The Way I Loved You | Tobias Eaton

one

before,
Fallon, age 14
four years ago

Perhaps this was a bad idea, but being holed up at home all day has made me feel like banging my head against the wall until I passed out.

Yes, that's how bored I was.

My parents had left a couple of hours ago for some faction meeting... At least that's what I assumed it was. They never go into details about what they do as part of the council and I have never bothered to ask either.

I sneaked past the rows of houses, gravel crunching under my boot-clad feet as I went.  I wasn't supposed to be out for reasons regarding a 'past bad demeanour'...if you could even count climbing a tree as a bad demeanour. I guess in Abnegation, you can. Seeing as how we're practically allergic to having some fun.

Raising a hand to shield my eyes from the beating sun, I continued on, determined to find that beautiful large oak tree by the end of the big field that stretches across acres of land outback.

I had stumbled across the place on my way home from school the other day and now, I've made it my mission to locate it once again.

A wide grin stretches across my face when I finally find it. Taking in a deep breath, I breathe in the fresh scent of nature and admire how breathtaking the lone gigantic oak tree looks against the sunlight.

As I trekked across the field, I see that someone had beat me to it, leaning against the trunk of the tree as he stares out at the view.

I take in the stranger's appearance as I draw closer. With a head full of luscious dark hair and dull grey clothing that matched mine, he towers over me even though I'm pretty sure he hasn't even reached the peak of his height yet.

It's strange how I don't find him familiar, considering how he looks only slightly older than me.

"Hi," I greet as I draw closer.

The boy startles, jerking away from the tree with a wince like it'd just burned him and whirling around to face me.

I suck in a breath when a pair of gorgeous brown eyes land on me, reminding me of the most luxurious chocolate.

"Sorry," I apologised sheepishly, "I didn't mean to scare you."

The boy doesn't reply me. He seems a little jittery, judging from the way his eyes constantly dart over my shoulder as if he's afraid someone might pop out from behind me.

"You come here often?" I asked, hoping to calm him down.

This time, I manage to get a reply and he shakes his head. "First time."

"Me, too," I say.

The boy fidgets, stuffing his hands into his pockets like he doesn't know what else to do with them.

"I'm Fallon," I introduce, not sure if I'll be able to stand the awkward silence for much longer.

He hesitates for a second as if he doesn't know if he should even be talking to me before he finally replies, "Tobias."

"That's a nice name."

Tobias doesn't say anything, simply nodding in reply.

"It's nice here, isn't it?"

"It is," He agrees. The boy sure doesn't talk much.

"I stumbled across it a couple of days ago," I explained, "Thought it'll be a nice place to relax."

Once again, he nods. Tobias straightens out and takes a wary step toward me.