Prior Rings

Chapter 57: Tobias - Prior Rings

A/N: Thank you so much to everyone who has reviewed this story, and to my wonderful beta reader, Rosalie! This is the very last chapter, and I couldn't have gotten here without your support.

Chapter 57: Tobias – Prior Rings

(Tris is 30, Tobias is almost 33, Abigail is 4 3/4, and Eli is a newborn)

If I had any doubts that what happened to Tris was extremely unusual, they would have been wiped out by Dr. Martinez's obvious concern in the days afterwards. She refuses to let Tris go home, saying that she needs to be near the hospital in case anything goes wrong with her recovery.

That worry makes it impossible for me to leave my wife's side, so I end up sleeping in the room with her and Eli while Christina continues to watch Abigail. But it's not a great solution, and the longer it lasts, the more frustrated Tris and I both get. We miss our daughter.

It's a relief when Caleb proposes a solution on the fifth day – letting us use his apartment in Erudite while he stays with Cara. So, our family of four takes up temporary residence there, cramming into the small space and getting to know our newest member while Tris slowly heals. It's a tight fit, but it's certainly better than being separated, and we end up making it work until Eli is six weeks old, and the doctor finally agrees that Tris can resume normal activities.

That's when it becomes obvious just how much our faction-mates missed us. The entire group participates in moving us back home, in getting our apartment ready again, and in cleaning Caleb's. George even borrows a friend's car, insisting on giving us a ride so Tris doesn't have to face the long walk.

They welcome us back in style, too, with banners and cake and an official announcement that they're covering our faction chores for another month. I'm not sure when I became willing to admit, even to myself, that I love every single person in my faction, but it's impossible to deny that at this moment. I've never felt closer to them.

Still, that doesn't mean I'm not happy to say goodnight to them all at the end of the day. It's an incredible feeling to finally be alone with Tris and our children in our home.

In some ways, it's even sweeter to get the kids to bed and to be with just my wife for what feels like the first time in ages. I can't help staring at her as she moves around our room, running her fingertips along the photo frames as she smiles at the images in them.

It's when she reaches one of our wedding photos that I realize there's something I want to do. My feet move on their own, taking me to our dresser and to the small box of important items we keep there. I open it, pulling out Tris' ring, which she had to remove during her third trimester when her hands became too swollen to wear it.

She meets my gaze as I turn toward her, holding the metal band carefully between my fingers.

"Can I put this on you again?" I ask, suddenly feeling almost shy.

"I'm pretty sure I'd be open to that." The corners of her mouth tug upwards. "Seeing as we're married and all."

I stop closer to her, returning her smile but also feeling something more serious. "I've never been happier about that," I tell her honestly, holding her gaze as I take her left hand in mine. "But I think a few words might be in order for this occasion."

Her smile deepens, reaching her eyes, and I stare into the grayish-blue swirls that I love so much.

"Sometimes, I don't think you realize how much you've changed me, Tris." My fingers reach out on their own, tucking her hair behind her ear so I can see her better. "You taught me how to love, and how to extend that to others. And then you gave me two incredible kids to love."

I shake my head a little, awed, as I so often am, by her. "At our wedding, I told you that you were it for me, and that's still true. If anything happened to you, I'd be there for our children, and I'd love them and be happy with them. But this...." I hold the ring up. "This part of me belongs only to you. It always has, and it always will."

Bringing the ring to her left hand, I slide it carefully into place. "So, this is still always, Tris."

There are tears in her eyes as she stands on tiptoe, pressing her lips to mine. I don't hesitate to return the kiss, pulling her to me and feeling once again how perfectly our bodies fit together.

"I can't imagine my life without you, Tobias," she whispers against my skin. "And I don't want to try." She kisses me again as her fingers link with mine, pressing against my ring the way I'm pressing against hers as we feel the way they join us together.

"You're my always, too. My husband. My lover. My friend. My family." I smile as my eyes move to her heart, to where I know the raven that represents me is tattooed. "And I will always love you."

The words carry all the way through me, as they do every time. No matter how often she says them, they're still the best thing I could ever imagine hearing. And I respond with the statement that I will never tire of saying.

"I love you, too, Tris."

The End

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A/N: I know this was a short chapter, but it felt like the right place to end the story. There will not be an epilogue, since this story leads into the epilogue of "Determinant." However, as I mentioned in my final A/N on that story, I will add an additional epilogue from Tris' POV to "Determinant" if that story ever reaches 2,000 reviews. (It's less than 100 away now, so that might happen yet.)

At any rate, I really hope you enjoyed "Prior Rings." If you've gotten this far with me, please take a moment to let me know what you thought of it. Your reviews, favorites, and follows mean a lot to me, and I truly appreciate the way you've all supported me throughout this story!

If you're curious about what I'll be working on next, please check out the poll on my fanfiction net Profile page. If you're a member of the ff site, you can vote in that poll. Otherwise, you can "vote" by telling me your choice(s) in a review here or on any of my other stories. Please make sure to mention the story names, not numbers, though, since they appear in a random order for each person who views them. :-)

Thanks again!

~ Windchimed