Soulmates

Chapter 26: Winter of Discontent

Life goes on as usual for the soulmate trio. They continue to bill themselves as friends, and keep most of their kissing, cuddling, and affection for times when they're alone. They maintain their individual apartments, work their respective jobs, and go about their business.

The rumors about them eventually die down as the faction adjusts to their unique bond. None of them date or hook up with anyone. When someone dares to mention them in that context, people just shrug and say, "That's how they are."

Zeke, Shauna, and Hana keep their knowledge to themselves. Zeke becomes especially defensive of the trio. As Tobias had predicted, after a few days to nurse his hangover and process what he learned, Zeke apologized to Tris, Eric, and Tobias for questioning their relationship, and especially for hurting Tris' feelings.

At the end of the summer they celebrate Eric's birthday with a barbecue on the roof. The party is even larger than Tris' had been as they invite the leadership team and a few of Eric's other friends to join their usual group.

When everyone is gone, the three of them sit on the ledge. This time, Eric is in the middle. Tris curls into the birthday boy's side, but Tobias keeps a few inches between them.

"This is where we both met you," Tobias says, breaking the silence.

"You both irritated me, too," Eric says. "I wanted to hide from stiffs, hide from love. Now I can't imagine my life without the two of you in it," Eric confesses.

xxxx

In November, Tobias' birthday is celebrated more quietly. Tris cooks his favorite dinner, and the three of them spend the evening together curled up on the couch watching his favorite movies.

xxxx

Hana invites the trio to her home on Thanksgiving. Tris helps with the baking, and they enjoy the home-cooked meal with Hana, Zeke, and Shauna. Uriah joins Marlene's family on a holiday for the first time, but having additional guests keeps Hana from missing her baby too much.

xxxx

Between Thanksgiving and Christmas, winter sets in. Snow and bitter cold come early. Fortunately, the food harvest was done in time. Unfortunately, the heavy snow slows trains and halts trucks, slowing distribution. The factionless fare the worst, especially when Abnegation has little extra to give them. As they become restless, Dauntless troops are often called on to enforce the peace and clear the roads and train tracks.

After a series of long, cold days overseeing the Dauntless soldiers clearing train tracks, Tris is exhausted. She's hot behind her eyes, but otherwise chilled to the bone. She strips out of her wet clothes and rolls into her bed for a quick nap.

Eric and Tobias meet in the cafeteria for dinner. They wait for Tris, but when she doesn't arrive, they assume her crew is still out clearing snow. After they go through the food lines, they sit at a table with many of their friends, and are surprised to find Marlene among them.

"You're back?" Eric asks her.

Marlene rolls her eyes and looks down at her body, patting her own hands over her shoulders and face as if checking to see is she's really there. "Looks like it," she says sarcastically.

"Where's Tris?" Tobias asks around a mouthful of pasta.

"I think she went home for a nap," Marlene says. "She's coming down with a cold or something."

Tobias is instantly ready to bolt from the room. "Sit down," Eric chides him. "She's just napping. We'll check on her after we eat."

Tobias reluctantly agrees, but finishes his dinner quickly. He picks up a to-go meal of chicken soup, bread, and an orange for Tris while Eric eats his dinner.

The two men find Tris asleep in her bed and still shivering. As the larger and warmer of the two, they decide Eric should climb in with her. He changes into the sleep pants he keeps at Tris' apartment and gets under the covers.

"She's burning up," Eric says.

"I'll get a thermometer," Tobias says, walking into Tris' bathroom and digging through the medicine cabinet.

Her temperature is one hundred and one degrees. The fever is high enough to make her miserable, but not high enough to require medical attention. Tobias brings water and fever reducers for Tris, setting them on the nightstand.

Eric spends the rest of the evening keeping Tris warm while Tobias putters around her apartment doing laundry and cleaning. When Tris wakes up, Eric helps her sit up and take the pills.

"Do you want some food?" Eric asks. Tris shakes her head. "Tobias brought you soup and bread. An orange, too. And we can make some tea if you want."

"Maybe the orange," Tris croaks.

For two days the men nurse Tris, with one or both of them hovering over her around the clock. Her illness isn’t severe, just a case of influenza heightened by days working in the cold, wet snow. On the third day, she insists that they go back to their regular routines.

Eric catches the flu from Tris, but his case is mild. Others throughout the compound and the city also come down with the illness, which hits individuals with varying intensity. Most in Dauntless have only a few days of fever, chills, and body aches. They’re back to normal quickly. In Amity and Abnegation, where they use fewer protective serums and have more elderly and infirm members, the flu is sometimes deadly.

As always, the factionless fare the worst. Abnegation aid workers and Erudite medics cannot keep up with the disease. Their fight is further compounded by unrest within the factionless community. People are hungry, sick, and dying. It’s a recipe for desperation and anger that leads to violence.

Just after the new year, in another miserable cold snap, the Dauntless leaders are forced to mobilize troops in the factionless sector. Tobias’ squad is called up, and Eric is sent as the leadership representative in the field.

Tris, still in leadership training, is given additional responsibilities during the deployment. It keeps her busy, but her heart is in the field with her men. As leaders, she and Eric are able to communicate occasionally through email and messaging on their comm devices. Eric passes along updates and greetings from Tobias as well.

Out in the field, the two men go from deeply connected friends to brothers in arms. Serving side-by-side, they face danger, cold, and deprivation. They learn to rely on one another and work together like never before.

After two weeks, their squad is returned to the compound, and Tris meets them at the loading dock. She sees Tobias first and runs to his arms. They share a long hug, and when she looks up, Eric is there as well. She gives him the same greeting, and the men around them just shake their heads and continue stowing their gear. They all noticed in the field that although Four and Eric share a deep bond, there is nothing overtly sexual between them. The other soldiers never had cause to be uncomfortable around the two men. They may not understand, but they learned to accept the relationship as they saw it work.