but understood. She clipped on Chicago's leash, laced up her boots, and lastly grabbed her water bottle before they were ready to go.
She grabbed the handle of Chicago's leash, unlocked the latch, and threw open the door. Both girl and dog bolted as they slammed the door shut behind them, pissing off Eric and their neighbors.
Chicago, overly eager, bolted down the stairs at full speed, his paws thudding against the steps. Surprisingly, V still led the way, her legs already burning. She looked down and couldn't help but smile at the sight of her dog, a Belgian Malinois, giving it his all to keep up. Belgians were master athletes, but a Dauntless officer was more skilled yet.
They sprinted down the stairs and into the street, the chill morning air sharp against her skin. The city felt oddly peaceful. The streets were unnervingly quiet, with everyone still being on break until next week. This was the one time a year Dauntless officers could rest, and the city reflected it, as if the world had paused just for them.
V kept up their pace as they took the long way around to the park and to her brother's place. They charged through the streets, quickly intersecting through the park, and sprinting out onto the other side of the residential high rises. She slowed to a light jog as they neared her brother's place. She looked at the entrances of some of the buildings, the cars, and the two trees that sat on opposite sides of the street as she got closer to Four's flat, noticing how different it all seemed. This was her street just a month ago and everything already looked so different. She slowed them down to a walking pace and Chicago's tongue looked like it was about to fall out on the sidewalk, he was panting so hard.
V looked at her watch and saw that it was close to 8:00am. She knew Four was normally awake by now, so they turned and walked up the steps of his building. Her old building. They made it to the fourth floor, and she walked up to the door, knocking four times. It opened a few seconds later, her brother having walked over to throw it open for her before going back to flip his pancakes. He knew it was her.
"Good morning." She huffed, letting the dog's lead go as he walked over to where his water bowl normally was in the kitchen. Four looked down at the confused animal before feeling bad for him and going to fill him a small glass bowl placing it in its 'usual' spot.
"Go for a run this morning?" He asked, watching as the dog heavily lapped at the water. V nodded, taking a big chug from her water bottle. After a moment she pulled the bottle down from her lips and screwed the cap back on.
"I did." She let out a heavy and tired breath.
"Where to?"
"Through the park and then to here." Each thing they said lasted with a break of silence for just a moment too long. It felt weird to them both to be standing in the kitchen, knowing all her things had been taken out and she no longer lived here. He put the finished pancakes on a plate with some hardboiled eggs and turned to his little sister.
"Do you want some?" He asked and she shrugged taking the plate and taking a seat at the kitchen table. He smiled turning back to the skillet and making three more pancakes for himself. They sat in silence again before Four addressed the elephant sitting in the room. "So why did you stop, V? You know the dog thinks he's done." Four smirked, looking over at Chicago. The dog had melted out into a puddle on the cool concrete floor, looking like he didn't want to go any further.
"Came to make sure they got everything out of my room." She lied.
"Don't lie to me." He looked back at her and she sighed.
"I missed you. I don't know… I missed the apartment… Everything is… different now."
"Bad different?"
"No, just different. It's just all new." She said looking over at the dog. She knew Chicago had been a little more anxious than usual in the last month. Training wasn't in session, and he had no job to do during the day. That alone made him a little crazier than usual. That with moving to a new apartment, and taking his first trip out into the woods… He was massively out of his routine. But V knew that as soon as they started training next week, he would settle down.
"Are you regretting things?" Four asked her as he walked over to the table with his food. V stared at her plate of food, holding back her tears. Four had always made her pancakes in the morning for as long as she could remember.
"I don't regret anything." She looked up at her, her bottom lip softly quivering as she held back tears. "I just miss my big brother making me pancakes on my off days." Four smiled at his baby sister before taking his first bite
"Have your lousy husband make 'em for you." He joked with his mouth full. She rolled her eyes at him.
"If I asked him to make pancakes, he would." She softly replied, smiling down at her food and taking her first bite. Four still had a hard time believing that Eric had a side that would be open to making his sister pancakes in the morning. He hadn't seen that side, even the last few months, while planning their escape.
"Whatever you say." Four smiled before they dug into their food and got quiet. They were taking in the moment of being together, just the two of them. Four knew it would be the last time for a while, at least before they would make it out of the factions.
"Thank you, for making me breakfast." She said after taking her last bite and grabbing his plate from across the table. He looked at her and gave a single nod as he watched her walk over to the sink and rinse their plates off.
"Need a lift back?" He asked, getting up from the table and walking over to her.
"Absolutely, not. We'll make it back." V looked over at her dog who was fast asleep on the floor. He was going to be pissed when she made them walk back, but she didn't half-ass a workout. Four was right though, the dog had thought he made it home from his run. She finished rinsing dishes and looked over at the wall clock above the fridge. It was almost 9:15am. If she didn't get home soon, she knew Eric would start to worry about her.
She went to pick up her things, grabbing Chicago's leash that was still attached to his collar. The dog slowly got to his feet, taking his time. Four watched his sister as she avoided making eye contact with him.
"V?" He finally asked her as she began making her way to the front door. As she looked up at him tears met her eyes and he took three big steps towards her, giving her a huge hug.
"You'll always be my big brother." She sniffled, not letting her tears fall.
"And you'll always be my sister." He whispered back to her, holding her for a moment before they let each other go. "Why don't you get back before he starts to stress?" He suggested as he showed the two of them to the door. V gave him one last hug before she took off with, this time with Chicago dragging behind.
She finally convinced the dog into a spring, racing towards 'home.' She took a deep breath in, calming herself down. She reminded herself that she was okay, she was just anxious from all the change. She thought about how they just needed to settle back into a routine after their time off. They had three more days at home before they would need to start reporting to Jeanine again.
She hopelessly wondered what they were going to do for the next three days and as she turned down her street the cold and overcast sky started to rain again. A steady light rain fell on V and her dog, both of them forcing themselves to go faster. V thought about how she would have to give Chicago a bath when they got back. There was nothing worse than a soaking wet dog…
Finally, she could see their building and she had never been happier to see her new apartment. All the sudden her legs felt sore, and she couldn't wait to get inside. She pushed them as they reached the base of the stairs and collapsed on the first couple steps, both of them panting and trying to catch their breath. After a moment V forced herself back to her feet and Chicago followed suit as they began making their way up to the flat.
Just as she reached their floor, she saw the door open and Eric step out. He looked down at the street first before turning to see her coming up the stairs. He looked relieved when he saw her, letting out a tense breath.
"I know, I'm sorry. I stopped at Four's." She softly spoke walking up to him and hanging her arms around his neck. "I just wanted to make sure they got everything out of my room." She whispered.
He knew she was lying. He knew it freaked her out to see all her things moved into his flat. She had even admitted how difficult was for her to move in, when they officially made the decision last month.
"Did they?" He asked, playing along and carrying her back into the apartment. She nodded not saying anything else as he carried her over to the bed and set her down. "I know you miss him, V. It's okay." He knelt beside the bed and looked at her, taking her hand in his. She sat up and took her hand back, wrapping her legs around his torso and holding his big head with both of her hands.
"I don't want you to think I'm not happy… Because I am!" She looked at him like she might cry, but she wouldn't let herself.
"Shhhhh." He calmed her down and she fell silent. "I don't think that at all, Doll." He whispered, and she nodded. They sat like that for what seemed like a long time just staring into each other's eyes and thinking. Finally, she leaned over and kissed his forehead
"So, what the hell are we supposed to do for three days?" V asked, finally breaking the silence. He laughed before realizing he was also drawing a blank. They never had time off, so they didn't have many 'hobbies.'