Divergent Short Stories (Eric & Tris Fanfics)

Chapter Nine-Eric

I can't keep the smile off of my face the whole next week. 
"What's gotten into you lately?" Ryan asks in disbelief at dinner on Friday.  "Did you get a dose of peace serum slipped into your food as a joke?"
"No," I laugh at that.  "I'm just in a good mood," I reply. 
"That doesn't sound like you," he mumbles. 
"Oh, leave him alone.  He's been bitten by the love bug," Max says teasingly. 
"No," Jude disagrees.  "It's obvious it's the Florence Nightingale Effect," he says jokingly. 
I go to protest... but I realize, he's right.  And I don't even care. 
"What the heck is that?" Ryan asks confused. 
"Oh?  You don't know?" Lydia taunts him laughing. 
Ryan shakes his head. 
"It means..." I reply since I probably have the best explanation.  "...that they think I'm infatuated with my nurse.  It's a common presumption that those who are injured either become enamored with their nurse or the nurse becomes infatuated with their patient."
"Dude!  Your nurse was a guy," Ryan points out. 
I guffaw at that while Max and Jude can't help but spit out their food or beverage laughing about the comment. 
"Tris, you moron," Lydia says smacking him in the back of the head. 
"Oh..." he nods.  "Man, she is hot.  I thought she was with Four."
"Nope," I shake my head proudly. 
"Shoot.  I missed out.  Had I known, I'd have been after her from the start," he replies. 
"Thank God for that," I mumble. 
"So, I heard from Will that you're attending church services," Jude mentions. 
I nod. 
"That's good news," he grins. 
I smile in reply.  "Yeah," I agree.  I'm seriously looking forward to this Sunday.  It can't come soon enough.
I see her walk in the cafeteria and I grin at her as she meets my eyes. I called her this week and asked if I could see her. She told me Friday after dinner... so I'm biding my time until she's finished.
Max asks me how the investigation is going. "We're kind of watching and waiting," I admit in a whisper. I know it's not him. He's Dauntless through and through. He's suspecting one of the surveillance employees. I would be in agreement there, one that's befriended most of them.
"Has there been any new leads?" he inquires.
"Not yet," I shake my head.
"Well, let's hope this silence will keep them at ease enough to do something foolish," he mutters.
"That's what I'm hoping," I nod.
We chat a bit more but my eyes are on a certain lady who has my heart. I honestly can't focus on much more than her. When she rises from her table, I head out to meet her.
"Funny running into you here, stranger," she teases.
"Yeah, of all places... why would I be in the cafeteria at dinner time?" I joke.
She laughs lightly at that.
"Where are you headed?" I inquire.
"Home," she shrugs. "I want to get out of these scrubs."
I nod and follow after her in a trance. Yeah, I'm hooked.
We make the trek toward her apartment. The Pit isn't full yet. Everyone is either at dinner, standing in lines at the restaurants, or heading home for the weekend. I'm grateful for that so there shouldn't be much gossip about us. I'd like to avoid imprisoning Four when he finds out I'm with his ex... but I will if he doesn't leave her alone. She's mine now... or at least I'm biding my time for a chance to make it official.
We arrive at her apartment and I wait while she unlocks her door.  She lets me in and I follow her inside. 
"I'll be right back," she tells me.  "Feel free to make yourself comfortable."
I grin in reply as she goes off to her room to get changed.  I look over her apartment.  It's actually pretty nice.  She has an incredible view.  The tree line of the creek is visible in the distance and the Merciless Mart is just beyond that.  Between there is the factory section of Dauntless.
I surrender my attention to her apartment interior.  She's got a setup similar to mine with a couch, a couple of chairs, and a coffee table.  I see she has a small dining room with four chairs.  Her kitchen is just beside that and I think it's more spacious than mine but the rest of the living room is more cozy than what I have. 
I take a seat on her sofa.  It's a nice fabric with an interesting, simple lattice pattern in grey and black.  Her taste is quite classy. 
She joins me a minute later.  I admire how good she looks in casual attire—sweatpants and a t-shirt.  She looks very relaxed and appealing.  She asks if I want anything. 
"What've you got?" I inquire curiously. 
"Someone gave a Dauntless cake to the infirmary staff yesterday.  I brought the last two slices home last night," she offers. 
"What kind?" I ask intrigued. 
"I don't know.  Some sort of fall variety.  It's orange but I didn't try it," she mentions walking to the kitchen and opening her fridge.  "It smells like it might be pumpkin spice or something with cinnamon," she tells me. 
"That sounds good," I nod. 
"I could make hot apple cider," she offers raising her voice in intonation. 
"If you keep being so hospitable, I'm never going to want to leave," I tease. 
She laughs lightly at that and bites her lip.  She warms up some water and mixes in a drink mix.  I'd do the same and that actually smells incredible.  I know she's from Abnegation and she's learning new things but I see she has a small bookcase in her kitchen with a couple cookbooks.
"Do you want your cake warm or cold?" she asks. 
"Whatever you're having," I grin.  She really is a sweetheart. 
She brings me the warmed drink followed by the warmed cake.  She takes a seat by my side—much closer than last time at my place with her leg actually touching mine.  I smile at her but I'm thrilled that she's so comfortable with me.  I figured she'd be more standoffish with her Abnegation childhood.  I try the cake she gave me and it's exceptionally good.  It looks like it's from one of the bakeries in the Pit.  It is pumpkin spice which I do typically enjoy.  I haven't had any yet this season and this is definitely one of the best I've probably ever had. 
"This cake is fantastic," she says around a bite.  "I see why the staff was devouring it."
I agree with her and sip the beverage.  I like it.  They're both not too incredibly sweet but they are flavorful. 
We finish and sit together talking.  I've honestly missed her all week.  I did speak to her a few times on the phone, though... in the evenings. But this is so different. I savor my time in her company. We have so much in common and for a former Stiff, she's hilarious. She's so knowledgeable, too, and not just about medical kinds of things. She tells me she reads often and I invite her to visit my place anytime for a book. She thanks me for that and reaches out for my hand. I'm in awe of the gesture and just bask in the moment lacing our fingers together.  I notice after a little while that it's getting late, though. So, I ask her when she has to be into work tomorrow.
"Well, I'm on the schedule for nine to five... but I only work six days because I've got nothing else going on," she mentions.
I nod at that.
"You want to have breakfast together?" I inquire.
"Sure," she smiles. "How about I take next Saturday off?" she suggests.
"We could do something if you want," I offer.
"I'd like that," she replies.
She yawns and I know I should probably go. She's got work in the morning. "I should probably let you get some sleep," I say.
"Yeah," she frowns.
I rise and pull her up with me. She walks me to the door. I reach for the doorknob but she touches my hand. I remember she was a Stiff... so I let her make the first move. She laces our fingers together and pecks my lips sweetly. I wrap my other arm around her and pull her closer deepening the kiss. She puts her arms around my shoulders and sighs into the kiss. I peck her lips again.
"I'll see you in the morning, sweetheart," I tell her. I kiss her again and she's beaming.
"Goodnight, Eric," she whispers as we disengage.
I kiss her again and wish her pleasant dreams. I leave her apartment and I'm on cloud nine.

*****

The next few days are like a dream. I see her before and after work, then we spend all of Sunday together. I enjoy the church service, afterwards our time around Erudite for lunch. We eat at the park across the street from the restaurant and go for a walk before I drive her back to Dauntless. We go back to my place and visit. I let her look through my cookbooks and choose anything she wants to make. I have groceries delivered and we prepare a pork loin with roasted vegetables together in my oven. It comes out amazingly and I'm shocked at how good it is and simple surprisingly.  We finish the meal and cleanup before we lounge around on my sofa together. We're laughing and talking when my phone rings.
"I'm sorry. I've got to answer this," I tell her when I see it's Chris.
"What's going on?" I ask him as I hold my phone up to my ear. 
"It's Four," he says.
I sigh harshly, "What's he doing now?"
"Breaking into the armory with someone else's passcode," he tells me.
"What?" I question in absolute shock bolting up in my seat.
"The person we've been looking for seems to be Four," he tells me seriously.
I run my fingers through my hair. I have to make a decision now—to arrest him immediately or watch him expose himself completely and possibly lose another firearm.
"Alright. Notify security and have them be ready to move on him if I give the order," I explain.
"Okay. I'll send the feed to your phone," he tells me.
I turn to Tris.
"I've got an emergency. Give me a minute," I tell her.
"I understand," she nods.
I step out of my apartment and knock on Max's and Jude's doors. Max opens his, then Jude.
"Emergency," I tell them. 
We all step into Max's living room and he closes the door.  I quickly explain the situation and Max looks devastated. Jude wants to arrest him now so we don't lose him and we can interrogate him. I agree. Max nods his assent and we give the order. I instruct security to cover all exits so he can't escape even if he runs. We watch on my phone while he's apprehended. Security approaches him in the hallway while he exits the armory with an empty firearm in hand and a few boxes of ammo tucked into his bag.  He asks the soldiers what they're doing as they surround him and don't let him pass. They explain that he's under arrest. He makes up a story, an implausible excuse about getting the firearm for a friend. After that, he attempts to resist arrest by fighting a couple of them but they outnumber him and subdue him easily—ten to one. I watch as they cuff him and haul him down to our underground facility.
"Do you want to have him held until morning or do you want to go down now?" Max inquires.
"Are you in your right mindset?" I ask him.
"I may need some time to process all of this," he admits honestly.
"In the morning, then?" I confirm.
He glances to Jude and pauses for a moment... but he nods.
"We'll do it tomorrow," I agree.
We separate and I walk home. I step into my apartment to see Tris looking out the window. I sigh shakily.
"Everything alright?" she asks.
"We had to arrest someone just now," I admit.
She frowns but doesn't ask any questions. 
"We'll interrogate him tomorrow," I tell her.
She nods. 
"I think he's the one who's supplied Factionless with Dauntless weapons," I continue. 
"So, he's a traitor," she frowns. 
"It would appear so," I nod. 
"It's likely that he's responsible for your injuries," she says grazing a hand gently over my chest—right over where I was shot, where she removed a bullet from beside my heart and stitched me up.
"At the very least supplying them.  Hopefully that's all but it's an extremely serious charge," I explain softly.
She nods at that. I pull her to my chest and hold her for a while. She nuzzles up to me. I keep my arms wrapped around her and kiss her head a few times.  She sighs in seemingly contentment and I'm grateful for her company as my mind is still reeling from the events that just unfolded.