Determinant: One choice will change everything

Chapter 2: Tobias - Entering the Fire

Chapter 2: Tobias – Entering the Fire

I wake up at three-thirty, as I have every morning since Tris went to Erudite headquarters. That's what time it was when I woke up and found her gone, and it's now imprinted on my brain better than any alarm clock.

She's still lying next to me, curled on her side, and for a moment, I just wrap an arm around her and hold her close. It's always amazing to me how much strength I draw from her presence. I could actually fall back asleep now, for once, but it's time to get up. When we returned to the apartment last night, the others were already asleep, and Tris convinced me we should wait until the early morning before relocating.

I place my mouth close to her face and say gently, "It's time to wake up." She groans and swats at me, but I catch her hand and add, "Tris. We need to get up now." She sits up with a sigh, running her fingers through her hair. It's been growing longer again, though it will take years to reach its former length, if she even decides to let it grow.

"Are the others up yet?" she asks groggily.

"No," I answer. "I thought I'd let you have the joy of waking them."

There's very little light in the room, so I can't see her expression, but she shifts to the side of the bed and gets up. At first, it seemed kind that the others left us the room with the big bed, and I know I slept better with Tris next to me, but it felt strange sleeping on such an enormous mattress. We spent the night tucked into one corner of it, like we'd lose each other in the vastness if we stretched out more. I suppose it's another Abnegation instinct – it feels selfish to use something bigger than we need.

We make our way out of the dark room, and Tris goes to the room next door to rouse Christina and Cara. I walk to the couch where Uriah is sprawled, half his body trailing to the floor. I'm not really sure why he joined us when we escaped. He didn't have to, since he hadn't been labeled a traitor, and in a way I would have preferred him to stay at Erudite headquarters. That way, we would have had another friend inside, and he would have been safer. I still feel an obligation to Zeke to keep his brother safe. He's never said anything to me about it, but it's the kind of thing friends do for each other.

"Uriah," I say loudly, shaking his shoulder, and he jumps. "That's enough beauty sleep."

He drags all the parts of himself together and shifts to a sitting position, rubbing his eyes. "Maybe that's enough for you," he says, "but some of us are prettier and need more sleep to stay that way." I grin – it's hard not to like Uriah. He and Zeke share the same sense of humor, and after years of being so isolated, I find I really enjoy laughing with them.

"So, why exactly do we have to leave?" Uriah asks as he gets to his feet, stretching in a way that makes the whole room seem full of his limbs.

"Because the factionless will be clearing the building soon, and I don't want them to catch our little group of traitors."

"Clearing the building?" Cara asks as she helps Christina down the hallway from the second bedroom. Christina has a crutch now, but she's clearly not good at maneuvering it yet. Cara is hovering by her, her hand reaching forward and jerking back spasmodically with every step Christina takes. "Why would they do that?"

I sigh. I told Tris the truth last night, but I didn't really want the others to know I was part of the factionless plan. Still, I suppose they're entitled to answers if they're going to follow me into the unknown.

"Because they want to eliminate all the factions," I reply heavily. "So they're planning to gather everyone together in the Erudite compound, group them into new living units, and distribute them across the various faction buildings. I think they'll probably go to Amity first, since most of the Candor are already at Erudite, but they'll come here soon enough to collect anyone who's left."