Divergent Faction High

Chapter 40 (Tris and Tobias POV)

When we get to Tobias's house, I plop down on his bed and sigh. I breathe in his pillows that smell like his cologne and fresh laundry detergent.

"You okay?" He asks, knowing about my father.

"I'm fine." I reply flatly.

"Just making sure that he didn't hurt you." He says.

"He didn't, and I actually stood up to them today, that's why I was laughing when we left. I'm proud of myself." I say, cocking my head up.

"I'm proud of you too, not letting him intimidate you, that's my girl." He says smiling.

He kisses me and holds both of my hands. Gazing into my eyes, I stare back. It's like we're talking with our eye contact.

Eyes are the windows to the soul.

His chocolate brown looking eyes look worried, or frightened, even though his facial expression doesn't show it. I wonder what he sees in my eyes.

TOBIAS POV

Tris is worried about something. I can tell. Those baby blue eyes of hers look apprehensively uneasy. Did she lie to me?

Did her father hurt her?

Tears fill her eyes, and I gather her in my arms. Her sobs jolt me, and we fall to the floor. I'm still holding onto her.

"I'm not fine Tobias!" She says, her voice shaky.

"What happened? Tell me babe, please I'll handle it." I say calmly, trying to ease her.

"It's just my family! I don't know I can live with them anymore, especially my father!" She says before wiping her tears.

"What do you mean?" I ask.

She sits up and looks at me, tears drying on her cheeks.

I hate seeing her like this.

"Did that bastard hurt you?" I say, trying to control my anger.

"I'm afraid he'll hurt me again." She says before her head droops into her lap. A weight sinks in my stomach.

She thinks he's going to abuse her like Marcus abused me.

"Do you think that your father could-"

"Abuse me? Maybe. It's scary, and I don't know if I'll be able to handle it. How did you manage to overcome the abuse?" She asks.

"I honestly really don't know. I think it's when I started seeing Tori during school that it just got desensitized I guess. The physical pain may fade, but the emotional and mental pain still stings me like the belt would." I admit.

"Do you think I'm being over dramatic? I know you've experienced this for years, but this only happened to me once, and now I'm thinking about leaving home."

"No. Think however you want to think, if you want to leave home, then leave home. Just clear your thoughts for a while. Why do you think I'd go to the garden? To clear my thoughts."

"How are you so cool, calm, and collective all of the time? It's fascinating."

"I really don't know. I guess I just deny pain. But that's the thing about pain, it demands to be felt. I tried to make myself susceptible to it. I guess I just didn't allow it to seep through me and eat me alive. It almost did when I tried to commit suicide. I used to think in such a confrontational way, that if someone hurts me, I hurt them and I'll block them off. Never let them in again. After being abused for so long, it really opened my eyes, because it really helped to have someone there. Zeke and Uriah consider me to be like a brother to them, and I definitely owe them. I owe you. The day we went to the mall, was the day I planned to kill myself. You, Zeke, and Uriah saved me. My pain was very, very long, but still temporary. I thought the situation would never go away. That'd it'd be insurmountable. That it'd be haunting me for the rest of my life. I've come so far along, and I've healed. Change, like healing, takes time." I say.