I Was Amity...

24

The lights come on, revealing a long, narrow room with busted brick walls and a cement floor.

"That's it?" I say. "Those were your worst fears? Why do you only have four..." My voice trails off. Only four fears. "Oh." I look over my shoulder at him, as if everything in the world suddenly makes sense now. "That's why they call you Four."

I almost gasp when I see his expression, his eyes are wide and seem almost vulnerable under the room's lights. His lips are parted. If we were not here, I would describe the look as awe. But I don't understand why he would be looking at me in awe. He wraps his hand around my elbow, his thumb pressing to the soft skin above my forearm, and tugs me toward him. The skin around my wrist still stings, like the belt was real, but it is as pale as the rest of me. His lips slowly move against my cheek, then his arms tighten around my shoulders, and he buries his face in my neck, breathing against my collarbone.

I don't know what to do for a few seconds. I've never seen Four like this, and I never want to again. I move to loop my arms around him and sigh.

"Hey," I say softly. "We got through it."

He lifts his head and slips his fingers through my teal hair, tucking it behind my ear. We stare at each other in silence. His fingers move absently over a lock of my hair.

"You got me through it," he says finally.

"That's what I'm here for, Four. It's easy to be brave when they're not my fears." I let my hands drop. He laces his fingers with mine.

"Come on," he says. "I have something else to show you."

"What now?" I question causing Four to chuckle.

Hand in hand, we walk toward the Pit. It's different holding Four's hand. It's something so innocent but it makes Four more human to me. He runs one of his fingertips down my palm, causing a shiver to run down my spin.

"Four fears, huh," I remark.

"Four fears then; four fears now," he says, nodding. "They haven't changed, so I keep going in there, but I still haven't made any progress."

"It's not natural to be fearless." I say. "You still care about things. About your life. As Long as you keep caring you'll never be fearless."

"I know," Four admits.

We walk along the edge of the Pit on a narrow path that leads to the rocks at the bottom of the chasm. I've never noticed it before, it blended in with the rock wall. But Four seems to know it well. I don't want to ruin the moment, but I have to know about his aptitude test. I have to know if he's Divergent.

"You were going to tell me about your aptitude test results," I say.

"Ah." He scratches the back of his neck with his free hand. "Does it matter?"

"Yeah. You're not getting out of this again."

"Demanding much?" He smiles.

We reach the end of the path and stand at the bottom of the chasm, where the rocks form unsteady ground, rising up at harsh angles from the rushing water. He leads me up and down, across small gaps and over angular ridges. My shoes cling to the rough rock. The soles of my shoes mark each rock with a wet footprint. He finds a relatively flat rock near the side, where the current isn't strong, and sits down, his feet dangling over the edge. I sit beside him. He seems comfortable here, inches above the hazardous water. He releases my hand. I look at the jagged edge of the rock.

"These are things I don't tell people, you know. Not even my friends," he says.

I lace my fingers together and clench. "Well I guess I'm special then, because you're gonna tell me, even if I have to beat it out of you," I joke, causing Four to chuckle. The roar of the chasm ensures that we won't be overheard.